NOVEL NEXT 3.6 - Raven
[Spell Obtained!]
The Wild Spirit Harg has taken notice of you. He has gifted you with the Shapeshift: Raven spell.
"Immediately, and without delay, we must build a statue honoring Harg," Rud said.
Rud wasn't aware of the exact mechanisms the spirits used to spy on him, but he was grateful for it. Harg gifted him a form perfect for scouting the grove. Since the birds within the grove wouldn't cooperate with him, this was the next best thing. If he spent a great deal of time in the raven form, he could increase the level of his shape-shifting skill. It truly was an amazing gift from the Wild Spirit. Without delay, he inspected the spell.
[Shapeshift: Raven]
Rank 0 Druid Spell
Shapeshifting Magic
Component:
Imbued Leaf
Mana Cost:
150
Duration:
Two Hours
Description:
Assume the shape of a raven. You'll be super goth and you can fly. Win-win!
Effect:
You turn into a raven. All your clothes, equipment, etc are maintained in your true form and will reappear when you cancel this effect.
You retain all your attributes, but your abilities and skill usage may be limited.
Expending mana while in this form allows you to heighten your magical senses.
This was even better than Rud had expected. His other shapeshifting spells had the same text under the effects, except for the last item. If he expended a mana while he was in this form, he would gain increased magical senses, which meant he could spot the dungeons more easily. The only way this spell could have been better was if it somehow interfaced with his observatory. But he wouldn't complain. Instead, he withdrew an imbued leaf from his bag and pitched it between his fingers.
"We're going airborne, boys," Rud said, forming the spell in his chest.
Whenever the druid used his shapeshifting magic, it was an instantaneous process. There was no gradual change from his full size to that of the animal, and this spell was no different. One moment he was standing in his true form, and the next, after a cloud of black and green smoke, he was a raven. Losing his four appendages brought a sense of confusion. He no longer had arms, but instead had wings. He spread them out to either side, giving them a few good flaps. The strangest thing of all was the sensation of his new beak.
But even with the strange feeling of now being a small raven, Rud couldn't stop the excitement from rushing through his chest. He had never been a bird in the past, but assuming the shapeshifting form meant that he knew the basics of flying. He spread his wings wide and gave them a few more flaps before hopping. His first attempt wasn't successful, resulting only in him tumbling into a tangle. However, the shapeshifting form helped him along.
With a few powerful flaps, Rud lifted off the ground. He searched ahead as the wind rushed over his feathers during his ascent. He tucked his legs up and pushed harder, soaring above the canopy of trees after narrowly dodging through their branches. In a few moments, the groves sprawled below him. He banked from one side to the other, then dove before spreading his wings wide again and catching a breeze. It was too exhilarating not to have some fun.
The sprinting speed of the raven form was impressive, but so was its cruising speed. Rud found himself locating the wind and settling into that stream, which pushed him forward with little effort. The higher he went, the easier it became, allowing him to cover vast distances with almost no energy. It took him a while to get his orientation in the air, but he eventually spotted the sacred tree and banked yet again before slipping into a dive. The wind rushed by his ears, ruffling his feathers. He slipped through the canopy and spread his wings wide again to slow his ascent before landing on one of Ban's many branches.
"I'm a bird!" Rud shouted, bobbing up and down excitedly.
"Yes, I can see that," Ban giggled. "I see Harg made good on his promise."
"Aww, this was you?"
"Correct," Ban said. "Harg has been impressed with how hard you're working. He wanted you to be a shapeshifting specialist, but is settling for that being your second-favorite form of magic. Truth be told, he's jealous of Basil."
"Tell Harg I love him," Rud blurted out, cawing.
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"I'll pass the message along."
"Oh. While I've got your ear… Well, I know you don't have ears but you know what I mean," Rud said, ruffling his feathers. He found himself more flustered than expected. More than anything, he wanted to return to the sky. "How close are we to making a portal that can send items."
"I don't know. You tell me."
Rud narrowed his black eyes, cawing. "That's cryptic."
"If you think so…"
Rud couldn't figure out if this was a lesson or something else. Was Ban trying to say that he already had what was required within him and that all he had to do was believe in the power of friendship? No, she was speaking more practically. With his new specialization, he should be able to create the principles of a portal using his plant magic. The sacred tree would do the rest, but this meant that he had to understand at least a little bit about how portal magic worked. And his favorite mage wasn't in town.
"So, you're saying I can already do it. You have enough energy to support one," Rud said.
"Exactly right."
Rud tapped his scaly little foot, cawing in thought. "Okay. I'll talk to Elm when she comes back to Barlgore. Until then…"
"Time to fly!" Ban finished his thought.
Rud cawed with excitement, taking to the skies.
Instead of starting in a logical spot, such as the western, eastern, northern, or southern edge of the Grove, Rud began in the dead center, working in a spiral pattern outward. His goal was to become more accustomed to flying and to understand how his raven form worked. One thing he realized right away was that, despite his increased attributes, flying was hard. He was placing a lot of demand on his shifted form, and flying against currents of air was a recipe for exhaustion.
Rud had only been searching for a few minutes before he heard the faint rustle of feathers behind him. He turned his head, using his strange bird vision to spot Nulsa flying right behind him. Despite the owl's normally placid expression, he had a look of amusement on his face.
"I'm guessing the magpies weren't cooperative," Nulsa said with a hearty laugh. With a few powerful beats of his massive wings, he was flying alongside Rud.
"You guessed right," Rud said with a laugh. "They brought me a bunch of buttons, but had absolutely no idea what a dungeon was. And I still had to pay them in nuts and seeds. What a ripoff."
"Yet in exchange, you receive a flighted, shapeshifting form. I wouldn't be too angry if I were you." Nulsa went silent for a few moments, his head swiveling here and there as though he spotted something. "Have you had any luck locating a dungeon yet?"
"Negative, Ghost Rider," Rud said. "I'm still getting used to flying. Honestly, I don't know how you do it. It's exhausting."
"Years of practice," Nulsa said. "Anyway, let's split up, and we can scour the Grove together."
The owl had a very basic plan for them. He had searched a tract of land to the west, and they would pick up where he left off. Nulsa would fly a tight pattern from north to south, while Rud came in behind him to fly a looser pattern with the mana-enhanced vision ability he had. He was better as a scattershot rather than a shot of precision.
Rud flew high in the air, and it was difficult to maintain his orientation. He flew behind Nulsa, banking this way and that. When he took his gaze away from the owl to look at the ground and use his mana-enhanced sight, he would lose track of him. Thankfully, using that same sight allowed him to spot the vortex of mana. Nulsa's signature was powerful.
It only took Rud about four hours to become completely accustomed to his new raven form. During that time, he had to land and reapply the spell. However, thanks to the effect of his artifact weapon, he never ran out of mana. The pattern he was searching for with Nulsa drew him to the south, bringing him close to the group of adventurers. From the sky above, he watched through the canopy as they finally emerged from the first dungeon. As expected, they were injured. He banked, dove, and then landed right near the party, which caused them to go on edge and draw their weapons. Only when he shifted into his true form did they relax.
"If your goal is to make us soil ourselves, you've accomplished that," the lead human said, a trail of blood tracking down his cheek.
"Speak for yourself. I haven't peed myself yet," the elf said.
"I come offering healing," Rud said, holding his artifact staff high in the air. "Now line up, please. This shouldn't take long."
The mortals were all too eager to get their wounds healed, and it all fell into the druid's plan. He needed them in perfect shape if they were to delve into the dungeon so frequently. Since he had access to the healing spell, there was no reason he shouldn't abuse it. Compared to the wounds the Sacred Beasts had earned from the tower, the mortals were barely injured. One member of the party had a magical disease, which meant they had to head back to the shelter so Rud could cast Nature's Cleanse. That would put them into a deep slumber for a few hours.
"He should be fine," Rud assured them. "Hold on…"
Rud reached out through the Grove, feeling a general sense for what everyone was doing. He located a dwarf taking a break near the smithy. "Hey, could you bring five bowls of soup to my location?" Rud asked, pushing his thoughts through to Taz.
"You scared me half to death," Taz responded. "Forgot we can speak into each-other's minds… Yeah, I'll bring your soup. Just a minute."
This gave Rud enough time to finish up with the adventurers. He got them settled, even helping them start a fire and put a pot of tea on. That was just enough time for Taz to appear through the nearest bush, somehow carrying not five, but ten heavy bowls of soup. He arranged them on a table, placing wooden spoons near each and bowing slightly. "Your wish is my command," the dwarf said with a sly wink.
"We are grateful forest spirits," the human said, performing the sign of respect and bowing low. "The tea and cheese energize us, and we should be able to clear another dungeon tomorrow."
Rud leaned in close and elbowed Taz and the ribs. "This means I get to eat another dungeon," he whispered.
"Yummy. What's on the menu?" Taz whispered back.
"What kind of dungeon was that?" Rud asked.
"Some kind of sludge monsters," the human leader said through a mouthful of food. They were already digging in.
"Yummy sludge monsters," Rud said, rubbing his hands together. "Wanna come along, Taz?"
The dwarf shrugged. "Sure. I'm taking a break. Might need your help in the mine aftward."
Rud looked to the sky. He couldn't see Nulsa, but he could imagine the owl giving him a disapproving look. "Hey, I got a lot of jobs around here," Rud said, shaking his fist at the sky. "When you're the custodian you can decide how to spend your day."
"Who are you talking to?" Taz asked.
"Hoot, indeed."