Chapter 427 (2/2)

Randidly bared his teeth. Perhaps he wasn’t clear on the details, but it seemed very true that the System had laid another trap for the people here, one that the best and brightest would fall to if they were not forewarned. From what Lucretia said, there was a way to avoid this, but…

Undoubtedly, it was another way that the System binds people to it. A life devoid of your own images, subsisting on half-hearted regurgitated ones.

Again, Randidly howled mentally, sending a tsunami of Aether flowing towards Alana, Aether that could help absorb the images before they destroyed the carefully created Class, but there was only so much that Randidly could do. He realized it several precious seconds too late. Already, Alana’s Class was in 13 pieces, and handfuls of small shards that were being slowly disintegrated.

Still, he would not stop now.

More and more offshoots of his Aether grew up through her Class, wrapping around the remaining 13 pieces, guarding them, shielding them from the violently exploding images. And slowly, the pandemonium began to clear.

Tighter and tighter the vines spun, twining together, pressing the remaining shards of Alana Class into a semblance of what once was. Annoyed at his slow progress, he sent a mental prod at Lucretia, even as about half of the violent energy was subdued.

“...If you think it will help… hum… Let’s weave it like this.” Lucretia said slowly, still disbelieving, but her eyes flashed with curiosity. She too realized that there was something peculiar here, and even if it wasn’t enough to save Alana-

No, Randidly thought, grinding his teeth. It had to be enough.

Now, with Lucretia’s assistance, his vines twined together in specific patterns, fueled by his flood of Aether. It was becoming difficult for Randidly to concentrate, as images flooded him in exchange, giving him a headache. Hopefully, this was a short-term thing, because otherwise…

But Lucretia was there, touching and prodding using his Skills, keeping things under control while he was distracted. They had built a Class before, or at least tried to, so Lucretia moved with a deft assurance that was absent the first time. One of the key lessons that they had learned was that Aether was not nearly as fragile as they had first believed, and also that it could not be kept separate from itself. Strands of it would inevitably mix.

So instead of aiming for accuracy, what was better was to focus on the general shape, and let the Aether itself, and the life and images that constituted it, fill in the difference.

Slowly, the Class came back together, forming once more into a five-tiered construct, representing the five 10s of Levels that Alana had gathered. It was a strange thing, made mostly of vines and large shards of amber, but as Randidly focused, he could feel something else happening, deep in his chest: Living Aether activated.

Slowly, the form of the vines faded away, leaving only the spiraling emerald crystal, in stark contrast to the amber. It shrunk back too so that it seemed that the emerald portions were just highlighting and outlining the amber, like a frame for a painting. And the amber seemed to even out a bit too, as some of that emerald energy was absorbed by it, the two varieties of Aether mixing together.

By the end of it, it had become a spear, made of amber and emerald, pointing towards the sky, a large, intact shard of amber at the apex, pointing upwards.

****

After coughing up what felt like a lung, Alana sat up, her head throbbing. People were gathered around her, and she pushed them away, desiring space. They seemed to sense this, and they got up and took several steps back.

One of them passed her a water.

She felt a flash of irritation. Did they think her incapable of getting a drink, just because of a little headache? Jesus fuck…

Well, she was thirsty…

After a long drink, Alana finally opened her eyes and blinked at the notification she saw.

Congratulations! You have passed your Reckoning! Your Class has changed. You have now become a Level 50 Valkyrie of the Red Dust. Your Level up gains have changed. +15 Health and Mana per Level. +18 Stamina per Level. +2 Strength per Level. +5 Stats divided amongst Endurance, Agility, Wisdom, and Focus. You have gained the Skill Crimson Ire ® Lvl 1. You have gained the Skill Avatar Form (A) Lvl 1.