Chapter 90: Growth In An Unexpected Direction

  Darius

  Darius yawned as he walked. The hunter had always seen himself like a big cat or a dragon, he just didn’t wake up properly until the sun hit him and warmed his blood a little. Of course, he had to concede it might have something to do with his tendency to stay up late into the night drilling various scenarios and spear sequences. It wasn’t as effective as it had been back home with people to train against, but he didn’t really want to drag Alley into his own obsessive practice.

  That kid had more than enough on his plate already, and besides after the horrific nausea had mostly cleared Darius wanted to push himself and his newly increased rank body well past the point it would be polite to do with a practice partner.

  So having set off in the morning well before the sun had actually risen Darius found himself yawning a lot. Before Alley had gone to sleep the night before, a decision Darius was more than a little envious of. The pair had discussed what Card if any Alley should put through the Duster. Now that the dark-haired boy had a few spare Cards that weren’t spoken for by the monstrous ninety-card requirement of the Cursed Deck, they had eventually concluded it would be worth converting some of the Cards that Alley really couldn’t use.

  First up on the chopping block was Surge Wing Falcon, a Beast, Pursuit, and FeatherKin Card that had no place in Alley’s deck. While the Lesser Duster would only refine the Card into one type of Resonance Dust rather than all three it was still worth it. The boys needed Chips if they were going to complete their salvage in the swamp, and while the Undeath Crystals were certainly valuable there might not be a demand for them even in Medius.

  So while the pair of boys marched north out along the muddy path out of Rak Town, the little leather box that was the Duster attached to Alley’s belt hummed softly as it broke the Creature Card down.

  Without the use of a boat to traverse The Deep River or skim along the coast the journey ahead was looking like it might take several weeks, but they hadn’t liked their chances of snagging a free ride from one of the destitute-looking boats moored near Rak.

  As they walked they idly chatted discussing the landscape around them, the chance to already see Cursed Isle again on the way past, the possibility that they could luck into a barge or river boat heading to Medius that wouldn’t mind taking the pair along.

  While the path they were taking solidified and widened into what could almost be described as a dirt road, Darius knew the improved footing was only a temporary state of affairs. That was just the nature of The Muck Lands. It was a country of swamps, glades, crisscrossing waterways, and wet forests. All of it centered around The Deep River; The huge river ran from North to South through most of the country and held the River Island towns from the tiny Valeton on Cursed Isle to the country’s capital of Medius.

  Setting up camp as the afternoon became evening after their first day of walking North Darius couldn’t help but make a few light-hearted jokes at his friend’s expense. He couldn’t help it, Alley survival skills were just kind of lacking. The former fisher wasn’t entirely incompetent, he knew how to make a fire, find or make shelter, and even a smattering of hunting and gathering lore every now and then though he would make some decision or have some gap in his knowledge that left Darius laughing.

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  Once they were all set up, and Alley had his nose in a book he had taken from the swamp mansion Darius headed out of camp, saying he was going to go practice. It wasn’t strictly true nor was it a lie exactly. Darius felt like Alley had enough on his plate right now, and didn’t want to distract him with this minor mystery that he was sure wasn’t anything to worry about.

  The setting sun was no obstacle to Darius who could see in the dark almost as well as he could the daylight. Strangely that was the source of his concern; Prince Of The Dawn Hunt had been in the Knots family for generations, and while each successive owner customized the Library to suit their own needs the effects of the Pursuit Resonance on the wielder's body had always been consistent, that was until now.

  Darius had ranked up in the mansion, which was over a day ago. He should have noticed an increase to his sense of smell by now. That is what had happened to both his grandmother and great-grandfather. According to his dad they described it like a less intense version of using Scent The Blood, but with a greater range. That Card only increased your sense of smell in regards to the Blood of the person or monster you were targeting.

  He should be smelling everything more intensely now, the grass, the water, the trees, all of it. Granted Darius could smell that stuff, but not any more than usual. It was possible it had increased and he simply hadn’t noticed the effect, instantly having become accustomed. That didn’t feel right so he set off in search of a way to test his sense.

  After about an hour of going around sniffing rotten logs, and walking backward away from fragrant plants to see if he could detect them from far away Darius had to conclude he was right. His sense of smell had not improved at all, but he had absolutely gained a rank. The hunter could feel the increased flow of Resonance into Life Essence inside him, he could feel the increased power of his muscles, the way he regained his breath easier from exertion. Darius had ranked up.

  So what was the new ability that he should possess?

  Moving through the wetlands he tested his ability to move quickly, his strength, and even his ability to move in the water. All of it had certainly improved, that was to be expected everyone’s physical traits grew when they ranked up, and Prince Of The Dawn Hunt tended to grow him in a fairly well-rounded manner.

  None of it felt like an ability though, Alley had gained an ability. The dark haired boy had explained earlier that he could now see ghosts when he looked directly at them. Ignoring the way his skin grew chill from the water Darius let out a long sigh and finally took his least favourite option. He crossed his legs, sat down and began to meditate.

  It had never been something he was good at, and it didn’t do anything overly interesting like reveal Card effects. It was however a known fact that you could discover a clue or two about yourself through meditation. Despite his earlier criticism of the appearance of The Muck Lands the wetlands North of Rak town put on its best face for him.

  Darius found himself in perhaps the perfect setting for such self reflection, a dark mirror like pool with a perfectly cut log stump he could use to sit before it. The moon above was full and rising, he could see it reflected in the glassy water. A chorus of frogs and cicadas filled the air and Darius took a moment to absorb it all before he closed his eyes.

  It took him another hour of fidgeting and swatting away insects before the hunter found the serenity this sort of activity required, but it did eventually happen. He wasn’t sure how long he sat there visualizing his mind traversing the tracts of Resonance that flowed through him. It must have been a few hours at least as the moon had risen high enough in the sky that when he opened his eyes it was no longer visible in the pool before him and he was covered head to toe in bug bites.

  None of that meant anything to the red headed boy who smiled savagely out at the darkened wetlands. He had found the change in his body and while he was more than a little confused about how it had happened Darius knew this was going to be an ability far more tangible in power than an improved sense of smell.

  Any guesses what his new ability is?