Hello there people of the Internet! Journeymen here, for another chapter of The Paladin's Game. I hope you are all ready, for I got a lot planned for this chapter! Anyway, I don't really have that much to say for now. Oh, wait, actually I think I should properly explain the poll... which I don't think I ever did on here. Anyway, this poll is to decide what story you guys all want me to post along with this. For anyone who has been with me for a while, they will remember that The Paladin's Game was also decided by a poll, and I took down The Power Within an Arc. This poll was set up to see what would replace that. I hope that clears up any confusion. Also, at the end of this chapter, I will be posting a summary of each of the options, which will include it's bio, it's parring, it's genre, and which fandom it belongs to. Now let's get this going, shall we?
(Editor's comment: Only one of the stories is not a part of the RWBY fandom, and it does look pretty interesting).
Comment of the Week goes to...Hirshja: You will see my friend, just be patient
Honorable Mentions:
Benji the Monocat: While I don't know exactly about what you are talking about, it is interesting that there is something similar to that. Outside of other gamer fics before.
Phalanx30: Glad you find my chart so helpful! And I thought the Conquest feature would help spice things up.
I do not own RWBY or anything owned by RoosterTeeth…
I smirked as I stepped out of the bar. The mini-map showed that I was now in Greyhounds' territory instead of the Bloodhound's territory. Now all I needed to do was go and deal with the other lieutenants, and then I can go after the big man: Jett himself.
But which one should I go after first? I had talked to Blackwood, and he gave me the basics of what each one handled. Besides Blackwood, who had handled training the gangsters, there were two other lieutenants besides him. There was a man named Xian Hong, a man of Mistrilian descent and the one who had gotten the guns and anything else that they might need; and there was also a man named Donovan, who handled contracts for any mercenary work the gang did and was the one in charge of the money flow. Both were responsible for vital parts of the gang and, if what Blackwood said was true, they should also have their semblances unlocked.
Xian Hong's semblance was called Sacred Fire while Donovan's was called Brick Break. Unfortunately, that was all that he knew since the other lieutenants seemed to keep information regarding their semblances under wraps. At least I could get an idea of what they did from the names. Xian Hong would probably be a pyromancer while Donovan would be a hand-to-hand fighter. Why someone would put a pyro in charge of all the guns and ammunition was beyond me, but who was I to judge? Besides, they might learn their mistakes if my fight with him went wrong anyway.
Unfortunately, none of them helped me figure out who I should face off against first.
"If only I could make multiple copies of myself," I thought. Sadly, I couldn't do that...yet. So, if I couldn't figure out a logical reason to go after one instead of the other, I decided to do the one thing I really did not want to do: rely on my luck.
I pulled a coin out from my inventory.
"Alright," I muttered to myself, "heads for Xian, tails for Donovan."
I flipped the coin. I caught it and put it on the back of my other hand. I lifted my hand and looked at the result. It was heads.
I bit back a sigh as I held in my disappointment. Guess I was hoping for Donovan after all, fighting a pyromancer doesn't sound fun. I was a man of my word, though, and I had already decided to go with what my luck decided. So, I headed off to where Xian was supposed to be located tonight.
It took a while, as it was now well into the night, but I was finally able to make it to the warehouse where Xian was located. There were a couple of people outside holding guns as they patrolled the area. They were more sensible then the Yellow Snakes at least, I could give them that.
The warehouse was also surrounded by a tall fence with barbed wire on top. That meant that even if someone could climb the fence without being spotted by the guards, they'd have to also be nimble enough avoid having the barbs catching and digging into their flesh. Even if someone's aura was unlocked, managing all of that while being completely silent would be a very tall order. Luckily for me, my semblance gave me all the skills and abilities I needed to get around all of that without any problems. I just had to make sure the guards wouldn't spot me while doing so, and to do that, I first had get close to the fence so I could watch the guards.
Activating Stealth, I got as close to the fence as I could without the lights strewn about the area revealing my location, making sure to avoid the street lamps as well as those would do the same thing. Once there, either my luck finally proved useful enough to throw me a bone, or The Game decided to throw in a reference to one of my favorite stealth games in the form of a conveniently sized cardboard box sitting discarded right next to the fence. There were even holes on the sides intended for handholds that I could use to peer out of. There was no way I wasn't taking advantage of that. I pulled the box over me, and I watched the guards though one of the handholds.
After watching their patrol pattern for a bit, I noted that there were four guards outside with their patrol route set up to have one guy always watching a side. The area was pretty well lit up thanks to the outside lighting the warehouse had, which negated any hope that they wouldn't see me when I got past the fence. However, I saw that there was a twenty-five second window for when the guards moved to a different side. While that was a lot of time to leave a spot unwatched, I still had to act fast if I wanted to take advantage of it since the fence itself was so far from the actual building.
As soon as the guards started to move, I quickly threw the box into my inventory (could be useful later) and used my Jump ability to jump over the fence. On the other side and on a time crunch, I then ran as fast as I could, not wanting to use Sprint in case I went too fast and made unnecessary noise. Once I reached the edge of the warehouse, I used Jump one more time to get onto the roof, using just enough power so I landed on it at the very apex of the jump to prevent any sound falling onto in would cause. I held still and listed for a bit, and after hearing no sounds of running or shouting, I looked back over the edge to see that I had gone unnoticed as there was a new guy standing guard looking absolutely bored.
Smirking to myself, I walked across the roof until I got to a maintenance entrance on the roof looking into the building. It looked like my luck was working overtime tonight because there was a catwalk barely a few meters below it. I even waited a few minutes to see if anyone was going to walk across it, and no one did. I carefully opened the skylight and dropped onto the catwalk as silently as I could.
Now inside, I looked below to see a lot of crates of what I guess was weapons and dust, and what looked like all the gang members circled around one man. He was about 5'8" and had midnight black hair, tan skin, and emerald eyes.
Insight.
Xian Hong {Special}
Lvl: 26
Main Title: The Fire Dog
Sub-Title: The Blue Fire of Mistral
Hp:14,000/14,000
Ap: 8075/8075
Sp: 780/780
Str: 52 (78)
Dex: 70 (123)
Vig: 92 (161)
Int: 68 (102)
Wis: 54 (81)
Luck: 8 (12)
Chr: 108 (162)
Born in the lower levels of Mistral, Xian was the son of a gangster and raised in crime. He joined the Mistral military to better his skills. Once his service was done, he was picked up by Jett to join the Bloodhounds.
Closing the screen, I tried to move in closer so I could hear the discussion while also keeping my eyes open for anything of interest. Unfortunately, when I got as close as I could from up in the catwalk, I still could not hear what Xian and his goons were talking about. So, I settled for going for his office instead, which was on the same level as the catwalk. I faced little trouble as it seemed that most of, if not all of, the goons were indeed with Xian.
The office was a simple metal box with a window on the side and a simple office door. Looking through the window in the door, I made sure no one was inside before trying to open it. Sadly, it was locked, meaning that I couldn't find any potential information regarding him or the gang before I fought him.
"Guess I will just have to settle for plan B," I thought to myself, and I made my way to the circuit breaker. Unfortunately for me, it wasn't on the same level I was, which was the top floor of the warehouse. This means that I had to go down to the only other floor of the building, where all the goons and Xian where. I really hate my luck.
I hopped off the catwalk and landed on the floor behind a wall of crates and boxes. Thanks to Feather Fall being maxed out, I didn't take any damage from the fall. Even better, I also didn't make any noise, so my presence was still hidden. I wasn't sure if that was because I still had Stealth on, or if Feather Fall just did that naturally. Shelving that thought away for later, I activated Aura Sense and saw a big cluster of people through the crates, their outlines filled in with red, with a single man and a box whose outlines were filled in with yellow.
"Gotta love highlighted objectives," I thought, and I worked through the maze of crates and boxes. I even looked through a couple of the ones that were open and easy to reach. I found guns and ammo mostly, but also money and more dust, the latter of which I took. Among all the dust, I found a decent-sized, yellow, lighting dust crystal, which would make my job of taking out the breaker a little more permanent.
Checking my mini-map, I noticed that a red dot was slowly coming towards me. Seems that my luck had finally clocked out for tonight to start working against me again. Fortunately, it didn't seem to be trying too hard right now as I was able to stay ahead of him.
I made it to the breaker in little time. I opened it up and pulled out the lightning dust crystal I had picked up.
"Lights out," I said before jamming the crystal into the breaker. The lighting coursed through my arm and body as a fast series of pops sounded and the lights went out before I let go.
"Status: HP," I mentally commanded as I held my arm to alleviate the pain of the electricity.
HP: 18,894/19,984
Wincing at the loss of HP, I took solace that it at least got the job done, leaving everyone in the building who didn't have Aura Sense blind. Since I not only had Aura Sense showing me where everyone was but also Mini-Map giving me an outline of the halls as well as everyone's exact location, it was as if nothing had changed for me.
I immediately backtracked to my follower and found him trying to attach a flashlight to his rifle. He managed, but I was on him just as he did.
I grabbed him, covered his mouth to muffle his startled yell, tripped him, and slammed him to the floor, knocking the man out as soon as his head whacked the pavement. He probably had a serious concussion, but he was still alive. Smashing the man's flashlight with a quick stomp, I left him as I saw the eighteen red dots on my mini-map separate and spread out.
I let a grin grow on my face as I used my Jump ability to get on top of the crates to get a vantage point. This was quickly becoming like one of my favorite stealth games. I snuck along the top of the crates towards a grunt who had decided to strike out by himself. These guys were always the easiest and first ones to take out. Once I was above him, I jumped down and smashed my fist into the back of his head. With the force of my punch combined with gravity's pull on my body, the guy was knocked out before he even had a chance to open his mouth. Seeing that he had a flashlight attached to his rifle as well, I quickly gave it the same treatment as the last one and smashed it.
I glanced at the knocked-out guard and noticed that he had an earpiece in his ear. Taking it off his hands, I was greeted to a blue screen.
Would you like to learn the skill Comm Link?
Y/N
Clicking the Y, I watched as the earpiece disappeared like a skill book, and I felt it take its place in my right ear.
Congratulations! You have earned the skill Comm Link!
Comm Link (Rank 1)- Alfred, patch me through. (Can listen in to enemy comms in a 15 Meter radius.)
~What was that?~
I had played enough stealth games to know what was coming. I grabbed the body and gun of the guard I had just knocked out and leapt up onto the crates again. I even moved away just out of habit. I smirked as I saw one of the red dots run around a corner, and stay there for a few minutes before the comm came to life again.
~Man, I don't like this. Boss, I think someone is here with us.~
~Well then find him.~
Oh, this was just like my favorite stealth games. Pickoff each guard one by one, don't let them set off an alarm, and then take on the boss. Unlike those stealth games, though, it looked like I didn't even need to worry about setting off an alarm as all the guards who would respond were already in the room. Granted there were the guards outside, but there were only four of them. Not much in the way of reinforcements. This was going to be fun.
I quickly looked for my next target and found a pair of grunts who were back to back, covering the halls in the light. Seeing that I wouldn't be able to get one of them without the other catching me, I dispensed with a silent take-down as I dropped down in front of the lead grunt. His light was right on me.
"Freeze!" He yelled, but that was it as I used Flash Step Strike to hit him square in the jaw, grabbed his and his buddy's heads and slamming together.
Critical Hit! Critical Hit!
While they were disoriented, I shifted my grips to their necks and choke slammed them to the ground.
Critical Hit! Critical Hit!
I then used Jump to get out of there as fast as possible, leaving the bodies unconscious on the ground. While I didn't like leaving evidence, it turned out to be the right move. Back in the safety of high above, I was able to see a group five grunts arrive just as I shifted my position to look down at the aftermath from above my perch.
"Shit," one of the grunts cursed, "He got 'em."
Now things were going to get harder since they all now knew that I wasn't just present, but that I was also picking them off. Xian's voice came over the coms.
~Get in groups of three and have one of you watch the catwalks. And someone get the damn lights back on!~
Looking at Xian's yellow figure through the crates, I saw that he had at least four of his grunts with him as he made his way to one of the steps leading up to the catwalk too, I assumed, get to his office. I also noted that a group of three grunts was heading towards the fuse box and a group of two grunts seemed to be standing back-to-back somewhere separate from the other grunts.
I stealthily made my way to where the group of two was and found them in the center of a clearing. The clearing was definitely big enough to prevent me from dropping down on them, which was something I bet they were counting on. With this set up they had made, they likely figured that I would be forced to get down from the boxes and face them on even ground. I could admit, that was a good plan. Unfortunately for them, it wouldn't work against me.
Getting to the edge of the box, I crouched as I filled my legs with aura. I then lunged towards the two, my aura enhanced legs launching me like a human bullet out of a cannon.
Congratulations! You have earned the new skill Lunge!
Lunge (Level 1)- Like a lion stalking a gazelle, you wait for the perfect chance then strike! (Lunge up to 10 feet. Spend an additional 10AP for another 10 feet. If you attack someone while in stealth, you'll make an automatic critical.) [10 AP and 10 SP] [10 more AP for more distance]
I crashed into one of the grunts, bringing him to the floor with a surprised shout. I quickly punched him in the head, knocking him out, and was then greeted to a flashlight in my face courtesy of the other guard. I used Flash Step Strike just rifle barked at me. He missed and I landed my Flash Step Strike right on his face, sending him to ground on his back. I quickly mounted his chest and proceeded to pummel him, making damn sure he was out. Once he was down, I grabbed him and his buddy before jumping away back to the safety of the crates. There was no way the entire warehouse didn't hear that rifle going off, and it didn't take experience in stealth games to know that the sound of unsilenced gunfire would bring the horde on top of you in moments.
Sure enough, a group of five grunts came into the clearing. I decided to forgo stealth in favor of further bringing down their numbers. I grabbed a green dust crystal from my inventory, graciously supplied by the warehouse looting I had performed earlier, tossed it at the group, and pulled out my Beretta. Before the grunts could react, I shot the crystal, causing a huge gust of wind to erupt from it and throw them all at the walls. The group of five was now a group of two. One of the knocked out grunts lay buried in one of the crates with only his legs sticking flailing, and the other two layed knocked out on the floor. The two still conscious were pushing themselves up from the ground. I rushed them, and after a couple of quick sequential punches, they too went down. I grabbed one of the legs of the guy in the box and yanked him out.
Or, at least, I tried to.
The guy would not budge, and judging from how his legs were slowing, he was also suffocating. Wasting no time, I hit the box with a Divine Smite, blasting the thing apart to free the grunt. He took a few breaths of fresh air with great abandonment as he was finally able to breathe again.
"Tha-thanks, man."
"No problem."
The man shot a grateful smile at me before enjoying the feeling of breathing again. Then his brain finally began to process that I was the guy he was supposed to be fighting.
"Goodnight," I said grinning, and then I decked him in the face, sending him to the floor unconscious.
You have leveled up! You have gained a skill point!
Smirking to myself, I decided to leave the group of three for now. After all, it's not like they would be able to get the power back on. That lightning dust crystal had absolutely fried that box.
Before I left, however, something about the shattered box that caught my eye. While the contents, some powdered ice dust, had all spilled onto the floor, the box itself had turned out to be far more than an ordinary one. The box's interior sides all had a layer of insulation and styrofoam attached to them. The insulation was the foam kind I had seen some construction workers spray into walls and roofs to help keep houses warm and cool against outside temperatures. This foam, however, had a sharp, blue tint to it.
I didn't have much time to investigate the construction of a box, though. I had much more pressing matters to attend to.
Moving to Xian and his group at his office, I saw that he left his goons to guard the outside. Pulling out Crocea Mors, I held the sword at the ready as I jumped up to the catwalk while preparing a Shockwave. As soon as my feet touched the floor, I let it go, the rushing wave dazing all of them while making the ones up front take a step back. Using another Flash Step Strike,I slammed a Divine Smite powered blade into the chest one of the grunts in the front and then followed up with a pommel to the face and a knee to the gut. The grunt went down like all the others before him. I then threw my blade up, deflecting a bullet from the pistol.
Deflection increased by 1!
Grabbing one of the grunts, I threw him off of the catwalk, knowing that the fall wouldn't kill him. If they could survive me cracking my fist on their head while falling from the crates, they could survive that fall. One of the others came rushing at me before I threw him off as well. The last one, who just so happened to be the one who shot at me, had his gun shaking like mad at me. I smirked, and he decided to save us both the trouble and jump off after his friends. I heard a thud and some groans. Sounds like he had landed on said friends.
Danger ahead of you.
Reacting quickly, I jumped off the catwalk and onto the boxes as a blue spirling fire came crashing from the other side of the door. The culprit was none other than Xian, who was covered in a blue spirling flame. He didn't say anything as he jumped onto the crates, the flames somehow not making the wood catch fire. I was not going to complain about that, though, as I got into a ready stance, and waited for him to make the first move. This turned out to be a mistake.
He ran straight at me. As he did so, his flames did something similar to Ruby's semblance, only instead of a spiraling ball of rose petals, they turned him a spiraling ball of fire! I had to jump to another set of boxes. Unfortunately, it was starting to look like Xian's semblance was a direct rip off of Ruby's as Xian just corrected his course. I jumped from box to box, and each time he follows me. This also turned out to be a mistake on my part as his flames had actually started to act like flames and started setting fire to the wood of all the boxes it got close to. I had to get away from all of the wood, but with all of the fire going on already, I couldn't see a way to get to any of the exits without Xian barbequing me in the process. The only place I could think of that had any space that wasn't completely consumed with fire was the clearing the grunts from earlier had lured me to to get me out of hiding. It wasn't the most ideal of places to fight Xian, but I didn't see much of a better option and I didn't have time to think of a better one before the crates started exploding.
I rushed my way to the clearing, doing my best to stay away from Xian, which was hard to do as he was right behind me. I managed to make it, but with the final leap I took to get into the clearing, he finally managed to catch up to me and I was forced to turn around and block with my sword.
His flames licked and burned my skin as both of us crashed into the ground. I used a Shockwave to get the guy off me, sending human fire bullet back a couple of feet before he transformed back to his human form and shot at me with a jet black revolver. I rolled out of the way and fired off Shockwave at the ground, launching me into the air. I quickly equipped my Beretta and shot at him, forcing him to dodge to the side. This gave me enough time to get up and re-equip my sword while having my pistol in my other hand. We stared at each other for a little bit before I activated Heaven's Fury, dowsing my sword in holy flames.
Xian smirked before his flames came across his body once more. "Let's see who's flame is superior hm?" He said for the first time since this fight.
With a flick of his finger, his revolver shifted to a combat knife that he held in a reverse grip. His flames then wrapped around the knife, extending its reach to match the length of my own blade. I started round two of the fight by firing my pistol. The flames then separated from the blade and absorbed the bullet. I narrowed my eyes as I watched the flames go back to the blade. It seemed that, so far at least, his blue fire could not leave him or the thing they were wrapped around. While it was around him, he was able to do something similar to Ruby and move at high speeds with the only difference being that he could hurt me while like that. He also had enough control of it to have the flame branch out to different parts or become one.
"But could he do more than that?" I mentally questioned as I unequipped my pistol. Using Holy Ember, I tried to recreate what had occurred when I first made Blazing Smite. The result was a wave of fire around five feet high and wide went zooming towards the man. I saw his eyes widen before his flames turned into a shield to protect him. Incidentally, this gave me enough time to deal with my blue screen.
Congratulations! You have earned the skill Heat Wave!
Heat Wave (Level 1)- Things are heating up! (Send a 5 by 5 wave of fire that can stun and will burn enemies for up to 50% of the shockwave damage. More if charged.) [100 AP more if charged]
I smiled to myself as I closed the box. I then ran over to his side to strike him, but his fire, even while dealing with the flames from my Heat Wave, still forced me to take a step back as they acted like vipers and lashed out at me. Before I could press the attack again, his flames finished off my own, and he came rushing towards me.
He held his flame blade like a fencer, and he stopped about ten feet before he reached me.
"Fire Lance!" He exclaimed, and his weapon seemed to leap out at me in a spiral of flames. I had no time to dodge as it plowed right into my gut, knocking the wind out of me, burning a hole in my suit, and knocking me on the floor. Thankfully Gamer's Body was a thing, and I was healed of all the damage. I could not say the same about my suit, though.
Getting up, I glared at the smirking man.
"That was my only suit," I said, frustration leaking from my voice.
"You won't be missing it for long." Xian threatened before he once again got into his fencing position.
This time, I was ready for it. When he went to make the attack once again, I used a Flash Step Strike to get in close and hit him with a Divine Smite charged fist. I then tried to slam my pommel into his temple, but it turned out that my punch didn't have as much of an effect as I hoped it did. He grabbed my wrist, pulled me close to him, and his flames then receded from his knife, wrapping around me and my body. I winced as I felt his flames burn through my clothes and my skin. I quickly shoved him away just enough for me to get my sword into position to stab him, but his flames left my body to shield him from the damage, and I quickly took the opportunity to put some distance between us.
"Note to self, don't let those flames trap you." I thought, watching as his flames came back around his blade. We glared at each other, the only sound around us coming from the burning boxes around us (how was there not an explosion by now!?)
At an unspoken and unseen signal, we both rushed each other, our blades collided again and again. As we dueled with our blades, I prepared a Heat Wave in my off-hand. When Xian managed to parry my blade in a way that left me wide open, I let it loose. His fire was not fast enough to stop it when unleashed at point-blank range. His guard opened up, I went for a low sweep, knocking him off his feet and onto the ground, and I plunged my sword down on him. His aura protected him from being killed, but not the damage or pain he felt. He gave a cry of pain, as his fire lashed out violently, scoring a hit on my eye and forcing me to back off as it healed in a couple blinks.
Xian was up and glaring daggers at me. "You'll pay for that." He growled.
"Was my suit not enough?" I asked.
He smiled.
"Nooo…" He said pulling out a second revolver and shifted it to a knife. Then more of his flames appeared and surrounded his blade. Now instead of one, there were two swords made of fire that I had to worry about.
"This will be much more fitting." He then swung his sword, and I watched in awe as his swords acted like a pen and the air, paper. He wrote a simple symbol, though I didn't know what it meant. I didn't get the chance to find out either.
"Fire Blast!" He shouted before sending the thing straight at me at an alarming speed.
Before I could even think to move, the symbol exploded and ten smaller but faster torrents of flame came out moving like vipers. They all latched on and proceeded to trap me as the remaining fire came rushing towards me. I could do nothing but take it as the fire consumed me. To top it off, the fire vipers exploded, adding their own damage while adding intensity to the fire. I couldn't hold back my scream as I felt my skin burn to ash, rebuild itself, and burn again. It then ended with another explosion sending me crashing into the wall, smoking.
Xian's laughter filled the room. "You were a worthy foe," He said, haughtily, "but in the end, my flame was superior."
I gave a groan in response as I pushed myself back up onto my feet.
"Ah, still alive are you?" He said as I fell onto one of my knees in pain. "Well, worry not. I will put a swift but merciful end to you." He said walking over to me, his fiery blade gone replaced with a combat knife. However, whether from his own arrogance or the smoke from all of the flames (seriously, how has there not been one explosion from all of these flames?), he must have not seen my smirk.
Once he was in range, I activated Flash Step Strike and Divine Smite while making an upward slash with my sword. I saw his aura shimmer, but not break. I quickly fixed that with a Divine Smite powered punch. His Aura broke as he finally fell onto the floor unconscious.
You have leveled up! Pain Tolerance has gone up by 2!
"Would you look at that." I breathed out, the level up fully rejuvenating me from that exhausting fight. Not a moment later, the lights came back on, bringing the sprinklers on with them.
"Wonder how those guys managed to do that?" I questioned.
I saw the three red dots on my mini-map come towards the clearing. If they wanted to fight, I figured I could oblige them. I was back up to full power now.
"Boss! Boss! We managed to…." The grunts' voices died off as they came upon the scene of their boss unconscious and me standing there over him. And I just now realized that I didn't have a shirt on. Must have burned off from that attack of his. I wonder why my pants survived, though.
Magic~
Also, I'm rated T, not M.
"Quiet, you." I mentally ordered the game, as I looked towards the grunts. "Do any of you know where I can get some new clothes?" I asked.
Their response was to drop their weapons and go on their knees with their hands out for me to cuff.
"We're really sorry." One started.
"Yea, wes never meant to hurt no'bdy." The other said in a really weird accent. I looked to the final grunt expectantly.
"Hn." He grunted and I sighed.
"Just, tie yourself up," I said not wanting to deal with this.
To my surprise, they actually followed my order as they took off their shirts to make a makeshift rope and tied the three of themselves up in it. Giving them a weird glance, I decided to shrug my shoulders and move on.
However, there was one thing I had to know first, something that had been bugging me during the entire fight with Xian but could be addressed. This was a warehouse filled almost to the brim with crates and boxes filled with weapons, ammunition, and dust. Almost all of the boxes had caught on fire during the fight between Xian and I, yet there was not even one explosion that occurred during the whole ordeal. I had to understand how that one happened.
Jumping up to the top of the crates, I found my answer. The wood of the crates was completely burned away, leaving behind the now blackened and soaking wet insulation I had seen earlier in the box I had torn that one grunt out of. Some of the crates, however, had a thick layer of ice encasing the insulation.
Observe.
Iced Insulation Foam.
An insulation foam used to provide special protection to objects and contents that are considered flammable. When ignition temperatures are reached, the ice dust will trigger, encasing the foam in a thick layer of ice to protect its contents.
I blinked after I read that. Looks like Xian was smart enough to take precautions against the possibility of his semblance going off by accident and igniting all of the ammunition all around him. Guess Jett wasn't as dumb as I thought he was putting a guy like that in charge of all of this.
That mystery solved, I looked for the unconscious goons, whose bodies hadn't gotten burned from all the fire Xian had put out, thankfully, and looted them for all their lien. After collecting it all, I had to whistle at the amount. It had just looted twenty-two thousand lien from these guys.
"Too bad I'm extremely irresponsible with money," I lamented, "Else I might be able to go somewhere with this much. Oh well, comic books here I come."
That silver lining found I made my way to the office. No longer having to worry about the door since it was blown off, I walked inside… only to find that most of the stuff was burnt.
"Well, that plan went up in smoke," I said. I chuckled a little bit at the pun as I tried to find anything that wasn't burnt to an absolute crisp. "You would think my sister tried to cook here with how much shit is burnt," I commented under my breath. There was a reason why I had such a high cooking skill after all.
Eventually, my efforts did prove fruitful. I found a button that was under one of the desks. Pressing it, I was greeted to a sliding doorway behind the desk. Inside was a small room with a nice pristine wooden chest.
"Ooo, hidden chest!" I exclaimed as I walked to the chest and seeing that there was no lock on it only made me happier.
"Alright, Big loot, no whammies. Big loot, no whammies." I chanted with crossed fingers. I then opened the chest to find a journal, a rather large crystal, and a leather duster. I decided to inspect the crystal first. I pulled it out the chest so I could turn it and have a better look. It looked like a massive quartz crystal that was about half the size of my head and as clear as still water.
"Wonder if you're more than just a big wad of money," I questioned, getting a blue screen in response.
You have discovered a Supreme. Killer. Illustrious. Luscious. Lavender Scented Crystal!
"Are they really called that?" I questioned.
Nah, it's called a Skill Gem. You use these things to get skill points.
"Oh, Cool!" I exclaimed, and not so long after that, the crystal turned to dust in my hand.
You have gained another Skill Point!
I couldn't help but smile as I looked quickly looked through the skill trees. Taking Ren's suggestion of upgrading my crafting skills, and thanks to only needing one skill point for that. I was then able to Meditation like how I wanted.
Congratulations! You have gained the skill Crafting Uncommon Gear! You have gained the skill Meditation!
Crafting Uncommon Gear (Rank 2)- Ah yes, slightly better than normal. (Able to craft gear of Uncommon level and lower.)
Meditation (Rank 1)- You know I heard some monks can do this for years without food or water. Sure sucks that they aren't gamers. (Passively boosts MP regen by 0.15%, actively boosts MP regen by 1%)
I smiled before closing the tabs and picking up the duster.
Insight.
Fire Dust Infused Duster
Quality: Uncommon
Armor Type: Light
Description: A dust infused duster, this leather coat has been infused with fire dust to protect the user from the cold, and has been modified for combat as well.
Base Effect: Grants Immunity from the cold
Uncommon Effect: Boosts Fire Attacks by 15% percent
Modification Available (1)
"Wait. Modifications? Are those what I think they are?" I questioned The Game.
Yep. Thanks to upgrading your crafting skill, you can now modify gear that is uncommon or lower. The higher your crafting, the more modifications allowed and the higher quality gear you can modifier.
"That's... really cool. How do I modify something?" I asked.
Well, all you need in this case are the items in question and a table. For things with metal, you need a forge and so on and so forth.
Nodding my head, I walked to the desk.
"This is good enough to be a table right?" I asked myself before throwing everything off the desk and placing the duster on the desk. "Alright, game! Show me the mods!" I yelled, and I got a blue screen in return.
Modifications
Grimm Hide Under Shirt- Adds a Grimm hide undershirt, boosts attack by 15% but reduces healing and Aura by the same amount. [Requires Grimm Hide]
Increased Fire Capacity- Boosts Fire Attacks by 30% instead of 15% [Requires Fire Dust Crystal]
Iron Padding- Adds a 5% bonus to defense, bumps armor type to Medium [Requires Iron Ingot]
Extra Pockets- Adds 5 inventory spaces [Requires Leather]
Looking over each option, I immediately dismissed the Grimm Hide Undershirt. As cool as that sounds, I really didn't want my ability to heal and my Aura to be lessened in any way, even if boosted my attack. It just had too many downsides. Extra Pockets sounded nice, but I didn't really want to waste a mod on something like that, especially as I naturally earn Inventory space by increasing my Str. That left the Iron Padding and Increased Fire Capacity. Both were good things in my opinion. I have been using a lot of fire-based attacks recently, so it would always be nice to have some extra damage in that field. Then again, added protection would always be nice. I didn't have any iron on me, though, while I did have a fire dust crystal. Would it really be that hard to get a single iron, though, especially with the money that I just got? But would I want to wait that long?
Well, I should probably see what the journal is about before I decided what I want. Confident with my choice I walked back to the chest and picked up the journal.
Do you want to learn the skill Sacred Fire?
Y/N
"Wait, wasn't that Xian semblance?" I asked as I turned to the first page.
A Sacred Fire and Its Secrets
I have made this journal to take notes on my...Semblance. If it could be called that. To be honest I have never even heard of a Semblance like this before. My family has a history of fire-related semblances. But this feels... First of all, this fire is blue. A unique color that has rarely been seen in recorded history. Now that alone isn't the weirdest thing. Gods know how many people out there who live in the wilds and haven't even seen one of the cities, and records get lost all the time. No, what makes me question this fire is the fact that it is alive, and I mean that literally. This fire has a mind of its own. I have never seen anything like it. Gods know it has been a bitch to keep it under control, but I have somehow managed to not burn down everything I have touched. So that gotta mean something. Right? Anyway, I have written down all the qualities I have observed from it so far.
-Its fire is blue (Though I have seen different colors)
-The Fire licks to lash out at things (Always tries to attack Beacon Academy's Headmaster's pictures. Made the guys think I had a grudge against the guy.)
-The Fire can absorb fires from dust or natural means (Have yet to test it against another fire-based Semblance)
-It can and will burn you
There was more to the book, but I didn't want to read anymore. I closed the journal.
Skill Magical Resistance.
~~Magical Resistance (Level 1) {25%}- You are 1% resistant to magic
"Oh, my gods." I gasped.
Ren and I have been trying to find out how to level this skill up, but, seeing as how neither of us had magic, we had eventually just given up on it. After all, magic did not exist. Now, however, I was being led to believe otherwise.
"I-I don't know how I should feel about this," I admitted before a thought struck me. I just learned that magic existed, and I now had the opportunity to learn it. There was no way that I could pass this up! Going back to the skill book screen, I clicked the Y button and watched in childlike excitement as the flame was absorbed into my being.
Congratulations! You have learned the skill Sacred Flame! You have unlocked the Ignis Skill Tree!
Sacred Flame (Rank 1)- Yes! Burn! Burn everything into the grou- Uh... I mean, look fire! (Conjure a blue flame that surrounds your body giving you a 15% boost to all stats and a 25% boost to all fire-based attacks.) [1500 AP]
I smiled to myself as I grabbed a fire dust crystal, walked to the chest, grabbed the duster, selecting the Increased Fire Capacity, and watched as the duster glowed red and the dust crystal turn to vapor before flowing into the leather. Once the process was done, I put on the leather duster before walking out of the warehouse.
Hearing sirens coming in the distance, I made my way out, never once letting the grin leave my face.
Here we are! The next chapter, also I might be changing the updates to be on Mondays. It will just be easier. Also as promised here are the updated summaries. Did you like it? Hate it? Leave me a review to let me know. Until next time, this is Journeymen signing off!
~~Sacred Flame (Rank 1)- Conjure a blue flame that surrounds your body giving you a 15% boost to all stats and a 25% boost to all fire-based attacks. [1500 AP]
~~Crafting Uncommon Gear (Rank 2)- Able to craft gear of Uncommon level and lower.
~~Meditation (Rank 1)- Passively boosts MP regen by 0.15%, actively boosts MP regen by 1%
~~Heat Wave (Level 1)- Send a 5 by 5 wave of fire that can stun and will burn enemies for up to 50% of the shockwave damage. More if charged. [100 AP more if charged]
~~Lunge (Level 1)- Lunge up to 10 feet. Spend an additional 10AP for another 10 feet. If you attack someone while in stealth, you'll make an automatic critical. [10 AP and 10 SP, 10 more AP for more distance]
~~Comm Link (Rank 1)- Can listen in to enemy comms in a 15 Meter radius.
~~Deflection (Level 2) {0%}- You are 15% more proficient in blocking projectiles
~~Pain Tolerance (Level 16) {88%}- Reduce all damage taken by 16%
The Power Within an Arc (Rewrite)
Fandom: RWBY
Parring: Lancaster
Genre: Action/Romance
Bio: Due to his Father's Mistakes, Jaune lived far from civilization. After encountering a Beowolf, Jaune sets off to become a Huntsman. If only his father's past would just leave him alone.
Man Made King
Fandom: RWBY
Parring:
Genre: Adventure/Friendship
Bio: Destiny is a fickle thing really. Jaune Arc, a man destined for greatness. Is kicked out of Beacon thanks to a man who can not accept his. Jaune must learn how to survive and become what fate has had planned for him all along. To become a king
A Brothers Wager
Fandom: RWBY
Parring:
Genre: Fantasy
Bio: It was over. The heroes had done it. They defeated Salem. When the brother of Darkness calls foul play, however, the older brother proposes a wager… A wager focused on one Jaune Arc.
The Dragon Who Wanted to Play Hero
Fandom: RWBY
Parring: Dragonslayer
Genre: Action/Supernatural
Bio: Jaune was not your average kid at Beacon. Anyone who took a look at his grades could tell you that. But it was not his fault that he was a giant fire breathing beast of legend. He just wanted to make his ancestors proud. And nothing was going to stop him.
Of Dragons, Gods, and Celestials
Fandom: RWBY
Parring:
Genre: Fantasy/Action
Bio: Balance; something that everyone strives to achieve. Whether it is inner balance or something on a much longer scale, it is the ultimate goal that only gods have ever claimed to achieve. But what was not told was of how no matter how much they boasted of there achievement. They could have never thought of the consequences that it could bring. And with gods now gone and powers being left unchecked. It's up for Balance to restore itself.
One Man's Past is Another Man's Future
Fandom: RWBY
Parring: White Knight
Genre: Fantasy/Romance
Bio: Jaune Arc died, sacrificing himself to buy his and his friends more time to escape Salem and a grimmified Cinders clutches. But it's often when on death's door ones regrets become to surface. And with a parting breath, he wished for another chance. It just so happened a certain god was listening.
Born of Darkness, Forged by Light
Fandom: RWBY
Parring: Arkos
Genre: Adventure/Drama
Bio: All Jaune ever wanted to be was a hero. But from what his mother keeping him sheltered. And someone claiming to be his actual mother telling him that it is his destined to destroy humanity. His life felt like it was falling at the seems. But at least there was a helpful wizard.
An Arc Around the World
Fandom: RWBY
Parring: Arcwitch
Genre: General
Bio: Remnant. It was given its name after the Gods left it. However, what if there was more to the world then what is seen? What if across the ocean there lay another land? One that seeks to reunite with those from across the sea?
The Gamer That was Promised
Fandom: GOT (Game of Thrones)
Parring: Jon x Daenerys or Harem (Would be decided by yet another poll)
Bio: Jon, the supposed bastard of Winterfell. He was supposed to be nothing unique; just a stain on his father's honor. However, after learning of his true heritage and gaining the powers of The Gamer, he will leave his mark on the world.
Allfather's Dream
Fandom: RWBY
Parring: None
Genre: Fantasy/General
Bio: Life on Remnant, was hard. With countries on the verge of war. Secret organizations planning something, and gods playing their own games. But when a solar eclipse arrives, and with it monsters from the void, the earth must choose its champions. But can they help a long forgotten god regain his power in time? Or will the void consume them all?