Edge woke up early the next morning, filled with the rising excitement that comes with hunting big game.
After saying hello to Riller and Jumo, who were debating the merits of various prey, he ate breakfast, grabbed his pack, and then stepped through the front door to greet the rising sun. ...
2025-01-21 18:00:06 +0000 UTC View PostAfter stopping by the public green for a quick post-shopping workout, Edge jogged back to the lodge.
He was glad to see Blue playing in the yard. It meant that Sasha was back from a hunt that had taken her most of the afternoon to complete. He hadn’t really expected it to work, but he had...
2025-01-20 18:00:12 +0000 UTC View PostThe instant that Nick saw the flares, he knew that the party was living on borrowed time. They had a few minutes at most before airships began converging on Team Earth’s position like a swarm of hornets descending upon a chunk of bloody meat.
“Shit.” Shaun said what everyone was think...
2025-01-20 18:00:09 +0000 UTC View PostEdge brought the blade of his polearm up, just in time to block the spear that was sailing for his chest.
With a hearty thwack, the shafts of both weapons collided, shoving the spearhead away from his flesh with inches to spare. He quickstepped to avoid a foot that was trying to ho...
2025-01-17 18:00:06 +0000 UTC View PostThe rest of the day proved uneventful despite a few close calls. Several airships made low passes overhead, but none of them had spotted Team Earth or landed to survey the island on foot. Nick wasn’t sure if the pirates lacked the manpower to search each isle individually or if the party had ju...
2025-01-17 18:00:06 +0000 UTC View PostTrapper stepped through the door of City Hall with a spring in her step and a smile on her face. She stopped to chat with Emily—the mayor’s aide who was working at the reception desk—then made her way down the long hallway behind it. She nodded to a pair of deputies who were stationed in th...
2025-01-16 18:00:04 +0000 UTC View PostAfter the party finished updating their map, everyone settled down to wait until night fell.
Team Earth passed the time in various ways: training, talking, and napping on and off. It was strange to have so much downtime after their experiences crossing Blackmist Bog and basement of Darkston...
2025-01-15 18:00:16 +0000 UTC View PostWhen Edge reentered the nymph’s core, the white forest had changed during his absence. The trees looked distinctly less healthy and had lost half their leaves. However, he was pleased to note that the corruption wasn’t nearly as pronounced as the other times he had stolen multiple skills from...
2025-01-14 18:00:06 +0000 UTC View PostBefore Edge willed Extraction to activate, there was something else that he needed to do first. During the fight, he had spotted the stage-one nymph he’d injured hiding in a tree. He was worried that it would attack him while he was busy stealing a skill. Time moved slowly inside a core, but en...
2025-01-13 18:00:15 +0000 UTC View PostBy the time that Nick was done writing, it was an hour or so before noon. He took his turn standing watch, letting Sophia get some well-deserved sleep. Since there wasn’t much to look at beside the ground directly below the island, he took the opportunity to peruse his profile, considering the ...
2025-01-13 18:00:09 +0000 UTC View PostWith their new and improved abilities out of the way, the party moved on to dividing the loot they had taken from the pirates’ bodies. Nick had already opened his bag and spread the gear across the deck so that everyone could decide what they wanted. While they hadn’t been able to strip the p...
2025-01-10 18:00:06 +0000 UTC View PostEdge watched as a layer of mana spread across the charging beast’s chest, causing the bands of living wood to thicken along that surface. That skill seems similar to Harden, but it’s specialized for the nymph’s unique biology.
That was all the time for analysis Edge was given...
2025-01-10 18:00:05 +0000 UTC View PostWhen the nymph’s copy of Entangle entered Edge’s core, he was drawn inside too, where a message from his Guide was waiting.
You have Extracted the skill: Entangle (Common, Rank 1).
You already have this skill in you...
2025-01-09 18:00:04 +0000 UTC View PostEveryone grabbed onto the frame of the vessel as the airship continued to climb. Within a matter of minutes, the pirates’ outpost was reduced to the size of a child’s toy. Nick drank in the exhilarating sensation of soaring through the air, which melded with his relief from winning the fight ...
2025-01-08 18:00:07 +0000 UTC View PostBy this point, Edge’s Leap had carried him high into the air.
He was already at the level of the lowest branches, avoiding the vines reaching for his legs with plenty of room to spare. The nymphs hissed in frustration as their ploy fell apart, and he landed on the ground twenty feet away ...
2025-01-07 18:00:07 +0000 UTC View PostThe dual-wielder’s body toppled onto the archer, momentarily taking her out of the fight. The woman swore and pushed the corpse to one side. The instant that it was out of his line of fire, Shaun’s arrow plunged into the hollow of her throat, adding a second body to lie beside the first.
<... 2025-01-06 18:00:13 +0000 UTC View PostEdge wove his way through the towering crimson ferns, keeping one eye on the shadow-strewn ground and the other on the purple canopy stretching out above his head.
He couldn’t afford to ignore either elevation. The beasts he was stalking were infamous for ambushing people from the branche...
2025-01-06 18:00:08 +0000 UTC View PostNick’s party would have died within the first minute of combat if it wasn’t for the month of intensive training they had just undergone. Their opponents were skilled, used to fighting as a team, and had plenty of experience facing other weapon-wielders.
On the other side of the scales, ...
2025-01-03 18:00:05 +0000 UTC View PostNow that he had toured his core, Edge was ready to continue with his day. He was planning to head into the field tomorrow on a solo run, hunting for more skills to help rank up Regeneration.
Before he left town, there were a few things that he wanted to take care of. First and foremost was ...
2025-01-03 18:00:05 +0000 UTC View PostSetna huddled between the ferns as death prowled the sky above. She peered through the sprawling fronds, praying that the foliage was thick enough to shield her from the monsters that had been stalking her for days.
Her heart hammered in her chest as a flock of feathered serpents flew past ...
2025-01-02 18:00:06 +0000 UTC View PostThe party assumed a combat formation facing the three buildings where the pirates were sleeping inside. Sophia crept forward and cracked open the first door, while Veronica took care of the second. The instant that V flashed the hand signal for “attack,” Shaun fired a pair of smoke arrows thr...
2025-01-01 18:00:06 +0000 UTC View PostEdge still had some shopping to do, but taking care of the rest of his list could wait another day or two.
He had a few hours before he was supposed to meet everyone at the Pioneer, so he walked over to the public green to get in a midday workout. He’d made excellent progress conditioning...
2024-12-31 18:00:07 +0000 UTC View PostEdge’s next stop took him to the crafters’ quarter. When he crossed into the district, the sounds and scents of industry washed over him. He sat down on a bench, stopping for a few minutes to immerse himself in the vibrant bustle of the town’s crafters at work.
The district was even b...
2024-12-30 18:00:12 +0000 UTC View PostNick braced his weight against the line, slowly, so that he wouldn’t dislodge the grapple. When the rope was taut, he placed his feet against the wall and started to climb, pulling himself up one hand at a time. Without his pack, his body felt so light that it was effortless to make the ascent,...
2024-12-30 18:00:09 +0000 UTC View PostWhen they were ready, they packed up their gear, climbed down from the cave, and walked out into the night. The party followed Veronica as quietly as they could, hoping to avoid any beasts on their way to the pirates’ base.
That two-mile hike must have taken less than an hour, but it felt...
2024-12-27 18:00:08 +0000 UTC View PostWith a spring in his step, Edge started walking toward the commercial district, heading for the first stop in his impromptu shopping spree.
Change was in the air as he made his way through the settlement, as its residents came to grips with their dramatic change in circumstance. They were s...
2024-12-27 18:00:06 +0000 UTC View PostEdge slept in late the next morning. When he woke up, he stretched out in bed with his eyes closed, savoring the fact that he had nothing to do. That there were no urgent missions to complete or bloodthirsty beasts trying to devour him.
The sun was high in the sky by the time that he shed h...
2024-12-26 18:00:08 +0000 UTC View PostEveryone woke up a few hours later, but Veronica still hadn’t returned.
They sat in front of the entrance of the cave, wrapping blankets around themselves for warmth, snacking on cold rations while discussing their situation. Although Nick’s device offered enough light to see, they coul...
2024-12-25 18:00:08 +0000 UTC View PostEdge raised his fists and deepened his stance, just in time to block a punch that would have knocked him out cold if it had connected cleanly. The impact reverberated throughout his body, forcing him to take a step back to avoid losing his balance.
Melania circled around while looking for a...
2024-12-24 18:00:07 +0000 UTC View PostWhen the dino died, the rest of its pack pulled back to feast on its remains. This time, they didn’t come charging back right away, although Nick knew that it was only a matter of time before they returned.
The good news was that the sun was going down outside the tower. Unless the pirate...
2024-12-23 18:00:08 +0000 UTC View Post