Chapter 292

Point Village, Dublin, Ireland - 10:06 AM

Jamie and I approached from the east in an effort to get ahead of Maine before they made it to Pennsylvania. We stopped at the foot of the Dublin Port crane, a large, gray-blue metal machine that would allow the Weapon Master a nice perch while I negotiated. Seeing as she was going to get credit for taking out the wanderer, she didn’t argue.

“I’m just going to be right across the road if you need anything,” I told her.

“Yeah, you said that already,” she replied, rolling her eyes.

I smiled. “Just want to make sure, is all. Are you ready for the Mental Link?”

“If you must,” she grumbled.

“I must,” I returned before reaching up and placing my fingers on her forehead.

<<<>>>

[[Ability]]

Mental Link

Level 6

Form an telepathic bond with up to two allies that can be sustained up to a distance of feet equal to Willpower*2.4. You always know where they are, what condition they are in, and their mental state. Concise thought cannot be sent through the Mental Link. You may connect with more than two allies, but every instance Splits your focus.

<<<>>>

Jamie bristled as she received feedback from my mind. Even though I could tell from her aura how uncomfortable it was being linked to me, she blinked and stared afterwards. Even in this situation, I was exuding nothing but calm through our connection in an attempt to ease her.

While she and the rest of Sol Ligatus were relatively new to Mental Links, I had literal centuries of practice in order to work it out. Though, I was using it more in training so they would have more practice. Her mind was almost an open book to me, emotionally speaking. I could feel Jamie’s wariness of the ability, her excitement and stress at her upcoming bout with Maine, and more.

I was simultaneously hurt and happy. There was a hint of distrust that still lingered from when I had told her my origins, but I also actively felt her deciding to trust me and try to put it aside. I schooled my expression, knowing that if I gave away too much now she’d be less likely to accept the Mental Link in the future.

“With all of my stats and the modifier from my cowl increasing the distance by another 30%, we can remain connected at a little over 600 feet,” I explained before turning to nod at the building across the street. “Should be plenty of space, but it’ll let us know if we start getting too far away from each other. If I feel you enter combat, I’ll wrap you in my Shield.”

“That is pretty handy. Thanks, Franklin,” she said, and I could feel her sincerity through our link.

“Just be careful. Shield is a strong ability, but it doesn’t last forever,” I warned. “Maine is going to be coming in hot and I’d predict two strikes to the right area, or three regular attacks, will shatter it. Be careful. He’s one of the stronger MVPs in the event.”

“Cool, thanks. Are you going to let me climb up this so I can snipe him? Or are we just going to sit and wait for him to get here?” she asked.

<<<>>>

[[Patron Message]]

He’s nearly here. Heading your way from the north.

<<<>>>

“Sit and wait, apparently,” I said, shrugging. “Gotta show off for Athena now that you snubbed Aries.”

“What?” she asked, arching an eyebrow.

Nodding to the north, I pointed out a man who emerged from one of the streets. He could have been adequately described as a mountain, wearing a flannel shirt and green pants. His eyes searched the area before falling on us, and there was a grin hidden behind his thick, black beard. In one hand he carried a double-bit axe with a head half the size of his torso, and in the other he had what appeared to be a carving axe.

“Who is this Paul Bunyan looking bastard?” Jamie asked, wrinkling her nose at the sight of him.

“Maine’s MVP, Jerry Moore,” I answered as he started checking his weapons. He appeared to be speaking to his Patron. “It’s actually funny that you say that because he is Paul Bunyan’s avatar.”

“No.”

“Yes.”

The Weapon Master shot me an incredulous look. “There’s no way fucking Paul Bunyan is a Patron,” she said.

Laughing, I shrugged. “It’s not just mythology, but the Flying Spaghetti Monster being a Patron told you that. Folk heroes count, too. His trusty blue ox is another one.”

“You’re killing me here, Franklin,” she groaned, putting a hand over her face.

I patted her on the back as Jerry nodded, swiped away a text box, and began to charge. “Good luck, Summers,” I told her before turning and walking towards Point Square. “Just don’t let him cleave you in two and you’ll be fine.”

“Don’t you turn your back on me!” Jerry yelled, changing directions.

It almost seemed like Jamie was going to let him come my way as if it were my fault that the guy was Paul Bunyan’s avatar, and I felt her struggle with herself in real time thanks to Mental Link. With an absolutely disgruntled sigh, she aimed and fired her harpoon launcher. Jerry whirled, striking down the projectile with his carving axe, and skidded to a stop.

“Is it really true that your Patron is Paul Bunyan?” I heard her ask as I started flying towards the roof of the building. “Please tell me it’s not.”

Jerry stared at her for a moment before laughing, which was a great booming sound that seemed to echo through the area. I didn’t hear his response, but I could feel her resignation, and I grinned. It was some harmless fun that Icould really get behind.

I alighted on the roof of the building and walked along its edge. Behind me, the sound of carnage reached my ears as they started fighting in earnest. Pennsylvania’s obelisk was on the southern side of Point Square, in between two open-air courtyards.

The MVP wasn’t anywhere in sight, but there were several turrets facing my direction. None of them fired yet, as I wasn’t in range. Given that the obelisk was so high up that there weren't really any good angles on the ground that weren’t right in plain view from the street, it looked like they went with short range defenses.

I stopped just outside of their field of fire. My aura permeated the area, searching for the MVP. They were hiding in one of the courtyards, hanging onto a windowsill, waiting to ambush me in case I got through their turrets.

Sara was right, I did recognize them. They were also Sol Ligatus taught, though reluctantly so, and someone I had fought before getting trapped in the Golden Dream.

“Tony Felder!” I called jovially. “Guildmaster of Shakespeare At The Frick! My man! How’ve you been?”

He, along with his teammates, Jacqueline and Doug, had been my 50th victory in the Cooper Fieldhouse arena. Tony had even felt smug enough to wager Synthesis Pages if I won despite his Air Elementalist companion recognizing that it was probably a bad idea given how excited and confident I had been. I fought them while letting Mercury snoop around my notes, which I had left deliberately enticing so he would follow me to a place I could confront and recruit him. It had worked like a charm

There was no response, and I felt confusion in his aura. He had heard my voice before, but it didn’t seem like he recognized it.

“I’m hurt, you really don’t recognize me?” I asked, putting a hand over my heart even if he couldn’t see me. “Did you repress the memories of the time I beat you up? Or has so much happened that you had to push memories of me aside?”

I saw his lips move in confusion through my aura, but I couldn’t hear him. Slowly, he lifted himself up to peek over the roof. With a big grin on my face, I waved.

Tony’s eyes narrowed. “Warmonger?” he asked incredulously.

“The one and only!” I said with a flourishing bow. The act put me within the closest turret’s firing range, and it started shooting. Force Field popped up between me and it, taking the attacks for me, and the machine stopped firing when I stood back up. “Though, you called me the War Monster back then, which was honestly a fair and adequate description.”

“Should have known a jagoff like you would end up here,” he scoffed, and he pulled himself up onto the roof. He threw his arms out, gesturing for me to come. “Well? Let’s get this over with.”

“You want to fight me?” I asked, arching an eyebrow. “After what happened last time?”

I snorted at the sneer on his face, and he pointed at me. “I’m a different man now, you know?” he asked, thumbing his nose with his other hand. “Shakespeare At The Frick shot back up to the top of the rankings after Sol Ligatus left. Whole crew got trained by your folks, too, and I went around collecting MVP Tokens like they were candy.”

“Yeah, I can see that,” I said, my voice a little sour at the fact. “I actually have some questions about how you managed to get here, Tony. You’re not who I expected.”

“Doesn’t matter, I’m what you get,” he replied. “Now, step into my garden and let’s get started.”

“Are you sure you want me to do that?” I asked, arching an eyebrow. “You’re the one at a range disadvantage here, Lightning Pugilist. We could really just talk. I even have an offer for you, if you stop being so excessively cocky.”

“What, scared to get closer? What happened to all your bravado from back in Pittsburgh, Warmonger?” he asked in return, making a come get me gesture. “Let’s have a rematch. See who’s grown the most.”

“Alright. It’s your Defense Points, I guess,” I replied with a shrug.

Before he could ask what I meant by that, I started walking. The first turret fired, but I used Spin and Lift on it. Not with enough force to pull it off of the roof, but it continued to fire as it turned. These machines were not built to be smart, and they always fired the moment an enemy was in range.

I continued forward until six of the turrets were firing, and I took control of each of them. With Split at level 5 and the Extra Focus ability augment on my Cowl of the Warmongering Mystic increasing the number of things I could affect by one, I was at my limit. That was fine. Tony stared with an open mouth as I started destroying his other turrets with these six.

“You could always turn them off,” I informed him as the machines were destroyed in a shower of sparks and smoke while I moved to the next targets.

“Jagoff,” Tony spat, swiping open his menu. “Just as cocky as ever.”

“Guilty as charged, but there’s a good reason for it,” I replied easily. The turrets stopped firing, and I smiled. His aura was that of someone about to attack. I prepared myself. “There, that wasn’t so—”

Tony transformed into a bolt of lightning and shot towards me in what was his most powerful movement ability. Electricity coursed through me as he entered through my chest and out of my back, his body reconstituting with a clap of thunder that made my ears ring. I remained unmoving as he turned around and an open palm struck me behind my heart. The blow made me stagger forward.

More power coursed through me as lightning arched between his fingers. He closed his fists, revealing plates with short spikes on his leather gloves, and began striking me. A furious flurry of blows sent me stumbling forward, each strike dealing bludgeoning, piercing, and electric damage.

I took them, moving only slightly to avoid debilitating blows to my spine, and checked in on Jamie’s mental state. She was exhilarated. The fight was proving to be a bit more climactic than she had first thought, and I could see them trading blows at the very edge of my awareness aura. She had taken out her twin scimitars, Firefly and Silhouette, to combat his double axes.

Then, before I knew it, time was up.

<<<>>>

[[Notice]]

Buff

Your Bodily Battery spell has absorbed 963 electric damage.

Your Strength and Dexterity stats have been increased by 38 points each for 96 seconds.

<<<>>>

All of the electricity that had been hovering around me was suddenly absorbed into my body, causing my orange eyes to glow bright white. I spun and knocked his next blow off course, the lightning coming off of his fists burning me now that I wasn’t absorbing it. One hand pushed him from the shoulder as I took a step forward, and my other lowered from where I had parried before shooting out into his stomach.

Tony’s eyes widened as he was knocked backwards, and I followed. He took on a boxer’s stance and lunged forward back into melee. Instead of a punch, he reached out for my arm and brought up his knee. It connected with my stomach, but I was already in the process of headbutting him. The wind was knocked out of me while I broke his nose with his forehead.

He took a step back and his fist glowed bright yellow. Tony punched from out of reach, shooting a bolt of lightning at me. I ducked forward to dodge, but it shifted and struck me in my shoulder as if it were homing in on me. Ignoring it, I grabbed his leather jacket and lifted him up.

It was tough, he clearly had a high Constitution, and I had a feeling I wouldn’t have been able to lift him without the Bodily Battery buff. It was already useful. Tony didn’t flail, but instead started exuding electricity from every part of his body as he struck my arms. I grit my teeth as I lifted him above my head, activating Shield to save me from the damage, and then tossed him down.

His skull broke through the building’s roof, and he lashed out with a kick as he tried to pull himself free. I jumped over it and took a couple of steps back. Tony’s head rose up from the hole I had made, bleeding heavily, and he turned to look at me. His eyes widened again as he shifted, protecting his vitals.

My running kick sent him sprawling against one of his turrets. He growled as he scrambled to his feet, and I cracked my knuckles. “Seems like not as much changed as you had hoped,” I told him.

Tony spat blood onto the roof. “It’s not over until it’s over,” he said defiantly, lightning arching between him and his turret. It scorched the machine and destroyed the roof that it passed over.

“You’re right about that, but this doesn’t have to be the end,” I replied. A potion in a metal vial appeared in my hand, causing him to tense up, but I gently Pushed it towards him. “Let’s heal up and talk about things like gentlemen. I have a proposition that I think you might find really interesting.”

“Yeah? And what’s that?” he demanded. His eyes were focused on me, but his lightning didn’t destroy the vial that stopped and hovered in front of him.

I grinned. His attitude left a bit to be desired, but he was just holding a grudge. I could understand that. I reached out, offering my hand despite the distance. “Tony Felder, how would you like to be the second place winner of the Star Spangled Shadow Invasion?”

The look of surprise on his face was priceless.