《To Break The World》 Chapter 1 Maser took a swig from his canteen as he approached the summit, wishing not for the first time he¡¯d brought something stronger to calm his nerves. But climbing a mountain at sunset wasn¡¯t risk free at the best of times, and he couldn¡¯t afford something as idiotic as falling down a cliff because he was drunk. Not now. Reaching the plateau, he shielded his eyes as the sun broke through the clouds, sending rays of light over the landscape below. A crowd of fellow climbers were having a picnic nearby, apparently celebrating their successful climb, and the achievement that came with reaching the summit for the first time. His outfit was drawing some odd looks and a few laughs from the party goers, but Maser didn¡¯t mind. Standing at the peak, he couldn¡¯t help but be filled with a silent reverence at the sight of the world stretching away beneath him. From the green rolling hills to the crystal waters of the sea and even the snowy caps of the surrounding peaks, it was a sight to behold. With the wind nipping at him as he stood drinking it all in, and the airs chill fighting with the newly broken sunshine, it was hard to believe it was all just a game. Seven years ago, Genesis had first been released, a virtual reality multiplayer game set in a world of magic and dragons. Within its first month it had completely dominated the market, and within two, had shown off statistics displaying a full fifteen percent of the world population playing simultaneously. The games phenomenal success came from the revolutionary technology used by the developers. A simple looking headband and mask that, when plugged into its computer and turned on would put the wearer into a form of controlled REM sleep. Allowing for direct sensory input, this let you see, hear, taste and feel like it was real, as if you were really there and not just lying comatose on your bed. For a while people had complained, saying that it was dangerous, that it was bad for you, that it would corrupt impressionable children. But after a year of not a single incident, even the most outspoken groups had all but given up. A game, a world, almost half as big as the real one, where you could be whoever you wanted, follow your dreams, fight monsters and explore? The lure was too strong to resist, and with such an immense player base already so attached the game, Genesis would never see anything close to competition. Maser had been in one of the first waves of players, the first to walk on ground that felt real, and breathe in air smelling of flowers born purely out of imagination. He had spent years playing the game, joining up with parties, making friends and enemies, and experiencing things that would stay with him for the rest of his life. But... that had been three years ago. Things had begun to stabilise throughout the games kingdoms, the evil monsters kept at bay, and everything had slowly reached a state of status quo. The game was still fun and massively popular, but something was lacking now. The quests didn¡¯t have the same weight to them, exploring new areas became harder and things began to slow down. A lot of people he¡¯d come to know from playing had began to drift away, the game not holding on them as tightly as it used to. People had initially assumed that when things reached this point, the developers would step in and make some changes or create more content to keep things fresh. But once the in game economy rivalled and even dwarfed a lot of real countries, they not only didn¡¯t want to adjust things, but they legally weren¡¯t allowed to. All of this led to what Maser had planned for today. It taken three months of planning, six more of rigorous testing done in secret, and another thirteen to get everything in place, but finally it was ready. Maser looked out at this virtual world he¡¯d spent so much time in for the last seven years, and prepared himself. He¡¯d made sure to dress up for the occasion, putting his finest suit and hat, along with an enchanted monocle so he could see and check his results more clearly. Compared to the others in their thick climbing furs, he could see why they¡¯d laugh. But all things considered, he felt it was more important to do this with a touch of class, despite the cold damage and penalties. Psyching himself up, he stood up on the highest rock on the plateau, named the chandelier stone, the highest point in the world, and drew out his baton. A straight piece of carved, white oak with gold inlays; it represented everything he¡¯d worked on for the last two years, and much more besides. He began to raise it up, but hesitated, considering what he was about to do, and everything it would accomplish. ¡°No.¡± He said to himself, shaking his head to clear his mind. ¡°It needs to be done, better this than to leave things the way they¡¯re going.¡± And with a final gesture he raised his arm and activated the baton, releasing a pale golden pulse that rapidly travelled outwards before going too far and becoming too thin to see. Moments later, music began to play, flowing out from Maser¡¯s pocket, coming out cleanly and perfectly to cover the plateau, as it would be doing perfect harmony with all the location. He wondered whether his choice to play the 1812 overture was needed, whether it would be too much of a clich¨¦, but in the end it had felt...right, despite the extra work it took. His unsuspecting audience were both surprised and confused at where the music was coming from, but it quickly turned to delight as they seemed to think they were getting a special show. Waving his conductors baton around, now no more than a stick, Maser smiled, tears of joy, pain and relief rolling down his cheeks, freezing in the cold winds. His work was done now, his personal quest at an end. All of his emotion was let out, leaving him practically dancing around on the mountain top. None of it mattered anymore, nothing could be done, one way or the other. The onlookers laughed at his antics while listening to the music, some even dancing around with him, leaving him to wonder how people were reacting elsewhere to this sudden music. But as the music began to reach its climax, their joy and contentment turned almost instantly to horror and confusion, dropping to their knees as the first explosions began. As close to the music as Maser could manage, huge balls of flames and energy began erupting around them, lighting up the landscape as far as the eye could see. Every where he looked, the ground broke and buckled as the music played, at the force of the explosives he had made and set up over all this time. Rapidly, the world began to change beneath them. The forests became seas of flame, the lakes turned to pits of ash and mud, while the skies became filled with every creature that could try and escape the hell that the land had become. Eventually, seeming suddenly compared to the destruction moments ago, both the music and the explosions died out leaving him standing in silence, a brief moment to catch his breath after the destruction he¡¯d caused.Stolen novel; please report. ¡°What...what did you do? You bastard, what have you done?!¡± Maser turned to see that the revellers were shaking off the shock of what they¡¯d witnessed. They had begun getting to their feet and were starting to approach him. He was sure that in hindsight that feel lucky to have witnessed this...event, however it would later be described, from such a vantage point, having been in the right place, at the right time. But for now they wouldn¡¯t be getting any answers from him, as he had one last piece to accomplish, having never planned to go back down this mountain. Reaching into his pocket he pulled out an intricately carved shimmering stone, his last and greatest piece. This would be his last action in the game since he knew there would be no coming back from this. Smiling to the crowd as they began to mob him, his triggered the artefact, detonating it with enough force to eliminate not only those on the mountain top, but to leave nothing but a crater where once the largest mountain had proudly stood. As the wall of force rose up to hit him, Maser¡¯s last thoughts were of how he would miss this world he loved so much.
You have died. You will lose 1 level and 18 skill levels, based on remaining character level, chosen at random. You will now be locked out of game for 24 hours, at which point you will be able to respawn at the nearest designated respawn point.
~~~~~~ Removing the headset, Matt rubbed his eyes and checked the clock. His shift at the grocery store didn¡¯t start till nine on Fridays, giving him three hours before he needed to leave for work, so he reset his alarm for another two. Eventually getting up, he stumbled into the kitchen, and began making some breakfast. Flicking on the news as he waited for his kettle to boil, he was unsurprised what the feature story was. ¡°-levels of destruction. The exact amount of damage will likely take weeks or even months to truly become apparent. The developers of Genesis, Masquerade Entertainment, had this to say: ¡°We are sorry for the inconvenience and losses this action has caused to players, but we can assure you that the actions taken by this player were both legal, and within the rules of the game at the time. Our programmers are currently going over the exploits used, and are making alterations so that this can never be used again. We promise that these changes will either not affect, or minimally affect other players.¡± The developers also went on to say that, despite the many requests and demands from various parties, they would not be revealing any information about the individual who caused the event, saying it would be a large breach of client confidentiality. This has left people with only the knowledge of the name of their killer according to the games screen, leaving many calling this ¡°Maser¡¯s Upheaval.¡± We will be bringing you more news throughout the day as things develop.¡± Sipping his coffee, Matt stared blankly at the TV. Apparently the news teams were quicker than he gave them credit for, as they showed images of destroyed cities and castles from all over the games country side. Only a few hours had passed and already they¡¯d put together panels of experts to figure out what this would mean. While various officials were talking about the losses, both personal and financial, Matt didn¡¯t really mind. They could say what they wanted but not only were they all generally insured, but he had destroyed game items, and killed game characters, by the games own systems. The worst they could really say is that it was extreme griefing. Cleaning himself up in the bathroom, he looked in the mirror to see if he was acceptable. As always when he¡¯d been playing for too long straight, there was a moment of disconnect before he accepted that the person in the mirror was him. Six foot and gangly, his short black hair stuck up as usual, making him look like a cartoon character who¡¯d just been surprised. Eventually he got it to sit flat enough for work, and grabbed his uniform for the back of a chair. Heading out to the car, he was surprised to see the streets busy with cars this early in the morning. Spotting his neighbour getting into his car he called out to his neighbour leaving for the day as well. ¡°Greg!¡± he called out ¡°What¡¯s going on today? There a show going on or something?¡± Greg grunted in reply ¡°Some little shit went and wiped everyone out didn¡¯t they? Rudest wakeup call I¡¯ve had in years, so figured I may as well head in early, seems like everyone else is in the same boat.¡± As he pulled away, Matt actually felt somewhat responsible for the first time. He didn¡¯t care much for the effects in game, but waking up your neighbours was always uncalled for. The rest of day continued the same way. As he stacked shelves he heard dozens of conversations, all talking about the attack, the event or the upheaval, however the network they¡¯d watched was spinning it. Some thought it was the developers messing around; others thought it was a group of hackers and one even claiming it was the first strike of a terrorist group. That one had come from a man buying a dozen rolls of foil while carrying a duck under one arm, shouting at the top of his lungs, so not many people were going along with that train of thought. As the man was led away by security, Matt was left wondering how people would eventually define his actions. History is written by the victors, they say but when everyone still around afterwards, who gets to decide what happened? This lasted forthe entire week, staying as the biggest topic the news networks were covering, to the point it actually started to get on his nerves. He got that it was a big deal affecting a lot of people, and that a lot of money was tied up in it, but come on. There was real news going on that was way more important than a game, shouldn''t they be covering that? Or were murders, breakthroughs and innovation not as interesting as virtual ones. Matt was at loss for what to do for the weekend as he came home after his last evening shift for the week. Normally he¡¯d spend most of it logged in, making preparations for his endgame, but now that it was done he was left with so much free time to kill. As he pulled up to his house, he saw that some big van had managed to park across his driveway. Swearing he found a spot to park on the road before heading inside to look for some paper to write them a note. However, as he reached for the door, he realised something wasn¡¯t right and it was already unlocked. Carefully, he opened the door slightly and looked inside, his phone in hand to call the police. He wasn¡¯t sure what he expected, but a pair of large men in suits drinking tea at his kitchen table certainly wasn¡¯t it. ¡°Good evening, Matthew Harper I presume?¡± One of them said politely, spotting him. ¡°Get out of my house before I call the police!¡± He said quickly, opening the door fully to show his phone. ¡°That would be... a poor decision, Mr. Harper, as we are not thieves I assure you. Rather, we work for Masquerade Entertainment.¡± The other man said pointedly. ¡°...Oh. Yeah ok that... that explains a bit, I guess.¡± Matt said quietly, putting his phone away. ¡°And by that reaction, I believe it¡¯s safe to say that you are indeed who we were sent to collect. My name is Smith, my friend here is Thompson, and on behalf of Masquerade Entertainment, would you please come with us.¡± Chapter 2 Matt had considered trying to run or resist for a moment, but doubted his chances of even being able to faze the two men who were watching him as they drove to the developers headquarters. Besides, he thought to himself, he hadn¡¯t technically done anything wrong. He just really hoped they felt the same way. ¡°We¡¯ll be taking you around the back way, Mr. Harper. Given recent events, it¡¯s for the best if we avoid the reporters that have been camped out the front this past week.¡± Smith said, breaking the silence that had filled the car. As they began walking him through the building, Matt couldn¡¯t help but feel like a man on death row with one guard on each side. The building was almost empty at this hour, but a few people peeked over the cubicles and whispered to each other. Eventually they came to a halt before a large set of double doors. ¡°Here we are, sir. If you would step inside, I believe the board is waiting for you.¡± Johnson said, opening the door. ¡°Smith and I will be waiting out here.¡± Waiting in case he tried to run? Matt thought to himself. Psyching himself and taking a deep breath, he stepped into the room. As the door clicked shut behind him, he took a moment to look around. A dozen men and women in business wear sat talking quietly, around a large marble topped table. Engraved on both the tabletop and the wall behind them was the company logo, a simple jester mask winking at the onlooker. ¡°If I can interrupt everyone, I believe our guest has just arrived.¡± One of the businessmen said. Almost as one, they turn slowly to look at him, studying him closely, as if he were on display in a show. ¡°This is him is it? I imagined...something more I suppose. He doesn¡¯t really look the type.¡± One woman stated, sounding almost offended. ¡°Well let¡¯s confirm that before we move on shall we? You are indeed Matthew Harper, and the player behind Maser, who engineered and triggered the upheaval earlier this week?¡± Asked a silver haired man at the head of the table. He considered lying for a moment, but it was clear they already knew who he was. ¡°Yes, I am¡± he said, triggering a wave of murmurs from the board, which the table head silenced with a look. ¡°Good, then I can continue. I am August Fronz, founder and CEO of Masquerade Entertainment, and developer of Genesis. A game that at roughly six o¡¯clock Monday morning you almost completely destroyed. Do you dispute this?¡± ¡°I''m not sure if destroyed is the right word, but yes I did it.¡± He said deciding to just come clean with everything. ¡°Decimated then? Ravaged? Take your pick. During this time, slightly more than 90% of all life was wiped out, mobs, npcs and players alike. Not only that, all capital cities, and the majority of smaller ones, were similarly destroyed. From there, we go to the destruction of hundreds of popular and well known dungeons and land marks, ending with the loss of the Mt. Cloud spire. Mr. Harper, you killed almost all of Genesis.¡± ¡°And yet,¡± he continued before anyone could interject, ¡°you did it all within the rules. Despite what the media are trying to claim, we¡¯ve had people going through the files, and they¡¯ve been unable to find even a hint of cheating.¡± ¡°Can¡¯t figure out how he pulled it off though either.¡± One member muttered. ¡°You don¡¯t know how I did it?¡± Matt asked surprised. ¡°As of yet, no.¡± Said August, who looked annoyed at the disruption. ¡°This is Mr. Bindle, our head programmer, who has been looking for your actions leading up the event in question.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve still got my notes on how to work it at home if that helps, but don¡¯t you have a record of everything that¡¯s done in game?¡± Matt offered, trying to keep on their good side. ¡°Do you know how hard it is to go through hundreds of thousands of hours of playtime for millions of players? It takes a while, so yes the notes would save me and my team a few weeks of work so I¡¯d appreciate it. How¡¯d you do it anyway?¡± Bindle asked curiously. ¡°While this isn¡¯t the reason for this meeting,¡± August said, looking pointedly at bindle, who looked embarrassed, ¡°I admit I''m rather curious myself at how you pulled it off. If you don¡¯t mind telling us we can make sure that loop hole gets closed in the next few hours. ¡°Well,¡± Matt began, trying to figure out where to start, ¡°The base was using various magic crystals as the cores in the explosives, so they¡¯d have a wider range of damage types for maximum coverage. Then I placed each bomb in a giant oyster, which was a rare drop from a few sea monsters. That applied a magical layer of pearl around the explosive, which I carved amplification runes into, then repeated until it reached the level required.¡± ¡°Right, right, and each layer amped up the previous one exponentially,¡± Bindle said, nodding as he marked down some notes on a tablet. ¡°But that oyster takes six months to a year to create a layer, what you¡¯re saying would¡¯ve taken centuries.¡± ¡°True, which is why I rigged them into a frame powered by lich dust that would cast aging touch on them repeatedly while it was turned on, accelerating the process.¡± He said proudly, particularly pleased with that idea. He¡¯d never been able to talk about any of this with anyone, so it felt freeing to finally say some of it aloud. ¡°Very clever, an original use of the spells. So that explains what they were, but how did you get them everywhere unnoticed? Some of the locations should have been monitored closely enough to spot them.¡± ¡°That took longer to figure out, a lot of wasted time experimenting, but eventually I figured out that using portable guild chests was the answer. If you payed to upgrade them, they could become invisible and untouchable to anyone not in your guild. Then it was just a matter of creating a trigger that could set off the bombs from inside them, and placing them all over the continent.¡± ¡°Hmm, hadn¡¯t considered using chests for that sort of things.¡± He said sounding concerned. ¡°Mr. Fronz, if you don¡¯t mind, I¡¯d like to go and get to work on dealing with this now. The sooner we get this squared away, the sooner the media will get off our backs.¡± ¡°See to it then.¡± August agreed. ¡°I¡¯ll have a copy of the minutes sent to you after wards.¡± As he left, the remaining board members resumed their study of Matt, his hands twitching, looking for something to fiddle with. ¡°I suppose the next logical question,¡± August said, breaking the silence, ¡°Is why? Why did you decided to attack, well, everything? As I understand it, you¡¯ve been playing fairly consistently for the past seven years, so why suddenly decide to snap?¡± That was the big question wasn¡¯t it, Matt said to himself. Out loud, he tried to explain himself. ¡°I...loved the game. Really, it was, and is an incredible thing, that has given me nothing but happy memories. But it grew dull. Nothing ever changed, the forces that drove things along were defeated and it all became... something less. I can¡¯t really put it into words very well, but it didn¡¯t have the same spark it used to have. So, I did what I could to try and reignite that spark.¡± As he trailed off, silence fell in the room. August got up from his chair and wandered over to the window, staring out. ¡°Do you think we were unaware of this?¡± He said bitterly. ¡°We know that people were losing interest, but ever since major companies started taking advantage of our server security as a means to make money, our hands have been tied. On average, we make less than five percent of the money that travels through our system every day, and that numbers been dropping every year. Our own lawyers have looked into, but its air tight that our people can¡¯t affect the game in any major way. Which brings me to why you¡¯re here today, Mr. Harper. Your actions, while viewed as destructive, have indeed succeeded at revitalising our game. Already we¡¯ve seen more than double the number of people creating new accounts or renew old ones, leading to a large increase in revenue for our company.¡± He turned and gestured to another of the board. ¡°The truth here is that we wish to make you an offer, a job of sorts. We wish you to return to the game, and engineer other events and actions, to keep things... fresh as it were. Under the table of course, and we¡¯d need you to sign a few confidentiality agreements, the usual sort of things.¡± Matt was speechless. He¡¯d been expecting complaints, not whatever this had become but... ¡°No. Thank you but no. After what I''ve done I think its best that I cut ties with the game at this point.¡± ¡°I''m sorry you feel that way Mr. Harper, though I suppose that¡¯s your choice.¡±August said sadly. But as Matt began to leave, the CEO continued. ¡°Confidentiality agreements are a funny thing, Mr. Harper. On the one hand they stop a person leaking information. On the other...¡± Matt¡¯s blood went cold. ¡°What are you saying?¡± he said, turning back around. ¡°There are currently many powerful people in the world looking for ¡®Maser¡¯ who cost them and their companies millions of dollars. While a lot of them were insured I''m sure, those sorts of people don¡¯t take this sort of thing lightly. You have to wonder what would happen if they found out who was responsible.¡± On the contrary, Matt didn¡¯t have to wonder. His nightmares had been filled of late of people chasing him down, of being dragged into unmarked vans. There was a big difference between things that were legal, and things that people wouldn¡¯t retaliate against. ¡°Giving out personal information like that is illegal.¡± He said, trying to sound sure of himself. ¡°Oh indeed, if any of your information slipped out to the public, you could sue us for quite a bit. But could you sue us for more than the various offers we¡¯ve gotten to release your identity? And could you do it before you were found out? I''m sure you would end up losing more than we would, and we both know it would be more than money in the end.¡± ¡°That¡¯s...you can¡¯t!¡± Matt exclaimed, stunned. The CEO¡¯s face turned hard, all of the supposed friendliness draining away in an instant. ¡°I¡¯ve put my life into this company, as have everyone else in this room. We¡¯ve seen our work become nothing but a meeting room for others to make their money, leaving us as a dying business. If you think I would sacrifice one random nobody to save my work and the jobs of hundreds, you are sorely mistaken. You will do this, like it or not, or I will see to it that you are destroyed for you actions. Do not think for a moment that this will play out any other way.¡± He let that sink in for a moment, a dark expression on his face, before snapping back to his previous polite and friendly tone of voice. ¡°Now then, I believe our lawyers have drawn up a contract for you to sign, covering your agreed silence on the matter, as well as your reimbursement for your work.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t!¡± Matt said, trying to find a point to stand on. ¡°Everyone is looking for Maser right now; if I went back in I¡¯d be hunted down until I was found!¡± ¡°Hmm, a fair point... you¡¯ll simply have to put together a new character then! I¡¯ll have one of our programmers assist you in setting one up after we¡¯re done here. And as an added bonus for this, we¡¯ll pay out the current value of Maser for the inconvenience.¡± He looked down at a table on the table and scrolled through a few pages. ¡°Which is, as of now due to your actions is... Let¡¯s see, three point two million, give or take. We¡¯ll have to give that to you in several smaller payouts to ensure discretion, I¡¯m sure you understand. I¡¯d recommend you use some of that to ensure you have our latest models to play with to ensure you can do your best. In fact we can have one sent around tomorrow morning, so you can spend most of your time working on our agreement.¡± ¡°I...I have a job and-¡° He started desperately looking for some kind of out. ¡°Mr. Harper, we looked into your details before we brought you in. I¡¯m sure a grocery store will be just fine should you choose to quit. Honestly, if you look at the contract you will see we are offering a good deal more than you have been earning previously, though that¡¯s not saying much is it? I would have thought you would have aimed higher with your degree in graphic design.¡± They really had done their homework hadn¡¯t they he thought bitterly. ¡°These days¡¯ computers and AIs are doing more of that work, so there¡¯s not much of a career in it anymore.¡± August nodded in something resembling sympathy. ¡°The changing times are hard on everyone, so think of this as an opportunity. Not one you chose for yourself, it¡¯s true, but nevertheless. Now, if you¡¯d be so good as to sign the contract here, ¡°He said, passing over a small stack of papers, ¡°then we can send you down to our programming level and you can get started.¡± Matt felt completely defeated. He knew he¡¯d messed with people so far above him that it was a mistake to even think of it, but he¡¯d done it anyway. Now, as he signed the contract, he realised why it had been such a terrible idea, that what was legal only really mattered if it could be enforced. As soon as he finished signing it, one of the suits took the documents away. ¡°They¡¯ll be taken and processed immediately, so no need to worry about anything happening in between, and we¡¯ll send you a copy to peruse at your leisure. So all that¡¯s left is- Ah, Miss Tolson, perfect timing!¡± A woman in her early twenties came in through the door, knocking as she entered. ¡°This is Mr. Harper, the one you were briefed on. Mr. Harper, Miss Tolson here will take you down and get things organised with you. She will also be the one in charge of tracking your actions to ensure you¡¯re following the regulations of the contract.¡± ¡°Pleased to meet you Mr. Harper, feel free to call me Sarah.¡± She said cheerfully, offering her hand. Unlike the board members, the blonde woman, who couldn''t have been more than five feet tall, was dressed as if she hadn¡¯t planned to be seen by anyone today, wearing sweatpants and an old sweater. Deciding that she probably wasn¡¯t a part of the CEOs scheme, Matt decided not to hold his actions against her. As he went to take her hand, she noticed him looking at her clothes.This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it ¡°I¡¯m normally just down in engineering so I hadn¡¯t really-¡°She tried to explain. ¡°It¡¯s fine, sorry if I put you off there. No one was expecting this today, ¡°Matt said, shooting a look at August, ¡°So it¡¯s hardly your fault. I look forward to working with you.¡± ¡°Right, so then, um...Mr. Fronz? Can we leave and go down and do the things, Sir?¡± she said quickly, looking flustered. August waved his hand at them, already having checked out of the conversation and looking at some other information he was being shown. ¡°Yes, yes, carry on. I¡¯ll expect the report either by tomorrow morning or when he finishes up. Goodbye Miss Tolson, Mr. Harper.¡± And with that, Sarah all but grabbed Matts arm and ran from the office. ¡°I¡¯m sorry about this,¡± She said as they hurried down the halls, ¡°I¡¯m normally a lot calmer about things, but I don¡¯t think I''ve said anything to Mr. Fronz more than a passing greeting, let alone the full board. And of course, it had to be on a casual Friday, which makes me look oh so professional.¡± She stopped talking for a moment as they entered an elevator, pressing a button to head down. As they began to descend she started again, in a much more quiet tone. ¡°Sorry for rambling a bit there, but I don¡¯t get a lot of opportunities to meet with the bigwigs, so I normally try to act very professional around them. But then I get told about you less than three hours ago and, argh, it¡¯s not your problem, and I''m rambling again.¡± Leaving the elevator, she led him past a series of smaller cubicles and into another room, currently the only one with the lights on. ¡°I might not look it, but I''m good at what I do, it¡¯s how I earned an actual office.¡± She said proudly as she entered. ¡°So the instructions are to set you up a new player character, which shouldn¡¯t take too long, since I''ve got some of your old info, as part of the contract you signed, as well as a confidentiality agreement on my part as well, so don¡¯t worry about that. So for the moment, feel free to take a seat, and there¡¯s some drinks in the mini-fridge there, help yourself. Matt went over and grabbed himself a coke as she began typing away, needing the sugar to deal with the situation. ¡°Right then,¡± she began. ¡°Now for reasons that for official reasons are and will remain unclear to me, you¡¯ve been given permission to select you class from the entire list of allowable starters, which I¡¯m sure you can appreciate. However the racial selection is pretty heavily locked into the AI¡¯s choices so let¡¯s see what you have to work with.¡± As she began typing more information into the terminal, she continued listing off a bunch of information seemingly out of habit. ¡°The AI will select your race, and starting point based on various information provided by you through a questionnaire, combined with its own randomising algorithms and processing. Once chosen, any character you create for the next six months will be from that race, after which you may attempt to have a different one chosen.¡± As she finished her speech, she continued typing away quietly, leaving Matt to look around the room aimlessly. Various folders, books and gaming pieces littered the room, leaving it clear that this person loved their job, or at least the medium they worked with. ¡°Okay!¡± she said suddenly, breaking the silence. ¡°I¡¯ve copied across the information from the character I don¡¯t know about, so now let¡¯s see what you get!¡± she seemed oddly excited as she spun a monitor around so they could see the reveal together.
Processing...processing...complete! Race selected: Gremlin
Sarah winced ¡°Yeesh, I didn¡¯t know an AI could hold a grudge.¡± She muttered under her breath. ¡°What was that?¡± Matt asked. ¡°Hmm? Oh, nothing, just... Any way you¡¯ve been given the race of gremlin which is... an unusual choice of race, which isn¡¯t used by players very often. It¡¯s, well, have a look at it for yourself.¡± Tapping a few keys, she brought up the features and details for the gremlin race, and saw why it had prompted a reaction.
Gremlin, Standing at around 3 feet tall, the gremlins generally live in goblin warrens, around city dumps or whatever slums they can get into. While similar to the goblins in appearance, they lack their whipcord muscles and reflexes. As such, often bullied and attacked by their neighbouring goblins and given poor treatment, they have developed an increased tolerance to both poisons and disease. This had forced them to focus on their mind to improve their standing, making do with whatever they can scrounge from their surroundings. Gremlin Traits: -50% Strength, -25% Constitution, +25% Intelligence Small size: -25% Constitution, increased sneaking ability Poison resistance: 50%, Disease resistance: 50% Mother of invention ¨C Level 1 - When learning or creating recipes, gain a chance to substitute ingredients and components to various effects. Chance based on intelligence, craft level, and recipe grade. Changed recipes only function for creator.
He sat staring at the screen for several moments in silence, before it became too uncomfortable for Sarah to let continue. ¡°Look, Mr. Harper,¡± she began. ¡°Please, call me Matt.¡± He said. ¡°Fair enough. Anyway, off the record? I¡¯ve seen people just put the game aside after getting way better options than this. With what you¡¯ve been asked to do I¡¯m sure that if you went to the board that-¡° ¡°Asked?¡± Matt interrupted angrily. ¡°Doesn¡¯t that kind of imply I have a choice in the matter?¡± He sighed. ¡°Even if they were willing able to do anything about it, which I doubt on both counts, one more handicap won¡¯t make much of a difference in the scheme of things. Considering what I''ve been asked to do.¡± Sarah raised her hands in defeat. ¡°Fine, it¡¯s your call, just trying to help. Now, any ideas for the class you want to go for?¡± Right, he remembered, he had access to the full list. Normally when you started, you were given a selection of the ten basic options, plus three chosen at random from the remaining several hundred options. You could change your class later to any of the others if you found a teacher who accepted you, including a few hundred more that could only be gotten like this. But changing class cost you half your levels and skills, plus even more based on how different the class was. Not a huge deal early on, but there were plenty of high level players who felt locked into a class they didn¡¯t like, unwilling to climb to the top again. He thought about it. ¡°Hmm, you got filters for that list?¡± ¡°Of course, this isn¡¯t the stone age.¡± ¡°Then let¡¯s try and narrow this down. Let¡¯s see, drop all of the ones that are based on physical stats, the fighters, thieves and tanks. Even if I didn¡¯t have a huge penalty for it, I doubt a fighter type is going to be able to pull off what they want. We can probably drop all the good ones as well.¡± ¡°The good ones?¡± ¡°You know, priests, paladins, peacekeepers, that sort of thing.¡± ¡°Why there¡¯s plenty you could do with those ...¡± she trailed off. ¡°By all means, go on.¡± ¡°...to try and ruin the world. Right, point made. Any other requirements?¡± ¡°No, that should cover most of it; let¡¯s see what I''ve got to work with.¡± He began scrolling down the list, flicking through the various wizards and assassins, cultists and summoners. Opening up and looking at a few that caught his interest, he eventually found that seemed to fit. ¡°Hmm, here we go... Dark Chemist. A single target healer, with a number of buffs and debuffs, access to a large selection of poison and disease based skills, and another tree of something called life shaping? I think I could probably do something with this, looks to be mostly intelligence based, and I can make the most of the resistances. Sure lets lock this in.¡± She seemed surprised. ¡°Really? No comparisons, no research, you¡¯re just going to pick it straight away?¡± Matt shrugged. ¡°If I spend a heap of time, I''m sure I''ll start doubting this decision, but as things are right now, it seems as good as any other, and honestly? My gut says go with this one. A weird reason I know, but it¡¯s the one I have, so it will have to do. Besides maybe I can put together a plague or something like that.¡± ¡°For official reasons, I have no idea what you just said. And again, it¡¯s your call. So, let¡¯s put you in, and get your character generated.¡± She led him over to a couch in the corner of the room, and offered him a headset. ¡°Right, so we don¡¯t have a lot of time today to actually let you play here, so just create your character and get settled in, then drop back out. I¡¯ll need to report how you went afterwards. After that, it¡¯s up to you I guess.¡± Taking the headset, he set the mask over his face and pressed the button on the side. A 10 second countdown began giving him time to lie down and get ready. As soon as it hit 0 a small surge went through his head, and his senses went black. ~~~~~~ Matt found himself floating in a familiar black abyss, although black wasn¡¯t quite right. There was simply no visual input, leaving him completely blind as he drifted for a few moments, before a voice rang out.
Welcome to Genesis, Matthew Harper, and your new virtual life. Now generating avatar...
The darkness was burned away in a flash of white light at the voices words. Instead he now was looking at what at a small wretched creature that, for the foreseeable future, would be ¡°him¡±.
This model was created by a randomising engine, would you like to make any adjustments? Be aware that you will not be able to change your appearance afterwards.
¡°Yes.¡± He quickly agreed, bring up the various tools to modify his appearance to what he hoped would be passable in any form of society. In the end, once he threw in the towel, he was left with a three foot tall gremlin with a dark bluish green skin tone. He¡¯d shrunk its over sized ears as much as he could, leaving them still 8 inches long pointed backwards along the sides of his head. It left him looking a bit rat like with his sharp facial features, but it was better than the almost elephant like proportions before. It seemed impossible to get a gremlin to be anything but scrawny, but he¡¯d managed to get it to point where he looked overly thin but healthy, instead of an emaciated wreck. It wasn¡¯t going to be winning any beauty contests, but it was now an appearance he could accept, instead of the one before that put him off eating.
Avatar accepted. Class has been selected as Dark Chemist. Do you accept?
¡°Yes.¡±
Class accepted. Please name your character.
Matt paused. He hadn¡¯t put any thought into this yet, considering the rest more important, but there was a lot to a name. No one wanted to hang around someone called xXxKillerxXx, and there were entire guilds of people who got rejected for having offensive or inappropriate names. No, these days you needed a proper name, something cool sounding but usable in a sentence. ¡°My name will be...Jicker¡±
Name accepted. Welcome, Jicker, to the world.
Again, everything went white before falling into darkness. Except this time when things began to reappear, it began with a green fist, aiming for his face. Crack
You have taken 4 damage.
Reeling back, he clutched his nose. You didn¡¯t feel pain exactly in the game, but it certainly wasn¡¯t pleasant. ¡°Oi, runt! Why aren¡¯t you at your mining post?¡± A gravelly voice came from above him. ¡°Lumgra help you, if you don¡¯t get moving in the next few seconds I¡¯ll¡­¡± Blinking his eyes clear he looked up at speaker, seeing not a goblin as expected, but an orc. Taller than a normal human, they were big, tough and known to be little more than cruel thugs. Being stronger than most, they tended to capture, threaten and enslave anyone smaller or weaker into servitude whenever they could. The orcs deep green skin was closer to a leathery hide than normal skin, this being mottled in various scars, pockmarks and what looked like a burn mark that cost him most of his left ear. Wearing a dirty grey cloth shirt over what looked like armour, the orcs arms flexed menacingly, each bulging bicep larger than Jicker¡¯s head. ¡°Eh? You¡¯re not one of mine, your one of those gremlin wretches! What do you think you¡¯re doing out of the Pit?¡± The orc question suspiciously, clenching fist to strike him again. ¡°Please wait! I¡¯m lost, I just arrived and I don¡¯t-¡± Jicker began desperately in an oddly pitched, gurgling voice. He couldn¡¯t tell if it was his normal voice, or whether his nose was broken. He also didn¡¯t know which the better option was. ¡°Huh, a strong soul are ya? That¡¯d explain why you¡¯re out here instead. You new?¡± He breathed a sigh of relief. Strong souls, the developer¡¯s way of explaining how players would just appear and disappear, and even come back from death, were common enough around here that apparently this orc recognised what it was. Players, as well as important npcs and monsters, were anchored to the world, either by destiny, faith or some other power. This meant they could never fully leave the world, but sometimes this same power called them away for a time. ¡°Yes, so if you could-Hurk!¡± he said before the orc reached down and picked him up by the throat effortlessly. ¡°Don¡¯t think that makes you special, runt. Normally, I¡¯d just kill ya for talking back, or being out of place. But since you¡¯d just come back there ain¡¯t a lot of point, so listen up and listen good, since I ain¡¯t letting go til I''m done.¡± The orc began walking down what seemed to be a carved floor, and now that he had a moment to look around, he realised the entire area was an immense cavern .An entire city seemed exist within its walls, stretching up in every direction as they travelled downwards, the ground sloping to one side. The vast darkened area was filled with various inhuman races, all of whom were trying to stay out of the orc¡¯s way. His captor shifted his grip slightly allowing him to breathe, but not enough to talk, imply a frightening level of practice of strangling people. As he was dragged along with his feet trailing uselessly behind him, his captor began to speak. ¡°I am Grolug; I''m foreman for one of the goblin mining crews here in Mount Kaloh and more importantly, the warden of the Pit. That means if you cause problems, it becomes my problem, which means you have a problem with me, understood? Good. I¡¯d explain everything around here, but it doesn¡¯t matter, because the only place that matters to you is the Pit.¡± As they came over a small rise, Jicker got his first look at what Grolug was talking about. An enormous crater, over a mile wide, was sunk into the ground. Filling the bottom to what must have a dozen stories deep was rubbish. Broken carts, metal scrap, broken pots and pans and all manner of rotting and mouldy substances filled it as far as he could see. Already he could see that his poison and disease resistances were going to be needed, but he couldn¡¯t see exactly how. ¡°This is the Pit, where we put everything we don¡¯t want, that¡¯s broken or useless, several cities round here used to put stuff in here as well, have for a long, long time. Don¡¯t know why, but that ain¡¯t important. This is where you work, and live. You don¡¯t leave it, ever. I get why you were out before, but if I catch you out again, I¡¯ll feed you to a troll, or just eat you myself. Got it?¡± Releasing his throat, Jicker took a breath, coughing as he rubbed his throat. ¡°What about things like food, weapons or supplies?¡± he croaked. Grolug grinned evilly at him. ¡°You have access to whatever gets thrown in, no more. You want food? You make do, and as for weapons? Doubt you¡¯re much of a fighter, but you make do. And it¡¯d be a good idea to get something; because there are a few things down there you don¡¯t want to meet. Other than that you can try and trade stuff with us up top, but we might just take it from you anyway, so it¡¯d better be good.¡± Jicker swallowed. ¡°How can I leave?¡± ¡°Oh? Don¡¯t like your new home? Well if you¡¯re set on leaving, you got two ways. Get one of your betters from up top to take your place somehow, fight ¡®em, bribe ¡®em, whatever, I don¡¯t care. Or, and this is harder, impress me. You got a name runt?¡± he asked. ¡°Um, Jicker.¡± he said hesitantly, unsure of the sudden question. ¡°Well then, Jicker, welcome to the Pit!¡± And without warning, lifted him by the rags he was wearing, and threw him down into the Pit, laughing as he fell. Chapter 3 Hurtling down into the pit, Jicker managed to grab on what seemed be a broken off mast of a ship, sticking out of the garbage, saving himself from crashing into the ground and having to go to respawn already. If he was going to be able to pull this off again, he needed to start as strong as he could manage. Clinging to what was left of the rigging, he took a moment to catch his breath and take stock. Starting locations varied, he knew, but he hadn¡¯t expected anything this rough. Still, he was alive, and could begin working on getting out of here to have any chance of meeting the developer¡¯s demands.
Ding! Quest: Escape the Pit. You have been sent to the Pit, and are unable to leave until you beat someone from outside, or gain the warden¡¯s approval. Leaving without achieving this will cause you to be teleported to the centre of the Pit after thirty seconds. Success: Gain your freedom Reward: 1000xp Failure: N/A
¡°Really, I need to escape? I never would have guessed¡± He complained to himself. Opening up his inventory to see what starting equipment he¡¯d been given, he was disappointed to see it was a single item ¡°dirty rags¡±, no properties or stats, just something to prevent gremlin nudity, for which he was thankful. Going over the rest of his menus, he began to adjust his settings and preferences, turning down damage notifiers, adjusting colour schemes and setting things up the same as his old character. He saw one notification that he hadn¡¯t been expecting, and upon opening it up, he spent a moment reading through it before logging out. ~~~~~~ Sarah¡¯s voice greeted him as soon as reality began to fade back in. ¡°That wasn¡¯t very long. Changing your mind about the gremlin? I was tracking you, so you can see what I meant about them right?¡± Removing the mask, Matt blinked as his eyes adjusted and shook his head. ¡°No. I mean, yeah, I wasn¡¯t expecting a start quite that...extreme, but I can handle it. No, the problem is I have achievements.¡± She raised an eyebrow. ¡°What do you mean? You were playing for less than five minutes.¡± ¡°I mean- look, let me pull up my character sheet.¡± He said. Reaching over to her terminal he logged into his account and brought up his characters information. A lot of people kept this sort of thing private, since even the tiniest bit of information could become an advantage to the right sort of person.
Name: Jicker Level: 1
Race: Gremlin Class: Dark Chemist
Hp: 50 Mp: 100 Stamina: 50
Statistics
Equipped weapons Damage: Equipped Armour Defence:
Dirty rags
Statistics
Core Statistics Other Statistics
Strength: 5 None
Dexterity: 10
Constitution: 5
Intelligence: 12
Wisdom: 10 This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
Resistances:
Poison: 50%
Disease: 50%
Skills
Mother of Invention - Level 1
Achievements
Grand Genocide Kill over 20 million sentients within 1 hour
Unique-Effect: 30% damage and ability effectiveness against sentients
Force of Change Destroy and create over 1000 dungeons
Unique-Effect: Creating or altering areas or creatures will be 100% more effective
World Shaper Permanently alter the geography of the world on a grand scale
Level-Max-Effect: Effect: Permanent effects will be 100% more effective
King Killer Kill 50 leaders of states, royal or other.
Level-Max-Effect: Boss and Leader resistances reduced by 60%
¡°Well aren¡¯t you lucky? Not many people, if any, can boast achievements like those.¡± She said after reading for a few moments. ¡°Are you kidding? I shouldn¡¯t have any achievements! That¡¯s all stuff from... before. Not things I''ve done today.¡± He said annoyed at her reaction. ¡°Relax. It¡¯s uncommon, but not unheard of, for the AI to let a person keep certain achievements when making a new character. Usually they¡¯re ones relating to personal achievement, rather than skill or level, things that can¡¯t really be repeated. Yours though... I¡¯d say the AI is sending you a message.¡± ¡°Wait, what?¡± ¡°The systems a lot smarter than most people give it credit for, and I¡¯d say this is a pretty clear way, along with your race, that it knows who you are, and it¡¯s not exactly happy with you. Since they¡¯re pretty damn good ones, I wouldn¡¯t say its angry exactly, but it¡¯s definitely going to be watching you, so I¡¯d recommend not going against it again.¡± ¡°But anyone who looks at my information will see these! There¡¯s only one person who they could belong to!¡± Matt panicked, running his fingers through his hair. ¡°Well,¡± Sarah began, as if speaking to a small child, ¡°You can go into your options, find this button called privacy settings-¡° ¡°I get it!¡± He interrupted. ¡°I just... look; it¡¯s been a long day, ok?¡± She looked at him closely for a moment. ¡°Hmmm, yeah I suppose your right. You can head home if you want, I¡¯ve got all the information I need to pass on to the board. Give me a ring if anything else comes up.¡± She said, handing him a card with her number on it. ¡°And if you call me after hours, it¡¯d better be important or you¡¯ll regret it. A girl needs her beauty sleep, got it?¡± ¡°Got it. If that¡¯s all we have to do, I''m out. I suppose ill hear from someone later this week about my ¡®task¡¯.¡± He said getting up to leave. Sarah gave him a sad smile. ¡°You¡¯ve been given a rough deal Matt, but the thing is, you made your own bed on this one.¡± He sighed. ¡°I know. Now I just need to make sure I don¡¯t get buried in it.¡± The company was nice enough to pay for a cab to take him home, since a company car might attract attention even at this late hour. Stumbling through his front door, he made it five minutes before he broke down. Swearing, screaming and putting dents in the walls, he cursed anything and everything involved in this mess. Collapsing onto the couch, with his eyes red and his voice hoarse, he knew that in truth he was the real reason for his predicament. He was the one who spent all his time planning his attack, figuring out the loopholes to pull it off, to the point where most of his friends had drifted away. In the end it was on him. The developers were definitely taking advantage of the situation, but he was the one who made it. Pulling himself together, he got up and cooked himself some eggs, his stomaching making it clear it hadn¡¯t eaten since lunch. The one good thing, he thought as he ate, was that once again Genesis was a game. New waves of players were coming in; quests and territory disputes were apparently popping up all over the continent. The AI was apparently also taking advantage of his work; guilds were once again racing to be the first to conquer new dungeons and bosses that had sprung up. Maybe, just maybe, things had actually worked out for the best. And with that in mind, he went and picked up his own headset, settled in for the night, and sunk himself into the game. ~~~~~~ As soon as he entered, he almost fell to his death before he remembered to grab onto the mast rigging. Fortunately the system had a form of time dilation, so while it was late at night in the real world, he was able to check out his surroundings during the day. Not that there was much sun anyway, with only a few rays managing to come through the various cracks in the roof of the cavern. It seemed gremlins had pretty good night vision, as he could make out details pretty well even in this dim light. As he began to climb down from his perch, he began to make a list of what he needed to do, an old habit from his time as a tinker.
  1. Get a hold some kind of weapon or means to defend himself, armour as well if he could.
  2. Find a safe place where he could hide and store what possessions he had and acquired.
  3. Figure out how his abilities worked.
  4. Plan on how to get out of the Pit.
It seemed simple enough once you broke it down, so now he had to get to work. Anything could be used as weapon, but obviously properly produced items were a lot more powerful. He¡¯d spent years as a tinker, a class based almost entirely on putting things together, so he had a fair idea of how to put together some junk into something passable. The only problem was that he was used to working with actual tools and supplies, and right now he was lacking both. The simplest option would be a club of some sort, but with his dismal strength it would be next to useless, leading him to his next choice, a shiv. It was simple to find a sharp edge; the place was littered with things that could hurt you if you weren¡¯t careful. He managed to track down what seemed to be a copper ladle that had cracked along its handle, leaving a long, tapering edge where the grip used to be. Bending the bowl end around on itself with a rock, he made a rough handle with what he hopped was just a dirty, and not soiled, rag. The result was a crude and ugly knife with an attempt at a hand guard, but it was something.
Junk sabre Item type: Weapon Grade: Common 2-5 damage This blade is so foul you are likely to catch a disease just by wielding it
¡°And so it begins again.¡± He muttered to himself. He looked around to see if he could fashion some clothes, but sadly his own filthy rags were in better condition than anything else he could see. Tying his knife to his waist with a piece of half rotted rope, he set out to see about step 2 of the plan, finding somewhere to live. Despite the fact you were technically sleeping while you were playing, your character had no such luck and needed to rest, or large penalties would quickly build up. Normally you¡¯d do it in town, where there were restrictions about attacking players in their sleep. But here, he had no such luck. Travelling around the Pit, he sought out somewhere he could bunker down, while trying his best to avoid the other Pit dwellers. A few places, piles of crates or what looked like shattered buildings, looked like they¡¯d do, but when he began to approach for a better look, it quickly became obvious that they were already taken. Jicker was fully aware that his odds of winning a fight were slim to none at the moment, so the last thing he wanted to do was start challenging people. Returning to the mast where he¡¯d started from he went to go and climb up again, to try and see if there were any other good looking spots. But as he approached he noticed something. The ground, though covered in mud and filth, was creaking as he walked on it; more so the closer he got to the mast. ¡°I wonder...¡± He muttered to himself, scratching at his chin. He¡¯d assumed it was just a broken off mast that had been thrown in, but if they threw in entire chunks of buildings, maybe it was more than that. Pacing around, he tried to find where the sounds were loudest, appreciating his oversized ears for the first time. Finding a spot that seemed right, he began digging down into the muck and sure enough, after only about a foot of filth, he found what seemed to be the deck of a ship. He hadn¡¯t been much of a sailor when he had played before, but if you wanted to travel the world, there were times when a ship was your only option. Wracking his brain, he tried to remember where the hatches were to the ships hold. After a lot of trial and error, he found one, an old rusted hatch, still sealed shut since it had been thrown in the Pit. Chipping away at the rust with his sword, he pried it open, making sure no one was around to see him. The last thing he wanted was to give away his location straight away. Dropping down into the dark of the ship, he was overjoyed with what he saw. The hull was, for the most part, still intact, barring a few holes where dirt and rock had poured through, sealing the gaps. Broken chairs and table, rusted lanterns and cracked barrels, littered the floor, but despite this, it was clean. ¡°This will do nicely.¡± He declared happily, and got to work. The first step was to go back to the surface and fill in the various holes he¡¯d made to hide it as best he could. After that he began to pile up all of the broken objects to one side, giving himself space to move around. The rear of the ship appeared to have been broken and crushed, but that still left him with a good twenty by forty feet, more than enough space to work in. Piling up some old sacks, he sat down; stretching out the kinks in is muscles. For a digital game, he thought as he got comfortable, it sure was lifelike. It always amazed him just how real everything seemed to be, even when he knew it wasn¡¯t. ¡°Okay, time to focus.¡± He said slapping himself on the cheeks. He opened up his character sheet, to get a proper look at his abilities. It was split up into three trees, each focusing on a different aspect of his class.
Medicinal Abilities: Anaesthetic-Create a dose of healing salve, restoring health and applying a damage resistance buff. Effect: +10hp + 1 per level, 15% physical damage resisted for 1 minute. Recipe: 1 unit of water, 10 mana. 10 minute cooldown. Adrenaline-Create a dose that when injected increases attack speed and stamina regeneration. Effect: 30% attack speed and stamina regeneration for 1 minute. Recipe: 1 unit of water, 1 unit of blood, 10 mana. 10 minute cooldown.
Poison Abilities: Chemist shot- create a doseof poison; can only be used by creator Effect: 20 damage + 1 per level over twenty seconds. Special: 50% bonus damage if injected. Recipe: 1 unit of water, 10 mana. 10 minute cooldown. Tranquiliser- Create a dose of numbing agent, slowing target and have a chance to put them to sleep. Effect: 20% reduction in movement and attack speed, 5% chance of sleep, based on difference between creators and targets level. Recipe: 1 unit of water, 1 unit of ash, 10 mana. 30 minute cooldown.
Life Shaping Abilities: Adaptation-Modify a willing, restrained or unconscious living creatures form temporarily. Effect: Extents of modification limited by levels of subject and caster. Duration: 4 hours, has a 2% chance of becoming permanent, based on level and changes.100 mana cost, Minimum 10 minute casting time.
¡°Great, just...great.¡± He muttered bitterly. The class was apparently heavily based on crafting, with almost all of his abilities needing to be made and prepared well in advance, with the exception of adaptation, which he didn¡¯t know what to make of. But in his trip around the Pit, he hadn¡¯t seen a water source, let alone the equipment he¡¯d need to brew potions. As it was, he had spent most of the day digging and clearing out his new home, so for the time being he decided to turn in for the night. Making sure the hatch was shut; he buried himself in the sacks and went to sleep. Chapter 4 His in game clock told him he¡¯d only been sleeping for 2 hours, when a cracking sound awoke him. The length of wood he¡¯d used to hold the hatch closed was cracking, as something was forcing it open. Rolling to his feet, Jicker drew his sword and hoped that whatever was coming in was even weaker than he was. This proved unlikely as the hatch finally gave out, and a goblin armed with what looked to be a crowbar dropped down. ¡°Thought ya could hide down ¡®ere did ya? Well I saw ya diggin¡¯ didn¡¯t I? Now, hand over your things before I brain ya!¡± The goblin shrieked in a high pitched voice. Jicker had always thought of goblins as weak little pests, and apart from the odd one or two that had always held true. But when you had to look up at one of them that was no longer the case. ¡°I don¡¯t have anything!¡± he said quickly, trying to get it to leave. ¡°Psh, all you gremlins got things. I seen ¡®em! Now gimmee!¡± ¡°I really don¡¯t! I only got thrown in the Pit today¡± he exclaimed, trying to put distance between them as the goblin slowly advanced. It paused as he said this, cocking its head to one side. ¡°What, really?¡± it asked, sounding unsure. ¡°Yes.¡± Jicker said relieved he¡¯d gotten through. ¡°Gah!¡± it screamed. ¡°Spent all day spyin¡¯ on ya, and ya got nothin¡¯!¡± ¡°Sorry.¡± A dark expression fell on the goblins malformed face. ¡°Maybe you do have something after all.¡± ¡°What? I told you I only came in today, I haven¡¯t had time to find anything.¡± He said confused. ¡°Haven¡¯t had fresh meat in a while, have I?¡± It cackled, revealing its sharp teeth, raising its crowbar high. Leaping quickly out of the way, Jicker drew his sword, keeping it between them. He knew he was in trouble, even if they were the same level; a goblin would naturally be stronger than he was. Without the perception skill, there was no way to see an enemy¡¯s level, but this one, by the way it lazily avoided his panicked swings, was clearly several levels higher than him. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s make this quick, ye? Don¡¯t want you to get stringy, do we.¡± It laughed; batting away his swings at it came closer. But this game was more than just numbers, though it took most people along time to realise it. Because while your stats and level dictated how fast, how strong and how tough you were, they didn¡¯t dictate what you did with that strength. So as the goblin closed in, Jicker threw a handful of muck he¡¯d picked up while he¡¯d been swinging ¡®wildly¡¯, into its eyes. Screeching in surprise, it dropped its weapon, trying to wipe its eyes clear. Taking the advantage, he gripped his sword, and drove it through the goblins chest. Or at least, he tried to. Instead, less than an inch in, the blade stopped as it hit bone, Jicker lacking the strength to force it in any further. Having cleared its eyes, it knocked the blade away with one hand, sending it clattering away. Reaching over, it grabbed him by the throat and began to strangle him. ¡°You¡¯ll pay for that, wretch.¡± It snarled in a guttural tone, all traces of mirth gone from its face. Clawing at the hands around his throat, Jicker was unable to move, them the goblins grip on him to strong. Only managing feeble slaps against his attacker, Jicker desperately tried to think of something, anything to get loose. His vision began to go dark from lack of oxygen, his mouth filling with saliva, as his throat was crushed. An idea suddenly formed in his mind, something he prayed would work, otherwise, he was out of options. Keeping his mouth shut, he focused as hard as he could. This would work, he thought to himself, feeling himself growing dizzy, it had too. Precious moments passed, the sounds of the goblin grunting as it tried to crush the life from him filling the ships hold, when suddenly...
Mother of Invention! You have discovered how to replace water in some of your recipes with gremlin saliva! These versions are only 50% as effective, and will only work for you.
Finally! Jicker thought, and spat into the goblins face. For a moment nothing happened, the goblin not even flinching, dealing with worse in the Pit every day. Then the skin where the spittle had struck began to blister and crack. Shrieking, the goblin dropped him, clawing at its face in pain and suprise. Sucking a lungful of air, he pushed himself to his feet, knowing the goblin would be on him again him again. Staggering, he retrieved his blade and struck at the goblins back, which was crouched on the ground, rubbing at its face with dirt. Crying out again, the goblin turned to him, murder in one eye and the other sealed shut from the swelling in its face. Not willing to give it an opening, Jicker renewed his attacked, repeatedly striking at it, aiming for its now blinded side. He knew he didn¡¯t have a lot of hitpoints left, and one good shot from it would finish him. Eventually, the goblin slowed, unable to keep up, not having been prepared for an actual fight. Finally, after what seemed like hours, the goblin fell.
Goblin has been slain. You have received 338 EXP! You have reached level 2! You have 5 points left unassigned. Assign points now?
¡°Yes.¡± He croaked, rubbing his throat. He really had to find some source of water. The sheet opened up before him, giving him five points to distribute amongst his stats. Strength would improve his ability to do melee damage, as well his carrying capacity and overall physical might. Dexterity governed his accuracy and hand eye coordination, plus his natural agility and speed. Constitution was his physical fortitude, which determined his health and resistances. Intelligence controlled his skill with spell casting and crafting, and allowed him to collect and retain information more easily. Wisdom was based on your spirit, determining your mana and your ability to resist magical effects. Looking at his options, Jicker decided to drop every point in intelligence. While his lack of strength and constitution were problems, increasing those would take twice as many points as normal. Besides, he figured, intelligence was going to the most important stat he had, and it had saved him before. Sitting down to catch his breath, he stared up the ceiling as he tried to get his heart rate under control. The rational part of his mind knew that if the goblin had won, he wouldn¡¯t have really died; he¡¯d have just lost a level, some skills, and be locked out for a day. But in the heat of battle, with the feelings of fear, anger and pain being so realistic, that part of your brain found it hard to make its self heard. He stared blankly at the body of the goblin, that moments ago had been trying to kill him, and struggled to his feet, sighing as he did so. Some games of the genre had it so all of the creature¡¯s items just appeared in a little pile in front of it when it dies, but Genesis prided itself on realism. So despite a lot of initial protests and complaints, collecting loot from a kill required you to actually go and search the body, with the exception of bosses or monsters where it would be just impractical. Going through what could technically be called its pockets, Jicker managed to find a few silver coins, which disappeared as they were added to his inventory. The only other things it had were its rusty crowbar, a weapon worse than his sword, and a piece of slightly rotting fruit. Grimacing, he ate the fruit, needing the food one way or another, and dragged the body into the corner. Bodies degraded pretty quickly in game, turning to bones in just a few days. He¡¯d get rid of it in the morning, once he¡¯d slept and recovered some hitpoints. Re-barricading the hatch, he went back to sleep, figuring that things would be quiet for the rest of the evening. The low hissing that awoke him however, proved him wrong. Opening his eyes and reaching for his weapon, he was confronted with a rat. Already scarred and wounded, a rat shouldn¡¯t have been a threat to a player, but not only was Jicker still injured from earlier, but this rat was easily two feet tall at the shoulder. Giant rats weren¡¯t unheard of; in fact they were fairly common in some areas. But at his size, this was the equivalent of a wolf, not something you want to wake up to. For whatever reason, it hadn¡¯t attacked him yet, instead just staring at him hissing. ¡°Shoo? Don¡¯t eat me?¡± He said hesitantly, hoping that wouldn¡¯t provoke it to attack. He did not want Jicker¡¯s first death to be being eaten by a giant rat. Fortunately, the rat didn¡¯t react and just continued hissing at him, not moving from its place in the corner of the hull, near what looked to be a tunnel through one of the spots where the wood had broken open. But it didn¡¯t just stare at him he noticed, as he watched it. Its eyes would also flick over to the corner past him, over where he¡¯d put the body... ¡°Do you want that? Are you...hungry?¡± He wondered aloud. If that was the case, it must have followed the smell and found its way in. It didn¡¯t look like it had much fight left in it, so it was probably avoiding any conflict, even though it could definitely take him easily. Getting up slowly, he moved over towards the body, the rat tracking him, but so far not moving from its spot. He wasn¡¯t strong enough to move the body very quickly, so instead, gritting his teeth, he pulled out his sword. The rat flinched for a moment before settling back down again when he brought the blade down on the body. After a few swings, he managed to cut off an arm, which he quickly threw towards the rat. It eyed the limb suspiciously for a moment, then decided it was worth the risk and fell upon it ravenously. The sight of the rat gnawing on the piece of goblin made him want to throw up, but he didn¡¯t know when he¡¯d next find food, so he forced himself to keep it down. After a few minutes, the rat had finished eating the arm, even crushing and swallowing the bones, and began to once again eye the rest of the body. Not wanting to cut any more pieces off, he backed away from the body, leaving a clear path for the rat. Slowly, keeping watch of him as it moved, it dragged itself towards the body, and began to rip into it, eating as quickly as it could. Only when it had moved did Jicker realise the one of its rear legs was broken, likely the main reason it hadn¡¯t wanted to fight. He thought about trying to leave since he could outrun it, but odds were, even with the rat, he was safer in here than out in the open. Looking at the rat, he decided to try something. It might get him attacked, but it seemed happy enough just eating the corpse, and he wasn¡¯t going to sleep while it was here. Slowly moving closer, he triggered his anaesthetic ability, spitting into his hand. It gave off a light blue glow, as he did so, illuminating the room, and alerting the rat. It stopped eating for a moment, turning to look at Jicker who froze, before returning to its meal. Taking a deep breath, he moved closer and applied the salve to the rat¡¯s leg. As soon as he made contact it twisted around, hissing and spitting at him, causing him to fall back. For a moment he thought it was going to tear him to shreds, but then it paused and sniffed at its leg where he¡¯d touched it, then resumed eating. Jicker breathed out a sigh of relief, moving back to his own spot in the room. The weakened version of the salve would only heal five hp, not nearly enough to fully heal the rat¡¯s injuries, but any form of healing triggered the body¡¯s own healing, letting it get to work on restoring its functions. He wasn¡¯t sure it was the best plan to heal a creature that might try and eat him later, but he had time to kill, and it would help him increase his skills. Once the rat finished eating, leaving only a few splatters and bits of gristle around, it moved back towards its tunnel then curled up and went to sleep. Seeing that the rat didn¡¯t have any plans to try and eat him, Jicker gave up and tried to get some rest himself, hoping to actually be able to do so until morning. Light broke into the hull as the sun rose, slipping through the cracks in the upper deck that had become his roof. Yawning as he stretched, he scratched his neck, considering just going back to sleep, when he suddenly remember his visitor. Looking around quickly, the rat was nowhere to be found, apparently having left in the night at some point. ¡°Well, I survived the night, so I guess I¡¯ll call it a win.¡± He said to himself, his voice hoarse and scratchy. While his hitpoints had recovered, water was becoming an urgent requirement to survive, and was now priority one. Making sure his sword was secure, and grabbing one of the sacks to carry what he found, he pulled himself up through the hatch, covering it up with loose trash to disguise it. He tried searching around the edge of the Pit when he¡¯d been looking around before, wanting to avoid the more populated centre. But water ran down hill, so if he wanted to find some, he¡¯d need to head lower into the crater. Keeping an eye out for both threats and things of value, he made his way down, using the tall ship mast as a way of keeping his bearings through the maze-like junk. Hours had passed, and he¡¯d all but given up, when he slipped and fell on a strip of mud hiding under some rotting leaves. He was about to curse his luck, when logic jumped to the front of his mind, telling him that mud meant water. Following the trail down its slope, he spotted more and more Pit dwellers skulking through the twisting paths. There had to be something here, he figured, to attract all these people. Eventually he found it: a murky, brown pool of water, with chunks of rusting metal and other pieces of garbage floating in it. He thought he must have missed the real one, when he saw an orc approach the pool and drink a few handfuls before moving on. Making sure he was unseen, he approached the pool, keeping to the shadows as much as he could. Taking a handful of the foul water, he hoped his disease resistances would be up to the task. It tasted exactly as he¡¯d expected, foul, gritty and pungent. But it was water, beautiful live preserving water, and that was the important thing. Drinking his fill, while spitting out the odd leaf or wood chip, he moved away from the pool, now needing to find some food as the fruit he¡¯d eaten yesterday was doing nothing to fill him. Apart from the garbage that was thrown down the sides of the Pit, he didn¡¯t know what other food sources were down here, but he assumed there was something. The memory of the goblins attempt to kill and eat him however, didn¡¯t reassure him about his chances. Slinking through the garbage, he spotted a few birds perched on the garbage, looking to be somewhere between a seagull and a crow. He was wondering how he could try and catch one when an arrow came out of nowhere and pierced one, sending the rest of its flock scattering. A goblin climbed to where it had fallen carrying a crude looking crossbow, making Jickerglad he¡¯d stayed hidden. ¡°A bow, sure, I can do that.¡± He whispered. There had to be some things around he could make one out of, he thought, beginning to rummage around. There plenty of lengths of wood that, with a bit of work, could make a rough bow, but finding the string was proving far more difficult. Cloth and other fibres didn¡¯t appear to survive very well down here, so a sturdy enough cord was almost impossible to track down. His searching bore other fruit however. A plank of wood he picked up turned out to be a broken lid of a crate, half buried in the muck, its contents still inside. Apparently it had been a box of some kind of preserves, which had expired a long, long time ago. While most of the jars were cracked and broken, half a dozen of them were still sealed. Once he managed to get rid of their current contents, it gave him away to carry some water back to his home. If he could find a way to filter it, he¡¯d be set he thought happily as he carefully put them in his bag. As he slung it over his shoulder, he decided he really needed to get himself a proper pack. Without one, everything apart from currency was its normal size and weight, but a properly made one could contain literal tons of items using an inventory system while still being functionally portable. As it was now, his feeble strength meant it was an effort just carrying the jars of water back home. As he dropped into the ship hold and barred the hatch, he turned to find the rat had returned. Sitting in the corner near its tunnel, the rat stopped what it was doing and stared at him. It had apparently caught several of what looked like giant cockroaches the size of chickens, and been eating them before it was interrupted by his arrival. Looking at it, Jicker was surprised at the changes in its appearance. While its leg was still badly damaged, a large meal, some healing and night¡¯s sleep had apparently done it wonders. Its fur, previously matted and patchy with small injuries, had smoothed out becoming almost silky, its gaunt frame now having filled out to look far more solid. It didn¡¯t appear to consider him a threat, and just continued to eat as he made his way to his normal seat. When he opened one of the jars to grab a drink however, its head lifted its head up, focusing intently on the open jar. Jicker looked at the jar and shrugged, pouring most of it in to a piece of broken barrel. He slowly moved over to the rat, keeping the bowl between them. Putting down the bowl, he saw that the roaches did look like they contained a fair amount of meat...Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. ¡°Trade?¡± he asked the rat. He didn¡¯t expect an answer but it seemed to agree, happily drinking the water while he grabbed one its prizes. While he was nearby, he used some of the water and applied another dose of healing to its leg, watching the wounds slowly close up. It sniffed at its leg, licking at the remains of the water, and then sniffed at Jicker who tried to remain very still, before returning to its water bowl.
You have unlocked the Handle Animal skill! Current level: 1 Allows for greater understanding between you and animals, increases your respect with neutral animals, and increases effects of abilities on animals.
¡°Neat.¡± He said surprised. Most skills required a trainer to get the first level and teach you the basics, but apparently you didn¡¯t need one for this. Skills were a core part of the game, and while you could get as many as you wanted, they took a long time to train, so people generally only picked up the ones they felt were necessary. A free one was a big win this early on, and would be a big help, even if he didn¡¯t make much use of it. Now all he had to do was-
You have been playing for more than 12 hours. It is recommended by Masquerade Entertainment that you take a break.
-Take a break apparently. It was very easy to lose track of time in game, more than one person becoming dangerously dehydrated while playing. Since then they¡¯d add these time warnings to remind people that eating in game didn¡¯t actually feed you. Seeing that the rat had gone to sleep, he decided now was as good a time as any to log out for a while. ~~~~~~ Taking off the head set, he was greeted by bright sunlight streaming through the window. Checking the clock, it was 11:30, too late for breakfast but just fine for an early lunch. Throwing some noodles in the microwave, he grabbed a quick shower and cleaned himself up. He might be planning to sleep all day, but a person, Matt felt, should have standards. Besides, you never knew when men in suits would come and drag you away for a meeting. Sitting down at the table he browsed the news, as he ate, seeing what the real world had been up to since last night. Apart from a bit about the continued effects of ¡°Maser¡¯s Upheaval¡±, the rest was fairly standard. There were a few murders, a robbery, some political slander and a piece about cats in costumes, the usual. At least his actions weren¡¯t the entire networks main focus anymore, but he¡¯d probably make an appearance for the next few months. Going out to check the mailbox, he found a small box sitting by his front door with a small, unmarked letter sitting on top. Taking it inside, he opened the up the envelope and reading the short note inside. ¡°Mr. Harper, As per our discussions, I¡¯ve taken the liberty of securing you one of our latest products, the PK4 virtual mask. This is top of the line model we produce; in fact it doesn¡¯t go public for several more weeks, so I¡¯d appreciate you not sharing it with anyone. In addition, the first part of your remuneration has been sent as per the agreement. Looking forward to seeing your results, August Fronz¡± ¡°Bastards definitely good at sounding polite.¡± He muttered as he opened the box. Inside was a sleek white mask with the company¡¯s logo on the front. The back, lined with thin but firm foam, fitted to his face as if it had been moulded for it. Considering the person it was from, he wasn¡¯t a hundred percent sure it hadn¡¯t been. Deciding to be productive, he put the mask away and went to his email to have a look at the contract he¡¯d been ¡°asked¡± to sign. Most of it was in legal jargon he didn¡¯t really understand, but the main aspect of it was clear enough: he was to cause large amounts of chaos and disruptions, suitable for the company¡¯s interests, without involving them in any way, shape or form. As long as he did so, and maintained the secrecy about his actions, he would be reimbursed each month based his actions plus a retainer. If he hadn¡¯t been forced into it, it was honestly a pretty good deal, but the reasoning for it gave Matt a sour taste in his mouth. Thinking about the meeting, he remembered that they said they¡¯d reimburse him for his old character for a fairly ridicules amount of money. He¡¯d had about fifteen grand put aside; he thought as he opened up his banking online, I wonder if they actually plan on... Balance: $314,234.92 He refreshed the browser, and refreshed it again. ¡°Not a glitch then,¡± he muttered to himself, a catch in his throat, ¡°They actually paid me...Right.¡± He sat staring at the screen for several minutes, unsure of how to react. One thing was for sure though, as he picked up the phone to make a call. ¡°Hello, Greenmart produce, how can I help you?¡± a gruff voice answered when they picked up. ¡°Hey Steve, its Matt, I''m calling to-¡°He began. ¡°Matt! How are you? Let¡¯s see, you¡¯re not scheduled for today, and I told you last week I can¡¯t give you anymore hours, so what¡¯s this about then?¡± Steve replied. Steve had been a great boss, always looking out for his employee¡¯s best interests. But with robotics becoming cheaper and more efficient every year, it was getting harder and harder for him to justify having as many employees. ¡°Actually, I¡¯m kind of calling to, um; give my two weeks¡¯ notice?¡± Matt said awkwardly. ¡°Great! If you want, I can take you off the roster now instead of two weeks.¡± He said cheerfully. ¡°I... What?¡± Matt asked, confused. ¡°It¡¯s about time you found a better gig than this one, bright guy like you. That is the situation, right? Your arts picked up, or you¡¯ve found somewhere better?¡± he said, sounding hesitant. ¡°Ah, yeah, that sort of thing.¡± ¡°Good, good.¡± He said relieved. ¡°I¡¯ll sort out the paperwork on my end, but this is great news. I¡¯d had to cut your hours back for a while now, so I¡¯m glad you¡¯re moving up and out. So, do you want to work for the next two weeks or...?¡± ¡°Nah, it¡¯s probably easiest if I end now if you think its fine.¡± ¡°No problems at all, just drop by some time before then to sign the papers and pick up your things. I¡¯d talk longer, but I¡¯ve got an old woman demanding to see me at register three. Good luck out there Matthew.¡± ¡°Thanks Steve.¡± Matt said, relieved it had gone so smoothly. Hanging up the phone he leaned back, covering his face with his hands. He had now officially put all his eggs in one basket, one not even really controlled by him. Still, he already had enough to pay off his loans, his university debts, fix up his car... That damned CEO might have him on a leash, but at least it was an expensive one. Since it had now apparently become his full time job, he spent some time looking into information on his class and race. The company had always refused to give out any information towards the game, so all he had to go on were the words and reports of other players. Gremlins, as he¡¯d expected, got a bad rap from pretty much everyone, with more than a few people saying it had cheated them of being able to play the game. Apart from that, the only redeeming feature was the racial ability mother of invention, with a few people saying it had saved them alot of money over the years. The Dark Chemist class however, was a different story. It took almost half an hour for him to find any mention of the class, and when he did so it was a forum page from several years ago. Most of it was complaints and questions, people unable to figure out what to do with it. ¡°What the point of this class? You can buy potions that are better for pretty much the same cost.¡± ¡°Why do the poisons do more than the healing, but still have you build like a healer?¡± ¡°Why would anyone be this over a normal healer or assassin?¡± And above all, something that appeared in almost every second post: ¡°How does the Adaptation skill work?¡± He could agree with that sentiment. He¡¯d read and reread the skill, but couldn¡¯t make heads or tails of it. It looked vaguely like some kind of longer term buff with some weird requirements, though why you had the option to buff an unwilling creature was weird. Eventually, down near the bottom, almost two years after the last post about the class, there was one last post about it. ¡°I don¡¯t know if anyone will bother to look at this, or if anyone but me was still trying to use the class, but Adaptation is not what we thought it was. I used for ages as a way of making some animal look weird and be tougher, and make it go in as distraction. But eventually I got the permanent trigger to actually go off. The damn thing, a bear I¡¯d covered in spikes and armour plates, became a unique mob that I could name. I still didn¡¯t get control over it but I made a mob! Now, the ¡®Spine Bear¡¯ as I called it is considered a low level boss for the forest I made it in. It¡¯ll even respawn when it gets killed; it¡¯s got loot, everything! It¡¯s crazy! I didn¡¯t want to put my name on it to begin with since it looked a bit derpy, but I wish I had now. I can¡¯t believe no one else managed this, though I suppose it took me 3 years to pull it off. And now that I''ve done it, I''m going to change class. I swore I wouldn¡¯t give up until I got it to work, and now that I have... I want to go and have some fun instead. Maybe a fire mage! Ka-boom!¡± Matt read through it again, making sure he hadn¡¯t missed anything. They wanted him to change up the game? Well apparently he could really make some lasting changes. It wasn¡¯t what he¡¯d initially planned, but the idea of creating some big boss monsters to get people¡¯s attention appealed to him. He remembered the Spine Bear from his own time playing; it had simply shown up one day, wiping out a small party of players that hadn¡¯t been expecting it. Afterwards, players came in droves to defeat it and get the rare bone shards it dropped to craft weapons with. Grabbing a glass of orange juice he lay on the couch, his imagination running wild with ideas of crazy monsters he could make. His face screwed up however, when he realised he couldn¡¯t do it yet. ¡°Still got to get out of the damn Pit.¡± He muttered, swearing. He tried looking for tips online on how to get out, but while there a few bits and pieces on starting in Mount Kaloh, the closest he got to dealing with the Pit was one goblin players report. ¡°I ate garbage for three weeks, reached level ten, and was still no closer to getting out. Give up and restart. I did.¡± ¡°If it can be thought of, it can be done.¡± He said to himself. It was the mantra that had kept him going during the last two years, which he¡¯d held on to no matter what. It was possible to get out of the Pit, so he would do it. Now he just had figure out how. ~~~~~~ Dropping back in, it was still evening, though the rat appeared to have moved off again. He looked at the cockroach in his hands, his stomach growling. Whether it was because of hunger or disgust he wasn¡¯t sure, but he had to eat. Rather than eat it raw like the rat had, he decided he¡¯d spend some time and try to sort out a fire. The hard part wouldn¡¯t be finding something to burn, or to light it. That would be simple; in fact Jicker was surprised half the pit wasn¡¯t on fire at any given time. No, the hard part would be figuring out a way to hide the light and smoke it gave off. Prying up a few hull planks with his crowbar, he dug a hole down below, only a foot down, but low enough that it would be far enough from the rest of the wooden ship, before lining it with some rocks and bits of broken pottery. Going out of the ship he gathered a few armfuls of wood that, combined with what was left in the hold, should keep him going for some time. Travelling further out for the day, he found a few length of old cord he believed would suit his needs, when he spotted something. Standing near the lip of the pit was an orc, bellowing insults at passersby, but from the way people ignored them, this was nothing new in Mount Kaloh. For a moment Jicker wondered why he was risking provoking retaliation, before figuring out that that was the whole point. Pit dwellers couldn¡¯t leave the Pit, so if you wanted to challenge someone for the right to leave, you had to get them to come to you. After a few minutes the orc¡¯s shouting drew someone in, who began shouting back but remained outside the Pit. The insults grew worse and worse, attacking the others appearance, their smell and even their family, until the orc from above had had enough, and stepped in to silence him. This was what he¡¯d been waiting for though, as the Pit dweller surged upwards, desperately trying to get over the lip of the crater, before the other. He¡¯d made it almost to the top, when an axe the outsider had drawn buried itself in his back. Falling like a puppet with its strings cut, the orc fell only be stopped by the other. Leaning down, they appeared to whisper something to the dying orc before tearing free their axe and kicking the body further own hill. Laughing as the body bounced around as it struck various objects on its way down, the orc climbed back out of the Pit, while others went about as if nothing had happed. Jicker was just beginning to head over to see what had happened to the orc when various shouts and cries began to echo around. Ducking under some debris, he saw dozens of goblins, gremlins and orc¡¯s running towards where the body had fallen, pushing and shoving each other to get to it, and whatever it held, first. One larger orc, he spotted, didn¡¯t seem to care about it for the same reasons, instead reaching down to a goblin who had lowered their guard and instantly broke their neck, sending a second wave of panicked frenzy through the group. As quickly and quietly as he could, Jicker made his way back before sealing the hatch and curling up into a ball. It took almost an hour to get his emotions under control from the sudden panic, the weight of his situation hitting home. Any one of them could have killed him in seconds, and even they were too weak to fight those up top. He either needed to become much, much stronger, or find another way out. If he was even going to survive down here, he need to improve, which meant he need to figure out a way of storing his potions and poisons. He spent the rest of the day scratching designs in the dirt and making doses of his abilities, trying to find a way where he could secure them for later. Several ideas would work, but they all required things he simply didn¡¯t have. If he had started out anywhere else, things would be so simple, but no. The AI had given him one of the worst races, in one of the harshest starting points. He understood why it didn¡¯t like him, if that really was the case, but what about other players that ended up here? How could they survive under these conditions? Eventually night fell and he was willing to risk a fire, hoping the dark would hide the smoke well enough. Scraping his swords and the crowbar against each other, he managed to get enough sparks to get a small flame going in his new fire pit. Cracking open the cockroach, he pulled out the largest pieces of ¡®meat¡¯ he could find and put them on sticks, hanging them over the fire. By the time they were cooked they still smelled pretty bad, but a lot better than they had when raw. Taking a bite, he found it had a surprising sweetness, leaving it tasting like an overripe melon but with the texture of burnt chicken. It as satisfying though, as ate the rest, managing to get through it all before the rat returned again. Apparently it had decided that this made a good nest, and it didn¡¯t seem to mind if it had a roommate. It approached the fire hesitantly, but eventually it stretched out beside it like a dog, chewing loudly on another roach it had brought down. Again it was willing to trade a cockroach for a bowl of water, giving him food for another day. He wasn¡¯t sure if it was the handle animal skill, or whether he¡¯d just gotten used to it, but the rat seemed far more relaxed around him now, not even moving when he applied a healing salve to its now almost restored leg. As he sat quietly in the ship, watching the flames as he fed it more wood, his mind turned to the information he¡¯d gotten on his abilities online. ¡°Adaptation huh?¡± He muttered, twisting a stick in his hands. Deciding to take a risk, he got up and fetched a bottle of water. Pouring some more out for the rat before taking a drink himself, he approached it. ¡°Can I try something on you? It won¡¯t be bad, just ... don¡¯t attack me okay?¡± he asked it quietly. It stared at him for a few moments, and then drank the water he¡¯d poured for it and closed its eyes. Taking that as its consent, Jicker grabbed a handful of ash from the edge of the fire and applied a dose of tranquiliser to it, wanting to ensure it wouldn¡¯t move around while he was trying this. Already tired, the rat immediately fell into a deep sleep, letting out low, nasally snores. ¡°Ok then Snuffles, let¡¯s do this.¡± Jicker said to himself, before laying his hands on its side and activating the ability. Immediately he was hit by a barrage of menus and screens, gauges and prompts. Having underestimated how detailed this would be, he was taken aback by the sudden information overload. After a few minutes he eventually figured out the majority of what they did and meant, and attached labels to a few of the various menus. Some were simple, like a dial that could make it bigger or smaller, others were less so, like one that apparently could adjust the creatures blood type. A bar on the side seemed to dictate how many changes he could make, with each addition or enhancement emptying the bar proportionally. Weakening it seemed to refill the bar, but not by as much as it should. Eventually he stopped playing around and got to work. A lot of options were currently locked out, from level restrictions he assumed, but there was still a massive amount to work with. After around half an hour he locked in his choices, and looked at his creation. The rat, once smooth and sleek, now sported a large pair of curling horns on it brow. An additional set of legs sat at the back of its extended body, before a tail taken from a scorpion curled over it. The fine fur had been replaced with a thick, rhino like hide giving it the overall appearance of... Jicker sat back and wondered what had come over him. He had drawn up plenty of weird animals over the years on commissions, but those made a sort of sense. But as soon as he¡¯d started messing around with the skill, he¡¯d felt a driving need to create some twisted abomination, which explained how that person in the past had ended up with a spine bear. Apparently you needed to really focus or you¡¯d end up with some weird freakish creation. Fortunately, it hadn¡¯t been permanent, and after its duration expired, the rat shimmered, and took on its normal appearance, never even waking up during the experience. While he needed to practice the skill, he also needed to be careful. The achievements the AI had given him gave him a much higher than normal chance of the changes becoming permanent, so he¡¯d need to make sure that when he changed something, it was in a way he was happy with. But he¡¯d figured out how it worked, he thought proudly, and it was something he could use. Now he just needed a way to get some use out of the rest of his skills. A way of storing up doses of his abilities, of using his poisons without getting beaten to pulp, perhaps a way to use them at range... Considering that train of thought, Jicker decided to log off, and went go and see how you made a blowgun. Chapter 5 Thunk The dart sunk in to the side of the crate he¡¯d set up as a target, only half an inch, but for his purposes it was more than enough. Since he¡¯d decided to make it a few days ago, Jicker had spent a lot of his time practicing with his blowgun. He had reached a point where he could now consistently hit a target a few dozen meters away. Made of a length of copper pipe he¡¯d found and altered, it stood at four feet tall and could double as a quarterstaff if the need arose.
Rough copper Blowgun Item type: Weapon Grade: Common 1-2 damage This crude pipe can deliver small darts at a distance.
The darts had taken some work, but he¡¯d had success with one made from nails he¡¯d cleaned up and sharpened, some adhesive he¡¯d managed to scrape off some furniture and reheat, and tufts of rat fur that fell out as it groomed itself. Combined with a dose of poison, he was able to routinely take down the roaches that the rat ate, following it when it went hunting. The rat, which he had taken to calling Snuffles, had become more and more at ease with him, even getting him to cook some its food as well. These changes had improved his handle animal skill to level two, an impressive feat for a level two character. For his part, Jicker had continued practicing on the rat, managing to now make fairly sensible decisions when altering its shape, though the desire to make it breath fire was still strong. So far he¡¯d managed to avoid anymore Pit dwellers, though he knew that wouldn¡¯t last forever, and he dreaded his next encounter. While he had a way of attacking at range now, he could only make one batch of poison every ten minutes, and with no way of storing them, that left him with a single shot. The one other time another goblin had stumbled upon his hideout, Snuffles had been home, and took only a few seconds to rip out its throat. He wasn¡¯t sure how strong it was exactly, but it was clear that Snuffles was at least a dozen levels higher than he was. Eventually, he was going to need to fight, otherwise he¡¯d never get strong enough to get out of here, but he wasn¡¯t sure how to go about it. The one real fight he¡¯d had, he¡¯d won true enough, but only through surprise, luck and overconfidence on their part. If they¡¯d tried to kill him straight away, he¡¯d have died plain and simple. He had gone out to refill his water jars, something he had to do more often now that snuffles had figured out how to open them, and heading home when he saw the orc. Like the previous time, this orc was bellowing near the edge of the Pit, but unlike the other which was yelling insults, this one was declaring a straight challenge. Jicker recognized the orc; it was the large one that had so easily killed the goblin last time. Since this orc was at pretty much the top of the food chain in the Pit, he was curious to see how the fight would go. Getting closer, he found a spot where he could hide and watch, and waited. After a few minutes of shouting, an orc came down and accepted his challenge. Shorter than the Pit dweller, the orc wore heavy armour, and carried both a thick shield and a longsword. Compared to the challenger, who was wearing some scraps that looked like rat pelts and carried a cobbled together axe, it didn¡¯t look anywhere close to a fair fight. As soon as the other stepped into the Pit, the dweller went on the offensive, charging forward faster than Jicker had expected they could manage. It was also apparently faster than the armoured orc expected, who barely managed to get his shield up in time. Unleashing a series of heavy blows, the Dweller kept on the attack, circling around until he had his back to the edge of the Pit. Not so that he could try and escape it seemed, as he pushed his foe further down, but so that his opponent couldn¡¯t. Unable to match the outsider in their equipment, the orc seemed to be focusing on skill, strategy and rage. But that strategy could last forever, and eventually the armoured orc found the rhythm and began to hold his ground, even getting a few of his own blows in. But dweller¡¯s frenzied blows had already given it a strong lead, and seemed inevitable that it would win what had become a drawn out trading of blows. At least, until the outsider backed away suddenly, before drawing and drinking a potion from his belt. As his wounds healed before his eyes, he gave a wild howl and grinned madly at the larger orc, and jumped back into the fight. Where once he¡¯d held the advantage, the orc now was trying to fight on even ground with a healthier and better armed opponent. Each blow mattered more and more as their health dropped and their wounds built up, but it seemed that the outsider would win this time as well. Unless... Reaching for one of his darts, he dipped it into a handful of water, applying a dose of Anaesthetic to it. Loading the dart, he lined up the shot as best he could and, giving a short prayer to whomever would listen, fired. The dart flew through the air, and struck the dweller in the back of the shoulder. Whatever damage was done by the dart was over powered by the healing effect, and more importantly, applied a level of damage resistance. Flinching slightly in surprise as the dart struck, the orc narrowly avoided an incoming blow, then gave an exuberant shout and returned the blow full force. While that would help him match the others armour, Jicker realised, it still couldn¡¯t put out the same level of damage. Pulling out his sword, he cut open his palm, and pouring water on to the wound, created a dose of adrenaline. Loading it into his blowgun, he waited for an opening in the fight, and fired again. Not flinching this time, the orc seemed to have been ready for it, and engaged as soon as it struck. The extra speed and restored stamina, seemed to be enough to swing the fight back in his favour, and pushed forward. Not liking the sudden turn of events, the outsider snarled and retreated slightly, going for another potion. But not having lived in the Pit, it was unused to the loose and random footing; it slipped and fell back, the vial flying from its hand. Snatching it out of the air, the dweller downed it immediately before advancing on his downed opponent. They tried to raise their shield to defend themselves, and appeared to make some kind of mercy plea, but the fight was done. Bring his axe down in a wide swing, the dweller severed his opponent''s head, raising it high and screaming to the heavens. Throwing it down, he turned and began to climb out of the Pit when he paused. Reaching up to his shoulder, he pulled out one of the darts that was still embedded, and looked at it. He stared at it for a moment and then looked around, trying to spot its source. Despite being hidden in shadow, the orc spotted Jicker and met his gaze for a few seconds, before nodding, dropping the dart and climbing out the Pit. Jicker didn¡¯t even bother trying to go for the body or his darts this time, already there were cheers and cries of people racing for the fallen orc¡¯s remains. Whoever got a hold of the armour and weapon would have a much better chance of getting out, so the competition would be fierce. Heading home, he was filled with a sense of triumph. He hadn¡¯t gotten out himself, but he¡¯d proved it could be done. The trick was, he realised, wasn¡¯t to fight on their terms but to play to your strengths. It seemed incredibly obvious in hindsight, but with everyone else down here being some kind of warrior or thief, he¡¯d lost sight of that. You didn¡¯t need to be the best fighter; you just had to be the best you... Looking at Snuffles, who was currently gnawing on jar lid, trying to open it, he realised where he¡¯d been going wrong. The reason why rats lived and thrived in these sorts of conditions, was that they had grown and adapted to suit their environment. He didn¡¯t need to try and create some new sort of monster; he just had to make a better rat. Going over to Snuffles he opened the jar for it and filled its bowl, scratching it behind its ears until it settled down. Once it was calm enough to stay seated, Jicker activated his ability. Fighting off the various impulses, he got to work, following a plan. He didn¡¯t try to add limbs or spikes; instead just working to enhance what was already there. This proved far more efficient than his other attempts, and by the time he was done, Snuffles had grown into a monster. Standing over four feet at the shoulder, it was over a dozen feet long, its tail looping around for another ten. Its muscles had been built up, though retaining its sleek build, and its claws and teeth were hardened to a point where they¡¯d give iron a run for its money. The only addition he made was a foot long spike at the end of its tail, with edges sharp enough to cut through flesh. When he¡¯d first started experimenting, he¡¯d been surprised how much he could do at such a low level. However he realised that through a combination of his skills, achievements and Snuffles¡¯ higher level, he had a lot more to work with than he normally would. Finishing off with a change to its fur colour, making it a pure black, he locked in the changes.
Ding! Adaptation has become permanent. Unique creature created. Type: Modified male giant rat. Level: 21 Do you wish to name this creature?
He¡¯d done it! He¡¯d made a new creature, all on his own. He wasn¡¯t sure if the better choices increased his chances or whether he¡¯d just gotten lucky, but right now he was too happy to question it. ¡°The creatures name is Snuffles.¡± He said proudly, not minding if anyone else would think it weird.
Name accepted, Snuffles the Pit rat has been created. It will receive additional stat points as a unique monster. This creature is now able to respawn, and will drop items proportional to its level. Do you wish to be identified as its creator? This cannot be changed afterwards.
Right, there was this question. He¡¯d thought about it since he saw it mentioned, about what would be the better choice. On the one hand it would be awesome to be known as the creator of monsters, but in the end, the last thing he wanted was people looking for him or information about him. ¡°No, leave it as anonymous.¡±
Creator will remain unknown. Now applying changes to creature.
A pale green glow appeared around Snuffles for a moment, waking him from his rest. Shaking himself as he got up, Jicker got a proper look at just how big he¡¯d become and realised he, and it was a male, he now realised, wouldn¡¯t be able to fit through his tunnels anymore. Towering above him, the rat looked around as if seeing its surroundings for the first time. Focusing on Jicker, he could see there was intelligence in the rat¡¯s eyes that hadn¡¯t been there before. He got up to go and have a better look at his work, when another system message came through.
You have unlocked the Evolution Statistic. Do wish to accept? Each point of Evolution increases the capacity for adaptation, unlocks additional options and adds Bonus stats equal to your level of the stat, as well as reducing the cost of abilities targeting these creatures. For each point of Evolution you will earn 0.1% of the experience earned by unique creatures you create and chance of permanency will be increased by 1%. Synergy - Handle animal effects will be increased by 10% per point on created creatures. Warning: Once a statistic is selected it cannot be removed. You have 5 Stat slots remaining.
Jicker paused, unsure of what to do. The other person hadn¡¯t mentioned anything about this, but if it had been three years since they started, they¡¯d probably filled all their slots by then. It would use up a precious slot, but it would be a substantial bonus for what looked like could be his main trick to shake up the world. The experience part though, didn¡¯t seem that useful. Snuffles would need to kill athousand cockroaches for him to earn the experience from killing one. But on the other hand, he would eventually kill that many and combined with any other creations he made, plus if he could increase the stat somehow...It would build up pretty quickly. ¡°I Accept¡± he told the AI, seeing the statistic entered into his character sheet, and triggering a second wave of glowing on Snuffles as he received its enhancement. Blinking, the rat moved around him, picking up one of the caught roaches and swallowing it whole. ¡°Well, aren¡¯t you the impressive one.¡± Jicker said to him admiringly. Despite the physical changes, Snuffles maintained the same attitude it had always had, going back to sleep now that it had eaten something. Checking the time, he saw that it was still only midday. Not wanting to risk going outside while people were still fighting over supplies, and not feeling sleeping through the day, he signed out. ~~~~~~Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. Removing the mask, he went through his normal routine of food and a shower to clear his head. Seeing he was low on a few things he went down to the supermarket, figuring he could sort out his leaving papers while he was there. Steve spotted him immediately, offering him a drink and getting his forms, before having to duck away to sort out one problem or another. While he was always in a rush, Matt had never known Steve to be anything but happy with his work, and hoped that one day he could find a job that brought him that level of contentment. Getting home, he went to check his phone for the time but realised he¡¯d forgotten to charge before he¡¯d started playing yesterday, letting it run flat. Plugging it in he was greeted with four missed calls and two dozen messages from Sarah, all asking where he was. He was about to reply when his phone rang, the caller ID showing that it was her fifth call of the day. ¡°Sarah, hi, sorry I missed-¡°he began as he answered the phone. ¡°Where the hell have you been? I''ve been trying to reach you for the past hour, and don¡¯t say you were in game because I can see on my screen that you weren¡¯t.¡± She shouted back, cutting him off. ¡°I- wait, you¡¯re watching when I play? Isn¡¯t that a bit stalker-ish?¡± He asked. ¡°It¡¯s my job Matt.¡± She sighed. ¡°At this point in time, tracking you is part of my job. Anyway, Mr. Fronz wanted to speak to you as soon as you next got out, hence my calls. Now hold on a second while I try to put you through.¡± ¡°But I don¡¯t want to...¡± He said before giving up, already hearing the sounds of hold music. His mind was beginning to go numb after listening to some tweeny pop music for ten minutes, but eventually it cut out replaced by the voice of August. ¡°Ah Mr. Harper, it¡¯s so good of you to find the time to speak to me.¡± He said in a calm tone of voice. ¡°Sorry, my phone wasn¡¯t charged and I forgot to plug it in.¡± Matt said cautiously. ¡°I knew there¡¯d be a reason. You didn¡¯t seem the type to reject a person¡¯s calls, certainly not important ones. And while I was slightly annoyed from having to wait for this call, not something I deal with often I assure you, I''m calling with good news. ¡°I''m not sure what you mean.¡± He said, hoping they hadn¡¯t found a way to tack on more to the contract he was in. ¡°Its¡¯ your new Monster, of course! When I heard you¡¯d been dropped into that hole in the ground I admit I was concerned we wouldn¡¯t get much out of you, yet here we are. Playing less than a week and already creating a new enemy for the area, a feat that has only been achieved... three times since the games launch. An impressive feat indeed, though I''m not sure I understand the choice of name, but overall, I¡¯m very pleased with your progress so far, and look forward to seeing you continue.¡± ¡°And the rest of the board members? What¡¯s their opinion?¡± he asked. August chuckled darkly. ¡°Hmm, I¡¯ll let you in on a little secret, something most people don¡¯t seem to realise. I own over sixty percent of Masquerade Entertainment, since I never wanted to lose control since I started this company. I can assure that they don¡¯t matter in any real sense; I am the one that owns you. Understood?¡± ¡°Crystal.¡± Matt replied bitterly. ¡°Good. In that case, keep up the good work Mr. Harper.¡± And with that he hung up without another word. It was a good thing Matt hadn¡¯t gotten used to having plenty of money around; otherwise his phone would have found itself buried in the drywall. As it was it took all of his self control to not throw it across the room. All the joy he¡¯d gotten from his accomplishments had been stripped away in seconds by a single phone call. Needing to zone out for a while, he grabbed the carton of beer he¡¯d picked up at the store and turned on the stereo. As the sounds of metal washed over him, he lay back and tried to get the thought of the smug suit wearing bastard out of his head. And after drinking a dozen cans, he didn¡¯t think much about anything. An incessant buzzing, which turned out to be his phone, woke him from his bed, which turned out to be the floor. Rolling over, he felt around and eventually found it buried under what appeared to be his pants. ¡°Hello?¡± He mumbled out, his head feeling like it was going to split open. ¡°Matt? Hi, it¡¯s Sarah and, wow you sound terrible. You ok?¡± ¡°Just trying the old experiment of drinking my problems away.¡± He replied, staggering to his feet. ¡°Been there, definitely been there.¡± She said sadly. ¡°Anyway, I¡¯ll make this quick, but I just wanted to apologise for yelling at you yesterday. It wasn¡¯t really your fault that I couldn¡¯t get a hold of you, so I shouldn¡¯t have been angry with you.¡± ¡°I''m, a little hung over right now, but I don¡¯t really remember you yelling at me. Are you sure it was me?¡± He asked. There was a moment of silence. ¡°Have you...Listened to the voicemails I left you yesterday?¡± she said awkwardly. ¡°No, I pretty much just attacked my liver as soon as I got off the phone with your boss. Should I?¡± ¡°No! Just, um, delete them. It¡¯s not really important anyway since I got through to you in the end, right?¡± Matt chuckled, then wished he hadn¡¯t as a new wave of pain went through his head. ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll believe you. Anyway isn¡¯t that a little emotional to be getting for just a phone call?¡± ¡°Are you kidding? Mr. Fronz decided that you need to be monitored, and said that if I failed in that, or you didn¡¯t achieve his goals, then he¡¯d ensure I¡¯d be blacklisted to every game company he could contact. Which, considering who he is, is all of them.¡± She said bitterly. It was Matts turn to pause. ¡°Isn¡¯t that...wrong? How can he hold you responsible for my actions?¡± ¡°Like I¡¯ve mentioned before, I''m required to give you any assistance I can, as long as it¡¯s within the rules of the game. Otherwise, it¡¯s back of the unemployment line for me.¡± ¡°That sucks, but it could always be worse.¡± Matt said sympathetically. ¡°You¡¯re right, obviously. I know it¡¯s not my life on the line here, but it¡¯s still my future. I¡¯ve never wanted to do anything else since I was a little girl.¡± ¡°Then...ugh, I need to go back to bed. We¡¯ll just need to ensure we pull this off. So what help can you give me anyway?¡± he said, trying to rub the sleep out of his eyes. ¡°Not a lot, if I''m honest here. There are pretty strict laws about people who work on the game playing it, insider information and all that. So I''m fairly limited to just collecting information that¡¯s been released to, or written by, the public.¡± She said, sounding apologetic. ¡°Well, its more help than I had before. Hmmm, feel like getting started?¡± he asked, an idea slowly forming in his misfiring brain. ¡°Sure, it¡¯ll give me something to put in my report, what do you need?¡± ¡°See what you can find on creature creation, as well as things on biology, ecology, that sort of stuff. Basically anything that can help me understand how monsters work in the game, like skills and things. You following me?¡± he asked. ¡°Yeah, ok I can do this.¡± She replied, the sounds of a keyboard hammering away in the background. ¡°It might take me a few days to get things together though.¡± ¡°No problem, just get it to me when you can.¡± ¡°Done, and for your side, go drink some water and eat some food. Seriously, you sound terrible.¡± ¡°Ha, yes ma¡¯am.¡± ¡°Take care of yourself Matt, bye.¡± She said, ending the call. Taking her advice, he went and got himself some breakfast, managing to hold down some dry toast long enough to get into the shower. Getting rid of the smell of booze that had soaked into him, he began to feel like a person again. ¡°Right then, time to get back to work I guess.¡± He said to himself, and went looking for where he¡¯d put his mask. ~~~~~~ When he logged back in, Snuffles had already headed out, carving an even larger tunnel through the side of the boat, wide enough that Jicker could walk along it without even having to bend over. Deciding to do just that, he went exploring, wanting to see where the rat¡¯s normal hunting grounds were, and where his new back door led. Running his hand along the wall to keep track of where he was, he wandered through the darkness, wondering where he¡¯d end up. After several minutes he saw a glimmer of light, finally having reached the end, and exited the tunnels. A small cavern, slightly larger than his ship, had been broken open, one of the walls seeming to have collapsed when some of the debris outside had shifted. Apparently, some Pit dwellers had decided to make it their home recently, with several box¡¯s of old clothes and various objects littering the ground. But he had a feeling that was no longer the case when he saw a severed arm lying at the edge of the chamber. Stepping out, still unsure of his exact location, he was greeted by a scene of chaos. Bodies littered the ground in various states, some armed, some not. He was trying to understand what he was seeing when a voice called out behind him. ¡°Runt, Get out of there, the beast is still around!¡± Turning around, he saw an orc armed with a long harpoon crouched on top of the cavern he¡¯d come from. The orc seemed to be scanning the surroundings nervously, not looking at him at all. ¡°What beast?¡± He asked up to the orc, drawing his blowgun. ¡°Dunno, no one ever got a clear look at it, not for long anyway. I¡¯d get to higher ground if I was you.¡± the orc replied, shifting his grip. ¡°If there¡¯s some big monster here, why didn¡¯t you leave?¡± Jicker asked as he climbed up the side an old cart, scanning the area but not sure what he was looking for. ¡°My group only moved in here a few weeks ago, cleared out the rats nest and everything. All our stuff was in there and it was fine. But then some time yesterday this...thing has been picking everyone off in the area. I think that....Oh god, I think I''m the only one of us left. Where¡¯d you come from anyway? I didn¡¯t see you approach.¡± ¡°I came through the tunnel underneath this place.¡± The orc turned to him. ¡°What tunnel? What are you talking- Oh no.¡± The orc stopped suddenly, going pale as it looked past him. Jicker turned to see what he was looking at as a shadow flew over him, ending in a wet, crunching sound. Twisting back around, he saw Snuffles, with his jaws currently wrapped around what had been the orc¡¯s head. ¡°Hey Snuffles, I guess that explains things doesn¡¯t it?¡± He said, putting his pipe away. ¡°They drove you out of this place, so you came back to return the favour huh? Well I¡¯d say you¡¯ve succeeded.¡± Snuffles gave a happy wag of its tail in way of a response, carving lines in the debris as the spike whipped around. ¡°We¡¯ll I''m going to have a look around and see what I can find, but then we might need to cover up that tunnel. Don¡¯t want any one sneaking in now do we.¡± He said, patting the rat. Snuffles then gave a snort and began to walk off, not interested in this place anymore. No one else seemed to be approaching the area, perhaps not wanting to cross paths with ¡°the beast¡±, so Jicker had time to search the area, as well as most of the bodies. Most of what he saw was the same as his, cobbled together weapons, rags for clothing and the occasional piece of food that was still almost good. There were a few finds though that really stood out. One orc had managed to get a hold of a cloak that was in good condition, or it had been until Snuffles had torn through, and his legs as well. The damage was all on the lower part however, and since the orc had been more than twice as tall as him, it would serve him well, the dark grey cloth much thicker and finer than the rags he wore now. He also found several more jars and tins, either empty or holding water. His greatest prize however, was a pack. It was a smaller one, and not very well made, but it meant he could actually carry all of his equipment properly, and not need to drag a hessian sack everywhere when he wanted water. Climbing to the top of the cavern where the orc had died, he began to jump around, trying to loosen up the garbage and bury the tunnel entrance. He had shaken down a good amount and was going to try and lever some more free when a shout caught his attention. ¡°Gremlin!¡± He whipped around, trying to find out who¡¯d spotted him as he drew his pipe. Unable to see anyone, he wondered if he¡¯d imagined it. ¡°Gremlin, get up here!¡± Looking up, he saw who was calling out. Standing at the lip of the Pit, was the orc who had gotten out, staring down at him. They hadn¡¯t been out for long, but it showed just howdifferent the conditions were. Gone were the rags and gaunt expression, now the orc was wearing high quality armour, looking in their prime. Warily, Jicker began to climb up and see what the orc wanted. He knew it could be a trap, but he couldn¡¯t see a reason why someone outside would bother messing with a Pit dweller. He approached the orc, and stopped a dozen feet before the edge. The orc glared at him for a few moments before speaking. ¡°This was you.¡± The orc held out one of the darts he¡¯d hit him with, no hint of question in his tone. ¡°Yes, it was.¡± He replied cautiously, not seeing a point in hiding it. The orc grunted and through the dart to him. ¡°Why? Why help me fight? You gained nothing from it.¡± The orc asked, frustrated. ¡°I just...¡± Jicker paused to get his thoughts in order. Why had he done it? ¡°I needed to know that it was possible to get out. I had to see it for myself.¡± He said, hoping the orc would understand. For a moment the orc just looked at him, before slowly nodding. ¡°It has been... a long time since one has left the Pit, it¡¯s true, so I suppose I can see why you had doubts. I can only remember two others getting out since I was tricked into here three years ago. ¡°You survived this place for three years?!¡± He asked incredulously. The orc laughed at his reaction. ¡°Amazing is it not? But in truth I did not survive all this time. No, I am one of those known as a strong soul, blessed or cursed to return upon my death. Over a hundred time I fell and was returned to the Pit, and not a day went by I did not curse the one who put me in there.¡± The orc went silent, staring hatefully at something only found in his memories. ¡°You were beaten by someone from the Pit? I kind of doubt that.¡± Jicker said, hoping he didn¡¯t offend the orc. ¡°You would be right. Before I fell, I was Morthoc, warden of the Pit! None could best me in combat, and none dared oppose me!¡± Morthoc grinned, remembering better times, but the expression didn¡¯t last. ¡°But then Grolug, may the gods take him, betrayed me. Even though he is a strong soul himself, he had been jealous of my status and strength, but he knew that even if he defeated me, I would rise again and take my vengeance. Instead he had one from the Pit challenge me, and in my arrogance, I accepted. As I toyed with them, Grolug somehow struck me from behind, leaving me crippled, and allowing the Pit dweller to best me. When I returned, I had become bound to the Pit, and Grolug had taken my role as warden. He ensured that none would approach or fight me for two years, ensuring I could not escape. At first it was simple, I was far more powerful than any other down there, but two years of no real food, sleep or rest weakened me to the point you saw, until I could no longer fight my way out, not against the advantages those outside possess.¡± ¡°Bah!¡± he said suddenly. ¡°This gets me nowhere. I did not call for you to tell you old tales. No, while I do not care for it, I am...indebted to you, for your aid. Since I wish to be free of this debt, what do you seek?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t suppose you¡¯d take my place?¡± Jicker asked jokingly, then instantly regretted it as Morthoc face went black. ¡°I owe you a great deal it is true,¡± he began in a low voice, ¡°But there is no power on this world that would have me willing enter that place again, and I would destroy you should you try.¡± Jicker raised his hands in apology. ¡°A poorly chosen joke, you have my apologies. I wouldn¡¯t wish this place on anyone. Well, almost anyone.¡± He said, thinking of the CEO that was the reason he was in this mess. Morthoc relaxed. ¡°I know how you feel. If I could find a way to get Grolug to be trapped down there...Hmm, if you could ever find a way to best him, I would reward you greatly, not the least of which would be your freedom.¡±
Ding! Quest: Defeat the traitorous warden. Morthoc has asked your aid in banishing Grolug to the Pit in vengeance. Success: Defeat Grolug in combat Reward: 2000xp and Morthoc¡¯s favour Failure: N/A
¡°I would gladly help cast him down Morthoc, but in my current state...¡± Jicker said gesturing to the rags he was wearing. ¡°Indeed, you would be no match for him now it is true. Dreams for another day I suppose. Regardless, I must clear my debt with you...¡± Morthoc paused. ¡°My name is Jicker¡± he said helpfully. ¡°And if you don¡¯t mind me asking, you don¡¯t exactly sound like the others I''ve heard around here.¡± ¡°...Jicker.¡± He said nodding, ¡°In the past I spent a few years playing diplomat for the cavern, I suppose some of that stuck with me. So, what do you seek? If it is in my power I will do what I can to get it for you to balance things.¡± Jicker thought about it. There were plenty of things he could do with, but what did he really need? ¡°I need... a way of storing medicines and poisons, if you can find one.¡± ¡°That¡¯s all?¡± Morthoc said, raising an eyebrow. ¡°Very well, though there are few who practice such crafts within this cavern, I will seek out an answer for you, and give it to you when I can. Of this, I give you my word. Now I must go. It is seen as weakness talking to those of the Pit.¡± He gave a small wave as he walked away. ¡°Should you manage to get out however,¡± he said, calling over his shoulder ¡°I will be happy to buy you a drink.¡± Returning back to his home, he considering trying to board up this end of the tunnel, but realised it would be knocked down the next time Snuffles came in. Getting to work, he pulled the cloak from his pack and carefully cut off the unheeded length before some of its loose thread and a large splinter of wood to sew the rest into a rough tunic. The result was...
Grey hobo¡¯s garb 2 defence This poorly made clothing was once quality fabric Special: +5 cold resist
Fortunately he wasn¡¯t planning to become a tailor; otherwise he¡¯d have a problem. Otherwise his new clothing was fine, a massive improvement over his old rags, both in stats and in comfort. He started to go through the jars and containers he¡¯d picked up, and realised he now had had far more than he needed. Filling up one of the larger cans with water, he put it over the fire to boil, hoping to drink water that he could see through. Once then he¡¯d have something better to drink at least, though he was still stuck eating roaches since there was nothing else around. As Snuffles came in and curled up by the fire however, an idea started to form and, taking his blowgun, he went out to hunt. Chapter 6 Several days of hunting had gone by but he was making progress on his latest plan. It had taken a lot of trial and error, enough that his failures had put him up to level 5. Using tranquilisers, he¡¯d carefully collected a few dozen roaches and taken them alive, storing them in a pen he¡¯d constructed in his home. He¡¯d had to rebuild and reinforce their cage twice already; not from them trying to escape, but from Snuffles deciding it was easier than hunting. Jicker had finally gotten through to the rat that these weren¡¯t food, though one still went missing on occasion. But now that he had plenty to test with, he got to work. Taking one of them out of cage, he carefully sedated it and restrained as best he could with some cords had collected for this purpose. Once it was fully immobilised he got to work, using his adaption ability to try and change the features of the roaches. It was slow going, since he wasn¡¯t sure exactly how you went about changing the taste of an animal¡¯s meat, but he adjusted a few settings and tweaked a few numbers until he had a cockroach that looked similar to the normal ones, but more muscular, and for some reason, blue. Once the change was complete he picked up a sword and killed it quickly, seeing no point in causing the simple creature any more pain. But as soon as it died, its form began to flicker and melt, returning to become the body of a normal roach. ¡°Damn it!¡± Jicker swore. Apparently, if it wasn¡¯t permanent, it wouldn¡¯t stick beyond death, which means he couldn¡¯t even test whether he was going in the right direction. Unless... Waiting for the ability¡¯s cool down to reset, he modified another roach, repeating his efforts as closely as he could. However this time, rather than try and kill it himself, he woke Snuffles from his nap. Throwing the experiment to the rat, he tried to judge the difference by Snuffles reaction as he ate it in a single bite out of the air. By the way he quickly spat out as much as he could and went to his water bowl, it seemed he¡¯d gone in the wrong direction. It took several attempts to find one that was considered good enough for Snuffles to actually eat, having to be bribed and cajoled into it after the first failure. The result was a large, light blue roach the size of a golden retriever. The first sign he had of his success was the rat¡¯s nose twitching slightly before leaping on top of it and biting a chunk out of it.
Ding! Adaptation has become permanent. Creature remains too similar to existing creatures become unique, adaptation can be repeated at a 10% chance of permanency Type: Modified Pit Roach. Level: 5 Do you wish to name this creature?
Well, it wasn¡¯t unique, but he¡¯d managed to make another permanent change, though the rate Snuffles was going through it, it wouldn¡¯t last long. Quickly carving off a large chunk, he spitted it and put it over his fire, leaving the rest for the rat to finish off. As it cooked, a delicious savoury scent filled the room, the first decent thing Mat had smelled since coming into the Pit. Eventually he decided he¡¯d waited long enough and cut himself off a piece and tried it. Gone was the taste of rotting fruit, instead there was a delicate taste that reminded him of mushrooms , combined with a strong base of chicken, leaving him with a juicy cut of meat that was something he¡¯d choose to eat. He couldn¡¯t remember what had come over him, but before he knew it he¡¯d eaten a few pounds of it, the rest having vanished into the ever hungry rodent that was now happily lying on its back digesting its meal by the fire. He grinned at Snuffles. ¡°I definitely need to make more of those... shoot! I still need to name it!¡± he said, reopening the menu, relieved to see the prompt still waiting for him and racked his brain for a name. ¡°The name will be...Azure Roach.¡±
Name accepted. Do you wish to be identified as the creator?
¡°No.¡± Maybe he¡¯d want to attach his name to something one day, but until he was in a better position, these would remain anonymous. As it was, he now had real food, clean water and warm clothes. With all that giving him a warm feeling he lay down by the fire himself, and got some rest.
Creator will remain unknown. Now applying changes to creature.
The increased creation chance, combined with his achievement bonuses, meant that he had around a one in three chance of creating the new Azure Roaches. It only took two days before then pen he¡¯d built had become packed with them. He wanted to make sure he had plenty of them, not wanting to go back to eating the regular kind now that he had an option to eat literally anything else. Snuffles apparently shared the sentiment, and had began dropping live roaches in the pen before dragging a larger one out, making Jicker wonder just how smart he¡¯d become. Slowly, his stock began to grow, to the point he considered trying to trade some of them away for other supplies. The problem was that while there would definitely be interest in them, he couldn¡¯t think of a way to stop people just coming in and taking them if they knew he had some. Coming to a decision, he loosed his herd of roaches out through the rear tunnel, away from his home. Snuffles whined in complaint, not happy with his food walking away. ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± he said, scratching the rat¡¯s ears, ¡°I¡¯ll make some more later.¡± The plan was to let people see the roaches in the wild, so they would assume they came from him. That way he could still produce them in secret, but be able to trade them more openly. It was going fine to begin with, as the roaches began to spread out as they left the tunnel, their shells glistening in the sunlight, when the game grabbed his attention.
Enough Azure Roaches now exist in the wild that they are now a sustainable species. Do you accept?
What did it mean by that? And what exactly was it asking him to decide? He tried to remember if any nature documentaries had talked about this, but nothing came to mind. Eventually he just gave up and decided to chance it. ¡°Yes.¡± He said, far more confidently than he felt.
Azure Roaches are now a full species of Genesis. They will now breed and spawn naturally within this area, and slowly spread to other areas in the world that can sustain them. Azure Roaches can no longer be created. You cannot create other species from Azure Roaches. Evolution has increased by 1! Total: 2
¡°Heh, Snuffles is gonna be mad.¡± Jicker muttered to himself. Falling to the ground, he sat there for a while unsure of how to react. He¡¯d been playing for only a few weeks now, and only just passed level 4, something that could be done in a few hours normally. At least, it would anywhere else other than this damn Pit. But even so, without really meaning to, he¡¯d just released a brand new species across all of Genesis. He could predict and guess how a new boss monster would fit into the world, which was simple. It would make itself a lair, that people would find, hunt and slay it and that it would drop some items of varying value, end of story. But introducing an entire new species? Even if, somehow, no one ever saw it, it would have an impact. It would eat and become food for other creatures, throwing of their own balances. They might spread out to look for food, or be drawn in by the new prey. And that was just the beginning, in the real world; there were hundreds of species that had gone extinct when a foreign one was introduced. There was no way of telling where the effects of this would end, and he hadn¡¯t even known what he was doing. Eventually, he dragged himself back inside before he got spotted. Throwing a few planks into the fire pit, he sat down and lay there, staring at the ceiling, lost in his thoughts. Snuffles came in after a while and dropped a normal roach down beside him, expecting him to change it for him. ¡°Sorry bud, no can do, but there are some outside so help yourself.¡± He said tiredly as the rat stared at him patiently. Giving a snort, Snuffles bumped him with his snout and headed outside. Getting up to throw the roach that¡¯d been left into the now empty pen he stood aimlessly for a minute, unsure of what to do. Giving up, he moved over the pile of old sacks that had become his bed, and took a nap. Crack! Rubbing his eyes, Jicker slowly got up, wondering what had gotten him up before his alarm. Looking around he saw that Snuffles was still asleep in the middle of the room, legs in the air, wiggling as he pursued something in his dreams. Assuming it wasn¡¯t a threat if it hadn¡¯t disturbed the rat, he went out to see what the noise was. Poking his head out of the trap door, he looked for where it had come from. He didn¡¯t have to look far, as buried deep in the mast of the ship was a long spear. Wrapped around the shaft of the weapon was a band of cloth covering what looked like a box. He was going to leave, not wanting to fight whoever it belonged to when he noticed a piece of paper with his name sticking out. It took a while to pull it out of the mast but eventually he managed it and brought it inside. Removing the paper, it turned out to be a letter from Morthoc. Jicker, First off, while I''m sure you feel your fairly well hidden from others in the Pit, you are much easier to spot coming and going from outside. You should endeavour to correct this immediately if you plan to ever make it out. As I agreed, I have sought out a way for you to store what medicines and poisons you could produce. Like I had assumed, there are very few who practice the healing arts to any great degree, people mostly relying on smaller healing magic or simply ignoring the problem, as is the orcish way. Nevertheless, I swore, and so I have acquired the items in this box for you. The lore keepers said they could achieve what you asked for if used properly, though they look like they will take more work than you may have expected. With this, my debt to you is paid in full, and unless you escape the Pit, you will not hear from me again. Good luck, Morthoc After reading the letter, Jicker''s first thought was that the orc had surprisingly nice handwriting for a savage warrior. Then he put such thoughts aside and began unwinding the package on the spear to see what it contained. Over 8 feet long, the spear was far too big for him to use as a weapon, but here, everything had to be valued, even the wrapping would be carefully stored away. Looking at the unwrapped objects, they appeared to be a book and some kind of tool box. He decided to examine the book first, figuring it would make more sense.
Master Kremels advanced guide to medicine Item type: Skill book Grade: Rare Uses: 1 This Skill book can be used to instantly grant the apothecary skill.
Well, Jicker thought, skills were always useful, and a free one was hard to come by. He couldn¡¯t remember off the top of his head what the apothecary skill gave you, but he assumed that it would be something to do with the box that had come with it.
Pill shaping kit Item type: Crafting kit Grade: Rare This kit contains all necessary moulds and tools to produce pills and tablets.
¡°Not what I was expecting,¡± He said to himself, ¡°But I guess it will work.¡± Picking up the book he triggered it and accepted it¡¯s prompt.
You have unlocked the Apothecary skill!A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. Current level: 1 Allows for the creation, enhancement and understating of various medicinal recipes. Recipe gained: Inert powder ¨C 5 units of limestone, 5 units of salt & 7 units of water- produces 10 units of Inert powder. Inert powder can be blended with any liquid or powders medicine or poison and processed to produce pills of weaker quality. 1 dose of selected medicine and 1 unit of inert powder produce 3 pills at %30 the strength of the initial medicine.
This would definitely be useful, he decided. Looking in the box, he saw that Morthoc had thoughtfully included a small jar of premade powder, which would useful since he doubted he¡¯d be able to get many of the necessary ingredients down here, at least not easily. The book had more uses than just giving him the skill it seemed, as he opened it to have a look. Inside were carefully drawn diagrams and procedures of how to use the equipment, of how to extract substances from plants and animals and of how to identify various diseases. He wasn¡¯t sure how much of it he would end up putting to use, but when he had the time, he promised himself he would study it and learn what he could. Looking at the jar of powder, it didn¡¯t look like he had enough for more than ten or so batches, but he had to start somewhere. Carefully measuring out the amount needed with a little cup that came in the kit, he poured it into a small beaker. Then, creating a dose of anaesthetic with his boiled water, he poured that in as well and began to stir the flask, the contents giving off a pale light as they changed. After a few moments the colour changed, becoming a pale yellow as a sign that this step was complete. Pouring the mix into a small press from the kit, he selected an appropriate mould from the box and pressed down hard. Despite the press only having a single mould inside, and the contents seeming far too much to stay inside, by the games laws the recipe completed, leaving him with three small yellow pills as a result.
Anaesthetic Tablet Item type: medicine Grade: Common, created by Jicker (Level 5) Effect: +4hp, 4% physical damage resisted for 1 minute
At the moment, he thought while studying his work, they weren¡¯t great, being less effective than just having the effect directly. But as his mastery of the skill improved, he was sure that it would become a very effective tool. The problem now would be trying to get a hold of more of the inert powder to work with; otherwise it wouldn¡¯t do him any good at all. An idea struck him, but he quickly drove it from his mind, trying to convince himself of what he was trying to do. ¡°Clearly,¡± he said loudly to himself, ¡°the person who wrote this book didn¡¯t know what they were doing. Their powder recipe is completely wrong.¡± Snuffles woke up at the sudden outburst, looking at him oddly as he walked over to the fire. ¡°I have no idea why he uses such useless ingredients when all you really need is some ash and water and you can make up some powder as easy as that.¡± Jicker grabbed a handful of ash and dropped it in a beaker before sloshing in some water and began swirling it around, trying to act as confidently as he could. For a while nothing happened, but he refused to break and after a few minutes...
Mother of Invention! You have discovered an alternate recipe for inert powder! 2 units of ash & 2 units of water produce 1 unit of inert powder. This version will only work for you.
¡°Ha ha!¡± he laughed dancing around the room. He¡¯d done it; he¡¯d gotten the system to accept his idea despite the fact it had no reason to. An old memory suddenly sprung to mind, from back before he¡¯d first started to play the game. He¡¯d been a part of a huge dungeon clearing operation and saw someone playing as a monk doing things that seemed impossible even by the games rules and logic. When he questioned the about it they¡¯d said it was something anyone could do if they tried. When Jicker had disagreed, saying he wouldn¡¯t be able to do it in a million years, the monk grinned at him. ¡°There¡¯s a reason why the word impossible starts with I. If you can¡¯t make yourself believe you can do it, what chance do you have to convince the universe?¡± Those words had stuck with him for a long time, and were one of driving forces behind his upheaval. That was the trick to it apparently. If you could make yourself believe it would work, then it seemed more likely that it would. It wouldn¡¯t work every time, of that he was sure, but once in a while he could do it. Scooping up as much ash as he could from around the fire, which had built up over the past few weeks, Jicker began mass producing the powder, and began creating his healing pills and poisons as quickly as he could. He soon realised a problem however. While this was a good way of storing them, the small pellets wouldn¡¯t be able to poison his blowgun darts. He either had to continue using it in its previous state, or come up with something else. Looking through the case to see if there was anything else he could use, he found a larger, slightly oval shaped mould the size of his thumbnail. Measuring it against his blowgun, he made a batch of poison using it hoping it was what he thought it was.
Poison pellet Recipe: 1 dose of selected poison and 1 unit of inert powder produce 2 pills at %40 the strength of the initial poison. Item type: Ammunition Grade: Common, created by Jicker (Level 5) Effect: 10 damage over 20 seconds Special: This ammunition is too fragile to do any physical damage, and will not apply its poison if it doesn¡¯t make contact with skin or a vital area.
¡°Perfect.¡± Jicker said, grabbing a tin and loading the pellets in. It wouldn¡¯t work on heavily armoured opponents, but here in the Pit where the best armour was a few planks tied to your chest? It would definitely be enough to get him through. Now he just needed to build up enough to use and he¡¯d be one step closer to escaping the Pit. It was slow going, since he had to wait for his abilities to refresh every time, but eventually he made as many as he could, at least until he burned more wood to make more powder. Deciding to take a break while he thought about what to do next, he logged out. ~~~~~~ Cooking an omelette to eat, Matt turned on the news. It looked like the news teams had gotten around to tracking down and interviewing his old guild mates and friends. The way they all seemed happy enough to sell him out for their fifteen minutes of fame made him happy he¡¯d never revealed any personal information. ¡°-used to play with him a few years ago. Seemed like a normal enough guy, you know? But I suppose they always do right? Anyway, yeah, so me and a few others used to run with Maser, just doing normal quests and stuff. Then after a while he started getting more depressing and quieter, so we left him, and a lot of us stopped playing not long after that. We would have checked up on him, but he¡¯d been really strict about never telling us anything about himself. Oh man, do you think he¡¯d planned this from the start? That¡¯d be crazy, right?¡± Plating up his meal, he sighed. He certainly hadn¡¯t planned it out from the beginning, but he did have very good reasons for keeping his identity secret. Back when he¡¯d first started playing; there had been a lot of cases where people had pretended to be someone else to steal information, or even to lure people to places in the real world. The police had come down hard on it, and it didn¡¯t happen anymore, except in a few rare cases, but it was a habit he was now glad that had stuck with him. He¡¯d only just started eating when the phone rang, the caller ID showing it to be Sarah. ¡°Sarah, what¡¯s up? ¡° He asked, wondering what was going on this time. ¡°Matt, what have you been up too? I''ve been waiting for you to come out for most of a day now?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve just working on a few things, practicing some skills, that sort of stuff. Is everything ok? You sound... concerned.¡± ¡°Right, that¡¯s good, that¡¯s... Matt, the boss wants to talk to you, and Matt? He didn¡¯t sound happy. I need to put him though now, so watch what you say ok?¡± She said, the worry plain in her voice. ¡°I¡¯ll try to keep myself under control, thanks for the heads up.¡± He said as the call cut out and was replaced with hold music. He was left wondering what had happened for a few minutes, before the music dropped suddenly, leaving him with the CEO, his voice cold. ¡°I gave you a single job, Mr. Harper, something I believed you had the intelligence to do without screwing up.¡± For the first time since he¡¯d met the man, Matt could hear anger in August¡¯s voice. ¡°I¡¯m doing the job. I''ve spent damn near every moment in game for the past three weeks.¡± He replied. ¡°And what part of the job was it, pray tell, to cost me over three point two million dollars? Because I don¡¯t recall that little sidenote in the contract, or did I simply miss that part?¡± he said, his voice dripping with venom. ¡°I... Really don¡¯t understand what you mean, Sir.¡± ¡°No? Then let¡¯s have a bit of story time then shall we? In the wonderful world of Genesis there are many different classes and skills, allowing you to become and do whatever you want. Some of these are things are painters, cartographers and all sorts of artists. But the amazing and vibrant colours they use have to come from somewhere. Purple and blue in particular are very hard to come by. Purple usually comes from mixing more common red dyes with the aforementioned blue. Do you know where the biggest source of blue was?¡± ¡°No.¡± Said Matt quietly, not liking where this was going. ¡°No? Well I¡¯ll tell you. The largest and easiest to access source of blue dye was a large flower plantation that was set up by a small, privately owned company, which sold dye all across the continent. That is, until recently. You see, now there are these giant blue cockroaches that are popping up in sewers and dumps all over the place that have shells that can be ground up into a decent quality blue pigment. Now everyone can go and get blue dye easily, and not need to buy it, which means the price has dropped through the floor. Now, would you like to take a fucking guess who owned that company?!¡± He all but screamed. Matt was silent for a moment, not sure how to respond as he felt the blood rush from his face. ¡°I didn¡¯t mean to, I didn¡¯t even know-¡° ¡°Oh, I''m shocked, that the grocery store worker didn¡¯t know the financial backers of various global organisations. Luckily, despite your actions, Miss Tolson informed me of your actions soon enough that I was able to shift the majority of my holdings in the company and avoid making a loss there in addition to the missing profits. Now then,¡± He paused for a moment before resuming his normal cheerful and calm tone of voice. ¡°It is clear enough to me that you didn¡¯t know that your actions would affect me in anyway. Indeed, I have doubts that you¡¯ve thought much on the economical implications of much that you¡¯ve done. Your Roaches, an impressive feat, a first in fact from what I''ve been told, have sent ripples throughout the world. Minor ones, it¡¯s true, but ripples none the less. People are now switching their choices of paintings and art. Cartographers, already a booming business of late thanks to your reshaping of the landscape, are now turning to the sea as the prices for the special nautical maps have dropped. What I''m getting at is this: Even the seemingly smallest change to the world at that level can have huge effects. Think butterflies and hurricanes, as the old saying goes. In that regard, you are now to inform me via Miss Tolson, of any and all plans of the introduction of new species. Am I clear, Mr. Harper?¡± ¡°Yes Mr. Fronz. Um, what about the one-offs, the unique monsters? Do you want me to pass on those as well, because I''m not sure I really can until they¡¯re done...?¡± ¡°I very much doubt that a single creature will affect the world economy to a great degree, though if you feel that it¡¯s possible, give word to Miss Tolson as soon as possible. Now I have one last thing to say, Matthew, are you listening?¡± He said his voice going quiet and emotionless. ¡°Yes.¡± Matt whispered, his throat going dry. ¡°If you ever cost me money again because of something you¡¯ve done, I will not give your details to anyone. Instead, I will personally come to your house, and break every bone in your body. Good evening, Mr. Harper.¡± With that the phone went dead, leaving Matt stunned. He¡¯d realised adding a species would have wider effects than Snuffles had, but he hadn¡¯t expected it to be that big a deal. In his daze, he almost dropped his phone when it suddenly rang again. ¡°Sarah? What, does he want to yell some more?¡± he said. ¡°No, this is just me. Sorry about the whole being left responsible thing. I mean, even he knows it¡¯s not like you did anything intentionally and were just doing what you were told, but he likes being able to point fingers at people. We probably should take his advice on that one though, and keep more in the loop about what you make to avoid this happening again. I mean, I get that it wasn¡¯t your plan, but why did you make those roaches anyway?¡± ¡°Well, there¡¯s not much to eat in the Pit, and I was hungry, so...¡± he said awkwardly. Sarah went silent for a few moments. ¡°You cost him over three million dollars, because you wanted something else for lunch. I think it might be best if we keep that detail a secret and don¡¯t tell him, ever.¡± ¡°Good idea.¡± He agreed whole heartedly, not wanting to know how August would react. ¡°Certainly a better one than yours was. Anyway, this is about that info you asked me to get. I''ve put together a list of everything I could find on the basics of creatures in Genesis, as well as a compilation of all the skills I could find that might be helpful. Stats were harder, and I ended up giving up there if I''m honest. I¡¯ve never even heard of evolution, so I have no idea how it will interact with anything.¡± ¡°Me neither until now, but so far it¡¯s been proving useful. I¡¯ll track down a Dark Chemist trainer and see if they can give me any clues.¡± ¡°That could be more difficult than you think Matt.¡± She said slowly. ¡°Why? Are they only in one specific area or something? Or is there some weird initiation ritual involving running around town naked or something?¡± He asked jokingly, trying to lighten his mood after the last call. ¡°You wish. Actually from what I can tell, and believe me I''ve looked, there are no trainers for that class anywhere.¡± She said, trying to sound dramatic, but failing as she laughed at her own attempt. Matt chuckled. ¡°Ha-ha. Are you serious? I thought there are supposed to be trainers for every class.¡± ¡°There should be, and from what I¡¯m seeing here, there were to begin with. But somehow they started disappearing a few years ago.¡±She said more seriously. ¡°Can that happen? I didn¡¯t think that sort of NPC could be killed.¡± ¡°No, they can¡¯t, so I''ve got no idea what¡¯s going on with that. Either way though, you won¡¯t get any help there. Speaking of which, I''ve sent you an item in game.¡± ¡°I thought there were rules about getting in game help from the company.¡± He said curiously. ¡°There are, but in every rule there are loopholes. How do you think Mr. Fronz owns things in a game he¡¯s not allowed to play? Anyway, it¡¯s an item that can summon a little avatar for me, so you can contact me while playing. They can be acquired by normal players, so it¡¯s fair. They''re usually just ways for workers here to be able to play, as NPC guides or messengers, or godlike avatars for those who investigate cheaters. It¡¯s the only way we can really play since there are some pretty heavy laws about people who work here playing within three months of being on payroll. So next time you¡¯re working on something, let me know.¡± ¡°You can do that? That¡¯s pretty cool. Well, I''m going to spend some time going over the information and maybe take a break and clear my head. I guess I¡¯ll talk to you later?¡± ¡°You know it Matt, take care.¡± He spent the rest of the afternoon going over the information she¡¯d sent over, though he wasn¡¯t sure how much of it was sinking in. He knew August was a hard man, far harder than his media presence had let on, but those threats had come from such a dark place, he wondered if he had any real idea who he was involved with. They¡¯d worked though, and there was no way he was crossing that guy if he could help it. In the end, he admitted to himself that all of this information, while useful, wouldn¡¯t do anything for him until he got to a town where he could actually try and grow. As it was, he was lucky to have two skills, and a stat that would definitely give him an edge in the end. Evolution would in the end, he realised, start to give him substantial rewards. At the moment it gave him a tiny fraction of a percent of the experience earned by creatures he made. But if those creatures numbered in the hundreds of thousands and were spread all across the continent... it would add up faster than you¡¯d think. Deciding that he needed to get out of the Pit as soon as possible to really get to work, he began to plan on getting out. ~~~~~~ Things were going slowly with his efforts to increase his level, but now that he could more reliably use his poison when he needed it, Jicker was now making progress. His strategy could be called cowardly, and Jicker would be amongst the first to agree with them, but here and now it was more important to win than fight honourably. The plan was simple: find an opponent and strike them with one of his pellets, or a dart if he could. Then he simply ran and hid while the poison went to work, and repeated until they died. It was slow, dirty and unfair but soon he began to be able to bring down several Pit dwellers in an afternoon without being seen. Then he¡¯d collect whatever he could from them before heading home to restock. He¡¯d finally reached a point where it wasn¡¯t realistic to carry everything with him, even with a pack. Fortunately, he hadn¡¯t worried about someone coming and robbing him in a long time, not while he had a rather large houseguest. Snuffles began spending the day elsewhere, roaming around or hunting for food, his larger size needing to eat a lot more than he used to. For a while Jicker wondered whether the rat would just leave altogether, but he always came back as the sun went down, curling up by the fire and even bringing some bits of food back for Jicker in exchange for filling a bowl of clean water for him. Food had become an interesting situation in the Pit. Others had quickly discovered the azure roaches, and just as quickly started killing and eating them. With a real food source to be found, outsiders had started trading small items for the bugs. Whether they wanted the meat or the shells, he wasn¡¯t sure, but Jickerhad started to collect and store all of the shells he and Snuffles picked up. It was this interest in the roaches, which gave Jicker the beginnings of his idea on how to get out. He¡¯d stock up on as many potions and poisons as he could, make sure his equipment was in as good a condition as he could make it, and then, once he hit level ten, he¡¯d go for it. Already having hit level eight from his hunting, he was filled with confidence, finally seeing an end to his time stuck down here. Chapter 7
You have unlocked the Blowgun weapon skill! Current level: 1 Allows for greater damage, effectiveness and use with the selected weapon. Current effects: reduced range penalties, increased accuracy, +1 damage You have reached level 10! You have 5 points left unassigned. Assign points now?
¡°When it rains it pours, hey Snuffles.¡±Jicker said as he crawled back into his house after his latest hunt. The rat in question flicked its ears in greeting, before curling tighter around the fire, only moving so he could throw some more wood in. The goblin he¡¯d taken out hadn¡¯t even noticed when he¡¯d stuck him with a dart, and had just kept walking along until it staggered and fell. It had been the last kill he¡¯d needed to get the necessary experience to hit level ten, and apparently had put him over the edge to qualify for the weapon skill. It was a basic, yet core skill you needed if you planned to do any real fighting, and was able to be acquired at least at a basic level just by using a type of weapon enough. Taking it as sign he was ready, he allocated his latest points, and looked at his sheet, hoping it would be enough to pull off his escape.
Name: Jicker Level: 10
Race: Gremlin Class: Dark Chemist
Hp: 140 Mp: 240 Stamina: 50
Statistics
Equipped weapons Damage: Equipped Armour Defence:
Blowgun 2-3 Grey Hobos garb 2
Core Statistics Other Statistics
Strength: 5 Evolution: 2
Dexterity: 25
Constitution: 5
Intelligence: 50
Wisdom: 15
Resistances:
Poison: 50% Cold: 5
Disease: 50%
Skills
Mother of Invention - Level 1
Apothecary - Level 2
Handle Animal - Level 4
Weapon Skill - Blowgun - Level 1
Achievements
Grand Genocide Kill over 20 million sentients within 1 hour
Unique-Effect: 30% damage and ability effectiveness against sentients
Force of Change Destroy and create over 1000 dungeons
Unique-Effect: Creating or altering areas or creatures will be 100% more effective
World Shaper Permanently alter the geography of the world on a grand scale
Level-Max-Effect: Effect: Permanent effects will be 100% more effective
King Killer Kill 50 leaders of states, royal or other.
Level-Max-Effect: Boss and Leader resistances reduced by 60%
He¡¯d definitely come a long way in the past few weeks since he first began. His apothecary skill had managed to increase after making enough tablets and powder to bury a man in. The handle animal skill was a bigger surprise, though it shouldn¡¯t have been. While he might sometimes think of Snuffles as a pet, in truth the rat was still very much wild, and an area boss at that. Getting along with him had driven up his skill in great strides. He considered leaving the majority of his supplies hidden at home, so he wouldn¡¯t lose them if his attempt failed. In the end though, he realised that he would either win and not want to come back and get anything, or have plenty of time to replace whatever he lost. He turned to Snuffles. ¡°Hey, depending on how this goes... I might not be coming back okay? If I don¡¯t, look after yourself alright?¡± and with that, unable to put it off anymore, he stepped out and got to work. ~~~~~~ ¡°Grolug! Get your lazy ass out here!¡± Waking from his rest, Grolug pulled himself out of bed, bottles falling to the floor as they fell off of his rising form. It had been a nice evening, but now someone would pay for waking him up before noon. Tossing on his warden jacket, he stumbled out of the door, blinking dumbly at the light streaming through the cavern roof. ¡°Finally got your drunken ass out of bed huh? Now go do your damn job!¡± The voice yelled again. ¡°What the hell ye talkin¡¯ bout? Doin¡¯ my job just fine.¡± He slurred out. ¡°Oh yeah, sure you are. That¡¯s why we¡¯ve got dozens of cockroaches coming out of the Pit! Now get your shit together and go deal with it!¡± the other orc complained. Grolug stared at the person in front of him for a moment, committing the face to memory. ¡°Yeah...yeah, ok¡± He said after a few moments, ¡°I¡¯ll go and ¡®do my job¡¯ and stop them getting out. Then I might look into that other part of my job, and put something in.¡± Pausing just long enough to take in the other orc face going white in fear, he turn to go and put on some proper armour, before going to ruin whoever had disturbed his morning. ~~~~~~ It had taken Jicker more than a few hours to herd enough roaches up and over the edge of the Pit to start getting attention. All of the practice he¡¯d had collecting live ones for practice had done him well, and already he¡¯d heard people calling for the warden. Then it was just a matter of time before Grolug showed up to investigate because after all, if there was a problem with the Pit, it was his problem. He was already happy with himself, knowing that even if he failed, he¡¯d at least cause some grief for the bastard who dropped him in here.Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. Hiding on top of an old pile of masonry, he waited, keeping an eye out for both his target and on his surroundings. The last thing he needed right now was to be attacked by someone else. As he waited, he wondered if this was wise, or whether he should have gone after an easier target to try and get out. Shaking his head clear of his doubts, he focused himself. He¡¯d already stepped down this road, there was nothing to do now but follow it to the end. It didn¡¯t take long he spotted Grolug wandering along the rim, crushing roaches he spotted. Jicker''s heart sank slightly upon seeing the orc. It had been too much to hope he would be lightly armed it seemed, as he was dressed in some patchwork steel plate that looked a size too small for him, and carrying a large mace and shield. His only solace was that he hadn¡¯t bothered with a helmet; otherwise he may have needed to rethink his whole plan. Carefully loading a dart, he took aim and fired, striking the warden in the side of the neck. Jerking suddenly at the sharp pain, Grolug roared in anger, spinning around to see who had attacked him. Crouching down and making himself as small as possible, Jicker hid, waiting for the orc to give up. It didn¡¯t take long before he went back to crushing roaches, albeit now on alert. Once he had stopped looking for who had hit him, Jicker took his second shot, this time aiming for a gap at his hip. Again Grolug spun around to see who shot him, this time looking down into the Pit, homing in on Jicker¡¯s location. ¡°Whoever just hit me; this is your one and only warning! Come out here and I¡¯ll make your death quick, hide from me, and I¡¯ll do everything I can to make you regret it!¡± he shouted. Jicker considered this and gave the diplomatic response of firing again, striking the orc in the forehead. The dart all but bounced off, but it got the desired response. ¡°GRAAGH!¡± he screamed and barrelled down into the Pit, heading towards where Jicker was sitting. This made step one a success, to lure the warden down into an area where he could use a hit and run strategy. It was also why he hadn¡¯t used any poisons yet. The moment he used one, Grolug would realise he was actually under attack and not just being harassed. He just had to lure him in deep enough, so that when he did, he wouldn¡¯t be able to just leave. Ordinarily, a strategy like this would be next to useless against such a tough opponent, but with his king killer ability in effect, it should level the field to a point where he had a shot. It took a dozen more darts, and ten of the most stress filled minutes of his life, but eventually he got him into position. The warden, for his part, had worked himself into a frothing rage, screaming out in graphic detail what he would do when he caught him. Carefully loading one of three carefully prepared poisoned darts, he lined up a shot and struck him again before moving, barely scraping over his collar before hitting flesh. ¡°- And then I¡¯ll cut the skin from your back and-Gah, you little... ¡°Grolug¡¯s ravings suddenly went quiet after being hit, and for a moment Jicker wondered whether this had been far easier than he¡¯d thought. ¡°Ha, so that¡¯s you game is it? Think you¡¯re clever do ya? Well let¡¯s see how smart you are when I break your neck!¡± ¡°Oh good, he¡¯s fine.¡± Jicker whispered flatly to himself. This had been something he¡¯d been worried about, whether the warden would try and withdraw once poison came into play. But apparently he was far too worked up and pigheaded to back off now. It became a slow battle of attrition, firing the last of his darts then switching out to his pellets, firing as soon as he found a spot to hide once the last had run out. Everything was going to plan, until a piece of debris gave way under his foot, sending him crashing to the ground. In that moment, the orc finally identified his position and saw his opponent. Jicker was back on his feet in an instant, but the damage was already done, and Grolug was charging directly towards him. Darting up and away, he tried to put some distance between them, hopefully enough that he could lose him again. Looking over his shoulder, he was shocked to see the warden only a dozen feet behind him and closing. Despite his appearance and attitude, it was clear that Grolug was a serious fighter. ¡°I''m gonna rip out your lungs when I catch you runt, and eat them before you can run out of air!¡± he screamed as he came ever closer. Desperately trying to escape, Jicker loaded in a tranquiliser pellet and fired; only barely managing to stay out of arms reach. As the orc began slowing down slightly as the toxin took effect, he made a desperate sprint across the roofing, hoping to find an escape route. Spotting a length of pipe jutting through the ground, he dove into it, hoping that the time it took the warden to figure out where it led would be enough for him to get clear. His hopes were dashed however, when a few yards down the tunnel, a thick iron grate had fallen across the path, catching debris from other side and sealing it tight. Grolug had given up trying to follow him through, his bulky form far too large to get through. ¡°Stuck are ya? Well then perhaps we can make a deal, yeah?¡± he said, sounding far too happy about the situation for Jicker¡¯s liking. ¡°You cut off...let¡¯s say a leg, and hand it to me, and I¡¯ll let you die quick. Or I can just see if I can find some oil to pour down there. Take your time deciding because I¡¯m going to enjoy this.¡± Trapped with nowhere to run or hide, Jicker knew he was in a bad way. He tried shooting a dart from inside the pipe, but with Grolug watching him the whole time, he dodged easily before dropping a chunk of pallet over the opening, taking even that away from him. It was a dark few minutes for him, his only possible action being to dodge whatever random piece of garbage the warden threw at him as he grew bored. He knew his options were limited, to the point where he drew his sword and truly considered the orc¡¯s offer. It was as he was checking the blades sharpness that the sounds from outside suddenly changed from mocking laughter to combat. The shadows moved as Grolug no longer stood in front of his cage and, being curious to the sounds of battle, he went and pushed the pallet aside. Squaring off against the orc, who was bleeding heavily from his arm despite his armour, was Snuffles. The rat, bearing several smaller cuts along his body, charged in faster than Jicker had thought possible from the rat, biting deeply into Grolug¡¯s leg before darting back out of reach. ¡°Argh, ya damn pest! What do you think you are, trying to challenge me! I¡¯ll make a coat out of your hide!¡± The orc raged, taking a massive swing of his own as he tried to stave the rats head in. Narrowly avoiding the swing, Snuffles ran back in, only to be struck by a swift kick as Grolug turned sharply, sending the rat stumbling across the ground. Distressed to see his friend being injured like this, he loaded a dose of anaesthetic into his blowgun, one of the few other non-poisonous pellets he¡¯d made, and fired it into the rats side, quickly following it with his only remaining dose of adrenaline. The rat visibly perked up under the effects of the pellets and quickly reengaged this time succeeding on his attack. Grolug, for his part, attempted to change targets and rushed to finish Jickeroff, the clearly weaker of the two threats. However the moment he turned his back the rat leapt, burying his claws deep into his back, the spike on his tail lashing at the backs of his legs. In an unexpected turn of events, Jicker quickly found himself little more than a spectator in his own escape attempt, the effects of his poisons and healing doing little compared to the damage the two combatants were throwing at each other. Slowly, the two of them began to overwhelm the warden, who began to succumb to his many wounds. ¡°I...am not... going to lose...TO A GODS DAMNED MOUSE!¡± he bellowed, punctuating his words with heavy blows of his mace. Getting some distance, he dropped his shield, but before Snuffles could engage the now defenceless orc, he pulled something from his pocket, a vibrant green potion that shimmered in the light. Rushing towards him, Jicker desperately tried to stop the orc drinking it. A high level regeneration potion, it would heal him rapidly for an hour, making it impossible for him to beat the warden and get out. He¡¯d seen them a few times playing before, but he had no idea how such a low level NPC got a hold of one. Diving closer, he reached out, trying to stop it before it reached his lips... Suddenly, a blur sped past them, the vial shattering explosively as it sent a spray of green in to the air. They turned to see a bolt buried in the ground, drenched in the remains of the potion. Following its path back up to the top of the Pit, they saw Morthoc standing there, looking down at them, with fury in his eyes and a crossbow in his hands. ¡°No!¡± Grolug howled in anguish, as Snuffles leapt on top of him, biting deeply into his now exposed neck. For a moment, he stood firm, and tried to bat away the rat that had him gripped tightly, but his blows quickly weakened, and it wasn¡¯t long before they stopped completely.
Grolug, Warden of the Pit has been slain. You have received 1260 EXP!
Jicker stood up and stretched, laughing that it was done. He started to go and look at the body, his habit of taking everything he could, when a noise caught his attention. Looking around, he saw that a crowd had gathered to watch the fight and were now staring at him, or more accurately, the body. ¡°Go for it. I¡¯m out.¡± He said to the crowd, which began to rush in, needing no further encouragement. He probably could have used a few bits and pieces the orc had on him, but this way he¡¯d actually get out before another dweller tried to attack him for the loot, though maybe not with Snuffles still around. Running as quickly as he could, he made his way to the edge of the Pit, to where Morthoc still stood, and began to climb out. He took a moment to look back down as he stood on the lip, relieved with knowing he¡¯d never have to be trapped down there, and could finally rest easy. ¡°So, Jicker, it seems I owe you a drink.¡± A voice said from behind him. Turning he saw Morthoc looking at him his teeth bared, in what he quickly realised was a wide smile. ¡°I guess you do, but I¡¯ll settle for a handshake.¡± Jicker said giddily, still high on his success. ¡°I owe you much more than this, my friend.¡± He said as he did so. ¡°Thanks to you, I have had my vengeance on that traitorous scum, and will take great pleasure in watching him suffer in the Pit. More than that, now that he has been removed, I can retake my rightful place of warden.¡± ¡°We never decided that!¡± a voice came from a gathering crowd that had come to see who¡¯d escaped. ¡°We need to figure out who should be in charge and-¡° ¡°WHO CHALLENGES ME?¡± Morthoc bellowed, silencing the orc who had spoken. While in the Pit, Morthoc had been a large and fearsome orc, but now that he was out, he had regained his lost physique, and now stood almost a head taller than the rest of the crowd. As he brandished the crossbow he still held in the air, only silenced was heard. ¡°As I thought. Now that I have retaken my rightful place, I declare you a free citizen, and release you from the Pit.¡±
Ding! Quest: Escape the Pit. - Complete! Reward: 1000 EXP. You have earned your freedom and can now make your own way in the world.
¡°More than this I owe you a debt, and my gratitude.¡± He continued.
Ding! Quest: Defeat the traitorous warden. ¨C Complete! Reward 2000 EXP. Morthoc now views you as a trusted ally. You have reached level 11! You have 5 points left unassigned. Assign points now?
¡°You¡¯re thanks isn¡¯t necessary, but on second thoughts, I think I will take that drink.¡± Jicker replied. ¡°Then let us travel to the bar to celebrate! Everyone, drinks are on me!¡± he proclaimed to the crowds delight. ¡°Although, before we go...Jicker, will you be taking your...rat?¡± Turning back to the Pit, Jicker saw that Snuffles had sat himself on the edge and was looking around at everyone. The crowd, having seen what he did do Grolug, were giving him a wide berth. ¡°He¡¯s not mine really, just another one living in the Pit I made friends with.¡± He said before going over to Snuffles. ¡°What do you think buddy? Do you want to come with me? Or stay here?¡± he asked. The rat cocked its head to one side as it thought, before licking the side of Jicker¡¯s face, and darting back down and disappearing amongst the waste. ¡°Gross, but I get it. Take care Snuffles,¡± Jicker said quietly, wiping off the rats spit and what totally weren¡¯t the beginnings of tears from his eyes. The bar turned out to be fairly decent place, more of an inn than anything, and any comments about his shabby clothing were instantly silenced by Morthoc¡¯s menacing gaze. ¡°Sorry, but we don¡¯t have much of a range, so I hope this is passable.¡± Said Morthoc as he brought over a drink for them both. They¡¯d sat themselves in a small booth by the wall, the place filled to capacity despite being the middle of the day. Apparently even orcs struggled to resist free drinks. Taking a sip of the offered drink, Jicker found it to be a fairly flat beer, but compared to the muddy water he¡¯d been living off, it was heaven. ¡°Gods, that¡¯s much better.¡± He said, taking a larger swig. ¡°Indeed, I felt the same way, but now to business. I owe you a great deal friend, for helping me realise something I''ve dreamt about for years, not once, but twice now. I don¡¯t know you well enough to know what I could even do to try and balance things between us, though I doubt anything could. But as it is, I wield a decent amount of power around here, and I''m sure I could get you a decent job to suit your talents, as well as a place to live.¡± ¡°That¡¯s...tempting Morthoc,¡± Jicker replied hesitantly. ¡°But if I¡¯m honest, I want to put this place behind me. To go out and see the world and all it has to offer.¡± The orc raised an eyebrow. ¡°I understand where you¡¯re coming from, and if I didn¡¯t feel bound by duty and vengeance, I may have done the same. But I''ve spoken with others since my escape, and the world outside is not the one I remember. Life out there has become a rough thing, with many trials to overcome. It is not something for the faint of heart.¡± He warned. ¡°So nothing at all like the pit then?¡± Jicker asked in return, raising an eyebrow of his own. The two of them looked at each other silently for a moment, before Morthoc broke, his laughter echoing through the bar. ¡°Too true my friend, your point is well made.¡± He said wiping tears from his eyes. ¡°You certainly have the heart, so I can do nothing but wish you luck. Though perhaps you will allow me to give you a few small things that assist in your travels?¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t say no to a few of the basics, like a decent pack perhaps?¡± he asked, hoping that wouldn¡¯t be too much. Those could be expensive. ¡°I believe I can put together something a little better than that. But enough of such talk, tonight we celebrate! Now, my small friend, have you ever heard of the drinking game, ¡®The giants challenge¡¯? First we take a large glass...¡± ~~~~~~ It had been a while since Jicker had experienced a virtual hangover, but once again he was impressed with how accurate it was compared to the real thing. His head aching, he looked around trying to remember where he was and how he got there. He appeared to be in a small wooden room, and lying in a warm bed. Easing out of it, he was relieved to see he was still clothed and his bag was next to the bed. Gingerly walking out the door, he foggily remembered that he¡¯d been at the bar as looked around and headed down a flight of stairs. ¡°Ah, he lives!¡± a voice called out; sounding so loud he was surprised he didn¡¯t take damage from it. Sitting at a table and eating a large plate of food, Morthoc waved him over, looking no worse for the night before. Carefully, he pulled his hood over his head to try to block some of the noise and light and pulled up a chair. ¡°Ah, I wondered where you¡¯d gotten too this morning, but now I see the issue.¡± He said, signalling something to the barkeep. They came over with a smaller plate of bacon and eggs, a glass of fruit juice, and a small metal cup of something he couldn¡¯t identify. ¡°Drink that down first in one shot, don¡¯t hesitate. It tastes foul but it¡¯ll cure your head and the taste doesn¡¯t linger.¡± The orc said, pointing at the cup. Holding his nose he did as the orc suggested, gagging as he wondered how people who hadn¡¯t lived in the Pit dealt with it. As he quickly tried to wash away the taste with juice, Morthoc continued. ¡°I beg forgiveness my friend. I have not had much cause to celebrate in quite some time, and I have overindulged myself when it came to drinking. I also believe I didn¡¯t quite account for the difference in our sizes when it came to how much I gave you to drink. Still, all¡¯s well in the end yes?¡± ¡°Sure, it was a fun night, well what I remember of it anyway.¡±Jicker replied as his head cleared, wishing that something like this existed in the real world. ¡°This is good to hear. Now then, since I had the morning free and it didn¡¯t seem like you would be going anywhere, I have taken the liberty of acquiring a few items for your journey.¡± He said as he lifted a small pack on top the table. ¡°It is mostly just basic equipment, things like a tent, some cooking tools, a water skin, that sort of thing, as well as about two weeks of trail rations. Nothing very fancy but good quality, of that you have my word. Apart from that, I''ve added a few things that I think could help, as well as a small amount of gold. First is a compass, that not only functions as a normal one would, but can be used to mark a location, so that it can always lead you back to it. Another is an extremely durable journal with an endless number of pages, so that you can record your adventure. And my final gift, is this.¡± He finished proudly, gesturing to the pack. ¡°Thank you Morthoc, I will definitely get plenty of use out of a good tent-¡± He was cut off as Morthoc rapped him lightly on the head. ¡°I refer to the pack itself, obviously. It is made of high quality gorgon leather, so it will survive more than you will, and has been made to be able to hold a great deal inside. It¡¯s also lightweight, making it perfect for a traveller of your...¡± ¡°Strength?¡± Jicker offered. ¡°Size, I was going to say. So please take these items, and make good use of them. So when do plan on leaving us?¡±He asked. ¡°While I don¡¯t want to be rude about it, I want to get going as soon as possible. There¡¯s a lot to see out there, so I can¡¯t waste time putting it off.¡± He said, hoping it didn¡¯t offend the orc. ¡°I would normally suggest waiting a few days to regain your strength after being in the Pit, or at least planning out your trip more, but I see your mind is already made up. So be it, it is your decision to make, and I will not be one to try and stop you. In that case, you should make haste and leave while the sun is still high.¡±Morthoc said, downing the last of his drink and standing suddenly. ¡°Sure, that sounds good, but could I leave in like five minutes?¡± Jicker said gesturing to the plate in front of him. ¡°Well, I suppose your great journey can wait until after breakfast.¡± Once he¡¯d eaten and loaded everything into his new pack, Morthoc led him through Mount Kaloh, pointing out a few features, seemingly to try and entice him to stay. But after seeing the town properly, he was sure he wouldn¡¯t make much progress here. The hollowed out mountain was a place for fierce warriors, and if you weren¡¯t one of those, you¡¯d better be either skilled at a needed trade, or you¡¯d end up in the mines, or worse, the Pit. No, if he was going to do what he had to, he¡¯d need to get out and travel, or at least get to the capital where he¡¯d have things to work with. Leading him up a wide set of stairs, they reached a large gate which was opened for them as they approached, letting Jicker see real sunlight for the first time since his re-entry into the game. ¡°Well Jicker, this is where we part ways. Watch your back, little friend, and make sure you don¡¯t do anything you regret.¡±Morthoc said solemnly, placing his hand on his shoulder. Jicker looked up at the large orc considering his choice of words. ¡°I¡¯ll try not to Morthoc. Oh, in case you want to attract Snuffles, the giant rat? He¡¯s a big fan of cooked azure roaches, and he¡¯s smart enough to remember who you are.¡± ¡°Ah yes those blue cockroaches. Despite all my time in the Pit, I had not seen them until I got out, though I suppose I had never seen that rat either.¡± He said, giving Jicker an odd look. ¡°But yes, I will endeavour to care for...Snuffles? That is truly the beast¡¯s name? Regardless, it is a fearsome creature and one I will accept as an ally if it would have me. Now, off with you. You are, as the humans say, wasting daylight.¡± ¡°Right then, in that case, goodbye Morthoc.¡± Jicker said, feeling sad about leaving even though he¡¯d only known the orc for less than a day. And with a last nod to the old warden, he stepped out into the light. Chapter 8 When Jicker had planted explosives to reinvigorate the world, he hadn¡¯t managed to cover everything. He¡¯d hit pretty much every major city, and most landmarks, plus plenty of other more random locations, giving a little over three quarters of the continent. But that still left a lot of area that was untouched, and as he stepped out of the cavern, he was glad it was. Shielding his eyes against the sun, he looked out over the small farms surrounding the mountain foothills and beyond that, nothing but untouched grassy plains dotted with tall drooping trees. A cool breeze was blowing in, sending ripples over the long emerald grass, giving life to an otherwise still landscape. Pulling his hood up to shield his eyes, he began to head away from the mountain, hoping his eyes would adjust to natural light soon enough. It would be a pain if it turned out that gremlins couldn¡¯t handle light. It had been so long since he could relax that it felt strange just walking in the open, and he had to fight off the feeling that he should try and hide. But apart from the occasional bird over head, and a rabbit he saw racing away in the distance, the area was completely empty. It became relaxing in a way, and he found his thoughts drifting randomly as he walked, about his situation, how he¡¯d gotten into it and what to make for dinner. He was paying so little attention to what he was doing that it too over an hour for him to realise that he had no idea where he was, or where he was going. Sitting down underneath a nearby tree, he considered his options. He hadn¡¯t remembered to ask where Mount Kaloh actually was on the continent, it not being a place he¡¯d ever been since it didn¡¯t have much use to most people other than as a starting or mining location. It was why it had been missed in his attack in the first place. He could go back and ask for directions, but that would be more than a little awkward. He could log out and try to look it up he supposed, before suddenly remembering something. ¡°Didn¡¯t Sarah say she gave me some kind of communication thing?¡± he muttered to himself as he went through his pack. Going through its inventory he eventually found it, a small glass tube filled with a thick black liquid.
Ink vial of Tolson Item type: Summon Grade: Unique This vial is used to summon the totally awesome avatar of Tolson To use: Smash and wait.
Jicker had a sneaking suspicion she¡¯d written its description herself. Figuring he¡¯d give it a shot, he hurled it down at the ground, sending ink and broken glass scattering around. At first, nothing happened, and then nothing continued to happen for almost fifteen minutes. He was about to log out and see if he¡¯d done it wrong when the ink began to lift off the ground and flow together into a sphere the size of an apple. Rippling, the ball sent a number of lines into the air until it formed a rough sketch of a small fairy, hovering above it. ¡°Hey Matt, or Jicker Iguess, sorry about the wait, but I had to finish off something before logging in. I was wondering if you were ever gonna use this thing, what do you think?¡± It said, Sarah¡¯s voice coming through at a higher pitch. ¡°It¡¯s pretty cool actually; I haven¡¯t seen something like that before. What is it exactly?¡± ¡°I¡¯d be surprised if you had. This is something I added into the game myself, so currently only three exist. I call it an ink sprite, and it¡¯s not really good for much really, if I''m honest. As you can see,¡± She said as she turned sideways, becoming a nearly invisible line, ¡°It¡¯s basically two dimensional, so it can¡¯t really interact with stuff very well, cant travel far from its summoning point and it only lasts up to an hour, but I''m still pretty proud of it.¡± ¡°Wait, you added it in?¡±Jicker asked surprised. ¡°We can get away with a little bit here and there, as long as it doesn¡¯t affect anything in any real way. Speaking of which, are you calling about some new creation?¡± she asked, a small question mark flowing up above her head. ¡°Hah, that¡¯s cool, but no nothing that serious actually. I kind of... need some directions.¡± He said slowly. ¡°Hmm? Of like, what to do next? I can¡¯t really tell you, even if I did have ideas.¡± She said confused. ¡°No... I need directions from here to the capital.¡± ¡°...You¡¯re kidding me. You finally get out of an area most people never do, and you didn¡¯t even think to check where you were before travelling?¡±She asked incredulously. ¡°I know it¡¯s not exactly my best moment, but there¡¯s no need to rub it in. Now, can you help me out here?¡± ¡°Fine, fine, I won¡¯t make fun of your clear and obvious mistake. For now.¡± She said quickly. She paused for a moment and the ink sphere below her folded out into a large map. ¡°Let¡¯s see... you¡¯re pretty far north so there aren¡¯t a lot of big cities up there. Your choices really come down to either Ardenvale or Carthan, though you hit them both pretty hard. Carthan still one of the biggest market hubs around, so if you¡¯re looking to get some better gear, head east until you hit the coast, then head south, should take about a week and a half. Ardenvale¡¯s a bit smaller, but they still have one of the widest varieties of trainers around, especially for where you are. So if you¡¯re looking to pick up some more skill¡¯s that would be a good place to start, so just head south west for about... let¡¯s see... three days? And then follow the main road down into town. That good enough?¡± ¡°That¡¯s perfect, thanks for this.¡± He said as she folded her map back up. ¡°I think I¡¯ll head to Ardenvale and try and get a hold of a few of those skills you recommended. So, do I need to get a new ink vial to talk to you again?¡± She shook her head. ¡°No need. As soon as the summon ends or times out, all the ink and glass will come back together just like new, but it¡¯s on a 48 hour cool down, so don¡¯t use it for fairly useless things, like say, directions.¡± ¡°Ha ha. Alright, I''ve got it, so I¡¯ll get moving and you can get back to work.¡± ¡°Oh joy, filing. Catch you later then.¡± ¡°Later Sarah.¡± He said as the fairy collapsed back into the ball, the glass fragments on the ground lifting into the air before rushing inwards, reforming the bottle around it. Picking up the item and putting it away, he pulled out his compass and figured out which way he needed to go. Realising he had been travelling east to begin with was slightly annoying, but he corrected his course and made his way to the road heading west. It was little more than a trail of compacted, barren dirt but it was enough to navigate by and, now having a proper destination, set out properly. He hadn¡¯t realised how much he¡¯d gotten used to moving only short distances in the Pit, and before long his legs began to ache. With the sun bright over head, a breeze and nice scenery, it should have been a pleasant trip. But it was such a shift from his recent activity that he was having difficulties. As the trees slowly became denser, he decided to take a break, and made use of the time by practicing one of the oldest forms of herbal analysis. Namely, eating bit and pieces of plants and seeing what happened. For the most part there was no effect, apart from the bitter taste of leaves, though he had a few successes, though not very useful ones.
Broad leafed crawler vine Item type: plant Grade: common Can be used to heighten sense of smell
Black rimmed toadstool Item type: plant Grade: common Can be used to reduce taste and cause rashes
Red striped lily berry Item type: plant Grade: uncommon Can cause minor paralysis if ingested
¡°Are you okay kid?¡± A voice called out as he was picking himself off the ground after his latest test. Getting to his feat he turned around to see several wagons travelling along and that one had stopped nearby. The speaker, an elderly looking man, stood up on his cart as he called out before almost falling off backwards as he got a better look at him. ¡°Argh! What in the gods name is-¡± The man got no further as it was at this point he properly lost his footing and tumbled back out of sight. Not wanting to just leave the man, Jicker hurried over to make sure he was all right. ¡°Old man! You okay there, or do you need help?¡± he asked. ¡°I... What? You can talk?¡± the man said nervously, sounding surprised. ¡°Never seen a gremlin before? That explains the reaction then I suppose. Anyway, are you okay?¡± ¡°Nothing bruised but my pride, I think. Sorry about before, with all the different people you see travelling I shouldn¡¯t have reacted like that. But after what happened a few months ago, everyone¡¯s a bit on edge.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been stuck under a mountain for a long time now,¡± Jicker said, trying to play dumb. ¡°Everyone keeps mentioning something, but what actually happened?¡± The old man looked at him oddly for a few moments, and Jicker hoped he hadn¡¯t pushed too far. He¡¯d been wondering how the NPCs had reacted to his attack, but in the Pit he hadn¡¯t had the opportunity to ask anyone. ¡°If you don¡¯t know, then I suppose you¡¯re one of the lucky ones, though I can¡¯t think of how you haven¡¯t heard by now. There was a... they¡¯re calling it an event, but truth is it was a damn apocalypse. Something tried to destroy the whole world, and came pretty damn close as well. It seems the gods stepped in though, and were able to stop enough of the destruction that some places got spared. They also shielded most of us, so the body count wasn¡¯t nearly as high as it should have been... a lot of people thankful about that.¡± The man trailed off, looking into the distance as he relived some memory. He coughed abruptly and shook himself out of it. ¡°Anyway, what are you doing out here on your own...son?¡± He hazarded awkwardly. ¡°I don¡¯t look that weird do I? Anyway name''s Jicker, and I''m heading up to Ardenvale. I was just stopping to study up on some of the plants around here, see if they¡¯re useful.¡± ¡°Redgar. You a doctor or something?¡± He asked as he introduced himself, offering a hand. ¡°Eh, bits and pieces. It¡¯s why I''m heading to the city; need to get a proper education and all that.¡± He replied, he replied helping the man to his feet. Redgar scratched his chin. ¡°We¡¯re heading there at the moment actually, me and the rest of the caravan. You seem trustworthy enough, so if you can help out and lift your weight, you can jump on my wagon and get a lift.¡± ¡°Really? That¡¯d be a huge help, thanks.¡± Jicker answered happily. ¡°Not much of a change really, won¡¯t slow me down none and even if it did, wool doesn¡¯t mind. Two questions though: are you any good in a fight, and is the smell a gremlin thing?¡± Jicker frowned and raised an arm, taking a sniff. Ah. ¡°Like I said, I''ve been stuck in some fairly rubbish conditions for a while so sorry about the smell. But I can get by in a fight, and I¡¯ll tell you what, first decent sized body of water we pass, I¡¯ll jump in and see what I can do.¡± Jicker offered. The man laughed. ¡°Fair enough. In that case, grab your things and hop on; we don¡¯t want to get separated from the rest of the caravan.¡± Getting a proper look at the man, Jicker got a proper idea of just how small he was compared to the average person. Dressed in a worn but sturdy brown leather coat, he was at least twice Jicker''s height, his legs being bigger than his entire body. Deep crease covered his face, signs of a life of rough conditions and plenty of sun. Despite this he moved around like a much younger man, picking a large floppy hat up from where he had fallen and clambering quickly back up to his seat. Grabbing the traces for the two horses than had been waiting lazily, he gestured for himto hurry up. As Redgar snapped the reins and the horses began to move, Jicker sat down and got comfortable. Getting up to speed, they dropped back in line with the rest of the caravan and while it was hardly a sprint, it was still far quicker and easier than walking. ¡°So, how long until we reach Ardenvale?¡± Jicker asked after a few minutes. ¡°Be a little more than two days if the weather holds. It¡¯s a pretty easy run there from here, so odds are good you¡¯ll be the most eventful thing until we arrive.¡± He answered lazily, keeping his eyes on his horses. And for the rest of the day, he was right. As the caravan slowly but surely ate up the miles, Jicker managed to become bored for the first time in ages. He tried to relieve the feeling by introducing himself to the other carts and wagons, but they had a similar reaction to his appearance to the one Redgar had. In the end he settled for flicking through his medicine book and seeing if anything stuck out to him. He must have fallen asleep at some point; because before he knew it they were slowing down and stopping by a large wooden building as the sun was setting. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± he asked, yawning. ¡°Awake are you? Well, it¡¯s a pretty safe trip, but there¡¯s no sense taking extra risks for nothing so we¡¯ll be spending the night at the inn and heading off again in the morning.¡± He said as he began to untie the horse¡¯s traces. ¡°They have decent beds and food here, and could probably run a bath for you as well.¡± He added pointedly. ¡°Message received loud and clear. I¡¯ll go get myself a room then.¡± He said, hoping down and heading for the door. ¡°Make sure they know you¡¯re travelling with the group, they¡®ll give you a better deal.¡± The driver called from behind. As he opened the door, he was hit with a burst of applause, and for a brief moment he thought it was for him. But on looking around, he quickly realised it was for the woman on a small stage carrying a lute. Apparently he¡¯d just missed a performance, but by the look of a small line of people holding instruments beside the stage, it wasn¡¯t going to be the last. Carefully making his way over to the innkeepers counter, trying to avoid getting stepped on by drunken patrons, he reached up and rang a small bell. After a few moments, a cheerful matronly woman came out from the back and after a moment of looking around, spotted him and greeted him with a warm smile. ¡°Hello dear, and welcome to the Bardic Spoon, where we sing for your supper. What can we do for you today?¡± ¡°Hi, I just came in with the caravan, and I¡¯m looking for a room for the evening, if one¡¯s available.¡± ¡°Ah, I should have guessed. Yes, we¡¯ve got a number of rooms upstairs available for a decent price, including both an evening meal, which you¡¯re just in time for, as well as breakfast. Drinks are extra though, but I doubt you¡¯ll be drinking that heavily if you¡¯re travelling with that lot. Will there be anything else?¡± ¡°Yes, actually, what are the odds of me getting a bath tonight?¡± He asked, pulling open his pack to get some of the gold that Morthoc had given him. He hadn¡¯t actually checked how much he¡¯d been given, so he hoped he had enough. ¡°Ah, I was hoping you¡¯d say that. It takes all kinds dear, but most kinds have a sense of smell. I can have a bath drawn for you in your room in a few minutes, for not much more, as well as our laundry service, which comes to, let¡¯s see... 15 gold.¡± She said plainly. Jicker winced. Looking through his bag, he¡¯d come up with only a little over twenty gold, and while it was a fair enough price for a meal and a stay at a decent inn, he didn¡¯t like having to spend over half his funds. Still, he didn¡¯t have a lot of options. ¡°Agreed.¡± He said handing over the money. ¡°Though I think we can skip the laundry, no point in washing rags.¡± A thought struck him. ¡°Actually, do you have any old clothes around the place I could buy? Anything better than these would be good.¡± He continued, pointing at his tattered clothing. The woman tapped her cheek. ¡°We have a few bits and pieces that people leave behind, but I¡¯m not sure we¡¯ve got anything that would fit you. I¡¯ll have someone take a look, but I can¡¯t make any promises. If it¡¯s not too much trouble, would you mind taking that bath before you eat?¡± ¡°Is it really that bad? Fine, I¡¯ll take it as soon as you can fill it.¡± He said sounding resigned. By the time he¡¯d cleaned up as much as he could, the water had turned a greenish brown, almost black with filth. As he dried off with a towel they¡¯d provided a knock came at the door. ¡°Sir, we¡¯ve found some clothes that we believe would fit you, so feel free to look through them. Shall I leave them by the door?¡± ¡°That¡¯ll be fine.¡± He replied from inside. Waiting a moment, he went and grabbed them, and had a look at what they¡¯d found. Looking at them it appeared to be a variety of various pieces from some of the smaller races, but largely clothing for children. While it wasn¡¯t exactly what he wanted, it was another step in the right direction. He picked himself out a decent pair of brown pants, a dark green shirt and light grey jacket that had what looked to be a cat face on the back. He grabbed a well worn pair of shoes as an afterthought, having gone without for so long. Putting it all on, he was surprised to see one of them was magical.This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
Cloudy Cats Happy Coat! 13 defence This jacket protects the wearer from most weather, because cats don¡¯t like rain. *This item was created as part of the 5th annual design contest for children by Annie-age 6 Special: wearer ignores all low to middle level wind and weather effects. +5 cold resist, +5 fire resist, +5 shockresist
While the appearance wasn¡¯t what he¡¯d have chosen for himself, he couldn¡¯t argue with the effects. At his level, effects like that were hard to come by, and it could be useful even at higher levels. ¡°Thanks Annie.¡± He muttered to himself before throwing on his pack and heading back downstairs, the rest of the clothes under his arm. As he stepped down, the innkeeper spotted him instantly, calling out to him. ¡°Ah, there you are! I''m glad see you¡¯ve found some things that fitted? We¡¯ll discuss payment for those in a bit but for now take a seat and I¡¯ll have someone bring out your food.¡± Right, he¡¯d need to pay for these, he thought, and if they knew this was magical, then it probably wouldn¡¯t be cheap. Taking a chair at an empty table, he opened up his bag and began emptying it, looking to see if there was another bag of gold or something that he¡¯d missed, or something valuable he could trade. The compass might be worth a bit but he didn¡¯t wasn¡¯t to trade away a gift like that, and it was valuable to him in its own right. His pills would be worth a little, but since they weren¡¯t an established item, he probably couldn¡¯t expect very much for them. ¡°Hey, little green dude.¡± A voice came from behind him. Turning around, he saw a large man with a giant red mohawk, covered in scars and wearing a deep crimson suit of armour. ¡°Um, hi? Can I help you?¡± Jicker asked, hoping he wasn¡¯t about to get into a fight for some reason. ¡°Yeah, where¡¯d you manage to find those shells? I¡¯ve been looking around and I can¡¯t find any.¡± The man said, pointing over to the table, where a stack of the azure roach shells were sitting. He¡¯d kept them mostly as a token of his first species, but he hadn¡¯t really thought they¡¯d be good for much. After a while he¡¯d picked them up out of habit, and had started grabbing the ones Snuffles brought in as well. ¡°I got them in the Pit, over in Mount Kaloh. It¡¯s about a day¡¯s travel-¡± he began but the man cut him off, waving away his words. ¡°Yeah, I know where that is, should have figured. Pity, they don¡¯t let most races in. Are you collecting them as well?¡± he asked. ¡°Collecting them? What do you mean?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t know? A heap of the art guilds have put a decent bounty on the things, and a few others have put one out for the destruction of the species. I¡¯m not really up to date on why they¡¯re so valuable right now, but it¡¯s a good bit of cash at the moment for an easy enough quest.¡± He said. ¡°Quest? You¡¯re a player?¡± ¡°Hair didn¡¯t give it away? Name¡¯s Bloodhawk, barbarian of the bloody guild. Anyway if you¡¯re not doing a quest on these things, why¡¯d you hunt so many?¡± ¡°Well, they¡¯re pretty good eating to be honest. Better than anything else I could get.¡± Jicker offered. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯d heard they cook up pretty decent, but what do you mean they were all you could... Hang on; you said you got them from the Pit? Man, I¡¯ve heard of that place, props on getting out little dude. Well, if you¡¯re not using them, mind if I buy them off you?¡± ¡°Name¡¯s Jicker, how much we talking?¡± Jicker asked quickly, offering a hand. Bloodhawk almost crushed it in his own massive paw before responding. ¡°I can¡¯t give you top rates or anything, and I kind of want to make a profit here myself. Let¡¯s call it...¡± he paused and looked to the ceiling, seeming to be doing some calculations in his head. ¡°Twelve gold a shell? And I¡¯ll give you a round two fifty for the full stack of twenty there.¡± Jicker raised an eyebrow and held up a finger, before reaching into his pack and pulling out another two stacks. ¡°That¡¯s sixty three shells all up,¡± he said, ¡°Feel like buying some more?¡± Blood hawk grinned. In the end, they settled on seven hundred for the lot, giving Jicker more than enough for his new clothes and a decent amount to get by for quite some time, and was apparently enough to complete Bloodhawk¡¯s quest. Happy with his new found windfall, he spent the rest of his night listening to the various musicians that came up to the stage to play. There was a wide variety of music played, but apparently the flavour of the month was to write songs about Maser and the upheaval. Hearing about the apparent evil monster he was, and how he¡¯d ruined so many lives quickly soured the evening. Heading up to his room, he decided to turn in. ~~~~~~ By the time the sun rose, the main room was all but empty, with only the caravan members and the inn staff themselves being awake. The others had either left during the night, or were still trying to sleep it off. Even though they¡¯d all woken early, it still ended up in a mad rush to get everything together and back on the road as soon as possible. In less than half an hour they were back on the road, on their way to Ardenvale, leaving Jicker to once again aimlessly staring at the slowly passing scenery. Eventually he gave up, hopping in into the back of the cart under the covers and telling Redgar he was going to take a nap. Once he¡¯d gotten comfortable amongst the wool bales, he opened the menu and decided to log out for a bit. ~~~~~~ He¡¯d had the headset off for less than fifteen minutes, and had just started making a toasted sandwich, when there was a knock at the door. Wondering who it was, he opened it to see one of men in suits who had collected him before. ¡°Hi, Smith wasn¡¯t it? What¡¯s-¡± he began before he was cut off. ¡°Mr. Harper, are you alone? Is there anyone else in the building?¡± He said briskly, looking around. ¡°What? No, there¡¯s no one else here. What¡¯s going-¡± ¡°Area is secure, sir.¡± Smith said into an earpiece, cutting him off yet again. Before he could try and get an answer, the guard turned towards a pair of black cars as they opened up, revealing August Fronz, flanked by several more men in suits. While the executive approached with a seemingly casual attitude, the others were all on high alert, constantly scanning the surroundings. ¡°Ah, Mr. Harper, may we come in?¡± August asked once he reached the door. Knowing it wasn¡¯t a real question, Matt moved out of the way as they stepped through, a few staying outside. ¡°What¡¯s going on, sir.¡± He asked nervously. The last time he¡¯d spoken with the man, things hadn¡¯t been a good note, and now that he¡¯d come here in person... ¡°I take it, since you¡¯ve only just logged out, that you haven¡¯t seen the news of the last few hours?¡± Matt shook his head, now more confused than worried. August snapped his fingers and a laptop was presented to him, a video paused on the screen. ¡°This was going to be recorded but quickly became a live news broadcast at two o¡¯clock this afternoon.¡± He said before hitting play. Looking to the screen, Matt saw it was of a man in his late twenties standing at a podium, with multiple microphones in place, camera flashes going off almost constantly. ¡°Journalists, and the people of the world that are listening, thank you for coming. I arranged this broadcast by promising vital information regarding events in Genesis. And that information is this: I, Scott Gerard, am Maser.¡± The man said solemnly. The room was suddenly in an uproar, as questions were shouted across the room, while people tried desperately to get in contact with their superiors. Holding up a hand the man continued. ¡°I know you all have questions, so let me try and answer some of them. Yes, I orchestrated the upheaval, with the aid of my guild, and yes, it was intentional. As to the why, it¡¯s actually very simple. My guild was able to unleash a level of devastation unseen in anything but an act of god. With that level of power displayed, I put this forth to the world: Join us, work for us and grow with us. Because know this, you cannot oppose us.¡± August chose this moment to pause the video, turning to Matt. ¡°So, the first question that I need to ask, though I feel I already know the answer, is do you know this man?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve never seen him before in my life, and I did everything myself. I told you that, you know that!¡± Matt said quickly, worried that they thought he¡¯d lied to them. ¡°Indeed we do, but for legal reasons I needed to be sure. From what we¡¯ve gathered from various in game messages amongst this guild of his, they saw this as a way of getting publicity, as well as some fame or infamy, depending on how things panned out.¡± ¡°Well, I don¡¯t really see the problem, if I''m honest. I mean sure they didn¡¯t do it, but if they want to take the credit-¡± Matt got out before August raised a finger, silencing him instantly. ¡°Keep watching.¡± Turning back to the screen, he saw that the guy on stage was still going. ¡°Over the next few weeks, we will be taking in new members, but after that the entry requirements will rise sharply, so I¡¯d advise you to get in early. As to our future goals-¡± There was suddenly a commotion from behind the camera, followed by several screams. Before he could even process what he was hearing, there was a gunshot. Like a puppet with its strings cut, the speaker fell back off stage as security rushed in from the sides. After a few moments of panic as the camera shook, the screen went black, leaving Matt struggling to comprehend what he¡¯d just seen. He tried to get to a chair, but ended up falling to his knees. Someone had pretended to be him, and had been killed for it. If he¡¯d gone public, if he hadn¡¯t decided to keep quiet about his plans, that would have been him. Unable to handle it anymore, Matt threw up, emptying his stomach onto the floor. August, standing by watching him, wrinkled his nose. ¡°It seems this Mr. Gerard didn¡¯t think about the full ramifications of the upheaval, in the same way you did. They caught the killer, I''m sure you¡¯d like to know, though it seems they were simply a hired gun, and are refusing to give up their client, though evidence is pointing to one of the insurance companies that went under in its wake. Now I''ve got to go to a press conference, in...Three hours, to explain to people that this is an unfortunate situation, especially since they weren¡¯t even who they were claiming to be.¡± ¡°Couldn¡¯t...couldn¡¯t you just let them be Maser? I mean-¡± Matt began, struggling to his feet. ¡°Mr. Harper, I¡¯m surprised at you, letting someone else take the fall for you? Shameful of you, though to be honest, I¡¯d be surprised if you hadn¡¯t thought of it. No, sadly if I don¡¯t make the declaration, the rest of his little guild will probably be hunted down. Besides, if someone else took the fall for you, you¡¯d hardly continue your work for me now would you?¡± he said looking down at him. ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Matt asked, confused. August gestured, and the various guards he¡¯d brought in left the room, shutting the door behind them, leaving just the two of them. ¡°Do you understand why I¡¯ve decided to use you for this job, Mr. Harper? It¡¯s not because you have some amazing skill at the game, or some angle that no one has thought of before. While you have the skills needed, that was just a throw away reason for the board to stop pestering me. Truthfully, I could go and pick up dozens, even hundreds of suitable candidates for this task, plenty of them more effective than you are. But you have one key advantage that is hard to find, and that is the fact I own you. The moment you even think of betraying me or try to tell people about this situation, well I believe pictures speak louder than words.¡± He said, gesturing to the laptop, still paused at the last moments of the video. ¡°The moment that your identity got out, your life would be measured in days, if not hours. So unlike one of the other choices, I don¡¯t have to justify my actions, I don¡¯t have to ensure that its ¡®legal¡¯. You will do what I say, when I say it and you¡¯ll keep quiet about it, or you¡¯ll be in the ground before the day is out.¡± Grabbing the computer and heading to the door, he tapped it lightly before one of the guards waiting outside opened it. Pausing to straighten his tie, he turned back to Matt. ¡°For now, by all means, keep playing and get stronger. The better off you are, the more able you¡¯ll be to fulfil my ¡®requests¡¯. But occasionally I¡¯ll have word sent to you of something more...specific I need done, and I expect you to deal with it as soon as possible. Good afternoon, Mr. Harper. Oh, and clean up that vomit, it might be your home but it¡¯s still disgusting.¡± As the door closed behind them, Matt was left sitting on the floor in silence, listening to them drive off into the distance. Only once the sound had vanished completely, did it start sinking in. Part of him was trying to come to grips with the fact his actions had gotten someone killed, but mostly he was left feeling empty. Like an automaton, he cleaned up, ate his meal and sat down, staring at the television without even turning it on. August words and the last moments of the video kept circling each other in his head. Eventually he collapsed under the weight of it all, and fell asleep. By the time he woke up, it was pitch black outside, the only light he had was the faint glow of his clock on the wall. Standing up and unsure of how to act or what to do, he decided to drop back into the world of Genesis, having had enough of this one. ~~~~~~ Opening his eyes he found that he was still lying in the back of the wagon, though it seemed to be a bit emptier than it had been before. Before he could even get to his feet, the cover was suddenly pulled back revealing Redgar. ¡°Ah, you¡¯re back.¡± He said, slightly surprised. ¡°I wondered where you¡¯d wandered off to, but I guess you were just asleep behind one of the bales? Anyway, up and out Jicker, time to off load.¡± Hopping up,Jicker grabbed one of the bales and, wobbling under the weight, jumped down from the cart. Looking around he saw that they were in a large wooden warehouse, filled with various trade goods as traders and workmen moved around large crates and objects. Following Redgar to where he was piling up his wool, he spent the next few minutes helping empty out the cart. ¡°Thanks.¡± He said as they stacked the last bale. ¡°Well, in case you missed it somehow, we¡¯ve made it to Ardenvale, rolled in about an hour ago. Didn¡¯t know where you¡¯d ended up or I would have woken you up when we approached, so you missed out there. I take it this is your first time in town?¡± he asked as they began to head out of the warehouse. ¡°Yeah, first time anywhere really,¡± hesaid which was technically true, for Jicker at least. ¡°Well, since that event it¡¯s not the same, but Ardenvale is a city of scholars and artists, or at least that¡¯s what they say. It used to have lots of shining silver towers, huge statues, and one of the largest libraries and colleges in the world. Now all of that¡¯s gone, but I¡¯ll be honest, there¡¯s something to be said for the new city.¡± He said as they pulled out through the gates, giving Jicker his first look the city, and the results of his work. When he¡¯d planned out the upheaval he knew he¡¯d need to use a wide variety of explosives to do it properly. Not only because it would be too hard to get enough ingredients for a certain type, or for the various resistances of the locations. No, they had to be different so that areas could be reshaped and changed. The effects of a volcanic bomb left a very different mark on the country side than a winter blast charge, meaning that places that had once been nearly identical were now almost incomparable. He hadn¡¯t thought about it much, but he couldn¡¯t actually remember what he¡¯d unleashed on the city before he saw the results. The breath of a great sand dragon could either form into a high pressure spray of sand particles that would strip flesh from bone, or solidifyinto a super dense piece of stone, used to make their nests. By using and amplifying this second function, what remained of Ardenvale now sat in the shadow of an immense, black stone mushroom cloud. A few pieces had come loose, likely as it was for¨´ming, but the rest seemed to be durable enough that scaffolding and buildings had been built against it. ¡°Scared the life out of me when I first saw it,¡± Redgar said after a moment, ¡°Especially when they told me go sleep under it, but apparently its tough enough that it would take another event to bring it down. But more than that though, apparently a lot of the old city, including their fancy library, is caught up inside and a lot of people trying to mine their way in to strike it rich in there despite the risks. You¡¯re the adventuring sort; think you¡¯ll have a go?¡± He asked as they joined the line of people heading into town. ¡°Maybe one day, but I''m not ready for something like that yet. As it is, thanks for the lift Redgar, and I hope you have as profitable trip here.¡± Jicker said, offering a hand to the merchant. ¡°Here¡¯s hope, and the same to you, whatever you plan on doing. I¡¯d get yourself a room at inn if I was you, if you haven¡¯t made plans already. They¡¯re coming down on vagrancy a lot harder than they used to.¡± ¡°Thanks for the tip Redgar.¡± As they approached the gate, Jicker jumped down, needing to go a different way. ¡°Maybe I¡¯ll see you around sometime, but for now, take care.¡± He said, giving one last wave to the man before heading into the thriving city. Ardenvale was recovering from the destruction, but it was a slow process. As it was the city seemed to be in a random state of repair, with newly built home sitting right next to crumbling ruins, a sturdy stone bank seeming untouched where across the street a church had been left as nothing but a tent on its old foundations. But despite the state of the city itself, its people were as active as ever with the streets crowded with people, stalls of every kind lining the main road from the gate as far as he could see. As he walked down the road amongst the jostling crowds, trying not to get stepped on, he thought about how he hadn¡¯t been in large community in quite some time. The noise, the sights and even the smells were so realistic that it was hard to remember you were playing a game. Fortunately, or unfortunately, the other players managed to shatter this feeling quickly as they stood around shouting for attention. ¡°Looking for a group to hunt giants! Level 80 or higher!¡± ¡°Trading medium grade iron and coal! Will take gold or goods!¡± ¡°Quest assistance needed! Will pay gold to anyone who can tell me where I''m supposed to take this dog!¡± The one good thing about being stuck in the pit was that he hadn¡¯t had to listen to the messengers. Genesis had decided early on that having a big chat window for people to talk and trade in would ruin people¡¯s immersion, which was true enough. However people being what they were, there were now hundreds of people, npcs and players, who spent most of their time standing around in public areas shouting out various messages that people paid them to say. Advertising at its finest. If what Redgar had said was true, Jicker thought, then he needed to find a place to stay, and soon. He didn¡¯t have any friends in town, and he certainly couldn¡¯t afford to buy a house even if he could find one for sale. That left him with either finding an inn to stay at, which would burn through what little gold he had, or try to get a room at an academy or college. The various training building normally had cheap, temporary rooms for visiting students, so as long as he could get in that would do for the time being. Asking for directions from one of the messengers, he headed to the eastern side of town to find what remained of Ardenvale academy. The white marble structure seemed to have either escaped most of the damage, or had been a priority to repair. Two curved wings of the building left it with a large contained courtyard, currently filled with students and players. Walking to the administration building, he got the names and directions to two of the professors that could give him the skills Sarah had recommended. ¡°If they accept you as a student,¡± The administrator said, ¡°Come back here with a note from them and you can rent a room.¡± Heading to the first choice, he was greeted by small elderly woman working in a green house. He didn¡¯t even manage to say hello before the woman waved a trowel at him without turning around. ¡°Here to learn the skill of herbalism? Well I don¡¯t have time to teach someone who can¡¯t tell a weed from a tree, so here¡¯s the deal, take one of the packs there on the cupboard and bring me a decent sample of all the plants written on a list inside. Show me you know what you¡¯re doing, and I¡¯ll teach you some of what I know.
Ding! Quest: Pick for proof. You have been tasked with collecting various plants and flowers from the nearby area to show your willingness to learn the herbalism skill. Success: Bring the needed plant samples back to the teacher Reward: Herbalism skill lvl 1 Failure: Don¡¯t return with the items within 1 week
Stumbling back out of the greenhouse with the pack under his arm, he muttered a goodbye, unable to tell if she was being rude or really didn¡¯t care. He decided it was probably the second after he got the same treatment from the next teacher he¡¯d selected. The thin man that was apparently the anatomy teacher seemed to care even less. ¡°Look,¡± he said as he answered the door, drenched in blood up to his elbows, ¡°This craft take both skill and a strong stomach, so if you really want to learn it bring me 10 fox spleens. And in good condition, not just a lump of meat you¡¯ve ripped out of the carcass.¡±
Ding! Quest: It¡¯s what¡¯s inside that counts. You have been tasked with collecting 10 fresh fox spleens from the Greyleaf Forest to show your ability to learn the anatomy skill. Success: Bring the needed pieces back to the teacher Reward: Anatomy skill lvl 1 Failure: Don¡¯t return with the items within 1 week
¡°Good old fetch quests.¡± He sighed to himself as he wandered out of the academy. It had been years since he¡¯d done one of these, but they were all the same. ¡°At least it isn¡¯t rats I guess.¡± Making his way through the town, he went to find an inn for the night. He still had most of the day to work with but he wasn¡¯t sure how hard it would be to find and collect everything he needed, and leaving things like a bed to the last minute was how you ended up in jail. Finding a reputable enough looking place and booking a room for the night, he sat and had a meal, considering his next moves. Obviously he was going to need to go into the woods to get the items for the quests, but while he¡¯d gotten strong enough to escape the Pit, it didn¡¯t actually relate very well to the rest of the world. Still, he should be strong enough to go and pick some flowers, he decided, and finished his drink before setting out for the forest. Chapter 9 As Jicker desperately clung to a tree branch high above the forest floor, he swore at himself. He¡¯d been correct in thinking he could manage to find the flowers, and only had a few more to find. He¡¯d also been correct about his beliefs about being able to defeat a small fox in battle, his poisons making short work of his targets. It hadn¡¯t even crossed his mind however, that there were plenty of other things living in the woods, and many of them were far stronger than he was. This left him in his current situation, trapped up a tree while a large brown bear growled at him, clawing at the tree in a vain effort to climb up and get him. It seemed the tree wasn¡¯t strong enough to support its weight though, as it slid back down to sit at its base. After a few hours of sitting as still as possible to avoid stirring up the bear any further, it eventually got either bored or hungry and wandered off deeper into the trees. Carefully climbing down and making sure it wasn¡¯t going to start running back, Jicker hurried as quickly and quietly as he could back to town. Back at the inn, sitting in his room after dinner, he considered what had gone wrong and realised it was simple. Despite having some fairly effective poisons to work with, in the end he was a support class, and wasn¡¯t supposed to be fighting on the front line. Normally, a person with a support class would attach themselves to some more combat focused ones and level up that way, taking a share of the experience from the group. But if he attached himself to a group, they¡¯d want see his stats and that would lead to a much shorter life span. There was a chance they wouldn¡¯t want to see them, and his achievements would remain hidden, but the people who don¡¯t care who you are were also the ones who would probably stab you in the back. That didn¡¯t leave him with a decent way to grind any levels, at least no normal ones he realised. His evolution stat was giving him a tiny trickle of experience, not enough to even bother counting. But that was because there was only so much snuffles could do on his own, and the azure roaches had the combat ability of a brick. But if he could put something together that could hold its own, and spread across the world...Patching himself up with a few of his healing pills and grabbing some food on his way out, Jicker hurried back to the forest while the idea was still fresh in his mind. ~~~~~~ The trick would be, he thought, to make something that could take on low and maybe mid level players without being so specific that it ended up being a one off creation. It also couldn''t be too weird or it wouldn¡¯t spread out properly. Something weak enough that it would fit in a low level forest, but could also manage to take out higher level players if they worked together. ¡°Let¡¯s see... forest creature, aggressive, pack tactics...I need a wolf don¡¯t I?¡± Jicker said to himself as he snuck through the trees, keeping an eye out for movement. Moving as quietly as he could it didn¡¯t take him to long before he found something that fit the bill. Closer to a wild dog than a wolf, the large animal was asleep under a tree, apparently more of a day creature than a nocturnal one, which suited him just fine. Getting closer, he loaded a tranquiliser and fired not wanting to be torn apart while he tried to work on it. Flinching slightly as the shot struck its side; it rolled over but didn¡¯t wake up. Sighing in relief, he put away his weapon and went over to his target, getting between it and the tree to hide his presence. Sitting down, he used his Adaptation ability and got to work. There were a few more options than the last time he¡¯d used it, which he attributed to either his increased evolution stat or the fact that this creature, apparently called a forest hound, was several levels higher than what he¡¯d worked on as a base in the past. After about an hour, he had something he was happy enough with. After playing with the colour sliders, he found he could make its fur so black that it became hard see anything but its outline, which inspired the entire creature. Making its eye, claws and even its teeth the same pitch black and adjusting its fur to a more shaggy length, it would have been hard to make out any detail if his ability wasn¡¯t compensating. Putting various pack tactics into its mind and making it nocturnal was simpler than he¡¯d thought it would be, and he promised to himself that he¡¯d play around with that when he had more time. He also managed to give it a special ability, to be able to emit a cloud of fog. By shaking itself like a wet dog, it could release a fifteen foot cloud of impenetrable black fog which nothing, not even it, could see through. To compensate, Jicker greatly heightened its sense of smell, and altered its ears, giving it a bat like sonar ability. The end result was a large canine standing four feet tall at the shoulder, its large ears making look like an over sized fennec fox that had been dunked in ink. Under the cover of the trees in the dead of night, it was hard to spot the animal lying in front of him, even when he knew it was there.
Ding! Adaptation has become permanent. Creature remains too similar to existing creatures become unique, adaptation can be repeated at a 10% chance of permanency Type: Modified Forest Hound. Level: 20 Do you wish to name this creature?
¡°Hmmm, let¡¯s see... its name will be Silhouwolf.¡± Jickersaid proud he¡¯d succeeded on his first try.
Name accepted. Do you wish to be identified as the creator?
¡°No, definitely not!¡± He said quickly. The last thing he wanted was to be blamed for killing a bunch more players.
Creator will remain unknown. Now applying changes to creature.
As the creatures form began to shift before his eyes, another notice got his attention.
You have unlocked the Enigma Statistic. Do wish to accept? Each point of Enigma increases your ability to go unnoticed, increasing your stealth. For each point of Enigma, you produce an aura that causes players, NPCs and monsters to ignore and forget you. The strength of this field is based on the level of the stat vs. the targets wisdom. Warning: Once a statistic is selected it cannot be removed. You have 4 Stat slots remaining.
¡°Oh great,¡± Jicker sighed quietly, not wanting to wake the newly formed creature in front of him, ¡°another stat I''ve never heard of.¡± This one at least seemed to be a clearer ability to do with hiding, and was probably offered to him since he kept refusing to get any fame for his creatures. It wasn¡¯t something he¡¯d planned to try and get, but since he was pretty much winging it as he went anyway, he accepted it. If nothing else it would hopefully make people less likely to rob him on the roads.
Enigma accepted. Note that performing actions that gain lots of attention or fame can lead to temporary or permanent reductions of this Statistic.
And of course it could go away, just his luck he thought grumpily. Still, it made sense that if he started attracting people¡¯s attention it would be harder to make them ignore him. It was only went something soft batted against his legs did he realise he hadn¡¯t been quite as stealthy as he thought he had. The silhouwolf had woken up, and by the slight amount of moonlight reflecting in its eyes, he could see it starring at him calmly. Whether it was his handle animal skill at work or it was still adjusting to its new shape, it made no move to get up as he hurried off. With a stroke of luck he managed to spot a few foxes on the way back to town to fill in the quest, though he¡¯d need to come back tomorrow to try and find the flowers. The academywas closed at this hour so he made his way back to the inn to log off for a while. ~~~~~~ Taking off the mask and looking at his phone, he saw that it was apparently the middle of the night. Having nothing to do apart from play Genesis, which had its own time scale, was really beginning to mess with his internal clock. Deciding not to risk getting another call from August, he shot a quick email over to Sarah Hey Sarah, Just giving you a heads up here, I made another beastie recently that I want to get checked out and get the ok on before I let it go and spread around the place. Matt After the...thing that happened before, he wanted to out of his way to avoid confronting that man, so if he had to clear any creations with his people, fine. There were a lot of worse things than going through some paperwork. Deciding he needed a break, he heated up a bowl of noodles and sat in front of the television, unsure if he wanted to turn it on. The images he¡¯d seen on the laptop were still fresh in his mind, and he didn¡¯t want to have to deal with those emotions again right now. Instead, he threw on an old action movie, choosing to just clear his thoughts with some mindless violence. After a while even that lost its appeal and he went to bed to get his first real bit of sleep in the past few days. After only a few hours he woke up, his body not really needing more rest, despite what his brain thought about the matter. Taking a shower and grabbing a cup of coffee, he flicked on the news; just in case something was going on that he needed to know. While there was a piece on the televised murder, it seemed to have become more of a background piece behind talks on gun laws. Apart from that it was just tax changes and bad weather, things that he couldn¡¯t control but could ignore. Checking his phone, he saw that Sarah had already replied. Matthew, Good idea on passing that through before you started throwing them everywhere, but what if it had become unique straight away? I know you can¡¯t really plan for that, but we should figure something out. I got access to pull up the specs of your ¡°Silhouwolf¡± and took it to the boss, and he¡¯s given it the all clear. He¡¯s not even shuffling any funds around so I guess it doesn¡¯t affect him? Anyway, you¡¯re good to start mass production. Sarah the Great Happy to see he had a go ahead on his wolves, Matt finished off his coffee and a few slices of toast before cleaning up and getting back to work. ~~~~~~ It was just after dawn when he opened his eyes, the morning sun streaming through the window. As if on cue, and it probably was, there was a knock at the door. ¡°Housekeeping sir, may we come in?¡± A voice called from outside. ¡°One second.¡± He replied, collecting his things from around the room. He silently hoped that at one point all of his possessions wouldn¡¯t fit in a small bag. Going out to the main room as a maid swept in behind him, he went over to the innkeeper. ¡°Sir, I''m wondering if I could put a room on hold. I''m planning to move into the academy this afternoon, but-¡± Jicker began before being cut off. ¡°No can do sir. I don¡¯t mean to sound rude, but with so much of the housing in the area destroyed, each bed is tightly contested. In fact, you were lucky to manage to get one yesterday, since we had a sudden cancelation. So it¡¯s nothing personal, but if you¡¯re planning on moving on, then there are plenty of people who will be quick to take your place.¡± Jicker considered paying for the room in advance, just in case things didn¡¯t work to at the academy, but his funds were already stretched pretty thin, even with the gold he¡¯d gotten from the shells. Without knowing how much he¡¯d need to pay for his education, he couldn¡¯t afford to pay for a room he hopefully wouldn¡¯t need. ¡°Very well then, in that case, could I get some breakfast before I head out?¡± ¡°Right you are sir; I¡¯ll have something brought to you shortly.¡± The streets were already busy even at this early hour, though a city of this size never really stopped. Merchants bringing in their goods, craftsmen and cooks beginning the day¡¯s work and all manner of adventurers going about their business. The academy was quieter than most area, since even virtual students didn¡¯t want to wake up before noon, so he managed to get to the anatomy teacher¡¯s office with too much hassle. The man took his time looking over the samples he¡¯d brought in, making Jicker wonder if they were good enough. He¡¯d made do with a camping knife he¡¯d picked up for a few silver pieces, not having the gold he¡¯d need for a good knife. ¡°Well the cuts are rough,¡± the man said after he¡¯d finished his inspection, ¡°though far enough from the organ that it isn¡¯t much of an issue. It¡¯s also the correct organ, which was something I wish I didn¡¯t need to check, but apparently standards have fallen considering what some applicants have handed me. However there¡¯s also some discoloration on them that I¡¯d associate with illness or poison. So did you take these from already dying animals or...?¡± He left the question hanging. ¡°Poison sir, I hope that¡¯s ok.¡± Matt answered, not having considered that to be an issue. ¡°For these it¡¯s fine, though for other collections it¡¯s something to keep in mind. Regardless I can safely say you possess the necessary talent to begin learning the art of anatomy.¡±
Ding! Quest: It¡¯s what¡¯s inside that counts. - Complete! Reward: 1000 EXP. You have gained the Anatomy skill.
You have unlocked the Anatomy skill! Current level: 1 Gives you a greater understanding of living forms, giving increased critical damage, healing and poison effects against living targets. Synergy - Adaptation will be increased by 2% per level of Anatomy on living animals.
You have gained the ability: Prime Specimen! This ability can be used on a member of a created species to upgrade it into a leader, elite or boss of that species, making them unique. This can only be done once per species. Cost: 300 Mana.
This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. ¡°Wow, good work Sarah.¡± He said, surprised at his results. He¡¯d need to get a bit more mana before he could try it, but that ability was definitely going to get some use. ¡°What was that?¡± The teacher asked suspiciously. ¡°Nothing sir, just being thankful for my blessings.¡± Jicker replied quickly. ¡°Well, while I won¡¯t stand between a man and his gods, this is a place of science, not religion, so I ask you to keep it to yourself while you are here. Now then, in case you weren¡¯t told, you may address me as Professor Kaldari and should do so with respect. I teach those I find acceptable the finer points of anatomy, which you are right to be thankful to be included in. I hold classes throughout the week, of which you can find a schedule in the main hall. While attendance isn¡¯t mandatory, you will gain significant insight on the subject should you attend. In addition, students staying at the academy are required to attend at least three lectures a week unless told otherwise to be allowed to stay. Any questions?¡± The professor said blandly as he looked down at him. ¡°No sir, although about staying here...¡± ¡°Ah yes, I¡¯d figured as much.¡± He said, grabbing a small copper token and handing it to him. ¡°Take that to administrations and they will give you permission to rent a room. Now then I have important work to do so be off with you.¡± He said shooing him away before closing the door in his face. Since he¡¯d heard that rooms were limited, Jicker wasted no time heading over to see about a room. After waiting what seemed like an age, an elderly woman came out of the administration office and took his token, inspecting it. ¡°A token like this allows you to rent a basic room for 50 gold pieces a week, assuming you can meet the necessary lesson requirements, which I assumed the professor explained. You also can use the facilities here freely, as well as take part in meals served here. Will you be taking a room today?¡± she asked. The room he ended up with was small, little more than a prison cell with a bed, cupboard and desk. If he hadn¡¯t been so small he would have felt trapped in the tiny space, but as it was it was a safe space he could finally relax in. Lying down on the bed, he stretched out and chose to take a nap before going out to track down the last few flowers he needed for his herbalism quest. It was about an hour before dusk when Jicker eventually set out for the forest, but he told himself it was so that he could try to find some more of the forest hounds, and not because he overslept. There were still plenty of other adventurers walking around through the woods, either beginning their night time activities or ending their days work. Most players just gave a passing nod out of courtesy, though a few drew their weapons on him before realising he was a character and not a weird monster. Since no one really played as gremlins, and the natural ones were almost entirely contained as orcish slaves, most people had never seen one before. Eventually he reached a spot in the forest that he thought should be a good place to track down the plants on the list. After searching around for a while he managed to find most of them, but one on the list eluded him. A small white flower called a moon lure, which should have been around here, was nowhere to be found. It was only by studying his surroundings for signs of the flower that he noticed a patch of shadow that shouldn¡¯t have been there. The Silhouwolf he¡¯d created the night before stood silently as he turned to face it, not moving in the slightest as it was discovered. Jicker didn¡¯t think it wanted to attack him, or it would have done it before now, but why it had found him again was still a mystery. Slowly he moved over towards it, hoping he hadn¡¯t misread the situation. ¡°Hey boy, sorry if I''m in your territory, I was looking for a flower and I kind of wandered so...¡± He realised he was rambling to an animal that couldn¡¯t understand him, but the way it cocked its head at his words made him wonder if it could. Carefully taking out the list he¡¯d gotten from the professor, he showed it to the wolf. ¡°I¡¯m looking for these, have you seen any?¡± He asked not sure what to expect. The beast stared at the flower for a moment before huffing softly and turning down a path Jicker hadn¡¯t gone down yet. After a few yards it paused and turned back to him, huffing again. ¡°I''m supposed to follow you? Sure, why not? Not like I''ve got a better idea of where to find them?¡± he said. For the next fifteen minutes he followed the animal as best he could, which kept stopping every time he began to fall behind as they made their way through the undergrowth. Eventually it stopped completely next to a large oak and looked up at it expectantly. Jicker squinted up at the branches trying to make out any detail in the dying light. ¡°It grows up there huh? Weird, the list didn¡¯t say anything about-¡± Being too busy looking up at the treetop he didn¡¯t see when the silhouwolf tackled him from behind, tripping and forcing him down through a hollow he hadn¡¯t seen at the trees base. As he rolled and fell, he came to a stop a few dozen feet underneath the tree. He couldn¡¯t tell whether it was a natural cavern or whether it had been dug out by hand or paw, mostly because he was preoccupied with the dozens of hounds that his entrance had disturbed, which were now beginning to circle him growling menacingly. Getting to his feet and looking rapidly around, Jicker wondered what had possessed him to follow something he¡¯d designed to kill players so deeply into the forest. Part of him had known it was a foolish decision but he¡¯d done it anyway. One of the larger hounds had apparently had enough of just growling at him, suddenly rushing forwards. Before Jicker could even reach for his weapon to defend himself, the silhouwolf that had pushed him dropped down from above, keeping itself between Jicker and his would be attacker. To two beasts began growling at each other, seeming to have an argument at a level he couldn¡¯t hope to understand. It came to a head when the hound rushed forwards, jaws goings for the wolf¡¯s throat. The wolf darted back, getting clear of its attacker before shaking its head, releasing a thick cloud of darkness. In the pitch black that the cave was left in, not even Jicker''s natural night vision could pick out anything, only having the whines and howls to go by. After a few tense moments of not knowing whether he¡¯d feel teeth in his neck before being sent to respawn, the cloud began to clear. Standing over the bleeding and whining body of the forest hound, the silhouwolf stood proudly, untouched and looking for other challengers. When none came, and the cave fell to near silence, the silhouwolf seemed to give a command to one of the other hounds. Slowly it approached and stood in front of him, seeming as confused about it as he was. He wondered what was going on, when the silhouwolf growled at him and bumped his hand with its nose. Suddenly everything clicked, leaving Jicker astonished at the animal intelligence. He assumed it had been a part of this pack before he had changed it, and now it wanted him to change the rest of them. This was a far higher level of thinking than most animals in genesis possessed, most needing to be of very high level to have the intelligence needed for such forward thinking. He wondered for a moment why they were able to do it, when he realised that it was obviously him. His evolution stat was giving a bonus to all of his created animals, including to their intelligence, something notoriously hard to increase in an animal. While they weren¡¯t as smart as a person, at least not yet, they were still far more capable than they should have been. It explained why Shuffles had been so easy to talk to, and the roaches... well a cockroach wasn¡¯t ever going to be a genius. Placing a hand on the animal¡¯s side, he hesitated as it flinched and growled at him only to be silence by a single bark from the silhouwolf. ¡°This...might not work straight away.¡± He said, hoping they¡¯d understand, and praying that it would. Activating his adaptation, the energies slowly flowed out and around the hound, changing it into a second silhouwolf, to what seemed like the surprise and delight of the surrounding pack. Jicker breathed a sigh of relief as the change held, as the new wolf trotted off, inspecting its new form. The noise was over powered by a bark from the original, and another hound came towards him, this time far more eagerly. ¡°I''m going to be at this for a while aren¡¯t I?¡± He sighed to himself before beginning work on the next animal. ~~~~~~ The first time he had to wait while his mana recharged, the surrounding pack got annoyed, and after the first time the transformation didn¡¯t stick, they became actively angry. Luckily, the original held them back and got them under control while Jicker tried again. Slowly the pack began to be converted, and it was only when the sun came up and Jicker tried to leave they once again turned aggressive, blocking his exit. The meaning was clear: he would stay until he was done, whether he liked it or not. Though they kept him trapped inside, they didn¡¯t try to attack him, even letting him get some sleep. The moment he started yawning the pack had scattered, either going out to hunt or getting some sleep themselves, with only a few of the new wolves remaining to keep an eye on him. When he woke up he found that a freshly killed rabbit had been dropped by his feet, again reminding him Snuffles, leaving him wondering exactly how smart that rat had ended up. He wasn¡¯t bothered as he gutted and cleaned the meat, though several pups had come to watch him, and fought eagerly for the scraps he threw their way. Even lighting a fire appeared to be only a passing distraction for the wolves, though the hounds backed away from it. Once he¡¯d cooked and eaten his meal however, the line of transformation began again, carrying him through the rest of the day. He wondered how the animals would respond if he logged out, but he decided not to risk it, since he doubted they¡¯d react well, when he came back. Finally, after almost four days, the last hound pup was changed, leaving him looking at a cavern full of nothing but shifting shadows, the silhouwolves watching him from every angle. Getting up and stretching out his back he noticed a few prompts from the game system.
Enough Silhouwolves now exist in the wild that they are now a sustainable species. Do you accept?
¡°Yes.¡± He said relieved.
Silhouwolves are now a full species of Genesis. They will now breed and spawn naturally within this area, and slowly spread to other areas in the world that can sustain them. You can no longer create Silhouwolves. You cannot create other species from Silhouwolves. Evolution has increased by 1! Total: 3
Handle Animal level has increased by 2! Current level: 6
You have been playing for more than 18 hours. It is highly recommended by Masquerade Entertainment that you take a break.
The wolves moved out of his way as he headed for the exit, climbing back out the surface as the sun was rising. Before him sat the original silhouwolf, a small bundle of flowers sitting at its feet, and what he could only describe as laughter in its eyes. ¡°Fine, you win. Good luck with your new pack. In fact...¡± Jicker said as he picked up the flowers he¡¯d been looking for, before an idea struck him. Putting a hand on the wolf¡¯s neck, which it seemed to tolerate out of curiosity, he activated the ability he¡¯d unlocked recently. A wave of energy poured out of him, soaking into the animal, now shaking under the flow of energy. After a minute it stopped, and Jicker looked at what he¡¯d done, blinking the spots from his eyes. Seeming to have doubled in size, it actual form seemed to flicker and ripple, its long fur twisting in a nonexistent breeze. While seeming like nothing but a cloud of shadow itself, he had no doubt that its claws and fangs were sharper than ever.
You have created the Alpha Silhouwolf. Level: 45 This wolf is now a boss and the undisputed leader of its kind Special abilities: The Alpha can summon other silhouwolves from within its own shadow, and can teleport between shadows up to half a mile, bringing other silhouwolves with it. Do you wish to name this creature?
¡°Well then smart guy, your name is going to be Penumbra.¡±
Name accepted. Do you wish to be identified as the creator?
¡°No.¡±
Creator will remain unknown. Now applying changes to creature. Enigma has increased by 1! Total: 2
¡°Who¡¯s the Smart guy now huh?¡± He said the wolf as it tried to figure out how to get back into its den with its new size. After a moment it stopped and turned to him, giving a short bark before flowing like water back underground. ¡°Well, I guess you are apparently.¡± He said quietly to himself before tiredly heading off to find his way back to town. As he walked past people heading out for the day, he kept an ear out to see if anyone had spotted his work yet but it seemed that the wolves were either lying low, or hadn¡¯t left a survivor who could come back yet. No one seemed particularly mindful of the forest normally, so it would probably take a while before they learned to watch for the shadows. When he eventually made it back to the academy he got the same reply from the professor that he had gotten about anatomy. A quick check of the flowers, a few words about the lessons and time table and then he received his skill.
Ding! Quest: Pick for proof. - Complete! Reward: 1000 EXP. You have gained the Herbalism skill.
You have unlocked the Herbalism skill! Current level: 1 Gives you a greater understanding of plants, allowing higher grade and quality of plants to be harvested and used. Synergy - Adaptation can now be used to create and modify plants and plant based creatures.
Useful, he thought to himself, though he wasn¡¯t sure how yet. Still he had no doubt that it would be put to work in the future. Going through the mess hall he pick up a bite to eat, but even though the game told him he was full, part of him was making him very aware he needed to eat. Making his way back up to his room, he staggered in and collapsed on to his bed, almost falling asleep before he managed to log off. ~~~~~~ As he dropped the headset on to his bed, part of him felt tired and wanted to rest. A larger part of him instead raced to the kitchen and managed to polish off three sandwiches, a bowl of noodles, two bananas and a bag of chips. After he¡¯d eaten enough to feed a small family all he wanted to was collapse into a food coma, but he refused to let himself go down that path. For several years he¡¯d spent a lot of his time in a comatose state, and while they¡¯d ensured there were no problems mentally, a person¡¯s physical health was always their own responsibility. Groaning as he threw on his shoes, he went to go walk some of it off, or run if he could manage it and not throw up. Too many people had begun to have health issues once Genesis had become popular enough, but no one even tried to shift blame onto the company. It was obvious to everyone that if you spent twenty hours a day asleep, only waking up to eat and use the bathroom, you weren¡¯t living a healthy lifestyle. Obesity, bedsores, muscle atrophy and a host of other problems had arisen, but the answer was simple, even if a lot of people refused to do anything about it: exercise. As he hurried down the road as best he could manage, he thought about his plans for the future. As long as August had him under his thumb, he wouldn¡¯t be doing anything but playing and aiming to do whatever it was that bastard wanted. The problem was, that all he had to do to get out of the situation, was give up his identity to the public, but he¡¯d seen the results of that. He could go to the police for protection, but even if they¡¯d help, who knew how long he¡¯d have to live like that? As he lent against a traffic light, waiting for it to change, he spotted a billboard on the side of a bus for the game. Genesis, a changed world, What change will you make? Not the greatest tag line, but he was still impressed with how quickly they¡¯d gotten out marketing to bring people back into the game. It was everywhere at the moment, though it had always been present somewhere in the media, since something couldn¡¯t be that big and not have coverage. But now it seemed there were thousands of people and groups televising there new adventures or characters in the ¡®new¡¯ world. Businesses that had fallen during the upheaval were being replaced by dozens of others fighting out for rights and territory, sometimes literally. It was one of things of strange amusement watching two elderly bankers in the game trying to burn each other alive to see who got rights to certain quarters of a city. Heading over to the supermarket to grab a few things, a conversation from a cafe caught his ear. ¡°...thought you weren¡¯t going to make it tonight? I thought you said you were gonna stay and play the whole night.¡± ¡°That was the plan, but I figured since I¡¯m dead, I may as well come out anyway.¡± ¡°Wait, you died? You were in a low level area weren¡¯t you? How¡¯d you manage to get yourself killed?¡± ¡°I know right? I was like, twenty levels above most people around there, but these weird...black things came out of nowhere and blinded me. I couldn¡¯t see what they did, but they took me to pieces. I¡¯m gonna go hunt the things down when I can get back in. So any way where¡¯s Linda at? Is she still stuck dating that...¡± Matt didn¡¯t bother sticking around to hear about whatever social drama they had going on, and hurried on. He¡¯d hoped his wolves would be effective, but to already be bringing down players stronger than they were? Racing home, he rushed through the door and grabbed his head set, before pausing and rethinking his decision. Instead he went and started up his computer, wanting to see if there were any other reports of his wolf¡¯s actions, or whether he¡¯d stumbled onto the only case by pure chance. But sure enough, as he started to scan over the various forums, he found more and more evidence of ¡®shadowy animals¡¯ attacking and bringing down players of various levels in Greyleaf Forest. There even a few reported cases coming from further parts of the continent, surprising him with just how quickly they¡¯d managed to spread. Concerned, he sent a quick email over to Sarah wanting to make sure that this wasn¡¯t getting out of control. After a few stressful minutes she sent back a reply saying that while it was more than expected, it was still well within acceptable limits, and she¡¯d been allowed to draft a few interns to help track the silhouwolves movements and growth across the game. Calming himself down with a cider from the fridge, he cleaned himself up from his run and got comfortable for another session of play. ~~~~~~ Waking up in his room, he was immediately greeted with a number of notices.
You have received EXP from Evolution! You have reached level 12! You have received EXP from Evolution! You have reached level 13! You have 10 points left unassigned. Assign points now?
¡°Two levels already?¡± He said to himself in surprise. He looked to his status making sure he wasn¡¯t misreading anything, and sure enough, he¡¯d gone up two levels while logged out and almost gone up to-
You have received EXP from Evolution! You have reached level 14! You have 15 points left unassigned. Assign points now?
Jicker shook himself out of it and looked through the information, trying to figure out how he¡¯d earned three levels so quickly. His evolution stat was giving him only 0.3% of any experience earned by his created creatures, which meant he was earning less than a single point of experience for every three hundred that the wolves were pulling in. There was an increased amount of experience given for killing a player, but for them to be getting to be getting these sorts of numbers they¡¯d have to be... His thoughts paused as he remember the pack moving around so quietly, the intelligence they¡¯d shown in their eyes, the viciousness he¡¯d seen when one of the others had challenged the alpha. No they could have brought down larger targets with their combined efforts before the changes, and were famously known for it. But with what they¡¯d become now, it seemed to have been amplified, and he could easily see them taking out whole groups of players more than a dozen levels higher than themselves. And if Penumbra got involved, well, then he doubted many players in the area would have a hope of winning. Eventually, once people realised that section of Greyleaf Forest wasn¡¯t as safe as they remembered, the experience he would slow to a tiny amount, and even more once people adjusted their tactics to fight the silhouwolves. But for now he had a source of experience coming in, so with that problem squared away for the time being, it was time to address his other issues. His main problems now were a lack of useful skills, and a source of income. As it was he had some left from the beetles he¡¯d sold, but between housing, food and the other expenses that came when trying to get anything done in a city it was quickly running out. He also needed to find a way to learn some more skills that could help him improve, but training wasn¡¯t going to be easy. Most skills could be taught and if something could be done; there was always someone willing to get paid to do it. He¡¯d been lucky in picking up the ones he had for free, and the academy could help him out with a few of the simpler ones, but eventually he was going to need to invest in some higher grade abilities, and those were never cheap. It was circle in the end, you needed money for skills, and you needed skills to make money, but fortunately there was a way to break the loop. And with that in mind, Jicker assigned his Stat points and went out to find a quest. Chapter 10 ¡°Let¡¯s see here... we have a request to hunt down a group of bandits that have been spotted in the woods, would that do?¡± ¡°What else do you have?¡± Jicker asked with a sigh. It had been easy enough to find one of the various adventuring halls that handed out quests to people looking to make some money. People, either NPCs or players, would come and request for a task to be done that they either wouldn¡¯t or couldn¡¯t do, and left it and the reward with the hall. And when an adventure proved they¡¯d completed a quest, the hall would hand over their pay minus a cut the hall took as their fee. It was a quick, clean and simple system setup so that anyone could use it. Except, apparently, people who couldn¡¯t manage even the simplest quests available, leaving Jicker standing in front of the counter for the last ten minutes as the girl behind the counter went through every assignment they had on hand. ¡°Hmmm, scraping the bottom of the barrel here...another wolf pack, but you turned down the last one, and our last available quest is taking down a rabid bear. With all due respect, have you considered that adventuring might not be for you?¡± She asked politely, eyeing the growing line behind him. ¡°It looks like you might have a point. Thanks anyway.¡± He said before leaving. Heading back out on to the street he wondered what he should do now his plan had managed to fall over at step one. Checking the clock on his menu, he saw that there was a class on herbalism starting soon, and decided to head in and get a lesson out of the way for the week. Making his way back to the academy, he saw that people seemed to be travelling in groups in and out of the campus now, unlike the random streams he¡¯d seen before. Shrugging, he went to the administrators to get directions to where the lecture hall was. Checking his name off the attendance roll, he found a seat in the amphitheatre style room, and waited as a few dozen other people began to file into the room. There were times when the realism of the virtual reality was so intense that it was hard to believe it was just a game. But sitting in a room for an hour as a professor droned on for an hour about pine trees was all too believable. He wasn¡¯t the only one who¡¯d been bored, he was happy to see, as more than one student had be prodded awake once the lesson was over. ¡°Oh, and a reminder from the headmaster,¡± the professor called out to the escaping crowd, ¡°since the forest seems to have become more dangerous recently, please ensure that when doing field work for the academy, try to work in a group for safety. Also, if anyone has any questions about the lecture, I will be in my office for the rest of the day.¡± With a grin on his face, Jicker hurried through the crowd while doing his best to avoid getting underfoot. He¡¯d forgotten that the schools usually had their own quests to do, since they couldn¡¯t rely on a constant stream of hopeful students to do it for them. Reaching the greenhouses he¡¯d visited before, he looked around and found the same woman who taught him herbalism to begin with. ¡°Hello, professor? I didn¡¯t actually get your name before but-¡± he began before being cut off. ¡°If you¡¯re to learn herbalism, grab one of the packs from the cupboard and get what it says.¡± She said without turning around. ¡°What? No, I already got those for you yesterday, don¡¯t you remember?¡± Jicker asked confused. ¡°Look youngster, I get dozens in here every day trying to earn their place here. I don¡¯t have the time or patience to remember every person who comes through here...¡± She said as she turned around, clean a large pair of spectacles, pausing as she looked at him. ¡°Although I¡¯d remember you, gremlin, now that I look at you. So what do you want then? You¡¯re already in the academy, I don¡¯t give any lectures and I damn well don¡¯t give private lessons, so why are you bothering me?¡± ¡°Well I was wondering...wait you don¡¯t give any lectures? Then how are you a professor here?¡± ¡°An elf with tenure is a powerful thing, but we¡¯re not talking about me here. What do you want?¡± She said, crossing her arms. ¡°Well... I''m looking for paying work.¡± He said bluntly, getting the feeling she wasn¡¯t big on manners anyway. She snorted. ¡°If all you want is to make some gold, try the adventuring hall. Honestly, do kids these days even think or do you just-¡° ¡°I¡¯ve checked,¡± He said quickly ¡°but they don¡¯t have anything... suitable for me at the moment, so I thought I¡¯d try here.¡± She looked at him for a moment, before taking out a pipe, lighting it and taking a deep pull. After a few moments she exhaled. ¡°Not much of a warrior, are you. Don¡¯t bother trying to deny it, I''ve seen a lot in my time, and while I''m not sure what you are exactly, I definitely know what you¡¯re not.¡± ¡°Fair enough I suppose. So do you have any work? And should you be smoking in a greenhouse?¡± She gave him a sharp look. ¡°Act you know more about plants than me again and I¡¯ll throw you out of here before making you pay for the glass you break on the way out. But yeah, I''ve got something you might be able to help me with. Call me Molta, don¡¯t bother with any of that professor nonsense, and follow me.¡± Heading to the back of the greenhouse, they walked through a side door into what seemed to be a combination office and laboratory, with various notebooks, pictures and glass ware seeming to cover every wall and available surface. Molta began shuffling around piles of papers on what he assumed was a desk underneath, until she eventually pulled one free. ¡°Right then,¡± she asked turning back to him, ¡°What do you know about the upheaval?¡± Jicker froze, the question catching him completely off guard. ¡°I-I don¡¯t really-¡± He stuttered, panicking about why she was asking. ¡°Of course you don¡¯t know anything. Pretty much no one does, and most of the people who say they do are lying. Now, come and look at this.¡± She said, ignoring his reaction and rolling out a map. Taking a moment to get his thoughts under control, he went over to look at the paper which seemed to be a hand drawn map of the Greyleaf forest. ¡°I''ve been collecting information on the changes it caused in the nearby area. Now a lot of this is pretty vague, since it¡¯s on such a large scale, but from the way most of the trees fell, there looks to have been a blast that was centred in the woods. I''ve been mapping it out, and from what I''ve gathered, there should be some caves rightnear the middle of the blast. That much of any sort of energy is going to affect the environment, so here¡¯s the deal: go out there and find these caves, and then take samples of what you can from in and around them. As for your pay, well, that¡¯ll depend on what you can bring back for me. I know you can tell what a plant is, so if you just bring me a pile of grass, you¡¯re getting nothing but slap upside the head, understood?¡±
Ding! Quest: The cave of potential wonders. You have been tasked to investigate caves in Greyleaf Forest and bring back any samples of plants changed in the upheaval. Success: bring samples from the caves to Molta. Reward: unknown Failure: Don¡¯t return with the items within 1 week
¡°Yeah I can do that. Anything else I should know?¡± Jicker asked. ¡°Not really, though I¡¯d keep an eye out if I was you. I''ve heard some weird animals showed up in the forest the other day, and they¡¯ve been tearing through people who go in unprepared.¡± After grabbing a few things and leaving the city, Jicker made his way to the borders of Greyleaf, ready to start his first real quest. Looking around, he saw that there were very few people entering the woods on their own, with impromptu parties being formed by anyone thinking of going in. ¡°Check it out,¡± he heard a voice say as he walked towards the forest edge. ¡°Another one of them is going in alone! Bet you ten gold that he doesn¡¯t come out alive.¡± He turned to see a pair of adventures sitting on the ground looking at him, either unaware or simply not caring that he could hear them. ¡°No point betting on that, to obvious,¡± the other said. ¡°But I¡¯ll bet you twenty that he dies within the hour.¡± ¡°You¡¯re on.¡± Sighing he stepped in to the woods, the sounds of civilisation falling away as he headed deeper in amongst the trees. The bright light of the midday sun was quickly transformed into dappled shadows as the canopy above blocked out the sky. Pulling out a copy of the map he¡¯d gotten from Molta he did his best to get his bearings, trying to keep track of which way he¡¯d come in by. After a while he remembered that he''d been given acompass and pulled it out thankfully, otherwise he knew he going to end up getting lost. Travelling further in, the forest slowly began to shift, with trees becoming taller, the undergrowth thicker and the light fading even more. Not for the first time he was glad that gremlins had good night vision. For the most part the trip went smoothly, even having the time to pick up a few herbs and plants he spotted along the way. He was beginning to wonder why everyone was so concerned about how dangerous the woods had become when he heard a rustling from behind him. As Jicker pulled out his pipe to face the creature, a large boar burst through the bushes freezing when it saw him, apparently just as surprised as he was. But it soon regained its senses and made a deep guttural noise before charging towards him. Although he had become stronger since he had started playing again, Jicker had no illusions that he could beat the boar in a fair fight, not when its shoulder was almost twice his height. Leaping out of the way of the charging animal, he was informed he hadn¡¯t been fast enough by a sharp pain in his leg as one of its tusks caught him, tearing through muscle and throwing him to the side.
You have taken 43 damage and have gained the open wound status. You will continue to lose health until the wound is closed or healed. You have taken 1 damage You have taken 1 damage ...
Rolling to his feet, he stumbled as his injured leg wasn¡¯t able to support his weight, the boar began to turn and bear down on him again. Jicker was trying to figure out what he could do to get some distance when a black streak sped past the boar, letting out a squeal of pain as a long wound opened op on its side. Before either he or the boar could react to this development, several more streaks came through, each dealing a heavy blow to the boar. Before it could more than take a few steps away, it collapsed defeated. Moving gingerly, Jicker hopped closer to the body, trying to figure out what had happened, though he had his suspicions.Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. They were proven true almost immediately as he inspected the injuries on the boar when a soft growl came from behind him. Turning he came face to face with a silhouwolf, only inches away from him, staring intently at him. As his breath caught in his throat he realised it wasn¡¯t staring at him so much as it was staring at the boar. Limping out of the way, he watched it and another of the wolves came and began to drag the body away, melting back into the shadows with only the drag marks showing they¡¯d been there at all. Grabbing a couple of anaesthetic tablets from his pack, he sat as wound began to heal over, and studied his surrounding more closely. As he looked around, he saw that there were several patches of shadow that seemed to move, and were much deeper than they should have been. He wasn¡¯t sure when but it seemed that the silhouwolf pack had been keeping an eye on him since he re-entered the woods, which explained why nothing until now had given him any trouble. Getting up and testing his leg to make sure it was fully healed, he tried to get his bearings, only to realise that he had completely lost his sense of direction when the boar had thrown him. Looking around, he couldn¡¯t even see where the boar had broken through leaving him with no trace of how to reach the caves, or even how to get safely back out of the forest. Though if he picked a direction and kept a straight line, the wolves might see him out...There¡¯s an idea, he thought to himself. ¡°I need to get to the centre of the forest,¡± he called out, watching as his onlookers paused in their movements. ¡°Which way should I go?¡± He waited for a minute, wondering if he was expecting too much from wild animals, when one of the wolves broke its cover and stood in the open, howling once it was sure it had his attention. Once the echoes of its call faded it stared at him for a moment before darting away. ¡°Should I take that as follow me? Sure why not.¡± He said and began to head in the direction that the silhouwolf had disappeared in. It took the better part of an hour to slowly make his way through towards the centre of the woods, having to wait for new directions several times after slipping downhill sides or finding ways around cliff faces. Eventually though he managed to spot an opening in a rocky outcrop, which he took to be his destination. ¡°I think this is where I''m supposed to go... thank you for your help?¡± he called out, wondering how much they could really understand. Checking his pack he made sure he had enough darts and pellets within easy reach and drew his pipe, not wanting to be caught off guard again, before entering the cave. As he stepped through the cave opening, he held his breath for a moment before sighing in relief, happy to not see any messages or warnings. While this cave seemed to be just that, there were plenty that were actually dungeons, with a variety of extra rules or penalties as well as traps, monsters or even magic seals that stopped a person from leaving until they cleared the dungeon or died trying. But just because the cave wasn¡¯t a dungeon didn¡¯t mean it was any safer. More than one adventure had thought they were safe after taking refuge in what turned out to be a bears den. Slowly making his way forward, he moved as quietly as he could, following the old rule of sneaking, being that there¡¯s no point in starting to sneak once you¡¯ve already announced yourself. Holding his pipe out in front of him to check for traps, he made his way deeper and deeper into the cave as it began to descend, the random rocky opening giving way to what seemed to be a much older cave network. With stalactites hanging from the roof, and what looked like a now dried up waterway, it seemed this place had existed well before the upheaval. Eventually what little sunlight had managed to find its way down through the cracks faded away, leaving the cave in total darkness. As Jicker went to grab a torch from his pack, he went still as he spotted movement from deeper inside. Straining his eyes to make out what he could, he wondered if it was another player who had gotten the mission, though it was unlikely. But as the figure moved and revealed more details, he mentally swore. There were plenty of races and classes that moved slowly, and there were quite a few with greyish complexions. And while there was even a couple that smelled bad enough for it to be considered an attack, the gaping wounds in it neck and stomach were unquestionable: zombie. The undead were surprisingly uncommon to find in a game like genesis, though plenty of players went the route of a necromancer or death knight regardless. But the kingdoms and various religious groups came down without mercy on any place or dungeon where undead began to spawn, making him wonder how he¡¯d found some so close to a major city. But in any case, it didn¡¯t help him now, as he pulled back quietly, wondering what to do. The first cave he¡¯d entered and he¡¯d already found an enemy that countered his every skill. Without any real bodily functions, he couldn¡¯t hope to hit a weak spot, not that a dart could really accomplish much against a zombie. And poisons were even more useless, since you could hardly stop a heart that wasn¡¯t beating anyway. Which left him to either have to try to beat it to death by clubbing it with his pipe, something he doubted he could do at the best of times, or coming up with something else. Making his way back out of the cave, he considered throwing in the towel and contacting the guard about the undead, which was sure to have a squad of soldiers come out and clear the caves. He wouldn¡¯t gain anything from the quest, but it probably wouldn¡¯t be viewed as a failure either. The idea of luring them out of the cave crossed his mind, hoping the wolves would finish them off, but most animals were unwilling to approach the undead, and he didn¡¯t want to break the status quo he had with the pack at the moment. ¡°No, I can do this.¡± He said to himself, trying to psyche himself up. ¡°I''m not going to give up before at least trying something.¡± From what he could remember of the little he¡¯d had to do with zombies, they were resistant to most physical damage, as well as cold, dark and earth based magic¡¯s, while having weaknesses to light, fire and holy attacks. While he no means of producing light or holy abilities, fire... fire could be done. All he need was something that could burn well enough and he¡¯d have a chance. Looking around he groaned as he searched the quiet, dim and green forest floor. Most of the old wood and been burned away in the upheaval, and apart from a few twigs that would be next to useless, the rest was still far to fresh to burn reliably. Giving up, he found a seat on a rock and began playing with a branch in his hands, his mind working. He knew that you couldn¡¯t burn greenwood because it had too much moisture in it. But not all plants had the same water content, so presumably, some would burn well enough even if it was fresh off a tree. And if he could alter a plant, dropping its moisture content low enough... Finding a small bush to test his idea on, he activated his adaptation. Immediately he was flooded with dozens, if not hundreds of menus and options he¡¯d never seen before, many of them not even close to what he¡¯d become used to. Apparently, he discovered as he began to browse his options, altering an animal had certain restrictions, probably to prevent mistakes like forgetting to let the poor creature to be able to breathe, or just having it die immediately. But no such blocks were in place on plants, and he could get to work at a much deeper level. Able to go as far as adjusting the level of carbon and oxygen in the wood, he quickly realised he was in way over his head, but also that he had more options than he thought he did. Remembering an old science lesson, he smiled and got to work. Using some of the more user friendly menus, he adjusted the plants base so that it was completely fireproof, not wanting to lose his work by accident. The he began to work on creating small fruits, shaped like a thick skinned grape. It took more than an hour to figure out to reach his goal, including dropping out of the game several times to look up the necessary ratios, but he eventually managed to adjust the fruits so they would be filled with roughly ninety percent ethanol by the time they were ripe. In addition, he placed a thin layer of white phosphorus underneath the skin as a means of ignition. The seed inside the fruit itself was comparatively normal, though its heat resistance had been raised exponentially, with the same treatment given to the skin. Eventually he decided it was as good as he could manage, spending a few minutes playing with the colours and shapes, settling on a dark base that rose before spreading out a few feet up, with deep green leaves. The fruits themselves were bright red, and were smooth ovals that, on average he hoped, should fit inside his blowpipe.
Ding! Adaptation has become permanent. Note- all plant changes are 50% more likely to become permanent-scales with level of herbalism. Type: Modified fern. Do you wish to name this plant?
¡°Incendiberry bush.¡± He said, feeling pleased with himself.
Name accepted. Do you wish to be identified as the creator?
¡°No. In fact, don¡¯t identify me as a creator of anything until I say otherwise.¡±
Change in permissions accepted. Creator will remain unknown. Now applying changes to plant. Enigma has increased by 1! Total: 3 Evolution has increased by 1! Total: 4 Herbalism level has increased by 1! Current level: 2
Note: Created plants will spread naturally if planted in suitable environments and cared for.
Carefully taking a berry off of the newly formed plant, he looked at it closely, seeing if there was anything he¡¯d missed. Seeing that it seemed to be in good condition, he threw it as hard as he could in to the caves mouth. For a while nothing happened, and he wondered if the skin was too thick to break that easily, but right before he¡¯d gone in to check what had happened, it ignited. The phosphorus had gotten enough air and reached a warm enough temperature to ignite itself, and lighting the now evaporating cloud of ethanol with it. The result was a small, bright flame that erupted explosively, burning for a minute small pile where its remains sat. Picking at the still smoking scraps, he saw that, while the seed could potentially survive the fire, this one had ended up a shrivelled piece of charred wood. Pocketing it just in case, he went back to the bush and sighed. He was happy with what he¡¯d achieved with the plant, even if it wasn¡¯t perfect. He¡¯d always felt proud when he¡¯d managed to build something or design something new, and this was definitely the most ¡®from the ground up¡¯ thing he¡¯d made, and the stat increases were just a bonus. But staring at the bush as it sat on the forest floor, surrounded by grass and branches, he realised his mistakes. Not only was he going to need to move the bush so it wouldn¡¯t accidently set the forest aflame, but he was going to need to make a call. ~~~~~~ ¡°And you¡¯re sure they won¡¯t just...explode at random?¡± Sarah asked, both curious and concerned. ¡°They shouldn¡¯t, unless something pierces the skin, then it¡¯s all up to fate from there. Though I doubt anything¡¯s going to try and eat them, not twice anyway.¡± Matt said chuckling. He¡¯d been able to get straight through to Sarah once he logged out, since it was still early in the afternoon, and she¡¯d been quick to pull up all of the information on his work. ¡°Gross, but it looks like it all checks out. They won¡¯t grow very well in most conditions, but the fact they will grow at all is still an issue. I''m going to need to phone this in Matt.¡± ¡°I figured you would. Well, I guess ill grab something to eat and sit by the phone for a while then.¡± ¡°No problem. I¡¯ll be in touch soon.¡± She said before hanging up. Seeing that he likely had some time, Matt grabbed a piece of fruit and went to watch the TV for a while. The big story today seemed to be about a celebrity couple getting a divorce, which was apparently a ¡®surprise¡¯. It seemed the news had finally stopped featuring his... no wait, apparently one of the reasons they were getting a divorce was that their home in Genesis had been destroyed and they couldn¡¯t agree whether to move or rebuild, so apparently that was his fault too. Eventually the phone rang, Matt picking it up quickly, hoping to get back to it. ¡°Hey Sarah, so is everything clear or-¡± he began ¡°Do people not check caller ID anymore?¡± August¡¯s voice said quietly though the line, silencing Matt instantly. ¡°M-Mr. Fronz, I-¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, this should be brief. Now, I''m interested to see that you¡¯ve managed to move to creating new flora, in addition to fauna. While a few people have had some luck breeding a few trees and things together, no one has made anything this... unique. So well done, I suppose. But I¡¯ve also been told that, with suitable conditions and care, anyone could manage to grow these... Incendiberries? As long as they could acquire a few healthy seeds. Now while this new addition of yours doesn¡¯t affect any of my market interests, being far too left field to really compare anywhere, I believe there is a ready market that would purchase the fruit if available, even if just as an ingredient. As such I would like you to collect several dozen such seeds and give them to an agent of mine who I will have come and see you in the near future. In addition, I want you to avoid letting them spread naturally, or selling them yourself, though a few here and there will be fine, as a small distribution will help dissuade the idea of tampering.¡± ¡°I-¡± Matt began trying to get his thoughts in order. ¡°I had planned to give some as samples to my herbalism teacher as part of a quest, is that going to be a problem?¡± ¡°An NPC I presume? They don¡¯t really matter as far things like this go, so as long as they don¡¯t start selling them on the street corner, I won¡¯t have any problems with you. Now, have I made my points clear, or are you working on anything else I should be aware of?¡± ¡°Not...right now, no.¡± ¡°No, what?¡± August said, a hint of danger in voice. Matt remained silent for a moment, but decided it wasn¡¯t worth arguing over something trivial. ¡°No sir.¡± ¡°That¡¯s better. It doesn¡¯t end well when a person forgets their place. Now I¡¯ll leave you to sort things out, since I have matters of actual importance to deal with. Oh, and make sure you destroy the original plant would you? Can¡¯t have that just sitting around now can we?¡± He said before hanging up. Throwing the phone down in anger, Matt fumed. He¡¯d hoped he could have made some gold off of selling the berries, but in less than an hour that chance had been stripped away. Still, he could at least use them himself, and would have to if he was going to get a hold of the seeds he¡¯d been ordered to get. And right now, he thought as he grabbed his headset, setting things on fire seemed like a great idea. Chapter 11 Returning to the game, Jicker swore, screamed and shouted, throwing rocks and sticks as he tried to vent his feelings. He knew it wouldn¡¯t achieve anything, and could even attract unwanted attention from creatures in the forest but he needed to do something. August had stripped away his chance of making any money from his work, closing off another way to try and get some distance from the man. He¡¯d created an entire new species of plant, only to have it taken away from him immediately. Taking a deep breath, he tried to calm himself down, to get his emotions under control. Going over to the bush, he spent a few minutes carefully removing every remaining incendiberry, making sure not to tear the skin as he pulled them free. Once they were all safely stored in a pouch of his backpack, he took out his sabre and used it as a crude shovel, digging up its roots and pulling it free. Sighing, he broke up the plant and threw it back into the hole before beginning to bury its remains. As he dug, he came to a decision: He had to get out from underneath August¡¯s thumb, no matter what it took. He thought he could put up with the threats, the insults and being talked down to. After all, he¡¯d worked for people like that before, and he was actually being payed well for what he was doing now. But in the past it was always on his own terms, and when it¡®d gone too far he¡¯d always had the option to cut his losses and run. But now he¡¯d had that choice taken from him, and with the threat of his reveal hanging over his head, he had no choice but to obey. At least, that was his current situation. While he couldn¡¯t see a way around it yet, he had time to plan and funds to work with. Not as much as August had himself, but he¡¯d certainly done more with less. Jicker was sure that, if he looked hard enough, and kept an eye out for an opening, he could get free, and hopefully some payback as well. He figured he should probably start by reading through his contract more closely when he had time. But for now he was stuck, and he had work to do. Entering the cave for the second time, Jicker made his descent far more quickly, knowing he had quite a bit of time before he needed to worry about being spotted. It wasn¡¯t until the light began to fade to black that he once again began to sneak along, looking for his first target. It wasn¡¯t long before they appeared, slowly and aimlessly stumbling around on the cave flaw. It seemed unlikely that something that was struggling to stay upright as it paced around the rocks would be much of a threat, but he¡¯d dealt with some before. Once they spotted their prey, they would move faster, relentlessly chasing down it down and ignoring all else. Crouching down low, he pulled out his pipe and picked one of the berries, loading it as carefully as he could, before lining up his shot. Patiently, he waited, until it turned at the right angle, exposing a deep gaping wound in its side, and fired. Silently the berry flew through the air, before burying itself inside the zombies flesh. The monster paused, moaning as it looked around for whatever had struck it. Jicker shrank down as much as he could, trying his best to stay hidden. For a few moments nothing happened, the zombie giving up looking for anyone and resuming its previous lurching around. He began to wonder whether it was a dud, when it ignited violently, throwing the zombie to the ground. It moaned as it got back to its feet, clawing at the still burning wound. Zombies weren¡¯t known for being smart, and if it had been, it might have been able to smother the flame and save itself. But lacking the intelligence to do so or the dexterity to remove the burning material, it began to claw deeper at its side, growling and moaning in more fevered tones. Eventually the fire burned itself out, leaving the side of the now truly dead zombie charred black, filling the cave with both a foul smell and haze of grey smoke. Approaching slowly, he poked the body with his pipe gingerly; making sure it was actually dead. He knew it was he realised, chuckling to himself, since the game had awarded him experience for killing it, making him blame all the horror movies he¡¯d watched. ¡°Now comes the gross part.¡± He said to himself, swallowing nervously. Pulling out his sword, he dug it into the side of the zombie, using it to lever out its long dead, and now cooked, insides. Trying not to throw up, he poked around squeamishly, looking for where the seed had stopped, eventually finding it stuck in what seemed to be a piece of coal. Taking it and putting it away, he moved away, considering his next move. The cave got darker the further he went in, and was already hard to see. While it didn¡¯t seem to bother the undead, he didn¡¯t really want to fight off a mob of zombies in a pitch black cave. He¡¯d either need to light up a torch and give up on stealth, or hope he could pick them out by sound and smell. Or, he thought as he opened up his pack, come up with another option. He hadn¡¯t tried to create any potions apart from the ones his class had taught him, since resources had been fairly limited. But he currently had an entire forest he could comb for ingredients if had to, and he knew night vision potions existed, having used plenty in the past. Pulling out a bowl from his pack, he looked through what he had; putting in things he figured would help, relying on luck and his gremlin talents. ¡°Let¡¯s see,¡± He muttered ¡°Water¡¯s a good base for everything, so a dash of that... Some carrot pieces from my lunch? They¡¯re supposed to be good for your eyes... what else... sugar? Couldn¡¯t hurt...¡± Grinding it down and mixing it, he was left with an orange mash that while fairly healthy, wouldn¡¯t help him unless he needed to feed a small child. But he felt he was on the right track, he just needed something to focus it, something about sight... He suddenly knew what it needed. His gut told him it was the answer and while his brain agreed, his stomach was shouting that it was the worst idea ever. Pushing aside his disgust, he pulled out his sabre, and went back to the zombie¡¯s corpse. ~~~~~
Mother of invention! You have created a new recipe for the potion ¨C Dead man¡¯s sight. Recipe: 3 units of water, 2 units of carrots, 1 unit of sugar, an eye of zombie Item type: Potion Grade: Uncommon, created by Unknown Effect: Darkvision and minor life sense- duration 1 hour.
Jicker looked at the bowl of thick, orange liquid in his hands, both happy it had worked, and horrified that he¡¯d have to drink it. If he hadn¡¯t made it himself, maybe it would just seem like bad carrots, but he knew what was in it. ¡°I just hope I can keep this down.¡± He grimaced, upending the bowl and downing the potion. Gagging, he knew all he could taste was carrot, but his brain kept trying to suggest other flavours hiding underneath. Still, it was done, and after a few moments of retching it stayed down, letting him press on deeper into the cave. As the potion took effect, the world began to shift in tone, becoming black and white, the darkness replaced by shades of grey. He had to move carefully as the change robbed him of most of his sense of depth, but once he¡¯d adjusted it was fine. It didn¡¯t take long before he encountered his second zombie, this one seemingly a dwarf that had lost a fight with the pickaxe buried in its back. Repeating his earlier strategy, he first warmed up a berry in his hands before taking a shot at his target. This time the berry broke instantly, taking only seconds before covering the dwarf in flames. The brightness of the fire was amplified by his darkvision, to the point where he had to stop himself crying out as he was momentarily blinded. By the time his vision came back, and he¡¯d finished blinking away the tears, the zombie had ended up in the same state as the other, making him wonder at just how effective the incendiberries were. He¡¯d turned off most of the damage notifiers form the game since he felt they ruined his immersion, but part of him wondered. He also wanted to get a more durable and secure container for them as soon as he could, the thought of tripping and crushing an entire pouch of them seeming more terrifying than he¡¯d first thought. The rest of the cave complex went the same way. He¡¯d find some sort of zombie, get close enough to fire while keeping out of sight, then duck away while it burned itself out. It was an effective strategy as long as there was only a single target, since a second zombie would have a much better chance of spotting him in the temporarily brightly lit tunnels. As it was, all he had to worry about so far was his supplies and potion holding out, which was down to its last few minutes, forcing him to prepare another dose. Coming to wider chamber he looked around at the cavern floor and walls, seeing if he could find anything to complete the quest, while his mind worked on a problem that had been bugging him for a while. He¡¯d seen plenty of different zombies as his previous character, but the variety he¡¯d seen in this case was much too wide to be normal. Dwarves, humans and goblins made a certain amount of sense to find in a cave, all them were known to work as miners. But he¡¯d seen elves, orcs, and a host of others down here, which had no business being underground. Either the game had stopped working properly, or something was off about these zombies. It wasn¡¯t until he spotted a human with the rotting remains of a noose around his neck that he knew something was off, and that the game agreed.
Ding! Quest: Dead men tell no tales. Something has taken bodies and animated them inside this cave. Success: Discover the source! Failure: Leave the cave without answers
Not that he¡¯d planned to leave until he¡¯d figured it out, but now Jicker was really curious. While they weren¡¯t overly strong, seemingly proportional to the rest of the forest, the zombies had seemed out of place, and now it looked like they really were. Checking his pouch, he saw he still had a little more than two dozen incendiberries remaining. Hoping it would be enough, he pushed himself onwards, deeper into the darkness. Several zombies later, he was creeping along slowly, getting closer to the newest zombie, this one apparently important enough to still be wearing armour. By the way the chest had been caved in; it looked as if they¡¯d been wearing it when they¡¯d died. He managed to get close enough to land the berry right between the plates in it armour, burning it out from underneath when he got a prompt from the game.
Ding!Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. You have unlocked the stealth skill! Current level: 1 Ranks in this skill enhance your ability to go unnoticed. Attacks while undetected will do increased damage based on skill level. Synergy: Each point of Enigma will multiply your effective stealth value by 20%
Jicker sighed, happy to get the skill. He¡¯d expected to unlock it for a while now, since it had been core to most of his strategies so far. In addition, the synergy would make it far more useful, since he doubted he was ever going to be much of a front line fighter. ¡°Still, that would have been handy earlier.¡± He said to himself ¡°I''m sure it would have.¡± Said a voice from behind him, before a bag came down over his head. ~~~~~~ He wasn¡¯t sure how far they¡¯d travelled since he¡¯d been grabbed, but according to his clock they¡¯d picked him up over twenty minutes ago. After dropping a bag over his head they¡¯d bound his hands behind him and put him on what felt like a cart. Not a single word had been spoken since his capture, and without any way to see his surroundings, he had no idea how fast they were going, and only the vague feeling of wind told him they were moving at all. His attempts and communicating with them had been met with total silence, not even telling him to be quiet, which made him give up far sooner than threats would have. Without warning they stopped, the cart lurching and sending him toppling over, landing heavily on his side. As he tried to regain his bearings, a pair of hands grabbed him and hoisted him into the air. It seemed that this part of the trip had to be taken on foot, though his captor didn¡¯t seem to have any issue carrying him for several minutes, before dropping him roughly onto a seat. The bag was suddenly torn away, leaving him blinking to a bright light. ¡°Who are you?¡± Spoke a voice, seeming to come from all around him. ¡°I... what¡¯s going on? Why did you-¡± Jickers question was silenced when something struck him heavily from behind. ¡°We ask the questions here. Who are you?¡± The voice continued. ¡°...Jicker. My name is Jicker.¡± ¡°Jicker, why did you enter the cave?¡± He hesitated, not wanting to give the wrong answer. ¡°For a quest.¡± There was silence for a time. He wanted to ask what was going on, but he really didn¡¯t want to be struck again. ¡°Jicker, which guild are you apart of?¡± ¡°Um... none? I''m fairly new.¡± Jicker replied, confused. ¡°I see, and what is your quest?¡± ¡°To look for any plants changed in the upheaval.¡± ¡°Hmm. Jicker, do you swear an oath to remain silent about what you have seen here?¡± ¡°I... suppose?¡±
You have accepted an oath of silence. You will be unable to communicate about the subject for a minimum of 3 months, after which the oath may be broken.
Jicker swore silently. There were a few oaths in genesis that had real meaning, and were generally hard to call on. But if you did, they were heavily enforced, to the point where people often got punished for breaking them outside of the game, though it was unsure how it tracked that. If he was now under oath, he was dealing with people well out of his weight class. ¡°Okay, the oath took. Tay, you can drop the light now.¡± Came the voice again, now sounding like a normal person. The light faded away, letting him see his surroundings clearly for the first time. He was in a large circular room of white marble with a high vaulted ceiling that seemed to be giving off its own far more subtle glow. Dozens of entrances opened into this one chamber leaving him with no idea of how he got here. Turning around, he could make out various figures going about their business down the passages, making him wonder where he was. ¡°Now then Jicker, I¡¯m sorry about all this. And, just to confirm, you¡¯re a strong soul, correct?¡± ¡°Yeah, I''m a player.¡± He said understanding what they were getting at. ¡°Good! It¡¯s always awkward talking to an NPC like their worlds not real, even if they forget it in a few moments.¡± A speaker continued in a friendlier manor. Turning to get a look at the speaker, he saw it was a fairly short looking human, dressed in a large dark cloak that covered everything but his face, black gloves hanging inside of his oversized sleeves. It was fairly classic attire for a mage, which explained how he did the voice trick. His brain began making the connection: Wizard dressed in black, zombies... ¡°You¡¯re a necromancer!¡± He blurted out. ¡°So close! I¡¯m not actually, though we have plenty with us. I can see why you got that idea though, it¡¯s the robe isn¡¯t it?¡± he sighed. ¡°I''ve told them it¡¯s a huge give away, but no, they''re all ¡®we have to show solidarity¡¯ and ¡®what¡¯s the point if you don¡¯t look the part?¡¯. Honestly, some people take these things far too seriously. Anyway, call me Gabe.¡± He finished cheerfully. ¡°Good to meet you then Gabe. Is that your real name?¡± Jicker asked, noting an odd expression on his face. ¡°Nope, not even my character name. A lot of people don¡¯t even realise that until they¡¯re told later, so good job there. Sorry about being all secret agent and stuff, but until we figure what to do with you, you¡¯re on need to know at best, and there¡¯s not much you need to know. Come on, let¡¯s grab something to eat and I¡¯ll explain what I can.¡± Gabe said before turning suddenly and walking down one of the passages, leaving Jicker to hurry after him. ¡°So, anyway, the top brass are deciding what to do with you. If you were an NPC, things would be easier. We¡¯d either just dump you some place far away without revealing ourselves, or if you¡¯d seen too much, execute you.¡± He paused at that, seeing Jicker¡¯s expression. ¡°I know, it¡¯s not exactly the nicest thing to do, but secrecy is really important right now. Most of them just fall to the zombies anyway, so it doesn¡¯t really come up much. But, since you¡¯re a player who will just respawn if that happens we need to figure out something else. You¡¯re actually the first player we¡¯ve had to do this on, and for what? Collecting some flowers? You must have the worst luck. Ah, here we go, the mess hall! Grab a plate of whatever you want, it¡¯s all free.¡± Compared to the formal stone of the previous rooms, the mess hall was a stark change, with simple wooden walls and a dirt floor. Crude wooden furniture filled the room, with dozens of people in black taking plates of food from a buffet along one wall. ¡°About that, are you allowed to get rid of these?¡± Jicker asked as he tried to roll his shoulders with his arms tied behind his back. ¡°Whoops! Sorry about that, I swear I¡¯d forget my head sometimes.¡± Gabe said, snapping his fingers. The ropes tying his hands seemed to become warm for a moment before suddenly dropping in temperature rapidly, shattering around his wrists. Looking down, he saw that all that was left were a few pieces of ice with cords poking out of them. Jicker didn¡¯t know every sort of magic in Genesis, but he did know that accurately freezing something until it shatters was high level stuff, not the kind you should be able to pull off that easily. ¡°Thanks, I guess. So, where are we exactly?¡± He asked while rubbing his wrists. ¡°Hmmm can¡¯t answer that one yet, but I can say that we¡¯re not exactly out in the open. Here, try the coffee, it¡¯s pretty good.¡± He said grabbing a pair of mugs and filling them before heading to an empty table. Grabbing a few things that looked okay, Jicker followed. ¡°Okay then, can you tell me what this place is?¡± ¡°I can tell you that it¡¯s ours. Next question?¡± Gabe said grinning. ¡°I¡¯m sensing a theme here. How about this, are you all players here or-¡± ¡°Yes!¡± He shouted slamming his hands down on the table. ¡°Finally something I can explain! No, not everyone here is a player, in fact we make up less than a third, but we do have most of the leadership covered. We¡¯re not quite a guild, but close enough to one, and we pick up like minded individuals, players or NPCs.¡± ¡°And what sort of mind is it exactly?¡± Jicker asked him, taking a sip of the coffee. Gabe was right, it was good. ¡°You¡¯ve seemed smart enough so far, see if you can take a stab at the answer.¡± Gabe said, leaning back in his chair, looking at him closely. Jicker thought about what he¡¯d seen so far. ¡°Necromancers?¡± He hazarded. ¡°Like I said before, you¡¯re close. We¡¯re about half necromancers, but that¡¯s how the numbers worked out. The truth of it is we¡¯re all the ¡®bad guys¡¯, I suppose you could say. Assassins, demon worshippers, necromancers and a bunch of other oddballs. The sorts of people that have been labelled as a monster or villain, whether they¡¯ve earned it or not.¡± ¡°And have you earned it?¡± Jicker asked carefully. Gabe hesitated. ¡°I can¡¯t say that we¡¯re a bunch of angels around here, but a lot of us didn¡¯t shoot first if you follow me. You can¡¯t blame a guy for killing someone who¡¯s after your head can you? And after a while, you end up becoming the bad guy just by trying to survive as a good one.¡± He said, his voice turning dark towards the end as he stared down at his drink. He went quiet until a cough from nearby broke him out of his thoughts. ¡°So you came looking for plants? What¡¯s that about?¡± Gabe asked suddenly, trying to change the subject. Jicker explained that he was looking for some paying work that didn¡¯t need much combat experience, and how it had ended with his arrival at the cave. Gabe didn¡¯t seem particularly surprised. ¡°Sounds like this Molta lady knows what she¡¯s doing, since we ended up there for the same reason. It looks like Maser did one of his whatevers around there, which is interesting enough, but more than that, its- oh, hang on a sec, need to take a message.¡± He paused and began staring off into space, apparently dealing with it via his menus. ¡°Alright!¡± he said after a few moments, downing the last of his coffee. ¡°They¡¯ve figured out what to do with you, so we¡¯re going in to see what that is. Ready?¡± Jicker sighed. ¡°If I said no, would it matter in the slightest?¡± ¡°Of course not, but where would we be without manners? Come on, it¡¯s down this way.¡± He said before jumping up and hurrying down another passage. Following him yet again, Jicker wondered about what Gabe had meant about something being more than the explosion. He¡¯d set off a bomb here, that much was true, though the terrain was unrecognisable because of it, but that should have been the end of it. He¡¯d let off a few that would have longer term effects, that would alter the area at a deeper level, but nothing like that was around here. So what exactly were these people after? They came to stand before a pair of wrought iron doors, inlaid with black glass in the shape of a moon. Knocking a few times, Gabe turned to him and gestured for him to enter as it opened. ¡°They really love the whole black ominous look around here, but personally I think we need more colour.¡± He said as they entered, revealing another circular room. A high platform rang around the opposite wall, as several shadowy figures looked down at them. ¡°I mean, if we¡¯re trying to do the whole come together thing, then should we show a bit of variety.¡± He continued. ¡°Because, you idiot, we are united, so we keep things the same.¡± Said one of the figures from up above. ¡°Well I think it¡¯s wrong, and we should... actually let¡¯s come back to that later. Move over I¡¯m coming up.¡± He said back to them before launching himself through the air to land amongst the others.¡± There was a brief muttering, and then the surrounding voice returned. ¡°Jicker, you have entered the domain of the rising moon uninvited, and have seen things that must not come to light. How do you plead?¡± ¡°Plead? For what, entering a nameless cave?¡± Jicker asked, confused. ¡°...he¡¯s got a point you know. Can we really say he intruded if we don¡¯t say it¡¯s ours?¡± One of the figures said. ¡°Of course we didn¡¯t say it¡¯s ours, we¡¯re a secret organisation! What are we going to do, put up a sign saying ¡®empty cave, don¡¯t come in¡¯?¡± Shouted another. ¡°I get that, but couldn¡¯t we do something? Like a danger sign, or a fake name, or-¡± ¡°Can,¡± The magical voice interrupted, ¡°we get on with this? Where was I...? Oh yeah, how do you plead.¡± ¡°Um, not guilty?¡± he said, losing track of what was happening. ¡°Wait, can he make that claim? I mean we saw him do it, so I don¡¯t really know what to do here.¡± This came from Gabe. The voice sighed exasperatedly. ¡°Just... you know what? Screw the atmosphere, it¡¯s already a mess.¡± More muttering came from above, and sounds of grinding rock came from the wall as the raised platform descended to the floor. Panels in the walls lit up, turning the dark and brooding chamber into something that felt more like a coffee shop than an evil lair. Revealed by the light, he could now see a dozen people of various races dressed in black robes, now quietly bickering out colour coordination and aesthetics. A dark elven woman in the centre gestured into the air a few times before speaking. ¡°I''m fed up with this already, so let¡¯s make this simple. Did you know about us being here in any way before you came here?¡± ¡°Nope.¡± Jicker replied. The woman looked over to another person who had pulled out glowing sphere. They studied it for a moment before nodding back to her. He wondered what it was. A lie detector of some kind? ¡°Next question: Do you know where you are or who we are?¡± ¡°I think you said something about the rising moon? But apart from that, no.¡± She growled, starring daggers at someone else who was trying to avoid her gaze. ¡°I told you to cut that from the speech, but noooo.¡± She sighed. ¡°Moving on then. What do you plan to do with this information?¡± ¡°Nothing? I''m under oath, remember?¡± ¡°There are plenty of ways of getting around oaths if you try hard enough, or are willing to make sacrifices. But I¡¯ll change the question then: what would you do with this information if you weren¡¯t under oath?¡± ¡°Again, nothing. I don¡¯t really know anything, and whatever you¡¯re up to, it¡¯s nothing to do with me.¡± Jicker said which was true enough. He had enough to deal with without messing around with cults or whatever this was. Again the person holding the globe gave a nod, so the dark elf continued. ¡°In that case, where do you stand on the systems of the world, in which certain groups are evil just because we are told they are?¡± He thought about it. ¡°I think... some people can certainly do more evil, and have a lot more access to it. But anyone can be evil, and anyone can be good, so I guess it comes down to the person? Something like that anyway.¡± ¡°Good answer. So, here¡¯s a question for you then, gremlin Jicker. Would you like to join our guild?¡±
Ding! Quest: Dead men tell no tales. - Complete! Reward: 600 EXP.
Ding! Quest: The Moon Rises. You have been offered a place in the Rising moon. Success: Join and learn more about the organization. Failure: Refuse or be unable to join.
Chapter 12 ¡°You¡¯re really going to invite me to join you just like that?¡± Jicker asked surprised. ¡°Sure, why not. You passed all the tests after all.¡± She said shrugging. ¡°What tests?¡± She began ticking them off her fingers. ¡°You¡¯re not part of a guild already, you aren¡¯t going to rat us out either way, you have similar beliefs and most importantly, Gabe didn¡¯t put you through a wall.¡± ¡°It¡¯s true!¡± Gabe said with a huge smile on his face. ¡°...Okay I guess. What¡¯s his real name anyway?¡± Jicker asked, curious despite himself. ¡°Huh? It¡¯s Gabe; I thought he told you that... Gabe what garbage have you been saying this time.¡± ¡°Nothing! I was good I swear!¡± He said putting his hands up in defence.¡± ¡°Really? So if I ask the new guy...?¡± ¡°I....may have suggested that I have a secret identity. But only because I was bored, I swear!¡± The rest of the room groaned, the woman rubbing her temples. ¡°Call me Mary by the way, and now you see why dealing with Gabe is part of the test. He might not look it, and certainly doesn¡¯t act the part, but he¡¯s one of our heaviest hitters, and could be our leader if he managed to get his act together.¡± ¡°I guess I can see that... wait, really? You¡¯re leading an evil cult and your name is Mary?¡± he asked incredulously ¡°It¡¯s short for Bloody Mary, and we¡¯re not evil. I thought he explained this to you?¡± ¡°Sort of? He said that you were a group of people with certain natures, but I mean come on! You¡¯re in a secret lair wearing black robes guarded by zombies. That¡¯s pretty classic bad guy material.¡± ¡°And if we were in a secret base wearing white robes and guarded by nature spirits, would we suddenly be good guys?¡± Jicker was silent at that, not having a good answer. ¡°It¡¯s that sort of thinking we¡¯re trying to deal with here. We¡¯re fairly relaxed about what we do for the most part though. It¡¯s more about helping each other out, than doing quests for glory and stuff.¡± ¡°Up until recently anyway.¡± Interjected Gabe. ¡°Yes, thank you, Gabe for giving away information to a non-member.¡± She said. ¡°So back to the question: Do you want to join?¡± ¡°...what¡¯s the guilds stance on withholding information?¡± he said awkwardly, not wanting to have to show his achievements. Mary raised an eyebrow. ¡°You mean like how you did the thing with the bush out the front of the cave?¡±She laughed at his horrified reaction. ¡°We¡¯ve already told you that we¡¯re a secret group, and you¡¯re surprised we have people watching around our base? Well, while I''m definitely curious, everyone here knows a lot about keeping secrets for a variety of reasons. So as long as it doesn¡¯t impact the guild, feel free to keep it to yourself.¡± Jicker let out a sigh of relief. ¡°Then I¡¯m in.¡±
Ding! You have failed the quest: The Moon Rises. You are unable to join the Rising Moon.
¡°Err.¡± Jicker began, not sure how to proceed. ¡°What¡¯s up?¡± Mary asked. ¡°I failed to join? Is there some initiation or something I have to do first?¡± ¡°Failed? No it should be just accepting the offer to join.¡± She looked confused for a moment before realization dawned on her. ¡°Wait, what level are you?¡± ¡°Fourteen? Is that a problem?¡± ¡°Yes, it is.¡± She said through gritted teeth, looking at Gabe who was trying to casually move away from her. ¡°When we formed the group we put a minimum requirement of level sixty, to ensure we only picked up people who knew what they were doing. Gabe was supposed to make sure you qualified.¡± ¡°He sounded like he knew what he was doing!¡± Gabe said, trying to defend himself. ¡°I figured if he knew what was up, then he had to be a high enough level.¡± ¡°I recently started as a new character, so that might have thrown him off.¡± Jicker said quickly, trying to prevent her from killing him. ¡°Oh, so you¡¯re one of the secondaries then? That explains it I guess.¡± She said, calming down as Gabe mouthed his thanks to him. ¡°Secondaries?¡± ¡°You¡¯re not the only person to do a reset since the upheaval. A lot of players who had left the game are coming back to start again in a fresh world. And with a heap of practice and experience behind them they¡¯re rising through the ranks pretty quickly. That¡¯s what you are I take it?¡± ¡°Pretty much.¡± ¡°Okay. Well we can¡¯t let you in at the moment, but if you still haven¡¯t joined another guild by the time you hit sixty, you¡¯re welcome to join up with us.¡± She said.
Ding! Quest: The moon rises...eventually. You have been offered a place in the Rising moon once you qualify. Success: Join and learn more about the organization. Failure: Refuse or join another guild.
¡°Thanks for the offer. I¡¯ll probably take you up on that, but I don''t know how long it will take. I''m not much of a fighter if you hadn¡¯t noticed.¡± Jicker said. ¡°Consider us shocked. But if you want to be part of our throwdown, you¡¯ve got a month.¡± Said Gabe. Mary looked at Gabe. ¡°Is there any way for you to keep a secret?¡± Turning back to Jickershe tapped her cheek, deep in thought. ¡°Actually...walk with us for a moment.¡± ~~~~~~ Unlike the rest of the structure he¡¯d seen, the passage that Jicker, Mary and Gabe walked down seemed to be naturally formed. ¡°Now,¡± Mary began, ¡°I normally wouldn¡¯t say anything about this to someone who hasn¡¯t even become part of the guild, but we¡¯re pretty over worked at the moment, so we¡¯ll take what we can get. To begin with, have you heard about magical resonance before?¡± ¡°I have, but it wasn¡¯t anything I looked into before.¡± ¡°Fair enough, that¡¯s the case with most people. The short version is that the environment affects any magic cast in it, depending on how compatible it is. For example, you¡¯d have an easier time summoning water in the ocean than you would a desert, or casting fireballs in a volcano than the arctic. Makes sense so far?¡± ¡°Sure, seems like common sense really.¡± ¡°It is, but here¡¯s the part that people didn¡¯t really pay attention to before. While the environment affects the spell, the spell affects it back. Now normally, this is on a tiny scale because, well, the world is really big. But what would happen if a lot of energy got dumped out all at once?¡± Jicker paused mid-step. ¡°The upheaval.¡± ¡°Bingo. All that power got dumped all at once, and began to change things, but it could only absorb it so fast, the runoff had to go somewhere. And so, we were left with these.¡± As they made a final turn down the tunnel, Jicker saw it, since it would be hard to miss. Floating a few feet off the ground in the centre of the chamber was a large raw crystal, several feet long and near pitch black, it rotated slowly on the spot, giving off a thin haze as it did so. ¡°What...is it?¡± Jicker asked without taking his eyes off it. ¡°It¡¯s called a node-¡° ¡°Powerstone!¡± Gabe shouted cutting her off. ¡°I discovered it and the game let me name it. It¡¯s called a node now get over it.¡± ¡°You only discovered it because you beat me to it!¡± Mary shrugged. ¡°You shouldn¡¯t have tripped then.¡± ¡°I ¡®tripped¡¯ over your foot! You cheated!¡± ¡°Sounds like a personal problem.¡± ¡°That¡¯s it!¡± Jicker continued to stare into the crystals depths, watching as the occasional flash of red light crackled through it. After a while, his reverie was broken by the commotion behind him. Turning he found that Mary had put Gabe in a headlock, who in turn was doing his best to throw her off. ¡°Are you two...family by any chance?¡± Jicker asked. ¡°He¡¯s my little brother. How¡¯d you guess?¡± She said as Gabe struggled against her. ¡°Just a hunch.¡± ¡°Anyway,¡± Mary said, releasing Gabe, ¡°these nodes formed from all the left over energies thrown out by the upheaval. Since they¡¯re nothing but a huge piece of solidified mana, they have a huge amount of uses. Our people have been keeping their ears out and we¡¯ve already heard of some being put to use. Some have been carved into weapons, ground into potions or used to cast some insane magic. Whenever people get a hold of one of these, and know what they¡¯re doing, it¡¯s a game changer." ¡°That awesome, but what do you need me for exactly?¡± ¡°I¡¯m getting to that. Our info is telling us that larger blasts were let off at key locations, including major cities. The one we care about at the moment is Ardenvale. Buried somewhere in that giant lump of rock is a node way bigger than this one, and if we¡¯re going to succeed then we need to control it, or at least ensure no one else does.¡± ¡°I¡¯m following you so far, but you still haven¡¯t really explained why you need this stuff.¡± Jicker asked, getting frustrated with being drip fed information. ¡°It¡¯s actually pretty simple. Before, we had plans of staking a claim in the wilderness and building a city that would let people practice whatever craft they chose to, assuming it didn¡¯t hurt anyone else. But now countries are scrambling, militaries are a mess and everyone¡¯s eyes are looking towards the nation¡¯s borders. So instead of going out and building a city...¡± Gabe threw his fists into the air. ¡°We¡¯re going to steal one!¡±This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. ~~~~~~ As they headed back towards the main complex, Mary filled him in on a few more details. ¡°So our biggest problem was going to be the churches of light. Most of our forces are undead, so their holy magic would tear us apart. But even more than most of the nodes, ours is primarily death energy. So some of our smarter people have been tinkering away and have aligned it to necromancy. When its turned on, necromancy and undead will get around a fifty percent increase in power while within three miles of it, while holy and healing magic will weaken by the same amount. It won¡¯t be a guarantee or anything, but it will give us a huge advantage come fight time.¡± ¡°Why is it like that anyway? Death energy I mean.¡± Jicker asked. She shrugged. ¡°A lot of people died during the upheaval, more than pretty much every war here put together. That tainted all of the magic floating around, shifting it in that direction. It can be purified of course, but it¡¯s easier for us to use it as is. We¡¯re still trying to figure out the other traces inside of our node, but we should have it sorted by go time.¡± ¡°Poison.¡± Jicker mumbled absentmindedly, deep in thought about what he could do in Ardenvale. ¡°What was that?¡± Gabe said sharply. ¡°I...¡± he paused thinking quickly. He couldn¡¯t remember all the explosives he¡¯d used off the top of his head, but the forest stuck out because it had taken him some time to come up with one that wouldn¡¯t destroy the trees as well. ¡°I knew someone who had been hunting around here during the upheaval. They said that it was a giant cloud of deadly gas that killed every animal it touched before it got them as well.¡± Mary nodded. ¡°That theory came up in their think tank, but it¡¯s good to get confirmation. Thanks I¡¯ll pass it along. Speaking of info, we¡¯ve got a decent sized library here, bigger than what¡¯s currently left in the city. If there¡¯s anything you want to find out before you head out, feel free to use it. It¡¯s normally for guild members only, but at this point you¡¯re in, just on a sort of super probation.¡± He was going to politely refuse, before a thought struck him. ¡°Now that you mention it, I¡¯ve got a stat I haven¡¯t heard of before. Do you have any information on enigma?¡± he asked, hoping he could keep his other stat hidden for now. Gabe scratched his head. ¡°I don¡¯t think we¡¯ve got anything in the library, but I''m pretty sure that¡¯s the stat Oda has. When you see him later, he might be able to give you some advice.¡± ¡°Sure, I¡¯d be happy to.¡± Said a familiar voice from behind. Spinning around, the three of them were faced with a man wearing a suit of grey leather armour, casually leaning against the wall. With a sharply cut bead and black topknot, Jicker wondered how he hadn¡¯t noticed him before. ¡°Damn it Oda! You almost gave me a heart attack! What are you doing here?¡± Mary shouted, clutching her chest. Oda shrugged. ¡°Following you guys.¡± ¡°Why?¡± she continued, struggling to regain her composure. ¡°Boredom mostly, but I¡¯m also studying this little guy here.¡± He said, point at Jicker. ¡°Really? Anything interesting?¡± Gabe asked curiously. Oda waved a finger at him. ¡°I thought it was said earlier that it¡¯s ok to have secrets. Just because I know things doesn¡¯t mean I''m going to tell people. Anyway, is it about time I take Jicker back out?¡± Mary nodded. ¡°So Jicker, you understand what we¡¯re asking you to do?¡± Jicker nodded.
Ding! Quest: The secret heart of the mountain The Rising Moon as asked you to ensure the Ardenvale node remains unused until they claim it. Success: The node remains unclaimed until the Rising Moons invasion or is claimed by the Rising Moon. Failure: The node is claimed by another source.
They parted ways at one of the intersections, leaving him alone with Oda, who was staring at him intently as they walked. ¡°Is there something on my face?¡± Jicker asked jokingly, wondering what was going on. ¡°No, sorry if I¡¯m being rude, but you¡¯re just not what I expected of the evil Maser.¡± Oda said casually. Jicker froze, wondering if he¡¯d misheard, getting ready to log out and run. What had happened, what had given him away? ¡°Hey, relax.¡± Oda said, snapping his fingers in front of his face a few times. ¡°Stress isn¡¯t good for your health. Besides, I really don¡¯t care and like I said before, your secrets safe with me.¡± ¡°I...I don¡¯t...¡± Jicker stumbled, having been caught completely off guard. Oda sighed and went to sit against the wall. ¡°Okay, let¡¯s just take a seat for a moment until you can get a grip. Now I take it by that reaction that I''m the first to spot you. Now it¡¯s not too surprising, since I''m pretty high level, but surely you knew that people can see hidden information?¡± Jicker''s head whipped around to look at him. ¡°What?¡± Oda chuckled. ¡°Ah, so you were more of a good guy, despite the whole upheaval thing. Well, the short of it is there¡¯s a skill called True Sight, which is unlocked after you master Clear Vision, which you unlock if you master the Perception skill and have enough intelligence. Not easy to do, clearly, but it lets you see hidden information about characters. In addition to stuff like your characters name, health and buffs, at higher levels, I can also see skills, stats and achievements. This by the way was what gave it away, specifically that genocide one. I''m pretty sure I would have heard about someone else killing that many people.¡± ¡°And you...don¡¯t care?¡± Jicker asked, having no idea what to do anymore. ¡°Eh, it¡¯s interesting, but it¡¯s also obvious why you¡¯d want to keep that a secret. As for me, I had fun before you pulled the trigger, and I''m having even more fun now. I didn¡¯t lose much in the upheaval, I''m well off both in game and real life, and while I really want to hear what you did, I can wait. Besides, you¡¯re in the guild...ish, so it would be wrong for me to mess with you. But if you want to keep it hushed up, try and avoid people like me if you can.¡± ¡°And what sort of person is that?¡± he asked trying to grab on to any information to calm himself down. ¡°An assassin, which now that I say it out loud is obviously not what you want to hear.¡± He said wincing. ¡°An assassin.¡± Jicker said flatly. Oda smiled. ¡°Believe it or not, when I started, I wanted to be a samurai. The whole duelling, code of honour thing seemed great to me, I even picked my name for it. But after a few people came after me, unhappy with losing, I realised I was a lot better at killing than fighting. But I swear to you, I only killed people for money.¡± ¡°How does that make things better?¡± Oda¡¯s smile disappeared. ¡°There are plenty of reasons people use to kill, and some of them are downright evil. I don¡¯t claim be a good guy, in fact I''m probably one of the worst in the guild, but I¡¯ve seen people do things in the name of justice that would make you vomit.¡± He hopped back to his feet. ¡°Now, I need to take you back out to the forest, where I saw you do that thing with the plant. You¡¯re going to need to be blinded while I do that again, it¡¯s one of the hard and fast rules of the guild.¡± ¡°You saw me do that?¡± Jicker asked while Oda put a bag over his head, giving up on denying the smaller of his secrets. ¡°Yeah, it was neat. You didn¡¯t see me however, because of my stealth skill, and more importantly, the enigma stat. I''m not a teacher, but I¡¯ll try and explain it. Most people don¡¯t use it because of the fame restriction, and because they can¡¯t understand how to use it properly. It doesn¡¯t make you invisible, or even any sneakier, but it sort of...puts you in people¡¯s blind spot. It¡¯s not that people don¡¯t see you; it¡¯s more that people don¡¯t bother looking for you. If you try and interact with someone, you¡¯ll get their attention easily enough, but unless you do something to get them to focus on you, you¡¯ll find it easier to slip through without people caring. That¡¯s how I bagged you the first time, despite your night vision and life sight potion, which the guild would probably buy from you by the way. Your senses picked me up, but your brain just filed me away under things that don¡¯t matter. Does that make sense?¡±
You have learned the lessons of a master. Enigma has increased by 1! Total: 4
¡°I think so, and the game agrees. Thanks for the tips.¡± Jicker said honestly. ¡°No problem. Now since we¡¯ve got some time before we reach the exit, my turn to ask a few things, starting with evolution. I''ve seen a lot of people stats, but I haven¡¯t come across that one.¡± Spending a few minutes, Jicker explained how his abilities worked, about how he¡¯d created Snuffles, the roaches and the silhouwolves. It felt good to just be able to talk about things for once, to not have to lie and hide all the information. It didn¡¯t matter if Oda knew this stuff, since he already knew the big one. ¡°That¡¯s some crazy stuff. So those wolves running around are all yours?¡± Oda asked when he was done. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t say they¡¯re mine, I don¡¯t have any control over them. But they¡¯re smarter than you¡¯d think and they know who I am so they seem to be keeping an eye on me and at least giving me some respect.¡± ¡°Damn. An army of those guys would have been a big help during the attack.¡± ¡°You know, if you can find a way to communicate with Penumbra, their alpha, you might be able to recruit them. I don¡¯t know what they¡¯d want, but they¡¯re smart enough to understand the idea of an alliance, him especially.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll try and suggest that, but how do you want to play it? I can¡¯t really say anything without revealing you made them.¡± ¡°Do you trust them?¡± Jicker asked. ¡°The whole guild? No, I haven¡¯t even met a lot of them, but I¡¯ll vouch for the leaders that you met.¡± ¡°Then you can tell them I suppose, and have them keep it a secret form the rest. We can figure something else out later I suppose, but for now I need to go investigate a mountain.¡± ¡°Right. My advice is to see if you can get a mining licence to go and have a look through the sections people have already opened. It won¡¯t get you everywhere, but it¡¯s a start.¡± Oda said as he pulled the bag off of Jicker''s head. ¡°Thanks for the...advice.¡± He tried to say, only to find that the man had already disappeared. Looking around, he saw the spot where he¡¯d buried his work, giving him a rough idea of where he was. At least finding his way out of the forest would be easier; all he had to do was pick a direction and commit. ~~~~~~ After stumbling along through the undergrowth for a few hours, he eventually made it out of the woods, and even came out on the right side of it. Again nothing had come after him while he¡¯d walked, but he¡¯d heard several growls and crashes around him, as the silhouwolves apparently resumed their watch over him. By the time he made it back to the city gates the sun was going down, and he had push his way through the crowds going out to hunt in the forest tonight. As he did he heard snippets of conversations, mostly about their new plans for the wolves. ¡°...they fear fire, so as long you keep a torch lit...¡± ¡°...dead, so I''ve loaded up with holy water and...¡± ¡°...tomato sauce, to mask your scent from them and...¡± Apparently people were still trying out different strategies to handle the new threat the silhouwolves posed, though by the sound of it they still had a long way to go. Stopping by a bakery to grab a bite to eat, he made his way up to the academy. The grounds had mostly emptied out at this hour, people having gone home for the evening, or spending it hunting outside of town. He had no problem making his way to the green houses, and knocked on the door when he found them locked. After a few minutes Molta came to the door. ¡°Who¡¯s bothering me now? It¡¯s getting dark now, come back in the... Oh, it¡¯s you. Come to say you¡¯re giving up?¡± She said dismissively. ¡°I¡¯m done if that¡¯s what you mean, but I¡¯d prefer to call it a success.¡± She looked closer at him. ¡°Have you now. Hmmm, in that case come in and let¡¯s take a look.¡± They returned to her lab where she took a seat, taking a sip from a cup sitting on her desk. ¡°You¡¯ve already interrupted my evening, so let¡¯s cut to the chase. Show me what you found.¡± Jickertook off his pack and took out a few of the remaining incendiberries and told her the story he¡¯d prepared earlier. ¡°I couldn¡¯t save the main plant since that cave was unstable and it began collapsing on me, but I managed to grab a few of the fruits from it. I didn¡¯t recognise them, so I figured they were something interesting.¡± She picked up one the berries gently and studied it. ¡°With your vast knowledge of plants, I''d be surprised if you could tell wheat from barley. But in this case it looks like you¡¯ve picked up something worth looking at. And you say the main plant was destroyed?¡± she asked while reaching for a notebook. ¡°Crushed by falling debris, sadly. I was too busy escaping to save it.¡± ¡°A pity, but this style of plant should have usable seeds inside the fruits, so I should be able to grow one. Did you get a look at its location? Light levels, soil types, that sort of thing?¡± she asked, holding a pencil at the ready. Jicker rattled off what he could remember the adaptation menus saying as its preferred conditions, ensuring it was vague enough that she wouldn¡¯t be suspicious. After finishing taking her notes she snapped her book shut and stood back up. ¡°This is...Interesting, as you said. In fact this could end up being quite the find, though it¡¯ll be a few months until I''m able to say anything about it for sure.¡± ¡°Not to sound impatient, but we did agree to a reward if I found something...¡± Said Jicker, leaving the question hanging. Molta snorted. ¡°Trust you youngsters to put wealth before knowledge. But we did make a deal, and you¡¯ve certainly than held up your end. So here, payment for your service.¡± Opening one of the drawers of her desk, she searched through for a moment before pulling out a satchel and throwing it him. Opening it, Jicker found it filled with gold.
Ding! Quest: The cave of potential wonders. - Complete! Reward: 2500 EXP, 1900 gold. Molta now trusts you. You have reached level 15! You have 5 points left unassigned. Assign points now?
He¡¯d been hoping for a few hundred gold pieces, so he was shocked when he received the reward, even asking whether it was right pouch. ¡°Teaching pays better than you might think when you¡¯re good at it, and I don¡¯t have much to spend it on. And in return you¡¯ve given me something to work on for sometime which, when you live as long as we elves do isn¡¯t something to sneeze at. In fact... here, take this as a thank you. It¡¯s an older copy but it hasn¡¯t started being wrong yet.¡± She said, passing him a book from her table.
Molta¡¯s study of common plants and their uses Item type: book Grade: uncommon This book contains information collected by the herbalist Molta. Studying it can assist with the herbalism skill, as well as teach additional plant lore.
¡°Thank you, this will help a lot. And if we¡¯re just being nice now, I¡¯d be careful with those berries if I was you. When some got squashed in the cave in they tended to explode and burn.¡± He told her, putting the book away and throwing his pack back on. ¡°Really? How curious. I¡¯ll make sure I have some water on hand when I begin studying them. Now see yourself out if you don¡¯t mind, It seems I have work to do.¡± Jicker had heard the phrase ¡®a heavy purse make a light heart¡¯ before, but he¡¯d never realised how true it could be. He now had enough to ensure a roof over his head for several months, even with spending money on equipment and training. Or perhaps he¡¯d go and see about getting one of those licenses¡¯ Oda had mentioned. Either way, he decided to head to his room and get some rest. He had experience sorted out for now, and money had just been dealt with. Skills could be tomorrow¡¯s problem, he decided, and went to bed. Chapter 13 When he eventually woke up the next morning he groggily went over to the mess hall to grab some breakfast and began to plan out the day. As he sat down to a bowl of warm porridge with honey and cinnamon, he wondered where to begin. If he was going to try and pick up some skills he¡¯d need to do a bit of research first, and twice that if he was going to work towards some stats. Still he had time to figure things out for once he could just relax for a moment and- ¡°Excuse me, are you Jicker?¡± Speak of the devil... turning around to get a look at the speaker, Jicker was greeted by a man wearing a thick black hooded cloak. While it might have made him an imposing figure in a dark alley or a night time rooftop, on a brightly lit morning while people ate breakfast it lost some of its image. Several people looked towards the figure and made comments to their friends, which the man seemed to be aware of as he shifted nervously, constantly looking around. ¡°You are Jicker right?¡± They asked again. ¡°I am, though I¡¯d like to know who wants to know.¡± Jicker said, wondering why someone had come looking for him. ¡°Finally! Got sent to look for you with nothing but a name and race to go on. Ended up searching around all morning, and would have taken longer if there were many other gremlins about.¡± ¡°Well good job, you found me. Now, why were you looking for me?¡± he asked, still confused. ¡°Hmmm? Oh yes, well, I¡¯ve been told to get some seeds from you.¡± Right, Jicker thought, August said that he¡¯d have someone come and pick them up. He hadn¡¯t expected them so soon, but August wasn¡¯t the sort to leave things too long if they could be dealt with earlier. ¡°Yeah, ok, I¡¯ll go and grab them. I¡¯ll be back in a sec.¡± Returning to his room, Jicker pulled out a bag containing all of the seeds he¡¯d collected after using the Incendiberries, leaving him with just the few berries he had left. If he needed to he was confident he could reproduce the plant, but he decided it would just be easier to keep a few seeds for himself. Coming back to the mess hall, he saw the man had moved to the doorway and looked like he wanted to run, and Jicker couldn¡¯t really blame him. If he could run from August¡¯s grasp he¡¯d do it himself. ¡°Here.¡± He said, tossing the bag to the figure. ¡°That¡¯s the seeds.¡± ¡°This is it?¡± They said, eyeing the bag suspiciously. Jicker shrugged. ¡°Sure, what were you expecting?¡± ¡°Nothing... just don¡¯t want to disappoint the boss you know?¡± The man said, chuckling weakly. ¡°Yeah I can understand that.¡± Said Jicker, nodding. Saying a quick goodbye they hurried off, presumably to go take the seeds to wherever August was setting up his new farm for them. He wondered if he should have asked whether he was supposed to report anything but decided that the money hungry bastard was probably following it closely enough anyway. Having dealt with one issue, Jicker returned to his breakfast and planning for the day. ~~~~~~ ¡°Sorry runt, can¡¯t let you in the tunnels.¡± The guard said, refusing to move out of the way. Since Sarah hadn¡¯t turned up any new information on where he could find a trainer for his class, and that he didn¡¯t really know what skills could come in handy, he decided to get to work on the mine. In the centre of the city, the giant stone cloud left the whole area in shadow, which made the shanty town that had sprung up around it look even less inviting. Still, having avoided the various cutthroats and pickpockets that lurked around the place he¡¯d finally made his way to the base the cloud and began climbing the wooden stair that had been hastily constructed against it. Soon he was stuck in a mob of positional miners making the same trip, some hopeful, some experienced and some resigned to another day of drudgery. As the stair became thinner and more rickety as it rose, the crowd became denser, forcing Jicker to travel with the flow whether he wanted to or not. Eventually he reached what seemed to be the start of the actual mines, a large alcove that had been dug into the side of the cloud, giving a solid place for people to rest in between trips inside. With the stalk of the cloud being over two miles high before it reached the core of the cloud, which the bulged out to be well over ten in diameter, people could spend weeks mining into the cloud while making seemingly no progress. Helpful signage had been placed, directing him to where he could get a license to head in and try to find some treasures, as well as look for the node that was somewhere inside. Going to the counter he was asked to use a magic tablet which checked for level, criminal record and guild affiliations, which gave Jicker a better understanding of why the Rising Moon had sent him to have a look, rather than an actual guild member. Normally it was just for ensuring no guild tried to force a monopoly on a communal resource or area, but he was pretty sure a group that was planning to take over the city wouldn¡¯t be looked at favourably either. But once he¡¯d signed the waver, paid his hundred gold fee and received his license, he¡¯d been stopped at the entrance by an ogre acting as both guide and bouncer. ¡°But I have the license.¡± Jicker said, showing him the small brass plate he¡¯d been issued. ¡°True, but part of my job is stopping anyone that just going to get themselves and others killed from getting inside in the first place. Too many people were complaining about unexpected hazards and trying to sue or start fights. So yeah, I can¡¯t let you in. Sorry, but it would be bad for business.¡± Jicker was at a loss. ¡°I can understand what you¡¯re saying, and even get behind your reasoning I suppose. But if you weren¡¯t going to let me in, then why the hell did you take my money and sell me the damn license!¡± He said, raising his voice. ¡°Calm down. It¡¯s perfectly fine for us to sell the licence; we even mention this rule in the waver you signed. You did read the agreement, right?¡± The ogre asked, raising an eyebrow. Jicker hesitated. It had been a dozen pages of fine print and clauses. ¡°Does anyone?¡± he asked eventually. The ogre sighed. ¡°Generally only the type of person who is trying to find a way to sue us anyway, so that part kind of deals with itself. But look, it¡¯s not like the license has an expiry date, so go and kill a few monsters, run some quests and you can come back and go in. We have flexible standards but we try and keep a minimum level requirement to go in. So are you joining up with a group or going solo? ¡°I¡¯ll be working on my own at the moment.¡± ¡°In that case I¡¯ll need you to reach level 20 before I can safely let you in. Spend a few weeks training and farming monsters and you¡¯ll be fine. No need to hurry though, not like we¡¯re going to run out of rock to mine.¡± Feeling cheated but unable to find anything else to complain about, Jicker headed out. Trying to go back down the stairs, he was forced back by the flow of people coming, several of whom threatened to throw him over the side for getting in the way. Coming back to the alcove he was about to go and ask someone where the exit was when he saw someone exiting the mines. Pausing to watch them, he saw them go to a desk to turn in their finds, wave to a few people they saw on their way out and then throw themselves off the edge of the platform. Rushing to where they¡¯d gone over the edge, Jicker looked down to see a long slope that had been made from all of the excavated debris. It seemed to have reinforced with magic and now the person who had gone over the edge was now safely, albeit rapidly, sliding back down to the ground. As he wondered how safe it was for people to be hurtling along a steep slope for miles, someone bumped into him from behind, sending him stumbling off. Landing heavily on the slide, he barely had time to roll onto his back before he started hurtling forwards. While it had taken half an hour to climb the stair to reach the mines, he¡¯d been falling for less than a minute and the ground was approaching fast. Wondering how he was going to stop without being forced to respawn; his thoughts were interrupted as he felt like he¡¯d been dropped into a pool of treacle. As the air seemed to thicken around him he began to slow down, letting him catch a glimpse of symbols carved into the base of the slide. By the time he reached the bottom he was moving at a slow walking pace, letting him stand up and walk off smoothly between one step and the next. Heading back out the main part of the city Jicker grabbed a bite to eat while wondering what he should do instead. If he was patient enough the Silhouwolves should earn him enough experience, but with how people were adjusting to them it could take several weeks. Rather than just do nothing while he was waiting, he went to one of the crafting halls stationed around the city. No one was sure who had built the first one, but before long there were several in every major city. To learn any of the crafting skills took a great deal of time and effort, but unlike combat or magic it also needed a substantial investment of resources and equipment. So rather than wait for a person to scrape together the funds to buy everything they needed, the halls were created, containing equipment for almost every trade that could be used at a small fee, as well as large amounts of common resources that were bought at a great discount. Most groups helped pay for the halls since they generally ran at a loss, but the end result was a large number of skilled workers producing much higher quality equipment. As he walked through the doors he was almost defend by the sounds hammers striking metal, of saws and chisels hitting stone and the dozens of people trying to talk over the noise and each other. Looking around to see if they had a better pill press he could use, the closet he could find was a free potion brewing station with some fairly clean equipment. When he asked the halls manager they just shrugged. ¡°What you see is what we¡¯ve got.¡± They said lazily. Despite being somewhat poorly maintained, the station was of high quality and would give a small bonus to the efficiency of anything crafted with it, so he spent a few minutes cleaning it up before going and collecting some ingredients, making a note of what he took and dropping some golds in the box in front of the supply barrels. As his station had a tap already there, and water was free, all he needed was a large amount of ash and some blood that people had collected from suitable animals. He spent the rest of day in the hall, making doses of anaesthetic and adrenaline as often as he could before converting it into pills to be used more easily. The mass production wasn¡¯t as good as making something new for levelling his skills but he still managed to gain a level in apothecary. Getting bored of making the same things over and over again, he turned his attention to trying to come up with something new. However unlike his luck with his Dead man¡¯s sight potion, all he had succeeded in creating was a grey slop that smelled faintly of pineapples.This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. His attempts weren¡¯t completely without results however. As the day dragged on and Jicker mind began to wander, he put a batch of anaesthetic into the tank he was using to hold the adrenaline by mistake. Previous combinations of potions had resulted in the waste of both ingredients, however this time it instead changed to a red hue, though it didn¡¯t seem to have actually turned into a new potion. Running the mix through his press to see the result, he was rewarded with a message from the game.
Mother of invention! By combining two potions at the correct ratio and binding them with inert powder, you have created a new item Recipe: 3 doses of adrenaline, 1 dose of anaesthetic, 4 units of inert powder Item type: Pill (12) Grade: Uncommon, created by Unknown Effect: +8hp, 10% physical damage resisted, 20% movement and attack speed increase, 15% mana and stamina regeneration increase - duration 2 minutes Do you wish to name this item?
¡°Stimulant...fighter.. Oh, I know. They will be named battle drops.¡± He said looking at the small red tablets in his hand.
Name accepted. Creator will remain unknown. Apothecary level has increased by 1! Current level: 3
¡°Well those look interesting.¡± Said someone from behind him. Wondering how people kept sneaking up on him he turned around quickly, to find Oda looking over his shoulder at the pills he was making. ¡°Oda! What are you doing?¡± Jicker asked in surprise. ¡°Watching you work. I don¡¯t normally care much for crafting myself, but its interesting seeing new stuff being made. What did you make anyway?¡± The man asked casually. Jicker, still unsure of why he was there, handed him one of the pills. After looking at it for a moment Oda popped it into his mouth, swallowing it. He went still for a moment and raised an eyebrow. ¡°Those are some nice effects. Got anymore?¡± ¡°You just saw me make the first batch...apparently. Why are you here Oda?¡± Jicker asked. Did he always act like this? Oda snorted. ¡°Did you really think we¡¯d let someone who¡¯s seen our secret base just leave without a tail?¡± ¡°...there¡¯s no way I can answer that without you losing respect for me, is there?¡± Jicker answered after a moment. ¡°Not likely.¡± The man said with a grin on his face. Jicker groaned. ¡°I thought as much. So you¡¯ve come to check up on me?¡± ¡°Please, I¡¯m good at what I do. I''ve been following you all day, usually within a dozen feet or so. Hell, I asked you to pass the salt at lunch.¡± Jicker tried to think back. There had been someone, now that he mentioned it, but his memories of them were fuzzy. ¡°That¡¯s...really impressive actually. So is this what you normally do? Follow people around I mean?¡± ¡°Kind of, I mean normally I stab them more than I talk to them, but the skill sets the same. And since my work loads pretty light until we start up the plan, I figured I¡¯d take the job of watching the most interesting target we¡¯ve got. So anyway, can you make some more of those pills?¡± ¡°You were serious about that? Don¡¯t you have people who can make way better stuff than this back at the guild?¡± Jicker asked, wondering if they should be talking about this stuff in public. Looking around, it didn¡¯t seem like anyone was listening in, but you never knew. Oda saw what he was doing. ¡°Relax, even if someone could eavesdrop on us over all the noise in here, my skills will ensure the conversation remains private, though I doubt anyone else has even noticed I''m here. But yes I was serious on the pills. They¡¯re pretty weak but a general purpose buff like that is still worth more than you might think, and being easier and quicker to grab than a potion bottle is a huge plus in a fight.¡± ¡°If it¡¯s that big a deal, why don¡¯t I see more people making pills then?¡± ¡°Have you met people? They¡¯re lazy, so why would they go out of their way to make a change that would take a lot more time and effort while giving them little improvement. And people who work in groups that could bring in someone else to do it, well... not everyone likes sharing. So yeah I¡¯d like to buy some from you. How many do you have?¡± Oda said with a shrug. ¡°Currently eleven, since you ate one. But if I work for a few more hours,¡± Jicker said, looking at what he had left and doing some mental maths. ¡°I should be able to put together another hundred or so.¡± ¡°Works for me, I¡¯ll give you two hundred gold for the lot.¡± ¡°...what?¡± ¡°Not enough? Look I''m not exactly made of money here but I suppose I can go to two fifty.¡± ¡°No, I mean, you¡¯d pay that much for these?¡±Jicker asked incredulously. ¡°What can I say? My life is important to me, and these could do quite a bit to help me keep it. So yes I''m willing to trade gold for survival. So let¡¯s say two fifty for at least a hundred, plus however many more you can make, and I¡¯ll pick them up tomorrow?¡± ¡°Yeah that works I suppose.¡± An idea struck him. ¡°Actually, what are you doing tomorrow?¡± Oda sighed. ¡°Well for the next three days I¡¯m your tail, so you¡¯d have a better idea than I would.¡± ¡°In that case how would you feel about helping me with something instead of paying for these?¡± ~~~~~~ ¡°Keep clear of its tail! This one isn¡¯t aiming for you but that doesn¡¯t mean it can¡¯t hit you!¡± Oda shouted. Diving out of the way, Jicker wondered yet again whether he¡¯d made a mistake. Once he¡¯d explained the situation with mine, it had been easy enough to get Oda to agree to help him get the levels he needed to get in. The next day after forming a party, he¡¯d led Jicker to a dungeon that would have been way out of his reach to do alone, but would be a cake walk for the assassin to manage. It was a common method of training up someone quickly. The stronger players would take the weak into a high level area and do all of the work and then the game would then divide the experience proportionally amongst the party, based on their contributions. To ensure he got a decent share of the experience, Jicker just had get at least one shot off onto an enemy before it died. But the giant lizards they¡¯d been hunting didn¡¯t take kindly to being shot by someone they could eat in one bite, and spent almost half their time enraged and trying to chase him down. Apparently the difference in their levels was offset by Oda¡¯s higher enigma stat, leaving him to be seen as the greater threat. This left him, for what seemed like the hundredth time, trying his best to keep out of the reach of the beast, since a single solid attack could take him out. Luckily Oda took his job seriously, and quickly dispatched them once Jicker had officially participated in the fight, usually with a single strike from an angle that Jicker would have called impossible if he hadn¡¯t seen it himself. But after jumping around, hiding under rocks and generally running for his life all day they¡¯d gotten him up to level nineteen, so as the sun started going down, they decided to call it quits for the day. ¡°So am I going to need to take you out again tomorrow?¡± Oda asked as they walked back towards Ardenvale. Jicker shook his head. ¡°Thanks, but the Silhouwolves should be able to get me the rest of the way.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± Oda asked curiously. ¡°You said you could see my stats didn¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Just because I can see something, doesn¡¯t mean I''m going to look.¡± Oda said, sounding hurt. He turned to look at Jicker properly, and his eyes took on a golden sheen. ¡°Let me see then... Ok yeah, evolution. Man that¡¯s a pretty fancy stat to have. So when you say the Silhouwolves will get you there...¡± ¡°It¡¯s literally a waiting game, so I should be fine.¡± ¡°Speaking of which, can you make me something?¡± ¡°What?¡± Jicker asked. ¡°You know, with your ability.¡± Oda said, as if it were obvious. ¡°I mean, I suppose I could try but...why?¡± Oda shrugged. ¡°I joined the Rising Moon because I agreed with their beliefs. I became one of the council members because I shared Mary¡¯s dedication and ruthlessness when needed. However I also found I shared Gabe¡¯s attention span. I play Genesis because I enjoy it and because it offers a wealth of new experiences. Or to put it another way, I get bored, amuse me.¡± ¡°I''ve heard worse reasons I suppose. Any idea of what you want? It¡¯ll have to be a plant since I don¡¯t have an animal to work with.¡± Oda scratched his head. ¡°I don¡¯t mind really, just something interesting.¡± ¡°That works I guess. Now, this probably won¡¯t stick, but let¡¯s see what we get.¡± Taking a seat on an old rotting log, he pulled up a lump of moss, holding it out in front of him as he activated his ability. Looking at the various options, he wondered what he should do. He didn¡¯t want to do anything major, just in case it did become permanent, but there were still plenty of things he could do. In the end he settled for changing up some pigments, its rate of growth, and how it spread its spores. Finalising the changes, he felt the moss vibrate in his hands slightly as it changed to an almost pure white colour, and was relieved to see that the game hadn¡¯t given him a message. ¡°So that¡¯s it?¡± Oda asked, breaking the silence. ¡°Yep all done. How long did that take anyway? I¡¯ve never really timed myself.¡± ¡°About ten minutes, give or take. So what is it?¡± ¡°Well like I thought it¡¯s not a permanent change like the other one was, so it doesn¡¯t get a real name, but I was thinking of it as canvas moss.¡± ¡°So it¡¯s like, tough or water resistant or something?¡± Oda asked, unimpressed. ¡°Or something.¡± Jicker said with a grin before hurling the lump of moss at a nearby tree. As soon as it struck, little bubbles inside burst, sending sprays of bright blue spores out in every direction. A few seconds after the spores made contact with the ground, they began to grow in moss, becoming a fully grown replica of the original in moments, except they retained their bright blue colour. ¡°Tada, canvas moss, like paintings, not the fabric. Whenever it suffers a big enough impact it will release its spores, but the colour will be completely random. Other than that though it¡¯s pretty much useless though since it¡¯s nontoxic, non edible and should break down completely once my ability wears off.¡± Oda bent down to carefully scoop up a chunk of the newly formed moss. ¡°Ok, yeah this is definitely cool. So it¡¯s safe to touch... what else will it grow on?¡± ¡°Hmmm? Well its moss, so pretty much anything that has a surface. Why do you ask?¡± Jicker said while picking up some himself. His question was answered when a piece of moss was thrown into his back, sending a spray of red spores over him. In moments he had a thin layer of bright red moss covering his back, his arms, and over legs. Turning around slowly, most of the moss falling away as he moved, he saw Oda not even bothering to look innocent while picking up another piece. ¡°Of course you know,¡± Jicker said, adjusting his grip on the piece in his hands. ¡°That this means war.¡± Jicker liked to consider himself a sensible sort of person, and was normally able to avoid getting carried away. But by the time he and Oda had gotten tired of hurling moss at each other, every tree, rock and every speck of ground for fifty feet was covered in a thick layer of rainbow coloured moss, to the point every step started triggering small bursts of colour to flare up. ¡°Well,¡± Said Oda as he scraped a pink layer of moss off the side of his face. ¡°That was fun. Are you sure it¡¯s going to disappear on its own?¡± ¡°It should do, but I''m not sure whether it will turn back to normal moss or disappear completely. I guess I¡¯ll come back tomorrow and have a look. For now though, I want to go home and take a shower.¡± ¡°Maybe clean up a bit before you go back, right now you look like... the worst clown.¡± They spent a few minutes getting rid of the worst of it before heading back, leaving blobs of brightly coloured moss as they went. Oda spoke up for the first time in a while, having been deep in thought. ¡°You know, I know you made that stuff as a bit of a joke, but even that could have some useful applications. Things like markers or alarms, to find invisible targets, all sorts of stuff. You should make it permanent.¡± Jicker thought about it for a moment before shaking his head. ¡°It would get out of control way to easily, and I could guarantee people would start throwing it around in towns. Besides, I have to be careful about what and how much new stuff I create.¡± ¡°Really? Why?¡± He hesitated. ¡°Too much new stuff coming in at once and people will start looking for the source. While you don¡¯t seem to care, there are a lot of people who would be way too happy to find me.¡± Oda looked at him for a moment. ¡°That¡¯s bullshit, but I¡¯m pretty sure you¡¯ve got a reason so I guess I can let it go at that. Don¡¯t be surprised if Mary asks you to make some stuff for the guild though?¡± ¡°Yeah I expected as much, but ill cross that bridge when I get to it.¡± They parted ways at the entrance to the academy, or at least Jicker assumed they did. As soon as they said goodbye Oda vanished, and he quickly gave up trying to see if the assassin was still following him. Heading up to his room he walked as normally as he could, hoping his enigma stat would make people ignore the fact he looked like he got beat up by a paint brush. When he opened the door however, he was greeted by a man in a suit, flanked by a pair of large, heavily armed orcs. ¡°Ah, there you are Jicker. I have been asked by our mutual employer to pick up some seeds from you. I trust you have them around.¡± Jicker stood still in the doorway, trying to work out what was going on. ¡°No, I don¡¯t.¡± He answered after a few minutes. ¡°You don¡¯t have them here? Are they in storage somewhere else or-¡± ¡°No, I mean you already collected them from me.¡± ¡°Sir, I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re on about I''ve never even seen you before you stepped through the door.¡± The man said, sounding annoyed. ¡°Well, not you specifically, but someone else came by to collect them.¡± The man opened his mouth to say something, but paused, going slightly pale as he rubbed his eyes. ¡°Are you saying,¡± They said slowly, ¡°That someone else has come here, claimed to be from our employer, and you gave them the seeds?¡± ¡°Uh...yes?¡± The man swore. ¡°Well then Jicker, I suggest you log off and stay near your phone for a while. I¡¯m going to need to call this in.¡± Chapter 14 Matt had just enough time to have both a shower in game and then a real one after logging out before the phone rang. ¡°He¡¯s pissed.¡± Sarah said before he could even say hello. ¡°I don¡¯t know what you did but he¡¯s been shouting in his office for the last twenty minutes now.¡± ¡°I figured he would be. Go ahead and put me through.¡± He said, taking a deep breath. The hold music hadn¡¯t even begun to play before the phone was picked up again. ¡°Harper,¡± August said, his voice devoid of emotion. ¡°Do you remember what I told you to do?¡± ¡°You asked me to give the seeds to the person who comes to collect them.¡± ¡°And did you do what I asked?¡± He hesitated. ¡°I thought I had.¡± August went silent for a moment, the sounds of papers being rifled through coming down the line. ¡°That¡¯s what this report says as well. Now explain yourself, and I¡¯d strongly advise you to be honest with me.¡± Matt told him as best he could about the man in black that had come and taken the seeds, and that while he had seemed suspicious he¡¯d handed them over anyway. ¡°I did wonder about him,¡± Matt said as he tried to defend himself. ¡°But he knew about the seeds, and I thought only you, Sarah and I had been told about them, so I figured he was your guy.¡± Again the call went silent, And Matt wondered whether he should keep away from the windows, but after a minute August returned, sounding frustrated. ¡°You¡¯re¡­right. No one else should have had that information, or been able to track your characters whereabouts. So, I guess¡­you¡¯re off the hook.¡± ¡°Then¡­who was that?¡± ¡°No one important, much like you. They¡¯re just another pawn for someone moving against me. And while I can¡¯t be certain, I have my suspicions¡­ never mind that, it''s well above you¡¯re pay grade. Although if I can track down the person who took the seeds off of you, perhaps I can¡­¡±The line went dead suddenly as August ended the call. Matt, surprised he¡¯d gotten out of it without even a warning, called Sarah, wanting to make sure there wasn¡¯t something he missed. ¡°Matt, what¡¯s up? The boss is still pissed and on the phone, but is everything ok on your end?¡± she said anxiously once she picked up the phone. ¡°Yeah, he¡¯s sure it¡¯s someone else trying to screw him over, so I got out of it. So he¡¯s moved onto someone else already? In that case, there¡¯s something else I¡¯ve been meaning to ask you. You said that people can¡¯t see my information if I set it to private.¡± ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s what private means.¡± ¡°See that¡¯s what I thought too. But the other day, I ran into someone who could see them anyway, with some ability called true sight.¡± ¡°What? I mean yeah I¡¯ve heard of that skill, but like only¡­¡± there was the sound typing through the phone. ¡°Fourteen people have ever had that skill, and only eight of those are active accounts. Did you really run into one? Did they figure out-¡± She said, starting to sound stressed. ¡°They know I¡¯m Maser, or that I was, but they don¡¯t seem to really care.¡± ¡°Could be true, the people who manage to unlock those weird abilities are often pretty weird themselves. But I¡¯ve got a feeling that Mr. Fronz is going to want a background check on anyone who figures you out, so did you get their name? Their character name will do.¡± ¡°Oda.¡± ¡°¡­do you have any idea how many players we have named Oda? You don¡¯t have anything else?¡± ¡°Well, you figured out how many people have the skill, can¡¯t you look him up there?¡± She sighed exasperatedly. ¡°Different systems. The whole confidently agreement makes it difficult for us to pull up much info on anyone.¡± ¡°Then what are you going to do?¡± Matt asked curiously. ¡°I¡¯ll admit, it¡¯s not entirely legal to go through some of this stuff, but you¡¯ve dealt with the boss now. He doesn¡¯t exactly go by the same rules as everyone else, and we¡¯re forced to go along with him. So just¡­ pretend that all this info doesn¡¯t exist, and hopefully it won¡¯t come back to bite us. How¡¯d you manage to run into a player like that anyway?¡± Matt gave her a quick rundown on what he¡¯d found out about the Rising Moon. ¡°They should be able to help me out with what I¡¯m trying to do,¡± He said, ¡°and I can probably help them with theirs. Is a guild trying this sort of thing okay? Or am I going to need to report this?¡± She laughed. ¡°What, a bunch of people rising up against the establishment and fighting the system? There are literally hundreds of groups trying to do that on any given day. The fact they might pull it off is less common, but it¡¯s perfectly normal, and most in game companies even take out insurance for things like that. So by all means, if you think you can trust them, play with your new friends. I¡¯ll send you a message if anything comes up.¡± With that weight off his mind, Matt said goodbye and went to his computer, checking his emails and looking through the forums to see if his wolves were still managing to beat players. Most people still hadn¡¯t figured out the new threat, but there were now a number of threads giving legitimate strategies to beat them. Most ideas seemed to rely on light magic to burn away the shadows they used, so that they were left with just a normal, if larger and stronger, wolf. A couple seemed to have been written by people near Ardenvale, since they had run up against Penumbra and hadn¡¯t survived the encounter. Looking at the overall opinion of people, Matt figured that he probably had a few days left of experience from the silhouwolves before it died down to a trickle. Deciding to make the most of the time he had before he could go into the mines, he went to log back in and go produce some more pills. ~~~~~~
You have received EXP from Evolution! You have reached level 20! You have 5 points left unassigned. Assign points now?
Or he could level up as soon as he logged back in, he thought with a sigh, before reading the rest of the message.
New abilities unlocked.
Medicinal Abilities: Antitoxin- Create a dose of medicine that can cure most physical poisons Effect: Cures target of poison effects. Success chance is reduced by 1% for each level of difference between the poison and the antitoxin. Recipe: 1 unit of water, 1 unit of oak sap, 40 mana. 20 minute cooldown. Surging steroids- Provides a buff to either strength or dexterity. Afterwards the target will become exhausted for a time, receiving a penalty to the selected ability. Effect: When crafting, choose strength or dexterity. Target receives 30+1 per level to selected ability for 5 minutes. Once duration expires target receives penalty equal to half of bonus for 10 minutes. Recipe: 2 units of water, 1 unit of iron dust, 3 units of blood, 60 mana. Cooldown 30 minutes.
Poison abilities: Choking cloud- Create a dose of poison that produces a cloud of choking gas when released. Effect: create a 5 foot + 0.5 per level radius cloud. Creatures within cloud have sight, breathing, speech and verbal spells reduced by 40%. Recipe: 2 units of water, 1 unit of oil, 3 units of sawdust, 50 mana. 2 hour cooldown.
Jicker looked through his new abilities happily. As a crafting based class he didn¡¯t get as many abilities as combat ones, or get them as often, since he could work out a lot of things himself if he worked on it. But the ones he got would give him a lot more variety to work with, and to use as bases for new recipes. He was saddened to see that there wasn¡¯t any new life shaping ability, but with the scope of what adaptation was capable of, he couldn¡¯t say he was surprised. He did notice, however, that the ingredients he needed were becoming harder to come by. These ones were still easy to come by, the crafting halls having barrels of iron fragments and various plants, but at this rate it wouldn¡¯t be long before they started getting expensive. Since he¡¯d already planned to go, he spent the morning putting together a few of each of his new potions, as well as some of the others. Bothe the antitoxin and steroids converted into pills easily enough, but due to the nature of the choking cloud it had to remain as a vial of liquid. Deciding he was as ready as he was going to be, he grabbed a roll to eat for lunch and headed towards the cloud. Stopping in at a blacksmith on the way, he asked whether they had picks available, and what other mining equipment they recommended. The dwarf behind the counter pulled out a selection of picks from a crate behind him. ¡°We have a wide range of picks,¡± They said cheerfully. ¡°Suitable for both mining and combat. Can I ask for your proficiency in mining, as well as you budget?¡± ¡°None, and cheap.¡± Jicker said flatly. Anytime a merchant started asking how much you were willing to spend, they made sure to take you for every cent of it and more. The dwarf¡¯s expression became colder as they grunted. ¡°Just another trying to strike it rich in the cloud, should have known.¡± He picked up most of the tools on the table, leaving only three, which looked somewhat worse for wear. ¡°Here, these three are the only ones I have in stock that you¡¯d be capable of using unless you plan on learning the art of mining.¡± He began gesturing to each of the picks in turn, describing them lazily. ¡°This one¡¯s an old copper pick, second hand. Its old owner left it in a puddle for so long its half rusted as you can see, but it¡¯s the cheapest one and will give you some use. Next we have this steel one and old apprentice of mine made. The materials are good quality but the workmanship is poor so it won¡¯t work well, but it¡¯ll last as long as you don¡¯t throw it away. Next I¡¯ve got an iron pick someone tried to enchant. It didn¡¯t take, so all that¡¯s left is a pick with a bunch of useless engraving on it, but it¡¯s still well made, and is the most expensive of the three.¡±Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Jicker picked up the steel pick, its head flared out like a hoe on one side, while the other came to a rounded point, too blunt to work on harder rock, but he thought it would manage for what he needed.
Apprentices Steel Pickaxe Item type: Tool Grade: Common 1-14 damage Despite the quality of the materials, the craftsmanship has resulted in a loss of control.
¡°I¡¯ll take this one. How much?¡± ¡°Hundred and forty gold, but for another ten and a few minutes I¡¯ll clean it up for you.¡± ¡°Done and done.¡± He said, handing the pick back to the dwarf as he opened up his pack. As he pulled out the golds, a thought struck him. ¡°Do you do any custom work here?¡± He asked the dwarf who had begun sanding back the picks edges. ¡°Depends on how I feel, and what you want. What do you need?¡± Pulling out his blowgun, he laid it down on the counter and let the dwarf take a look. Wrinkling his nose, the blacksmith picked it up gingerly. ¡°Whoever sold you this piece of trash cheated you badly.¡± They said after inspecting it, dropping it down and quickly wiping their hands. ¡°I made it myself under fairly harsh conditions. I¡¯m looking to have a proper one made.¡± The dwarf shook they¡¯re head. ¡°You got lucky on this one, the pipe being as straight as it is. I could hammer out something that would be an improvement, but if you want something decent you¡¯d be better off seeing a carpenter. Try Laura¡¯s down the road and tell her Jorgurson sent you. She should be able to sort you out.¡± After his pick was finished being repaired, Jicker repacked everything and headed out, looking for the carpenters. But after walking up and down and down the road a few times he was unable to find a carpenter anywhere along it. Right before he was going to head back and ask for better directions he spotted a small shopfront selling instruments, under the name ¡®Laura¡¯s crafts¡¯. Heading inside, he saw a wide variety of instruments lining the walls, as well as a number of them hanging from the high ceiling. While looking through the various items, he called out. ¡°Hello? Is anyone in?¡± ¡°Just a moment, feel free to browse.¡± A voice said from the back of the store. Continuing to do so, Jicker began to wander. The first thing he noticed was the sheer range of items. Normally a store would specialise in a single type of instrument, like strings or drums, but here there were not only selections of every kind he could think of, but also a number of copies at different scales, allowing multiple sized species to come and shop. He¡¯d just picked up a violin that seemed to be suited for his size when his instincts made him spin around. Behind him stood an enormous figure, looming over him at almost sixteen feet tall, grey skin covering thick muscle. The giant, or giantess to be precise, looked around before their eyes focused on him, narrowing. ¡°Oh! I didn¡¯t see you there!¡± They said in a surprisingly light and cheerful voice. ¡°Welcome to my store! Have you seen anything you like?¡± ¡°I¡­I, um...¡± He began to trying to get his heartbeat to slow down. She noticed his reaction and groaned. ¡°I did it again didn¡¯t I? I learned that rushing up to people in this body scares the life out of them, but I always forget that sneaking around quietly can be just as bad.¡± She pointed a finger at him. ¡°It¡¯s your fault too though. Why were you hiding and sneaking around? If you were trying to steal from me I swear I¡¯ll-¡± ¡°I wasn¡¯t sneaking.¡± He said quickly, not wanting to get into a fight with someone who could kill him by accident just by stepping on him. ¡°I¡¯m just¡­hard to spot.¡± ¡°Well then,¡± she said, calming back down. ¡°I guess that makes sense. Not an issue I ever have myself, but that¡¯s not the issue here. Now how can I help you today?¡± ¡°I was looking to have some work done, and the blacksmith Jorgurson recommended that you¡¯d be better suited for it than he would.¡± Her mood visibly brightened. ¡°Jorgy sent you? That makes this easier then, let¡¯s go over to my work table and see what you need.¡± Needing to almost jog to keep up with her long strides, Laura led him over into a back section of the store past numerous instruments both completed and under construction. ¡°I¡¯m surprised to see such a variety here. Isn¡¯t it harder to practice making all of these?¡± Jicker asked curiously. ¡°Oh, you know how it is. You get bored working on one thing and so you try out something as a hobby and before you know it you¡¯ve picked a little bit of everything.¡± Reaching her huge desk she went over to a cabinet and rummaged around inside before pulling out a tall collapsible chair designed for someone his size. Climbing up its steps and taking a seat, Jicker found that not only was it surprisingly comfortable, but put him at eye level with her. ¡°Thank you.¡± He said honestly. ¡°Most people wouldn¡¯t have bothered with something like this.¡± She waved him off. ¡°I deal with people of all shapes and sizes, so I like to be prepared. It might be true that some people aren¡¯t suited to be a fighter, but I¡¯ve never heard someone say you¡¯re too short to play music. Now, what are we looking at today?¡± Pulling out his blowpipe, Laura had same reaction the dwarf had, wrinkling up her nose. ¡°I see. Well it¡¯s not really what I do normally, but like Jorgy said, I can definitely make you an improvement. So what exactly are you looking for, requirement wise?¡± ¡°I need something that be used to block a decent sword swing, but still be able to shoot one of these accurately at about fifty feet.¡± He said, pulling out one of his poison pellets and offering it to the giantess who carefully picked it up with a pair of tweezers. ¡°Ok, that¡¯s doable. I¡¯d say we¡¯re looking at a hard wood base, with a thin copper, or maybe steel cover to minimise damage, some wax, or a resin to seal the ends and inside, with some lead weights to help-¡± ¡°I can see,¡± he said, cutting her off. ¡°That Jorgurson was right. I¡¯ve done a bit of tinkering and crafting myself, so I know that a design process like this tends to shift around as you go, so I¡¯ll tell you what. Take what measurements you need now, and I¡¯ll leave a deposit of, let¡¯s say 400 gold with you now. I¡¯ll come back in what, two weeks? To see what you¡¯ve made, and we¡¯ll decide what the final price is then. Does that sound acceptable to you?¡± Laura looked at the pipe on her desk thoughtfully. ¡°Hmmm, not what I¡¯d normally do, but you¡¯re right that this job will probably end up as something different than what I¡¯ve thought of so far. Okay, you¡¯ve got yourself a deal!¡±
You have unlocked the Charisma Statistic. Do wish to accept? Each point of Charisma influences people¡¯s reactions towards your words and actions. Also effects creature¡¯s hostility and market prices. Warning: Once a statistic is selected it cannot be removed. You have 3 Stat slots remaining.
Jicker thought about it for a moment, and then rejected the stat. While it would be handy to have, and could make him a lot more money, he spent so much time avoiding direct interactions with people that it wouldn¡¯t be worth using one of his limited slots for it. It only took a few minutes for her to get everything she needed from both him and his weapon, and then he left her to her notes and began making his way to the cloud in earnest. Climbing up the winding stairs to the mine site was no less time consuming the second time around, but at least he was expecting it this time. One he finally reached the top he waited in line and has his level rechecked, proving that he was a high enough level to enter. ¡°Back already?¡± The bouncer said when he approached. ¡°The rules haven¡¯t changed since the other day.¡± ¡°They might not have, but I did. I qualify to enter now.¡± Jicker said somewhat proudly. The ogre raised an eyebrow. ¡°That¡¯s pretty impressive; though I''m sure you had some help. Still, you are now free to enter, so as long as you follow the rest of the rules for working here, I officially welcome you to the Cloud of Stone.¡± Stepping forward, Jicker felt a subtle shift in the air and received a message from the game.
You have entered the dungeon: Cloud of Stone. Type: open mine Status: uncleared Danger: N/A Special: Due to the type of dungeon, difficulty and rewards may vary greatly depending on what is uncovered. Note: All items collected within a dungeon will be dropped if the owner dies inside.
Mat smiled. It had been a while since he¡¯d been in a proper dungeon, even before he started from scratch. Dungeons varied a lot, even from the areas they were found in, and creatures and items found inside varied even more. Of everything that had changed since the upheaval, the chance of finding a new dungeon was what people generally considered the most exciting. This one should be fairly safe though, Jicker thought, since until someone uncovered something dangerous there wouldn¡¯t be much in the way of-
You are receiving an outside call from: Sarah Tolson
Jicker groaned, getting a glance from the bouncer. ¡°Is there anywhere around here where people log out?¡± He asked the bouncer. ¡°We¡¯re mostly all players up here so it¡¯s not a huge deal, but try to use one of those stalls over there if you can.¡± Thanking the man before going and entering one of the small wooden stalls, he shut the door before logging out. ~~~~~~ ¡°I thought everything was fine on my end.¡± Matt said when he picked up the phone. ¡°I thought so too. But since then August has been calling dozens of people and putting through piles of paperwork. I don¡¯t know what¡¯s going on exactly, but I¡¯ve been ordered to put you through immediately. Good luck with whatever this is.¡± Sarah said to him before putting him on hold. Seconds later, August¡¯s voice cut through the hold music. ¡°Ah, Mr. Harper, please say something.¡± ¡°Err, what?¡± he said confused. ¡°One moment.¡± He could hear the CEO talking to someone in the background. ¡°And again please.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t understand what¡¯s-¡± ¡°Stop there.¡± Again a conversation took place on the other end of the line. ¡°Right, that seems to be working. It seems, Mr. Harper that you were entirely without blame for the earlier incident, at least as far as your intent goes. I¡¯ve had some of my more trustworthy tech people look into my phone lines and it seems that a certain person managed to record a number of my calls, including several involving you. While the problem has now been dealt with, I¡¯m not in the habit of letting actions like this stand without retribution. The person in question is a fellow business man by the name of Gregory Bech, a competitor of my company in a few fields. It seems as though he has extended this into Genesis, attempting to literally steal the market on your new crop out from under me. Now if he had simply bought it from you, or tried to patent the idea somehow, well business is business. I¡¯d be upset, but things would largely end there. But sabotage and treachery will be met in kind. I have been monitoring his actions, and found he has purchased several large tracts of farmland around the city of Ardenvale, seemingly to begin production of the Incendiberries as soon as possible. He has even gone as far as starting to sell them in advance, on the advice of a few people I may have made suggestions to. I have taken out a number of contracts and policies on both his lands and these sales that, while costing me a great deal now, will ensure I take him for all he¡¯s worth in the event he is unable to follow through on his deals. As my hand in this, your job is to ensure that these contracts remain unfilled, or become impossible entirely. I don¡¯t care what you do to achieve this, though I¡¯d prefer it if it remains isolated to his lands. And before you start thinking about letting his deals go through and costing me a great deal of money, I assure you, such an act would be far more costly for you. Do you understand what I''m telling you to do?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Said Matt simply. ¡°Really?¡± August said, sounding mildly surprised. ¡°That¡¯s it? I tell you to help me ruin someone, and all you say is yes?¡± ¡°No one likes being betrayed or robbed. You see a way of getting even and you¡¯re taking it. I can understand that, and I can promise you this. The moment I find a way to repay you for my current situation, I will do it without hesitation.¡± Matt said, hatred slipping into his voice. For a moment the call went silent and he wondered if he¡¯d gone too far, then... ¡°Ha ha ha! Finally he shows some spine!¡± He laughed. ¡°I¡¯d been wondering if you were actually capable of doing what I need to keep Genesis alive and growing. I¡¯d be disappointed with you if you weren¡¯t actively trying to get out of your predicament. Able to blow up most of a continent but can¡¯t get around a business man? I¡¯d think less of you to say the least. So do what you can, get together with your little friends, both in game and out, and put everything you have into besting me, I won¡¯t try and stop you. But know this: when you come for me, you will find me ready and waiting, and if you fail, I will ensure you wished not even your parents had been born. The contracts on the berries are due in two weeks. Good day, Mr. Harper.¡± And with that, the line went dead. Matt stared for a minute at the phone in his hand, before glancing to his headset lying on the couch next to him, then a copy of his contract sitting on the table with a note pad. Making his decision, he ignored both, went to the fridge and grabbed a beer before sitting down on the couch, staring blankly at the ceiling. ¡°Well....Shit.¡± He said to himself. Chapter 15 A quick run, a pizza and three drinks later, Matt was nursing his forth beer for the evening when he decided to contact Sarah and see if she could give him any more information about his targets. ¡°Hey Matt, what¡¯s up?¡± She asked when she picked up. ¡°Quick question before I say anything else, how deeply...involved are you with Augusts operations?¡± ¡°You mean his semi criminal activities, or his actual ones?¡± She sighed. ¡°I''m in about as far as you are. Not as trapped but I could definitely go to court for a lot of this stuff. Why?¡± He gave her a quick rundown of what he had to do. ¡°So I was hoping that you could at least tell me the actual locations of the areas I''m supposed to deal with.¡± He said. ¡°Gregory Bech? I should be able to do that, in fact... done.¡± ¡°Really? You found it that quickly? I thought it was harder than that to get peoples information.¡± Matt said surprised. ¡°It is normally, but I just went and had a look at the recently accessed files in our system. I figured that someone had probably tracked this down for the boss already, and I was right. So do you want to write this stuff down?¡± ¡°Couldn¡¯t you just send it to me in game? I doubt I can figure it out just by the description.¡± ¡°Fine, we can do it the lazy way I guess, so summon my sprite when you¡¯re ready. Anyway, it looks like there are three areas you¡¯re going to need to take care of. The first is a smaller area north of the city, fairly isolated as well, so you should have a pretty free hand there. The other two are a lot bigger and out to the east, but still a fair way apart.¡± Matt groaned. ¡°Nothing¡¯s ever easy is it? Anything else you can tell me, like size or significant features?¡± ¡°There¡¯s not a lot listed here, but apparently the northern ones listed as small, so around a hundred acres or so, and is fed from a private well. The other two are both counted as medium, which could be anything from two hundred to a thousand acres. They¡¯re also both on one of the main rivers, if that helps.¡± She said, typing away in the background. ¡°Well it¡¯s more than I had before, so yeah, it helps. Thanks Sarah.¡± ¡°Be careful out there. Bech doesn¡¯t have the same pull that August does, but people have still been ruined after crossing him.¡± ¡°Better than disappearing altogether. Thanks for the warning.¡± Putting down the phone and finishing his drink, Matt put on his headset and rejoined the game. ~~~~~~ Grumbling, Jicker stepped out of the stall and made his way to the exit. ¡°Hey little green dude, everything ok?¡± The ogre called out to him. ¡°Yeah, something¡¯s come up though that I need to deal with.¡± He replied as he walked. ¡°Definitely been there. See you next time you want to take a shot at the cloud.¡± Dropping down the slide, Jicker was actually able to enjoy the ride down this time since he knew what was going on, and as he accelerated downwards he looked out the city around him. While there were still large areas of damage from the upheaval around, the people were recovering. Craters had been either filled in or had structures built inside, sections of burned out housing had been cleared and replaced, and the walls that had been shattered were slowly being rebuilt. It was slow, but it made him happy to see people coming together after dealing with an event like that, even if he was the one that caused it. Reaching the bottom, he headed out towards the forest, wanting to let the Rising Moon know that he¡¯d been delayed again. He¡¯d barely made it out of the city gates when Oda spoke up from behind him. ¡°Where are you headed this time?¡± He said nonchalantly. Jicker spun around, clutching his chest. ¡°Can you stop doing that?!¡± He shouted. ¡°I can, yes.¡± ¡°...Will you?¡± he asked, having a feeling he already knew the answer. ¡°Not until it stops being funny, so not for a long time.¡± Jicker rubbed his eyes. ¡°How have the rest of your guild not stabbed you by now?¡± ¡°Who says they haven¡¯t? Anyway, where are we going?¡± Oda asked again. ¡°To see you lot actually. Something¡¯s come up that I need to deal with, so I need to sort that out first before I go looking for the node.¡± ¡°Maser stuff?¡± ¡°What?¡± Jicker asked confused. ¡°You¡¯re a level twenty midgetturning away work from a large guild. I can tell you¡¯re not in any other guild and I''ve been tracking you so I know no one else has come up to you for something. So I take it that it¡¯s something to do with your previous and far more important character.¡± ¡°That¡¯s...not too far off really.¡± He admitted. ¡°But I¡¯d appreciate it if you didn¡¯t ask too many questions about that stuff.¡± ¡°Fair enough. It shouldn''t matter much if you can¡¯t deal with the node at the moment, since we already had plans without it, but is whatever you¡¯re doing going to affect us?¡± ¡°I have no idea if I''m honest. I haven¡¯t figured out how I''m actually going to sort it out yet.¡± Oda sighed. ¡°In that case I''d better take you to Mary, so we can factor in...Whatever it is you do. I¡¯ll need to blind and carry you in again, but we¡¯ll take one of the closer entrances.¡± ¡°Fine, but I need to take care of something first. Give me a few minutes of privacy.¡± ¡°Sure¡± ¡°Actual privacy Oda.¡± The assassin rolled his eyes. ¡°I said it was fine. Meet me by that tree over there when you¡¯re done with your thing.¡± ~~~~~~ After getting the information from Sarah, he rejoined Oda, who wasted no time in taking him back to their guild. Instead of the hood and cart that he¡¯d experienced last time, Oda simply shoved him into a large hessian bag, threw him over his shoulder and ran. The entrance must have been a lot closer than he¡¯d thought, since it only took a few minutes before he was put down and once again sitting in the council/lounge room. Several people were currently sitting around talking when they noticed that he and Oda had arrived. ¡°Hey you two, what¡¯s up?¡± Mary asked from her seat. ¡°How¡¯s the Node job coming along?¡± ¡°That¡¯s why I¡¯m here. You see...¡± Jicker gave them a brief rundown of what he had to do while trying to avoid any names or specifics. ¡°I see. Care to explain why you need to do this?¡± Mary asked looking deep in thought. ¡°I would actually. It¡¯s kind of private.¡± Jicker answered wondering if they¡¯d leave it at that. Mary raised an eyebrow and turned to Oda, who shrugged. ¡°He seems trustworthy enough to me.¡± ¡°Good enough I suppose. Jicker, to be clear, do you still plan on joining us when you can?¡± She asked. ¡°Yes? I mean, I doubt I¡¯m ever going to get a better offer and you seem like good people to play with.¡± She nodded to herself. ¡°In that case, we might be able to help you out a little. We already have groups of people who spend their time disrupting things. I think we can spare a few dozen to play highwaymen in those areas, which should give you time to come up with something more permanent. What are you planning for that anyway?¡± ¡°You¡¯ll help me? I was just coming to say I can¡¯t look into the node for now.¡± Jicker said, surprised. ¡°Like I¡¯ve said before, you¡¯re basically a member already, except for actually being one. And while we wait for a few details on our assault on the city to be resolved we¡¯ve got a fair number of people just sitting around. So yeah, we can help you out a bit with this. Back to what I said though, what¡¯s your plan?¡± Jicker held up three fingers and pointed to the first one. ¡°I have three areas to deal with, and if they all go the same way people would notice and might complain. The first one is simple enough; I just need to come up with a strong enough poison that I can drop in the well to ruin the area. Won¡¯t work for the other two though, since they¡¯re fed from a river, and I don''t think I can manage to foul up the whole thing, even if I wanted to.¡± He moved to his second finger. ¡°The next one shares a border with a wooded area. I figure I should be able to produce something in there that can shut down the farmland around it. Oda told you how that works?¡± ¡°Pretty much.¡± One of the hooded members chuckled. ¡°It was hilarious. He came in trying to be all sneaky, not realising people might notice that in a place where everyone wears black robes, someone coming in looking like they were attacked with paint cans kind of stands out.¡± ¡°So what are you planning to make?¡± Another asked curiously. ¡°Honestly? I figure I¡¯ll just wing it, since it¡¯s worked out so far.¡± Jicker moved to the last point. ¡°That just leaves me with this one. It¡¯s surrounded by other areas of farmland, so I can¡¯t really send anything in quickly, so if anyone has any ideas...¡± ¡°I¡¯ll do it.¡± Gabe called out from the back of the room. Mary spun around to look at him. ¡°Gabe, you¡¯re time is way too valuable to the guild to lend out like that. You know this.¡± She stressed. ¡°Right, so I¡¯ll do it for myself, guild not included. Which means he¡¯ll have to pay me for my work.¡± He said with a gleam in his eye. ¡°I...are you even capable of doing it?¡± Jicker asked. Gabe waved him off. ¡°I¡¯m pretty much the greatest master of ice magic in Genesis. I¡¯m pretty sure I can manage to shut down a single farm.¡± ¡°How¡¯d you manage that?¡± Jicker asked, honestly surprised. People with that level of skill tended to be more public figures, often ending up with sponsorship deals. Gabe struck a pose, and several other people groaned. ¡°Listen well young gremlin,¡± He began in a dramatic voice. ¡°And I shall tell you the tale of my rise to greatness. When I entered this world that we inhabit, I was offered the class of warlock, and through either will or fate I chose to specialise in ice. Now the specialty of warlocks, and the reason they are despised by so many others, is that when we reach level one hundred, we are given the chance to make a pact. These pacts are made with greater beings form beyond the stars, beyond the reality that we consider real, and what they want in exchange for this power, is our life. Anything can be offered in exchange however, but the further it is from our life, the less we are given. If we were to sacrifice a rabbit to these dark forces we would receive almost nothing, while the lives of a hundred people would give far more.Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. But the greatest trade will always be our own lives, and that is when inspiration struck me. While I couldn¡¯t sacrifice myself, since being powerful and dead is the same as being weak and dead, there was nothing to stop me trading most of myself. So with determination, I made the deal: my arms and legs, most of my organs, barring one lung and my heart, my left eye and finally my entire skeleton. I was left with almost nothing, little more than a broken and disfigured corpse, but I had gained the power I sought. But in that state I couldn¡¯t survive, leading to my death, only to revive a day later and die again. Again and again I perished, until I was only level ten, having lost all this world could take from me, until finally, my sister found the way forward. While I was broken and my body failed me, it was still present, and for a powerful and skilled necromancer, dead bodies are hardly an issue. It took us weeks to find a way to animate the various pieces of my body, and even longer to bind them to myself, but eventually I was reborn. Armed with power claimed from beyond and a body that, if not living then at least functional, I regained my lost levels and became a figure of power lurking in the darkness, my undead state unaccepted by society.¡± Ending his speech Gabe took a bow, receiving a smattering of applause from the audience. Mary sighed happily. ¡°I miss those days. Back when I had control over his body we used to play ¡°stop hitting yourself¡± for hours.¡± ¡°Yeah, almost as fun as when I locked your feet in a block of ice and slid you down the hallway all afternoon.¡± ¡°Anyway,¡± Jicker interrupted. ¡°So you can shut down that farmland?¡± ¡°I can, if you agree to pay.¡± ¡°Right, how much are you asking?¡± Gabe held his hands out. ¡°Blunicorn.¡± ¡°I... I don¡¯t...what?¡± Jicker asked confused. ¡°You can make creatures, like the wolves in the forest right? So in exchange for my help, I want you to make me a blunicorn.¡± ¡°And that would be...¡± ¡°A blue unicorn. You can do that right?¡± ¡°I could I suppose, but really? A unicorn?¡± ¡°Hey, don''t go dissing unicorns man; they¡¯re like, the most metal horses. Assuming they¡¯re not pink and glittery, they¡¯re just cool horses with horns.¡± Jicker sighed. ¡°And...You know what? Fine. One unicorn-¡± ¡°Blunicorn¡± Gabe corrected. ¡°Blunicorn in exchange for your help. I¡¯ll need something to use as a base, do you have a horse I could use?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll take you down to the stables later.¡± Mary shook her head at her brother. ¡°Well, since that¡¯s settled I guess, was there anything else?¡± ¡°No, that pretty much covers it.¡± ¡°Right then. Gabe can take you around to our crafting station once he¡¯s shown you his horsie so you can put a poison together for the well.¡± ¡°Come on come on come on!¡± Gabe said excitedly, dragging Jicker along like a five year old on Christmas morning. Jicker didn¡¯t know whether he should be surprised or not that no one reacted to them sprinting through the hallways, but apparently everyone learned to put up with Gabe pretty quickly. Before long they arrived in the stables, a wooden building with a dirt floor that smelled strongly of horses. Natural lighting had been set up to keep the animals happy even though they were underground and several people were taking animals in and out. Walking in, Gabe pushed past everyone else and took him over to a stall in the corner. Inside was a large black horse feeding from a bag, which stopped to stare at them as they approached. ¡°This is Princess.¡± He said lovingly, running his hand through its mane. ¡°I¡¯ve had her for the last couple of years now, and she¡¯s the best horse ever.¡± ¡°You¡¯re an undead Ice mage in a secret underground guild, and you named your horse Princess?¡± ¡°Only partially undead, and what your point?¡± ¡°Nothing I guess. So you want me to try and change, er, Princess here?¡± Jicker asked as he looked up at the animal. ¡°Yup. Unless...it doesn¡¯t hurt them does it?¡± He asked hesitantly. Jicker shook his head. ¡°The only reactions I''ve seen animals have was being interested in their new forms. But there are a few things I should mention first. I don''t have control over creatures I change, and they tend to become a bit smarter than they were before, so if Princess here hasn¡¯t been treated well...¡± Gabe looked so horrified at the idea that Jicker waved his hands and moved on. ¡°Right, that parts not an issue here. The other thing is that this isn¡¯t guaranteed to work. I''ve been pretty lucky lately, but more than likely this will just be temporary, so if it is we can look at the result and you can suggest any changes you want, and then I¡¯ll try again once the ability wears off. Got it?¡± ¡°Got it. So... when can you start?¡± Gabe asked hopefully. Jicker opened the gate and went into the stall. ¡°Well, if you grab me a seat, and make sure your horse doesn¡¯t try to kick me while I work, I can start now if you¡¯d like.¡± ~~~~~~ ¡°She¡¯s beautiful.¡± Gabe said, his voice full of awe. It hadn¡¯t taken too long to make the necessary changes, since it was all just visual. Deciding to put in a bit of effort since he¡¯d be working with these people, Jicker went a bit deeper. Increasing the animal¡¯s strength, endurance and speed, he also greatly ramped up its ability to handle the cold, considering its owner. The result was a horse standing six foot at the shoulder, covered in a shaggy, steel blue coat with thick white socks. Since what Gabe had wanted from his animal wasn¡¯t a normal unicorn, Jicker changed up his design for the horn. Instead of a dainty spiral, there was a foot and half long white spike that curved back on itself, sharpened to a knife like edge along its front. ¡°Well like I said, this one¡¯s just a temporary and I¡¯ll try again in a few hours, but is there anything you want to change?¡± Jicker asked as he got up from the stool he¡¯d been sitting on. ¡°Could you make her horn black? Other than that she¡¯s perfect...¡± He trailed off, stroking the horse that had returned to its feed bag. He nodded. ¡°Can do. In that case, can you take me to the crafting station Mary mentioned? I should probably get to work on that.¡± The station the Rising Moon had built for themselves wasn¡¯t as extensive as the one in Ardenvale, but it had access to a number of resources that the public one didn¡¯t. For instances, he couldn¡¯t remember seeing a freezer full of human corpses next to the forge, or a pool of blood by the herb racks. While he had free access to the facilities, the woman managing them told him that he would still be expected to pay for what he used unless it was directly for the guild. After handing over fifty gold pieces, he got to work, racking his brain for a way to kill off farm land. Several hours, a hundred gold and a massive headache later, he was still no closer to figuring out a way of doing it. He¡¯d tried to enhance his own poison by mixing in some of poison pellets, but the result was just a nasty slush that was no more deadly than it had been before. Mixing in strengthening potions had the same effect, and trying to come up with a poison on his own had so far resulted in nothing but a waste of ingredients. He¡¯d just come back from another attempt at making Gabe¡¯s blunicorn and was currently banging his head on the table when the manager spoke to him. ¡°Are you...ok? You look like you¡¯re having some trouble.¡± They said cautiously. ¡°Oh no, everything¡¯s great. This what I always do when things work out perfectly.¡± He said bitterly. ¡°Jeez, no need to be a jerk about it.¡± She huffed, starting to walk away again. Jicker sighed. ¡°Sorry, you¡¯re right. I just can¡¯t figure out why none of this is working! Surely something here can give me the result I''m looking for, but I''ve tried dozens of poisons and chemicals and while a few are useful, nothing seems to do what I want.¡± ¡°Well, don''t give up; I''m sure you¡¯ll get it eventually. I''m going to grab some food from the mess hall, want anything?¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t mind a sandwich if you¡¯re going anyway.¡± ¡°Sure. Salt and pepper?¡± They asked. ¡°Yeah that sounds go- Is it that simple? Jicker said suddenly. Hurrying over to the shelves holding most of the ingredients, he grabbed a few handfuls of salt and went back to his work, throwing them into a beaker of boiling water. Once it was dissolved, he dropped a single poison pellet into the mix, trusting his instincts. He waited for a moment, stirring as the pellet dissolved, then...
Mother of invention! By studying reactions between substances and other toxins you have created a new poison Recipe: 5 units of salt, 2 units of water, 1 poison pellet Item type: poison (2) Grade: Uncommon, created by Unknown Effect: cause severe dehydration if drunk. If spread over terrain, will destroy most plant life and leave area unable to grow for five months unless cured. 1 dose can cover two hundred square feet Do you wish to name this item?
¡°Saltycide.¡± Jicker said as he swirled the cloudy solution around.
Name accepted. Creator will remain unknown.
¡°I take it you¡¯ve had some luck?¡± ¡°It¡¯s exactly what I needed, thanks for the help.¡± He said. ¡°I didn¡¯t actually do anything.¡± She said. ¡°Well thanks anyway. Also could I still get that sandwich? I¡¯m going to need to make a lot of this stuff.¡± ~~~~~~ It took almost three days until he thought he had enough of the poison to kill off the farm, costing him the better part of a hundred gold and leaving him with two large barrels of the stuff. It had been a slow and monotonous process since he had to wait to produce more pellets, but he eventually decided that anymore would be overkill. He was going to tell Mary that he was going to be gone for a few days to deliver it, but when he turned around, both barrels were gone. In their place was a short note. ¡°Jicker, Since I¡¯ve got nothing else on and I kind of doubt you¡¯ve got the skill¡¯s to carry to barrels bigger than you are through fifty miles of hostile terrain, and then dump it in a well without being detected, I figure I¡¯ll take this for you. Oda P.S. If you¡¯re wondering how I both wrote this note and took two barrels without you noticing anything: #Ninja¡± As Jicker crumpled the note and threw it away, he smiled to himself. He wondered how much of what Oda did was to help and how much was purely to mess with people. Either way, having that area dealt with did give him plenty of time to continue trying to create the mount for Gabe, and late on the second day he had success.
Ding! Adaptation has become permanent. Unique creature created. Type: Modified Northern Warhorse. Level: 87 Note: This creature is already owned and named by another player. This player will now receive a chance to choose a name.
Jicker waited for a minute, unaware that Gabe had to select the name himself. He supposed that made sense so that he couldn¡¯t go around renaming other people¡¯s property, at least without their notice.
Name accepted, Princess the Blunicorn has been created. It will receive additional stat points as a unique monster. This creature is now able to respawn, and will drop items proportional to its level. Creator will remain unknown. Now applying changes to creature. Evolution has increased by 1! Total: 5
Before Jicker could even stand up, Gabe burst into the stable, literally crashing through the wall, much to the distress of the other animals. ¡°She¡¯s done?!¡± He shouted. ¡°Yes, you are now the proud owner of your very own blunicorn. She also came out as a unique creature, so if she dies she¡¯ll drop items and respawn.¡± Jicker told him as he went to hug his animal. ¡°Who¡¯s a pretty princess? Who¡¯s a pretty princess? You are!¡± He said, cooing over it like a baby. ¡°You ok there Gabe?¡± he asked awkwardly. Gabe turned to him. ¡°My apartment complex doesn¡¯t allow pets, so I¡¯m making do here. Seriously, thanks for this." ¡°Don''t mention it, besides you¡¯re helping me out as well. Speaking of which...¡± ¡°The area in question is currently having a bout of extreme unseasonable frost. Nothing¡¯s going to be growing there without a team of people with flamethrowers working around the clock.¡± ¡°That¡¯s two of them I can cross off then.¡± Jicker said with relief. ¡°Only one more to go then. Any ideas how you¡¯re going to pull it off?¡± Before Jicker could answer, one of the other people in the stable came over to look at Princess. ¡°Hey, you said she¡¯ll drop items if she dies? What does she drop?¡± Gabe turned slowly to face the speaker, frost beginning to form on his robe. He spoke in a low voice. ¡°You even think of hurting princess, and I swear I will-¡± Whatever threat he had been about to make quickly became irrelevant as Princess rushed past them both through the still open gate of her stall and charged down the speaker. Before they could move out of the way they were speared on her horn and impaled before being flicked off and thrown across the room. The person only managed to gurgle a few times before they succumbed to their wounds, their body enveloped in a brief flash of light. ¡°Like I said before,¡± Jicker said after a few moments of silence. ¡°Any animal I change tends to be a bit smarter than before, so I have a feeling she understood that guy perfectly well.¡± Gabe went over to his now blood spattered mount. ¡°Aw, who¡¯s a pretty Princess? Be nice to people in here ok? If you do I¡¯ll make sure you get plenty of oats, but if they try and hurt you feel free to trample them.¡± Princess whined quietly before going back to her stall, giving the dead body the dirtiest look Jicker had ever seen on a horse. Yep, he thought, definitely smarter. ¡°Don''t worry about that,¡± Gabe said, seeing Jicker looking at the body. ¡°These things happen around here, and he was a player anyway, so no real harm done. And even if he wasn¡¯t, there are more necromancers around here than pretty much anywhere else, so death isn¡¯t that big a deal. We¡¯ll get this cleaned up and that¡¯ll be that.¡± ¡°And the big hole in the wall?¡± Jickerasked, as a beam cracked and fell down. They both turned to look at it. ¡°...Don¡¯t tell Mary.¡± Chapter 16 After a short clean up and much longer lecture about not destroying guild property, Jicker decided it was time to make his way to the third farm and get the job done. He¡¯d hoped by now that he could leave under his own power, but was once again bagged and carried out, leaving him just outside the cities gates. Checking the time, he saw that it was still only morning, giving him plenty of time to go over and have a look at his target. Stopping first at the college to sit in on a lecture for the week, Jicker had a thought and went to visit Molta. One of the other workers in the greenhouse tried to turn him away, saying that the professor was busy and not speaking to anyone, but elves apparently had pretty good hearing since Molta called out for him to be let in. The Old elf was currently sitting in her lab, studying notes that had been arranged around several small potted plants. ¡°Good morning. Are those...?¡± He asked leaving the question hanging. ¡°Yes, these are the plant you found. Well, sprouts of it anyway.¡± ¡°So you¡¯ve managed to grow them already?¡± ¡°I ¡®m good at what I do, even if no one has ever heard of the plant in question. But honestly these are surprisingly hardy little seeds. It takes a fair amount of force or heat to actually break open then seeds casing to let them sprout, so they¡¯re fairly hard to kill until they¡¯re already planted. Though it seems only a third of them were actually fertile, while the other seeds lacked certain necessary chemicals. Seems to be a way of ensuring it doesn¡¯t spread out too quickly and run out of nutrients.¡± Molta said as she made a few final notes to one of the pages. ¡°Is that normal in plants?¡± Jicker asked surprised. While he had made the plant, he hadn¡¯t remembered to reinforce the seeds against physical impact, and hadn¡¯t even thought about how they would spread. Apparently the game¡¯s system would fill in any blanks if it thought it necessary. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t say normal, but also not unheard of. It¡¯s normally a trait found in plant that grows in harsh conditions, which makes sense if it came from a sealed underground cave. Now, enough about that Jicker, what brings you here this morning?¡± ¡°Actually that is what brings me here. I was wondering what you¡¯d found out about it so far. To see if it has any special features or weaknesses to watch out for, that sort of thing.¡± She gave him a look. ¡°An odd question but I suppose I can humour you. It should be fairly obvious that the most interesting thing about this specimen is its highly flammable nature. Other than that I''m still running tests on its other uses though it looks to be a decent coagulant.¡± ¡°A what?¡± She sighed. ¡°It helps to stop bleeding. As to weaknesses... plants really don''t have them, unlike the animals and monsters running about the place. Well, generally fire is effective, though that wouldn¡¯t help here. There are also a number of herbicides that can eliminate most plant life, and of course a number of animals tend to feed on them. I hope you¡¯re not planning on damaging my specimens here.¡± She added sharply. ¡°Just making sure I know what to do if I come across them again.¡± ¡°Well if you do, give them to me. I could always use more samples.¡± She said, waving him away and making it clear their talk was done. Leaving the greenhouse, Jicker headed straight for the farm, not wanting to waste anymore time. The longer he left things, the more stable the farm would become and the harder it would be to deal with. Looking at the map he¡¯d drawn from the information he¡¯d been given, it would take about two days for him reach the farm, longer if the weather changed on him. Making sure he had enough food to get him there and back he set out for the forest. While travelling through the woods would normally be a slower and riskier choice, it was necessary. Since the guild had begun preying on caravans headed to the targeted farms, the scouts of the Rising Moon had reported that there had been an increase in security around the farms. After the well had been poisoned and Gabe had shut down the second farm, these security measures had tripled. If he was going to get close enough to have an effect, it wouldn¡¯t be by following the main roads. As soon he passed the tree line he felt eyes on him, watching him closely. He¡¯d expected as much, the wolves still keeping an eye on him for whatever reason they had, and he wasn¡¯t about to complain. Not having to worry about the majority of creatures in the forest meant he could focus on hurrying to his destination. Pulling out his compass he aligned it with the map and headed further in, trying to pace himself as best he could. While he needed to get there as soon as he could, it was still going to be a long trip. ~~~~~~ Not only had it been a long trip, but it had been remarkably dull. In the entire time he had travelled, not a single monster had even approached him, at least none that he could spot before the wolves dealt with it. He¡¯d tried to keep his mind occupied by examining any unusual plants he came across, but all he¡¯d managed to achieve was a slight rash. Except for a single event it had been a completely quiet trip. He¡¯d just collected up some fire wood and had begun setting up his campsite in a small rocky alcove set above the forest floor, hoping a fire would be enough to discourage any curious animals. The flames were just staring to rise when Penumbra appeared silently. It wouldn¡¯t be accurate to even say he arrived, rather, he simply walked out from a trees shadow cast against the wall, as if he had been standing behind an open door. The large black animal was cut sharply against the fire light as it gave a short huff and began to walk away, pausing and looking behind at him. Jicker sighed as he got to his feet and began to follow deeper into the trees. He didn¡¯t know what was going on exactly, but he did trust Penumbra. While it may have tricked him into helping change his entire pack, it had also protected him when another wolf had tried to attack him, though how much of that was just asserting dominance he¡¯d never know. Regardless, he had no concerns following the large predator deeper into its territory. What he did have concerns with, was the pack of forest hounds that they encountered in a clearing. At first he wondered how they¡¯d been ambushed since normally the silhouwolves kept track of everything around them, but as his eyes focused he could see that around the pack, hiding amongst the trees, were members of Penumbras pack. In fact the more he looked at them, the more it seemed that it was these new wolves that didn¡¯t want to be here. Before Jicker could do or say anything, Penumbra gave a loud series of barks and growls, apparently giving orders. When he was done the clearing was completely silent, until eventually one of the new comers whined and came forwards, its tail between its legs. Look at the larger animal for confirmation, it headed over to Jicker and waited, until something clicked in his head. ¡°Oh.¡± He said in realisation. ¡°You want me to...But I can¡¯t anymore.¡± He wasn¡¯t sure exactly how much of what he said they understood, but at the word can¡¯t Penumbra let out a low growl, causing many of the hounds to lie down and whine. ¡°Fine, it won¡¯t work but I¡¯ll try...something I guess.¡± Putting his hand out to the hound, it flinched away for a moment then returned under the silhouwolves watchful gaze. Activating adaptation, he wasn¡¯t sure what he could manage, but he hoped that he could get something close enough that the wolves would be happy with it. Selecting the settings he¡¯d used when he created them the first time, he tried it anyway, just to see what would happen. What he didn¡¯t expect was it to go through, and to receive a message from the game.
Mother of Invention! You have created a new ability! Conversion: By casting Adaptation at triple the mana cost, you can turn a suitable willing creature into a previously created species. This ability cannot be taught. Evolution has increased by 1! Total: 6 Mother of invention has increased to Level 2
Jicker looked at his hand, flexing it as the new silhouwolf got to its feet, shaking as it examined its new body. ¡°Well that¡¯s new.¡± He said quietly in surprise. Mother of invention had saved him and helped him out in the past, but he¡¯d assumed he¡¯d seen all it could do. Creating an entirely new ability, and a useful one at that was...incredible. The penalties of being a gremlin were harsh, the starting locations seemed to be almost impossible, but surely other people had gotten this far? The limitations of abilities and spells were the main reason people cared so much about getting the right class and stats. If he could get around some of those problems at the cost of stats... While he¡¯d been thinking, the remaining hounds had been herded into a sort of queue, waiting to be changed. Putting aside his thoughts, Jicker settled in and got comfortable, getting ready to change the entire pack. It took a few hours thanks to the ability cooldown and mana regeneration, but eventually the entire clearing was filled the shifting black shapes of the silhouwolves. Penumbra gave a few barks and the forest emptied, the pack melting away into the trees, leaving Jicker alone with the alpha. The wolf gave him a respectful nod and started to walk back the way they had entered from, apparently walking him back to his own campsite. The fire had long gone out, but the rest of his things were still untouched, and he still had plenty of wood left to get a new one lit before he went to sleep. Penumbra turned to leave, but Jicker called out to it, causing it to pause. ¡°Penumbra, I don''t know how well you can follow what I''m saying, But I¡¯m going to be making something over to the east.¡± He said pointing into the trees, causing the wolf to look. ¡°I don''t know what it will be yet, but can you leave it alone? At least until it¡¯s done what I need, then do what you want I guess.¡± The wolf didn¡¯t move for few moments then bobbed its head slightly before walking back through a shadow on the ground, slipping out of existence. Figuring that was probably the best he could hope for, he got a fire going again, had some dinner and turned in for the night. Arriving at the edge of the forest after the second day of travel, Jicker was shocked at just how developed the farmland had become. From his estimates, they¡¯d only had the seeds for a little more than a week, but already there were hundreds of rows of fully developed plants. Molta may have only just gotten hers to start sprouting when he saw her, but she was doing things naturally, studying its growth. These people were throwing everything they could behind it, with as much magic being used as they could afford. From his spot crouched in the tree line he could make out a dozen people wandering the fields, casting out green magic that soaked into the ground, causing the plants to grow before his eyes.This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. Heading deeper into the forest he found a place to sit and rubbed his temples, trying to rethink his plans. He¡¯d come up with a few ideas on his trip here, but they¡¯d all been assuming that they were still in the seeding stage of things. He wouldn¡¯t be able to send in just one big thing to ruin the place now, and even if it could work, they¡¯d ramped up security to the point where they¡¯d be able to defeat it. From what he¡¯d seen of the guards patrolling the grounds, they hadn¡¯t pulled any of the best players around, but they definitely had enough. That part was lucky at least, since if they¡¯d hired a group of top level players, there was no way he¡¯d have gotten close enough to pull anything off. Instead they were all off going through the high tier dungeons that had opened up since the upheaval, something they hadn¡¯t gotten to do for years. He sat around for a while, scratching notes into the dirt when he decided to go and find something to use as a base, hoping it would give him an idea. He¡¯d been looking around for only a few minutes, wondering whether he should have tried to get the silhouwolves to help him when a bush rustled next to him. Looking at what crawled out from under the leaves; Jicker grinned evilly as an idea took root, and got to work. ~~~~~~ Three Days Later ~~~~~~ ¡°It¡¯s like pulling teeth.¡± He muttered to himself. Hardgrave was one of the oldest players in Genesis, a veteran of hundreds of raids and thousands of battles. He¡¯d dedicated his time and had helped forge one of the most powerful merchant guilds in the game, ruling the coastlines from the city of Carthan. But all of that seems like child¡¯s play compared to getting the other local guild heads to come together and listen without trying to start a fight. But after hours of gritted teeth and stressful calls he¡¯d gotten them all into this hall for at least a while. Sighing and promising himself a drink when this was over, he took the stage and stared out at the sitting crowd. ¡°Thank you all for coming. You all represent the guilds in this part of the world, and as such have a vested interest in the surrounding area. So before I go any further, let me get to the main point of this meeting.¡± Moving back, another person wheeled a covered cage in to the centre of the stage, which Hardgrave removed with a flourish. Muttering began from the room. ¡°Tell me you didn¡¯t have us all gather to see that!¡± Someone called out from the back. Sitting in the cage, quietly chewing on some straw was a small rabbit. No more than a foot tall, it was covered in rolls of red and white fur, making it seem like a cross between a rabbit and a shar-pei. Realising that it was being looked at by the surrounding crowd it froze, staring immobile out at the audience. Hardgrave raised his voice. ¡°I assure this is extremely important to you all. I have personally verified that these creatures have killed over eighty players in the past two days alone.¡± The room went quiet as that sunk in. ¡°How did that many people die to a rabbit? I mean, have players standards dropped that much?¡± ¡°On the contrary, the reason that this rabbit killed eighty people, and injured hundreds more, myself included,¡± he raised his hand to stop any interruptions. ¡°Is that this species didn¡¯t exist a week ago.¡± Silence fell as they tried to make sense of it. ¡°Since the upheaval, we¡¯ve seen plenty of critters move from old habitats or dungeons, which has thrown a lot of people off. It¡¯s understandable, and we¡¯ve seen it before on smaller scales when areas underwent change. When the azure roaches began showing up, no one really cared, and when the silhouwolves appeared, no one bothered to look into it. But this time we have and this species hasn¡¯t been seen anywhere, by anyone. We¡¯ve had people looking into it, both in game and out, and even our best hackers and diviners can¡¯t find any trace of them past last Sunday. The developers, it¡¯s safe to say, weren¡¯t the origin, and it¡¯s doubtful the system AI added something like this. Over the next few weeks, our guild will be launching an investigation into the appearance of this species. I¡¯ll now turn you over to our lead hunter Thompson, who will go over the important information about these ¡°poppits¡±.¡± Someone from the back of the room stood up and huffed in disgust. ¡°I¡¯m not gonna waste my time listening how to deal with some fancy rabbit.¡± The hunter, who had been about to start, paused before turning to the speaker. ¡°Then how would you deal with this, Mr...¡± The speaker stepped forward, a dwarf in thick steel armour. ¡°Krog, leader of the Skull Breakers, and you seriously expect me to need to think about a dinky little rabbit? One kick and the thing will be in pieces.¡± Thompson nodded. ¡°You are correct, one hit and it will be in pieces. The part that most people don''t realise is that you¡¯ll end up in pieces as well.¡± That got the dwarf to hesitate. ¡°How¡¯s that now?¡± The hunter made a gesture to a person off stage who began to make gestures. Moments later a faint blue barrier appeared between the stage and the onlookers. Grabbing a long spear, he crouched down behind a crate that had been positioned for this purpose. Once he was in position he addressed the crowd again. ¡°The poppit, as they¡¯re called, is for the most part a normal herbivore, low level and not really that different than a normal rabbit. When threatened it will resort to an animal¡¯s normal fight or flight response, and almost always attempt to run. The issue comes in when they can¡¯t run, or have a strong reason not to, like protecting their litter or mate.¡± Hefting the spear, the hunter began to bang on the sides of the cage, rattling it around. The poppit panicked at first, scrambling around as it looked for an exit, but then it stopped and began to emit a high pitched whine. As it did so, the loose rolls of skin began to quickly tighten as it swelled and inflated, stopping after a few seconds as its body became almost spherical. ¡°When they choose to stay they produce a kind of gas that we¡¯re still trying to identify, and trap it in a pocket layer under their skin. And if anything causes that skin to be breached...¡± Without warning Thomson jabbed between the bars of the cage, pricking the poppit. Before anyone could react the animal exploded, a small burst of heat and light followed by a massive wave of pressure. Even behind the shield that had been put up, the audience found themselves rattled by the explosion. Thomson, having braced himself for the blast as best he could, was still thrown across the stage and was now picking himself off the ground. ¡°And that people, is why we don''t just kick them. If it helps, don''t even consider them as a monster, and instead as a mobile landmine. If you are going to go after some of these things, then you need to either take them out before they notice you and inflate or do it at a safe distance, or both if you can.¡± ¡°What if we don''t break the skin?¡± One woman asked curiously, gesturing with a mace. Thomson nodded. ¡°While that does work, and they¡¯ll deflate naturally after a while, you¡¯d need to be very precise since they are particularly thin skinned once they prime themselves. Also, we¡¯ve had reports of the larger males charging at people threatening their mates and purposefully biting themselves to detonate, so approach with extreme caution.¡± ¡°Anything else we need to care about here or is this it? Some of us have important things to do.¡± Someone said in the audience, getting a few people to agree. Hardgrave took control again. ¡°No, this was the only issue. As I said before my people will be launching a full investigation into this, so I''m only asking for any assistance your guilds share to get to the bottom of this.¡± A woman laughed from the back of the room, catching people attention. ¡°Hardgrave, you¡¯re a smart guy, no one is going to argue that. But if you think you¡¯re the only smart person around, then we are going to have problems. If there really is a way of creating new mobs in Genesis, that people can actually claim as their own? Then whoever finds it first is sitting on a damn fortune. So yeah, information on any new monster we come across? That¡¯s fine, we will give you a full report and make it open to everyone, but the source? If I find that out, you can hear it on the news when they interview me from inside my solid gold house.¡± People started to talk amongst themselves, some of whom still weren¡¯t following. Hardgrave cracked a smile. ¡°Well put as always Nirva. In that case, I suppose it¡¯s a race to see who can track down the source first. May the best player win.¡± ~~~~~~ Jicker sat in the crook of a tree, relaxing as he toyed with a piece of string from his pack. He¡¯d been doing nothing but wait around for the past two days, though he¡¯d earned two levels doing so. The poppits had done the job and done it brilliantly, far better than he¡¯d expected. While rabbits aren¡¯t normally known for their violent nature, they are a common threat to farmers and that was all he needed. Having them explode was a strong choice he knew, but at least this would control their population to some degree and after all, rabbits tended to breed like, well, rabbits. After he¡¯d gathered and produced enough to have them become a full species, he¡¯d set one loose on to the farm to see what would happen. At first it had just hopped around aimlessly, wandering around investigating the farm. It had just started to nibble on the leaves of one of the plants when one of the mages spotted it. Hurrying over the caster in question proved to not be a fan of rabbits, and decided to attempt to deliver a solid kick to the poppit. As if it was happening in slow motion, Jicker saw the poppit notice the mages approach and inflate in response, something its attacker failed to spot. When the foot connected with the animal, both were engulfed in a blast wave, covering them both in a cloud of dirt and debris. When the dust settled, both Jicker and the onlookers that rushed over at the sound of the explosion saw the mage lying in the bottom of a shallow crater, seemingly dead and missing a limb. While it had proved effective, he wondered if it would take too long for the poppits to do enough damage to stop the farms production. His second test run however proved that it would be even easier than he¡¯d thought originally. Another poppit had been loosed on the farmland, and again it was spotted, by one of the guards who apparently had orders to deal with any pest eating the crops. The difference this time was that this section of plants had already fruited. When the poppit detonated, it took out the rows of incendiberries in a lengthy and fiery chain reaction, leaving almost a fifth of the entire farm as a smoking wreck. From there it had taken only a dozen more tries to seal the farms fate, despite the best efforts of the guards and workers, who found their instincts to go for a lethal response too strong to overcome. The final straw had been when one of the poppits had gotten away from a guard that had been trying to scare it away, and had run into one of the storage sheds. He hadn¡¯t seen what happened inside, but from the size of the explosion Jicker saw, it had been where they had been storing the harvested Incendiberries. After that none of the guards, farmers or mages thought they were being paid enough to deal with the situation and left, leaving the place abandoned. Since then Jicker had let the remaining poppits he¡¯d held on to loose, and just kept an eye on the farm, making sure they didn¡¯t send anyone else to try again. He¡¯d already searched the place and recovered all the surviving seeds and berries he could find, but he didn¡¯t want to assume they hadn¡¯t held a few in reserve to try again. But after two days he decided to call it, not having seen anyone but a few scavengers, looking to claim some of the farm equipment for themselves. Not having any way to carry it around himself, Jicker let them have it and left, heading back into the forest. Finding a good spot to camp for the night, he figured it was time to take a break. ~~~~~~ Taking off the headset, Matt stretched his arms, blinking blearily in the dark. Grabbing his phone to see what the time was, he saw he had a couple of missed calls, followed by a text message from Sarah, simply saying ¡®call me¡¯. Wondering what he¡¯d done wrong this time he groaned as he grabbed a glass of water before making the call. ¡°Hey Sarah, what¡¯s up?¡± he asked, taking a sip. ¡°Ah Mr. Harper, about time you back to us.¡± August said on the other end, causing Matt to spray water all over his couch. ¡°Hurk! Mr. Fronz! Sir, I-¡± He said, half choking as he tried to clear his throat. ¡°Please Matthew, you finally came clean about your opinions of me when we last spoke, don¡¯t back peddle now. There¡¯s no point bothering when niceties like sir when we both know you mean bastard.¡± He said jovially. ¡°...What do you want August.¡± ¡°Much better. I¡¯ve always preferred honest hatred over false pleasantry. But don''t fret about the call, I simply wanted to let you know that Bech has officially defaulted on his promises and deals. He still had a few days before any of the deadlines, but apparently it became impossible to complete them, so well done there. He declared this early to try and minimise his losses, but fortunately I had my lawyers draft things up so that regardless of when things happened, I¡¯d be able to claim for damages. Since he¡¯d done a lot of this under the table and used funds from his business he shouldn¡¯t have, we¡¯ll have to spend a few weeks faking a few business deals. But I thought you would like to know that I, along with Masquerade Entertainment now have a controlling share of two of the major news networks. So I can promise you that none of your information will be accidently leaked through them.¡± ¡°I''m sure you''re right.¡± Matt said through his teeth. August laughed. ¡°I knew you¡¯d understand. Oh and before I go, the poppits? I don''t know what on earth possessed you to unleash exploding rabbits on the world, but personally I think they¡¯re hilarious. Some landowners might not share my view, but if they didn¡¯t build fences then that¡¯s their problem. Besides, they¡¯re testing well with kids so who knows? Maybe we¡¯ll put together some merchandise, a plushee or something. Anything I should know on your end Mr. Harper?¡± ¡°Nothing I need to tell you.¡± ¡°I thought as much. Good evening to you then.¡± He said as he hung up. Matt put down his phone and went to grab another drink. On the one hand, a weight had been lifted off his shoulders now that this was dealt with. But on the other he¡¯d earned the arrogant prick even more money and power. The feelings of wanting to celebrate and wanting to punch something chased each other around his head for a while, until eventually he gave up and went to get some proper sleep. Chapter 17 Matt woke up with a start, his body covered in sweat. As he clutched his head and calmed himself down, he recalled what had made him wake up so suddenly. He¡¯d had been unhappy about his situation since it had begun, but actual nightmares about being pulled around by August like a puppet on strings was definitely new. Slapping his cheeks to try and wake himself up properly, he looked at his phone to see what the time was. ¡°I¡¯ve got to figure out a new sleep schedule.¡± He said groggily, opening the blinds after seeing it was mid afternoon. Staggering around, he made a vague effort to clean himself up, even though he didn¡¯t plan on doing anything else today except lying back down. Still, a certain standard needed to be kept just in case especially if he planned on ever getting a normal life back. Thinking about he turned to the copy of his contract sitting on the table and looked absentmindedly through the notes he¡¯d written down. It didn¡¯t actually matter what was in the contract he¡¯d quickly realised. Without any real legal knowledge he had no idea what he was even looking for. And even if he could find some small loophole in the contract and hire a good enough lawyer to argue the case, he¡¯d be crushed in court by whatever legal team August purchased that week. And even if, somehow, he won the court case and got out of the contract he¡¯d signed, it wouldn¡¯t matter to August, who would just carry on like nothing had changed. The thing that was tying him down wasn¡¯t the contract, but the man himself. As long as August had the ability to reveal his identity to the public, Matt had no choice but to give in. Any legal option he had would be shut down almost instantly since he didn¡¯t have the financial power to challenge anything the company said or did. Besides, nothing legal would able to get him free of that bastard''s blackmail... The thought sparked something in Matts mind, and he began to form an idea. It would be risky and would need some set up, but any chance to get out from under August thumb was worth the effort. Picking up the phone, he flicked through a search engine, looking for a group that looked promising. Finding one, he gave them a ring, happy he¡¯d caught them before closing. ¡°Hello? Yes, I¡¯m looking to have some work done, but I''m not a hundred percent on what would be best, do you think you could send someone out to get me a quote?...Great, when could we get that done...Sure Thursday morning works for me, let me give you the address...¡± ~~~~~~ Logging back in, Jicker looked around and found that the sun was well and truly up, making it a good time to pack up camp and begin to head back to town. It was amazing how a bit of sunshine and a walk could brighten up a person¡¯s mood, Jicker noticed. Even though it was all digital, there was something about travelling and working in genesis that made it easier to move past all the bullshit that August threw at him. The journey back was as uneventful as his trip out, though on the way he heard a few loud noises that sounded suspiciously like people running across a poppit for the first time. He wondered absently how wide spread they¡¯d get before their population levelled out. By the time he got back to town two days later he was fed up with travelling, and swore that the next time he had to go that far he would get himself a mount, or at least a travelling companion. Heading into the academy he, went to go and clean himself up a bit and drop some gear off in his room before taking in a few lectures. It wasn¡¯t the most fun way to spend his time, but the last thing he wanted was to get kicked out and have to keep paying for an inn every night. As he relaxed in the back of an anatomy lecture, he let his mind wander as the professor dissected a fox for the class. The big question now was what to do next. He¡¯d promised to go and track down the node above the city, but where was he supposed to go after that? He¡¯d spent so long working towards the upheaval that now that now that he could go anywhere, he didn¡¯t know what he should do. He was sure that August would have some ¡®suggestions¡¯ but hopefully his plan would work and he could avoid those. As the lecture came to a close he shrugged, and figured he¡¯d ask the Rising Moon if they had any suggestions. Heading out of the hall, he decided it¡¯d been delayed long enough and made his way to the cloud for the third time. When he made it to the stop of the stairs, the ogre at the entrance spotted him immediately. ¡°Hey, little green dude! Back to try again?¡± he called out. ¡°More like actually go for the first time.¡± he replied. Stepping through the entrance, Jicker was again greeted with the message about being inside a dungeon as headed deeper inside. One of the advantages of working with a bunch of necromancers is that dead bodies are easy to get a hold of. This meant that he was fortunate enough to have been able to stock up on his dead man¡¯s sight potions, and wouldn¡¯t need to worry about setting up any torches. As he headed deeper and deeper in, the tunnel became narrower as off shoots started appearing, passages left by other people digging through the stone. There was no real way to tell where anything from the city had ended up in the cloud apart from a few rough guesses and assumptions, meaning that people simply dug in random directions as they hoped to get lucky. Sometimes it panned out for them as they found themselves in an armoury or laboratory that had survived mostly intact. More often than not however, people could mine for days with nothing to show for it except a broken pick. However this was one time where Jicker was at an advantage. Not only was he able to travel through some of the smaller cracks and passages that had formed, but he had an actual destination in mind. When he¡¯d first been asked to track down the node inside the cloud, he¡¯d spent some time going over his notes for his explosive in Ardenvale. While the explosion itself had been centralised, the device itself had been positioned more to the north. From there he had done some rough math and bit of guess work to figure out where it would have ended up. His hunch was that since that had been where all of the energy had originated, that was where it would end up pooling as well. It was a bit of a long shot but it was all he had to go on. ~~~~~~ When he¡¯d first entered the mine, he¡¯d been worried about the dangerous creatures that had started living inside. Then he¡¯d considered all the ways things could go wrong if someone else followed him, or found the node before he did. But something he hadn¡¯t thought about was how boring mining was. After moving as close to his target as he could using existing mine shafts, he¡¯d started to mine through the dark stone. It was slow, monotonous and incredibly dull. He¡¯d gone through several dozen battle drop pills and a few uses of adrenaline to try and speed things up, but unless you were a miner by class or had the skill at a high level, it was slow going. After several hours of tedious digging, moving the fill and digging again, he¡¯d begun to wish something would come across him, just to break up the time. But whether it was the enigma stat at work or his tunnel was too small for anything to notice, he was left alone to work, pausing only when he heard the sounds of combat from other places in the dungeon. Suddenly his pick broke through the stone face he¡¯d been working on and rush of stale air came through the hole. Excitedly he worked with renewed enthusiasm to clear the opening and see what he¡¯d uncovered. A few dozen feet wide, the room was covered in a layer of dust and debris with various cabinets lining the walls. Tables and benches were thrown around the area, and Jicker spotted a few bodies of people that had been caught in the blast, which gave him a small amount of regret. Heading deeper into the room he found broken pieces of equipment that looked familiar, though he couldn¡¯t quite remember where he¡¯d seen them. It was only when he opened a cupboard on the wall to find a small rotting bag with a label saying ¡°Franks- get your own¡± did he realise the truth, that he had successfully uncovered a lunchroom. It wasn¡¯t a complete loss however, he realised as he searched the bodies and downed another sight potion. While they only had a few golds between them and the rest of their belongings were beyond repair, he could tell they appeared to be tradesmen. If a bunch of workers were in a lunch room, odds were good that there should be workshop around that this room had been attached to. Starting work from the remains of the door out of the room, he was reward after a few feet when he hit another room, this one considerably larger. The chamber was a single room, but was huge in scale, seeming to be the size of a soccer field from what Jicker could see, with tall columns scattered around. It was these that seemed to have saved the place, as most of the walls had cracked and broken with tons of stone pouring in before solidifying. By the look of the equipment left around as it rusted away, this place had been doing large scale carpentry, with lengths of wood left to rot where they lay. Jicker was about to go and see if any of the saws and tools were worth trying to reclaim when he spotted something out the corner of his vision. Lit up with a faint blue outline was a large spider, perhaps two feet across, sitting atop one of the racks of wood. If it wasn¡¯t for the life sense from the dead man¡¯s sight, there was no way he would have spotted it before he was right underneath it. Pulling out his blowgun, he loaded up a poison shot and fired, wanting to get it out of the way. The spider flinched violently when struck, before spasming for a few moments, squealing as it died. He was about to put the weapon away before he heard a sound from above him. Looking up he saw his mistake, and that he had broken into the room directly below a nest of the spiders, which began to rappel down towards him. Jicker didn¡¯t normally have a big problem with spiders, but the sight of hundreds of them heading towards him, each bigger than his head, had him running back down the tunnels as they began to follow him. He seen them run around when he tried to squash them in his house, but it had been a long time since he¡¯d appreciated just how quickly spiders could move when they had to. As soon as they¡¯d hit the ground they had started to rush towards him, a seemingly solid wall of legs and fangs. Realising he had no chance of outrunning the swarm behind him, he reached into his pocket as he ran and pulled out one of his last remaining incendiberries and fired it off behind him. A few seconds later there were high pitched cries as the tunnel was suddenly illuminated by the bright flames, spiders dying in droves as the mass behind them forced them into the intense flames. Even once they had gotten over the surprise; they kept rushing through the flames, seemingly willing to give their lives to get to him. Most died in the fire, the hairs of the spiders proving to be extremely flammable, but the sheer size of the swarm meant a fair number got through. These were only a few at a time however, and could be managed, Jicker clubbing them down with his blowgun as he fired the last of his berries to keep the fire going. As the last few spiders launched themselves towards him and met their ends, he leaned on his pipe, breathing heavily. It had been a while since he done any actual life or death fighting, and he¡¯d forgotten how stressful it could be.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. After taking a drink of water from his canteen, He headed back into the workshop, keeping an eye out for anything else moving around, but from the way they¡¯d gone after him he had a suspicion that they¡¯d eaten every other living thing here some time ago. The tools he found were largely ruined, though a few chisels and saws looked to be repairable. Being mostly filled with wood, there weren¡¯t a lot of valuables to be had, though he did have a small stroke of luck. A section of the workshop had been closed off with some dividers to form what seemed to be an office. Inside he found a small cupboard containing a wide range of exotic woods, some he recognized from his days as a tinker, and some that were completely unknown to him. While it wasn¡¯t exactly finding a safe full of gold, there were plenty of chemists, artists, doctors and all sorts of other trades that would pay highly for them. With his new found gains safely packed away into his bag he resumed his search for the node, trying to remember where it would have been in relation to the workshop. He¡¯d left several of the explosives in more public locations, in this case a public storage warehouse where another crate of undeclared goods wouldn¡¯t make anyone bat an eye. As with most warehouses they tended to be surrounded by various businesses who wanted to use them for convenient storage, such as this one. It didn¡¯t take long to find the right direction, as more and piece of broken wood and metal started showing up in the stone he dug through, though the changes in material meant that it took the better part of a day before he reached his destination. Breaking through the last piece of debris, he was immediately rewarded as light poured through the opening, lighting up the tunnel. As his eyes adjusted Jicker looked through the opening, finally seeing what he¡¯d been searching for. The room itself was almost spherical in nature, a rough layer of shattered crates, cupboards and other pieces that had been stored in the warehouse making up the walls. At another time he would¡¯ve been interested in looking through them, seeing if anything had survived the blast, but as soon as Jicker stepped inside, he was captivated by the node as it hovered gently in the centre of the room. Where the one that the Rising Moon had claimed was slightly taller than a human, this one was taller than a building. At least twenty feet tall and half a dozen wide, the sides of the giant crystal were perfectly smooth, a vivid green colour with rich brown swirls through it seemingly at random, branching out like the veins of a leaf. In fact, as Jicker got closer, he saw that the wood directly underneath the node had somehow started to sprout, new shoots growing upwards towards the source of the revitalising light. Jicker took a seat in the chamber, closing his eyes and relaxing for the first time in several days, drinking in the light. Earth magic was usually used for defence and reinforcement, but in this quantity its healing properties were more than enough to strip away the weariness and stress. It was tempting to just go to sleep for a while, to just let things be for a while as he bathed in the energies of the node. Eventually though he shook himself free of such thoughts, getting back to why he¡¯d come here in the first place. He¡¯d had plenty of time to think about how to deal with the situation when he eventually found the node, but now that he¡¯d actually found it, a lot of the plans he¡¯d made weren¡¯t usable. He wouldn¡¯t be able to hide it any better than it had been before he¡¯d uncovered it, and trying to take or move it was completely out of the question. With his options limited, he fell back on his back up plan: to make a guard. As long as the creature he created could keep people away from the node for long enough for the Rising Moon to launch their assault it would be good enough, so it didn¡¯t need to be perfect. But when he¡¯d thought about adapting something to become a guard, he hadn¡¯t thought about what he could use as a base, and now racked his brain trying to think what to do. He considered trying to make something out of the few sprouts growing underneath the node, but a strange plant would be more likely to attract people rather than send them away, and he wasn¡¯t sure exactly how making a plant monster worked yet. He was going to head back out to the workshop to see if there were any spiders left or an egg in their nest, when he spotted a few specks of blue buried amongst the plant life. Getting onto his knees and taking a closer look, Jicker found a number of insects crawling around, having found one of the only sources of food around. ¡°Well, beggars can¡¯t be choosers.¡± Jicker said to himself as he carefully picked up a large millipede, looking at it as it curled up on his palm. Activating adaptation, the first and most obvious change needed was size. His evolution stat gave him more leeway, but he found that there was a fairly hard limit on what he could achieve, at least at his current level. He ended up settling for only half as big as he could go, since at maximum he wouldn¡¯t be able to anything else, and a giant millipede would be only slightly more dangerous than the original bug. Getting to work he reinforced its carapace, its shiny body becoming a rough reddish colour with a texture resembling shark skin. Its head also got an overhaul, with much larger and stronger jaws, as well as a number of additional eyes since he didn¡¯t want anyone sneaking by it. The last change was more complicated, needing him to play with settings he hadn¡¯t touched up to this point. Adding the ideas of using pack tactics to the silhouwolves hadn¡¯t been difficult, as wolves tended to use them naturally. But adding the idea to protect a magical rock to a millipede was something else entirely, especially since he couldn¡¯t change its thoughts, only its instincts. In the end he settled on trying to get it to hoard earth energy, like a dragon hoarding gold, hoping it would want to keep the node to itself. Finalising the change, a glow overtook the millipede, its form beginning to rapidly expand, the sounds breaking wood coming from underneath as its weight rapidly increased. Once it eventually faded Jicker was left staring up at the giant insect, its head the size of a car as it moved around lazily, its body fluid despite its new size and shape.
Ding! Adaptation has become permanent. Unique creature created. Type: Modified Insect. Level: 28 Do you wish to name this creature?
¡°Got it in one.¡± He said quietly as the creature ignored him. It wasn¡¯t as high a level as he would have liked, but considering it had been a normal insect before he couldn¡¯t say he was surprised. ¡°The name will be Earthwyrm.¡± He said, having thought about it while he was working
Name accepted, Earthwyrm has been created. It will receive additional stat points as a unique monster. This creature is now able to respawn, and will drop items proportional to its level. Creator will remain unknown. Now applying changes to creature.
The creature was lit up for a moment as the changes took hold, and Jicker turned back towards his tunnel, happy that he¡¯d achieved his goals. It wouldn¡¯t last forever, but a giant insect should at least dissuade people from investigating this area for long enough. All that he had to do now was let someone from the guild no and then he¡¯d be able to relax and make some longer term plans. A muted clicking sound managed to get his attention, causing him to turn towards the source. Looking back he saw that the Earthwyrm had stopped randomly sliding around the area and was now in the process of swallowing the entire node whole, its jaw unhinged far wider than he had thought possible. Jicker wasn¡¯t sure when he started running, but he did know his brain had nothing to do with it. Before he knew it he¡¯d sprinted out from dungeon, shoving past other adventures and the bouncer who had turned to say hello. Throwing himself face first down the side of the cloud, he ignored everything else as he willed it to go faster as he plummeted towards the ground. He had no idea what was going to happen, but every instinct he had was screaming at him to get clear of ground zero. By the time he reached the ground a few people began to yell at him for cutting in line but he didn¡¯t pay them any attention. All that his mind could focus on was getting enough distance from the cloud before...something happened. A few people noticed him running and wheezing down the streets, but while a pale gremlin wasn¡¯t a common sight, it was hardly interesting enough to take a second glace. ¡°So how¡¯s the node search coming along Jicker?¡± Turning to one side as he ran, Jicker saw Oda, who was casually strolling alongside him while keeping pace. ¡°Got to...get out...of here.¡± He wheezed, not willing to slowdown despite his lungs burning. Oda raised an eyebrow curiously. ¡°Why do you-¡± Before Oda could finish asking the question, a sound came from behind them. To call it a crack would be an understatement, since it had almost nothing in common with something like a branch snapping. Instead it had the same deep, booming quality that fireworks have, a sound that is felt as much as it is heard. Jicker looked towards Oda as the assassin turned to look back towards the cloud, the man¡¯s normally impassive expression turning to shock. ¡°Right, yeah ok, leaving now.¡±Oda said, tripping over his words slightly as he hoisted Jicker under one arm and mutter something under his breath. Golden light began to pulse along his veins as whatever ability or spell he¡¯d cast activated. Before he could think to ask what he was doing they sped off, their surrounding blurring as they ran far quicker than Jicker had thought possible. At any other time, the sight of a person dashing through the city like a living bolt of lightning would have attracted attention, even with enigma in effect. But with whatever was happening in the cloud, not even the guards at the city gates paid them the slightest bit of attention. Eventually Oda¡¯s spell ran out, and they slowed down to a more humane speed. Well into the tree line at this point they stopped, both gasping for air. "What¡¯s going on?¡± Oda said after a few moments in between wheezes. Jicker shook his head. ¡°Don¡¯t know exactly. I was looking for the node, and I found it. Then I tried to make a thing to guard it, so I made it attracted to earth energy.¡± ¡°Makes sense, what¡¯s the problem?¡± ¡°It... ate the node.¡± Jicker said quietly. ¡°It ate the... ok, not going to pretend I understand how that happened, but what does that mean?¡± Before he could answer, Jicker received a message from the game.
Warning: Unique created creature ¡®Earthwyrm¡¯ has greatly exceeded your limits and no longer qualifies as your creation. Evolution will no longer grant experience for this creature.
¡°Oh, that can¡¯t be good.¡± Jicker said to himself. ¡°What can¡¯t be good? What did you do!?¡± An explosive noise came from the city, and the pair turned to look back. A section on top of the cloud had broken open, throwing huge chunks of stone over the city, and from the crater rose the Earthwyrm. Its appearance was fairly similar to how he¡¯d crated it initially, but the key factor here was scale. Visible even from this distant, the monster had grown dramatically, extending out the top of the cloud for hundreds of feet. It s enormous head swivelled around looking at its new surroundings, each of its dozen eyes larger than a house, and then it opened its maw and screamed, the sound tearing the air around it, leaving visible ripples as it deafened the city. ¡°That. I did that.¡± Jicker shouted as he clutched his ears. ¡°Of course you did. What¡¯s the plan?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°You made it, so how so we deal with it?¡± Oda asked, not taking his eyes of the monstrosity over the town. ¡°I didn¡¯t plan on creating it, why would I have a plan for this?¡± ¡°Well come up with one now then! Weak points, habits, anything that could... hold up what¡¯s it doing now?¡± The Earthwyrm kept screaming out, but its tone seemed to have become more desperate. From where it left the cloud, its body was becoming discoloured, slowly beginning to match the stone around it. The discoloured sections began to slow and crack, seeming to become nothing more than an oddly shaped rock formation, the legs snapping off under the strain of the transformation. The beasts head scrambled upwards, as if in an attempt to escape from its own dying form, but it didn¡¯t take long before the change covered it completely, bringing about a sudden silence. For a brief moment nothing happened, and it seemed as if the entire city held its breath. The as quickly as it had come the silence was broken as the head of the beast exploded outwards, showering the city in a hail of stone. And there, sitting on the remains of the petrified monster¡¯s neck high above the city, sat the node, spinning gently as it shined in the morning sunlight. ¡°I guess... problem solved.¡± Oda said after a while. Jicker nodded. ¡°Looks like the nodes contain a lot more energy than a living creature can handle.¡± ¡°We should probably get back to the guild hall; they¡¯re probably going to have a few questions. And while I''m there I think I¡¯ll put a note on our node.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± ¡°Warning: Do not eat.¡± Chapter 18 ¡°When we sent you to look for the node, I could have sworn you were asked to find it, tell us, and maybe try and keep people away from it until we take the city. I don¡¯t remember asking you to crack open the top of the cloud, unleash an enormous monster and put the node on display for the entire population.¡± Mary said, fuming as she tapped her fingers on the table she sat behind. When Oda had taken Jicker into the guild hall, they¡¯d been greeted by people running in all directions, panicking and not knowing what was going on. Oda had grabbed someone by the collar and had them set up an emergency meeting with the guilds heads. ¡°So in short,¡± Mary continued after Oda had briefed them of the situation, ¡°only two weeks before we launch the attack, you accidently unleashed a titanic monster above the city, causing chaos and panic, giving away the nodes existence and putting the city on high alert. Did I miss anything?¡± ¡°Apparently it¡¯s also probably going to respawn, but at the moment we¡¯re not sure how big it will be, or where,¡± Oda added. ¡°Oh good, so we have that to look forward to as well,¡± she sighed and dropped her head onto the table. ¡°Do you have any idea how much this is going to push back our plans?¡± she asked despairingly. ¡°Come on Mary, it¡¯s not that big of-¡± Oda began trying to reassure her, when her hand lashed out and grabbed the front of his shirt. ¡°You were supposed to be keeping an eye on him,¡± she said in a low voice. ¡°now everything is ruined!¡± ¡°Is it ruined? Or is it...Awesome?¡± Everyone turned as Gabe, apparently thinking it was a good idea to ride Princess through the building, entered the room. ¡°Yes Gabe, it¡¯s ruined. You¡¯d know that if you showed up on time,¡± Mary said as she turned to her brother. ¡°I went and had a look at the city, and if you shift your thinking a bit, we have an opportunity here.¡± ¡°Ardenvale is on high alert now. How is that an ¡®opportunity¡¯?¡± ¡°The city might be, but the people are all busy try to fix up the place from all the falling rock.¡± ¡°Speaking of which, we didn¡¯t want them to find the node because it could be a huge problem to deal with, which we know for a fact after this incident. Now they know exactly where it is!¡± ¡°And it¡¯s completely protected,¡± Gabe countered, making Mary hesitate. ¡°What?¡± ¡°It¡¯s currently sitting on a relatively thin column of stone almost half a mile above the ground. They might know where it is, but they¡¯re not going to be able to reach it for a long time. There are only a few thousand players that have managed to achieve flight, and barely any of them would bother looking into earth energy.¡± ¡°Ok, but what about the fact they¡¯re withdrawing patrols to reinforce order in the city? They¡¯re going to be better armed than we¡¯d planned.¡± Gabe shrugged. ¡°With less patrols about, we can get our forces way closer before we get detected, which was one of the big problems we had wasn¡¯t it?¡± She gritted her teeth. ¡°Fine! What about the fact that our plans to get past their defences don''t work anymore?¡± ¡°Well, they shouldn¡¯t be too hard to replace.After all, half of those defences got crushed by falling debris.¡± Mary¡¯s expression slowly turned thoughtful. ¡°You know, maybe you¡¯re right. But if we¡¯re still going to manage to pull this off we¡¯re going to need to move things forward. Arcus, how far along with preparations are we?¡± One of the council members looked at a folder. ¡°We¡¯ve got all the soldiers we need, though they¡¯re all in standby at the moment. All our other equipment is primed and ready to go, except for the node itself.¡± Mary nodded. ¡°Right, in that case, have people open up the vault and start waking up our soldiers to getthem prepped for war. Arcus, begin work on getting the node mobile; we need it up and running as soon as possible. Ladies and Gentleman, we attack in two days.¡± ¡°Actually,¡± another person spoke up. ¡°could we push it back to three? I''ve got an assignment I need to finish off.¡± Gabe winced. ¡°Ooh actually now that you mention it I''ve got to finish that off as well.¡± Mary stared at them and sighed. ¡°Fine, just... fine. The assault begins in three days.¡± Another person raised their hand. ¡°Umm, I have work that day so could we...¡± They saw the death stare Mary was giving them and slowly lowered their hand. ¡°Actually, I''m sure I can swap my shifts around...¡± Mary stood up and addressed the room. ¡°Three days people. Make sure you¡¯re ready.¡± ~~~~~~ Since Mary had given the orders to mobilise, the guild had become a hectic mess, with people rushing from one place to another to get things organised for the upcoming battle. Logistics were being managed, weaponry being repaired and checked and an endless number of other small jobs. Even with all the preparations that had already been done there was always something else that had to be done at the last minute. The biggest task was the army itself, since with a large number of necromancers involved it was almost entirely undead. Rising Moonhad been stockpiling bodies in a huge underground vault for some time now, and while most of the work had been done, they needed to be taken out of the stasis they¡¯d been put in. Undead creatures would normally rot and degrade over time, and while measures could be taken to extend their lifespan, eventually they¡¯d decay. So instead, the bodies had been taken, raised, and then put into an enormous freezer that Gabe had created. Now they were being thawed out, restored, armed and arranged into the growing legions under the command of the more combat based members of the guild. While everyone was rushing about, Jicker went to find Mary and asked what he could do to help. ¡°No need, right now we have everything in hand. Besides your ¡®help¡¯ has already been more than enough.¡± she said as she looked at a map of the area and made some notes. ¡°Are you sure? Maybe I could try and-¡± ¡°You have some interesting and potentially powerful abilities Jicker, but we have a lot of powerful people already. Sorry if it hurts your ego, but you¡¯re not exactly crucial to our plans.¡± She was right of course, Jicker knew. He wasn¡¯t actually part of the guild in the first place, but it still left him at somewhat of a loss with what to do with himself. In the end he headedback to the crafting hall to make up some more of his poisons and restock on the rest of his supplies. It wasn¡¯t anything important, but it was something to do, and it all added up in the end. The place had become almost entirely deserted, asall the crafting needed for the assault had been finishedlong ago, which left him to his own devices. The manager of the hall checked in on him a few times, but for the most part he was left to work quietly alone, pausing occasionally as he heard people crashing around throughout the base. After a while he began to lose track of time, until someone tapped him on the shoulder. ¡°Hey Jicker, you got a moment?¡± Oda asked. ¡°I swear I¡¯m going to put a bell on you if you keep sneaking up on me, but yeah. Right now I have nothing but time. What do you need?¡± Jicker said as he put down the flask he¡¯d been cleaning. ¡°Like that would make a difference. Anyway, can I get some more of those drops from you? I figure I should grab a few more before things get too hectic.¡± ¡°Sure, just grab some from the pile over there and make a note of how many you take. We can worry about payment later.¡± ¡°Cool. Secondly, how do you feel about a field trip?¡± ~~~~~~ Oda wasted no time in taking him out of the base and heading towards the city. From where they stopped Jicker could see that repairs were already under way, with teams of people hauling awaythe huge chunks of stone that had broken off of the cloud. ¡°So why are we out here?¡± Jicker asked. ¡°Well, I don¡¯t have a lot to do until fight time, so I started thinking. Thoughthe city''s defences are in a pretty bad shapeat the moment, there¡¯s still a decent chance that this ends up being a long, drawn out siege.¡± ¡°Makes sense, but I assume Mary already planned for that.¡± He nodded. ¡°She has, at least as far as our supply lines go. But in a siege, the big thing is how long both sides can hold out. As long as both sides have food and water, sieges can go on for years.¡± ¡°I''m pretty sure the city can be taken before then. They¡¯d get reinforcements before then anyway.¡± ¡°True, but if things do get rough they might try and hold up as long as they can. If we can be ready to shut down their supplies, we could shorten the siege by a lot.¡± ¡°And you plan on achieving this by...?¡± ¡°Ardenvale gets the majority of its water from the river, so I figure if we repeat what we did with the well on that farm, we can take it out.¡± Jicker looked at him. ¡°You are aware there¡¯s a difference between a well and a major river right?¡± ¡°Well yeah, I mean, I know we¡¯re going to need a lot more, so I figure we can come out here now so you can see how much we¡¯d need and then-¡± ¡°Not what I mean.¡± Jicker paused for a moment as he tried to figure out how to explain it. ¡°A well is a fairly stationary body of water, all in one place. A river is...a river! Its massive and is constantly moving, you can''t just drop a few barrels of stuff in it.¡± ¡°Yeah I know, but...I kind of got chewed out about the whole ¡®earthwyrm thing¡¯ and I want to show that I can plan ahead.¡± ¡°Really? That¡¯s your reason?¡± Jicker asked doubtfully, raising an eyebrow. They stared at each other for a few moments before Oda threw his hands up. ¡°Ok, fine,¡± he said, ¡°I don''t have anything to do until the fight so I''m bored. Like, you would not believe how bored I am. So I figured looking into the river would kill some time?¡±If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. ¡°That I¡¯ll believe. In that case, since I¡¯ve got nothing else on, lets head further up river;maybe we can find a spot we could put up a dam or something.¡± ¡°Works for me.¡± ~~~~~~ The two travelled along the river¡¯s edge, trusting inOda¡¯s skills to keep them from being spotted as Jicker took the time to tell him a bit about the upheaval. Along the way they saw a small group of poppits moving amongst the plants nearby. A fox appeared as well and began to stalk closer, but longbefore it got close enough to pounce, the poppits spotted it, swelling up and causing the fox run away. ¡°How far do you think those things are going to spread?¡± Oda asked after watching the interaction. Jicker thought about it. ¡°I''m not sure, but they shouldn¡¯t get too out of control. I don''t really think it through all the way when I put together something like that.¡± ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s probably a habit you should break. Last thing we need at the moment is another city-destroying monster.¡± ¡°One mistake, and now I''m never going to live it down am I? It¡¯s not like I''m the only one who ever-¡± ¡°Quiet,¡± Oda said cutting him off. ¡°What, don''t like being told about your own-¡± ¡°I said quiet,¡± he repeated, straining his voice. Looking at the assassin¡¯s expression, Jicker stayed silent. As he motionedfor them both to get into cover, they both quickly ducked behind an outcrop of rock and waited. Jicker desperately wanted to know what they were waiting for, but seeing the normally relaxed person suddenly turn serious made him hold his tongue. After several minutes, he managed to pick up what Oda had been listening to. A large number of people were marching along the river bank, hauling carts and wagons. Deciding to risk a look, the pair peeked out for a moment to see who had come from such an odd direction. Whatthey saw were soldiers, people in armour and robes and carrying weapons of all descriptions. In short, they were an army. ~~~~~~ ¡°Why are they here now?¡± Oda muttered to himself for the fifth time. The two had waited until the group had passed by to follow them at a safe distance. When the travellers were several hours from the city gates, they set up a campsite, apparently wanting to enter the city while fresh and rested. Once the camp had been set up and they saw that people had begun to turn in for the night, Oda went to investigate, leaving Jicker to sit alone in the dark. After a few minutes, the assassin silently reappeared, and began swearing. ¡°Why are they here now?¡± he said again. ¡°Who are they?¡± Jicker asked, looking towards the camp. ¡°They¡¯re the Seekers, and they shouldn¡¯t be here for a month!¡± ¡°That... doesn¡¯t tell me anything. Who are the Seekers?¡± Oda looked at him. ¡°You really need to pay more attention to in-game politics, but I suppose this one¡¯s fair enough. Until they did a whole rebrand after the upheaval, they were called Compass.¡± Compass. Now there was a name that Jicker remembered. Back when the game had first come out, and Genesis was still a wild and unexplored continent, the guild of Compass had formed¡ªa group of pathfinders, trailblazers, treasure hunters and everyone else who wanted to go out and explore an unseen world. They¡¯d become known for being a friendly guild, willing to share their information with anyone who asked, at least, at the beginning. However as time went on, Compass began to realise the advantage of reaching dungeons and locations first, keeping some of them secret. Suddenly the friendly guild changed overnight and began to protect their information fiercely, and with all of the rare equipment they¡¯d collected in their travels, they were a force to be reckoned with. Over time that information became public knowledge, and the guild''s iron grip began to fade. But apparently, according to Oda, since the upheaval and the new dungeons being produced, the guild had gone through a resurgence. Once again there were unknown and unclaimed spaces on the map, and the remaining members of Compass had regrouped and brought in new members. Now, as the Seekers, they travelled around seeking information on any areas that either hadn¡¯t been explored, or dungeons that hadn¡¯t been cleared. ¡°So, why are they here?¡± Jicker asked. ¡° There¡¯s nothing around here that hasn¡¯t been looked through.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right, there¡¯s nothing around here. The only dungeon even nearby is the cloud itself, and they already decided it wasn¡¯t worth their time.¡± His eyes widened in realisation. ¡°Except a giant monster just revealed itself from inside.¡± Jicker swore. ¡°And so now it¡¯s caught their attention. Damn it, with their strength in the mix, taking the city is going to be far more difficult.¡± ¡°It will be, unless...¡± Oda began, trailing off with a thoughtful expression on his face. ¡°Unless what?¡± ¡°Unless we can take them out now.¡± he flatly stated. ¡°I know you¡¯re an assassin but seriously? Your first thought is to kill them all?¡± ¡°Like you said I''m an assassin, and you¡¯re a... monster-making, poison-brewing weirdo. What part of that sounds like diplomacy to you?¡± ¡°Ok, so we can¡¯t talk them out of it, but you think we can beat four hundred soldiers?¡± ¡°There are two hundred and thirteen of them, ranging from levels twenty seven to a hundred and eighty three, with an average of fifty six. The majority are at sixty percent health or lower and are currently afflicted by a variety of debuffs.¡± He saw the uncomprehending look Jicker gave him and sighed. ¡°Perception skills man. If I can see your hidden information, you think I can¡¯t see levels and hit points? My guess is they¡¯ve come straight from whatever dungeon they¡¯ve been clearing out and are still suffering from its effects.¡± ¡°Okay, so they¡¯re already hurt, but they still outnumber us by a hundred to one, and they¡¯re at a way higher level than me at least. There¡¯s no way we could take them in a fight.¡± ¡°I never said we¡¯d fight them, just that we should take them out. Fighting them fairly would be suicide, but if I''m careful, I should be able to take out about a third of them,¡± he said, looking thoughtful. ¡°You could kill that many?¡± ¡°Maybe? It would depend a lot on when they started waking up and noticing me. I don¡¯t suppose you could... make up some kind of distraction.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve got some vials of choking gas that could disrupt people if we threw it around.¡± ¡°I meant you could, you know, make up something?¡± he said, stressing the words. Jicker looked at him incredulously. ¡°I''m sorry, but for some reason repeating the thing that brought them here in the first place seems like a bad idea.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t mean another city eating monster, just something to keep their attention off me.¡± Shaking his head, Jicker replied, ¡°Sorry, I''m pretty much at my limit for now. Any more, especially something that comes out of nowhere at a group of players, is going to give meaway pretty obviously. Although... maybe we don¡¯t need something new. You said they¡¯ve been busy in a dungeon right?¡± ¡°It¡¯s just a guess, but it makes sense considering everything. Why?¡± ¡°Well, that means they might not be up to date on the latest events,¡± Jicker grinned as he started to draw out a plan in the dirt. ¡°Heh,¡± Oda chuckled as he looked at the plans. ¡°Even if they are aware, they won¡¯t be expecting this. Come one, we¡¯ve got work to do.¡± ~~~~~~ The camp had fallen all but silent as the night went on, with people either going to sleep or logging out entirely. It had been a long trek to the city and would likely be just as long tomorrow, so few peoplewere willing to pull sentry duty. Being as close to the city as they were they didn¡¯t have any real fear of attack, but some habits shouldn¡¯t be broken. Oscar had drawn the short straw and was currently leaning on his pike while trying to stay awake. He had ended up on watch last night as well, but trading shifts in exchange for an enchanted sword was a good deal, or it seemed so at the time, he thought as he yawned. His train of thought was interruptedhowever, when a small animal moved out of the darkness and started to move closer to the fire. Looking at it absently, Oscar hefted his spear, seeing something to occupy his time. If he hadn¡¯t been looking at the animal in front of him, he may have noticed a number of small shapes being launched over head into the camp. But as it was dark and cold, and his senses were dulled from lack of sleep, he only looked at the small animal while thinking he hadn¡¯t eaten rabbit in a while. ~~~~~~ As explosions began to ring throughout the campsite and people started to wake up in panic, Oda moved in. Watching from his hiding place, Jicker was amazed at the man¡¯s skill, barely able to follow the mans movementseven while knowing the plan. Gatheringup dozens of poppits had proved easy enough, the critters not reacting to thembefore being carefully scooped up and bagged. After letting some loose and herding them towards the sentries, Jicker threw the restdeeper into the camp. The result was chaos, pure and simple, with a few officers trying to shout over the din and restore order as people screamed from injuries and searched for whatever had attacked them. It was these officers that Oda targeted first with near surgical precision. Moving within an arm¡¯s length of his victims while remaining unnoticed, he would perform a single, calculated strike to an exposed vital area and move on before they¡¯d even processed that they¡¯d been injured. The few that survived the initial attack died within moments from blood loss, leaving their surrounding guild mates to lookaround in shockand search for whatever had killed their friends. It didn¡¯t last forever, obviously, and eventually the poppits had all detonated and order slowly restored. Oda was still chipping away at their numbers, and his actions and the explosions had claimed almost half their number. But as the camp recollected itself, Jicker saw that Oda had been left trapped in the centre, with no easy way out. Going into his bag, he pulled out a few of his vials and wondered where he could use them to help. Seeing a cluster of people gathering on the other side of the camp, Jicker hurried into the tree line, flanking around toget into position. He¡¯d onlygone in a few feet beforehe ran head first into a darkened shape that appeared in front of him. Stumbling and falling back he looked up to see Penumbra looming above him, head cocked to one side while studyingthe fallen figure on the ground. As Jicker scrambled to his feet, the alpha turned and walked away a short distance, before turning and waiting for the gremlin to follow. ¡°I get it, you want my help with something, but I can¡¯t!¡± Jickerdesperatelycriedas he picked up the vials he¡¯d dropped and spun around to figure out which way he needed to go. ¡°My friend needs help, so I have to go.¡± He started to run forwards back to the campsite when the shadows in front of him blurred and Penumbra blocked his path again. ¡°Damn it, I don¡¯t have time for this! Look once I''ve done this, assuming I survive, I¡¯ll come and deal with your thing, but right now either help me or get out of the way,¡± he shouted, staring at the creature above him. Penumbra seemed to consider something for a moment before singing out a long, echoing howl. The pack appeared out of nowhere, and the moonlight reflected off their eyes as the silhouwolves surrounded him. ¡°Is this your way of forcing me to help you? No...It¡¯s not is it; you could do that on your own. You¡¯re going to help? Then let¡¯s go.¡± As he ran through the trees the pack followed him, with Penumbra silently keeping pace beside him¡ªthe only sign that the wolves were there at all. Reaching the edge of the tree line, he looked out over the campand saw that people were busy putting out several of the fires that had broken out in the chaos. ¡°Okay, if you can follow this then try and understand,¡± he said to turning to the pack, ¡°that camp down there is the enemy. My friend is stuck in the middle somewhere, but don¡¯t worry about him, he can look after himself if we can distract the rest. We go down there and attack whoever wecome across. But some of these people are strong, so if you are in danger, run. If you can kill someone safely, do it, but if you can¡¯t then just harass them and keep out of the way. Understood?¡± Jicker had never seen a wolf roll their eyes before, but watched as Penumbra did so and gave another howl to the pack while showing Jicker a look that plainly said, ¡°Don¡¯t tell me what to do.¡± Like a wave of shadow the pack swept forth out of the forest, breaking over the unsuspecting Seekers. The camp was immediately alive with cries of alarm, though Jicker noticed many were cut short. Deciding to help out directly, he glancedaround and saw people attacked by wolves that they could barely see. Launching vials of choking gas towards any groups of soldiers he saw, he did his best to disrupt any attempts to form a defence against the pack''s onslaught. He had been worried that wolves would be wiped out, but it seemed he¡¯d underestimated how well they could capitalize on the already panicked guildas he watched more than one high level player dragged into the forest by the hungry animals. Before long the number of opponents dropped to only a few. These were the elite, the original members of Compass, and they stood head and shoulders above the rest of their guild. ¡°What is going on here?¡± one of them screamed. ¡°What the hell is going on?! First those rabbit things, then that nut job started stabbing people and now these things?¡± ¡°Focus!¡± another shouted. ¡°We¡¯ve been through way worse than this. Just calm down and get it together. We¡¯ll finish off these ones, and then retrieve everyone else¡¯s equipment. It¡¯ll be fine; just focus on healing us.¡± ¡°But we¡¯re right next to a damn city! Why are these things here? We should be safe-¡± ¡°I said focus! There¡¯s still the four of us left, and we¡¯re more than enough to deal with these...dog things, right guys?...guys?¡± The speaker turned around to find Oda standing behind him, with the other three members falling to the ground and the healer still gurgling from a slit throat. ¡°You might have been, but you can¡¯t deal with me,¡± the assassin simply said before bringing his knife around in an arc towards the shocked fighter. As the last body toppled over, the assassin cleaned off his blade on a nearby body and looked around with a satisfied expression. ¡°Man,¡± he said to Jicker as he turned to him. ¡°Your wolves do not play around do they? We should totally put them on the city''s coat of arms when we take over!¡± He laughed as he pushed over one of the bodies and looked at their face. ¡°I know some of these guys, real asshats. Hopefully that and the fact we won the battle will keep Mary from blowing up at me for starting a fight right before we go to war. Hey, I need to make a call to have some of our people come and collect all of this stuff, and the bodies as well if you can keep the wolves from eating them?¡±he added as an afterthought. Jicker nodded. ¡°I think they already took their share into the forest, but I¡¯ll see if I can get the gear off of those ones. Speaking of which, I need to go and do something for them. Are you right out here by yourself?¡± ¡°Please, between the two of us you¡¯re the one who is in more danger. Go on and play with your friends while I sort this out. Head back towards the guild when you''re done yeah? Someone will bring you in.¡± ¡°Roger that,¡± Jicker replied with a salute before heading back towards the forest, the pack fanning out around him. Chapter 19 As the pack dispersed amongst the trees, Jicker was left running alongside Penumbra who lazily loped along, slowing himself down enough for the far shorter gremlin to keep up. ¡°You know,¡± Jicker huffed as he ran, ¡°if you have somewhere to be, we could get there faster if you gave me a lift.¡± The silhouwolf stopped suddenly as he said so, causing Jicker to almost trip over as he stumbled to a halt. Giving out a short howl, Penumbra waited patiently until another wolf appeared from amongst the trees. While not as big as the alpha himself, this wolf was still considerably larger than the average, making him wonder what had caused it. Looking between them, this newcomer huffed in resignation and lay down, waiting. ¡°Wait seriously? I was kidding but, sure why not.¡± Jickersaid as he carefully approached the animal. He¡¯d ridden a number of different mounts in his time from horses and camels, to birds and lizards, but a wolf was a new one. He was also confident that any attempt to put a saddle on would result with his mauled remains being left to rot under a tree. Grabbing a fist full of fur, he pulled himself up onto the animal, realising that it was smaller than he expected. With both the shadows and its long hair hiding its form, the edges of the silhouwolf weren¡¯t even close to where he expected, causing him to sink deeply into its fur. Holding on tightly as the silhouwolf rose to its feet and shook itself slightly; Jicker did his best to get comfortable. Some kind of communication passed between the two and they began to race through the forest, not a sound coming from either of them as the trees whipped by. Having a moment to rest and collect his thoughts, he took the time to go through the various messages that had come up during the attack on the Seekers. The majority of it was experience from the wolves¡¯ kills and what he¡¯d gotten from being in a party with Oda as he¡¯d carved through the campsite. The total brought him up to level twenty six, a decent increase considering he hadn¡¯t done much himself. The others were death notices; messages from some of the players they¡¯d killed that declared vengeance on whoever killed them. They didn¡¯t actually do anything, but they made a nice dramatic touch for some people. Assigning his new stats, Jicker looked at his character sheet, happy enough with how he was coming along.
Name: Jicker Level: 26
Race: Gremlin Class: Dark Chemist
Hp: 360 Mp: 520 Stamina: 110
Statistics
Equipped weapons Damage: Equipped Armour Defence:
Blowgun 2-3 Cloudy Cats Happy Coat! 13
Core Statistics Other Statistics
Strength: 11 Enigma: 4
Dexterity: 45 Evolution: 6
Constitution: 11
Intelligence: 80
Wisdom: 27
Resistances:
Poison: 50% Cold: 5 Shock: 5
Disease: 50% Fire: 5
Skills
Mother of Invention - Level 2
Apothecary - Level 3
Handle Animal - Level 6
Anatomy - Level 1
Herbalism - Level 2
Weapon Skill - Blowgun - Level 1
Stealth - Level 1
Achievements
Grand Genocide Kill over 20 million sentients within 1 hour
Unique-Effect: 30% damage and ability effectiveness against sentients
Force of Change Destroy and create over 1000 dungeons
Unique-Effect: Creating or altering areas or creatures will be 100% more effective
World Shaper Permanently alter the geography of the world on a grand scale
Level-Max-Effect: Effect: Permanent effects will be 100% more effective
King Killer Kill 50 leaders of states, royal or other.
Level-Max-Effect: Boss and Leader resistances reduced by 60%
¡°So, where are we going anyway?¡± he asked after several minutes, only to be greeted with silence. ¡°Right, you can¡¯t tell me, obviously. But are we far from where we¡¯re headed? ... Why am I still asking questions?¡± The rest of the trip was made in silence, Jicker staring blankly ahead into the darkness as they travelled forwards. Occasionally Penumbra would make noises to passing wolves, sending them racing off in other directions to complete whatever order he¡¯d given them. Whether it was his increased status, or that he was the packs alpha, no one else seemed to ever oppose the larger wolf. Eventually they slowed outside of a large cavern, the moonlight letting Jicker see the surrounding wolves clearly for the first time. Pausing, he realised he shouldn¡¯t be able to see that much moonlight this deep in the forest and had a better look around. The trees above them, normally a dense canopy, were almost completely leafless, the bark having become a sickly grey. The undergrowth was no better, having become dry and brittle, leaving the area as an empty space devoid of any life other than the wolves themselves. ¡°What happened here?¡± Jicker asked quietly to himself. As the wolf he was riding lowered itself down, he dismounted and went to have a closer look at one of the nearby trees. Touching it, the bark broke away at the slightest pressure, leaving little more than grey ash on his fingers. ¡°Burned? No...It¡¯s not just dry, it¡¯s dead. Very, very dead. Is this what you wanted me to see?¡± he asked, turning back to the wolves, but their attention wasn¡¯t on him. Instead they were all still as they looked into the cavern, as a figure slowly came into view. It was a wolf, Jicker could tell that much, but in its current state he wasn¡¯t sure how it was still alive. Most of its fur had fallen out; its exposed skin now covered with gaping and oozing sores. Its ribs were visible on its sides, all fat and muscle having been eaten away by whatever was wrong with it. As it slowly shuffled forwards towards them, the rest of the pack moved back, unwilling to go near the sickly creature, leaving Jicker and the alpha to deal with it alone. It whined softly in pain, its lungs apparently as damaged as the rest of the animal. ¡°Okay I think I see why you brought me over, but this is outside of my range. I don¡¯t know what you expect me to...¡± he trailed off as a dozen more wolves left the cave, each in a similar condition. One walked over to them, stumbling as its legs struggled to support it, its eyes almost shut from sores on its face. Grabbing a plate from his pack, he poured out a dose of anaesthetic for it, watching as it pulled itself over and drank as fast as it could, apparently extremely thirsty. Others began to approach, and started snuffling around the plate that he refilled as much as he could. Looking at them while they drank, he used what little skill he had with anatomy to try and see what was wrong, but all he could tell was that they were extremely sick, and were dying.If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Jicker began pacing, looking to the wolves occasionally while he racked his brains. Normally a bunch of sick animals wouldn¡¯t be his problem, but the silhouwolves had helped him, so he owed them this much. ¡°Pen,¡± he said, going over to the alpha, ¡°when they got sick, did they come here? Or is this where they got sick?¡± For a moment it didn¡¯t move, its eyes locked on the sickly wolves, before turning and flicking its head towards the cave. ¡°We¡¯re going to need to work on communication, but I take it they were from here,¡± he said. Walking around, he looked for any sign of what could be causing the wolves to be sick, something they¡¯d eaten or touched. But the entire area was dead, so there was nothing around that could have affected them... ¡°Unless it was the same thing,¡± he said as he face palmed at his own stupidity. Seeing the clearing properly for the first time, he realised it was almost perfectly circular with the cavern sitting almost dead in the centre. Whatever was causing the problem was likely inside the cave itself, so he went in, hoping his poison resistance would be enough to hold off whatever this was. The cavern was cold inside as he made his way down, the ground falling away as he went deeper inside. As the light faded and he headed further in, he began to notice the smell. Not needing to worry about being detected, Jicker withdrew a torch of his pack and lit it, to get a better view of what the cave contained. Lying around cave were wolves, in even worse states than the ones that had come out to see them when they¡¯d approached. They shifted as the light hit them but stayed where they lay some looking like they couldn¡¯t move if they tried, others well past moving altogether. Careful stepping past the sick, Jicker searched for something that could help him identify what had caused this outbreak. The cave was barren however, even more so than the clearing had become, not even a scrap of moss to give some idea of what had caused this. Heading back out, he went to Penumbra, who seemed to be communicating with the sick. On his approach, the alpha flicked its head towards him, and one of the dying wolves approached him, in a manner that he recognised. ¡°Pen, I don¡¯t mind changing them but I''m pretty sure it won¡¯t cure whatever this,¡± he said to the alpha, which in turn didn¡¯t move a muscle, staring at the gremlin that eventually sighed and looked away. ¡°Fine, I¡¯ll try but no promises.¡± Activating the conversion ability on the wolves was an interesting experience, their fur rapidly regrowing over their disfigured bodies. But while they changed to silhouwolves, their movements were still that of people on their last legs. But it gave them a better chance than they¡¯d had before. ¡°Pen, they¡¯re stronger than they were before, but they¡¯re still dying, all this has just bought them some time. But if we can keep them alive long enough, maybe they can fight this off themselves. Right now they need food and water, and while I have a little water with me, it¡¯s not going to last very long. Can you get some food for them?¡± Jicker asked. Penumbra cocked his head for a moment then let out a cry. Before its echoes had died away, a pair of wolves emerged from the trees, dragging a still flailing deer into the clearing. Some of the healthy animals attempted to approach it, but with nothing more than a glance the alpha cowed them in to retreating, leaving it for the ones that needed it. ¡°Well, that will help for now, but I still need to find the source of the problem. There are some inside the cave that can¡¯t walk; can you help get them out while I look around?¡± Going back inside, Jicker watched as the Silhouwolves helped their new pack mates to walk, supporting them as they left the cave, leaving him to sit alone amongst the dead. Looking around for an answer, he quickly realised that all of his medical knowledge, from both his time as Maser and Jicker, quickly added up to nothing. ¡°I don''t know what I¡¯m supposed to do,¡± he told himself quietly. He started pacing around in the empty cave, occasionally pausing to poke and prod at one of the deceased wolves. But after half an hour of this, he realised he had no idea what he was trying to do, and simply sat in silence, thinking. But it wasn¡¯t silent, he realised after a few moments. Between his heartbeat that seemed to be thundering in his ears and occasional sound that leaked in from the wolves outside, there was a noise. It wasn¡¯t loud, and if anything else had been in the cave with him he wouldn¡¯t have noticed it, but it was there, a faint murmuring from the back of the cave. Leaping up, he moved towards the source, staying as quietly as he could, not willing to risk losing it. Pressing his ear to the walls, he traced it to a point on the floor, a subtle sound coming through from below. Grabbing his pick from his pack, he began to hack away at the stone below him, trying to get at whatever was making the noise. But in doing so, he broke the first rule of mining: never dig straight down. As the ground broke away beneath him, his first reaction was to try and grab on to the edge, but his attention was distracted by a message from the game as he broke through.
Warning: You are currently being affected by a severe magical poisoning. While exposed to the source you will take 3 mana and stamina damage per second. When stamina and mana reach 0 you will begin to take 1 damage per 5 seconds.
Looking around at his surroundings, he realised especially the large black crystal floating in the centre of the chamber. Several clocked figures surrounded him. ¡°Who dares enter the halls of...¡± one began. ¡°Hang on; haven¡¯t I seen you down here before?¡± ~~~~~~ Apparently the cave had been directly above a section of the Rising Moon guild hall, which made Jicker wonder just how expansive it really was. The problem, it seemed, was which part of the guild it was. ¡°Seriously dude, you can¡¯t just make new entrances,¡± a human wearing the guild robes said. ¡°We¡¯ve got rules and stuff about who and how people come in.¡± ¡°I came here once before,¡± Jicker began, ignoring what they were saying as he studied the node. ¡°The earth node in Ardenvale gave off a heap of energy; this one should be doing the same. So why aren¡¯t you all being affected by it?¡± ¡°Personal shields when we¡¯ve got to work with it, and we¡¯ve put down a circle to contain it. But come on man we need to seal up that hole you made before-¡± ¡°Did you cover every direction?¡± he asked, trying to confirm his suspicions. ¡°What? Of course we did, we¡¯re not idiots. Full barriers on all sides, circle on the floor. Now listen to me and-¡± ¡°The roof?¡± ¡°-fix the hole you made or...What?¡± ¡°Did you cover the roof?¡± he said slowly. ¡°Well,¡± the figure looked to the others in the room, who just shrugged. ¡°No. What would be the point? Our guild stops here.¡± ¡°Because, that means you didn¡¯t contain all of the energy it was releasing, you just channelled it all straight up.¡± ¡°Same thing, it¡¯s all out of the guild so its fine.¡± ¡°Oh sure, it¡¯s fine. Unless you consider the fact that everything within a hundred yards of this thing on the surface is dead or dying, including the wolf pack that was living in the cave attached to this place.¡± The person chuckled. ¡°We¡¯re about to overthrow a city and become its rulers. We do that and we¡¯ll own this whole area outright! Who cares what happens to a bunch of mangy mutts?¡± Jicker was about to respond when a growl filled the room, everyone turning to look at the opening in the roof. Penumbra had apparently decided it had been too long since he¡¯d heard anything, and after coming in to find him, didn¡¯t look happy with what he¡¯d heard. ¡°Apparently,¡± Jicker said as the alpha flowed into the room, taking up most of it. ¡°He does, and I¡¯m sure he¡¯ll be happy to hear all of your reasons why his pack doesn¡¯t matter.¡± ¡°Call off your pet, or I¡¯ll be forced to kill it,¡± one of the guild members said. ¡°He¡¯s no one¡¯s pet, and while I might be able to reason with him, it¡¯s hard to argue when I agree with him.¡± ¡°I''m a level sixty seven necromancer! Do you really think I''m afraid of some animal?¡± ¡°Your words say you¡¯re not, but the way you¡¯re trying to keep the node between you and him says otherwise. A few hours ago I saw these wolves take out dozens of people around your level without breaking a sweat, and they had places to run. What do you think your chances really are?¡± ¡°No matter who would win, I¡¯d rather you didn¡¯t fight at all.¡± Came a voice from down the hall way. The room turned again, now looking at Mary as she walked into the room, studying its occupants. ¡°Now, I initially came here to see what had triggered my alarms and broken through the guild walls, but it looks like this has become something else. Octivian,¡± she said snapping her fingers and point to another person in the room, an elf who had been trying to stay out of it. ¡°Give me a report on what happened here.¡± ¡°Well,¡± Octivian began, licking their lips as their eyes darted around. ¡°We were beginning to adjust the runes and barriers on the node like Arcus told us too. Then this guy, the gremlin, broke through the ceiling above it and started asking about our shields. Then Harrison made a comment about the wolves and then... that came in.¡± ¡°I see. Harrison, is that true? Did you say something to cause this situation?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t say anything!¡± they cried. ¡°I just said that our assault is more important than some mangy-AAAH!¡± The robed figure collapsed against the wall in fear as Penumbra leapt across the room, jaws aimed at the human¡¯s throat. But luckily for him the wolf never made it across, instead stuck floating in the air several inches from his target, jaws snapping ineffectually. ¡°Jicker, this is the pack leader isn¡¯t it? And its name was...Penumbra¡±? Mary said, her arm outstretched towards the wolf. Jicker nodded in shock. He wouldn¡¯t have been able to react to the sudden lunge at all, let alone cast a spell, and certainly not one that could stop half a tonne of angry wolf dead in the air and hold it effortlessly. He mentally promised himself never to go up against Mary if he could avoid it. ¡°Now then,¡± she continued, as she moved her hand spinning the alpha gently until they were face to face. ¡°You¡¯re the leader of your pack, and I¡¯m told you understand our speech well enough, so listen up. You¡¯re responsible for your pack, and they¡¯ve apparently been hurt badly and now insulted by Harrison here, so I understand your reaction. In fact, in another place and time, I¡¯d applaud it. But these people are my guild, my pack, so I am in control of them. And while we¡¯re in my hall you are not going to interrupt me and you¡¯re not going to challenge my authority! Understood?¡± The two stared at each other, the others in the room refusing to even breathe in case they break the silence. One was a small dark elf, the other a massive black wolf, but it was clear who was more powerful. After what seemed like an age Penumbra broke eye contact and turned away, at which Mary nodded and lowered him back to the floor. ¡°Right then, and for what it¡¯s worth I''m sorry your people have suffered. Now I heard a few things from the hall as I came up. Harrison, you and Octivian were given the job of sealing up the node until we needed it. Did you cover the roof?¡± ¡°...No.¡± ¡°And why didn¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Because putting a seal on the roof would have been hard, and it wasn¡¯t necessary! Even if there were some...complications, it still did the job, it was still hidden!¡± he said indignantly. ¡°So you went and had a look to make sure there were no visible signs of it? Like you were told to?¡± That made the man hesitate. ¡°I... It¡¯s in the middle of the woods! Who¡¯s going to go out and compare magical signs out there for no reason?¡± ¡°No reason...¡± she said, deep in thought as she tapped her chin. ¡°Jicker, you found it, how¡¯d you to know to look for its magical signature?¡± ¡°What signature? I found the damn thing because everything¡¯s dead in a massive circle around it. How could I not notice it?¡± Jicker said, raising an eyebrow. Mary frowned and launched herself up through the tunnel he¡¯d cared in the roof. For a moment they wondered if they¡¯d been supposed to follow her, when her shout echoed back down the tunnel. ¡°HARRISON!¡± she sped back down and grabbed the man by the collar lifting him up off the ground. ¡°You were told to make sure no one would find or look for the node! There¡¯s a damn football field up there of dead earth that would catch the attention of the dumbest adventurer! The only reason I can think of that no one has spotted it sooner, is that a certain group of ¡®mangy animals¡¯ has been attacking pretty much anyone who goes this far into the woods. Now, can you give me a single good reason not to literally throw you to the wolves?¡± she snarled at him. ¡°We...need everyone for the attack?¡± he said, half pleading. She held him for a few more seconds before grunting and throwing back down. ¡°You¡¯re right. We need everyone we can get for the attack. Even with all our advantages, taking a city is gonna be rough. So you get to avoid becoming a chew toy this time, but you¡¯re still on my shit list. Octivian, since this idiot apparently can¡¯t be trusted, put a barrier on the top of the damn thing before you continue. Jicker, Penumbra, walk with me.¡± They began to head down the hall, the wolf pausing to growl at the man who was still frozen in fear on the ground. As they moved further along, Mary turned to them. ¡°I¡¯m...sorry about that. Any other time I¡¯d let you get revenge for that level of incompetence, but right now I don''t have the time to find a replacement for him. Is there anything I can do to help?¡± Jicker turned to Penumbra and back. ¡°My best guess is that if the node is closed off, and they get some distance from it, they¡¯ll be able to recover. After that they just need food and rest, though a bit of healing wouldn¡¯t hurt.¡± She nodded. ¡°That we can do, at least for now. We aren¡¯t the best when it comes to healing magic but I¡¯ll send some of our better people with some food and water out for a while, but then they¡¯re going to need come back to recharge. I don''t know if you remember but we¡¯ve got a pretty busy day coming up soon.¡± ¡°Heh, yeah I remember. Thanks for this Mary,¡± he said, beginning to turn away from her when she continued speaking. ¡°Are you sure you remember? Because I just received a message saying that you and Oda were being busy somewhere else recently. You wouldn¡¯t have been causing problems for us would you?¡± ¡°Yeah, you see,¡± he said, not knowing what to say. ¡°We didn¡¯t mean to start anything, but the situation kind of got away from us and-¡± ¡°Don''t say anything else!¡± They all looked to see Oda sprinting towards them, pushing past people in his way to get them. Stopping in front of them, the assassin was bent over trying to catch his breath, leaning on Penumbra who seemed too confused by the man to be bothered by it. ¡°What did you say?¡± he asked after he¡¯d managed to stand up properly. ¡°I was just about to say that-¡± ¡°Ah! Don''t say anything, don''t even think anything loudly, just leave that part to me. She doesn¡¯t actually know anything, she just doesn¡¯t trust me so she does this to anyone I work with.¡± ¡°And by the way you¡¯re telling him to be quiet, I¡¯m right, again. What did you do?¡± ¡°We... look, I¡¯ll explain later, but what¡¯s going on here? Why¡¯s big and fluffy inside the base?¡± As they explained what Jicker had found, Oda¡¯s expression began to turn dark. ¡°I¡¯m surprised you seem to care Oda,¡± Mary said, looking at his expression. ¡°It¡¯s not like you to care about this sort of thing.¡± ¡°Normally, said things haven¡¯t just helped to save my ass from getting killed. I¡¯ll explain properly later, but those things are tough, smart and vicious.¡± ¡°Really? You needed saving? Jeez you must have screwed up worse than I thought... however you have given me an idea. Jicker do you think you could get them to help with the siege? Not the attack itself, since they¡¯re ambush predators, but maybe patrolling to keep runners and messengers at bay? Like I said we need everyone we can get.¡± Jicker shrugged. ¡°Don''t look at me, I just made them. Penumbra is the one who calls the shots.¡± She looked down at the wolf that was lying on the floor, having gotten bored of the conversation. ¡°Well? What do you think?¡± she asked the animal. Penumbra raised his head and cocked it slightly, apparently considering it, but then turned back towards the node and growled deeply, the sound echoing throughout the halls. ¡°Right, you¡¯re not exactly happy with us after Harrisons screw up. While I hope you understand it was an accident, and that guild didn¡¯t know what he¡¯d done, I don''t know what we can give you to apologise for it.¡± ¡°You could just give them Harrison." Oda suggested as he played with a knife he¡¯d pulled from somewhere. ¡°I can¡¯t just hand over one of our people to be killed before a massive battle, that¡¯s crazy!¡± she exclaimed. ¡°Well, do it afterwards then. He¡¯ll respawn and it¡¯s his fault anyway, so he should pay for it.¡± ¡°He¡¯d never agree to that.¡± ¡°You don''t need to do anything. Just refuse to follow up on it when he ends up a snack to some vengeful hunters. I doubt that the silhouwolves need any help to get him when he leaves the base, and if he ends up too scared to leave, well... I owe them a favour or two.¡± Penumbra had been following the conversation, and by the end was wagging his tail, looking for all the world like a big friendly dog. He gave a short, happy bark and stood up to shake himself. ¡°I guess the terms are accepted. I¡¯ll send Oda or Jicker to find you if I need to tell you anything in particular, but I think you understand well enough. If that¡¯s everything I¡¯ll get back to arranging supplies for the patients up top.¡± Penumbra went to head back outside then paused and began to run further into the building. The other three looked at each other for a second then hurried after the animal, no one having any idea what it was doing. They came out into one of the common rooms, largely empty at the moment but there were still a few people who leapt up as they saw the wolf enter the room. Looking around, Penumbra approached a section of wall and gave a strange call that seemed far deeper than a wolf should be able to sound. The stone work in front of him began to darken and ripple, fragments of shadows breaking off of surrounding objects and pooling in the centre. The wall quickly became a shifting wall of darkness that rippled oddly, tendrils of inky shadow stretching away from the wall and twisting in chaotic patterns. Giving a second, more normal howl, the wolf moved away from its work and waited looking into the darkness. It didn¡¯t have to wait long, as other silhouwolves began to walk out from the shadowy surface. Behind them they dragged bodies, the remains of the Seekers that they¡¯d taken in the battle, some mostly intact, others...less so. A few quickly turned to dozens as more and more bodies were dragged into the growing pile in the middle of the room, sending some bystanders into a panic. Once all the bodies had been deposited, at least those they planned to return, the wolves went back into the darkness, Penumbra included. As soon as the last wolf stepped through, the alpha followed them, the darkness rapidly changing back to normal shadows that dissipated in the light of the room¡¯s torches. It was as if they had never been there, yet the pile of dead adventurers in the centre of the room said otherwise. ¡°He can do that?¡± Mary asked quietly after a few minutes, breaking the silence that had formed. ¡°Yeah, I guess he can.¡± Chapter 20 The rest of day seemed to rush by as people hurried out to drop of boxes of food upstairs as others came to start preparing and reanimating the usable bodies to add to the army. Oda was forced to do some quick explaining as to why there were bodies at all, but since they were carrying a number of useful pieces of equipment and nothing was lost, Mary let them off on a warning. As other people started coming in, bringing in the bodies that had been left in camp, the piles of equipment began stacking up. When players died they didn¡¯t drop everything they had; only a few random items they were carrying. But with over two hundred kills on players that went out of their way to hunt down rare and unusual equipment, it quickly added up. Having been involved in the actual battle, Jicker was able to get to pick a few pieces first. Most of it wasn¡¯t suitable or useful to him, either being too high a level for him to be able to use, or be completely opposed to what he needed. For instance he found a suit of plate mail that would more than double his health, but trying to wear it not only let him almost unable to move, but made him clank around like a pile of tin cans. In the end he limited himself to just a few items, things that he could use at his current level that would still be a large improvement. His first choice was to replace the old sabre he¡¯d made, picking up a new blade.
Long Serrated Scalpel Item type: Weapon Grade: Rare Restriction: Level 20 Minimum 10-42 damage This long handled blade comes to sharp point and backed with a serrated bone saw. When used for critical strikes the damage is increased by 50%. When used for surgery, chances of success are increased by 25%.
It was much lighter and sleeker than his previous weapon, which was promptly thrown into a trash can, and also had the benefit of not smelling like a waste pit. His second choice was a new acquisition rather than a replacement. It was a cloak that he hadn¡¯t noticed when it had first been thrown on to the growing pile of gear. He only spotted it at all after tripping on it after going to examine something else.
Chameleons Cloak Item type: Cloak Grade: Rare Restriction: Level 23 Minimum When left in the same place for 10 seconds, this leather cloak will begin to take on the colouration of its surroundings, allowing the wearer to hide more easily.
The cloak would be all but useless for someone more mobile like Oda, but for him and strategies of hiding and waiting, it was perfect. The final item he bothered to grab was a new set of boots that had fallen off someone his size.
Grey Soles Item type: Boots Grade: Common These shoes are both comfortable and durable, with the added benefit of reducing the noise of the wearer¡¯s footsteps.
Most of the equipment he picked up was taken from assassins and cutthroats rather than crafters, but considering the source that wasn¡¯t really surprising. People investigating unexplored tombs and dungeons might bring along a blacksmith to keep things running, but they would''t bring along carpenters or alchemists. The rest of the equipment was sorted and stored in the guilds strongroom, though a few pieces vanished as people came to investigate the pile. Having no other plans for the day, Jicker just wandered the guild hall for a while; occasionally check up on the wolves on the surface. The guild had dropped of several sides of beef, as well as a few water troughs. While the animals kept back from the people as they¡¯d brought the items up, they¡¯d fallen on them ravenously once they had gotten clear. The few healers the guild could spare carefully walked amongst them doing what they could, the wolves flinching away, but staying still long enough for the people to do their job. The result was that while they still looked weak and malnourished, they no longer looked like they were going to collapse at any moment. Once they had all managed to get to get their feet and they¡¯d picked the meat clean of every edible scrap, they headed into the trees, leaving the dead where they lay in the cave. Now that the wolves had left and the node had been properly sealed, Jicker went back in to the hall to find that everyone had gathered together in front of a stage. Before long Mary walked out and addressed them. ¡°Members of the Rising Moon!¡± She called out in a clear voice. ¡°For almost a year now we have been preparing for this moment, dedicating ourselves to our common goal. We have sacrificed our time, our wealth and our status to get here. For too long we have been judged and oppressed for our choices and actions, only because they didn¡¯t align with the opinions of others. We have been declared evil and outcasts, monsters and troublemakers for things often beyond our control. I will not say we are perfect, and I certainly won¡¯t say we are a force of good. But we should have the same rights as others, and be innocent until proven guilty, rather than be run out of town because of rumours. Because of this we found each other and began our search for a home, a place we could walk freely and call our own. But no city would take us in; no kingdom would grant us the right to build our own. So with little choice, as is our path it seems, we began our work to take the last option available to us. Tomorrow we will march out, not hiding in the shadows but with our heads held high. We will no longer lie or hide our magic, but wield them proudly as we fight for what will be ours. Our forces are ready, our numbers are great and our purpose is clear. So rest now, recover your energy and prepare yourselves. For tomorrow, we begin our attack on Ardenvale.¡± As Mary finished her speech and went to leave the stage, a thunderous applause broke out, people cheering and stomping their feet. Any thoughts of remaining hidden were forgotten as the stress of the past months was released. ¡°Before you start to party too hard this evening,¡± she said, speaking up again. ¡°Remember that the hardest part is still to come. So if you want to drink and celebrate, make sure you¡¯re fit and healthy by tomorrow, or you¡¯ll answer to me.¡± Taking her advice, several players decided to log out and catch a few hours of sleep, Jicker included. ~~~~~~ Removing the headset and going to the kitchen, Matt searched through the fridge for something to eat. Settling on a chicken sandwich and half a stick of garlic bread that he found wedged in the back of the freezer. Waiting for his meal to heat up he went and set an alarm for a few hours from now, not wanting to show up to the battle late. Checking in on the news, he was amused to see that there were several reports of cities in Genesis making evacuation plans in case they were attacked by something like the earthwyrm. Apparently a few people had decided it was some kind of nuclear grade summoning spell that had been discovered, and considering how effective it had been, it wasn¡¯t a terrible theory Wondering absently whether they should prepare to leave Ardenvale in case, he finished his meal and went to bed. ~~~~~~ Dropping back into the game, Jicker found himself alone in the hall, having overslept by half an hour. Hurrying to the main chamber, he saw someone and followed them up to the surface no one caring about keeping the guild hidden anymore. But as he left through the exit that had been opened and stepped into the sun, Jicker stopped in amazement at what he saw. The average necromancer that he¡¯d seen while playing had managed to maintain a handful of zombies, occasionally raising some more in a pinch. Any more than that and they struggled to keep them rotting away, and attempts to strengthen them enough to last without constant maintenance were generally shutdown by the church or like minded players. But the guild had enough time and secrecy to put in the work, and Gabe had let them store bodies by the score to be worked on. The result wasn¡¯t a large shambling horde like he¡¯d been expecting, a mob of loosely controlled bodies. Instead they stood in disciplined squads, carefully arranged and organised legions. Each had been outfitted with leather and was armed with both a long spear and shield. Attached to each squadron was a large skeletal champion, standing at ten feet tall and covered head to toe in black steel, a massive greatsword strapped to their backs. Scattered amongst the forces were the guild members themselves, dressed and readied for battle. Any exuberance they¡¯d had the night before had been stripped away, everyone aware that it all came down to this moment. In the distance he could see people fleeing towards the city, unsure of what was going on but knowing that being in front of an undead army wasn¡¯t a good choice. After an hour of standing in the sun, the zombies began to slam their spears into the ground in unison, creating a thunderous rhythm. After a few minutes of this a group of people were dispatched from the city to see what was happening. Rather than risk getting too close to a hostile force, they paused a few hundred feet from the front lines and used magic to amplify their voice. ¡°To the armed forces within Ardenvale¡¯s territory! I am sergeant Gamber of the Ardenvale guard! You are violating the law by intentionally bringing undead creatures within three miles of the city! Surrender the bodies for destruction and disperse! Do you understand?¡± People within the guilds ranks began to chuckle, which quickly spread and turned to outright laughing. While the majority of the forces stood shaking with laughter amongst the dead, and the people from the city continued to make demands, Gabe advanced. Jicker wasn¡¯t sure how he¡¯d found the time for it, but he¡¯d had armour made for Princess, making the rugged creature into a true warhorse. Silvery chains hung from the various plates of brightly polished steel adorning the mount, and a shining white blade had been attached to her horn. But the feature that caught the attention of the entire field was the horse shoes that Jicker assumed Gabe had made himself. Made of some bluish substance, trails of frost spread from them both up the animal¡¯s legs and below, forming small platforms of ice below each hoof. The result was a temporary trail left through the air as Gabe rode her into the air above the battle field, leaving her standing proudly on what had been empty air. As Princess reared up, Gabe addressed the detachment from the city, amplifying his own voice to be heard by everyone behind its walls.Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. ¡°When we planned this, we tried to account for every possibility, a reaction for every action. So congratulations! At no point did we ever think that the cities response would be to tell us to just go away. But the problem here I think, is communication. We¡¯re not here to visit, and we¡¯re certainly not going to hand over all of our hard work. Instead, we are going to take your city. We are going to march on it, open its gates and break down its walls. We will fight, kill and raise anyone who attempts to fight us, be they soldier or citizen, or just passing through. For the next hour people we are allowing people to leave, abandoning anything and everything remaining inside after they leave, however any attack against us will end this period immediately. Anyone left after then is considered either a trespasser in our city, or loyal to our reign. So tell us, sergeant Gamber, do you understand?¡± For a moment there was silence from both sides as they waited for the sergeant¡¯s response, everyone on edge to see how things would play out. Apparently his mind was made up, as he wordlessly turned and ran back towards the city, the rest of those he¡¯d brought with him following closely behind. Gabe turned Princess around and addressed the guild. ¡°Okay, not the start we expected, but things are back on track. You all know your assignments, and those that weren¡¯t given one know the drill. This isn¡¯t going to be over quickly, so we need to minimise our losses once the fight starts and hold the line. Play it safe and keep together, being a hero might get you points but it will also get you dead. Right then, take your divisions and begin to circle the city, and wait for orders before... hold on a moment.¡± Not everyone in the city was willing to wait an hour to fight it seems, as several people from atop its defences had been gathering energy for a spell. Once the soldiers from the city had gotten clear, they unleashed it, a massive ball of red broiling flame arced lazily upwards from where they stood, aiming towards the centre of the army. Despite the oncoming threat, not a single guild member moved except for Gabe, who he trotted Princess forwards to place himself directly in the path of the oncoming attack. As it fell towards them, the normally childish mage¡¯s face turned serious as he dropped the reins, blue mist gathering around his hands. Collecting the forming frost into a ball he compressed and focused it until he held a basketball sized sphere of ice so blue that it almost looked black. Raising his hands he shot it forwards into the flame where it was swallowed whole, having no visible effect. But a few seconds later the flame exploded, ripped apart by whatever magic he had cast, letting it safely disperse overhead and leave nothing but a faint cloud of snow that began to drift downwards.
Ding! Quest: The siege of Ardenvale The guild of the Rising Moon had declared war on the city Ardenvale. This quest will remain active until either the guild is defeated or the city is taken. Rewards: Player rewards will be based on their contributions to the winning side.
Dismissing the message looking around, Jicker saw the rest of the guild doing the same, and expression of excitement on their faces. ¡°Well,¡± Gabe called from his position above the guild. ¡°It looks like our fight is now official and that the city doesn¡¯t feel like running. So boys and girls, let¡¯s get to work!¡± A cheer broke out amongst the army and the advance began, the undead legions beginning to slowly march towards the city. In the distance they could see the gates of the city swing closed and hundreds of figures beginning to climb the walls. The fight had begun. ~~~~~~ ¡°Where¡¯s my mirror, I need to check my hair.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine, now get ready, we¡¯re live in twenty.¡± The reporter smoothed out her dress and looked behind her to the battle that raged in the background. While large scale battles weren¡¯t exactly rare, ones that went on for more than a few hours were, especially this close to civilisation. So the news network had sent her out to get live coverage for them to stream to the public. It was somewhat risky, if one side of the fight thought she was an enemy, but usually people ignored the media in these situations. ¡°3...2...and go.¡± Her cameraman said. ¡°Good afternoon, this is Mindy Lawless, reporting for channel eighty three, your first source on Genesis news. At around three o¡¯clock pacific standard time today, the guild known as the Rising Moon launched an unprovoked attack on the city of Ardenvale. Since then, the fight has escalated over the past three hours into a full blown war. Hundreds of players that had been in the city at the time of the siege have taken up arms and joined in the city¡¯s defence. Against them is an attacking force of zombies, skeletons and a number of other undead. When the fight began it has changed into an official quest, but with the nearest town several days away, it is unlikely that any reinforcements will reach the city in time to help defend it. Stay tuned as we watch both sides unleash their greatest spells and mightiest warriors against each other in what will be the first attempt to overthrow a city since the upheaval. Now we¡¯re going to see if we can move closer to the action and... Dave, get a look at that thing over there. What is that?¡± ~~~~~~ Penumbra looked out towards battle from his place in the trees. Part of him knew that his new body could hide almost anywhere, but keeping to the trees was an instinct he couldn¡¯t shake. Huffing, he lay down as he listened to the calls of his pack that surrounded the area, keeping an ear out for anything that needed his attention. He didn¡¯t really understand why the-angry-one¡¯s pack was fighting against this one, but that didn¡¯t really matter. Her pack had brought food and other things to his, so it felt...right, to do the same. He whined, the strange thoughts making him uncomfortable. Ever since the-one-who-wasn¡¯t-pack had changed him, his mind had been so much more than it had been. Before his life had been simple, nothing more than hunt, eat, mate and protect. But now he thought about the future, knew that there was a future. It wasn¡¯t all bad, he was much bigger and stronger than before, his pack had grown and absorbed others, and their territory had grown massively. But then he thought about things other than his own pack, like when they¡¯d saved the-one-who-was-hard-to-smell, he wondered why he did it. When he asked others in his pack, they didn¡¯t understand, and seemed...slow, compared to him. They didn¡¯t seem to have these thoughts about things beyond food and the pack, thinking only about right now. He turned towards the strange thing moving amongst the moving dead, confused by what he saw. It felt strange to him, and the things around it looked like they felt the same. It looked like they wanted it to be there, but he couldn¡¯t understand why they would want something like that nearby. He whined again before his ears perked up, hearing a call from the other side of the stone thing they fought for. Slipping through the shadows to other side, Penumbra revelled in the feeling, loving being able to sneak up his prey without being seen. When he appeared, the one who called showed him the tracks; a dozen of the ones from the stone thing had run away, making him happy. His life had become complicated, but the hunt was simple. ~~~~~~ The battle had ebbed since it had first begun as things reached a sort of stalemate for the time being. Initially it seemed as though the guild would overrun the city with ease, the first groups of adventurers that had left the city to fight them being buried in undead soldiers in moments. Apparently they weren¡¯t prepared for properly reinforced undead, and had expected them to break apart with the slightest touch. But since then they¡¯d stopped sending out groups and stayed behind the walls, launching spells and firing arrows down into the waiting masses. The dead, while an imposing force, weren¡¯t well equipped to fight at range, and their scrabbling at the gates had so far proved ineffective. While the mages and other adventures of the Rising Moon were firing back, the siege had turned quiet, with both sides taking the time to reload and plan their next moves. But that time was about to come to an end, Jicker saw, as he spotted the guilds prize being moved forwards. He wasn¡¯t sure where they¡¯d gotten the body, or how they¡¯d raised it, but it certainly stood out. A tortoise like creature of enormous size, it towered above the army it walked through, seeming more like a mobile building than an undead creature. Its leathery skin had been reinforced with iron plates and spikes, bolted directly into the flesh and bone of the beast, runes carved along its sides. Its head slowly swung side to side, its jaws and empty eye sockets leaking a dark mist that pooled around it. The centre of its shell had been cut away hollowed out, and sitting in the centre and bound with chains of bone was the node, casting its sickly light over the battlefield around it. ¡°Let¡¯s see how they handle this.¡± Mary said fiercely as she watched the monsters progress. Not being equipped for siege warfare, Jicker had wander the rear line of the field for a time, helping to patch up the wounded, and had ended up at the command tent. Sitting on the field a good half a mile from the walls, it was the only structure the guild had bothered putting up. Inside the guild heads peered over maps of the city and surrounding area, making notes and sending runners out to relay orders to the NPCs of the guild. With the node finally taking the field, the commanders had left the tent and were watching to see the defenders reaction. At least, most of them were. ¡°It really does look like a cupcake now. Don¡¯t act like you don¡¯t see it,¡± Gabe said as he pointed towards the cloud. ¡°It widens out, it¡¯s rounded on the top, and it¡¯s got a big candle of stone sticking out the top now. With the node glowing on top it even looks lit!¡± ¡°Thanks for that Gabe,¡± Mary sighed as she turned to her brother. ¡°We¡¯ve been planning an attack all this time, we¡¯ve finally launched the assault, and now all I can see is that our final objective looks like a goddamn muffin.¡± ¡°...I said cupcake.¡± He said, looking abashed. ¡°Just...go and blast some people would you?¡± As Gabe remounted and took to the air again, the rest of the people turned back to the node as its carrier moved slowly towards the city. There was a commotion from the defenders as they spotted the oncoming beast and began to prepare countermeasures. Naturally suited to dealing with the undead, white magic had quickly become the highest priority in the city once they¡¯d seen the nature of the invading force. Clerics, priest and all manner of holy classes had taken to the walls, raining down beams of light against the dead below. But as the carrier trudged forwards, the defence held their attacks and began pooling their energy, unleashing a massive torrent of bright energy towards the tortoise. As the flow of magic passed over the dead on its way to it target, the ones in its path, began to shrivel and break, unable to withstand such a large amount of force that ran against their very existence. But as it came within a hundred yards of the beast itself, the energy began to buckle and dissipate, branching and splintering as it came up against opposition from the node. By the time the blast reach the tortoise, the attack was only a tenth of its initial size, and while it still struck with enough force to flatten the units around it, the tortoise itself was able to shrug off the attack. The heads cheered as the attack failed, their biggest gamble paying off. Mary gave a signal to the others to get ready for something. ¡°Arcus, prepare to return fire,¡± she said with an evil look on her face. Matching her expression, the necromancer closed his eyes and threw his hands forward. The tortoise, stopping in its tracks, raised its head upwards, facing towards the sky. Trails of light began to pour from the node and flow into the creature¡¯s mouth, collecting into an oily mass. Biting down suddenly, the flow cut off as it turned its face back towards the city and released the power it had collected. Where the city¡¯s attack had been a wide rush of white magic, this was a single ray of black light, an instant where it seemed the universe had split. Where it struck the wall there wasn¡¯t an explosion or a shockwave, no crumbling or even sound. Instead the point of impact flashed outward for a moment, creating a perfect sphere of darkness a few dozen yards across. When the dark faded a second later, the wall it stuck was gone, with not even rubble remaining. The entire sphere had been wiped clean of all material, the edges that had touched it gaining a polished look as it had been cut away so cleanly. ¡°Beautiful work. When can we fire again?¡± Mary asked while the rest of the field became quiet as they reeled at the display of power. ¡°Um,¡± Arcus began, shaking his head as he regained focus. ¡°It needs at least an hour before we can fire again, any more it will start to tear it apart and risk misfiring.¡± ¡°Well we can¡¯t have that. Have some people set up some defences around it while it recovers. Now let¡¯s make use of our new door before they try and seal it up. Oda stop standing behind me and get to work.¡± ¡°How¡¯d you know I was there?¡± the assassin asked as he became visible, sounding surprised. ¡°Because whenever you have the chance to sneak around and annoy people, you take it. I want you to get inside and start working on getting the gates open. Until we can secure a way in and out of the city that isn¡¯t going to be sealed off magically we can¡¯t risk sending too many inside. What do you think you need to get the job done?¡± Oda thought about it for a few moments. ¡°Give me half a dozen of the champions, and a bag of the explosives we brought. Also, make a push to draw their fire until I get inside.¡± ¡°They¡¯re yours. Grab what you need and I''m bringing the skeletons to meet you nearby. We¡¯ll go when you¡¯re in position.¡± ¡°I¡¯m also taking Jicker.¡± ¡°Wait, what?¡± Jicker exclaimed in surprise. Mary raised an eyebrow at his reaction. ¡°He¡¯s been helpful, true, but why?¡± ¡°He¡¯s the only other person we have with the enigma skill, so I won¡¯t need to change my strategy if I bring him along, and having someone to watch my back will make this easier. He¡¯s also got a few things in his bag I can make use of.¡± ¡°Fine, take him in. But is that the real reason?¡± ¡°Well, he¡¯s also small enough that I can carry him if need be, and light enough that I can probably throw him over the wall for emergency communication.¡± ¡°Now that makes more sense. In that case get moving, we¡¯re already getting reports of people trying to put up blockades over the breach.¡± Before Jicker could even say anything about not wanting to go inside, Oda slung a bag over his shoulder and hoisted him under his other arm and began to sprint towards the walls. Chapter 21 Jicker watched the battlefield rush by as Oda ran, having quickly resigned himself to his fate. While none of the defenders seemed to target them directly, they still ended up having to roll and dodge out of the way of random shots and explosions that blocked their path. As they got closer to the walls, the fighting became more intense, both sides desperate to control the breach in the walls. Warriors battled desperately to keep the undead at bay, the army becoming a mindless horde as they pressed in on the defenders. Jicker saw that as the battle had become more hectic, the discipline the zombie had been instilled with began to break down as weapons were discarded and replaced with teeth and clawing hands. It made them less effective soldiers, but to the defenders it was a psychological weapon in its own right. It was one thing to face off against a force of soldiers trying to cut you down, but another if they were trying to cut you into bite sized pieces. As the zombies rushed towards the breach at an alarming speed, a number of the skeleton champions had hung back, waiting for their arrival. Slowing down, Oda gave a signal to the armoured warriors who began to move in, drawing their blades and holding them at the ready. ¡°So what¡¯s the plan?¡± Jicker asked from his less than dignified position. ¡°We go in and open the gate,¡± Oda said without taking his eyes off the breach. ¡°That seems more like a goal than a plan.¡± ¡°Do you have a better one?¡± ¡°...No. so how are we going to get the skeletons inside? They aren¡¯t exactly stealthy,¡± he said, looking at massive figures loping along beside them. ¡°They¡¯re not coming in; they just need to make it look like they are.¡± ¡°You¡¯re wasting some of your best units on a distraction?¡± Jickerexclaimed. ¡°The more you commit to a feint, the less likely it is that anyone will actually think it is one. Now quiet for a minute, this parts going to be a bit tricky.¡± Like an icebreaker, the champions crashed into the defenders line, both them and the zombies nearby being thrown back by the impact. Size didn¡¯t mean everything in battle, and very few of the defenders seemed fazed by fighting something twice their size. But an opponent swinging around almost ten feet of sharpened steel will cause anyone to think twice, and the fight began to slowly push its way towards the breach. However while they were closing in on their target, it didn¡¯t look like they¡¯d make it in time. Huge slabs of stone had already been pulled from the ground and merged into the walls, shrinking the gap. Oda, having hung back from the initial collision, kept to the side as he watched the fight closely. As one of the defenders moved back to begin casting something, the assassin apparently spotted his opening and raced forwards. As the spell went off, it let off a massive burst of energy that bathed the area in brilliant light that burned the undead. Oda launched himself above the fighters who were momentarily blinded, moving quickly enough that by the time the light faded away they were already several dozen yards past and getting into cover. ¡°And that¡¯s how you infiltrate a city that¡¯s under siege,¡± Oda said proudly. They¡¯d wasted no time in going further into the city, and were currently positioned on a roof several blocks away from the walls. From here they could see the city¡¯s defenders organising their supply behind the walls and their troops being positioned at strategic points. The breach had been sealed off completely a few minutes after they¡¯d gotten through, though a detachment was still standing nearby in case it was attacked again. ¡°Okay, well done. Now what?¡± Jicker asked. ¡°Now we...open the gate.¡± ¡°Again, that¡¯s a goal not a plan. What do we do?¡± Oda stared at him flatly but he refused to break eye contact. Eventually he gave a tired sigh and looked back to the walls. ¡°I have no idea,¡± Oda said. ¡°we had plans for lots of things, but we also knew that no plan survives contact with the enemy, so we never came up with a way to accomplish this part. I figured I could come up with something.¡± ¡°So we¡¯re winging it then. Ok, we have a goal, and a bag of explosives. We can work with that I suppose.¡± ~~~~~~ It had been several hours since they¡¯d made it inside the city walls. The node had been fired a few more times since they¡¯d entered but each time the defenders had fought desperately to rapidly reseal the damage to the walls. So far they were holding out, but their people were dealing with each breach a little slower than the last. In theory, the Rising Moon would wear them down enough that they could get in without any subterfuge, but that was never the concern. Already armies from nearby cities were mobilising and getting ready to come to Ardenvale¡¯s aid, and millions of players were watching the reports on the siege, many of whom wanted to get involved. If they took the city before they got here, then by the rules of the game it would be theirs, and unable to be sieged again for one month. In that time they¡¯d be able to reinforce the defences and people would probably just accept it was theirs now. But if they were still outside when the reinforcements came... So the only way to take the city in time was to take control of the gates and keep them open, Jicker thought as he looked out over the city. Only a few weeks after the games initial release, rules had been put in place to stop people being able to magically seal city gates with magic, after some people had locked a city full of new players inside. Since then, they had become the only guaranteed way to get through a city¡¯s walls, and the primary target of every siege. However a city this size couldn¡¯t get by on just a single gate, people travelling to and from it in every direction. There were four main gates around the city, and while the army was pressing towards one at the moment, they were slowly spreading around and encircling the city. Soon they would be attacking from every side, which had given Jicker the idea. ¡°Okay, everything¡¯s in position. Are you sure this is going to work?¡± Oda said from behind, appearing suddenly on the roof top. ¡°If things go the way we think they will, it should be fine.¡± ¡°Well, I''ve gotten word to Mary about the plan, so I guess we wait a few minutes and then get started.¡± It was nerve wracking, watching people run around below them, knowing that if a single person managed to spot them not only would the plan be done, but they wouldn¡¯t make it out alive. They squatted down, trying to avoid casting a shadow that could be spotted by the enemy, though with Oda¡¯s abilities it wasn¡¯t a huge concern. ¡°What level is your enigma stat anyway?¡± Jicker asked out of curiosity to kill time. ¡°Well, it¡¯s rude to ask about another man¡¯s stats, but I don¡¯t actually have enigma anymore.¡± ¡°Wait, what? But I''ve seen you using it.¡± Oda smirked. ¡°What you¡¯ve been seeing is the upgraded form, insubstantia.¡± ¡°You actually managed to upgrade one?¡± Jicker asked in surprise. Oda simply smiled and turned away. While the base stats could be increased endlessly, once a players selected stats reached a cap of fifty, any further increase would cause them to upgrade into a superior version at level one. Not only would it be an improvement of the previous level, but would take on new properties. Jicker suddenly realised why his ability made people more likely to ignore him, while Oda¡¯s started to actively alter people''s memories of his actions. He was going to ask what level his new stat was, but Oda spoke first. ¡°Okay, that¡¯s five minutes. Let¡¯s do this.¡± ~~~~~~ Genesis was an amazing feat because of the realism it provided, the accuracy letting a person loose themselves in the game. But no amount of graphics, AI integration and physics engines could change human nature, so while the siege raged and people died on both sides of the walls, the markets were still in full swing, the workshops still trying to hit their deadlines. Since death meant nothing more to players than a setback, those who had things to do just kept going. If the defenders held the city, then business would go on as normal, and if they failed and the city was taken? Then the city would still need trade to function, and they¡¯d go on as before, if with a few different names on their tax files. So despite the soldiers moving through town to reach their positions and the occasional scare of artillery style magic, Jicker hadn¡¯t had any problem securing the pieces he¡¯d needed for the plan to work. A few pieces of copper wire, some small crystals and a bit of acid to etch them was all he needed. He didn¡¯t have his old tinkering skills that showed him exactly what he had to do, but he¡¯d built enough remote triggers as Maser that he could do it by memory. They were crude but efficient devices that would send a signal to activate the device their counterpart was attached to. So when Oda hit the one in his hand, the others received the signal, and the piles of explosives that had been set up around the gates went off. Three explosions occurred simultaneously around the city, each sending up clouds of fire and smoke over the city. The army outside had been told to expect it and immediately pressed the attack, and had sent forces to attack the other gates that had been hit. ¡°Think it¡¯ll work?¡± Jicker asked Oda. The two were currently hiding in an ally, watching the forth gate that hadn¡¯t been hit. Several squads of soldiers had been relaxing around it, no other gates having been attacked yet. But as soon as the explosives had gone off they¡¯d snapped to their feet, looking around anxiously. ¡°Like I said before, the more you commit to a feint, the less likely it is that anyone will actually think it is one. And in this case, it¡¯s not entirely a distraction, since Mary¡¯s probably committing enough forces to at least one of the gates that they¡¯ll have a decent chance to get in regardless of how this goes. But it¡¯s a pretty simple choice to move troops from a safe position to reinforce where the fighting¡¯s thickest.¡± ¡°I get that, but do you think it will work?¡± Jicker repeated, still doubtful. ¡°Well, I guess we¡¯re about to find out. Here comes a runner,¡± he replied, point down the street. They turned to look as a lightly armoured figure sprinted towards the soldiers, who were all nervously handling their weapons. ¡°New orders!¡± the runner said, wheezing as he stopped in front of them.Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. ¡°What¡¯s going on? We heard the explosions a minute ago.¡± One of the soldiers said, the others muttering things to similar effect. ¡°The other gates have come under attack. The council has issued orders that you are to immediately send aid to the other gates since you currently have spare manpower.¡± ¡°But what¡¯s going to happen if they attack this gate once we leave? We can¡¯t just leave it undefended.¡± ¡°Obviously. Send three quarters of your people out to assist as soon as you can move them.¡± ¡°But-¡± The runner apparently wasn¡¯t in the mood for back talk and cut him off. ¡°Look, if this gate is attacked it could be bad, but we¡¯ve got hundreds of zombies pressing in on the other gates right now. If you don''t like the orders, then hope we win so that you can take it up with the council.¡± There was still grumbling but the officers silenced them quickly enough. It only took a few minutes for the troops to get themselves ready to move, and suddenly the gate had turned from heavily defended, to lightly held. ¡°I think we can safely say the plan worked,¡± Oda said as he reached for something. ¡°You got any of those gas grenade things you used before?¡± ¡°The choking clouds? Yeah I''ve got a few, why?¡± ¡°One of the first rules of being a sneaky bastard, if someone pulls out a trick you haven¡¯t seen before, either, copy it, steal it or plan for it. And since I''m not much of a brewer, I went with plan.¡± Pulling something out of his pocket, he revealed it to be a thin white mask that stretched around to cover his entire head, leaving him completely featureless. ¡°This mask prevents any air or gas based effects, so feel free to fill the area with those. Now, are you ready to get to work?¡± ~~~~~~ There are many problems with relying on poison as a main means of attack. There are many things that either ignore its effects, or react in an unforseen way. But the biggest one, and the one Jicker was trying to deal with now, was that it wasn¡¯t instant. Any attempts to try and hit them from afar and wait for the poison to do its job would give them plenty of time to get word to others and the gate would be reinforced before they could get it open. Instead, they were going to pick off who they could, then hit hard and fast before they were discovered. The gas vials would help reduce the chance of them getting off a signal, but the moment they were used, the element of surprise would be gone. Oda was going to come from one side first, more likely to be able to take out several before being detected. Once they¡¯d caught on that they were under attack, Jicker would join in. Giving him a final nod Oda slipped away, somehow managing to hide in the shadows despite it being the middle of the day. Moving around to his own position, Jicker wondered how long it would take before he got the go ahead, but soon realised it wouldn¡¯t take long. Whether someone had been particularly observant, or Oda had messed up, only moments had passed before there was a call to arms. Rushing forwards, Jicker found himself frozen for a moment as he watched the assassin fight. When they¡¯d come across the seekers, he¡¯d struck with surgical precision, attacking high value targets before escaping again. But now he had thrown away that strategy and moved through the enemy like whirlwind of death, blood and body parts being thrown in every direction, fighting for the ambush to succeed, rather than just to survive. He still moved with the same near impossible speed, but he didn¡¯t bother with accuracy, slashing and hacking at whatever was close enough. Any plans or defences the soldiers tried to use were quickly destroyed, unable to keep up with the speed and savagery of the assault. Collecting himself, Jicker threw out a handful of vials of the choking clouds, yellow clouds rapidly covering the area. Where Oda had found equipment to handle the gases effects, he was relying on his own natural poison resistances. The air still irritated his eyes and skin, and his lungs felt like they were scraping against themselves, but it was merely painful instead of debilitating. The mages who had pulled back to prepare spells to fight back didn¡¯t fair so well, having given up casting as they coughed violently as the poison got into their systems. It wouldn¡¯t have any lasting effects, and wouldn''t do much apart from interrupt them, but it gave him time to reach them with his blade drawn. With the gas burning their eyes and covering his approach, Jicker had no trouble getting in position to plunge his blade into the chest of one of the enemy. In Genesis levels matter, and skills and equipment are just as important. Beyond that is personal skill, something beyond what the game can help you with, the part of a person that lets them use what they have available to them to the best of its ability. But none of that, no numbers or talents, will help a person deal with a foot and a half of steel through their heart. Striking upwards through their ribcage, the scalpel passed effortlessly through both their robes and flesh, dropping them in a single strike.
You have unlocked the Small blades weapon skill! Current level: 1 Allows for greater damage, effectiveness and use with the selected weapon. Current effects: increased armour penetration, increased accuracy, +1 damage
Dismissing the notification, he got back to work, withdrawing his scalpel and moving on to his next opponent. With the element of surprise and the mages inability to cast as effectively, Jicker had no problem dispatching several more before they started fighting back. As he pulled his weapon back from his latest target, a blast of force struck him from behind, stripping away almost half his health and sending him sprawling onto cobbled street. Knowing that staying still was a death sentence he sprung back to his feet, ignoring his body¡¯s protests. Moving further in to the fight, he hoped that the clouds of gas would be enough to hide his presence enough that they wouldn¡¯t be able to pick him off at range. Hearing someone casting behind him, he dropped low as a wave of fire rolled over him, striking several other soldiers in the process. Jicker grinned to himself as he pulled out his blowgun, an idea coming to mind. Anger could be useful in a fight, driving a person onwards, but fighting angrily was no different than fighting dumb. Keeping low, he moved back towards the mages and took aim, loading both a poison pellet and a battle drop. The pellets struck their target in rapid succession, a mage who had been gathering bolts of lightning around him, now dispersed as he flinched. ¡°I¡¯ll get you, you bastards!¡± the mage screamed blindly as they started throwing blasts out randomly, hoping to hit a target they couldn¡¯t see. Jicker laughed aloud, happy with the effect, which only goaded the mage further. Pain and irritation, combined with a surge of strength and adrenaline, left the target angry and wanting to lash out at the enemy, or at whatever they could consider an enemy. It was a useful technique, and apparently the game agreed.
Mother of invention! By combining the effects of two opposing potions, you have created a new formula with an original effect. Recipe: 1 battle drop & 1 poison pellet Item type: Pill (1) Grade: Uncommon, created by Unknown Effect: Target becomes irritable and uncontrollable and will begin attacking at all nearby targets, 15% physical damage resisted, 20% movement and attack speed increase, 15% mana and stamina regeneration increase - duration 3 minutes Do you wish to name this item?
¡°Frenzy,¡± he said loudly, inspiring another round of blasts in his direction that he narrowly avoided.
Name accepted. Creator will remain unknown. Apothecary level has increased by 1! Current level: 4
With frenzy now at his disposal, his strategy shifted again. With clouds of gas still masking the battlefield, it was easy to pick out the stronger fighters and unleash them on their surrounding allies. It would hardly work in a one on one scenario, but in a murky and confusing ambush they wasted no time in cutting down people they would have defended moments ago. Only a few minutes had passed since the first cry had gone out from one of Oda¡¯s victims, but almost all the defenders had been beaten. The gas was beginning to disperse and give people their first look at the fight since it had began. Blood ran like rivers over the cobbles, pooling and flowing around the dozens of bodies on its way to the cities sewers. Several bodies were a good distance from the main fight, but by the look of the daggers buried in their backs, Oda had kept an eye out during the bloodbath. Only a few defenders remained standing, several of whom were coming down off the effects of frenzy, their weapons held loosely. They seemed to be in a degree of shock, unable to understand why they¡¯d attacked their friends and comrades. With their guards lowered, Oda had no trouble cutting his way past the ones in between him and Jicker. What had once been a black suit was now drenched with blood, dying it a deep crimson red, though whatever properties the mask had seem to include stay clean, as it remained perfectly white. ¡°Nice new trick you¡¯ve got there,¡± he said, breathing heavily as he surveyed the remaining opponents. ¡°Nice...killing spree,¡± Jicker replied, looking at the devastation behind him. ¡°No time to play nice today. I¡¯ll finish up here; you go check out the gate. There should be a lever to get it open.¡± ¡°On it.¡± Running over to the gate house, he looked around rapidly for whatever would open the gate. Checking behind one outcrop almost cost him his life however, as a fighter that had been keeping back leapt out at him, their sword missing his neck by an inch, instead cutting deeply into his shoulder. Hissing in pain, Jicker readied his blade to fight back only to see a handle sprout from the man¡¯s forehead. Turning, he saw Oda drawing another dagger before gesturing for him to get back to it. The warrior had apparently been the last line of defence, the outcrop he¡¯d been hiding in also containing the lever to open the gate. Pulling down on the handle, it caught and Jicker had a moment of fear that after all of this he wouldn¡¯t actually be strong enough to open the door. But whatever had jammed came loose and the lever clicked across, the counterweights beginning to move. Slowly the gate swung open and the portcullis rose up into the walls, leaving Jicker face to face with hundreds of skeletal faces. The invading forces wasted no time in entering, drawing their weapons and moving in on him emotionlessly. ¡°Disengage from the target and move in,¡± called a voice from behind them. Immediately, the undead stopped threatening him and began to ignore him instead, moving past him towards their destination with unthinking efficiency. ¡°Sorry about that, they¡¯re programmed to take out anyone not in the guild,¡± Mary said as she walked through the gate and looked around. ¡°Wow, you two seriously let loose didn¡¯t you.¡± ¡°It was mostly Oda, but we got the job done. How are the other gates going?¡± Jicker replied as he watched the skeletons move in, dispatching a couple of survivors that Oda hadn¡¯t gotten to as well as some wounded who had been playing dead. ¡°They pushed us back at all three, but we made them pay dearly for it. Could¡¯ve gone better if we¡¯d sent in more champions, but I decided it was better to keep them for this part. Now, next part of the plan is to-¡± ¡°Mary Mary Mary!¡± called another guild member walking through the gate, this one dressed in bright red robes unlike the rest of the guild. She sighed. ¡°Yes Lucy?¡± ¡°Can I have the blood? It¡¯s currently going down the drain so could I...?¡± the figure asked eagerly as she shifted from foot to foot. ¡°Fine, but don''t waste it.¡± Raising their hands, they held them above their head as if they were lifting a heavy weight. Like someone had hit rewind on a movie, the blood stopped running towards the drains and instead began moving back towards the woman in red. Thin trails of blood began to break away from the pool on the ground and flew towards a point above Lucy, rapidly collecting into shimmering crimson sphere. By the time she was done, there wasn¡¯t a drop of blood left on the battlefield, and Jicker doubted there was much left in the dead bodies either. Even Oda¡¯s clothes had been cleaned, every drop pulled off and reclaimed, returning them to their normal black as he approached them. ¡°Glad to see you made it Mary. Nice clean up Lucy, what are you going to do with it?¡± the assassin said as he looked up at ball above them. A few feet across, it spun gently as they all looked at it. ¡°Fights not done yet,¡± she replied. ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure I can find a use for some heavy weapons.¡± ¡°You can and will. We need to too take the eastern watchtower before they fortify it and use the elevation against us. Lucy, Oda, you two take a few dozen champions and go clear it out, and hold it until I send word. Jicker, you¡¯re with me as we circle around to the next gate, while they¡¯re still trying to recover after being hit by our previous assault. Any questions?¡± ¡°Got something to eat? I¡¯m starving and I don''t have time to raid the market.¡± Oda asked as he peeled his mask off. Mary shook her head at him and pulled a few apples from her pack, throwing them to him. Catching one in each hand and the third with his teeth, he dropped to one knee and put his arms up in celebration, Lucy shaping the blood above her into several scorecards. ¡°Yes yes, you¡¯re very clever,¡± Mary said as she rubbed her temples. ¡°Now go, we don''t have time to play around just yet.¡± Pocketing the fruit, Oda stood back up and went to collect a few of the knives he¡¯d thrown during the battle. Once he¡¯d gathered what he could they gestured and portion of the skeletons shifted stance and began to head towards them. ¡°So who¡¯s Lucy in the guild hierarchy?¡± Jicker asked as she and Oda headed off. ¡°She¡¯s not on the council, but she¡¯s our best blood mage by far, one of our heavy hitters and she¡¯s done a lot to drain and preserve bodies for us over the years. But here¡¯s a quick word of warning that we give anyone who deals with her.¡± Mary replied as she gestured to her minions, having them fan out and check the alley ways. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Avoid making any period jokes. Best case scenario, she''ll joke back before she kills you. I swear I¡¯ve had to raise Gabe from being killed by her more than anything else.¡± ¡°That¡¯s...fair. I¡¯ll do what I can to not bring up shark week around her.¡± She stared at him before groaning. ¡°I¡¯m going to need to raise you as well aren¡¯t I?¡± Chapter 22 The dead fanned out around them as they headed towards the nest gate, checking down every alleyway and side street, looking for any potential threat. ¡°These guys seem a lot smarter than the normal minions I''ve seen,¡± Jicker said to Mary as he watched them work. ¡°They aren¡¯t any smarter actually, but I¡¯ve set up a bunch of...preset commands, so they can react to most common scenarios without me having to command them directly. Saves me from having to replace them after I forget to tell them move out the way of a high speed wagon,¡± she replied. ¡°Huh, that¡¯s a really good idea.¡± ¡°There are a few reasons why I''m in charge of the guild. But speaking of skills, after your fight at the first gate, what do you have left?¡± Jicker looked through his pack and thought about it. ¡°I¡¯ve got a hundred or so shots of poison, a handful of stuff for causing frenzy, and a few healing supplies. But I''m pretty much out of everything else.¡± ¡°So you¡¯re pretty much tapped out at the moment,¡± she said thoughtfully. ¡°Can you make up some more?¡± ¡°If I had some supplies, a crafting station and several hours of work, sure, I could make some more stuff.¡± ¡°A simple no would have been fine. What about regular combat? Your blade still in good condition?¡± ¡°It works just fine, and I''ve got a few regular darts for what it¡¯s worth.¡± He said holding up one of the darts he¡¯d made from Snuffles¡¯ hair so long ago. Mary looked at it in disbelief. ¡°You came to this fight with those?¡± She asked incredulously. ¡°I was planning to get a new one fairly soon, but then things started happening.¡± ¡°As I recall, you happened. We have a few people in the guild who do good work; you should ask one of them once things settle down.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve got one being put together at the moment, assuming the store isn¡¯t destroyed in the siege.¡± ¡°In town? Is it nearby?¡± ¡°A few blocks over I think but I don''t think this is the time to go shopping.¡± ¡°It¡¯s always time to shop.¡± ~~~~~~ Most stores hadn¡¯t been affected by the fighting so far, but once the army managed to clear the walls, that would quickly change. Laura had apparently shut up shop for the day, but hadn¡¯t put up any defences on her store beyond putting up a closed sign. It seemed that she, like most of the businesses in town, either didn¡¯t think the siege would succeed or that it wouldn¡¯t affect them if it did. Knocking on the door, they waited for a reply as the skeletons began to search the ears for enemies. ¡°Seriously, don''t we have more pressing things to do right now?¡± Jicker asked as they stood there. ¡°Rising Moon does, yes. But now that we¡¯ve taken one gate, things are right on track, and we¡¯ve got a little while to kill before our forces are in position to take the next gate. It¡¯s also a good chance to see how the local merchants feel about our takeover, and whether we¡¯re going to need to replace them. And besides you¡¯re not much good to us with that stick.¡± After a few minutes of knocking, Laura came and opened up, crouching down to peer through her own door. ¡°In case you didn''t know, the sign says closed. Reading isn''t exactly a hard skill to learn around here¡­ oh hey, it''s you. Isn''t a bit dangerous to be walking around the city today?¡± she asked as she looked down at him. Jicker looked from her to the undead forces that had stopped their search and turned to face the giant, identifying her as a potential threat. ¡°It¡¯s more dangerous for some than others,¡± he replied to Laura, who was now looking concerned about the forces surrounding her store. ¡°I was coming to see how my order was coming along. Is it ready?¡± ¡°Your order? It¡¯s... um¡­¡± ¡°Let¡¯s move past this part shall we?¡± Mary said, speaking up. ¡°Now, Laura wasn''t it? What your opinion on our attack on the city?¡± ¡°What? I don''t know, I don''t get told anything. If you succeed, are you going to wreck my shop?¡± she asked in a hard voice, her grip on the doorframe tightening and beginning to crack the wood. While Jicker took a step back in the face of the unspoken threat, Mary remained unfazed. ¡°Assuming you¡¯re both willing to pay your taxes to us instead and have our guild members as customers, you¡¯re more than welcome to keep your shop.¡± ¡°And are you going to damage it during your takeover?¡± ¡°We don''t plan to, but things happen in battle that can''t be planned for. Same as the city could damage it during the defence.¡± Laura sighed. ¡°Fine, you can come in I guess, but the skeletons stay outside. I don''t let any pets or summoned creatures inside, and that not changing now.¡± ¡°Fair enough, it¡¯s your store.¡± Mary said giving a wave, signalling for the dead to take up defensive positions around the building. On entering the building they saw that Laura wasn''t quite as unprepared as they¡¯d thought, a large ballista positioned and aimed towards the door. A number of other weapons and objects had been placed around the windows, several glowing with magical power. ¡°Didn''t trust us not to raid your place?¡± Mary asked, examining the defences. ¡°Surprisingly, none of this is for you or the defenders. The fighting at the walls had called away all of the normal guards and patrollers, so a number of people are spending their time looting. I¡¯m kind of surprised to see a little guy like you as a part of the invasion,¡± she said to Jicker. ¡°Kind of just got swept up in things I guess. Now, is my pipe finished?¡± ¡°It is, and I think you¡¯ll be happy with how it turned out.¡± As Jicker followed Laura into her workshop, Mary stayed out in the display room, apparently looking for something. Searching through her shelves, Laura pulled down a wooden box, small by her standards but still bigger than he could easily lift himself. Placing it on the floor, she opened it, letting him see his new weapon. ¡°I¡¯m pretty happy with how it turned out, despite how much of a pain it was to work on something so small,¡± she said as he looked over it. A little over three feet long, it stood a little taller than him when he rested it on the ground, and was around an inch in diameter. Made of white material he didn''t immediately recognize, it was covered in fine, flowing scrollwork ending in polished brass end pieces. ¡°What¡¯s this made of?¡± Jicker asked as he examined pipe. ¡°Treated troll bone, which I can tell you, was a pain to work with. But it¡¯s as light as wood while being stronger than most metals, with the added benefit of being able to repair most damage done to it.¡± Jicker gave it a few swings to test it out, getting a feel for it. While the bone was as light as she¡¯d said, the metal ends gave it enough heft that it would still be a solid weapon.
White Pipe of Striking Item type: Weapon Grade: Rare Restriction: Level 16 Minimum 20-32 damage This stylised blowgun can be used as both a ranged or melee weapon, and will recover lost durability over time. All projectiles fired will gain an additional 5 damage and 20% increased effects.
It was a beautiful piece, and the increased effects of fired ammunition made it irreplaceable for him, enhancing his main source of damage substantially. ¡°It¡¯s perfect, how much did it come to?¡± Jicker asked as traced the lines along the pipe. ¡°Let¡¯s see, you left me with four hundred gold, taking into consideration materials and design costs...you owe me seventeen hundred gold.¡± Jicker looked at her in disbelief. ¡°For a pipe? I could get one made of solid gold for less than that!¡± ¡°Easily,¡± she agreed. ¡°Because troll bone is worth a lot more than its weight in gold once treated, and a lot harder to carve as well.¡± ¡°When I left you to work on this I didn''t expect you to try and bankrupt me!¡± ¡°It¡¯s high quality custom work, and I expect to be paid for it!¡± ¡°Custom work that you wouldn''t be able to sell to anyone else!¡± ¡°Normally I wouldn''t care,¡± Mary said, having come to find them. ¡°But we¡¯re on a bit of a schedule here, so can we hurry this up? Here''s the gold.¡± She threw a small bag to the giantess who grabbed it out of the air and opened it. ¡°Boo! Haggling over the price is half the fun on these sorts of jobs! Besides, this is way more than the thing is actually worth.¡± Laura said, but still pocketed the money. ¡°You didn''t need to pay for that,¡± Jicker said, despite knowing he didn''t have gold to his name at the moment. ¡°I didn''t, it¡¯s coming out of your share of the winnings from the siege. But since I''ve apparently already over paid, maybe you can help me with something. What''s the biggest drum you¡¯ve got Laura?¡± ¡°Hmm? Wide, tall or over all?¡± she asked, raising an eyebrow in interest. ¡°Wide I suppose, and with real leather drum skin.¡± ¡°Odd requirement, but I''ve got a few four footers that qualify. But if you give me ten minutes I can put together a six or eight foot wide one.¡± ¡°The eight foot would be perfect, better than I¡¯d hoped. Will the excess I just paid cover it or are you going to try and gouge me for this as well?¡± ¡°No, you¡¯ve covered this. Pull up a seat while I get to work.¡± The next ten minutes were a strange experience. Despite the fact that a battle for control of the city was happening only a few blocks away from them, they sat patiently and relaxed as they watched Laura work. A huge circle of wood was quickly assembled and nailed together, the sanded back to a fine finish. Once the base was completed, an entire bear skin was brought out and quickly cut and shaped to fit, the head and claws left attached by Mary¡¯s request. The resulting instrument was somewhat crude in appearance, but the seemed to fit given the large size.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. ¡°She¡¯s all done. I¡¯ll get it out of the store for you, since I don''t want you to break anything, but after that it''s all yours,¡± Laura said, giving the drum a final check, brushing of a few specks of sawdust. Once she¡¯d carefully manoeuvred the drum out of the store, Mary had a number of her skeletons lift it up, carrying it down the street like a litter. Before they could head off, Laura large hand landed on Jickers shoulder. ¡°Jicker, one last thing. I had some leftover bone from working on your pipe, and I had some time to work with it. I¡¯d planned to offer it to you as part of our negotiations, but since your friend just paid the first number I said I didn''t get a chance. And since I can''t really sell it to anyone else, and because I¡¯ve already made a profit even with this included, here.¡± She handed him a small, black leather pouch, little more than a pocket. Looking inside he saw that it contained a number of fine bone spines growing from the bottom of the pouch, ending in razor sharp points.
Troll Splinter Box Item type: Ammunition Grade: Rare Restriction: Level 23 Minimum A fine leather pouch holding 24 darts of bone, which deal an additional 4 points of damage when used as projectiles. Darts disintegrate 5 minutes after being removed from the pouch, and will regrow after this period in 1 minute.
¡°This is great! Way better than having to scrounge up bits of metal or wood to fire,¡± Jicker exclaimed, attaching the pouch to his belt. Pulling one of the darts free, he loaded it into the pipe to find it fit perfectly. ¡°You do excellent work.¡± ¡°Thanks, I do my best. Now if you don''t mind, I¡¯m going to go and barricade myself inside until this is over.¡± As they left the store and began heading down the road, the dead once again grouped up around them, clearing the street as they went. People might not be particularly concerned at the fighting at the walls, but a squadron of heavily armoured skeletons still had enough of an impact to empty the way in front of them. Jicker had been looking at the drum they were carrying and after a while he couldn''t contain his curiosity. ¡°I wanted to have a united front in the shop, so I stayed quiet, but seriously what''s the drum for?¡± He asked Mary. She turned to him and grinned. ¡°We¡¯re going to go and drum up some help,¡± she said, her expression then rapidly turning serious. ¡°Never tell Gabe I said that.¡± ~~~~~~~ ¡°So run this by me again?¡± Jicker asked from his seat, leaning back on a tombstone as he watched Mary work. Rather than head to the next gate, they¡¯d instead made another detour and ended up at the city cemetery. With an army of necromancers battering the walls, defending the city¡¯s dead had become a necessity. But while a number of guards had been pulled back to keep an eye on the cemetery grounds, they were woefully unprepared to defend it from forces that rushed at them at Mary¡¯s command. Jicker had loaded his new blowgun and tried to find an opponent, eager to test out his new weapon, but any potential targets had been quickly buried under the hacking blades of the skeletal warriors. And so now he sat out of the way as she drew a series of circles on the ground, centred around the drum. It in turn had been adorned with a number of symbols drawn in fresh blood, taken from one of the soldiers who shown up to change shifts with those who¡¯d already been killed. ¡°I thought you¡¯d played Genesis before? You should know this stuff,¡± Mary replied as she worked, focusing on the lines she dug into the soil. ¡°Played the game, yes. Seen someone start painting blood onto a drum in a graveyard? That one''s new to me.¡± ¡°The drums a focus, a bit more hocus pocus than I normally use but it¡¯ll work. I channel the spell through the drum with the help of the circles I''m setting up and then the spell gets carried along with the sound, amplifying and extending it.¡± ¡°I get that, I suppose. But why didn''t you bring a drum with you then?¡± ¡°Firstly, because for it to make any difference it needs to be substantial, and I couldn''t invade a city while hauling around a massive drum. And secondly, this is a bit more freestyle than the rest of the plan.¡± ¡°Was that a joke?¡± ¡°What?¡± Mary asked, confused. ¡°Freestyle music? While you''re working with a drum? You know, ba-dum-tss!¡± Jicker said, miming hitting the cymbal. ¡°...I swear I would end you if we didn''t need everyone we have right now. Now get ready to move, I¡¯m going to start in a sec,¡± she said, dusting off her hands while shooting him a dark look. Sitting cross legged in the circle she sat next to the drum, and began to chant as she struck the drum. As the first beat started Jicker felt the magic wash over him, then flow back with echoes that hadn¡¯t been there before, the sound and magic mixing and twisting. Each note added to the build up of energy and shaped it into something else, something far darker than just sound. As the spell reached its finally, Mary struck the drum with a massive blow, shattering it and driving chunks of wood into the ground. But even though the drum itself was destroyed, its sound continued to reverberate around the graves, rolling heavily through the air. Eventually these last sounds went silent, sinking into the ground, or at least beneath it. For a brief moment there was silence, the dust beginning to settle back down after the spell. A grave right next to where Jicker was sitting was the first to break open, a figure rising up with surprising force, throwing lumps of dirt and pieces of their coffin aside as if they were weightless. Standing over six feet tall, the corpse was unlike any that he¡¯d seen before. It was a zombie, the grey skin and rotting flesh was a give away, but this one seemed like it was stronger now than it had been in life. The muscles in its arms and back were almost comically enlarged, to the point they tore through the skin and left the figure hunched over. The arms became so distended that they dislocated from the shoulders, hanging down loosely and swinging in what would have been agony in anything that could still feel pain, the flesh tearing away from its hands and leaving fragments of bone exposed. But the thing that caught Jicker¡¯s attention the most was its face. Its jaw had become misshapen and filled with far too many teeth to eat properly, but from the swollen muscles in its neck, it would have enough bite strength to tear into whatever it came across. Its eyes still contained some remains of what they¡¯d been before, but were entirely filled with rage and hunger. Jicker had been so caught up in looking over the undead that had risen next to him that he hadn¡¯t noticed as at first dozens, and then hundreds of other bodies started clawing their way out of the ground. They were varied, being of many different races and in various states of decay, but they all had the same deformations. He went up to the one next to him, looking to see where the additional muscle was attached and whether he could use it in a creation of his own. But as he got close, the zombie spun around and lunged at him, its arms swinging wildly at him, giving audible sounds as its shoulders cracked under the strain. ¡°Heel!¡± Mary shouted, causing it to pull back just before it took his head off. ¡°What do you think you¡¯re doing?!¡± ¡°It¡¯s a zombie; I doubt it thinks much about anything.¡± ¡°Not it, you! Who just walks up to someone¡¯s zombie after it¡¯s just been raised!¡± ¡°None of your other ones have been an issue, I figured these would be the same?¡± he hazarded. ¡°Those other ones have been trained and given sets of instructions. These are just a bunch of motor functions and the desire to feed on the living,¡± she sighed. ¡°What were you doing anyway?¡± ¡°I was seeing if I could copy its weird muscles into my stuff,¡± he answered distractedly, watching as lump of skin fell off its arm and landed wetly on the ground. ¡°Can you?¡± ¡°No idea, I¡¯ll have to try later.¡± ¡°Why not try something on one of them? That should give you a better understanding.¡± Jicker was about to reply when he hesitated. Why couldn¡¯t he change one? ¡°Hold it still,¡± he said putting his hand the zombie and activating adaptation. Normally when he activated the ability, time seemed to slow down and focus on the creature, letting him work with extreme accuracy. But whatever the ability normally latched on to seemed to slide off of the zombie, lacking some crucial component.
Warning! Adaptation cannot currently be used on undead or inorganic targets.
¡°No luck I¡¯m afraid. Doesn¡¯t seem to work on undead creatures,¡± he informed her, while his mind considered the implications of the word ¡®currently¡¯. He shook the idea from his head, deciding that it was a problem for another day when they weren¡¯t about to fight. ¡°Why are they like that anyway?¡± ¡°The drum probably,¡± she replied with a shrug. ¡°What?¡± ¡°I doubt it¡¯s the same for whatever it is that you do, but a lot of the time magical summoning is more art than science. Sometimes things are affected by tiny little fluctuations in the air, sometime by the stars and more often things just...happen.¡± ¡°So you¡¯re saying it¡¯s just...magic.¡± ¡°Look, I used a bear skin drum, now I have bear-ish zombies. What else do I need to say?¡± ¡°...Charge?¡± ¡°...works for me.¡± ~~~~~~~ He¡¯d picked a bad day to come in to the city, the soldier thought as he sharpened his sword. He¡¯d only stopped in to Ardenvale to pick up some supplies for a quest in a town, but in that brief window of time the siege had been declared and the city had locked down. As a decent fighter, they¡¯d wasted no time in conscripting him to the defence force, and at that time he¡¯d agreed, happy with the idea of getting a few levels and some gold for pushing back a bunch of whiney corpse lovers. But they had misjudged their enemy and were paying the price for it. What they¡¯d thought would be an effortless day of lazily firing from the battlements had quickly turned to a desperate struggle for every gate. Once they¡¯d brought out that monstrous weapon and punched holes clean through the walls, any hope of just staying out of it was shattered, and the reserves they¡¯d planned on quickly being redeployed around the city. At least for now it had gone quiet at the gate, the latest push having been beaten back and both sides recovering and tending the wounded. The defenders had patched up the damage to the wall as best they could, but it was weighing heavily on everyone when they looked at the repairs. Each time they held them off and each time they fixed what had been broken, but each time there was less to work with and the cracks were beginning to show. But they didn¡¯t need to hold them off forever, just until reinforcements made it in from another city, which could happen at any time if they were lucky. But luck isn¡¯t something to be depended on, and almost as one the defenders paused and turned looking towards the sound that had been picking up. What had began as a low drone turned into a roar as they rounded a corner, a rushing wave of corpses, howling for blood and breaking everything that stood between them and their prey. It was a bad day to come to the city. ~~~~~~~ Mary hadn¡¯t had time to properly organise or train the dead she¡¯d raised, but had decided that they¡¯d suit her purpose¡¯s as they were. The newly created zombies, named Igors because of their hunched backs, were almost feral in nature, and at best could function as a mob. But with their great strength and numbers, they could be used as berserkers, simply sent in to fight and kill until they either ran out of opponents or died. When Jicker had fought the seekers, he¡¯d watched fighting through precision and planning. When they¡¯d taken the first gate, they¡¯d relied on surprise, deception and speed. But now, as he watched the Igors crash into the hastily formed defensive line of the gate guards, he saw brutality and chaos at work. There was no strategy, no key points of attack or direction, no form of command. Just every zombie doing everything they could to sink their teeth in to the living in front of them. With their shoulders all but useless, the favoured huge blows of their arms to drive their victims down, swinging well past were an arm was supposed to stop and getting more force because of it. The shattered hands had become effective maces, the broken shards of bone tearing at flesh and turning glancing blows into horrific wounds. While he managed to pick of one runner and hit a couple of targets in the fight, Jicker quickly realised his contributions to the battle were going to be minimal at best and took to the roof, finding a spot to watch things unfold. The result of the fight had been determined before it had even begun, and no act of valour or courage from the defenders was going to change it. The numerous defences they¡¯d set up, magical shield and physical barricades, all of it had been placed with the assumption that the enemy would be attacking from outside the city. When the Igors struck them from behind, they found themselves trapped against their own safety measures. A few of the more nimble and magical fighters managed to escape the fray, dodging the raging dead around them and tried to head further into the city to get word to their commanders. Unfortunately for them, the skeletal champions had been hanging back and had formed a ring around the battle, and made short work of the already injured escapees. It had been brief frenzy, but already the fight was done, though the Igors feeding would likely continue on for some time. Climbing down, he made his way around the undead as they gorged themselves, not willing to come between them and their meal. Getting to the gate house, he shooed a zombie that had been eating the person manning the lever away, luring it out by throwing a piece of body away. He wondered briefly as he pulled the lever open, at how the scenes of violence didn¡¯t seem to be affecting him as much as they would have previously. He wasn¡¯t the target of the attacks, which helped, but in the past seeing zombies eating his enemies would still have made him sick, and he wondered if it was gremlin ability to be able to stomach things, or whether he was just becoming jaded. As the forces began to file in through the gate and take the surrounding streets, Mary came down to get reports from her officers. ¡°How are things going out there?¡± ¡°General casualties are going as expected, with the node doing a lot to minimise the effects of holy magic on our forces. So far they continue to patch every hole we¡¯ve put in the walls, but they¡¯re slowing down.¡± ¡°Good. Have word sent to Arcus to cease fire and move the node up towards one of thegates we¡¯ve taken. I want that aura stretching over as much of the city as we can get,¡± she said with a nod. Another guild member saluted and took off back out to the battlefield. ¡°Actually, we¡¯ve taken three gates so far,¡± the soldier said, continuing with their report. ¡°One of the pushes broke through?¡± she asked in surprise. ¡°Not exactly. Gabe came past one of the gates to lend support and let loose something I haven¡¯t seen before, and left the gate buried under a dozen feet of ice, with combatants from both sides included. We have people digging out who we can and thawing them out, and once the gate defrosts enough to open, it will be ours.¡± Mary groaned, ignoring the laughter that came from others who¡¯d overheard the report. ¡°Of course he did. Well, it¡¯s not how I¡¯d planned to take the third gate but I guess it¡¯ll do. If we¡¯ve got three gates, we can now start circling throughout the city proper and get to work claiming it. Without the walls to keep us out, our number advantage can be applied in full. Have our forces move in and group up in the markets, bring everyone we can spare. We¡¯ve got one last objective to take, and that¡¯s the council chambers themselves. Once we take those, and drive out the council, Ardenvale is ours.¡± Chapter 23 As their forces marched down the main street of the city, the mood of the populace rapidly changed. They could no longer ignore the assault, or shrug it off as someone half baked attempt at an attack. Shops closed as they approached, children being dragged inside homes away from the advancing dead. Compared to how things had been less than an hour beforehand, the city had fallen silent, no one willing to interfere with the coming fight. The army on the other hand, thundered through the city, shaking the ground as thousands of undead stomped forwards in lockstep, crushing market stalls and dropped items underfoot. The guild members themselves were moving along at the centre of their forces, and Jicker had found himself in amongst them. They didn''t have the emotionless stance as their undead minions, but a heavy feeling of serious and determination. Everyone travelled in silence deep in thought about the consequences of victory and defeat, and their preparations for what was to come. Mostly. ¡°The dead come marching 10 by 10. Hurrah! Hurrah! The dead come marching 10 by 10. Hurrah! Hurrah! The dead come marching 10 by 10. The rotting one stopped to-¡± ¡°Gabe! Shut the hell up! You¡¯ve been singing garbage for the last half an hour!¡± Mary shouted at him. ¡°I''m just excited okay? We¡¯re almost done after all this time!¡± he answered. ¡°Then wait until we''re actually done.¡± ¡°...The dead come marching 10 by-¡± he began again, louder than before. ¡°Right, give me that!¡± She said, grabbing a spear from a soldier beside her and doing her best to stab upwards at her brother. Gabe had remained mounted once they¡¯d entered the city, riding Princess over the heads of their forces. He¡¯d been riding low to avoid being shot out of the air on their approach, but it also meant everyone had been trying to put up with him. In addition he now had to flail around in his saddle to avoid being stabbed by Mary, who had reached the end of her patience a long time ago. While it was hardly professional to have to of the leading members of the guild randomly attacking each other, it went a long way to relieve the stress that had been building up. People stopped staring ahead with dead eyed expressions and began to laugh at the sibling''s antics, some even making bets with each other if Gabe would end up getting injured. But as they rounded the final corner and came to face the council hall, the mood became serious again as they looked at what they were up against. Sitting behind the market square, the hall struck an imposing shadow against the setting sun. Where most buildings had been damaged or outright destroyed during the upheaval, and again by the more recent Earthwyrm attack, the hall had not only survived, but had been reinforced. A steep flight of stairs rose up to a set of thick stone walls and a heavy, barred wooden gate, sealed against any intruders. Behind those stood a waiting battalion of golems, made of best material the council could afford at the expense of their taxpayers. While the main building itself had been strengthened to resist further damage, it was only these outer defences they had to worry about, but that didn''t mean it¡¯d be easy. As Gabe flew up to have a better look at the defenders arrangements, Princess dropped suddenly, narrowly avoiding a sudden blast of flame coming from inside the walls. As they landed heavily near the rest of their forces, Mary turned to address the guild. ¡°We¡¯ve seen that going in by air isn¡¯t viable, even if we could get people in properly, so we need an entry plan people. Arcus, how long would it take to move the node up here?¡± Arcus scratched his head. ¡°Maybe six hours or so? And that if I can get some people to help break down a few buildings to get it here.¡± She nodded. ¡°If we can¡¯t do anything else, that¡¯s our plan. Anyone got a better one?¡± ¡°Can we just break through normally? They¡¯re not as tough as the city walls.¡± ¡°But they do have the best people sitting back to reinforce them.¡± ¡°Well, if we got a heap of skeletons and made a ramp...¡± Jicker tuned them out as they began to rattle off ideas, each less useable than the last. Slightly bored, he went to go sit down and wait for things to be resolved when his stomach grumbled; reminding him he hadn¡¯t eaten in a while. Walking away from the group, he moved past the zombies that had gone still while they waited for new orders and went to inspect what remained of the market. When the guild had approached, the merchants had picked up what they could and left, abandoning what they couldn¡¯t carry rather than risking their lives. Looking around he saw several stalls of fabrics and clothes, one that had been selling mirrors and another apparently offering to sharpen blades. Most of people products had been taken when the stall were abandoned, but he eventually struck gold with a baker who¡¯d emptied the till but left a number of still warm pies where they sat. Carefully picking one up, he happily bit into the crisp pastry and the savoury beef beneath before turning back and almost tripping over, dropping his meal. He looked down angrily to see what had caused him to stumble, thoughts of avenging his dinner in his mind. A small weed was sitting amongst the flagstones of the market square, and had pushed several of the surrounding stones up and away as it grew, which had cost him his footing. He was about to uproot the plant when he stopped himself, realising just how childish he was being. But as he looked at the greenery in front of him, an idea struck him and he hurried back towards the walls, thoughts of food forgotten. ~~~~~~~ ¡°Are you sure this is the place?¡± Gabe asked, looking down below them. ¡°It¡¯s the right spot, but it looks like things have been...busy.¡± Jicker replied, taking in the view. When Jicker had gone back to Mary and told her his idea to get inside, she was all for it, but in practice it was a different story. The idea had been to alter a plant so that it could weaken and break the walls as it grew. The problem was that he couldn¡¯t get it to grow once he¡¯d made the changes, and he couldn¡¯t make it affect the walls while he worked on it. With no other ideas being considered workable in the timeframe they had, some people had been dispatched to make way for the node, while Jicker and Gabe would go and see if they could get some advice from Molta on the plants. Though after the third time Gabe had landed to pick up snacks, investigate a weird sound or just stretch his legs, Jicker had a feeling Mary was trying to keep her brother occupied until they could get to the council. The ground they flew over had once been manicured lawns and pathways, but apparently things had changed. A sea of vines poured out from the greenhouses and covered the area, rising up and covering several of the nearby structures. The vines gathered into clumps in random places that, on closer inspection, turned out to be skeletons that had been grabbed and crushed by the vegetation. ¡°Are you sure it¡¯s safe for us to be here right now?¡± Gabe asked as Princess shied away from one them. ¡°It¡¯s safe enough,¡± Molta called to them as she stepped out from her greenhouse. ¡°Until you tell me what you¡¯re doing here at least. Who are you?¡± ¡°What do you mean? Don''t you remember me?¡± Jicker asked. ¡°I remember you Jicker, but that¡¯s not what I meant. Are you with the attackers?¡± she said, gesturing to one of the broken skeletons. ¡°Or are you with the council now?¡± Again she gestured to one of the clumps of vine, but from the trails of dried blood covering the vines, he doubted it contained an undead soldier. ¡°I can understand why you destroyed our soldiers, but did the council attack you? That seems like a pretty strong reaction by them against their own people.¡± Gabe asked, doubt flashing across his face. ¡°They came to demand everything I had that could be used to help against the siege, and didn¡¯t want to take no for an answer. Apparently they¡¯re taking a stance of ¡°if you¡¯re not with us you¡¯re against us¡±. When the skeletons showed up later they started hacking at the vines so I dealt with them as well. Now, which side are you with?¡± ¡°We¡¯re with the invaders.¡± Gabe said, bringing Princess up a few meters in case they had to escape. Molta grunted dismissively. ¡°I figured that, just wanted to know if you were going to lie to me like some of the others here. Now, what do you want?¡± ¡°I was hoping to get your help with something,¡± Jicker said, then continued quickly as the vines started shifting at Molta¡¯s feet. ¡°Specifically, I was looking for advice on growing certain types of plants?¡± he asked hopefully. The elf paused, and the plant life at her feet did the same. ¡°Why?¡± she asked bluntly. ¡°We want to use them to invade the council hall and control the city.¡± Gabe said before Jicker could reply, who turned to look at him in shock. Molta chuckled. ¡°Honesty like that¡¯s in short supply these days, though I think you should warn your ally¡¯s before saying something like that. But while I can''t claim to care about the council after what they tried to pull, why should I help you?¡± Jicker tried to think of what he could trade for her help but came up blank. ¡°I thought you¡¯d be more interested than this, but I guess it''s fair. What do you want?¡± She snorted. ¡°What do I want? I''m an old woman, what I want is to be left alone.¡± ¡°Heh, unfortunately I can''t really give you-¡± Jicker began before Gabe cut him off excitedly. ¡°Oh, I can do that! Ahem,¡± he began sitting up straight and putting on a more official voice. ¡°I, Gabe of the Rising Moon guild, swear that upon our victory, you will be given this area as private land and be exempt from the actions of the city unless you directly jeopardize our safety and work.¡± he finished proudly, before turning to Jicker. ¡°Mary had me memorise that speech so I wouldn''t start promising things we couldn''t deliver, and i doubt she wants to attack here if we can avoid it. So, Ms. Molta, can we get your assistance?¡± She was silent for a moment, and then nodded with a smile. ¡°It¡¯s a deal. You can land your...horse; over there and then we¡¯ll go inside and talk.¡± ~~~~~~ The inside of the greenhouse was quiet, everyone else who normally worked there having left, probably about the time the plants had risen up and started breaking through the windows. They made their way over to where a few chairs sat around an upturned table, trying to avoid stepping on the plants as much as they could. Jicker found it disconcerting to feel the greenery flinch underfoot, as if he¡¯d stepped on a dog''s tail. ¡°So let''s get down to specifics here, what do you want to know.¡± Molta asked, sipping from a cup of tea she¡¯d pulled from somewhere. ¡°Well, I need to figure out what sort of plant can grow through stone quickly, specifically to break down the council¡¯s walls.¡± Jicker replied, keeping an eye on Gabe who¡¯d gone over and started poking what looked like a flytrap. ¡°I can point you in the right direction on that I suppose. What have you tried so far?¡± ¡°I put a plant next to the wall and tried to accelerate it, but it just sort of sat there.¡± ¡°Okay, but what did you actually do? What did you plant, what fertiliser that sort of thing?¡± she asked gesturing for him to expand on it. ¡°...Magical stuff?¡± he said awkwardly. ¡°Care to narrow that down at all?¡± she said with amusement in her voice. ¡°Look it''s kind of hard to explain, but Ii need you to promise not to tell anyone else about this." Deciding it probably wouldn¡¯t hurt to let her know, Jicker gave her a brief rundown on his adaptation ability. He gave her a brief run through of his adaptation ability and how it worked, and asked for her opinion. Whatever reaction he was expecting from her, it wasn¡¯t for her to slap her hand down on the table suddenly and burst out laughing. ¡°I knew there was something off with the plants you gave me! There was no way something like that could grow around here without me knowing, even with the upheaval! That¡¯s been bugging me ever since you first gave them to me. For a while I thought you were some master herbalist who¡¯d been sneaking around under the radar, but this makes far more sense. Now, considering what you¡¯ve done so far I think your best bet would be something with deeper roots, but that not the real issue.¡± ¡°Then what is?¡± ¡°A wall, while durable, isn¡¯t exactly known for having much in the way of nutrients. But I think I''ve got some stuff here that might help you there...¡± she said, trailing off as she got up and went to look through a cupboard. While she spent a few minutes searching for whatever she was looking for, Jicker did his best to help Gabe pull his hand out of flytrap that was currently trying to digest his fingers.Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. ¡°Here we are!¡± Molta exclaimed, handing him a small steel bottle. ¡°I made this up a while ago for working in areas that couldn¡¯t support the crops people needed. It¡¯s a type of fertiliser, but calling it that would be understating it. Pour some of this on the wall next to the plant and stand back, and it¡¯ll grow like nothing else!¡± ¡°Thank you for this, how much do you want for it?¡± Jicker asked, putting the bottle in his pack. She waved him off. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. I spend far more than what that¡¯s worth trying to get a hold of plants that I haven¡¯t seen before, and I¡¯m sure that whatever breaks the council walls will qualify. Now you two should probably go, before I''m accused of helping the enemy and the college tries to fire me.¡± ¡°Don''t you have tenure here?¡± ¡°I said they¡¯d try, not succeed. Now off with you.¡± ~~~~~~ Things hadn¡¯t changed that much when they returned to the guilds forces, though there were a few piles of bodies near the walls that were slowly growing as both sides took potshots at each other. ¡°Your back then, ¡°Mary said as she spotted their approach. ¡°Any luck?¡± ¡°Apparently we have an answer, so get ready I guess? I''m not sure how this will go exactly.¡± Jicker answered before heading towards the base of the wall. Grabbing a clump of grass from one of the nearby garden beds he went to work and activated adaptation. As the influx of information and options hit him, he did what he could, trying to focus on Molta¡¯s advice and give it an impressive root system. Worrying that the council would kill it off before it could make enough of an impact, he reinforced it as best he could, having it pull in minerals to protect it. It was a quick change compared to some of his other works, but telling a plant to grow wasn¡¯t exactly difficult.
Ding! Adaptation has become permanent. Note- all plant changes are 50% more likely to become permanent-scales with level of herbalism. Type: Modified grass. Do you wish to name this plant?
¡°Does anyone have an idea of what to name this stuff?¡± he called to the guild, having been caught unprepared and not expecting this change to stick. There was some muttering from a few people until one person called out. ¡°How about Rockweed? It breaks rocks, so...¡± ¡°Good enough for me. The name will be Rockweed.¡±
Name accepted. Creator will remain unknown. Now applying changes to plant. Herbalism level has increased by 2! Current level: 3 Note: Created plants will spread naturally if planted in suitable environments and cared for.
The grass in his hand had thickened and turned a dull grey colour in the process, its roots hanging down almost to the ground. Carefully placing it at the base of the wall, he grabbed the bottle they¡¯d been given and poured some onto the wall. A thick yellow slime, it had an eye burning smell as it seemed to sink into the stone work, leaving only a faint residue. But that was apparently more than enough for the rockweed, with the plant suddenly buried its roots into the ground and began to cling to wall, growing at an exponential rate. It was only when the plant had grown several feet high and a dozen wide that he remembered Molta¡¯s advice to get clear of the plant as it grew. Sure enough, as he fled back to the group, the first cracks began to show, sharp popping noises coming through as the wall began to split, unable to handle the pressure of the roots rapidly spreading through it. As the wall began to break apart, Jicker saw that it held length of rebar, an unusual sight addition for construction in Genesis, but not unsurprising. But while the iron bars may have helped reinforce the wall against normal attacks, they seemed to do the opposite for the rockweed. Fine roots began to attach themselves to metal and greedily start drinking it in, dissolving the bars as they watched. The leaves of the plant however, became wider, their colour dimming even further as they grew, the iron being put to use. In less than five minutes, a section of wall more than fifty feet across had given way by the time the rockweed had run its course, having used up all of the fertilizer it had been given. ¡°Okay people, we¡¯ve got out entrance!¡± Mary yelled out, breaking the silence that had fallen as people had watched the plant grow. ¡°This is what we¡¯ve been working for, so let¡¯s make it count!¡± Both the dead and the guild began to move forwards in a mad rush, people on both sides of the conflict firing off abilities in rapid succession. Shields and auras were deployed, rays of energy were fired and all manner of weapon techniques were used in the chaotic battle. With the elite of both sides all fighting in such a small area, the golems and the undead were reduced to little more than scenery, being cut down at random as collateral damage by the true fighters. Jicker, for his part, had gotten closer and was now crouching under a section of the rockweed, looking for targets. The rockweed, he¡¯d found, made for good cover, as all of the metal it had pulled in had left the leaves as hard as iron, and just as heavy. Several random projectiles had come his way, only to break apart on striking them, yet leaving the plant intact. Soon enough, the courtyards defenders fell to the guilds superior numbers and the council themselves emerged from the hall, taking the field. These were the best the city had, masters of their fields with even the weakest being a match for a dozen of the guilds warriors. Once the council had been NPCs, but now they were players from every background, from mages to monks, holy priests to assassins, craftsmen and berserkers, each having agreed to unite and rule the city. While one of these councilmen demand surrender from the Rising Moon, another scanned the battlefield as they talked, studying the opposition. It was this person who managed to spot Jicker in his hiding place, locking eyes with him and a strange expression appearing on his face. Suddenly, a sharp pain struck him from behind, and he saw his hp rapidly fall to zero. He wondered what weird skill or spell the player had cast on him, until he turned to find Oda standing over him, with Jicker¡¯s blood still dripping from his knife. Jicker, unable to understand the betrayal, tried to say something, but the blood rapidly feeling his lungs denied him the opportunity. ¡°Sorry, I¡¯ll explain later.¡± The assassin said, cleaning off his blade and returning to the fight without looking back. Before Jicker could do anything else, a cold feeling gripped him and things faded to grey, leaving him looking at a message he hadn¡¯t seen in sometime.
You have died. You will lose 1 level and 2 skill levels, based on remaining character level, chosen at random. You will now be locked out of game for 24 hours, at which point you will be able to respawn at the nearest designated respawn point.
~~~~~~ Removing the headset, Matt raged internally, not knowing how to react. He¡¯d trusted Oda, considered him something of a friend, only to be literally stabbed in the back. He tried to figure out why he would have don''t it, some way he could understand or justify the attack, a way to process what had just happened. Perhaps that was what the person who¡¯d been looking at him had been doing? Matt thought to himself, that they¡¯d been forcing his allies to- Suddenly, a memory sprang up in his mind, of something Oda had said to him some time ago. ¡°At higher levels, I can also see skills, stats and achievements.¡± Oda had said True Sight was a hard skill to get, and Sarah had backed up those claims. But a person who was strong enough to help control and rule a city would definitely be capable of earning the skill if they worked at it. If that was true, and another person had been trying to see his skills... As if on cue the phone rang, causing him to jump. ¡°Hey Sarah,¡± he said after he saw the caller id. ¡°I was just thinking about-¡± ¡°He¡¯s on his way to you,¡± she said in a panicked voice, cutting him off. ¡°I don''t know what you did but you need to run, get out of town until he calms down enough to be reasoned with.¡± Matt took a shuddering breathe, a million thoughts going through his mind. ¡°It¡¯ll be fine Sarah; I¡¯m not going anywhere yet.¡± ¡°You don''t understand, he¡¯s furious! You need to-¡± ¡°Thanks for the warning. Goodbye Sarah,¡± he said ending the call. He wasn¡¯t sure of the exact trigger of the visit, but it had been a while since he¡¯d heard from the company, so it could be any number of things. But everything was set up, and this was as good a chance as he was going to get. Grabbing a beer from the fridge to help settle his nerves, he sat down to wait for August¡¯s arrival. ~~~~~~ To say there was knock on the door would lead to confusion, as the hammering sound made it clear they were coming in, and Matts only choice was whether he wanted the door to be able to close afterwards. Unlocking the door, it immediately swung open as a pair of Augusts people pushed their way inside, followed by the man himself, dressed in his normal business suit. ¡°You know Mr. Harper,¡± he said as he closed the door behind him. ¡°Maybe it¡¯s possible you¡¯ve forgotten some of our little talks, what with how busy you¡¯ve been playing with your new friends. But I seem to recall having been very clear on my opinions of you interfering with my businesses.¡± ¡°So what, I¡¯ve cost you a few million again.¡± Matt replied blithely. He knew it would cost him, but he had to push things down the right track if this was going to work. What he didn¡¯t expect, was for August to swing a punch suddenly, striking him in the face. He¡¯d never been much of a fighter in real life, but it¡¯d happened enough in Genesis that he knew that his nose was broken. Dropping to the floor in both shock and pain, he clutched at his nose trying to stem the blood that was pouring freely. ¡°Stand him up,¡± August ordered, as each of his men grabbed an arm, forcing him back to his feet. ¡°Is this all still just a game for you? I suppose I can see how you¡¯d make that mistake, but I can assure you that to me, this is quite serious.¡± He continued, pacing as he removed his jacket. ¡°You have cost me some money, or you will do after your work as spread out, and there¡¯s not a lot I can do about it this time. I doubt you even fully realise the potential of plant that pull and process metals out of dirt, but I can assure that others do. Thanks to the news feeds of your friends little siege, there¡¯s already a bidding war for samples of this ¡°Rockweed¡± you¡¯ve put together. Even I can¡¯t tell where the ripples of this will end, but the mining industry will never be the same. But the real thing that bothers me isn¡¯t the money, it never was. No, this was about control. For years, I¡¯ve been locked out my own game, forced to work by proxies to try and accomplish anything in what is my own damn property. But I could manage, I thought to myself, since after all the business was doing well, and that was what I wanted. Then other companies started forming inside of my own product, and due to a few legal loopholes, not only weren¡¯t we entitled to anything they did with it, but they could sue us if the system ever went down. For not being able to make money in our game! We had a blackout that shut down our systems for a few hours, and we lost almost a hundred million in lawsuits, with the government claiming a few themselves.¡± August looked away, apparently lost in his memories. The men holding on to Matt had either didn¡¯t care or were payed enough not to, continuing to hold on to him until their boss said otherwise. ¡°So after that, I decided that I would get back my game one way or another. Thousands of bribes and favours, hundreds of dummy companies, but eventually I started to buy back my own game. Do you have any idea how it makes me feel having to try and purchase land I created from a twelve year old running around with a sword?¡± He turned suddenly to Matt staring into his eyes. ¡°And then you happened. All of my careful planning wiped out in an instant, entire landmasses I¡¯d worked so hard to buy land on now no longer existing. My first thought to was to have you killed, and right now I''m somewhat regretting not following through on that thought. But then in the fall out, I saw it. Millions of opportunities to not only reclaim what you¡¯d cost me, but to gain even more. The companies I fought with were broken and struggling to regain their footing as the hundreds of new entrepreneurs fought over newly discovered resources. And that¡¯s when it hit me, to have you work for me. Turn that unbridled chaos in the direction of opposition and be ready to claim what was left afterwards. And if it got more players back in the game then so much the better. But the plan would only work if you went along with it, but that wouldn¡¯t be a problem in your situation. Or at least I thought as much, until you sprang those roaches of yours on the world. An entire resource, untapped and unclaimed, that shook several markets almost to the point of breaking. And now you¡¯ve done it again, in a way that will be impossible to hide. It¡¯s difficult to capitalise on your actions, if they don''t just upset an industry, but pull it apart entirely. Anything to say for yourself?¡± Matt looked at him before snorting and spitting some blood on the floor. ¡°Do you know you monologue a lot?¡± August walked up to him and buried a fist in his kidney, drawing a low gasp of pain from Matt that would have sent him to the floor again if he wasn¡¯t being held up. ¡°Hilarious, anything else, Mr. Harper.¡± He asked casually. Matt looked him in the eye. ¡°How about smile, you¡¯re on camera.¡± August paused. ¡°Excuse me?¡± Matt tilted his head towards a small camera mounted in the corner of the room. ¡°I had a couple of security cameras put up a couple of days ago. Seemed like a good idea, can never be too careful with your safety and all that.¡± August raised an eyebrow. ¡°Let me guess, the police are on their way here?¡± Matt shook his head, wincing as he did so. ¡°Please, as if you don''t own every cop for a hundred miles in every direction. No that footage is set to be sent to every news network I could track down around the globe, and will be if I don''t keep sending a signal to cancel it. And before you ask, yes there are back ups, encryptions, the works. The security people who set it up for me said it was over kill, but hey, I had some money to burn.¡± August expression turned more serious. ¡°They¡¯d ignore it; they always do with spam like that.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right,¡± Matt said in agreement, confusing August further. ¡°And with your reach you¡¯d easily be able to bury the ones who decided to with the story. But that¡¯s not the point.¡± ¡°And what is the point?¡± ¡°A guy like you, claiming businesses left and right, running up against the government to get things done tends to make a few enemies. Now I¡¯m going out on a limb and thinking a few of those people, maybe other businesses or government agencies, might have the power to make some things stick, would love a plausible reason for digging through your business and holdings. You wouldn¡¯t have done anything illegal over the years would you?¡± Augusts face went through a number of colours, turning from red to pale and back again so quickly it can have been good for his heart. But eventually he calmed himself down and spoke in this normal steady and almost friendly voice. ¡°So if you do down, I¡¯m coming with you? Clever, not the choice I¡¯d have gone with, but not entirely ineffective. I guess for now were at something of an impasse, since I don''t really want to go to prison, and you don''t want to be dead. Answer me this, how long do you think it will take before I track down your footage and destroy it?¡± he asked. ¡°A few weeks, maybe a few months if I''m lucky. I paid for the best I could get, but you¡¯ve got some good people working for you,¡± he shrugged. ¡°Yes, I do, though I''m going to have words with the people who were supposed to be monitoring your home. Well I suppose this means you¡¯ve bought yourself a bit of freedom, at least until it¡¯s done. Then you¡¯ll be right back where you belong.¡± ¡°And then it begins again, until I find a way to get clear of you for good.¡± ¡°So now what? You¡¯re going to go on a bender with your new found freedom, maybe try going to the press?¡± ¡°I figure I¡¯ll go to bed then check out how the siege panned out, maybe get to work on a few new ideas for creatures I had.¡± August furrowed his brow. ¡°You¡¯re going to keep playing? Even while I don''t have your life in my hands?¡¯ ¡°You wanted to gain control of Genesis but I just wanted to make it interesting for people to play again. It¡¯s why I caused the upheaval in the first place, and while I hate you and pretty much everything you stand for, I signed a contract. It may have been in distress, but I still believe in that goal, so yeah I¡¯m going to keep playing.¡± August looked at him, honest surprise on his face, before nodding to his two guards who dropped him, sending him stumbling to the floor. ¡°How very noble of you, I suppose. Well I guess we¡¯ll be heading out then, though I should mention a rather large flaw in your plan for our meeting.¡± ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± Matt asked curiously, looking up at him. ¡°When you¡¯re already holding blackmail against someone of them being violent, there¡¯s nothing to stop them doing this.¡± He said, before turning sharply. A large and well made leather shoe rapidly came into focus as it filled Matt¡¯s field of view, followed by pain that seemed to fill his whole body. ¡°Have a pleasant evening, Mr. Harper,¡± were the last words he heard before he blacked out. Chapter 24 When Matt awoke, the first thing he realised was that he was lying on the floor, followed rapidly by the fact that his head hurt like hell. Putting his hands to his face, he immediately regretted it as his fingers touched his nose and set off a series of jagged pains reminded him of what had happened. Looking around blearily, he saw that he¡¯d been left alone, apparently lying in a small pool of blood. Gingerly getting to his feet, he looked around to see if they were just out of sight, when he saw note sitting on the table next to him. His headache made the words blur and hard to read, but after a moment things began to focus properly. ¡°I¡¯ve been assured by my men that you have no lasting injuries, and took the liberty of having one of the men set your nose back into place. No need for you to go to the hospital and start making unnecessary paperwork. August¡± ¡°How considerate,¡± he said bitterly as he crumpled the note and threw it towards the trash. He went to the couch and sat in silence, thinking deeply about how things had gone. As he ran through what had happened, he knew that he should have handled things differently; that he shouldn¡¯t have ran up against August directly. But as the man had started closing in on him, he¡¯d panicked and had needed to put something between them, even if it would cost him in the long run. But he¡¯d bought himself a few weeks at least, which would hopefully be long enough to find a more substantial solution. He needed to find a more permanent way to get him off his back, something that he couldn¡¯t just walk over with money or his connections. The problem there was that any legal answer Matt came up with could be countered by some of August¡¯s less than above board options. Figuring he¡¯d be better off taking his time and thinking things out more thoroughly, he went to see if he could log back in. Apparently he hadn¡¯t been lying on the floor as long as he¡¯d thought since he still had a little over fourteen hours to go before he could go and see what had happened. As he got up to see if anything had been posted online, the blood rushed to his head, making him wobble and almost fall back down. ¡°Or, I could go to bed.¡± He muttered to himself as he gingerly rubbed his temples. Taking a quick shower to clean him up, he grabbed a couple of aspirin and tried to get some sleep. ~~~~~~ ¡°I swear it¡¯s what I saw!¡± he said again. ¡°Are you sure? This isn¡¯t another case of your ability to read being so bad it hurts is it?¡± ¡°I''m telling you it¡¯s him it has to be!¡± Most of them had died in the siege, but the Ardenvale council hadn¡¯t spent so long working together without getting to know each other outside of Genesis. They were currently sitting in a private chat room, mourning their losses and planning out what to do with themselves now, when David, who¡¯d been their best rogue and assassin, had brought up an interesting piece of information. ¡°You remember when you swore that a guy had the ¡®Grand Maker¡¯ achievement? We got all our money together and went to find them to have some gear made, only to find them working in a bakery.¡± Another said, getting a few chuckles from others in the call. ¡°And what could I have mistaken ¡®Grand Genocide¡¯ for?¡± David continued, ignoring them. The chat went silent for a moment. ¡°Okay fine, let¡¯s say you¡¯re right; let¡¯s say you¡¯ve spotted Maser. What do we do with that information? Do we sell it or go after him ourselves¡± ¡°David, did you get a good look at him? Could you give people a description to go off of?¡± ¡°I was too busy looking for threats to study faces, and someone took him out before I could find out much, but from what I remember he wasn¡¯t a very high level.¡± ¡°That makes sense I suppose, if he started a new character. So do we want to try and make some money, or do we go on a hunt?¡± ~~~~~~ By the time Matt woke up his head was starting to feel better, though his reflection shows that his face was a lot more purple and swollen than he remembered. But enough time had passed that he could log back in and find out what the damage was. When the game loaded up he found himself standing in the Ardenvale cemetery, along with dozens of other players who¡¯d been killed in the battle. As he got his bearings, two pieces of information came to his attention. The first was that he¡¯d lost both a rank of handle animal, and that his herbalism skill had dropped back down to two. The second, more pressing matter was that apparently the items he¡¯d lost on his death included his jacket and pants, leaving him standing with just his shirt and underwear. Racing towards the groundskeeper¡¯s house, he opened the large chest that was kept by the door for this very reason. People had all agreed to contribute a small amount of their taxes to ensure that a stash of simple clothing would be kept at city respawn points at all times. People may have been unwilling to pay for roads, or to share medical bills, but no one wanted to be stuck walking around the city naked. They were nothing but simple white cotton item, but they did the job and that was all that mattered when you¡¯d just woken up. Properly clothed and awake, Jicker left the cemetery to see if he could go and get some answers. The fighting had definitely finished, with people once again wandering through the streets and shops open for business. A number of people were hard at work repairing some of the damage the siege had left, repaving the roads and restoring shop fronts. One thing also quickly became obvious, and that was that the Rising Moon had won. There was something about zombies walking through the city streets while being ignored by everyone else that seemed oddly disturbing, even if they weren¡¯t doing anything. With that in mind, he made his way towards the council hall in hopes that the guild had set up shop in the same place the previous rulers had. Sure enough, armed guards were patrolling the area that was now adorned with banners of the guild. The repairs around the area seemed to have already been completed, though the rockweed still filled a section of the wall, despite tools and axes littering the ground around it. Approaching the main gates, his entrance was barred when a pair of guards stepped in front of him, forcing him to halt. ¡°Halt! No one is to enter the hall without permission from the council.¡± One said in a bored tone. ¡°So I take it we won the fight then?¡± Jicker asked the speaker, which got them to pause. ¡°You¡¯re in the guild? I don''t remember seeing you around anywhere before...¡± they asked suspiciously. ¡°I''m not in guild at the moment; I''m sort of, I don''t know, adjacent?¡± The other guard snapped his fingers suddenly and pointed at him, understanding dawning on his face. ¡°That¡¯s where I''ve seen you before! When the seeker patrol got wiped out, the boss was yelling at you and Oda! I take it by the pants you didn¡¯t make it through the siege?¡± ¡°Something like that. I was hoping I could find someone to talk to about that, and maybe see if can track down the stuff I dropped. Can I come in now?¡± Jicker asked patiently. ¡°Hold on just a second, I should probably double check with someone.¡± ¡°No need guys, I can take it from here.¡± Gabe called out as he walked out of the hall in what looked like a Hawaiian shirt. ¡°A couple of Mary¡¯s zombies spotted you on your way over, so I figured I¡¯d come and let you in.¡± ¡°Thanks Gabe, but more importantly, what the hell are you wearing?¡± asked Jicker, the brightly coloured clothing so at odds with what he¡¯d seen of the guild so far. ¡°Hmmm? Oh these? According to Mary, I''m only slightly above useless when it comes to repairs and management of the city, so I''ve spent my time celebrating. I was just about to go and get a few more drinks when I got called out here. Now come on, there are a few things you need to be filled in on.¡± Walking through the newly claimed building was a strange contrast to the old guild hall he¡¯d seen. What he¡¯d seen before were people in dark robes going silently about their business, there was now colour filling the hallways, people laughing and talking openly as they worked. Apparently no longer being shunned as outcasts, they¡¯d dropped the dark and brooding image and were letting themselves finally relax. The room Gabe brought him to had been done up in an almost identical fashion to the one where he¡¯d first been introduced to the guild, if more brightly lit. The top brass of the guild were sitting around the room working, but on their entrance all work stopped suddenly, and several aides were ordered from the room. ¡°Jicker, good to see you came back to see us.¡± Mary said from behind a desk piled high with paperwork and forms. ¡°I felt I should come and see how things panned out. What¡¯s with the fire hazard?¡± Jicker replied, gesturing to the stacks. She sighed. ¡°A million little things that need to be done after claiming a city, that all need to be signed by me personally. Insurance forms, business licenses, citizenships and everything else even vaguely affected by the change in ownership. But that¡¯s not exactly why we had you called in here.¡± ¡°Sorry about this.¡± Oda said awkwardly as he stepped from the shadows. ¡°The people in the room at the moment are the only ones in the guild who know what were about to talk about, and we¡¯ve all agreed to secrecy for the time being. I can tell you¡¯re confused so I¡¯ll get to the point, and we can take it from there. Once we attacked the hall and you broke down the wall with that plant of yours, which will be another matter entirely, Gabe saw Oda take you out just as the battle began. After some serious questions about loyalties, Oda came clean with us, and told us about you.¡± ¡°What, exactly, did he say?¡± Jicker asked hesitantly, fearing the worst. Oda sighed. ¡°That you are, or were, Maser and that I¡¯d known for a while. Listen I''m sorry about killing you but one of the council guys had the same skill I do and-¡± Jicker held up a hand, interrupting him. ¡°I get it, and I thought it would be something like that. So now what? Are you going to attack me, run me out of town or try and sell me to the highest bidder?¡± There was silence for a moment, and then Gabe burst into laughter, quickly followed by the rest of the room, leaving Jicker looking around confused.You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. ¡°God, I wasn¡¯t sure how you¡¯d react but I didn¡¯t expect you¡¯d be so matter of fact about it.¡± Mary said as she wiped a tear from her eye. ¡°No, for better or worse we¡¯ve pulled you into our little family here, and we don''t turn on each other or sell them out. I mean, I¡¯ll level with you, whatever drama you¡¯ve got going on outside the game because of this is your own problem, and we won¡¯t get involved, but while you¡¯re logged in, we¡¯ve got your back.¡± ¡°That¡¯s...a lot better than I¡¯d expected.¡± Jicker said, honestly surprised. ¡°Meh, pretty much everyone in the guild has been chased and attacked for committing fictional crimes in a fictional world. Yours are a little bigger than everyone else¡¯s, but the ideas the same. But it does bring us to the main point, and it¡¯s a biggie.¡± ¡°And that is?¡± ¡°From what Oda told us, he doubts the guy got a good look at you before you got taken out, so you might actually be in the clear. But until we know for sure... we¡¯d like you to get out of town for a while.¡± Jicker stood quietly for a moment as he processed what she¡¯d said. ¡°That doesn¡¯t exactly sound like you have my back.¡± ¡°No it doesn¡¯t and I''m sorry about that. While the city is ours now and they can¡¯t attack us for a month, we¡¯re still in a rough spot right now. We used up a lot of resources taking the city, and its going to take time to replace them, even if we can be more open about it now. But if word get out that Maser had been sighted in the city, we¡¯re going to be drowning in adventurers with a score to settle. It¡¯s lucky, in a way, that you¡¯re not technically part off the guild, so they can¡¯t try to get anything out of us about you. Well lucky for us I suppose, it¡¯s still kind of a shit show for you isn¡¯t it.¡± Mary said, looking unhappy about the situation. She wasn¡¯t the gentlest leader, but she was fiercely protective over the rest of the guild, as long as they didn¡¯t push her too far. That brought another thought to mind. ¡°The silhouwolves! Did they have many casualties?¡± Jicker asked quickly out of nowhere. ¡°What? Oh no they didn''t have any deaths as far as we could tell, just a few scrapes here and there. Apparently there weren¡¯t that many runners, so they stayed safe for the most part. Everything went fine on their end, though one of our people, Harrison, was apparently killed out there before the wolves could help him. A terrible shame really.¡± ¡°I''m sure they¡¯re very upset about it.¡± Jicker replied, both of them doing their best keep straight faces and ignore Oda¡¯s chuckling. The mood in the room lightened after that, but Mary¡¯s tone remained serious. ¡°So we¡¯d appreciate if you went out of town for a while, maybe a month or so? Just until things settle down and we can do some recon on what that guy actually saw.¡± ¡°Yeah!¡± Gabe said from the corner, lifting up a glass. ¡°Take it easy for a while and cash in on your earnings from the siege! You were pretty involved right up until the finale, how¡¯d you make out anyway.¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t actually checked yet, I was a little busy finding some pants. Speaking of which...¡± ¡°I¡¯ll have someone go and get your things,¡± Mary said with a wave. ¡°Now come on, Gabe¡¯s got me curious now as well.¡± Opening up his menu, Jicker brought up his quest log, looking for the siege information, and finding that he¡¯d completed another quest he¡¯d forgotten about.
Ding! Quest: The Secret Heart of the Mountain - Complete! Reward: Improved standing with the Rising Moon.
Ding! Quest: The Siege of Ardenvale - Complete! Rewards: Player rewards their contributions.
Contributions made by player: Recruited allies Part of offensive Defeated opposing forces - 23 Attacked gates Opened gates - 2 Broke final defences Calculating...Final reward ranking- A
A glimmer of golden light appeared in front of him, drawing his hand towards it. As he made contact with it, it flickered and twisted, folding in on itself until it became a small golden box, no bigger than an apple. ¡°I got an A!? But I barely did anything!¡± Jicker exclaimed as he looked at the object in his hands. The rewards you could get from an event like this varied massively, but to simplify things there was a graded scale ranging from D to S. Receiving a D was what you got for being present, but not actually doing anything, and you got a few coins at best. Getting involved in any way that wasn¡¯t betraying your own side would earn you a C, which would usually give you the equivalent of a good quality weapon or piece armour. Larger contributions, like taking a key point would earn you a B, and could get you some magical items or better. Managing to get an A was usually reserved for the commanders in charge of large forces, or champions that had turned the tide of battle, and the rewards for that were sometimes enough to cause battles in the first place. It was unclear what the rewards of an S ranked reward would be, but since you would need to basically defeat a country single-handedly to earn one, they were only talked about as myths. To Jicker, earning such a high reward for what he¡¯d done seemed...wrong. When he said as much to the others, they disagreed with him. ¡°Let¡¯s see,¡± Oda said as he began ticking off his fingers. ¡°You got the wolves to help us out, which counts for a lot as these things go. You didn¡¯t do all the work, but you were the one who technically opened two of the gates, and then there¡¯s the matter of the plant that we¡¯re still trying to get rid of while people keep sneaking off with clippings. Is it really that surprising? I got an A myself, and so did a couple of others, with Mary pulling off an A plus. So come on, open the box!¡±
You have received: Six levels 1 wild stat point Amulet of Natural Selection
The results were...surprisingly unimpressive. The levels were nice, though at this point it wasn¡¯t actually worth much experience, but since it was a flat value that was his own problem more than anything. The wild stat point was good, since unlike a normal point it could be used on any stat he had and was promptly dropped into evolution, since every point there help him level. ¡°So?¡± Gabe asked excitedly. ¡°What¡¯s in the box?¡± ¡°A few levels, a wild point and an amulet.¡± ¡°That¡¯s it? Mary got an entire set of gear out of her reward. I think you got ripped off.¡± ¡°Maybe, maybe not. What does the amulet do?¡± Oda asked curiously. Jicker pulled out the amulet and had a proper look at it. A thin circle of jet black stone, it was attached to a fine chain of what looked like the same material. On to the face of the pendant were pieces of jade set in to form an image of an eagle diving towards a rabbit. As he handled it he felt a spark of energy jump from it to his hand, and quickly pulled up its information. Amulet of Natural Selection
Item type: Jewellery Grade: Unique (Soul bound) Restriction: Dark Chemist class This ancient amulet holds powers once forgotten. Special: +20 Intelligence, mana cost of adaptation reduced by 20%. Further abilities require the aid of a master to unlock.
¡°Well, its soul bound so for better or worse I''m stuck with it. And apparently I need to track down a master of my class to unlock it properly,¡± he said as he equipped it with a sigh. Soul bound equipment was usually top tier stuff, but with one key downside: it could never be gotten rid of. You couldn¡¯t sell it, drop it or trade it away, and with the exception of divine intervention they couldn¡¯t be taken from you. They often had a quest attached that would allow them to be removed of improved, but that was going to be difficult. ¡°Well that could be good, where¡¯s the nearest one? I¡¯ll give you a lift.¡± Gabe said, getting up from his seat. Jicker shook his head. ¡°I¡¯d never even heard of this class until I ended up with it and I doubt you¡¯ve seen one either. I¡¯ve already done some searching around, and all of the teachers for my class have apparently vanished.¡± ¡°How does that happen?¡± ¡°Not a clue, but I''m trying to track down where they were last seen, so maybe I can get some answers there.¡± ¡°Well, we did want you to get out of town for a while, and there are worse things you could do with your time than try and track one down.¡± Mary suggested. ¡°Sure, I¡¯ll just drop everything and go on a trip to god knows where to find someone that might not even exist.¡± ¡°...are you ok? You sound kind of bitter about this,¡± she asked with concern in her voice. Jicker took a deep breath and cleared his head. ¡°I¡¯m fine, just some personal garbage. It just always seems that I¡¯m being led around from place to place whether I like it or not, and it''s starting to get to me. But you¡¯re right I suppose, and it''s not like I¡¯ve got anything better to do around here.¡± ¡°I''m sorry about this, but I don''t want to put the guild at risk at the moment if we can avoid it. Listen, while you¡¯re travelling around, there¡¯s actually something I¡¯d like you to do if you don''t mind.¡± ¡°Hmm? What are you after?¡± Mary pulled out a sheet of paper and began writing out a list, talking as she did so. ¡°Before we started preparing for the takeover, the guild was spread out all over the place. But when we went dark to keep the element of surprise, we lost contact with some of our operations. Now, I don''t know where you¡¯re going to end up going, but if you manage to swing by any of these places and find out what happened, I¡¯d appreciate it.¡± Finishing off the list and handing it to him, it became clear that the meeting was over and people began to file in and out of the room, including one person carrying a small bag holding his dropped items. With his gear collected and given instructions to leave town, Jicker didn¡¯t feel like sticking around. His first stop was over to the academy to cancel his room and pick up a few bits and pieces he¡¯d left there. After that it didn¡¯t take long him to get to the city gates, which in their current state of repair were just a stone arch with a few people keeping an eye on things. He was about to head out when a hand fell on his shoulder. Turning, he found Oda standing behind him, holding the reins of a small horse in his other hand. ¡°You know,¡± the assassin said. ¡°You don''t have to walk everywhere when you¡¯ve got friends with resources.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve already got plenty from the guild so far.¡± Jicker said. ¡°I didn¡¯t mean the guild, I meant me. I still feel kind of shitty for stabbing you before, so I hope this can help make up for it,¡± he said, offering him the reins. Jicker looked at the horse, which was trying to eat a tree painted onto a sign post. ¡°Thanks for the offer, really, but I¡¯ve never been that great a rider. So if I''m going to get myself a mount I think I¡¯ll look for something a bit...smarter. Like, literally anything except that horse.¡± ¡°Hey that¡¯s a bit harsh. It¡¯s not that bad.¡± ¡°Oda, it¡¯s currently trying to fit its head into a drain pipe.¡± Jicker said incredulously as he watched it. ¡°...Ok fine, I had a bet with Gabe to see if I could get you to take it. But seriously if you need anything, just drop a message and I¡¯ll see what I can do. Good luck out there man, if it turns out that you¡¯ve been spotted, you could be looking at a rough time.¡± ¡°I know, but Mary was right that distance is probably a good idea right now. Speaking of which, I should probably get some details on where I should go looking.¡± Saying good bye, Jicker went into a nearby alley and logged out. ~~~~~~ His first realisation when he logged out was that his face still hurt, followed by the fact that the rest of him didn¡¯t feel much better. Carefully getting up and heading to the kitchen, he grabbed a few more painkillers and raided the fridge for a few things that didn¡¯t need to be prepared. After finishing off his makeshift meal, he sent an email to Sarah about getting information on his class trainers. It was only a few minutes later as he was looking at some videos to kill time when his phone began to ring. ¡°Sarah hi, listen I was wondering if-¡± ¡°Oh thank god you¡¯re ok!¡± she exclaimed loudly, cutting him off. ¡°He was going to your house, and then he came back with a weird expression on his face and you weren¡¯t answering your phone and-¡± ¡°Sarah, relax! Things were tense for a while, but right now everything is fine. Well, not fine but things are...stable.¡± ¡°Are you sure? Because I just got an order to put you through to the boss,¡± she said nervously. ¡°What on earth does the bastard want now?¡± Matt groaned, falling back on to the couch. ¡°You¡¯ll find out in a second, so maybe rein it in a little?¡± The connection died for a brief moment, the sounds of pipe music coming through as hold music began to play, before they cut out again. ¡°So, Mr. Harper, I didn¡¯t think we¡¯d need to speak again quite so soon after our little run in yesterday, but here we are.¡± August said in his usual smug tone. ¡°What do you want August?¡± Matt asked flatly, rubbing his nose as he said it. ¡°What I want isn¡¯t the question I need answered. I thought we¡¯d come to an ...Accord when we spoke, so I''m confused about this latest act of yours.¡± ¡°What are you blaming me for now?¡± ¡°I don''t know why you think my memory is faulty, but I do recall you telling me you had blackmail material. Sending a reminder via anonymous email was unnecessary and honestly a bit tactless¡± Confusion made Matt remain quiet and in his silence August continued. ¡°I admit though, the other pieces of data you sent over were a surprise. I didn¡¯t think you had the skill or ruthlessness to dig up some of those old records. But the question remains, why did you send it? What do you want?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t send it.¡± Matt said quietly after finding his voice. ¡°Excuse me?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t send you an email. I haven¡¯t even accessed the video since yesterday.¡± August went so quiet that Matt wondered whether the line had disconnected. ¡°You¡¯re sure? This email didn¡¯t come from you, or from someone you¡¯ve hired to help you?¡± August asked, sounding almost ... desperate? ¡°I don''t even have your email address, and honestly I didn''t want anything else to with you.¡± Matt replied. He waited for a response, then a laboured breath came through the phone. ¡°Then someone else is aware of our arrangement, what happened yesterday, and a host of other activities. And apparently they¡¯re interested in you.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Apart from the host of files attached to the email, there was a single line of text, and it gave a pretty clear indication of their intent.¡± Matt licked his lips nervously. ¡°What did it say?¡± ¡°¡¯Continue the work or be held accountable. We will be watching.¡¯¡± Chapter 25 ¡°So, what does this mean?¡± Matt asked, breaking the silence. After August had revealed the message, the line had gone silence, both deep in thought. ¡°What does this mean? Are you that clueless? Someone else is both aware of your history, and our current arrangement. They also appear to have latched on to your idea of blackmail, but they seem to have the reach necessary to do it properly. And whatever reason they seem to want you to keep going about your business in Genesis, Mr. Harper, that is what it means!¡± He shouted angrily. ¡°Who could have-¡± August cut him off with a sigh, suddenly sounding very tired. ¡°I don''t know who it is, and if I don''t, you certainly wouldn¡¯t. For now, continue whatever activities you¡¯d planned, since apparently I''m not the only one watching.¡± Without another word August hung up, leaving Matt sitting in silence as held the phone, looking blankly around him. Before he could do anything else however, he jumped as the phone rang in his hand, showing that Sarah was calling him back. ¡°Matt? I saw that the line had cleared, is everything...ok?¡± she asked nervously. ¡°It¡¯s not perfect, but it¡¯ll do for now. So what can I do for you?¡± ¡°Um you rang me before remember? I take it you needed something?¡± she asked. ¡°Oh yeah! Sorry, August kind of threw me there for a minute. I initially called to get some information from you; do you think you could help me out?¡± ¡°Probably but it depends. What are you looking for?¡± ¡°A while ago, you looked for trainers for my class right? Well I''m going to go and see if I can track one down, so I was hoping you could give me a place to start looking.¡± ¡°That I can do, just give me a few seconds to find those files again¡­ Ah, here we are. Now were you looking to go after any in particular?¡± she asked. ¡°For now let¡¯s just go with the closest one and see where that gets me.¡± ¡°Well, I don''t know if close is the right word, since it looks like they¡¯re a good month away if you¡¯re on foot, though you could cut that down if you¡¯re mounted. You picked up a ride?¡± ¡°Not yet, though it doesn''t look like I can put it off much longer. So where am I headed?¡± Mary listed off a series of directions and gave him a few landmarks to help him to reach the trainers last known location. ¡°I¡¯ll warn you now though,¡± she added. ¡°I wouldn''t trust the landmarks perfectly, since you destroyed or moved a lot of them with the upheaval, but this is all I''ve got at the moment.¡± ¡°Ok. I think I got all of that, thanks for the help. Hey before I go, got anything else for me?¡± ¡°Not that I can think of... Oh! I had a bit more of a look into skills that you should try and learn? There''s a hunting one called communal instincts that give you a better understanding of how animals think and act. It¡¯s supposed to be for tracking, trapping and training them, but it would probably help you out as well.¡± ¡°Could be useful, I¡¯ll keep an eye out for anyone who could teach me. Thanks Sarah.¡± Putting down the phone, he took a deep breath and tried to relax. He¡¯d gone from under threat to safe to whatever situation he was in now in less than a day, and it still hadn''t fully sunk in yet. Getting up and stretching his legs, he decided to go for a walk to clear his head and get some fresh air. ~~~~~~ Logging back in after his walk and a meal, Jickerfound himself once again at the city gates, though now with a destination. But if he was going to get there anytime this month he¡¯d need to find something to ride. Looking around he saw that Oda had left the horse he¡¯d been leading around tied up nearby to a nearby post, which it had managed to walk around to the point its lead was only a few inches long. Helping out the poor animal, he wondered if he should try and get himself a proper horse, but soon dismissed the idea. A decent horse was too large for him to ride properly, and the ones sized correctly were too slow to justify the hassle. Other options were either designed to only be ridden on certain terrains or were little more than a joke. He could still remember the weeks he¡¯d been stuck riding on a bright red goat that was apparently the only way to safely cross a certain marsh. No, if he was going to spend his time riding something around for weeks at a time then it would be on an animal he liked, rather than just merely tolerated. With that decided he didn''t bother trying to find anything in the stables and instead hoped he could find something suitable to work with on the way there. The roads were quiet today, and until proper trade agreements had been set up with the Rising Moon they¡¯d probably stay that way. People were beginning to accept they owned the city now, but they weren''t sure whether they wanted to do business with them. Until people had decided one way or other, traders would be waiting nervously to resign their contracts or form new ones. But for now at least it meant that he could walk down the main road without needing to worry about being rundown by a cart fighting its way through the crowds. When he¡¯d first left the orcish city, he¡¯d been uncomfortable travelling around in the open, but he¡¯d just attributed it to having been stuck underground for so long. But now that he wasn¡¯t running from anyone or racing against a dead line, that same sense of unease began to creep back into his mind, making him wonder whether it was something Gremlins had to deal with. Getting off of the main road, he moved into the edge of the trees and began to travel under the forest canopy, keeping an eye on his compass to make sure he didn¡¯t lose his way. Even though his pace slowed down as he had to navigate around obstacles and climbing over the terrain, he immediately felt more comfortable than being out in the open. With nothing forcing him onwards as he went he found himself able to appreciate his surroundings, and actually experience things rather than just force his way past. The air was crisp, the plant life around him was vibrant and green and bird calls filled the area. Compared to lurking in the shadows to reach his objective, it was a much more pleasant way to spend his time. Taking the odd break as he went, his pack slowly began to fill as he collected herbs and other plants that stuck out to him, getting a level of herbalism for his troubles. He wasn¡¯t sure what most of them could be used for, but he had a feeling he¡¯d find some information in the book Molta had given him. The day was quiet as he travelled through the woods, and by the time night began to fall he¡¯d made good time, having covered a little over a dozen miles. Setting up a small campfire to wait out the night, he set up his bedroll and lay down, staring vacantly into the flames as he relaxed. Going into his bag to find something to eat, he paused as he heard a rustling in the bushes behind him. Jicker found himself slightly surprised that it had taken this long for the Silhouwolves to come and see him, since Penumbra had a habit of demanding things from him as soon as he entered. ¡°What do you want this...time¡­?¡± Jicker said as he turned to face them, trailing off as he saw the creatures in front of him. There were a wide variety of monsters living in Genesis, and with magic in the mix they ranged far beyond normal animals, including everything from dragons to the oddities standing around him known as wickerlings. Even shorter than he was, the forms illuminated by the fire in front of him were irregular in shape, made of twisting vines and broken lengths of wood in a rough humanoid shape. Their heads were covered with a large plate of bark with random carvings on it to form something resembling a face, though the mouth split open to show jagged wooden teeth that looked all too functional. He¡¯d encountered wickerlings before, as they were a recurring pest that sprang up in Genesis with surprising speed. From what players had gathered about them, they¡¯d been a goblin chieftains attempt to build a golem army, with the help of a mischievous forest spirit. Whatever plan they¡¯d had backfired dramatically, as the newly formed constructs not only killed off the goblins entire clan, but tore apart the spirits forest for materials to create more of their kind. Somehow they¡¯d gained a crude self awareness of their own, and wasted no time in attempting to wipe out anything that approached their tribes and ambushing travellers they thought they could handle. Their bodies had become cruder over the years as they slowly lost the dexterity to create the next generation, but they kept the same savagery, though no one was sure why they ate their victims exactly, since they had no digestive system that could be found. But with dozens of them dropping from the trees and pulling themselves out of the ground, all of their history seemed irrelevant as he turned and ran. As he picked up speed he saw the wickerlings pull out spears and knives of hewn stone, raising them up as their piercing cries filled the air. They wasted no time and began to chase after him immediately, running after him as he fled. Racing through the trees, Jicker looked around desperately for a way to hide or escape from the creatures chasing him, seeking a way out. As he ran he could hear them gaining on him, now only a few dozen feet behind him and closing fast. A sharp pain bloomed on his shoulder as a spear was thrown from behind, leaving a deep gash as it passed. The sight of blood only seemed to incite them more, their cries picked up in volume and intensity as they threw another volley of spears in an effort to bring him down. Narrowly dodging aside to avoid them, he tripped on an exposed root and fell, tumbling down a steep embankment before landing in a shallow creek bed. Getting to his feet he looked back up to the top of the embankment Jicker saw that not only had the wickerlings stopped at the edge, but backlit by the moonlight was another group that had been waiting for him on the other side, and now both groups were apparently cheering at his predicament. As they spread out along the bank they began taking lazy shots at him, laughing as he dove out of the way. Moving behind an outcrop, he tried to hide from the attackers long enough to come up with a way out, only hiss in pain as a spear found its way into his calf. As he crouched down below his cover he pulled the spear free and downed a dose of anaesthetic and took stock. As constructs, none of his poisons would have any effect at all, and he suddenly wished he¡¯d taken the time to restock on incendiberries. His blowgun could hit them, and would probably do enough damage to take out several, but with his ammo limited he¡¯d be swarmed over long before he could thin their numbers, and the last thing he wanted to do was go toe to toe with them all in a knife fight. Searching around desperately, he tried to think of something else he could try as rocks and spears pelted his cover and wickerlings began to move further along the embankment to get a better shot. The only other trick he really had at his disposal was adaptation, and he didn''t have anything to work with, since any plant he could make would take too long and wouldn''t be able to do what he needed. He looked to see if he could find an insect, a worm, anything he could use to create at least a distraction for him to get away.This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. His hands twitched as an idea flashed through his mind, bringing him to a point where he ignored the screams and cheers of those above. He was a step above his normal targets, but he was technically a willing target for adaptation. Taking a last look over his cover to make sure things hadn¡¯t changed, he placed a hand on his chest and triggered the ability.
Warning: this ability cannot be used on yourself.
¡°Goddammit!¡± he screamed, his voice joining with that of the wickerlings. His idea had failed right at the start, before he could even make an attempt, and as he knelt against the rocks he saw the first of the enemy begin to hurl themselves down the embankments to engage him. Pulling out his blade, he readied himself as the first reached him, while the others cheered on their self-elected champion. Crying out as they charged, a spiked club held up, they launched towards him, causing Jicker to throw himself out of over to avoid their heavy swing. Fortunately, the bystanders had stopped their attacks while they waited eagerly to see the result of the impromptu coliseum match. Lashing out with the scalpel, he carved a long gash into the side of his attacker, sending a scattering of twigs and wood chips to land in muck of the creek bed. Lacking a brain, a face and even a proper head, the wickerlings still managed to give a mocking smirk as his attack left no real damage. With a body made of wood held together with nothing but vines and magic, even the sharpest of weapons wouldn¡¯t have much of an effect. Its expression changed quickly as his second blow took its arm of at the elbow. Jicker smirked back as it howled for his blood. It was an old trick that been developed to deal with the undead, since short of massive trauma they weren¡¯t going to stop. So instead it became less combat and more butchery, with every stroke designed to instead incapacitate the enemy rather than defeat them. Even with no vital organs or a need for a working brain, it was hard to swing a weapon when its arms had been broken or removed. Enraged at being disarmed, it attacked ferociously with its remaining arm, flailing wildly with its club. Ducking low, he stepped to the side as it moved in to take a shot at his face and returned one that took it low at the leg, taking off its foot. As it collapsed it tried to stop its fall be propping itself up with the club, before sliding to the side and falling in the mud. As it scrambled in the muck and screamed at him, he moved in and began to hack at the side of his fallen opponent, until his blade came through to the other side. When the short battle had ended the area went silent as the audience looked on, their spears lowered in surprise as their fighter had been beaten. But the quiet didn¡¯t last, as their screams picked up again before a few, then dozens leapt down into the creek bed and began running towards him, weapons raised. Standing his ground, Jicker lifted his own weapon and screamed back letting go of his stress at everything that had been going on in his life over the past few weeks, always being pushed around and led by throat from one situation to the next. He pounded on his chest as they at him trying to activate his ability in spite of its failure, wishing he could take a few more of them before they brought him down. As he did so he was hit with a stream of error messages, until a change came through just before the wave of wickerlings struck.
Warning: this ability cannot be used on yourself. Warning: this ability cannot be used on- Warning: this ability cannot- Warning: this- War- Mother of invention! You have unlocked a-
He couldn¡¯t read anymore of the message before he was struck by an electric shock, his muscles seizing uncontrollably, the loss of control causing him to drop is weapon and fall to his knees. His body burned as he felt his back twist and burn, his bones creaking under the energy pouring through his system. In between waves of convulsions, he was surprised to see that, despite the mind numbing pain, according to the game he wasn¡¯t taking any damage. But after a few minutes of his body¡¯s reactions, the pain subsided, leaving him floating in a daze, unable to focus properly. He tried to look around but found himself unable to move his neck, or move much of anything in fact. But from what he could see, not only was his vision sharper than it had been, it also seemed¡­wider? As he looked through his frozen eyes he could tell his field of view of had expanded significantly, and by the appearance of the wickerlings that had stopped their approach, he¡¯d grown substantially as well. Without any action on his behalf he found himself moving forward with frightening speed, tearing the wickerlings in front of him apart with ease. He wondered how he was cutting them apart with his bare hands until he caught a glimpse of long rugged claws jutting from his fingers. Without any input by him, Jicker found himself moving through his attackers, striking at them without hesitation, their stone weapons bouncing off his apparently reinforced skin. In moments the ones that had joined him in the creek bed had been destroyed, to the shock of the onlookers above. Before they could decide whether to fight or run however, Jicker found himself soaring through the air towards them, arms outstretched towards the nearest opponent. ~~~~~~ It had been half an hour since the last of the wickerlings had been destroyed, torn apart with its remains thrown aside carelessly. It had quickly become clear that his body had started working on some kind of forced autopilot, leaving him unable to take any action. With no way of participating the fight, Jicker had taken the time to look back at the notice he¡¯d received when the ability activated.
Mother of Invention! You have created a new ability! Lesser Rageform: When activated, this ability will change the user into an uncontrolled bestial state, desiring survival and focusing on the thoughts the user had when it was activated. Duration and permanency chance is based on adaptation. Your character will remain in this state and continue to be active even when logged out, and during this time you will count as a creature rather than a player. 3 day cooldown. This ability cannot be taught. This will be replaced once a higher level version is acquired.
Another ability created, and again it had been a stroke of luck, though spending several hours roaming the forest as some kind of beast man wasn¡¯t exactly how he¡¯d planned to spend the evening. He¡¯d considered logging out for a while and letting the ability run its course, though he decided to stay so he could at least be aware of what he¡¯d be responsible for. With all available enemies defeated and no other threats around, the Rageform didn¡¯t seem to have any real goal, and settled on running randomly amongst the trees, jumping and climbing with surprising agility. It was only when it decided it was thirsty and went to grab a drink from a nearby pool did he finally get a proper look at what he¡¯d become. From his best guess he¡¯d shot up several feet, putting him at around eight or nine, though his hunched over stance dropped it a little. His face and jaw had elongated into more of a muzzle, causing his eyes to slide further around his head and expand his view, while giving him a vicious set of teeth. His skin had turned a pallid grey, covered in rough bumps of what looked like scar tissue. When he¡¯d changed his muscles had grown violently, swelling to almost comical size, and while his legs had undergone the same treatment, they¡¯d had the additional effect of his bones breaking and reforming to become more reptilian, allowing for his surprisingly high jumping ability. Unfortunately his clothing hadn¡¯t survived the changes, being torn apart as he grew right through them, though the games nudity safeguards had left him with his modesty even when a snake like tail had ripped through his pants when it sprouted. The Rageform apparently considered keeping his belongings part of protecting him, and had grabbed his pack from where it had fallen once he¡¯d tore the shoulder straps off. The few other animals he came across seemed to recognise him as a threat as soon as they saw him, quickly running away or hiding where they could, though a few tried to fight him. One bear in particular tried to challenge him when he¡¯d wandered to close to the cave it had been sleeping in, only to have its neck broken, as he rushed it while it was still roaring at him. On the plus side it gave the Rageform something to eat since his dinner had been interrupted by the wickerlings. It was approaching midnight when the Rageform finally expired and returned him to his normal shape, though it didn¡¯t happen gently, giving Jicker the rare opportunity to feel his bones break in reverse. As he was left shaking on the ground, he got another notification.
You have the gained shifted status. Until your body recovers from having forcibly entered another form, your strength, stamina and speed will be halved. Duration remaining: 6 hours
¡°Well, that wasn¡¯t fun,¡± he said to himself as he struggled his feet. Reaching into the remains of his pack he pulled out the cemetery clothes he¡¯d picked up before and put them on before looking around to see where he¡¯d ended up. He was still somewhere in the forest, that much he knew, but he¡¯d ended up travelling a lot further in than he¡¯d planned to, though how far was still unknown. He¡¯d tried to remember the path the Rageform had taken, but the rapid, jerky movements in the dark had made it difficult to follow, even if he could make the same leaps and bounds it had to get around. Seeing nothing better to do he found a small corner formed by a fallen tree and got a campfire going, settling in to sleep for the rest of the night. ~~~~~~ As daylight broke through the forest canopy, Jicker awoke, his body still complaining from last night¡¯s adventure. With proper lighting to see his surroundings, it became far easier to tell the direction he¡¯d come, with deep gouges marking various trees he¡¯d grabbed and leapt from as he¡¯d moved. For all the speed and strength of the Rageform, it wasn¡¯t exactly subtle, and had left an easy to see trail of marks if you were looking for them. It took him a little over two hours to make his way back to the creek bed, and another to find the site of the battle. He was grateful that his body had decided to just race away in a single direction, otherwise it could have taken days to get back, over which time his dropped equipment likely would have vanished or have been picked up by someone else. As it was it didn¡¯t take too long to find and retrieve his weapons, though his armour and shoes were going to need to be replaced completely. Using the remains of his jacket he tied his pack onto his back and wrapped his feet in what was left before checking his compass and setting off. He considered just going back to Ardenvale to replace and repair his equipment, but not only was there a chance that people would be looking for him there, he also didn¡¯t want to face people while looking homeless after being gone for only a day. With that in mind he pressed on, deciding to keep going despite this setback and would try and replace what he could at one of the towns along the route Sarah had suggested. It would be at least several days before he got to the first one but he¡¯d worn worse before, and stepping on rocks and sticks was still better than broken metal and glass. A branch snapped behind, causing him to spin and draw his weapon, only to see a silhouwolf watching him. ¡°Oh sure,¡± he said to it, causing the animal to stare at him. ¡°Now you come and see me, but when I get attacked you¡¯re nowhere to be found.¡± Sighing he realised that he couldn¡¯t expect wild animals to look out for him, and it was hardly their fault he¡¯d set up camp in the middle of a wickerling ambush. Shaking his head at his own foolishness, he double checked that his pack was securely in place and that it wasn¡¯t going to split open, and began traveling again. It was several hours after sunrise when he decided to stop for a bite to eat, looking for a place to sit and relax. The creek bed that had wound its way along had been replaced with a wide river, birds sitting atop its currents and plucking fish out of the water with practiced ease. As he sat down on its banks he pulled out bread roll from his pack and began eating, letting the sounds of the river wash over him. It was hard to tear himself away from such a peaceful sight, but eventually he felt it was time to get moving. As he went to stand however, a hand landed heavily on his shoulder, forcing him to stay seated. ¡°Well then,¡± a harsh voice said from behind him. ¡°What do we have here? All alone without anyone to help you?¡± Jicker swore to himself. He¡¯d been hidden while moving through the forest, not needing to be o the lookout for threats from other people. But now that he was by the river he could be seen by anyone looking closely, and apparently this person, whoever they were, had been. Sighing heavily, Jicker looked upwards. ¡°How does everything keep managing to sneak up on me?¡± he asked of no one in particular. ¡°With ears like that I¡¯m surprised I managed it myself,¡± the voice answered. ¡°But that not really important right now is it.¡± Before Jicker could ask what he meant by that, a heavy blow connected with the back of his head, and vision quickly faded to black. Chapter 26 Waking up, Jicker was about to get up when he remembered that he hadn''t exactly gone to sleep voluntarily. Carefully opening his eyes and looking around as much as he could without moving, he tried to make out his surroundings. From what he could tell he was on the back of some wagon travelling through the forest, though considering the size of it that didn''t tell him much, and he couldn''t even be sure if it was still a part of Greyleaf forest or he¡¯d been taken somewhere else entirely. ¡°About time you woke up. Don''t bother trying to pretend otherwise, you¡¯ve been collared,¡± a voice came from off to the side. Hearing that, he threw off all pretence of being asleep and reached quickly towards his neck, finding a band of cold metal wrapping seamlessly around his neck. Swearing, he looked around to find an elf sitting in the back of the wagon with him, wearing a similar collar themselves. ¡°Names Salt, been in for two months,¡± the said offering a hand. ¡°Jicker,¡± he grumbled, shaking the hand as rubbed his neck where the collar sat, cursing his carelessness. Taking people prisoner had been a big topic of debate in Genesis, since the idea of slavery was always a touchy subject. But it hadn¡¯t taken long for people to try to kidnap people, so the company was forced to takes steps shortly after the games release for player¡¯s protection. It was possible to conscript someone by equipping an enchanted collar onto a helpless target, with both the collar and the person using being a higher level than the target. Once equipped it couldn¡¯t be removed except by the person who put it on, though there were a few magic¡¯s and abilities that could get around this. Once conscripted, they were forced to work for the one that held the other end of the contract for three months, at which point they would be freed and rendered immune to the effects of the collars for a year. What a conscripted person could be order to do was limited to combat or labour, and any attempts to force a person to go beyond these restrictions were met with...severe responses. In addition, those in control were encouraged to take a degree of care of the conscript, since if they died five times while in service then they¡¯d be released early. This meant that there was a good number of people who would simply try and kill themselves until they free, view the loss of levels and skills the lesser of two evils. Jicker wasn¡¯t a high enough level for the loss to be too substantial, but it would still be more of a setback than he¡¯d like. ¡°Who¡¯s grabbed us?¡± he asked the elf. ¡°And what are they having us do?¡± ¡°No one you¡¯d know I expect, a group of bandits calling themselves the Woodsmen, players mostly, but they¡¯ve got a few NPC¡¯s amongst them. They normally spend their time attacking people along the roads, raiding caravans that sort of thing. As to the what, mostly we¡¯ve been forced to help them fight, carry the loot and other stuff like that. But lately, there''s been talk of them setting up a more permanent base, and since they¡¯ve been on something of a recruitment drive, I''m guessing that they¡¯re ready to start.¡± ¡°So I¡¯m looking at a few months of building work?¡± he asked, mulling it over. ¡°That''s my guess, but you¡¯d only have my word for it. So, are you going to stick it out, or do you want to borrow my knife?¡± Salt asked, drawing out a large blade. ¡°They let you keep your weapons?¡± Jicker asked in surprise. ¡°Like I said, we¡¯ve been doing some banditry around the area, and I wouldn''t be much good if they left me unarmed. They¡¯ll probably give you your stuff back once they¡¯ve given you your orders and can trust you not to stab them in the back. So, knife?¡± He shook his head. ¡°I¡¯ll pass, though depending on what I actually end up doing that might change. So where are we anyway? Are we still in Greyleaf forest, because I can''t say I recognise the area.¡± Salt laughed. ¡°You¡¯ve been out for almost a whole day, and I can assure you the woodsmen don''t hang around after grabbing someone. We left Greyleaf a few hours ago, and now we¡¯re in the Blightwoods.¡± ¡°The... Blightwoods? Where the hell are those?¡± ¡°Officially, I''m not sure they¡¯re anywhere yet. This place used to be all fields and open plains, with a few quarries and mines about from what I remember. But when the upheaval hit¡­¡± ¡°Things changed.¡± Jicker finished, while thinking about where he¡¯d caused a forest to grow. Most people wouldn''t look at growing plant as a way of causing widespread destruction, but to keep things balanced, he¡¯d explored every option he could find. And some of those options had resulted in places like this, where things had been swallowed up by the rapidly growing vegetation, and the various other effects that had come along with it. The trees they were surround by looked much more familiar to him now that he knew what to look for, though calling them trees would be a mistake. Tall reddish plants stood around them, with thick broad leaves forming a canopy above them, but the trees plants themselves lacked any form of bark, and were instead covered with a thin layer of sap. The entire ¡°forest¡± was made of a type of fungus that he¡¯d pinched from a high level dungeon and spread across the area along with some strong fertilizer agents with the blast. From what he could recall, it should have covered everything in a good fifty mile radius or so if it gone to plan, and by the look of things it had, overrunning everything in the area. Anything coming into contact with the sap on the plants would meet with an unfortunate end as the fungus would respond by rapidly producing more, attempting to coat and trap whatever had touched it, before following it with an acid to try and kill and digest its now trapped prey. ¡°They actually live in this place? It''s a damn death-trap!¡± He exclaimed. ¡°It sure is,¡± the wagon driver said without turning back, speaking up for the first time. ¡°But it¡¯s our death-trap, and it''s going to make us rich.¡± ~~~~~~ It took a little less than an hour for them to reach their destination, and Salt decided to fill in the time by talking about himself, while the driver resumed his silence. Jicker had a suspicion the elf was something of a liar, since if he were to be believed, then not only had he personally conquered several cities, but had also invented the concept of magic. But the random stories and tales were entertaining, and it was a pleasant distraction for the trip. Eventually they reached a small clearing, which seemed to serve as their camp, tents covering the area while giving the plants a good distance away. Around a hundred people were wandering about the place, with a few dozen of them wearing conscription collars. Once, the wagon had come to a stop, Salt wasted no time in dragging him off to where most of the conscripts were milling about. ¡°Jim! We¡®ve got another one to put to work!¡± he shouted out to a dwarf who was busy discussing things with some others, marking things down in a ledger. ¡°Tone it down Salt, its way too early for that level of enthusiasm,¡± they replied tiredly. ¡°What? It¡¯s past noon!¡± ¡°Your point?¡± Salt shook his head before turning back to Jicker. ¡°Jicker, this grump is Jim; he¡¯s in charge of assigning work amongst the conscripts and will be acting as your boss while you¡¯re stuck here. Jim, this little green is Jicker, a brand new conscript who''s going to be sticking it out with us for a while.¡± ¡°Another one? I suppose our turnover rate is high enough, but at this rate we¡¯re going to outnumber the woodsmen. Anyway, good to meet you I suppose, though it''s not like either of us has much choice in the matter. There are a few perks to being charge of everyone else however, though I¡¯d have to be real grump to use some of them, right Salt?¡± he said, looking at the elf who winced. ¡°Ah, come on Jim, you¡¯re not going to retaliate for me saying you¡¯re a grumpy bastard are you?¡± ¡°Of course not, that would be childish. But the latrines do need to be moved, and I am the one who dictates whose job that is. And it¡¯s is my great pleasure to say that it¡¯s all yours, so grab a shovel from the shed and get to work.¡± As salt trudged away grumbling, he turned back to Jicker, looking down at him. ¡°Now that he¡¯d dealt with, let''s get you sorted out,¡± he said, his eyes losing focus as he began to speak as if reading off something in front of him. ¡°You are to obey all orders given by members of the Woodsmen, so long as they obey the laws of conscription. You are not to attack any member of the Woodsmen, nor any other conscripts currently working for them. You are not to use any abilities or spells in an attempt to escape.¡±
You have been given conscription orders that you will be required to follow while they are within the rules. Attempts to break the orders will trigger degrees of AI control over your actions.
¡°They¡¯re trusting you to hand out the orders to us? Isn¡¯t that a bit risky for them?¡± Jicker asked as he dismissed the message. ¡°I wish, but they were careful about what orders they gave me, so they haven¡¯t left me any real room to screw with them. But let¡¯s put that aside for now, and cover what you¡¯ll be doing. What did Salt tell you?¡± ¡°A million different things, but I''m pretty sure almost all of it was useless or false. He did say you were building a base or something?¡± he said, scratching his head. ¡°Sounds like him, but as usual he¡¯s wrong, though not as much as usual. We¡¯re not building a base, were clearing a road.¡±A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. ¡°That doesn¡¯t sound as... bandit-like as I was expecting.¡± ¡°Well if it gets done properly, and they maintain it well enough, they¡¯ll be making money by the bucket. When this forest sprang up, it sealed up the entire area between the mountains, forcing people and merchants to go all the way around, taking weeks longer than it used to. But if they carve a new road through here, they¡¯ll officially own it and can charge a toll to use it, and everyone¡¯s going to be taking it.¡± Jicker was impressed. Most people only worked towards goals that helped them in the short term, or gave benefits on along the way to their final objective. Hearing that bandits, people who always took the easy way out, were working towards such a far reaching goal was surprising. ¡°So what are we doing?¡± he asked. ¡°First step is clearing the way, which is harder than you¡¯d think since the trees keep trying to eat anyone who goes to cut them down. That¡¯s why they¡¯ve been grabbing people to work on it, to replace who we¡¯ve lost. Now, you got much experience in being a lumberjack?¡± He raised an eyebrow. ¡°Look at me. Do I look like the type who goes around cutting down trees?¡± Jim chuckled. ¡°No, you look more like something I¡¯d find stuck under a log. But you¡¯ve got some time to learn now, so go grab something from the shed and I¡¯ll show you what to do.¡± Heading over to the small wooden hut that served as the tool shed, he looked over the wide range of tools and equipment available, most of it rusty and in desperate need of repair. Searching through the piles of garbage he found an axe suitable for his size that was still sharp enough to put to use.
Small Iron Axe Item type: Tool Grade: Common 3-5 damage This small axe is on its last legs, and will need to be replaced before long.
Jim spent the next half an hour showing him how to put his axe to use and cut down the trees, while avoiding becoming the forests lunch. As long as nothing organic came into contact with the plants, they wouldn¡¯t react, though you still had to be quick and careful. If you stopped cutting for a minute the damage would begin to heal over with sap undoing your work in moments, making it a test of endurance more than skill. Once he had the basics down he was given a section of forest to work on, and instructed to cut down everything he could manage. As a gremlin, he wasn''t built to be a physical labourer, which became clear after he struggled to cut down his first tree. The wood visibly flexed to push back against him with every swing, making him fight for every inch of purchase and forcing him to lean into every blow and get dangerously close to the deadly sap. Walking back after over an hour of only managing to take a single tree down, Jicker went to track down Jim, who looked to be in a discussion with someone. ¡°Listen,¡± he said in a pleading tone. ¡°I¡¯m telling you we can¡¯t do it! With the people and equipment we have, it¡¯ll take us months or even years to put a road through this place, and that''s if nothing goes south on us again. If you want to get this done then you need to-¡± ¡°You don¡¯t get to tell me what needs to be done! I¡¯ve told you what has to happen and it''s your job to ensure that we meet the deadline. Now get back to work before I send you out to go hug a tree.¡± As the person walked, leaving Jim to stew over his words, Jicker went up to him. ¡°Jim, do you have a second?¡± he asked. ¡°Hmm? Oh, yeah I''ve got a moment, what do you want?¡± ¡°What was up with him? Is there a problem somewhere or-¡± Jim raised a hand, cutting him off. ¡°Nothing that you should worry about, and you should just forget you heard anything to be on the safe side. Now was your eavesdropping all you wanted to speak to me about, or did you have something else?¡± ¡°I was hoping to get my stuff back. Salt said I¡¯d get it back later, and there are a couple of things in my bag that could make this easier on me.¡± Jim looked at him oddly for a second before shrugging and walking into another building he hadn''t gone into yet, and after a few minutes came out with a bag containing his belongings. ¡°It should all be in here, though I wouldn''t be too surprised if some of your gold had gone walkabout. Conscription only lets them disarm you, but there are enough thieves and other shady classes amongst the woodsmen that minor theft is pretty common, even amongst themselves. So do you have your own lumber axe in there or¡­?¡± Jicker snorted. ¡°I¡¯m no lumberjack, and I never plan to be. But if i can up my strength and stamina a bit, it should make things a bit simpler,¡± he said as he opened up the bag. Sure enough, about half of his gold had been taken, but everything else seemed to be intact and was quickly re-equipped. Looking through his pockets, he was happy to see that he still had a number of battle drops left and took one out, popping it into his mouth and feeling the faint surge of power that came with it. ¡°You¡¯re going to waste potions on this work? It¡¯s your money I guess, but¡­¡± Jim said as he watched him. ¡°I make them myself, so it''s not exactly expensive. Besides I''d rather drop a few coins than stagger around and get eaten by the woods.¡± That got Jim''s attention. ¡°You¡¯re an alchemist? Normally the only people getting brought in are fighters who were off adventuring.¡± ¡°I''m not an alchemist, but I dabble in it when I''ve got the time to work.¡± ¡°Made anything good?¡± he asked thoughtfully. ¡°A couple of things I¡¯m sort of proud of, but most of its pretty generic. Why, are you interested in buying some?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know about buying, but if you can put together anything to help get through this place then I''m pretty much going to order you to make it.¡± ¡°I could probably make a few strength enhancers, but I doubt they¡¯d make a big enough difference to most people to be worth the effort.¡± He said with a shrug. ¡°Damn. Well, it was worth a shot I guess.¡± He said as he turned away, before pausing as a thought came to him. ¡°What about something to kill off these damn plants directly? Do you have much experience with poisons?¡± Jicker grinned. ¡°Now that,¡± he said as he cracked his knuckles. ¡°Is something more my speed.¡± ~~~~~~ It took only a few hours for him to repurpose the poison he¡¯d made for dealing with farmland to affect the hardier fungal life of the forest. It had taken far less for Jim to get him permission and access to all of the Woodmen¡¯s alchemical equipment and supplies. While they saw the value of the items they¡¯d been taking and collecting, they were almost entirely warriors and combat focused mages, leaving very little in the way of people who could put it to use.
Mother of invention! By studying reactions between substances and other toxins you have created a new poison Recipe: 3 units of salt, 1 unit of water, 1 poison pellet, 1 unit of active Blightwood sap, Item type: poison (3) Grade: Uncommon, created by Unknown Effect: Causes poison damage and slowing effect if consumed. If spread over terrain, will destroy most plant life and leave area unable to grow indefinitely until cured. 1 dose can cover fifty square feet.
As the new version of the poison, simply named saltycide 2, was sprayed over the vegetation, it quickly turned a pale grey, the sap layer drying out and breaking apart as it became a fine powder. But despite the change the plants themselves remained standing, even if their leaves drooped lifelessly. ¡°Not exactly the effect I was hoping for, but it¡¯ll do.¡± Jim said as he took a few swings at one of the treated plants. ¡°Still, not having the damn things fighting us for every inch is going to make this a hell of a lot easier.¡± ¡°Easy enough that you¡¯re going to hit that deadline?¡± Jicker asked. Jim shot him a look. ¡°I told you to forget about that. There are plenty of things going on that you don''t want to get involved with, and this is one of them.¡± ¡°Considering I was literally grabbed and dragged into this workforce, I''m pretty sure I''m already involved.¡± Looking at him, Jim turned and spat. ¡°I suppose you are somewhat, but this is still far above you. The long and short of it is that a lot of money changes hands in Genesis, and some of those hands don''t mind if they have to get dirty doing it. Trust me when I say you don''t want to get involved with this stuff.¡± Jicker sighed. ¡°It¡¯s a bit late for that, but I hear what you¡¯re saying.¡± ~~~~~~ With the poison proving effective, work began to pick up pace and Jicker was left to continue to produce more for the other workers. Lacking any good glass ware or other containers, he was left to follow along behind the main group of cutters, continuing to replace what was used to keep up with their progress. Where it had taken them over an hour to get through a dozen feet before, now that they¡¯d been reduce to normal plants, the work force was managing to progress at just below a walking pace, with another half of the force constantly shifting cut lumber out of the path. ¡°You know,¡± Jim said to him as they watched the work progress. ¡°You seem like a smart guy, so why are you sticking around doing this? Why not take the loss of levels and go adventure somewhere? It¡¯d have to be more interesting than this.¡± ¡°I could ask you the same question.¡± ¡°The simplest answer is that I''m killing some time before meeting with some old friends in a few months. But you didn¡¯t answer the question.¡± Jicker thought about it as he absently stirred up the next batch. ¡°Before this, I recently finished up a¡­ project of mine. It was a massive thing that took up pretty much all my time and energy, even cost me a lot of my friends as I focused on pretty much nothing else. While the results weren''t exactly what I¡¯d hoped for, I don''t regret it. But now that it¡¯s done? It¡¯s¡­ relaxing to just deal with things as they come, rather than put myself on a path. Even if it¡¯s forced labour, it¡¯s still simpler than before.¡± Jim stood silently for a minute as he continued to mix up the poison before replying. ¡°I¡¯ve known a few people who¡¯ve gone through similar situations, even went through something like it myself once. A good friend of mine almost ruined his marriage when he got too focused on a marketing campaign he was running. But when you get to the end of these things, you need to keep moving. If you just stop and let yourself drift about, sure it''s easier, but you won''t get anywhere. You need to get back on that horse as soon as you can, or it¡¯ll get harder and harder to reach that place again. It doesn¡¯t need to be a big thing, not compared to what came before, but as long as you¡¯re always moving forwards towards something you¡¯ll be okay. Anything else, and you¡¯re just slowly sinking into nothing¡± They sat in silence as Jicker considered his words, mulling them over in his mind. Jim was right, he thought, he¡¯d stopped trying to do anything for himself. Ever since he¡¯d pulled off the upheaval, he¡¯d only being reacting to things, letting himself get pushed around from one place to the next. Even these bandits were doing better than that, try to build something that would last. Everything he¡¯d done of late had always been as a reaction, always on the defensive. He didn¡¯t have a lot of options when it had come to what August had thrown at him, but it had caught him so off guard he¡¯d just accepted that as his fate, and since then it been a growing trend. He¡¯d been pulled into situations, into groups and battles not of his own choosing, and he kept letting it happen. And why? Was it because it seemed like a good idea, or because he had not other options? No, it was that he couldn¡¯t come up with a good enough reason not to. And that, he decided as he ground a poison pellet into a fine powder, needed to stop. ¡°You¡¯re right Jim; I should do something with myself.¡± ¡°Oh, and what will that be?¡± the dwarf asked, sounding interested. ¡°Not totally sure yet, but I''ve got a few ideas I''m tinkering with. First things first though, need to deal with being a conscript.¡± He said, scratching at where the collar rubbed against his neck. ¡°Sensible of you. It¡¯s important to plan for the future, but only an idiot doesn¡¯t pay attention to the present. Are you going to stick it out or try and take the loss?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll need to think about it, since I''m not sure what I need to do. This batch is done by the way, I should probably pass it along.¡± He said, getting up from his sitting position, when an idea popped into his head. ¡°Out of curiosity, do you know if these collars work on other creatures?¡± Jim snorted. ¡°If you want to catch yourself a monster, you wouldn¡¯t be the first. Sorry to say that while they exist, they cost a fortune and are rare enough that ill doubt you¡¯ll ever see one, where as these things only work on players and regular npcs. Hope that doesn¡¯t ruin your plans of glory.¡± ¡°On the contrary, it should make things a lot easier.¡± Chapter 27 According to his status, he still had the better part of two days before he could try and put his plan into action. Fortunately, there was no trouble in finding something to do to kill time, since the road always needed to move forwards. Spending his time producing batch after batch of poison wasn¡¯t the most exciting thing he¡¯d ever done, but it kept him occupied and managed to raise his apothecary skill, bringing it up to five. It wasn¡¯t the most exciting time he¡¯d ever had but it went quickly enough, and gave him time to think. Once the days had passed he began part two of his plan, namely annoying the crap out of a Woodsman by the name of Tidus. While he looked like a warrior elf, he acted more like a middle manager, the kind that would take every bit of credit they could find while avoiding responsibility like the plague. It was a sad truth of the world, but every organization that got big enough tended to end up with a few people like this, but right now it was something that played into Jicker¡¯s favour. For Tidus to claim any of the progress as his own achievements, he first had to at least participate to give himself something to stand on, and since he didn¡¯t want to actually do anything, that amounted to shouting orders at all the conscripts. ¡°Chop faster!¡± ¡°Move those logs!¡± ¡°Clear that ground!¡± And after giving a couple of orders he¡¯d retire to his tent for the rest of the day, having technically led the conscripts in their work. At least that¡¯s how it had always gone before now. ¡°Where do you want them moved to? And which trees should we cut down?¡± Jicker asked innocently. ¡°It doesn''t matter, just...get rid of it.¡±Tidus said through gritted teeth, red in the face. The problem with claiming all of the work as his own meant that not only did he get the success, but any failures would also be left at his door as well. And since the punishment for failure could be execution or worse, he couldn¡¯t risk not answering any questions about orders he was asked. It didn''t matter how inane or useless the question was, he had hear it out just in case it was something that mattered. If he didn''t, it could end up coming back to bite him, they both knew that Jicker would ensure that it did. Over the course of the first day of putting his plan into action, Tidus had gone from confident, to annoyed and the on to frustrated, and since on the second day some of the other conscripts had caught onto his game, it was only getting worse. ¡°Is my axe sharp enough?¡± ¡°Should I go from the right or the left?¡± ¡°What¡¯s the time?¡± The last one had proved a crowd favourite, and a few people had put down bets that it would be the one to break him. Until Salt, who seemed to take far too much joy in messing with the poor man, raised the bar. ¡°How long has it been since the last time I asked you a question?¡± That one seemingly simple question was the straw that broke the camel¡¯s back, sending him running to the other side of the camp. After that incident, Tidus did everything in his power to keep away from the rest of them. He¡¯d come out every now and then to do his job, but would rapidly retreat afterwards as he was harassed with questions, forced to either leave or be stuck checking the clock every minute. Once waiting for Tidus to come to him had no longer become an option, Jicker went on the offensive and started seeking him out at all hours, asking whatever he could think of at the time. It after the third time he¡¯d awoken him up in the middle of the night that Jicker finally got the result he was looking for. ¡°You know what?¡± Tidus snapped as he threw open his tent. ¡°I don''t care, do what you want! Just leave me alone!¡± He chuckled. ¡°Now that you¡¯ve written a blank cheque like that? I think I will.¡± And before the woodsmen could question him or give any other orders, he triggered his Rageform. Getting around orders could be a tricky business, especially when the game system helped to reinforce them. But in the end it was a computer, and followed a fairly logical train of thought, in this case that commands in front are higher priority than ones that come after. A smarter person would have closed off these gaps with a few more specific commands, but this sort of thing could happen when you start handing off that job as well. As it was, he wasn¡¯t supposed to use any abilities to try and get free, but now he had do what he wanted, and what he wanted right now was to leave. The change this time was no less painful, but since he knew it was coming he was able to brace himself as his body began to tear itself apart to make room for the extra muscle and features. As his bones creaked and snapped during the process, he was dimly aware of Tidus shouting at him while backing away, probably ordering him to stop or seeking help, but it was already too late. If he could still speak he might have tried to warn him to run, but he was too busy focusing on what he need the Rageform to do, namely escape with all his belongings. Right now he wasn¡¯t even close to a person, and he could feel the collar lose its hold him, becoming normal metal that quickly snapped as his neck swelled to several times its normal size. By the time the transformation had completed, less than half a minute had gone by, yet already several Woodsmen had been alerted and come to surround him as well as a few conscripts who¡¯d been ordered to assist. Normally, the fight would have been extremely one-sided, since he was both out manned and out levelled. But seeing that it was the middle of the night, and that conscripts shouldn¡¯t have been able to fight at all, they were caught completely unprepared. The conscripts were somewhat more organised but they were hardly giving it their all to protect their captors. He also had the advantage of not caring about damaging his surroundings, letting his Rageform get some distance by bull rushing its way through the tent behind him. As his body was left to its own devices, Jicker was left to think about his next move. Whether he¡¯d manage to escape from this situation was still up in the air, but whether he survived or not, he was still free of the collar and could move on with his own plans. Opening up his menu to make a few notes, he saw that he¡¯d received a notification.
You have unlocked the Inner Rage Statistic. Do wish to accept? Each point of Inner Rage increases and refines your Rageform abilities based on user¡¯s intelligence and wisdom, also reducing its cooldown and chance of permanency. Also provides an amount of influence over the Rageform¡¯s actions based on the level of Inner Rage. Warning: Once a statistic is selected it cannot be removed. You have 3 Stat slots remaining.
Once again he¡¯d come across another statistic he¡¯d never heard of, though he wasn¡¯t surprised that this one had slipped his notice. His Rageform, while a potent ability, was only a lesser variation of something it seemed he pick up at a higher level, and not something he should have access to at his current state. Which meant that for a player to come across this stat, they¡¯d need to reach a higher level of a class people couldn¡¯t easily access, with the help of trainers no one could find, all while keeping a slot free for something no one knew about. In short, it was unlikely to happen, and left wondering again just how powerful a gremlin¡¯s ability was if they could get around the system like this. It was a harder choice than he¡¯d had before, but he had to admit that while it was rough picking up a statistic that would only affect a single ability, it was one that so far was proving extremely potent. If he could work on it, he thought as he saw himself rushing through the camp, his Rageform could become a real trump card further down the line. With that in mind he accepted the ability, feeling the effects wash over him, even visibly changing his appearance to a small degree. His skin had previously been a chaotic mass of scar tissue and skin, but now it had began to balance itself, becoming a somewhat more uniform layer of hide. His body still had far more muscle that it should be able to sustain, but it had lost a small portion while becoming leaner, heading away from the shape of a bodybuilder and towards that of a fighter. He also had a suspicion he¡¯d a grown another inch or two, but while he raced through the campsite he couldn¡¯t really tell. Putting aside thoughts of his own appearance, he watched as his body rushed around the campsite, knocking over tents and anyone who in front of it who wasn''t paying attention. It seemed to run aimlessly, but after a few moments he realised it was searching for something. He¡¯d wanted to get his things and leave, but apparently the Rageform wasn¡¯t the smartest of creatures, and couldn¡¯t remember where he¡¯d left his pack. Unable to find his belongings, it was left confused and began to lash out; tearing tent posts out of the ground and launching them like spears at anyone unfortunate enough to be within sight. Jicker sighed from his mental seat, watching as it ran amok in frustration, wishing his body didn¡¯t remind him quite as much as a chicken with its head cut off. His new stat was supposed to give him some control right? He thought to himself as he watched. So how was he supposed to do that exactly? After spending a minute straining his brain trying not move a leg he wasn¡¯t connected to, he gave up on that approach. Looking through the Rageform¡¯s eyes, he could see that the woodsmen were slowly beginning to put themselves together, getting over the shock of a monster appearing in the middle of their camp. Already orders were being given and weapons were distributed amongst soldiers, though curiously their words, while easily within hearing range were garbled and distorted into something unintelligible. If he couldn¡¯t get his body to leave the area, with or without his supplies, he¡¯d be killed and sent to respawn, defeating the whole point of escape. ¡°Come on you bastard, its right there!¡± he mentally screamed in frustration as they went past his tent yet again. But unlike every other time, it didn¡¯t keep stomping through the camp but instead paused, tilting its head as if it had heard something. ¡°Can you...I...It? Hear me?¡± he said, looking for a reaction. The Rageform scratched at his ear curiously before beginning to move away again. ¡°No! The stuff is in the tent, go back and get it!¡± he said, trying to mentally point towards where his pack should be. Again it paused, but this time it turned in the direction he¡¯d ¡®pointed¡¯ and moved towards it, tearing apart the canvas tent with ease to look inside. Sure enough, his pack sat neatly at the end of the cot he¡¯d been using, packed and ready to go for the moment he could get free. With somewhat more precision than it had shown so far, it carefully picked up his small pack in one hand before tearing the rest of the tent apart and hurling at an approaching Woodsman. Apparently this one wasn¡¯t as easily surprised as the others, blocking to mass of cracked timber with a shield before thrusting a spear towards they¡¯re midsection. Hopping backwards, the Rageform avoiding the blow but didn¡¯t retreat, standing its ground and growling menacingly at the challenger. ¡°No, don''t fight, we need to leave!¡± Jicker shouted, trying to get them dumb beast to escape. He¡¯d caught them by surprise with the transformation, and they¡¯d only had light defences ready in case someone else stumbled into their campsite. But this was no longer the case, and most of the camp was now awake and arming themselves to ensure he was dealt with. There was still a good chance to get away if he left now, the nature of the Blightwoods making difficult to pursue anyone effectively. But every second he was still there that chance became slimmer, and soon it would vanish all together. That all seemed irrelevant to the Rageform however, which seemed more than happy to stick around and duke it out with its new opponent. While he could influence its actions, Jicker realised, he couldn¡¯t control it, not to any real degree. Like a car that had lost its breaks, he might be able to steer it around a few things, but he sure as hell couldn¡¯t stop it. The only hope he had was that it would either give up and flee the area, or manage to beat the fighter in front of it. Whoever this person was seemed to be in charge or close to it, as they began to shout out orders to the people surrounding them. The conscripts nearby were moved away, being placed under guard by a few Woodsmen, probably in case they managed to pull off something similar to what he¡¯d done. Twirling his spear in his hand, the fighter threw out a rapid series of jabs, more trying to get a sense of the Rageform¡¯s behaviour than trying to put out any real damage. For all its flaws, slow reflexes wasn¡¯t one of them, as it deftly avoided the strikes before swinging a heavy blow back in return, forcing them back. Happier to be on the offensive, it pressed forward, lashing out with a series of wide sweeping attacks, taking more ground as it tried to force its way past the fighters shield. From his place as an onlooker rather than a combatant, Jicker noticed that the warrior seemed happy enough to give up the ground, almost like he was letting him move in closer... As that thought sunk in, Jicker shouted to the Rage form trying to get its attention. ¡°It¡¯s a trap! They¡¯re trying to surround us!¡± he cried, causing its head to spin around and look the other way. Sure enough, several other fighters had been carefully moving around to pin them in, trying to cut off their way out. Snarling, it threw itself back towards them, ignoring the damage they inflicted and drove one of them to the ground, trying it¡¯s best to bite their throat out. Gagging, Jicker tried to ignore the taste of blood that filled his mouth as he watched the Rageform¡¯s actions, trying to distract himself from seeing swallow what used to be a piece of the enemies flesh. In the corner of his vision he saw a piece cloth flapping around, swinging as his head twisted and turned. His shirt hadn¡¯t come free this time, and had been heavily damaged but was attached, which his pockets were still there as well. ¡°The vial on your right side,¡± he said, trying to nudge it towards the pocket in question. ¡°Smash that and escape.¡± In between bites of its victim, it growled but seemed to decide it had had enough being stabbed and cut by people while it was trying to eat. Flexing one arm, it pushed back a dwarf that was doing their best to cut off its head and struck itself in the chest shattering the vial that was hanging in the pocket. Almost instantly a cloud of gas began to seep out and fill the area, blinding everyone around them, giving them time to pick up what was left of the Rageform¡¯s prey and escape. Leaping over the panicking Woodsmen, they made their way to the edge of the camp as quickly as they could before the gas dissipated, and began to sprint through the trees. As they ran, Jicker decided to leave his body to its own devices for a while, logging off for a short break. ~~~~~~If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. As Matt removed his headset, he set himself an alarm to make sure he¡¯d back in time, not wanting to leave his character sitting aimlessly in the middle of nowhere. Making a quick bite to eat, he poured himself a drink and went to sit down at the table, studying a blank piece of paper. As he ate, he jotted out a few notes, trying to formulate a plan of attack of what to do next. He let his head sink, thumping onto the table. Why couldn¡¯t things be simpler? Sure, just reacting to things was no way to move forward but at least he knew what to do. But now, with every avenue of approach open to him, he had no idea of what to do next. The only thing he knew he wanted to do was to track down a teacher for his class but everything else was still up in the air. Rolling his head stared blankly at the note he¡¯d made. Profit was key, he realised, sitting back up. He was in this mess because people with more money, and therefore more power, than him started pulling on his strings, forcing him to do things or reveal him to other people with money. That what it all boiled down to in the end, what all of his problems came down to. Everyone who he¡¯d spoken to about the upheaval that¡¯d played the game for nothing but fun didn¡¯t have any real problem with what had happened, apart from some annoyance at being killed. The only ones who were seriously angry were the ones trying to make money off of it. If he could get some decent money behind him, stabilize his position some more, then he might be able to get clear of some of the people who¡¯d come after him. It was, after all, harder to make someone disappear if they left a big enough footprint. Even if it was nothing more than being able to pay off any hired guns that came after him. Rubbing his face, he wondered at how rapidly his life had entered a tailspin, making him try to come up with actual ideas of how to deal with people trying to kill him. Then there was the mystery person who¡¯d managed to create enough leverage to pull august of his back, though what they were getting out of it he had no idea. But all of that was a problem for later, he decided as he cleared his plate. Right now he had to get back in to Genesis and see what he¡¯d been up to. ~~~~~~ Logging back in, he saw he still had a few minutes before he regained control of his body, and spent them going over his current status.
Name: Jicker Level: 43
Race: Gremlin Class: Dark Chemist
Hp: 580 Mp: 760 Stamina: 170
Statistics
Equipped weapons Damage: Equipped Armour Defence:
White Pipe of Striking 22-34 -- 0
Long serrated Scalpel 11-43
Core Statistics Other Statistics
Strength: 16 Enigma: 4
Dexterity: 73 Evolution: 6
Constitution: 16 Inner Rage: 1
Intelligence: 135
Wisdom: 34
Resistances:
Poison: 50% Cold: 5 Shock: 5
Disease: 50% Fire: 5
Skills
Mother of Invention - Level 2
Apothecary - Level 5
Handle Animal - Level 6
Anatomy - Level 1
Herbalism - Level 3
Weapon Skill - Blowgun - Level 2
Stealth - Level 1
Weapon Skill - Small Blades - Level 1
Achievements
Grand Genocide Kill over 20 million sentients within 1 hour
Unique-Effect: 30% damage and ability effectiveness against sentients
Force of Change Destroy and create over 1000 dungeons
Unique-Effect: Creating or altering areas or creatures will be 100% more effective
World Shaper Permanently alter the geography of the world on a grand scale
Level-Max-Effect: Effect: Permanent effects will be 100% more effective
King Killer Kill 50 leaders of states, royal or other.
Level-Max-Effect: Boss and Leader resistances reduced by 60%
He¡¯d been growing steadily of late, with the siege of Ardenvale giving him a bit of a boost, but he still had a long way to go. It also let him know that whatever information his body was currently running on, it had nothing to do with his stats, since they apparently hadn¡¯t changed at all, despite the fact he was currently sprinting along faster than a gremlin could possibly move. By the time the Rageform had expired, he¡¯d put a good amount of distance between himself and the Woodsmen¡¯s campsite, but not as much as he¡¯d have liked. The Blightwoods themselves were slowing him down, forcing him to manoeuvre around the trees or risk getting trapped and digested. There had been a few close calls as he¡¯d attempted to leap through the treetops, only to have his feet catch in the sap, leading to him desperately claw at it as more sap crept towards him. He¡¯d gotten free and continued to escape, but now that his ability had expired, he had no doubt they¡¯d catch up to him. Not only did they know these woods far better than he did, but a number of them certainly had the necessary skills for hunting him down no matter where he hid around here. But they had to move slowly through here as well, which gave him sometime before they closed in on him. So if he could leave something behind to slow them down, maybe stop them all together¡­ Taking stock, he looked at what he had to work with. His pack had managed to come through unscathed, which was good since he didn''t know what he¡¯d do if it had torn and dropped all his belongings through the woods. His clothing hadn¡¯t fared as well, and was now just some loose rags that hadn¡¯t quite fallen off yet. But he still had his weapons in his pack, meaning he could get to work. Drawing his blade, he carefully carved off a piece of fungus to work with. He¡¯d have preferred to have an animal to work with while he was under pressure, but beggars can''t be choosers, and activated adaptation. It was strange trying to make an animal out of a plant, even if fungus sat somewhere in the middle. It lacked any bones, organs or any real points to build around, its structure being pretty much the same the whole way through. He had no idea how to build something that could be considered threatening out of something that the average person could effectively lean through. But plants and fungus were capable of hurting people, many even considered dangerous in the real world. So how did they normally do it, and how could he apply those methods here? Slowly he began to shape an idea, refining it as he went, until eventually he had something that should hopefully stop any sort of pursuit. ~~~~~~ ¡°Keep looking! The tracks went this way, and something that size doesn¡¯t just vanish!¡± Tidus shouted as he stepped over an exposed root, waiting for his forward scouts to return. Tired, stressed and angry, he hadn¡¯t been having a very good night. First he¡¯d pestered constantly by a bunch of lousy conscripts, who wanted nothing more than to annoy him, and then this happened. That new weird one goes ahead and turns into a freaking monster, and of course he gets the blame, he grumbled to himself. How was he supposed to know it could do that? Weren¡¯t the collars supposed to stop that sort of thing happening in the first place? Then Larry got...eaten, which meant it became his job to lead a bunch of people to hunt the damn thing down. If it were up to him he probably would have just let the damn thing go, but apparently the people upstairs didn¡¯t like the idea of anyone messing with their stuff, and wanted to keep their operation quiet. And because of that he¡¯d spent the past six hours trudging through the dark, trying to avoid tripping over and getting killed by these damned woods. At least, he thought on a positive note, when they saw that it was his team that had caught the damn thing it should make up for losing it in the first place, and maybe get him a promotion in the Woodsmen ranks. Buoyed by the idea of possible rewards, he picked up his pace and marched determinedly onwards He couldn¡¯t say what he noticed first, whether it was the sound, the smell or just feeling that something was wrong, but whatever it was it made him spin in place. By the light of the torch in his hand he saw one of the scouts he¡¯d sent out, or at least what used to be one. Covering most of their face and coming out of several open wounds were thin grey mushrooms, turned red by the blood still sticking to them. Tidus couldn¡¯t remember what the man¡¯s name had been in life, but now the game was calling him a level thirty six Fungal Zombie. He was sure he could defeat it, being a far higher level, and obviously a superior warrior to any walking corpse. But on looking at the animated remains of one of his guild mates, he made the executive decision to flee back to camp, since clearly this new information was more important than him defeating a single enemy. In his haste to return to camp however, he failed to notice the slight difference in the grounds appearance, too busy trying to stay away from the approaching monster. As he stepped on what should have been solid ground, he found his foot breaking through a thin crust of leaves, dirt and dried sap that had been formed to cover the pit. Falling, he landed in soft liquid that frightened him more than if it had been a pit of spikes, since his torch had landed in such a way that it had stayed lit. The bottom of the pit had been filled with a foot of the Blightwoods sap, and already it had begun to harden around his body, locking him in place. His head had luckily stayed above the sap, otherwise he¡¯d already be suffocating, but that left him little to do other look up to see where the zombie would approach from. Instead of the zombie however, he saw something that looked like it should be in a children¡¯s show rather than in a place like this. Standing only a foot tall, a small humanoid figure stood looking down at him, its shape round and bulbous. Its stubby arms and legs ended in little more than wiggling nubs rather than actual appendages, working awkwardly to climb down to the bottom of the pit. As it came closer to the torch, he could see that it had the same reddish colourings as the forest around them, with the exception of a large mushroom-like hat that sat atop its head. Under it hat was an extremely simple face, two holes for eyes and a larger break for a mouth, all lit from within by a dim purple glow. Reaching the bottom of the pit it wobbled about but somehow managed to stay standing, walking along the surface of the still liquid sap towards him. Tidus would have yelled at it to drive it off, but was concerned about attracting the zombie¡¯s attention in his condition. He wasn¡¯t too concerned by it however, since the apparently the ¡®Greycap¡¯ was only level three, and could be defeated with a light tap. But, he realised, he couldn¡¯t even do that, and was currently at the mercy of the little pest. As it reached him, he tried to head butt it, swinging as closely as he could, but only succeeded in splashing some more sap on himself. Waiting until he¡¯d worn himself out, the Greycap approached closer, going as far as to start prodding him with a small shovel-like stick it was holding. Nodding to itself, it moved closer and grabbed him, leaning closer as it put a hand on either side of his head. ¡°Leave me alone! What are you trying to-¡± he began as it filled his field of view, but before he could say anymore the Greycap¡¯s mouth transformed in to perfect circle and a fine stream of grey smoke slowly poured out over his face. He tried to hold his breath and keep away from it but he was in no position to escape, and the monster seemed to be willing to wait him out. After a minute his lungs gave out on him, forcing him to take a choking breath of the smoke.
Warning! You have been infected with Greycap spores! You will receive -20% to strength, dexterity and constitution for the next three hours. If you die while under this effect you will be raised as a Fungal Zombie loyal to the Greycap.
This is what happened to the other guy, he realised as he coughed trying to clear his throat. One of these things must have gotten to him, and then he¡¯d been killed. He tried in vain to pull his arms free as the Greycap hopped back down, but the sap held firm, being far stronger than he was. Looking on hopelessly in horror, Tidus watched as it filled its shovel with liquid sap and began to pour it on top of him. Chapter 28 The road was empty has his horse cantered along, kicking up dust clouds from the dry ground. The knight, NoobSlayer73, had spent the past week clearing out an old dungeon to clear a quest, and was finally able to get back to proper civilisation. Pulling out a pocket mirror, he made sure his hair was in pristine condition, wanting to make sure his triumphant return was perfect. He sighed as he put it away; wishing that it was easier to get back home, since what was the point of being an amazing hero if there was no one around to praise him? He¡¯d made sure to adjust his character appropriately, and his parents had paid for high quality equipment suitable for a champion of a kingdom, including the mount racing along beneath him. What was the point of playing a game when you couldn¡¯t rub how much better you are in other people¡¯s faces? The best gear, the best mount and the best personal trainers that could be paid for, ensuring he took his rightful place as a top player in the game. ¡°Excuse me!¡± a strange voice called out, distracting him from his thoughts. ¡°I''m sure a fine warrior like you would love some of my wares, now on sale!¡± Pulling on his horse¡¯s reins, NoobSlayer73 looked around to find a small wooden stall set up on the side of the road, manned by a tall figure dressed in a deep blue robe that covered them completely. Covering the counter of the stall was a seemingly endless number of bottles, ranging in all manner of shape and colour, from huge red spheres, to tiny black teardrops. Looking down the road, Noob couldn¡¯t see anyone else around, so he decided to sate his curiosity and investigate the stall. Dismounting, he approached the table, and began looking over the items on the table. None of them were anything that he recognized, but that wasn¡¯t that surprising if they were someone attempts to make something worthwhile, since he normally only used premium consumables. Still you never knew when you¡¯d find something interesting that the seller couldn¡¯t see the value in. Picking up one of the bottles, he looked over its attributes, trying to figure out if it was worth anything.
Unknown Potion Item type: Potion Grade: Hidden Effects: Hidden Creator: Hidden
¡°Anything in particular you¡¯re looking for?¡± the figure behind the counter asked. ¡°What¡¯s with all your stuff? All the information¡¯s hidden.¡± The person coughed awkwardly. ¡°Ah, that. Well, after a few¡­¡¯incidents¡¯ concerning ownership, I came to the conclusion that it¡¯s simplest to keep the information on my products to myself for the time being.¡± Noob snorted. ¡°And you actually expect people to buy this stuff without knowing what it is? You¡¯re out of your mind.¡± he said derisively, turning back to his horse. ¡°True most people might not be willing to purchase, some of the more...illicit goods, but you¡¯d be hard pressed to find anything like this in a normal store.¡± ¡°And you¡¯re actually getting away with this?¡± ¡°Well, I have something of an understanding with the local guards.¡± ¡°I doubt that.¡± ¡°...right, so basically, I understand that it¡¯s best if they don''t catch me. After all, it¡¯s not a crime if you don''t get caught right? Now, can I interest you in any of my wares? I''m sure I have something here to suit your needs.¡± An idea took hold in Noob¡¯s mind, and a smirk crossed his lips. ¡°By all means,¡± he said. ¡°Show me what you have.¡± The cloaked figure began to vaguely gesture to the various bottles and flasks scattered over the table, listing off their effects. ¡°I¡¯ve got a few various healing potions, a couple of mana potions, both recovery and increased regeneration, as well as a range of resistance increasing items. Along with that I''ve got a few long term strength boosters if you¡¯re looking for something to give you an edge.¡± Perfect, Noob thought, before reaching out and grabbing the bottle the merchant had pointed at. ¡°Ah, looking to improve your fighting power is it? An excellent choice my friend, now that particular product is-¡± ¡°Please, as if I''m going to bother to pay for this.¡± He said with a snort, stepping away from the table. ¡°E-excuse me?¡± ¡°Like I¡¯d really bother to hand over gold for any of your shoddy or stolen merchandise. Besides what are you going to do about it? You wouldn¡¯t last a minute in a fight and I doubt you¡¯re eager to report this to the guards.¡± Ignoring the figures cries of outrage, Noob headed back to his horse with his prize in hand. Wondering whether to use it now or hold on to it for an emergency he decided to put it to use immediately, doubting he¡¯d actually get much value from something he¡¯d gotten from such a fool. As soon as the potion hit his tongue he knew something was wrong, as a numbness began to spread throughout first his mouth, the quickly began to spread throughout the rest of his body. ¡°Wha...¡± he tried to say as his body began to give out on him, collapsing on the ground, unable to move.
Warning! You have been paralysed! You will be unable to move or take any physical action for the next five minutes.
As he lay on the ground, trying to understand what had just happened, the shopkeeper slowly walked out from behind the stall and squatted down in front of his face, holding up the now discarded and empty bottle. ¡°You know,¡± they said, waving the bottle in front of their face. ¡°You might not be aware of this, but it¡¯s considered a crime to steal things from people, and rude to just do it right in front of them.¡± ¡°You...p-poisoned me.¡± He choked out trying to shake off the effects. ¡°Noooo I think we can safely say you did this to yourself, though I''m surprised you¡¯re able to talk at all after drinking this stuff.¡± The merchant said, placing the bottle down where Noob could see it.
Poison of Ingested Paralysis Item type: Potion (Empty) Grade: Rare Effects: When consumed, causes full paralysis in drinker, bypassing most resistances. Must be taken in pure form by a willing player. Creator: Hidden
¡°I¡¯ve tricked a few people and misrepresented a few things to others, but you can feel proud knowing you¡¯re the first to just grab it and down it on your own.¡± The merchant said, patting him on the shoulder. ¡°W-why?¡± Noob asked, not really caring for the answer. He realised he mustn¡¯t have drank all of the poison before he¡¯d dropped the bottle, since he could feel his body slowly shaking off the effects. If he could just keep this bastard talking a little longer. ¡°Why? You really can¡¯t figure that much out? It¡¯s simple enough.¡± They said with amusement clearly present in their voice. ¡°Tell me.¡± He said, trying to make a fist. ¡°Fine then, since you¡¯re being a spoil sport about this. It doesn¡¯t really come up much in towns, since the guards tend to deal with it almost immediately, but theft is a hostile action.¡± ¡°So...WHAT!¡± He shouted, launching himself forward with everything he could muster, trying to strike at the person who¡¯d dared to cross him... Only to find them sitting out of the way, a blade held gently against his throat, drawing a drop of blood as he swallowed. ¡°Which means,¡± they continued, as if he hadn¡¯t even moved. ¡°That any attack I do to you is one in defence against an attacker, and not one that would get me flagged as a player killer in anyway. But clearly you¡¯ve got far more constitution than common sense, so let¡¯s get this over with shall we?¡± ¡°N-no, no please wait!¡± ~~~~~~ It had been a little over two weeks since he¡¯d made his way out of the Blightwoods, and things had...escalated since his escape. The Greycaps, initially designed as little more than a distraction and a deterrent for anyone following him and proven to be far more effective than first expected. Not only had they managed to completely wipe out the hunting party that had come after him, but apparently they possessed a vindictive streak against anyone who¡¯d tried to mess with the woods themselves. Less than a day after their creation, the little mushroom-like monsters had managed to completely wipe out the Woodsman''s camp, leaving nothing but a few scraps of their tents and a few tools scattered amongst the newly regrown vegetation. Jicker had given the Greycaps the ability to manipulate the Blightwoods as a means for them to hunt and move around quickly, but it seemed they¡¯d taken it a step further and declared themselves both its rulers and protectors. By the time the first other players had come to investigate messages about new enemies lurking in the woods, they had amassed their newly created zombie minions and made short work of any intruders, each adventurer being added to their ranks. After a week of watching people do nothing but rush to their doom, several guild and groups of NPC¡¯s had been forced to take steps against the Blightwoods, which hard started to spread at an alarming rate, leaving things in their current state. A picket line had been erected around the entire area, and was slowly being replaced with a thick stone wall, with archers and casters patrolling its borders. No one was allowed in, and anything trying to come out was attacked with extreme prejudice. After it was found that both the Greycaps and the Fungal zombies were capable of spreading the Blightwoods to new locations if they got out, no one was willing to let them get even close to the perimeter wall. A daily quest had been created for people with enough ranged firepower to start to burn and destroy as much of the forest as they could without getting close to it. With the natural resistances of the Blightwoods and the Greycaps constantly opposing the destruction of their home, it was barely making any headway, but people believed that they should be able to destroy the woods within a few years. Knowing that it would be a commonly visited place for quite some time, people had already begun purchasing land around the woods despite the risks, and stores and inns were being built. It wouldn¡¯t be long before there was an entire community built around the woods, though if the line ever failed it wouldn¡¯t fair well for those living there. The attention on the woods and the new Greycaps had also completely covered up Jicker¡¯s escape, and despite all the attention on the area, he hadn¡¯t seen any mention of his actions. In fact he hadn¡¯t seen anything by the woodsmen at all, leading him to believe they may have disbanded after suffering such heavy losses. Whatever agreements they¡¯d made regarding the roads construction had come to a dead stop, and whatever group had been on the other end wouldn¡¯t have been happy with them. Putting away his knife, Jicker dropped his cloak before letting himself fall to the ground and began unbuckling the stilts he¡¯d fashioned for himself. Being little more than logs with straps on the top, he couldn''t move very quickly with them or he¡¯d end up eating dirt, but he didn''t need to sprint to catch up to someone lying paralysed on the ground. As the body flashed signaling that it was lootable, he got up and went to inspect his catch. Once he¡¯d gotten clear of the woods and was confident that no one was still pursuing him, he¡¯d decided to try and get a bit of gold in his pockets, sick of the way he¡¯d been always scraping by so far. Potions generally weren¡¯t the greatest money makers, people preferring to just travel with someone who could cast healing magic, which not only saved money but was normally a quicker effect. But plenty of people, particularly those who played solo, like to be able rely purely on themselves, and so there was still money to be made if you put in the work. Banditry was still a big enough issue even with the Woodsmen gone that it was easy enough to find an abandoned wagon to use for parts to serve for his stall, and the rest he¡¯d picked up piece by piece from those he dealt with.This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. He¡¯d been playing at dealing with travelling players for the past week now, taking advantage of the increased traffic heading in and out of the area around the Blightwoods. At first he¡¯d planned to do things properly and sell off some his battle drops and other creations, but it hadn¡¯t taken long for him to see that the average player was far more willing to commit crimes when away from civilisation. Once he¡¯d decided that he might start doing a bit of player killing, even by proxy, he¡¯d made sure to trade for the oversized cloak he now used, to cut down on anyone looking for a gremlin that had tricked them. After he realised that being only a few feet tall still meant he would stand out, the stilts were added to the disguise, letting him pass for an average, if extremely suspicious, person. Since then he¡¯d dealt with dozens of players, and seen a wide range of people though they mostly fell into three different categories. The first made up the majority of the players he spoke to, and were all players with the rare commodity known as common sense. These all realised that a shady looking dealer on the side of the road in the middle of nowhere probably didn¡¯t have their best interests at heart. The second, and most profitable, category was those like poor Noobslayer73, whose body was beginning to steam in the cool air of the afternoon. While most people realised that a deal was too good to be true, there was always a few that thought they could one up crook or just take advantage of the situation. The new poison he¡¯d created worked wonders on these people, and was cheap to produce as well, only needing some water, sugar and salt. The problem was that it only worked if they drank it willingly, so it¡¯s only real targets were people who thought they were smarter than they were. And finally there was the third category, which made him feel bad about messing with other people. Rookies, new players that had only just started playing after the hype of the upheaval and had no real business being this far from any towns. They were wide eyed and still marvelling at the sights around them which, while impressive, shouldn¡¯t take so much of your attention that you stop looking where you¡¯re going. The first one he¡¯d come across almost rode him down by accident, too busy marvelling at the mountain ranges to the north. Once he¡¯d dusted himself and they¡¯d apologised, he¡¯d begun his speech about his products, only to have them honestly want to purchase some, much to his surprise. In the end he¡¯d given up and sold them a few things they¡¯d find useful at cost along with a warning that they shouldn¡¯t trust random people they meet on the road. As he looked over the body and searched through pockets he hoped he could find the sword that he¡¯d seen on the man¡¯s belt, but sadly that had vanished on his death, along with the majority of his wealth. What was left amounted to a little under three hundred gold, a bright blue scarf, and a nice shield that was far too large for him.
Embossed shield of resistance Item type: Shield Grade: Common Defence: 18 This Shield has been weakened by the large amounts of engraving and gold plating used on its face to proclaim the wielders greatness. Included in the markings are runes granting 10 acid resistance to the wielder.
It wasn''t anything amazing, designed to be more of a show piece than a real piece of equipment, but it should still sell for enough to be worth hanging on to. As he began putting away his prizes for the day, he paused as a thought crossed his mind. ¡°Hang on a second¡­¡± he muttered to himself, frowning at the horse as it ran into the distance. If it had been an owned animal, then it should have vanished along with the rest of the players belongings. For it to still be out and running away, it would have to be... Returning to the body, he went over it again, this time looking harder for something in particular, and sure enough it was there, stuck in a small pocket of the man¡¯s shirt that had been sewn shut. Carefully cutting away the fabric, he retrieved his prize.
Slate Disc of Ownership Item type: Marker Grade: Uncommon Maximum Level: 60 Current Target: None This token grants temporary ownership of a suitable Item, Creature or Structure that is within the level range. Loss of this token will result in loss of ownership.
¡°Perfect!¡± Jicker exclaimed excitedly. The tokens were mostly used as a way of controlling hired mounts or accessing rented buildings, but they had a number of other uses. The most important one to him at the moment was the ability to turn a tamed wild animal into a temporary mount, which could then be made permanent later. He¡¯d been planning on looking into a mount to make his journey easier, and it seemed like he¡¯d had a decent stroke of luck. Looking around, he began to hunt for something he could work with, something that could be used to create a creature that could take him where ever he needed. ~~~~~~ ¡°You,¡± Jicker said as he stared at his latest creation. ¡°Are just the worst.¡± His new mount turned to him for a moment at the sound of his voice, before going back to stomping around in the shallow water, splashing water around like a five year old child. He¡¯d initially been concerned that a unique mount might draw more attention than he wanted, much like the Blunicorn Gabe had asked him to make. But after things it settled down, it seemed to be the general consensus that it had just been a rare drop from one of the new dungeons that had sprung up, or a new quest that required necromancy to be involved. Even before the upheaval there had been a wide range of strange mounts that could be found, tamed or purchased, and things had only escalated on that front since his actions. No longer worrying as much about getting noticed, he instead went for something that could do what he needed, rather than what he could get away with. Flying was obviously his first choice, but after a few tests, he found that, at least with his current skills, he couldn¡¯t put together anything big enough to be useful. Since he was looking for something that could get him over long distances, rather than sprinting across a battlefield, he¡¯d gone with something with more endurance than agility, and on that front he¡¯d succeeded. Standing a good twelve feet tall at the shoulder, a thick, pale blue carapace covered its entire form, helping to survive wherever they ended up travelling to. A dozen powerful legs ending in sharp points moved with surprising grace and precision, allowing it to cross any terrain with ease, along with a powerful set of claws to both defend itself and aid in any task requiring heavy lifting. To put more simply, it was a crab, though a very large and powerful one with a few useful changes. He¡¯d headed towards the river to see if he could find an animal getting a drink, but nothing had been around and he¡¯d almost moved on. But as he turned to go he spotted movement on the water edge, finding a small hermit crab looking for food, giving him both a base as well as inspiration. The normal shell was scrapped, converting its body to a more typical, spidery form instead of one that would drag itself along the ground. In addition, with its body being a wide, flat area received an additional layer of shell in a conical shape over the rest with a gap in the middle, creating a type of chitinous tent. It wasn¡¯t the biggest space inside, but it was still around eight feet wide, and more than tall enough for a gremlin to stand in. It was safe, warm, and dry, a perfect place to sleep and store all his belongings. When he¡¯d first finalised the crab, it hadn¡¯t been quite large enough for what he wanted, but with the aid of his Prime specimen ability he¡¯d gotten there.
You have created the Giant Nomad Crab. Level: 52 This crab, once a singular creature, is now unique. Special abilities: The Crab has an instinctive sense of direction, and can always find its way to where it wishes to go. Its shell will slowly change in colour and texture to blend into whatever terrain it¡¯s currently inhabiting. Do you wish to name this creature?
And so Hermes was born, and while he wasn¡¯t as fast as his namesake, he was perfect for what Jicker needed. Or at least he¡¯d thought it was until later, when he realised his mistake. In order to make taming the enormous crustacean easier, he¡¯d done what he could to make it extremely docile, since fighting it would have been difficult for his smaller weapons to handle. It had worked apparently, since Hermes had barely even responded when he attempted to use the Disc on it, too busy trying out its new form and scooping up clumps of vegetation to feed on. He had finished disassembling his store front and loading it and the rest of his belongings through the opening in the front of the crab''s shell when disaster struck, in the form of a small bird. Whether there was a link between aggression and cowardice, or whether it was an old instinct left over from its original shape, Jicker couldn¡¯t be sure. But as soon as it swooped down nearby, Hermes panicked, the multi-tonne monster scurrying away from the sparrow as fast as it could, throwing Jicker into the back of its shell by the sudden acceleration. Unfortunately, it decided that the best place to run to escape the flying terror was back into the water it had come from. ¡°Stop stop stop!¡± Jicker shouted as he saw their destination. ¡°My stuff is in your shell, MY STUFF IS IN YOUR-¡± Blup And that unexpected trip into the water left him where he stood now, sitting by a fire in nothing but a loincloth as he waited for the rest of possessions he¡¯d managed to fish out dried off. Watching his clothes dry could only provide so much amusement, and after a while he¡¯d had enough. Getting up and throwing on a few things that were mostly dry he went to talk to Hermes, who was having the time of its life scaring the fish swimming in the shallows. ¡°Stay here and keep an eye on things. If you do need to leave, make sure to put all my things in your shell. Understand?¡± he said. Thankfully his evolution stat had given it enough intelligence to understand basic speech, even going so far for it to give him a salute before returning to its fun. Seeing that things were in hand for the time being, Jicker decided to take a break and log off for a while. ~~~~~~ As Matt made himself a meal, he went through his emails and messages, only to have his stomach drop when he saw one from Masquerade Entertainment. Apparently, after all the garbage that had been going on, it was time for him to go in and have a proper check in, to ensure everything was going according to plan. The first ones had been skipped over since August had been taking more of a personal involvement in matters, but now he had to head into town to see them. Finding a decent shirt and some jeans, he headed out, wanting to get it over and done with as soon as possible rather than let it hang over him. It was early in the afternoon, and the roads were fairly quiet though he hoped it would be finished before rush hour. After parking his car in the visitor¡¯s area, he¡¯d barely walked through the door before an official came through and rushed him towards an elevator. Apparently they still wanted to minimize their visible involvement with him, even though the press largely stopped staking out the building to get scoops about the upheaval. Before he knew it he was dumped in a familiar office, sitting in front of several of the same board members who¡¯d been there when he¡¯d first been drafted into this mess. They all looked the same for the most part, all prim and proper business people fancy suits and ties, all looking down at him but the exception was August, who looked... rough. Whenever he¡¯d seen him before, even when he¡¯d come to make threats or even assault him, he¡¯d taken great care of his appearance. His clothes were always immaculate, his beared neatly trimmed and not a hair out of place. Now though, he looked like someone who¡¯d spent too long in the bottle. His clothes were the same designer pieces, but now were just thrown on by someone going through the motions, his face looking haggard and unkempt. His bloodshot eyes looked around the room wildly, jumping lightly as if hearing random noises. ¡°Now then, Mr Harper,¡± One of board members said, deciding to move things along. ¡°Over the past weeks, we¡¯ve seen a marked increase in new subscription, though much of that is largely the result of news. So far your actions have-¡± ¡°Who is it!¡± August burst out, startling the rest of the board as he leapt to his feet. He continued as he stared blindly at Matt. ¡°They had the video I thought it was you, but it wasn¡¯t was it? It was someone else, someone else with access with that video, could be lots of people, plenty of smart people with computers. So I have my own smart people try and track it down and guess what happens?¡± For a moment he paused in his rant, and Matt was about to try and answer when he continued. ¡°It vanishes! The source, the trail, even the email itself was deleted from my computer, not a single record of it left! Then a few minutes later, I get a new email, a new video, and this time it¡¯s not of you. They¡¯ve got cameras watching me, must have had them for years. They¡¯ve seen things, things no one should see, things no one could¡¯ve seen...¡± He trailed off suddenly, walking over to the window and leaning his head against it quietly. After a few moments the speaker seemed to come to a decision. ¡°W-well, it seems that Mr. Fronz isn¡¯t feeling very well at the moment, so perhaps we¡¯ll just pass on the meeting for today. Now before you go, I believe Miss Tolson would like to see you, apparently they have a few questions for you.¡± He said nervously, looking from Matt to August, not sure of what to do. Also wanting nothing to do with the man, Matt agreed and was promptly escorted down to the IT department, to find Sarah pouring over a table covered in documents and maps, many of which struck him as familiar. ¡°Hey Matt,¡± she said, looking up. ¡°You¡¯ve got good timing.¡± ¡°Something up? The guy up stairs said you had some questions.¡± He asked, taking a look at the papers on the table. They were copies of his notes, he realised, the markers and calculations he¡¯d written when he was planning everything out. ¡°Just trying to get a few details ironed out. We¡¯ve been asked to create an ¡°official¡± version of the upheaval, something for the NPC¡¯s to understand, and to be used for history purposes. Something with a little more gravitas than ¡°A guy did a thing¡±.¡± ¡±I''m going to get blanked out of things?¡± he asked, surprised. ¡°I thought when players achieved things, they were added to the history.¡± ¡°Normally yeah, but you''re kind of a special case. Would you like all your information listed for your achievement, because if you¡¯d prefer that then...¡± ¡°Fine, I get it, blanking it is. So, what the question?¡± ¡°We¡¯re trying to come with a reason for the attack, which means I need to know why some were spared. Did you have any specific reasons for those?¡± ¡°Well, I couldn¡¯t hit every tiny little hamlet or farmstead. I just hit the major ones and every other one I could travel to.¡± ¡°But that¡¯s the thing, there¡¯s a couple of big ones you missed, so did you forget about them, or were they needed for something else? Come on, I need this report done by tomorrow, give me something.¡± Matt frowned. ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure I hit all the major cities, there shouldn¡¯t have been any that escaped.¡± Sarah grabbed a pad of paper and handed it to him. ¡°There are the ones that got through untouched, so was the fallout from nearby blasts meant to wipe them out?¡± Shaking his head, Matt pointed to a name on the list. ¡°Macross, major city in the southern kingdoms, hosts the champion games every year. I didn¡¯t just forget to hit a city like that, in fact...¡± he said, pausing as he remembered something. Looking through the note on the table, he dug around until he found a copy of the page he wanted. ¡°See, it says right here, ¡°Macross: Asteroid impact, complete.¡± I definitely put something there.¡± ¡°I- hang on, what do you mean by asteroid impact?¡± she asked curiously. ¡°It was a pain to do, but I felt like doing something special, so I put something a little fancier together. You know the Gideon¡¯s around there?¡± ¡°The mountain range? You were going to cause an avalanche or something?¡± ¡°Not quite. It would summon a giant mass of stone about the size of the mountain range, travelling at high speed above the city.¡± Sarah paused at that, rubbing her face as she sighed. ¡°Of course you did,¡± She said after a few moments. ¡°So why¡¯d you change your mind?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t, it should have gone off with the rest.¡± ¡°Well I''m pretty sure I don''t remember hearing about that one, so I guess it didn¡¯t.¡± She said a note of panic entering her voice. ¡°I don''t suppose it was made to last forever, or disarm itself if you didn¡¯t hit the switch.¡± ¡°No, they were always armed, but they were all gotten rid of in the patch anyway weren¡¯t they?¡± ¡°We were able to stop any future production of things like that, but we can¡¯t change or delete anything that¡¯s already been made by a player, intellectual property laws and all that.¡± ¡°So... what then?¡± ¡°Best case? There¡¯s a piece of extremely high value magical equipment hidden in the city.¡± ¡°And the worst case?¡± Matt asked with a wince, having already come to the answer himself. Sarah picked up her phone. ¡°There¡¯s a live weapon of mass destruction sitting in a city with over a million people in it.¡± Chapter 29 With the idea that several world altering weapons may still be in play now around, the amount of resources and people at their disposal multiplied exponentially. Sarah had been working the job on her own for the most part, with other people coming on temporarily as needed. Apparently, Matt thought as he watched people scurry around with arm loads of papers, this was one of those times. As people went over all the information, it seemed at first like he¡¯d missed dozens of locations, which was a surprisingly heavy blow to his self esteem. He¡¯d wondered about his choice of actions a lot, questioning whether he¡¯d made the right choice, or whether it had been his choice at all. But at no point during that time had he doubted that he¡¯d done it well. Seeing a bunch of people looking through his failures and mistakes was...humbling, to say the least. But as more details came to light, and things were checked out in greater detail, not all of his so called mistakes had actually been failures. They¡¯d just turned out a little different than expected. ¡°Coastal city of Quenar? Says here there should have been a tidal wave to wipe it out.¡± Said one of the techs, reading off a list they¡¯d put together. Another checked their notes. ¡°Mmm...looks like it went off but they had measures in place for those, and they ruled it as a natural one.¡± ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll mark that one off, how about the mountain city of Nix? Did we get a collapse under the place?¡± ¡°Looks like we did but... oh man...¡± ¡°Problems?¡± ¡°The collapse went as expected, but the city held up, leaving us with a pretty damn huge cave underneath it.¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t really sound like a problem.¡± ¡°It isn¡¯t by itself, but the cave has become a sealed dungeon, and a high level one at that. It gets cracked open and we¡¯re looking at a major incursion.¡± Another programmer stuck their head around the corner. ¡°Exactly how big are we talking?¡± ¡°We¡¯d need to run the numbers, but I¡¯d say at least a national situation, though if it¡¯s left long enough it might end up being international.¡± The programmer scratched their head and shrugged. ¡°Get me the numbers and I¡¯ll manage it. We can put a few rumours of treasure or loot buried under the town out on some of our false media accounts, then we can lure in a player to crack it open. They can take the blame and fame of unleashing it, and we can run it as an event to get more interest in those mountains.¡± ¡°Fair enough, it¡¯s your problem now. Next on this list...¡± They continued on for over an hour, going over every place that hadn¡¯t had a confirmed hit, looking over the records in detail. In the end there were only three recorded failures, the rest being labelled as misses. With most of the work done, Sarah had the rest of them head back to their own stations, leaving only the two of them and one of the head programmers, a man in his late thirties who introduced himself as James. ¡°Nice to meet you James. So where do we stand?¡± Matt asked, trying to make sense of the various documents the man had lain out before him. The programmer pulled out a few sheets from the array on the table, and pointed to a few key details. ¡°Well,¡± he began. ¡°There are a few things, but most have pretty much taken care of themselves or aren¡¯t going to be an issue anytime soon, so here are the big ones. You¡¯ve got a couple of... frankly ridiculously large seismic charges buried in the cliffs that hold up the coastal town of Grey Shore. When detonated they should have broken off about a two mile wide section of stone, leaving the place to slide into the underwater crevasse nearby.¡± ¡°That was the plan,¡± Matt admitted. ¡°So what went wrong?¡± ¡°We aren¡¯t sure exactly, but our best guess is something disrupted the signal, so we¡¯re going to try and have a few people try and quietly remove the charges before anyone even realises there¡¯s a problem. The next one is a little more complicated, but might have a very simple solution.¡± Grabbing out another page, he showed them a city, its bright green banners sitting on the walls, reminding Matt of his plans for that particular place. ¡°The Verdant Keep? There should have been a super charged seed that would have grown and swallowed up the whole place. Did it not get triggered either?¡± ¡°No, this one definitely went off, although it was a day or so behind everything else, but I really hope you¡¯ve studied up a little more on plants for your new works than you did with these. I could follow what you¡¯d planned from your notes, but rather than going up it decided to grow down, in a big way.¡± ¡°What do you mean exactly that it grew down?¡± ¡°Currently on the surface there¡¯s a small tree, maybe a dozen feet tall with incredibly bright green leaves, growing in the middle of one their sacred glades. Underneath it has a complex root system that stretches out for a minimum of forty three miles in every direction, and has latched on to every other bit of vegetation in the area. And thanks to the games AI deciding that power scales with size to a degree, this network has achieved a near demigod like state, with a fairly active response to anyone crossing it. We¡¯ve got some footage of shortly after it had sprouted.¡± Grabbing a tablet, he brought up a video taken from an NPC¡¯s point of view. A player had entered the glade, expecting a clear empty field, and paused when they saw the tree growing from the centre, they turned away to ask someone a question, but they were too far away to make out the words. Shrugging they walked up to the tree and pulled a small axe from their inventory and made a few gesture, apparently trying to get rid of the unwanted plant. The next piece of the footage would have been to blurry to see, but someone had taken the time to slow down and clean up the video. Before the axe had touched the bark of the tree, a root had shot from the ground with snake like speed, and wrapped around the persons neck before they could even recognise the danger. Despite being no thicker than a pencil, it apparently had the strength to not only drag his head back towards the ground, but force his head and upper torso through the hard ground, leaving Matt happy that the video hadn¡¯t been able to pick up the sounds of the poor persons bones breaking under the pressure. Things only got worse after that, as a strange noise filled the air from seemingly every direction, and the entire glade erupted into a sea of the same whip like roots that shot towards the sky, except for one which made a beeline straight for the poor NPC who¡¯d taken this footage. Everything went black for a moment, and then the video picked back up again, sped back up to normal with a message saying it was from a different character. The glade was back on screen, but there had been a horrifying change. The once green field was stained red, and filled with bodies, a sea of twisted arms and legs, jutting from the churned up ground. There was carnage throughout the whole glade, even the walls surrounding it were cracked and bloodied, yet the tree itself was unmoved. It remained untouched in the centre of its horrific harvest, not a speck of blood marring its emerald leaves. ¡°Oh my God, that¡¯s nasty.¡± Sarah said, looking a bit pale. ¡°It took out more than three quarters of the city before it calmed down.¡± He said as he stopped the video. ¡°What made it stop?¡± ¡°Nothing really, it just ran out of nearby targets, then had a few hours to calm down.¡± Matt looked at the now blank screen. ¡°So what¡¯s it doing now?¡± ¡°When no one goes and bothers it, not much. As long as no plants are damaged within around three hundred yards of it, it sits around and acts like a, well, tree. But the few times someone¡¯s messed around closer than that it had a fit similar to the first one. Still, as things go it¡¯s not too big a problem and some people have already started to try and cast spells through it.¡± ¡°They¡¯re using it? How does that work?¡± He asked. ¡°I''m happy to say that since I''m on the event team, I have no idea. All of the magical programming was done by another group entirely, but from what I¡¯ve been told they¡¯re using its roots as way of broadcasting nature based spells through the area. Its letting them do some pretty crazy stuff, but nothing too extreme yet, which is where you come in.¡± ¡°What, you want me to poison it or...¡±Matt asked, thinking about possible solutions. ¡°Nothing nearly that complicated, all we need is your permission.¡± ¡°...My permission? How¡¯s that going to help solve anything.¡± ¡°It¡¯s actually pretty simple. ¡° Sarah said while pulling out her phone. ¡°We¡¯re pretty limited in what we can change without the lawyers getting involved, but one of the few things we can mess with is storylines, so that we can try to have things actually progress as a game. There are some extra hoops to jump through for any player created items, or in this case life, but we can get around the AI limits by getting your permission for us to work on it.¡± ¡°Sure, I guess?¡± Matt said, scratching his head. ¡°Right then!¡± James said, sounding relieved. ¡°I¡¯ll have someone get the paperwork delivered and we¡¯ll upload the required information. Now, on to the biggest problem.¡± Turning back to the tablet, he swiped across it and opened up a different file, this one bring up a clip of an asteroid travelling through a starlit void. ¡°Correct me if I¡¯m wrong, but that looks a little bigger than what your notes suggest.¡± Sarah said, squinting at the screen, to which Matt had to agree. The lump of rock and metal tumbling through space should have been large, but large compared normal things, like trees and hills. The mass lazily falling towards them was instead comparable to a continental plate, and may as well have the words ¡°Extinction event¡± printed on it in bright red letters.Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. ¡°We¡¯ve done the math,¡± James said, snapping their attention back to him. ¡°And from what we can gather, it looks like a decimal point got shifted in your calculations somewhere for the scale. That leaves us with a meteor 100 times bigger than planned for, but fortunately, or unfortunately depending on how you look at it, it also started out a hundred times further away. You didn''t give it any real momentum, relying on gravity to do the work for you, which means we¡¯ve still got some time to sort this out. But by the time it does hit the atmosphere it''s going to be carrying enough force that we might as well do a hard reset of the world.¡± ¡°Why not just delete it while it''s still far away?¡± Matt asked, looking for a simple solution. ¡°Partly the same reason we needed your permission to make changes to the plant, but the main issue is scale. Little things, like an image here or a bit of stonework there, we can change with no problem, its necessary to keep the game functional. But when we start looking at the bigger things, it gets harder, since the game¡¯s AI releases that information to the public.¡± ¡°What¡¯s the point of that?¡± The programmer sighed. ¡°People and business started getting worried that we were secretly giving an advantage to their competitors, though considering some of the people we work for, can¡¯t say it was unfounded. But now we¡¯re stuck with a piece of code that any changes we make completely transparent, so just deleting it isn¡¯t on the table.¡± ¡°Why not? If people hear that you stopped something from wiping everything out then-¡± ¡°Then they¡¯ll complain that we didn¡¯t stop the destruction before, and we¡¯ll run into more law suits than we can deal with. Legal¡¯s already ran the numbers, and they judge it¡¯d be cheaper to just let it hit.¡± ¡°Then why don''t we just let it hit then?¡± Matt asked, looking for a simple solution. ¡°Because there¡¯s a big difference between cheap and cheaper. We don''t deal with this and the companies going to end up in rough shape.¡± Sarah said. ¡°And that would be my problem because...?¡± Matt asked, raising an eyebrow. ¡°It¡¯s not like I¡¯m going struggle to sleep at night if August goes bankrupt.¡± Sarah raised one back. ¡°Because you¡¯re a good person and want to do something nice for others? But more seriously, I doubt he¡¯d hesitate to drag you down with him if he goes under.¡± Thinking about it, Matt nodded in agreement. The man looked like he¡¯d been losing it the last time he¡¯d seen him, and it probably wouldn¡¯t take much of a push to put him over the edge. ¡°Fine, so it¡¯s my problem too, but how do we go about solving it then? I can¡¯t think of anything off the top of my head to get rid of an incoming meteor.¡± Sarah and James looked at each other awkwardly before James cleared his throat. ¡°Well, you see,¡± He began. ¡°There kind of... isn¡¯t one.¡± ¡°That we know of.¡± Sarah said quickly. ¡°But new items and spells are always being made or found these days, so I¡¯m sure there¡¯s something out there that can work.¡± ¡°So just to be clear here, you expect me to...what? Wander the game world on my own until it hits, hoping I luck my way into finding an answer?¡± He exclaimed in disbelief. It was James¡¯s turn to look disbelieving. ¡°The executives have dropped some resources into managing your situation, but this is a lot bigger than just you. We¡¯re getting every asset we can manage to look into solutions for this mess you¡¯ve created.¡± With the discussion over, Matt was sent home with instructions to check around Macross to see if he could find the actual triggering device, since it could help them get some control over the oncoming destruction. Other than that he was just told not to spread rumours about it and that they¡¯d be in touch. It wasn¡¯t the clearest goal he¡¯d ever had, but from looking at everyone racing around the office as he was leaving, he knew it was all he was going to get. Driving back he considered his plan of attack, and what his options were. In a perfect world, the device would be exactly where he¡¯d left it, untouched and unnoticed by everyone, though he¡¯d need to double check his notes to remember where it was exactly. But he hadn¡¯t expected for any of his work not to go off properly in the first place, so he didn¡¯t have high hopes. Opening his door, he went to the kitchen to grab something to eat before settling in for another session, knowing that he was looking at some long hours ahead of him. But when he sat down to eat the bowl of noodles he¡¯d made, he found a single sheet of paper sitting on the table in front of him. On it there was a detailed picture of the asteroid in space, and a single line of text underneath. ¡°Fix it or be held accountable. We will be watching you. The work must continue.¡± Staring at the paper, his mind raced as the food fell from his fork. The company had only just discovered that the meteor existed, yet someone had already had time to break into his home and drop off... a message? A warning? What exactly was this? Whatever it was, it seemed to be from the same source as the email August had gotten that had started to drive him nuts. Who exactly was pulling the strings on him now? For now though it didn¡¯t really matter, since for once everyone seemed to be pulling him towards the same goal: to save the world from himself. ~~~~~~ Dropping back into the game with his new mission firmly in mind, he was prepared to get things underway, only to quickly realise that he had no idea where he was. A person''s return point should be the same as the one the one they logged out from, but apparently the notch he¡¯d put in Hermes¡¯ shell was substantial enough to count as a dwelling and could move without him being there. So instead of appearing on the riverbank as expected, with the sun shining off the water, he found himself struggling to stay upright in Hermes¡¯ shell, as the giant crab bolted through a forested area Fallen logs, shrubs and smaller trees were thrown out of the way, the crustaceans momentum too much for simple foliage to even slow it down. Shielding his face from branches that whipped past, Jicker tried to look out and see where they were, and more importantly, why they were running. He¡¯d told his new mount to leave if it thought it had to, and apparently that need had come up, although it had also thought it needed to retreat from small birds. He was about to order it to stop running away so he could see what the problem was, when he heard horns and baying of hounds behind them. ¡°Keep going, I¡¯ll see what I can do.¡± He called out to Hermes, not that it really changed anything. The crab was built for endurance rather than speed, but was currently pushing itself to the absolute limit at the moment. Carefully, he stepped out of the notch and gripped the shell tightly before beginning to inch his way around. After being struck by a few errant branches he made his way to the other side, and got a look at what exactly had driven his mount into a run. Behind them, racing through the undergrowth in hot pursuit, were riders. Dozens of figures on horseback, led by line of dogs, wolves and other hunting animals that, now that he could get a proper look of them, had weapons drawn and pointed towards them. As an arrow broke against the shell next to him, he started shouting back at the riders. ¡°What the hell are you doing? Stop attacking me!¡± he called, hoping this was something he could solve with words, not liking his chances of winning a fight at twenty to one odds. Fortunately, someone had either heard or seen him, and called for people to stop firing and call the dogs off, though it may have come to late. A final volley of both arrows and magical attacks arced towards them resulting a wave of flame that set the trees ablaze as it crashed down towards him. As his life, or at least his day flashed before his eyes, Hermes shifted suddenly beneath his feet, making him lose his balance and throwing him to the ground. While losing his senses slightly as his head struck the earth, he quickly realised that while he was sore, and there had definitely been a flash of light and heat, he was still very much alive. Looking up, he saw that Hermes, having carved large furrows in the soft soil of the forest in order to come to a dead stop, had stood over him blocking the majority of the attack with its wide, durable claws, the rest making no real impact against the creatures solid shell. Getting to his feet, he patted the crab on its leg, immediately glad in his decision to go with toughness and endurance over power and agility. ¡°You there!¡± Turning, Jicker found one of the riders approaching, the others having stopped further back to check over their animals. ¡°What the hell do you think you¡¯re doing? We put out an official claim for this hunt, you can''t just come along and try to steal it out from under us, even if you¡¯re willing to get your fool self killed in the process.¡± Confused, Jicker turned around looking at the area around them. ¡°What were you hunting?¡± he asked after a moment, still feeling groggy after his trip to the floor. The rider just stopped for a moment before removing their helmet, revealing herself to be a tall slender elf. ¡°Are you trying to annoy me,¡± she said slowly ¡°Or are you actually an idiot.¡± ¡°In fairness, my head hurts.¡± She sighed. ¡°The damned monster behind you! We¡¯ve been after it for days now, then you jump on it out of nowhere, right in the middle of our attack.¡± ¡°Okay, so just to be clear, we¡¯re talking about the big blue crab here, the one I was riding?¡± ¡°Obviously, unless you see another giant undiscovered beast around here.¡± ¡°The same crab that I found and claimed as a mount about¡­ time is difficult, but I want to say about four days ago?¡± ¡°You got anything to back up that claim?¡± she asked unhappily, gritting her teeth. ¡°I¡¯ve got the claim marker right here if you''ve got someone with you who can appraise it if you want an exact time.¡± he said, offering her the slate disc to look at. Looking a mixture of rage and acceptance, she took a long, slow breath before turning back to the rest of her group. ¡°Mack!¡± She shouted, ¡°Come and take a look at this for me!¡± ¡°You think that I¡¯m lying?¡± Jicker asked, surprised. She rubbed her eyes before facing him again. ¡°As much I would love it if that were true, I''m pretty sure you¡¯re telling the truth. Still I¡¯ve been ripped off before and I¡¯m not going to take any chances.¡± The man she¡¯d called over took a few moments to study the token before exchanging a few words with the woman. ¡°It¡¯s legit, that things been his for around three and a half days now, which...doesn¡¯t make a lot of sense. Didn''t the guild send us out here after that?¡± ¡°They did, which means that either someone screwed up and heads are gonna roll, or someone''s messing around and they¡¯re going to wish it was just their head.¡± she grimaced before taking on a more friendly expression. ¡°Sorry about all of this, but we¡¯d been going off of what our info had told us, that this was an unrecognized, and more importantly unowned creature. Anyway, name¡¯s Harriet, and on behalf of the Emerald Riders guild, I apologise for attacking you and your property. I don''t suppose you know where we could find another one of those do you? It''s not the best manners I know, but we¡¯re on a job to bring this thing in, so if we can''t at least find a substitute, we¡¯re going to have to declare it a failure.¡± Jicker shook his head, a decision he wished he hadn''t made, ¡°Sorry, but Hermes here is apparently a unique monster, and I don''t plan to get rid of him any time soon. But it doesn''t look like any real damage was done to him so I¡¯m willing to let things go at that.¡± ¡°Sporting of you.¡± She said, sounding surprised. ¡°I don''t know if I¡¯d be able to say the same in your position. Still we were told to bring that thing back with us, so are you sure we can¡¯t get hold of one? How¡¯d you get yours anyway?¡± ¡°Well...¡± He began, thinking quickly. ¡°There was this old guy who gave me a quest a while ago to investigate some shells around the water back there, and when I finally got around to it one of them rose up and became the Hermes. If you want you could ask him for the quest? He was hanging around the edges of the Blightwoods when I spoke to him a few weeks ago.¡± She swore. ¡°Dammit! I take you haven¡¯t been up around there recently? The entire area¡¯s roped off, and anyone who goes in generally doesn¡¯t come back out. Mushrooms pick off anyone who goes in far enough to lose sight of the outside.¡± ¡°I¡¯d heard about that, is it really that bad.¡± Jicker said, hiding his relief. It seemed like she¡¯d bought it. ¡°It¡¯s not too bad at the edges, but almost no one risks going in further than that, not with the risks.¡± ¡°Well, death is always a risk in this game.¡± ¡°Death? Nah that¡¯s not too bad, the real problem is-¡± She stopped herself, a strange expression crossing her face, before turning to the other player. ¡°Mack, that thing is bound to him through the item yeah? Could we take it off him?¡± ¡°Wait, what?!¡± Jicker exclaimed, not liking the sudden change of direction things were taking. Mack scratched his chin in thought. ¡°Used to be the case, but that got fixed early on after people took control of animal hauling goods. Now it¡¯s set as an extremely rare drop from a person carrying one, so that options off the table.¡± ¡°That is yeah, but the mushrooms..?¡± Mack looked pained. ¡°It would work, but do we really want to go down that road?¡± ¡°I don''t know about you, but we¡¯ve been working on this job for days now for a big pay off, and I don''t want to go home empty handed.¡± ¡°Wait a second, don''t I get a say in this?¡± Jicker asked already knowing the answer. ¡°Sorry about this.¡± She said, laying a hand on his shoulder. ¡°But you really don''t.¡± Chapter 30 ¡°You know, I did pay money to be here. You can''t just drag me around.¡± ¡°You paid to experience Genesis, and right now your experience consists of being tied up on horseback. If you¡¯d like, you could also experience a gag as well.¡± Matt sighed and rubbed at his wrists where the rope was beginning to chafe. While he wasn''t exactly happy with being grabbed yet again, he had to admit they were far more professional than the group of bandits had been. Not only had they been quick to follow orders and get to work, but they¡¯d been surprisingly well mannered about the whole situation. Rather than put him to work like a prisoner, he seemed to have been put in a place somewhere between a guest, a hostage and valuable cargo. He¡¯d been restrained, and Hermes had been packed away. After having him choose between the option of having his mount killed every time it respawned until they¡¯d taken ownership of it, or letting them store it away, he¡¯d agreed to the less violent option. They¡¯d brought a stasis cage with them in order to capture their target alive, and it made for a simple way to keep Hermes with them without letting him run free. The extra-dimensional crates were often used to store large mounts and pets in areas without the necessary space, so it was something he¡¯d need to buy for himself, Matt decided, if he could get out of this mess. The travel itself was pleasant, with clear skies overhead, vibrant scenery and the sounds of birds all around them. He¡¯d thought he might have an opportunity to put something in the food when they broke for camp at sundown, but instead of being made to help or even fetch water, one of the riders pulled out what seemed to be an entire collapsible kitchen. Seeing Matts expression, one of the other player told him that the person in question had gotten in cooking in a big way since the ingredients were so much cheaper in game the real world. So instead of making do with trail mix and premade ration packs, they were treated to slow-cooked beef with seasoned roast vegetables followed by a light chocolate mousse. It was delicious. In fact, if it wasn¡¯t for what they were planning, it would have almost been an enjoyable trip. ¡°So here¡¯s the deal.¡± Harriet told him riding along next to the horse he¡¯d been put on. ¡°We need your crab, but we can¡¯t take it from you, at least not within the timeframe of our contract. So instead of having to refund our initial payment, we¡¯re taking you into the Blightwoods.¡± ¡°Yeah, I got that when you tied me to this horse and told your people to head for the Blightwoods.¡± Matt said despondently, trying to shift around to a more comfortable position. ¡°No need to be snippy, we¡¯re just doing our job. Anyway, when we get there, we¡¯re going to herd you deeper into the trees until-¡± ¡°Wait, herd? I''m not a sheep.¡± She raised an eyebrow. ¡°I could say ¡®we¡¯ll jab you with spears until you go where we want¡¯ if you¡¯d prefer?¡± ¡°...Herd is fine.¡± ¡°Anyway, we¡¯ll send you in until you run into one of the mushrooms living in there, then wait for your corpse to try and fight its way out.¡± ¡°Right, I¡¯m with you so far, but how does that give you control of Hermes, and not just labelled as bandits?¡± ¡°There are area of the border run by...less than reputable guilds who turn a blind eye to this sort of thing for a small fee. But I take you haven¡¯t heard the full story about the those little mushrooms, the greycaps?¡± ¡°They attack you with sap and spores, and then-.¡± Matt said lazily, being remembering the design he¡¯d used. ¡°-you get raised as puppet under their control.¡± She finished with a nod. ¡°But what people didn¡¯t realise at first is that if they manage to kill you and raise you as a fungal zombie, you don''t lose a few random items. Instead, you lose everything you had equipped or in use, no matter its quality or whether it was soul bound.¡± ¡°Wait, what? How the shit did that happen?!¡± Matt exclaimed, snapping to attention. The rules for what items you lost were a constant, well known mechanic, one you could map out with almost perfect accuracy. On death, you lost a level, as well as a number of skill levels based on your character level, then you¡¯d drop up to ten percent of your carried items and the same amount of your gold, and that was it. There were a bunch of other calculations on what the chance of every item was, and ways to tweak those numbers, but it was a core rule of the game, and why soul bound items could be so valuable. They couldn¡¯t be stolen, dropped sold, or traded, so once you picked it up, it was yours. Until now. ¡°No idea how it works, I just know that it does, and that you can connect the dots. We throw you in, you kick the bucket, and then you can head back to the woods to collect your belongings, minus what we take from your corpse. Everybody wins.¡± She finished. ¡°I really can¡¯t see that as a win for me. At all.¡± ¡°Well, a win for the majority then, democracy and all that.¡± ¡°Never go into politics.¡± When they arrived at the border of the Blightwoods, the Emerald riders moved into a tight formation, trying to get past the growing number of players and NPCs that were spending their time combating the growth of the forest. From he could see from his place in between his ¡®escorts¡¯, there were two main types of people hanging around the area. The first were players taking advantage of the repeatable quest, happy to make some quick cash and experience. The second group also had players in it, but also consisted of the NPCs that were fighting against it. The haggard expressions on their faces showed that for them this wasn¡¯t just about gold, but what they stood to lose if the greycaps ever broke through the quarantine line. The line itself had been heavily reinforced by both magical and mundane forces, with powerful barriers woven around imposing stone walls. But despite the high grade of defences present, Jicker couldn¡¯t help but notice that that same power level wasn¡¯t reflected in the defenders themselves. As they swung around past the main area or wall, Harriet spoke up. ¡°You noticed it, didn¡¯t you?¡± she said, looking out at the crowds.¡± Can¡¯t say that I¡¯m really surprised. Let me guess, you played a lot before the upheaval?¡± For his part, Jicker remained silent, earning him a sigh. ¡°Look,¡± she continued. ¡°I get that you¡¯re not exactly happy about the whole situation, but it¡¯s nothing personal. We¡¯re just trying to complete our contract.¡± ¡°I''m tied to a horse while you¡¯re leading me to my death so you can loot my corpse. I don''t know about you but I think it¡¯s perfectly normal to take this sort of thing personally.¡± ¡°Fine, we¡¯re the bad guys, but it¡¯s not like you can do anything about it right now.¡± Debating whether to stay silent or actually try and figure out what was going on, he gave in. ¡°Fine then,¡± he said grumpily. ¡°Where are all the high level players? All I can see around here are midrange and rookies.¡± ¡°There are couple of high level players about, but for the most part you¡¯re right.¡± She admitted. ¡°Ever since people noticed that dying in the Blightwoods could cost you all of your gear, even the bits you shouldn¡¯t be able to lose, the big guns have been steering clear. Odds are that no one could touch them, and that they could stroll through the woods untouched, but if that tiny chance did happen...¡± ¡°There would be a slaughter, when everyone fights over unique items.¡± ¡°Which would just make things worse as there items got added to piles of things up for grabs. So to prevent that there¡¯s a sort of... unofficial truce that stops high level players from hanging around here.¡± ¡°And are the people that are left enough to hold the border?¡± ¡°A lot of the defences were put in place before the discovery was made, so yeah, things should be fine. And the lack of top tier people about also has the advantage of less people interfering in the... business practices that we¡¯re about to do.¡± The group began to slow as they cleared a small rise, revealing a small crowd gathering around several tents. The people there seemed to move around in groups of their own, and Jicker noticed that most of these groups had at least one person restrained or in distress. Most the people were quiet, serious about their actions, though a voice from one the tents carried through the air. ¡°I¡¯ll get you for this Jack! I¡¯ll come for you and when I find you I¡¯ll-¡± Whatever they had planned to do would remain a mystery as the voice was cut off with a hard thud. ¡°Lucky for you,¡± Harriet said as they entered one of the tents. ¡°We sent word ahead of us, so we won¡¯t be stuck at the back of the queue.¡± ¡°Glad to hear you¡¯re at least being efficient about your murder and theft.¡± Jicker said as another rider lifted him off the horse and brought him inside. ¡°Well sure just because we¡¯re being kind of evil here, there¡¯s no reason for it to take all day.¡± ¡°Okay!¡± an elf with a clipboard called out. ¡°Next group come on forward and get your packages sorted out!¡± Dragging Jicker along with them Harriet went and spoke to the elf who seemed to be running things. ¡°We¡¯ve got a booking for the Emerald riders?¡± The elf flipped through his papers for a moment. ¡°Yep, got you listed here, and you made pretty good time getting here as well. So this your mark? Got a tag or something to identify which zombie is yours to claim?¡± ¡°Sure, ours will be the little, green gremlin.¡± Harriet said gesturing to his tied up form. He nodded, making a note in the file. ¡°Yeah that¡¯ll do it, not a lot of gremlins around here, or anywhere really. Okay, let¡¯s load him up then.¡± ¡°Load him? We¡¯re not marching them in?¡± She asked confused. ¡°Nah, we¡¯ve moved up in the world so things are little more efficient now.¡± Walking through a side door in the tent, they came out to small open area that faced out the woods. Sitting in the centre was a large siege weapon that had probably begun its life as a ballista, but where the bolt would have sat there was now a basket, one just big enough for a person to sit, or be forced into. ¡°I would have gone with a catapult,¡± the elf said as they watched another person in handcuffs be shoved into the basket. ¡°But while it would have been easier, apparently it would have had too much height and be too noticeable. Though we do have a lot more control of where people land with this setup.¡± ¡°And it works?¡± One of the other riders asked as the ballista fired with a heavy thud and a short scream. ¡°Oh yeah, we¡¯ve got about a ninety percent success rate. The zombies always try for the nearest bored point when they¡¯re taken over, and that¡¯s us, though we keep an eye on our neighbouring sections. If they manage to die without being reanimated, and they don''t drop anything, then it¡¯s not our problem. If you need to rob someone that bad then go stake out their respawn point and pay for another round.¡± ¡°Wait, we have to pay even if it doesn¡¯t work? That¡¯s highway robbery!¡± ¡°By all means try and find someone to report us to, I''m sure they¡¯ll love to know about how you know our prices. Now the engines rewound so let¡¯s get things underway. Grumbling, but more or less having conceded that this was going to happen, Jicker walked up and climbed into the basket. ¡°A final word,¡± He said, turning and addressing both the riders and the people manning the launcher. ¡°I¡¯m probably going to die, but that¡¯s not that permanent for us, so a word of warning. I promise that for whatever happens to me thanks to you, ill return the favour tenfold.¡± ¡°Well said,¡± the elf replied. ¡°But nothing I haven¡¯t heard before. Okay Jimmy, let her rip!¡± As the lever was pulled, Jicker felt as though all of his organs were in a rush to see which could push through his spine first under the acceleration. Apparently passenger comfort doesn¡¯t matter when their death is the end goal. The feeling only lasted for a moment, then stopped as his momentum tore him free of the basket and sent him hurtling through the air, heading over the Blightwoods. Through little more than luck, he managed to avoid crashing headlong into a tree, which at the rate he¡¯d been moving would have likely killed him outright. Though his luck wasn''t that strong as instead he landed softly into a waist deep pool of sap, though he managed to twist himself around enough to avoid his head going under. Has he blinked to clear his eyes, he saw that one unfortunate soul that had landed nearby had hit the pool head first, and while they¡¯d stood up in time, they¡¯d been left with a thick layer of already dried sap covering their face. They were trying to scrape away at it, but as their limbs were also covered in the resin like material, their efforts were feeble and sluggish. His own situation left Jicker with half buried himself, with his arms pinned to his sides, able to do little more than watch as the player¡¯s motions began to slow and then stop before long. Struggling at the pool that had hardened around him for a minute or two, he realised he simply lacked the strength to try and break out. Instead, he began taking in his surroundings, looking for something that could help, and he realised that over a dozen other player had been launched into the area around him, all in various states. Some appeared to have died on impact, though these could end up being the lucky ones, Jicker realised, as he saw thin cloud of grey dust lingering in the air and floating through the sap. It wasn''t dense enough to catch a person instantly, but before long he¡¯d been forced to breathe enough of it that he received a notice that he¡¯d been infected.
Warning! You have been infected with Greycap spores! You will receive -20% to strength, dexterity and constitution for the next three hours. If you die while under this effect you will be raised as a Fungal Zombie loyal to the Greycap.
Crack Whipping his head around, he saw that the person whose head had been covered had not only started moving again, but they¡¯d managed to stand up. A brief hope filled him, wondering if they could break him free as well, but it was quickly dismissed when he realised that the person hadn¡¯t had this strength in life, but the story was different in death. The player-turned-zombie didn¡¯t seem to even notice the sap as it broke apart like a sandcastle in the sun. With resounding noises of shattering glass, other zombies began to pull themselves out of the pools, the sap simply giving way under the forces that now animated them. But once they all managed to get to their feet, free of their restraints, they simply stood there, stationary like only the dead can be.This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°What... what are they doing? Why aren¡¯t they doing anything?¡± Turning as best he could Jicker saw that another survivor lay behind him, this one with both his head and an arm free, the rest leaning against a tree that was slowly covering him as it poured out ever more sap. ¡°I don''t know,¡± he replied. ¡°But you¡¯ve got an arm free, can you break yourself clear?¡± ¡°How? My weapons are already covered and the only thing to brace myself against is the sap. Can you-¡± The question was drowned out as, in perfect unison, the zombies screamed. It was a long, drawn out cry that echoed through the trees around them, and then as suddenly as they¡¯d started, they stopped again and became stationary once more. Jicker was fascinated, and more than a little impressed. When he¡¯d initially created the greycaps, he¡¯d given them a shape and abilities, as well as a few key behaviours. He¡¯d told them to hide in their woods, and have their victims do the fighting, to not engage until the battle were all but one. It seemed that the games AI had taken his ideas and run with them, turning them from a group of trap makers to something that worried the general population, to say nothing of this item business. He tried to think of what the scream had been for, since it wasn¡¯t something he¡¯d put in, but he didn¡¯t have to wonder long. A pair of the greycaps toddled out from behind the trees, holding hands like children with large wooden ladles over their shoulders. Waddling towards the zombies, they split up, one heading for the dead, the other preparing to deal with the living. Knowing the fate of those trapped in the sap, Jicker tried to distract himself by focusing on the one working with the dead. Poking at them with its ladle, it seemed to be looking for something, inspecting them for some value that it didn¡¯t seem to find. Once it had gone over the entire group, it began waving its ladle around like a conductor¡¯s baton, emitting a rapid series of whistles and clicks as the purple light in its eyes flickered and flared. ¡°They¡¯ve got a language!¡± he said laughing in amazement, his situation forgotten as he watched the tiny figure give marching orders to the newly risen. Apparently the zombies wouldn¡¯t take any actions without the greycaps commands, he thought as the undead headed towards the forests border, truly they were more puppet than person now. It was only when he heard another series of whistles behind him did it come back to him. Turning he saw that the second greycap had been busy, and that he was now the last one left. It lifted a ladle full of sap overhead, and then stopped, tilting its head in thought, at least as much as one can do without a neck. Seeing the delay the first mushroom came over and began whistling at its compatriot, causing a brief discussion with a lot of pointing and flailing. Eventually they seemed to come to a consensus, and moved to either side of him. Jabbing their ladles into the sap holding him in place, it returned to liquid under their touch, letting him breathe easier for the time being, though with the spores so thick in the air, whether that was a good thing was still in question. He¡¯d initially made sure that the sap wouldn¡¯t affect them, which was easy enough to do since they were based on the same material as the trees around them. But the ability to actually manipulate it at this level was another new development, one he¡¯d have loved to know more about if he didn¡¯t have more pressing issues. With his body freed, he pulled himself out of the sap, the viscous liquid rolling off him like water. Once he¡¯d gotten to his feet, the greycaps each grabbed one of his hands and began tugging on them trying to lead him forwards. If he¡¯d been of a normal height they wouldn¡¯t have reached his shins but as it was they managed to lead him along easily enough, guiding him through the woods. He had no idea where they were taking him, or why, but they apparently didn¡¯t plan to kill him and that was a good enough reason to go along with them. There was a quality to these woods that, even while he knew he was currently safe, was disturbing on a level that he couldn¡¯t immediately identify, then after while he realised it. It was silent. No animal, be it a bird rabbit or even an insect managed to survive here, the only things still moving were the greycaps and their animated victims. And for now, him, the only living person for miles has they headed ever deeper into the trees, other greycaps beginning to appear from out of trees, trailing them as they walked. Eventually they reached a grotto, and Jicker got to view one of his own works he¡¯d never seen before. When he¡¯d been fleeing from his captors, he¡¯d put together a couple of greycaps in order to slow them down, and hopefully get them to give up entirely. Though it had clearly worked, at the time he hadn¡¯t known how it would go, and so before he took off running he triggered his prime specimen ability on a greycap at random hoping the added strength would be enough. And now he stood before the ruler of the Blightwoods, as it sat upon a dais in the centre of the area. Having grown far beyond a normal greycap, the boss stood at least ten feet tall, its skin a dull bronze with a golden light in its deep set eyes. Its cap had inverted itself, becoming a large bowl that constantly filled its self with sap, with fine streams overflowing all around it to form an amber veil. Sitting inside were several smaller greycaps, peering over the edge watching his movements closely, looking for any threats to their queen, the Goldcrown. All around it, scattered over its platform, were bodies. They were older zombies, the spores having taken deep root long ago, with large growths coming from their skin, slowly burying them and turning them into another layer of the queen¡¯s throne. That¡¯s what it was, Jicker realised, the entire platform was made of the dead that had been piled and overtaken, leaving a mound that grew the next generations of greycaps. When he entered the queen turned to face him, scattering her veil around her and letting out a low hooting call, then paused looking for a response. ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± he said after a few moments of silence. ¡°I don''t understand.¡± Leaning back, it sat down on its throne and pressed a hand against its throne and for a moment, nothing seemed to happen. Suddenly all of the bodies that were intact enough to do so let out a sigh, and in unison began to speak in a slow halting manner. ¡°Do you...hear us? Know our... words?¡± The voices, distorted through the rotting of their vocal cords merged into a single inhuman voice. ¡°Yes I can understand you.¡± Jicker replied once he managed to stop gaping at the sight. ¡°Good. We... greet you...changer.¡± ¡°Changer?¡± ¡°We...know you. We were... of the forest. Then you... made us different.¡± ¡°Yes, I did that.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Jicker paused. ¡°Why what?¡± ¡°Since the...change...we have learned. We see into... the minds... of the dead. We grow and... learn. To fight. To speak. We see... memories... of places unknown. But we don''t... why you... made us.¡± ¡°I...¡± how do you explain to something that it was a distraction? Deciding honesty would serve him better than lies, he tried to explain. ¡°I was being hunted, and needed a way to stop them. I couldn¡¯t fight them myself, so I created you.¡± The queen let out another hooting groan. ¡°This... makes sense...to us. We take others... to survive. To have them...fight for us.¡± ¡°I''m glad you understand.¡± ¡°But,¡± the voices continues. ¡°We also...feel you. We are...connected. all greycaps... feel the others. See and hear... through them. we feel you...as well.¡± ¡°I gain power from the people you kill.¡± Jicker explained. ¡°It¡¯s the other reason I create things like yourselves.¡± Wondering how much he gotten from them over the past weeks, he pulled up his sheet
Name: Jicker Level: 55
Race: Gremlin Class: Dark Chemist
Hp: 750 Mp: 920 Stamina: 220
Statistics
Equipped weapons Damage: Equipped Armour Defence:
White Pipe of Striking 22-34 -- 40
Long serrated Scalpel 11-43
Core Statistics Other Statistics
Strength: 20 Enigma: 4
Dexterity: 91 Evolution: 6
Constitution: 21 Inner Rage: 1
Intelligence: 158
Wisdom: 41
Resistances:
Poison: 50% Cold: 5 Shock: 5
Disease: 50% Fire: 5
Skills
Mother of Invention - Level 2
Apothecary - Level 5
Handle Animal - Level 6
Anatomy - Level 1
Herbalism - Level 3
Weapon Skill - Blowgun - Level 2
Stealth - Level 3
Weapon Skill - Small Blades - Level 1
Achievements
Grand Genocide Kill over 20 million sentients within 1 hour
Unique-Effect: 30% damage and ability effectiveness against sentients
Force of Change Destroy and create over 1000 dungeons
Unique-Effect: Creating or altering areas or creatures will be 100% more effective
World Shaper Permanently alter the geography of the world on a grand scale
Level-Max-Effect: Effect: Permanent effects will be 100% more effective
King Killer Kill 50 leaders of states, royal or other.
Level-Max-Effect: Boss and Leader resistances reduced by 60%
They¡¯d put in some substantial work, though his rate of growth was starting to slow down, since there was only so much they could earn for him, and each level took more experience to reach. Skulking along the roads had also managed to improve his stealth which was an added bonus. The queen nodded at his words. ¡°Growth is something... we understand...and seek as well. But it is... something you have...denied us.¡± ¡°Denied you?¡± ¡°We wish... to grow...and spread...but you have... left us...trapped. All we send... to the edges... are killed... before they... can release spores. You have...left us...trapped.¡± ¡°That was never my goal, but you pose a threat to people everywhere. They are protecting themselves by trying to destroy you.¡± ¡°We understand...survival. But you... created us. Please... help us.¡± Jicker rubbed his eyes, wondering what to do. On the one hand he really didn¡¯t have time for this, with a much larger problem falling towards them as they spoke, but at the same time they were his creation. ¡°Before I decide what to do, I''m going to need to talk to someone else. Is there somewhere I can do so privately?¡± As one the zombies shifted, pointing in a direction through the woods. Walking past the watching greycaps, he found himself largely alone in the woods, and took out Sarah¡¯s vial before breaking it on the ground. After a few minutes her avatar formed the ink sprite hovering in the air in front of him. ¡°Hey Matt, what¡¯s up? Found the answer to our space problem?¡± He shook his head. ¡°Haven¡¯t even made it to Macross yet. Got jumped by a group of hunters and thieves. Again.¡± ¡°Seriously? You really need to work on that enigma stat. Any way we are pretty busy so what¡¯s the deal?¡± He gave a quick recap of his run in with the greycaps. ¡°They¡¯ve grown way beyond what I expected, they¡¯ve got a language, they can talk to people!¡± Sarah¡¯s sprite suddenly turned into a stop sign. ¡°Hold up a sec, let me get the latest report on them.¡± She was silent for a moment, a little hourglass floating in space before she returned to her fairy shape. ¡°Okay I''m up to speed, and yeah those things have gone way beyond their starting point. But that still doesn¡¯t explain why you summoned me up here.¡± ¡°I thought you had all my information.¡± Jicker said, his thoughts momentarily derailed. ¡°I used to, but now you¡¯ve got a team of people working on what you did before, a team working on what you¡¯ve done recently, and a couple planning for what you might do. I¡¯m managing them but there¡¯s a lot of information. Now, the reason?¡± ¡°Well first of there is the thing where they take all of your items on death.¡± Her image pulled out a little book. ¡°Right, I¡¯ve read up on that already so I can answer that. Apparently the animation trigger on the fungal zombies hits at the same time as the loot is supposed to be decided, causing that bug. It¡¯s not too big a problem at the moment, though we¡¯ve definitely gotten some complaints. As long as they¡¯re isolated to that location it¡¯s not really a big issue.¡± ¡°Okay, so that brings me to the other point. They want to spread, and they want me to help.¡± ¡°...you did hear me say that they¡¯re fine while they¡¯re contained right?¡± She said stressing her point. ¡°I did, but is it really your call to make?¡± ¡°Excuse me?¡± ¡°You¡¯ve all made it pretty clear that I''m having to do most of this stuff because you can¡¯t interfere with the game much. So I have to wonder... could you actually stop me?¡± ¡°What are you saying? You want to what, blackmail us back or something?¡± ¡°What? No, of course not. What I am saying though, is that free will is something that still exists, and I''m planning on using mine. Out of the goodness of my heart I felt like giving you a heads up might be a nice thing to do.¡± ¡°I... let me go talk to someone.¡± She said, return to the hourglass state. Several minutes went past he waited for her to return, wondering what the fallout of this call would be. But whatever the result was, it wasn¡¯t a decision he regretted. He wanted, needed, to take some control back, and this was a good place to start. ¡°Okay.¡± Sarah said as she returned. ¡°I''ve spoken to some of the programmers and they¡¯ve reached a consensus. If you go ahead and do this, they¡¯ll do a tweak to the greycaps, putting them back to normal drop rules, though in order to keep it from needing to be declared publicly, it¡¯s a very minor change, and it might still happen on occasion. The boss, the... Goldcrown? Will remain the same, since any changes to a boss are always recorded.¡± ¡°It will be happening, so I''m glad you could come to terms with that.¡± He said, relaxing slightly. ¡°Also, one of the story programmers wants to get permission from you. She had this huge zombie epidemic plan all written up and scripted, but someone managed to pick off patient zero at random before it got underway. She¡¯s hoping to be able to adjust it to fit on to your new spreading problem.¡± ¡°Tell her that as long as it doesn¡¯t end with them all being wiped out that she has permission, it sounds like it would be pretty cool to see.¡± ¡°Fine. So, how did you plan on breaking the quarantine?¡± ¡°I have a few ideas.¡± Chapter 31 ¡°Are you sure this is going to work?¡± ¡°It¡¯ll be fine, the physics are sound.¡± ¡°Physics? According to any kind of science, this shouldn¡¯t even exist, let alone work.¡± ¡°Game physics then. Look I know what I''m doing, it¡¯s not like this is the hardest thing I''ve ever done.¡± ¡°And as we¡¯ve seen, you made mistakes with those as well.¡± Jicker sighed. He¡¯d been working for a while now, and had quickly found out how annoying it could be to have backseat crafters. Once he¡¯d explained his plan to Sarah, the other programmers who¡¯d been listening in on her end had all decided to add their own thoughts. While he had the final say in what he actually did, it didn¡¯t stop them all commenting on how they would do it. And so he¡¯d sat there working for two days now, and while Sarah herself had work to get back to, a ring of tiny avatars belonging to the programmers hovered around him, commenting on every move he made. ¡°You should make that longer, to act as a balance.¡± ¡°Raise that point there to even it out.¡± ¡°It would look better in blue.¡± Still, as frustrating as it was, it was complicated enough that he was glad of the help with some of the calculations for his project. When he decided to help the greycaps spread out, how became the big question. Pushing through the wall wouldn¡¯t work, or at least, it wouldn¡¯t work twice. If they held their forces back, gathered their strength and the attacked in a single strike, they¡¯d get through for certain, but they¡¯d be swallowed up by reinforcements before they took enough ground to make it worthwhile. After that the defences on the borders would increase tenfold, and that would be the end of it. Trying to undermine the defences had been the original plan, digging deep enough to bypass the defences entirely, and then releasing spores from underground to rise to the surface. It would have worked out, except that apparently people thought about roots and things when fighting against plants, and the defences went into the ground for over a hundred feet, and the alarms stretched down for a good mile. So with down being blocked off and going through out of the question, the only way left was over. With the fungus that made up the Blightwoods being far too dense for his purpose and nothing else living in the forest, he¡¯d had to make do what he had on him, namely a few pieces of fruit that had started off as part of his lunch the previous day. Most of it had failed, either unable to work or the change didn¡¯t take, but eventually he hit a success.
Ding! Adaptation has become permanent. Note- all plant changes are 50% more likely to become permanent-scales with level of herbalism. Type: Modified raspberry. Do you wish to name this plant?
¡°Float fruit?¡± Came a suggestion from an onlooking programmer. ¡°That¡¯s garbage. How about inflataweed.¡± ¡°That¡¯s worse!¡± ¡°Hmmm, cloudberry? It¡¯s kind of cloud shaped.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not awful.¡± Jicker admitted. ¡°I think those are a thing...yep looks like you can buy cloudberry jam.¡± ¡°Do they also grow and float away?¡± He asked, stretching his legs after sitting still for several hours. ¡°Well no, they¡¯re real, not game plants so-¡± ¡°Then its fine.¡±
Name accepted. Creator will remain unknown. Now applying changes to plant. Herbalism level has increased by 1! Current level: 4 Note: Created plants will spread naturally if planted in suitable environments and cared for.
It had taken most of a day to put together what he needed, and since then he¡¯d been working against a deadline. It currently sat on the ground behind him, half buried as it grew and ripened, but if he looked closely he could see it slowly push the soil around it out of the way, as the massive fruit grew and inflated. Already it was over a dozen feet across, a rough, lumpy dome pushing through surface of the ground as it grew and ripened. It was a dull, green fruit, with hundreds of small pockets that were slowly filling with a natural lighter than air gas. He¡¯d taken a few recommendations on what to use from the programmers, using an inert gas from the game that functioned like helium, since using a giant balloon of hydrogen to get past people who could throw fire seemed like a bad idea. It would take another three days for it to fully ripen, at which point it would turn a deep purple, and its spherical form, which would be over a hundred feet across, would pull itself free of the ground, along with the others that were growing and try to drift somewhere else to release its seeds. Unless of course, someone else took control of them and made use of their aerial abilities. But a balloon was only half of what was needed, so work had begun on constructing the rest of the transport. Trying to use a knife to carve the trees that grew in the Blightwoods was a fruitless effort, something he remembered from he¡¯d tried to clear a path through them. But the greycaps had no such problems, and with the same ability they used to carve out the ladles they carried with them, they moulded the wood like putty. With their little nub-like hands, they quickly began to build the structure according to his designs, the pieces being sealed together with a liberal amount of sap pasted over the joints. With the aid of the programmers, and the queen relaying the instructions, the airship finally began to take shape. They even managed to show them a crude way of weaving strips of bark together to make ropes strong enough to hold the ship to the berries once they ripened. Initially the programmers had been against the idea of the airship, not as a solution to the greycaps, but because of its future impact. Player access to flight had always been extremely limited, with only a few thousand out of over a billion players managing it, and even then it had been small scale, usually only able to carry the player in question. The spells were rare and hard to learn, the artefacts were almost mythical and the mounts were all but impossible to tame. People had tried to build airships before, with magic, science and everything in between, but it had always ended up to impractical and costly to work, and were mostly left to millionaires to joy ride around in. Giving people access to a cheap, if hard to use, source of lift would make it possible for far more people to take to the air, giving people a way to avoid a lot of the content scattered throughout the world, which was why it was restricted. But now that the world had changed so much, they were willing to let the cloudberries pass, as long as they weren¡¯t permanent. After around a week the berry would begin to rot, losing its gases at a rapid rate, before landing and seeding once again. It wouldn¡¯t let someone travel forever, but it would have plenty of time to spread spore over the area. To power it they would make use of a force known for its tireless and unwavering strength, namely the undead. Half a dozen zombies would be sealed into a small chamber, cranking a propeller that would send it out across the countryside. It wouldn¡¯t be as quick as other options, but they wouldn¡¯t need to worry about running out of power anytime soon. Of course, Jicker thought as he sat supervising the greycaps slapping at the sides of the ship, a mage could probably come up with something easier... An idea struck mind, making him stand up and go to the queen. ¡°Goldcrown,¡± He called out to her as he approached the dais. ¡°If I could find you help, or even allies, would you accept them, and let them through your forest?¡± ¡°You think... others... would aid us?¡± ¡°Perhaps, if they were sure you weren¡¯t going to turn on them. They would at least agree to leave you alone, that much I can safely promise. Before I contact them, do you have a way to let people through, or would they need an escort?¡± The queen slowly reached one arm up and gripped the edge of her crown, and carefully tore a piece off, letting out a cascade of sap, washing out one of the greycaps that had been sitting inside. ¡°Eat...this.¡± She said, offering the piece to him. Taking it in his hands he looked at it, a spongy piece of material with a golden edge, looking all the world like a piece of cake. Weighing the odds about whether the queen was trying to kill him, he put the piece in mouth, grimacing slightly since while it looked like cake, it tasted like a block of raw mushroom.
You have eaten a shard of the Golden Crown! You are now permanently immune to the Greycap Spores! Because the shard was freely given, you have also unlocked an achievement! Goldcrowns Blessing: Immunity to Blightwood sap and greycap spores. This ability affects all allies within twenty feet.
Coughing in surprise at the notification, he almost choked on the remaining mouthful, spitting it across the clearing. ¡°You can give people immunity?¡± Jicker asked, wiping at his mouth. ¡°To... the worthy. Others try... to take... by force.¡± ¡°Right, I get it now.¡± He said in understanding. It was one of the items the queen could drop, a single use item that gave immunity, or if given, the achievement. If things worked out and the greycaps began to really spread, it would a valuable item, and one that he could definitely use as a bargaining chip. With permission from the queen, he then went and spoke to the programmers, who were still looking over the airships construction. ¡°I¡¯m going to get into contact with some players, so I¡¯d make myself scarce if I were you.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t just tell us to leave, we¡¯re the ones who¡¯re working on this!¡± one said. ¡°And if you want to explain why the developers are messing around with in game activities, then by all means, stick around.¡± Grumbling, they all logged out one by one, their avatars flickering out of existence, with some greycaps waving their arms through the air where they¡¯d been in confusion. Once they¡¯d all left, Jicker opened up his friends list and sent a message to Oda. Hey Oda You said to tell you if anything comes up, and I can safely say that things are about to go up in a big way. Can you get word to Mary for me? This seems like the sort of thing the Rising Moon might want to be a part of. Jicker With the message sent, he went back to work, ensuring that greycaps didn¡¯t start carving little faces into what were becoming the sides of the ship. While they seemed happy enough to do what the queen told them to, their childlike intelligence meant that keeping them on track without her direct control could be difficult. A few minutes later, as he was pulling away sections of the ship to pull out several of the little mushrooms who had ¡°accidently¡± sealed themselves inside, a point of light appeared behind him. Turning to it, he watched as it slowly grew, pulling in a red mist seemingly from nothing, forming a twist mass of blood that span as it shaped itself. In only a few seconds, it turned from a red speck floating in the air, to a full replica of the head of the rising moon. ¡°Good to see you again Mary.¡± He said once it had fully formed. She was sitting at a desk, apparently having been working before being interrupted, and her nearby surroundings were pulled into the image with her, the edges frayed and bleeding. ¡°Same, but skip the pleasantries. I''ve had to sacrifice two goats and a player to get this message out to you, but Oda said this is probably important, so make it quick.¡± She said, looking over at something he couldn¡¯t see. ¡°Sure, I just- wait you sacrificed a person for this call?¡± ¡°A spy who was going to be executed anyway, now stay on target. You mentioned something for the guild? It¡¯s not just you being ready to join is it? Because while I¡¯m happy to let you in finally-¡± ¡°No, close though. Up to level 55 so hopefully we can square that away soon. No this is much more important. How much do you know about the greycaps and the Blightwoods?¡± Her expression focused, becoming more interested. ¡°I''m caught up on the woods themselves, but I''ve heard some horror stories about people losing thing to little mushroom monsters. That¡¯s your doing I take it?¡± ¡°The woods were a Maser thing, but yes the Greycaps are all me.¡± ¡°Figured as much. So what are you after? Some protection for your little friends?¡±This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°Not exactly, but that¡¯s something else to cover later. No I''m wondering if you could give me some help with necromancy, specifically making better zombies.¡± He said. She frowned. ¡°I thought you abilities didn¡¯t work on the undead, we tested that didn¡¯t we?¡± ¡°We did, and that hasn¡¯t changed, but I''m not looking for you to help me, I''m wanting you to help the queen.¡± ¡°What queen?¡± ¡°Other players haven¡¯t reached her yet, but there¡¯s a boss in the Blightwoods, the queen of the greycaps, and she has a fair amount of control over the fungal zombies that come from the spores.¡± He explained. ¡°So you want me to help, what, make her puppets better? How exactly does this interest the guild?¡± ¡°Because,¡± he said, turning and gesturing towards the growing airship, and the five others underway. ¡°They¡¯re likely to create more zombies over the next few months than the amount created by every player in the last seven years combined.¡± She leaned forward over the table. ¡°Let me get a few animals together, and maybe a couple more guests from the prison cells. I think I need to have a word with this queen of yours.¡± ~~~~~~ It took most of the afternoon, and from the sound of it the majority of a small town, but eventually Mary seemed to reach a deal with the queen. Jicker was checking over the last few detail when Mary¡¯s image floated towards him from the dais. ¡°Well that was a... interesting meeting.¡± She said, looking back towards the queen¡¯s seat. ¡°I hadn¡¯t realised that ability of you¡¯re could make something so...¡± ¡°Intelligent?¡± he guessed. ¡°Sentient. I swear I''ve had conversations in the real world that seemed more artificial. Anyway, we¡¯ve come to an agreement, as long as you give the final nod.¡± ¡°Why do I get a vote?¡± ¡°Since the queen trusts you completely, for fairly obvious reasons, she wants you to act as a go between, and her representative, which means you really need to get your shit together so you can join the guild. We could have used the guild chat system, but no, I had to empty out an entire farm, and cause problems for the butchers in town.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll get right on that. So, what¡¯s the deal?¡± ¡°First off is a basic nonaggression treaty, we leave them alone and they leave us alone. After that we moved on to more supportive stuff, which is going to be fairly minimal at the moment, and taken at a case by case basis. We might help defend them while they grab a colony for themselves, and they might turn their attention to an enemy of ours.¡± ¡°Seems fair enough.¡± He said nodding in consideration. ¡°What about the zombies, did you have any luck?¡± ¡°In exchange for helping improve their forces, the queen promised to immunize enough of our people that the guild will largely be able to ignore what they¡¯re starting. The problem is that the queen doesn¡¯t use necromancy the same way we do. Its more... instinct than skill or knowledge.¡± ¡°So what¡¯s the plan then?¡± ¡°Well you¡¯re in luck, since I''ve got a group of people moving through that area soon, so we¡¯re hoping that teaching things in person will work better, more learn by doing than hearing.¡± ¡°It¡¯s worth a shot. Okay I agree to this, and I¡¯ll keep an eye out for the guild.¡± ¡°Good. Oda¡¯s with them, so I¡¯ll relay the orders to head into the woods through him. Make sure they don''t all just disappear okay?¡± ¡°Not a problem. Nice talking with you.¡± ¡°Great, now I just need to fill out an expense report for that many sheep...¡± she muttered, her voice trailing off as the spell gave out, the blood splashing to the ground. ~~~~~~ A day later, as night was beginning to fall, the Greycaps began calling out, sending word that a group was approaching the edges of the wood. Walking out to meet them was much easier than it had been getting to the centre, the queens blessing making it simple. If he stepped into a pool of sap, it would harden underneath him, forming a momentary stepping stone before returning to its liquid state as he passed. Waiting at the edge of the woods were a hundred figures, half made of hooded guild members and half undead being used as pack mules. Further away were members of the border guard, looking unhappy that a larger force had shoved their way past the wall. Standing centre stage was Gabe, sitting proudly on top of Princess, still loving to show off his Blunicorn. ¡°Jicker!¡± he called out, waving as he saw him coming through the trees. ¡°How¡¯s it going?!¡± ¡°Not bad Gabe, not bad at all. Are all of you coming in, or are some of you waiting out here?¡± he asked from the edges, keeping an eye on the border guards who¡¯d started pointing and gathering their forces. ¡°I was going to say just a few of us, but maaaaybe we should all head in a little, at least get out of peoples way.¡± Walking in, they all moved close together, watching their surroundings closely, just in case the arrangement fell through and it all became enemy territory. While it was hard for people to travel safely, they had to be extra careful not let their own zombies wander into the sap and become stuck. There was already one case where a foot had been hacked off rather than try to free it, leaving it limping along. Princess on the other hand simply trotted a foot above the surface, leaving a frozen trail that several others tried to stay on. ¡°So,¡± Oda said, the assassin appearing suddenly behind him, making Jicker jump a foot in the air. ¡°You haven¡¯t improved your stealth abilities much, and your enigma stat hasn''t grown much either. You won¡¯t get better if you don''t practice.¡± Turning to him, he replied. ¡°First off, don''t do that! Secondly I''ve been out in the wild all this time so I haven¡¯t really had a chance to work on them.¡± A frown ¡°You should get on that, sooner rather than later. I guess it¡¯s because of your... unusual levelling method, but you¡¯re getting to a level where you should have way better skills than the ones you do. The inner rage thing is new though, along with that achievement... is that the one Mary mentioned?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll explain the stat later, but yeah the achievement is what you¡¯re here to get, at least some of you? I don''t know exactly how many the queen agreed to let-¡° ¡°WE¡¯RE UNDER ATTACK!¡± someone shouted. Whipping around, they turned to the source of the cry to find people pulling away from a zombie that had been surrounded by greycaps, who were jabbing it with the ladles, whistling and chirping to each other. This wouldn¡¯t be any cause for alarm, but they¡¯d brought several dozen of their own through the woods, so now there were two masses of the undead facing each other, one word away from becoming a lifeless melee. ¡°So, these are the greycaps then?¡± Oda asked, not taking his eyes off of them, his hand drifting towards a pocket. Jicker sighed. ¡°Yes that¡¯s them, and I think I should step in before someone else does something dumb.¡± ¡°Who¡¯s been dumb already?¡± ¡°They have.¡± He said walking forward before grabbing a ladle away from one of the greycaps. ¡°Quit that! They¡¯re not doing what you say because they¡¯re not yours, so don''t poke them! it very rude to start messing around with other peoples things, so leave them alone, no matter how curious you get, okay?¡± He turned and shouted over his shoulder. ¡°And that goes double for whoever¡¯s shuffling towards the fungal zombies right now! We¡¯re trying to sort out a treaty, not let you play with the dead.¡± ¡°But these are unprecedented, different of anything raised before! The possibilities are-¡± ¡°Zip it Harrison, we¡¯re not here to mess around.¡± Jicker shot Oda a glare. ¡°You brought Harrison here? The same guy who saw no problem in almost killing a bunch of wolves who are now part of Penumbra''s pack?¡± Oda held up his hands to defend himself. ¡°Look, he¡¯s an ass, but he¡¯s good at what he does, and right now that¡¯s the important part. To be honest with you,¡± he continued with an odd gleam in his eyes. ¡°He¡¯s exactly what we need right now.¡± With the tension dispelled, the greycaps hung their heads in shame and started to wander off back into the woods, leaving the rising moon to travel deeper into the woods, and eventually reach the queens clearing. ¡°So this is the queen we¡¯re supposed to meet?¡± Gabe asked looking up at the dais. ¡°I thought it was supposed to be intelligent, that thing looks kind of-¡± Cutting him off, the dead that made up the queens throne lit up. ¡°We can... promise you... we are... intelligent... Gabe, brother... of Mary.¡± ¡°Umm... You know me?¡± he said awkwardly, surprised. ¡°I spoke... to your leader...for some time. We do not... know much... of humour. But her... stories of... your antics... amused us. We greatly... enjoyed the... one about... the snow globe.¡± He groaned. ¡°Aaaand now I need to get back at her.¡± ¡°What did you do with snow globe?¡± Jicker asked in amusement. ¡°It involves a snow globe, a magic rope and the loss of five city blocks. I¡¯ll tell you the full story over a drink sometime.¡± Oda said quickly before Gabe started spluttering his denials. ¡°For now though, let¡¯s get to why we¡¯re here.¡± ¡°There are... many of you. I am willing... to give... half of you... the immunity. But I need... your payment... before I... gift it... to the rest.¡± Jicker paused, turning to the guild members who were shuffling around. ¡°Payment? I thought Mary agreed to some teaching, so what¡¯s the payment?¡± ¡°Well, you see,¡± Gabe began, slowly moving through the crowd. ¡°Mary found out that the queen doesn¡¯t really learn well from explanations. But we¡¯re pretty sure it¡¯s a communication problem rather than ability.¡± ¡°So after asking about how she normally learns things, me and Gabe came up with an idea.¡± Oda continued, also getting into position. ¡°Apparently she learns by absorbing the minds of bodies added to throne? Then the simplest way would be to add the right body.¡± And with that, they both suddenly grabbed one of Harrison¡¯s arms each. ¡°H-hey, what are you doing?!¡± Harrison exclaimed as they lifted him off the ground and started walking forward. Oda answered him as the two of them ignored his struggles. ¡°Mary¡¯s been looking for a way to properly punish you for your screw up with the node for some time now. She¡¯s tried to give you some shitty jobs to make up for it, but you kept either screwing those up or palming it off onto someone else. So we decided that your noble sacrifice would be a fitting and poetic way to make up for things. Everybody wins.¡± ¡°I never agreed to this! You can¡¯t do this!¡± ¡°Mmm, I''m pretty sure we can, but I think you mean that we shouldn¡¯t. But, the needs of the many outweighthe needs of the few and all that.¡± Ignoring the last of his cries, the two threw him forward towards the queen, where he landed in a deep pool of sap that quickly hardened around him, leaving him trapped below the waist. Turning towards him, the queen inhaled deeply, expanding slightly, before unleashing a stream of spores so thick that they momentarily lost sight of Harrison under the barrage. When they¡¯d dispersed, he was dead, any trace of life snuffed out and a thick grey layer still covering his face, forming a smooth plate. The queen took a step back and made a small bow, pouring sap over the body the liquid flowing oddly around the still form. When it was done the queen touched its surface and cause it to break free of the lake, the liquid draining away to leave a perfect sphere with Harrison¡¯s body resting permanently at its centre. ¡°Yeah, I think we can say that his debt cleared up for now, at least until he screws up again.¡± Gabe said, watching on with interest. The queen had lifted the sphere and placed it onto a small pedestal by her throne, where it started to glow, and cast light on the queen, who knelt before it, their body trembling as they underwent the process of absorbing whatever memories she was looking through. ¡°We...see now.¡± The queen said after a minute of silence. ¡°We understand... how the dead... are made... to rise. We can... use this... to protect... ourselves... and our future.¡± Lifting themselves to their feet, they slowly moved down from the dais, both player and greycap moving out her way wordlessly. She stopped before a small outcrop and ran a hand along its surface, causing it to tremble and crack. Slowly the Blightwood and fungus that had grown over it peeled away, leaving a largely decayed body that now began to rise to its feet. ¡°This was... a wizard... a wielder... of fire.¡± They said, carefully holding the zombie¡¯s shoulders. ¡°They came... to burn... our home... and my children. They could... not succeed... so now... they will serve.¡± With a sharp movement, quicker than Jicker had thought possible with such a bulky frame, the queen tore the head from the zombie, its body collapsing to the ground, its animation leaving it instantly. With a low groan, she called out causing a single grey cap to come forward, looking up at their leader chirping quietly. With care she squeezed the head between her hands, until they began to shift and mould around it, before separating them to show them empty but dyed bright red. Reverently, she placed them on the cap of the mushroom before her, holding them there and crooning softly as light began to form at the point of contact. Releasing it, they watched on as two hand prints were left smouldering, then outright caught flame as the small creature was set ablaze, but paralysed by the queens will. But as quickly as it had ignited, it went out, leaving a very different monster behind. Growing to twice its original size, the two foot tall mushroom creature had gained a blacked skin tone, while its cap had become a bright fiery orange, speckled with points of red and white that moved across its now rough and jagged surface. Where its eyes had glowed with a soft, purple light, they were now filled with flames that licked at the air as it studied its surroundings with new interest. ¡°Did you know this would happen?¡± Oda asked Jicker quietly. ¡°No,¡± he whispered back, looking at his creations... creation. ¡°This is definitely not what I expected.¡± Moving closer he went to examine the newly created creature, when it span and looked at him, grinning at him with a mouth that now contained jagged teeth.
Greycap - Queens Guard variant. Level: 31 By absorbing and transferring the nature of another creature the Goldcrown has turned this greycap into an individual with abilities based on the dead it was taken from. Special abilities: Born of a pyromancer, this Greycap has gained intelligence, intermediate fire magic, fire and cold resistance and the ability to ignite spore clouds to explosive effect.
¡°Are you seeing this?¡± He whispered. Oda nodded. ¡°You were right; this is going to be big. Really, really big.¡± The queen turned to them, her new guard at her side. ¡°We thank... you for your... sacrifice. With my new...children we... will be able... to defend ourselves... properly. We will still... have losses... but if one... survives... then they... can become... many.¡± While most people were in a state of shock or confusion, Gabe was beside himself with joy. ¡°That was awesome!¡± he said, jumping around on top of his mount. ¡°Can you make fighters? And tanks? Oooh! What about spies? Those could be cool!¡± ¡°For now,¡± Jicker said while trying to drag him away, which proved fruitless until Princess agreed and trotted back. ¡°We need to start loading up the airships, which are ripe enough to launch any minute, and will do it on their own fairly soon.¡± The next hour had suddenly become a frantic rush, people going as far as just grabbing the greycaps and throwing them on the airships, packing them in along with the other supplies that had been prepared, namely large barrels of spores, and large pieces of currently hardened sap. As they flew they¡¯d slowly scatter the spores over the area, covering a wide enough area, that something would die while under its affects, potentially giving rise to an entire colony. The sap, while solid and useless at the moment could, thanks to the greycaps abilities to manipulate it, be liquefied and weaponized in an instant raining down on the unprotected targets below. Before long, the first of the cloudberries broke free of the ground, the sap they¡¯d used to hold it down being broken away and tearing up huge lumps of soil. As they rose, the ropes caught and pulled tight, dragging them in place above the ships where additional ties and ropes were quickly attached. ¡°We¡¯ve got to get some of these for the guild.¡± Oda said, inspecting one of the ships. ¡°I¡¯ll give you a couple of seeds, though we¡¯ll need a way to explain where they came from.¡± Jicker replied, tying off the final rope. ¡°I think we¡¯re getting past that. The Rising Moon has done what it can, but people have caught on that new things are being made, and people are going to connect it to you eventually. But for now, what next?¡± ¡°We let them loose. They¡¯ll all go in different directions, covering as big an area as they can, while the queen rebuilds her forces here and repeats the process. Any success will begin to create new Greycaps, Blightwood and zombies, and the cycle continues.¡± ¡°So, your part is done for now? You¡¯re not busy with anything?¡± Oda asked hopefully. He hesitated. ¡°I''m not busy exactly, but I need to get to Macross for... reasons.¡± ¡°Are these Jicker reasons or... ¡°reasons¡±?¡± he said, making air quotes. ¡°The second one, and I can¡¯t go into it right now.¡± ¡°All good, perfect in fact. I was going to ask you to come to Macross with us anyway.¡± ¡°Really? Why?¡± Gabe came over and slapped him on the back. ¡°We¡¯re competing in the games, help give our new city a bit more legitimacy, you know? ¡°Feel free to hear that as ¡°Mary kicked him out of the city for a while for causing more problems than he solved¡±.¡± Oda said smirking. ¡°That¡¯s not true, Mary said it would be good to do some politicking out there, so she put me in charge!¡± ¡°And then she put me in charge of him.¡± Oda said, ducking a slap from Gabe at his words. ¡°But he¡¯s right, and since Harrison has been... removed from the group, he won¡¯t be able to make it in time and that leaves us short a player. So we were hoping you might fill in for him.¡± Jicker weighed his options. ¡°Sure, as long as it doesn¡¯t interfere with my ¡°reasons¡±, I''m game to join. ¡°Awesome, then lets head out now, there¡¯s a deadline on the sign up.¡± ¡°Sure, just wait up a second, there¡¯s a favour I want to ask from the queen.¡± ~~~~~~ Harriet looked at the message she received from the contractor, demanding to know why they hadn¡¯t gotten them the creature yet. The problem with answering the question was that she didn¡¯t know either. They¡¯d sent the gremlin into the woods, and waited, everything looking like it was running smoothly. Then the first of the dead had started to stagger towards the border and they¡¯d kept an eye out for the little green one. But it never came out, even after the rest had all been killed off and collected. According to the elf running the place, it happened sometimes, when either the zombie had gotten stuck somewhere, had headed out a different side, or the target had just died on impact without being infected. But she¡¯d checked with the border guards on every side, and had someone keeping an eye on the nearest spawn point. She knew he couldn¡¯t be that far away, since they still had his mount in stasis, and if he got too far it would teleport out to his location, an old game patch they¡¯d included to stop people running off with entire stables. So where the hell had he gotten to? While she was thinking, a small piece of paper found its way into her hand, but she couldn¡¯t remember where it had come from, or why she was holding it. Opening it up she saw that there were two words written on it. Ten fold. Before she could process what she¡¯d read, people started shouting and running around, scattering in every direction. Some aimed weapons towards the sky, trying to ready themselves for something they hadn¡¯t planned for. Looking up she saw a bright purple ball drift through the air, with tiny figures underneath waving down towards her. Then they pushed something towards the edge, and suddenly all she could see was a sheet of liquid amber, falling towards her. Chapter 32 ¡°So there we were in the mess hall, just chatting away, killing time after taking the city, when the upheaval comes up. Now I''m sure you¡¯re all familiar with this, but the patch notes they released afterwards hinted at how it was pulled off, namely the layering of spells. Now they went into a fair amount of detail into why this and that had been changed, and how things wouldn¡¯t work anymore, and somehow this translated in Gabe¡¯s mind into ¡°this would be really cool¡±.¡± Oda said as they walked along the road to Macross. ¡°Now while we all tried our best to explain to him that A, by definition it wouldn¡¯t work and B, he shouldn¡¯t try in the first place. But for those of you have dealt with our glorious commander here, you¡¯ll know we would have better luck talking the sun out of shining. So for while it seemed like he¡¯d forgotten about it entirely, days passed and he didn¡¯t mention it at all. Then out of the blue he comes along and smacks this snow globe on the table, and this thing was overflowing with power.¡± ¡°Now when you say overflowing...¡± Another guild member asked. Oda had started to tell Jicker the story as they walked, much to Gabe¡¯s disapproval, and now most of the group was listening in while he rode Princess up front, trying to act like he couldn¡¯t hear them. ¡°I mean literally had power leaking through little cracks that had started to form. Most people would take this as an extremely obvious sign to stop, but not Gabe here. No, not only did he ignore it, and us when we told him again, but he went and found a way to store some more in there. He went into the vaults that, thanks to this, he no longer has access to, and pulled out some heavily enchanted rope, the kind we use if we need to tie up and sacrifice a demon lord. So he tied it around the snow globe and sure enough it stopped the leaks, so he began to add more power, like a totally sensible person would.¡± ¡°Obviously.¡± Jicker said with a grin. ¡°Right so for the rest of the day he pours an absolute butt load of power into this thing, way more than a normal player could handle, chugging mana potions like water. Most of the guild had gotten wind that Gabe was up to something, and had followed the protocols, evacuating the area, leaving only a few people who were too dumb, too lazy or too curious to watch what happened next. And before anyone makes a comment, I was curious. So we''re all sitting there wondering how it¡¯s all going to go wrong, when it starts leaking power again, spraying out of the gaps in rope like a hose. And then Gabe cleverly realises that because the rope hasn¡¯t formed a perfect seal, there are gaps for the power to leak through. He decides that it needs to be wrapped and tied differently to do a better job and so, in one of his finest moments in recent history, he unties it to try again.¡± ¡°He didn¡¯t!¡± Jicker exclaimed as several people burst out laughing. ¡°He certainly did. The second that rope came off the magic all rushed out, the snow globe giving way and letting it all go at once. I saw it start to go and managed to sprint clear, but the rest of them got swallowed up by the ice that formed, and it just kept growing. By the time it was done, about five city blocks had become encased in a giant, almost perfectly clear block of ice. In fact it was so clear that not only could we see some very surprised looking bodies trapped inside, but it acted like a magnifying glass and actually started a few small fires around it. After that, Gabe got assigned to the first mission that would take him out of the city for a while, and here we are.¡± Laughing, Jicker looked up as he wiped the tears from his eyes, watching the airship head off into the distance. Since the ships had been designed to only carry the greycaps many people were disappointed they wouldn¡¯t be able to ride one all the way to the city, but most of the opinions changed after the launch. While the first ship had taken the borders by surprise and successfully delivered a present to the players who¡¯d thrown him into the woods, the second hadn¡¯t fared as well. As soon as it had cleared the forest canopy, the first attacks had started to strike it, tearing holes and setting it a flame. The queen seemed to take offense to this however, and ordered the ship to ram the defenders that had launched the assault, the burning airship ploughing through their barricade as it crashed into the ground. It wasn¡¯t according to the plan, but it reduced the number of attacks against the remaining ships enough that they could get away, with varying degrees of success. Their efforts seemed tied to upgraded greycaps that had been put on each ship, their magical abilities put to use in defending the ships. One ship that had held several with fire magic not only got clear, but ignited a wide section of the walls and camp on their way out, where the ship protected by one armed with lightning took shots at any archer that fired back. The most worrying ship had held both an air mage and one made from the body of a druid, which had risen straight up rather than heading out, vanishing above the clouds. Since then they¡¯d heard a few odd rumours about vines reaching out of the sky and dragging people away but only time would tell if there was any truth to them. The guild had been travelling for the better part of two days now, sneaking out after the chaos the airships had caused. Thanks to the queen¡¯s gift, they were able to ignore the faint haze of spores they left behind, unlike the other creatures caught up in its wake. The spores alone didn¡¯t kill anything, little more than a debuff, until something died while under its effects. A fox hunting down a rabbit, a farmer preparing killing some livestock, or one of the hundreds of players doing nothing but killing everything they came across. As soon as it started, the numbers began to grow rapidly, with huge numbers of creatures being changed into fungal zombies. They weren¡¯t a real threat yet, usually even weaker than they had been when they were alive, but with numbers that was slowly changing and people were already starting to prepare for the worst after only a single wave of airships. A small village had already been overrun, and once the second wave of ships had finished growing, things would only get worse. ¡°Well,¡± Gabe said, slowing down slightly and rejoining them. ¡°If you¡¯re done making fun of me, we should probably figure out where to put you in our team.¡± ¡°Sure, what events are you competing in?¡± Jicker asked. Gabe thought about it. ¡°Pretty much all of them.¡± The champion games were held in Macross every year, or several times a year depending on what time scale you looked at. It was started as a way for the city to make money, but now the Macross existed almost solely for the games, the population made up of people who ran the events, sold merchandise or ran services for tourists. The events covered almost every sport, game and contest that could be thought of. If there was a way to determine a winner, then people would compete and others would bet. There were fights, physical and mental challenges, obstacle courses, card games, debates and art contests. Matches for teams, guilds and solo players were available, all with their own tournament rules and prizes ranging from a participation ribbon to millions of dollars. It was one of very few events that was worth hundreds of thousands of people travelling from all over the world of genesis to compete in, and would be viewed by millions more. ¡°Are the games really that important to your guild?¡± Jicker asked. Oda sighed. ¡°Not exactly, but our status with Ardenvale is a bit... tricky at the moment. We¡¯ve still got a bit of a time buffer before people can try to take the city back from us, but it¡¯s going to run out pretty soon, and we¡¯ve currently got more enemies than allies as a guild. We¡¯ve already seen scouts around the place, so we know to expect a fight, but if we can get a few allies, or even just show people we¡¯re a legitimate city rather than just an overgrown bandit camp, maybe we can reduce the number of attackers.¡± ¡°Not stop them all together?¡± ¡°Oh gods no, we stole a city. That¡¯s not a grudge that going away anytime soon, something you should know plenty about. But maybe we can get the outsiders to not bother getting involved. And the games can do a lot to show off our legitimacy. ¡°So what was Harrison going to be doing then, before his... donation?¡± ¡°He was lined up to fight in a few five man team battles, as well as a summoning contest. The guy was an idiot and a bastard, but I can¡¯t say he wasn¡¯t good at his work.¡± Gabe replied. ¡°Think you can fill in?¡± ¡°The summoning I can probably manage, if we can clear it with the referee, but the combat might be little difficult.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been thinking about that.¡± Oda said. ¡°We¡¯ve got a week to get there and register for the games, and we also need to raise you up a few level s so that you can actually participate as part of the guild. I figure if we head off and do some proper hunting we should be able to bring you up to a point where you at least won¡¯t drag people down.¡± ¡°Wow, thanks for the vote of confidence.¡± Jicker said sarcastically. ¡°Fine then. When was the last time you actually fought properly? Actually planned to fight rather than escape?¡± He hesitated. ¡°Probably around the siege?¡± Oda sighed.¡±And even then you were mostly hiding and taking shots at people who didn¡¯t notice you. While that¡¯s... fine, for hunting, it won¡¯t be enough if they know you¡¯re coming and it¡¯s a limited environment.¡± ¡°Well sorry! I¡¯ve been busy, and I was crafter before this as well. I didn¡¯t fight much then and I don''t fight much now.¡± ¡°And that¡¯s what we need to fix.¡± The assassin said firmly. ~~~~~~ The rest of the Rising Moon headed straight for Macross, While Oda, Gabe and Jicker headed to a nearby swamp to train and practice for a few days. It was initially going to be just Oda overseeing his training, but the rest of them refused to be left alone with Gabe giving orders. ¡°Right then,¡± Oda said once they¡¯d found a spot to set up camp, crossing his arms. ¡°Come and attack me.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you want to draw a weapon first?¡± He snorted. ¡°Right, despite the fact we¡¯re because you¡¯re a terrible fighter, I should be careful. You could be fifty times stronger and you still wouldn¡¯t even see me unless I let you.¡± Sighing, Jicker pulled out his blade and rushed him, holding his blade low to the side. A moment later he picked himself off the floor and wondered how he got there. Shaking his head he found his blade and turned to attack again, but couldn¡¯t quite remember what he was supposed to be doing. ¡°He¡¯s not going to learn if you keep messing with him like that Oda.¡± Gabe said from the sidelines, brushing Princesses mane. ¡°Yeah, I know, but its fun to mess with rookies like that.¡± Oda said, fading into view. ¡°It all serves to show you that enigma can be used in combat if you¡¯re good enough. Now then, let¡¯s do this for real.¡± Over the next several hours he was struck, thrown, shot, kicked, stabbed and a host of other things, until they finally reached an answer. ¡°You¡¯re... really bad at this.¡± Oda said, helping off the floor after a particularly heavy fall. ¡°No, really? Any other amazing insights you want to share? Maybe that I''m short or that Gabe¡¯s not the brightest.¡± ¡°Hey!¡± Shouted Gabe, dropping the stick he¡¯d been using to poke at a nearby snake. ¡°Yeah I knew you weren¡¯t going to be great, you¡¯ve played this game for a long time now, I figured you¡¯d be better than this.¡± ¡°I was a tinker, not some leapfrogging assassin, which I''m sure we can all agree is something I was very good at. And what combat I did learn involved me being about three feet taller than I am now.¡± Oda scratched his chin. ¡°Right, so you have some reflexes, but they¡¯re the wrong ones. How have you dealt with things so far as a gremlin?¡± ¡°Lately it seems that I get snuck up on then captured.¡± ¡°Ha, and the other times?¡± ¡°Either hiding with poison darts like you said, or twice now I''ve survived with my Rageform ability.¡± Oda clapped his hands together. ¡°Right, I knew there was something I meant to ask about! That inner rage thing you¡¯ve got, what its deal?¡± Jicker thought about how to explain it. ¡°Well Rageform, or the lesser kind I¡¯ve got, turns me into an uncontrollable monster for a while, making me way stronger and tougher.¡±This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. ¡°Sounds neat, let¡¯s try it out!¡± Gabe said, coming over. ¡°How about no. For one thing it¡¯s got a pretty massive cooldown, even with a reduction from the stat it¡¯s almost three days, and I can¡¯t turn it off early. And I did say it was uncontrolled right? It¡¯ll try to survive and maybe try to follow the last thing I thought of before activation. I¡¯ve had a little luck trying to nudge it in how it does it, but other than it tends to lash out.¡± ¡°That¡¯s... interesting, but still worth trying out. And while I believe you when you say it makes you stronger, I''m pretty sure that between me and Gabe we can handle you for what? A few minutes?¡± ¡°Around six hours or so, but that not the biggest issue. There¡¯s a small chance, smaller thanks to the stat, that it becomes permanent.¡± ¡°And by permanent you mean...?¡± ¡°I mean I write off Jicker as a character all together and there¡¯s another mob running around with something that used to be my face.¡± ¡°More of a last resort sort of thing then.¡± Oda said, looking thoughtful. ¡°Oh, I don''t know, you should do it anyway.¡± Gabe said cheerfully. ¡°Are... are you serious? I just said-¡± ¡°That it¡¯s a massive risk, and it¡¯s one you should take. I died so, so many times when I acquired my own power, and if Mary hadn¡¯t managed to find a way to keep me going, I¡¯d have been a write off as well. But we managed and now I''m one of the most powerful players around. If things really do go wrong, what do you have to lose?¡± What did he have to lose anyway? Jicker wondered. His character obviously, but then, he hadn¡¯t really wanted to create a new character anyway and been forced into it. He¡¯d become invested in it, but he could always start again if he had to, though maybe this would give him a way to get out of the contract he¡¯d signed. More likely they¡¯d just fudge some numbers and repeat the whole process, but it was worth a shot. ¡°You know what, fine. We¡¯ve got a week before the games, so it¡¯ll be off cooldown before then, but if I get stuck then I blame you in particular Gabe.¡± ¡°Noted, now let¡¯s do this!¡± ¡°Anything we should know before you start?¡± Oda asked, drawing a large curved knife from his belt. ¡°Well, it hurts like hell to activate, and both times I''ve used it, the Rageform came out different so be on your toes. I''m going to try and get it to beat the tar out of both of you, so have fun with that and try to keep me from running off. Are you ready kids?¡± he asked, dropping his pack and taking off his shirt. Gabe grinned and bounced on his heels, his hands glowing with power. ¡°Aye aye captain!¡± Triggering the ability, Jicker gritted his teeth at the feeling of his bones breaking and resetting themselves in rapid succession, tendons snapping before being replaced with larger muscles. His skin split and rejoined, thickening as it did so, its grey colour spreading over his body as he hunched over in pain. The one upside was that he could see the expressions of the two players in front of him as he first grew to match their height, and kept growing until he towered over them. His vision blurred as his head felt like it was bursting, then suddenly he could see... everything, more than he could comprehend. His eyes had disappeared completely, replaced with just a flat section of exposed bone that covered everything but his jaws, two long tusks jutting outwards. Yet somehow he could not only still see, but could do in every direction, the experience more than he could handle, but apparently easy for the Rageform to manage as it stood once the transformation was complete. Unlike the last time when it had adopted a lean athletic build, this time it had gained nothing but bulk, becoming almost twelve feet of thick muscles coved in a layer of what looked like blubber. It roared at the players in front of it, causing the local wildlife to scatter. ¡°So that¡¯s cool, if a little... disturbing to watch.¡± Gabe said as he looked up at him. ¡°And apparently more adaptable than I¡¯d figured.¡± Oda said with interest, his eyes glowing slightly. ¡®He¡¯s put on a thick enough layer to get some decent cold resistance, and has somehow acquired omni-directional sight, so sneaking up on him is out of the question.¡± ¡°Well he looks pretty fat now, so he should be pretty sl-¡± Gabe began, before throwing himself to the side as the Rageform suddenly rushed him, throwing a fist that was completely encased in bone plates. ¡°Or he could be faster than he was before.¡± Oda said as he threw a couple of knives to test things out, only for them to bounce of his blubbery hide. ¡°This... is going to be fun. Can you hear us Jicker?¡± ¡°If he can or not, that not the biggest problem right now is it?¡± Gabe shouted as he backpedalled, sending out a frigid spray of mist that formed ice when it came into contact with the Rageform, but broke apart before it could thicken enough to be a problem. Jicker spent a few moments to type out a message to Oda, looking up occasionally to see his body trying to kill them. Oda Looks like it didn¡¯t become permanent, so have fun duking it out with me for the next six hours or so. I¡¯ll set a clock to figure it out exactly, but I''m going to log off for a bit and take care of some things, so I¡¯d appreciate it if you didn¡¯t kill me while I''m gone. ~~~~~~ ¡°What do you mean you¡¯re moving?¡± Sarah asked, fuming. ¡°It means I''m going to stop living in one building, and live in a different one. Have you never heard of this before?¡± Jicker said as he packed a suitcase. ¡°You can¡¯t just... move! We have forms, security, insurance details... there are things we need to-¡± ¡°No, there are things the company probably needs to do. I don''t need to do anything other than play a game.¡± When he¡¯d logged out, he¡¯d spent several minutes staring at the paper on his desk, the message that had been put in his house. Looking through the footage from security cameras he¡¯d installed, he found that there was a minute in the video where it all went black, and afterwards the note was on the table. After seeing that someone had both gotten into his house and could access his security, getting out seemed like a good idea. ¡°But it¡¯s not safe out there for you, there are still a lot of people looking for Maser.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not safe for me here! My house has been repeatedly broken into, I''ve even been attacked twice already and that was by August himself! So I figure I¡¯ll take a shot at being somewhere that people might attack me, instead of one where I know they will.¡± Sarah had called once she¡¯d seen he¡¯d logged out, wanting to know if he¡¯d any luck in figuring out how to deal with the asteroid, since their own efforts had so far been hit and miss. ¡°We managed to track down a unique shield that someone made to win a bet,¡± she said with a sigh. ¡°One that would completely disintegrate any projectile that struck it, no matter what it was.¡± ¡°That sounds kind of overpowered, but perfect for what we need right now. So how do we get it in place?¡± he said relieved, happy something had come through. ¡°We can¡¯t use it anymore.¡± She replied grumpily. ¡°Why not, is the owner refusing to sell it or something?¡± ¡°No, they just gave it to us, but the problem is that its ability can only be used once before it goes on cooldown. And when they picked it up to examine it...¡± she sighed. ¡°A bird crapped on it. Just... plop, straight down, a few sparks as it triggered and bam all used up.¡± Matt coughed to cover a laugh. ¡°What¡¯s the cooldown?¡± ¡°A year, so it¡¯s useless to us now. Apparently it¡¯s the same thing that happened to the guy who made it in the first place. But what about things on your end, any luck?¡± ¡°Not yet, but I''m back on my way and should reach Macross within the week. But right now I need to do something I should have done a while ago.¡± He said, putting her on speaker phone while he packed. Since he¡¯d said he was moving all she¡¯d done was rant and complain, partly over her concerns, but it was also her job to keep track of things like this. ¡°Fine, move if you want to, just let me know where so I can put it in the file.¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Oh come on! Are you just being difficult on purpose?¡± she shouted. ¡°Look, I¡¯m sure that the moment I spend so much as a dollar, people from your accounts department are going to start making calls to track me, but right now I want to stay off the radar as much as I can, especially since my main threat has come from the company itself. So for now, you can take a guess, but I''m not going to tell you, though I''m sure it¡¯ll only buy me a few hours at most.¡± Ending the call, he called a cab and went into town, having the driver pick a decent hotel at random. The one that was picked was a five star monolith of a building, one that usually catered to the rich and famous. He got a few looks at first, after walking in off the street with his old ratty suitcase, but after putting some of the money he¡¯d earned to work, the looks were replaced by helpful smiles. They were happy to show him to a suite he¡¯d booked for the week, and went to over the various security details it offered, saying that they knew the value of their client¡¯s privacy. After the attendant had gone he went to order something from the room service menu, after hearing their boasts about the chefs they had on staff when he paused. He¡¯d left his house on little more than a whim, and had the cab driver pick a hotel at random, one that should be extremely secure. Yet sitting by the phone was a single card, containing a familiar looking message. ¡°You may live where you like, we can find you there as well. The work must continue.¡± ~~~~~~ Swearing as he logged back in, he was thrown for a moment as he tried to acclimatize to the strange view he was given. The area was cracked and broken, and almost completely white with frost, with trees torn from the ground and large chunks ice buried in the earth. Both of his legs were currently encased in ice, pinning him to the ground while a tired looking Oda and Gabe sat a short distance away. ¡°Ice prison is going to give way in a minute.¡± Gabe said with a sigh. ¡°Your turn.¡± ¡°Yeah I know. Jeez this thing is just relentless.¡± Oda muttered, pulling a sword from thin air. Swinging the sword down, he vanished for a moment before appearing in what would have been a blind spot, the blade aiming right between his shoulder blades. Instead he found himself twisting suddenly, a chunk of ice breaking free of his legs and being grabbed as a makeshift club against the oncoming assassin who flipped over it as it whistled underneath him. Adjusting his grip, Oda moved quickly and used the clubs momentum to jump above him, and somehow accelerated down, piercing him through the arm and pinning him to the ground. ¡°Okay that should hold him for a few minutes, then you¡¯re up again.¡± He said, sitting back down heavily. Jicker was about to try and send Oda a message, when the Rageform decided it had had enough, and deactivated. The pain and discomfort of his body shifting back to its normal state was bad, but having a sword jammed through his arm made it all the worse.
You have the gained shifted status. Until your body recovers from having forcibly entered another form, your strength, stamina and speed will be halved. Duration remaining: 6 hours Inner Rage has increased by 2! Total: 3 You have unlocked the Natural weapon skill! Current level: 4 Allows for greater damage, effectiveness and use with any of your body¡¯s natural weapons. This also counts as the unarmed combat skill Current effects: increased armour penetration, increased accuracy, +4 damage. You have unlocked the Iron Hide skill! Current level: 3 Ranks in this reduce incoming damage while in a transformed shape. Current effects: reduces incoming physical damage by 3 or 3% whichever is higher.
¡°Hell, how long were you guys fighting me?¡± Jicker said once his breath came back. ¡°Oh, you know, a while.¡± Gabe said, falling backwards. ¡°Are we done now?¡± Oda wandered over to Jicker¡¯s prone form. ¡°Yeah we¡¯re done for today. Hold still for a sec .¡± he said before ripping the sword out. ¡°Mother-¡± He said clutching his arm. ¡°How about a bit of warning before you go doing something like that!¡± ¡°Hmm? Oh yeah, sorry, but we¡¯ve been stabbing you for ages now, and you¡¯ve fought back. A lot. You set a clock right? How long was that?¡± He checked. ¡°Seven hours, plus or minus a few minutes.¡± ¡°Right, seven hours of dealing with you attacking us, while we couldn¡¯t kill you, or lose you when you tried to pull back. Oh speaking of which, after a while of your hit and run tactics, this thing showed up. Yours I take it?¡± he said, pointing his thumb over his shoulder. Looking the way he pointed, he saw that what he¡¯d though was another pile of torn up snow and rock was actually Hermes, who seemed to be sleeping peacefully despite his surroundings. ¡°Yeah, his name is Hermes, a mount I put together, but got taken off me when I got kidnapped the last time. I guess we finally got far enough away that the game teleported him to me.¡± ¡°Cool, but princess is better.¡± Gabe said, sitting up enough to throw him his bag and clothes. Throwing his shirt and cloak back on, which considering his surroundings he was thankful for, he quickly rummaged through his bag for a few of his healing pills, sighing happily as the pain in his arm faded away. ¡°So, that¡¯s my Rageform ability. What do you think?¡± He asked the two tired fighters. ¡°It¡¯s impressive. If we¡¯re being honest, either of us could have killed you easily, but considering the level difference, that was a given. But against someone around your own level you¡¯d definitely give them a run for their money, which makes sense since you¡¯re more monster than player. But the thing that got me the most was how adaptable it was. You said it took different forms before, was that either of them?¡±Oda asked. He shook his head. ¡°No that was new yet again. That sight thing gave me a headache.¡± ¡°Well yeah, people aren¡¯t designed to see every direction at once. But the fact it shaped itself to specifically counter your opponents is kind of terrifying. There¡¯s a strange, roaming boss up in the highlands that does that, the Nemesis, and people always have to go in as big a group as possible to fight it, so that it can¡¯t counter them all. In a one on one fight it¡¯s straight up death. If you ever reach that point, you¡¯ll be unstoppable.¡± ¡°As long as I don''t get stuck as a monster and attack people like crazy you mean.¡± ¡°Well yeah, assuming that. Now come on and get, your crab up, we need to find a spot to make camp. Tomorrow we¡¯ll try and get you to fight like a player, so I¡¯d get some rest if I was you.¡± ¡°Can¡¯t we just stay here?¡± Gabe whined from where he lay. ¡°I''m tiiired.¡± ¡°We might have been able to, but thanks to all the ice around here its freezing, and when it eventually melts it¡¯s going to become very wet, even for a swamp. So get up and let¡¯s find some higher and drier ground.¡± As night fell, they found a small hill that lifted out of the murk that would do for the evening. Gabe and Oda began putting together their tents, while Jicker just grabbed a few armfuls of leaves to soften the floor of Hermes shell. Gabe looked at him jealously over the canvas he trying to unfold, but just turned away and said that Princess was still better. After they¡¯d set up they sat around a small campfire, chatting about strategies for the games, elaborate battle plans seeing who could hold a poker face longest. For his part, Jicker spent some time restocking his supplies of potions and pills, making sure he¡¯d have enough for the upcoming days. Oda had shot down a couple of birds to serve as dinner, and while none of them were chefs, hunger was always the best spice, and the roasted meat was quickly devoured. Turning in for the night, Jicker lay inside of Hermes shell, wondering about the potential of his Rageform ability. It was powerful, but wouldn¡¯t be much good during the games, since they were usually multiple round events, and he wouldn¡¯t be able to control himself anyway. The last thing he needed was to lose it during the games and just go wandering around attacking people like that thing Oda had mentioned... Suddenly sitting bolt upright as an idea struck him, he swore as his head smacked in the shell above him. Rubbing his head, he opened his menus and went through some of the information Sarah had given him and swore louder. The Nemesis, an unusual, boss grade monster that adapted to its opponents just like he had, roamed the highland area. The same area that, according to his information, was the last known location of the dark chemist trainer. Shit. Chapter 33 ¡°Congratulations. After the last few days, you¡¯ve almost reached a point where you¡¯re half as good as you should be.¡± Oda said with a small round of applause from Gabe. They had been long days, the two players drilling technique and tactics into him, sparring constantly to improve his abilities. But thanks to their efforts, and the large amount of experience the greycaps had been bringing in, he¡¯d managed to improve enough that they believed he had a chance, if slim, of not losing instantly in the games. Oda had given him a crash course in sneaking and assassination, working on his stealth, anatomy and knife work. Gabe had been acting as a training dummy for the most part, giving Jicker a target to aim at, but had also spent some time exploring the swamp picking up a few different plants that had helped push up the gremlins herbalism skill up a few levels. The end result was still below where he should be, but it was all they were going to manage with the time they had before the games. As they started to make their way out of the swamp, Jicker pulled up his screen to see his progress.
Name: Jicker Level: 60
Race: Gremlin Class: Dark Chemist
Hp: 810 Mp: 1000 Stamina: 250
Statistics
Equipped weapons Damage: Equipped Armour Defence:
White Pipe of Striking 28-40 -- 40
Long serrated Scalpel 13-45
Core Statistics Other Statistics
Strength: 22 Enigma: 4
Dexterity: 103 Evolution: 6
Constitution: 22 Inner Rage: 3
Intelligence: 167
Wisdom: 41
Resistances:
Poison: 50% Cold: 5 Shock: 5
Disease: 50% Fire: 5
Skills
Mother of Invention - Level 2
Apothecary - Level 5
Handle Animal - Level 6
Anatomy - Level 3
Herbalism - Level 5
Weapon Skill - Blowgun - Level 5
Stealth - Level 6
Weapon Skill - Small Blades - Level 7
Natural Weapon - Level 4
Iron Hide - Level 3
Achievements
Grand Genocide Kill over 20 million sentients within 1 hour
Unique-Effect: 30% damage and ability effectiveness against sentients
Force of Change Destroy and create over 1000 dungeons
Unique-Effect: Creating or altering areas or creatures will be 100% more effective
World Shaper Permanently alter the geography of the world on a grand scale
Level-Max-Effect: Effect: Permanent effects will be 100% more effective
King Killer Kill 50 leaders of states, royal or other.
Level-Max-Effect: Boss and Leader resistances reduced by 60%
Goldcrowns Blessing Eat a shard of the Golden Crown that was freely given
Unique-Effect: 20ft aura of Immunity to Blightwood sap and greycap spores.
It wasn¡¯t great, but it was still a marked improvement, as Gabe happily pointed out. ¡°I mean before you were straight garbage, I mean honestly, I don''t even know how you survived to get to this point.¡± He said as they rode. ¡°Yeah, well-¡± Jicker tried to say, but Gabe just kept going. ¡°I¡¯ve seen some bad players early on, but man you were just terrible. I was pretty sure you were going to get yourself killed just walking around after seeing how you tried to fight, but I guess you¡¯re not quite that bad.¡± ¡°I get it.¡± He said pointedly. ¡°Well, now that you¡¯re not completely useless and are finally level sixty, I officially ask you once again to join the Rising Moon. Are you ready to join, and probably be killed repeatedly when people come to take our city back?¡± ¡°Well, since you make it sound so inviting, sure I''m in.¡±
Ding! Quest: The moon rises...eventually - Complete! Reward: You are now a member of the public guild ¡°The Rising Moon¡± Current guild settings Member ranking: Initiate Taxes: 10% of all quest reward gold and sales Exp share: all experience divided equally amongst nearby guild members
¡°So that¡¯s it then?¡± Jicker asked. ¡°I''m in now?¡± ¡°Yep¡± Oda replied with a grin. ¡°You¡¯re officially in the guild as the lowest of the low. Normally we¡¯d have cake and party hats to celebrate, but out here we-¡± ¡°Got them!¡± Gabe shouted, rifling through his saddle bags. ¡°I normally would be able to offer a few more flavours but all I have is chocolate or-¡± ¡°Gabe, why do you have those?¡± Oda said slowly. ¡°We travelled light to get here on time.¡± ¡°I know we did, I do pay attention sometimes. But I thought we should be prepared for any recruitment we do during the games.¡± ¡°That¡¯s... almost forward thinking of you Gabe.¡± ¡°So the party hats thing is real?¡± Jicker asked. Oda nodded. ¡°An old tradition from when Gabe was still allowed to make rules. But, we only had so much space, and we had a set list of things we needed. How did you fit cake in?¡± ¡°Oh, I got rid of the extra cooking stuff you put in there. Don''t know what you were bringing it for anyway.¡± ¡°Extra coo- do you mean the spices? The ones we invested in to try to actually turn a profit on this trip, and try and find some trade partners?¡± He said, staring at the back of his head.Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. Gabe coughed, and kept looking through the saddlebags, refusing to meet his eyes. ¡°...I can¡¯t say yes if I don''t know the answer. So... cake?¡± He rubbed his eyes. ¡°...a small slice.¡± Once they¡¯d eaten they returned to the trail, and while Gabe¡¯s stream of chatter and distractions made it seem like it took an age to get anywhere, before long they hit their stride and were making good time. As the sun began to set they came across an inn on the side of the road,leaving them with a choice to make. ¡°So we can either press on through the night,¡± Oda offered. ¡°And get to the city by morning, or stay the night here, and make it by tomorrow afternoon. Either way we¡¯ll have plenty of spare time to sign up, assuming nothing goes wrong.¡± ¡°Right, because everything so far has gone perfectly.¡± Jicker mumbled. ¡°Seriously, I''m surprised I haven¡¯t been kidnapped again today.¡± ¡°Well, I''m lucky so maybe that cancels out your bad luck?¡± Gabe said. ¡°You¡¯re not lucky Gabe; you just tend to have ablative guild mates that take the bullets for you.¡± Oda said with a snort. ¡°Sounds like luck to me. Anyway I vote we stop in, Princess could do with a rest and I could use a break.¡± ¡°Stopping it is then.¡± The stable next to the inn wasn¡¯t particularly small, but it still took some effort for Hermes to wiggle his way through the door before curling up in a corner, much to the discomfort of the horses inside. Princess, on the other hand, wasted no time in claiming the place as her own, the other animals backing away from the aggressive blunicorn. With the animals secured, they headed inside the door swinging open to let out a burst of joyful shouting, though it quickly fell quiet as patrons turned to see who had come in. The place was packed, with people who were travelling to the games filling it to capacity and then some. Since cramming over a hundred heavily armed people who tended to solve problems with excessive violence could be...problematic, there were unspoken rules about picking fights in taverns, the first of which being: don''t. When that rule is inevitably broken however, the rest are taken into account, a series of loose guidelines to keep things on friendly terms, without levelling the building itself. No wide range or major magic¡¯s, no poisons or long lasting effects and no curses. Bladed weapons are to be kept to a minimum, and nothing that can¡¯t be wielded with one hand. These rules tended to fall apart however, since people who fight in bars don''t like being told what to do. Wizards found out how to compress an explosion to the size of a person¡¯s head, poisons were designed to run their whole course in only seconds, and barbarians found they could quite easily swing around a wizard with one hand. But even still, things normally kept fairly calm, and when the sun rose, the taverns were intact, and everyone¡¯s limbs were more or less still attached. But these rules assumed that the fight broke out over something that happened inside, rather than a deep grudge coming to light. And as expressions turned to scowls at their appearance, it seemed that more than a few people recognized them. ¡°You¡¯ve got a lot of nerve coming in here. Your guild ain''t welcome.¡± A large man growled from the side, their hand resting on the handle of an axe on their waist. ¡°Last time I checked, this was a free bar.¡± Oda replied, staring the man down. ¡°And last time I was in Ardenvale, it was still a free city, so it looks like things change.¡± ¡°Being ruled by a few guilds instead of one doesn''t make it free, it just means it takes longer to get organised, which is one of the reasons why they lost.¡± ¡°And that makes it ok for you to come and attack us out of nowhere?¡± Oda raised an eyebrow. ¡°Our people have been hunted for sport by your guilds in the past, I¡¯d hardly call that ¡®out of nowhere¡¯.¡± People growled, hands moving to weapons on their belts. ¡°Yeah? Well with you people doing things like that, looks like we we¡¯re already making the right choice.¡± Gabe groaned. ¡°I''m both too tired, and not nearly drunk enough to argue cause and effect with you, but buy me drink to fix at least one of those, and I¡¯ll happily explain why you¡¯re an idiot.¡± ¡°Idiot!? You think you¡¯re some kinda smart guy?¡± The warrior snarled. Gabe turned quickly and grabbed Oda by the shoulder. ¡°You heard him right?¡± he said earnestly. ¡°Promise me you¡¯ll tell Mary that someone called me smart!¡± ¡°Yes, yes, I¡¯ll make sure you get another sticker on the board. But now isn¡¯t the time, for stickers or fights.¡± He said waving him off as he turned back to the crowd. ¡°Look, you don''t like us, and the feeling is mutual, but seeing as this fine establishment would like to remain intact, how about we all just-¡± Crack. A mug shattered as it was hurled against the door frame above them, splattering them with a few drops of beer as the pieces fell around them ¡°...Ok, we¡¯ll go with option two then. Jicker what do you have to neutralize a crowd peacefully?¡± Jicker tried think quickly. He had a few paralytic poison recipes, but they were slow acting, and only if taken in a fairly large dose. The tranquiliser he could produce was only a chance to knock people out, and even then it was only effective if he was stronger than they were. Perhaps if he could combine them somehow, or maybe concentrate the dose and- ¡°Times up, you fail the test. Gabe, give the room a blanket.¡± Oda said, patting him on the back. Nodding, the warlock stepped forward, ignoring the people in front of him who started drawing weapons and began making a few gestures with his hands, collecting a small ball of snow from the air. Just as the patrons of the inn rushed them, the ball exploded outwards, momentarily obscuring everyone¡¯s vision with a white cloud, but when the cloud faded a few seconds later, the white remained. Everything in the building, the walls, the tables and chairs and of course the people were coated completely in a thin layer of snow, leaving them as little more than statues, though their eyes still darted back and forth, looking at the state of their peers. The only things left untouched by the frost were the three of them, the innkeeper who¡¯d ducked behind the bar at first sign of trouble, and a barmaid who was doing a fine impression of a statue all on her own. ¡°For those of you unaware,¡± Oda began, walking forwards and tapping gently on someone¡¯s frozen head, producing a dull noise as the ice resisted. ¡°You¡¯ve all been hit by a modified version of a hibernation spell. Ice casters use it to defend themselves momentarily by covering themselves in an incredibly strong barrier, with the only downside being that it leaves them paralysed for the duration, but sometimes a moment is all you need. Gabe¡¯s version instead casts it on everyone else at a much greater cost, leaving everyone here quite safe from most hostile effects so don''t worry about us attacking you. On the other hand, this version lasts for a good ten minutes, which gives us plenty of time to cast another, technically non-hostile spell by the name of permafrost tomb.¡± Gabe walked up to the man who had hurled the mug, touching them gently on the forehead, holding it there for a moment until a black sheen began to spread under his hand. It spread rapidly; covering the victim¡¯s panicked face, before quickly encasing them entirely, growing until all that was visible was a seven foot tall spire made pitch black ice. As condensation formed and fog began to roll off the spire, Gabe began repeating it on other people who¡¯d managed to draw weapons. ¡°As you can see, it works just fine on you in your current state. While the first spell is only a temporary protection, this one can last for days, design to protect people through pretty much anything until the caster releases it, its duration expires, or someone manages to break through or dispel it. These can last for up to three days and managed to weather the upheaval, so unless you know a very good pyromancer, you¡¯re not getting out early unless we say so. So here are your options as I see them; You can log out, and stay logged out for the next eight hours or so until we move on our merry way, and since we can¡¯t entomb someone who¡¯s not here it ends our exchange. Option two, you try and call our bluff, and try and get some of your friends to come attack us and get you free. This option leaves you and your friends frozen for a few days, but I''m not the sort of person to deny someone their right to make bad decisions. And finally, and this option is only for those up the back who did their best not to get involved. You can wait quietly for the current spell to end and, if you¡¯re willing to leave matters there, we¡¯ll do the same. So what¡¯s it to be?¡± A second passed as people processed what Oda said, all while Gabe had entombed another three of their would be attackers. Then there was a flash of light from one person, followed by dozens of others as over half the inns patron chose to get out of the situation entirely. Oda nodded. ¡°Pretty much what I expected. Gabe when you¡¯re done, move them to...Innkeeper?¡± ¡°Y-yes?¡± The man said hesitantly as he peered over the counter. ¡°Where would you prefer us to leave these people? It¡¯d be rude of us to clog up your door way like this.¡± ¡°I... guess you could leave them out back?¡± he answered nervously. ¡°Not a problem. In the mean time, I¡¯d like to get two rooms for the evening, as well as whatever is for dinner this evening.¡± He said, dropping a thick platinum coin on the table in front of him. ¡°Of course sir, I¡¯ll see to it immediately.¡± They said, eagerly leaping to their feet and quickly beckoning the petrified barmaid, much to Jicker¡¯s amusement. Respect, fear, love and duty were all great motivators for people, but if you wanted better treatment in the service industry, money was king. As Gabe started to cart frozen bodies outside, Oda and Jicker sat down at one of the now empty tables as platters of roast meat, vegetables, bottles of wine and mugs of ale were quickly placed in front of them. ¡°So Jicker,¡± Oda said as he grabbed a chicken leg. ¡°What do you think you did wrong there.¡± ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure I didn¡¯t do anything wrong.¡± He replied hesitantly. ¡°Not quite. The problem is that you didn¡¯t do anything at all, and in the future you need to be ready for anything.¡± ¡°I... we¡¯ve just been going over how need to react better and think on my feet, now I need to plan for every possible situation as well? I mean, I didn¡¯t see you do anything, you just made Gabe do it.¡± Oda sighed and took a sip of his drink. ¡°I could have dealt with it, even faster than he did, and if I had you still wouldn¡¯t have seen anything. Unfortunately I''m an assassin, so my options tend be a few different flavour of permanent. And while the guilds trying to stabilize its new position we¡¯re all under orders to try and play nice with the community, hence the little display there instead of a fan of knives. But you, you¡¯re an alchemist, so you should at least prep something to subdue an angry mob.¡± ¡°Why would I ever need to stop an angry mob?¡± The gremlin asked, chuckling at Oda raised eyebrow, before taking a drink and let out a long exhalation. ¡°It¡¯s just... I used to be better than this you know? I¡¯d figured out the ins and outs of my class perfectly, I knew my strengths, my limits and what I could do to push past them. And even with how things are now, there¡¯s no one who can claim I wasn¡¯t very good at what I did. But now I''m back at the bottom, scrounging every step of the way, trying to figure things out that no one can help me with. And every time I move forward, I get shown just how much ground I still need to make up. It¡¯s...difficult.¡± ¡°How about you don''t be a pansy and toughen up.¡± Gabe said as he came back in, sitting down and grabbing a mug of ale. ¡°Excuse me?¡± ¡°I''m kind of an expert on screwing up, but let¡¯s make sure I''m on the mark. You, like many, didn¡¯t like the state of Genesis, built a massive series of doomsday weapons, set them all off successfully enough to cause the closest thing to a reset the game has ever seen, and now your whining because you got caught up in the damage. And now that you didn¡¯t get to hide away from it all, you¡¯re upset that it¡¯s hard for you? Toughen. Up. Oda, how¡¯d I do?¡± ¡°I think you just earned yourself a second sticker. Gabe¡¯s an idiot, but he does occasionally have moments of clarity, and I believe he¡¯s hit the nail on the head. Unless you can honestly claim otherwise?¡± Jicker dropped his fork on the table and crossed his arms, glaring at the two of them. ¡°So that¡¯s it then? My problems stem from me being a child about this?¡± ¡°Pretty much, but at least there''s a reason. Some people are just terrible for no reason.¡± ¡°It¡¯s true, I personally know many terrible people who just make fun of me for no reason.¡± Gabe said casually as he drew pictures on the table with gravy. ¡°Well, great, I guess I¡¯ll become a better person thanks to this discovery. But if we can move away from my many, many flaws for a moment, are we in danger from any of those people seeking vengeance?¡± ¡°Always assume people are out to get you, especially in your case. It¡¯s a good survival technique, and if anyone actually is, you look cool when you¡¯re ready for them. But that particular group? There shouldn¡¯t be anyone nearby who¡¯s a threat, and people who posture like that will wait for the spell to wear off so they can be a part of the attack. So we should be fine until we¡¯re settled into Macross.¡± ¡°My turn to change the subject¡± Gabe said as he shoved a piece of food in his mouth. ¡°Have you figured out what to do for the games Jicker? Are you going to make something cool in advance, or just wing it? I think it should breathe fire, or be on fire, or both.¡± ¡°I have a few plans in the works.¡± Oda looked at him for a moment. ¡°You¡¯re lying aren¡¯t you.¡± Jicker finished his drink. ¡°Almost completely. But if we can grab a few things on the way tomorrow, that should give me a starting point. Other than that, apparently I''m working with ¡®be on fire¡¯. I will gladly take other suggestions, preferably useful ones.¡± The three of them spent the rest of the evening coming up with ideas, as the spells wore off a few patrons who decided to take their chances out in the night rather than stay at the inn. As the drinks kept flowing and the ideas became increasingly terrible, they eventually turned in for the night. In the morning they settled their bill, watching the innkeeper¡¯s inner battle to either tell them to come back soon or to never return. As they mounted up for the morning¡¯s travel, Oda eyed Princess and Hermes with a trace of envy. ¡°So when do I get a fancy mount like you two?¡± he asked as Jicker climbed inside the giant crabs shell. ¡°As soon as you ask, and I can figure out how to modify something to be at least as fast, quiet and unseen as you are. So, maybe in a few years?¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t need to be like me. I still use a normal horse when we travel long distances like this, though if it doesn¡¯t leave a trail would be a plus.¡± He added thoughtfully. ¡°Have Mary put you on the list near the top then. She¡¯s apparently been promising my services to a few people in the guild and to a few others to repay some favours.¡± He said with a shrug. ¡°You know there was a time when I was trying to lay low as possible, but apparently now I''m being advertised and entered in contests.¡± Gabe shook his head as Princess took to the air, leading the group proudly. ¡°Nah, your name and identity is still being kept out of things. All that people are going to manage to learn are that the guild has access your set of abilities and my sister comes down hard on anyone who tries to betray guild secrets. Speaking of which, you don''t take credit for your work right? Same as Oda¡¯s thing?¡± Oda clicked his fingers in realisation. ¡°That¡¯s right! Now that you¡¯re in the guild for real, instead of taking credit for things or denying it, you can just set it so it will say that the Rising Moon did it. That way the guild gets the fame, but you still remain unknown and boost your enigma stat. It wouldn¡¯t work if too many in the guild did it at once, but since it¡¯s just two of us, and we¡¯re in very different fields it¡¯ll be fine. It¡¯s how I''ve been doing assassination work for years.¡± ¡°Sounds good to me, but how does that work anyway? No one is supposed to know what you do, yet lots of people seem to know and fear you?¡± Jicker asked curiously. ¡°Best I can tell I¡¯ve achieved a sort of boogieman status. No one can prove I''ve ever done anything, but there are enough faint traces around that stories have formed about what I might have done. I even got a title out of it, ¡®figure of myth¡¯, that boost¡¯s my skills with intimidation. You¡¯d get it as well if people ever find out who you are.¡± ¡°Yeah, I can live without that one, and I probably can¡¯t live with it. Now, I want to grab a few things from the woods, so I''m looking for a bird or two, some herbs, a log, maybe a weasel...¡± The city of Macross was a large walled city, with a single road passing through the north and south sides and a river entering from the east. The massive fortifications were an effort from the entire community to ensure no one managed to take over the famously neutral city, and they¡¯d never been broken since the cities founding. In fact people believed the walls of Macross had prevented its destruction during the upheaval, despite it levelling cities with greater defences. After the construction of several enormous coliseums within its walls, it hadn¡¯t taken long before the whole city had adopted an ancient roman theme, with large amounts of marble and pillared buildings. Every thematic option had been taken, from red hanging banners, traditional food and even the style of the guard uniforms to help sell the aesthetic. A long line of carts stretched out before northern the gate, bringing their travel to a halt. By the way some people had set up campfires, it was clear they weren¡¯t expecting things to change quickly. Jicker had Hermes walk up to one of these fires, and thanks to the crabs unusual appearance he had no problem getting their attention. ¡°Excuse me, do you know what the lines about? We need to get in to the city.¡± He asked a woman who¡¯d walked over to examine the crab. ¡°Oh, I didn¡¯t see you up there! This lovely thing is yours I take it? Anyway, they¡¯re checking people¡¯s cargo for Greycaps since they don''t want the city to get contaminated, especially right now.¡± She said cheerfully, patting Hermes on the leg, which shied away a bit at the attention. ¡°So we have to wait in line? I don''t know if we have the time...¡± He said, squinting as he looked from the line to the sun over head. ¡°Nah, this lines just for traders, since we¡¯ve got lots of places and things for them to hide in, travellers can go through with just a quick check to see if your already infected... you¡¯re not are you?¡± ¡°Definitely not, thanks for the advice.¡± He answered, beginning to turn around. ¡°No problem. Hey, if you need anything, my store is Agatha¡¯s general in the trade district, I¡¯ll give you a discount if it¡¯s for your beauty here.¡± Waving her good bye, he returned to the others as they made their way forwards, skirting around the carts and wagons as Hermes continued getting looks. Several people asked where they got it, and a few even asked if he¡¯d sell. It prompted them to shift their plans slightly, deciding to swing by one of the halls of law to get the mount permanently registered before someone tried to steal it. By the time they reached the gate itself, there were only a handful of people in front of them and before long a helmed guardswomen in bronze, archaic looking armour spoke to them. ¡°Welcome to Macross, the home of the games, what¡¯s the reason for your visit?¡± she asked in a tired voice. ¡°The games, as both participants and audience.¡± ¡°Just like everyone else. And are you currently infected with Greycap spores or knowingly carrying anything that is?¡± ¡°Will you just believe us if we say no?¡± Gabe asked. ¡°Obviously not.¡± She said with a sigh, pulling out a metal wand and waving it towards them. ¡°Ok, you¡¯re clear to enter. Enjoy you¡¯re stay and please don''t... cause... trouble...¡± she trailed off as she noticed Oda who was smiling just in front of her. ¡°Claire! It¡¯s been a while since I''ve seen you! How have you been keeping, how¡¯s the wife?¡± He asked jovially, patting the stressed woman on the shoulder. ¡°She¡¯s fine, and things have been...fine, if busy thanks to the quarantine rules. I need to ask, Oda... are you here for...business?¡± They asked carefully. ¡°Relax, I''m here for the games as one of our guilds reps, not for contract work so no need to raise any alarms.¡± Claire visibly relaxed. ¡°Thank the gods; I did not need that paperwork today.¡± ¡°Rough morning?¡± Jicker asked, eyeing Oda while wondering what contracts he¡¯d done here in the past. ¡°Damn infestations getting worse every day since the games have been approaching. Hell, this morning one broke through my window and landed right in my porridge while I was having breakfast.¡± ¡°I thought Macross had kept the Greycaps out so far? If not, what the point of the quarantine?¡± he asked, confused. She snorted then grimaced. ¡°Please, those mushrooms are dangerous, but only if you don''t pay attention and follow basic hygiene rules. No, Macross has a much older and larger problem to deal with, and it¡¯s dug in deep at this point.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± he asked. She waved them through. ¡°Swashbucklers.¡± Swashbucklers were a warrior class, one that focused on speed and precision more than strength, their mobility and targeting skills letting them act as fearsome duellists able to dance around their foes. But even more then skill, they believed in style. Swashbucklers had a unique ability called panache, with their power increasing for every stylish move they performed, leading to an ever escalating show of talent and grace. And a show it was, since its effects were greatly increased dependent on the size and interest of their audience, which led to the problem. In a normal city, there would only be a handful of people with the class at the most, a few people who would be able to dramatically challenge each other throughout the streets to the cheering of the crowd. The fights would be followed by gleeful onlookers as they danced throughout the city, leaping across the rooftops and battling nimbly through crowded markets. Whatever damages these roaming duels caused were usually made up for by the enjoyment of other players, so it was generally seen as positive. But Macross wasn¡¯t just a city, it was a city built around the concept of competition, of crowds watching people striving for glory. In short, it attracted swashbucklers in hordes. There were rooftops that saw more foot traffic than roads, and dozens of people were employed purely to remove foot prints from high ceilings. In fact almost half the cities tradesmen were employed in repairing the constant stream of damage caused by them, with another group also selling wares to help keep them away. From a few sign boards they saw on the way in, nets and glue traps were the current fashion. And then to take it from bad to worse, someone started offering bounties for them. Since genesis somewhat supported their actions, all they could be charged with by the system was disrupting the peace, locking them up for an afternoon. But it was enough for people to think they got some kind of payback, so people began donating money for bounty hunters to subdue and bring in swashbucklers for a small fee and, foolishly, a leader board listing how many they¡¯d brought in. The idea was that people would be drawn to it as another competition, and something to bet on, but sadly the people best suited to bring down people who darted around the city and raced through crowds belonged to a certain class. Swashbucklers. Now they not only fought each other for the drama and thrill, but for money and ranking. Half the bounty money was now added to the repair fund for the city but no one had managed to come up with a better solution, so it had just ended up part of the city life. ¡°So what¡¯s the plan now?¡± Jicker asked Oda as he watched a person leap above them wearing a majestic red scarf. ¡°Step one, we head to the hall and get your crab registered. Step two, we find out where the rest of the guild has set up shop and regroup.¡± ¡°And step three?¡± ¡°Not sure yet, but step four is profit.¡± He said, frowning as Gabe laughed. ¡°I''m not kidding Gabe, we were going to be selling the spices you left behind to pay for this trip, and between us, you¡¯re the only one who can stand having a few organs sold off. Gabe laughter quickly ended as he choked it down. ¡°Erm... Right then, Profit. Let¡¯s get to work then.¡± Chapter 34 The Rising Moon guild had rented out the entirety of a small hotel of the duration of the games. Most guilds that could afford it were doing the same, but in this case the owner had found out about the guilds current political situation, causing them to drop the rates, increase the deposit and take their staff out as quick as they could. They didn¡¯t having anything against them personally, but they wanted no part in whatever fights would be brought to their door. That was one of the reasons why they¡¯d picked the place, even though it wasn¡¯t the best they could get for their money. Set back in a side street it had only a single entrance, behind a small courtyard with tall wrought iron fences. The thick white stone walls of the building were sheer enough the only the most talented swashbucklers in the area had left marks above the first storey, and a lack of balconies gave them no reason to try. It was the most defensible location the guild could find, and they¡¯d decided that was the most important feature for their stay. And they were right of course, within an hour of them handing over the keys, they¡¯d been attacked twice, four spies had tried to get in, and piles of garbage had been thrown at the windows. It could have been worse, but the city guards would only tolerate so much within the city limits, and as stressed as they were with the influx of tourists, no one wanted to push them too far. Even so, people were assigned guard duty, and those with the skills needed swept the building for bugs daily. The rest got to work on their main objective, that of the games, and improving their relations with other cities. They¡¯d broken alliances, trampled over neutral parties, and had made enemies that who would accept nothing less than their complete annihilation. When the protection over Ardenvale fell, they¡¯d be set upon by everyone who could muster enough manpower to try and settle their grudges. Acquiring new allies wouldn¡¯t make them untouchable by any means, but it could go a long way in making it something resembling a fair fight. When the trio reunited with the guild, they¡¯d first been checked over to confirm their identities, but that proved a challenge. Jicker didn¡¯t have any features that could confirm it was him without revealing more than he was willing to, and no one was going to ask Gabe to prove himself. Oda was even worse, since they couldn¡¯t even see him without his permission, let alone check his information. In the end that difficulty was considered good enough, since no one that stealthy would bother faking an identity. ¡°So Oda,¡± Jicker asked as they stabled their mounts and walked in. ¡°What¡¯s the plan now?¡± ¡°No idea, but the guy at the gate said the boss is holding a meeting, so maybe they have a plan.¡± Oda said as he looked around the hotel atrium. ¡°The boss? I thought you were in charge.¡± ¡°Not exactly true though I do have... authority. I can pretty much do what I want, give orders and expect them carried out... so yeah I could be in charge. But I''m terrible at organizing things, and looking after a handful of people is pretty much my limit on that. So me and Mary ¡®delegated¡¯,¡± he said with air quotes. ¡°This mission to Athena. So I''m in charge, but she¡¯s running everything.¡± ¡°And Athena, she¡¯s fine with you just dropping your work off on her?¡± ¡°If she wasn¡¯t, she wouldn¡¯t be doing it, that¡¯s for damn sure. She¡¯s one of the smartest and most determined people I know, but the game didn¡¯t miss a beat when it made her a berserker.¡± ¡°A berserker?¡± Jicker asked incredulously. ¡°The guild¡¯s fate is being managed by a mindless frothing psychopath?¡± ¡°Normally you¡¯d be right, but she never wanted to be a thug, so she dumped all her stats into intelligence and wisdom right out the gate. Eventually she got smart enough that she could stay sane during a berserker rage, which not only scared the hell out of people but got her the attention of a rare class trainer.¡± ¡°What can an intelligent savage become?¡± ¡°Something called a psionic raider, and no, we¡¯d never heard of it either, nor had her old group.¡± Jicker nodded in thought. During an interview with the developers, a programmer had once said that almost twenty percent of classes they¡¯d created still hadn¡¯t been found, to say nothing of things the system created itself. They normally refused to give any information on the game at all, but it was one of their last efforts to try and get people to change up their approaches and breathe some new life in to Genesis. But that still left him with a question. ¡°So what did she do to end up with the Rising Moon? It doesn¡¯t sound like it¡¯s an ¡®evil¡¯ class so did she start a fight or...?¡± ¡°Hah, she might not have started them but she definitely finished them, you see people didn''t like that she wouldn''t share, but she had good reason. While it¡®s still a fighter type class, it¡¯s got a few ...interesting abilities. She can generate psychic blades, can see a few moments into the future and, most importantly, can read minds.¡± ¡°That would definitely do it.¡± Jicker said with a wince. Mind reading had been a problem since the games launch, and something that had fuelled several protests over the years. Since the system connected directly to a person¡¯s mind, allowing them to control it with nothing but thought, it meant that those thoughts were filed by the system. If a person was lucky or skilled enough, they could acquire the ability to access those thoughts themselves. It had eventually led to legal action, and additional restrictions had been placed on the ability in one of the games few patches, limiting it to active surface thoughts, but the damage had been done, and people lost trust in them. ¡°Don''t worry about it too much though,¡± Oda continued, catching Jicker¡¯s expression. ¡°She¡¯s a good sport about keeping things she hears to herself, unless it affects the guild, or is really, really bad. She actually realised who you were straight away when we brought you in initially, but she kept quiet about it until other people found out.¡± ¡°Really? That was nice of her,¡± he said with honest surprise. ¡°Most people would tell whoever¡¯s around instantly.¡± Oda grinned. ¡°Yeah, she¡¯s a good egg, and if she had a bit more ambition she¡¯d probably end up running the whole guild. But enough talking about her behind her back, let¡¯s go see the lady herself and see what the plan is.¡± Walking through the hallway, they were directed to what normally served as a private dining room, now packed with guild officers. Against one wall someone had set up a large black board and desk, filled with the names of dozens of guild and their various relations. Standing on a small step ladder in front of it was a gnomish woman, just shy of three feet tall wearing a violet silken robe. Like most gnomes their hair was a vibrant affair, a neon blue ponytail that hung barely off the ground, swaying as she spun around to see who had just come in. Gnomes came in two general types, the first looking like a human child their whole life, right up until they went grey and wrinkly. Athena was in the second group looking like a beautiful human woman, simply at a reduced scale, almost doll like. ¡°Oda, Gabe!¡± she exclaimed happily as she identified them, her voice light and cheerful. ¡°You finally made it in! Ok, we¡¯re wrapping up now anyway, so a quick recap for you then, and for those rude enough to not be paying attention. As I''ve said, our main purpose here is not to win the games, though if we can pull that off as well it would be great. Our first true objective is obtaining some legitimacy, showing we¡¯re just another guild owned city to do business with, completely honest and above board. So that means that no matter what, even if every single opponent we face is cheating and getting away with it, even if there¡¯s no way of being caught out, we need to be following every. Single. Rule. I can¡¯t stress this enough, but any cheating or crimes will impact what we¡¯re trying for here, so I¡¯ve got permission to come down hard on anyone thinking this order doesn¡¯t apply to them. Looking at you Larry.¡± She added harshly, glaring at a figure in black who sank deeper into their chair. ¡°Secondly, and this is the big one, we need friends. We burned pretty much every bridge we had when we took the city, and stomped on a lot of toes. If we¡¯re going to survive the next few months and stabilize ourselves politically, we need allies and fast. So remember our options, and your assigned targets. Larry¡¯s team will be hitting up the poorer guilds, the ones with substantial debts that we can cover financially. They might only be as loyal as mercenaries, but short term friends are better than none. Ginger will be looking in to people with outstanding feuds with the previous guilds of Ardenvale. The old phrase ¡®the enemy of my enemy is my friend¡¯ is obviously a lie, but again, if we can get them to join the fight it¡¯ll help. A lot of them will find it hard to resist attacking their enemies while they¡¯re going all in on trying to get vengeance against us. Harvester and his people are going to be talking to the bigger neutral parties, especially the ones who have big stake in trade. They¡¯re our best bet on getting some real allies, and there are plenty guilds out here today who¡¯ve had nothing to do with Ardenvale before so they have nothing against us. We get a few of them signed up with some trade deals, and we¡¯re suddenly looking at some real security. If nothing else, the guild still needs to make some coin to recoup what we lost during the takeover, so do what you can. And finally the hardest arrangement to pull off: friendship. No way to plan for it, no real angle to work here. But if everyone plays nice with others, and does what they can to look out for opportunities, maybe we can find a group or two who¡¯d be willing to stick their neck out for us.¡±
Ding! Quest: You¡¯ve got a friend in me. The Rising Moon is short on allies and desperately needs new ones. Success: Assist in forming an alliance with another guild.
Looking at the quest that popped up in front of him, Jicker noticed it didn¡¯t actually have a failure state. Thinking about it for a moment, he realised it would probably be because there would never be a time when the guild didn¡¯t want allies. Dismissing it he resumed paying attention as Athena wrapped up her talk. ¡°Ok then everyone, you¡¯ve got your jobs, so if you¡¯re not preparing for an event, I want you out there socialising as hard as you can. Make sure to keep me posted of your successes and failures, so we dont end up allying with a pair of mortal enemies. Oda, hang back for a minute with your lads, I need a word.¡± The room slowly emptied, people filing out to get to work, the last shutting the door and leaving just the four of them inside. ¡°So,¡± she began, ¡°Any problems getting here once we left the woods?¡± ¡°A couple of drunken players picking fights they couldn¡¯t win, but we left everyone alive, if a little stuck. How about on your end, any major grief or news?¡± ¡°The usual issues, nothing particularly unexpected though there is one amusing thing of note. Some people tried to blame the new Greycap zombie epidemic on us, but were laughed at by everyone else, saying a guild couldn¡¯t manage that. I think it¡¯s the first time in a while that people aren¡¯t blaming us for something we did, or... Jicker were you part of the guild before or after that?¡±This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°Like a few days before, but I''m willing to give the guild credit if you like.¡± An odd look crossed her face. ¡°Right, we should get this out of the way.¡± Without any warning she rushed towards him at high speed, purple energy trailing her limbs before she embraced him in a hug. ¡°Welcome to the guild! It¡¯s so good to have someone else to talk to who¡¯s at the correct height for once!¡± But before he could respond, she broke it off and punched him in the stomach, hard enough to lift his feet off the ground. ¡°Damn you Maser!¡± she said, suddenly sounding angry. ¡°Do you have any idea how much work you cost me? How much inventory I had to track, how many spreadsheets I had to revise?! I¡¯d even bought myself a small cottage that you vaporised!¡± ¡°S-sorry?¡± He managed to cough out as he fell to his knees. For a tiny person she could definitely hit hard. ¡°Apology accepted.¡± She said, he anger vanishing as quickly as it had appeared. ¡°I get that it wasn¡¯t personal, so no hard feelings. Still I am glad you joined up, I really would like someone to talk to who understands my pain. I mean even chairs...¡± Jicker nodded solemnly. ¡°Or meal sizes.¡± ¡°Forget the meals, even just the utensils.¡± ¡°It¡¯s like eating with a pitchfork. And how about getting through crowds, or finding people in them?¡± She sighed. ¡°I¡¯d learned to identify people by butt long before I learned how to read minds. And there¡¯s being a ¡®lightweight¡¯ because of what a standard drink is...¡± Gabe snorted. ¡°Your fault you that can¡¯t handle more than a mug or two.¡± The two smaller people gave him a death stare before turning to each other in understanding. ¡°Hey, if you ever want to talk over a drink smaller than your head...¡± Jicker said, leaving the offer hanging. ¡°I might take you up on that, but for now, let¡¯s talk about work. Normally, as someone who just joined the guild you¡¯d be doing grunt work back at base for a few months like every other rookie recruit. But since you¡¯re something of a special case that immediately fell in with a bunch of our commanders, I guess you¡¯ll be skipping that step. Officially you are going to be under Oda¡¯s command, which basically translates to do what you want and don''t screw over the guild.¡± Oda frowned. ¡°That hurts you know? I could have orders and plans, maybe I had some jobs for him that you just don''t know about.¡± ¡°Please, when was the last time you gave an order to anyone under your command?¡± ¡°Well I-¡° ¡°Other than telling people to go away or making Gabe behave?¡± She added with a raised eyebrow. ¡°...¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I thought. Now then as I understand it, we¡¯re entering you into the summoned creature combat section of the games, is that right? And you¡¯re prepared?¡± ¡°Yes and no. I''m supposedly entering it, but I still need to put something together for it. Also... you were big on following the rules a moment ago, do my creations count?¡± Athena paused in thought. ¡°I think we can get them passed under the rules for fabricated golems, but I¡¯ll have someone check just in case when we submit the entry forms. You¡¯ve filled the forms out, right?¡± He shook his head. ¡°I haven¡¯t touched any forms lately, in fact I''m trying to avoid signing things these days. It¡¯s caused me some... problems.¡± She walked back to her desk, climbing up and began digging though the various papers on it. ¡°As a law student,¡± she said while searching. ¡°I agree with that idea in theory, but unfortunately in today¡¯s world you need to agree to things or you can¡¯t get anywhere. Still I''ve looked over these and they¡¯re fine, just basic stuff about agreeing to abide by the rules and who you¡¯re representing. The guild¡¯s already paid the fee so make sure you don''t let us down.¡± He looked over the form she handed him, and as best as he could tell she was being honest, but as it dissolved into pages of legal mumbo jumbo he sighed and gave up deciding to just trust her on this one. As soon as he¡¯d signed it Athena sealed it in an envelope and called out into the hall having someone rush it over to the offices that ran the games. ¡°Right then, so you¡¯re first events in two days, so make sure you have things worked out by then, and let me know if you need any materials, other than what I''ve heard you brought in. But now we move to slightly more personal subjects. You¡¯ve heard about why the guilds here, but I understand you were on your way here for other reasons? Before you got waylaid and gave birth to a potential zombie apocalypse?¡± ¡°I was...¡± Jicker said cautiously, unsure of what to say. While some of the guild knew his identity, it was still kept under wraps as much as possible. And while the situation with the incoming asteroid needed to be resolved quickly, he wasn¡¯t sure if he should bring them in or not. ¡°Good lord¡± Athena muttered with her eyes wide as she stared at him, face going pale. ¡°I¡¯m not sure how I feel about the lack of trust but I certainly understand in this case. You really didn¡¯t do anything by half measures did you?¡± Jicker frowned, annoyed at his own slip up. ¡°I thought you were good about reading minds.¡± ¡°I''m good at not sharing things I learn, but the actual reading is more like another pair of ears, ones I can¡¯t really turn off. Does... anyone else know about...it?¡± she asked nervously, eyeing Gabe and Oda who looked at the pair of them in confusion. ¡°A few people know who are also trying to deal with it but I¡¯d appreciate it if you could stay as quiet about this as possible.¡± ¡°You¡¯re honestly trying to cover up a freaking meteor?!¡± she exclaimed, beginning to panic. ¡°Wait, can someone explain this to us? What¡¯s this about a meteor?¡± Oda asked, trying to keep things calm. ¡°Look it¡¯s a little bit-¡± He paused as he received a message from outside the game, reading it quickly. ¡°Matt, We set up a filter to track anything about the meteor, and we just got a few small pings around you. Did you do something, or are we going to need to try and silence some people about this? -Sarah¡± ¡°Man, they are fast when they want to be.¡± He muttered, beginning to write up a reply. ¡°Jicker, by the sound of it we really need an answer on this.¡± Oda said louder, concern showing in his voice. ¡°Just...hold on a moment, I''m trying to deal with this issue right now. You really weren¡¯t supposed to find out about this.¡± ¡°Sarah, Turns out there¡¯s a mind reader in the guild and they picked up on some stray thoughts about it. Right now it¡¯s limited to them and two others I¡¯d actually trust on the matter, both to help and keep quiet. The mind reader is apparently good at staying quiet normally, but this freaked them out a bit. -Matt¡± A few tense moments passed as the three stared down at Jicker, waiting. ¡°Matt, Ok, we¡¯ve looked a little closer, and its those two you travel with, plus another? While we can¡¯t get them to sign anything, make sure they know not to tell people and cause a panic. If they can help then great but this has to stay quiet. I¡¯ll also tell the other teams to do what they can to avoid psychics as well. -Sarah¡± ¡°Ok,¡± he said with a sigh, ¡°I have something resembling permission to explain what¡¯s going on, but first, this has to stay between us. And I mean that, it doesn¡¯t even spread elsewhere in the guild, not even Mary. I can only say there will be some nasty fallout if this news went public right now. So first of all, we need a place to talk, where we can be sure we won¡¯t be overheard.¡± ¡°R-right, that makes sense,¡± Athena said, trying to calm back down, ¡°Don''t want people freaking out or anything. There¡¯s a wine cellar down stairs, it¡¯s the most secure room, since we¡¯ve already set it up to double as a prison cell if need be.¡± They made their way quickly through the hotel; the stress radiating from them getting a few questing looks, which were met by harsh glares. In a guild full of murderers and evil mages, you didn¡¯t get far by asking too many questions. By the time they reached the converted cellar, word had spread and everyone else in the guild had found themselves suddenly needed at the other end of the building. ¡°So now that we¡¯re here,¡± Gabe said as he locked the door behind them, ¡°Can someone explain what¡¯s going on? Because I''m normally confused about things, but I''m getting worried seeing other people confused as well.¡± ¡°Look, I don''t know how to put this, but what I say now doesn¡¯t leave this room. It¡¯s kind of complicated, but back when I was Maser, it seems I wasn¡¯t quite as precise in a few spots as I¡¯d thought...¡± It took a while to explain the situation, and more importantly that no one could find out it was going to happen. Insider trading was a real crime, not just in the game, and this sort of thing could be an economic disaster. If they failed and everything was destroyed, then not only would it be a digital tragedy, but if it was found out that the company knew it was going to happen, it would spill out in ways no one could predict. ¡°So, we just keep it to ourselves then? That everything will get destroyed and everyone¡¯s going to die, again.¡± Athena said, pacing in frustration. ¡°As I said, we¡¯re trying to stop it. So if everything goes well, we just won¡¯t be telling them what could have happened, which the government does all the time.¡± Jicker said. ¡°And what, pray tell, is your plan to stop it?¡± Oda questioned, rubbing his eyes. ¡°First up would be tracking down the beacon I made to summon the asteroid in the first place. That¡¯s what caused it to materialise, and it should still be linked to it enough to give us a connection. If we¡¯re lucky we can either dispel it, or redirect it enough that people will just see a particularly bright shooting star.¡± ¡°And when we¡¯re not lucky?¡± Gabe asked. ¡°Then...We stop it... Somehow... But we still need that beacon to get a fix on it.¡± He said, falling against a wall and sitting down on the floor. ¡°I really didn¡¯t mean to cause a problem like this one. I wanted to bring it all down, but only so people could build it back up again, not to have it gone completely. I didn¡¯t want...this.¡± ¡°You really didn¡¯t, did you?¡± Athena said quietly. ¡°Ok then, that¡¯s where we start. First, Gabe, grab one of the bottles behind you and a few glasses, I think we all need a drink. Second, you need to tell us where you left the beacon, and what it looks like. I hadn¡¯t planned on combing the city for an item you lost, but if that¡¯s what we¡¯ve got to do then... that¡¯s what we do.¡± Gabe created some glasses out of ice, but before he could open a bottle of wine, Oda looked at the label and quickly changed it for a different one, muttering about reds never being served cold. ¡°Well it shouldn¡¯t be that bad, it¡¯s something unique, and its appearance should stand out. It was bronze cube a bit less than a foot wide, with five gold spikes coming out the top in a spiralling cone-¡± ¡°Around a white stone crystal? Engravings of mountains on the sides of the cube?¡± Athena said, gritting her teeth. ¡°Arou- yes, that¡¯s it, did you pick it out of my thoughts? Have you seen it? I left it up on a tower out of the way, secured and hidden in a chest, but I suppose it would have been easier to find now that I¡¯m a new character.¡± ¡°Oh, it¡¯s definitely been found. Everyone in the city knows where it is.¡± she said, drinking deeply as Gabe passed her a glass. ¡°This is supposed to be good news, but it isn¡¯t, is it?¡± Jicker said, already knowing the answer. ¡°Everyone finish your drinks, and after that let¡¯s go take a little walk down to the doomsday machine.¡± They were standing at the edge of the main city square, and it was all Jicker could do to avoid breaking down in tears or burst out laughing. They stood staring across the square as Athena explained the situation. ¡°It showed up during the upheaval, but it was assumed to be either an unrelated project that was cancelled in the chaos, or the act of a god protecting the city. Since so many people believed the second version, it¡¯s taken on a bit of a sacred role in the city, with an altar built around it since they couldn¡¯t move it if they tried.¡± ¡°And no one¡¯s questioned it? Brought it up with the developers, or just had a decent wizard look at it?¡± Oda asked incredulously. ¡°The devs never answer this sort of thing, so no one would ever ask. But notice how the altar is actually pretty shoddy, with a good space away from making actual contact? When you get too close, things can get a little...messy. And it kept spreading for a few weeks, lots of people got torn apart out of nowhere, so they sealed it off and now no one gets near it.¡± ¡°No one? I get that it¡¯s dangerous but would they stop us if we wanted to risk it? Because I''m willing to risk it.¡± Gabe said, looking eagerly at the problem in front of them. ¡°They know it¡¯s deadly, but they also know it¡¯s incredibly valuable, and it¡¯s becoming more recognizable as well. In fact I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if people don''t figure it out on their own sooner rather than later.¡± It was definitely recognizable to the four of them, since the rising moon had a bit more experience in dealing with them than most. When he had poisoned a forest the magic had formed a crystal several feet long, the blast in Ardenvale had created a node almost two storeys tall. Those however, had gone to plan, whereas Macross had definitely not. Towering above the buildings around it, the node spun gently, the crystal structure a cloudy grey with flecks of both white and black moving around inside. The energies released during the upheaval had formed natural crystals in other locations, but here it was still anchored to an existing object designed to hold power. The previously small beacon had been twisted and shattered by the vast amount of power, creating mass just to dump the excess. The bronze cube was barely visible, driven into the ground by its own weight, yet a few feet still remain above, shining as no dust seemed to be able find purchase despite the fine inscriptions that covered it. The gold that he¡¯d used to make the spirals originally had only cost him a few dozen coins, only slightly more than if he¡¯d melted the coins himself. Now they were rose up like vast trees, branches splitting of and fusing with others as they rose and spun, forming a golden cage around the node inside. At a guess, Jicker put the node at around a hundred and forty feet long as it floated inside its prison with the air, or more accurately, space itself gently rippling. Stone work had been built up around the base, white marble staircases rising up to form a ring around the gold almost third of the way up. But looking closer it was clear that people had given up on the construction, wooden scaffolding left in place, tool scattered about amongst blocks of loose stone. ¡°Well, if I''m going to do this I need to get to work on it, who do I need to speak with to get permission?¡± Jicker said after a moment. ¡°And here¡¯d where the bad news get worse.¡± Athena said with a chuckle. ¡°A couple of groups tried to claim it already, so they needed to take measures to stop fights breaking out, and since this is the city of the games... ¡°They didn¡¯t.¡± Oda said aghast. ¡°Yup, they locked it up in barriers powered by the Genesis trade system, and its being held in stasis as one of the prizes for the champion games. The only way people can get close to it now is by placing high enough in the games.¡± ¡°Only place? It¡¯s not the grand prize?¡± Gabe asked as he continued to stare up at it. ¡°They¡¯re doing some of the medal ceremonies up on the altar they built around it. So congratulations, the world isn¡¯t doomed if we don''t win the gold medal. Bronze will do.¡± Chapter 35 ¡°I still can¡¯t believe we missed this.¡± Sarah said, the sounds of papers rustling coming through the phone. ¡°I¡¯m surprised as well, it¡¯s not like it¡¯s a subtle addition to the city.¡± Matt said jokingly as he took another bite of pizza. Once he¡¯d found the state of the beacon, he looked for a place to log out and make a call, hoping that they could do something on their end. But he¡¯d been on the phone for a few hours now, so long that he had ordered, received and had begun eating his dinner, and there hadn¡¯t been much good news. In fact, just getting straight answers had become more difficult lately, as if she was hiding something. At first he was concerned that August might be trying something against him again, but it turned out that was far from the case. The CEO hadn¡¯t been seen at the company for over two weeks now, and while his emails were apparently being read, there had been little response other than few sign offs on deals and contracts. The board was trying to cover for it as best they could, but they were a globally recognized company, and losing their head was going to be noticed eventually. Whatever had been in the files that August had been sent, it was bad enough that he was beginning to lose his mind. It had gotten to the point where the board had started floating the idea of forcing him to resign for being unfit to lead the company. Whether that happened or not, it seemed like August shouldn¡¯t be a problem for him for the near future. ¡°Okay, we¡¯ve had a few people flag the guild¡¯s trade deal as a potential scam,¡± She continued. ¡°So that lets us inspect the contents to make sure everything¡¯s correct. From what they¡¯ve told me it¡¯s definitely your device or at least it was, but it doesn¡¯t count as Maser¡¯s property anymore.¡± ¡°So can you use it to deal with the asteroid? It should have a link to it still, even if it¡¯s not in control.¡± She paused. ¡°We can confirm the link is still there, but we can¡¯t really do anything about it. Not on this end at least.¡± ¡°Seriously? I get there are rules you¡¯re supposed to follow about taking direct action, but isn¡¯t this an exception? If this hits you¡¯ll be back at square one, and you won¡¯t even give me access to the damn thing.¡± He said in disbelief. ¡°Look, just... try your best, do what you can and we¡¯ll do the same. But try and understand that you don''t have all the information here, and there¡¯s a difference between won¡¯t, and can¡¯t.¡± And with that she hung up, leaving him sitting in silence as he tried to process what she¡¯d said. It was publicly known, even if not commonly talked about, that governments had restricted what changes the company could implement. But this was something outside of those issues, even supporting them, so why weren¡¯t they taking action? Shaking his head and shrugging it off, Matt decided to put that concern aside for the time being. He¡¯d hoped they¡¯d be able to fix everything, but he hadn¡¯t held very high expectations. From his recent dealings with Masquerade Entertainment, he¡¯d learned they seemed to be fine with cutting their losses and leaving someone else holding the bag. Thinking about the fact that it would probably end up being him if it couldn¡¯t be stopped, he sighed, finished the last slice and went to log back in. ~~~~~~ As Jicker woke back up, he took a second to orientate himself, remembering exactly where he¡¯d left off. It was a side street off the main thoroughfare, alongside a small park set up for people to relax in. He¡¯d taken a seat on a bench as a place to logout since he¡¯d likely be waiting around until he heard from someone to let him know where to meet up. He was just about to send out a message when he heard a crash from above him. Looking up he had just enough time to make out the bottom of a well made boot before it collided with his face, sending him sprawling to the ground as glass rained down around them.
You have taken 87 damage. Bonus Panache effects: Unexpected exit ¨C reaction times reduced for 20 seconds Dramatic landing ¨C reduced resistances to intimidation and charm effects for 20 seconds Lucky hit ¨C increased chance of receiving critical hits for 20 seconds
This damage was caused unintentionally by a swashbuckler¡¯s abilities and does not count as PvP. ¡°Mother...¡± Jicker swore as he rubbed his nose tenderly, looking at the figure fleeing from the scene. He looked up to see where the bastard had come from, and was glad he had when a second person leapt out the same window several stories up. This one however, upon seeing his prone form below, reached out a hand with snake like speed, grabbing onto a passing window ledge. With nothing but a flick of their wrist they tossed themself to the side, landing in a roll before standing up with an easy grace. Spinning around and clicking their heels together, they bowed and reached down a hand to him. ¡°Terribly sorry about that old chap, thought I had him to rights up stairs, but the cad was more willing to ruin people¡¯s days than I thought. Still, I didn¡¯t think he¡¯d go so far as to actually injure someone in his escape attempt. Honestly, youths these days have no respect for their fellow citizens anymore.¡± They said as they pulled him to his feet. Like every other swashbuckler he¡¯d seen while in Macross, the white haired elf in front of him hadn¡¯t bothered with armour, instead wearing a dark grey jacket and white silk shirt. Combined with a matching bowler hat, monocle and handlebar moustache of all things, Jicker wondered if he¡¯d been hit in the head a lot harder than he thought. ¡°I...what?¡± he mumbled, trying to comprehend what was happening. It didn¡¯t help when he noticed they had an umbrella strapped to their side instead of a weapon. ¡°Easy there, you might not have a debuff, but a concussion could still be lurking in the old noggin. Now then, Sir Bradley¡¯s the name, pleased to make your acquaintance.¡± He said, lifting his cap. ¡°And while I hate to be rude about this, I promised a lady that I¡¯d catch that particular scoundrel for her, and I do try to be an elf of my word. So unless you require further medical attention, I need to be after the fellow. I don''t suppose you happened to catch which I way he was fleeing..?¡± ¡°Y-yeah, I''m good, and I''m pretty sure I saw him climb that building over there, the one with red tile roof?¡± he said, pointing the way. As Bradley looked in the direction of the building, he tapped the side of his monocle, causing the lens to glow faintly. ¡°Ah, capital! The trail is revealed and the game is afoot! Take care my little green compatriot, for there is work to be done!¡± As he shouted this he drew the umbrella from his waist and brandished like a rapier, getting a few cheers from happy onlookers. ¡°Actually, before you go...¡± Jicker said, making the strange swashbuckler pause mid-step as he turned back. He reached into his bag and fished around for a bit before pulling out a small vial. ¡°Here, it¡¯s a tranquiliser I made, should help you slow him down a bit if you can get him with it, maybe even knock him out if you¡¯re lucky.¡± They paused for a moment then let out a boisterous laugh. ¡°Ha ha! Normally I¡¯d be against using something dastardly like this, or in fact seeking help from a third party at all. But in this case, we can certainly say that they¡¯re the one who got you involved. Very well, I¡¯ll gladly accept your bit of vengeance to assist me in catching my quarry!¡± Taking the vial, they studied it for a moment before nodding and slipping it into their breast pocket. Sir Bradley then raced away, scaling the side of the building like it was no more than a flight of stairs. ¡°That was easily one of the weirdest things I''ve seen in a long time.¡± Jicker muttered to himself after a moment, as people resumed what they¡¯d been doing before the sudden display. ¡°But if I''m going o get on that podium, I might need to get weirder.¡± When he got back to the hotel, it had mostly been emptied out, with members combing the city looking for allies or out preparing for their events. Only a dozen people remained, those who were guarding and few of the people who¡¯d come to support the competitors. Walking through, he made his way to the closet where he¡¯d left the various objects and small animals he¡¯d picked up on the way to town. Someone in the guild had been feeding them, either as a job or just liked to play with animals, but at least it had been one less thing to track. But as he looked over everything he had, he realised he had no ideas, no inspiration. Grabbing a few branches and a one of the birds in a cage, he went up to the room he¡¯d been given and sat down, mulling things over as he studied them. But after over an hour, he had nothing. There were plenty of things that he could do of course, just make something bigger, give it more claws, that sort of thing. But they didn¡¯t...feel right, didn¡¯t seem like something that should be a part of Genesis. And that, he felt, was the important thing. That his creations fit within the world, even if only at the very edge of it. As he was lying on the floor holding a branch in front of the window, a knock came at the door. ¡°Come in,¡± He said, not bothering to get up.¡±It¡¯s not locked.¡± ¡°Obviously,¡± Athena said as she opened the door. ¡°We didn¡¯t give you any keys.¡± ¡°Athena, what can I do for you?¡± he asked, turning his head to face the gnome in the doorway. ¡°As the politicians say, ¡®ask not what you can do for me; ask what I can do for you¡¯. I can¡¯t help but notice that you haven¡¯t said that the ¡®issue¡¯ above us has been dealt with, I don''t suppose..?¡± ¡°No luck so far, everyone¡¯s still doomed.¡± He said vaguely. She nodded with a sigh. ¡°I figured as much from what I heard when you came in.¡± Jicker frowned. ¡°I don''t think I said anything when I came in. Are you sure it was me?¡± ¡°It was you, it¡¯s just that saying ''I heard'' is a lot more polite than saying I picked up your thoughts.¡± ¡°...A bit less creepy too. So can you tell people apart from their thoughts, like accents or something?¡± ¡°Not anyone¡¯s, but certain ideas give people away, and of course some people just think differently. For instance Oda is very good at partitioning his thoughts, relaxing whilehis subconcious works on a problem, while yours a very linear with a single goal and no distractions.¡± ¡°What about Gabe¡¯s?¡± ¡°If yours are linear, then his are dots, and I literally can¡¯t understand how he gets from one thought to the next.¡± He let out a small laugh. ¡°Yeah, that sounds about right.¡± ¡°So, back to you then. You said no luck on the doom, but do you have any ideas?¡± she said, leaning on the door frame. ¡°Honestly? I''m drawing a blank right now, but I''m sure that access to the beacon is still our best bet. Which leaves me sitting here trying to come up with something for the games. Enough to contribute to the medal tally at least.¡± Athena rubbed her neck for a moment before rushing off before returning moments later with a blackboard on wheels. Pulling out a piece of chalk, she began making notes as she spoke. ¡°Let¡¯s go over this then. The objective is for the guild to place on the podium at the end of the games, so we need to win events, and a lot of them at that. That¡¯s... doable, if difficult. I¡¯ll speak to people and have them put some more effort into the events themselves, maybe have Mary offer some guild rewards. We¡¯re not a big guild compared to some, but our members are all higher quality than most, so we¡¯ve got a shot there.Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. As to what you need to do yourself, your being put to work for two events: Duel Monsters, and the Minion Melee. The duel is a one on one fight between creatures, in a tournament bracket system. So you¡¯d be looking for something that can handle a single opponent, but a wide range of them. You¡¯ll be up against conjured beasts, golems, summoned demons and a host of other things, so versatility is key. The Melee, on the other hand, is throwing every competitor in an arena all at once, last creature standing wins. For that, the common strategy people have been using is to go for all offense and speed, to take out the competition before getting hit yourself.¡± ¡°That¡¯s pretty much what Oda told me, but I did wonder, what¡¯s to stop people just putting together some giant, million dollar golem and crushing everyone?¡± he asked. She looked at him oddly, her brows furrowing. ¡°You didn¡¯t see the match..? No, I guess you had other things on your mind back then. Anyway, a few years ago someone did try that, bankrolled a giant monster of a golem, cost a literal fortune but for some reason they thought it¡¯d be worth it.¡± ¡°It would make for good advertising.¡± Jicker said, nodding in appreciation. ¡°And maybe it would have, if it hadn¡¯t been torn apart in the fifth round by a rust monster a low level player had summoned up for free. They lost millions of dollars of value in minutes, and taught the community that everything has weaknesses that money can¡¯t cover. Yet to avoid a repeat, since then they''ve changed the rules a little. Now every entrant is checked by an appraiser for its value, with a limit of ten thousand gold. It generally doesn¡¯t even come up for people who make or summon their own, since the cost is in the labour, but it stops people trying to buy wins.¡± ¡°Well, there goes that plan then. So what¡¯s up first?¡± ¡°The Melee, since a giant free for all helps get people excited for a lot of the other events. Now what can you do?¡± she asked, ready to write it down. ¡°I thought you were told about my abilities?¡± he wondered. ¡°I was but we¡¯re brainstorming here, so humour me.¡± She said, tapping on the board. ¡°Okay then, I can modify plants and animals into new versions. I can¡¯t control them, but I can influence behaviour, and the smarter ones seem to recognize and somewhat respect me.¡± ¡°...respect.¡± she muttered, writing quickly. ¡°Just plants and animals? No constructs, no undead?¡± ¡°Look, initially I could only work on animals, so don¡¯t say ¡®just plant and animals¡¯. It took some effort to learn that.¡± Athena paused. ¡°And how did you learn that then?¡± ¡°Well, I went out and learned the herbalism skill which synergised with my ability, as did anatomy when I learned it.¡± Jicker explained. She sighed and leaned her head on the board. ¡°And you don''t suppose that, maybe, if you learned a few other skills it would let you branch out further.¡± ¡°...look, I''ve had a lot going on alright? Besides it takes time to learn that stuff, and where am I going to find a teacher for...whatever I¡¯d need to learn for that?¡± She held a hand gesturing for him to wait then walked out and down the hall before shouting. ¡°Can someone track down Benny and send him here? Tell him it¡¯s sort of urgent.¡± After a minute she came back in. ¡°Right, shouldn¡¯t be long, he usually doesn¡¯t travel far when we¡¯re- ah here he is now.¡± As a set of heavy foots steps approached, Benny was revealed to be a surly looking dwarf, dressed a thick leather robe caked in mud and dirt. Slung over one shoulder was a large pick, with fine symbols engraved over the surface and a small emerald set into the hilt. He was also clean shaven, which made him stand out somewhat from the average dwarven player, but he still had the same deep set eyes that were currently settled on Jicker. ¡°Athena, you said you had something urgent?¡± he said in a gruff voice. ¡°I do indeed. Jicker, this is Benny, better known these days as Rock Licker. He¡¯s one of the better earth mages in the guild, and the geologist in charge of all of our mining operations and interests. Benny, this is Jicker, who you¡¯ve probably heard a few things about, and who I need you to teach geology to in the next few hours.¡± Both Benny and Jicker stared at her for a moment before complaining. ¡°-Brought me here to set up trade agreements not to-¡± ¡°-Learn an entire science in a few hours in case it might-¡± She held up and, silencing the two of them. ¡°I¡¯m not asking, just try and get it done. This could help us win a few medals for the tally so I want it prioritized. I''m not expecting you to make him an expert, just the basics will do, and besides, from what I''ve been told, you¡¯ve managed to close enough deals already. Anymore and we¡¯ll be hard pressed to meet our obligations.¡± After grumbling for a minute, the dwarf dropped his pick by the door and took the chalk from Athena. ¡°Fine, but I¡¯m still getting paid for this.¡± He said to Athena before turning back to Jicker. ¡°What do you know about geology?¡± ¡°I know a bit actually, I learned some as a previous character, so I can remember...some?¡± ¡°Hrmm, maybe we can actually do this then. Okay let start with the basics then, there a four types of rocks in Genesis, being sedimentary, metamorphic, igneous and arcane...¡± ¡°...Factors are heat and pressure, plus surrounding minerals...¡± ¡°...Often mixed in deposits of copper...¡± ¡°...Coal seams deep underground need ventilation, otherwise you risk...¡± The lecture lasted all day, as he scribbled notes and tried to get things clear in his head. As maser he¡¯d learned all of this before, but the game held a lot of the memories and information for you, instead of making you actually learn and remember it all yourself. Though as he went over it all again and again it slowly came back to him, until late in the evening when he received a notification.
Ding! You have learned the lessons of a master. You have unlocked the Geology skill! Current level: 1 Gives you a greater understanding of minerals, allowing higher grade earthen materials to be detected, mined and processed. Synergy - Adaptation can now be used to include inorganic and geological substances in creatures. Note: Creatures may only include up to 15% of such materials, improve your abilities to raise this limit.
¡°And that¡¯s it!¡± Jicker exclaimed as he read it, dropping his pencil and stretching, cutting Benny off mid sentence. ¡°You¡¯ve learned it then?¡± He said, not bothered by the interruption. ¡°Geology level 1, as well as the synergy Athena was hoping for. I guess I owe her for that one.¡± The dwarf snorted. ¡°You¡¯ll end up owing her a lot more than one by the time she¡¯d done with you. But if we¡¯re done here, I''m going to log out for a while. If you see her before me, let Athena know I did my job and I¡¯ll expect it to be accounted for in my rewards for our trip here.¡± As Benny left, Jicker turned back to the materials he had on hand, and tried to see what he could do with the new effects. Yet upon trying to get it to work, the fields required were greyed out, only the previous options available to him. ¡°It just said I could do this, the options are right there, why isn¡¯t this working?!¡± He exclaimed in frustration. ¡°You had some success then.¡± Athena said as when wandered in with a yawn. ¡°I got the skill, oh and Benny said to tell-¡± ¡°Yeah I saw him outside before he left for bed, which I¡¯m about to do myself. So what exactly is the problem?¡± He swung the branch in his hand around. ¡°The skill should be letting me put some metal or stone into this, but it¡¯s not working properly.¡± She took the branch from him and examined it. ¡°In my experience,¡± she began as she looked between it and him. ¡°When a skill isn¡¯t working, it¡¯s not the abilities fault, but the user''s.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve done this a bunch of times, I know what I''m doing.¡± He said, offended. ¡°So how does it work normally?¡± He thought about it. ¡°I make contact with the target, activate it and use the system to make the changes. Simple.¡± ¡°And where does it get the materials for the change?¡± ¡°From the thing itself and from my mana... I guess?¡± ¡°So maybe it needs more than that, maybe it needs an example of the material you want?¡± He looked at her. ¡°It never has before.¡± ¡°Look, It¡¯s late and I''m your senior in the guild, so just humour me and try it okay?¡± she said crossing her arms. ¡°Fine,¡± he said, grabbing a lump of stone off the floor and shoving it against the branch as he triggered adaptation. ¡°But I''m telling you that¡¯s not how it-¡±
Ding! You have learned a new way to use adaptation. You have unlocked Symbiosis By using adaptation on multiple separate entities or materials, you can transfer the properties of one to the other, linking them together. Note: Creatures can only gain the traits of those equal to or below their own grade.
A moment of silence passed as Jicker worked, and before long he was sitting quietly, holding a branch that had, growing from the end, a number of stone leaves. ¡°...well I guess I owe you an apolo-¡± he began before being cut off. ¡°God dammit, that hurts!¡± Athena cried from where she¡¯d been; now sitting on the floor against the wall. ¡°Athena, are you alright?¡± he asked, concerned as to what could have happened. ¡°How in the bloody hells do you handle all of that?¡± she said, clutching her head. ¡°I picked up your thoughts when you tried to get it to work before and it was fine, but when it went off... it was like a tidal wave of data was being dumped into my brain, and I damn near drowned in it.¡± ¡°I... don¡¯t know what to say. It seemed like a lot to deal with, especially when I started out. But it¡¯s always been manageable, never painful or dangerous.¡± He said in shock. ¡°A person¡¯s mind isn¡¯t supposed to be operating at those speeds. I thought the system was doing all the work, but your brain was reworking that plant at a nearly cellular level. You thought it was normal to be doing that in just a few minutes?¡± ¡°What are you talking about? I get pretty deep into it, but nowhere that deep, that¡¯d be impossible like you said.¡± He exclaimed, confused. ¡°You¡¯re right, it wasn¡¯t quite there, and it¡¯s only a game after all. I don''t think we even have cells if you really think about it. But part of your mind was interacting at the base level of that little stick in your hand, and it moved so much data around it hurt like a truck to pick it up.¡± She sighed as she rubbed her temples. ¡°So first of all, a new rule: never use that ability around people with telepathy, especially me. Second, I''m going to log off, take some aspirin and go to bed, and thirdly... if you know some people at Masquerade, maybe ask them about this when you get a chance, because it doesn¡¯t seem right.¡± ¡°...Understood I guess, but I really don''t understand what you mean. Still, now that this is working, I''m going to try a few designs and see what I can come up with for the match...tomorrow, lord where does the time go? Anyway, sorry again for... whatever happened.¡± Athena nodded as she gingerly got to her feet and dusted herself off before logging out, leaving him alone with his thoughts. Staring at the branch he still held, his eyes unfocused as he looked through it, wondering about what she¡¯d said. That his thoughts shouldn¡¯t be working like that, that it shouldn¡¯t be possible, that it could even be dangerous. But he¡¯d seen reports of other people who¡¯d used the class, and they hadn¡¯t mentioned anything, perhaps it was a bug? Some kind of broken interaction between two rare class features? He sighed. Another thing to speak with Sarah about, another thing he probably wouldn''t get a straight answer about. Shaking his head, he decided to push those thoughts away for the time being, with all the other things he blocked out while trying to get things done, and started investigating what he had to work with. Looking through his resources, he slowly hauled what was left of a rotten tree stump to his room, and grabbed a spare dagger from the guilds stash as an afterthought. Sticking the blade into the side of the stump and looking inside the rotted hollow, he was delighted to see a variety of insect life had been living inside at the time they¡¯d picked it up. Pushing it into the centre of the room he grabbed a cushion to sit on and prepared to get to work. But right before he activated the adaptation, the window in the room shattered, a foot sticking through the hole wearing an elegantly heel shoe. Getting up and hurrying to the window, he got there just in time to see a woman race around the corner, a guard from the guild in hot pursuit. Another member burst through the door, a glowing staff in hand. ¡°Everything ok in here? Any intruders?¡± they asked, quickly scanning the room. Jicker shook his head. ¡°Just a swashbuckler, looks like they slipped and hit the window.¡± The man swore, spitting on the floor. ¡°Damn pests, I can¡¯t believe they got past us in the first place. Oh, um... sorry for spitting.¡± Jicker chuckled. ¡°All good, with glass everywhere, the rooms pretty much a write off anyway, though it¡¯ll still do for work. Are there any other bedrooms left?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll ask someone about it, if not we can try and get this one cleaned up. Give a shout if anything else happens.¡± Carefully shaking the glass fragments off his cushion, he sat back down, and activated the ability, bombarded as usual by the various menus and charts. He was happy to see that the knife¡¯s properties had been included, and in a pleasant surprise, so had some of the glass. In fact there were dozens of other option to include, namely the contents of the stump, but there was apparently a limit to how many could be used at once. Filtering out what he wanted, and could make use of, he got busy; twisting and reshaping things to suit his needs, and the goals of the events. As he worked, part of him noticed that he didn¡¯t even pay attention to some of the things he was changing, just that if he was going to do this, then that needed to move. He also found that as Symbiosis let him link things together, it could let him change what counted as a single creature, in this case, a swarm. From the outside, the stump was largely the same, if somewhat larger and sturdier, still no more than a stump, but it was what was on the inside that counts. Hundreds of insects lived within this new hive, feeding off it and ready to defend it from outside threats. Each of them was based off a dragonfly, their bodies no more than two inches long, black and unassuming. The wings however, were truly a thing of beauty. When stretched out, they had a wingspan just shy of a foot, each wing filled with flexible, stained glass that glinted in the candlelight of the room. Each one was a different colour, covering the entire spectrum, but they all had one thing in common, the edges being made of steel. Strong, sharp and paper thin, each fly effectively carried four razor sharp blades that moved at frightening speed as they flew. Carefully, he nudged the stump slightly, causing a few dozen to quickly take to the air. The sound of their wings sliding against each other filled the room with the sound of chimes, while the light refracted off them sending vibrant colours over every surface. The flies quickly sped around the room, examining it for possible threats to their hive, but began to settle when they found none. A few had approached him, their bladed wings scant inches from his face, but like his other creations they recognized him on some level and moved past him. Other things hadn¡¯t faired quite so well, with curtains and furniture being shredded, walls being chipped away and the black board sliced to ribbons. Eventually they settled back down and returned to the hive, the room once again becoming quiet and dark. Disaster almost struck when a loud knock came at the door as the guard came back to investigate the noise. ¡°Is everything okay in there?¡± they shouted, causing the hive to buzz ominously again. Jicker carefully hurried to the door, opening it on for chunks to fall away as it moved. ¡°Everything¡¯s fine,¡± he whispered. ¡°Just finished making something, but we need this room to be off limits for a while, and make sure there¡¯s no loud noises in this hall for the time being.¡± ¡°Sure, we can do that.¡± They whispered back with a wince. ¡°Someone sleeping in there?¡± ¡°Not someone, but something.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°You know? I''m not sure yet.¡± He said thoughtfully.
Ding! Adaptation has become permanent. Creature remains too similar to existing creatures to become unique, adaptation can be repeated at a 10% chance of permanency Type: Modified Insect hive. Level: 44 Do you wish to name this creature?
Chapter 36 ¡°How long until we¡¯re live Dave?¡± ¡°Thirty seconds.¡± ¡°Can someone get me some water?¡± ¡°Here¡¯s a copy of the guilds entering, and the pronunciations next to them.¡± ¡°Okay everyone clear the area, we¡¯re going live in five, four, three, two...¡± As the countdown ended, projections activated in cities all across Genesis and, out of the game, the footage went live to hundreds of different venues as well as the news networks own channel. ¡°Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, for all those who¡¯ve made it to Macross this year and for the hundreds of millions tuning in to watch, welcome, to the championship games.¡± Two people sat in a small booth, behind a window looking out on the central arena. One an orcish warrior wearing a black suit, looking cramped in behind the average sized desk, the other a vampiric woman in a sleeveless red dress and a wide hat to match. ¡°Tonight,¡± she said in a lilting voice, ¡°I¡¯m Mindy Lawless, joined by Brutal Bob, Games veteran and second in command of the Banishing Light guild.¡± ¡°It¡¯s great to be here Mindy. The two of us will be bringing you all the news of the games for the next few weeks, as well as broadcasting the major events. With the opening ceremony just minutes away, the atmosphere in the arena is positively electric. And that¡¯s certainly understandable since this is the first time the games have been held since the upheaval. Old balances have shifted and the guilds that once dominated certain events are still trying to get back on their feet. Even the smallest guild has a real shot this time of taking out the top place.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right Bob, and we¡¯ve got more guilds than ever this year, coming from the furthest reaches of Genesis. From the frozen wastes in the north to the blood seas in the south, two hundred and fourteen guilds have put forth teams to try and take the gold.¡± ¡°And with so many people throwing their hat in the ring, we can expect to see some truly amazing things in the weeks to come. Makes me wish I could get out there myself, but it¡¯s time to hand off that job to my juniors.¡± ¡°After your string of gold medals in the freestyle single combat events, people are certainly sorry to see you make your exit Bob. But I hope you won¡¯t be favouring your own guild during the games.¡± She said, chuckling lightly as a slight pained look crossed the orc¡¯s face. ¡°No problems there Mindy, I''m here to give unbiased commentary, and to make sure the audience is caught up on all the action. I¡¯ll definitely be cheering on a few friends of mine when they get into the arena though.¡± Mindy hesitated for a moment after seeing his expression before straightening up and getting back to her lines. ¡°Well, it¡¯s time for the guilds competing this year to send out their representatives before the lighting of the torch, the official commencement of the games. Let¡¯s switch over to our people on the ground to give people a better look at some of this year¡¯s players.¡± The cameraman gave a wave. ¡°Good job you two; you¡¯re clear for the next five minutes.¡± Mindy span around to face Bob, panicked. ¡°God, I¡¯m sorry, I mean I was briefed a few minutes ago but it just completely slipped-¡± He cut her off, waving her words away. ¡°Relax, those problems are between me and shits in the guild who are trying to kick me out. It came across as natural conversation, so it¡¯s okay, just... try and avoid the topic if you can; it¡¯s still a bit of a sore point.¡± ¡°I... ok, I just don''t want to screw this up. I was only a field reporter a while ago and now I''m a prime anchor for the Champion Games! I am so far out of my depth here.¡± She said, waving at her eyes to keep them dry as she began tearing up. ¡°How¡¯d you get this gig then?¡± ¡°I was the only reporter around during the Ardenvale incident, so I got promoted a lot after that, and I was already in the area.¡± ¡°Really? Our guild was involved in that mess as well, I¡¯m surprised I don''t remember seeing you. I''ve done enough interviews to know the difference between a good reporter and a terrible one to know you¡¯ve got what it takes, so let me tell you three things. First, we have a makeup department here, let them take care of your face real quick. Second, no matter who you are, when the camera is on, you¡¯re whoever people think you are, so just fill that role and don''t worry about anything else.¡± ¡°Right,¡± she said as someone touched up her makeup quickly. ¡°And the third?¡± He grinned, his tusks shining white. ¡°Listen to the person behind the camera; he¡¯s the one who knows what¡¯s happening.¡± A person with a notepad nodded to the two of them. ¡°I sure do Bob, and you¡¯re back in three, two...¡± ¡°Some really formidable people down there wouldn¡¯t you say Mindy?¡± ¡°A real range of players from all sorts of classes, from brawlers to bards, crafters to clerics, warriors to wizards. With the large number of guilds entering, we¡¯re seeing a number of classes that have never entered into the games before, something that¡¯s sure to turn heads. In fact, the current hot topic guilds, ¡°Rising Moon¡±, have entered a team after their takeover of a city, and will be fielding a team of people with classes not often seen in public.¡± ¡°It¡¯ll certainly be interesting to see what they can do in their events, but now let¡¯s turn our attention to the arena, where things are about to begin...¡± ~~~~~~ ¡°Are you sure that I look ok Athena?¡± Jicker asked for the fifth time. ¡°I keep telling you, you look fine. Now just relax and stand up straight, we¡¯re next in the parade.¡± She said, hushing him once again. Since he was now a competing member for the guild, Jicker had been required to participate in the ceremony, and had to wear the standard black cloak worn by the guild. The only ones they had that were close to his size however were a few spares belonging to Athena, leading to a quick few minutes of alteration to get it to fit properly. The big problem was his ears, that just wouldn¡¯t fit properly under the hood, leaving them with no option but cutting slits into the hood to have poke out the sides. Being the only point of colour in their procession, they did stand out a bit, but since he was small, they figured he could just stay in the middle and it¡¯d be fine. ¡°Are we ready to go yet Oda?¡± she asked, turning around. ¡°We head on in after the Red Horse guild over there.¡± He said, cupping a glowing stone to his ear while wincing. ¡°Something wrong?¡± Jicker asked. ¡°The announcers mentioned us specifically.¡± He huffed. ¡°We didn¡¯t really need the extra attention right now. But that¡¯s just how things are so get ready to move.¡± ¡°Should I do anything?¡± Gabe asked, generating some glowing snowflakes over an outstretched hand. ¡°I could make a blizzard to follow us, just a little one..?¡± ¡°Now¡¯s not the time for being fancy Gabe, it¡¯s time for you to put on your serious face.¡± Gabe nodded before touching a chain on his neck, dismissing an illusion he constantly wore. His normal cheerful face was revealed for what it truly was, half that of a preserved corpse, the other covered in a fine frost, locked in a deathly glare. His frame became gaunt as his muscles seemed to rot away, his normal golden hair replaced with a fine mane of twisted black ice. ¡°Right, then let¡¯s be serious then.¡± He said, his voice cracked and raw, dropping his hood to ensure viewers got the full effect. Jicker shivered as he watched the transformation. While they often acted immature and were just having fun, he had to remind himself that the elite in the guild were some of the strongest players in the game. The thought made him smile however, since having fun within Genesis was the whole point, and why he¡¯d made the decisions he had. ¡°Aaaand here we go people!¡± Athena said, pushing them into motion. Stepping out of the shaded corridor, they were momentarily blinded by the glaring lights of the arena, the sounds of the audience becoming to a dull roar that filled the air. The arena was packed, cheering people of all kinds as far as the eye could see, all eagerly awaiting the coming entertainment of the weeks to follow. ¡°And here we have the Rising Moon!¡± the announcers exclaimed, their voices projected over the arena, as much of the cheering turned to jeering and foul slurs. ¡°The self proclaimed guild of outcasts, the misjudged and the mistreated. They¡¯ve recently taken control of the city of Ardenvale, so make no mistake that they¡¯re going to be some strong competitors.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right Bob, some truly fearsome players are amongst their ranks. But it seems not everyone is a fan of their work.¡± ¡°Well, not everyone likes people who challenge the norm Mindy, but I don''t think anyone can find a fault with the guild entering the arena now.¡± Jicker turned to see who had followed them, out and was surprised to see that they looked somewhat familiar, all wearing grey jackets and bowler hats. Men and women alike wore the same uniform, all armed with the oddly placed umbrella as they strolled out. The men hade same impeccably groomed moustache, while a number of the ladies were wearing monocles on fine gold chains. ¡°The Followers of Sir Bradley, a guild inspired by Macross¡¯ own gentleman adventurer. While he has no actual connection to the guild himself, by following his ideals they¡¯ve become a force dedicated to doing what¡¯s right, if not always legal. While a fairly new guild, they already have a member or two in dozens of cities, doing what they can to help people stick to the right path.¡± ¡°That guy has a following that big?¡± Jicker muttered. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± Oda said from beside him, not turning to face him. ¡°Bradley. I met him the other day, but I didn¡¯t realise he had a cult.¡± He said jokingly. ¡°They''re no cult, though there¡¯s definitely a comparison to be made. Like the announcer said, they really are good guys, no matter the odds they always follow their moral compass, and they¡¯re kicked out immediately if they do otherwise. Bradley approves of them but doesn¡¯t like telling people what to do, so he apparently refused to be a part of the guild, instead keeping to himself. In fact it¡¯s considered to be good luck if you run into him around the city, so maybe that¡¯s a sign we can win this thing.¡± ¡°Were there any in Ardenvale?¡± ¡°Two of them in fact. And before you ask, they didn¡¯t actually pick a side, instead just keeping civilians out of harm¡¯s way as much as possible. They¡¯ve gone back to doing their thing since our take over, now try and stay quiet, we¡¯re on camera. Sure enough, a number of winged constructs flew over them, carrying the crystal arrays that served as cameras, projecting their images to the world as they flew by. For a brief moment there was a picture of him in front of millions, and then they swept past to the next guild coming through. Once they walked out they slowly paraded their way around the arena before going to their assigned point. It took over half an hour for every guild to make their entrance and take their lap before the ceremony truly got under way, as teams of mages got to work on their display of artistry to awe the spectating masses.If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. As a lone figure slammed their staff into the floor, a ball of light was launched up in the centre of the arena, a brilliant revolving globe that floated up as it spun ever faster. When it reached its apex its speed increased, it became a disk that stretched out under its own forces before beginning to come apart. These broken edges formed into long threads that flew outwards in the thousands, before they slowly fell downwards to form a delicate mesh of light that hung over the audience. Then, as the light began to fade from a pure white to dull silver, an orchestra of bards rose up in the centre of the arena; standing on a glass platform suspended by the same threads. With a wave of their hands, the conductor led them off, first gently, then slowly building up in both volume and tempo. All the while, the mages continued working, projecting images out into the air, using the mesh as an enormous screen, showing moments of triumph from the past. They began from the first ever games, tracking events all the way up until the previous year, before it all went dark and silent, leaving just the orb above. One second passed, then another and for a brief moment it seemed something may have gone wrong, before beads of red energy began racing up the mesh, collecting in the centre. As it combined, it began to take form, the light shifting around until within the centre of the orb was a curled up bird. Without warning it twitched, the orb surrounding it cracking in places, before bursting open completely in a blaze of fire, noise and light. Taking its place was a phoenix, hovering as each flap of its wings sent waves of multi coloured flames out over the area. It let out a single cry, a piercing note that spoke of triumph and pride, before diving downwards, striking an ornate brazier at the southern end of the arena with explosive force. But as the blast faded, the brazier remained; now burning with a flame of ever shifting colours. ¡°And with that, ladies and gentlemen,¡± the announcer said, speaking up as the crowds broke out into rapturous applause. ¡°The Champion Torch has been lit, and the games have officially begun.¡± ¡°That was impressive, but I don''t know if that¡¯s quite worth the applause.¡± Jicker said with a shrug. ¡°Haven¡¯t you watched the games in the past few years?¡± Gabe said, his voice still solemn. ¡°I was... occupied.¡± ¡°...Right, well, they¡¯re not just cheering the show, though that magic was pretty damn impressive, but now that the fire is lit, it¡¯s time for the Melee.¡± ¡°Now? The guilds haven¡¯t even gotten out of the arena yet.¡± Jicker asked, his eyebrows rising in surprise. ¡°We¡¯ve got a few minutes,¡± Athena said from behind him as she grabbed his shoulder and began pushing forward. ¡°But they like to strike while the iron''s hot, and there¡¯s nothing the crowds love more than monsters ripping each other apart. Now come on, we need to get down to the bay where we left your handiwork.¡± They hurried out of the arena, the organization that was present for the ceremony dissolving as everyone scrambled to get ready for the Melee. People pushed past each other to get back to the halls they¡¯d come from, to get down underneath the arena. There were hundreds of chambers below, going down several dozen levels to make sure there were enough spaces for five times this many competitors. The Rising Moon had scored a chamber on the second floor so it didn¡¯t take them long to get there. While there was no actual difference in the rooms, it was considered that the closer to the surface your team was, the better chance people thought you had of winning. The room itself didn¡¯t hold too much, serving as little more than a locker room, with the additions of a lounge facing a projection of the arena, as well as a small kitchen. The main feature was a small teleportation circle, located in an alcove at the end of the room, which would take participants up to the surface. Currently it was occupied by a tree stump, which buzzed slightly when curious guild members poked at it. They¡¯d been warned about it to avoid any incidents getting it here, which had been an ordeal in and of itself. But now it was here, and ready to be shown off to the world. ¡°Anything else this needs before it¡¯s sent out?¡± one of the people poking it asked. Jicker looked at it for a moment then shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s as good as it¡¯s going to get. Send the message and tell them we¡¯re ready.¡± The guild member nodded and typed out a quick message to the officials, before the circle lit up moments later. ¡°Okay boys and girls,¡± Athena said, clapping to get people¡¯s attention but wincing slightly as the stump buzzed again. ¡°The Melee is about to start, so everyone grab your drinks and head into the lounge. Let¡¯s see just how effective our newest member¡¯s handiwork is.¡± As if her words were the signal needed, the circle lit up filling the alcove with blue light before fading just as quickly leaving it empty. On screen they saw hundreds of similar lights fill the arena, as beasts of every nature were brought in to fight. ~~~~~~ The moment the combatants arrived, the crowds broke out in cheers. To ensure no one tried to get an unfair advantage, no one was required to identify their entrant before the event, as long as it followed the rules and met the criteria. Meaning this was the first time that the audience, the other teams, or the announcers had actually seen most of the creatures in front of them. They were given a few minutes to look over the field, as there were isolating barriers around each creature, to give the guilds a few moments to show off their work before the coming bloodbath. While simply subduing another creature was acceptable to have it eliminated, death was almost always the result. ¡°Okay, here we go people, what are we looking at tonight?!¡± Bob shouted as he hunched forward closer to the screen in front of him, scanning the field. ¡°Bob it¡¯s a real zoo out there,¡± Mindy said while doing the same. ¡°I''m seeing demons, I¡¯m seeing bears, I''m even seeing... what I swear is some kind of... emoji golem? Can we zoom in on that real quick?¡± The cameras blurred as the winged constructs flew over the field to their target, showing people a floating sphere, covered in familiar faces and images, each lighting up before going dim again. ¡°Well, that¡¯s definitely a new one Mindy, we¡¯ll have to see if it¡¯s just a joke entry, or it¡¯s more than meets the eye. On the other hand, the combatant over there doesn¡¯t leave much to the imagination.¡± Again the screens blurred as the visions moved, now focused on a semi translucent blue humanoid, wearing a tartan kilt and wielding an enormous glowing greatsword. ¡°Well, that¡¯s hardly what I expected to see tonight, but it¡¯s that sort of nonsense that people watch Minion Melee for. And I''ve just gotten the signal, the barriers are about to fall, so everyone make sure your eyes are open because it¡¯s about to get messy. The barriers fall in three! Two! One! Fight!¡± On that word, the walls dropped and all hell broke loose. Every being on the field that had been summoned had been given the same order: defeat everything else. So the moment the walls fell, hundreds of blasts of energy, flying spears and hails of arrows were unleashed. Before the echoes of the announcers words faded away, a quarter of the competition had already fallen with the incapacitated being sent back below, the dead lying were they fell. But that was only the opening salvo, and it only grew worse from there. A small penguin waddled forwards from its starting point, sprays of mist from its wings freezing anything that came near. A large slime had been brought in that now began slowly rolling across the field, simply swallowing those it covered. Not that it was enough to kill most creatures, causing smaller fights to break out inside it. One surprise came when a skeletal death knight went and tried to strike down what appeared to be a swollen, wobbling potato. ¡°And there¡¯s definitely going to be some rule investigations on that people!¡± Bob said as the smoke cleared. ¡°I''m not sure what rules there are at the moment on how many explosives you can send into the melee, but there will be some by tomorrow I''m sure.¡± The blast from what had apparently been potato stuffed with alchemic explosives, had decimated a section of the field, leaving only half the initial combatants left. While it thinned out the completion, it also made some of the smarter beasts a little more cautious about approaching things that seemed harmless. This meant that a large ogre, which had so far been recklessly tearing through its opponents, slowed down slightly before clawing at a rotten tree stump. At the first sign of the wood breaking, the swarm inside boiled out, dozens, then hundreds of dazzling colours filling the air above the stump, before diving in unison on the ogre. On their own, the damage they dealt wouldn¡¯t have even been noticed by the hulking creature, but with almost a thousand of them? It took only seconds for the ogre to collapse to its knees as blood poured from countless wounds over its body, all being absorbed by the hive before the ogres comatose form was teleported away. ¡°Now those are beautiful!¡± Mindy exclaimed. ¡°Swing around and get a better look at those, but maybe don''t get too close. Bob, what do you make of them?¡± Bob squinted as he looked at the shimmering swarm. ¡°Hmm, another interesting first appearance. Gary, could we get an appraisal..? Oh, they¡¯ve already sent the information up? Fantastic, pass it on through.¡±
Mosaic Daggerwing Hive Level: 44 This Organism disguises itself by blending into the terrain and feeding off nutrients in the soil around it. Special abilities: When threatened, it releases a swarm of drones it produces and stores inside to subdue the threat without killing it, allowing the hive to feed on spilt blood without drawing attention from larger predators. The colouration of the wings helps to distract, disorientate or scare off foes that couldn¡¯t be otherwise beaten. Created by: Rising Moon (Guild)
¡°Well I¡¯ll be!¡± the Orcish announcer shouted. ¡°That¡¯s not just a summoned beast, nor something they¡¯ve tamed or built! It¡¯s another of these new creatures that have been popping up lately, and apparently the Rising Moon made it themselves. I''m sure there will be a lot of people interested in how they¡¯ve pulled that off!¡± The Daggerwings were certainly getting a lot of attention, and not just from the audience. While they were small, their rapid movements and shifting colours made them seem like a single, larger opponent to deal with. More than one beast ran at them teeth bared, only to be cut to ribbons as the razor sharp wings of the swarm enveloped them. The demons that stood back throwing flames managed little better, their blasts doing little damage over all. While a number were destroyed by the infernal heat, more than enough remained to make short work of them once they gained the swarms attention. But it couldn¡¯t last forever. While the swarm effectively took out a large number of opponents, it wasn¡¯t suited against everything. A heavily armoured troll pushed its way forwards, the thick metal plate blocking the majority of the razor edges flying around it. What did get through was comparatively minor, and healed by the troll¡¯s natural regeneration. When the troll reached the hive the swarm tried one last ditch effort, hovering above the hive in formation. The colours and patterns quickly shifted, forming a gigantic bestial face, seeming to roar down at the attacking troll. Whether by its conditioning or its own stubbornness it ignored the visual threat, and pushed on before crushing the hive with a blackened club. When the hive broke, a ripple spread through the swarm, the Daggerwings freezing in place before crashing to the ground, wings shattering on impact. ~~~~~~ ¡°Noooooo!¡± Gabe shouted, jumping out of his seat. ¡°They were doing so well!¡± Oda finished his beer before grabbing another bottle and replying. ¡°We expected this, remember? By nature the Melee is almost impossible to win, but we should have earned some decent points for that showing.¡± ¡°And more importantly,¡± Athena said from her raised chair at the back of the room. ¡°We got a bit of unexpected advertising from the announcers there, so we¡¯ll make sure to capitalize on that. Jicker, you¡¯ve got them ready?¡± The gremlin next to her looked down at a small bag, opening it to see just under a hundred glittering seeds. ¡°Ready and waiting, but what do you want them for?¡± he asked. ¡°Business, my correctly sized friend. It¡¯s always about business.¡± ~~~~~~ When the hive was destroyed, there were less than a fifth of the competitors remaining, most of whom were wounded or exhausted. The troll that had done in the hive could have gone the distance, but was dominated by a succubus and turned against another group of large beasts, causing them to tear each other apart. The emoji golem had been proving surprisingly effective, firing off force blasts in strange shapes that sent its opponents flying into the walls of the arena. But it was destroyed as well when a large ape leapt on top of it, pressing down with a heavy shield in an attempt to crush it. When the golem fired upwards at its attacker, the recoil drove it into the ground, cracking the floor, the shield and the golem. Finally there were just a handful of fighters left, all picking each other off one by one. The succubus was proving a powerful threat, making its enemies protect it while it went to work against others. But a mindless stone elemental proved its undoing, ignoring its enchantments and burying it under a barrage of stone, before being taken down in turn. Its killer was a small blue drake that had been keeping to the edges, flying up out of reach and picking off anything that came close with blasts of superheated steam. For a moment it seemed like it was the victor, with nothing else moving on the field. But as the drake reared its head back in triumph, a blur shot towards it from underneath a pile of bodies. It impacted heavily against the throat of the flying predator, revealing it to be an ant little more than a foot long, though its impressive jaws were half as long again. These jaws were currently clamped heavily around the drake¡¯s neck, cutting in deeply as the force of its jump drove its prey against the arena wall before both of them fell to the ground below. The drake tried to claw at its attacker, but the ant¡¯s carapace proved too tough for a creature that normally fought at a distance. The drakes movements slowed, then it lit up as its unmoving body was teleported back to its waiting guild, leaving the Melee with its champion. ¡°And there we have it folks, in a surprise finish, the winners of the Minion Melee this year is the Sand Slayer guild, and their entry: DefiAnt, the Black Jumper Ant.¡± Mindy groaned. ¡°Congratulations on your victory, but that¡¯s the worst name ever.¡± Bob grinned at the camera. ¡°And it will go down in the games history, as the first victory in this year¡¯s Champion Games. While the arena is being cleared and repaired, we¡¯ll be sending a reporter to introduce you to a few of the teams competing in the crafting contest. These teams will have only two weeks to produce the finest items they can, in a number of different categories.¡± ¡°Some truly lovely creations are made every year, and I''m sure this one will be no different Bob. You can also find a list of other scheduled events on our website down below, and we¡¯ll be giving you the day¡¯s highlights at eight o¡¯clock Genesis time every day. For now, this is Mindy Lawless.¡± ¡°And I¡¯m Brutal Bob, signing off.¡± Chapter 37 ¡°We know it was you! You can¡¯t keep denying it when we have evidence!¡± Athena shrugged. ¡°I''m not denying anything. I''m just not agreeing with anything either.¡± The sun had barely risen before the first person came to the guild demanding answers. In the past hour, that one person had become a crowd of dozens, all wanting the same thing. ¡°We were all there, there¡¯s a dozen kinds of evidence, we know your guild made those things!¡± They continued. ¡°First off... what did you say you name was?¡± ¡°...Infernus.¡± ¡°Sure it is, now where was I? Oh right, first off Infernus, you don''t have anything other than the words of an announcer, and that of a couple of people with appraisal skills. That¡¯s hardly going to hold up in any real argument beyond your ¡°did too¡± attempts. Secondly even if it could hold up, we still don''t have to do or say anything.¡± ¡°It doesn''t matter if you¡¯re going to admit it or not, we know you did it, and you¡¯re going to tell us how!¡± They shouted. Athena raised an eyebrow. ¡°And in this fantasy of yours where you can indeed prove any of this, why on earth would we tell you anything? Are you going to threaten to attack us, maybe declare war on our guild? Or are you going to make it ok for your members to attack our people just for trying to play? You¡¯ve gotten nothing we want, and the threats you could make can¡¯t be worse than what we¡¯re already dealing with .¡± ¡°But¡­ you can¡¯t do that, it¡¯s not fair!¡± Infernus cried. Athena stared at him, eyes wide with disbelief. The members of the Rising Moon behind her did the same, as were most of the other players who¡¯d come to get answers. ¡°Are¡­ you serious?¡± she asked. ¡°Hoarding secrets and trying to steal them has been a core feature of Genesis since its release. Ever since the first dungeon was discovered there have been people trying to keep it a secret. But despite that, this is unfair?¡± The man coughed awkwardly. ¡°Well, if only your guild can do it, then it gives you an unfair advantage right?¡± She sighed and reached for a bag behind her. ¡°No, it gives us an advantage, not an unfair one, and also lets us offer other people an opportunity.¡± Opening the bag she pulled out a spherical seed that glittered in the morning sun, the size of an apple. Holding it in one hand, she held it aloft and showed it to the crowd as she spoke. ¡°Here I hold a seed, one capable of growing a Mosaic Daggerwing Hive almost anywhere that it¡¯s planted. Assuming that it¡¯s watered and given enough nutrients, I¡¯ve been told it would be fully grown within a week. Other than some occasional watering in summer, and maybe throwing some compost to it once a year or so, it will be completely self-sustaining.¡± The crowd¡¯s eyes followed the seed she held as they listened, tracking it as if hypnotised, until one broke the spell by speaking up. ¡°Why would you want to grow them, they¡¯re dangerous!¡± Athena grinned. ¡°I don¡¯t want to grow it myself, I don¡¯t live anywhere near here and will be leaving after the Games. But why would you want to grow one? Well I don''t know, what possible use could there be in a plant that can rapidly attack lightly armoured bodies? Especially fast moving ones all while doing so nonlethally? What value could possibly be gotten from something like that?¡± Some in the audience were quicker on the uptake than others. ¡°You actually expect people to want to put these in the city, near their homes? Like clouds of razor sharp monsters are better than swashbucklers?!¡± one asked incredulously. ¡°I do and they will, after all the hives are completely safe as long as you don''t threaten or damage them.¡± ¡°What do you mean threaten? They¡¯re going to attack us if we yell at them? This is a major city, people are always yelling!¡± They yelled. ¡°It''s more of a matter of...intent.¡± she replied cautiously. Jicker had gone over all the information he could with her about the Hive¡¯s nature when she¡¯d asked him to make up a bunch of seeds but he¡¯d been unable to give proper answers on some points. That left her somewhat at a loss on how to answer the question, and subsequently lose control of the crowd. ¡°What¡¯s that supposed to even mean? You don¡®t know do you?¡± Someone else shouted, taking joy in her discomfort. ¡°Well¡­ I certainly wasn¡¯t involved in this, so I can¡¯t be certain of the particulars. B-but I¡¯ve been told that they should indeed be safe for people to be around in almost all cases!¡± ¡°So you admit you don¡¯t know how it works? Have you even checked?¡± ¡°I¡­haven¡¯t, because I was busy, but others have! I know it works, it¡¯s not going to attack people if there¡¯s not a threat!¡± ¡°Then bring it out here, and go and hug it! We know you¡¯ve still got the one from the games last night!¡± ¡°Actually,¡± someone said with a glint in their eyes. ¡°You might know a trick to make it work, so one of us will. If you¡¯re telling the truth, nothing will go wrong, right? And if it does, well, you definitely have be able to make up for it right? Or do you not want to sell any of these dangerous creatures?¡± Athena hesitated. On the one hand she did need to prove they were safe to use if they wanted to sell any, and it was going to be a key point on making alliances in the near future. But on the other, it was clear that they wanted to sabotage things in order to get information out of her. It¡¯s not like they could actually make her say anything, even if they got killed by the Hive, but it could cripple a lot of their plans for trade deals. If they lost too much of peoples trust now¡­ ¡°Ah, I do love a good bit of soap box arguing!¡± Everyone turned at this new voice, struggling to point to its origin until it was revealed to be from above. Slowly floating down was Sir Bradley, his umbrella supporting him just enough for him to lightly land before the crowd, bowing as he did so. ¡°Good morning,¡± he said as he doffed his hat. ¡°And what seems to be the matter? As guests in this fine city, I feel obliged to help you resolve things peacefully, so you may spend your day taking in the sights.¡± The crowd went silent, no one willing to scare off the rare sighting, but eventually Infernus spoke up. ¡°They want to put dangerous monsters through the city, and won¡¯t tell us how they made them!¡± Bradley stroked his moustache in thought. ¡°I see, and from what I heard as I descended, they¡¯re claiming them to be safe? Is this correct young man?¡± ¡°Y-yes. Mister Bradley. Sir.¡± They said awkwardly. ¡°Then things are simple!¡± he declared with a clap of his hands as he turned to Athena. ¡°Please, little miss, would you bring out this supposed risk to my city, so that I can test it myself. Would this be acceptable for everyone?¡± There was a small amount of grumbling from the crowd, but no one was willing to raise a fuss. Athena picked up on the thoughts of the crowd as she beckoned for someone to bring out the hive. A number were upset that their plans had been stopped, but they knew they couldn¡¯t say anything or they¡¯d reveal themselves. After all, Sir Bradley was always upstanding about things, so if he declared them safe, then they were. No one was going to try and argue that he was a liar. With a great amount of care, two people wheeled out a small cart, carrying the now recovered hive which buzzed slightly as it was moved. The guild members tasked with transporting it took great pains to be gentle with it, while also doing their best to seem casual with it, not wanting to give the wrong impression. They¡¯d all heard that it was safe, and that there should be no real problem when interacting with it. Unfortunately, they¡¯d all also seen the fight, where the supposedly safe hive had literally shredded other creatures. The wooden stump that made up the exterior of the hive had healed, but there were still scars left from its near death in the Melee. Approaching it, Bradley examined it closely, twisting his monocle slightly as he did so, seemingly paying no attention to the slight buzzing from inside. ¡°It really is a marvellous thing you have here, a truly new creature!¡± he called back to the crowd before continuing closer. ¡°But I suppose the real test would be¡­ this.¡± And with that he lifted his hand with a flourish, and put it inside the stump. For a moment there was nothing, as if even the Daggerwings inside were shocked by this. But the silence was broken by a roar of noise from inside the hive, like a box of chainsaws had been started up within. After a few seconds, the noise lessened, but Bradley went a shade paler as a grimace crossed his face for a moment. ¡°Are you okay?¡± Athena asked. She knew it should be safe to touch, but Jicker hadn¡¯t covered anything about trying to get inside it, and for some reason Sir Bradleys thoughts were shielded from her. He smiled at her as he scrunched up his face slightly. ¡°Oh I¡¯m fine my dear, it¡¯s just that truth be told I¡¯m¡­ not a fan of creepy crawlies. Although, I have to say that these are rather beautiful.¡± Slowly he withdrew his hand, completely unharmed, and on the palm of his hand sat a Daggerwing, its large sapphire wings fluttering gently as it kept its balance. ¡°Seems safe enough to me.¡± He said as he looked at it, blowing gently on its wings, causing it to take flight for a moment before landing back down. ¡°But if anyone would like to try for themselves, by all means come up. I¡¯d say the trick to it is being gentle, and keeping in mind that you don¡¯t want to hurt them. Do that, and it¡¯s seems they won¡¯t hurt you. Sporting of them really.¡± With a flick of the wrist he shook it free, sending it shooting in to the air before it dove back into the hive. Before Bradley could continue, one of the earlier speakers stormed up to the hive, causing angry buzzing.Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. ¡°If they¡¯re this harmless, what¡¯s the point then? I may as well pick off a few wings t-ARGH!¡± Whatever they¡¯d planned to say, whatever they¡¯d planned to do, it all quickly became irrelevant. They¡¯d attempted to replicate Bradley¡¯s, but where the swashbuckler had been met with only some buzzing, this person dropped to their knees as blood began to fountain from the top of the hive. They writhed on the ground in pain, unable to pry their arm free themselves, until Bradley pulled them back. As he heaved, the arm came loose, looking as if it had gone through a wood chipper, bleeding from countless open wounds. ¡°And that,¡± Bradley said as he fished around in his pockets for a healing potion. ¡°Is why I said be gentle. Does anyone know his poor chap? I think he needs a spot of rest for a while, so if someone could take him¡­?¡± There was some grumbling as people debated admitting they knew them, before a couple came up and collected the sobbing figure. The swashbuckler sighed. ¡°I do so hate it when bards try and use crowds against people. An audience is something meant to be entertained and inspired, not wielded as a weapon.¡± ¡°Thanks for your help.¡± Athena said, voice filled with relief. ¡°Think nothing of it, but for now finish speaking to your audience, I¡¯m looking to discuss something with you afterwards.¡± ¡°Right, right¡­ now, where was I¡­ as you¡¯ve seen, the Mosaic Daggerwing Hives, are both safe for those who are sensible, and a great deterrent for those who don¡¯t care about others property. We will be selling the seeds, which I can guarantee you won¡¯t find anywhere else, seven hundred gold a piece. As far as I know they won¡¯t go to seed themselves, so don¡¯t think you can farm them from a single purchase, but we will be offering significant discounts to any allies of the Rising Moon. If you wish to make a purchase or place an order, please see Marcus by the gate there, he¡¯s the orc with the giant crossbow.¡± The seven foot tall orc gave a small wave to the crowd. ¡°He¡¯ll also be addressing any further complaints or demands of us to turn over things that I¡¯m currently saying we do not have.¡± A woman spoke up from the crowd. ¡°But we know you do! So just tell us-¡± He was cut off as the orc gave a cough and shouldered the enormous weapon which would be more at place during a siege than here. ¡°Ma¡¯am,¡± he said in a deep voice, ¡°If you wish to continue making those claims please step out over to your left. It would be rude of me to use the people behind you as a back stop.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t just shoot through a crowd in the middle of a city!¡± she shouted back fearlessly. ¡°With a bow like this I¡¯m confident I can shoot through most of this crowd quite easily, inside of a city or otherwise, but I¡¯d only be aiming for you. So if everyone else would care to step out from between me and the lady making a fuss...?¡± As the crowd slowly split down the middle, leaving a confused yet irate woman standing alone, Athena turned to the swashbuckler. ¡°Now then, Sir Bradley, if you¡¯d care to step inside? In very curious to hear what this is about.¡± ~~~~~~ ¡°So what¡¯s the plan then?¡± Gabe asked as he sprawled on the couch. ¡°What plan?¡± Jicker asked from his own seat. They were sitting in lounge within the hotel, relaxing after the stress of the previous night. The Melee had surpassed their expectations, but considering their skill sets, it had quickly been decided that Athena would be handling the fallout. That left a dozen members sitting around killing time before their own events to come. ¡°You¡¯ve got the Duel Monsters coming up in a few days, what are you putting forward for that?¡± Oda asked, leaning in the doorway, beer in hand. ¡°I dunno, what about you guys, can¡¯t we discuss your event plans? Are you ready?¡± Gabe and Oda looked at each other with a grin. ¡°Well gosh Gabe, how are you going to try and win your event?¡± Oda asked, voice full of false concern. The warlock made a big show of looking thoughtful before answering. ¡°Well, it¡¯s a team magic battle, so I think I¡¯ll try ice first, then maybe ice and if all that fails, I¡¯ll have to resort to ice magic.¡± Oda nodded seriously. ¡°That sounds like a cunning plan. For me, I¡¯m in a capture the flag event, so I figure, I¡¯ll let the rest of our team defend, and I¡¯ll go grab the enemy flag.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a good plan, I¡¯ve heard your pretty good a sneaking.¡± Gabe said before they burst out laughing signalling for someone to bring them more drinks. Jicker waved off the one he was offered before turning to the two laughing idiots. ¡°Yes you¡¯re both very funny, but that¡¯s all you¡¯ve got? You¡¯re not going to put any actual effort into this?¡± Gabe wiped a tear from his eye. ¡°If my magic isn¡¯t good enough, then nothing else I could do would help, and if someone can stop Oda from getting to the flag, then plans won¡¯t work.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°Because there¡¯d be no way to tell if they¡¯re in here right now!¡± he said, wiggling his fingers mysteriously before going back to his drink. ¡°Besides, I¡¯ve already competed in another event this morning.¡± Oda mentioned offhandedly. ¡°Wait, seriously?¡± Jicker exclaimed in surprise. ¡°Yeah, the thieving event, ¡®Locked Room¡¯.¡± ¡°You had to steal something? Was it from another team or¡­?¡± Oda shook his head. ¡°Nah nothing that interesting, honestly it¡¯s kind of a boring event which is why they hold it so early after the ceremony. They put a thingamajig in a sort of vault, then surround it with locks, traps, guards... the whole deal. Then we all take a turn at trying to get it without seeing how other people went. You get graded on how long it took, what you set off and if you actually got it or not.¡± ¡°Sounds like your thing. Soooo¡­. how¡¯d you do?¡± Jicker asked. Oda frowned and took a long drink before answering. ¡°Second.¡± Gabe coughed in surprise. ¡°You lost? Did you slap a guard or something?¡± With a sigh he explained. ¡°I got a perfect score on both stealth and trap avoidance, but I was behind someone else when it came to picking the locks and overall speed. There wasn¡¯t much in it but¡­ they came out a few seconds ahead of me, and were judged the winner.¡± ¡°You came second in what¡¯s effectively a global competition, and you¡¯re being bitter about it?¡± Jicker questioned in disbelief. ¡°You have to remember Jicker,¡± Athena said as she walked in, ¡°That while you¡¯re still starting up again from scratch, a lot of players in the Rising Moon are actually top tier players. That and their events don¡¯t require a lot of thinking, which suits them.¡± ¡°To a tee!¡± Gabe declared loudly before falling off the couch, struggling to save his drink from spilling. ¡°You know, it¡¯s scenes like this that make me wonder if I should join a guild in the end. You all seem to have such fun.¡± The room went quiet as Sir Bradley stepped around the corner, people¡¯s drinks stopping halfway to their lips as they froze. After a few awkward looks around for someone to break the silence, Oda stepped up. ¡°It¡¯s been a while since we last spoke Bradley, must be almost two years now?¡± The gentlemen paused with a frown. ¡°I hate to be rude, but do we know each other? I can¡¯t quite put a name to the face¡­¡± ¡°Hmmm? Oh, I used a mask back then, now I just go unseen when I work. I believe at the time I was going by¡­ the Spectre, if I remember correctly, but it might have been the Red Mist.¡± Realization came across his face. ¡°Ah! The assassin! Yes I remember now, chasing each other across the roofs, trying to get in each other¡¯s way! Plenty of fun in those days! You¡¯ve been keeping well then, settled down with a guild now I see?¡± Oda wobbled his hand from side to side. ¡°Oh, I¡¯d always kept a hand in, but now I¡¯m a bit more full time. Contract assassinations just¡­ aren¡¯t the thrill they used to be.¡± Patting him on the shoulder, Bradley nodded sadly. ¡°I know what you mean. These days I see less daring duellists perform impossible feats to get the upper hand, and more teenagers who just scream ¡®parkour¡¯ at me before breaking peoples gutters. Which actually brings me to the reason why I¡¯m here.¡± Looking around, he spotted Jicker holding a seemingly oversized mug, causing him to smile. ¡°Ah, there you are my little green friend! It¡¯s taken me a bit of work to track you down, but fortunately a friend of mine spotted you during the ceremony.¡± ¡°You were looking¡­ For me?¡± Jicker asked, surprised. ¡°Indeed young gremlin! Your assistance in the matter the other day made my work much simpler, while keeping things fair still! The concoction you gave me to subdue my quarry had no effect until I¡¯d had already bested them, yet it then made them collapse making it far easier to bring them in! Normally I¡¯d be against poisons and the like, as I mentioned before, but since this works as little more than a more effective set of bindings, it¡¯s perfect for catching those who¡¯d normally be able to struggle free.¡± ¡°You haven¡¯t used any before? It¡¯s not like tranquilizers are a new product.¡± Jicker asked in confusion, his brain still trying to catch up. Bradley hesitated. ¡°Over the years it seems I¡¯ve developed a bit of a¡­ reputation, especially here in Macross. While I¡¯ve got no real problem with being recognized by people, a number of them tend to emulate what I do.¡± ¡°And you don¡¯t want them to know you''re using drugs? Is that right?¡± He nodded. ¡°Or at least, that¡¯s how people would likely phrase it. So until people actually understand what I¡¯m using, I¡¯d like to keep things between us, to make sure people still trust those doing the right thing.¡± ¡°I can give you some more, it¡¯s not like it¡¯s hard to do but¡­¡± Jicker turned to Athena. ¡°Should I be doing this? Or is this something the guild should agree to? I¡¯m kind of new to the whole ¡®team¡¯ thing.¡± She shrugged. ¡°If we were talking anything substantial, yes leave it to someone who can sign off on a contract, but this is fine, especially since he helped us out a moment ago.¡± ¡°Problems out front?¡± Oda asked. Athena waved him off. ¡°Some safety concerns about the hives, but that¡¯s been dealt with. What about you lot, anything I should know or care about?¡± ¡°Nothing much, just wondering what sort of monster Jicker should make next.¡± Gabe said as he picked himself off the floor, before he stopped as he starred at Bradley. ¡°¡­That was one of those things I¡¯m not supposed to say wasn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°It was.¡± Athena said with a sigh. ¡°Sir Bradley, I¡¯m hoping that you¡¯ll keep this to yourself? One secret keeper to another?¡± The old elf laughed. ¡°Perish the thought! As you said outside, people discovering things for themselves is part of the fun! Although I admit, I do find the whole thing quite interesting. I don¡¯t suppose I¡¯d be allowed to sit in and watch¡­?¡± he said, leaving the question hanging. Jicker shrugged. ¡°If we can¡¯t trust you to keep your word, who can we trust? Everything else okay with this?¡± After receiving a collection of shrugs and nods, Jicker stepped out for a moment to retrieve a black board. ¡°So,¡± he began as he jotted down a few notes. ¡°The Duel Monster events are all one on one fights, bracket style, with the same incapacitation rules as before right?¡± ¡°Pretty much,¡± one of the Athena helpers said. ¡°But people try a lot harder to go for kills or excessive damage on permanent entries, like golems or yours.¡± ¡°He¡¯s right.¡± Bradley said with a nod. ¡°It¡¯s a little unsavoury, but it lets allied guilds work together to knock out potential threats by leaving them unfit to continue.¡± ¡°So it does have to be the same entry each time? How does that work for summons?¡± Jicker asked, writing it all down. ¡°For them it just has to be exactly the same spell. You can enter golems the same way, if you can prove they¡¯re all identical when entered.¡± ¡°So I¡¯d need a species that are identical then, which only leaves some kind of plant.¡± Oda shook his head. ¡°Not if we want any chance of winning. Fire is really common in these things, as are the undead, both of which would be highly effective against pretty much anything plant based.¡± Jicker nodded after a moment then drew a line through few things. ¡°I could probably get around that weakness, but I see your point. In that case it¡¯ll need be a beast then. Probably a unique creature as well, so it can respawn if it¡¯s too badly hurt.¡± ¡°You can create unique creatures as well?¡± Bradley asked, eyes lighting up. ¡°After were done here, I¡¯ll take you to see Princess.¡± Gabe said cheerfully. ¡°I¡¯d love to, but first, what kind of creature can you make? I¡¯d love to see something truly fantastical.¡± ¡°There aren¡¯t a lot of limits it seems, but it has to sort of¡­fit inside Genesis. But more to the point, what qualities will it need for the event?¡± ¡°I¡¯d say we¡¯re looking for something pretty beefy. The Melee is all about offense, since you can¡¯t survive too long no matter what, but the duels are different. Since you have to keep reusing your entrant, people do their best to not leave any glaring weakness.¡± ¡°If it needs to be beefy, how about a cow?¡± Gabe said as he searched for more drinks. Jicker paused before writing down the suggestions. ¡°How about no, and be careful or you¡¯ll lose your suggestion privileges.¡± ¡°So what¡¯s something tough then?¡± Athena asked the room while thinking hard. ¡°Something big and dangerous that will last against whatever they throw at it?¡± ¡°Well, what the most dangerous thing you can think of?¡± ¡°A moose.¡± Oda and Bradley said simultaneously before looking at each other. ¡°Alaska?¡± The assassin asked curiously. Bradley shook his head. ¡°Canada.¡± Gabe snorted. ¡°Seriously? You¡¯re both afraid of a big deer?¡± He said with a laugh, ignoring the glares he got. Jicker wrote it down. ¡°There could be something to that, but what else we got?¡± ¡°How about a shark? Those are really dangerous.¡± Gabe said as he flopped back down. ¡°Are the Duels held underwater Gabe?¡± Athena asked him patiently . ¡°Well¡­ no, but maybe if it had legs? And lungs? It could even be on fire!¡± Jicker sighed. ¡°Sure, ¡®land shark with legs¡¯ is on the list. Does anyone else have anything?¡± ¡°A lion maybe? Or a tiger, or even a bear? Gabe rattled off. ¡°I swear Gabe you¡¯re on your last warning¡­ but yes, they go on the list.¡± ¡°A snake? Maybe also with legs?¡± Someone suggested. He sighed. ¡°That¡¯s kind of called a lizard, but sure, it¡¯s on the board. You guys keep going, I¡¯m going to grab a few things and make up Sir Bradley¡¯s request.¡± ¡°What about an ant? It won the Melee, so maybe it would do well in the Duels.¡± Gabe said as Jicker began to leave the room. ¡°How would an ant beat things that are heavily armoured?¡± ¡°¡­Ok, how about an ant¡­ that¡¯s on fire!?¡± ¡°¡­No more drinks for you.¡± Chapter 38 As the sun rose the streets were already filled with people, all moving to the same destination. There were events running at all hours, but there were always some that really drew the crowds and the mage battles were one of them. Standing in their locker room, Gabe and his two team mates were psyching themselves up and making last minute preparations. ¡°Got your mana full?¡± Athena asked. ¡°As full as it''s going to get.¡± ¡°Are all your items properly equipped?¡± ¡°All the ones we¡¯re allowed to use.¡± Gabe replied with a grimace. ¡°Been to the bathroom?¡± ¡°God what are you my mom? But... you¡¯re right, be back in a second.¡± With a sigh as Gabe race passed her, Athena turned around to look up at the other two members of their mage team. One was Benny, the other was Cynthia, a dusky elven witch specialising in plagues and diseases. Normally she served as part of the guild medical team but they were making do with what they had. ¡°Okay you two,¡± Athena began, ¡°I know this isn¡¯t what you signed up for, but I know you can handle this. You¡¯ve got the skills and the experience; you¡¯re both professionals and masters of your crafts. I have every confidence in you that-¡± ¡°Athena sweetie,¡± Cynthia interrupted her voice coarse as if she¡¯d been smoking for years. ¡°We get it, no need to act otherwise, especially while the idiot is out of the room.¡± Benny huffed and nodded. ¡°You needed a team of at least three mages to enter, and we were all you had on hand that weren¡¯t too busy somewhere else. Not that it really matters who you had, that damn snowman is strong enough to win alone.¡± Athena groaned and buried her face in her hands. ¡°That¡¯s just it, I do need you! Not for your magic exactly, but for the fact you¡¯re sensible, and can be trusted to pay attention and remember what you¡¯re supposed to be doing.¡± Benny scratched at his neck. ¡°Figured as much. We¡¯re also the most likely to survive if he goes and does something that blows himself up as well.¡± ¡°Okay let¡¯s do this!¡± Gabe shouted as he started walking back in to the room. ¡°Go wash your hands Gabe.¡± Athena said, staring at him as she crossed her arms. ¡°...Gah, it¡¯s not like there are real germs anyway!¡± he said, heading back out in a huff. She looked back at the other two mages. ¡°Do what you can to win, just... try not to let him make us a laughing stock.¡± ~~~~~~ Bob span in his chair as the lights came on, tuning to face the camera. ¡°And here we are Mindy, for another round of glory, determination, and in many cases, blood.¡± ¡°That¡¯s certainly my favourite part Bob, though I''m obviously a tad biased. That reminds me, make sure you check out eastern plaza after the match, there are vendors selling food and drinks of every kind you can imagine. And if any of our staff are paying attention, I¡¯d love a bottle of the red stuff.¡± ¡°I''m sure someone can take care of that craving for you, but for those just tuning in, here¡¯s a quick recap of this morning¡¯s events. The druids of the Verdant Keep put in a strong showing against the pyromancers from the Red Lotus guild. While the end result was as expected given their respective magic, they lasted a lot longer than the bookies thought, and gave people quite the show. Following that, the Heralds of the Dawn guild sent a group of light mages in against the psychics representing the Halls of Madness. That proved to be slightly awkward on our end, since all we could see was glare from the arena until it calmed down and the Heralds were shown to be asleep. We don''t exactly how it went down, but the psychics will be moving on to the next round.¡± ¡°I still have after images from that fight Bob, but let¡¯s move on to the upcoming third match of the day, the Rising Moon versus the Sea¡¯s Alliance. The Rising Moon has only sent in a three person group, the bare minimum to qualify for entry, unlike the full group of ten everyone else has included. Do you think that¡¯s a sign of arrogance Bob? Or are they just unprepared for the day¡¯s events?¡± Mindy asked, quietly thanking an aid who passed her a chilled flask. ¡°Well, normally you¡¯d be right about arrogance, but I¡¯ve looked into it and this isn¡¯t the only event they¡¯ve entered with minimal participants. My guess is that they weren¡¯t fully committed initially but something changed along the way. On the other hand, there¡¯s a good reason for them to be confident about their chances in this event. While two of the players are relatively unknown, they¡¯re being led by Gabe, ¡®The Frozen Terror¡¯. If you haven¡¯t seen him before, check out the footage from the siege of Ardenvale, the guy is a real monster.¡± ¡°That was him? I remember seeing the city freezing over, but I didn¡¯t think it was a single person. But will that be enough to make up for the difference in numbers? I assume that the alliance have registered the full ten hydromancers as normal?¡± She asked. Bob paused. ¡°Well you¡¯d think that, but while they¡¯ve put forth ten players, they¡¯re actually all lighting mages.¡± ¡°That¡¯s...unusual. They¡¯re a group of sailors and another sea farers correct? But they don''t have any water mages?¡± He chuckled. ¡°Oh they have them; they¡¯re just doing things seen as more useful to the guild. So we have their lightning mages, led by Andrew ¡®Liquid Power¡¯ Tanner, a mage of some repute and a first time entrant into the games.¡± ¡°Well I''m on the edge of my seat to see how they go, so let¡¯s head on down to the arena as the combatants are being brought in.¡± As the teleportation arrays fired up, both teams were brought in, the Rising Moon wearing their black cloaks, the Alliance in what appeared to be old diving suits made of iron and copper. Both groups walked forward to the middle were a group of officials quickly went over the rules with them. A balding man held a crystal up, emitting a light that washed over them, before nodding and speaking. ¡°Ladies and gentlemen, let¡¯s have a clean match. No casting before the bell rings, no magical equipment that hasn¡¯t been cleared with the judges and no curses that last beyond the event. Any questions?¡± ¡°I have one, what¡¯s with the back packs?¡± Benny asked gruffly with a wave. A member of the Alliance removed their helmet before answering, revealing themselves to be the leader, a human with scraggly blonde hair. He grabbed another member by the shoulder and turned them about, showing off the large barrel strapped between their shoulders. ¡°It¡¯s pressurized salt water, all tinkering and no magic. Unless you want to call us liars and have the officials look again?¡± he said with a smirk. Cynthia laughed. ¡°Hey, if a lightning mage wants to strap water to themselves, who are we to stop you?¡± The official shrugged. ¡°If that¡¯s all then go to your starting zones and wait for the count.¡± Both groups walked back to opposite sides, discussing their plans and strategies. As they reached their places, a glowing count appeared in the sky above them, counting down. Everyone readied themselves as it go towards the end, nerves beginning to be replaced with adrenaline. Mindy leaned forward in her seat. ¡°And here we go in three... two... one...Go!¡± At that, both sides exploded into motion, running sideways to try and make it more difficult to be hit by a quick shot. The arena itself was a wide empty space of flat stone, but when mages were given free rein in a fight to the death, it rarely stayed that way. As they ran, Benny made a few rapid gestures alongside something that sounded halfway between a spell and swearing. In front of him the ground ripped open leaving a deep trench that he, Cynthia and Gabe dove into for cover. The Alliance had the same idea with multiple people striking a single point with bolts of lighting, breaking it open and jumping down into the newly formed crater. ¡°What¡¯s the plan Gabe?¡± Cynthia said, panting as miniature storm clouds began to form over head. ¡°I¡¯m not one for running normally, but we can¡¯t stay here or they¡¯ll just blast us from above.¡± ¡°Benny, can you dig us a tunnel? I need a bit more time for my plan.¡± Gabe said, blue smoke twisting his hand as he stared at, forcing it into being. The dwarf looked at it and grimaced. ¡°More time...? I¡¯ve seen what you can do in an instant, so this better not kill us as well.¡± Reaching out Benny touched the stone in front of them, grabbing it as if it were no more than cloth and pulling. The stone folded under his efforts, the ground pushing downwards to create a passage a few feet tall that led deeper down. As they crawled further down, the alliance began their assault, the clouds above barraging their trench with lightning, melting stone under its force. ¡°And that¡¯s why lighting mages have one of the highest damage outputs around people, look at that destruction.¡± Bob told the audience. ¡°But while it¡¯s hard to see through the dust, it looks as though the other team have escaped somewhere.¡± Sure enough, when a few of the alliance got closer to investigate as the debris settled, there was no sign of their opponents. What was there, however, was a foot wide pustule sitting on the ground, which burst as they approached, spraying out a thin green mist. Most of those investigating reacted quickly enough, channelling electricity through their own nerves to accelerate their movements and get clear. But the one closest wasn¡¯t as fortunate and while their suit was enclosed, it wasn¡¯t air tight, so as the mist seeped in through the cracks they collapsed to their knees, retching. Mindy winced. ¡°Ooh, I don''t know what they just got infected with, because while it won¡¯t be lethal, it certainly doesn¡¯t look pleasant.¡± Bob nodded. ¡°With suits like that, they had to choose between being airtight, and being able to cast from inside them. I can safely say that there¡¯s at least one person who wishes they¡¯d chosen the other option. But where has the other team gone? Can we get a visual on-¡± Before he could finish his sentence, the ground of the arena erupted, stone being thrown up in to the air as the three members of the Rising Moon rose up rapidly on a pillar of stone. The alliance recovered swiftly, and began blasting jets of waters up at them from hoses connected to their packs. The water carried a charge from the mages, arcing along the spray and over the defences Benny had erected. Cynthia tried to throw up a barrier to block it, but it splashed around the misty wall she made, covering them all in a painful, deadly energy. Mindy whistled. ¡°Well, I guess that explains what they wanted that water for. Well that¡¯s the end of this round of the-¡± ¡°Don''t write them off just yet Mindy,¡± Bob said, cutting her off as he stared at battle intently. ¡°The system says they¡¯re not done yet, and they haven¡¯t thrown a punch yet. I think they were waiting for something, and by what we¡¯re seeing now, I think that time has come.¡± As Bob said, there were changes happening at the top of the pillar. Both Benny and Cynthia had been taken out, teleported out of the arena at the moment of their ¡®death¡¯, but Gabe still remained. The water that kept being sprayed upwards had made it hard to see at first, but now it had become clear that it was simply freezing around him, forming a round frozen shell. As the assault ebbed, two of the Alliance began climbing up the stone tower, their armour slowing them down as tension began to rise.Stolen story; please report. Reaching the top, the lighting mages each grabbed one side of the icy cocoon and began sending electricity through it, sparks dancing across the surface. But before the lightning had a chance to have any real effect, it cracked open like an egg, giving one of the camera¡¯s a momentary view of Gabe¡¯s undead visage before he unleashed his attack. Slamming his palms together, thin lines of energy poured off of him spreading out and homing in on the enemy. They moved swiftly, but the other mages easily outpaced the attack, at least at first. Within the arena, there was only so far to run, and the beams never gave up their pursuit. Each time their chosen target turned sharply to avoid them, the trailing beam would split as it banked around, creating more beams to follow the other mages. What had been a largely empty field had now become a maze of frosty blue smoke no thicker than a finger, yet their constant splitting meant there were hundreds, and after a few dozen seconds of frantic dodging, the first line struck a member of the Alliance. As soon as it made contact, the player stopped dead as their armour seized up, joints caked in frost that began to spread across the ground around them. When the ice reached their packs, the water inside exploded as it couldn¡¯t handle the rapid change in temperature. The water froze instantly as it left the suit and was exposed to the magic, releasing a sharp icy hail to the surroundings and becoming a jagged mass of ice that ripped through their armour. First one, then another and in moments all of the mages had been struck, pierced and locked in place by the remains of their own armour. But not beaten, at least not yet, which gave them one last chance to rally and send an attack against the now unshielded warlock. This proved to be a mistake. As they all had the same idea and gather all the energy they could, none truly took note of their own predicament. Pierced with spikes of metal and ice, the lightning found a much easier path to leave the mages by going through their injuries, and racing along the remaining lines of energy filling the arena. As it travelled and spread it linked to the other mages, forming a circuit before slowly cooking the mages with their own magic. The smoke glowed brightly, illuminated by the passing magic as the Alliances¡¯ screams of pain grew quieter until going silent, taking their magic with them as they were removed from the arena. With no enemies left to face, Gabe let his own magic drop, the trails fading away as the audience watched in silence at his display, before slowly raising one fist in triumph. The crowd exploded, cheering and screaming at the victory or the loss. Mindy was cheering alongside them. ¡°That¡¯s some incredible magic Bob, and it¡¯s easy to see why he got his name. Do you happen to know what spell that was?¡± ¡°No spell that has a name, that was a custom piece of magic. In fact, by the way it seemed perfectly suited for that exact situation, I¡¯d say he made it up during the fight.¡± Bob replied, a trace of disbelief in his voice. Mindy turned to the camera. ¡°Well there you have it people, this round goes to the Rising Moon. And for those of you looking to pick a fight with them to try and reclaim Ardenvale, this is what you have to go up against.¡± Gabe promptly ruined this image however, in order to get down from the pillar he stood on. Spraying magic down, he created a thick layer of snow at its base before jumping down, and proceeded to make a snow angel as the world watched. ~~~~~~ Oda groaned as he lay face down on the floor as the others watched the end of the match. ¡°Why Gabe?¡± he complained, his voice muffled. ¡°You were doing so well. We took some losses which humanised us, but then you won with excessive force that made us seem too tough to mess with. And then you went and did that!¡± Jicker patted him on the shoulder. ¡°It¡¯ll be fine, people love that sort of thing. I''m sure there¡¯ll be pictures all over of him playing in the snow.¡± Oda rolled over to look at the gremlin. ¡°Publicity isn¡¯t the problem; it¡¯s that he did while basically being surrounded by his victims. Even though they¡¯d already been teleported out, it makes him look less full of childlike wonder, and more like a sociopath.¡± ¡°We work with what we have.¡± Athena said as she walked in, flicking through some notes on a clipboard. ¡°On that note, Jicker, is your girl ready?¡± ¡°She¡¯s fine on my end, she¡¯s being managed by...¡± he turned to Oda. ¡°Barry? Was that his name?¡± ¡°You mean Barret.¡± Oda corrected. ¡°He and a few of the other people with the animal handling skill are all trying to make friends, so she¡¯s being well looked after and is ready to go.¡± Athena furrowed her brow. ¡°They¡¯re trying to make friends? I thought we had it under control already, if it¡¯s not ready to go into the arena in a few minutes we¡¯ve got a serious problem.¡± ¡°Relax. She¡¯s ready to fight, that much was... ¡®Explained¡¯ to her. It¡¯s just a bunch of them want to make her their companion after the games. A creature that strong and smart that isn¡¯t trying to kill you is a rarity, so they¡¯re trying to capitalize on the opportunity.¡± Athena looked at Jicker as he tried to get her to relax, and exhaled loudly as she held the board against her face. ¡°Fine.¡± She snapped before calming back down. ¡°I believe you. But this is going to be so much worse than the Daggerwings.¡± Oda looked up at her. ¡°How so? Those were made to get people attention, this is just to try and win the event.¡± ¡°They got attention, but that was because they were new. People like things that are new, it¡¯s a core piece of marketing. But more than that, something game companies have known for years is that people can go crazy for exclusives. We¡¯re about to show the world that we can create new, unique creatures. Things are only going to escalate from here.¡± ~~~~~~ The arena used for the Monster Duels was just being reset, the damage being swept away as if it had never happened. As things were returned to their original state, more people began to fill the audience, a number of them not out of excitement, but of curiosity about the next competitor. ¡°-¡®re good to go? What? Oh, ahem and welcome back to the Monster Duels. For the next few rounds it¡¯ll just be me, Bob the Brutal, commentating on this particular event, as Mindy has been sent to do the same for today¡¯s rounds of blacksmithing and leatherworking. Hopefully this will get the network to bring in a few more commentators, but for now let¡¯s get stuck into it. We just saw two heavily armoured juggernauts fight it out, a trained ogre up against an enchanted troll. It was a long and tiring battle, but in the end the ogre¡¯s endurance outlasted the troll¡¯s regeneration, sealing the victory. Now we have our next battle, one more than a few have become interested in. On one side, the Mountain Kings were happy to immediately show off their entrant, a red wyvern that they caught up near the peaks they call home. It''s big, it''s fast, and it¡¯ll tear apart almost anything in the same weight class with ease. They¡¯ve sent in wyverns before to great effect, so the Kings are currently seen as having a good chance of winning this year. As their first opponent they have the Rising Moon, who has been putting forth a strong showing in all events despite having smaller numbers than most other guilds entered this year. I just came from the mage event where they won with quite the spectacle, and even more so with their Minion Melee performance. They seem to have access to a source of some of these new creatures running around recently, so everyone¡¯s curious as to what we are about to see. But we won¡¯t have long to wait as they¡¯re about to teleport in the combatants, so bookies get your numbers ready.¡± Moments later both creatures appeared in a flash of light, the crowds getting excited as people started discussing what they thought would happen. The wyvern stood tall, ten feet tall even while sitting on all fours, its leathery wings at its side with no room to stretch them out while contained. Its wings flexed as it lashed out with the attached claws, drawing sparks from the barrier that bounced across its crimson scales. Lashing out with its spiked tail drew a similar result so it settled for roaring at its opponent, its razor sharp teeth glinting as it¡¯s serpentine neck swung around in a display of superiority. Within the other barrier, there was a much more reserved creature, but no less imposing. Where the wyvern embodied speed and lethality, the Rising Moon had submitted a beast that had more in common with a brick. At almost eighteen feet at the shoulder, the hulking quadruped was almost spherical in its bulk, a thick mass of what seemed to be random off cuts of stone and pavers. If any officials looked close enough, they might even spot that some of it was literal chunks of the street. But other than that it just sat there, seeming a boulder with legs. Bob spoke up over the crowd. ¡°I¡¯ve gotten a report that, the guild was nice enough to give us a report on their entrant this time as well, which is good because I have no idea what it is. Let¡¯s see here... Gary put this up on display.¡±
Rubble, the Terra Ursa Level: 79 (Unique) This massive bear is filled with powerful earthen energies, giving it increased strength, mass and durability. She uses the unique nature of her fur to collect and maintain a protective coat of armour for an additional layer of defence. Special abilities: Rubble is capable of minor geokinesis, accelerated healing and resistances to earth, plant and water magic and is immune to most poisons. She can manipulate her coat into a variety of methods of both offense and defence. Created by: Rising Moon (Guild)
¡°We appear to be looking at Rubble who, if this is accurate, is in fact a unique creature so for those of you looking to investigate them, now you have another reason. But as to whether a new comer can face off against a tried and true champion of the arena? Let¡¯s find out! Fight!¡± With that the barriers fell, and both side sprung into action. The wyvern got some distance at first, stretching its wings and quickly taking to the air, slowly circling as it studied the creature below. Rubble on the other hand remained where she was, but was by no means still, the debris that was her namesake shifting over her, scraping and bouncing around as her appearance changed. She now appeared to be a bear, though an extra thick layer over her back gave a slight impression of a turtle. While even her face was covered in layers of grey stone, as she shook her head she looked up at her enemy and roared revealing a red maw, the flesh and blood jaws inside ones of jagged rock. Emerald eyes peered out from cracks in the armour, tracking the wyvern as it circled above, legs tensing as it got ready to move, crushing the ground beneath it. Having decided it had waited enough, the Wyvern dived without warning, twisting as it descend towards Rubble¡¯s flank. Claws met stone at the impact, both parties roaring at each other as the reptile dodged out of the way as the bear snapped back in return, jaws narrowly missing its leg as it regained altitude. A chunk had been taken out of Rubbles side, revealing a coat of shaggy green fur beneath the stone, now bleeding slightly from light scratches from where the claws had gotten through. As the crowd watched, the fur seemed to ripple as piece of stone were passed along from other sections of the body to fill in the gap. Meanwhile strands stretched out around its paws to pick up nearby loose debris caused by the creature¡¯s weight on the stone, the arena itself being added to its defences. Again the wyvern came down, swooping low as it raked its claws along the bears back, tearing stone away as well as traces of blood. But as it banked around for another pass, Rubble roared and seemed to flex, the chunks along its back realigning themselves not only to fill the gaps, but now layered and angled against the wyverns approach. This time when the claws struck, they struggled to find purchase, skipping over the stonework as much as breaking it. Again and again it played out, the wyvern unable to do substantial damage, but each time easily avoiding Rubbles attempts to bite and claw in return. After a few minutes the lizard gave up on the tactic, and returned to circling as the bear continued to repair its armour. Bob, who had been silent during the exchange, took the pause as chance to speak up. ¡°And here we have a real conundrum folks. What to do when neither opponent can handle the other? Well I can¡¯t say for sure about the stony brute below, but I know the red one above still has some tricks.¡± Sure enough, the wyvern appeared to reach a decision and flew even higher before getting directly above its prey and diving straight down. For an instant it seemed like it was trying to take them both out, but at the last moment two things happened. First, Rubbles armour snapped into a different position, the plates along its back suddenly jumping up to form long spines point directly up at the diving lizard. Then with incredible reactions, the wyvern pulled up its dive before impact, avoiding the spikes as it desperately shifted to the side, settling for striking out with its tail as it landed heavily a dozen meters away. The tail glanced along harmlessly for the most part, but through either skill or luck, it found purchase in the fine gap left for Rubble to see out through. The roar this time was an honest one of pain, but also of rage, as she turned and thundered towards the grounded beast, blood pouring out from her face. The wyvern saw its death approaching and franticly flapped its wings to get airborne, taking flight, but not before Rubble¡¯s jaws latched around its ankle. There was brief tug of war as the fought, but the foot gave out before the wyvern did, meat and bone separating as it flew up and got free. With wounds now suffered by both sides, the crowd reached a fever pitch, eagerly awaiting the outcome of the match. Wyverns were far from being dragons, but they were distant cousins, and the reds were closer than most. Hissing in pain from its leg it took a deep breath, its throat expanding before sending down a blast of intense flame at the bear below. The stone did little to shield rubble from the heat, weakening it, but not enough to stop it from causing injuries. As Rubbles roared in pain, the wyvern sent more blasts of fire down, each heavier as it descended for greater effect. For their part, Rubbles roars had become whines it curled up, pushing as much stone as it could on to its back while shielding its stomach with the ground below. As rocks began to soften under the exposure to extreme heat, and rubbles wounds didn¡¯t so much bleed as steam, the wyvern drew close for what it believed to be a final blow. But as it came within a few dozen feet and breathed in for the last attack, Rubble flexed. With a single motion, the bear¡¯s entire form seemed to clench as its back shuddered before shooting out, rock turning to a spray of fist sized gravel that shot out like a cannon, directly at the unprepared wyvern. Rubble had thrown their entire collection of armour up in a single burst, the twisting fur firing off like whips in unison to provide near explosive force. But while the bear had lost its defences, it no longer mattered since the match was all but over. The reptile¡¯s wings had been torn apart, one with massive holes through it, the other being ripped off at the shoulder. There were wounds all over its body, chunks of rock still lodged in some places, falling out slowly alongside gouts of blood. It¡¯s chest had all but inverted at the force, its lungs crushed though it still struggled to cry at its attacker, who slowly stomped towards the dying animal. But before it could deliver the final blow, nature did the job instead, the wyvern bleeding out and vanishing in a burst of light. Rubble cried out, roaring in indignation of being robbed, but also in triumph in her victory, and the audience joined her. Chapter 39 ¡°Not a bad haul if I do say so myself.¡± Athena said with a grin as she dropped another stack of papers on the table. ¡°You would say, since this whole thing is going exactly like you said it would.¡± Jicker said as he looked through and sorted the documents. After their success in the first round of the Monster Duels, they¡¯d quickly been inundated with questions and people wanting answers. Athena had ready for them this time, and released an official statement to an interviewer. ¡°The Rising Moon does indeed have the capability to create new creatures previously unseen in Genesis. While we will still be keeping the details a secret, we are able to create new creatures, even unique ones, per our own design. While it isn¡¯t unlimited it can achieve a great deal of things, and so to lessen the number of people complaining, we¡¯re announcing a new business venture. Anyone may come to our guild and request a creature made for them, an animal of your own imagination. We¡¯ll then see if it¡¯s within our capabilities, and if it¡¯s something the guild is okay with. We won¡¯t be selling anything that¡¯s too creepy, too awful or anything that would be an outright war crime. But assuming it passes all our checks, we¡¯ll get back to you on its price, whether it¡¯s in gold, materials or favours. It won¡¯t be cheap, but we¡¯re the only ones offering this service so we set the rates. Get in quick if you want to take us up on this deal, because the queue will grow quickly. Although... we will be giving priority and discounts to the guild allies.¡± It was less than two hours since then, and they¡¯d already received hundreds of requests with more still being added. Jicker was currently splitting them into two piles: what he could do, and what he couldn¡¯t. After that it was going to be left to people with better salesmanship to figure out what he¡¯d actually be working on. They were going to delay it until the games were over to see if they could use it to leverage a few more deals and alliances. ¡°And of course, if the asteroid hits it won¡¯t matter anyway.¡± Oda reminded people when it was discussed. ¡°Have you made any progress on that front? I¡¯ve spent a fair amount of time in this game, I¡¯d rather it not get smashed beyond repair.¡± ¡°I¡¯m planning to go see them this afternoon actually, since I''m low on ideas and I''m not needed for the games anymore.¡± Jicker answered with a shrug. ¡°Someone will be managing Rubble from now on, so we should be fine for the time being, but you¡¯re not done yet. The last event of the games is a full guild war, so it¡¯s all hands on deck no matter the class.¡± Athena said without looking up as she flicked through some papers before holding one up. ¡°Hey, does anyone know what white phosphorus is? This person wants it included if possible.¡± The assassin grimaced. ¡°That goes in the ¡®no way¡¯ pile, that stuff can be nasty. Back to our conversation; see if they have any leads on how to stop it, or what we can do to help.¡± Jicker nodded. ¡°Will do. On another note, I''m gonna get out of the city for a few days.¡± ¡°What, why?¡± ¡°Like I said, I''m not needed right now. So I''m gonna head out and try and clear my head, see if I can¡¯t come up with anything to fix this mess.¡± Athena nodded. ¡°Fair enough, just make sure you¡¯re back in time for the war. Do you know where you¡¯re headed?¡± ¡°I thought I might investigate the highland area; see if I can¡¯t track down some signs of my class trainer. Maybe some new abilities will give me some new ideas.¡± ¡°Ok, stay safe out there and don''t do anything crazy.¡± Oda said warningly. ¡°Please, I''m not Gabe, what have I ever done?¡±He said defensively. ¡°The last time you travelled alone you got kidnapped repeatedly, before unleashing a plague that¡¯s trying to spread over the world with some degree of success.¡± He answered with a raised eyebrow as he crossed his arms. ¡°...Point made. I¡¯ll be good.¡± ~~~~~~ The streets were crowded as Jicker made his way through, though Hermes cut a path through as people moved away from the large crab whether they like it or not. While he was still something of an attraction, he wasn¡¯t being actively followed. Athena had made sure to have him remove all indicators he was part of the guild before he left and with good reason. While they would certainly come to his aid if he needed them, there was still a reason why most of the guild was hiding out at the secured hotel. Even as he tried to leave the building, they¡¯d first had a few people run a quick distraction so he could get past a few of the spies that were lurking about. Feeling peckish as he travelled, he decided to swing by the food court, planning to grab a few things for the trip. What he found instead as he turned a corner, was a sight he could never have prepared for. An enormous billboard had been put up, with the words ¡®The Frozen Terror¡¯ written on it. Underneath was a picture of Gabe taken during his last match, showing him playing in the snow like a child. It seemed to have been set up to try and discredit him, ruin any chance of him still having any kind of fearsome image. A crowd was gathered at a stand that had been set up beneath it, manned by the man himself. With a growing sense of dread, he approached to get a better look at the situation and sighed. Gabe had somehow gotten a hold of a number of syrups, sprinkles and a host of other sweets and had apparently started selling snow cones. Grabbing an empty paper cone, the warlock would hold it and begin dropping toppings as it filled itself with fresh ice. While one line moved quickly as they got their frozen treats, another group at the stall seemed more stationary and agitated. ¡°You coward,¡± He overheard one of them say. ¡°Get out of you little stall and fight us!¡± Gabe shrugged as he handed a cone to a customer. ¡°I¡¯ve told you I''m not fighting anyone today. Here¡¯s your strawberry snow cone miss.¡± ¡°Hey Gabe, what¡¯s all this?¡± Jicker asked. Gabe looked up with a grin. ¡°Jicker! Oda shot me a message that you¡¯re heading out for a bit, fancy a snow cone before you go? My treat!¡± ¡°Sure, but shouldn¡¯t you deal with...them? The ones threatening you?¡± ¡°What these guys? There just messing around, aren¡¯t you Dave?¡± He said, point at them with a spoon before beginning to make up another order. ¡°I''m going to rip out your spine you bastard! Just come out here and fight me!¡± ¡°See? Classic Dave!¡± Gabe laughed. ¡°But they¡¯re harmless; they¡¯re not going to do anything with the lads standing by.¡± Gesturing with his head, Gabe point to a nearby building where a group of heavily armed fighter stood around keeping an eye on things. Seeing them looking over, one of warriors gave a wave while grinning before returning to eat the frozen treat in his hand. ¡°You hired some guards? I thought you were already in trouble about the guilds funds.¡± Jicker asked. Gabe winced. ¡°I¡¯m being good I swear. I bought all this stuff out of my own pocket, and I''m not paying those guys anything, except a few snow cones on the house. There¡¯s an open contract with the city to act as addition security for the games.¡± He explained. ¡°You sign up, you get a badge and you get to play rent-a-cop. The pay isn¡¯t huge, but you get a bonus if you actually stop crimes, and one of the biggest is stopping people who attack registered stores.¡± ¡°So they¡¯re just watching you? Not patrolling or anything?¡± ¡°Why bother? Dave and his little playmates are the fifth group to come say hi this morning, so just by watching me they make bank and I stay out of Athena¡¯s bad books.¡± Jicker nodded as he processed this. ¡°That explains how... I guess, but... why?¡± He paused for a moment before clearing his throat. ¡°I really don''t want to have to sell my organs to make up for the money I lost, so I''m doing what I can.¡± ¡°You know Oda was joking about that right? He wouldn¡¯t actually-¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I thought!¡± He shouted, slapping the counter, startling the group threatening him which in turned prompted the guards to approach. ¡°But then I found a couple of messages people had dropped off making offers. Apparently my liver is valuable to people but I¡¯d still like to keep it.¡± ¡°Well we¡¯ll be happy to take it from your cold, dead corpse!¡± the man addressed as Dave screamed at him. Having had enough of being ignored, he swung an axe at Gabe¡¯s arm leaning the bench, severing it at the wrist. Instead of the normal reaction, Gabe didn¡¯t scream, flinch or even bleed. Shrugging, the warlock picked up his hand and pushed it back into place before coating the joint with ice to hold it in place. ¡°A dead corpse is just a corpse, and I''ve been a cold one of those for years now.¡± He signalled the guards, waving with his reattached hand. ¡°Okay ladies and gentleman, they¡¯ve officially attacked me, feel free to bag them up. There shouldn¡¯t be a delay on snow cones while they take care of this, but make sure to move out of the way if need be. Jicker, want something before you go?¡± Jicker looked back at the brawl beginning behind him, weapons and magic coming to bear. ¡°Do you have anything with pineapple?¡± He sighed. ¡°One pi?a colada coming up.¡± Ice in hand, he made his way through the streets, avoiding any particular clusters of people that seemed like they might be dangerous. Most of them were just groups of fans talking about the games, or guilds advertising their products or recruiting members, but every now and again he¡¯d pass an alley filled with shadowy figures. The guards did their best, but with over ten times the population being tourists, there was a reason they recruited players to help out. Outside of the city, things were quieter with most people who were attending the games having already arrived. Hermes made quick time as he skittered down the road, passing the few other people who¡¯d decided to get out for a while or had better place to be. After getting clear of the few people around, he retired deeper into Hermes shell to log out for a while. ~~~~~~This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. Taking off his headset, Matt sat up and rubbed his face before checking the clock. It was late in the morning as he got himself presentable, still struggling to wake up properly as he shaved. Heading down from his room, he sent a quick text message to let Sarah know he was on his way. When he arrived, the building seemed to be in a state of disarray. People were running from one room to another carrying folders and computers, but whenever he asked someone what was happening, all they said was that it was above their pay grade. There was no one at the front desk, but after a few minutes someone hurried towards him and said that he was to head up to the boardroom. When he got there, there were only a handful of the board members he¡¯d seen previously, and none of them look like they¡¯d been sleeping well. Most notably was August himself though it took Matt a moment to realise it was even him. Dishevelled and haggard, the man looked more like a homeless man who¡¯d wandered in than the CEO of a global corporation. Unshaven, his eye were bloodshot under a mess of unkempt hair matted with grime, his suit that likely once could have paid for a house now stained and torn. ¡°You again,¡± he growled, the man¡¯s voice raw and cracking as he turned to face him. ¡°You just... couldn¡¯t be like everyone else, couldn¡¯t just leave things as they were. Everyone was happy, the company was making money but you just couldn¡¯t accept it. Why? Why did you have to RUIN EVERYTHING!?¡± Without warning he lunged at Matt, wrapping his hands around his throat. He might have seemed like he was falling apart, but as he tried to crush the life from him, Matt could see in his eyes that he was completely focused. Pulling at his hands, Matt was unable to break the man¡¯s grip as he struggled to breathe. ¡°Everything! It all started crashing down after you got involved!¡± August shouted, spitting in his face. ¡°The game changed, my business twisted under me and... It! Your friend, another company whatever it is! They started ruining everything, they¡¯ve torn apart my life, and hit other board members as well. If it wasn¡¯t for you...¡± While Matt choked, struggling for air the doors burst open as a security team rushed into the room, quickly dragging the business man off of him. Collapsing to his knees, he took deep grateful breathes as he watched the still screaming August being frog marched out of the room. ¡°I¡¯d like to apologise for that... outburst, he¡¯s under quite a bit of stress at the moment.¡± One of the executives said, offer him a hand up. ¡°He just strangled me!¡± The man nodded with a strained expression. ¡°And as I said, I apologise. Things have been tense of late, and Mr. Fronz has been bearing the brunt of things. If you¡¯d allow us to-¡± Someone rushed into the room. ¡°Apologies, but there are some reporters down stairs wanting to speak to the CEO.¡± The executives looked to each other before nodding at some undeclared agreement. ¡°In that case,¡± the one helping him up continued. ¡°We¡¯ll continue this elsewhere while my associates handle the news. If you¡¯d care to step this way?¡± Following him out of the room, Matt saw that most of the building was in the same state of disarray, people running around and moving things seemingly at random. While just walking down a single hall ,he someone run up and connect a computer on a desk, only for someone else to unplug it and carry it off moments later. ¡°What the hell is going on?¡± Matt asked after seeing this. ¡°Please, hold your questions until we¡¯re away from prying ears.¡± Eventually they found themselves in a small unused office, marks on the floor showing it may very well have been occupied only hours ago. ¡°I¡¯ll try and make this brief, who knows how long until some tries to come in and use this office. ¡° The man said. ¡°I''m Lawrence Fisher, executive in charge of human resources, and one of the few left.¡± ¡°So you¡¯re the one I should complain to about the near attempted murder back there?¡± ¡°In another time, I would have been the person trying to cover it up at least. But things are well past that, and in your exact situation all I can say is for you to try and ignore that it happened. But that¡¯s not what we¡¯re here to talk about.¡± Matt sighed. ¡°No, it¡¯s not. I''m here to ask about... wait, what do you mean you¡¯re one of the ones left, what¡¯s happening here?¡± Lawrence paused, steepling his fingers as he thought. ¡°How do I put this... you recall the messages that Mr. Fronz was sent from an unknown source? In fact I believe you were sent something similar if I recall correctly.¡± ¡°I do.¡± Matt said hesitantly, growing more concerned. ¡°Mr. Fronz did his best to ignore them, even oppose them. But since then things have escalated considerably, and not in a positive manner. Records of his more illicit actions have been given to the press, accounts have been frozen under strange technicalities, and some more... private affairs were made known to certain parties.¡± ¡°Private affairs?¡± ¡°Well, just affairs if you must know. His wife is filling for divorce, and is trying to take the kids and half of everything. Normally the Masquerade lawyers would deal with that quickly but certain legal documents have vanished or been found to be invalid, both the physical and electronic copies. He¡¯s started lashing out at others, thinking the other executives were plotting against him.¡± ¡°Were they?¡± Matt asked, raising an eyebrow. ¡°Not exactly. At this level everything¡¯s a bit cutthroat, but all the schemes I''m aware of are all against other executives, trying to get a bigger piece of the pie. While, if I''m honest, August is a piece of human garbage who deserves what he¡¯s getting and more, he¡¯s a genius when it comes to business. He built Masquerade Entertainment up from nothing, and in that sense we all have nothing but respect for him, leaving us to fight for second place. Now, with most of being fired or having our own secrets announced by this third party, we¡¯ve initiated an act to declare him currently unfit to remain in control.¡± ¡°A coup then.¡± ¡°Again, I respect the man, or at least his outward persona. If he was nothing but the scum at his core, yes he¡¯d be out with a handshake and a kick up the rear. But the business, hell, the industry might not recover if he¡¯s removed completely, so we¡¯re doing this for his own good. He¡¯ll be unable to make any decisions until we deem him fit to return.¡± ¡°So that¡¯s what¡¯s happening is it? Everyone¡¯s running around like madmen because the bastard won¡¯t be around?¡± ¡°No, everyone¡¯s running around because he was. One of his last actions before we managed to shut him out was to try and throw off whoever¡¯s interfering with things. His idea was if he shuffled things around enough, they wouldn¡¯t be able to keep up. So he sent out a lot of orders, like, a lot of orders.¡± Matt stared at him. ¡°And people actually did it? The man¡¯s insane!¡± Lawrence chuckled. ¡°Obviously, but he¡¯s the boss, so the lawyer will back his actions regardless.¡± ¡°And the lawyers don¡¯t care about the random chaos they¡¯re causing?¡± Matt asked, before pausing as he caught himself. ¡°Right, of course not, they¡¯re lawyers.¡± With a small clap he nodded. ¡°So that¡¯s where we stand, but it should quiet down by tomorrow. But that¡¯s what¡¯s happening here, not what happening in Genesis, which I assume is why you¡¯re here?¡± ¡°There¡¯s still a world ending lump of rock heading down, so yeah, I want to know what happening with it.¡± ¡°Well...¡± he reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone, reading from a document on it. ¡°According to this, we¡¯ve tried and checked every kind of method of outright deleting it. We¡¯re looking in to seeing if we can change the ownership and permissions on it, to see if that changes things, but it¡¯s not looking promising. There are three teams looking into other potential solutions, two of which are long shots, and the other would be almost as bad as the asteroid itself, though I doubt we could get that to work either. Clearing it through a server reset was proven to be unsuccessful, and the programmers say they can¡¯t figure out anything to intercept it in a way that doesn¡¯t make it worse.¡± He put away the phone and shrugged. ¡°It seems like we¡¯re running low on ideas, so if you¡¯ve got any, we¡¯re all ears.¡± ¡°Can¡¯t you just... do it anyway? Surely anyone who found out would agree it¡¯s better to break some stupid law to get rid of it, than let it wipe out everything?¡± Matt asked, running his fingers through his hair. Lawrence raised his eyebrows at his words. ¡°Law...? Ah, so you¡¯ve only been clued in that far. Well, it¡¯s certainly not my place to go over those matters, but in short there are other factors in play. Believe me, if the courts were all we had to worry about, we wouldn¡¯t even be having this conversation. I¡¯ll let a few people know about your visit, and it¡¯ll be up to them what to tell you about things. It¡¯s all very secretive I''m afraid, so I can¡¯t say anymore on the issue. But for now I suggest you return to your hotel room and back to Genesis. You¡¯re more likely to find an answer in there than you do out here. Now if that¡¯s all Mr. Harper, I¡¯d now like to ask you to see yourself out.¡± ~~~~~~ Logging back in Jicker found that Hermes had been making good progress on his journey. Now that he was properly registered, no one would mistake him for a wild monster, and while travelling on the main roads, other creatures shouldn¡¯t be an issue. At least that had been the situation before he¡¯d unthinkingly unleashed a growing epidemic on the world in the form of the greycaps. People were still safe enough on the roads, but the roads themselves had developed a tendency of disappearing under newly grown trees from the Blightwoods. Like the one he was looking at now that Hermes happily ran towards, unafraid of the dangers thanks the immunity from the golden crown. ¡°Everyone get ready, we¡¯re going to make another push in a minute!¡± Turning to see where the noise came from, he saw a few dozen people, most of whom were mounted, all getting ready to seemingly charge forwards. Yet while they were heavily armed and armoured, there were looks of resignation on their faces, as if they already knew how it was going to go. Looking across the field to see their opponents, he saw the remains of a small farmhouse, half swallowed by the growing Blightwood. In addition to the trees he saw a small group of familiar figures, in a combination he hadn''t expected to see. Standing by the edge of the newly formed woods, a group of greycaps stood by with a number of poppits, going through what seemed to be a ceremony. Bringing Hermes to a stop, Jicker watched with interest, seeing how far his spur of the moment creation had developed. With great reverence, the tiny mushroom figures carefully brushed the animal¡¯s fur with sap in sections, creating a scale like effect of the hardened material. The rabbit like creatures remained stationary, already under the spell of the greycap spores their noses twitching slightly at the scents in the air. Once the coating was done, a number of greycaps walked forward, kneeling as another walked past them, painting little lines on their faces, and on their caps. It would have been a serious scene otherwise, but the tiny mushrooms and rabbits made it seem to Jicker that it was just children acting out a play. With the painting done, they all stood and got on to a poppit, forming the smallest cavalry detachment while another pulled a horn out. Raising it up they gave their best attempt, but all that came out was a stuttering whistle. It was enough however, and the poppits leapt into action, running as fast as they could towards the enemy. With their riders weighing them down and their fur sealed into pieces of resin, this speed was slightly below a person''s walking pace but they ran their hardest nonetheless. ¡°Gods, okay its happening.¡± The leader of players called, defeat in their voice. ¡°Let¡¯s see if we can hold them back this time, or whether mages are going to need to bombard the area again. Charge!¡± The players began to move forwards, cautiously at first, then giving in to their goal and racing to battle. The fight was comically one sided, a group of seasoned warriors facing off against what was more suited to be a cereal mascot. But as the two sides got closer, the woods shook behind them as bodies flew out, groaning and growling as they launched forwards. A handful of people, scores of monsters and seemingly hundreds of animals spilled out, running mindlessly across the field, all with the tell tale marks of being converted into fungal zombies. Overtaking the greycaps, the undead crashed into the warriors with no strategy or formation, using nothing but strength, numbers and a complete lack of fear or pain. A wave of biting, clawing muscle, they struck the players hard, bring down a few on impact and breaking their line. The adventures were quick to respond however, deploying abilities and barriers to both regroup and funnel the enemy into a more manageable group. Heavy shields were held in front to take the brunt of the attack, while spears stood behind to attack from safety. Several rogues wove between them, cutting down the smaller creatures that slipped through while healers supported them all. Mages and archers stood furthest away, launching attacks into the mass behind, relying on brute force instead of precision strikes. All the while, the majority stood waiting, readying themselves for when the line fell, and it would turn from an organized assault into chaos. It wasn¡¯t long before the first defender fell, unable to withstand the overwhelming number that had surprised. The others shifted their positions, trying to make up for the loss, but the tipping point had already been reached. One after the other, they fell to the undead until the line collapsed completely, giving way to the next phase of the battle. The melee fighters, who¡¯d been holding back, now found themselves surrounded by enemies and wasted no time in bringing out their best moves. Zombies were torn apart by the forces, begin sliced, crushed, pierced and destroyed in countless ways. The undead push ground to a halt, its momentum countered as it ran headlong into kill box that had been set up. Flames washed over the horde turning dozens of small creatures to ash, and it seemed like the players had them on the ropes. Then the first of the mounted greycaps reached the battle, it spelled the end. They took out tiny spears and jabbed into the side of the poppits once they amongst the players, causing a chain of explosions. The sap coating broke off under the force, filling the air with razor sharp pieces of shrapnel from the kamikaze attack. Every figure, zombie or player, was brought down from the blast leaving the battle still barring the twitching of a few bodies. After a few minutes of nothing happening, Jicker was about to head over and see if there was anything worth looting when figures began stirring. The players who had grouped up to attack the woods struggled to their feet and helped each other up. Looking around, they seemed unfocused as if still reeling from the explosion, struggling to stand up straight. He was about to call out to them to see if they wanted help, when one turned and waved to him. Even from his distance he could see the telltale signs of the zombie infection, and remained silent as the group turned as one and walked into the Blightwoods. A moment passed before he shook his head and nudged Hermes back into motion, continuing on his journey. ¡°Huh,¡± he muttered to himself as he thought. ¡°Neat.¡± Chapter 40 ¡°... so then he says that it¡¯s not his place to talk about, like it¡¯s above him somehow, despite him being on the board. What¡¯s so important that he wouldn¡¯t have permission to talk about it? I''m under the biggest non disclosure agreement there could be, so what wouldn¡¯t he be willing to talk about?¡± Hermes burbled in response, both uncaring and unable to properly understand. Jicker sat back and sighed, looking around him as they travelled onwards. The woods were thick as Hermes forced his way through, his bulk proving surprising adept at twisting between the trees. Being able to ignore the sticking effects of the sap thanks to the Goldcrowns aura, the crab pushed rapidly through the foliage, not caring about touching what would otherwise be potentially deadly. The light vanished quickly as the canopy above became too dense for the sun to pierce through, leaving them to travel through murky darkness. This wasn¡¯t a real issue however, since gremlins had excellent night vision, and Hermes barely needed to see anything to know where he was going. It was quiet as they moved through the trees, no bird song, no animals, not even wind moving the leaves. The only sound was the ground giving out under Hermes¡¯ weight, the forest floor covered in a thin layer of rotting vegetation from before the Blightwoods taking over. After the first hour, Jicker had found the silence uncomfortable, and had begun using his mount as a sounding board. But even that became awkward after a while, leaving him to sit in silence, alone with his thoughts. As evening fell and the few traces of sunlight faded away, it became apparent that they were going to need to find a spot to stop for the evening. While Hermes could travel for days without rest, the last thing he wanted was for the crab to take him all the way to the Nemesis while he wasn¡¯t even awake. Searching for a clearing large enough that Hermes could sit down comfortably for the night, Jicker was caught off guard when he heard a laugh come from not too far off in the woods. Not a haunting child¡¯s laughter that one might expect to hear in the deserted woods at night, but a hearty laugh of someone who was almost definitely alive. Tapping the crab¡¯s shell, Hermes got the message and the two slowed, quietly approaching, fire light making it out from between the plants as they did so. Dismounting, he quietly walked in on foot, not wanting to startle anyone by bringing in a giant armoured crab. As he broke the tree line, he was greeted with a brightly lit campfire that blinded him momentarily, having gotten used to the darkness. The talking he¡¯d heard on approach stopped immediately, weapons being drawn as he blinked his eyes clear. ¡°Dammit Greg, you¡¯re supposed to be on watch, a damn mob just walked right into camp, the hell are you doing?¡± One of the men shouted in a gruff voice. ¡°My best dammit! I don''t see anyone else standing out here looking!¡± A reply came from the opposite direction. ¡°Did it drop anything interesting?¡± ¡°Just getting to that part.¡± Turning the person faced Jicker holding a sword out stretched. ¡°Now, c¡¯mere you, it¡¯s too late to chase you down through these woods so let¡¯s make this nice and easy...¡± Jicker quickly held up his hands. ¡°Easy! I''m a player, just wondering if I can share your campsite, no need for violence!¡± The campers paused but no weapons were lowered. ¡°A player huh, weird lookin¡¯... you alone?¡± Jicker let out a sigh of relief, lowering his hands. ¡°Yeah, just me. I was trying to get through the woods but its taking a bit longer than planned so I was-¡° The man laughed, several others chuckling as well. ¡°Let me rephrase that.¡± He began, giving his sword a few practice swings as he slowly stepped closer. ¡°You¡¯re out here, alone, in an area where people die suddenly all the time? Where people get kidnapped and murdered by the many bandits hiding out in these woods since the guards aren¡¯t going anywhere near them? And with all that in mind, you just walk up to the first campfire you see?¡± He laughed again. ¡°You might be a player, but you¡¯re sure not smart.¡± ¡°...ah.¡± Processing the man¡¯s words, he stumbled back, narrowly avoiding their sword as it swung down. Quickly turning he ran back into the vegetation, only to feel a burning pain in his back as he did so.
Sneak attack! You have taken 357 damage. You have resisted the poison!
Staggering forwards, he turned his head to find a barbed arrowhead protruding from his shoulder, having pierced all the way through. Gritting his teeth he pushed on, diving further into the darkness, zigzagging as he ran in hopes to avoid any other arrows. ¡°Look at the little guy!¡± A woman from the group called out mirthfully. ¡°John, you want to go catch him?¡± ¡°Nah, it¡¯s cold and dark out there and besides, he¡¯ll probably die from the poison anyway. We can have a look for the body later, so someone leave a marker of which way ran...¡± The voices faded away as he kept running not trusting the idea that they¡¯d actually let him go. He was so concerned with what lay behind him that he almost ran face first into another figure that was standing silently in the dark. Grabbing his shoulder that sill throbbed; he looked at the person in front of him and actually felt relieved when he saw they were a monster. They¡¯d been human once, but a person generally had more of a throat if they were still alive. Looking around he saw the entire clearing was filled with similar figures, undead people and animals all with horrific and fungal growths covering their bodies. In the centre of the group were several dozen Greycaps, climbing over and investigating Hermes, who for their part didn¡¯t seem to care much and took care not to accidently squash the little figures. ¡°Having fun are we?¡± He said, surprising them and sending one tumbling down from the top of the crabs shell. Hermes was quick to help though, and snagged the poor mushroom before it hit the ground, getting a small cheer from the others. Putting it down, the crab turned to its master and made distressed noises when it noticed his injury. ¡°This?¡± Jicker said pointing at the arrow. ¡°I¡¯ll be fine once I take some healing pills, just needed to find somewhere safe to pull it out first.¡± Numbing the area as best he could with anaesthetic, he drew his scalpel and slowly began cutting through the back of the arrow, struggling to get purchase thanks to the angle. Eventually it broke away, leaving him to grit his teeth at the next part. Taking a deep breath he grabbed the arrow just behind the head and tried to pull it out.
Strength check failed! You have taken 53 damage for failing to remove the Arrow of Anchoring.
¡°God dammit that hurts!¡± He swore as he was hit with a new wave of pain, the arrow refusing to budge under his efforts. The arrow they¡¯d hit him was apparently enchanted, normally used for attaching ropes for climbing, but there were always those who turned tools to weapons. Until it was removed he wouldn¡¯t be able to heal the injury, and if he hadn¡¯t resisted the poison, he¡¯d be left crippled from that too. ¡°I hate bandits, but at least I didn¡¯t get kidnapped again.¡± He grumbled as he swallowed a pill to remove the new damage. ¡°Hermes, come over here and...¡± Pausing as the crab stood, he looked at its heavy snapping claws, each larger than his whole body. ¡°...You know what, I''m not strong, but I''m not an idiot either, sit back down.¡± Jicker sat down himself, carefully leaning against a rock to keep pressure off his injury while he thought. He could head back to Macross and find someone in the guild to deal with it, but travelling back to have what was basically a big splinter removed would be more than a little embarrassing. These thoughts were quickly interrupted by further jolts of pain as he felt something tugging on the arrow, making him gasp in shock. Turning gingerly, he saw that one of the Greycaps had come up and had tried to pull the arrow free, but achieved little more than wiggling around a little, causing yet more damage. ¡°Thanks for trying,¡± he said through gritted teeth. ¡°But it¡¯s stuck in pretty good and you¡¯re not strong enough to pull it out. So please, stop touching it.¡± The Greycap tilted its head to the side in thought before hopping away and trilling softly, calling out to several others. They whistled to each other, discussing something as Jicker watched on bemused, before they started piling around him and all tried to grab the arrow together before he quickly intervened. ¡°Stop, wait a second!¡± he shouted as he waved them off with his good arm. ¡°I get that you want to help, but even together you¡¯re not strong enough.¡± The greycaps moved back and seemed to go back to the drawing board for a minute, until one paused, raised a hand and gave a questioning burble. The others went silent before burying their faces in their hands and laughing. The one who¡¯d raised the question whistled loudly, and turned to face out into the trees. A moment passed before heavy footprints could be heard stomping through the woods, revealing a true monster. ¡°How did you little guys manage this?¡± Jicker asked, honestly impressed. Standing before them was a giant that had fallen victim to the greycaps spores. It still wore heavy black armour, the few gaps it had now filled with the Blightwood fungus, leaving it completely sealed everywhere but its eyes, which stared out, grey and lifeless. In one hand it held the remains of an enormous sword, the blade snapped just above the hilt, while the other reached for Jicker before he could react. Without so much as a warning, the undead giant pinched the head of the arrow between two fingers and tore it free, a gout of blood following it for a few moments. For the next minute, all the gremlin could do was sit there and try to breathe while choking down more healing concoctions. ¡°Ow,¡± He said emotionlessly once he had it under control. ¡°But thanks. Which of you managed to get control of this guy?¡± The little Greycap that had whistled for the giant jumped up and down, waving its stubby arms in the air happily. It called out again and the giant reached down once more, this time picking the little figure up and gently placing it on its shoulder, where it struck a proud pose. ¡°That¡¯s...how did you actually manage this? No offense, but you guys aren¡¯t really up to fighting someone like this.¡± Dropping their stance, they seemed embarrassed as they had the giant turn around, lesser undead scattering out of the way of the armoured hulk. Covering most of its back were huge tears where something claws had ripped into the armour as if it had been made of paper. Whatever had attacked it wasn¡¯t just a dumb beast though, because once it had gotten through the metal, there was only a single injury of note. An almost perfect circle over a foot wide had been bored into its back, tearing out its heart while leaving everything else almost untouched. If the Giant wasn¡¯t completely dead, it would still have every other organ working just fine.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°Or as fine as they could be without a heart.¡± Jicker said to himself as he finished his train of thought. ¡°You guys didn¡¯t kill it, you what, found them right before they kicked off?¡± They nodded sadly. ¡°Don¡¯t be upset, there¡¯s nothing wrong with scavenging, I''ve done it myself. But where did you find them, I don¡¯t really want to run into whatever did this.¡± The giant, along with all the Greycaps, turned and pointed into the darkness, causing Hermes to burble in alarm. ¡°We¡¯re travelling that way, are we Hermes? Great, this is exactly how I wanted today to go. I don''t suppose you guys and your big new friend are heading that way too?¡± Heads shook, and they pointed the other direction, but as they did the arrow still stuck in the giant¡¯s hand caught his eye. ¡°Well, if you¡¯re not up to travelling along with me, I don''t suppose you feel like visiting a few other people tonight? If it¡¯s not far out of your way, maybe show them a little of the care they showed me?¡± he asked, gesturing to his shoulder. Greycaps mislead many people with their appearance, and if people didn¡¯t know about them beforehand, they¡¯d surely think they were innocent. They were tiny, soft and spent most of their time playing around, giggling like curious children. But one look at them while their expressions twisted into evil smiles and it was clear they were killers. ¡°That¡¯s a yes then? Well before you go then, I''ve got a few toys and other bits and pieces you can use if you feel like it, now where¡¯s my bag...¡± ~~~~~~ John yawned as he stared at the fire, idly wondering why a flame in the game made him sleepy like a real one, but not one on a video. They¡¯d been camped out in this section of the Blightwoods for a little over a week now, picking off people trying to get through on their way to Macross, but now that the games were in full swing their targets had dropped off. Scratching his chin, he wondered if they should call it, move on and find another place to stake out. They only got two people yesterday, and the only player they¡¯d even seen today had been the weird green one that had walked straight into their camp on their own. Yawning again, he rubbed his eyes, smiling as he remembered the fool¡¯s face when they¡¯d finally worked out what was happening. He sometimes made fun of Mitch using such expensive items on every target, but he couldn¡¯t deny their effectiveness. As he stood up to go and see if the body was lying just behind the tree line, he wobbled, and wondered if he should log off, since he really shouldn¡¯t be this tired. But when he blearily looked over to where their victim had escaped through, he woke up with a shot of adrenaline as he spotted a small glass bottle with thin blue vapour pouring out from it. ¡°Wake up you bastards!¡± He screamed at the rest of the camp who were lying around him, struggling to remember when exactly everyone else had fallen asleep. Slapping his cheeks to try and shake it off, he kicked a sleeper and drew his blade, getting ready. ¡°We¡¯re under attack! Sleeping gas or something, get the hell up now! Greg, how the hell have you missed things twice tonight, get in here and secure the area!¡± While he couldn¡¯t see any actual threats yet, John was glad to see Greg¡¯s hooded form step out from the darkness. The man might have made for a terrible watchman, but he was a hell of an assassin, and his skills tended to even the odds when they struck at groups that outnumbered them. ¡°You actually manage to spot anything out there, or were you just asleep up a tree again?¡± John asked, eyeing the surrounding area, trusting his back to his team mate. ¡°See if you can get anyone else up, a quick slap ought to do it, and yeah I¡¯ll take the heat if Molly complains.¡± Scanning the area he tried to focus, and began to move to kick away the bottle that was still leaking, but was stopped when a hand fell on his shoulder. Turning he found Greg standing behind him, his hood still drawn low. ¡°Greg, you need to get your shit together, now what-¡± Whatever else he¡¯d wanted to say died in his throat as Greg threw back his hood, revealing a Greycap squatting atop the torn stump of the man¡¯s neck. The monster¡¯s face was set in a wide grin, its purple light quickly joined by a dozen more that lit up in the darkness, revealing them to be surrounded. ¡°You little shit¡¯s! You¡¯re gonna pay for this!¡± As he brought his sword back to begin his swing, he was thrown to the side as something sped from the darkness, crashing into him. Rolling back to his feet, he looked to what had attacked him, to find Greg¡¯s severed head, now partially crushed from the force of the impact. ¡°What the hell is going on?!¡± he screamed in a panic. Moving back, he turned to face where the head had come from, only to see a black clad giant breach the canopy, and step towards him, a broken sword raised in one hand, and the shaft of an arrow in the other. ~~~~~~ When Jicker finally broke through to the other side of the Blightwoods it was just approaching midday, the warm sun relaxing after hours of dark and dreary shade. Stretching, he crawled out from Hermes¡¯ shell and looked around at the Highlands, seeing how they¡¯d fared since the last time he was here. It had been a wide open area, filled with hills that had been covered with long abandoned farms. While the farmers only existed in history books, their fields still covered the area in golden wheat, the stepped terraces broken by the occasional plateau of white marble jutting from the ground. It was these plateaus that gave the area its name, since the higher areas of land were claimed by various territorial beasts. The taller and wider the area, the stronger the monster it held, making the area both dangerous to the unprepared, and easy to navigate for those who were. While he hadn¡¯t spent too much thought into an area that had been abandoned by its very design, he hadn¡¯t let it off easy with the forces involved. A rain of hell fire had been deployed in the area, the blistering heat burning away the crops, blackening the marble and turning the very soil to crude black glass. But even that hadn¡¯t been enough to break it down it seemed, with rain and wind slowly scouring the marble white again, and verdant green shoots breaking the ground all over the place. Climbing down, Jicker picked up a piece of the ground that had broken under Hermes¡¯ weight, feeling oddly happy that his work would be almost unnoticeable within a few more months. ¡°Now Hermes, you¡¯ve got a good sense of direction, where can we find the Nemesis?¡± he asked the giant crab that had started chewing some shoots it had dug out. Turning about, Hermes smacked the ground a few times before looking at him hopefully while continuing to eat. ¡°Here... Right they¡¯re supposed to be somewhere around here and you don''t know any better than I do. I don''t know why I thought you¡¯d know, but hope springs eternal I guess.¡± He said with a sigh. ¡°Well, grab yourself a clawful if you want, you can eat while we look around.¡± With the Games on, it wasn¡¯t really a surprise that an area this close to Macross was largely deserted of players. With wide sunny pathways and all the monsters of note up on the plateaus, travelling was actually peaceful for once. Hermes had no problems clambering up the terraces, even travelling vertically sometime as his legs dug deep into the earth beneath. It had left Jicker to grab on to his mount desperately the first time it had happened, but with a scolded crab and piece of rope to function as a seatbelt, the rest of the trip went smoothly. ¡°Is there anyone else?!¡± A voice cried out, catching their attention. Hermes paused, turning around and preparing to head towards the sound, just waiting for the command. ¡°Are you... making fun of me?¡± Jicker asked incredulously. ¡°I got shot just yesterday for going towards random voices, and now you expect me to do it again anyway?¡± Hermes waited patiently. ¡°Look we¡¯re out here looking for a monster, not a person, and there¡¯s a lot of area to cover, so we can¡¯t just suddenly go off to see other people. Especially when we don''t know who they are, or what they want. It could even be a monster for all we know... Yes, I know what I said, stop looking at me like that.¡± He sighed. ¡°You know what, fine! Just know that if it turns out to be a monster that eats me, It¡¯ll eat you too, and you¡¯ll deserve it. Okay, go on then.¡± The crab burbled happily, and headed towards the voice. ~~~~~~ ¡°Anyone else? We¡¯re on a deadline, but if you can hear me give a shout and we¡¯ll wait!¡± The voice, a woman¡¯s now that they had gotten close enough to hear it properly, had been shouting out for the last few minutes as they approached. She had impressed him with just how loud she could be, but some comments had also given him a few doubts as to her state of mind.¡± ¡°Looking for people who are happy to die! Slowly is better, but everyone is welcome!¡± ¡°Accepting anyone who can be stabbed, burned, broken or crushed, the more vulnerable the better!¡± ¡°Short term offer, be quick and dead, or slow and boring!¡± When they rounded the final bend, Jicker was surprised to see a large group of players milling about, surrounding a cat-folk woman with a paper megaphone, standing atop a large bison. ¡°Last call, everyone¡¯s welcome with almost no chance of reward, come throw yourselves to your deaths!¡± she called out, her voice thundering around them. As the last echoes faded away, her ears twitched as she listened out for any replies before shrugging and throwing the megaphone away. Hopping down, she beckoned everyone to come closer. ¡°Can everyone hear me? What am I saying, of course you can! Now I''m sure a lot of you have questions, so does anyone know what I''ve been calling you all for?¡± she asked. ¡°...Suicide?¡± someone asked jokingly, getting a few chuckles. She scrunched up her face. ¡°If you thought that and came here anyway, strongly consider getting help. But I get that I might have caused some confusion, so let¡¯s take it from the top. I¡¯m Anna, leader of the Screaming Tigers guild, and a few hours ago one of our scouts spotted the Nemesis not too far away.¡± Like a dam bursting, everyone began talking at once, with almost a quarter of the crowd beginning to leave immediately. For his part, Jicker suddenly found himself incredibly interested in what Anna had to say. ¡°Hey!¡± she shouted, drowning everyone else out. ¡°I''m a Sonic Speaker, so you are going to hear what I have to say! Now then, as you all guessed, yes our guild is going to make a run at them, and yes we¡¯re looking to get as many people as we can. If you got this spot under your own power, you¡¯ve got all the skills we¡¯re looking for. This is the Nemesis, so I''m not gonna bother lying and saying we have a genius plan, because those don''t work against it. What I can say is we have a number of high levelled players with a wide range of damage types, so we should be able to beat it, assuming we live long enough. That¡¯s where everyone else comes in, myself included. Every person fighting it is another time it¡¯ll have to switch things up, exposing different weaknesses for other people to hit while it kills that person. I know it¡¯s not a great plan but drowning the enemy in bodies works depressingly well on most things, so we¡¯re trying it here as well. If we fail we¡¯ll all die, so plan for that, but if we win, the survivors will get some impressive loot to split with everyone, and we¡¯ll all get to say we took down the Nemesis. So, who¡¯s in?¡± ¡°...When do we attack?¡± ~~~~~~ The Nemesis, a beast feared by more players than almost any other, stood alone on an outcropping of stone, seeming to survey its domain. Twelve feet tall, it was a greyish humanoid, yet...off. Its arms were too long, its legs bending too far, its shoulders too narrow. It was as if someone had taken a child''s drawing and given it form. It turned at their approaching party, not out of concern or to threaten them, but just to notice a change in the landscape. Someone had asked what the plan was if it had stayed up on the plateau it had claimed, but it had turned into a non issue. The Nemesis was a lot of things, almost everything in fact, but a coward wasn¡¯t one of them, and there had never been a case where it had done anything but fight to the death when attacked. Now that it faced them, Jicker could get a look at its features, or more accurately, the lack of them. Where there should have been a face, there was just sagging leathery skin, the same as the kind that covered it¡¯s whole body. It gave the appearance of being half melted, like a wax figure left out in the sun too long. ¡®Is it already fighting someone? Why does it look like that?¡± Someone asked quietly. Anna shook her head before whispering back. ¡°First time seeing it? This is what it looks like when it''s left alone, its ¡®default¡¯, I guess. Now come on, everybody start spreading out, we need to surround it to have a chance.¡± Slowly they began to fan out, all being sure to keep their distance, not wanting to end being the first to draw its ire. Jicker stood out on the field, one of the only people to have brought a mount out, and certainly the largest on the field. Other players were torn between trying to hide behind it, or keeping far away from the giant target. Eventually everyone found a position, bunkers were rapidly dug and walls erected, all while the creature watched on impassively. ¡°So when do we start?¡± A man asked while shouldering a glowing hammer. ¡°We¡¯re getting ready to launch the first strike soon, so that¡¯ll be when we begin.¡± Anna answered with a shrug. ¡®Soon¡¯ became a minute, then five, and before long half an hour had passed. People sat around, being constantly ready to go fraying people¡¯s nerves, and being almost as exhausting as the battle itself would be. ¡°Are you ready yet? This is killing me!¡± A woman called out, voice filled with nerves. ¡°This was a spur of the moment attack, we¡¯re doing what we can but it¡¯ll be ready when it¡¯s ready.¡± Anna answered unhelpfully. Another five minutes passed before someone finally snapped. An elf in a white robe leapt to his feet and using his staff drew a large runic circle on the ground before standing inside and began channelling magic. ¡°What the hell are you doing you idiot¡± Anna shouted, running over to try and stop him. ¡°You wanted an opening attack,¡± The wizard said scornfully. ¡°Well here it is!¡± Before she could stop him, the circle lit up with a blinding light illuminating the area before it was sucked away into the staff he carried. A moment later it was released as a ray of brilliant energy, lancing up to the Nemesis who remained motionless. Right before the ray struck the creature¡¯s body seemed to ripple, a change passing over it faster than even the oncoming attack. The grey leathery skin that hung loosely was replaced with a clear, glass-like substance, converting even its bones and organs until it became a being of pure crystal, its hands now tipped with jagged claws. As the beam struck, the creature didn¡¯t try to block or dodge, instead it just remained still, as the beam passed through like light through a window. As the attack went off into the distance behind it, the crystalline monster leaned forwards and dropped off the edge it perched on, quickly kicking off the wall and launching at the shocked Light mage. The claws it had grown passed as effortlessly through the man¡¯s robes as the beam had gone through its form. Tossing aside the now dying mage, it took in the sight of the now panicking group around it, who were just now readying their own attacks, and screamed a single clear note, before charging forwards.