Chapter 4 - Divine Apostasy Book 4

Chapter 4

Both Ruwen’s parents were Fighters, so he knew the basics. His dad used various one-handed weapons and a shield, while his mom used a light one-handed sword without a shield. Now that he studied the Sub Classes, he wondered exactly what Sub Class his mom had chosen.

Even though Ruwen disliked physical violence growing up, he’d been curious about his parents’ Specializations. Looking back, whenever he’d brought up the subject, he realized his mom had turned the conversation to another topic. He’d never been that interested in the Fighter Class, so he’d never pried.

Now, as he looked through all the choices, nothing seemed appropriate for her. In just over a day, he could ask her again.

The Fighter Class gained two points in Stamina per level and didn’t have as many Sub Classes as the Merchant Class, but it still had a lot. They were all flavors of the same idea, damaging others. You could hit your opponent with one weapon or two, wielding a shield or not, all while debuffing and interrupting your foe. You could focus your expertise to an entire type of weapon like blunt or piercing, or specialize in a particular weapon.

While valuable, Ruwen needed help winning a war, and none of the common Fighter Sub Classes would help with that. He’d started to wonder if what he needed didn’t exist, when he found a promising entry.

The Sub Class was called Commander. Fighters could form small groups at level ten, but the Commander Sub Class expanded on that ability. Commanders could form more groups with more members than a plain Fighter. But, the Commander’s real strength appeared to be the capacity to pass this ability to other group members, forming something like a chain of groups.

The Commander Class had three common Specializations: Warlord, Quartermaster, and Emissary. Ruwen, thankful to have found a promising build path, eagerly continued to read.

The Quartermaster dealt with logistics and planning, and while Ruwen knew that was a critical piece of war, it didn’t fit well with his interests.

The Emissary Specialization looked more interesting. It seemed like a cross between a Spy and a Diplomat. It dealt with propaganda, discovering the enemy's secrets, and negotiating treaties. Probably because Ruwen still felt the loss of all the Observer abilities and spells, the spy-like nature of the Emissary appealed to him.

The Emissary received bonuses to Charisma and Persuasion to help with negotiations. Ruwen stopped walking as he read the next capability. Emissaries could form telepathic links to one member per group, down the entire group chain. This powerful capability made receiving timely data possible and might provide intelligence that could turn the tide of a battle.

Ruwen flipped forward to the next Specialization, Warlord. It had telepathy as well, but with two differences. It was limited to the immediate groups, not the entire chain, but you could speak with everyone in the group, not just one person. Being able to communicate with your party members was a huge advantage, even if it didn’t have the scope of the Emissary.

The Warlord could also give bonuses to things like experience or skills to everyone linked in his groups. In addition, he had something called a Battle Cry that would briefly increase stats of everyone as well. 

The last major capability revolved around something called Banners, which turned out not to be flags, but something Ruwen had never heard of, named groups. It appeared that Warlords could form named groups, and it gave the members added bonuses. 

Ruwen thought back to the Savage Seven he’d seen earlier that night and their designation as an Elite Squad. Blapy must have made them one of these Banners. He wondered what special abilities the Booming Hens had gained.

While the Commander Sub Class and its Specializations were powerful, you gave up access to a build path that would make you a deadly opponent. As a Commander, you’d likely lose a duel against any other Fighter.

Ruwen walked again, thinking through the implications of the two Specializations. 

An Emissary would definitely help him with his task of defending the southern border. But communicating with so many people might swamp him with details, causing a loss of focus on the big picture. A higher Charisma appealed to his vanity, and the Persuasion increase would result in fewer arguments.

As a Warlord, he didn’t have the visibility of the Emissary but could buff his troops, and the Banner ability let him distribute even more buffs. And truthfully, the thought of being able to talk to his immediate group telepathically really appealed to him. It would allow for quick and precise coordination.

Ruwen decided he would Sub Class in Commander and then Specialize in Warlord once he reached level twenty, but he had no idea how to do that. He’d ask the women, and if they didn’t know, his parents would finish reviving sometime tomorrow, and they’d know.

Putting the book away, Ruwen ran another query, this time for the Worker Class. He already knew his Sub Class was Collector, but there were many different types of Harvester Specializations. Plus, he hoped to find some books that described a few of the higher level Worker Spells and Abilities.

The second book Ruwen looked through had what he wanted. Thanks to the divine amulet from the camping trip, he already knew the first five levels of spells and abilities for every Class. Which it turned out was most of them. Uru front-loaded her Classes choices, and only two abilities remained for the base Worker Class.

At level seven, he could invest in the ability Survey.

Ability: Survey

Effect: Increase map details and automatically update map from all sources. Provide alternative views.

At level nine he had this option.

Ability: Insect Repellant

Effect: Create a barrier to keep unwanted pests away. Each Ability point increases the sphere radius by 100 feet. Adjustable.

Ruwen skipped the sections on Laborer and Household Sub Classes and moved to the pages detailing the Collector abilities. There were five of them.

Ability: Immunity

Effect: Increase Resistance to Acid, Poison, and Disease by 20% per Ability Point.

Ability: Prospector

Effect: Increase Perception by 20% per Ability Point.

Ability: Ripen

Effect: Accelerate growth of target. Increase speed by 200% per Ability Point.

Ability: Stone Echo

Effect: Sense reflected vibrations allowing discovery of buried or hidden resources.

Ability: Sunburn

Effect: Convert sunlight and other power sources into Energy. Increase efficiency by 20% per Ability Point.

Ruwen had twenty-two ability points to spend, and while there were some interesting abilities here, especially Sunburn, he needed to wait until he could go through the Fighter and Commander abilities. And he couldn’t do that until he learned how to select his Sub Class.

Spell points Ruwen had far more of, forty-three to be exact, and he glanced at the Mana-based Worker spells.

Spell: Steady

Effect: Increase balance by 25% per stack. Each stack reduces the width required for safe movement.

1 Stack: 12 inches

2 Stacks: 6 inches

3 Stacks: 3 inches

4 Stacks: 1 inch

5 Stacks: Rope

Spell: Tumble

Effect: Falls (max 50 feet) are slowed to that of a three-foot drop.

Ruwen had seen both these buffs when Ahvy’s team of Shooters had loaded Ruwen’s Void Band at the city warehouse. He looked at the Worker Energy-based spells.

Spell: Fresh Air

Effect: Creates a bubble of clean air around the Worker's head.

Spell: Climb

Effect: Creates 50 feet of magical rope for every 1 Energy per second.

Like most of the Worker spells, they all seemed to be utility-based and meant to help get jobs done. Hoping the Collector spells might be a little more flashy, Ruwen looked at the Mana-based ones. 

Spell: Lockbox

Effect: Create a magical lock that can only be opened with keyword uttered during creation.

Spell: Net

Effect: Creates a magical trap. Each stack increases trap size and strength.

1 Stack: Small Creatures

2 Stacks: Medium Creatures

3 Stacks: Large Creatures

4 Stacks: Very Large Creatures

5 Stacks: Gigantic Creatures

Spell: Shed

Effect: Create a basic structure to keep occupants safe from the elements and fits up to ten adults.

Spell: Minion

Effect: Create a helper from rocks, trees, or other solid items. Will follow very simple commands (dig, fetch, chop, etc.).

Spell: Fresh Harvest

Effect: Alter the flow of time, slowing it immensely, keeping the target from spoiling. Each stack increases the bubble by three feet, and the duration by 6 hours—movement within the sphere destroys the effect.

Fresh Harvest was how the cities received and stored fruits and vegetables. That just left the Energy-based Collector spells.

Spell: Drizzle

Effect: Generate rain in a radius around the Worker. 10 Energy per second for every 100 feet of radius.

Spell: Chaff

Effect: Remove unwanted objects from harvest. Every 10 Energy per second doubles the Worker's Haste.

Spell: Sow Seed

Effect: Move small objects using Telekinesis. Every pound requires 1 Energy per second.

Spell: Harvest

Effect: Magical scythe cuts crops in a 120-degree arc in front of the Worker. Requires 1 Energy per 10 feet (max ten Energy).

Spell: Greenhouse

Effect: Alter the temperature up or down by ten degrees in a radius around the Worker. 10 Energy per second for every 100 feet of the radius. Temperature and distance are adjustable.

These spells seemed a little more interesting, but still nothing to get excited about. Ruwen figured most of his Spell Points would go into the Fighter spells anyway. He closed the book with a mental hand, clearing his vision. 

Ruwen’s years of training with Rami triggered as he sensed a disturbance near him. He didn’t slow or look around, but concentrated on his other senses to provide clues. Because the Temple Guardians hadn’t reacted, it probably meant it was one of his friends.

The first hint of Dawn colored the eastern sky grey, but it remained dark around the temple. Ruwen had spent the entire night circling the giant structure. The Temple Guardians’ humming was the only sound, which made hearing the attack easier to catch.

Ruwen recognized the sound of the Viper Step.

Sift had ambushed him.