“And the veyer does have those skills?” I asked doubtfully. My sister nodded.
According to her, the Thief handled the crossbow well and was a great shot. Throughout the day, he shot down birds with it, helping to keep the starving and barely mobile Marsh Mistress fed. Incidentally, the spider had eaten the sherkh corpse that morning too. Later, when the group made a short stop on the bank of the great river, Avir Tan-Hoshi attached a rope to a crossbow bolt and shot some fish with impressive skill. He didn’t miss once! But then the creeping crocodiles Katy and Tick-Tock ambled over and devoured the whole catch, ignoring all the winged boy’s attempts to shout them away. To them, the boy was still a stranger. It was lucky they left him alive at all.
My sister also told me she’d seen Varya Tolmachyova at the river meadow — the girl was hunting on Irosaurus Regina. Her huge pet was already level twenty-two. But the Engineer’s daughter hadn’t wanted to talk — she just waved from afar and disappeared into the thick woods.
I stopped to think. I wondered — why was it that Rumbler’s Refuge had sent Varya the Scout to hunt, instead of their professional Hunters, Washington and his group? And the Engineer’s daughter had roamed kind of far from the river island in search of game. Although… for her fast pet, it was just a half-hour run, so maybe it was normal for her.
“Show me the infrared goggles,” I asked my sister. I tried sitting up, but my head suddenly span and I laid back down again.
Damn! What was wrong with me? Why were my Health Points recovering steadily, but not my Stamina Points? Julie watched with concern as I clumsily tried to sit up. She dropped her eyes and explained what had happened:
“It’s my fault, brother. I don’t have enough experience healing humans. I got the anesthetic wrong. You’re big and strong and you have high Physique, so I gave you a big dose of the red mushroom potion to make sure you didn’t wake up during the operation. But you stopped breathing. I had to resuscitate you. You’ll get strong again soon. I’m more worried that your wound might get infected — we don’t have any antiseptic. So I decided to take you to the river village and have Anna take a look at you — she’s an experienced Healer and can do it all properly.”
So the reason for my weakness was that potion made by the veichs, the same one I used to knock out the giga-komodos before I tamed them. It didn’t just knock you out — it took your Stamina Points too, preventing the victim from moving. Useful to know! I asked my sister to make me a vial of the potion when she could. I could find a great many uses for it. In the meantime, Julie took out the nightvision goggles and handed them to me.
Woah! They weren’t just cheap polarizing glasses like I’d expected, but an advanced design, with sophisticated eye pieces and crisscrossing adjustable straps for wearing them on your head. Not military — they were probably for professional hunters. They had some writing on them in English and had clearly come from the old world. The radio was factory-made too, not hand-built here. And it looked like… yep, the batteries were compatible. If we wanted to, we could move them from the IR goggles to the radio.
In the meantime, we passed through a marshy area covered in vines and the group’s speed increased. I even tried steering the Marsh Mistress alongside my sister — I needed to level up my skills and get closer to the next character level, which would instantly give me a full recovery. But my weakness reared its head — it was a huge effort just to move, let alone guide the gigantic spider. I had to hand the reins to Julie and lie back down again. Ugh. I could have really used some stinkberries to regain my strength! They’d sort me right out! But, like many things, we had none of them.
* * *
I lay on a broad bench in Grip’s former house, letting experienced Healer Anna treat and sew up my wound. Every now and again I clenched my teeth so hard I was sure I could hear them crack, but I still managed to answer questions from the leaders of the river island — Rumbler, Washington and Glutton wanted to hear all the details of the trip to the forcefield barrier. It wasn’t hard to figure out that what concerned the village leaders most was the fate of Viking and Yarik — why hadn’t the two returned from their mission to escort the resettling players?
The way I explained it, on the way there, Viking and Yarik got to know the settlers well, even made friends with people in the group. That was why they made the decision not to come back to Rumbler’s Refuge, instead leaving for the wider world alongside the others. Shelly? Yeah, my canine girlfriend had decided to go through the barrier too, to catch up to her packmates, now that she’d reached level twenty-five and could get through.
They seemed to buy it. It was far harder to answer their probing questions about the sherkh that attacked me, and my interactions with that race in general. A mysterious race, part myth for many, whose members few had ever seen. They didn’t fight humans, just stayed invisible and kept themselves to themselves. Why would one of them want to attack me all of a sudden?
I really didn’t want to tell them of the times I’d spoken to Avelia and my agreement to meet the girl in two days at Hundred Skull City. Otherwise, I feared, I would have ended up having to explain a lot — like Avelia’s relation to the idiot Scout that attacked me. And I would have had to tell them that the sherkhs had sentenced me to death, and so would try to kill me again and again. Why would Rumbler’s Refuge accept such a troublesome resident?
So all I said was that I once had a conflict with the Scout that attacked me today, on a previous occasion when he tried to attack my veich girlfriend. Because of that, Arvedo Un Ponar had a chip on his shoulder and attacked again to take vengeance for his embarrassing defeat. I also told them that the view that the sherkhs didn’t care about humans was deeply flawed. The sherkhs themselves saw war looming with the humans, and they kept close watch on all our affairs. In fact, the group of human settlers had been under watchful sherkh eyes all the way to the barrier, and they’d even been warned not to settle lands that the sherkhs had claimed. That answer suited the village leaders just fine.
Strangely enough, the winged Thief invited the fewest questions of all. All three leaders stated clearly that the veyer had no place in a human village, and that it was my job to tell him so.
“Done!” Anna said as she finished treating my wound. To finish up, she bandaged a cloth doused in some medicine onto my back. “I have to say, Sergeant, your sister did a great job on the operation, especially considering the conditions she had to work in and all the instruments she didn’t have. That girl has a great talent for healing!”
“And for working with animals too,” the Engineer piped up, humbly sitting apart from the others. The new leaders allowed Varya’s father to be present for the meeting, but didn’t normally let him speak. “Julie should be given a place in the village.”
“We’ll see…” Rumbler answered evasively, exchanging glances with the other two leaders.
That put my back up right away. What the hell? All my difficult and dangerous work to send thirty settlers beyond the barrier was supposed to be payment for my sister and Shelly to stay in the river village! Shelly had gone beyond the barrier, but Julie had come back with me. How could there be any doubt of her right for a place?!
They didn’t give me a clear answer. First Rumbler, and then Washington and Glutton, said they had no more questions and that I needed to rest and recover so that I could be of use again in the river village. As soon as the leaders closed the door behind them, Max moved to sit closer to me.
“I’m glad to see you, Sergeant! But I have to tell you, you may be a great Beast Catcher, but you’re a terrible actor! When you were talking about Yarik and Viking, it was obvious you were keeping something back. Rumbler knew it.”
“I don’t care! What difference does it make if they went through the barrier themselves or someone helped them…”
The engineer shook his head in disapproval.
“A lot has changed here in the days you’ve been gone. Let me fill you in now, so that you’re in the know and can better unde
rstand what’s happening. A man called Spike arrived — a huge bald level 60 Torturer, and a noble of the Pharaoh. And he brought a group of cronies with machine guns. They were looking for Haze and Hulk. They beat Rumbler and told him that from now on, the river village would pay a tribute of meat, furs and metal to the Pharaoh. Deliveries every ten days, and the amounts they want are staggering. If we miss even one payment, they’ll kill all the leaders. And worse, there’s a permanent guard of five of the Pharaoh’s overseers in Rumbler’s Refuge now, and we have to provide a separate house for them and feed them. From what I’ve heard, it’s the same at Orshi-Ur and Un-Talavi — the Pharaoh has claimed those villages too.”
So that’s how it was… That meant the number of places left for inhabitants was severely limited. That explained the cloud of hesitation over Rumbler and the other leaders regarding the promise to give my sister a place in the river village. Max Dubovitsky continued:
“On top of all that, my daughter left last night. Left in a scandal, accused Washington and one of the overseers of making advances on her. I was too late back to talk to her — I was working far away in the smithy by the mine. I only found out after the fact. I have no idea where Varya is now. Ashot and one of the Hunters were banished today — not enough space for them. I’ve grouped up with those ‘partial’ members, people who can only be in Rumbler’s Refuge during the day, and have to leave the village by nightfall. We spend the night on a raft out on the river. For now,” the Engineer spat over his left shoulder, “everything is going fine. Neither the beasts nor any monsters have attacked our raft. But today some bastard cut the rope that keeps the raft anchored to the island and the current carried us a couple of miles downstream. I think that’s their way of letting us know that they don’t want their ex-leader and a bunch of low-level players hanging around, and we need to leave. If not today, then tomorrow, I think, they’ll announce it officially.
The Engineer suddenly fell silent because the door opened and Washington walked in to announce the decision of the three leaders — Julie was allowed to stay, and my sister and I would even get our own room right here in Grip’s former house. But after all that alarming news, I wasn’t sure anymore whether we should even celebrate. Anna, who seemed to be carefully watching my reaction, decided to speak up as soon as the leader of the hunters closed the door.
“I see you don’t like all these changes, Sergeant.”
I didn’t deny the obvious. Who would be happy to return to their safe haven with their little sister only to find it no longer safe at all, and now burdened with onerous demands for tribute? In which, on top of all that, the overlords constantly moved the goalposts and failed to keep their promises!
“Are you thinking of leaving?” Anna asked. “Because I’ll come with you! I don’t like it here at Rumbler’s Refuge either, not one bit!”
“I’m with you both!” the Engineer hurried to add. “And if necessary, I can find more people willing to leave right now! The Mechanic and Philosopher, at least. I can vouch for them.”
I remembered my plans to seek out any malcontents that might leave the village with me and my sister in search of a better life. But it turned out that I didn’t even have to seek out those most upset by the new order and ready to abandon Rumbler’s Refuge. They sought me out.
Chapter 7 [Kitten]
Training a New Master
HOW MANY MUSHROOMS can one girl eat? Where’s the meat, the fish? At least some jam? Come on… And are you planning to feed me at any point? Meow! And why spend all night sitting atop a high hill, and with a fire lit? Anyone within five miles can see us!
As she sat by the fire cooking mushrooms on sticks, the girl turned to the cat meowing unhappily nearby. She stretched out a hand to stroke me, but I turned invisible and easily dodged her blindly seeking hand.
Dodge skill increased to level three!
The surprise on Avelia’s face was a delight to see. What, not expecting a trick like that from a fluffy little cat fresh out of the bag you stuffed him in? There’s more where that came from! I reappeared behind the girl and resumed my judgmental mewling. The Swordmaiden turned instantly, shot a hand forward and grabbed me round the waist.
“Ami vari shiro!” she said in triumphant tones, smiling. But a second later she suddenly let me go and pulled her hand back. Something to do with me biting her finger, I think. “Umi yu shirka kus!” she said, either swearing or chastising me. She sucked on the finger.
I hissed threateningly, my back arched and my fur bristling. Avelia immediately withdrew her outstretched hand again. We froze and watched each other, both dissatisfied with the other’s actions. This wouldn’t do at all. Feed me tasty food, and then you get to stroke me. That’s the deal! Only on that condition will I stay with you for any length of time, otherwise I’ll turn invisible and be gone with the wind! But how could I explain all this to this girl from another world, who had only the vaguest concept of cats from Earth? She kept trying to feed me roasted mushrooms, or worse, raw ones. Ugh.
Avelia turned to the fire, adjusted her skewers of sizzling mushrooms, then suddenly grabbed me in her quick arms again, this time above my chest right under my neck, so I couldn’t bite her. The Swordmaiden laughed happily. What, you think you’ve won? Let’s see how you like this…
“Umi yu vau!” the girl shouted, releasing me again and shaking her wrist, then staring at the burn on her hand in surprise.
Elemental Magic skill increased to level seven!
Avelia frowned and blew on her burnt hand. I saw little tears begin to form in the corners of the girl’s eyes. Oops. Seemed I’d overdone it. Alright, perhaps combat elemental magic is a little too much for a game of catch. My bad. Sorry! I sauntered over and rubbed my whiskery face on Avelia’s hand, even activated Soothe to calm her down. She carefully stroked the fur on my chest. This time I let her.
But what was that? I pricked up my furry ears. Dry grass rustling. And again. Louder this time. The Swordmaiden noticed my suddenly sharpened ears, my alarm. The girl turned her head toward the approaching nighttime visitor. A sherkh. A level 40 Scout from the same guild as Avelia, Eastern Garrison. He bowed low to my new owner. She gave him a wooden tablet engraved with strange symbols and he disappeared silently into the night.
The same happened again seven minutes later — another sherkh came, this time a thin girl who looked around eight years old. But highly independent, since it seemed she moved through the night with no fear of monsters. She too got a tablet of instructions from Avelia, bowed and disappeared into stealth. The third meeting happened almost right after that one — a young long-eared level 45 Huntress approached the fire. The two girls hugged, and my kidnapper even invited the Huntress to sit by the fire and shared a late supper with her. From what I understood, this was a symbol of friendship for the sherkhs.
“Meow!” The exciting and unmistakable scent of fresh blood wafted from our new visitor’s woven sack. I started to knead the thick cloth with my claws, demanding the treasure within.
“Un givi uvashi Whiskers,” the Swordmaiden said in interested tones. Her friend hurried to untie her sack and placed a small bird before me.
Finally! I set upon the bird with furious greed, tearing into the still warm flesh with my teeth. Both the blonde girls watched on in amazement, exchanging pleased comments. I even let both of them stroke me while I sated my hunger, gulping down chunks of meat greedily. And after I coughed and choked on some feathers, the Huntress took the bird and quickly plucked it and cut it into pieces to make it easier for their tiny kitten companion to eat.
“Meow!” I commented, rubbing my whiskery face on the Huntress’s leg in gratitude and glancing at my new owner as if to say “look, dumbass, do you get how to feed me now?”
Finally, her friend got her tablet of instructions, gave Avelia another warm hug and then left in an easterly direction — entirely different from the way the last two sherkhs were sent. My owner didn’t put out the fire just yet. She must have been waiting
for someone else. But an hour passed, then another, and nothing happened. I dozed in the girl’s arms in a good mood, meowing happily and thinking that life in a cat’s body wasn’t so bad after all. But the lady didn’t lie down to sleep. She stayed sat by the fire, tending it, yawning and staring at the starry sky.
Radar Ear skill increased to level twenty-four!
I heard our next nighttime visitor long before his arrival. He made a lot of noise as he walked, as if not just one sherkh was moving through the dry grass, but several at once.
“Meow!” I warned my sleepy mistress, jumping up onto her shoulder.
The figure that appeared in the firelight was Arvedo Un Ponar, Avelia’s brother. And as soon as he opened his mouth and spat his first words, it was obvious that the level 40 Scout was in a terrible mood. I would have liked to know what that bastard was so angry about. The game system invited me to take the Translator skill again, as it had many times before that day, but I refused. Maybe I should have taken it. Then I’d know what was going on.
In the meantime, Arvedo continued ranting. The only words I could pick out of his diatribe were ‘Sergeant’ and ‘Whiskers.’ When he voiced the latter word, the furious sherkh jabbed a finger in my direction. Nearly hit me in the eye, that bastard. What was his beef with me? I’m just a harmless pet! Just in case, so as not to annoy the mentally ill sherkh, I jumped down from the Swordmaiden’s shoulder and ran off into the night. I even went into stealth. But the stream of angry words didn’t stop, and my name came up again. That did it!
Level one Translator skill learned!
13 of 13 possible character skills at level 21 chosen.
Things didn’t get any clearer. I listened to the brother rage on at his sister for another half a minute. At the same time, I studied the possible modifications for the Translator skill. Basic Animal Speech. Basic Writing. Accelerated Language Learning. Hmm… not bad, but that mutation cost seven points, and required Translator level fifteen. As I read further, another possible mutation jolted me like lightning.
In Service of the Pharaoh (League of Losers Book #2): LitRPG Series Page 6
