As we waited for the next wave to begin, we learned something new about the remains of our enemies. With two minutes remaining, the corpses of the monsters sank into the ground as if it were quicksand. Any that were being held were dissolved into motes of light that were similarly pulled into the ground. The System must be recycling them somehow.

  Waves 3 and 4 were very much the same, with each showing an increase of one level. Their wave coin count also increased to match their level, so that by the end of wave four two hours later, we ended up with 460,000 wave coins. Additionally, by the end of the fourth wave, the remaining survivors finally reached our camp, putting our army just over 800 strong.

  As the administrative folks’ energies waned over the prolonged fighting, Selka decided to begin cycling troops out to allow some to rest.

  Wave 5 was different, but only in the number of the opposing army. These jumped two levels to 15 and there were twice as many. The Mark was still in place, and these too, were inexorably drawn to me. As they charged at us, I felt Tree’s urgent message from within the Soul Chamber.

  “Dan, your room with the Deeps is dimming!”

  “Be right there!” I replied as I slipped into meditation. The green glow emanating from the Deeps chamber was flickering with dimness, as though it were a lightbulb on the verge of burning out. “Well, this isn’t good.”

  “Agreed. I believe that though you can power it more or less indefinitely with your regeneration rate, the energies you pull from within the chamber will need time to recover. Unless you can think of some other way to charge it back up.” Tree pulsed worriedly as we watched the chamber’s dimness increase.

  “I need to turn it off for a while, at least. I’ll try to think of something. I’ll let the others know. Thanks for letting me know!”

  Tree acknowledged my thanks as I returned to the battlefield. I quickly opened the admin chat.

  Dan: Problem. I need to turn my mark off for at least a little while as its source is running low. No time to explain.

  Selka: That’s fine, we’ll send the full army to keep up with the spread of focus.

  Sarah: Finally! Been getting bored over here.

  I left them to discuss amongst themselves, and shortly thereafter, the platoons charged in as the mark faded. The chimpcrete army, no longer solely focused on me, met the charge with equal fervor. I was pelted with several chunks of concrete as I settled back into my relaxed position, watching as several chimpcrete rapscallions slashed and clawed ineffectually at me before being slain by a fireball from one of Sarah’s platoon that actually did sting a bit.

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  Senses of the Deeps showed me that our current enemies had no affinity, which to me felt odd as everyone of the ADA that I’d sensed had some kind of affinity, even if it was just something simple like a swordsman’s primary affinity being sword.

  “I wonder?” I said aloud, though I’m sure no one heard me over the cacophony of battle. I rose to my feet and grabbed four of the beasties. I leapt forward fifty meters, roaring for my army to stay back from me.

  The time I’d spent in the Deeps with Thalassa, and the fact that I could sense the chamber within me, gave me a good understanding of its affinity. I quickly checked my skill before using it.

  Enlightened Alteration. Rare. You can change the affinity in a twenty meter radius around you to improve certain enchantments and empower runes. The rate of the alteration can be increased using energy from your pathways. When enchanting within your Soul Chamber, you can more easily siphon the altered affinity, easing the difficulty of enchanting.

  My skin began to glow the sickly green of the Deeps as the change spread from my pathways. I felt my health, mana, and stamina all noticeably drop as I reached the one meter mark. The chimpcrete rapscallions I held, along with several others adjacent to me, were absorbing the affinity as quickly as I pushed it outward.

  Red algae grew over their swelling bodies as it thickened into hard shells. With loud cracks, they quickly transformed into randomized aquatic humanoid forms. Claws, jaws, and maws all turned to me. Fascinated, I tried my Senses of the Deeps again.

  Level 15 Deepling Cretan. A being transformed by absorbing the ambient affinity of the Deeps. Blessing: None. Primary Affinity: Deeps.

  Without any fanfare, I shoved one of the deepling’s into my chest. Unlike the typical sweetness that the concrete monsters had, the deepling tasted of freshly boiled crab. I felt its affinity flow into my chamber of the Deeps, but the weakened energy showed no improvement. The other three went in and two more that had changed around me. Only the slightest of change.

  “Shit. Tree, I don’t think my idea will work. I need too many more. My alteration cost is too high with the chimpcrete dudes charging in and absorbing it.”

  “I’ll work on some ideas for a solution.”

  “Thanks! I guess we’ll get to see how long it takes for the room to recharge on its own.”

  I was startled back to reality by a swordsman who shouted at me as he cut down two of the rapscallions with a single horizontal swing. “Yo, what the fuck are they doing?!”

  I’d left two of the deeplings alive because… I got distracted.

  Two things struck me as odd. First, they were entirely ignored by the other beasts. Second, and I can’t stress how fucking bizarre this was, they were kneeling before me. Just like the Guides. They did not seem able to speak, but they kneeled and were awaiting something.

  “Up, you two!” I commanded, and they sprang to their feet. “Attack our enemies!”

  As soon as they turned to fight, the chimpcrete beasts turned on them. They took down a few before they were torn asunder. Given how much creating those eight had drained my pathways, making an army of deeplings was not going to be feasible. Unfortunately.

  Needing a little snack and some time to consider things, I tried my new Hunger Strike ability. Destructive arcs lanced out from each swing of my claws and I quite enjoyed the influx of consumed energy flowing into my pathways. I could choose what each strike recovered, and I mentally just set it to alternate between my Health, Mana, and Stamina. If I needed to, I could always change it later.

  Another short time later, and we received the new notifications.

  WAVE 5 COMPLETE! Next Wave to commence in one hour. Records received.

  QUEST UPDATED.

  Waves Survived: 5/100.

  Tower Health: 100%.

  Wave Coins: 760,000.

  Survivors within your designated Tower Area: 802/802.