Talent Unlocked!

Accessing the Talent Interface…

Talent

Type

Affinity

Details

House of Poison

Passive

Poison

For every poison affecting your body gain 10% of your base attributes.

Maximum of 15 poisons at a time.

The world unfroze, Vivena blinked finding most of her family staring at her. They were eager to know. Her parents had put a lot of effort into shaping her Talent. They’d failed with Keynes and she could see the apprehension in their gazes since. Honestly? She had anxiety herself.

It doesn’t matter anymore. My Talent is here.

She exhaled as her parents and grandfather – Syberius Sael approached.

“Show me the Talent,” he commanded.

Syberius Sael was the head of the Sael family and even not Vivena’s parents would dare to speak before him. Especially not her mother. She was in Syberius’s bad grace after the failure with Keynes. It wasn’t as much about the failure as about the fact that they’d revealed shaping to someone outside the family. If that had been anyone else but Vivena’s father’s wife, Syberius’s reaction could have been much more severe.

Vivena showed him the Talent while she glanced at the rest of the family standing around the large, marbled room with green columns. It was the Sael’s family private Unlocking Ceremony room. Behind her stood a small glyph of spiritual enhancement.

Her aunts and uncles and even some of her cousins watched her with predatory eyes. They were eager to find out if the new powerful Talent was unlocked in their family and if so, how would it benefit them. But the final call was Syberius’s. He was the one to make a judgement about her Talent.

Now he was staring sightlessly into the spiritual interface, refilling Vivena with anxiety. His inspection lasted less than a minute, although a painfully long minute for Vivena.

“Have a look,” he said to Vivena’s parents. They could check it at the same time but Syberius was the slave of traditions. In Sael’s family level meant everything.

Her grandfather’s cold tone shouldn’t feel out of place as he was that kind of person and yet she had a bad feeling about this. In her opinion, her Talent would have potential if she had a poison resistance Talent like her brother Antall.

Her parents glanced at her Talent and exchanged a look that was hard to decipher. Over the years, they’d learned the art of silent communication, one that wouldn’t give away their true intentions in the room full of their relatives. They’d refused to share it with her, explaining how important it was for her to find her own silent language. Sure but she didn’t have anyone to use it with.

“It has potential,” her father said with confidence.

“Maybe if you merge her Talent with her brother’s,” Syberius said a little more icily, mimicking Vivena’s conclusion. The room stirred. Vivena glanced around, some of her siblings showed worry.

“Father, should we call in the Death Dealers?” asked Marakus, Vivena’s uncle.

Syberius looked at him but didn’t say anything. Instead, his attention returned to Vivena’s father.

“If you believe her Talent has potential, prove it to me. You have one week.” Syberius turned to the rest of the family. “Sirian’s daughter’s Talent will be revealed in one week and it is in Sirian’s hands to determine if it is useful or not. Marakus, call in the Death Dealers.”

“For her?” Marakus asked, pointing at Vivena who was consoled by her mother and father.

“No. This family does not hand out free essence. I will take it.”

“But father, those are Level 1s and 2s…” Marakus trailed off when Syberius narrowed his eyes. Not without a reason, Vivena’s father was his grandfather’s favourite son. Marakus was a greedy leech.

“I am two percent shy of Level 8. I may very well push for it.” For one last time, he turned to Sirian. “One week.”

***

Vivena had never seen her parents so stressed out in her entire life and they had had their fair share of worries. Her older siblings hadn’t had Talents to her grandfather’s liking.

She was the youngest and if she failed to meet the expectations of the head of the Sael family, her father could lose his hard earned privileges.

Only Antall stayed with them in their house in Croatia. The rest of her siblings had businesses to run. She was glad they weren’t here. Her siblings weren’t the easiest company to be in. They didn’t perceive her as their equal which made her sad.

By the late afternoon of the fifth day of her grandfather’s ultimatum, Vivena sat on a balcony with a book about poisons and ‘enjoyed’ the warm Mediterranean air when her mother’s jade green dress flickered in the corner of her eye. Vivena turned toward the inside of the house and saw her mother trot downstairs where their offices were.

Without thinking twice, Vivena put the book aside and followed her mother, staying outside of Level 5’s hearing range or so she hoped.

The lower level of their mansion built on a steep Croatian coastline was repurposed for impressive office space with an entire wall being a single sheet of glass facing the sea.

She was at the bottom of the stairs when she heard her mother say, “…it goes back to Keynes Kid.”

Vivena froze. Keynes Kid was a nice although weird guy. She hadn’t thought about him too much since the base in San Antonio and she wondered what happened to warrant her mother’s strong reaction.

“You sure it isn’t Gollod Brunk overreacting?”

“Yes, Burygold Finn confirmed it. The Hidden Hand is looking for us.”

“But they don’t know our identities otherwise we’d have a visit from Freeman.”

“Tsk,” Lorelai hissed. “I despise them and their arrogance. They think they can just stroll in here and disregard all the rules and laws.”

“It’s Windsor Freeman we are talking about. He’s a monster among monsters.”

“Still… what about the poison research? Is there a chance we will make it in time?” Her mother stayed out of the research as her Talent amplified the strength of poisons. The complete opposite of what they needed.

“Not a shred of hope, honey,” Sirian replied gently. Vivena slumped hearing her father’s words. She was doomed then?

“What about people with a Talent opposite to mine?” Lorelai asked.

“Don’t worry about it, Lorelai. This is our punishment for Keynes Kid. My father knows we would never find enough harmless poisons in a week to prove that Vivena’s Talent is overpowered. I won’t risk our precious daughter’s life to make my father satisfied.

Thank you, father. Vivena thought, hidden behind a wall in the corridor. She shouldn’t have eavesdropped but she couldn’t stop herself.

“That means no levels for her, Sirian.”

“My father’s too close to Level 8 to divert resources elsewhere. I’d rather focus on finding harmless poisons than deal with my father and the Death Dealers at the moment.”

“You’re right,” Lorelai sighed. “Vivena, you can come out now.”

***

“Monsters!” Sylia shouted.

“What?” Vivena and her parents turned around. They moved out of Croatia into more secluded Yugyd Va National Park in Russia where her family owned secret laboratories producing poisons for the Sael Corporation and other unofficial entities. It was here that they worked on the serum of several harmless poisons Vivena would be able to inject herself with and gain additional attributes without taking damage.

They were in the yard when the outbreak happened. After Sylia’s shout, they found the fences swarmed by wild boars, hundreds of them. At first, Vivena didn’t understand why her sister called them monsters then she noticed the bodies of security guards outside the gate. They were torn apart.

“Stay back, Vivena,” Sirian said as he and his wife took off toward the gate. Sylia joined them, while Vivena had to watch from distance.

Her father was a menace on the battlefield due to his Poison Touch Talent. Anything he touched died within minutes from a single touch. But the numbers worked against him. There were too many wild boars.

Her mother didn’t have a combat-oriented Talent and had to rely on the attributes alone. Sylia was the same. She could multiply any poisons as long as they weren’t inside a body of a living being.

Alarms set off and more security guards joined the fight. But like her father’s mana, the gunfire didn’t last long. The number of wild boars didn’t go down. Something needed to be done.

Vivena was too weak to fight. She needed to make a hard choice. Her father had a prototype of the first poison serum in his office inside the lab. She looked at her parents and knew that time was running out.

It wasn’t even a hard decision…

***

Three hours later, Vivena emerged from the rift after killing a boss and taking the absurd reward. Blood was splattered all over her body. None of it was hers. She could feel the poison serum in her bloodstream, working through her health pool slowly. The concoction of ten poisons wasn’t perfect but the boost she received was something she couldn’t have dreamed of. It doubled her attributes. She easily outperformed her Level 5 parents.

They’d been startled then terrified to see her enter the battle. After a few seconds, they knew what was going on and they couldn’t find words to rebuke her. She was like a blade cutting through the water. Monsters died beneath her fists. They were of an uncommon rarity with a passive skill that gave them extra piercing damage. She’d been too fast to get caught though.

“Are you okay?” her father asked.

Sylia and her mother nodded while Vivena stared sightlessly at her level progression. She gained 4% from this. What was going on? How was this possible? Where did this rift come from?

It was still there.

Rift (Uncommon)

Level

1

Status

Open (Ruptured)

Requirements

-

Modifiers

-

Details

This rift contains basic rift monsters and a small chance to encounter a boss.

Affinity

Nature

Special Status

-

Time to recharge: 24h

Did it mean the rift would do this again in twenty-four hours? The scope of death was staggering but 4% wasn’t bad at all. She would need twenty-five days to level up. Slower than what the Death Dealers offered but… free.

“Vivena?”

“I am here.”

“What’s the matter?”

“Did you get an essence for killing the monsters?”

They went silent for a moment then her orange-haired sister yelped, “I did! I gained one percent!”

She was Level 3 meaning the level penalty was 50%. It was severe but still viable. Her parents gained only 0.25% in this case. At their level, 1% of normal essence cost between 1 and 10 million dollars, depending on the region and the availability.

“I need to make calls,” Sirian said urgently to his wife then turned to five security guards. “Stay here and watch the rift, if the monsters appear again, call me immediately.”

He approached Vivena.

“How’s the serum?”

“It’s fine. I will wait it out.”

Sirian didn’t argue but his face was stricken by worry.

“Sylia get samples of the monsters. We must find out what are they.”

Left to her own devices, Vivena checked the reward.

Gloves of Boar’s Swiftness (Rare)

“Heavy like a horse, deft like a mouse”

+5 Dexterity

5% chance to evade a physical attack

[Gloves]

Level 1

Vivena already used the Scroll of Identification on the item. She’d found two scrolls, the gloves and a tome. Her parents gave her the gloves but took the second scroll and the tome. Gloves of Boar’s Swiftness sounded crazy good although she didn’t have a clue what any of this meant.

“We should get back to the lab, Vivena,” her mother said, hooking her arm. “The serum may give you power now but your body took damage and need time to recover.”

“Yes, I wouldn’t say no to a short nap.”

***

The rift next to the lab turned out to not be the only one in the area. Several kilometres from the laboratories another rift opened. A common one. Vivena, her sister and her father had cleared it with ease. Common monsters weren’t a challenge.

Unfortunately, the progression halved as both rifts didn’t have so many monsters as during the day of the outbreak. It was going to take a little longer than twenty-five days for Vivena to level up.

A few days after the outbreak, her mother flew to America to recruit someone and check on Keynes and his parents.

It was two weeks later that the terrible news struck them.

War was imminent.

Windsor Freeman and his so-called Inner Circle decided to snatch the power for themselves. They claimed the right to all rifts around the world.

The old families refused to hand over the rifts that lay in their sphere of influence. Even a part of the military broke off of the World Government and stayed loyal to the Chief-in-Command Columbus Curt.

Her father left the laboratory soon after the official declaration of the World Government – the High Parliament was no more. All the Lords who wished to stay within the structures of the World Government would have to undergo evaluation.

Syberius Sael refused Windsor Freeman’s offer, telling him to get lost. They’d have fought if not for the presence of Columbus Curt who was feared to no lesser extent than the President himself.

Vivena hadn’t been there, as she wasn’t a Lady and wouldn’t be allowed inside the High Parliament, but heard about it from other family members. Windsor Freeman went as far as destroying the seat of the High Parliament in Paris.

It took her over a month to level up. Level 2 wasn’t anywhere near what the poisons serum gave her but her base attributes did go up and so did her boost as well. It was pleasant to be Level 2 nonetheless and she was ready for more rifts. But before this could happen, she was called in back to the mansion in Croatia. She didn’t know the purpose. Leaving her sister Sylia in the solitary laboratories, she was taken by helicopter to Croatia.

The travel was boring and she used that time to take stock of her items. Most of them were weak but her family kept them nonetheless.

Lizard’s Skin (Uncommon)

“I fear no poison!”

+2% to poison resistance

[Shirt]

Level 1

Tiny Tusky Knife (Uncommon)

“Do not make assumptions, size is not everything.”

Attacks with this blade weaken an enemy’s bones.

[Dagger]

Level 1

Out of many, only these two were worth any attention. Others mostly added attributes. There were also non-combat items: orbs, raw material and odd objects. Sylia had taken them for research to which Vivena hadn’t objected. Working in the laboratory wasn’t her call.

Lizard’s Skin proved that poison resistance could be acquired through other means. Talents weren’t the only source of power anymore. If she could ramp up the poison resistance higher, it’d allow her father to create a stronger serum. If 10 poisons gave her 100% more attributes… 15 poisons would give her 150% extra in total. How hadn’t her grandfather seen this? Or maybe he had seen it and hadn’t liked what he saw? No. Grandfather may be a cold bastard but the family is everything to him. He’s never harmed a member of the Sael family. She focused back on the rifts.

The longer Vivena thought about them the more she understood why the war had broken out. With the influx of rift essence and powerful items, the World Government had no choice but to establish dictatorship lest they’d lose control in the next couple of months.

The helicopter landed several hours later on a secluded helipad. Her parents waited for her. They looked happy to see her but they were more thoughtful than usual. Especially, her mother who was a rash person.

“We were able to purchase more items with poison resistance for you. Together with your Lizard’s Skin, it should add up your poison resistance to ten percent. It doesn’t sound much but it will allow me to put additional poison into the mix without causing you harm.”

“Thank you.”

“How was the flight?” her mother asked. A weird question. One that her mother wouldn’t ask normally.

“Good, what about your visit to America?”

“I got what I went for.”

“What about Keynes?”

It was her mother’s turn to frown. Vivena hadn’t mentioned Keynes to her since they left San Antonio two months ago.

“He and his family disappeared without a trace. Most likely the Hidden Hand has them.”

Vivena accepted the answer without further comment. Sirian took a chance to steer the conversation in a different, more solemn direction.

“We didn’t call you here without a reason. It is our tradition to initiate any member of the Sael family who levels up into the cult.

“Cult?”

“The Cult of Shapers,” her mother answered.

“Do you mean Talent shaping?”

“Yes.”

“But I thought… what exactly do you mean?” Vivena asked confused.

“Come with us, Vivena.” Her father took off toward the mansion on the other side of a large orchard. They didn’t speak on their way there. Vivena’s mind tried to fit the puzzles together. She didn’t consider Talent shaping this important.

Inside the house waited her grandfather, two uncles and their wives, three aunties and their husbands. No cousins or siblings. Her grandmother had died in an accident years ago.

The office was refurbished into an empty space with curtains covering the window and faint yellow light coming from the side lamps.

She changed into a plain white robe like the rest of the family with the exception of Syberius who wore a black robe.

When she entered the room, her parents went to the sides leaving her in the middle in front of her grandfather.

“Vivena Sael, you reached Level 2, the first step of recognition in our family. You must understand that we do not value or hold Level 1s in any esteem. They are nothing to us. This tradition is old, as old as the Sael family that goes back to Sora Sael. The first of the shapers in our family. Her Talent alone has raised our name from obscurity into the highest echelons of power. Since her time, we have passed on the secrets of Talent shaping to the newest members of our family. You, Vivena Sael, are now the official member of the Sael family.”

He beckoned her closer.

“Now, it is time for you to learn how to shape the Talents of those who will come after you.”

A book materialized out of thin air in his hands. It was a massive tome in an ornamental golden hardcover.

“Everything you will learn here, you shall never repeat to any person who is not a member of our family. If these secrets were to pass on to the likes of Windsor Freeman, we’d be doomed.”

Vivena stood dumbfounded and speechless listening to passages talking about rituals, rune formations, glyphs and enchantments. Not a single thing had been used in the shaping of her and Keynes’s Talent… Unless she somehow had missed it?

After the initiation was time to talk about the war.