"I don't care. You put that knife away, or I'll do it for you."
Slowly, reluctantly, the woman sheathed her knife at her waist. Her hand, however, didn't stray far from it.
Whatever. As long as it isn't out.
Perturbed, Vessilia settled her hands on her hips. "Where are you from? Why are you in the Foglands, and how in Avel's name did you kill a frost giant with your bare fists?" Her voice rose slightly with each question, and her dark eyes were intense.
Felix scratched his left shoulder awkwardly and dodged the question. "What is a Guilder? Or a Tin Rank?"
Vessilia fixed him with a suspicious stare. "How do-? Why would you not know this?"
"Let's say I'm stupid," Felix smiled in a disarming sort of way, he hoped. He was never really good with this interpersonal stuff.
The girl gave him a weird look, like he'd just farted in public or something. "A Guilder is a member of the Protector's Guild, a coalition of adventurers that work to protect the Continent from monsters. Tin Rank is the lowest of the Guild, essentially a...trainee."
"Oh, huh," Felix huffed a breath. Adventurers? For real? "So where's your trainer, then? Is that Lady Aren?"
"Ah, well, she is technically my mentor but..." Vessilia appeared nervous for some reason, and Felix quirked an eyebrow.
"You don't know where she is?"
The girl huffed out an aggrieved breath. "Fine, yes, I am a bit turned about. I was carried here against my will, I will have you know."
Felix smiled. "So you'd recognize how to get back if I can get you on the path?"
"Sure," Vessilia shrugged. "The idiot left me awake the entire trip, only knocking me out once he got here. Enormous git," she muttered under her breath. Felix clapped his hands, startling both the girl and Pit, who warbled and fell over in surprise. Laughing lightly as his companion stood back up, he glanced at Vessilia to find her clutching the hilt of her knife and staring daggers at his friend. Gently, Felix placed a hand on hers, causing her to look up at him in surprise.
"He's a good boy, Vessilia," Felix looked her in the eyes, and tried to convey this simple fact again. "He won't hurt you."
After a moment, the girl's brows relaxed and her grip loosened. Felix grinned. For some reason he couldn't figure out, she blushed.
"Ok! Let's get going, I can see the destination from here. Sooner we find your mentor the better!"
Hopping back toward the giant, Felix picked up the discarded Crude Metal Club and slung it over his shoulder. It was very heavy, even with basically an 85 in Strength, but it was manageable. It was a good weapon against the giants, and also added in a dash of irony to each strike.
Felix walked off, leading them back to the original square with Pit hot on his heels. Vessilia followed slightly more cautiously, picking her way over the rubble and remnants of his battle against the Risi Warrior. He knew his fight had destroyed several of the more rickety walls around the area, but Felix was a little surprised that he'd gone so far off course. They walked for about 400 feet before entering back into the iced over square, which even now was starting to melt. Reaching down, Felix ran his hand through a small puddle of water.
"Why is the ice melting?" Vessilia asked from behind him, her steps loud and heavy on the thin ice.
"Not sure. Maybe the giants were maintaining it?" Felix shrugged and stood back up. He pointed across the square. "I saw the wounded giant carry you from that direction."
Vessilia stepped ahead, looking around the ice and noting the acid-scorched ropes still laid in a pile. She seemed to be searching for something, but after a few seconds she seemed to have given up. For whatever reason, she seemed to be squinting a whole lot.
Maybe it's a sight Skill or something.
They took off shortly after that, Vessilia in the lead. It was sometimes slow going as the girl seemed to have trouble navigating some of the more treacherous rubble and ice slicks, almost as if she hadn't noticed them until she was on top of them. Did that mean her Perception was low? Her Agility didn't seem terribly high either when she attacked him, nor her Strength.
She said Tin Rank was basically a beginning adventurer, so low level. But she's level 19? That's the same level I am, but my stats are clearly higher than hers. What's the difference?
Felix pondered as the armored young woman picked across the ground, moving with less and less caution. She was in a hurry. After only ten minutes they heard a roar of rage and the telltale sound of clashing metal. Felix's eyes snapped up, suddenly feeling surges of bright orange Mana burst and evaporate not too far away. They were spots of vivid color in the gray, brown, and purple white miasma that was the ruin all around them.
"Fire magic," Felix breathed, both curious and nervous. His last experience with fire magic was an awful case of bad breath, though this was likely an ally. Felix didn't imagine Frost Giants would be using fire spells. Vessilia confirmed it.
"That must be Atar." She paused, sucking in a sudden breath as she must have noticed the lights reflecting in the ruins ahead. "They're all fighting, I can hear them! Come quickly!"
Shooting her a curious look, Felix easily outpaced her, even with the giant club. Pit chirruped curiously at him.
"Don't know what we're getting into, buddy. But keep an eye out and stay to the side. Things might get weird for a while." Felix felt his chest grow warm, that bundle of emotion that he recognized as his connection to his companion swelling and shifting. He was coming to recognize the feeling meant agreement.
Companion Pact is level 11!
Moments later, Felix crested the ruins of a two story building that had collapsed, turning its second floor into a strange ramp. Once there, he had a clear view of a fierce battle. Nearby, a figure in full plate armor was duking it out with a blue skinned Risi, one he almost didn't recognize due to the preponderance of bloody injuries. It was Young, the smoother skinned giant that left with Wounded. Speaking of Wounded, they were getting their ass handed to him by another armored warrior, this one wielding dual shields on their arms. As he watched, he saw the person pick up a boulder the size of Felix's torso and chuck it at the giant. It exploded in a brilliant shower of jagged shards.
Felix felt a chill. These people were strong. He didn't think he'd survive an explosion like that, even with his Armored Skin.
The rest of the battlefield was dominated by a much larger giant with an icy axe that didn't seem to be doing much, and a fourth Risi Warrior battling two humans. One of them was using some sort of chain to whip and bind the giant, with little success; she was also remarkably...flippy. Acrobatic, that's the word. She's good, way better than me.
The other fighter was a young man with curling blond locks and disheveled robes. He was busy conjuring small orbs of fire that he'd then sling at the Risi from behind. He didn't look to be in great condition, robes torn and stained by blood.
Fire mage, huh? He hadn't worked with fire yet. Maybe the kid would let him learn.
A sudden, explosive boom diverted Felix's attention back to the center of the field. The shield warrior had somehow blown up the ground itself, and had put up a...magical force field? Agog, he was so focused on the swirling shield of yellow energy that he nearly missed the movement of the big axe wielding giant leader. It had hefted it's massive ice axe and was running toward the mage, lifting the weapon to deliver a devastating blow.
Felix panicked. He looked around the field, noticing that nearly everyone else was preoccupied.
No way I can make it over there in time...
Felix saw ice start to encroach up the mage's body, and a quick glance told him the giant leader had cast something. Streams of purple-white Mana radiated of its hulking frame, and its ice axe started glowing as well as it stepped ever closer.
What if I...no, I could--
The giant made a final leap, pulling its axe high into the air.
"Damn it!" Felix hauled back and, like he was doing a hammer throw, spun and released the massive club he'd looted. It felt like throwing an I-beam, and Felix staggered a few steps as the club whirled off into the darkness. Thankfully his Perception, Strength, and Dexterity were good enough that the club flew true, and it smashed hard into the ice covered ground at the mage's feet. Almost at the same time, the giant's ice axe cleaved into the ground, sending the boy flying off over a dozen feet.
Thrown Weapons Mastery is level 10!
"Holy shit," Felix gasped, wide eyed. I almost hit that guy!
"Avel's Eyes, how did you do that at this range?" Vessilia had come up behind him while he winced. He turned and saw her face; she looked impressed.
"Uh, practice, I guess," Felix managed.
"Vess!?"
The cry came from below, specifically from the chain-wielding woman with the sky high Acrobatics level. Felix saw Vessilia's face brighten and she waved as the chain-wielder continued to dodge her opponents attacks. Felix took a breath as a wounded giant lumbered closer to them, pushed back by the axe wielding man.
"Time to help, yeah?" Vessilia nodded and they both turned back. Once he was ten feet away or so, Felix turned and dashed back toward the edge.
"See you down there!"
"W-what? Wait!"
Felix jumped.
Reign of Vellus!
Blue light flashed as he fell, arcs of lightning rising up to meet him. He slowed, then landed with a muffled THUD, knees bent. Felix quirked his mouth to the side. That was easier than before.
Then the giant was on him.
Wounded badly and wielding their metal club, the Risi Warrior roared in rage at Felix, charging him with what he was coming to understand was a characteristic gusto. Felix braced, ready to dodge or strike or cast, but found it was unnecessary. An armored blur shifted before him, slashing twin blazes of silver light at the blue behemoth before resolving into a warrior with two axes. The Risi's left arm and neck were suddenly bisected.
Blue blood rained down on the both of them.
"Gross," Felix grimaced, then smiled at the warrior. "Hi, I'm Felix."
The warrior grunted and flicked his two axes, wicking the blood off them and onto the ground. They wore a strange frog-mouth helmet, and it made them look like a medieval murderbot a little bit. Felix felt his palms start to sweat as they tilted their head, looking up. Felix followed their eyes, seeing Vessilia leaning over the edge in surprise.
"He with you?" The murderbot's voice was surprisingly deep and raspy. Vessilia nodded.
"Yes! He helped me, Harn!"
The murderbot (Harn, he supposed) grunted and turned back toward the battle. "You helping us too, little mage?"
Felix swallowed. "That's the idea." Harn nodded, and started running toward the next giant.
Felix followed, excitement rising unbidden.