Connie
Calling what she had been through painful was an understatent. Connie didn't even have words to describe what tornt had just befallen her. And considering she was an expert in several different bardic skills, that was saying sothing.
There just weren't a lot of words used to describe the feeling of having your entire body broken down and shredded in an attempted alien parasitic takeover. Generally, the people that kind of thing happened to didn't survive the experience. Which ant it was up to her to co up with the future verbiage to explain her experience to others.
Because she would be damned if she let this stop her. No, if anything, this would make her stronger than ever. She had had her will tested in a way not even Gramps had. And she had proven she could handle it.
The old man would be proud. She'd have to make sure she had a proper story to tell him the next ti she saw him. Then again, considering how much that man had to have known and not told her about everything she was experiencing these days, she had a bone to pick with him, too.
She quickly pulled up her class display and read over the descriptions of the previous classpaths she had long ago unlocked. Sohow, her brain always read these in the voice of her grandfather. Was it so trick caused by his own creation of the class? She had no idea.
Green Operatic AcolyteThere is no universal approach to becoming a Green Operatic Acolyte. It is neither a calling nor a career. It is a fundantal approach to life. Anyone seeking to follow in the footsteps of Elmwood Greens is either insane or a fool, and he would have it no other way. The host of this class must contend with a chaotic growth rarely seen in other class orbs. While experience is still needed to unlock many of the abilities, the true paths to power require an exploration of the self and the universe. You have chosen a path without help, without peer, and without limit.Path of the Stellar Opera {100/100 Performances}The Stellar Opera is a performance that has only ever been put on once. In seeking to recreate that performance, you must first master multiple disciplines. You must harden your will against the dangers it brings. Do not walk this path. Dance this path. Flourish across this path. Show the universe your colors.Path of Musical Synergy {5/5 Class Orbs}Never re-invent the wheel. It's far too much effort. Why create sothing that already exists when you can just borrow from it? The Path of Musical Synergy is simply that. Everything has a song unique to it. Learn those songs. Master those songs. Mix and match the parts that are needed the most.Path of Change {1/1 Life Altering Revelations}Those who refuse to change die. They leave no legacy. They do not alter the fabric of creation. Do not be one of them. Stare the universe into its heart and make it accept you. Change not only yourself, but the reality around you. Make. Your. Mark.-Form {0/1E3 Levels} |0/5 Shifts| Not all body types are equally capable of differing tasks. It requires more than one throat if you wish to harmonize with yourself. Through shifting their own body, the host becos capable of totally unique and alien displays. The Form skill enhances their ability to control these smaller shifts of the body that may otherwise be incompatible with each other. Further ranks allow for a greater synchronization of bodily functions.-Function {0/1E3 Levels} Just because one organ is designed to do one thing doesn't an it cannot be enhanced to do others. Through the use of the Function skill, the host is able to teach their body to be capable of things far outside its normal operating paraters. Further ranks in this skill allow for more extre differences between what an organ may normally do and what it becos capable of.
She had always wondered just what level of life-altering revelation the Path of Change would require. It turned out the answer was simply having your soul ripped apart and nearly displaced. It was a feeling she wasn't sure she would have willingly undergone, had she had the choice. But it was done, and now she had access to a subset of class abilities that would let her grow further than she had dread.
One of the big questions plaguing her was if her grandfather had even known what those new skills would be. This class wall was an experint created by him in an attempt to allow his family line to follow in his footsteps. So far, Connie had been the only one willing to go far enough to actually utilize it.
So what did that old man know about soul bonds and soul realms anyway? Why had he fled the Spiral? There was so much information that he had that could help Dave and the mysteries this faction was stuck investigating.
For so reason, that had started to bother her more and more the longer she was with these people. Was it simply because she was becoming friends with them? That wasn't sothing she had had the liberty of experiencing much during her childhood, so she couldn't be sure.
Her body groaned as she forced herself to stand up from her bed. No matter how angry her muscles may be, she was just too bored to continue loafing around in bed. She had spent enough ti doing that after the jester's attack to continue now that her soul knot was gone. It was ti to do sothing she hadn't done in what felt like ages.
She was off to get drunk.
In what was quickly becoming the food district of the city, a new bar had finally been built. It was the first dedicated one, and up till now, the Dwarf had only been drinking in the Great Hall along with everyone else. But it was hard to fulfill the eating demands of an entire city in only one place. Plus, as much as everyone loved Rabyn's food, not all chefs got along with the very bossy Orc.
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Her march to the Down to Earth was t with so interesting looks. She couldn't bla them. Most of the Humans still weren't used to seeing a Dwarf. And those that were certainly weren't used to seeing a Dwarf that looked like her these days. Following her experience in the soul realm, her hair had shifted color to a spectral blue shade.
It was sothing she had expected to return to normal during her recovery, but so far it had persisted. Her best guess was that it had sothing to do with the classpath she had finally unlocked. But in truth, she had no real idea. It would make her performance more interesting. So there was that, at least.
“Connie!” A voice called cheerily as she entered the bar. She spotted the owner of the voice sitting at a small table near the bar with a stack of papers and a large mug of so sort of ale.
“Glunderlin,” She said as she approached the forr mayor.
“Glad to see you're up and about! I heard it was pretty touch-and-go for a while. How are you doing?” He asked, pushing a nu in front of her.
“Yeah, it was an experience. I don't recomnd it. Keep your soul in your body to yourself. So what are you drinking?” she asked, looking over the nu. It was full of Human and Reltleon drinks she was not remotely familiar with.
“Just a batch of amber ale they finished putting together. It's pretty good,” Glunderlin answered.
“Hey, I'll take a couple of these too,” Connie said to a passing waitress.
“Want any food to go with it?” they asked, pulling out a notepad.
“Uh, sure? I guess? Give whatever the most popular dish is.” She just wasn't used to Earth cuisine enough to be ordering like this, and she had no real idea what the Reltleons liked.
“Probably best you get her one of those bacon burgers that the humans like so much. I think so of our specialty food is going to be a little bit outside of her tastes,” Glunderlin added.
“Thanks,” Connie said. Normally, she wasn't big on the idea of soone ordering for her. But she was willing to make an exception here. She had an inkling that Reltleon food involved a lot of rock flavors, and she just never enjoyed those types of als. Strangely, she had t a lot of Dwarfs that did, but it hadn't sat well in her stomach. No matter how many tis she was told that copper shavings really made the food sizzle, she didn't buy it.
“So what brings you to the Down to Earth? Thought you usually ate in the great hall?” Glunderlin asked while thumbing through so of his paperwork.
“I've been cooped up way too long. I needed a good change of scenery, and I hadn't been to most of the new places in Alexandria yet. Seed like the perfect ti to do it. Plus, I got this nice new fancy hairstyle to show off,” She said, ending with a flourish of her hair.
“Well, I welco the company. It gives the chance to run an idea by you I've had recently.” The Reltleon looked oddly nervous as he spoke, piquing Connie's curiosity.
“And how insane is this new idea on the Dave scale?” She asked with a smile.
“There is a scale for how insane his ideas are now. Where do I find the full details?” Glunderlin replied, jokingly. “Honestly, I don't know. The system gave a couple of quests. I've been debating what to do about them.”
“Wait, actual System quests? As far along as you are? That's kind of rare, ain’t it?” She asked, surprised. It wasn't impossible as far as she knew, but usually, you only got a lot of quests in your youth or when you were new to the System. Two at once, at his age, she wasn't sure what to make of it.
“I would have thought so as well, but I think my decisions to join this faction and, well, frankly, change the course of my people, pushed so things. Both quests involve getting to the central Hub, and honestly, I have no idea how to do that.” There was a look of sha in his eyes as he said that last sentence.
“Considering neither of those paladins has returned from the highways yet, seems like a dangerous undertaking. Which, of course, ans Dave is probably one hundred percent on board doing it. Have you talked to him yet?” Connie doubted he had, solely because there was always the possibility that Dave jumped at it imdiately. And at the very least, Dave would have been ntioning it as a future plan.
“No, with what he's already done for my people, I can't ask any more of him. I an, look at this city. It's more than I would have ever expected. Reltleons from all over the Spiral are coming to find a ho to build sothing together. We can't ask any more of him. I especially can't ask for a personal favor like that.”
Connie let out the first bout of laughter she had felt since the soul realm. It was a deep belly rumbling laugh. “That's not how Dave thinks,” She said, barely managing to get the words out. Calming her laughter down, she continued. “That man will want to do everything to help. Especially if it sounds fun and a weird trip to your city in search of so strange quests, it's gonna really sound fun to him. I'm not saying we do it right now, of course, but once this competition over, and we've secured the Twinoge’s ho world? Yeah, it's probably sothing we're gonna want to do.”
“I noticed you said we. Are you also interested?” The nervousness had returned to his voice.
“Yeah, probably, though I've got so other plans, I think, once this competition is over, it'll ti to pay Gramps a visit. I've got so information to pry free of him. And who knows what the hell we're going to learn by the ti that's over, but yes, I do think this is sothing the faction should consider. Talk to Dave and Pryte about it. After all, I'm just a Dwarf here to get drunk,” She finished as two large mugs were set down in front of her.
“I suppose I'll consider it. The rewards for completing the quest would be another large boon for my people. And that ans I have to get over whatever sort of hesitance I may have here. It's a new universe, Connie. A very new one.” Glunderlin raised his mug on that last statent.
“Sure is, and I'll drink to that,” Connie said in total agreent. Raising her own glass, she gently clinked his and then took a giant gulp. “Huh, not bad. This place knows how to do its ale.”
Chip
Chip hadn't returned with Corey imdiately. The Pumakey wanted to study the energies of Saud and Selody more. Sothing in the back of their mind was telling them it was important to understand how their soul forms differed from material forms.
These thoughts were still a little foggy and slow to process. But more and more every day, Chip was starting to really understand the world around him. Even the words of the soul chat were nearly understood in their entirety. The problem was that the more he thought, the more mories of his youth ca back to him.
Those were not happy mories. His poor mother had desperately guarded him and his siblings from so creature that had hunted them across their world. Sadly, he was too young to fully process what everyone looked like, and all he could truly grasp were the emotions that had co with it. Those emotions were full of deep fear and sadness the day he was caught, and his family had been forced to leave him behind for their own safety.
But Chip found it best not to dwell on those unpleasant mories. He had important things to do now. Dave was counting on him to figure out this soul realm.
“You know, I'm glad that we made friends with all of you. You really are a cute little guy,” Saud said as she scratched the Pumakey behind his ear.
He chirped happily back at her.
The spatial turtles that swim the sea between the worlds of Selteria Four and Five offer a breathtaking sight for anyone looking for a nice vacation within the Spiral. For a modest fee, a traveler can charter a craft to accompany them on their migrations. The sight offered by the turtles as their shells catch the morning sun in the middle of their journey is sothing that could be seen nowhere else. It is a shimr that will stay with you for the rest of your life.
10,000,000 Things to See in the Spiral
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