Unchosen Champion

After returning to the center of the ritual chamber on her own bare feet, the Avatar of the System placed her hands behind her back and hovered into the spotlight, smiling at Coop modestly, masking the grand hopes she had clearly decided to place in him. She left Coop with another flash of blinding light, causing him to stagger as mana rushed back into the chamber, filling the void she created with her arrival. The bright light that condensed into the chamber made Coop consider getting his own runed blindfold just to spare his retinas. Once he recovered from the temporary vertigo, he searched for the doors that Madison and her assistants used to exit the room.

As he slid his hands along the smooth walls, he wondered if the building itself was impacted by the clearing of mana. Would the medical center’s doors even open? While he struggled to find his way out, he put his unallocated points into Mind and checked his notifications.

[You defeated Curse of Carmine (Level 33)]

[You defeated Siege Boss: Monolithic Destiny (Level 100)]

[+210642 Basic Credits]

[+3 Voidstone (Legendary)]

[Bloodstone Relic (Unique)]

[Congratulations! You have leveled up!]

[Congratulations! You have leveled up!]

[Congratulations! Your profession has leveled up!]

[Congratulations! Your profession has leveled up!]

“Nice.” He smiled at receiving his first scavenged Unique. The Trophy Hunter quest was already paying off. He wondered what equipment Garod or Erasimus would be able to craft once he started farming more of the rarest materials.

While he was continuing to flail against the unblemished border of the chambers, a portion of the wall adjacent to him slid open with a woosh. A disheveled Madison looked at him like he was an idiot for wiping the walls with his fingertips before waving him through the threshold.

“You alright?” Coop asked the overworked Sage. Her hair was uncharacteristically sloppy and her half-lidded eyes weren’t only due to the physical exhaustion of recurring mana consumption.

“Warn a lady if you’re gonna invite rude guests to suck the mana out of us like a damn vampire.” She muttered, sounding like someone with a bad hangover. Coop had hoped the Avatar’s influence over mana wouldn’t extend too far beyond the ritual chamber, but they had no such luck. Hopefully, it wasn’t too disruptive to the rest of the settlement.

“Hey, she said she was able to visit because you did such an incredible job with the ritual.” Coop exaggerated the compliment, mending a relationship that had begun on the wrong foot for no particular reason other than wanting everyone to get along.

Madison lit up, glowing with pride. “Did she?” She turned back toward the chamber they had left behind. “I suppose it did come out quite nice for my first try.” The former physician wasn’t above abandoning modesty after accomplishing something so dramatic.

“It worked right?” Coop couldn’t help but wonder about the results. Curing Jones had been a long time coming.

“Of course. Jones was already awake as we left the chamber. I was evaluating the lasting effects of the curse when she knocked me out.” Madison explained as they entered another, smaller room.

“Lasting effects?” Coop feared.

Jones stood with one hand clasped on his other wrist behind his back as he gazed out of a viewing window that looked over the ritual chamber. Coop paused for a moment as he noticed the bright red veins running up his wrists and fading into his forearms. More crawled down his neck below the collar of his shirt and others ran through his calves. They reminded Coop of the flames that would be painted on a hot rod, but the effect was uncanny on a human. Coop used Presence of Mind on his old friend.

[Bloodstone Human (Level 33)]

[Bronarch Mountain Adept (Intelligence)]

[Chosen of Collegia Universal]

[Stone, Blood (Cursed)]

It seemed like there were some changes to the senior caretaker, left behind by the influence of the blood curse. An extra affinity, a new title, and a racial evolution at the very least. Coop hoped none of the lingering effects were negative. He really doubted any affinities or titles would be anything but beneficial, even if the terminology didn’t always have the best connotations. Afterall, some of his own were pretty grim and titles like Abomination had positive effects. Coop smiled at Jones’s back, happy he was up and about, even if he had some new racing stripes.

“Jones!” Coop let out, unable to stifle his enthusiasm for any longer than it took to glance at his aura and come to terms with the changes.

Jones spun around and smiled at the sight of his junior. “Coop, my boy!” The older man stepped forward with his arms out and they embraced in a warm hug. “How long was I out?” Jones asked quietly, holding Coop’s shoulders as they separated.

“A bit more than a month.” Coop frowned, “It seems like way longer. A bunch of stuff happened.” He started to explain, but trailed off with no idea where to start.

“I can see that.” Jones nodded slowly, angling his head toward the viewing window. “Who was that pretty young lady you seemed so familiar with?” He curiously asked with a twinkle of familiar mischief in his eye.

Coop huffed. “You really went straight for the biggest complication right away.”

Jones smiled. “I always had a nose for trouble.” He raised an eyebrow at Coop, while tapping the tip of his nose to demonstrate, and expecting an answer with no intention of Coop dodging the question.

“Are you feeling alright?” Coop wondered, spinning to Madison before Jones had a chance to respond. “Is he alright?” He asked worriedly, not wanting to get into the nitty gritty if Jones wasn’t one hundred percent okay.

“He’s fit as a fiddle, as far as I can tell.” Madison stated as she fixed her blonde hair.

“I’m fine.” Jones confirmed.

“What’s with the racing stripes?” Coop pointed out the most obvious physical change.

Jones looked down at his wrists. “I guess it’s from my racial evolution. According to my status, I’m a Rank 2 Bloodstone Human now. Can’t say it feels any different. Really, I just feel decades younger.”

“Weren’t you at a lower level too?” Coop tried to remember, but he was pretty sure level 33 was closer to his own level at the time of fighting the Zombie Lord than what Jones’s should have been.

“Indeed I was.” Jones put his hands up, unable to explain the differences either. “I’ll tell you what, I never felt better. I was obviously well taken care of by Doctor…” He waited for Madison to introduce herself properly.

“Seraphin.” Madison finished.

“Oh!” Jones was excited. “Are you related to our young Charlie?” Jones asked curiously.

“She’s my daughter.” Madison smiled proudly, suddenly appearing rejuvenated at the mention of the mousy park ranger.

“She’s a lovely girl, gifted, and kind.” Jones deservedly heaped the praise on Charlie.

Madison basked in the acclaim. “She certainly is, but she’s been hanging around quite a few troublemakers recently.” She lifted her own eyebrow at Coop.

But Coop nodded along. “Camila.” He confirmed. When Madison’s expression didn’t change he asked, “Camila, right?”

“Anyway, feel free to call me Madison, Charlie has already told me so much about you, it feels like meeting an old friend. Thank you so much for taking care of her.” Madison ignored Coop and changed the subject.

“It was always my pleasure to have her visit.” Jones beamed. “Where are we anyway? Still on Ghost Reef?”

“Still on Ghost Reef.” Coop answered. “You’re gonna need a tour.” He pointed out with a smile.

“Uh oh. What have you done with my fort?” Jones asked skeptically.

“Not me!” Coop looked at Madison. “Is it alright?’

“He’s fine, get outta here so I can take a nap.” She dismissed them both.

Coop exited the room with Jones and one of the androgynous acolytes was waiting to guide them through the facilities and back to the golden lobby. On the way, he promised to tell him about the Avatar, but wanted to start at the beginning. Instead, he explained to Jones that they had needed to construct the medical center in order to cleanse the blood curse that he was afflicted by, how Jett and Olani had saved him, and how the Endless Empire’s Chosen had been attempting to snatch the civilization shard from them before Coop killed the ones who didn’t defect.

Jones nodded along until they reached the lobby where Balor, Olani, Charlie, and Camila were waiting with Emmanuel.

“Hah!” An enthusiastic laugh boomed across the lobby. “Jones!” Balor shouted in genuine excitement as he practically bounded across the open hall despite being solid stone. “Wait ‘til you see what the young Champion did to your fort! He even found a new Viceroy to replace you, the scoundrel!” He laughed in glee as he threw Coop under the bus without a second thought. “But, at least there’s some hope with you back. C’mon, c’mon! It’s my turn to give the tour.” The stonemason swept Jones out of the lobby and the rest followed, saying goodbye to Emmanuel who promised to make sure Madison would take a proper break.

“I can tell you are even more in tune with the stone than before!” Balor continued happily. “Congratulations!”

“I suppose I am.” Jones agreed hesitantly, looking around the unfamiliar developments in a familiar place. “I see…” He mumbled as he apparently tapped into new powers while gazing at the fort’s walls. “It might take some getting used to.”

“Don’t worry! Grandmaster Balor Rockshaper will be your personal mentor!” Balor promised. The stonemason had been starved for a human who appreciated the fort as much as he did without Jones in the settlement, and he wasn’t shy about how delighted he was to have him back.

“I’m glad to see you out and about, old man.” Olani commented between Balor’s exclamations as they strolled toward the canal from the medical center’s entrance.

“I’m glad to be out and about.” Jones responded and they smiled at each other momentarily. Coop raised his eyebrows as he thought he detected a hint of flirtatiousness in their little exchange. Olani took her leave, letting Jones know that she typically haunted the alchemist’s building these days.

“Was that always a thing?” Coop mumbled to himself, wondering just how aloof he had grown before slowly opening back up on Ghost Reef.

The sun was high in the sky as Balor went in on the explanations for the paved canal avenue, the market street, and didn’t forget to point out the still wrecked northwestern inner wall with the massive cat’s paw print crater beneath it.

Jones had to pause the excitable stonemason to ask about the absolutely enormous pig lounging in the canal, but all he got as an explanation was that, yes, there was a huge pig that hung around with his little herd. There were, in fact, quite a few new residents who were taking note of the grand escort Jones was receiving. The glowing red highlights on his skin made him stand out, even in a settlement full of ghosts.

“Seriously, Jones! They’ve promised me over and over that they would be able to recreate the fortress walls properly, but without your presence I have zero faith! None! I mean look how the rubble still lays in the gaps! It’s even worse from the battlements!” Balor couldn’t help himself as he laid into the early repair efforts.

Coop, for his part, was distracted with idle observations of the weather, while he tried learning how to whistle and stifled the temptation to summon his spear and mistjump away. The morning’s precipitation was completely absent after the sun rose high enough to burn it all away, but Coop diligently sought out clues of its presence in order to escape the conversation.

“Now, Balor, it could have been a lot worse!” Charlie softened the blow, coming to Coop’s rescue at least as much as when she first arrived on the island. She turned to Jones and continued. “You should have seen Balor run around to make last minute fortifications when he saw the Challenge Assessment.”

Coop could only shake his head and avoid eye contact with Jones while Charlie patiently explained how the siege event had gone. Luckily, one of her special abilities was that she was immune to generating any ire, so they got through the difficult part with minimal admonitions with regard to the state of the fort’s walls.

She particularly emphasized how dangerous it had been and that they were fortunate to have survived at all. Balor couldn’t help himself, though, making sure Jones really understood the damage, clearly having every intention of touring each and every bit of wrecked stone, hoping that the expert human would be able to guide proper repairs before some amateur, like Coop, stacked them without enough proficiency. Coop just frowned and kept his eyes in the clouds as he accepted the slander, trusting that Jones would not be swayed.

The newer facilities on the northern half of the courtyard were briefly glossed over in Balor’s tour, with his interest clearly being in promoting the excellent stone work of the spoked roads as well as highlighting the future tower that would eventually dominate the northern town circle. There hadn’t been much progress on the tower and underlayer project, but Balor had created a wide perimeter where the structure would go, establishing the preliminary foundation that would come next.

“You see, the ground floor will have an open patio that won’t obstruct traffic aside from the central spire. The actual entrance to the under layer will be established in the existing space above.” The stonemason presented. Coop didn’t exactly understand how it would work, but it sounded like there might be some pseudo teleportation possible. He’d need to see it to have a better appreciation for the process. Jones just nodded along, clearly happy to be back.

“Now, don’t mind the bridge. It’s still in an incomplete state since our young Champion constantly needs my help repairing emergencies elsewhere.” Balor went on before identifying the civilization shard’s citadel.

As he guided the group through the spiraling stonework, they ran into Marcus and Kayla, seated on one of the stone benches facing the shard. The pair of advisors were discussing the direction of further development before the group interrupted them to introduce Jones.

“It’s nice to meet you.” Marcus greeted him with a handshake. “I hope you don’t mind how I relied on your notes to organize the settlement.”

“I’m just happy the fort was in good hands while I was otherwise engaged.” Jones chuckled before he turned his attention to Kayla. “And you, my dear, must be The Siren herself, Pirate Queen of the Tempest Fleet, it’s lovely to meet you, Captain.” The old caretaker laid it on thick, as Jones held her fingers politely, as if he was being introduced to real royalty, to Coop’s surprise and Kayla’s delight.

“My, my! Did you coach him, Coop?” Captain Kayla laughed, actually losing on the charisma front to Jones’s opening salvo.

“Not at all.” Coop admitted with his hands held up innocently. “I would have told him you’re technically an Admiral now. I had no idea he could be that smooth.”

“You didn’t know me when I was young.” Jones pointed out. “It’s not everyday you can meet a true hero.” Jones chuckled. “I have read all the accounts of your adventures, and even have a copy of your portrait from a biography.” Jones explained. Coop finally realized that, of course, Kayla’s assault on Ghost Reef was a major event in the fort’s history, so Jones would definitely be familiar.

Kayla, laughed at the sudden renown she hadn’t been aware she had. “There’s a biography about me?” She gasped with an open mouthed grin. “And it makes me out to be a hero?” She seemed skeptical, not forgetting that she was a notorious pirate.

“More than one!” Jones elaborated, “And it was what you accomplished during your life that makes you a hero. It seems even now, your heroic deeds have continued, if what Charlie said of the siege event is true.”

Charlie wilted under the affectionate attention of Kayla, but she was saved by the insistent meow of Jett announcing her presence to Jones.

“Ah, there’s the lighthouse keeper!” Jones caught her leap and cradled Jett in his arms happily. The more than two decades of friendship not missing a beat despite his temporary absence.

With Jones back, it already felt like everything would be right in Ghost Reef. Coop watched as the senior caretaker was comfortably reinserted into the dynamic that had developed around the settlement. He was already known to most people, as Coop often deferred to him even while he was incapacitated, and the search for a cure to the blood curse had been a driving factor for Coop to leave the island at all.

There were a few more accounts to settle, but Coop was feeling happier than ever.