by Ryan DeBruyn
Joaquim Smith
● Journeyman Level 1
Cancel refunds 1,000,000 Territorial Etherience. 12 hours, 13 minutes, 35 seconds of 48 hours remaining until Rebirth.
Amber Dell (In Queue)
● Journeyman Level 1
Costs 1,000,000 Territorial Etherience
48 hours total time required for Rebirth
Sela’s eyes welled and she pressed her lips together. She met his eyes, a tear tracking through the dirt on her face, and his stomach fell.
She looked away and whispered, “I know we all donated our Etherience to be Reborn. But after seeing this? I think we have to take the Uplink.”
Every knotted emotion flared. His heart pumped fire through his veins, and his eyes welled with tears. His face wrinkled and his breath caught. It was impossible to discern which of his emotions had triggered the web. He felt around the edges of his anger, sadness, disgust, and surprise. Was that his shame? Did he feel the same way as Sela?
He placed a hand on her shoulder. “Sela, I—”
“All done looting this thing. We left anything we can't use for the Territory. Goodbye.”
He forgot they weren’t alone and he held on to Sela's shoulder, squeezing accidentally. She wriggled away and his teeth clacked together. Was there anything Derik couldn’t ruin?
He snatched his hand back like he had touched fire, taking a deep, controlled breath as he watched the man walk away. He could send his clone in stealth after him. He would have the perfect alibi. No one would suspect him of—he shook his head. Derik wasn’t worth it.
His cheeks suffused with heat, and he turned to apologize to Sela.
Sela wasn't there. She was back with the group of exiles, talking with the exiles, worry painted on their faces. She made calming gestures, and after a few more exchanges, the refugees followed Derik.
His apology settled at the back of his mouth and he blurted, “What was that about?”
Sela shrugged. “They were worried that we thought they felt the same way as Derik. They saw your face and feared that it meant they would never be allowed back into the Grotto.” She paused and smiled, “I assured them that you wouldn't hold the actions of one man against the whole. I pointed out that you let them loot their kill. Relationships are mending.” Her smile slipped for a moment, and she rubbed her shoulder.
Rocky opened his mouth to speak, but Sela cut in.
“No worries, I was surprised too. What are we going to do with these two ogre corpses?”
“I think I can just place them in my Bag of Holding. Remember we did it with Ragnar?” He crossed his arms, hugging himself, as goosebumps popped onto his arms. “I wish I had thought of this with Joe.”
He bent down and put Pebbles in his Bag of Holding. The bag yanked him to the ground. He dumped Pebbles back out of the bag and stood up, brushing off the dirt from his butt. He looked at the ground, avoiding Sela’s eyes, his cheeks heating up.
Sela giggled. It was infectious, and he soon joined in. It felt good to laugh after the last few hours.
“I want to give them to the Dungeons. We will have to either get some tanks or Tao and Gamma to drag them back, though. Tell Azoth to bring what’s left of his corpse back, too.”
Giving the corpses to the dungeons sparked something. His eyes flew open.
“Sela, do you think Ragnar might be released from Apep if another Dungeon absorbed him?”
Sela touched her lips and shrugged. “I doubt anyone else has ever tried it. I vote to be the first. Let's grab the loot and get back to the Grotto. We should call the council as well. We will want everyone’s input on the decision with the Tower. Have you looked through the other options?”
Rocky shook his head. “No, I didn't want to get bogged down. Michabo was pretty annoying and specific about choosing this one…”
“He wasn't very friendly with me.” She scowled and crossed her arms. “I am not sure I trust anything he says.” She sighed and added, “Let's at least look through the other ones. I will admit a connection to the Atlantean Net is crucial.”
Rocky nodded and gingerly placed the three loincloths into his Bag of Holding. He shivered with disgust. He definitely needed to burn his fingertips after this to get that off his skin. Then he remembered he was also still covered in dried ogre slobber.
Maybe the system can heal me if I rip my own skin off?
He assumed the Exiles had taken anything else of value for themselves and wondered what Bam-Bam and the other eight minions had dropped. He and Sela made their way back to the Grotto as he studied his notifications and levels.
Congratulations, you have reached Level 4! You have been awarded 3 Stat Points and 3 Skill Points!
Stasis Entered! 0 Etherience Remaining till next Level!
--
Rockland Barkclay Level 4
Class: Journeyman-Dark Chimera Knight,
Level 3 Strategist
Class Skills: Dark Blade, Dark Mend, Soul Blade, Dark Cloak, Shadow Clone, Knight’s Resolve
Health Points = 340/340
Dark Ether Pool = 230/230
You have 8 stat points and 4 skill points to distribute.
Stamina – 34 (Strength of Body +9)
Strength – 36 (Strength of Arms +18)
Agility – 40
Dexterity – 37
Intelligence – 23
Wisdom – 35
Charisma – 37
Luck – 10
Weak Skills
Non-Class Combat Skills: Ether Cleanse - 10
Common Skills: Barter – 8, Camouflage – 7, Endurance – 27 (+2), Falling - 1, Tracker – 19 (+3), Trance Meditation – 24 (+5)
Profession Skills: Actor – 5, Butcher – 23, Cook – 2, Herbalist – 19, Miner – 1, Skinner – 22, Teacher – 18, Trader – 5
Moderate Skills
Non-Class Combat Skills: Combatant – 2 (+1), Ether Channels – 3 (+2), Ether Manipulation 4 (+3), Stealth – 13, Swordsmanship – 9
Common Skills: Analyze – 16 (+2), Perception – 7 (+3), Sneak – 18
Profession Skills
Stasis
He noticed a change he hadn't accounted for. His Level in his Leader Class had risen. He checked through his notifications and found the one he was looking for.
Congratulations, you have successfully defended your Territory from the first Territorial Invasion. The timer for Ether-Assisted Protection has been reset to one moon cycle. You have been awarded 2 Leadership Levels for defeating 2 bosses.
Rockland smiled, realizing that he had found at least one way to increase his Leadership Class Level. It would take a long time to gain more of the levels if he had to wait approximately 29 days for each one, but at least he had finally discovered a way to do it.
He placed his new Skill points into Knight’s Resolve. He wanted to view the second tier of skills and held off putting anything into Poison Pool just yet. As Rocky placed his skill points, more became available until he reached level six. He fully filled the first tier of skills and accessed the new unlocked skills.
Soul Blade
Dark Mend
Dark Blade
Dark Cloak
Shadow Clone
Chimera Knight Skill Tree
Tier 1
Poison Pool
● For each venom/poison the Chimera Knight suffers and survives, he gains immunity. The toxic makeup of that poison will be added to his Venom Pool. In time, the Chimeran Knight can add his unique venom to strikes or weapons. Do be careful; as Chimera Knight, not all poisons can be survived.
0 / 5
Skill gained at 1/5 “Envenom.”
Envenom
● Create an applicable venom from your Chimera Venom. This venom increases in strength with each additional poison and venom added to its base.
--
Knight’s Resolve
● Increases the knight's resistances against all elements, poisons, and venoms.
/> 5 / 5
Passive buff gained, “Stalwart.”
Stalwart
● Stalwart increases elemental, poison, and venom resistances by 50%.
--
Tier 2
Knight's Quest
● Increases the Etherience received from completed quests.
Passive buff received at 1/5 “Questing.”
0/5
Questing
● At 1/5 Questing, buff increases Etherience received from completed Quests by 5%.
--
Knight’s Action
● Allows the user to increase an attack or perform a dodge at double their usual Strength or Speed.
Skill gained at 5/5 “Knight’s Action.”
0/5
He was disappointed that he didn’t get a new powerful offensive Skill. Although tempted by Knight’s Action, Knight’s Quest was a no-brainer. Having increased experience was a bonus in every game he had ever played. He hoped this world would treat it the same way.
Not to mention that the vast majority of his Etherience had been awarded from Quests in the Apprentice ranks.
Chapter Seven
The walk back to the Grotto was pleasant, and Rocky enjoyed the noises of the lush forest as the warm summer sun shone through the leaves.
Sela finally spoke again. “Michabo essentially insulted my entire family and my guild.” She crossed her arms in front of her and dropped her gaze to the forest floor.
Rocky had asked her why she didn’t like Michabo nearly five minutes ago. She had changed the subject to the weather. Had the silence finally allowed her to work out her feelings?
He glanced at her. Clenched jaw. Lowered brows. Eyes down. He was going to have to let her speak when she was ready.
Do I trust Michabo? I mean, his claims that no woman ever made it past Master Class seem a bit far-fetched.
Five more minutes passed in tense silence. Rocky couldn’t go back to enjoying the walk. Not when Sela was stomping angrily by his side.
“He said horrible things. He even took away all of my senses. Torturing me by sending me back to a replica of that place.” Sela shuddered.
Rocky hugged her. He recalled her intense fear of the place she had resided before her return to be his guide. He didn’t have any other response to give. Michabo had been an annoying host—but torture?
Sela’s shuddering eased, and she pushed him away, still refusing to meet his eyes.
They walked on. Rocky kept opening his mouth to tell her what had happened to him in the Spirit Realm. But the time wasn’t right.
Maybe I should investigate some of his claims first.
Her body language and those few sentences accomplished one thing. By the time they passed through the Grotto entrance, his opinion was muddled. Her experience was so different from his that he wasn’t sure which Michabo was the real one. The disregard for Sela convinced him that they should look through the other options for the Greater Territorial Perk—if nothing else.
Sela and Rocky didn’t expect the clamoring scene that greeted them. Tao, Gamma, and the military surrounded what remained of the unmoved ogre corpses. A ring of citizens encircled the golems and military.
Rocky and Sela froze in the entrance. The citizens didn’t seem aggressive. On the other side, the military and golems glanced around, searching for answers. What was going on?
Sela arched an eyebrow.
“Let's go see what this is about, then,” he said.
The crowd noticed their approach and returned to their bickering.
“That leather is a rare ingredient.”
“I got given a quest to make something with the ogre earrings.”
“My quest is more important.”
Rocky and Sela pushed their way through the closely packed bodies, eventually reaching the center of the mob. Gamma had collected all the visible loot into a pile.
“People all say that they have a right to the loot because they have a quest. There are too many people for the number of components here, though,” said Gamma.
Rocky nodded and wondered why he hadn't received a quest to create something.
He looked at the crowd again and Analyzed a few people. The group of about five hundred citizens consisted of all crafting classes. All Non Power Classes.
“Think you two—” he turned to Gamma and Tao, “—can go collect the corpses of the two others we fought outside the Grotto? Maybe check them for earrings and the like? I kind of...forgot.”
Tao nodded and placed a hand on Gamma's shoulder, preventing him from responding.. Gamma clearly wasn't happy about his request. Rocky had only intended to give them an escape from the situation. Tao whispered something to Gamma. Why couldn’t the angry ax-golem see that?
Hi, pot. I'm a kettle.
The crowd parted around the golems as they made their way to the Grotto entrance.
“Seen anything like this before?” asked Rocky, turning to Sela.
“It's prevalent when a rare material comes into a Territory. Usually, we auctioned the items to the highest bidder. Rare materials are a great way to increase class levels and professional skills,” she responded.
Rocky considered the pile of loot. None of the gear was exceptional, except for a single locked ring.
Ring of Pebbles’ Champion
● This ring is part of a set. Both rings must be worn together to harness the power of its Enchantments.
Quality: Excellent
Stats: Unknown
Rocky picked up the ring, then pulled a bundle of robes, a sword, an ax, and a few other pieces of locked gear, from his Bag of Holding. He handed everything to a few men in military fatigues.
“Give all of this to Zippo, please, and ask him to unlock it before bringing it back.”
The men saluted and shoved their way through the crowd, heading toward the cafeteria. Rocky wasn’t sure if Zippo could identify in the Citizen Acceptable Shop, but figured it was worth a try.
He puffed out his chest. He could get used to this whole delegating thing.
The rest of the pile was mostly ogre leather, bone weapons, plain metal adornments, and herb sacks.
“The quests you have should all be completed. Seek out those who have the same quest prompt as you and form a group. The military will dole out the materials you need.” Rocky dumped the loot from Pebbles' group into a pile and marched off to the Dungeons, ready to negotiate.
Due to the Grotto’s unrest with one of them—he started with LFD. Rocky and Sela found a stack of ogre corpses waiting just outside the entrance. As they crossed the bridge over the river, they heard LFD practically begging for the military to drag the bodies to him. “Why are you stacking the corpses outside of my Dungeon! Obviously, you misinterpreted the order—”
“They didn't misinterpret anything, LFD.”
“But—”
“LFD, we must negotiate before you get all of these Master level corpses. I believe the contract said that for each 'kill' you managed, we would provide equivalent goods. Right?”
LFD groaned, vibrating the soil under Rocky. “You would just let the corpses rot away, then?”
“No, I am sure Maximus would be more than willing to receive these corpses,” said Sela with a smirk.
“Ready to deal?” asked Rocky.
“Yes—”
“Good. Release all of your captives!” Rocky initiated.
“But Rocky, I still get to hold them for two more days. It's in the contract.”
“We aren’t negotiating until you let them go, LFD.”
“Fine. It will take a moment for them to get outside. They’re on my second level.”
They waited patiently, and before long, their people came out of the entrance, blinking as they transitioned to the sun. “Is everyone okay? No one is hurt?” Rocky asked the group.
Sela checked with each person individually. He left that to her, and oversaw everyone who came out.
A young woman approached him, “He treated us pretty goo
d, all things considered. But he totally ruined our leveling plans.”
Rocky focused on the speaker. It was Bailey. Rocky remembered her; she even had the same five guys with her from their last run-in.
“Still getting into trouble, I see,” Rocky grinned, including the entire group.
“She gave you trouble, too? This one and her friends kept escaping and killing my mobs for Etherience. Eventually, I had to give them their own room and lock them in!” LFD tattled.
Rocky’s eyebrows rose and Bailey shrugged. “We needed to level somehow. I told you after the morning after the party, we are going to be hunters for the Grotto. The food in there, though,” she finished by mimicking a gag.
All of the groups that emerged began to make their way toward the Mess Hall. “LFD, how many did you have? And what did you feed them?”
“Sustenance. I assure you it had all of the necessary vitamins and nutrients required by humans. Exact count was four hundred and eighteen ‘dead.’”
Rocky didn’t want to imagine what all of the nutrients and required vitamins would taste like.
He pictured LFD lumping it into a slimy ball. Gross. “For the kills, we will give you half of one of these corpses for all of them.”
“No way, Rocky! The two more days of captivity and eating them would amount to way more than that!”
Rocky stored away that tidbit of information. Dungeons got something from holding people. “Okay, well, for another corpse and the other half of this one, all you need to do is go loot the Dungeon at Chalk River. The one we killed and collapsed.”
Sela peeked inside and walked over. “That was the last of them. No one was hurt. LFD, you have to recover all of our gear from that dungeon. I wonder why Michabo left it there.” She grumpily added the last side comment to Rocky under her breath.
“Oh, really? I can go take back my body that’s outside the Territory, then. I mean, that seems like a fair price.” The eccentric dungeon always gave away too much. Rocky did like its straightforwardness. He crossed his fingers—his ring that connected him to Azoth was down there.
