Chapter 45: Back in Kansas

Eliza

June 21, 2035, Earth Time, Palermo, Sicily

"Dorian's dead," Tristan said, arriving near her, limping.

"Uh-huh," Eliza said absently.

"I mean, really dead," Tristan insisted. "Dead for good. History. In a hundred pieces. I have bits of him in my teeth," he spat out.

"Uh-huh… Toto, I think we're back in Kansas…"

"Sorry?"

"It's a pun, based on a novel about—"

"Ah. Another cliché only you Outworlders understand," Tristan rolled his eyes.

"Look!" Eliza grabbed him by the shoulders, forcing him to turn and look around and making a sweeping gesture to the valley below. There was a highway with dozens of cars passing every second, their headlights lighting the night. Bright stars shone above, with the full moon the brightest. A plane's lights blinked as it passed in front of the moon, moving from right to left. They could see mountains, the sea, a village of white houses, a bay, and boats.

"What the fuck?" Tristan slackjawed.

"We took the wrong tunnel," Eliza said. "This was the one with the portal. And it worked!"

"You mean we're on Earth?"

"Yeah, only not in the place where the portal used to be… Wow…"

"That's why our powers are gone? No Mana?" Tristan said.

"I just siphoned health from that guy," Eliza pointed out. "There is Mana, but it's unstable. Probably less of it too. Some powers work, but not all of them. They did tests back when the portal was opened, bringing Orders to Earth. First and Third still kept a bit of Magic; Second Order didn't."

The man was now running along the highway, waving his hands, trying to find a car that would take him. Weirdly, he was going in the opposite direction of a group of about fifty people, men and women, who had stopped a little further, in a parking lot, with a police car and a bus near them. She could read Poliz on the back of the vehicle, the remaining letters hidden by a policewoman's body.

"We have to return and warn the others," Eliza said.

"I tried. The portal is not working anymore," Dorian's voice said from the tunnel.

"You're alive?" Tristan yelled.

"Oh, my God," Eliza gasped when the Irishman came next to them.

"What?" Dorian asked.

"Good news and bad news," Tristan said. "You're back in one piece."

"And the bad news?"

"Not all your parts are in the proper place."

"You look like Frankenstein," Eliza said. "No… On second thought, you look much worse."

"Yey!" Dorian mumbled, unenthusiastically. "What's written on that car? Poliz? Like Polizei? Are we in Germany?" he asked, squeezing his eyes and leaning forward. "Can you take a photo and zoom it? My phone is broken."

"This is not Germany. Not unless there was some serious global warming and tectonic movement," Eliza said. "This is Italy, and that must be La Polizia."

Now, the group was going onto the bus. Before stepping in, a few of them shook hands with a tall man wearing a Borsalino hat. A minute later, the bus left, escorted by the police car, with its lights on but no siren.

"This can't be a coincidence. We have to scram before the guys in black come," Dorian said.

"Guys in black?" Tristan asked.

"The secret government agencies that were running the portal project," Eliza said. "We need a place to stay. I'll call my dad. He's very resourceful."

"Her father is rich," Dorian said.

"I know, she told me," Tristan said.

With shaking fingers, Eliza extracted her phone from the inner pocket. "Please answer… Please answer…" she begged.

"Hello?" a man's voice asked.

"Daddy?" Eliza yelled. "It's me!"

"Liz?"

"Yes! I'm back."

"Are you okay? I can't tell you how worried I was all these years."

"I'm okay. I'm healed for good. I'm… I don't know where I am; the portal opened to a new place. It's Sicily somewhere. Wait, I'll use the location finder," she screamed, turning the camera on and walking it around. "Oh, I'm near… Palermo?"

"Say no more. Send me the geolocation, and please, sweetie, don't move."

"Dad… This portal was not opened by Earth's side. It closed again, but the whole situation is weird."

"There's a dark conspiracy in play," Tristan said. "The group of people we were following escaped through the portal, and they were picked up immediately."

"Who's this?" the man asked.

"Tristan, an associate," Eliza said. "He's right. This is fishy. Can you provide us with a place to hide until we figure out—"

"Give me five minutes, I'll call a good friend. L-love you, Liz."

"Love you too, Daddy," Eliza said, squeezing her eyes to chase away her tears. She was almost thirty years of age, but her father was still special in her heart. Hearing his voice again was something she had not expected.

"So, it appears some of our skills work, and some do not," Tristan said. "Dorian came back to life, you siphoned health, but I couldn't use my teleport."

If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

"Neither did I. We'll talk about it later. Give me a second to check my Character Menu," Eliza said.

She walked a little further, her eyes still watery. Despite her shock at her return to Earth, the notifications grabbed her undivided attention.

!!! Warning: You are in an Unstable Mana zone !!!

Unstable Mana is an elementary particle that decays in 0.25 seconds. Nevertheless, the stable mana already stored in your body remains the same, and some of your skills that require external Mana can be applied within this timeframe. Increasing your Arcane Power, Mana Affinity, and Mana Capacity could help you work around this impediment.

Uh…

For the previous thirty-some levels, Eliza had worked out every day, naturally boosting her stats except for Constitution and Endurance, in which she had invested points heavily because they were the key to her survival. She had also put many points in Arcane Power, because teleporting behind an enemy and stabbing them was a fast way of dealing with problems. For the rest, a point here and there, now and then, and practicing the related skills during missions.

She had enough points—thirty—to raise two out of three stats to the maximum, and those were Constitution, Endurance, and Arcane Power. Considering the message, she opted for the latter and the first.

Congratulations! You have reached 100 in your chosen stats. This is an important threshold. The Interface will not allow you to invest any more points in these stats; however, raising them through training, enchanted gear, or buffs is possible.

Having your Constitution at 100 offers the following benefits:

Alchemic Body: An alchemic body can survive in the most extreme conditions, sustaining itself on almost anything. For a—TBD period of time—you can even breathe in water or walk in space.

Extreme Damage Resistance, including Kinetic, Acid, Heat, Poison, Toxins, etc.

Rezz. Your Constitution interacts with other high stats or advanced skills to ensure your survival. This will take priority over your Supreme Vampire Toughness.

Supreme Vampire Toughness. Vampires with a Constitution of at least 100 are immune to lethal hits as long as their heart is not removed and burned. If every part of their body but the heart is destroyed, the Vampire will be able to regenerate itself within a month, with their memories intact. If only a square inch of the heart remains, the regeneration will take one year.

Arcane Power+Constitution Interaction: Remote Rezz: If you take lethal damage, you can teleport away to a safe distance, using Shimmerwalk or Clair-Obscure, reconstructing yourself immediately at full health. One use per day.

Having your Arcane Power at 100 offers the following benefits:

Core:

A core is a Mana construct that can process and store Mana for various uses, while giving access to spatial storage. The core's capacity depends on your Mana Affinity and Mana Capacity. Investing points in them or cycling Mana will help you develop your Core faster. Your Core can process and turn unstable Mana into regular Mana, but at a very slow rate.

Because a Vampire's main organ is the heart, you can project your Core outside of your body, manipulating it for various effects. If your Core is destroyed, it will regenerate within 24h.

Time until your Core is formed: 24h.

Spatia Storage capacity: One full set of enchanted equipment (Set of armor, one amulet, two earrings, two rings, one weapon) as long as their total space doesn't take more than half a cubic yard.

"Uh…" Eliza groaned under a sudden burning sensation in her chest. Well… Guess I have to endure through… It's worth it. "Dudes, maxing out a stat is sick!"

"Yeah, I get it. Yeah," Tristan said. "Sure, we'll do that. No worries."

He sounds strange. Never mind.

Smiling at the good news, Eliza reviewed her stats.

Name: Eliza De Levalois

Alias: Princess Erzsebeth

Age: 29

Class: Vampire Princess*

*Technically, your tier qualifies you to be a Queen, but for this title and its boons to take effect, you need either to be married or to rule over a country.

Sexist System!

Level: 67 (Third Tier) *

*At the Third Tier, your stats evolve further. As such, each point in your stats is three times that of an average human. Applies retroactively.

Physical

Strength: 36

Dexterity: 41

Constitution: 100

Agility: 41

Endurance: 81

Speed: 36

Mental

Intelligence: 52

Wisdom: 36

Perception: 51

Knowledge: 41

Focus: 51

Willpower: 41

Magic

Arcane Power: 100

Blood Potency: 26

Mana Affinity: 26

Mana Capacity: 26

Soul Resonance: 26

Charisma: 40*

* This stat replaces your Humanity stats. Royalty cannot be judged by the same standards as the crowd. Be aware that at high levels, your influence can elicit extreme responses, either positive or negative.

Shimmerwalk: You can transform into motes of light and move unimpeded between two points in space, but no farther than 1000 feet. CD: 8 hours. Unavailable until your core is formed. One use per day on Earth, otherwise, four uses.

Secrecy. You cannot have more than one minion or thrall. Your image will not be reflected in mirrors, and you have no shadow. You are immune to electronic detection and probability reading. You cannot be cataloged in any electronic database or recorded. This ability's effects are directly influenced by Charisma. People will tend not to notice your missing shadow or reflections, forget about you, or, on the contrary, remember you vividly, depending on your actions. No change on Earth.

Duelist's Grace. Within 10 feet, your strikes cannot be anticipated or parried and will always critically hit (pending conditions). No change on Earth.

Clair-Obscure. You are a creature of contrasts, moving through the shadows of the stage or the spotlights. While in darkness or shadows, you can stealth, glide above the ground, or teleport in any dark spot within 1000 feet. While in direct light, you can move ten times faster. This ability will not work in dim light. Unavailable until your core is formed. Current Cooldown: 60 seconds.

Feeding: You can feed on blood and lifeforce. Your fangs have enhanced penetration.

"This is so cool!" Eliza let out a deep breath.

"Here," Tristan said, offering her a phone.

Taking it, Eliza realized it was hers. "Did I drop it?"

"No, you were so absorbed by whatever you were doing, you didn't notice it rang."

"We told you twice," Dorian said.

"I took it from your hands, literally," Tristan said. "It was your father. He says your godfather will come with a car to pick us up shortly."

"He didn't say that; he said the Godfather," Dorian said. "Like in the Mafia. What kind of business is your father in, exactly, Liz?"