NOVEL NEXT 2.42 - Heavy Core
Heavy like the waves, light as the wind, from the depths I rise, born again
-Excerpt from 'Songs of the Deepsea' by Horomir Ansul
Rose felt as if she was dragged under the surface of the sea. She remembered the time she was taken by the waves as a child, kicking and screaming as the burning salt filled her lungs.
For a brief time, the sea had been a comfort. Once more she was reminded of the devastating power hidden in the cracks of reality. The world was not kind.
Her core stretched, all semblance of former stability lost as the whirling mass of arcane energy burrowed into her flesh. Like a thousand searing spears it pierced through, seeking any path to reach her core.
The compressed mass of energy inside threatened to burst. Rose roared and clamped down, imposing her will on the energy inside her.
It was her core. Her body. Her energy.
It would not move without her command.
Slowly but surely, the energy stopped leaking out of her circuits. The rampaging flow settled into a leisurely cycle under her control and the streams of energy which gathered in her core only did so under Rose's direction.
It had been a risk, pushing beyond the natural limits of her advancement. She could've settled with what she'd earned, becoming stronger and taking the same steps as every other seafarer.
That wasn't enough. Rose didn't want to be ordinary. So she'd risked her life to take from the world.
It had paid off. The energy settled around and within her as her entire core compressed further and further.
The walls of her core melded into the energy within as if they were becoming a single entity. A pulse of energy rippled outwards as they completely merged together and filled her body with power.
Her circuits thrummed and her tempered flesh sang as the energy crackled through. She opened her eyes and exhaled, a smile crossing her face.
It's funny, I thought knowing the name would help me advance, but it only comes back to me after my advancement is complete. Heavy core, was what Trent called it, Rose suddenly remembered.
Skill up!
Arcane Attunement 26 > 27
You have earned a new title!
Arcane Adept: As you unlock the secrets of the world and transform yourself into something more than mortal, the arcane power of the tide seeks to devour you in turn. Every step forwards empowers you, but brings greater danger than you could ever hope to know. Passively enhances your control over arcane energy in all its forms.
It was a strange title. Both warning and blessing both. Rose didn't need to be told twice that arcane energy was dangerous, but without its power she had no hope of saving her country or achieving her dreams.
She thought back to the day she'd set sail. How naive she'd been. Rose had believed she could conquer the seas with nothing but bravado and a blade.
Instead she ended up discovering just how much bigger the distance she needed to cross truly was. Even so, she was excited to keep progressing.
Turning her hands over, she ran her gaze up and down her arms. She could feel the energy roaring inside her circuits—even her muscles and bones had been forged anew in this particular advancement.
Standing to her feet gingerly, she shook her limbs loose and rolled her shoulders. She glanced downwards and almost jumped out of her skin when she realised Jason, Daniel, and Everyn were all sitting right in front of her.
"Why the hell are you all so close!?" she exclaimed.
"What do you mean, you damn fool," Everyn snapped in response. "You suddenly collapsed and started screaming. And only a blind man wouldn't see the storm of energy that surrounded you."
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"Plus, that happened right after Jason did the same thing," Daniel added, throwing a sideways glance at the newly awakened boy.
Rose took a deep breath in and exhaled softly. She was still acclimating to her body and core. It was warm and powerful, but strange.
"I advanced to Heavy Core. Jason awakened his core before," she explained. "It was all so sudden. I was teaching Daniel and clearly this damn fool was following along on his own," she added with a wave in Jason's direction.
He lowered his head to stare at the sand. "Sorry," he muttered.
"Ha! Don't say sorry you damn coward. You're a man. Besides, I've never seen anyone with such a powerful affinity for arcane energy. It practically raced to fill you up. If not for the fact I had to help you handle the load, I wouldn't have triggered my own advancement early."
"Well, getting stronger is never a bad thing," Everyn replied, his face stern and lips pulled taut. "Congratulations, both of you," he muttered, before turning and walking back down the beach to resume his training.
Rose watched him go with a conflicted expression. She could guess what he was feeling. Inadequacy.
The boy had been trained in the art of combat and arcane power since he was a child and she—a village bumpkin—had surpassed him in the blink of an eye. Jason was still far behind, but he would soon catch up given his talent.
Daniel also had a grim expression. Rather than sit down and continue his awakening practice, he sighed and took out his notebook.
"Jason, follow me. I'll show you some basic manipulation exercises to get used to your new power," Rose said, walking towards the ocean.
***
You have earned a new skill!
Your occupation has advanced!
Apprentice Scholar 42 > 43
Huh. Interesting, Rose thought as she read the two whorls that had appeared after she had finished teaching Jason. With another skill that could advance her profession, it was only a matter of time before she completed it.
With the others all focused on their own training, she had a little free time to spend on some much neglected skills. Despite vowing to focus on her occupation she'd found little time for scholarly pursuits.
Walking further inland, beyond the sand dunes and the salt marshes, she found herself at the edge of a river. It wasn't a large river, more a meandering stream that lazily wound its way through the land.
The faint smell of salt clung to the air. Silver darts flecked with orange swam back and forth in the brackish water, scattering as she took off her shoes and paddled among them.
Rose stared up at the sky. It was bright blue, clear of clouds as the morning sun blazed in the sky. She sighed.
I don't think we can keep going like this. Minenblum's navy is too large. They can just keep throwing fleets at us until we crumble. What will we do if they decide to attack two cities at the same time? she wondered.
Their hit and run strategy had worked until now, with them rapidly striking back whenever their enemies made an assault. However, she knew it wouldn't last.
Rather than sit and wait for the attackers to come to them, perhaps it was time to take the fight to Minenblum. Their citizens might not feel so happy with their King's actions if the destruction was a little closer to home.
But where to attack? Aughold is out of the question. We'd die before we got within a mile of the coast.
She continued to walk through the stream as she pondered the question. She thought back to her travels on Liberty. They'd visited a city in Minenblum on their way to Zoria.
Eastfel Bay.
It was heavily fortified, but the actual garrison it fielded wasn't very large. She thought about the layout of the port. The walls were sturdy, but due to the cliffs it would be possible to approach unseen and strike with virtually no warning.
Even better, now that they had that ridiculous arcane-powered ship which they'd stolen from the navy, stone walls would be as useless as paper. A single blast of those cannons would melt any defenses the city could muster.
Her stroll took her to a waterfall. It was barely a trickle that fell a few metres down to a rocky pool in the centre of a glade, but it was a breathtaking sight.
Rose sat on the cliff, legs dangling over the edge, and took out her sketchbook. Some time drawing might help to clear her mind and figure things out.
To be honest, she felt that attacking Minenblum was the right choice. There was only one issue with doing that, an issue that might prove to be difficult to overcome.
Could Rose bring herself to hurt innocent civilians in her crusade against Minenblum? The people of Eastfel Bay had never hurt her. It was the King and old man Saff leading the attacks.
If she did nothing however, the people of her own country would be slaughtered and burnt. She clenched her jaw as her pencil scratched across the page.
A few hours later, Rose exhaled and looked down at her finished drawing. A mirth-filled chuckle escaped her lips.
On the page, there was a vivid depiction of a village in flames, half the buildings were reduced to rubble and in the distance there was a haunting ship, manned by ghosts.
She had made up her mind.