Battleborne

by Dave Willmarth

  Max had been walking back toward the pond. He retrieved his bunny carcass, then moved over to his new campsite and set it down. As he began to clear a spot near the boulders for a campfire, he asked, “Can you teach me the spell?”

  Red shook her head. “One of the many things I am forbidden to do.”

  A thought struck him, and he asked, “Can trolls do fire magic? With their combustible blood, I mean?”

  “Hmmm… you know, I don’t know. I’ve never seen, or heard of, a troll using fire magic. So maybe not? It could be that they just don’t have the affinity. Or that they don’t want to take the risk? Could also be that some of them have taken the risk, and gone up in flames.” She winked at him.

  “That’s very helpful. Thank you.” He snarked at her. “I guess we’ll try this the old-fashioned way.”

  Once he had his spot cleared, he retrieved an armload of fist-sized stones from the rubble around the boulders, and placed them in a circle. Then he built up a tripod of twigs, adding more and more until he switched to thicker sticks. He left an opening in one side, for air flow and access.

  Taking a particularly dry stick in hand, he used his thumbnail to split it in half. Then he scraped out a shallow depression in one of the halves, drilling the smallest of holes in the bottom. Placing the dried moss, and a pinch of bunny hair he pulled from the hide, into the depression, he raised the half-stick up off the ground and set the shaped end atop another stick, then looked up. “Wish me luck!”

  Taking the other half of the stick in one hand, and holding the shaped half still with his other, he began to rub the first against the second in a rapid back and forth motion. With his improved strength, he had to be careful not to break either half. He moved his right hand back and forth as quickly as he could, rubbing the stick against the piece on the ground just in front of the moss and hair. Faster and faster, he rubbed the two pieces of dry wood against each other, building up friction. The shaped piece began to darken as it heated up, and rubbing began to create a squeaking sound.

  Max gritted his teeth and pushed just a little bit harder as he moved back and forth. A tiny tendril of smoke curled up from the spot of greatest friction. Max took a deep breath and began going even faster. Finally, after nearly ten minutes, the friction increased the heat enough to create a tiny spark within the moss. And that was all it took. A gentle puff of air from his lips, and the spark ignited the moss and hair. He sprinkled some more on top of the little flame, then shoved the end of the smoking stick into his pre-built fire. Another few more gentle puffs of air, and the flame began to grow. Soon he had a nicely crackling fire going inside the ring of stones.

  Feeding it a few more substantial sticks, he turned his attention to the bunny. Removing the two sparkly stones, he set about using his claws and even his teeth to separate the skin from the meat. When he’d fully skinned the bunny, only tearing the hide a half dozen times in the process, he found himself a sharp stick and skewered the meat.

  Red, who had been watching with interest the entire time, spoke as he extended the meat out over the fire. “That was a lot of damn work just to start a fire.”

  “Tell me about it. Right about now I’d give my left nut for that Spark spell, and a frying pan.”

  Red gasped, then giggled. “Don’t say things like that! This world has a habit of hearing and holding you to such statements. Promises and oaths are acknowledged and upheld by the gods. Breaking an oath carries dire penalties.”

  “Shit. Duly noted.” Max rotated the meat slightly, wanting to make sure it cooked evenly. “Since no frying pan or spell scroll magically appeared just now, I assume I’m safe?”

  “Probably.” Red drifted down from her hovering to sit upon a nearby stone. “That smells good.”

  Max looked over at her. “I thought you couldn’t interact with the physical world?”

  Red blushed. “I can’t. I was just trying to make you feel good about your efforts. One bit of useful information I can give you, since you’re trying your hand at cooking. The world is full of herbs and plants that can be used to flavor your food, or as a supplement. Since you don’t have access to a trainer at the moment, I would hold off on experimenting. But it’s something you should consider, later.”

  “Oh! Hey, I found these rocks…” Max grabbed one of them and held it out toward her as he pulled the meat from the fire and set it aside with his other hand. “There’s a shiny metal vein inside it. I’m trying to figure out whether it’s a valuable metal.”

  “Did you try to Examine it?”

  Sheepishly pulling the stone back, he shook his head. “In fact, I did not. But I will now.” He focused on the stone in his hand, specifically the shiny vein visible along one side. After staring for about three seconds, a description popped up.

  Small Vein of Copper Ore

  Weight: 6oz

  The moment he was done reading the description, it was replaced with a notification.

  You have learned the skill: Mining!

  Alright, so you just picked the rock up off the ground, and didn’t actually work for it. But some part of you knew enough to lug it around in that smelly bunny corpse.

  Continued use of this skill may increase its level and functionality.

  “Hey, Red? What’s with the attitude in these notifications?” He set down the rock and picked up the other one.

  “No idea what you mean.” When he looked up at Red, she was staring at her feet, avoiding his gaze.

  “Of course not.” He focused on the second rock just as he had on the first, and smiled when the description popped up.

  Small Magnesite Vein

  Weight: 7oz

  Skill level increase! Your Mining skill has increased by +1!

  “Okay, I have another question. Why did the Mining skill kick in after I examined the metal, rather than when I first picked up the rocks?”

  “The gods have a sense of humor, and it is reflected in some of the quirks you will find from time to time. When you picked up those rocks, you only knew them to be rocks. It wasn’t until you used Examine that you became aware of their properties as valuable ore.”

  “And the weight designation? I’m guessing that’s the weight of the ore once its separated from the surrounding stone?”

  “You are correct, Maximilian Storm.”

  “Please, just call me Max.”

  “Of course, Maximilian Storm.” Max jerked his head up from staring at the magnesite, and she giggled. “Sorry, Max. Just messing with you. It’s so easy.”

  “I recognize magnesite. From my explosives training years ago. It’s a source of magnesium.” He muttered, turning the stone over and over in his hand.

  “Correct again. As you increase your Mining skill, you will eventually learn how to convert the raw ore into usable material. Or you can simply purchase the Refining and Smelting skills.”

  Max shook his head. “Assuming I ever make it to a settlement of some kind.” He stared harder at the stone. “I am going to try something. You might want to back up.”

  Stepping well back from the fire himself, he picked up a discarded leaf from one of his firewood sticks and laid it flat on the ground. Using his thumbnail, he scraped at the magnesite vein inside the rock. Initially he was very careful and slow, not wanting to create friction, and thus heat, as he scratched. A few small particles dropped onto the leaf. Another two minutes of careful scraping, and he had accumulated a tiny pile of the mineral, about the size of a pea. Setting the stone down, he carefully wrapped the leaf around the magnesite dust.

  “Alright, here goes nothing.” He took another step back from the fire, then gently tossed the leaf bundle into it. There was a brief delay, then a bright white flash as the heat reached the magnesite dust and a molten flame shot upward for about two seconds.

  Skill level increase! Your Mining skill has increased by +1!

  Max uttered is best evil overlord laugh. “Muah ha ha!”

  Red shrugged. “Big deal. You made a mineral explode. Sk
ill boost. Hooray.”

  “I’m not done yet!” Max glared at her. He scraped off some more of the magnesite, a much smaller amount this time. Gathering it into a tight pile in the center of another leaf, he used one of his claws to prick his finger. Holding it over the leaf, he squeezed the finger until a couple drops of his blood mixed with the magnesite. Carefully wrapping the leaf, he once again tossed it into the fire. The flare was much larger this time, but less bright, having a blueish shade to it.

  You have learned the skill: Alchemy!

  By recognizing a potential result of a combination of raw materials including your own unique blood, and its interaction with the element of fire, you have stumbled onto the skill of Alchemy.

  Continued use of this skill may increase its level and functionality.

  “Yessss!” Max pumped a fist into the air.

  Red nodded, grudgingly. “Alright, that was pretty cool. Well done. Maybe you’re not such a dumbass after all. Alchemy is a powerful, useful, and potentially lucrative profession. Now you’ll need to work on developing more gathering skills in order to obtain the many and varied ingredients you’ll need.”

  Max stowed the two rocks in his inventory, noting that they took up one slot each. His stomach growled again, and he returned to the bunny kabob, picking up the stick and extending it back out over the fire. A few quiet minutes later, he decided the meat was cooked enough, and pulled some from the stick. Popping it into his mouth, he chewed carefully.

  You have learned the skill: Cooking!

  By gathering, preparing, and only slightly scorching a food ingredient, you have earned the skill: Cooking.

  Continued use of this skill may increase its level and functionality.

  “Not bad.” The meat was a little gamy, and could use some salt and melted butter, but when he swallowed, his stomach gurgled happily.

  Ten minutes later, he’d finished off the entire rabbit, nibbled every bit of meat he could from its bones, and was leaning back against one of the boulders. “Ahhhhh.”

  The sun was beginning to set, and the extremely stressful day was starting to catch up with him. His eyes grew heavy as he leaned against the rock, the warmth of the fire and the sound of the breeze making him sleepy. He was about to doze off, when thoughts of the wolf prowling around earlier brought him back awake.

  Red saw the look on his face, and guessed at his concern. “This world has safe zones where one can sleep in peace, without the worry of being attacked. Campsites are one such zone. Yours is primitive, and just barely qualifies. Normally one would need a tent, or a makeshift shelter, along with a campfire. In this case, the boulders behind and above you are sufficient shelter. As long as you keep the fire between you and the outside world, and keep it burning, you may sleep safely.”

  Max piled a couple good-sized sections of branch onto the fire, and leaned back against the warming boulder. “Can you wake me in… two hours? So I can feed the fire?”

  “I can. You have the ability to set your own alarms, which I can teach you about tomorrow. For tonight, I will assist. And based on the last hour’s fuel consumption, the wood you have added to the fire will last four hours, not two. I will wake you when it begins to burn low.”

  Mumbling his thanks, Max closed his eyes and drifted off.

  *****

  Max was up with the sun, having gotten a solid eight hours of sleep, with one break in the middle to add fuel to the fire. He felt amazingly refreshed. As a career soldier, he’d learned to function on as little as four hours of sleep per night. Most often he got six. Rarely eight.

  Feeling thirsty, he got up and walked over to the pond. He cupped his hands together and dipped them into the water, bringing them to his lips. The water was cool and sweet! He’d never tasted anything quite like it. Wishing he had a canteen, he tried scooping another double-handful of water and depositing it into his inventory. It didn’t work.

  After drinking his fill, he returned to the still-smoldering coals of his fire, and added more wood. Heading back to the forest, he made three trips with large armloads of firewood. Selecting two sturdy sticks with y-shaped ends, he planted each one into the ground on opposite sides of the fire, just outside the stone ring. A moment later he had all of his wolf meat skewered onto a long, straight stick, and the stick mounted over the fire atop the two supports.

  “It ain’t bacon and eggs, but it’ll do in a pinch.” He sat there and monitored the cooking meat for half an hour, turning the stick about forty five degrees every few minutes. The smell of fat dripping into the fire actually made him salivate. When he was reasonably sure the meat was fully cooked, he removed it from the fire.

  Skill level increase! Your Cooking skill has increased by +1!

  His belly still reasonably full from the bunny meat, Max slid the chunks of meat that were now designated as Wolf Steaks into his inventory. The hot coals of his campfire gave him an idea, and he got up to search through his wood pile. Not finding what he wanted, he walked back to the forest and found a likely looking branch. It took him a while to break it off of the tree, but when he finally had it in hand, he nodded in satisfaction. “This will do.”

  He stripped the smaller offshoots from the branch, as well as the bark, leaving them in neat piles not far from his fire. What he was left with was a six foot long, almost perfectly straight pole about three inches thick. Twenty minutes of using one of the rougher stones as a sander, and he had a reasonably sharp point at one end of the pole. He immediately set that end directly into the coals of the fire, turning the pole slowly as he watched the last foot or so turn brown, then black. He pulled it out of the fire, walked over and dunked it into the pond, then returned to the fire and heated it again.

  The next time he pulled it from the coals, he used Examine on it.

  Hardened Wood Spear

  Item Quality: Crude

  Damage: 10-15 Stabbing; 5-10 Blunt

  Durability: 25/25

  Skill level increase! Your Woodcrafting skill has increased by +2!

  You have learned the skill: Weaponscrafting!

  By creating a plan and improving what would have been just a sharp stick into a more effective and durable weapon, you have earned the skill: Weaponscrafting.

  Continued use of this skill may increase its level and functionality.

  Looking around to show Red his new weapon, he couldn’t find her. Figuring she may have returned to whatever dimension she usually existed in while he was asleep, he shrugged. Proud of his work, he took time to practice jabbing with the spear. He twirled it around in front of himself like he was a ninja, then quickly snapped the blunt end out at an imagined enemy.

  Which caused the sharp end to scrape across his bicep. It barely broke the skin, only doing four points of damage. But he felt foolish for cutting himself with his own weapon. Max caught himself thinking he was glad none of his squad had seen that. Which immediately killed his buzz. He wondered again if his guys were given the same offer he was. And if so, how many of them would have just gone to Valhalla?

  “I hope at least a couple of them chose reincarnation. And that they were put on this world. Be good to get the gang back together. Blake would probably choose to be a dwarf. And Dylan was one hundred percent an elf.” They were both gamers, and he smiled faintly as he thought about how much they’d love this world.

  Depositing both his club and his spear into his inventory, Max looked up at the cliff above him. It was nearly vertical, but there were rocky outcroppings and cracks everywhere. With his physical abilities, he felt sure he could climb it. Stopping at the pond for one more drink of the delicious water, he considered trying to spear a fish or two. He decided it could wait until he returned. With five wolf steaks in his storage, he had at least three days’ food.

  Moving to the cliff face, he placed a clawed foot atop a stone, and boosted himself upward. Reaching as far as he could above his head, his long arm allowed him to grab hold of a stone that jutted out nearly ten feet up.

  Takin
g things slow, he made his way up to where the waterfall emerged from the stone of the mountain. There was a wide ledge on either side of the water, and on his side it curved back into the rock face. The stone of the ledge and lower walls was almost perfectly smooth. It looked as if at one time the water flow had been much greater, pushing out of an underground stream or river, creating a wider path than it needed now.

  Looking down, Max saw that he’d climbed maybe a hundred feet. “Good time for a break.” He moved up a few dozen paces into the tunnel carved out by the water, then sat down on the ledge, dangling his feet in the water. “Ahhh that feels nice.” He wiggled his toes.

  Max took one of the wolf steaks from his inventory and bit into it. His enlarged canines easily ripped through the cooked meat, which he was surprised to find was still as warm as it was when he’d removed it from the fire and placed it into storage.

  As he ate, he gazed up the tunnel. Now well out of the sunlight, his pupils widened to compensate for the lack of light, and darksight showed him that the narrow tunnel actually widened considerably about fifty feet further back. Getting to his feet, he took another bite of steak as he walked. The meat was bland, but filling. His stomach gurgled happily as the protein reached it.

  Arriving at the widening, Max surveyed the area. The tunnel opened into quite a large cave that extended out on either side of the stream a good twenty feet. The ceiling was covered in stalactites of clear crystal hanging twenty feet above his head. The back of the cave, nearly a hundred feet away, was where the underground stream emerged from the stone.

  Turning to his left, Max found what looked like a campsite. Carved into the stone wall were a half dozen alcoves, three feet deep, three feet high, and about five feet wide. They looked like sleeping spaces, arranged in a neat row about two feet off the ground. There was a long table made of rough-hewn wood, with several cut sections of log to act as stools. Walking over, he noted that the table was set low, and the stools didn’t even reach his knees. All of the wood was so old it had become petrified.