Mage Tank

Chapter 94: System Phases

When I walked out of Sam’lia’s stone treehouse I found Xim kneeling in prayer, her body bathed in crimson light. I waited a few minutes for her to finish what I expected was her own communion with the deity. When she finally opened her eyes she looked more excited than I’d ever seen her.

“Whaddya think?” I asked. She stood so quick that she did a little jump.

“Everything’s changed,” she said, “but nothing has.”

“Yeah, I feel about the same.”

Xim hopped forward and took me by the arms.

“We’ve gotta tell everyone,” she said, looking as though the knowledge she now possessed pleased her to no end. “Come on!”

Xim used her dream step and the branches, houses, and foliage swept by us in an abstract blur. In a matter of seconds, we were back inside the Irgriana tree within a large library where Drel and Xorna were lounging and reading.

“News!” Xim said, rushing forward and pulling her mother out of a velvet chair. Drel sat his book down and drifted over.

“Yes?” said Xorna, giving Xim a pat on the head. The cleric waved her mother’s hand away.

“We talked to Sam’lia and she told us lots of stuff!” said Xim. “Stuff she’s never told anyone! Well, she’s told people, but not for a long time. We’re the first ones from this generation that she’s told. Everyone else she’s told is gone. She hasn’t had a reason to tell anyone yet because it hasn’t mattered but now that there are avatars and we found out about the phases she decided that we were the ones to tell!” Xim said all of this is a rushed jumble.

“Calm yourself, Xim,” said Drel. “What did she say?”

“Where do I start? It’s uh- The System is- No, the avatars are-”

“May I?” I asked. She turned, eyes a bit wild, then nodded. I cleared my throat. “The avatars will endlessly grow stronger and destroy all life unless someone finds a way to stop them and the System is a world-spanning device that turns Delvers into gods.” I paused to let the statement settle. “Oh, and Sam’lia helped me learn a new technique.”

“The avatars are that dangerous?” asked Xorna.

“What is meant when you say “turn Delvers into gods”?” said Drel.

“Yes,” I said to Xorna. “Sam’lia doesn’t know the exact reasons why, but when the System starts pumping out Delvers the avatars come out of the woodwork. They grow more dangerous over time and their past hijinks have resulted in the devastation of multiple civilizations that rose and fell on this planet prior to the ones that currently exist. We haven’t seen them up until now because it usually takes time for them to emerge, but Sam’lia says it’s happening faster this go-round than it has in the past. Probably a bad thing.”

I turned to Drel.

“Gods, as in celestial beings. True divinities, not avatars. The System phases continually unlock additional resources that allow Delvers to ‘transcend’ the physical plane and become one with the divine. It culminates in ascendancy for anyone who’s made the grade. Phase two is mainly about increasing the accessibility of the Delves; allowing more people to undergo Creation and giving the high-level Delvers that exist a new crop of challenges to help them grow.”

Silence ran across the library for a few seconds.

“Oh,” said Xorna. The woman was normally as detached as they came, but she placed an arm around Xim’s shoulder to steady herself.

“I don’t think the avatars can reach us here, Mom,” said Xim, patting her mother’s arm. “They’re limited to the First Layer.”

“For now,” I said. “Not to be too negative, but Fortune brought my body across dimensions. I’m sure some of these entities could find a way to travel between Layers.”

“We have all of us tasted Orexis’s strength,” said Drel. “You say such power is only the beginning?”

“Orexis is less powerful than a normal avatar alone,” I said. “And all of the avatars will be getting stronger over time.”

“How many are there?” asked Xorna.

“No idea,” I said. “It sounds like a lot of them got locked into the Cage, but Sam’lia doesn’t have good vision into the First. She can’t be certain how many escaped that trap or how many new avatars have arisen in that time.”

“New ones?” said Xorna. She was going pale. “They can breed?”

“Their reproductive habits are unknown,” I said. “But they do multiply… somehow.”

“I must confess,” said Drel, “I do not desire godhood. Had I known that was the path of Delvers, I might have chosen a different trail.”

“Why did you become a Delver?” I asked.

“I was… curious,” he said.

“Guess that’s where Xim gets it from. What about you, Xorna?”

“Hmm?” My question broke her from some deep thought. “Why did I become a Delver? It is what Drel was doing.”

“Ah. I suppose that’s kind of romantic.”

[None of you need worry about ascension for some time,] said Grotto into our minds. [One may become a Delver without having divinity thrust upon them. It is a choice, not a mandate.]

The Delve Core floated out from between a series of bookshelves, several tomes gripped in his feelers. His gray robes undulated around him in time with his feathers, as though he were underwater.

“Finally able to share?” I said. “Not being held at spearpoint by the System any longer?”

[There are still truths that I am forbidden to speak if you must know. The two of you]—he gestured between Xim and I—[have had your permissions elevated. Matriarch Xorna and Patriarch Drel’gethed, I apologize, but I remain unable to answer your questions directly.]

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“Huh?” I said. “Why?”

Grotto’s dark eyes shifted as he considered. For a second I thought he would keep holding out on us.

[They are not Platinum-grade Delvers,] the core finally admitted. [Although the phases have been revealed to them, their path through Gold disqualifies them from further advancement.]

“What?!” said Xim, rushing up to Grotto. “What do you mean? The difficulty a Delver pursues can… can lock them out of whatever the second phase might give them?”

[Yes,] Grotto thought to us. [The Delve tiers are the first great filter. The System rewards bravery, risk tolerance, and commitment, in addition to skill and intellect.]

“Is that why it’s so hard to jump up a grade?” I asked. “The System decides your merit early then makes it impossible for you to change your mind?”

[The System makes no modifications for a Delver who attempts to climb to a new difficulty, it is merely that those who wish to do so are seldom equipped for the endeavor. Regardless, after the first few Delves within any grade, an evaluation is made of the Delver. There is no absolute rule of when the matter is ultimately decided, but I have not yet seen the System issue its approval for a Delver who has remained at Gold or lower past their tenth Delve.]

Xim looked back at her parents, worried, but Drel raised his hand to calm her.

“Fret not, Xim,” he said. “As I mentioned, I do not seek such heights. I am content to remain mortal. To remain within Sam’lia’s embrace.”

Xim looked to Xorna, who nodded in agreement and took Drel’s hand. I got the sense that she was happy to be wherever Drel was, whether that was in the Third Layer or the heavens themselves.

[Now, you two have many important decisions to make,] Grotto thought as he swept past Xim to hover between the two of us. [What will you do with this knowledge? Do you seek to ascend, or are you satisfied with your paltry mortal lives?] He spun to Drel and Xorna. [No offense meant, most esteemed ones.] I rolled my eyes.

“I don’t have much interest in becoming a god,” I said. Xim raised an eyebrow at me. “Okay, becoming a god is a compelling proposal but it’s not top of mind for me at the moment.” I crossed my arms. “We need to let Varrin in on what we’ve discovered. He can decide if he wants to take that intel to the higher-ups in Hiward. Then we need to figure out how to unlock the next phase.”

“You are certain you wish to do so?” asked Drel.

“What choice do we have?” I said. “According to Sam’lia, the avatars are a threat that must be dealt with. Giving the world’s Delvers the tools to do so should be priority number one.”

“I don’t think Hiward will be on board,” said Xim.

“Why wouldn’t they be?”

“They control the Creation Delve,” she said. “If the second phase allows for more Delvers to be minted outside of Hiward they lose their monopoly.”

I rubbed at the bridge of my nose.

“First, we don’t know what form that would take. Maybe it just increases the number of slots within the Creation Delve that’s already in Hiward. Second, I fucking swear if politics and bullshittery get in the way of literally preventing an apocalypse then I am going to lose my cool.”

“Politics and bullshittery,” said Xim, “it’s what Hiward does best.”

“We are not beholden to their whims,” said Drel. “If this must be done, the tribe will be with you.”

“I… appreciate that, Drel. Still, if Hiward isn’t on board then Varrin may not be. I like to think he can look past political allegiances for the greater good, but with his station that may be tough.”

Xim let out a loud, groaning sigh aimed at the ceiling.

“I guess I’ll go back to the First and let him know what’s happening,” she said.

“You have only just arrived home,” said Drel.

“Let us send a messenger,” said Xorna. “Cul’gute is quick and good with the Eye.”

“He is an honorable young man,” said Drel.

“And handsome,” Xorna added.

“He is of an age that is ripe for bonding, as well,” said Drel. Both of Xim’s parents were now staring at their daughter.

“Please stop telling me about Cul’gute,” said Xim. “In fact, yes, send him away to Varrin. Tell him to be our Ravvenblaq contact while Arlo and I are here. That way I won’t have to worry about any more ‘surprise’ dinners with his family.”

“He will be eager to prove his merit to you,” said Drel.

I knew that Xim was irritated with her parents over this Cul’gute guy, but the whole situation was a little funny. I did my best to hide my grin while I tried to find a way to guide the conversation toward a change of topic.

“So,” I said, “now that we’ve got the line of communication between the First and the Third sorted, I think this would be a good time to talk about getting me a new hammer.”

*****

There were no smiths in the Xor’Drel tribe. There were dream forgers. The most skilled of them was named Khigra.

Khigra’s workshop was near the base of the Irgriana tree, surrounded by a wide field on all sides. The forge itself was open to the air, with only a canopy set upon stilts to keep the rain and weather off of the forge master’s back and a series of tarps to set apart its different sections.

I traveled to Khigra’s alone while the Xor’Drel’s worked out the logistics of communicating with Varrin and continued to discuss both the implications of Sam’lia’s truth bombs and the various suitors that Xim’s parents wanted to hook the cleric up with. I was happy to be away from that conversation since I didn’t want to get “roped in” like Xim suspected that I might.

Drel had already sent the broken haft of my old hammer, Arbitros, to the forge master to inspect. The Xor’Drel patriarch expected Khigra to have formed some strong opinions about both myself and my fighting style from reviewing the remains of my old hammer, although I was uncertain what that meant. I tried to walk into the forge while leaving all of my assumptions at the metaphorical door since I had no idea how crafting weapons operated in the Third Layer, which was only slightly less than the amount I knew about how weapons were crafted in the First.

Upon seeing Khigra, I realized that I hadn’t been successful in abandoning my presumptions.

When I thought of a forge master I thought of a sweaty man with a beard in an apron and covered in soot. Maybe a stout dwarf or, at the very least, a hale lass with thirty kilos of muscle buried beneath a few decades' worth of hardy post-manual-labor meals.

Khigra was a level 23 Delver, six feet of lean and trim with curves that defied her body’s attempt at eliminating all fat in favor of muscle. She had thick, black hair that ran down to the small of her back and which floated in the air behind her, kept out of her work by an unseen force. Her clothes were minimalist and functional, hugging close to her body with no loose articles to get in her way, but lacking the thick and protective nature of typical smith wear.

When I approached she turned her orange eyes to me. Set against her light red skin they gave me a profound sense of sunset, as though the world were preparing to call it a day and settle in for the night. She’d been leaning over a heavy wooden counter, engraving squirming sigils into a length of unfamiliar metal.

“You must be Arlo,” she said, resting an elbow on the counter and looking me over.

“And you must be Khigra,” I said. “Pleasure to make your acquaintance.”

She met my greeting with a half-amused smile, then turned and walked behind a thick curtain. She returned holding the haft of Arbitros.

“What material is this?” she asked, which surprised me.

“It’s frozen steel,” I said, and she looked at me expectantly. “It gets harder when it’s hot and gets softer when it’s cold. It also has some simple magic properties.”

She flipped the haft over in her hands, feeling its weight.

“You don’t look like you run hot,” she said, still studying the haft. “Or cold.”

“No,” I said. “It was a gift. It wasn’t the best fit for me, to be honest.”

She nodded, then gripped the haft by either end. Her forearms flexed, the striations of her muscles pressing against her skin, and she bent the length of magically enhanced metal until its ends crossed like a simple ribbon.

“Not the strongest substance,” she said, then stepped forward and handed me the twisted remains of Arbitros.

I accepted it out of reflex but couldn’t help but stare at Khigra and experience a moment of enlightenment. While my body responded to the symmetry and grace of Charisma, it responded more profoundly to the raw power of Strength.

“Come,” she said as she held back the curtain, “let me show you a few things.”

“Yes ma’am,” I whispered, then followed her deeper into her shop.