I couldn't sleep right away last night, still a little bothered by my blackout. I could kick myself for letting this go on so long and forgetting that the game is still a test run, as Richter plainly reminded me. But, if I make too big a deal of it I might be forced to prematurely retire and that I cannot allow. So, I tried the technique of reading a book to get me in the mood for bed. Unfortunately, the only book I had was the one on Valkyries.

I had read bits and pieces whenever I had five or so minutes to kill, which wasn't often, but last night I had quite a bit more time. Most of it drones on like a high school history book, but there are passages that read more like the epic poems of Gilgamesh or Beowulf. It's as if it were written by different authors. The exploits of specific Valkyries look as though they should be sung by a hair metal band with lasers and fog machines going off on stage. Excerpts such as:

"They rode for glory and bound by honor

to end the Hill Giants' reign of terror.

A river of blood to water the seed

and let her blossom grow.

A bridge of bones, skulls into homes

they left no part for beast or crow

to feast upon while the snow, the snow

did fall upon the reddened earth below.

A hundred men of monstrous height

did well to fight, but couldn't stop

the march of the Valkyries and their supreme might…"

Or:

"When the horn of battle called,

she answered.

When the edge of steel sang,

she danced.

No rage nor bloodlust this,

she knew.

When the Ki-Rin kneeled,

she bowed."

And who could ever forget this ancient, but short Valkyrian love story:

"His blood warms her bed, for that was all he had that she wanted. Since he did not have the Potential inside him, Rota wanted to see if she could find any honor or integrity within. She found naught but entrails as limp and greasy as their owner had proven to be. Their sudden duel was quick, dragged out only by the teary, pleading of the spoiled man-child.

'You were so quick to bed me and make me your bride, yet you couldn't pay the toll to enter my garden?' she asked the blanching prince. Her axe had cleaved his chest in a way that even if he had a clever retort, as he so often did during the festival where he hounded her, he wouldn't be able to offer a single one of it. The only rigid thing sticking out of this poor, excuse of a man was the handle of Rota's axe and the sight of it brought her pleasure indeed."

Yeesh. I remembered my first encounter with Victoria in the Rentas Woods as I yawned into my hand. The memory of clashing metal and her cold appraisal of me finally sent me off to sleep with a smile.

I hide a big yawn with a hand and turn my head to the side. Dawn asks me about my sleep. What little I had was proportionately filled with nightmares. Apparently, depending on how long I sleep, I still get a fair share of them. Either way, sleep has become a necessary evil to me and I'm not even sure if I'm getting any rest out of it. She suggests I talk with Corvina more often and I nod in agreement.

"I guess so. Maybe she can learn some mental healing magic. Hey Milli, are we almost there?"

We left the settlement almost two hours ago. Our intention was to bring one of the wagons filled with construction and mining materials. Much like the California Gold Rush miners, we'll create another camp near the good stuff and if the area meets Dawn's criteria we might just set down some roots.

Haro takes point, Milli and Dilla flank the wagon, and Tamu protects the rear. My Dire Wolf, Ghost, pulls the wagon with no trouble and I don't have to worry about him getting fatigued. The pass is wide enough for two wagons to narrowly scoot by one another and flanked by steep, sheer walls. All along the way it also winds and forks many times. If it weren't for tiny markings my Kobolds carved into the rock I'm sure they would've gotten themselves lost again. That technique must have come from Conner and El.

"Not far, sir. Maybe thirty minutes at this pace." Milli holds up three of her four claws. It's a shame I can't teach them a good prtion of ASL, but I have been trying to impart a few basic words and phrases we could use in battle. She stops us with a gesture, her fist held in the air. A few hand movements later and four crossbows fire into the air. The actions would have confused Dawn, had she not seen them do this several times already. Moments later, a pincushioned bird creature hits the dirt.

The ostrich sized monster with feathers as red as clay, skin as pale as ash, and talons as dark as blood twitches after its involuntary landing. The Vulture Harpy's jaundice yellow eyes widen with fear and anger. Before it could react any further than a few weak thrashes at the ground, a crystalline vine shoots forward and binds its wings to its body. Unable to protect itself from the rain of shadowy blades coming down on it, the Harpy dies without putting up much of a fight. Dilla scoops the loot sack into her storage ring and I urge Ghost to continue pulling the wagon.

My Kobolds don't utter a single squeak after the attack, just resume the march up the rocky trail. I nudge Dawn with my elbow, "Eh? Eh?" She playfully puts a hand in my face, pushing me away. I parry and we continue to slap fight for a while. A heart stopping shriek in the distance ends our play and I cast Arcane Shield above our heads on instinct. My squad tightens their formation, but keeps their eyes and crossbows trained forward.

The red hostile scent trails continue up the pass. Milli tells us we're close, but so is the danger. When I ask her if she knew what lay in wait, she shook her head.

"Not sure, sir. Sound like Harpy, but bigger. Mama bird maybe? Open cave had no beasties yesterday."

"Shit," Dawn and I manage together. With the pass taking a little over two hours to navigate, it would take about five to come back with a larger force. We aren't in a hurry, but time is still a resource we don't want to waste. I dismiss my shield and hop down.

"Haro and I will scout ahead. I'll have Ghost continue slowly, but I'll turn him back if it doesn't look good."

"Keep your ear on. I want to know right away how you want to move forward."

With a confirmation and a salute, the little red Kobold and I jog the rest of the way to the entrance of the area marked by Milli before I turn us both into puffs of smoke. Her brief description of the space couldn't prepare me for what lay before us. I don't know what I was expecting, but it wasn't this. I have no theories on how this place could have come to be, besides maybe a long melted glaciar. This left a partially enclosed dome of rock that opened up in the center like the iris of a giant eyeball. When the glacier melted, it must have also helped create the pass with the constant trickle of water. But now, the area is littered with dried up vegetation and great streaks of the electrum across the walls. Just by looking at the space, I get the feeling that it could be used as some kind of stadium for football or soccer, given the proper seating. Another dreadful shriek pierces through us as well as a sudden realization.

A loot sack containing bones sticks out of the piles of branches and dead leaves. The piles are only seperated by thin layers of similar material and the idea that they aren't simply wind swept debris trapped in a hole gives birth to an image. As if rewarding me for reaching such an obvious conclusion, a flock of harpies flies in through the aperture and land in the center. A dozen of the red Vulture Harpies disperse from the central figure, a Harpy Matriarch about three times their size. Aside from the abnormal size, it also has black feathers encircling her head like a crown of laurels and a ridge of them going down the ridge of its neck and back. The mama bird is the same clay red with bloody looking talons. Those, too, are proportionately massive and intimidating as they grasp a lamenting Blue Elk. Burgandy lips peel back, revealing fangs as dark as the talons glowing blue and they drive deep into the captured creature's flank. The attack splits the elk wide open as if a bomb went off inside it. The spray of blood hits the Matriarch's ashen face and it begins to feed on the rest. Distracted by her meal, I give her a Scan.

>Scan[7119/7119HP, 230/290MP, 1445/1475SP

[Instead of growing Dire, this Harpy ranked up into a Matriarch. She has marked the entire valley as her territory, though she is not arrogant enough to contend with the resident Sphinx, her sworn enemy. Intruders have captured her ire as many of her brood have been killed since their arrival.

[Summon Twister, Critical Stab II, +Wing Crush, +Aero Blast, Focus III, Slash, Bite]

I get Haro's attention and we fall back to the trail, out of her vision. I'm interested in her description since it actually mentions us, not to mention her list of Abilities. But, before I can start a conversation with myself a notification pops into my vision.

[Minor Quest Received: Angry Avians

[Take care of the Harpy infestation. 0/1 Harpy Matriarch, Vulture, 0/13 Vulture Harpy, 0/24 Harpy Eggs.

[Reward: 1000XP, 1*Diadem of Aerial Ferocity, 4*Pawn Chest]

As if I needed any more incentive to kill a bunch of Harpies. A Minor Quest is going to be icing on the cake. Don't worry, Blue. You shall be avenged soon enough. I'm going to pluck every single feather off of that stupid bird's body and cram them down her throat. Im going to slice off their heads and roast them over a spit. Actually, that sounds delicious. Maybe I can talk Gorm and Malica into doing that. If we had some coal, I could dig a pit for it.

"Mama bird?" Dawn's voice snaps me back into the moment. I forgot they were following us.

After relaying the information we gathered, Dawn takes a moment to think over our situation. Two players and four Kobolds versus thirteen Harpies, possibly more from the eggs, and a Tier One Boss. If we were to just bust in, guns blazing, maybe we can take a few Harpies down in the confusion, but then we'd have to deal with several of them in an area they can fly in. They would have the advantage in the air and we'd be limited in our effective attacks. I can switch Ghost out with Faye, that'll give us an aerial unit. However, the advantage of the Dark Wisps are their numbers and right now her number is one. Too bad I don't have any flight Abilities. Well, except for--

"Ardy? Are you listening?"

"I… I wasn't, but I am now. Sorry."

She gives me a resigning stare and just shakes her head, "Here's the plan. First, I need you to give your team Body of Smoke. Then, you and Ghost are coming with me..."

The entrance of the nest is just as wide as the pass, about the size of a two way street, and about two stories tall. The dome at it's apex is about five to seven stories tall, it's a bit hard to tell from the angle that we observe it at. Still, it is shorter than the walls in the pass. If we had to scale them by hand, it would take some time especially with how sheer they are. Good thing I know a few Spells. They certainly helped my little friends reach the top of the dome in a hurry. Body of Smoke doesn't necessarily allow the caster to move any quicker than they normally could go, but it does help them ignore any terrain disadvantages.

Once we get the signal from Electrum that they are in position, I recast Spell Division to turn the three of us into smoke. Breezing through the branches, sticks, and singled out Harpies, we get as close as we can to the largest cluster of the bird mobs, four, which is perfectly situated a few yards away from the boss. With our plan in mind we position ourselves accordingly. In between the two target groups, Dawn and Ghost face the boss while I aim two outstretched hands toward the cluster. The Harpies jerk their faces around the nest, tilting toward us and investigating the smoke, probably searching for the fire causing them. I got a fire for them. Just have to silence the notifications first.

If I hadn't, I would be buried under the amount of damage I'm dealing with Trinity Stream. With four Harpies taking three seperate hits for three seconds, my head would have been spinning. The sudden aggression of my attack causes just enough hesitation and they soak in all three seconds before weakly trying to take off. Crossbow bolts rain down on each one, pinning them to the ground and killing them. I throw a thumbs up into the sky and move on to the next cluster.

Dawn and Ghost work over the Matriarch in turns. She uses her Divine Flash like a slow jab, interupting the timing of the boss' attacks while Ghost shoots in to bite or claw at the legs. The Matriarch's mouth glows yellow and it fires a beam of compressed air down at my Dire Wolf. Dawn uses her shield to redirect the attack into a glancing blow. Still, it must have taken a big chunk of HP because she has to heal herself after a single hit.

I still have nine more scattered, panicked Harpies to deal with and one of them is already in the air. More bolts come raining down on it, sending it for a crash landing. I focus on a pair of them, wings spread and faces glowing blue. Still running, I hurl an ice ball at one, smashing it the face and sending shards of ice flying into both of them. The attack cancels whatever spell it was trying to cast, but the one standing next to it manages to fire a jet of compressed air at me. I dive out of the way, barely dodging it. The attack hits the far wall with enough force bust a few chunks of the electrum out. Still recovering from its attack, I teleport above the creature and drive a Critical Stab into the back of its head, followed by an Echo Strike. The body I land on no longer capable of supporting its own weight, I back flip over another jet of air and repeat my previous two hit combo to great effect. That's six down, seven to go, plus the eggs wherever they are.

By now the racket in this open cavern is deafening as the remaining Harpies and their leader squawk at us indignantly. Some of them even get into the air and create a flight pattern encircling us, too fast for the Kobolds to track. One of the Harpies heads for the aperture, but this reduces the amount of space for it to fly around and the Kobolds' volley is enough to send it back down to us. Unfortunately, all four of them have to change boxes simultaneously as another Harpy rushes toward them. I can hear Milli yelling something and a moment later the escapee hits the ground like a meteor, wrapped in the Emerald Verdinia. The awkward head landing from such a height must have snapped the creature's neck since it evaporates and leaves its loot sack behind. I finish off the first one that tried to escape with an Assassinate and now the count is down to five.

My bolts take a second to charge and are too slow to hit the Harpies in the air, even if I use the Rifle setting with my Bolt Master's Ring to double their speed. It would also take too long to get the timing just right. As I glance over at Dawn to see how she and Ghost are doing, her yell for aid pulls me back towards them. Well, something is certainly pulling me towards them. A swirling mass of air about twenty feet tall sucks in the debris and bones in a wide radius, including my commander and summon. I'm too late to escape the suction as my feet slide out from under me and I fly into the twister. The wind itself doesn't do any damage to me, but the swirling branches and rocks manage single digit damage by the dozen. The room continues to spin and tumble in my vision when something heavy slams into me with a metallic crunch. Did I just get run over by a flying car?

"Shit! Sorry Ard!" Dawn makes up for it by casting an AoE healing Spell for the two of us, since Ghost can't be healed this way. The wind slows down and we hit the dirt. I cushion the Infernus' fall with a grunt. "Switch with me?"

"…yeah…" I say weakly. She pulls me up and heads out, taking Ghost with her. His HP looks to be about fifty percent and I can't help but worry. The worry doesn't last long as a growing shadow under my feet moves me to cast Blink Step. When I reappear just behind the Matriarch, I'm just in time to watch one of her massive wings come down like an anvil, glowing yellow and obliterating the debris in its way to the ground. Further out, I can see Dawn's anti-air Thunderstruck and radiant energy bursting out from within the flying Harpies.

I cast Blink Step, reappearing above the Matriarch's head, but before I can give her the clawed crown she deserves she drops into a quick squat and launches us into the air. I'm able to follow through with Critical Stab, if only to dig the claw into the boss' back between her wings just to hang on. With just enough room, she takes me for a ride in the cave while she avoids the crossbow bolts raining down from my Kobolds.

"Ard! You alright?" Dawn shouts up at me as she kills another Harpy.

"Yippee ki yay, motherfucker!"

With one claw trapped by tensing muscles and large feathers, the other claw activates Shadow Toxin instantaneously as a Skill and pierces her once more. Black tendrils of poison spread from the wound I inflicted, visible even under the feathers. I spare a peak at the battle logs to see which effects go through.

[You pierce Harp Matriarch for 81 damage!]

[You Poison59 Harpy Matriarch!]

[You Blind Harpy Matriarch!]

[You Silence Harpy Matriarch!]

My elation for successfully Debuffing the boss is short lived as the flight pattern changes with me still in the pilot's seat. The circle she flies grows wide and I scramble to pull my claws out in time. She's either trying to escape through the aperture or she intends to slam into a rocky surface. In either case, she doesn't slow nor does she attempt to land. Her head shakes back and forth violently and I can see an angry mouth yelling without a sound escaping it. A wall fast approaches and everything about the angle and speed tells me that the ending won't be good. The tangle of feathers and bloody meat releases my hand and I react, casting a Spell without pause.

[Arcane Shield absorbs 215 damage! -215MP]

[0MP! Arcane Shield shatters!]

[Wall bludgeons you for 87 damage!]

My magical shield eats most of the damage and shatters in the process, my head and shoulder getting rocked by the impact. My vision's a little disconnected and lagging as I slide down the wall to unsteady feet and use it to hold myself up. Mama bird looks dazed, crumpled on the floor after the collision, more so than I feel. I try to walk over to her so I can take advantage, but my legs aren't listening well enough and I stumble.

"Whoa, shit." I grasp at the wall and cast Fey Touch on myself just as massive wings begin to twitch. What was originally thought to be a concussion or a Debuff becomes obvious as I glance down at my feet. Barely blending in with the dry, pale branches is an arm sized clipping of an albino plant. "Oh no…"

I stare at the plant for what feels like an hour, but was mostly likely a few seconds. That kind of distraction is dangerous in a boss fight, but so is passing out, completely incapacitated. Still feeling light headed, I wait for the notification.

[Moderately High ambient mana: Reduce MP Regen wait to 0seconds, increase HP Regen wait by 10seconds.]

"Yes!" I shout, grabbing at the branch without thinking. The spikes of elemental pain shoot through my hand and I throw the branch to the side. It felt like fiery, electrified icicles were pushing through my palm. My hand continues steaming blue vapors as I check the new notification.

[Mana Burn! Your body has absorbed too much Mana too quickly!

[+200MP! -50HP!]

[Feat: Ether Creature has altered these effects, reducing damage and absorbing residual mana radiation.]

"Residual man--?" A groan from the beast demands my attention and I jump back into the action. She's still trying to pull herself together (2017/7119HP) when jets of fire, lightning, and water collide with her prone form. They wash over her for three agonizing seconds, long enough for her to gather the energy in her body for a counter attack. The split second after the magic ebbs, she responds with a Spell of her own. A shot of compressed air fires out of her bloody, burnt maw at the silhouette in front of the wall. The blast cracks the wall, but hits nothing else. Confused, she stands, spreads her broken appendages in an aggressive stance, and searches for her attacker. The sound of gravel rubbing against gravel doesn't come from below her feet and she winces every time she tries to move her wings. From my position off to the side and in my smokey form, the grating noise sours my stomach, but I continue to wait. I'm mainly procrastinating because I know there's so much to do after the battle ends. After a few seconds her HP will start recovering and I tell myself to get this over with. Seeing the Matriarch like this sort of ruins the mood, so I'll make it quick.

I reappear, Critical Stabbing at the belly and finishing the attack with a downward slash. She pushes past the pain of her shattered limbs to try to defend herself, but I activate Predator Rush. Three possible paths of movement appear in my vision as time seems to stop. Each ghostly trail of attacks stems from my body: dash left, shoot in forward, or jump straight up. It actually doesn't matter which one I choose since all I need is a second of hesitation. I spend that precious grain of time to Assassinate her from above just as the wings glow yellow and close in for an attack, pulverizing the debris where I once stood. The impact of my claws to the back of her head sends her sprawling to the ground with a heavy thud and I finish the deed with a Trinity Stream. Taking only a moment for a couple deep breaths, I heal myself with Fey Touch, find the radioactive plant, and give it a hard slap on the ground.

[Mana Burn! Your body has absorbed too much Mana too quickly!

[+200MP! -50HP!]

"Shit!" I wave my hand soothingly, "That still stings, but, oh, that delicious mana." I just walked from a plane crash and I'm whining about a little mana shock. Aside from my tingling hand, an invigorating energy courses up my arm and clears my head. Maybe those plants aren't so bad in small doses. I can hear my Kobolds shouting for coordinated efforts. I sweep my gaze up toward them and spot the last Harpy in the air, dodging fist sized rocks. Realizing they must be out of bolts, I cast Blink Step with reckless abandon. It takes several casts to get to the center, even with my range increased to fifty feet due to my boots' set bonus.

It's a good thing I got that last MP boost, since it takes a good amount of repeated casts to reach the center of the aperture. Eight to be exact, and a few more just to catch up with the escaping monster. I slay the Harpy easily enough and spend the remainder of my MP teleporting safely back to the ground.

[Mana Exhaustion! You have drained your mana too quickly! Your mental and physical processes will be Slowed; HP and SP Regen will cease until you regain 50% of your Max MP!]

[Feat: Ether Creature has increased the effects of this condition.]

My Kobolds rush to steady me on my feet as I wait out the fifteen or so seconds for my head to clear. Instead of just feeling tired and drained, my body felt like it was being crushed into itself, like a juice box being sucked dry until it started shriveling. Once I was feeling right again, they tentatively let me go.

"Thanks, team. You did great." I use my hat to fan a little air at my head as it clears up. "Seems like I'm always passing out in front of you guys."

"No falling for Milli, Sir," Milli teases, punching me lightly on the leg, "Lady Victoria get angry."

I honestly had no response for this sudden jest, so we just started laughing. With most of my MP back on the bar, I cast Spell Division and our smoke trails fall into the nest. Dawn is standing next to a clutch of the Harpy eggs, Thunderstruck in hand. The head of her weapon raises and drops with visible indecision. When our forms solidify and she notices our presence, she jogs up to me expectantly and I already know what she's about to say. I hold my hands up to mollify her and I place one on her shoulder.

"We don't have to smash them. The Quest just said to take care of them. Let's store them like the Tlancalli eggs." She looks up at me with a sad smile and nods. If we could cry ingame her eyes might have been wet at this point and she gives me a big hug.

"Come on, Commander," I pat the top of her dark helmet, "What kind of murder hobo are you if you can't smash eggs for XP?"

[1880XP + 40% War Party Leader IV Bonus

[2632XP will be shared among the party.

[2632XP/6 party members

[You received 439XP!]

[Boss Slayer! As the last to attack the boss when it died you received a bonus!]

[You received 2300XP, Cloak of Zephyr's Bane]

[Minor Quest Complete: Angry Avians

[Take care of the Harpy infestation. 1/1 Harpy Matriarch, Vulture, 13/13 Vulture Harpy, 24/24 Harpy Eggs.

[1000XP + 40% War Party Leader IV Bonus

[You received 1400XP, 1*Diadem of Aerial Ferocity, 4*Pawn Chest]

[Cloak of Zephyr's Bane. Enhanced Journeyman Armor. Shoulders

[Durability: 175/175

[Armor: 4

[Bonus: +25% Resistance to wind and lightning damage. Increase all damage dealt to flying targets by 20%.]

[Diadem of Aerial Ferocity. Enhanced Expert Armor. Head

[Durability: 190/190

[Armor: 1

[Bonus: Add wind element to melee attacks.

[Spell: Summon Twister]

[Unique Quest Received: It Starts With One

[A sprawling metropolis begins with a single building. Construct a building 0/1 and set a Cornerstone Anchor within 1320feet of Foundation Marker.

[Reward: Obtain Feat: Surveyor, ???]