Fire and Heat

Nayra was nervous, even though she tried not to show it. Anrosh stood in front of her, tightening the straps on Nayra’s armor for the third time. It was obvious that she too was nervous, Nayra tried to smile through the slits in her helmet.

“It’s tight enough,” she told her.

Anrosh froze for a moment, and then nodded her head. “Right, yes, you are absolutely correct about that.”

Nayra nearly chuckled, she had noticed that Anrosh seemed to have picked up Ryun’s habit of talking weirdly when she was nervous or uncomfortable. When Ryun did that it made him seem detached, almost as if he was looking down on you. When Anrosh did the same it only made her look… cute—of course Nayra was biased on that front.

“It’s going to be fine. I’ve already reached further than I had imagined I would,” Nayra said. She had secured her place among the top 64 fighters in her division. That alone was an achievement she hadn’t expected.

Anrosh gave her a weak smile. “You could go farther; you are good enough.”

Nayra felt uncomfortable to hear her say that. Anrosh was an immortal now, what many considered the peak of power in the Infinite Realm. Nayra had always dreamed about the moment when she would reach it. She felt guilty for being jealous of Anrosh, especially for the way she had gained her power. She knew that it was unfair, Anrosh had only wanted to be strong enough that she could protect her people, there was nothing wrong with that. Still, it did make Nayra feel like she was falling behind, again. She couldn’t help but compare the situation to what she had gone through with Reyla. She had fallen behind her sister, and that had created a rift between them. She didn’t want that to happen between her and Anrosh too.

“I hope so,” Nayra said, resolute. “I plan on giving it my all.”

“As you should,” Anrosh said with a grin that was just a bit predatory. The sect people were not known for their restraint.

An attendant entered the small preparation room and Nayra took a deep breath.

“Wish me luck,” she said.

Anrosh kissed two of her fingers then placed it against Nayra’s lips through her helmet. “Good luck,” she smiled, then knocked on Nayra’s breastplate.

Nayra chuckled and then turned, putting all her doubts aside as she followed the attendant to the teleportation platform. The team battles had concluded without any major upset, everyone had assumed that the Dragon Heart Team would win, and they had. Nayra had been quite surprised by some of the team matches. Some of the people fighting in them had been good, enough so that she didn’t know if she could’ve beaten them if they were in the solo matches. Probably had to do with the prizes, the tournament was a gold mine for factions. Having people in every category was probably the best course of action for them to reap as many rewards as they could.

Before she knew it, she had been teleported to the arena. The light of day made her narrow her eyes for a second before they adjusted, and then she looked around. An arbiter stood next to her, a giant orb resembling an eye hanging above his head. A mark of an arbiter, as well she suspected one way that the action was captured for the screens around the arena.

Her opponent would be on the other side of the battlefield, waiting for the start.

“No need for you to be nervous,” the voice of her awakened spear, Er’ishi Resav, spoke inside her head. “You’ve prepared for this.”

“I could’ve practiced more with my new techniques,” she told him.

“The training with Ryun was sufficient, you understand them well enough.”

“I don’t yet have the rhythm down quite right,” Nayra said.

Her second path techniques were powerful, holding the might that Ryun had put in them when he made them. Flavored by her new Aspect they were… unique. Great, but it had taken a bit for her to adjust to them. They were so much more powerful than her main path, which made things slightly difficult. Still, she was thankful beyond words for what Ryun had done for her. She had been leaning toward the Molten Aspect, one of the three that he had brought for her. She had spoken with Anrosh and even with Daria, trying to figure out which of the three would be the best for her. They had all gravitated toward the Molten Aspect. Then, just before she made her decision she went to Ryun, to ask for his advice. He had given her three aspects and told her that it was her decision, but when asked he did give her his opinion. And it was… quite illuminating. It gave her an insight into how Ryun thought, how he planned his advancement. With her Path and True Body, she didn’t need to worry about the purity of the Essence she drew in or used for advancement, which gave her an advantage. And Ryun had taken everything into account. The way that her techniques would change, the way they would synergize with each of the aspects with both of her path. Then he talked about her fighting style, about her skills, what she could do with each aspect. By the time they had finished their conversation Nayra left with a changed idea of what she wanted to do. In the end she picked something that she hadn’t thought she would when she had first been presented with the three aspects.

“Are you ready?” the arbiter next to her asked.

Nayra called Er’ishi to her hand and hefted the over-sized spear to her shoulder. Then she looked at the arbiter and nodded her head. A moment later, a loud voice echoed through the arena, announcing the start of the battle.

“Nayra Ornn, Sect Leader of the Twilight Melody Sect, versus Fenor Oaken of the Kieran Kingdom. You may begin!”

Nayra sprang into motion immediately. She knew some things about her opponent, Lesamitrius had done everything he could to learn about the people they could meet in their matches. Her opponent had a good sensory ability that could track changes in the air. He had enough range that he could probably find her easier than she could find him with her newly evolved skill—Thermoception. She had a greater range than she did, but she had evolved her skill to be more sensitive. So, as she ran forward she looked for a good area to choose as their battlefield. She needed a specific place if she was to make use of most of her power.

As she neared the center of the arena, she finally found it. A small clearing slightly indented ground surrounded by several pillars and large boulders. It was maybe two dozen meters across which would limit the battle area somewhat but that was what she needed.

She stopped in the center and waited, keeping her mind on her skill looking for any sign of her opponent. The temperature around her was mostly even, some small fluctuations, it made it easy for her to sense when something moved. A heat signature that was slightly warmer than the surrounding air moved straight toward her, and Nayra braced herself. She raised her shield hiding her body behind it as she rested her spear on top of it.

Her opponent came at her fast and hard. He was a tall human, covered in armor and carrying a shield and a hammer in his hands. She knew from Lesamitrius’ information gathering that he was a Classer with skills as his secondary focus. His fighting style was that of using powerful control perks to tie his opponents down then finish them off with his hard-hitting abilities.

She knew that she shouldn’t get into a prolonged battle with him. As she had watched Ryun fight through the tournament without revealing his most powerful cards, a part of Nayra had felt like she should try to do the same. In the end she had decided against it, she wasn’t Ryun, she wasn’t that powerful. She had reached far, that was the truth. But she didn’t have the power or talent to go through battles while hiding her power. She needed to go all out from the start, she couldn’t afford to underestimate her opponent.

She activated her boosting perks. With the Gunnr attunement she already had 20% boost when in battle, her Quick Steps gave her a 10% to speed, and now to that number she added her Valkyrie’s Might and Valkyrie’s Swiftness, doubling her strength and speed.

Her foe charged at her, metal chains exploding out of his shield and heading straight for her.

Nayra had already moved her Qi through her body, and as she moved she activated {Mesmerizing Mirage} and her secondary path’s base technique. Her Blazing Conduits let her be able to use up to two techniques at the same time. Heat rose from her skin, through the seams in her armor creating a heat mirage around her even as her strength and dexterity soared. The effects of her True Body—Lotus Born already made it hard for people keep track of her, with the heat mirage it made her position even more uncertain.

She dashed to the side and the chains missed her and she pushed her Qi through her conduits dropping her technique and preparing another. She dashed forward with her Dawn Dash and triggered her Dawnfire Immolation. She reached her foe surrounded by golden fire, it surprised him she could tell, still he reacted. A blast of kinetic energy hit her, forcing her to stagger back as he attacked with his hammer. She used |Greater Block| and stopped his attack, then she stabbed with her spear. The man raised his shield to block but she triggered Viper’s Reach, and Er’ishi Resav bent over the shield. Her foe was good, he managed to duck so that her spear just scratched the metal of his pauldron.

She grimaced as he pushed her back. She took a step back and blocked his returning strike as her bonus switched from her strength and dexterity to her vitality and endurance. She pulled back, focusing on defense as her boosted endurance allowed her to take his hammer strikes with greater ease. The heat coming of from her Dawnfire Immolation made it hard for her opponent to get really close, she could see it in his movements. Her Greater Steel Mind let her read his movements better. A twitch here, a wince there, all told her that his armor was heating up and that he couldn’t handle the heat for much longer.

Then he unleashed a barrage of attacks. Chains burst into existence around her from holes in the air itself, she couldn’t evade them. And ended up tangled up and pinned in position. His hammer glowed and increased in size, a skill, and then he smashed it down on top of her.

Nayra opened her mouth and unleashed her Valkyrie’s Shout, the blast hit him and made his body freeze up for a second, halting his hammer in the air. It wasn’t enough to stop the attack, only slow it down. Then she activated her Valkyrie’s Avatar of Fire, her body burst into fire and her stats increased. She grew and chains around her broke, her foe was forced back by the heat and she pushed forward activating her Goddess of Speed, she attacked with her spear using |Greater Swipe|. A wall of chains sprung around her target, blocking her first swipe and the follow up stab. She activated her Dawnfire Wings and blasted off the ground. From up above him she attacked with [Dawnfire Mirage] sending an image of her self-diving from up above. A moment later she triggered [Shimmering Burst] following after her image. Chains burst from the man’s body, with wicked hooks on their ends. They ripped through her image dispersing it, and then unable to stop herself she smashed into them too. The chains wrapped around her spear and arms, then snapped to the side sending her tumbling to the ground. She hit it hard, but with |Greater Pain Tolerance| she barely felt it. Her foe didn’t give her the time to respond. She rolled from the attack of his enlarged hammer, got to her knees and raised her shield as he burst into motion and smashed it against her again. She felt the strike send a shockwave through her shield shattering the bones in her hand and twisting her arm. Her own shield snapped back and smashed into her helmet, rocking her head back. Disoriented she barely managed to get out of the way of his follow up. Even then he caught her shoulder with the edge of his hammer and sent her flying. She rolled over her broken arm, her shield clinging to the broken mess that it had become.

 She groaned in pain and got to her feet and then with her [Dawn Dash] moved out of the way of his next strike. She knew that she needed to get him to the center of the clearing, to the bottom of the indent in the ground. So, she used her Great Lunge, reseting the cooldown on her [Dawnfire Mirage]. She reached for him and stabbed forward, Er’ishi Resav surrounded with dawnfire. He jumped back, and the dozen chains that were still growing out of his back slapped her spear away. But that was fine, she beat her wings and dashed to the side, then sent another mirage image of herself at him. He knew now what it was, so he just stepped to the side, closer to the center.

Nayra felt her strength and speed dip, her thirty second boost perks running out. It didn’t matter anymore. She had him where she wanted. Nayra used |Greater Throw| sending her spear flying at him, distracting him. Then with a beat of her wings she closed the distance. He attacked with his chains even as he blocked her throw with his shield. Nayra sent a blast of dawn flames all around her as she used Dawn Stun. She saw him close his eyes, turn his head as he took the blast and was stunned for one second. It was enough. She stepped forward, closer, and focused inward as her stat boost switched for the second time, to her last stat pair, to her intelligence and wisdom. The moment her wisdom soared she triggered her second path’s fruit technique.

With a rush of sound and heat the {Mist of the Scorching End} exploded out of her. A gush of mist exploded out of her skin, through the seams in her armor, heating up the metal on her body. If she didn’t have Heat Resistance and a few other perks that let her deal with the heat, she would’ve probably burnt herself badly.

In less than a second the entire battlefield, some two dozen meters across was filled with an orange tinted mist. The Aspect of the Scorching Mist would not be what she herself would’ve chosen, but she knew that it was the right choice. It was a mist with that blazed hotter than fire, tiny particles that burned everything that they touched. Ryun had called the mist an aerosol, something that she knew nothing about, mist was mist. He said that it would allow her to control and burn an area around her if used properly. He had been right.

She heard her opponent’s scream of pain as the mist surrounded him, as it burned through the seams in his armor, as it boiled the liquid in his eyes, as he inhaled it. Finally, his scream cut off as the mist burned his throat and his lungs from the inside. She knew that his greatest advantages were his two sensory skills, according Lesamitrius they were both perfect skills. One allowed him to sense changes through the air, a skill that was based on the touch sense of his skin. The second was an eyesight-based skill. She had just blinded him, nullified his sensory skills by burning his skin and eyes.

The mist was anchored to her position, moving with her at least for fifteen seconds, but there was no need for her to rush, she had chosen her battlefield so that it would be a surrounded by stone. If her opponent managed to survive for fifteen seconds her mist would start to dissipate, but the area around them would keep it in place for longer.

She used her |Thermoception| tracking the difference in heat. The entire area around her had blazed in her sense, the mist pushing everything to the same temperature, but her foe stood out. Even if she couldn’t sense him, she could hear him as he tried to run away, out of the mist. It was smart, as long as he stayed inside of it he would be taking damage every second.

She beat her wings and jumped forward through the mist and toward her foe. She sent her armor to her storage ring, stripping naked, she put all of her other rings and amulet there as well. Her Avatar shut off as she triggered her True Body—Lotus Born Cloud. She burst into a cloud, mingling with her Scorching Mist. She lost all senses that her body was capable off, but with her |Thermoception| she could still track things around her. Her mist was a burning fog, a mist that was on fire, it worked with her Dawnfire attunement. She pushed a part of herself and caught her storage ring as it tumbled down. It didn’t weigh enough to stop such a thick mist from pulling it up, keeping it safe in the mist. Her shield, on the other hand tumbled to the ground, too large and too heavy for her to move.

She moved through the mist, pulling it in, consuming it to heal her injuries. She reached her foe, he had ran, but she had chosen her battlefield for a reason. He hit a wall, a pillar or a boulder probably. There were only a few ways out of this clearing, and he was now blind. She moved down, surrounded him with her cloud, she pushed through the seams in his armor, got beneath it. She pushed through his nostrils, through his mouth and ears, and got inside of him burning him all the way through. Through her |Thermoception| she could tell that his inner temperature was rising as she burned him from the inside, as his blood evaporated. His chains were spinning around him widely, his hammer was moving through the mist, but what could he do against mist? His power was physical, and he couldn’t damage her.

He collapsed to the ground, unable to scream because she filled his lungs, burning them from the inside not letting them contract. She burned his flesh and she burned his soul. And then, in an instant he was gone. For a moment she didn’t know what had happened, and then she realized that his talisman had to have activated.

She pulled herself back together, reforming her physical body, now healed as she had consumed a portion of the mist around her to fix her arm. Naked, but surrounded by mist she put her ring back on and then equipped her armor. She walked through the mist finding her shield and putting it on again. The anchoring for her mist ended and it started to move, dissipating slowly in the air, lifting up.

She didn’t wait for it, she walked out of the mist and looked around. An arbiter stood nearby, the orb above him pointed at her. A moment later the echoes of the cheers from the arena reached her and she closed her eyes, taking it all in.

——————————————————————————————

Name	Nayra Ornn
Race	Human (Infinite Realm)

PERKS
Twin Link (Unique) (Unique Perk)	Your mind is linked with that of your twin, allowing you to speak to one another regardless of the distance.
Valkyrie’s Descent (Class Perk)	Once per combat, jump high into the air and then descend toward targeted area and stab your weapon into the ground, releasing a shockwave around you. Strength of effect depends on strength stat.
Heat Resistance (Class Perk)	Your body is resistant to heat. 20% passive heat resistance, gain additional 1% heat resistance for every fifteen points of endurance. (Currently 34.4%)
Goddess of Speed (Class Perk)	Once per combat, double your dexterity for two strikes.
Body of the Greater Wolf (Path Perk)	Your body utilizes your endurance more efficiently. Your stamina is counted as if your endurance is if it 2.5 of its base. All stamina draining costs are reduced by 2.5. +10% to endurance.
Thousand Cuts (Class Perk)	Every injury you inflict that draws blood heals 20% slower and bleeds for 10% more.
Rapid Recovery (Class Perk)	Once per combat, heal a non-lethal injury. Speed of recovery equals twice your vitality.
Valkyrie’s Avatar of Fire (Class Perk)	Once per day transform into an avatar of fire. Doubles your size and doubles your total stats. Every kill you make while in this form, grants you double Essence.
Valkyrie’s Swiftness (Class Perk)	Once per combat double your speed for thirty seconds.
Ferry the Soul (Class Perk)	Create a contract with a recently departed soul, carry it to the Ethereal Realm and provide protection until it reaches the afterlife. Fulfillment of the contract will permanently grant you a boon in the form of one of the Soul’s perks. The perk gained depends on the soul, as the soul will lose the perk it offers.
Valkyrie's Shout (Class Perk)	Once per combat release a powerful shout that stuns nearby enemies. The effectiveness of the stun depends on your opponent's resistances.
Valkyrie’s Stamina (Class Perk)	Once per day recover your stamina to its full.
Valkyrie’s Might (Class Perk)	Once per combat double your strength for thirty seconds.
Dawnfire Wings (Class Perk)	Wings made out of dawnfire grow out of your back, allowing you flight. The wings last for a maximum of three hours, and will stay on cooldown for the same amount of time that they have been used.
Dawnfire Blink (Class Perk)	Once per combat, teleport to any place in a twenty-meter radius around you. Upon arrival at your destination release a blast of Dawnfire that hits everything in a three-meter radius.
Valkyrie’s Call (Class Perk)	While in the Ethereal Realm, summon any recently departed soul to your location. The soul is not required to answer.
Vaporizing Cuts (Class Perk)	Every attack that draws blood, sends a blast of heat into the wound, vaporizing a tiny portion of your opponent’s blood.
Greater Steel Mind (Path Perk)	In combat your mind is additionally focused. Reading your opponent's movements comes easier to you. Mental attacks are 15% less effective against you. Effect depends on your intelligence stat. +10% to intelligence.
Fortified Core (Path Perk)	Your core is fortified. Increased core capacity by 25%, +20% to Qi speed. +10% to wisdom
Scorching Mist (6) Qi (Aspect Perk)	When using techniques, your inner temperature rises increasing your heat resistance by 25%. When Scorching Mist Qi courses through your body your heat based attacks deal 20% more damage. +20% to wisdom and vitality.
Blazing Conduits (Path Perk)	Your Qi conduits are developed for great bursts of Qi, and are able to handle a greater volume of Qi moving through it at the same time. Able to unleash techniques without the need for a breathing form and able to use up to two techniques at the same time.  +10% to wisdom.
Quick Steps (Bonus Perk)	You gain 10% bonus speed when in combat.
True Body—Lotus Born Cloud (Path Perk)	Your body has been reforged into your true self, adopting attributes to reflect your path. Your path is that of one untouched by impurity, of pure heart and mind. As such your body is forged in that image. Your cultivation is no longer affected by the impurity of Essence you use, and always grants the most benefit. Your movements induce dreamy forgetfulness in those who gaze upon you. The power of the effect depends on their mind resistances. Physical changes.                                                              Your Body retains all the abilities granted by Lotus Born. Lotus Born Cloud is your truest self. Your body is soaked in Scorching Mist Qi, and you may assume the state of Scorching Mist. While active your body becomes a cloud of the Scorching Mist, giving off the Essence of the Scorching Mist, increasing the effects of your Scorching Mist Qi based techniques by 20% in your immediate surroundings. While in Scorching Mist Cloud state, you gain a +80% increased resistance to physical attacks, but you also gain a -40% to special attacks resistance. You are immune to mental attack and anyone caught in your Cloud will suffer a moderate mental attack that induces forgetfulness. While full Scorching Mist Cloud is active you have none of your physical senses. Running out of Qi while in Cloud form will result in death. Entering into your Cloud form when surrounded by essences related to mist will allow you to use that Essence to heal yourself. You gain +10% to wisdom and +10% to vitality.
Dawnspirit Cry (Class Perk)	Once per combat release a cry that will increase soul protection of everyone around you by 50% for 15 seconds.
Great Lunge (Class Perk)	Once per combat, lunge forward and reset the cooldown on one of your abilities of choice.
Valkyrie’s Mantle (Class Perk)	Passively gain +20% Essence from every kill you make even when Avatar of Fire isn’t active. The bonus is added to that of Avatar of Fire when it is activated.
Dawn Stun (Class Perk)	Once per combat, send a blast of dawn flame all around you that will damage and stun anyone caught in it for 1 sec. Time varies depending on targets resiliencies.
Battle Trance (Class Perk)	Once per combat, enter a battle trance for two minutes. You gain increased awareness of the battle around you and +20% to all stats and your cooldowns are reduced by 20%.
Death Sense (Class Perk)	You are able to sense the nearly departed in a radius around you. You may gain insights about the cause of death. Radius depends on wisdom stat.
Death Empowerment (Class Perk)	You gain increased stats depending on the amount of death around you. Gain 1% to all stats per recently deceased body in a radius around you. Radius depends on wisdom stat.
Lady of Battle (Class Perk)	Once per week you can inspire every ally around you, increasing their strength, dexterity, endurance, and vitality by 10% for 1 hour.

Class	Heart of Gunnr ( M )
Level	359
Combat Ability	Dawnfire Mirage
Movement Ability	Shimmering Burst
Support Ability	Dawnfire Immolation
Movement Ability	Dawn Dash
Support Ability	Ethereal Cross

EVOLUTION ATTUNEMENT BONUS:
Shepherd for the Souls	You are able to see souls. All Ethereal based powers are 20% more effective. All special attacks deal 1.5% of total damage dealt as soul damage. Gain +10% to strength and wisdom.
Dawnfire	All fire-based powers now create dawnfire, an intense fire that is extremely hard to put out and burns more intensely during the day. All fire-based powers are 20% more effective. All special attacks deal 1% of total damage dealt as soul damage. Gain +10% to strength and wisdom.
Dawnspirit	All dawnfire abilities gain 50% more effectiveness in the Ethereal Realm. Your soul regenerates at 200% faster rate. Gain +10% to strength and intelligence.
Gunnr	Your stats are increased by 20% in battle. Any person you consider an ally gains 10% to their stats while fighting with you. Your base ability cooldowns are reduced by 20%. Souls of warriors think of you as kindred. Gain 15% to strength and dexterity.

Cultivation	Path of the Lotus Dance ( U )
Stage	Peak Lord
Aspect	Scorching Mist (6)
Base Technique	Mesmerizing Mirage
Branch Technique	Mist Burst
Fruit Technique	Curtain of Mist

Cultivation	Path of the Final End ( M )
Stage	Mid Lord
Base Technique	Mantle of the Rising Mists
Branch Technique	Scorching Blast
Fruit Technique	Mist of the Scorching End

Passive Skills	Active Skills
Combat Mastery >> Spear and Buckler Mastery(9/10)	Block >> Greater Block (9/10)
Heat Sense >> Greater Heat Sense >> Thermoception (9/10)	Swipe >> Greater Swipe (5/10)
Pain Tolerance >> Greater Pain Tolerance (4/10)	Throw >> Greater Throw (9/10)

Strength	1630
Dexterity	1104
Vitality	431
Endurance	383
Intelligence	651
Wisdom	641

Path of the Lotus Dance Techniques
Mesmerizing Mirage	While using this technique you are surrounded by a heat mirage that confuses and mesmerizes your opponents. The power of the mental effect is equal to 2.3x (2x) your intelligence.
Mist Burst	Activating this technique sends you forward and unleashes a burst of scroching mist all around you. The speed of your movment is equal to 2.3x (2x) your dexterity, and the power of the scorching mist equal to 2.3x (2x) your wisdom.
Curtain of Mist	Activating this techique releases scorching steam from your body that condense into petal-like forms orbiting you. You can unleash them in any direction. They explode with the power of the scorching mist on impact dealing  2.3x (2x) wisdom damage each.

Path of the Final End Techniques
Mantle of the Rising Mists	Increase your stat pairs starting with strength/dexterity by up to 46% (40%) of their total, after ten second all the stat bonus will switch to the next pair increasing that pair by 46% (40%) and adding the bonus stats from the previous pair, ten seconds later the all the bonus stats given by this technique on the second stat pair will switch to the last pair repeating the process. Ten seconds later all three combined stat bonuses will switch back to the first pair with no more increases. From this point on the bonus will move from one pair to the next every ten seconds.
Scorching Blast	Send out a concentrated blast of Scorching Mist Qi out of your body, dealing variable heat energy damage depending on your wisdom, the amount of technique channeling, and the amount of Qi used. Base damage equals 6.9x (6x) your wisdom. The blast superheats the surrounding of the area it passes through, dealing one-quarter of total heat damage over the next four seconds to anything in the area.
Mist of the Scorching End	Unleash a sphere of Scorching Mist in one giant wave filling the area around you, the mist will remain anchored to your position for 15 seconds, after which it will start to dissipate at a natural rate. Mist deals 11.5x (10x) your wisdom per second as Heat damage to anything within the mist. The damage can be increased up to an extra 100% by charging the technique up to five seconds, with each second adding another 20% damage. Leaving the mist will stop the damage being dealt, the marked targets will suffer quarter damage over the next four seconds.