Unbound

Felix was right. The stairs were a haul.

Carrying a fully armed and armored Vessilia was a challenge; she wasn't hard to lift however, and was surprisingly easy considering she and all her gear was likely clocking in at 190 pounds. Mostly it was her limp form and having to drag around a goddamn eight foot spear.

It got caught on everything.

The struggle eased into monotony after a short while though, and Felix's mind began to unpack. They had fought and killed a large number of creatures in a short period of time. His kill notifications indicated he had dispatched twenty one, both alone and in concert with the Tin Ranks. Now, he didn't find himself choked with guilt or anything; those beasts wanted to eat him and he was just fine destroying them instead. It had been a wild and hectic battle, yet he had felt a profound rightness to it all that, in retrospect, felt odd. When had he reveled in combat?

Perhaps it was inevitable. So much of his time on the Continent had been spent in fear, in confusion, or a combination of the two. Now that he was finding himself more potent than ever, why wouldn't he marvel at his own strength? He punched a monster straight through its chest! It hadn't hurt him at all! It had, in fact, felt like breaking through drywall. Feats like this were impossible back on Earth.

This entire world feels impossible. Terrifying and awful at times, but astounding just the same. His mind drifted to the magical Skills he was accruing, a childhood dream he had long since abandoned now coming true. They have to have wizard schools here, right? Felix the Wizard sounds too good not to happen.

He even had potentially more Skills to acquire after today's fight. He patted his satchel, within which were the two vials of blood he'd managed to fill from the Ofrenok and Ofrehulk's corpses. Those were for later.

Around halfway up the third floor Felix finally gave into his curiosity. He toggled his notifications, solidifying his new growth.

Heat Resistance is level 19!

Blind Fighting is level 19!

Corrosive Strike is level 20!

Armored Skin is level 23!

Intimidation is level 4!

Bastion of Will is level 30!

Analyze is level 23!

Dual Casting is level 17!

Acid Stream is level 24!

Influence of the Wisp is level 23!

+1 AGL

+1 DEX

Hell. Yes. He had bumped up so many things, all of which were among his lower Skills. Ah, damn. I completely forgot to use Shadow Whip and Mantle of the Long Night. Ugh. Wasted opportunity.

Felix had decided he was in desperate need of a way to incorporate as many of his Skills into a solidified fighting style. It'd maximize his leveling gains and keep that nagging voice quiet, the one that insisted that any Skill below level 20 was dragging him down and should be leveled immediately. It wasn't wrong, per se, but it was an echo of his childhood when he'd not be done with a game until he'd reached max level, max stats, all the important items and weapons. Felix had long ago accepted that this was not a game, and that his new life had deadly consequences. But even still.

Gaining Skill levels and stats was immensely satisfying.

Felix frowned at his notifications, realized he didn't make his next level. While no XP bar existed (to his knowledge), he could still feel how close he was to another level and Felix felt only a hairsbreadth away from level 20.

Pit, however, did level up.

Your Companion Pit Has Gained 2 Levels!

+4 VIT! +4 PER! +8 AGL! +8 DEX! +6 WIL! +2 END! +4 INT!

"Scavenger," Felix eyed his Companion who trotted up the stairs beside him. "You snaked my experience!"

Pit warbled enthusiastically. He'd been extra affectionate since he rejoined Felix; the distinct feeling of being left out and worried had dominated the tenku. Felix had found out that Magda had sealed the archway with one of her force walls, allowing Pit to look into the room but be unable to help. This all came to him in a rush from Pit, who pushed his strange sense-emotions onto Felix with all the grace of a dump truck.

He had hugged his friend for a long while, sending his regret and assurance that he was fine.

Still, he grumbled to himself. Having a race with an experience penalty is bad enough, but I'm also sharing with Pit. Hard not to feel a little cheated.

The stairs finally ended. They had felt interminable, long enough that Vessilia was beginning to come around in his arms.

"Who--?" She mumbled. Her face was in the crook of his neck as Felix had her in a classic princess carry, and she blinked up at him with half-closed eyes. "Where are we?"

"Back at the top of the tower, Duchess," Felix grunted as he took the last step into their floor.

Vessilia shook her head. "I'm not-" Her eyes shot open wide as she got a better look at Felix. "P-put me down!"

"Oh, sure," Felix set her on her feet, and the woman quickly backed up. "Sorry if I--sorry. Here." Felix held out her silver spear, and Vessilia snatched it from his hand. She was blushing furiously.

Shit, did I do something inappropriate? He had held her, but that wasn't weird, right? He was just bringing her back up the tower, just like Magda was doing...

Felix turned to see Magda walk into the room, holding her sister and Atar by the back of their armor. Their bodies dragged limply against the floor, and both were starting to come around. Felix grimaced; their shins were gonna be bruised all to hell.

"Took ya all long enough," groused a familiar voice. Felix spotted Harn in the tiered fire pit, which was still unlit. He looked tired from this distance, and he slapped at the large corpse next to him. It was another Hoarhound. "C'mon and help me cook this damn thing before it dissolves on us."

Magda and Felix got to work. The Tin Ranks were left to recuperate at the edge of the fire, though Harn managed to coax Atar into lighting some kindling, though from the look on his face the mage regretted it immediately. Magda had Felix move the monster over to the side, where she started dressing the kill.

"Why did they pass out?" Felix asked, looking back at his ragged allies.

"You didn't?" Magda asked without looking up or stopping her knife. "The old timers think a Reveal is all about a build up of energy that eventually wears away at the nugget of destiny that each of us holds within. But once Revealed, all that energy's gotta go somewhere, so it spills out." Magda punctuated her words by scooping a mess of blue-grey sacks from the Hoarhound's chest cavity. She slopped them over to the side, unceremoniously. "The energy takes from your body too, draining Stamina, Mana, and a little Health too. Leaves most people damn near unconscious, if not completely out." She made a few more cuts along the creature's underside that Felix couldn't see.

"How are you doing that?" Felix marveled as the Hoarhounds fur almost jumped off its body, Magda's Skill at Skinning or Butchering or whatever proving to be much higher than even his best Skill. "All the monsters I've fought turn to greasy smoke not long after."

Magda nodded at her hand, where she held her knife against the meat of the beast. "Enchanted knife. Preserves the kill and stops it from decaying. Once butchered, the meat won't smoke up anymore, just rot like normal flesh does."

"Handy." Magda grunted in affirmation and got back to work.

Thirty minutes later the fire was crackling and a heaping slab of meat was cooking on the makeshift spit. Pit was off in the corner, chowing down on the guts from the Hoarhound. The Tin Ranks were more alert and less shakey, though Evie uncharacteristically silent and Atar resolutely stared anywhere but at the fire. Felix, meanwhile, chewed the inside of his cheek and watched them all, silently hoping the food would get done faster. He was, of course, starving again.

Most surprisingly, up close Harn looked even more tired looking than the Tin Ranks. He had bags under his eyes, several bruises on his face, and his armor was covered in new scratches.

"So," Magda said, breaking the silence. "What happened?"

He let out a slow breath before answering.

Using Felix's directions, Harn had easily found the shit pit where the prisoners were kept. Getting close to it, however, was a damn sight harder.

His Brawler's Physique and specialized Body enhanced his senses much more than Magda's Tempering. He could navigate the blasted fog better than most, but distances still frustrated him. Harn had to evade several large patrols between the tower and the Risi encampment. Each was made up of four Hoarhounds and three or more Risi Warriors, and though most only had a half-stage Body at best, he still had to take the long way around. It wasn't that they were tough; far from it, Harn could have taken their lives easy as breathing. It was that he was scouting, not fighting.

Scoutin' not fightin'. He repeated to himself. Even if his axes were getting real thirsty.

Once inside their encampment, the giant's security was much more lax. Groups of warriors congregated around their strange cold fires, while food and drink was passed around heartily. Harn slipped among them like a fish into water, his Stealth more than a match for careless eyes. The structure where the prisoners were being kept was off a little ways from the plaza square, tucked behind a large ice-covered collonnade. Within the enclosure, which had only the barest suggestion of walls, ice coated everything, a permanent decoration courtesy of the giants' bitter magic. Rags and paltry blankets were strewn about, as well as the charred remains of a fire. Bones of some sort were piled in a corner, and in another someone had carved a large hole into the ice for a latrine.

Harn frowned. There were no people.

The prisoner's area was completely empty. He hadn't been expecting it to be full, but no sick? No injured? The icy conditions and lack of shelter alone would lead to sickness among the weaker constituted folk, not to mention the wounded from down below. Harn worried that the weak were either left in the sinkhole, or they were disposed of up here. He could find no evidence either way, mostly due to the disarray of the encampment. Someone had at least made the latrine and had most of the garbage piled in one corner. He was betting that was Cassie's influence.

There was little to examine there, and Harn went about on the second part of his mission. He headed to the bronze dome.

Situated in the center of the camp, the squat building dominated the area. Not only was it the tallest structure standing for nearly a mile, but it was covered in an almost delicate layer of ice. The ice itself shimmered dully in the darkness, giving off distinct purple-white glow.

The whole building's warded. Didn't know ice magic could do that...

Yesterday when he was scouting this camp, he had noted the building but not the wards. In the dim sunlight and heavy fog that sheen was nearly invisible. Harn found a spot across the square, hidden and high, where he could wait and watch. He had a good angle, and could even see directly into the building to an extent. The mist confused his senses a time or two, but Harn had spent a long time honing his abilities, and he knew how to be patient. Regardless, nothing happened for a painfully long hour. When it did, it all happened at once.

The sky was just barely lightening up with the approaching sun when the purple-white aura flickered and disappeared. The massive bronze doors in the front of the building creaked open on ancient hinges, making an almighty racket, and out strode the biggest giant Harn had ever seen. When he had first caught sight of them, he had been impressed by the Risi's imposing aura. Today was no different. Easily twenty-five feet tall, he was a slab of muscle and fur, striding purposely out of the bronze dome. Trailing behind him were three other giants, and for the first time Harn saw a Risi that wasn't bearded. Built very similar to their male counterparts, the female Risi were dressed in robes and furs as they all but glided along after their leader.

Harn wasn't sure where the big Risi was going, and he put it out of his mind when he saw four guards walk wearily out of the building in their leader's wake. Another set of guards shuffled forward, taking their place.

Shift change, Harn nodded, it was similar to what he'd seen the day before. But how long before the leader comes back?

Turned out, about an hour. Whatever the leader was doing it seemed to tax him in some way, as the massive Risi seemed visibly fatigued when he returned. Only two women returned with him, their third mysteriously missing, though they did not seem tired at all. Again, same as the day before, when Harn had watched the leader disappear further into the city with his helpers. During that hour, Harn had watched the new guard scarf down food, drink mugs of ale, and ignoring the captives that were dredged up from the sinkhole. From his vantage point, Harn could occasionally see a Human or Dwarven face that looked haggard and gaunt. Food wasn't given to the prisoners, neither did the giants use any healing potions or poultices.

It was extremely clear that the prisoners' best quality was that they were disposable.

Within a few minutes of the leader's return, the prisoners were led out, back to their enclosure where a dozen Risi watched them like hawks. The rest of the morning proceeded as normal, and Harn ducked out before he was caught.

"The return trip was nasty, though," Harn added. "Had to fight my way through another patrol, then lead the survivors on a chase across town."

"At least you got some meat outta of em," Felix munched appreciatively. He was halfway through his second serving, while Magda cut pieces for the others. "After this morning, this is very good."

Harn eyeballed the three Tin Ranks. "Ya'll went through yer Reveals? All a ya?" Harn chuckled and bit a hunk of meat from a skewer. "Damn, wish I coulda seen that."

"They did good," Magda said, half-smiling at the others. "They're about as ready as we can make em, considering our timeline."

Harn nodded and encompassed everyone in it. "Alright. Time to plan." He grabbed a charred stick and cleared some space at the bottom of the fire pit. He began to sketch a rough outline of the giant's encampment, as far as Felix could tell. "This is where we need to go. In the center of the camp is the bronze building, easily found, very recognizable. We need to sneak in during the shift change, when the wards on the building are dropped."

"Where does the massive leader go?" Evie asked, staring over the fire at his charcoal drawing.

"No clue. All I know is he's done it twice in a row, and hopefully he keeps that schedule. If he doesn't this whole thing gonna go tits up fast." Harn drew a couple slashes near the circular representation of the dome. "Here is where the replacement guards come from, and here is where the old guards go. Both places are teeming with giants, so we avoid those at all costs. No stirring up the hornets nest."

Magda folded her arms. "Points of entry?"

"There's three. One is the main big doors. Second is a side access door that was built for folk much smaller than giants, though you might have a time gettin' in. And the third ain't worth the risk." Harn grunted.

"What's that?" Felix asked.

"Third way is to somehow scale the sinkhole and use the stairwell itself. Bypass the whole building. Problem with that is we don't know exactly how long the wards will be down, or what dangers the sinkhole poses. And hell, the sheer drop alone makes it nearly impossible." Harn slashed his hand through the air, cutting off the idea. "We'll have to come through the small side door the moment the wards drop, which means we'll have to hide somewhere close."

"Here, perhaps?" Vessilia pointed at a squarish block to the side of the dome. "Is this a completed building or more ruins?"

"Ah, hm. I'm not--" Harn began.

"Ruins," Felix answered, his mind already recreating the scene. "We could hide there, it's big enough for all of us while also being too small for use by the Risi." He looked up, startled to find everyone looking at him. "What?"

"How do you remember that?" Atar asked. "You saw the place once."

"Oh, it's my Born Trait. Perfect recall."

Atar's mouth quirked up in a grin and he shook his head. "Of course."

"Glad that's settled!" Harn clapped his hands before pointing at the dome again. "We get inside before the new guards show up. We ain't fightin' em, might as well send out invitations then. No, we knock em out, take'm down quietly. They've got a communal pot of food and they do not like sharing. A little poison'll do wonders."

"Good idea. It'd only weaken them, I assume?" Magda asked.

"Yeah, I ain't got poison strong enough for a giant's Endurance. It'll do, and I'll concern myself with killin' em while they're weakened." Harn took a breath and looked at them all, charcoal dangling from his fingers. "It all goes smoothly, we'll grab the prisoners and make it back here by noon."

Magda stood up, drawing their gaze. "I've heard better plans, but I've also been part of much worse. Time is not on our side. The prisoners are dying, a handful each night as far as we can figure. We do this right, we can save a lot of lives. We do this wrong..." Magda trailed off.

She didn't go on. But then, she really didn't need to.

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