The mood was low as the team watched the enemy avatars dismantle their nexus towers. Palinus had been forced away from the minions for almost the entire rift, and he had barely managed to squeeze the essentia to hit level two while he could see the slinger sitting pretty on level 5 slinging a rock every half second that split into half a dozen strikes that disintegrated minion waves faster than his heart beat. The Cinderborn were about to lose their first battle with their new designation, yet Seline was trying her best to keep it positive.

"It's ok," she said with a smile that didn't reach her eyes. "We are going to regroup and plan how we can counter them; they just got the jump on us this time."

"I don't know Sel," Palinus said, rubbing his head. "They seem pretty powerful. I don't know how I could beat that slinger if we had a straight one-versus-one fight, and the Spearman's ability is incredibly scary; he practically put me on a spit to roast."

Recalling the feeling of the spear lodged in his side, Palinus felt some phantom pain as he winced and rubbed the spot.

"We'll figure it out…" She replied, but Palinus could tell she was concerned as well.

"Oh, Pal," Rufian recalled something and was suddenly cheerful, but then looked at his hand and had some second thoughts. "I found something for you… I guess it might help?"

Holding out the calculus in his hand, the team crowded around it, they shared his disappointment, though Seline had a thoughtful expression.

"Sorry, it doesn't do any damage… but I guess it could be kind of useful?" Rufian shrugged.

Flagellant

Ars

Wick Lash

Attunement

|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||

Cooldown

5 Seconds

Compatibility

n/a

Skill Type

Debuff, Area

Slot

[Wrist], [Arm]

Slot Bonus

n/a

Description

Strike dealing [0] damage. If the target is [Burning], apply [Burning] to all enemies within [5]m. If the target is not [Burning], apply [Burning].

"I don't see how it changes anything, but thanks, Rufi." Palinus was grateful to his friend, but for a weapon ars it seemed a bit pointless. Why would he want to do no damage when he could apply burning with his shield ars buffing his strikes and applying burning already?

"If nothing else, it secures your future as a candlelighter when we fail out of the Rift Trials," Rufian joked, and they chuckled wearily.

A crash of masonry sounded from outside the Nexus hall, signalling their final tower had been destroyed. The team shared a sigh as they walked towards the exit portal dejectedly.

"Time to face the others," Vesuvia moped.

"We need to put a positive spin on this, yes, we have lost, but we can come back with more knowledge," Seline reassured. "We will be ready for them next time."

They returned to the overworld, and their bodies lying on the pavers of the road, with gasps for air and heads shaking as if they were escaping a bad dream. Immediately noticeable around them, the mood in the Erulean forces was grim. The essentia proficient amongst the soldiers that watched over them would have been able to see the waning power of the rift and had made it known that they were losing.

Feeling embarrassed about their loss, Palinus struggled to meet anyone's eyes. He had felt so powerful marching into the rift, and now he felt like a boy playing make-believe that he was a legionaire.

The savage cheers from the enemy avatars occupying their Nexus as they fled echoed in his ears, and the weight of the loss settled on his shoulders.

His friend Rolmnus patted his back and whispered. "It's ok, you can't win them all."

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

It was a nice thing to say, but this had not been an acceptable loss. They were in a bad spot, and now they needed to find out how bad.

"Right," Seline said, clapping her hands to get everyone's attention, "How did the scouting go?"

"It's strange news, it seems our enemies are an odd bunch. We have reports of some skirmishing Silvanmen in the forest around us, yet the forward team reported that the town's wall was manned with Stoneman slingers, who fired on them, preventing their approach." Rolmnus answered.

"Similarly to the rift, it is a mixed group," Seline said thoughtfully as they marched towards the field encampment already set up in the woods behind them in preparation for a longer attack than they had hoped for. "Good work setting up, it is a fair guess we aren't sleeping in warm beds tonight."

They took a moment to rest and regroup while they waited for further news, but it wasn't too long before spotting Vesuvia coming back from assessing the closed Rift. She jogged towards them with a dour look on her face.

Seline asked, "How bad is it?"

"It's bad, Sel," Vesuvia said softly. "The Nexus is on its last legs, I can sense it forming another rift for us… but I think it is only going to have enough essentia to form five avatars…"

Hearing the news, Rolmnus gasped, and the team's expressions turned serious. That meant that if they chose to delve into the rift, they would be limited to only one avatar. If their avatar perished before they could claim enough essentia to spawn a new one, they would be dead. It was worse than a normal hardcore rift because the other team didn't have the same limitation.

Seline was solemn as she spoke. "I am not going to make this decision without your full support. I know we got destroyed in that last rift, but I think we can win… If one of us says no, none of us is going in."

Appearing out of nowhere, Centurion Felusian suddenly spoke up. "You can't be serious, there is no way you should be entering a one-sided hardcore rift against a team you just lost to… I strongly advise you to reconsider."

Her normally flippant expression was gone as Vesuvia replied with deadly seriousness. "That means that the nexus falls, and we likely fail this task of the Rift Trials."

A man in dark leather appeared beside Felusian, pulling back a hood that obscured his features, from the dual swords and tall frame, Palinus already knew it to be Provocator Servius and was shocked to see him out here in the middle of nowhere.

"This nexus holds much more significance than your Rift Trial, even more so than the strategic value of the village's control of the pass…" Servius commented with heavily weighted words. "The nexus beast that resides in Ravensdam is one of the sole surviving eagle types in Erulea. You must recapture the nexus, or Erulea will lose the path back to the old ways."

"The loss of the eagle would be devastating, but how can you put that responsibility on children, Servius?" Centurion Felusian stated in disbelief. "We need to step in!"

"It must be them, the nexus can not bear the essentia costs of our avatars. Besides, I am not placing this burden on random children Fel. I know what they face in the village and I have observed this group for some time."

His face softened as he spoke, and his eyes were watery as he placed his hand on Palinus's shoulder.

"My son and his friends can win this."

Palinus's head swam with the revelation. This was his father. A Provocator. He had always told himself that he didn't care about having a father; it was a relationship absent from his life, yet now that Servius had revealed himself, Palinus couldn't stop tears leaking from his eyes.

"You are my father?" he said numbly.

"I couldn't reveal it with my role as a Provocator, but I have always been watching over you."

As Palinus considered it, he realised it was true; he recalled seeing Servius around occasionally watching him out of the corner of his eye. When the man had revealed himself in the alley after their first rift, he hadn't felt scared. A small part of him had known who he was and that he was looking out for Palinus, and now his friends.

"That secrecy seems a bit stupid now; with the Empire at war with itself despite our efforts," Servius said sadly. "Though if you and the teams in the rift trial could at least delay the advance of the real enemy, there is a chance the civil war can be resolved in time to preserve much of Erulea. I firmly believe that you five have the capabilities to recapture this nexus, and I suspect that will set you up quite nicely for the Rift Trials."

Around him, the shocked expressions of the team warred with the grim reality of the decision they faced. Were they going to risk their lives in a situation that was potentially suicidal?

"I am up for battle Papa Palinus." Rufian said as he rubbed his fist, "I owe them a few punches."

"We need to be quick about this," Vesuvia added, "I can sense the rift forming in the woods over there. I, for one, would rather die than return losing to Marnus."

The team looked at Bruchts; he was the sensible one. "I was slaughtered in my lane… I… I can't win it. I am sorry."

"We are going to modify our strategy. You can win the lane… with help. If you trust me, here's what we are going to do-" Seline went on to explain how she thought we could adjust to turn the tables on their opponents.

"That… sounds like it could work." Bruchts said as she finished her explanation. "It is still risky…"

His gaze lingered on Rufian's face, and an unspoken conversation passed between their eyes. A subtle nod was the only gesture that Palinus could make out.

"OK." Bruchts agreed, firming his stance and fingering his sword, trying to reassure himself that he could do this.

Everyone's eyes were suddenly on Palinus, and he wilted under their scrutiny with a tear still dripping down his face. Maybe he could do this? Seline had outlined how they could win, and it made sense. He had lost his lane because he wasn't ready for the slinger to be aggressive; now that he knew what would happen, he could prepare.

His heart raced as he looked into his father's face. The man's soft brown eyes were firmly locked on his own, and he projected a warm confidence. It felt weird, good weird. Palinus found himself nodding. He could do this.

"Alright, let's do it."

"This is insanity, there is no way you should be going anywhere near that rift." Centurion Felusian said, trying to convince them, despite it being within his power to order them not to go, he didn't. Potentially because he realised it might not stop them.

The rift looked sickly. Its tendrils were lanky, and the light spiraling out of its aperture was anemic as the Nexus began to open the rift for the teenagers.

"That does not look good," Rufian said inanely as they approached.

"Mmm," Palinus found himself agreeing. It was not a healthy rift, and it emphasised how precarious their situation was as they made preparations to enter.

"Is everyone ready?" Seline asked, to a round of nods.

"As ready as I will ever be." Vesuvia sighed. It looked like she had been crying.

"We don't have to do this…" Seline said, giving everyone the chance to pull out.

"Yes, we do Sel." Palinus replied. "Look how far we have come. I am not going back to the streets of the capital. I am not going back weak."

The words came out with passion, and they looked at him as if he had grown another head. But Palinus felt the truth in the words; he was not the same boy who had left the capital, and he was ready to risk his life to prove it.

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