James sat on the cot in his cramped bedroom, the dull walls barely visible in the dim light from an unknown source. His mind was locked on the nightmare fight, the moment he tried to Mend his wounds and got nothing but a system error: Out of Essence. It had left him a little frustrated, but mostly curious. Essence was the fuel for his Healer skills, and he needed to understand it to grow stronger so he could rescue Astor. He had to master this if he was going to survive the Domain and bring his friend back.
[Name]: James Cross
[Primary Class]: Oracle
[Secondary Class]: Healer (Innate)
[Oracle Challenge] - Nightmare Visions: Survive prophetic death creatures in nightly mental trials. Success yields Essence Shards. Failure risks death.
[Healer Challenge]: Innate class, No daily challenge.
[Class Upgrade]: Oracle(F) (1/10), Healer(E-) (0/50)
[Essence Mastery]: (F) (14/100)
[Inventory]: Oracle's Key(Divine)
Skills:
[Healer]: Mend (Restore minor wounds), Barrier (Shield allies), Soothe (Ease pain)
[Oracle]: Foresight (Glimpse future events), Shatterpoint (Disrupt critical moments)
He stood, shaking out his hands, and focused on his Barrier skill. "Barrier," he said, voice steady. A glowing dome shimmered around him, faint but solid. A warmth spread through his palms, like blood pulsing under his skin. It was subtle, a quiet hum of energy, but it was there. He held the dome for a moment, feeling the warmth, then let it fade. Nothing else happened. No big breakthrough, just that sensation. He checked his system:
[Essence Mastery]: (F) 22/100
A decent start from zero. The warmth was new, something he hadn't noticed in the chaos of the Drowning Specter fight. It felt tied to essence, maybe the key to controlling it. He wanted to push further, to see what he could do with it.
"Barrier," he tried again, focusing on the warmth this time. The dome appeared, and the sensation returned, pulsing in his hands. He tried to hold it, to keep the warmth steady, but it slipped away, the barrier pulsing out of existence. Frustration tightened his chest. Why is it so hard to keep it going? He checked the system:
[Essence Mastery]: (F) 23/100
One measly point. He paced the small room, boots scuffing the cracked floor. The warmth had pulsed, like a heartbeat. Maybe that was it. If he could sync it with his own pulse, he could control it better. But another thought struck him. Let's try making the barrier smaller, just a panel out in front of me. Maybe that will conserve essence. He pictured a small panel in front of him, just big enough to cover his torso. "Barrier." A faint glow formed, and the warmth in his body was less tense, but still noticeable. He felt it pulse, and when he let it fade he checked the system.
[Essence Mastery]: (F) 39/100
"Hell yeah," he whispered under his breath, a grin breaking through. The smaller barrier used less essence, letting him sustain it longer and boosting his mastery. It was a small victory, but it confirmed that the warmth was tied to essence. He just needed to be smarter about how he used it.
He closed his eyes, breathing deeply, feeling his heart thump. "Barrier," he said again, slower this time. The panel formed, and the warmth came back. He focused on his heartbeat, matching the pulse of the warmth to each thump in his chest. The panel glowed brighter, holding steady longer than before. Sweat beaded on his forehead, his muscles tensing with the effort. It took everything to keep the warmth aligned, like balancing on a tightrope. The barrier stayed solid, the warmth a steady flow, but the concentration was exhausting, his breath coming in short gasps.
A system notification pinged, shattering his focus. The barrier vanished, and James wiped sweat from his eyes, annoyed.
Solo Trial Commences: 1 Hour
"Shit," he muttered, the warmth gone. He tried summoning Barrier again, focusing on that pulse, but the system flashed:
Out of Essence
Same error as the nightmare. He clenched his fists, but instead of getting mad, he checked his mastery:
[Essence Mastery]: 86/100
"Woah, a huge jump," he said, surprised. "Looks like essence is tied to heartbeat or blood, that's why I feel warmth." The realization hit him hard. If essence was linked to his body's rhythm, maybe he could force it to recharge. "What if I focus on that and try to bring the warmth back? Could that restore my essence?"
He sat cross-legged on the cot, closing his eyes, and focused on his heartbeat. He pictured the warmth, imagining it flowing through his veins, pulsing with each beat. Minutes passed, his brow furrowing with effort. He tried breathing in sync, then clenching his hands to mimic the pulse. Sweat trickled down his back as he pushed harder, visualizing essence as a stream he could pull from his core. He stood, pacing, trying to move with the rhythm of his heart, willing the warmth to return. Nothing happened. He switched to focusing on his palms, remembering how the warmth felt during Barrier. Still nothing. The hour ticked by, each attempt building his focus but yielding no results.
"Come on," he muttered, sitting again. He tried picturing the warmth as a spark, then as a wave, syncing it with his breath, his pulse, even his footsteps as he paced. No warmth, no essence. Frustration crept in, but he shoved it down. This was content, progress, even if it didn't feel like it. He'd figure it out eventually.
The system pinged again:
Trial Teleport Initiated
The room blurred, and James landed in a narrow, overgrown tent, surrounded by thorny vines and glowing flowers. The air smelled of earth and decay, and faint moans echoed in the distance. A system screen appeared:
Healing Trial: Garden of Afflictions
Objective: Stabilize infected patients through multiple stages of disease. Use skills to manage spreading afflictions under environmental hazards. Level of Success determines rank.
Time: 23:59:58 hours left
He looked around, seeing nurses frantically addressing wounds, patients crossing into the tent. A figure stumbled into view, a human patient, with pale skin and dark veins pulsing under it. Boils covered their arms, oozing green fluid, and their breathing was ragged. Thorny vines twitched nearby, as if alive, and a faint mist carried a stinging scent. James stepped forward, ready to begin.