Planetary Mana Siphon Implementation Complete

  This notification is an official notice that your Koldaavi Combat Trials victory reward has now been fully implemented and will remain in place for up to a minimum period of 14.2 Earth years.

  Defensive measures are fully charged and fed by incoming and siphoned Mana.

  All Settlement MIS Portal installations complete.

  Current projections indicate a reduction of Teleports exceeding Level 250 by 96%, a reduction of Teleports exceeding Level 200 by 89%, and a smoothing of Ambient Mana Level peaks on Earth to a general limit of 30, over time.

  Please note this may mean an increase in AMLs for the lowest current AML locations.

  It feels weird to think humanity might not need me as much now. I’m more powerful and useful than I’ve ever been at the same time that the danger on Earth is more under control than it’s ever been. It’s nothing like the transition after my hockey career… trying to rebuild myself when the Mana Influx hit. Then, I was at the bottom of my game and nobody really needed me anymore in every sense of it. Now… things are a bit different and I’m used to being someone that other people need. It drives me and keeps me from spending too much time angsting about the past.

  I break from the wandering thoughts caused by the Mana Siphon notification and with a push of will, pull the Status information from the creature in the distance below us. It’s one hell of an impressive beast, bigger than a 777 and powerful. Its obsidian-black scales shimmer and shift in the sunlight as though they’re somehow coated in shadow. Wickedly curved horns sweep back from the front of its skull and its spine is lined with razor sharp blades as long as a dagger that swirl with dark energy.

  Black Dragon Patriarch (Level 307)

  Health: 34500/36990

  Mana: 16060/17100

  Conditions: Dragon Heart, Lightning Reflexes, Razor Sharp, Indomitable Will, more…

  Lirathel and I are now looking at the only Monster on Earth currently above Level 250 from a rocky outcropping on Socotra. On one side we look out over large, sloping white sand beaches that probably look the same as they did before the Influx. On the other is another sloping hillside sprinkled with Dragon blood trees that rolls down into a valley of Cucumber trees. I admit that despite the amazing location and powerful Dragon not far from here, it’s hard to keep my eyes on the surroundings rather than her.

  “Not really my kind of place, but that is my kind of dance partner,” drawls Lirathel as she points to the powerfully built black Dragon that’s savaging a small group of Crystalback Lizards who are all around Level 100, crunching on their crystalline armor. This Dragon’s grown a lot more powerful than the Smaug look-alike that first attacked Queenstown and got Taiwo temporarily exiled from Earth. At that time I didn’t think anything could be more powerful, but my perspective has definitely changed.

  “You know, Lirathel, before the Mana Influx this was known as the most alien landscape on Earth, due to the uniqueness of the plant life here. Most of what’s on this island can’t be found anywhere else. Of course now our definition of ‘alien’ has changed a lot,” I say.

  “Cute,” she says in a way that leaves no doubt she’s not interested in how things have changed for humanity since the Influx hit. I’ve shown her a few spots on Earth since she arrived and we left Jeff, but she got the idea pretty quickly and seems keen to move on.

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  “This is the only one, right? Then we leave?” she asks me, perfect eyebrows raised.

  I consider, despite the fact Tenebris asked her to help me and everything up to this point has led me to finish up my business on Earth and go. Am I really ready to leave? It’s what I think I should do, but that’s a lot different than everything since the Influx. I’ve been bouncing from one thing to another just to stay alive and save as many people as I can. This… this is more long term thinking and it’s not driven by the same kind of urgency. Have I become addicted to the thrill of combat and the thrill of being needed?

  “Yeah,” I agree with her. “This is the last one. Just give me a minute.”

  As I turn I catch a confused look in her molten orange eyes, but I’m already sizing up my options. Level 300 is high, but not the highest I’ve faced by a long shot, even in the last few days. I haven’t really tried Perfect Focus along with my Dimensional Forge armor and weapons and I’m tempted to see how they stack up against something this powerful. Since it’s only one target and I’ve got 30,000 Stamina to play with now, due to the extra boost from my Dark Mana Knight Evolution, I’m also keen to see if I can hammer it into submission without even going near it. And to test out how much punishment my different Skills can dish out against something like this.

  Decided, I take a few seconds to consider the order I use my Skills in. My options tend toward more focused power in a few Skills rather than many permutations of average or weak Skills, so there aren’t a heap of combinations and it doesn’t take long. Before I start I look over at Lirathel, who is watching me closely.

  “You want the honors?” I ask and nod at the Dragon, wondering if she wants to have a go at ‘dancing’ with it. I’m unsure of what kind of combat ability she has, but given the way she moves and her confidence this close to the Dragon I’m betting she can handle herself.

  “Be my guest,” she replies and gestures to the Dragon, her forearm guard flashing in the sun. “I’m not here to mess around and maybe get myself killed.”

  The Dragon looks pretty much done with its fun; all the Crystalback Lizards are dead and the proper feeding has begun. Experience tells me the Dragon must be aware of us from this distance, but since we haven’t taken any action it’s probably dismissing us as a threat or views us as too small to be a hearty snack. I activate Perfect Focus to watch what I’m about to do in as much detail as possible and feel everything slow down around me. For quite a while by my Perception that might only be a couple of seconds in real time, I watch the Dragon rip apart the Lizards in slow motion. I can already tell this Skill is going to be crazy when it’s Evolved. Then, without any warning, in rapid succession, I trigger Psychic Eruption, Sentinel’s Fury three times, and Resonant Strike three times.

  Psychic Eruption stuns the Dragon despite its Resistances; the Evolved Skill rattles its brain. It’s unclear which Skill or the combination causes it to stagger two steps then collapse dead, because even with Perfect Focus dialed up to maximum all I see is the whole of the Dragon’s body contort with breaks and bulges, then tear apart in a shower of bone, blood, and flesh as fast as I can pick out the details. Next time I’ll have to trigger the Skills more slowly or find something with a higher Level or Resistances.

  I frown at the lack of real information about what was most effective as my Stamina, almost bottomed out, ticks back up to full in a couple of seconds. It seemed like all of my Skills really took hold and smashed it.

  “I saw the footage from the KCT, but watching something like that in person is even more… threatening,” she says with interest, and maybe a bit more care or respect than before. Lirathel takes a powerful leap out from the outcropping, waves of flame-like hair fluttering in the air behind her. When her lithe, athletic form lands lightly next to the Dragon that’s now a pulped and shredded mess on the ground, she stalks around it as if trying to pull secrets from the corpse. Maybe with her Class she can. No doubt a Level 19 Ascended Class Dreadflame Inquisitor has a few tricks in the kit bag. She’s almost reached her Tier 3 Skills.

  I land near her with a much less delicate thump that kicks up a cloud of dust and Loot the Dragon, then stand up straight and take a deep breath. Almost like a reflex I trigger Omnipresent just to check one final time there’s nothing out of control. I find no runaway Monsters, no threat to humanity that will devour entire cities if left unchecked. Nothing the people of Earth can’t handle right now, with a little help from the Legendary Strike Forces still operating. It feels good, and weird.

  “Ready when you are,” I tell Lirathel, and she gives me a smile that shows her perfect teeth and the intensity of her orange eyes grows brighter.

  “How far can you take us in one hop?” she asks, and I shrug in reply.

  “Anywhere.”

  “Perfect. Our first stop is still in this Galaxy.”