Jjhutto_Son of Flame
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B2 Ch. 25 Gilly Gilly
🕑 Added 2023-12-14 21:42:51 +0000 UTC“Hold” Ichiro called back down the line in a whisper. The whole formation froze a few yards short of the boundary and crouched down. Tilly was still surprised to see just how difficult it was to keep track of the unit’s location as they melded into the surrounding forest. Even Gorock seemed to have a few levels in Stealth. He had watched the others actively train this skill for weeks, and still suppressed goosebumps at the sight of a whole group of people basically disappearing.
Despite the supernatural elements incorporated in the Skill, it still necessitated real-world knowledge and practice. Being careless and snapping a twig would result in a far greater probability of being noticed. But quiet footsteps and carefully chosen clothing didn't account for what Tilly had just witnessed from the entire ranger squad. Aside from Ichiro who still stood in plane sight looking down the line of the boundary, the rest of the squad had just evaporated.
Tilly recalled the first day of ranger training when one of the former hunters had shown them what his level 35 Stealth looked like in different environments. First, he activated his skill, standing in the open field while they watched. To Tilly, the edges of his profile had blurred slightly, before firming back up.
Then the hunter had asked them to look away and when they looked back, it seemed like he had disappeared… for just a moment. Then something in Tilly’s mind had adjusted he was able to spot the hunter lying completely still in the dirt. The muted color choice of his outfit and his skill had somehow blended in extremely well with the rusty brown ground. There was magic at play, but it didn’t come from the user of the skill. The Hunter described moments when his Skill had advanced greatly in the past, and how much more the Land itself was actively helping him hide now than in the past.
At even a moderate level in Stealth, an obstruction-rich environment was more than enough to render the user almost completely invisible. After several demonstrations in the tree line, the hunter assured them that high enough levels in Stealth were indistinguishable from full invisibility. The downside to the skill was its vulnerability to real physical variables. Some races used scent as their primary sense, and few stealth users took adequate precautions against such detection methods.
Tilly reviewed everything he had learned one last time, as he tried to get mentally ready for this next mission. His semi-meditative state was interrupted by two figures advancing slowly through the forest along the boundary. One wore a long trench coat with a green crystal-tipped staff and was casting something silently on the plants along the boundary. Tilly watched from his stealthed position as green-hued energy flooded into one plant after another, settling invisibly into the still normal-looking foliage. The other slightly shorter figure followed along, touching any plant that the first waved her staff over.
“Clear” The call came whispering down the line.
The formation stepped out of cover, one by one until a line of rangers stood waiting for the pair to arrive. They paid no mind to the squad and continued working right up until they reached the formation.
“Is this the correct location?” Ichiro asked Amelia.
In response, a tired Amelia looked up from her last plant and lifted her staff. A line of foliage running parallel to the border of the Boon in both directions shook along with the movement of the staff before rising with its movement and parroting her as she waved the weapon once. She allowed herself a grim but satisfied smile as she lowered her new magical implement and turned to her companion.
“Did you get them all, George?”
“Yes ma’am, all of them have been registered by my Ability in the eyes of the system, this is another one of my crops, albeit a strange one. I’ll know if any harm comes to them.” He said with a reassuring smile.
“Good, even when the Boon ends, these plants will continue to grow into one another, until they form an unbroken wall. Anyone free of corruption will be able to pass, but with the High Priestess’s twist on my ability, they have been keyed to detect and attack Corruption as it passes. “ Then she looked directly into the satyr's eyes, emphasizing her next point.
“Please remember that if any of our people claim they were attacked ‘by mistake’” she finished darkly.
“Yes, you told me this hours ago, I'll take care of them, and with my bonuses, they will continue to grow well past normal, even without your mana. Now, you take care of yourself and stop worrying about us. You will have plenty on your hands soon enough.”
At his admonishment, Amelia’s serious expression turned up into a soft smile.
“Very well George, your point is taken, I'll see you soon.” She said offering him a quick embrace and turning to the group.
“Are we ready?”
“Yes, Mrs Cooper, I believe we are,” Ichiro answered warmly, gesturing for the others to come forward. Tilly exchanged a look with George, who winked and mouthed, “Good luck” as if Tilly was trying to land a big part in the school play. The humor cut through Tilly’s mental cramming and he he couldn’t help but grin, shooting George a thumbs up before joining the others near the boundary.
The ranger squad moved to continue the patrol, while Ichiro, Franklin, Gorock, Tilly, and Amelia formed a small circle at the edge of Boon. Tilly couldn't help but eye the nearby mana-imbued plants nervously as they huddled up.
“Oh stop it,” Amelia said, catching his look and heaving an exasperated sigh.
“You know I now share your infection!! Of course, I thought of that when keying them on their targets. Nothing with this Flame of yours will be considered a threat.”
Tilly smiled sheepishly and shrugged as Ichiro broke in,
“Everyone, please-- We have a simple goal, find the next Facet. We will avoid enemy engagement where possible.” (at this Gorock snorted in derision)
“And we will move as quickly and quietly as possible. My father is the only one who has been far enough past the boundary to see where the Land has stitched our two areas together, but he informed me that, except for the pass where we have built the wall, many of the mountains were cut in half by the move, and now present shear cliff faces to the enemy.
“He and the High Priestess are working on building a distraction for the approaching army to cover our descent from any watchers. Once we reach the deadlands, we will depend on our cloaks and stealth to avoid the enemy scouts and watchers. Any questions?”
“Not a question, but depending on what we find at the bottom of the cliffs, I have an idea that should make our movements even more opaque to the enemy,” Amelia responded, looking around at the others.
Tilly just unslung his pack and asked Kindle to hop on the bag after he pulled out his reddish tan cloak, settling it over his leathers and pulling back on his pack. It may have been his imagination, but he thought he felt his armor wriggling in disgust as the normal quality cloak settled over it.
The others all followed suit, each nodding toward Ichiro once they were ready. Tilly took one last look at each member of the group, noting just how different their levels and classes were.
Level 48 Wall Breaker
Level 35 Tundra Caller
Level 38 Botnanist Surveyor
Level 25 Samurai Hatamoto
And finally him, a Level 18 Son of Flame. The lowest-tier enemies they faced averaged at Level 35… God, he was so in over his head. Sensing the general shape of his thoughts, Kindle pecked at him irritably, as she settled back on his shoulder. She sent him an image of a smoldering ember, surrounded by damp foliage. It slowly dried out its surroundings unbowed by the greatness of the trees towering over it. It was in the ember's nature to burn and burn it would, no matter how insurmountable its chosen fuel could be.
He absently reached up and stroked her feathered back in thanks before deciding to speak up to the group making final preparations.
“I know we each have our reasons for going on this mission, but this is as personal for me as it gets. So, I wanted to take this chance before we start to thank each of you for coming…” He said, some of the emotion of the sentiment lending a gravelly tone to his words.
“My reason is more similar than you think,” Amelia responded, her hand drifting to touch her midriff under her pocketed trench coat.
Franklin nodded under Tilly’s gaze finguring the scarf around his neck with a distant look in his eyes.
Gorock either sneered or smiled reassuringly at Tilly's pronouncement… probably the first.
“It is my honor to accompany you, Jonathan Tillman. Your path will bring great change and I will walk with you as long as I am able,” Ichiro replied simply before nodding to each of the others and turning to move through the barrier.
They all followed, feeling nothing as they moved through the shift in time dilation. But when Tilly looked back he found the ranger patrol and George had already gone from the spaces they had occupied thirty seconds ago.
The group moved through the trees uphill until they reached a gap, and came to the edge of a cliff hundreds of feet high. Tilly held on to a tree and leaned out slightly to see just how dramatic the unnatural fortification was.
Even though the System had thrown them almost immediately to the wolves, it had not done so without some favorable factors on their side. Tilly was sure that the impossibly smooth cliffs could be scaled, but he doubted it would be chosen by any significant number of enemies over a direct assault on the wall.
To his right, Amelia had just finished whispering with Ichiro who was taking turns looking far into the distance at the closing force and then shifting his gaze back to the sky above the boundary, where something was roiling and building in the hazy sky past the barrier. Amelia turned to address the others.
“I have a cutting of a certain vine that should work to descend this cliff face, and as a plus, it will wither in a few hours. So we will go as soon as the storm strikes.” She said pulling a thick root cutting with hundreds of feeler-like twigs growing off of it. She placed it on the ground at the edge of the cliff and touched the tip of her new staff to the plant which started to wriggle and squirm as she channeled mana into it.
Then new growth exploded out, shooting over the side and snaking down the cliff, sinking its continuously growing appendages into the side of the cliff as it descended. Tilly’s head shot up as a crack of lightning sounded from the barrier, and a storm head surged over the boundary toward the rolling hills and planes of the deadlands beyond.
“That is our signal gentleman, it's time to move.” She said, grabbing onto the initial root, and kicking out over the side, before beginning to descend as the vine grew just ahead of her descent. Tilly watched as she took advantage of the intentional back and froth curves in the growth for hand and foot holds.
The rest followed after her, each taking looks, when able, at the sudden and violent storm surged toward the enemy. It had started to pour sheets of water on the mouth of the mountain pass, adding tons of water to the river delta choking the entrance of the pass. Thunder stuck the ground angrily like the clanging of a gong, as the force of nature moved forward towards the enemy lines.
“How did we do this?” Tilly called to Ichiro, as the outer edges of the storm started to soak them with rain, removing any visibility they had of the area.
“It was Mistress Erash,” He called back down over the sound of the storm.
“She is able to do this with my father in his role as a Guardian. They called it a domain ritual. Although, I am afraid it will not rain for months after this in our valley.”
Even in the rain, the millipede vine provided an almost ladderlike descent down the cliff, and after ten minutes Tilly's moccasins had landed in the rusty tan grass that covered the lands of their enemy.
He looked around as the rain started to lighten near their area and saw Amelia doing something with the grass, as the others adjusted their tan cloaks and packs. She carefully dug up a clump of the ground cover and placed it in one of her pockets, before lifting another and laying it on the sleeve of her trenchcoat.
She waved, her staff over it, and the grass started to multiply rapidly, springing up in clums all over her jacket breaking up her shape, and lending the majority of her form an impressive camouflage with the surroundings.
“Do not worry Baby-man, I am sure her explosions are nowhere near as impressive as yours.” Gorock chuckled from behind Tilly causing him to jump. She looked up from her newly covered form and gestured silently for the rest of them to come forward.
As she grew each of their cloaks a sort of gilly suit covering, she explained in a low voice,
“This plant is called blood weed. If you are injured wearing this cloak, get it off quickly, I might not have time to keep it from burrowing into your wound. But in its inert state, it will provide excellent cover for us as we move.”
Tilly stepped forward last, but as she started to cover his cloak in the vampire grass, his Legendary armor underneath started to writhe once again and this time Tilly knew he was not imagining things. It felt… Outraged.
Tilly was about to call out a warning when his grass-covered cloak exploded all around him, causing Amelia to shout in surprise.
Comments
Joshua Hutto
haha
Wyatt Hilbert
Yandere armor... Nice
