by Sean Oswald
“That is very cool. You so have to get your class before dad does. He is always trying to hide it, but I can tell it annoys him so much that all we non-gaming girls have classes, and he doesn’t,” Mira said with an evil grin upon her face.
Jackson didn’t bite, and as they arrived at the mess tent, Mira had to shelve her questions till they got a table. It never took them long, the ladies who worked in the tent always went out of their way to make sure that the children of the nobles got their own table first. This time they found Tabor already eating and invited him to come over and join them.
Once everyone had a plate of food in front of them, Mira resumed her twenty questions. “So what are your base stats right now?”
Jackson fidgeted a bit, and Tabor got a pained look on his face while a hushed silence descended on the tables around them.
“Young heifer, it is not polite to ask a bull about his stats even if he is from the same sire. A bull’s actions speak for themselves and need no notifications,” Rak’kar spoke up when it was obvious no one else would.
Jackson could see Mira fighting back a blush on her face at being spoken to like that by the minotaur. The old Mira probably would have been shrieking by now, so he was already impressed at her demeanor. Maybe all the stat points, or the brushes with death, had changed her. He knew that his own trials had definitely changed him, even if he wasn’t yet able to quantify it all.
Then Mira adopted a charming smile–the one she liked to use on mom and dad when she wanted something. Except if anything it was much more … well just more. Even he felt his emotions tugged on by the obvious changes in his sister, and she hadn’t even spoken yet.
“It isn’t like that where we are from. In fact, there it is often hard to get a guy who isn’t obsessed with talking about levels and accomplishments.” Everyone seemed to just accept her words, and then she turned her head towards Rak’kar exclusively and spoke in a much lower tone, “And don’t you ever call me a cow again. Where I am from, that is a serious insult and gets bullies thrown into detention.”
Rak’kar’s expression didn’t change, or at least not in any way that Jackson could distinguish. How could a person tell what expression a bull had on its face for that matter? Either way, the minotaur walked a few feet away while letting out a loud snort.
“So, are you gonna be bashful or tell me what you’re starting stats are?” Mira asked.
Jackson thought about it as he closed his eyes for a moment. “Fine let me look. I actually gained a couple of points in some of my stats while I was at the academy. So now they are …”
Mira interrupted, “Wait you gained stats without having to earn the points from leveling up?”
“Yeah, what’s the big deal?” Jackson asked in a confused tone.
“I just thought that the only way to gain stats was by leveling,” Mira said.
Jackson looked over at Tabor for confirmation. He had come to trust upon his friend for information about Eloria.
In response to the look, Tabor said, “I was always taught that a stat could be leveled up by hard work until you reached level 1. But apparently only by a few points at the most, and there are still natural limits on how much a person can gain. Very few do it that way because if they have enough drive to make physical gains that way, then they have enough drive to gain levels.”
“Hmm, well that makes sense.” Mira continued, “So what are your stats?”
Jackson opened his stat sheet and rattled off the basics.
STRENGTH: 8
DEXTERITY: 11
AGILITY: 15
CONSTITUTION: 14
ENDURANCE: 16
INTELLIGENCE: 13
WISDOM: 13
CHARISMA: 12
LUCK: 3
“And that is after I gained 2 points in Strength, Agility, Constitution, and Endurance.”
When Jackson said that, both Mira and Tabor stared at him in awe, but Mira spoke first, “Agility makes sense, but you were able to gain in Strength and Constitution despite your racial penalties?”
After comparing notes, they confirmed that he had the same 15% bonus to Agility and 10% penalty to Strength and Constitution that both his sisters had. Mira said, “Well that was great then.”
“I still want to know how you gained that much in just a couple of months,” Tabor asked, “Was it because of all the …”
Jackson knew where Tabor’s question was going and certainly didn’t want his sisters to know what he had endured, so he cut him off, “You mean all the exercise? Yes, they run us ragged as you know.”
“So do you know what you want to be? Or are you going to try to follow after that class quest you got?” Mira asked.
“It actually seems to be something I would like a lot.”
“Then it’s pretty easy. You pick the stats that will benefit it the most. Keep in mind, your racial penalties and bonuses. Also you might want to try at least a little magic. Now that I have it, I couldn’t imagine living without,” Mira said.
“Well the three requirements were that I can’t wear armor, but that won’t apply until I actually have the class, that I keep my Constitution and Endurance higher than my Agility, and that I keep my Unarmed Combat as my highest fighting skill. So, I need to add some of my points into Constitution because it is one lower than my Agility.”
Before anyone could say anything, Jackson dumped four of his points into Constitution, which took his score up to 18 after his racial penalty. Just like his sister and parents before him, he felt the surge of vitality coursing through his body immediately. He felt hardier and more durable. He put one point into Agility which, with the racial bonus, brought it to 17 and another 2 points into Endurance to keep it above his Agility at 18.
Then, before anyone could ask him what he was doing, he dropped 11 points into Strength. His body began to spasm unlike with the other changes. Enough so that some of the off-duty guards and even one of the druids came to check him out. His muscles became denser, the fibers both sturdier and more elastic, and he felt a rush of power like nothing else as his Strength shot up to 18. In the few seconds it took for his body to be transformed, he went from being a fairly strong young man to a beast in the body of a teenager, capable of bench pressing 450 lbs–essentially triple his new body weight–with his new denser muscles.
Jackson heard Mira asking him questions and tried to answer them, but honestly all he wanted to do now was run and jump or … show those bullies at school the new and improved Jackson Nelson. As he answered his sister’s questions, he realized that he would need more than just increased stats if he hoped to not be everyone’s target at the academy. He needed to have some skills also, but that was what his 84 character points were for. In his mind, now was not the time for holding back.
This led to him trying to put 20 points into Unarmed Combat, but he soon found out that he was only able to apply 10 points. Which of course led to an explanation from Mira and Tabor about the various caps on points and Mira into kicking Jackson under the table to keep him from revealing the points he started with as part of the Watcher’s Provision. Jackson paused for long enough in this to wonder if he had made a mistake by listening to Mira rather than waiting to talk it over with his dad. He had felt so impatient to get to it. Now he was regretting it some, but instead of stopping, he felt the need to complete this and prove that he could make the decision on his own. His regret didn’t last too long, though, as he looked fondly upon his skill notification.
Unarmed Combat: 15, 75% increase to attack, 15% increase to damage. Tier 2 Bonus gained: Ability to automatically add a second attack when focused on unarmed attacks.
Mira interrupted Jackson’s thoughts. “So if you spent 10 of your 84 points, I would recommend that you set aside at least 20 points to use for a school of magic when you hit Tier 2. You may even want to save more because magic is really cool.”
Tabor had a mixed look of confusion and irritation on his face as he said, “You do know that most people can’t lea
rn magic, don’t you?”
“Pffhh, Jackson may be a dweeb who doesn’t know whether he is a nerd or a jock, but he is still my brother,” Mira smirked.
Jackson exchanged glances with Tabor who clearly didn’t understand some of Mira’s words, but Jackson simply said, “Now you feel my pain.”
“Don’t forget I have two older sisters, too,” Tabor retorted.
The visiting nobleman’s son then asked Mira, “Besides, how many schools of magic do you know?” Only to retract it a moment later as his face got red in embarrassment at having asked such a personal question. “I’m sorry Lady Mira–that was none of my business.”
“Jeez, relax. I know this is all some kinda secret sauce thing for you guys, but where we are from, it’s no big deal. I don’t mind telling you that I have five schools so far including Charm, Conjuration, Divination, Essence, and Evocation. I think I want to learn Abjuration next, but I already have some Shaping spells ready for me to learn, so maybe I should go that route.”
It was obvious to Jackson that Mira not only didn’t mind revealing this information but delighted in talking about herself. He sighed as he realized that some things never changed. Admittedly, Mira wasn’t quite the same pain in his side that she was before, but she was still an attention-seeking diva in his mind.
For his part, Tabor’s mouth was practically hanging open. “Very few people are able to learn that many schools of magic, especially Essence Magic.”
“It’s sorta what my class does. I’m the Mistress of all magic.”
That of course led to Tabor awkwardly asking what her class was, apologizing again about asking for personal information. Mira clearly didn’t mind talking about herself, and Jackson partially zoned out as it gave him time to think about what choices he should make with his character points.
Truth be told, he had been thinking about very little beyond that all evening. Every time he could do so without tripping over his own feet, he had pulled up the various options and had pretty much narrowed it down to a few skills he was most interested in. He had initially looked at a number of the hybrid skills but quickly determined that they would require too high of a level simply based upon their prerequisites.
In the end, he was pretty proud of himself for being able to narrow it down to: Stealth, Esoteric Senses, Toughness, Weapon Specialization, Counter Strike, Dodge, and Defensive Stance. He had been eyeing Berserk and Flurry of Blows, but he didn’t want to fully commit to either of those paths, and they would have required all of his points to meet the requisites.
Jackson was once again pulled out of his own head when he heard Sara raising her voice, “Why doesn’t anyone ever want to know about my class?”
Tabor looked even more confused. “Children can’t have classes.”
“I’m not so little anymore, and I do have a class, so that shows what you know.” Sara snapped back completely undermining her assertion as she stuck out her tongue at Tabor.
Mira and Jackson then took turns explaining a little bit about Sara’s situation and her class to Tabor. They both wanted to make sure that everyone thought it was a fluke as their parents had emphasized that no one could know they were from another world or about the special provisions they had received. Essentially, they played it off as a blessing from Shanelle that Sara had received a class when her life was in danger because she was the daughter of a Chosen.
“That is amazing. My parents always taught me to honor the three true Gods, but I never expected to actually see them interact with anyone around me. Your family is truly blessed, Jackson,” Tabor said. Then as an afterthought he added, “So is her class why the goblin, orc, and minotaur are here?”
Balayria grumbled, “Half-orc.”
Jackson said, “The goblin is her pet, and the minotaur just owes some kind of blood debt to our mom.”
“Krinnk isn’t my pet. He is my friend,” Sara said indignantly while standing on the bench where she had been sitting.
“Yeah Krinnk no be pet. Krinnk bestus friends with Sara,” the goblin interjected.
Trying to turn the conversation away from Sara’s situation, Jackson rattled off the skills he was pondering and asked for input.
“So what is Esoteric Senses? I’ve never seen that skill on any list,” Tabor asked. Mira and Jackson both spoke over each other trying to describe it. In the end, they decided that because Tabor had no magical abilities, he probably didn’t have access to the skill. For Jackson, that conclusion was comforting. He might not want to pick any magical school right now, but he was still glad to think that it would be an option in the future.
Mira said, “So tell us why you are thinking about these skills, and maybe we can give you some advice. But your friend here might be better at helping you pick smashy skills.”
“I guess there are really three reasons I’m looking at different skills. First, I would like some skills that would allow me to avoid um … people who I don’t want to find me. Stealth and Esoteric Sense would allow me to either avoid them or to know they were coming. Second, I want some skills that will increase my defense, specifically letting me take a hit better. Toughness, Dodge, and Defensive Stance seem like the best options available now for that. Finally, I want to be able to hit harder. Weapon Specialization if it works for Unarmed Combat seems like the most obvious choice, although I also feel drawn to Counter Strike.”
“Well Stealth would match well with your racial bonus whereas Esoteric Sense is powerful but a huge mana drain, and you really do need to stick all 10 points into it to give the lesser versions sufficient range. Also it can be hard on the brain. There is so much data that it gathers. I don’t know how well you would handle it without increasing your Intelligence score,” Mira assessed.
Tabor added, “You should probably only choose one between Dodge and Defensive Stance as they both use Stamina.”
“Good point,” Jackson responded before closing his eyes as he assigned 1 point to Dodge.
“I think Dodge makes the most sense. I only have to put 1 point into it for it to be effective since I don’t have enough Stamina to use it back to back yet. I like the idea of being able to avoid at least one hit. That can make all the difference.” As Jackson spoke, he was distracted and still reading the notification.
Dodge: Declared Action: Automatically avoids an otherwise successful melee or ranged melee atk (not spells). May be used 1/tick +.1/level (rounded down). Stamina: 4.
“Besides that, I think I’m going to put 10 points into Stealth for the ability to hide and Esoteric Sense so I will know if they are coming, at least a moment early. And yes, you don’t need to roll your eyes at me Mira. I will keep in mind what you said, but also think about how dad said this skill is what let him know the first goblin army was attacking.”
Stealth: 15, +75% to skill. Tier 2 bonus: stealth may be activated in full light as long as you are unobserved.
* * *
Esoteric Sense: 10, has a passive 6th sense out to 10’. Has an active 6th sense which requires 5 mana/sec to use out to 200’. Has an extended range of 5000’ for cost of 50 mana/sec
“So if my math is right, and we all know that it is, then that leaves you with 53 skill points. So if you put 10 each into Counter Strike, Weapon Specialization, and Toughness, then you would still have enough points to try a school of magic and put points into Blunt Weapons if you decide too,” Mira said.
Jackson rolled his eyes at his big sister, “I’m not gonna argue with you, but you don’t have to be such know it all.”
Then again without waiting for anyone, he applied the 10 points to each skill.
Counter Strike: 10- Once per tick +.1/level when you are successfully attacked using a melee strike you may attack back along the same trajectory as that strike.
Attack: -50% (reduced 2%/level)
Damage: +25% +2%/level
Cost 1/Fury
* * *
Weapon Specialization: 10 (Unarmed) - +50% damage.
* * *
Toug
hness: 10 +2 damage resistance
After all the changes, Jackson felt completely new. “You know I am actually sorta looking forward to going back to the academy. I think some people are in for a big shock.”
Everyone at the table grinned at Jackson’s enthusiasm, even Tabor who did his best to hide the concern he felt for his friend. Sara chimed in, “Can we go see mom and dad now.”
“Sure thing,” Jackson replied as they all got up carrying their plates to the area for them to be washed. Noble children or not, the Nelson children knew better than to leave dirty dishes on the table.
Meanwhile, back at the Nelson home, Dave had been staring at Emily for what felt like an eternity to her. She kept hoping he would just start speaking, so she held off on asking questions. As he told her the story about seeing Jackson all bruised and banged up, she wasn’t sure that she would have been able to speak due to the flow of tears running down her face.
He moved closer to her and took her into his arms and as angry as she was at the way he had kept this from her, she somehow managed to listen to him. The longer he spoke about what had led to Jackson’s injuries, the more she felt the duel of anger and sorrow within her heart grow.
Dave eventually broke down in tears and said, “Emily, I’m so sorry. You must be so sick that you can’t look at me. Believe me though, no matter how much you hate me for this, it doesn’t hold a candle to how much I hate myself.”
His description of self-loathing broke her from her cycling anger as she examined him and heard the pain in his voice as he continued speaking, “It’s a father’s job to protect his children. I have failed at every turn in that task. I have tried to tell myself that Mira’s near death was okay because she came out of it stronger and that Sara’s kidnapping was okay because we got her back safely. The truth is, though, that neither of those things are okay.”
