Middas, 13th day of Sun's Dawn, 4E 201
So, you might wonder what all there is to get up to in a snowy village in the middle of nowhere, where the people are highly suspicious of you, but it turns out once they learn that you lost a leg to a Falmer ambush while clearing out part of Blackreach? That tends to get you a few mugs of ale. Nords might hate Altmer, but holy fuck do they hate Falmer so much more.
"So there I am, up to my elbows in the guts of a Centurion, hmm? Yes those are the big ones with hammers, you really don't want to get their attention if you can help it. Anyways, I was being a dumbass and my ears were likely full of soot because I never heard the damned witch casting her spell. One moment I'm prying a soul gem out of the thing's heart, and the next I lose my leg to a lightning bolt." I sigh and pat just above my stump. "I've never felt anything as painful as that before or since that day."
"Aye, lightning never quite heals right does it?"
"Hoh did you get hit by some before?" Thren nods his head and sets down his mug of mead before rolling up his sleeve revealing a horrible lichtenberg scar.
"Aye. Was doing a patrol while I served with the guard and we ran into some bandits. I had the misfortune of grabbing one of the worn shields, and it's the grace of the divines that I didn't lose the arm when I blocked the bolt. Had to retire after that fight, but I got the bastard that got me." He grins at that and downs the rest of his mead. "Good on you for not letting that injury stop you though. Those Falmer are a bane upon Skyrim."
"Aye, that they are. I owe my life to my bodyguard several times over for the amount of times she's saved me since then."
[Lethaius: So what do you think? Believable but not too much?]
"For an imperial she sure sounds like she knows her way around a sword." Oh innuendo, how I love you so. "Are you and her?"
[Cinder: Hmmm, you haven't made me seem incompetent, so it's acceptable.]
[Cinder: Is it too much to ask for you to shoot this man?]
I snort before shaking my head. "Nah, I know not to stick my hand in the forge if you know what I mean, but I'm sorry to say I don't think you're her type Thren. Bit of a career woman if you ask me. That and the lass is practically my grandkid, sure mouths off like it." He laughs at that and the young Orsimer lass at the other end of the bar figures now's a good time as any to but into the conversation.
"You said you lost your leg to a lightning bolt, so does that mean you made the replacement?" I nod my head at that.
"Aye. Learned a few things while down there, and they paid off when I had to make this thing. And let me tell you something? It's a right pain in the ass in cold like this. Getting here from the damned lift nearly froze my stump." She makes her way over to our little group and pulls up a stool.
"Do you mind if I?" I wave it off.
"Go ahead lass, just don't run off with it aye? Couldn't exactly chase you in my condition." She grins at that and hefts the brass leg onto the bar and starts studying it, a small grin on her face.
"How'd you make it? I can't see a single hammer mark." I hum softly at that and sip my mead before wiggling my fingers.
"Magic~" She gives me a faux glare at that.
"Really now? What kinda magic might that be?" I hum thoughtfully for a moment. Alteration wouldn't be a lie would it?
"Some Alteration, a good deal of math, and a bit of research. I'd love to give myself a centurion leg, but it's far more complicated than this." She sighs at that.
"Never was much of a mage, but I'd be willing to go to the college if it meant I could make something like this."
"Truly? I've never been there myself, but I've been meaning to visit for a good while. Though I'll need to find a wagon and wait for things to warm up a good deal." That gets a laugh from Thren.
"Warm? In the pale? You'll be waiting a long time for that." I can't help but sigh at that.
"I'll admit I'm fond of the cold myself, and Skyrim is a lovely place to be sure, but it's not exactly kind to these old bones of mine."
From there the rest of the evening passes in a somewhat pleasant manner. Turns out buying rounds for people because breaking change for a Gold 'Semptim' was a bit rude. That said? Cinder and I have rooms for a month, which is nice considering we don't have any furnishings back in blackreach. With the advent that Cinder and I have Thane levels of money she manages to get all the supplies we could really need from the general store and blacksmith, with the added bonus of getting a pair of introductory books on Restoration and Destruction that we have to return when we leave the village.
Seeing as Cinder appears taken with Destruction magic, which makes a good deal of sense, and I'd rather not eat another book, she deigns to give me the book on Restoration to read. I thank Hadring for the nights meal before taking my leg from Gnush and retiring to my room for the night and casting a quick magelight above the headboard so I can read my book.
Honestly, It's a bit of a boring read and goes more into the broad strokes of things, talking about what Restoration can do, not how to do it. But it does have an explanation on how to do the most basic healing spell.
If you wish to learn healing magic it requires a great deal of concentration and for you to be in touch with your Magicka. It's best to practice on small wounds like a minor cut, scrape or bruise.
To cast the spell pull upon your Magicka and meditate on your desire to heal the injury in question before pushing the magicka into the wound. You likely won't have any results for the first dozen attempts, but within a month you should be able to see a small scratch start to slowly close.
I find myself oddly disappointed by that page, it makes all the magic look more like Wishcraft than anything truly impressive, but looking back on how things were in the game, it makes its own kind of sense. Magic is mostly used by people with strong wills, wants, and desires, so using those to fuel it does make sense, and it also makes sense why Necromancy is so frowned upon.
So it's not that dissimilar to the Unforgivables in Harry Potter in that regard. You need to want something to do it.
[Restoration 1 2]
That earns a small chuckle from me and I decide it'd be best if I try the spell out in the morning. I give the undead their orders for the night, mostly patrolling and resource gathering from within my territory, then I lay my head down for the night.
Middas, 14th day of Sun's Dawn, 4E 201
[Patching… Patching… Patch Applied]
[Welcome to The Game Version ]
Due to user feedback the following changes have been made.
-Level calculation no longer ignores imported skill levels
-MP has been changed to Mana
-SP has been changed to Stamina
-HP has been changed to Health
-The ability to work to improve your stats has been added
-Conjuration effects have been renamed to Summoning for the sake of simplicity
-Money values have been recalculated to show proper wealth
-User can now exchange monetary denominations from within the user interface
-Due to outside interference, all minions have had their stats recalculated, and generic minions will have universal stats. EG Lesser Zombie Falmer will have 20 condition instead of the previous 80
-Undead now passively draw upon the users Mana at a rate of 10 Mana Per Hour. This cost is paid throughout the entire hour.
-To compensate for this 'Nerf', The Gamer has been given the spell [Deconsecrated Ground] early
-Title System unlocked. Titles have effects that you will need to discover on your own
-Influence system has been added
-Inventory permissions have been added
[Titles: The Gamer, Novice: Speaker, Necromancer, Architect, Have been added]
[Stat gains: Endurance, Dexterity, Charisma +1, Intelligence +2, Wisdom +3]
[Congratulations on leveling up x4]
[You have gained 20 Stat Points and 4 Universal Points]
[Title: The Gamer]
Few are chosen to bear the title of Gamer, and fewer yet last long enough to matter.
Tread Carefully, for Gamer's draw attention like no others.
[Title: Novice Speaker]
You speak as comfortably as you breathe, and even know how to make people believe the tales you tell.
[Title: Novice Necromancer]
You're well acquainted with death, both in dealing it and working with those that have passed from their mortal coil.
[Title: Novice Architect]
You've started down the path of the builder, but you're far from the heights you may one day reach. You have however built a stable foundation that will allow you to build upon what you know.
[Influence System]
-Merida (despised)
-Molag Bal (Pleased)
[Deconsecrated Ground]
Sometimes you're forced to deal with a pesky paladin, or Shiro forbid an entire Order of them. Well, this allows you to level the playing field a bit as it were.
All undead on the grounds have their Condition doubled, and regenerate 1 Condition every 5 seconds.
Cost: 100
Range: 120 Feet
AOE: 20 Foot Radius
Duration: 10 minutes, can be made persistent with a 20 per minute upkeep
I wake up to an absolute flood of notifications. Patch notes? I…. Most of them are good changes in my eyes. Titles are good, the free levels are definitely appreciated, renaming my bars was appreciated, the currency converter is going to be nice to have so we aren't paying with a gold for everything, it's mostly all quality of life stuff, but what I absolutely hate?
Meridia decided to stir shit up. I'm currently losing 250 mana an hour, which honestly isn't a horrible cost, it's less than four mana a minute, which is literally nothing to me, but it's the principal of the matter, and then there's the colossal nerfing of almost my entire roster of undead except for the damned skeletons.
I sigh and run my hand through my hair as I stare at the ceiling. It's not a total loss, they are more fragile yes, but now I can heal them that much quicker, and with [Deconsecrated Ground]... Well, it's expensive, but I can still cast one of it a minute, and I'm pretty sure I can stack them as well.
I toss my leg over the side of the bed and sit up before looking at my sheet and getting to work distributing my stats. First off, I'm dumping ten points into Wisdom because I need the regen now, then I drop three in Int bringing it up to twenty, I'll drop one into Luck and Dexterity each, and that leaves me with five points left. Fuck it, I need the health. With that thought I dump the last five into Endurance.
[Due to reaching a milestone, the following perk has been added.]
[In Tune]
The path of the Sage is long and without end, step after step reaching forwards towards eternity, and yet here you are, having taken the first step onto the path.
You simply have to open your eyes.
[Health: 160][HPR: 64]
[Stamina: 160][SPR: 64]
[Mana: 260][MPR: 180]
As soon as the notification pops up my perception changes in a way I can only compare to the difference between a dream and reality. Everything becomes more, gains a deeper depth to it, and the most telling of all is the way the small ray of sunlight I can see glows.
[Cinder: Finally awake I see. I take it the evening was eventful?]
I snort at that and look down to my hands before pouring mana down my armm and out with my intent held firmly in my mind.
Heal
A smile forms on my face as I feel my mana plummet and start to fumble before slowly coalescing into a golden shimmer in the air.
[The following spell has been created]
[Healing]
Heals living beings and Damages undead
Cost: 10 MP
Range: Touch
[Lethaius: That's a word for it. Apparently my system updated due to the interference, and I was compensated for a few issues. You might be pleased to know part of that compensation took the form of charges for the multiversal summoning spell.]
I flick through the system screens so I can find the vending machine before spotting the lone can of Mistrialian coffee, a small smirk working its way onto my face at the sight of it. Can't really blame her, creature comforts are rare here. I grab a can of Arizona green tea from the machine and watch as ten coppers drain from the wallet.
[Cinder: Interference? What could cause interference for something like your system? I don't need to tell you how it would be unwise to use that at the moment, do I?]
I shake my head and quickly transfer my tea to a stone thermos before putting on my clothes and leg.
[Lethaius: Worry not, I won't do anything stupid. As for the interference…. One of the Daedra, Meridia in particular, despises the undead in their entirety, and from the changes made I'm assuming she took particular umbrage with the fact that my Necromancy is different than the local version. So now I'm using a constant stream of mana to keep my minions from being degraded. Thankfully it's handled in such a way that it doesn't change things too much.]
I make my way out into the small tavern and get a headnod from Hadring as he sets out a bowl of warm stew.
"Apologies if the bedding wasn't to your liking, it's been awhile since I've had travelers such as yourself in my halls." I shake my head and enjoy the bite of… rabbit? In my stew.
"Oh it was perfect, never was one for feather beds." I rub my nose a bit. "Always irritated my nose something fierce. Much better than sleeping on the ground without a bedroll at the very least." He gives me a questioning look so I elaborate between mouthfuls of stew. "Falmer snuck up on our site for the night and one of the summoned a flame atronach…. Some call them goblins, but I've never heard of a goblin summoning a Daedra before, hell just yesterday one of them summoned a storm atronach! If it weren't for Cinder's quick thinking in putting an arrow between the things blind eyes we probably wouldn't have been here yesterday." Looking at the man, he's rightfully spooked.
"You mean to tell me those things are smart enough to summon daedra?" I nod my head at that.
"Aye, in the first case I assumed it was a fluke, but the fact that it happened again yesterday…. I need to pick up paper at the store so I can start taking notes and draft a letter to the nearby holds. How often does a courier come through town?" He grimaces at that.
"Once a month if we're lucky, and the last courier came through a few days ago."
"Well that's unfortunate. Could I trouble you to hold onto some letters for me in that case?" He nods at that and leaves me to my meal, which is actually pretty good all things considered, and a few moments later my erstwhile companion joins me for a warm breakfast that she reheats to steaming. "Morning Cinder, I hope the accommodations were to your liking?"
"It was adequate, I've certainly slept on worse before." She lets out a content hum with the stew and I can't help but smile a bit.
"Aye, I have as well. That said, how did your studying go?" I might have touched a nerve considering I can feel the air heat up a bit.
"It was certainly an interesting read, but I'm not sure I can learn anything from it."
[Cinder: I tried doing as the book said but I was greeted with a message that I was unable to learn magic because my Mana was locked.]
"Truly? That's a shame, if you'd like I could help you go over the material again see if I can give you a few pointers?"
[Lethaius: I was afraid of that. I have a probable solution to the problem, but we'll need to discuss that in private.]
"If you can help me figure it out I would be grateful." I snort at that.
"You're practically a friend of the family with how many times you've pulled my ass out of the fire. The least I can do is teach you to use that fire as well." I very pointedly ignore the flash of something that crosses her face as she focuses on her food. "I need to go over the book myself before we return it, so if you'd like we still have a few hours to spend in town so you could get any last minute supplies we need." It takes a moment but she nods her head and finishes her stew before pulling the book from her pack and handing it to me and making her way out of the tavern.
I get a prodding hum from Hadring but don't go into details about anything before I move over to one of the free benches to free up the bar and get to reading up about destruction. It's honestly pretty similar to the restoration book if I'm looking at the broad strokes, the issue is I don't have the innate knowledge given by actually having the skill to back it all up, so I've got to read the entire book from cover to cover before I get the skill unlocked at level one, but the oddest of things happens once I apply the knowledge to create the three core spells.
[Core Skill [Destruction] has been added at level one]
[Sub-skill [Pyromancy] has been added at level one]
[Flames]
Damages a target with magical flames
Cost: 10 MP/s
Range: 20 Feet
[Sub-skill [Cryomancy] has been added at level one]
[Frostbite]
Damages a target with magical ice and slows the target while draining Stamina
Cost: 15 MP/s
Range: 20 Feet
[Sub-skill [Electromancy] has been added at level one]
[Shock]
Damages a target with magical lightning and drains Mana
Cost: 20 MP/s
Range: 20 Feet
'Hey system, can you clarify what sub skills are?' I've already got a good idea, but it doesn't hurt to make sure.
[Sub-skills are just that. In this case flame spells can be grouped under Pyromancy, which is a subset of Destruction. Normally these would be classified as Core Skills, but your starting destination has an influence on the system]
'Thank you for clearing that up for me.' Well, at least all of my magic isn't grouped into a singular magic core skill, so it could be worse. I wonder…. I leave the book with Hadring before making my way outside and to the edge of the village, and I'm already thankful for the boost to my endurance because the bitter chill has gone from feeling like swimming in a frozen lake to going into a meat locker in shorts, so a bit bearable all things considered.
Right, this should count as destruction magic since it's elemental in nature. I sigh before stretching my hand out and focusing. Flames burn, Lightning shocks, and Ice freezes things, but what does wind do? It cuts. I've read dozens, maybe hundreds of manga before all of this happened, and the amount of times people have created blades of wind with magic or swords…. I decide against using my hand for this and instead pull out my staff and brandish it like a spear with the blade held aloft. Then I close my eyes and focus.
A scythe cutting grass
A sword slicing through the air
Wind ruffling the leaves of a tree in fall
Inuyasha swinging a slab of steel and creating a whirlwind
I slowly open my eyes and hold the images and sound in mind as I focus on my desire to cut and start channeling mana into my staff. I wait for a moment before I feel my mana meet a threshold that it can't pass in the staff, and then I swing the staff diagonally through the air and hear the whine of displaced air for a second before a furrow is carved into the fresh snow a few feet in front of me that gets shallower as it peters off.
[Due to user action, Wisdom and Intelligence have gone up]
[Due to user action Sub-skill [Aeromancy] has been created at level one]
[Would you like to name your new skill?]
Hmm, what to call it? I think wind blade will work for now.
[Skill [Wind Blade] has been created through user action]
I let a pleased smirk make its way onto my face as I drop my staff back into the inventory and start making my way back towards the tavern.
[Lethaius: I've managed to learn the spells in the books we had access to, so we can leave the village whenever you're ready.]
[Cinder: Understood. I'll be arriving shortly.]
That was rather clipped for her, but I put it out of my mind for the time being and met up with her at the tavern before we returned the books to the village elder and started the long trek back to the lift while gathering resources where we could. My pace was slow, but with a very minor application of Pyromancy I managed to keep the metal around my stump warm enough that it wasn't a painful trip.
"So Cinder," I can't help the small grin that rests on my face as I enjoy my new armchair. "What was your impression of the village?" She does her best to scowl at me, but I know she's enjoying the leather furniture as much as I am. Gods, being able to transmute wood into a cotton adjacent form for padding was one of my better ideas.
"It was frankly depressing. The quality of living was horrendous, and two children were lost this winter," Oh fuck, that's not good. "And they treated it like it was a common occurrence. The hygiene was atrocious, the food was bland, and I assume this all went to plan so I learned just how comfortable living here with you would be in comparison."
"I'll admit, I was wanting to endear you to my company somewhat, but I was more curious how things were for the commoners." I don't even attempt to hide my displeasure with what she told me. "The fact that they lost children during the winter…." I take a moment to calm myself, setting things on fire isn't a proper outlet for emotions. "I'm less than pleased to hear that, but I can focus on solving that issue later. Tell me, what was their overall disposition towards you?"
"Oddly prideful for the most part. They saw my lack of reaction to the temperature as me being a fellow Nord which was useful, most of the men couldn't keep their eyes off of my figure even through those rags we had to wear. The women were mostly envious of me." Okay, I might be pissed but even I find the smirk that graces her features beautiful.
"Well, I'm glad you're able to pass for them in that case, it will make surface operations that much easier." I sigh for a moment before taking the sphere out of my inventory and tossing it to her. "You can do more without me holding you back, so if you wish to visit the surface I won't stop you. Gods know it's boring down here."
"I…. Thank you for that level of trust, I'll try not to abuse it." Yeah fucking right. Calm breaths.
"Right, I mentioned having a solution to your mana issue didn't I?" I pull a crystal from my inventory and eye it critically. Ironically enough, it looks like a marble that's been run through with fractals. "This should give you a form of internal Mana like I and the others in this world have, but I must warn you of something first. The 'Magic' this would let you perform will be of a more scientific nature unless you're extremely lucky. You will have to research any spell you wish to use heavily, and I'm unsure if it would let you even use this world's magic schools. Are you still willing to use it?" She stays silent for a few moments that stretch on into proper silence as she thinks it over, and I admit I'd approve if she was actually thinking things through.
"This was one of those items you pulled from the multiverse." It's not a question but I nod my head nonetheless.
"It is. This will essentially change your race from Human, to something called a Magus."
"Then why give it to me? You barely know me, how are you sure I won't use it against you?" I raise an eyebrow at that and set the marble on the table between us before drinking my tea.
"Cinder Fall, minion of Salem." Her eyes widen at that, but oddly enough she doesn't move for her weapon. "You want to know why I would give you something like this? I'll be honest with you because I would like the same from you, what I know of you can be summed up as tragic." I continue on ignoring the way her eyes narrow. "I don't pity you, and this isn't charity or some hand out to somebody who had a frankly atrocious childhood. Truthfully, I respect you."
"Your youth was painful, and you very well could have given up. Let people walk over you for the sixty odd years left you had on Remnant, but you refused to do so. You didn't let your experiences break you. I would ask a question if I may." She very carefully inclines her head towards me so I continue. "You sought to betray Salem and take her power for your own did you not? Outside of a few circumstances I don't think you've ever actually trusted anyone, so I won't ask you for trust. You could have killed me whenever you wished this past day if you wished to."
"I could have yes, and I'm rethinking why I didn't already."
"I would like to think it's because I am myself, but I think I've got an idea why that was. Because you felt you could use me, and since I'll be honest I had the same thought. You know my current state, a cripple in a land where war is a near constant thing, bandits preying upon those too weak to protect themselves, god and devils who meddle in mortal affairs." I sigh and finish off my tea. "We don't need to be friends, or even like one another, but we are both trapped upon this world until I figure out how to travel to another one. I believe I can trust you to that extent, because I doubt you would like to stay here longer than you can. So the reason for all of this? It's because I need the help, and you'd be more useful the stronger you are."
"Just how much do you know?"
"I'll admit, in my time in the void a few things have degraded, but I know enough in regards to you. You crave power so nobody can take advantage of you again, correct? Then take it, all I ask is that instead of turning your semblance upon me you humor me and we try to have some semblance of a working relationship."
"And you're willing to accept the inevitable betrayal?"
"Call me naive if you wish, but I was always an idealist at heart. The odds of you betraying me are high yes, but they aren't absolute, so I'm willing to give you the option you didn't have before. Power you need to work for, no strings attached. You can take that crystal right now and leave if you wish and neither I nor my minions will stop you." I lean forward a bit, meeting her eyes. "Or, we can work as partners and take this world for ourselves." Amber stares into Crimson for an untold stretch of time until a manicured hand reaches out to take ahold of the crystal before crushing it.
I watch in no small sense of pleasure as her body heats up, gaining a healthy full body flush and circuits start crisscrossing her body, emitting golden light.
"You're playing a dangerous game you know that right?"
"Is it truly a game when you know the outcome though?"