My awareness snapped back into my body, causing my hand jerked back from the building, as if on fire. Shuddering, I looked around, even though it hurt like hell to move my head. I was surrounded by the troops. Even some of the newly minted footmen that had already received their power armor had joined in guarding me. Now, 18 pairs of eyes watched every shadow in the town square. They scanned every roof top and examined every person who came anywhere near us

  John and Jim kept their attention mostly on me. I could tell they were ready to put me down if I wasn't myself anymore. I'd mentioned the possibility at some point, after we dealt with Grais. Nobody liked thinking about body snatchers getting them, but it would be the height of idiocy not to prepare for it.

  "That went well." Sarcasm dripped profusely off my tongue." How long was I out?" My voice slurred, I wobbled a bit. Yup, all the alterations done on my stats had messed severely with my balance. This was not unexpected. I still had more work to do, so the disorientation would likely get much worse.

  "About an hour, Hoss. You Good?" He left the, "Are you still you question" question unspoken. Anything riding my flesh would simply lie, it was better to wait for it to give itself away.

  "Yes, the main problem has been fixed. Step one, down. Now, I have to pick another class. Please, keep on watching out for me?" The teeth itching sensations had me expecting an attack at any second.

  "We're on it." John gave me a nod. I could never truly explain the real value loyalty possessed, but I could feel it now.

  I placed my hand on the Town Hall again and picked Choose Class.

  [ Mage of Transformation

  +2 to Will

  +1 to Cool

  +2 to Intelligence

  A Mage that specializes in transmutations.

  Starting Spells: Change Color, Alter Minor Property ]

  I had to admit I still didn't see how this class was useful to us. Changing something's color while interesting didn't seem necessary. Alter Property could be very useful or it could be worthless. I wouldn't be able to tell how valuable this class might be without picking it.

  [ Elemental Mage

  +2 to Will

  +1 to Cool

  +2 to Intelligence

  A mage that wields the Elemental forces. Specializations are available.

  Starting Spells: Flame Bolt, Frozen Shackles, Displace Earth, Breeze ]

  There was a lot of utility there. I suspected that the Elemental and Nature mana would likely synergize very well. I'd already noticed that nature mana seemed to have some of the properties of the four base elemental forces. On the other hand, choosing this class might end up being a hat on a hat situation. Raw Nature Mana could be shaped to do most of the things the starting spells seemed to do. With more effort, and practice I had no doubt that I could perform most of the same feats.

  [ Mage of Space

  +2 to Will

  +1 to Cool

  +2 to Intelligence

  A Mage that manipulates the fabric of Reality itself.

  Starting Spells: Dimensional Pocket, Expanded Step ]

  I had a strong feeling about this class. It not only sounded badass, it seemed incredible useful for my goals. Whether that was true, would really depend on what spells I could learn down the road. A dimensional pocket would be a good way to hide things, and smuggling was always profitable. I wasn't sure what Expanded Steps did, but it seemed interesting. I suspected it played with distances.

  Hmm. I was going to take a chance but not much of one.

  [ Mage of Space has reached Level 6

  You have gained Dimensional Pocket

  You have gained Expanded Step

  You have gained Between Points

  You have gained Know Location

  You have gained +7 Will

  You have gained +6 Cool

  You have gained +7 Intelligence

  You have gained +12 Free Points ]

  My hand flew off of where it'd touched the Town Hall. Everything was whirling around me. I felt my last meal trying to escape. Stop the ride, I want off. I stumbled backwards, barely managing to catch myself before my ass hit the ground. Then I once again struggled to let the contents of my stomach have their freedom again.

  "Someone get me the number of that truck." I groaned. Swallowing back the raising bile.

  "Deep Breaths." John encouraged. He was a wall of darkness, his thoughts and feeling hidden deep. Maybe even from himself.

  It took a few minutes of sucking air and pretending that controlling my breathing mattered, for me to regain a semblance of normalcy.

  "Alright, that step two down. Now we need to hit the Nexus and then see Meadran, so I can increase my strength further." Something was about to blow up, but I all my efforts to figure out what had been fruitless.

  "Hoss, you don't need to shoulder everything yourself. It's okay to lean on others." His concern was baked into his voice, and I could feel it coiling around him. He didn't want to fail again. What? How did he fail? No, not my business. He'll tell me when he is ready.

  "Would you? Jim, in my situation, would you really want others to help you? Even if you did, would you let them?" He shrugged and seemed to deflate even in his armor. I nodded, "I need your help and I'm doing my best to share the burden, but some things I have to do myself, because there is no one else that can." All the folks I summoned would likely go their own ways if I died. I might never be the hero of this story. I might not be the one to bring our enemies to their knees. I had a hard time accepting that. I had to accept that I was the glue. I could see that now. It was my task to gather all the people who still cared about forging better lives under one banner. To create a place for them to thrive. I don't know why it me took so long to see it. That epiphany resonated all the way down to my toes.

  Let's look at the new Class's spells. Dimensional Pocket created a space of (Level of skill) yard(s) cubed. This space couldn't be accessed by others, and sadly, it couldn't contain living beings. After the initial casting which would drain a ton of energy, I only had to spend a small amount of mana to open or close the space.

  Expanded Step increase the distance my steps traveled. So at skill level one my steps gain one extra yard of distance. At skill level two, two extra yards and so on. It would last as long as I provided mana. I could see this being very useful, but it would likely take a lot of training to be able to use it effectively.

  The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  Between Points was an odd spell. It could change the distance between any two points I could see. That would require a large amount of testing. I could see that shrinking the distance between myself and a friend could be fun, while expanding the distance that an enemy's fist had to travel would be useful. But could I twist the distance? Could I fold it back on itself?

  Know Location was a spell that could locate anything that was A) not protected from scrying and B) within the same causal reality. What "causal reality" meant wasn't exactly clear to me, Some testing required. However, that would make a few tasks much easier, starting with Saphie. I'd get on that just as soon as this looming threat passed.

  Alright, I'll let all of that percolate in the back of my mind. It was time to settle my stomach by clubbing it with some food. Besides I had a feeling that I'd need all the energy I could scrape together right then.

  "Come on, we'll grab a bite before we head into the Valley." Somehow, I felt a lot more alive. Everything was more vibrant, and my sense of myself in a space had increased. Once I'd become more acclimated to these sensations I'd a notion that stumbling would be a thing of the past.

  We wrecked quite a number of ration packs. We brutally devoured our meals, it's like we had all been starving. I wondered why. No one dared come near us as we consumed our fill.

  When we were finished, we marched up the path to the Valley. Of some increasing concern was that Jaina hadn't shown up, nor had Megan or Sally. Not even Amanda had come by to see Raynor. Something sneaky was going on. I just hoped it was unrelated to the burning anxiety in my gut.

  We bypassed Meadran for the moment, and headed to the Nexus first. Partially because, I wanted to save bumping up the Arch Druid Class until last. Partially because, I wanted to stop in real quick to look at a few of the lasgun schematics. Maybe, make a few adjustments and build one. Just one. I mean, Come on, it's a laser gun! My inner kid was fucking going nuts. Sometime you have to listen to your inner child, dammit! No matter the danger.

  [ Warp-Smith has reached Level 6

  You have gained Psi Technique, Overclock Self

  You have gained Psi Technique, Expedite Build

  You have gained +3 Psi Resonance

  You have gained +2 Tech

  You have gained +4 Free Points ]

  After the screaming agony of getting my head stuffed with more Khalai knowledge, my first coherent thought was, Nice!

  Overclock Self let me speed up my thought processes. Expedite Build was an ability to speed up any form of construction. These were just what the doctor ordered! Giggling like a schoolgirl, or cackling like a true mad scientist, I ran to the Forge and loaded up the schematic of the Marshall's Laspistol. I immediately used Overclock Self. My narrowed all consuming focus meant that I didn't even notice the judging stares of my men. Even if I had, I was far too invested in this idea.

  Less than 5 minutes later I had an improved Laspistol design ready to go. Just switching it to have a Psicrystal power and control system increased it's output and stability by a small amount. It could also be overcharged if it was operated under the Psifield. Using crysbronze for the shell had decreased the weight and increased the durability. I had also altered the design to look a little more like a modern firearm.

  Using Expedite Build had the first prototype out in less than three minutes. When it was completed, I danced a jig. Again I barely noticed that the guys all laughed at my antics.

  I took the newly forged weapon out to the testing ranged just behind the Nexus and let loose a few shots at the crysbronze targets. The performance was in a phrase, a Great Success! A couple of shots slagged each target. The beams the weapon emitted were a bright electric blue, and crackled like plasma. Yet they had the stability, distance and accuracy of a laser. All of this was without engaging the overcharging feature.

  I now had a light weight pistol that could function as an anti vehicle weapon. I immediately cast Dimensional Pocket. Once, I could feel the space open I gently laid the pistol inside. I liked that the spell had no obvious opening.

  Once everyone stopped giving me shit for spurging out, we went to visit Meadran.

  We got a pleasant surprise once we made it to Meadran's island. Faergin and Korvaith were already there waiting for us.

  Faergin had grown almost five more feet in height, though he had not gained much in the way of girth leaving him with an overly skinny appearance. New mystic symbols had developed on his bark, each glowed a faint blue. Korvaith's growth had trended in the opposite direction only gaining a few inches of height, while thickening up quite a bit. His new armor plates already needed to be adjusted to accommodate his massive frame. He had his oversized rifle's stock resting on the ground so that the barrel leaned up against him.

  'We were waiting for you Young One.' Meadran's concern bled through the tree network.

  'Hello, latest Arch Druid. It is good to finally be able to speak to you.' A mellow voice, like the wind through leaves, entered the network. There was the sense of seasons passing while my roots grew deeper.

  'Faergin?' Three voices laughed in my head. 'Korvaith, too? That's great!'

  'Not... quite... yet.' A deep growling voice faintly responded. A deep anger threaded that connection. A desire to strike back at those who would despoil the forest, filled the air.

  'Any progress right now is good. Look, I don't know what is coming but something has me all muddled inside. If you could watch over the Valley until whatever happens plays out, it would help me out a lot." I tried to let them sense the turmoil inside my gut. Then allowed them to feel my mana bucking nervously around my body.

  'Yes, that is definitely some form of prophecy. Though not a very clear one.' Faergin sent a vision of branches becoming snarled together.

  'Hmm. A dark intuition, Young One.' The determination to grow through rock and stone, bubbled through his link.

  'Whatever... Break... Through... ' A desire to smash foes was Korvaith's answer. I had a feeling that was going to be his answer for everything. Heh.

  I asked the question I had been dreading, 'Have any of you seen Lumi?'

  'About three days ago, I saw him running across the Badlands to the north. He never said anything about where he was going or why.' Faergin responded.

  I pondered everything I knew about the furry troublemaker. Lumiar was meant to be my companion. Yet from the start I'd gotten the impression that Lumi wasn't really a team player. Even when we could spend time together he preferred to do his own thing. Nothing wrong with that, at least not until nobody any any clue where you were, or if you were okay. No, the more I thought about it, Lumi wasn't normal. Now that I had been exposed to the divine, I knew for sure that Lumi was somehow related to those energies. I was absolutely certain he wasn't what the Company had in mind for my companion. Heh. I really had been hijacked by outside forces from the start.

  The question now was, what did a divine wolf want? What could such a creature want here of all places. Nothing useful came to mind. 'I'll have to hope he can handle himself for now.' I shook my head as I placed my hand against Meadran.

  [ Arch Druid of Renewal has reached Level 5

  You have gained Shapeshift: Serpent

  You have gained Shapeshift: Lesser Treant

  You have gained Aura of Regrowth

  You have gained Aura of Growth

  You have gained +12 Spirit

  You have gained +12 Will

  You have gained +8 Intelligence

  You have gained +16 Free Points ]

  I added the levels one at a time letting each settle before adding the next. I tried not to dwell on the interesting additional abilities, for right now. I moved on and used all the accumulated free points with the same mindset, one at a time. There were so many that I'd likely would've fried my nerves if I did it all at once. While I had little in the way of a model for comparison, my stats looked quite high to me. Considering that peak human was 10, I was now... What? Superhuman? Demigod like? I really had no way to know how I stacked up.

  I spent a few minutes jumping and stretching to test my new range of motion. This led to some interesting discoveries. My balance was insane, which would come in handy because even what I thought would be a lite hop, launched me high up into Meadran branches. However, the mistake which would normally have caused a bit of mild panic, had no effect on my emotional state. I stayed calm, my nerves steady and easily caught myself on a branch. Just as easily, I dropped twenty feet to the ground. My knees barely flexed. Something about hitting twenty in a stat changed things. Dramatically. Though I hadn't yet noticed any real difference when Will, Spirit or Intelligence crossed that line. Why would that be?

  Feeling like I had a handle on things, for now, I turned my attention to the new abilities. Shapeshifting was mostly self explanatory. Though I had no desire to experiment with either version right now. Snake or tree, what a choice. The Treant I got, but why a serpent?

  The Auras were passive effect versions of the spells. Their standard state was on, I had to concentrate to turn them off. Basically, I made plants grow around me and also made people feel better just by being near me. Yes, Aura of Regrowth still had that effect, just not as intense. The fellas were all shifting uncomfortably, until I managed to figure out how to shut off the Aura. Thankfully, the Treefolk were unaffected. I didn't want to know how they got down.

  Another interesting note was how little mana the Auras used. Maybe a quarter as much as casting the spell at the same level on all of same amount of people. That didn't seem to conform with my understanding of how energy worked, but I was becoming somewhat inured to the oddities of magic at this point.

  Now, it was time to head back to the Valley. But first...

  'Meadran, in the worse case scenario, can you uproot and leave the area?' I had to make sure that they could fend for themselves.

  'If I must.' A sense of reluctance.

  'We will aid him, if it comes to that.' Faergin's thoughts were of green shoots growing through ash laden soil.

  'Grrrr...' Korvaith projected confidence he could shoot anything before it was a problem.

  'Thanks you guys. I really do worry about you. Stay safe, no matter what, please.'

  'Your concern is touching, Young One.'

  I turned to the humans, "Alright time to go and figure out what the hell is going on."

  'Executor, I have a report.' Alina's voice flooded the Psifield. What suspicious timing. I held up my hand to indicate contact.

  'Alright Alina, let's hear it.' I was certain, I wasn't going to like this.