When TJ looked at his clock, he saw that hours had passed. A System notification flashed in the corner of his eyes and he acknowledged it.
Wave 1 of 3 of assault on the Pine, Arizona general store, complete. 30 minute extermination period, begin. Time until wave 2 of 3 of assault on the Pine, Arizona general store: 27:42
"What's this extermination period?" TJ asked as he looked around for some divine destroyer. Was there something they'd done wrong? What was happening?
"It's the penalty the monsters face if they don't attack the fort in time." David explained. The older man, one who worked with Penny in many things, had been the one to wake TJ. "And sorry about the rude awakening. You just didn't respond to anything else."
"I get it." TJ replied as he rubbed sleep from his eyes. Had he really been asleep for almost five hours? "I've always slept like a rock."
"Thanks. But we saw a couple of the monsters that failed to do what they were supposed to. They were running towards the fort but just dropped dead before they could get here."
"Well, nice to have the reassurance that they can't just all wait until ten thousand throw themselves at us at the same time." TJ said as he yawned and stretched. As soon as he did so, he felt ready for whatever was coming. The rains overhead continued to fall, and with so long recovering with Storm Soul and Divine Authority, he was back at full. His head still ached, but he was fighting fit.
David nodded as he walked away, focused on other things. TJ looked around until he found Farid, who stood beside Sarah and Tessie. The teenager hung back, looking a little awkward, but she continued watching everything outside of the walls with commendable vigilance.
"Glad you got some rest, TJ." Farid greeted as he approached. "You needed it after that killer tornado."
"Yeah." TJ grumbled as he hopped up onto the wall. "What happened while I was out?"
"You killed most of the attackers with that huge attack." Farid shrugged. "We estimate that, of the 2,500 in wave one, you killed just under 1,000 of them. The rest of us have, we think, killed a bit over 1,200 of the rest. The other 300 tried to mount an attack, but with everyone already angry about that first wave of attacks, it was a slaughter. Nobody else died on our side."
TJ sighed. "That's a relief."
"Yeah." Sarah agreed. "With you out for then, there were a couple people afraid of what might happen while you needed to rest. Seeing you collapse also kept anyone from complaining about how you'd been holding back or whatever. Laura also kept anyone else from running their mouths. Then there was Stanton…" She trailed off, letting TJ imagine whatever his old friend had done.
"Thanks." TJ said and meant it. "I totally exhausted my MP, so it was a miracle I got back to the fort at all. Thanks for the help."
"'Course." Sarah shrugged.
"Farid, don't mind me asking, but why are you still here?" TJ asked, changing the subject as he looked at the handsome Indian man.
"What do you mean?" He asked with a cocked head.
"Shouldn't you go lay a bunch of traps before they start to come?"
Farid chuckled as he understood. "Ah. You are not wrong! Unfortunately, as a Dirt tiered Occupation, it is very MP expensive for me to create traps. I've gone out and exhausted myself every hour creating more. I wish there'd been a safer way for me to prepare them before the siege, but in retrospect, I think I should have done so, disregarding the potential danger that would pose to the others."
"I'm sorry, I should have figured." TJ apologized as he kept his eyes out on the surroundings.
"Perhaps." Farid shrugged. "But you have become our leader, and it makes sense you would like to ensure that we are all pulling our weights."
TJ opened his mouth to disagree but realized he couldn't in good faith. Instead, he nodded his thanks to the Acolyte. Then, he peered around to look for Stanton. Not seeing the old man immediately, TJ turned to ask the people with him. Tessie, surprisingly, was the one to understand and respond quickest.
"He's behind the store, in his little garden."
"Thanks, Tessie. How are you? I saw you got hurt in that wave?" TJ asked before going to do anything else. The teenager's face blanched as he asked.
After a moment, she replied. "I'm ok. It… really hurt, what happened then, but I'm ok. Laura got to me fast enough to keep me… alive." She choked on the last word. TJ reached out a hand and put it on Tessie's head. The girl sniffled but didn't push it away.
"I'm glad you're here. Do you need to stay a bit further back on the next wave?"
She sniffled as she shook her head no.
"Sounds good. Let me know if you need anything, alright?" TJ asked.
Tessie nodded.
"Good. I'm gonna go check with Stanton." TJ walked away towards Stanton's garden. As he did so, he truly looked around the fort for the first time since he'd rushed out to kill as many pukwudgies as possible. Two of the walls showed where they'd been breached, rubble and shattered wood stacked in an attempt to recreate the barricades that'd protected them before, to varying levels of success. Instead of right angles and walkways, the holes were filled with whatever would impede the attackers' approach. The defenders' faces didn't show any dirt or filth, the constant shower of rain washing away the most obvious signs of injury. Even so, many eyes remained reddened, and nobody walked without a weapon in hand, Disciples included.
The Tutorial was ending, and with it, any innocence or irrational hope that the Participants had held onto. Though he lamented it, TJ felt it was necessary and he moved his attention to instead check his Status.
Status Sheet
Name: TJ (Thiago Jorge) Harris IV
Race: Semi-Divine Human – lvl 22
Class: Storm-Calling Neophyte lvl 22
Occupation: Savage Shaman lvl 23
Level of Divinity: Copper (I)
Divine Bloodline: Kukulkan
Health Points (HP): 2890/2890
Mana Points (MP): 2790/2790
Stamina: 2570/2570
Attributes
Strength: 147+5(+29)
Agility: 125(+25)
Endurance: 214(+43)
Vitality: 234+8(+47)
Toughness: 177+5(+35)
Wisdom: 152(+30)
Intelligence: 227+7(+45)
Perception: 170(+34)
Willpower: 210(+42)
Fixation: 231+3(+46)
Free Points: 25
Skill List: Hidden
Titles: Irregular
Elite Hunter
Evolutionary Frontrunner
Current total maximum Divine Transformation time: 0:00/4:29:30
(End+Vit+Will+Fix)/4 Current cooldown: 0:00
Status Sheet
Name: TJ (Thiago Jorge) Harris IV
Race: Storm Coatl – lvl 22
Class: Storm-Calling Neophyte lvl 22
Occupation: Savage Shaman lvl 23
Level of Divinity: Copper (I)
Divine Bloodline: Kukulkan
Health Points (HP): 5700/5700
Mana Points (MP): 5520/5520
Stamina: 5140/5140
Attributes
Strength x2.5: 368+5(+74)
Agility x2: 250(+50)
Endurance x2: 428(+86)
Vitality x2: 468+8(+94)
Toughness x2.5: 443+5(+89)
Wisdom x1.5: 228(+46)
Intelligence x2: 454+7(+91)
Perception x2: 340(+68)
Willpower x1.5: 315(+63)
Fixation x2: 462+3(+92)
Free Points: 25
Skill List: Hidden
Titles: Irregular
Elite Hunter
Evolutionary Frontrunner
Divine Trial Records (Copper (I)):
0 Minor, 0 Moderate, 0 Bitter, 0 Celestial
With how high his Attributes were climbing, especially Toughness as a coatl, TJ felt more and more assured with his current plan for how to ensure the fort remained standing after this second wave. Every Attribute was growing insanely quickly with every level, and TJ wanted to feel some measure of pride for where he was now. After all, he was at least 20x as strong as he'd been in any Attribute at the beginning of the Tutorial. Even so, he knew that he could be hurt, or killed. He divvied up his Free Points, 3 in Strength, 5 Agility, 3 Intelligence, and 9 Fixation, and then, not sure where to put the other 5, left them alone for now.
As soon as he'd made the decision, TJ met eyes with Stanton, who sat in his garden, watching TJ's approach.
The old man grunted and gestured for TJ to take a seat. He didn't mind and sat in the muddy dirt. Funny how he couldn't bring himself to care about those kinds of things at this point. Instead, he enjoyed the smell of life that filled the air near the garden.
"Pretty good grove, huh?" Stanton asked with a smile of pride. "Thanks for the rain, even though there might be a bit too much of it."
TJ shrugged. "I think the help it'll give us will be more important that your little garden."
"It's a Druid's grove." Stanton frowned as he replied. "Not like I'd expect a big old snake like you to appreciate that.
TJ raised his hands in apology. "My bad. I just wanted to check on you. And Lailani, if I can find her. The more levels I get as Copper is making me more and more worried about what we're going to do about the Boss and the Copper monster that're coming."
Stanton sat back and nodded in agreement. "I'll get the girl to come to talk about it. We should have some sort of a plan before it's too late."
As soon as he said as much, Stanton plucked a single, large leaf from one of the Lifeblooms near him. Then, after scraping his nail across it in a pattern, the leaf flew away and whipped around a corner before TJ lost sight of it. The wind told him it went inside the store, and then it didn't want to follow the little thing inside.
"That from your new Occupation?" TJ asked, impressed.
"Yeah. Copper is… very different." Stanton replied with a sigh. "I don't feel really… human anymore. Too different."
"I get it." TJ commiserated before changing the uncomfortable subject. "Did you figure out what thes plants all do? All I got from them is that they're pretty strong and can live longer."
"Plenty." Stanton answered, but he obviously took special glee in not giving TJ the information he'd requested. Before TJ asked again, Lailani stepped out and towards them.
"You wanted me, Stanton?" She said, hands clasped behind her back.
"Both of us." Stanton clarified. "You're the only other Copper here in the Tutorial, and you'll be really important as you keep getting levels. How many levels have you gotten in Copper?"
"Six." She answered, looking embarrassed. "Just the three from evolving, and a couple more in my Class. I can feel that my Occupation is close, though! The Chindis are good experience for my Occupation, so I think I'll get some more levels soon!"
"Them specifically?" TJ asked, curious. "What's your Occupation?"
"... –assin." the nervous girl muttered, embarrassed.
"What was that?" TJ pushed again.
"Metaphysical Assassin." She answered, raising her head but keeping her eyes averted. "Yeah, it's edgy, but it was the best Occupation offered, and it was a boon from killing the first Chindi in the Tutorial, ok?"
"I don't care what its name is, sounds like it'll help a lot!" TJ replied, holding both hands up in as placating a gesture as he could manage. "I just didn't hear you that first time. My Occupation is 'Savage Shaman', so I get the idea that the names are maybe a bit much. I don't care. I just wanted to work out a plan with you two about how we're going to deal with the Copper tier threats that're coming our way."
"Oh." Lailani's face puckered up like she'd eaten something sour. Her tanned skin flushed as she blushed in embarrassment. TJ didn't call attention to the poor teen, regretting that the girl was being forced to the front of these upcoming conflicts.
"So, I think your Skills are focused on supporting and killing spirits, right? Your Divine Transformation isn't focused on physicality like mine, right?"
"No, it's almost entirely mental Attributes." The girl confirmed. "A lot of my Skills are more focused on making everyone else stronger because I… don't like to fight." Her voice trailed off as she spoke, but TJ didn't mind.
"I get it. Honestly, I was going to suggest you stay back and let me get up close and personal with the monsters anyways. I'm getting better and better at just taking hits, so that's what I'm going to do."
The three Copper tier Participants conversed together for a good 20 minutes, trying to decide what they'd do in this second wave to make sure that they were supporting and protecting the rest of the Participants better and allowing them to gain more experience, because the third wave was going to be bloody. As the countdown reached zero minutes left in the "extermination period", they stood up and made themselves ready for the second fight, more prepared for what was coming this time around. It was just in time, as the System gave another warning.:
Wave 2 of 3 of assault on the Pine, Arizona general store, begin.