Jaded Series (Books 1-2)

"Holy shit, you smell like cinnamon rolls," Jin said as Karam sat next to her, and she got a whiff of his new Passive ability.

"What's a cinnamon roll?" Basima leaned over her to take a deep inhale as well and said, "He smells like an apple tart to me."

"Why are you smelling him?" Alim signed to her in confusion.

"Try it," she signed back with a grin, and Alim gave her a dubious look. She laughed and added, "Seriously, his Passive is making us smell different things."

Alim carefully moved closer, and Karam chuckled as he held out his hand. The lankier boy looked surprised and signed to her, "I smell dried lavender."

As she told the others, she heard Keeper Nell announce, "Congratulations, Kian! Your Flute Aspect bonded to your Fortitude Attribute and unlocked a Passive ability for a flute that slows enemies and a Spell that taunts as well. It also looks like your Unknown Potential Talent cultivated to give you the Song Attunement."

Jin didn't manage to see the display for those ones, but she was fairly positive at this point that the elders weren't planning on staying close to them. It wouldn't surprise her if they ended up just saying their farewells and wandering off to go find the nearest monster to die to. They both seemed like they were prepared to meet that brutal end.

While the Keeper began preparing the final ritual, Jin turned to her confirmed teammates and asked, "So explain what happens next?"

"Well, the gates will open again and this time when we go through, we'll be teleported to the first floor inside the Tower," Kar replied and Jin made sure to translate for Alim in case he wasn't sure about the details.

Hadia interjected to add, "There's a total of ten floors and each one is a massive biome that we won't know till we see. It'll be bigger on the inside than how it looked on the outside, though."

"Right, the main objective for each floor is the same," Karam said. "We find and secure our Sect's base and defeat the floor boss to unlock the next level until we reach the top."

"Is there anything I need to know about the base or boss that's considered common knowledge?" Jin asked.

"Just that the base will have a device in the center of it that will generate a zone of safety around it once activated by a member of that Sect. It keeps monsters at bay but not other people. There will also be starting supplies waiting for us there, but what that includes depends on the type of biome we end up with."

"Food and water?" she clarified.

Karam shrugged. "Maybe, but it depends. If it's a desert biome like outside, getting water will likely be one of the survival challenges."

"Wonderful," she grumbled.

"The hardest part we need to worry about first is the opening of the gates, though," Basima said. "There will likely be a lot of Mundane monsters at first. They won't keep spawning very fast, but they've probably stockpiled a bit during the prep time before today."

"Yeah, a lot of the Champions die this first day just trying to find their base to trigger the safety wards," Hadia confirmed.

"So, we run for it, or is it better to move cautiously?" Jin asked. "I'm not sure if there's a usual strategy in place."

"It all depends. The biggest advantage in the Tower is training beforehand and a person's ability to adapt on the fly," Hadia said, then glanced over to Max who was ignoring them to admire his sword and swing it in the open space of the room. "Those who can't adapt and react quickly enough will die."

"Kar mentioned puzzles and traps, will those be part of the biome features?"

They all shrugged in response as Karam said, "Again, it depends, but usually they're not. Oftentimes, there are extra challenges inside that can give additional rewards. Those are usually the puzzles, but it's definitely not unheard of for the whole biome to be a giant puzzle either."

Jin nodded and said, "So we just wait and see now."

They nodded and fell into silence as the clock wound down.

"Congratulations, Mary! Your Staff Aspect bonded to your Mind Attribute and unlocked a Passive ability for conjuring a bindle stick that allows the storage of items in a personal dimensional space, and a Spell that conjures a temporary staff to give a selection of additional effects. You also had a Talent cultivate from Unknown Potential into Spell Disposition. Making you more likely to unlock more Spells and increase their effects."

The Keeper then turned to everyone and said, "That concludes the Absorption Rituals for the Servants. Congratulations again to all of you for becoming a Half-Caster, and thank you for participating in this Season of Salvation. May the gods watch over you as you climb."

They politely bowed to all of them before moving to collect the things they had changed out of, and Jin asked them, "What happens to our stuff? I don't want to lose the embroidery Kar gave me in the pants pocket."

"It will be returned to you once you leave the Tower," Keeper Nell replied.

They didn't offer anything more, so Jin fell silent to continue waiting, but Alim got her attention and asked, "Where did you learn the Whisper signs?"

She didn't want to basically out Petal on live TV, so she simply answered, "I have a translation Talent and noticed you sign when Shahara got mad and beat you."

Alim grimaced and replied, "I'm sorry you had to see that. I didn't mean to get you in trouble for my sake."

Jin stared at him for a moment before angrily signing while saying out loud, "Don't you ever apologize again for being a victim! She deserved to burn for hurting you like that. Especially when you did nothing wrong!"

The young man stared at her in shock before starting to reply, "I'm sorry—"

"I said don't!" Jin interrupted. "Never again! Okay?"

He paused then gave an amused smirk as he signed, "Okay."

"Good," she replied and gave an angry huff. "How much longer till we get to stab some monsters?"

Basima touched the Ladder Rune on her bracelet to trigger the current display for the floor progress and rankings. It didn't have any names listed yet, but it did have the time counting down. The blonde gave a little squeak of surprise as she said, "Looks like only about five more minutes."

"Longest five minutes of our lives," Hadia muttered but stood and began to pace in front of the gate.

Kian chuckled at that sentiment. "Trust me when I say that it will seem all too short by the end of the day. Just breathe in this moment, and keep moving forward to the next. I have hope that you young ones will reach the top."

Jin felt her own nerves start to rise as the seconds ticked on like it would before a match and she quickly decided to do her stretch routine she would normally do before one. The familiar motions helped calm and focus her as she twisted and reached to warm up the muscles.

She was worried about her new teammates and getting them all to the base alive. Worried that she might panic at the sight of an actual monster that wasn't separated from her by a screen. Worried that she would fail and be left alone with only her broken promises.

With only a minute left, everyone else stood in front of the gate with her and she shoved all those worries as far down in the darkest recesses of her mind that she could.

The glowing white portal reappeared in the archway and they all stepped through to discover their first challenge.

Jin had gone camping in the forests near her hometown a handful of times over the course of her life, but she had never felt the weird eeriness the current forest they were standing in was giving off. It instantly felt like they were both lost and trespassing.

"In all my years, I never thought I'd see a forest," Kian said in mild awe. "I wish you could see this, Mary."

"I can feel it," she replied. "However, I think not having my sight fully may be a blessing in disguise in this particular case."

There was a sheer stone wall directly behind them where the portal had been until disappearing once all of them were through. The wall stretched to the left and right until the trees and subtle mist hid their view of it.

"The wall marks the boundary," Karam whispered to her. "It can't be scaled or breached as the sky is an illusion and we're technically in the Tower still."

"We need to get away from the wall," Hadia said, her Mace already in hand as she looked all around them. "There might not be monsters near here at the moment but sometimes other Champions will follow it to sneak up on the people too afraid to leave it."

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"I'm assuming they are all spread around the boundary, too, and the boss is in the center?" Jin asked.

"Yes to the first part, no guarantee on the second. It could be anywhere, finding it is part of the challenge."

"Any clue on where our base is?" she asked and conjured her own weapon as she cautiously moved deeper into the dark forest. The fake sky was overcast, which added to the dreary feeling. She wondered if it was meant to be haunted and if they were going to be fucked over by incorporeal ghosts or something.

Jin's spear was a blackened metal shaft with a double-edged blade head about a foot long and a third as wide at the base where it melded to the shaft. The blade itself looked like brushed steel and had a wickedly sharp edge.

"Time to go find our new home, Cici!" Dare happily announced, moving forward quickly but Celia quickly sprinted to grab his hand.

"Wait, Dare! We need to stick with the group!" she warned, worriedly glancing between them and her brother. "Remember, a hero doesn't leave anyone behind, right?"

Dare grinned broadly at his sister. "That's right!" He looked back at the others and waved them forward. "Let's go, friends!"

"We should try—" Hadia began to say but Max shoved past her and yanked on Jin's shoulder.

"Hey! I told you before that I'm going to get there first. You get bonus points for being the one to discover a point of interest so just follow behind me and try to stab anything with that lame spear of yours if it sneaks up behind us," the blonde man said and moved past her, shoving Daren out of the way as he passed the slightly taller boy.

Dare cowered slightly toward his sister and whispered, "He's not very nice, is he, Cici?"

She gave a sigh in response and shook her head. "He never has been."

Jin tried not to laugh at the idiot sauntering ahead of her and simply said, "Be my guest, little rabbit."

Max grinned and lifted his chin. "You are rather lucky to have one such as myself graciously allowing you to follow. Just make sure not to get in my way."

Jin just stared after him in confusion as he continued walking, and Hadia set a hand on her shoulder as she explained, "Rabbit's the god of luck. You basically called him a good luck charm."

"Oh," she said. Then she smirked and whispered, "I was referring to him as bait for the monsters to chase." As they followed after Max, she circled back to her original question. "So, how do we actually find our base thing?"

"We don't get a clue per se, but our bracelets help a bit," Hadia said, looking into the forest as she explained. "They'll make a tiny ringing sound as we get closer and the bracelet is what activates the security wards."

"So, we just wander until—"

A scream interrupted her question, but it was far off in the distance. It was enough to set all of them on edge, though, and Jin's new team moved closer to her as Karam asked, "W-what do we do?"

Jin ignored her racing heart and said as calmly as possible, "We don't panic. We keep moving carefully and try not to draw anything's attention. Kar, if someone gets hurt, cast that new mist spell. Hadia, I think you already know to smash things."

"Damn right," she replied, letting the mace head fall into her palm for emphasis.

"Basima, if you see a monster, don't hesitate, just shoot it."

"I—Okay."

She turned slightly to sign to Alim and asked, "Did that barrier thing have a limited duration, or can you pre-cast it on all of us?"

"It has a duration, but it's long enough that I can keep it up on us. I get the feeling it lasts around ten minutes, but that it also depends on the ambient magic of an area," he replied and conjured his wand.

"Kar first, always," she firmly commanded. "Then you, Kian, Mary, Basima, Dare, Celia, Hadia, and me. That's the priority, alright?"

He nodded, and she saw his mouth move with unvocalized words as he cast his [Mana Barrier] on Karam. It shimmered in a sphere of brilliant blue light for a moment before vanishing from sight.

The thirty-second cooldown before Alim could cast it again was slightly annoying, in Jin's opinion, but the fact the barrier lasted much longer than that helped.

"Kian, if you see a monster, use that taunt, and we should hopefully be able to kill it before it breaks through your barrier," Jin said while still translating for Alim. She turned to the other elder and asked, "Mary, I'm not sure what all your staff Spell can—"

The sound of a twig snapping close by had everyone freeze and turn towards it, except for Alim as he finished casting the third barrier around Kian. He looked at them with questioning eyes before swiveling his own head in the direction they were looking.

Even Max and Daren were smart enough to stop and tense for a potential attack.

Then chaos erupted when a small white blur lept from the opposite side of where Max had turned to look and impacted with the man's neck.

Blood sprayed through the air as Max screamed while falling forward, and Basima yelled, "May the arcane arrow fly true!" A brilliant blue arrow of light streaked through the air from her outstretched finger, and the ball of fur practically exploded in a shower of crimson flesh and white fluff.

From behind her, Karam incanted, "Let the mists refresh the fallen!" and they were quickly enveloped in a fresh wintergreen scent and a pale green vapor that spread out in every direction from the new healer.

Hadia and Daren both moved forward to check on Maximus, and the blue barrier of Alim's spell shimmered around the caped boy mere moments before another white ball impacted with it. As Jin moved forward to help, she could finally make out that the attacking monster was actually a small rabbit with beady red eyes and wicked-looking teeth.

Kian incanted a moment later, "The end is nigh!" which made the bunny immediately turn and glare at the old man, but Jin was already stabbing it with her spear as the demon bunny tried jumping at him. It gave a pained squeak but stopped moving a few moments later, and Jin let it fall from her spear.

Hadia dragged Max further into the mist since he had been too far away to be within it at first, but the guy was sputtering and clutching at his neck. His sword stayed fallen on the ground, and Jin went to retrieve it for him.

When no other enemy appeared right away, Jin also bent down to look closer at the first monster she had slain. It looked wilder than a normal rabbit she had seen on Earth, with longer legs and ears, and the teeth were pointed and definitely designed for tearing into meat more than veggies. She grabbed it by the ears, hoping to potentially cook it later in case there wasn't food at their base, and was surprised when another holographic display appeared for her.

Jin grinned and nodded.

The rabbit's body dissolved into gray ash in her hand, and on the ground at her feet was a package wrapped in twine, a folded fur pelt, and a handful of what looked like clouded glass pebbles about the size of an American quarter. She bent down and curiously picked up one of the pebbles and was grateful for the additional display.

"You have a looting ability?!" Basima said excitedly from beside her as the blonde bent down to look at the items with her.

"Apparently, it's one of my hidden Talents," she replied and looked back to see how the others were doing.

Max was sitting up now, looking paler but still alive as the mist healed him. Hadia was standing and still looking around them, on edge. Celia was talking with her brother, who seemed to be giving a verbal replay of the epic battle that just took place, where they won against their first monster. Karam was talking with Alim, who nodded, shrugged, or shook his head in response to whatever was being said.

When Jin looked to Mary to ask if she wouldn't mind carrying the loot in her bindle storage ability, she saw movement behind the group and shouted, "Look out!" She stood and lifted her spear over her shoulder in a single fluid move to prepare to attack.

It was a massive wolf-looking creature covered in creeping vines instead of fur, and it lunged at Alim, who had been standing closest to it.

Jin's spear flew through the air at a speed she had never managed before. Her new Crystal Caste Strength was further bolstered by the spear itself, and it sent the monster flying backward in a harsh reversal.

That wasn't what had Jin's heart threatening to burst, however, as the rest of the wolf's pack moved through the underbrush toward them, and Basima cried out, "What do we do?!"

"You run!" Kian yelled.

Jin didn't argue as she grabbed Basima's hand and reconjured her spear, which made the one lodged in the monster disappear.

Hadia and Karam both grabbed Alim's hands in turn and pulled him along as they fled.

Celia was practically dragging Daren with her as they followed after them, but Kian and Mary both didn't bother running. Instead, Kian called after them, "Keep running and live!"

"Don't ever give up!" Mary added, and then a shimmering blue staff appeared in her hands. She raised it up and incanted, "Staff of the Earth, let none pass!"

She slammed the Staff down on the ground and the earth itself shot up in a massive wall in front of them, blocking off the wolves rush attack.

However, Max was the dumb idiot who conjured his sword again to run around the newly formed barrier as he yelled, "No! I can't let any of you get more points than me for killing these!"

Karam turned to look back, and Jin shouted at her friend, "Let him die a hero and fucking run, Kar! Kian and Mary chose this!"

When one of the wolves appeared on the opposite end of the wall from where Max had run to, Jin threw her spear but missed again as the others finally passed her to run deeper into the forest. She grabbed Basima's hand and pulled her along to follow after them.

They heard Max scream as the elders yelled incantations, and Jin shouted at all of them, "Don't look back!"

She ignored her own advice to make sure Basima was okay while stumbling behind her and saw the wolves swarm on the trio that were left behind. One tore out Maximus' throat with its teeth and abruptly ended the screaming. Four others took Kian and Mary to the ground, but there were still monster bodies beside them. They had gone down fighting and buying the rest of them precious time.

The group of friends in front of her all gasped as their bracelets let out a pinging sound, and they all turned to move off towards the right more.

Dare even excitedly shouted over his shoulder at them, "Our new home is this way!"

A moment later, her own bracelet let out the sound, and she felt the metal band vibrate and tug her to the right in the direction of the others.

Basima almost sobbed behind her, "Oh, thank the gods!"

Jin grimaced as she replied, "Don't thank them. They're why we're running for our lives."