Rising Kite - A story from the world of HWFWM

As Triumph of Indomitable Will moved, he strived to become the spear. To align his body, his corporeal form merely the extension of the weapon, his spirit guiding the whole to singular focus. Each moment had to be balanced, each thrum of the weapon felt and interpreted as it moved through the air, giving the feedback needed to reach perfection. And that his heaven-cursed foe kept growing those crystalline patches where needed made it all a study in frustration.

Will was currently in glorious battle against a crystalmoss lurker, or at least attempting glory. The thuggish silver-ranked monster constantly kept growing patches of crystalline moss where Will tried to deliver his more decisive special attacks, which made what could have been the future Saint of Spears in making look like an amateur wailing against a surprisingly intelligent training dummy.

He knew that he was too harsh on himself with that likeness, but having each and every proper attack you made only crash into resilient crystal had steadily caused Will’s mood to sour. It did not help that the creature’s own potent regeneration made overwhelming it with lesser strikes less effective as well. Will knew that for a fact, having plowed a veritable monsoon’s worth of conjured javelins into the monster.

“Heavenly shaft; Darkness penetrat- Oh, heavens curse this. Fine! Kite, would you kindly lend some help to your dear friend in need?”

“What about the rest of us?” Dragonfly called back, eagerness clear in her voice.

“Just Kite at first, please. Let me keep at least a little bit of dignity,” Will retorted, getting a sour grumbling in return as he felt Kite draw closer.

The monster, of course, did not just stay idle as the adventurers redeployed themselves. It had the home ground advantage within its cavernous lair, and tried its best to inexorably chase down Will while he spoke, delivering sweeping strikes with its long arms and crystalline claws. But in this case, Will could at least prove his proficiency as he danced among his spears, often using the conjured weapons to step through the air or spring into vaulting leaps.

In the midst of one such attack, Kite appeared next to the monster, having charged in with the help of his enchanted boots. Will’s friend and his path might lack personal mobility, but his taste in equipment at least compensated for that somewhat. The elven spearman readied himself to break the rhythm of his dodges, because Kite had not charged in close just for the fun of it. He wanted to clearly telegraph this particular attack as he made a vicious swing with his chiming staff, its head trailing dark tears in reality.

As expected, the monster grew a thick patch of crystal to intercept the blow. Those crystals were more than just hard structure like armor, but had a magical quality akin to many essence powers Will had heard of; the monster's act of actively intercepting did much to negate most, if not all, effects of the attack. It was only by the grace of the heavens that the crystalmoss lurker could not cover all of its body with the stuff.

But where Will’s own resonating force attacks had failed, his friend managed a result. The crystalline structures were sundered, leaving behind a slight wound which seemed to carry remnants of nothingness within it; the attack clearly weakened by the defense but not entirely negated.

Just as planned, Will had changed his stance just a moment before, and what would have been another dodge became a twisting lunge, his spear aglow with one of the special attacks of his pure essence as it closed in a mere second after Kite’s strike. The monster tried answering it as usual, and Will couldn’t help the glee leaking into his smile as the crystalline growths only flickered at the edges of the wound, unable to grow there as they once had.

WWJS:

Congratulations!

Your ability, [Void-Sunders-Firmament] has reached Silver 0.

[Void-Sunders-Firmament] has gained additional effects.

- Void-Sunders-Firmament -

Special attack. Cost: Moderate mana Cooldown: 3s Current rank: Silver 0

Effect - Iron: Surround your melee weapon or unarmed attack with spatial tears, dealing high damage and resonating force damage. Can be used either as a wide, sweeping attack or as a more focused, directed attack.

Effect - Bronze: Cooldown reduced to 3s. Suffuse the target’s wounds with remnants of the void, inflicting the [Vitality-tear] affliction which negates a certain amount of healing before being consumed.

Effect - Silver: This attack partially bypasses areas of localized damage negation, turning complete negation into increased damage resistance, and inflicts the [Sundered meridians] affliction in that area. Very powerful effects or effects of a higher rank may not be entirely affected.

[Sundered meridians] - Wounding, magic - Local mana flow is disrupted, decreasing effects that affect the location of damage.

Will had known that he might need to call upon Kite to assist him with this foe, his friend’s new advancement making him a perfect tool to help against creatures such as the crystalmoss lurker. Kite’s new ability was not as niche as Will had once thought that it sounded, either. If he injured a leg with this ability, a magically empowered jump would be similarly weakened, but Will had so far found that it made the biggest difference against more extreme defenses such as the silver-ranked lurker. With them hunting silver ranked foes, the monsters started to become more and more complex beings, and more niche powers had started shining ever more where before pure damage had been a simpler solution.

With Kite now fighting at his side, the slow foe became easy prey for Will’s path of the Heavenly Shaft. With his spectral arms working alongside the corporeal ones, Will’s friend started poking more and more holes in the lurker’s defenses. Not every application of sundered meridians stuck to the higher-ranked creature, but as the seconds ticked by, that resilience lowered steadily. More and more weak points presented themselves, and as Kite’s void-afflictions also hampered the monster’s healing, Will could finally bring the battle with the crystalmoss lurker to a satisfying conclusion.

“Heavenly shaft; lancer’s judgment delivered!”

All of his remaining conjured weapons streamed in towards the lurker, Will guiding as many as he could to strike the vulnerable areas, even though the sheer number of projectiles in itself would have been enough to finish the weakened monster.

As Will felt its aura wink out, his shoulders sagged a bit in disappointment.

“Still not close enough,” he murmured in frustration.

“Reaching across the ranks is hard enough in and of itself. If the matchup is bad, calling for help is the wise choice,” Kite said from beside him, clearly trying to placate Will in his self-recrimination. While part of him was grateful for the attempt, part of him only became more frustrated.

“I know, my friend. I do. But…” Will sighed. “Isn’t reaching towards the heavens to try and overcome those limitations as well? Who could you ask, inside the gate?”

“Maybe, but doing it at bronze rank may be too much to ask even from the future Saint of Spears,” Kite retorted. “But as for the gate…” he began, trailing off with the ensuing silence acknowledging Will’s point.

The spearman knew that their paths were very different, with Kite not coming close to the level of damage and mobility Will’s path could muster. But Will couldn't reach Kite’s pure resilience and attrition either, and between the two of them, it was obvious who had the best chance in going in blind and alone against unknown foes.

Still, Will tried to look encouraged as they returned to the others, with Dragonfly already planning to take on the next of the crystalmoss lurkers reported to have manifested inside the cave system quite far to the west of Convergence, but inwardly he let the frustrations further temper his spirit and dedication. The future Saint of Spears would find a way to overcome this obstacle as well.

Serene let herself be swept even deeper into the song of her goddess, its absolute purity bringing the very same concept to her mind. Ahead of her, Dragonfly, Gold and Will all fought against a pair of silver-ranked caterpillars, each of their long, vibrant green bodies having a diameter close to the height of Dragonfly. The monsters were also completely and utterly covered in bristles of varying lengths and coloration, creating a psychedelic rainbow of sorts as they repeatedly shot said bristles from their bodies in chaotic salvoes.

To Dragonfly, this was her ideal opponent; something rather slow and bulky which tried to kill by death of a thousand cuts. While she had needed more of Serene’s attention at the beginning of the fight, the feisty woman was now a beacon of inner light where she fought, healing as quickly as the monster she was facing could damage her.

Will and Gold, on the other hand, needed to work together to create openings. Gold’s doubly reinforced armor was able to become a moving bulwark for the nimble elf as he conjured more of his spears with which to return fire.

As usual, Serene stood removed from the rest, her aura veiling her from immediate attention as she kept her friends alive. She should have been in constant danger though, both from the pair of indiscriminately firing silver-rankers and their bronze-ranked brood which surrounded the sides of the ravines, the smaller larvae nesting along the cliff walls as they fired thorns of their own. Most of the air was indeed covered in flying thorns, but Serene felt very much her namesake as she was untouched, courtesy of Kite.

“Will you be able to continue keeping them up?” Serene asked her friend, who stood nearby with a look of focus on his distant gaze. She could understand that his answer was slightly delayed, as Kite was currently surrounding them with angled barriers, protecting himself and Serene from the wild attacks of the silver-rankers and all of them from the gathered iron- and bronze ranked larvae.

“The ones keeping the silvers’ attacks at bay need my constant attention,” he answered her, his focus obvious in his distant voice. “But the heavens saw fit to give me tools to compensate, the gods be praised.”

WWJS:

Congratulations!

Your ability, [Spiritual futility] has reached Silver 0.

[Spiritual futility] has gained additional effects.

- Spiritual futility -

Special ability (Mana drain). Cost: None. Cooldown: None Current rank: Silver 0

Effect - Iron: Opponents who make a melee strike against or come into contact with your barriers have some of their mana drained. The drain is continual if the opponent remains in contact with the barrier.

Effect - Bronze: Mana drain ramps up when an enemy has extended contact with the barrier. The rate of drain is gradually reduced back toward initial values during moments not in contact with a barrier.

Effect - Silver: The mana drain triggers from ranged attacks as well, as long as they are made from within short enough range. Any magical attack striking your barriers without breaking it will have some of its magic absorbed, replenishing some of the barrier’s integrity over time.

From what Kite had explained to Serene, the advancement of Spiritual Futility might seem like a small one, but one that would have a huge impact in any situation where his opponent’s tried using multiple, smaller attacks to whittle down his barrier. Any magical attack, projectile or not, would have some of its magic drained along with the attacker’s mana, the stolen magic actively rebuilding the damage. This wasn’t instantaneous, but unless said foe coordinated attacks well enough, each new attack would need to contend with the buildup of replenishing energies from those that came before.

The scattered larvae on the walls were either iron rank or the lower end of bronze rank, and from what Serene could glean from Kite’s barriers through her magical perception, courtesy of the power ascending to silver rank, the barrage of weak attacks had built up such a level of replenishments that it would probably hold for a dozen more minutes. The panes of force facing the silver-ranked caterpillars were a different story, however, and Kite constantly had to use his racial gift to reinforce the force walls.

“At least there is no shortage of creatures to drain of mana,” Serene mused to herself, casting her simplest wind spell to shove the caterpillars into the more powerful attacks of her friends or to help drag said friends out of the way. Dragonfly repeatedly used her leaping attacks, trusting that it would either end with Serene pulling her back at the last moment or plenty of more stacks added to her inner fire as she landed on the bristles.

“Carried by the heavenly wind.” Serene chanted, a sigh almost making its way into the chant as she once more stopped her friend from impaling herself onto the silver-ranked monsters. Even so, Serene’s mouth was quirked up in an amused smile.

“To be so trusted… The Serene of four years back would scarcely have believed it.”

“Then it might be appropriate for you to trust your bond with them as well, little singer? Isn’t telling them your plans long overdue?” the voice of her goddess echoed in her mind, its melody effortlessly inserting itself into Serene’s sung spells.

“It is, my Lady. Soon. Please let this young one have a few more weeks free from life’s complications.”

“Of course, little singer. Enjoy yourself in the harmony you have helped create. And know that your voice can become powerful enough to reach them no matter where in the world that any of you may be.”

“Greetings Dessie. Did you hear? One of these bloody locals apparently threw a fit that another wouldn’t back down on a contract and just fought a duel over it,” Marten called as Desdemona entered the office that the functionaries shared at Convergence’s adventure society campus.

“Hey there Marty! It’s called a clash, not a duel.”

“What?”

“A clash of paths. As decreed by the last diamond ranked queen, way before she abdicated the throne to go and do whatever diamond rankers do.”

“I know what a clash of paths is, Dessie, I read the briefings before accepting this position. I was more surprised that you felt the need to specify. It’s just two meat-headed adventurers duking it out no matter what you call it.”

“Marten, just because you have only non-physical essences doesn’t make you any more sophisticated than those ‘meat heads’. Using your elemental essence kills things dead just as much as someone using their conjured axe,” Desdemona said, rolling her eyes as she sat down in her chair, which was sized to be comfortable even to the huge leonid. “Also, the clash is a bit more regulated. I would know, as I officiated it myself.”

“What?”

“One would almost think that you had the echo essence, the way you repeat yourself.”

“You know what I mean,” Marten grumbled. “Why would you of all people officiate a clash.”

“Because I was nearby, and the Pathbreaker asked very politely.”

“It was that guy? Is he the one causing trouble?” ‘

“No, no. It was the other one, some self-proclaimed young mistress. She threw a fit about how he had apparently taken a contract that was ‘rightfully hers’ as she had apparently intended to pick it up that afternoon. And instead of backing down, the Pathbreaker just firmly but politely challenged her to a clash and proceeded to beat the stuffing out of her.”

“I thought that these clashes were supposed to be civilized. That sounded rather gory.”

“Eh, it was just an expression. The whole thing was actually entirely bloodless, if you don’t count the conjured stuff of the woman’s blood essence. The Pathbreaker just picked her apart. I could barely follow it, between the many barriers and strikes, weapons flickering in and out. Did you know that he has four arms? Or that he can at least conjure an extra set? I didn’t think that his essences would produce those kinds of power, but there they were, appearing and reappearing as he needed them to.

Anyway, each of his strikes just glowed blue and passed through her. You should have seen it, Marten! One moment, she’s delivering haughty insults and the next-” Desdemona described, pausing to play at falling limp across her desk,”- it is as if all her strings were cut. Just, poof, she’s unconscious and out of mana. Didn’t even seem to realize it herself.”

“Well, if he’s so great, why are you here then instead of out there fawning? You said you were looking for someone, so why not Mister Local Champion?”

“Eh, too little hair. It just looks weird, you know. When things get good, a girl likes a little mane to hold onto. Still, the guy can conjure more arms. Now that is something to consider…”

“Desdemona! Be professional!”

“What? You asked!”

“I did not ask for so many… mating-related details.”

“Oh, come on. It’s not like you haven’t wondered. It’s something we all think about. I’m still curious what draconians have in their pants. Or how most of you other races get anything done with so little hair on you.”

“Either way, are there any other consequences or fallout from the challenge of which the adventure society should be made aware?” Marten asked, changing the subject with all the subtlety of a landslide redirecting a river.

“Unless said young mistress had some competent silver-rankers owing her favors, which is quite unlikely, I’d say that this is nothing for the adventure society to concern themselves with.”

Inner disciple Iridescent Bell made her way through the streets of the Perfected Step sect, keeping her poise even though her insides were still churning with shame and anger. She was supposed to have embarked on a contract by now, one that a sect initiate she was mentoring had reported of that very morning. Hunting down the Striped Dawn Striker would have brought her much glory as she was yet far from silver rank, but Bell studied diligently. Her path would be a perfect counter to the beast.

But not only had it been claimed mere minutes before by some outcast nobody, but said nobody had refused to give it over. And then, when Bell had insisted and warned of the consequences, he had the gall to challenge her. And win. Her memory was still a bit fuzzy, but she clearly remembered it feeling all foggy inside as she fought. Had she been poisoned? But her crystal spirit should have warded off such attempts. One moment, she had defended herself against his two-pronged assault, and the next she had woken propped up next to one of the notice boards, an officiator’s note in her lap.

“The humiliation,” she fumed, her face enough to send a pack of initiates scurrying out of the way. “But that Pathbreaker - such a ridiculously supercilious name - will not be the one who ends up laughing.”

Bell schooled her expression once more as she drew close to one of the private residences awarded to the elders of the sect. Or, in this case, to outstanding students. Bell could feel a powerful aura from the training area behind the lavish house, its silver rank on full display for everyone to feel. It had been that way ever since a month ago when inner disciple Soul had ascended, and the woman who emanated said aura had not shown any signs of stopping her tireless work since then.

“It is not hard to see why my father has been in favor ever since discovering her talent,” Bell thought, mixed emotions of pride and a bit of jealousy warring inside her as she stood on the stairs outside the house, projecting her aura to announce herself. “Even though Warrior showing himself to acknowledge her should have made it obvious for any to see.”

A moment later, the aura out back flared in response, so Bell entered, crossing the open living space of the entry hall to the back yard. As she emerged, she could barely make out the blur that was inner disciple Soul as she was darting between projections of glowing discs that were projected anywhere within the yard.

“One moment, Bell. I’m soon done.”

At the words, Bell righted her robes and sat down at the edge of the porch, as the area lacked any proper seating arrangements. A minute later, a nearby glowing cube chimed and its light dimmed as the training regimen came to a close. Inner disciple Soul came to a halt, her poise perfect.

“As always,” Bell thought wryly, but Soul always managed to steal her breath away. The celestine’s skin was like luxurious pale porcelain, her amethyst hair and eyes the perfect complement. But to Bell, the perfection was marred by the rest of Soul’s attire; a pair of pale silk trousers fitted way too close for modesty and just a few layers of wrappings around her chest. There were not many of Soul’s toned muscles that weren't on full display for the world to behold.

“Had she actually cared to dress for it, she would have stood out even on the streets of the capital. But as things are, she would probably have preferred to fight stark naked to preserve maximum mobility. Not an ounce of care for propriety, that one. Not one bit,” she thought while she stood up and bowed as was proper to those of higher rank.

“Inner disciple Soul, blessed of Warrior,” Bell greeted as the woman ignored her bow and sat down on the porch next to her, going through some stretches.

“Bell,” Soul said in way of greeting. Bell knew that it was not said in disrespect, as Soul had always been painfully disinterested in formalities, but it still chafed that Bell lacked the personal power to force just a little bit from her. “Weren’t you going out on a contract?”

“I was, but fate saw fit to test me. And I was found wanting.” Bell began. She wanted to rail and claim injustice, but she already knew that Soul wouldn’t care. If she wanted the result she hoped for, Bell would have to go about it another way.”

“Oh? Someone beat you to it?”

“Yes.”

“And you didn’t do something about it?”

“I tried, but he challenged me. And I lost.”

“I see. Well, loss and adaptation are Warrior’s best teachers. You should thank him.”

“I suppose so. And he was rather skilled too. His powers were frustrating, I could barely slip a blow through his defenses, and had lost before I knew what happened. It hurts to admit that he was probably among the top bronze-rankers I have ever witnessed,” Bell said, throwing out the hook.

Soul did not bite at first though, continuing her stretches. “Warrior would be proud of your clash then. Maybe you could find him and challenge him again? Prove to the gods that you don’t give up. Did he use weapons?”

That question meant that her interest was at least a little piqued, but Bell remained patient. “He did, but none of his essences seemed to revolve around them. Still, those additional arms and the plethora of equipment… Maybe an arsenal confluence.”

“Those tend to be boring though, all caught up in their fancy weapons,” Soul remarked, and Bell felt that she was almost about to forget about the hook.

“Time to skip to the finish then,” Bell thought as she spoke.” Maybe so, but I suppose that one isn’t named Pathbreaker for nothing.”

As Soul halted ever so slightly, Bell knew that her lure had already been swallowed, hook, line and sinker.

“Pathbreaker, huh. That sounds… like a challenge. The very name wants me to test mine against his, to see how I hold up. Where is he now?”

“In the lands around Convergence,” Bell said, a sense of gleeful triumph rising in her chest. If Soul would seek out this man and fight him, he would know true strength and suffer the same humiliation she had. He-

“But you faced him, so he’s a bronze, right?”

“I- yes, but-”

“That’s a shame. I’ll have to wait until he’s silver then. Sounds interesting though, so send word to me if you hear that he has advanced. Thank you for the tip, Bell.”

Before Bell had the time to say more, Soul went back to her training. While her metaphorical fish had bitten, the lure simply wasn’t tasty enough. Still, when dealing with one such as Soul, one had to take what victories one could have, even ones that were delayed.

“You don’t know it yet, Pathbreaker, but you will soon face your match.” Bell thought as she left Soul’s garden. And you will learn why crossing anyone in the Perfected Step sect will only bring harsh retribution.”

Worth Transcending Gold watched, in silence, as was his way. Or at least it used to be. These days, you would often find him carrying a slight tune, a gentle hum in concert with a song wreathed in splendor. He didn’t need to even glance towards Serene, their embrace public for anyone with ears. These last few months had been like taking a step into the world after learning to see color; everything was the same, yet carried more depth and meaning. And it had all been thanks to the person who was singing.

Gold stood alongside Serene, Kite and Will, watching Dragonfly take on one of the silver-ranked monsters alone. The Striped Dawn Striker unfurled its golden frills and hissed again, and the glow looked very much like the dawn the monster was named after. It darted forward, and Dragonfly dodged, already empowered by the swirling streaks of gold that flew through the air around the lizard-like monster. Most moved while some of the searing motes hung in place, creating a tapestry like fireflies around the embattled pair.

Only Serene’s touch was upon Dragonfly; Gold’s very own little goddess impacting the fate of her friend and companion through just existing. To him, Serene was creation and life, of finding new beauty and purpose even though the world around hadn’t changed.

But another force was upon the battlefield as well, as many of the motes of light seemed to be struggling to retain their cohesion. Here and there, some even winked out, as if eroded away. And the source of that force stood at Gold’s other side, his eyes fixed on the battle ahead. Should the need arise, Kite would intervene with a barrier at a moment’s notice. But as things stood, there should be no need. Still, the man’s spiritual presence was felt, one of the four sub-notes to Serene’s splendor.

WWJS:

Congratulations!

Your ability, [Discarnate Erosion] has reached Silver 0.

[Discarnate Erosion] has gained additional effects.

- Discarnate Erosion (Erosion)

Special ability, aura. Cost: None Cooldown: None Current rank: Silver 0

Effect: All hostile magical effects affected by your aura start to erode, reducing the duration of ongoing effects and lessening the impact of spells and special attacks within the area. Effect increases the longer the hostile effect remains inside the aura.

Effect - Bronze: Increases the casting times of hostile spells within the aura.

Effect - silver: The eroding effect becomes greatly increased against hostile solid manifestations of magic, such as conjured matter, equipment and barriers. Higher rank effects will take longer time to be affected, and some powerful effects might not be entirely eroded, instead leaving them weakened.

When Gold had first heard of Kite, he was described as this great villain; a knave who used underhanded means to win at any cost and take the treasures of his betters. Gold had not taken too much stock in the description as he knew the likes of Soar and Mist. But as he had seen the young man burst through the door to their gathering and brazenly challenged them all, Gold had to admit that he was a bit shaken, searching to see if there was any truth to the claims of the other men.

Since then, Gold’s mind was at ease. In a way, Kite was much like his aura, at least to Gold; a stable presence which would steadily work to break down bits of the world around him that weren't to his liking, protecting those he held dear in the process. Said breaking down could be smooth and gentle, or harsh and unforgiving, and Gold could appreciate both. Kite was somehow a good counterpoint; the gentle destruction to Serene’s careful empowerment, and Gold could appreciate how the pair simultaneously strengthened and renewed a battlefield while also breaking it apart, dissolving the hostile magics into mere motes of dust before the heavens.

“In a way, it is a shame that this harmony will soon be split apart,” he thought. Gold knew of Serene’s plans for the future, of course, and when she had asked if he wanted to come with her, it had been one of the happiest days in his life.

“But the goddess teaches that harmony in purpose can create bonds that transcends both time and space,” he thought. “In that way, none of us will truly be apart from one another, not in a life where time started to lose its meaning the higher you climbed through the ranks on your way to the heavens.

Gold did not doubt for a second that Serene would make it to the very top, proving to a nation whose warriors had spurned her that they had made a grave mistake. And if he had any say in it, Worth Transcending Gold would be with her every step of the way.

Without saying a word, he could feel Serene’s spirit embrace him just a bit closer, sensing his surface thoughts. With her at his side, Gold didn’t need to say almost anything, after all. Serene Breeze heard his heart’s song anyway.