Fel lurched into awareness.

 

He stumbled his way to his feet, hands scraping against stone as he heaved himself up.

 

Spinning slowly, he scanned his surroundings.

 

Shrubs. Boulders. Moss. Mountains. His glasses were... there.

 

He picked them up in a daze, depositing the apparel into a pocket in the side of his robe. From there, Fel walked to the nearest of the boulders that surrounded him and sat against it. His head pressed back on its damp surface as he leaned for support.

 

He'd died again.

 

He'd died and then come back.

 

It was really happening; it wasn't some delusion, or grand illusion, or a misunderstanding of reality to be dismissed.

 

Three times he'd died, and three times he'd been revived somewhere new.

 

The first had been a crystal shard from Angus's ritual. He remembered it— an explosion as the boy turned, followed by a burst of pain as the shard pierced into his skull. The second had been the woman with the bow. He'd been shot, then... possibly stabbed? The arrow embedded in his chest had made the memory blurry; It was hard to recall.

 

This third time had been... less violent, by comparison. Killed by a mana-potion— that was a novel sentence. He'd drank it, hemorrhaged mana, and died. Why it had happened was unclear, but the cause being the potion was obvious in hindsight.

 

Fel rubbed at the skin on his arm and made to stand, brushing the dampness from the hair at the back of his head.

 

Now though, he needed to move— or rather, he needed to walk around. It would help to get him thinking and stay engaged.

 

As horrifying as the first two experiences were, it was this most recent one that shook Fel to reality. The event called for his full attention. Mortal injuries— being killed— that was hardly an every-day concern. Not for a man who'd lived his life in a city, at least. He'd been able to convince himself that what was going on wasn't real— that it was something he could ignore, or that it wouldn't impact him after his initial issues were fixed.

 

Having this same thing happen when he ran out of mana, however? Coupled with a complete inability to regenerate his pool, that was something which could— and likely would— dictate his life going forward, ignorance or not. Mages like him used their mana for everything. If it was this restricted, tied to consequences this severe, he really only had two options: He could give up magic— his life and the basis of his class— over the fear of what would inevitably happen to him each time he ran out, or he could get his head on straight and actually start figuring things out.

 

Loose rock crunched beneath Fel's feet as he paced his way forwards. Watching his steps through mindless rote, he looked forwards without seeing, focused in on his thoughts. The morning air was brisk, and Fel...

 

Fel would take the second option. It wasn't a real choice. The self-delusions were over; he would start being... proactive. He'd make a list, starting testing things, and maybe, just maybe he could begin to find solutions to his problems. First though—

 

Fel arrested his forward movement, one foot sliding forwards to stand with the other. An outcropping— the end of a slightly risen slope— stood before him, the land disappearing up ahead. He could walk no further, and so he took the opportunity to finally look at his surroundings.

 

He was... on a mountain top. Or perhaps a plateau. The immediate area was relatively flat, but otherwise...

 

Fel swiveled his head.

 

Clouds extended in all directions. They filtered the morning light from above, while still managing to obscure the surrounding terrain. To his sides, there stood more mountains. Their peaks ranged heights both far taller and shorter than the location at which he stood.

 

Looking down, over the outcropping's edge, Fel could see the sharp opposite slope of the incline end in trees. Their canopy rustled, a distant green, and shadows flitted in the spaces between them.

 

He moved away from the cliff's edge and turned around.

 

Far back in the direction from which he'd walked from, the terrain extended further upward. His own mountain's peak disappeared high into the sky, piercing through the clouds.

 

All taken together it was an awe-inspiring sight, and Fel... Fel frowned. The scene was grand, and the mountains were wonderous, but it wasn't the time.

 

He needed to focus. He needed to stay on track, if only for this small while, or else he'd never get around to it all.

 

Fel pulled himself back— back to pacing while he thought.

 

Taking a few initial steps forward, Fel paused and eyed the cliff to his right. He hesitated, increased the distance separating himself from the fall, and then resumed.

 

Pacing. Wondering. Theorizing. He'd been thinking about...

 

A list? Fel needed a list. One of questions he would get answered— organization to his thoughts. He had four — no, five — questions he thought were important, just off the top of his head.

 

The first, of course, was as easy to come up with as it seemed impossible to answer— how was he coming back from death? It wasn't a conscious choice, as far as he could tell, nor was it a Skill he had. It simply happened, and Fel had no idea why. Still, in his mind, it was the most important to answer, even while he had no expectation of being able to do so.

 

The second point was the traveling. The teleportation. The movement aspect of his revival, or whatever he was supposed to be calling it. More specifically, why it happened and how he could direct or nudge the locations he ended up in, if at all possible.

 

His third question for the list was...

 

It was...

 

Fel blinked, briefly coming out from his thoughts.

 

There were sounds, faint but still louder than the mountains' winds, echoing from somewhere above. It was a screeching of sorts, like that of a bird's call, but sharper. Louder and more insistent.

 

He looked up into the sky.

 

Between the clouds, in the spaces where the sun's light shone through to reveal a dark blue sky, Fel could see... creatures. Wings, feathery and graceful, sprouted from the backs of what could best be described as large, predatory, and bird-like rats. It was an underwhelming description, the brevity and relative normalcy of the comparison failing to convey a proper image.

 

In reality, they looked... dangerous.

 

The creatures' wings, beautiful at first glance, cast long shadows above where they flew. Their talons glinted— appearing sharp and almost metallic as they reflected the light.

 

At their front, a hooked beak grew out from elongated, almost malformed skulls. They opened wide, nearly splitting the head to let out the creatures' screams as they dove. And from each of their backs, a long, hairless tail whipped outward. Their movements caused the air to crack as the creatures changed the direction in which they flew.

 

There weren't many of the creatures — a dozen at most— and they traveled away from where he stood, but they sent shivers down Fel's spine. He watched until they disappeared behind another mountain's peak, then waited until he could no longer hear them to resume his haphazard pacing.

 

Shaking himself, somewhat unnerved, Fel pushed his mind forwards once more.

 

His third and fourth questions— they were both about leveling. Why wasn't he leveling while he slept, and what was he doing that caused his new [Simulacrum] Class to advance?

 

He knew the [Ritualist] Class advanced from practicing, well, rituals, as well as from similar activities such as runework. He'd made a living from it, after all. [Simulacrum] however... that was more difficult. Though Fel could infer he'd gotten the Class through his initial death — seeing as he'd gotten it immediately following the event— what it was intended to be still eluded him.

 

While he was continuing under the assumption that [Simulacrum] was a magic Class, given the [Mana-Counting] Skill he'd learned so far, even that was only likely, rather than assured. If he wanted the Class to level, knowing its purpose would be integral.

 

And as for the last question...

 

Fel sighed.

 

It was less a question than it was an overarching concern.

 

Side-effects. He needed to know if there would be any more. His mana issues, the teleporting, the levels reset— it was clear there were a number already, but it seemed likely he didn't yet know them all.

 

It was a cause for concern, not knowing all the ways that he may have been changed. Still, whatever issues existed, the key to their discovery would be patience and time; he'd find them eventually.

 

Sighing softly, Fel reviewed the list he'd come up with within his mind. It was short and somewhat limited, but for now, it would do. Questions made, available hypotheses given, the next step would be... testing? Testing, and finding people who he could ask for help.

 

With a wince, Fel eyed the cliff to his left.

 

The people aspect was fine, but the issue with testing these things was that, in the end, most required that he die under the assumption he'd come back.

 

He'd do it— he'd take the risk— but he'd didn't like it. No sane person would.

 

But again, a few moments of pain and some brief non-existence for a new location and maybe even some questions answered — that'd be a good deal. He'd have it happen eventually, seeing as he couldn't recover mana anyways. This was simply... speeding up the process. Expediting while removing the need to attempt surviving in the mountains during the intervening time.

 

It'd be a good deal.

 

Turning around again, Fel walked back to the outcropping— the very edge of the protruding stone— and gave the trees below another scan. It was a final check, just in case. Still, no hidden cities, lost temples, or smokey fires revealed themselves to Fel's eyes.

 

He took a long, deep breath.

 

There was no sign of habitation, as far as the eye could see.

 

That was... arguably a good thing, even as it made him feel worse to see it. Fel wasn't sure he would've been able to work up the courage to follow through, if there'd been a chance for an alternative.

 

He eyed the ground below and — slowly — he sat himself down on a rock that spanned the cliff's outer edge. His legs draped themselves over the side, hanging limply above the fall.

 

Stretching out a hand, Fel began to funnel his mana pool into its palm. He didn't bother with finesse or compression, simply pushing what was available forward and out to collected in a growing sphere.

 

He was going to replicate what had happened with the mana potion. It'd take a minute to run through it all, but he was emptying his pool.

 

It came quickly at first — a high-pressured released that gradually slowed as he ran it through.

 

As his mana drained, Fel's mind began to flicker. Short interruptions in consciousness, followed by bright flashes as parts of the Spell destabilized, the mana disappearing into the air.

 

He began to near the end of what he had.

Fel jumped. The sphere of mana he'd been collecting spewed into the surrounding air, leaking like a sieve. Hastily, he drew back what he could — sucking in whatever mana hadn't yet been lost — and whipped around, falling side-first into the rock to stabilize himself.

 

A man, dark-skinned and smiling widely, peered up at where Fel sat at the top of the rise. Keeping one hand angled to block out the sun, he took a step forwards as Fel gaped at him. He waved with the other.

 

"Are you okay? I might suggest not sitting so close to the edge. The griffins around these parts can get pretty—"

 

"Who— what—" Fel sputtered. He quickly stood and scrambled down the slope, more than willing to delay the temporary cessation of his existence. "Hello! Yes, I'm quite okay— I hadn't realized there was anyone nearby! Is there a town, an outpost of some kind, or a—?"

 

The other man scratched at his head, giving a confused smile as Fel paused his speaking to slide down one of the steeper patches of stone.

 

"Nooooo...?"

 

With exaggerated slowness, he peered around at the mountain landscape that surrounded them.

 

"The nearest village would have to be... five, maybe six days travel? Seven to nine for a real town. I was going to say though— saw you flashing those lights here, and I can't help but notice your lack of supplies." He patted at his waist, where a belt held a pack of gear and some small bags. "Did you get lost or something? Separated from the rest of your team?"

 

Fel glanced up from where he was watching his feet, slowing his half-jogging approach as he neared a more comfortable speaking range.

 

"My team? I don't think I— oh!"

 

Snapping his fingers together, he pointed.

 

"You're an adventurer, aren't you? That makes more sense; the whole thing comes together! The bow, the knife, her unprompted attack..."

 

He trailed off, a faraway look in his eyes.

 

Then he shook his head.

 

"Sorry— you reminded me of something. But no, I'm out here by myself, actually, and as for being lost..." Fel rubbed at the back of his neck with a shaky hand, chuckling lightly. "Well, yes, very much so."

 

The man seemed to blink at his blunt admission.

 

"Uhh... right. Well, it was a smart thing you did with the light-show there— pretty sure we could've seen you from at least two rises over." He paused, frowned, and then stuck out a hand. "Name's Horace, by the way— mid-ranked [Scout]. Did I hear you say you were attacked out here? By another person?"

 

"It was a while back, and not exactly nearby, no. I'm Fel, though— no adventurer's guild affiliation. I don't do a lot of combat magic."

 

He shook Horace's hand distractedly. The man's sudden appearance tipped the scales on what Fel been planning. He'd follow through with leaving in a day or two, but with there being an extra set of eyes to possibly assist him, as well as a local mind to ask some of the questions he had... Yes, delaying would be the better option.

 

"Hm. I'd like to hear more on that, if you wouldn't mind— but how'd you end up out here without a hunting team? You some kind of druid, or explorer type? The mountains aren't exactly the place for a casual traveler, you know— was a bit of surprise to see someone signaling like that."

 

Horace opened up one of the pouches at his side, fiddling with something within before glancing up to wait for a response.

 

Fel winced, then simply shrugged.

 

"It's... it's an issue with a teleportation spell, I guess you could call it. A problem of mine I'm trying to get fixed. I uh, think I'll try it again in a day or two — see about reaching someplace more settled — but it's not my favorite experience. Still though, if you could tell me where I am now, it'd be a help in that regard."

 

Peeking back into and tapping at the pouch's interior, Horace flipped closed its covering flap. An eyebrow rose appreciatively.

 

"Well I'll be damned, can't say that's a story I expected to hear today. Here, why don't you follow me— far be it for me to leave another man stranded, but the rest of my team is still a ways further back. Feel free to ask your questions while we get to moving— maybe you can tell me a bit more about that teleporting of yours, after the fact."

 

Horace turned his body away, waving Fel forwards while calling back from over his shoulder.

 

"Assuming you're in need of a traveling group while you wait on that spell of yours, that is. It doesn't exactly look like your gear came through though; I figure you may at least want some food."