/I was there. I saw Ion get burnt alive by Respitia’s Paladin. Fuck, what a sight it was. The rookie wasn’t even past level 20 yet, y’know? And got roasted by someone over the third threshold. Brutal.

  The smite was so strong that the ground cracked. It would’ve killed me. But Ion? Nah. That monster’s a different breed. You shoulda been there. Seen those eyes.

  No, I know Ion will be back. And I think it’s a real good idea to keep away from the church of Respitia. No amount of healing can buy your life back when the little Magic Breaker comes for you./

  -Leonard Zurok, lv. 29 climber

  - - -

  Two days later, and I’m walking again. It takes another day until I’m healed enough to consider myself “healthy”. It’s given other humans time to catch up… but I don’t think the tower compares us. Not in that way, at least. Otherwise, I should’ve gotten more for reaching level 10 in [Suppression].

  Why do I think so?

  No one else in the party has a skill at level 10. Not any of the aliens, not any of the humans, not even Sylves, even though her affinity with her class is probably insane. There’s probably some kind of bottleneck before specific milestone levels, and, well, ten is the most obvious one, if the wider universe uses a decimal based system.

  I breathe.

  It’s okay. Having to pour all my mana into healing is just fine. I don’t mind at all.

  At least my eye is mostly better, though it heals far slower than the rest of my body. I think that the lovely Eye’s avatar that branded me probably added something to make it take longer to heal. It hurts, but I can deal with that. So what if I’m in pain? Nothing new.

  What are my immediate objectives?

  Revenge. That [Darkbreaker] is gonna get it. Then, of course, healing Sylves’ arm. Maybe I messed up the order of those two, but it’s okay. Learning more magic is another one. Climbing higher. Messing up the plans of some of the Eyes that annoyed me.

  I look forward.

  [Cave Crawler lv. 13]

  The thing is already pathetically weak compared to me. My mana roils, and for the first time in days, I get to cast something that isn’t focussed on healing. [Selection] latches onto it, and [Suppression] flows along the link like a slick rope of oil. The bug stops screeching, suddenly unable to move.

  I stab a knife through its head. Well, what seems to be its head. It thrashed, but after a second stab, stops.

  [You have killed a lv. 13 Cave Crawler]

  Dar looks at me. “The way you fight is terrifying,” he says.

  “Sure,” I reply. Says the wulven warrior made from muscle and wild ferocity.

  If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  He gives me a long look, then smiles a feral smile. “Can your skill make someone stronger, too?”

  I tilt my head, just a little. Have they caught on? Do they know that the duel was, perhaps, not entirely legitimate? “What if it can?” I ask.

  Dar’s grin grows wider. “Use it on me,” he says. “I wish to know what it feels like.”

  For a few moments, I consider it. Long enough for them to kill another bug. They’re big and aggressive, which is sad. I like bugs, usually. Just maybe not this close to me, when they want to bite my face off. “Alright,” I eventually say, and [Selection] reaches the wulven.

  Something flows back towards me. A bit of power, of intent, of strength. I tilt my head. “What’s that?” I ask.

  “... [Blooded],” Dar answers. He’s quiet about it. Quieter than usual. “It seems our skills interact.”

  “What does it do?” I asked.

  Dar breathes, drawing in a heaving of air, then pushing it out. “Many things. It lets me recognize my blood-siblings, like Opal. It lets me get a glimpse of who they are. Of the vow we’ve made.” His eyes shake a little.

  “You’re scared of me,” I note.

  A barking laugh escapes his throat. “Yes,” he rumbles. “Yes, I am.”

  “Why?”

  “I refuse to tell you,” Dar says.

  A small smile blossoms on my face. “You’re silly,” I say. Then, gently, I reach out with [Suppression]. “My first skill is a targeting ability. It’s generally really sneaky, but apparently, there’s a bit more to it than just targeting.”

  The wulven shivers for just a brief moment. “Apparently,” he murmurs.

  “This second skill,” I explain, “is what I can use to affect someone’s capabilities.” I reach out, and cast it. My skill impacts their skin, unfurling like a lotus flower, and blossoms. I can see it better now that I’ve had so much time to practice my mana sense. At least the healing was good for that.

  When it applies, I [Suppress] Dar’s fear, their hesitation, and even try to target their weakness.

  A moment passes, and I can feel the wulven’s heart beat. A side effect of [Blooded], maybe? It lets me tell a lot about him, and some of those emotions bleed through. Battle lust. Fearlessness.

  He looks at me and the tension has bled from his face. “This is good,” he growls. “Better than I anticipated. I feel more ready for bloodshed, more prepared. Do keep it active, companion of Opal.”

  “Even if I need to keep the targeting spell, too?” I ask.

  Reluctantly, Dar nods. “I cannot feel my fear right now. So it is of no matter.”

  I smile and nod, then push deeper into the caverns with the wulven. There are bugs to clear.

  - - -

  After a day of hunting, we return to the others in the camp. I was out with Dar, the others also splitting into groups. Since the wulven is still getting more of a benefit from hunting than I am, I instead focus on using every ounce of mana I have, acting as a support and practicing.

  It’s kinda fun. I push [Solidification] by creating a little sphere of mana, then changing its shape back and forth. A needle, a tiny rubber ducky, a javelin, a cube, a sphere, tetrahedron, octahedron… So on and so forth. When that gets boring, I heal my skin a little, and when I’m low on mana, I trace the inscriptions on the mana maze.

  That’s what I’m doing now, too. The others sit and eat, while I trace those runes, over and over. They’re an array, I’m sure by now. Half of them act as little levers and conditionals, establishing zones where mana is harder to control - zones I’ve not even reached yet, deeper inside the cube. Some others work to make it durable, and some others ensure it remains stable and able to dissipate anything inside it.

  The thing is a marvel of engineering, and I’m so pleased with it. What a good investment.

  Another day passes. I practice. Every moment I have, there’s an orb hovering above my hand, slowly changing shape. Healing my eye feels weird, my skin crawling across my skull. The others hate seeing it, so I only do it when they’re asleep. But we survive. We grow.

  [Inscription 3 > 4]

  [Flesh Restoration 4 > 5]

  It’s routine. A slow one, but we live. It gets a little more exciting when the first bounty hunters find us.