Chapter 435 - Progress Resumed (Patreon)

“Questions.” Arachne declared, and the floor was open. Black Sentinel badges had the bat’s eyes burning red, and Arachne’s threads twitched.

“Sentinel Invincible.” The troll stood up and rumbled. With a name like that, he was just asking for it. Then again… troll, famously difficult to kill without direct sunlight, and Exterreri had a grudge against the daystar.

It was a great title until it wasn’t.

“The timeline of events suggest that you predate Vorlers, and grew up without their scourge. Why were you so confident that your healing could handle their venom?”

I thought about his question a moment before answering.

“I had no reason to believe their venom was anything special, and I’m Oathbound. As Night alluded to, not only am I Oathbound, I’m the originator of the [Healer’s Oath]. I’ve survived a glancing blow from a level 3400 Spore Guardian. Returning to Pallos from the fae realm, my [Oath] immediately capped out, and I’m currently sitting on 1.5 million points of magic power. I didn’t know scorpion venom sac capacity at the time, but it couldn’t be that large. I believed I could brute-force any venomous injections.”

I thought about expanding to how I’d been ignorant returning to Pallos, and how I simply hadn’t known that Vorler poison was especially potent and nasty. At the same time… it didn’t matter, I had the ability to brute force it either way.

The troll gave a brisk nod and sat back down.

Arachne acknowledged one of the people leaning in the back of the room, a high-level [Mage - 1889].

“Off rotation. War Sentinel Tyrannus when I’m on. Why did you choose to join the fae dance, when you had the chance to wait for Julius to leave?”

“At the time, I thought…”

On and on the questions went, strangely formal. Interestingly, the occasional question was directed to Auri, who always spent an uncharacteristic moment pondering the question before giving a single brrrpt of response, leaving it up to me to translate for her.

Crafty bird. I knew she could make her answers in flaming letters - she was making herself look more wise and worldly than she was. I let her have her fun. Why not?

I was more fascinated by the various Sentinel titles, levels, and implications.

Sentinel Skater. The woman I’d seen skating on Ice rails high above Sanguino when I first arrived - and who I recognized from the fresco!

Shadow Sentinel Terminus loomed. Sentinel Spark kept fidgeting. I felt like I understood him. Sentinel Devour was the one with a cloak made out of feathers. War Sentinel Depths looked enthralled with the proceedings, the woman’s eyes boring into whoever was speaking at the time. Sentinel Mirror kept running her thumb over a glass vial at her hip. War Sentinel Calm I suspected had one of those fake names - nobody was lauded for being calm, not with a War Sentinel title.

Sentinel Archmage was the gnome. Vampire? What was the right name when a gnome got turned? Probably vampire… I didn’t call people human vampires. Shadow Sentinel Springsteel was an illusion - not that I was going to call out that I could tell. The ‘real’ one was lurking invisibly in the room, and I suspected Arachne could tell. Shadow Sentinel Shatterpoint seemed to be studying me, taking me apart with her eyes. Shadow Sentinel Malice leaned on a back wall, looking vaguely like a crone out of a story.

And so many more, each one introducing themselves briefly before asking me a question, making me wonder - what did the new titles mean? It just emphasized how out of my depth I was. That no matter Night standing beside me, giving me courage and bolstering me, this was a new organization. A different one.

It was like seeing a famous painting in a different art style. It was both the same, and terribly different.

The last question was asked, and answered. Arachne stood up.

“Sentinel Dawn was lost, and is found again. A Sentinel out of time, out of space, returned once again to the fold. Blessed is this night by the System and gods alike, that Sentinel Dawn has returned from the dead. For now, all information about her, and her return, is under seal. Moonless Night protocol. Thank you all.”

I had an awkward, panicked look on my face. I wasn’t quite sure I wanted to be ‘returned to the fold’. These Sentinels were not the group I had left. Was not the organization, the country, the people, the… well, I couldn’t say anything. There were clear lines of succession, starting from Night, threading through culture, System… but yeah. Point remained.

“Command, Night, Sentinel Dawn. If you would please stay.” Arachne asked as the rest of the Sentinels began filing out. A few stopped by, briefly clasping me on my shoulder with a knowing nod and a smile, or offering a few welcome words.

“Welcome back.”

“Pleasure to meet you.”

The whole thing felt a little awkward. Night placed a reassuring hand on my shoulder.

The last Sentinel filed out, the doors closed and more runes lit up.

“That was not the ending I had anticipated or been told about.” One of the Commanders said. Arachne stood up and saluted them.

“I apologize. Sentinel Dawn was about to outright reject the entire idea and premise, which would’ve shattered the event. I chose a premature ending over trying to force things.”

I had been about to reject it all?

Yeah, I had been about to reject it all. Arachne’s ability to cold read people and gather intelligence was fucking terrifying. I suppose she’d just gotten my whole life story out of me, so it was a little easier to tell, but fuck. It was a strong reminder that she had literal thousands of levels on me, and was in her own specialized domain.

“Sentinel Dawn, is this true?” A different Commander asked.

I nodded.

“Yeah, like. Think about it from my perspective for a moment. This morning, I woke up trying to find Night, not knowing if he’s alive or not. And in the span of a single day, I’ve been beaten, tied up, interrogated, dragged around the city, met Night again, had a small party, then was promptly dragged here and was about to be told ‘here’s your new job!’. Don’t I get a say in any of this? I’d like a chance to see how things work, to see if I’d like to be a Sentinel again. It’s just… so different.”

The Commanders started to bicker a bit, and Night stepped forward.

“The Sentinels of today bear little resemblance to the Sentinels of the past. Indeed, it is no surprise that Sentinel Dawn is having reservations about becoming one of us once again, especially if done in a manner without her buy-in or consent. She is famously prickly, and one of the surest ways to make sure she will not do something is for a person she does not trust to simply decree that she will.”

A third Commander snorted.

“How did that work with military discipline?” She asked in a mocking tone.

“Because I trusted those giving me orders. I knew them. I knew the culture, the people, the country, everything.” I snapped back.

“I would ask you all to consider yourselves in Dawn’s sandals, please.” Night said, starting to pace back and forth. “You find yourselves lost. Exterreri is no more. A new nation comes forth and claims that you are naturally one of them, and to report to work the next day. What is your reaction?”

I was no good at this people thing, but I could see Night’s words hit home with at least three of them.

Arachne turned and studied me more.

“Fool that I am.” She half-whispered to herself, then brightened up and clapped.

“Well! Sentinel Dawn, know that whatever else happens, you’ve earned the right to the title, and I’ll make sure you’re able to use it if you’d like to. You’ll confuse people, but the Rangers won’t be knocking down your door anytime soon over it. With all that said, I’d love to sit and chat, and alleviate your concerns and worries. I trust you’re at least open to the idea, to being persuaded to come and rejoin?”

Auri gave me a tiny little nod, letting me know she was fine with the idea, and I went deep into thought on the subject.

Fundamentally, Arachne wanted to invite me to a job. A dangerous job, one with risks, but it wasn’t like I was being forced to do anything, and it was abundantly clear I had the ability to say no, and simply walk away.

I felt like it was more than a little weird at how badly they wanted me back in. I’d more expect them to say ‘nope, too bad, completely different everything, if you’d like to join the Sentinels please start from square one and work your way back up the ladder.’

I should figure that out.

There was no harm in hearing her out, then heading back to the inn and talking it all over with Iona.

Hang on - I should make sure that this wasn’t a limited time offer.

“I can talk it over with Iona, right? I don’t need to make a decision now?”

Arachne shook her head.

“Take as long as you’d like. On that note.”

She turned back to Command and saluted.

“I believe we’re all done here? Sentinel Dawn will be presented at a later time for evaluation should she choose to return.”

There was a bunch of grumbling, some arguing, but eventually they all left, and the four of us left behind them.

Arachne seized my hands in a gentle and friendly way.

“It’s late, and I haven’t been thinking properly. I apologize. You’ve had an incredibly difficult and stressful day. Why don’t you have a good sleep, then come by whenever you feel ready and comfortable with whoever you’d like, and we’ll talk about it more at your leisure?”

That all sounded like a fine idea.

“Brrrpt!” Auri was reading my mind, and officiously agreed with Arachne’s proposal on my behalf.

“Thanks, yeah, I think I’ll do that. It’s been… one heck of a day.” I surmised. Probably understating it a hair.

Auri nuzzled my cheek. Good bird.

Night nodded.

“Indeed, it has been quite the eventful day for all of us. Dawn, let me tell you how we can meet tomorrow, so I may deliver on the promises made today.”

Night gave me directions to a dye shop, along with instructions on how to be allowed into one of the rooms, and where the passage was located. Seemed elaborate, but I wasn’t the ancient Immortal here, and he’d clearly been alright with living in semi-public in Remus. Clearly, something had changed over the years.

We left, and Arachne had a litter waiting for me, manned by four burly, shirtless men.

“If you’d like. They’ve got skills for it. Tragically, the office for handling fliers is currently closed, otherwise I’d be giving you a permit to fly over and through the city.”

“Thank you.”

I decided to take the late night taxi. Why not? I’d never experienced being carried in a litter, and anyone Arachne was tapping had to be trustworthy enough. She could see everything they did, I didn’t doubt I was getting the absolute best… that still carted people around at midnight.

The ride was gloriously smooth, the four people somehow carrying me without a single bump, slipping and sliding through crowds without pause. I swear the litter stretched at one point to keep everything moving smoothly.

[Parallel Thoughts] let me do multiple things at once, and while I was being carried around and paying attention to that, I was also going over my level up notifications!

The easiest ones to the more complicated ones.

[*ding!* [Long-Range Identify] leveled up! 415->417]

Nothing special there. The skill was moderately hard to level up, and I’d hit all the Sentinels just now. Maybe I should’ve hit them all a second or third time, tried to see how many levels I could get.

At the same time, the skill was impressing me less and less as time went on. Well - to be fair, it was impressing me less the more I hung out with Iona. Why be content with a simple level and archetype display when I had the full details of every last thing they could do a single question away?

At the same time, I wasn’t always near Iona. It bore more thinking.

[*ding!* [Parallel Thoughts] leveled up! 177->178]

I might’ve missed a good chance to abuse [Parallel Thoughts] for all the levels. Damn. Live and learn. At the same time, I don’t think three thought processes going off to dreamland was exactly the best idea during a large ceremony. Ah well.

[*ding!* [The World Around Me] leveled up! 80->81]

Slow but steady. Had to wonder just how crazy the skill was going to end up. Would I be able to see everything going on in a city at once like Arachne could?

[*ding!* [Companion Bond between Elaine and Auri] leveled up! 508 -> 514]

Yes! FUCKING FINALLY!  At long last, I got Auri over the 512 barrier! We were now the same level!

[*ding!* Congratulations! [The Dawn Sentinel] has leveled up to level 513->514 +3 Dexterity, +24 Speed, +24 Vitality, +170 Mana, +170 Mana Regen, +48 Magic power, +48 Magic Control from your Class per level! +1 Magic Control, +1 Mana, +1 Mana Regeneration per level for being Chimera (Elvenoid)! +1 Mana, +1 Mana Regen from your Element per level!]

YES! I let the normally suppressed notifications fly.

[*ding!* [Celestial Affinity] leveled up! 513 -> 514]

[*ding!* [Dance with the Heavens] leveled up! 513 -> 514]

[*ding!* [Wheel of Sun and Moon] leveled up! 513 -> 514]

[*ding!* [Oath of Elaine to Lyra] leveled up! 513 -> 514]

[*ding!* [Sentinel’s Superiority] leveled up! 513 -> 514]

I was back in action! [The Dawn Sentinel] could level again!

And! That wasn’t all! I’d spent literal years carrying Auri’s level up to mine, now she could help me level. Companion-related leveling was a little tricky to explain, and it even shifted once our levels matched.

There were quite a few different theories to experience and classes. I personally liked the ‘lens’ theory, even though the ‘worthy experience’ theory was just as sound… and that was only the tip of the iceberg when it came to different schools of thought on experience.

The lens theory stated that all activities gained experience, no matter what they were. Sneezing gained a little bit of experience. Killing monsters triple my level was a lot of experience.

All of that experience was then ‘filtered’ through the lens of the classes, hence the name. Activities that closely matched the class kept all the experience, or even magnified it. Activities that didn’t match the class - like chopping wood for my [Butterfly Mystic] class - didn’t give much, or anything.

Companion bonds put strange twists on things.

Whenever Auri got experience, it was split after the lensing portion. Then half of it went to her classes as normal, and the other half was sent to me. Crucially, the experience wasn’t re-lensed… which, honestly, was a pretty good argument for the ‘worthy experience’ theory.

The experience was then evenly split among my three classes.

Putting some random numbers on it - nobody had quite been able to quantify experience yet, although some [Researchers] at the School of Sorcery and Spellcraft were hard at work on it - if Auri baked a cake with her flames and it was worth 100 experience, she might only get 60 experience after the lensing effect. Her class did like her using and manipulating flames, and she was using them to change things… but it wasn’t like she was burning a forest to the ground or anything.

Out of that 60 experience, we’d split it half and half. 30 would go to Auri, and 30 would come to me. Out of that 30, I’d get 10 experience to each of my classes.

Auri burning things to the ground would make me a better reader. Magic was fucking wild. Only on Pallos was such logic perfectly natural.

The natural effect would be that my 2nd and 3rd class would get a nice, solid helping hand up, and my medical efforts in the world would let Auri burn things better. Teamwork. Companionship.

There was no ‘bounce’ effect on experience, and that was easy enough to check for. What that meant was none of my experience that Auri gave me would go back to her. It was a single split.

So many exciting plans for the future! I wondered what Auri was going to take as her third class? A good conversation to have when we didn’t have a million listening ears.

Almost literally. Auri seemed to know as well, and didn’t bring it up.

Or was just too distracted by everything else! She’d obviously noticed during the Sentinel meeting, and that was almost a whole hour ago that she’d been told. Forever in bird-land.

The porters were great tour guides as well, pointing out all sorts of interesting things in the thriving Exterreri nightlife - possibly a significant source of Auri’s distraction.

Honestly, it was vampire heaven and coated in Ash. I don’t know why I expected anything other than an amazing nightlife.

“Theater of Spectacles can’t be beat.” The dude I mentally dubbed ‘tour guide’ said, pointing out the place in question. “The Dark Haven. Best place to grab a pint of whatever your favorite drink is, or to be the drink. Pits. Excellent fights, you can see whatever your heart fancies. To the death? Got those. Bloodless? Got those. Slaying monsters? You bet. Your Money Or Your Life. The owner’s got the best anti-cheating skills in the nation. Feel free to gamble, knowing some [Card Shark] isn’t going to cheat you.”

Huh. I wondered how that would fare against my perception skill, and if I could level it up there.

“Brrrpt?” Auri asked.

“Wait, you haven’t gone to see them yet?” I asked her. I thought it would be the first thing she’d do with Atlas!

I translated.

“Auri’s interested in seeing the Ash-burning furnaces.” I suggested.

The guide nodded, and the four of them turned in perfect unison. I didn’t quite want to go on a detour, but that was the thing about bonds, about companions. Sometimes, it wasn’t about me. Auri had been a champion the whole day, and I’d worried her sick. She deserved a little fun.

We made it to one of the four great furnaces, standing just outside a bright red line. It was cool here, a contrast to the raging flames barely contained in a large cast iron building. A whole log was being fed by a dozen individuals into the flames, and that seemed terribly inefficient to me. Wouldn’t it be better, easier to chop up the log then throw the pieces in?

Thick billows of Ash plumed from the top of the furnace, spiraling up into the air in a clearly skill-influenced way, joining the rest of the ashen cloud above in the skies.

The flames reflected in Auri’s eyes as she gazed upon the most beautiful display of industrialized pyromancy we’d ever seen.

“Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrpt.” She trilled in appreciation.

“It is amazing.” I agreed with her. I wasn’t a [Pyromancer] anymore… but I’d be lying if I said the flames didn’t speak to me at all.

I waved my hand over the red line, not feeling any difference.

Ah. Right. Immunity to fire.

We let Auri gaze upon the flames for a bit, until I reluctantly gave the order to keep going back to the inn.

It was late, and only the most die-hard patrons were still up, drunk as a skunk. I slunk up with Auri to our room.

“Elaine! You’re back! How’d it go?” Iona asked. My eyes snapped to a little table we had.

“It was fine. Is that…?” I asked, not daring to believe.

Iona beamed.

“Yup! Figured my Sentinelosaurus was having a hard day. Managed to track one down, literally the last one they had in stock.”

I gave Iona the biggest hug I could. Somehow, literal thousands of miles away from where they were grown, she’d managed to track down a single mango.

“Goddesses above, I love you so much.” I told her. Then since her love language involved physical touch, I kissed her deeply.

Then I sat, and slowly savored the mango as I recapped my crazy day for Iona. Piece by piece I cut the mango up, sharing half with my gluttonous little friend. Sliver by sliver I placed each slice onto my tongue, letting it melt in an explosion of divine, sugary flavor.

I carefully saved the seed, trying to figure out the best way to preserve it, to let it start growing. The start of my very own orchard. I wanted to give it some profound blessing, like from this seed ten thousand more shall grow or something suitably grandiose, fitting for the forerunner.

“What’s the plan?” Iona asked as I finished telling her about the Sentinel meeting, still basking in the afterglow of the rare mango.

“Well, Arachne brought up enough good points that I think it’s worth hearing her out. After morning sparring, let’s go visit her together?”

Iona nodded.

“Yeah, seems entirely reasonable.”