Rescue Read online

  “Now, don’t get too excited. Your reduced health pool means that you’re a lot easier to kill, and your smaller mana pool means that you’ll never be an arch mage that’s able to cast massive spells. Most artificers actually stay in big cities, working on their crafting projects.”

  I consider the trade-offs more than worth it, at least at this level. I honestly don’t have any point of comparison since I don’t know anything about any other classes.

  Token, continuing on his sales pitch for the class, adds, “Don’t forget to choose your new class skill. Just focus your mind on the crystal, and it should give you your options along with the details.”

  That’s right. Class skills! One of the best parts about choosing your class is the unique abilities and skills that it can give you.

  I focus on the crystal in my hands, and a new window pops up.

  Congratulations on choosing to be an artificer. Each level you gain, you may return to your class trainer to choose a free class skill to learn. However, you may purchase more class skills by giving up XP. Some skills may only be learned by advanced artificers or may only be learned once prerequisites are met first.

  Artificer’s Insight - Merge different spells into new combinations

  Artificer Speed - Increase the speed that crafting is completed

  Artificer Quality - Increase quality of crafting and bonuses associated

  Failure Reduction - Reduce chance of crafting failure

  Crafting Cost - Reduce the XP cost of creating magical items

  Design Mode - Activate a special design mode that lets you scan, break down, and build possible artificer projects.

  Combat Artifice - Craft, repair, and build in the middle of combat with reduced penalties

  Sub-specializations for specific types of spells

  Sub-specialization for specific types of crafting

  There’s a much longer list, but most of those are greyed out, and I can’t get any more information about them. The specializations lists state the bonuses that spells or crafting receive when they’re used in a project. Only the skills and spells I already know show up. I can only guess that the list will expand if I learn new types of magic or a new crafting skill.

  I mull over the list and am a bit unsure what I should chose. They’re all great options, but I don’t know what bonuses would work best for me.

  “Having a hard time deciding?”

  I look away from the options the crystal is presenting and nod.

  “Well, I’ll give you the same advice I’ve given my other students: choose [Design Mode]. It won’t give you any bonuses or make you a better crafter by itself, but if you can master the mode, you’ll find it is the single greatest ability that an artificer has access to.”

  “Really?”

  “You’ll have plenty of time to get the other abilities, but [Design Mode] is the ability that sets artificers apart from other crafters.”

  I trust Token’s advice and choose [Design Mode].

  Congratulations on choosing Design Mode as your first artificer ability. To activate the ability, simply call out or think Design Mode. Please feel free to return when you’ve gained another level or wish to spend your XP to purchase another ability.

  With that, the screen projecting from the crystal disappears, and Token puts it back into his personal inter-dimensional space.

  “So, try and activate [Design Mode] now.”

  I call out, “Design Mode,” and a whole new type of window pops up. There are a bunch of tabs on the left side of the window and a big empty pane in the center. Honestly, it reminds me of an AutoCAD program I messed around with once.

  Thankfully, Token is able to tell me about the [Design Mode] to help me understand things. Over the next couple hours, he walks me through the basics. I can scan raw materials, parts, or fully crafted items into the system and work with models of those things. I can then use those parts or materials in a kind of virtual environment and manipulate them or incorporate them into a new design. The mode also takes into account how much of the material I have, my skills, and my abilities to give me information about mana costs, XP costs, time to create, and if it’s even possible to do what I’m designing. Token lets me use a basic copper knife he has as an example. I scan it and get it’s basic information.

  Copper Knife

  Damage: 2-3 (Piercing)

  Durability: 8/10

  Now, I can modify the material the knife is made out of, switching out copper for steel. This increases the durability of the item from a max of 10 to 20 but doesn’t change anything else because the basic design of the weapon hasn’t changed. The [Design Mode] also kindly lets me know that I don’t have enough steel to actually craft the item or a high enough Blacksmithing skill. Another neat feature of the [Design Mode] is the ability to explode the knife or break it down into its component parts. The knife deconstructs into its major parts: a blade, a hilt, and a pommel. There are more parts, like a crossguard, tabs, and miscellaneous small parts, but those don’t seem to be modifiable. I can, however, enchant, engrave, or use any other skill I have on the major parts of the knife to enhance and change it. I can also incorporate either a part of the knife or its whole into the design of something else entirely such as a knife-flinging device. It’s all honestly a bit complicated, and Token tells me that I’ll have to practice with it to learn all the little things it can help me do.

  After his explanation, Token leaves me to experiment with my new artificer skills while he works on getting his and my mining quota for the day completed. I find that it’s hard to experiment with any designs because I first need to scan in objects or materials to work with. I scan in my prison shirt and pants, but there’s not much I can do with them. When I try to modify the clothes, I’m given the notification:

  Tailoring skill not known by user. Chance of failure 100%.

  So, I start to scan other objects in the mine just to have more to play around with. I scan the picks, the minecart, the rails, the rocks around me, the beams, and anything else I can. I find that I can make a Stone Knife based on the pattern of the Copper Knife Token let me scan.

  Stone Knife

  Damage: 2-3 (Piercing)

  Durability: 5/5

  Chance of failure: 43%

  It’s interesting to see that the knife itself is just a sharpened piece of stone with cloth wrapped around the blunt bottom. The design took into consideration that I’d have to use the cloth from my shirt to make the hilt. Still, not bad, even though I’d have a 43% chance of failing to make a knife based on my current skills. I guess that the low durability is from the stone material it’s made from.

  I experiment with other combinations and get a wooden knife, a steel knife, a wooden cart, and lots of others. Though [Design Mode] doesn’t tell me how I’d make these objects, it’s nice to see that I could. It’s almost the end of the work day when it hits me that, instead of randomly scanning objects, I can actually try to find materials that I have skills for. I look through my character sheet, and one skill in particular pops out at me: [Crystal Programing]. It’s a skill that I got from the dungeon master Koorb after finishing his entire dungeon. He gave me an object that downloaded all the knowledge and theory I’d need for Novice level Crystal Programming. I’d practiced with it a bit on the journey to Trinitarian but never got a chance to do much with it.

  I ask Token if he can find me some crystals or gems while he’s searching for metal deposits in the mine. It’s only a matter of minutes before he hands me a small crystal the size of a dime. I pull up [Design Mode] and scan the crystal.

  Tiny Crystal

  An unrefined crystal.

  That’s it. Nothing about [Crystal Programing] or what I can do with it? I sigh, disappointed. Then I remember that [Design Mode] can only work with designs that I’ve already entered into it. I’ve yet to scan a prepared crystal. I take the tiny crystal into my hand and probe it with my mana. I sense its unique crystalline structure and decide to rework it so that it c
an act as a reservoir for mana. After I rearrange the crystal matrix, I open up my eyes and rescan the object.

  Tiny Mana Crystal

  A modified crystal capable of storing mana.

  Current mana capacity: 5 mana.

  Current recharge capacity: 3.

  I throw both fists into the air like I just scored the winning goal during the World Cup and shout, “Yipee!” This is huge. I just made a mana storage crystal. My general inspection of the crystal only told me that it could now hold mana, but [Design Mode] gives me additional information about its capacity and the number of times I can recharge it. I get Token to find me another tiny crystal and repeat the experiment, only this time preparing the crystal matrix to accept instructions instead of mana.

  Tiny Matrix Crystal - Unprogrammed

  A modified crystal capable of storing magical instructions.

  Current Instruction capacity: F

  Sifting through the memories that were downloaded into my mind when I learned the skill, I recall that each crystal has a different level of instruction that it can take. Better-prepared crystals, or ones that are simply larger, can take more numerous and more complex commands. The ability of a crystal to take instructions is graded on an A-F scale with the best being an A and the worst being an F. That this crystal has an F rating means that it can be programmed with only the simplest instructions like “turn off” and “turn on.” Anything more complicated would require a crystal or gem of a higher quality and/or size. Still, it’s a wonderful discovery, and I’m already imagining all the things I can make now. I can’t wait to to start my experiments.

  Chapter 6

  I’m walking to where Token, Meno, and I have taken to eating our dinners together when I feel a sharp, stabbing pain in my lower back.

  Damage dealt: 12 (Sneak Attack)

  I drop my tray of food when the notification pops up and twirl around, fists raised to fight, but I don’t see anyone to attack. The notification doesn’t say who attacked me, only that they did damage. Usually, an attacker’s name and health bar appear above their heads, but there are so many people around, all moving and shifting, that it’s hard to search for one. I catch a glimpse of a red health bar above a small figure, but it’s already too far away to read a name, and I lose sight of it. However, I have a suspicion about who it is that attacked me.

  Damage dealt: 3 (Bleeding)

  The new damage notification reminds me of the throbbing pain in my back, and when I touch the wound, my hand comes away bloody. My head starts to feel dizzy, and I’m confused as to why such a small wound seems to have such an effect on me. I pull up my character sheet and see my health.

  Armon Ellington Lvl. 5

  Health 37/52

  Stamina65/65

  Mana 68/68

  Oh, dear. No wonder it’s such a big deal. Twelve damage isn’t a big deal when your health is nearly a hundred, but when it’s only fifty-two, it’s a much bigger chunk of your life.

  “Oh my gosh, man, what happened? Why are you bleeding?”

  The voice behind me startles me, and I spin around and find Meno staring at my waist.

  I shake my head, annoyed at myself for getting spooked. “Someone just stabbed me and ran away. It’s not as bad as it looks, but I’m bleeding, and I don’t know how to stop it.”

  Damage dealt: 3 (Bleeding)

  I consider using my newly-unlocked mana to heal myself, but a quick look around shows me that too many people are watching me. Meno must sense it too because he pulls me close and says, “Come with me, I know someone that can help.”

  The hobgoblin leads me across camp, his stern expression and demeanor making a path through the mulling prisoners. I expect Meno to lead me to a medic or doctor. Instead, he takes me to the camp cook, an overweight, yellow-skinned hobgoblin everyone calls Cookie.

  “Hey, Cookie. I have a friend here who could use your help.”

  The hobgoblin doesn’t even turn around from stirring a big pot of foul-smelling soup. He just shouts, “No second helpings!”

  “No, Cookie. Not food help, hurt help.”

  The hobgoblin in the apron turns around and gives me a quick scan then motions for me to come around the table. Once we’re near, he lifts up my shirt, and I feel him poke the hole in my back.

  Damage dealt: 1 (Bleeding)

  “Yup, you got stabbed.”

  I wince as he pulls his finger out of the wound. “Thank you, I realized that.”

  “No need to get sassy there. I’ll get you fixed up in a minute. Just let me find that yarrow root.”

  Cookie searches through his stack of pots and pans, banging them together as he searches through them. “Here it is!” he declares and holds up a thick, knobby plant root. “I’ll just get it all prepared for you.” Then he takes a bite out of the root and starts to chew on it. My eyes widen in disgust seeing Cookie chew open-mouthed, and I’m about to protest about what I fear is coming, when Cookie spits out a wad of fibrous material, lifts up my shirt and slaps the chewed-up root right onto my wound.

  I close my eyes and cringe at the thought of all the bacteria from the hobgoblin’s mouth mixing with my open wound. However, a quick look at my character sheet does show that I’ve lost the bleeding status from the wound.

  I try my best to smile and say through gritted teeth, “Thank you, Cookie, for helping me out.”

  He nods at me. “No problem there. I owed Meno there a favor for getting me some grubs for dinner tomorrow. So, we are all square.”

  Meno thanks Cookie anyway, and I follow him back to the normal place we eat with Token. Meno grills me about the stabbing with a dark expression on his face. I hesitate to tell him my suspicions that the goblin that tried to take my food before is the one that I think did it. He looks mad enough to kill someone.

  Instead, I wave away his concerns. “Don’t worry about it, man. I’m working on something that . . .” I look around to make sure no one is listening in before continuing, “I’m working on something that will get us an ‘early release.’ Okay, so you don’t go getting into trouble, ‘cause I’m going to need you to help me out soon.”

  It’s only a half truth. After all, I think I can use my new abilities to do so some amazing things. I just haven’t worked out any of the details yet of how they’ll help us escape. But the idea that I’ll need him to help me will make sure Meno doesn’t go looking for trouble any time soon.

  After several weeks of earnest practice, I find that I’ve made some great progress in [Crystal Programming] thanks to my new ability, [Design Mode]. I have tried out different ways of programing the crystals to mimic spell effects, and it has taken a lot of experimentation, and I don’t think I would have been able to do it without the virtual models I can create in the design interface, but I’m finally able to make a type of elemental grenade. I have to use two crystals, but it works. One crystal is formatted as an energy source that is able to be filled up with mana, an amount that varies depending on the matrix of each individual crystal. The second crystal is then formatted to hold magical instructions--in this case, to take the mana from the first crystal and turn it into elemental energy using spellwriting symbols--which then can then be forcibly expelled. Since all the magical instructions are in the second crystal, as long as the crystal has a D or higher instruction rating, there’s plenty of room to add instructions for timing and delay mechanisms. I currently have the grenades on a five-second timer, which gives me plenty of time to activate one, throw it, and make sure I’m out of range.

  The code kind of looks like this: [Activation]—>[Delay]—>[Draw mana]—>[Convert to element]—>[Expel energy]

  There are more details to it, but that’s the gist of how the programing works. It’s not that logically complicated, but fine tuning the details took a lot of trial and error. I hope to create more complicated programs in the future, but this is pretty good right now. Thanks to my incessant tinkering, I have several kinds of elemental grenades designed, all of which have excellent combat p
otential. Well, theoretically since I’ve yet to actually make any of the grenades I’ve designed yet.

  Crystal Fire Grenade

  Damage: 3-5 (Fire)

  Secondary Effect: 30% chance to catch fire

  Area of effect: 3 ft^2

  Durability: 3/3

  Crystal Death Grenade

  Damage: 3-5 (Death Magic)

  Secondary Effect: 30% chance to reduce healing effects

  Area of effect: 3 ft^2

  Durability: 3/3

  Crystal Force Grenade

  Damage: 2-4 (Force)

  Area of effect: 3 ft^2

  Durability: 3/3

  Crystal Air Grenade

  Damage: 1-1 (Air)

  Secondary Effect: Knock back

  Area of Effect: 3 ft^2

  Durability: 3/3

  It takes Token a few days to find a crystal of good enough quality to work, but when he does, I make my first Crystal Fire Grenade. Unfortunately, I forget to add the timer portion of the crystal programing, and it blows up in my face, burning off my eyebrows. Thankfully spellwritting ‘heal’ ‘self’ not only helps me recover the lost hit points, but the brows too. Though, my pride is not so easily recovered. Token’s still laughing at me and reenacting the explosion and my hair loss.