Salt and Blood - Chapter 166

Rose had learned more about her uncle in those few hours of drinking rum together than she had for the first fifteen years of her life

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2.72 - Wake of Disaster

Often those who survive a tragedy are worse off than its victims. They were spared from the pain and suffering it leaves in its wake, while the living must carry the weight of the horror that they lived through

-Excerpt from ‘Applications of the Arcane: Treating Mental Maladies,’ by Professor Kinwit of Tidespire Keep

Rose had learned more about her uncle in those few hours of drinking rum together than she had for the first fifteen years of her life. Then again, they hadn’t seen each other all that much.

The chef turned out to be a hilarious old coot, uncaring for the filthy stares of his customers while he laughed and joked with Rose and her uncle over the bottle of rum.

As it turned out, the rum was from his personal collection. He’d earned it through a wager with a travelling merchant and it was supposedly worth more than a house in Greengate.

It certainly burned her throat enough for Rose to believe that. She’d even earned another level in her Toxin Resistance as the evening progressed.

Skill up!
Toxin Resistance 14 > 15

Make that two. Rose hoped that the increasing resistance to toxins didn’t make it more difficult to enjoy rum in future.

“Alright, this has been great fun, but I should probably get back to the kitchen. I can smell the burning from here. Those fools are lost without me,” the burly chef said, slapping his knees. “You two can finish the bottle. My treat. Come back anytime, I’ll have a whole doori butchered for you!”

“You’re my hero, Leo,” Rose said, raising her glass with a swaying arm, her vision blurry.

“Thash right,” her uncle followed, almost falling off his chair as he raised his own glass. “A real… man of the people.”

He scoffed at their inability to hold their drink, marching back to the kitchen without a single wrongly placed step. Rose looked at her glass then at her uncle and back to her glass.

With a sigh, she reached for the bottle. “No point letting this ambrosia go to waste,” she mumbled to herself as she poured both her and her uncle’s glasses back inside before plugging it with the cork.

Then she stored it inside the spatial ring she’d gained after Nasar’s death. Huh, I can actually just… say that now. Maybe time does heal all wounds. Frick, I miss them, she thought to herself.

“Alright, big fella, I think it’s time to get you back to our great big mansion before you collapse. We’ve done more than enough damage to this place’s reputation already,” Rose chuckled, walking towards her uncle to help him to his feet.

“Whazzat?” he slurred, eyes unfocused.

She gripped his forearms tightly and heaved. He was so light to her that she almost fell over backwards, forgetting that her continually advancing core and divine energy made her body far stronger than even an awakened at a similar level.

I didn’t expect him to care so much for me, she thought to herself as she wrapped one of his arms around her shoulders and started to walk out. Mum did once tell me that he and auntie couldn’t have kids, perhaps that’s why? I’ll have to put in a good word with the king before I leave home.

She took a second step when the world exploded in red and blue. The temperature in the air shot from a cool breeze to a raging inferno in the blink of an eye.

She felt the weight of her uncle’s arm disappear. Rose’s skin blistered, patches peeling off. Her eyes went wide in horror.

Skill up!
Arcane Resistance 27 > 29

You have earned a new skill!
Flame Resistance 0 > 1
Flame Attunement 0 > 1

Skill up!
Flame Resistance 1 > 4
Flame Attunement 1 > 2

She turned to look at her uncle. All she saw was a charred skeleton. “No!” she cried. “Not again!” The blackened bones crumbled to ash as she clutched at them.

She tried to scream, but the words burned along with her throat. It was too late. Not even the gods and goddesses of the pantheon could bring back the dead.

Her eyes closed. Rose hoped it was just a bad dream. Some horrifying vision that had come to haunt her drunken mind.

Skill up!
Arcane Resistance 29 > 30
Flame Resistance 4 > 7

When she opened them once more, all she saw were the flames and the splashing whorls. Not ordinary flames. They crackled with more arcane power than she’d ever seen, every flickering wisp containing more energy than she put in most of her techniques.

Skill up!
Flame Resistance 7 > 12

Her grief had to wait. The flesh beneath her skin sizzled, beginning to cook. With every passing moment, the flames seemed to grow more intense. Hotter. Deadlier.

Nothing helped her see. Flames filled her vision, both physical and arcane. The energy was too dense to see through.

Skill up!
Arcane Attunement 32 > 33
Flame Resistance 12 > 18
Arcane Resistance 30 > 32

Then, a single drop of divine energy vaporised in her core. The waves it released spread through her entire body, healing the burns and restoring her damaged flesh and skin.

Another drop burst, melding with her arcane energy as she formed a barrier around her. The heat was still overwhelming, but the worst of its effects were held back by the barrier.

Sweat poured from her freshly formed skin, soaking her naked body. Her clothes had been incinerated in seconds.

All she had was the spatial artifact from Nasar and her inventory. What is happening!? Why!? she inwardly screamed and cursed.

Yet, Rose knew the truth. Knew there was only one possible perpetrator for this horror. Minenblum had retaliated for her attack with lethal force.

There was no time for grief. For horror. For vengeance or rage. No time for thoughts. Right now, Rose had to survive. Only then could she think about what came next.

Skill up!
Flame Resistance 18 > 20

Never before had one of her resistance skills, or any of her skills for that matter, grown so rapidly in such a short time. It went to show how powerful this blaze was.

Arcane power? Was it a person who did this? Or a weapon? The drain from maintaining the barrier put a quick end to her questioning. All her focus had to remain on keeping it up.

The divine energy made it far more powerful, but at the same time it exerted a greater toll on her body. One she couldn’t keep up forever.

Skill up!
Divine Attunement 15 > 16
Flame Resistance 20 > 21
Flame Attunement 2 > 3

That her flame attunement was increasing meant her body understood the particular flavour of arcane power that was burning her up. That was little help to her now.

The only real way to escape would be breaching the edges of the fire, but how far was that? She had been walking since the moment she’d regained her wits, but still all she saw was fire and death.

Suddenly her breath hitched in her throat. The heat had masked it until now, but Rose realised she was no longer able to breathe.

Her lungs still worked fine, but there was no air left. The flames consumed it all in their hungry advance.

She was on a timer now. Not that she hadn’t been already. Another drop of divine energy burst, the warmth spreading through her in a strengthening wave.

With all her muscles now empowered, Rose started to sprint. The direction was random. She encountered no obstacles. The flames had burned all the nearby buildings to ash, giving her a clear path.

Soon her muscles started to burn. Running only on a blend of divine and arcane energy was punishing. The fibres started to snap and fray. One by one, until her legs were shaking trying to hold her up.

As instantaneously as the flames had flared to life, they suddenly fell away beside her. Hot air rushed to fill her lungs as she panted and heaved. Yet she didn’t stop moving. Couldn’t.

Not until she was…

Rose collapsed to the ground, realising there was soft earth beneath her knees. The air shimmered with heat, every breath warming her insides beyond a comfortable temperature.

She allowed the barrier to slowly fall away. The heat was still oppressive, but no longer did a moment’s contact cause her skin to melt.

Once she’d gathered herself as best she could, Rose turned to look back in the direction she’d come from. The only way she could describe what she saw was with a single word.

Hell.

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