Chương 13: 7B. Seeds Of Awakening

"Do you still need me?" Sam asked, eyeing the marbles greedily.

"The supplies are gone, and I don't know how I could contribute."

"We need you," Iris said, pressing both spheres into his hand.

"The best way to resolve these anomalies is by allying with whatever spirit is behind them. That's why we got two porters. The supplies were irrelevant, more for you and Sophie. None of us can take on new spirits right now."

"And you were hoping whatever spirit is in there would accept Sophie or me?" A shiver ran down Sam's spine as he gripped the talent seeds tightly. Distant whispers echoed in his ears as they attempted to speak to him, competing with the Call of the Abyss. The boss nodded.

"We wanted to be sure before disclosing it so as not to get your hopes up. But given the attack, I'm almost sure we're walking into something big." She placed a hand on Sam's shoulder.

"We need you. However, if you don't want to risk your life and turn back, we won't judge you."

"You'll have to go back alone, though," Fred added.

"We can't afford to stop or slow down. I'd suggest you find a good hiding place, barricade yourself in, use one of the talent seeds, and then find your own way back. Perhaps you can trade the second seed for a lead and escort to a compatible spirit."

"I—" Sam hesitated. He studied the pair of talent seeds. One was a violent orange, and the other carried a calming azure cloud.

"I'm in," he said, speaking more to Iris than the others.

"I'm done just surviving. You're doing something important, and I'd like to be a part of it. It'll also be nice to be around someone from my old life."

"You make me sick." Fred chuckled.

"There's no time to waste. We need to get moving."

"Shouldn't I ascend first?"

"No time," the boss told Sam.

"Ascension will knock you out for six hours at least, and that's time we don't have. Let's deal with the Inhumans first. It might be best if we investigate the anomaly before you pick a talent. One might be more compatible with the spirit than the other."

"Got it." Sam nodded. The party gathered unsoiled supplies and enough water for a couple of days. Sam believed most of it was for him. Given their strength, he doubted a morning's trek was enough to leave them famished. Then, they were on their way, making a beeline for their destination. Fred declared they were no longer going to snake their way around beast territories and speed through. Much to Sam's relief, the trio didn't take off at breakneck speed.

They remained wary of ambushers with concealment techniques or spells powerful enough to avoid their heightened senses. As a result, speedwalking was enough to keep up. Sam couldn't help himself and squeezed the talent seeds between his palms one at a time to find out what they had to offer. He started with the one with angry, orange contents. Fire gives life. Fire takes it away. Fire illuminates. Fire purges. Fire will burn within you, and only the hottest may bring you harm.

Fire is your friend, your family, and your lover. Most students at the academies relied on specialized awakened to determine precisely what base talent a seed would offer. Given the words it had spoken directly into his mind, he guessed the sphere would significantly improve his resistance to fire and heat, and also enhance his ability to wield them. It was a simple and effective talent, but limiting.

He imagined only spirits that had fire as one of their domains would be willing to pair with someone with such a talent. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. Sam had encountered several students with access to a fire domain. They primarily focused on overwhelming offense at long or mid-range. They were one-trick ponies but did the one thing they were good at reasonably well. It wasn't the worst path for him.

Sam wasn't the best close-range fighter and saw himself in a role more like the boss's. In fact, he wouldn't mind ending up in more of a support position either. Finally, he turned his attention to the second talent seed. Barriers do more than protect. They separate, contain, and trap. In the right hands, barriers attack. They shatter. They explode.

"Well, isn't that perfect?" Sam whispered to himself. As a scholar by training, Sam hadn't just read about seeds and talents. He had studied them at length and written a handful of papers. They weren't published, but putting together such texts was one of the few things he excelled at, and he took pride in it. He had surmised that there were three major schools of talents. The first fell into the enhancement category.

They enhanced one's mastery over a particular element, domain, or type of ability and also occasionally provided resistance to it. The fire seed fell into the group. It wouldn't surprise Sam if, at its peak, the talent allowed turning one's body into fire, fueling attacks and avoiding injury. He believed that Fred and Sophie's talents were enhancement types. Sam had labeled the next category 'Function.' They added a unique function to a material or object.

He had encountered people with a special connection to iron, swords, and even umbrellas, and could do more with them than what was naturally possible or expected. The boss's talent allowed her to store spells within crystals, fundamentally altering their function. Finally, there were 'meta' talents like the one stored in the azure seed. They fundamentally changed how a domain or group of techniques or spells worked. Turning barriers into explosive weapons made it a meta talent.

Iris hadn't gone into detail, but Sam suspected she had a meta talent. Healing through inflicting injury seemed like a meta talent. He wondered whether it had come from her spirit.

'Lifesteal', her domains, and impaling foes on pikes felt oddly thematic. Sam drew parallels to vampire folklore, specifically Vlad the Impaler and Dracula. Over the past five years, as Sam spent his spare moments as a librarian studying the topic, he had spent long and hard thinking about what he wanted. A meta ability that granted a primarily defensive group of abilities and an offensive function was perfect for him.

Users of Barrier Arts primarily functioned as supporters in battle, protecting combatants like the boss, keeping them from being overwhelmed while they prepared powerful spells. The talent would allow him to fill such a role, but also capture foes or stall them with obstacles and then shatter the conjurations to cause significant harm.

"Sam." Iris took his hand and gave it a squeeze.

"Yes?" Her touch brought on a flood of memories of their time at Trinity College. Iris used to be one of Sam's closest friends.

"Don't be a hero," she said.

"I might not be able to save your butt as I did before. A lone Inhuman is already a challenge, and I don't know what kind of numbers we might be facing. Promise me you'll take cover."

"I can't just—""Promise me! Not just for your sake but all of ours. We might need you to resolve this anomaly. The Inhumans can't be allowed to grow any stronger."

"I'll try my best. Self-preservation is high on my list of priorities. I didn't move back there because the boss seemed vulnerable. If she fell, I wasn't going to survive much longer."

"I suppose then my advice would be to trust us," Iris said.

"We failed Sophie, but I promise that we're capable. Besides, if we face more Seekers or Rangers empowered and maddened by the Inhumans, you have no chance of standing up to them. They'll squash you like an ant." She pecked Sam's cheek before letting go of his hand.

"Sophie died to shrapnel. Her body might've exploded if she had taken a direct hit from one of those spikes. Just keep that in mind. You're a mortal until you solidify your first star. You might as well be made of paper."