Jaded Series (Books 1-2)

Alim broke into a grin as soon as the veil dropped again and Karam's new aura brushed against his own. At least he wasn't the only one with the new sense now, and he could already feel the noticeable boost it gave to their health regeneration. It was perfect for his best friend.

The smile lighting up the larger man's face made his own grow wider too; it meant Karam was happy with the abilities he unlocked. Alim didn't need words to understand that much.

As the next Worker crossed and Karam rejoined him, the other Servants came over as well to read the newest abilities and congratulate him with pats on the back and excited words passing their lips too fast for Alim to read. He didn't mind much, though. He got the gist from their body language and Basima's happy bouncing as her mouth moved faster than any of the others.

He was already used to this subtle feeling of separation from the others. It wasn't like they meant to exclude them, they just weren't always cognizant of accommodating him either. Jin seemed to do better than the others in that regard, at least. Not always, but definitely more often.

His gaze slid back toward the other group and the small blue girl slowly inching her way closer and closer to them, as if moving slowly would make it less noticeable. He doubted it helped much with that raven-haired woman continually shooting glares at her. Alim almost thought the pissy-looking woman was going to lunge at Liraz and throw her into the chasm at any moment. He wanted to be ready to react if that was the case.

While he was on the fence about joining the rebellion Liraz was connected to, he still didn't want her thrown to the wolves and murdered from… what? Jealousy? Nationalism? He doubted the others knew she was a rebel otherwise he doubted she would still be alive.

He definitely doubted Darya was part of it or even knew about it. The woman was twice their age and obviously volunteered and trained to be in here. If she was a rebel for that long without anyone finding out, then she belonged in the Silence Sect instead of the Labor one.

Perhaps his mental image of a rebel was skewed, though. The rumors of rebellion had only been really rising in the last two or three years, so he had always pictured younger people being part of it. Maybe he was wrong about that assumption and it had been going on much longer and only recently did they decide to act on whatever plans they had been making.

The most common rumors he had heard about were instances of propaganda mostly. Graffitied buildings, a scrap of a flyer that hadn't been removed fast enough, and a rise in a very specific symbol being sighted around the city… the symbol of a fallen leaf with a butterfly upon its stem.

A symbol for change.

But would it be a change that Alim could get behind? Would it just replace their tyrants in the Herald Sect with a new type of tyrant? Would it actually give them all the freedom many sought? Did he want that freedom?

If by some miracle he managed to survive the Season, he'd leave the tower as a celebrated Champion and one of the few Casters in the city. He could potentially change things from within the system for the Servants. He wouldn't need to ever fear the tower again… but what about next Season? Would he sit up in those fancy balconies like the current Champions of Legend did and watch the next group take on these horrors? Could he live with himself by doing that?

A soft touch on his arm brought Alim out of his thoughts as he looked up at Jin, who signed at him, "It's your turn. Are you okay?"

The worry in her eyes made him relax slightly. She had saved him from the abuse the system had trapped him in. Alim recognized that fact now, and it made him realize that she was already changing things before ever hearing whispers of rebellion.

"I'm fine," he signed back. "I'll finish quickly, then let's get out of here."

Jin still looked concerned, but she nodded and didn't try to stop him from walking across that smooth white bridge. He went through the motions quickly, familiar with what should happen, and only paused briefly at the sight of a small stone with the rune for "Rune" carved upon it, and then again to read the new abilities that Rune Aspect unlocked within his soul.

Excellent, he thought. This was perfect for what he needed to be more effective to the group. He also managed another Natural Talent cultivation and quickly read over that change as well.

That was also extremely useful if he hoped to be able to cast combat rituals here in the tower without blowing through all their supplies. He just wished that he had studied up on more combat-oriented rituals now. While the abilities could become insanely powerful to expand his capabilities, right now he was limited by his knowledge—or rather lack of it.

The book of rituals that had appeared in the shop a few times seemed much more enticing now. Unfortunately, the amount of points he and Karam currently had were abysmal and they needed to focus on other items for the group first.

Once he made his way back to the group, showing the others his new abilities and trying to keep up with Basima's lips, he decided to check the shop.

He sighed at the reminder that he had absolutely no killing power in here and would need to figure out a way to siphon the few points he had gained over to one of the others. While a hygiene kit sounded nice after over a week without a method to shower, he couldn't justify the cost when they desperately needed more important items.

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Jin got his attention with a cautious touch and signed, "Ready to leave?"

Alim nodded and looked at the others. The last two Workers were still going to get their Aspects but their group didn't need to wait around for it. There was nothing left for them to do here.

"Are we walking back or jumping?" he asked, gesturing to the open chasm that had transported the first two Workers. Remembering who those two were, he added, "We want to prepare for a possible ambush."

He was grateful that Jin didn't argue, nodding her head instead and glancing over to speak to the others. He assumed to relay his words of warning.

The others nodded and moved towards the edge as Jin grinned back at him and signed, "Let's jump."

Alim grinned back and playfully signed, "You first."

She laughed, the tilt of her head, crinkling of her eyes, and shaking of her body the only indicator of it for him. He wondered what it sounded like. Would it be the way books described it? Like bells or wispy breaths or a full body gasping for air. It didn't look like that last one that he swore was how Karam would get once in a while.

Jin didn't sign back, but instead said something to the others before taking a step to the edge. She conjured her spear and smirked back at him with a two-finger salute before letting herself fall backwards into the endless dark below.

He idly wondered just how fearless that woman truly was. She seemed completely insane sometimes in the fact that she didn't respond like the rest of them. He had seen her angry, annoyed, mischievous, embarrassed, and curious, but never afraid. Those moments the rest of them were terrified, she was a blank mask of either indifference or determination.

Alim waited a few moments with the others until that flash of violet light appeared, then glanced at the others. They looked back with that same unspoken question of who should go next. He shrugged and jumped.

The fall was just as terrifying as he expected. The teleportation was more disorienting than the last time when they were all dying. However, the sight that greeted him back in the forest was much more troublesome than he had anticipated.

Miley lay dead on the ground at Jin's feet. Her gaze unseeing and her body impossibly still.

Did Jin murder her? Where was Carter—oh. He was a few feet away also lying in a very dead heap. Did she kill him too? It had barely been a minute, she had to have moved preemptively…

That's when he noticed the glint in the distance and mouthed the words to the incantation he had waited to use for this potential moment. "Seek protection within the strength of my shield, the hope of my life, the last bastion for tomorrow."

He spoke the words silently like he always did, forcing himself to learn the silent casting skill early on in his cantrip training. It had taken almost a year to master, but he didn't like vocalizing when it always resulted in strange looks from others.

He was grateful that speaking the words faster actually worked with his new Passive and the shimmery shield of golden light surrounded the area in time to stop the arrow aimed straight for Jin. He made sure to recast the [Mana Barrier] on Jin next but she turned to glare at him and simply signed, "You first," before turning back to their newest enemy.

I took him a few moments to realize that she had gotten angry over him not shielding himself before her. It was a minor thing really, but he couldn't stop the smile as that tiny action reaffirmed his belief that Jin cared more about saving all of their lives than hers. If he had any doubts in her motivations or sanity, it was those tiny reassurances that let him believe that he could trust the woman that fell from the sky and changed his entire life.

Jin turned back to the new threat hiding among the forest trees and mist. She was already planning to chew-out Alim over shielding her before himself like she had told him on that very first day in this death tower. First, though, she needed to kill this bastard that apparently planned to camp out in front of the Trial entrance to farm Champion kill points.

She had no idea if they were alone or what Sect they might belong to. The only thing she knew is that they were a griefing asshole who had no qualms about murdering unarmed people. They deserved to die.

Another arrow struck against the golden dome of Alim's [Last Bastion], and Jin had a direction now. She heard Basima gasp as another flash of violet light came from behind her, but Jin was already moving, rushing to the spot the arrow had come from.

This time she was waiting for it, as her eyes found the enemy another arrow was let loose and she triggered her new [Leap] ability. She probably should have tested it first, but she practically flew at least thirty feet into the air above her target. Her [Nimble] Passive immediately proved its usefulness as she shifted her trajectory and triggered [Piercing Thrust] as she descended upon the enemy.

She barely had time to take in the person's androgynous features with short ashy-brown hair and wide brown eyes open in shock as her [Silent Spear] plunged itself straight through their chest.

The moment felt frozen in time as they both stared at each other in surprise at how quickly Jin had just ended a life. Before their gaze turned glossy, however, Jin saw the blue barrier around her shatter. A moment later, before she could find where the attack had come from, she felt a sharp pain in her back and spun to see another enemy.

A bearded man with cold eyes was glaring at her and already preparing to throw another dagger that she was fairly positive was magical. The fact that she didn't need to pull out the blade from her back to feel it vanish was just confirmation that it was conjured.

Her peripheral vision caught more flashes of violet light, but she didn't dare look away as the enemy flung the dagger again. She dodged easily enough, grateful yet again for that [Nimble] Passive, and the guy seemed to decide melee was the better option now that she knew he was there.

He was either incredibly arrogant or a complete idiot to think a dagger could overcome her spear.

Perhaps he hadn't realized that she got the Knowledge Tome needed to understand how to wield it properly, but it felt like second nature now to fight with it. Her spear was an extension of herself and her reach gave her the advantage.

It became quickly apparent that Jin was both faster and stronger than her enemy as she sliced into his limbs more often and could lunge further than he could keep up. Both her Strength and Agility were Crystal Caste already from bonding to her Aspects and between her [Nimble] boosting her Agility further and her [Silent Spear] increasing her Strength, the guy didn't stand a chance.

The only smart move he made was to turn and fucking flee.

It caught her completely off guard at first as he threw the dagger again and abruptly spun on his heels to run. She was almost tempted to follow after him and finish the threat but Hadia's voice calling her name made her hesitate. Worried that there might be a third attacker, she chose to regroup instead, only detouring to loot the essence of the first enemy they had killed.

The others were safe, thankfully, but Hadia had the same thought she had about additional attackers. It was a tense minute or two, she wasn't exactly sure how long they waited before assuming the enemy was gone.

Everyone was there now, all seven Workers and five Servants that remained.

"Loot them," Alim signed, pointing to Miley and Carter, and giving her a fierce look that clearly said he didn't want to argue the point.

Jin huffed, still not liking the idea of looting people that were considered allies, even if they were total jerks. She turned to Darya and asked, "Want me to loot them for you? They were your people."

The older woman grimaced but resolutely nodded.

Bending over each to quickly brush a hand against each of the already cooling corpses, Jin looted them without spending her saved essence and left the loot on the ground for the Workers to claim, not bothering to catalogue any of it. She didn't want to know what these people had been magically reduced down to.

A hand on Jin's shoulder made her flinch, but Karam immediately released her as he explained, "I just wanted to check your wound."

She nodded, lifting up the back of her shirt far enough to show the wound that was slowly healing itself already.

"Mind if I try my new ability?" he asked.

Another nodded and a weird tingling sensation began to spread from the wound. It was cool but not uncomfortably so as it relieved the heat surrounding the area, spreading to wrap around her midsection. The relief was immediate once the edges met each other and the steady pulse of Life magic quickly finished closing the cut.

"It looks like we owe you our lives," Darya said as the other Workers were surrounding their fallen companions. "And more for helping us get those Aspects. I don't think those ten points we traded earlier is enough to cover what you Servants have done for us."

Jin shook her head. "It was a deal and we saw our part done. You don't owe us anything, we got our Aspects and protected our own lives all the same."

Darya looked back at the white marble door to the Trial and firmly stated, "I think your group could have taken that on without us."

She shook her head again. "If it wasn't for Li—"

"I have another trade idea, especially if you're hoping to farm materials from here."

Jin lifted an eyebrow at the interruption but let the woman continue her line of thought.

"If your group can trade us the points for the dimensional storage in the shop, I'll let Liraz stay with all of you. I think she'd prefer that and she's more of a monster hunter than a crafter anyway. She'll do better hunting with all of you and still generate points for our Sect."

Looking from the older woman to the little blue girl behind her, Jin felt more surprised than anything and wondered what the Worker's apparent leader was actually thinking. Liraz was a powerful force, both for their own protection and for the storage powers she had. Jin was fully aware that they wouldn't have been able to defeat the Trial without her slime abilities.

"You're going to trade your best weapon… for just a bag?" she slowly asked, trying to make sure she understood exactly what was on the table.

Another woman scoffed, the raven-haired beauty that Jin had noticed earlier but gave off an air of vanity that was a pretty big turn-off for her. "We only brought her because a bag is all she was useful for."

"Quiet, Ramazan," Darya snapped, and Jin wasn't sure if it was out of annoyance or because there was some unseen downside to the offer. The way Liraz flinched and shrunk closer towards her, however, made Jin realize that she didn't want to leave Liraz with them either.

Giving a quick glance back at the rest of her party, nothing but nods and a tilted look full of questions from Alim met her gaze. She quickly signed for him, "She wants to trade Liraz for the dimension storage points."

His nod of agreement was immediate and he even stepped forward to offer out his own bracelet.

At her own confused expression, he signed, "Take the few from mine first. We might be able to still afford something else for us after."

She turned back to Darya, who was already smirking at her. Jin sighed and admitted, "I guess we have a deal."