Spell Weaver [Book 2 Complete]

The helicopter’s vibrations rolled through Alex’s bones to the steady wump-wump-wump of the propellers. He sat between Sam and one of Jonathan’s team members, looking out of the small windows at the other helicopters in the air around them. Each carried what Jonathan had called an ‘Orange’ as if it was a team name. They were the Hunters Association’s highest-ranked Awakened.

The sight of them during the briefing had been sobering. There were just over twenty men and women with haunted eyes and a large variety of visible scars. Some of them twitched and didn’t seem comfortable in the crowd. Even without scanning them, though, Alex could tell that their gear was all top-tier. During the opening of the brief, he’d had to stop his jaw from hanging open when the Director stated they were all present because they were close to level fifty.

“They live in the Rifts,” Jonathan had explained earlier in their flight, after Alex had asked. “Before the integration, they were Delta Force, our military’s tier one unit. The best of the best. They hunt the highest-rarity Rifts they can get into and maximize the time dilation. Most likely haven’t been out of a Rift for more than a few days since all of this started.”

“You don’t do that?” Alex had asked in return. As far as he knew, Jonathan was the poster child for the Hunters Association.

He’d shaken his head in response. “That’s not my path. I close Rifts to protect people, not chase power.”

Now, though, Martin traded pre-integration war stories with Greg, who sat across the cabin. He tried to draw Alex into the conversation a few times, but Alex was too focused on his creation of a new spell circle. The others chatted, while the one that impressed Alex the most was Damien, who was actually managing to sleep despite the rough ride, noise, and pending battle. Their easy camaraderie reminded Alex of home and his own team’s dynamic around the house.

His phone screen dimmed in his lap. He’d spent the last few hours deep in thought, both parts of his consciousness from [Parallel Mind] focused on analyzing the ritual schematic photos Edwin had sent him from different angles. Two leather-bound books sat heavy in his lap. One was his for his notes, which he’d rapidly begun filling with new theories on turning the ritual schematic into a usable spell circle. The second was actually given to him by Jonathan before boarding the helo.

Alex adjusted his grip on the books, and the cloth around his hands seemed to shimmer in the light that came through the small round windows. The enchanted wraps felt comforting around his hands and wrists.

What caused him to feel most out of place, however, were his enchanted robes. While valuable and a part of his combat kit, the gift from Eura seemed to stick out among the tactical gear and more modern equipment that the rest of the team wore. As soon as they’d landed from the plane in New Jersey and were ready to board the helicopter, Jonathan had insisted both he and Sam wear at least a vest, even going as far as to require Sam to wear a helmet. The Kevlar vest pinched uncomfortably against his chest, and Alex had to force down his desire to grumble further.

He looked at his phone screen and the reflection of the vehicle’s interior through the glass. During one of the shifts and shakes of the chopper, which everyone else seemed to think was natural, the screen woke up, and he saw his lock screen picture. The team photo that they’d taken at the loot pile party stared back at him. Mark’s infectious grin and Sarah’s slight smile. Liv had her arm around Sam’s shoulder, and the young man beamed at the camera. Alex glanced at Sam beside him, grateful that there was at least someone with him on this mission.

His entire hope since returning home had been to increase his friends’ levels and bring them all to more equal footing so that they could work together. He’d thought at the time that it was the right decision to avoid power-leveling them in the way that the Mana Spinners had done to him.

Even with their approach, Alex felt that Mark and Sarah had made huge progress. Comparing his growth to Olivia, who took over two months to reach level 12 while working as a Peacekeeper for the Guild, Mark reached level 10 in just over a month.

Now, though, going into something like the current mission, he wondered if it still hadn’t been fast enough. The frustrated look on Mark’s face when he’d been asked to stay back made him think that he’d made the wrong choice.

Maybe I should have taken them all and helped boost their levels to start…

Alex couldn’t help but notice the odd swap that had happened in how he was feeling just a few weeks ago. He’d been pleased with his friend’s growth while feeling immense frustration at his own stagnation and lack of levels gained.

Now, however, it was the opposite.

In hindsight, he realized that stagnation on levels and his focus on his own magic is what led to the development of spell circles, his Achievement, Class, and new title.

If I’d focused on leveling, I likely would still just be using rituals and have gained a few levels in a Rare class.

In contrast, where he’d thought Mark and Sarah had made great progress before, he now wondered if it was too slow and felt like his concern for their safety was holding them back.

He sighed and lowered his head into the palm of his hand, enjoying the pressure against his forehead.

At the time, one of my biggest reasons for not wanting to tell Mark and Sarah about my awakening was that I was worried they would hold me back from doing what I wanted because they might have thought it was dangerous… now look at me, doing that exact thing to them.

His phone buzzed, and the screen lit up with a message from John.

John Riley: Guild’s falling apart over here. Elana is trying to hold it together, but people are jumping ship left and right. Me and Ian have barely heard anything. What the hell happened?

Alex’s thumbs hovered over the keyboard.

Alex: Lots going on right now. You guys okay? What’s your plan?

John Riley: Not much of a plan right now. She’s not telling people much, just that the issue is being handled, and Rylan is banned. Trying to figure out our next moves.

Alex: Stay safe. When this is done, I’ll find you. We’ll talk about everything.

John Riley: Alright. Are you and your team still with the Guild?

Alex: No. I left the night everything started to go south. Gotta go talk later.

The helicopter lurched, and Alex had to put both hands down on the books in his lap to keep them from sliding.

“Stupid car. Bad at flying.” Alex kept down an amused smile as Valtherion, in cloak form, spoke to him mind-to-mind.

We’ll be out of here soon, buddy.

A deep boom rolled through the air, followed by another and another. Alex looked out of the window as artillery fire lit up the late afternoon sky. Missiles streaked toward the elven wards in the distance, and their trails burned bright against the growing darkness. The forest around the dome of runes caught fire, filling the air with thick smoke. Each impact sent waves of pressure through the air.

“Damn,” Damien said as he half stood to lean forward and watch the display through a small window. “Not even a dent.”

The wards shimmered to show a dome under the smoke that rippled with each impact. Despite their attempt to overwhelm it, humanity’s best modern efforts were ineffective. The full might of the military crashed against the ancient elven magic and failed to break through.

Leila leaned forward, and her braid fell forward over her shoulder. “How are we supposed to—”

"We'll find a way," Jonathan cut her off, though strain crept into his voice. "We have to." He glanced at Alex, who had been working steadily for most of their journey, only stopping fifteen minutes ago. “Use that skill book now. We’re touching down in five. Once we get a grasp on the situation down there, we need to be ready to move.”

Alex picked up the leather-bound tome on top of his personal notebook in his lap. “You said it breaks restraints?”

“Stuns, holds, and anything that locks you down. It’s got one use and then a long cooldown, but it’ll probably save your life.”

Alex held the book and willed his System to consume it. It dissolved into motes of light and he watched it drift into the air before rushing into his head. He absorbed the knowledge and knew with certainty that he had a new skill, [Shrug Off]. It was so interesting to him how gaining a skill from a skill book differed from gaining one through a token. He now had some intimate foreknowledge on how to use the skill based on the previous user of the skill and whoever created the consumable manual.

He pulled up his Status Screen and looked at his latest addition, still completely baffled by the enormous changes that had taken place in just the last few days.