《A World Away》 Chapter 1 On the 27th of October, 2023, the weather was finally clearing up after a week of foul winds and heavy rains, with everyone looking forward to being able to get outside. People were walking their dogs, going jogging and generally enjoying a bit of time outside. The work week was over and people were relaxing in the fading sunshine. And then the world went silent. Every sound, voices, animals, machines and even things being dropped as people jumped at the sudden absence were completely gone. But a few seconds later, before the panic could even begin, a microphone was tapped, a single voice was heard clearing its throat, and the first words humanity ever heard from beyond were heard. ¡°To the residents of planet 13847J-2, locally known as... Earth? Your universe, and obviously your planet, is about to be absorbed by our plane of reality. This is a natural event that has happened countless times before, and will happen countless times again, simply two drops of water touching and merging within the multiverse. However, since our universe has undergone this process endlessly, while yours is almost newborn, yours is being whole swallowed up by ours, consuming it for resources in a way that your planet, neither your galaxy, will withstand. As such, we, the Empire of Kurtza, have been dispatched to assist the more advanced races of your universe, transferring and saving as many as we can. Of the 892 species found worthy enough, you, a basic variant of humanity with your current technological level, barely qualify. Still, we have gathered what resources we have to complete our quest, and have found a suitable planet for your species to inhabit. Unfortunately, with the short amount of time we were given to organize the rescue of you and the other sapients of your universe, the available planet can only take in roughly three quarters of your population. Rather than simply deem the remaining population an unfortunate sacrifice of the process, the powers that be have chosen to widely distribute them throughout our reality. While steps will be taken to ensure they arrive on planets that can support them, their odds of survival will be greatly diminished. The division will be selected randomly, and we apologise for the turmoil this will cause. The full conversion of your reality will commence in 62 hours, and much of the technology and material goods you possess will no longer function afterwards. We suggest you plan accordingly, and look forward to your inclusion in to the system.¡± Then the silence ended. And the panic began. ~ Marcus sped down the street, swerving the car to avoid a man kicking a bin on to the road. As the information settled from the anonymous voice, he, like billions of others, assumed it was an elaborate hoax. But in less than an hour, those beliefs shifted. People saw that it had been heard all across the world simultaneously, waking up the sleeping instantly. While that made most people concerned, the government announcement set it in stone. Every nation¡¯s leaders released a near identical report, which he¡¯d listened to them give on the radio, their shaky voice struggling their own words. They said that people with telescopes had seen many that many stars had vanished, and astronomers and now reported that the other planets in the solar system had similarly disappeared. And so, on what was now a moonless night with an ever diminishing number of stars above him, Marcus drove rapidly home to be with his family. He¡¯d moved out years ago for university, and moved further again for work, but the house he¡¯d grown up in would always be home. It had been a rough trip, people in a state of panic and confusion, with many turning to rioting. They had no real goal, simply looking for a way to relieve the fear that had set in, that things were coming to an end. Pulling up to the house, he snorted when he found that even at the end of the world, the spare key was barely hidden under a ceramic frog by the front door. He¡¯d almost put it in the lock when his mother threw open the door and wrapped him in her arms. ¡°Marcus! Thank god you made it! We¡¯ve seen how things are getting on the news, we weren¡¯t sure you were going to make it home in time.¡± She said with emotion, hugging him tightly. He hugged her back. ¡°It wasn¡¯t the best trip, but if I''m gonna be anywhere when this thing shakes out, it¡¯s going to be with all of you.¡± She chuckled before releasing him. ¡°That¡¯s my boy, family first. Now go see your father, he¡¯s in the den with your sister. I¡¯ll put the kettle on.¡± The ¡®den¡¯, as they called it was the basement that Marcus and his dad had worked on back when he still lived here, transforming it from damp storage to a living space with a sizable bar that was currently being put to use. ¡°Dad, you can¡¯t spend the next two days drinking!¡± Samantha was complaining as he came down stairs. ¡°I think you mean that I shouldn¡¯t spend the next two days drinking, but I certainly can, and I will. If the end of the world isn¡¯t a reason to drink then I don''t think there is one. Besides, I doubt a bit of liver damage is gonna mean much in a few days.¡± His dad replied as he selected a bottle of wine from the rack behind him. ¡°Well can I have drink as well then?¡± she asked hopefully. ¡°No, you¡¯re not old enough.¡± He stated without hesitation. ¡°Well what¡¯s that going to matter in a few days?¡± she declared triumphantly. ¡°That¡¯s not...¡± he began hesitantly, looking for a way out. ¡°Ah, give the baby a drink, just a little in a sippy cup should be ok, right Smalls?¡± Marcus said. ¡°Marcus!¡± his dad said, thick with relief. ¡°Glad you could get here in time. But you aren¡¯t seriously saying I give your little sister alcohol are you? She¡¯s only 15!¡± ¡°Oh yes, I''m sure there¡¯ll be great repercussions for this, which will definitely be the first time she¡¯d touched alcohol. Isn¡¯t that right Smalls?¡± Marcus answered dryly, glancing to Samantha who looked away nonchalantly. ¡°Sam, what¡¯s your brother talking about?¡± his mother asked, coming down the stair with a tray of tea and coffee. ¡°You¡¯ve always promised us you¡¯ve stayed away from drinking at your friend¡¯s parties.¡± ¡°I did, I swear I never drank at those parties.¡± She said earnestly, immediately changing her tone when being questioned by her mother. ¡° But.... there was possibly an evening a few months ago when you were both out at your friend¡¯s wedding, and Marcus had come down for my birthday... that he may have let me have a drink. Or several.¡± She finished with a wince, knowing she¡¯d thrown him under the bus. Both his parents rounded on him. ¡°Marcus Gillian, of all the irresponsible-¡± Holding up his hands in defence, he cut them off. ¡°It was right here in the den, with only the two of us, so she was perfectly safe. And I figured that it was important that she know what drinking and being drunk was like before she started going to parties where drinking might not be as avoidable. Besides it was a Saturday so it didn¡¯t effect school, and other than her ¡®cold¡¯ the next day when you asked why she wasn¡¯t feeling well, no harm done.¡± He then grinned and decided to pass the baton further around. ¡°Besides, isn¡¯t this a tradition? I remember when I first got drunk, and I was a bit younger than Smalls, right Dad?¡± Their mother paused for a moment then rounded on their father who was keenly studying the wallpaper. ¡°Thomas, what is he talking about?¡± ¡°Oh... you know Mary... father-son bonding...stuff...¡± he muttered, slightly red in the face before coughing and changing the subject. ¡°So Marcus, what¡¯s your take on all of this?¡± ¡°Well,¡± Marcus began, grabbing a beer from the fridge behind the bar and a light cider for Samantha. ¡°It¡¯s really happening obviously. The moon disappearing is a pretty big give away that it¡¯s not a prank.¡± ¡°Or it a really, really good one.¡± She offered. He nodded in acceptance. ¡°Ok, it¡¯s either real or a joke with more power and technology backing it than I''m aware humanity has. So either way, bad times for Earth.¡± ¡°So that¡¯s it then? End of the world?¡± his dad asked, giving up and handing Samantha a bottle opener.If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°Eh, no more Earth, but it sounds like humanity is gonna keep on kicking. The message was pretty clear that we weren¡¯t being wiped out, just moved to a new world. Maybe it¡¯ll just be a nice fresh start, try for a little less global warming this time.¡± ¡°So... you think it¡¯s just Earth 2.0? We¡¯re just going to get in a ship and zoom off to another planet?¡± ¡°Sounds like it might be a bit more excessive than a ship, but yeah I think that¡¯s the plan.¡± He said with a nod. They sat in silence for a bit in contemplation, drinking and snacking on a few biscuits that had been brought with the tea. ¡°So...¡± Samantha asked after a bit. ¡°What do we do for last day before the end of the world?¡± Thomas scratched his beard. ¡°I¡¯d say we head to the beach, but with the rioting going on... anyone for monopoly?¡± Mary laughed. ¡°We are not having our last day on earth ending in a fight. Pour me some gin, I¡¯ll grab a deck of cards, Samantha see if you can¡¯t find some poker chips in the cupboard. I¡¯ll be damned if my losing streak lasts longer than the planet.¡± ~ They were sitting gingerly around the table for breakfast when it happened again. While their parents had caved a bit, Samantha wasn¡¯t allowed more than two drinks the previous night and was therefore the only one not nursing a massive hangover. She¡¯d been cooking pancakes when the world again lost sound, snapping everything into focus, causing her to silently drop the spatula in surprise. ¡°Residents of planet 13847J-2, Earth, thank you for patience during these trying times. While we see that there has been some... stressful situations since our last message, we are glad to see you have largely remained rational. With the full absorption of your reality only two hours away, we have now taken for processing all available materials from your reality not directly required for your sustained existence. Even the star you orbit has been taken, with a temporary cover currently being projected in its place. As such, it is important that you understand a few key facts about your new lives. First to note is this: you are not alone, and by extension, you are not special. There are countless races living within the System, with several thousand categorized as ¡®Human¡¯ alone. There will be many opportunities to better your people by interacting with these other cultures, but just as many dangers. While the Empire of Kurtza has been tasked with ensuring your safe entry in to the System, only you are in charge of your survival after that. After a six month period in which we will assist you coming to terms with your new reality and setting up your communities, you will be left to your own devices. The second and by far more important is the nature of the System itself. Throughout all of reality there exists a common force, a currently undefinable energy, signal or force. But while we can¡¯t detect or interact with it, it interacts with every atom of our universe and beyond. Quasi-intelligent, ever-evolving and always present, it is an unbiased force that grants power to those who seek it. Once the change begins, you will be taken in under its touch, and your lives will change, though how they change will be up to you. We will assist those of you who arrive on your new world to better understand and improve your abilities during your six month grace period. And now for an unfortunate task, the system has processed and marked all humans on the planet. Your population will be brought to a clean state of health, with all injuries, illnesses and detriments of old age removed, ensuring you¡¯re best possible start for your new lives. Children under the age of fifteen will be automatically selected for your new world, with the remaining population being divided randomly. Those of you marked in green will be sent to your new home world, while those marked blue will be relocated to somewhere else within the system that can hopefully support them. At any point before the final step you may choose to instead refuse migration, instead painlessly being disintegrated with the planet if you choose not enter the system. We give you the next two hours to say your goodbyes and make your decisions.¡± Again sound snapped back into place, the sharp beeping of the smoke alarm filling the room. Samantha quickly took the burning pancakes off the stove, turning to see her family, each with a bright green orb floating above their heads. They looked back in distress at the vivid blue one above hers. ¡°M-Mom?¡± she stuttered, going pale as her knees gave way, leaving her sitting on the floor. ¡°I- I don¡¯t... what do I..?¡± Their parents rushed over to her, hugging her tightly. ¡°It¡¯ll be ok sweetie, we¡¯ll... we¡¯ll figure something out! There has to be something we can do, right Thomas? She¡¯s still a child for goodness sake! I''m not having them send my baby off by herself!¡± Mary cried. ¡°What can we do?¡± Thomas said tonelessly has he clung to his daughter, as if to ensure they couldn¡¯t take her from him. ¡°We have no idea what¡¯s even happening, what can we do?¡± ¡°We can¡¯t do anything.¡± Marcus said as he stood up from the table. ¡°But one group apparently can.¡± ~ Walking out the kitchen before they could respond, he headed out the back door to the garden. Standing in the middle of the lawn, he raised his arms and screamed up at the sky. ¡°HEY! EMPIRE OF KURTZA, OR WHATEVER YOU CALL YOURSELVES! LET MY SISTER STAY WITH MY PARENTS! I¡¯LL GO INSTEAD! JUST LET HER STAY SAFE!¡± As he breathed in to keep screaming a blue screen appeared in front of his vision. -I can hear you just fine, no need to shout.- ¡°WHAT... sorry, what?¡± he said, looking at the box of text floating in front of his eyes. -We¡¯re monitoring, marking and medicating every person on the planet. Spotting someone yelling at us is easy by comparison.- ¡°You¡¯re the one in charge?¡± he asked hopefully. -Ha, I wish. No, like I said we¡¯re busy with your whole race and many others. I''m just one of many, many clerks organizing things, and the one managing your section.- ¡°But you can save my sister? You¡¯re the one making that decision?¡± Marcus pleaded. -I didn¡¯t make the decision; it¡¯s basically a very fancy random number generator, keeps things fair. Only so many safe spots to go around after all.- ¡°But you can give her one?¡± he said with hope. -Depends, we only have so many spaces and it¡¯s pretty tightly regulated, and before you even think of asking, trying to ¡®forcefully empty someone else¡¯s space¡¯ wouldn¡¯t end well for you, and wouldn¡¯t help her. So let me ask you, were you serious in trading places with her? Giving up safety to end up in some potential hellhole that not even I could tell you, a trillion light years away from safety and the rest of your species?- ¡°...What kind of person would I be if I made my kid sister go through that if I could shield her from it?¡± he responded firmly. -...A lesser one in my eyes. Ok, I¡¯ll move a few things, shouldn¡¯t get stopped since the numbers will still line up. Can¡¯t keep you all together I''m afraid, that¡¯d take more power than I''ve got, and the people with enough power... wouldn¡¯t.- Marcus felt a faint buzz as he looked up seeing the green light above him shake before shifting to blue. ¡°Thank you.¡± -Don¡¯t mention it. For what it¡¯s worth I''m rooting for you to survive and do well. In fact, you ever get strong enough to visit our empire, I¡¯ll buy you a drink- ¡°I¡¯ll hold you to that...got a name?¡± -Not one that can be comprehended at your level. Now go see your family, you don''t have long with them left.- Feeling that the strange conversation had come to a close, Marcus hurried back inside to see his family for what could be the last time. ~ ¡°Marcus, it¡¯s ok! The light- what did you do!?¡± his mother cried when he opened the door. ¡°The right thing I hope.¡± He said with a sigh and a smile. ¡°Hope you don''t mind but I''m going to give this hangover some hair of the dog.¡± Turning he smiled at family, noting in satisfaction the green above his little sister, before walking heavily down to the den, cracking the first bottle he grabbed and taking a deep drink. ¡°You know you¡¯re just chugging seltzer water right now, don''t you?¡± Samantha said quietly from behind him. He lowered the bottle with a grimace. ¡°I did wonder why it wasn¡¯t burning right, but I was looking to drink not check the label. Want anything?¡± he asked dropping the bottle to the floor, swapping it for a beer. ¡°You didn¡¯t have to do it you know. I''m plenty old enough to make it on my own if I had to.¡± she said, hugging herself. Marcus burst out laughing. ¡°Smalls, you¡¯re still a kid whether you like it or not, no matter what these alien things claim. Hell, it seems like only yesterday I had to help mom and dad change your diapers.¡± ¡°You¡¯ll never let me live that down will you?¡± she said with a faint chuckle, but turned solemn again quickly. ¡°It¡¯s not fair.¡± ¡°Well, you¡¯re still a kid, but I¡¯ll teach you one of the big lessons. Life, in all its shiny glory, is almost never fair.¡± As he fell back on to the couch, she came and sat down beside him, hanging off his shoulder like she¡¯d done ever since she was young. With a 19 year age gap between them, they hadn¡¯t had the most normal sibling relationship, ending up almost her uncle rather than brother. And with each of taking after a different parent, they didn¡¯t even look similar, which had caused a few incidents¡¯ when he¡¯d gone to pick her up from school. But despite this they¡¯d always been close and it was hurting both of them that they were going to split up. ¡°Now, if this was a dramatic movie,¡± he said as he drained his beer. ¡°This would be where I tell you it¡¯s up to you to look after the family. But we both know that you and dad are firmly under mom¡¯s thumb, aaand you¡¯ll probably stay there for the rest of your life.¡± Samantha smiled sadly. ¡°Not you anymore though, I guess you get to go free.¡± ¡°Freedom!¡± he cried in a terrible Scottish accent, trying to get her to cheer up. ¡°Well, if Braveheart doesn¡¯t work, I guess it¡¯s time to get serious. We¡¯re going to end up apart. This is, apparently, unavoidable, but as the only adult between us, I¡¯ll take one for the team. But it doesn¡¯t necessarily mean its good bye forever. The powers that apparently be indicated that it¡¯s possible to get about if your strong enough, even go see them in person. So if we stay safe, keep an eye out and work hard...¡± ¡°You can come back?¡± she asked hopefully. ¡°Or you can come to me. They said it¡¯d probably be harder, but maybe I''m sure I can make it awesome.¡± ¡°No, you¡¯ll make it lame. I¡¯ll make our place awesome so you can find us.¡± ¡°Heh, that works to I guess. Ok then smalls, grab me another beer for the road and lets go back up some mom can cry herself dry.¡± ¡°I heard that!¡± Mary called from upstairs, her voice sounding damp. ¡°But I want both my babies up here right now. I''m going to hug both of you until the end, and I won¡¯t take no for an answer.¡± ¡°I don''t get a hug?¡± their dad said, feigning hurt. ¡°I only have two arms Thomas, you hug them as well.¡± And that was how the Gillian family ended their time on Earth, hugging each other, talking and laughing, holding back their fears by focusing on their family. And so two hours later, when the sun faded, the ground beneath them fell away and the very universe seemed to tear them apart at the deepest level, they remained together, and smiling. As it all went black. Chapter 2 -Checking for dimensional destination...- -None determined. Finding location capable of sustaining existence...- -578934572732 locations available.- - E-grade Human, Please choose from bonus options to improve filter- ¡°B-bonus?¡± Marcus said/thought groggily. Trying to look around he couldn¡¯t tell where he was, in fact he wasn¡¯t sure he was anywhere. It wasn¡¯t dark as he thought it might be, thinking that it might have been a lie after all, that they¡¯d all just died, but it was instead an impossible kaleidoscope of colour. It hurt to look at, but he found he couldn¡¯t close his eyes, or do anything but talk for that matter. - E-grade Human, in exchange for being transported from your consumed reality without the aid of an assisting civilization, you will receive a bonus that will be matched with a suitable location. Choose- ¡°What options do I-?¡± he began before three lumps of colour separated out from the space around him and hovered in front, each with a single word written on them. -Class- -Race- -Item- ¡°These are the bonus options? What do they do? What¡¯s it mean by race-?¡± -Race bonus confirmed. Narrowing destinations- ¡°What?! No I didn¡¯t-¡± -Generating rarity. Narrowing destinations- ¡°Rarity? What are you-¡± -Calculating changes required. Narrowing destinations- ¡°Can you answer me? Can you even hear me?¡± -Comparing options to previous reality... Destination selected. Please brace for entry- -Welcome to the System- ~ Light and sound seemed to snap into focus around him, like he¡¯d been sleeping and someone had thrown open the curtains. Everything hurt and felt wrong, his head was killing him and he¡¯d kill for some cold water. Opening his eyes from his place lying on the ground, he was greeted with the blurry image of green shrubbery. ¡°Not a burning hellscape then. Yaaaaay.¡± He muttered to himself, his voice dry and hollow, sounding foreign to his ears. Blinking a few times to clear his eyes, he tried to get to his feet and immediately noticed more significant changes than his voice. Since he¡¯d been young he¡¯d been one for indoor activities rather than outdoor, something that hadn¡¯t changed since, though he¡¯d kept up playing basketball socially to keep in shape. But while he hadn¡¯t exactly been built, he didn¡¯t use to be wrap a hand around his own torso. He also didn¡¯t remember having four fingers instead of five, or his skin being that colour. He¡¯d always had a dusky complexion, but now it was an almost walnut brown, as well as becoming rough and textured... ¡°Hang on a tick.¡± He paused. He poked and prodded his arm for a moment, then grabbed a stick off the ground and compared the two for a few seconds. ¡°Yep,¡± He said with a sigh. ¡°I have bark. I''m skinny as a twig, and I have bark. Oh god, I am a twig.¡± Standing up properly, he was surprised when it took longer than expected, since by the time he¡¯d stood up straight his head was amongst the branches in the tree canopy above. ¡°Okay, maybe not that skinny, maybe just... stretched? With very long arms. And legs. And hands...¡± Carefully trying to take a step, he found his balance wasn¡¯t as bad as he¡¯d feared, though walking felt a bit like balancing on a tightrope. His feet had become big lumps of roots he realised, smiling at the idea of never stubbing his toe again. Brushing branches out the way of face he continued to mutter to himself. ¡°I can¡¯t really be this tall can I? I need to find something for scale...?¡± Beginning to find his stride, more just falling forwards and trusting his long legs to catch him, he began to cover ground at a decent pace, his heavy footfalls muffled by the undergrowth. Holding an arm up in front of his face meant he couldn¡¯t see where he was going very well, but it was better than being slapped in the face by branches he didn¡¯t notice in time. Pushing forwards, he fell several times on half covered rocks and slick rotting leaves, but he eventually pushed through, catching the sound of running water and making his way towards it. The canopy parted for a few yards, the sunlight reflecting brightly off the small streams waters in contrast to the darker forest around. Turning he saw that there was a small mountain further up stream that appeared to be its source, though the forest closed up again before he could see where it led. ¡°Right, those survival people say that to find your way to civilization you go... up... no, downstream. Ok I can do this, but first, let¡¯s see what I''m working with here.¡± Getting down to his knees, he found a still enough pool of water that he could get an idea of his appearance. ¡°Huh, it¡¯s amazing what you don''t notice. No nose. No teeth either, but I got that one. I have no idea if I''m ugly or not for whatever I am, but it¡¯s certainly a look.¡± He said to himself, twisting as he studied his face. He didn¡¯t seem to really have much of a neck; it was all thin so it was hard to tell wear his body ended. His head was slightly more defined, though missing a few bits he¡¯d expected. Ears were gone as well he found, just some holes in a similar place, though his hearing seemed as good as before. His eyes were solid brown, no iris or pupils of any kind which left him with questions but he was hardly a doctor. His hair was gone, unsurprisingly, but he now had some small sprouting branches growing on top of his head and shoulders, with small green leaves budding. Of everything his mouth was his greatest concern, and not because of the lack of teeth. Opening his lipless mouth he¡¯d seen a green tongue, misshapen but still a tongue, but there didn¡¯t seem to be an actual throat behind it. He had no idea how he was supposed to eat, let alone how he¡¯d apparently been talking. ¡°Mah mah mah, blub blub blub, grah grah grah...¡± He was so intent on figuring out his voice, that he almost missed the sound of rustling foliage nearby. But the huge stag that stepped out of the forest certainly got his attention. With antlers that rose up even higher than himself, it was a massive animal, but fortunately it didn¡¯t seem to care about him one way or the other. Until he got back to his feet to run away at least, which caused it to lock its eyes on to him immediately. Before he got the chance to try and retreat the animal rounded on him, realising that most animals are a lot bigger up close than people think. As his life flashed before his eyes for the second time in a matter of hours, the stag leaned up to him and gently bit his shoulder, tearing off a few of the budding leaves. More in shock than pain Marcus stumbled back, pushing at the large stag which may as well have been stone for his efforts. It seemed to be satisfied with the mouthful it had fortunately, letting him go as it finished off its snack. ¡°Just what is going on today!¡± he exclaimed with a groan. ¡°First I get sent to whatever place this is, then I find out I''m apparently a stick now, and it seems an edible one at that. And now a giant deer just ate some of my... shoulder branches? Leafy bits? God, could today get any weirder?¡± As if to answer his question there was another rustling from the other side of the stream, revealing a bear, with black fur only slightly smaller than the stag. He was worried it was going to attack the stag and spook it into trampling him, but was instead confused to see it give a short howl and turn rapidly, running in fear back into the trees. That confusion was cleared up when the stag howled towards where it had run to, its lips peeling back to reveal large, razor sharp fangs before it ran off in pursuit, smaller trees being thrown aside by its passing. Marcus sat in silence where he¡¯d fallen for several minutes, simply staring in the direction the animals had run.A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. ¡°...I think I can fully accept now, that this planet isn¡¯t quite the same as earth.¡± He said quietly to himself.¡± Rubbing his shoulder, he saw that it seemed the injury was only superficial, with just a handful of leaves ripped off and some scratches from where its fangs had scrapped on his bark. Considering it had just begun hunting down a bear, he felt he¡¯d gotten off lightly, especially since he was pretty sure the leaves would grow back. ¡°At least I assume trees work the same way in this system.¡± He said, poking at the scratches. -New citizen command detected- -System Version 27.82.6 performing initial booting...- -Boot successful- ¡°Oh god the weird voice is back. Please don''t turn me into anything else!¡± he begged, throwing his hands over his head. After nothing happening for a few seconds, he risked opening his eyes, hoping he wasn¡¯t back in the weird coloured space, and was glad to see he was still sitting by the stream. The only difference was a pale yellow glow in the corner of his vision. Trying to focus on it to see what it was, it spread about and snapped into focus, becoming a screen of text. -Congratulations, You and your reality have successfully been added to the System, the greatest force of knowledge and power in all existence. While its own power is limitless, it gives its loyal citizens a far more limited version allowing them to see their own nature and the gifts it has granted. Over the countless eons it had existed, these menus have undergone many changes, but we have compiled this helpful information packet to allow all new users to easily navigate its latest version, 22.1!- ¡°How long ago was this written? How out of date is five versions for something measured in eons?¡± he thought to himself as he scanned the notes presented in his vision. ¡°Glad to see marketing in the system isn¡¯t much different from earth though.¡± ¡°Ok,¡± he said after 10 minutes of studying the notes. ¡°People have six basic stats, strength, dexterity, and wisdom... simple enough, looks like it seeds that concept into nearby realities if it knows a merge is coming. Wonder if it did that to ours? Let¡¯s see... People gain skills, the system helps track, guide and compensate for their use... people¡¯s classes give more powerful skills and abilities... ha! Magic is real! Awesome! Right where was I... races give passive effects... wait so that¡¯s what the bonus stuff was about? Why didn¡¯t they give us this first! Ok, here we go... and none of this matches the file. What¡¯s that? What¡¯s this supposed to be?¡±
Name: Marcus Gillian
Level: 1
Race: Wood Walker (lesser)
Age: 29
Health: 79/80
Mana: 0/6000
Body 8
Grace 7
Thought 11
Spirit 6
Presence 10
Racial Effects:
Plant Biology Thick Trunk, Shallow Roots
Bark Skin One with Nature
Racial Abilities:
Greensight - Lvl 1 Green touch - Lvl 1
Share the Burden - Lvl 1
Defences
Physical Damage Reduction - 2
¡°Well all of that is profoundly useless. I have no class, no skills, not even the stats I''m apparently supposed to have.¡± He muttered grumpily. ¡°Ok this worked once, I just hope I don''t attract anything that¡¯ll eat me trying it again.¡± Standing up and making sure there was nothing around he began once again shouting at the sky, hoping to get answers. ¡°SYSTEM! YOUR MENU IS WRONG, WHAT DOES ALL OF THIS MEAN?!¡± -Processing request... Menu queries can be raised by focusing on the term or subject in question. Free question granted from system entry has been expended- He lowered his arms and rubbed his eyes¡°...How would I have known I had a question? Why did I have a- no, now is not the time Marcus, just be happy you actually got an answer. Lets ¡®focus¡¯ on all this nonsense.¡± Lesser Wood Walker - uncommon A sapient plant-based life form, normally only found on densely forested worlds. Generally peaceful by nature, these tall genderless beings often stay clear of more built up civilizations, choosing to remain in the wild, leading them to be regarded as a more savage race despite a lack of aggression. Racial stat gains per level: 1 Body, 1 Spirit, 3 free points. Racial effects: Plant physiology- Your body has moved far enough from the average form to be considered an effect in itself, and may change as you do. Most items and many abilities will not work correctly or at all for you. Gain Immunity to critical hits based on location of impact, and can naturally recover and regenerate from all physical injuries. Food and water consumption is replaced with processing of nutrients taken in via root system. Statistics altered from standard to account for Race. Body - Affects your physical strength, durability and life force. Grace - Affects your ability to make fine movements and avoid disturbing surroundings Presence - Affects your effect on surroundings, effect on others Thought- Affects your strength of mind, effectiveness of magic, clarity of thought Spirit- Affects the strength of your soul, mana capacity and ability to resist hostile magic Bark skin- Your wooden form is covered with a layer of thin but durable bark, giving you Physical Damage Reduction equal to a quarter of your Body score. Thick trunk, Shallow roots- you have the ability to hold far more mana than normal for a being of your level, but at the cost of your ability to use it well or to produce it yourself. Mana capacity increased 100 times, magic effectiveness reduced and permanently unable to naturally generate mana. One with Nature- greatly increased affinity with untainted plant life and animals. Affected by Presence. Racial abilities. Greensight- Lvl 1- Concentrating on surrounding vegetation allows you to gain information on both them and the area around them. Affected by Thought and Presence Green touch- Lvl 1- Manipulate plant life by thought or touch. Affected by Spirit and Presence. Mana expenditure affected by scale. Share the burden- Lvl 1- able to transfer mana to and from healthy plants. Affected by Thought, Spirit and Presence. Looking at the wealth of information suddenly available to him he focused on three pieces that stuck out to him the most. Firstly he wasn''t a stick, but something called a wood walker, apparently a lesser one. Secondly, he was very, very weird. Even in a universe with billions of different races, he was still considered an outlier, enough of one to be running off a different set of rules than everyone else. The final part was that while he''d realised he¡¯d been running about naked, and hadn''t seemed to care that he''d been running about naked, was that he''d lost some other equipment as well. "I suppose," he thought with a shrug. "That compared to losing my universe, planet, and species, losing the old wedding tackle isn''t that big a deal. Smalls is going to give me hell for it though." The thought of his little sister unblocked whatever damn and been holding back his emotions, dropping him to his knees in grief. He was completely lost in a space bigger than he could comprehend while his family was completely unreachable by any means available to him. And there was nothing he could do about it. ¡°No.¡± he said aloud after a minute, forcing himself off of those thoughts. ¡°They¡¯ll be together, and they¡¯ll be fine. They have six months of being protected, and humanity has gotten through tough times before. I just need to stay alive, and find them. There has to be someone around who can tell me how to get off this world.¡± Pulling himself together he got up and began to trek downstream, hoping to find a town or city, anyone who could help him get homes, wherever that might be. ~ Night had fallen. Marcus had been trudging forwards now for what felt like hours and hadn¡¯t found any sign that he was going the right way. He was mentally exhausted from the search, though his body seemed fine to keep plodding along, for which he was thankful. By the time the sun set he¡¯d lost all idea of how far he¡¯d come, his now lengthy stride throwing off any sense of scale he could use. He¡¯d tried to count it out, but even the faintest rustling in the trees would make him panic, worried that a predator would find him unawares. He groaned as he sat down by the stream he was still following, resting his legs and rubbing his feet. ¡°Why¡¯d it have to be a forest?¡± he whined to the empty air. ¡°I''ve spent the last 7 years as an architect, making urban places even more urban. I don''t know how to live in the woods; I barely managed to keep my lawn in check.¡± Looking up, he had to admit to himself that at least the night sky was an improvement over the one he¡¯d grown up with. There didn¡¯t seem to be any pollution in the air, and combined with an increase in the actual number of stars, it was a beautiful sight. If he squinted he was fairly sure he could make out a few clouds of faint colour amongst the black, and it felt as if space was close enough to touch. Like his family was almost within arm¡¯s reach. But they weren¡¯t, instead it was dark and cold, and he was alone. ¡°Guys, I hope you¡¯re doing better than I am.¡± He said with a prayer, before curling up by a tree and tried to get some sleep. Chapter 3 Samantha was breathing hard as she began her last lap around the rack, pushing harder as she approached the finish line. ¡°Pick it up Smalls! When I was your age I¡¯d be running circles around you!¡± Gordon called out to her from his chair as he timed her. ¡°Eat... shit... Gordon!¡± she huffed as she threw herself over the line, laying on the ground exhausted. ¡°Not bad, a touch faster than last time, but your start was a lot cleaner than before. Always good to be able to get moving at the drop of a hat, sure saved my kiester more than once in Vietnam. Got to work on that endurance though, not point getting away for them to catch up around the corner. Now get up and try again.¡± Pulling herself up, Samantha grabbed a bottle of water from near where the old man was sitting and took a drink, pouring the rest over her head. ¡°Can¡¯t we take a break? The Kurtza people were pretty clear that you can¡¯t improve your stats by exercising.¡± She said with a huff. He grunted. ¡°They also mentioned that exercise will get you more out of those stat things. Now your family has always been good to me, best neighbours an old vet could ask for. So when you asked for my help to get you ready to fight and protect your family, I''m happy to help. But if you¡¯re doing this, you¡¯re going to do it my way, no lazing about, now relying on these fancy numbers, or those fancy alien doodads.¡± She sighed as she nodded. ¡°I remember what you said Mr. Lincoln, ¡®Train hard, work hard, Fight harder and bring Marcus home¡¯. It¡¯s just... hard sometimes. It¡¯s been a week since we came to New Earth and I still don''t even have a clue on how to begin looking.¡± For the three quarters of the population that had been selected, the reality shift had been a largely smooth process. Cities, farms and entire industries had already been prepared before their arrival, all being brought up to the minimum standards of the systems efforts. This meant there was free energy, zero pollution, and more than enough food to go around. The elderly and sick had been given a new lease on life, with people like their neighbour Gordon Lincoln, a man in his nineties who could barely see, hear or walk, now almost back in his prime. In the week that had followed, representatives of the Kurtza empire had come to teach them the workings of the System and the ways of the world they found themselves in. The blue skinned, three armed beings had caused an initial stir but after showing a few pictures, they quickly proved they were quiet tame by the systems standards. The fact that most races followed the basic bipedal form was something biologists and scholars of the system still argued about. One of the first questions they¡¯d asked was to have humanity vote for the official name of their new home. New Earth had beaten out Earthy McEarthface by just 18 votes, something Samantha was slightly disappointed about. After that strange poll, they¡¯d explained the core of people¡¯s strength and growth, classes, and encouraged everyone to select one from the options the System presented them with. ¡°Which class is best?¡± One of the people in Samantha¡¯s group had asked. Their teacher had shaken his head. ¡°No class is better than any other, at least not by rank. Each beginning class has certain specializations and strengths, but overall each class starts at the same point. But as your grow, performing great deeds and achievements and improving yourselves, you will have the chance to evolve your classes into stronger ones. There you will see the five best options the System can give you, and the more you have accomplished, the better those options will be.¡± ¡°Then which class is the best for finding things?¡± Samantha had asked as people considered its words. ¡°Oh?¡± they said with a smile. ¡°You¡¯ve been here for just two days, have you already lost something?¡± ¡°My brother, he... didn¡¯t make it to New Earth.¡± She answered with a catch in her voice. Their smile faded. ¡°My apologise. Finding someone at that scale would be a monumental task, though with effort and a high enough level, not an impossible one. To begin with, I¡¯d recommend selecting the ranger if you¡¯re willing to fight or the cartographer if you aren¡¯t. Both of those lead to a number of directions that should put you on the path. From there it¡¯s up to you to put in the effort, and the System shall provide.¡± And put in effort she did. After recruiting Mr. Lincoln to show her the ropes, she¡¯d spent almost every hour doing everything she could to get stronger. She¡¯d become a ranger, unwilling to let someone else make the sacrifice for her again, and Gordon had been happy to show her every trick he¡¯d learned to get by. Guns apparently were of little use anymore, they and other chemical based weapons faring poorly against the powers the system could grant. With only a few lessons, her class was letting her use a bow with force than the average pistol, and she as only getting better. ¡°You¡¯ve taught me all this stuff, but I don¡¯t know if any of its going to help me find him.¡± Samantha said dejectedly. ¡°Oh it was never going to help with that.¡± Gordon replied, waving her off. She started at him. ¡°What? Then what was the point of me running in circles all morning?¡± ¡°Endurance, speed and discipline. That stuff was for you, not him. You¡¯re not gonna find and rescue anyone if you can¡¯t even look after yourself. But if you want to get started on a few lessons on how to track and sweep an area, I guess the System has sped things along enough.¡± Rifling through his pockets, he pulled out a red billiards pool. ¡°In my hand I have a ball, representing your target. At I''ve hidden three identical balls around town, within eight miles of here, and tomorrow I¡¯ll hide this one as well. I''ve carved some numbers into them so you¡¯ll know if you¡¯ve got the right ones. Go find them.¡± he finished, pocketing the ball and beginning to walk back to his house. ¡°How am I supposed to do that?¡± she called after him. ¡°Any way you can Smalls. I''m asking you to find a needle in a hay stack, you¡¯re looking for a grain of sand in the ocean. Find it any way you can.¡±This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. ~ The past few days had been rough for Marcus, but things had been looking up. He¡¯d kept walking along side the same stream for almost another whole day, looking for any sign of people that could help him, but the only thing he¡¯d found was what he¡¯d thought were voices, but had revealed themselves as horse-sized birds. Their brightly coloured feathers had fanned out when they spotted him at first, trying to intimidate him at first, then they¡¯d calmed down and raced away leaving him confused. Everything he¡¯d seen seemed like it¡¯d be able to kill him easily, but other than the stag on his first day they¡¯d all left him alone. Even the stag just wanted a few leaves, which had grown back since then. It had taken a particularly grisly scene for him to work out why. It had been early in the morning on the third of travel, and he was getting worn down, still not having found anything to help him. He hadn¡¯t been paying much attention as he absently thought of home, and was bowled over as a boar the size of car sprinted from the tree line. From the place where he¡¯d been thrown he watched as a pack of wolves raced silently after it. As quick as the boar was its predators had no difficulty in catching up to the animal, snapping at its flanks as they circled and hampered its movement. It attempted to fight back by swinging its head around; large tusks carve tracks in the ground and shattering rocks in the stream bed. The wolves, despite seeming out matched and out of place, no bigger than the ones from earth, moved as if physics was only an option. They leapt and twisted in the air, stepping and turning on nothing at all as the boar¡¯s attacks came close, avoiding effortlessly each time. They weren¡¯t going for the kill, Marcus realised as he watched on in shock, but were trying to tire it out so they could attack safely. It was only when the boar stopped its attacks, panting heavily, that a wolf slipped in and went for the throat. The last desperate movement s of the beast did nothing to shake it loose, and it wasn¡¯t long before the rest of the pack finished it off. Standing atop their kill the wolves howled loudly, triumphantly declaring their kill. It was only now did Marcus put few things he¡¯d noticed together. The surprisingly high pitch of the howls, the fluffiness of their fur, the somewhat oversized paws... they were only pups. The howl hadn¡¯t been to declare victory, it¡¯d been to show off their kill to the adults, who walked from the trees without a sound, not a single leaf moving to give away their presence. Each wolf had was the same size of the boar the pups had taken down, but moved with liquid grace as they walked over, sniffing and checking their young for injuries. They began to feed on the boars corpse, ripping through its hide like it was paper. He wondered if he¡¯d die there and then when one of the adults walked over to him. Frozen in fear, he couldn¡¯t move an inch as it sniffed at him, close enough that he could see the flecks of blood on its snout. But after a few moments of investigation it just walked back to its pack. That was when it really set in, why the animals were acting this way. They didn¡¯t care. He was, when it came down to it, a weak plant. He wasn¡¯t prey, he certainly wasn¡¯t a threat, and he didn¡¯t even make for a decent hiding place. He was just another part of the woods to them, one that moved for some reason, but still just a tree. Taking one of the biggest risks of his life he went to test it, and slowly approached the feeding wolves. He flinched when several of the adults moved around to get between him and the pups, but it was only caution, not hostility. Like any parent they worried about anything getting close to their children. The children themselves had no such fears, as one immediately tackled him, throwing him to the ground as it investigates the strange moving stick, driving the air out of him. ¡°C-cough... nice wolf?¡± he said as his back burned fiercely. ¡°Get off now. Gently does it.¡± Doing is best to push the curious animal off himself without angering the lethal parents watching them. He gingerly rolled to the side and stood up carefully, a small red light in his vision confirming what he felt. -Warning! Health below 20%- It was only the playful nudge of a young animal, yet it had almost killed him. Unwilling to risk another pup coming to try and play he limped away from the area as best he could, looking for a place to rest. In a sad kind of horror he saw a few pups begin to follow him, but they were quickly intercepted by rest of the pack. Eventually he hobbled away far enough that he doubted they¡¯d follow, chastising himself the whole time. ¡°This is just like the time with the electric fence. I just had to then, and I just had to know now.¡± Carefully reaching back, he carefully probed at his injury, trying to figure out the damage. ¡°No blood at least,¡± Marcus thought. ¡°Never been good with my own blood. Okay that hurts, that bit hurts, THAT spot stings... little bit worried that this spots not hurting...¡± From his best guess, almost half his back was cracked open, with a number of rocks and bits of debris wedged in the wound. Putting his long fingers to work, he grabbed a stick to bite down on and began fishing around to pull out the foreign material. ¡°Hnnngh!¡± Exhaling in pain, he slowly pulled them out one by one, some having gone deep enough that there was some greenish liquid on them. ¡°Oh god it¡¯s my not-blood.¡± He thought faintly, feeling sick, but getting the last one out. -Warning! Health below 15%- ¡°I am very much aware, thank you System. You can stop that now.¡± He said aloud, in no mood for the messages. -Low health warnings deactivated- ¡°I didn¡¯t mean... its fine. This is fine. Everything is fine. Ok, healing, healing, I know I saw something about that in the menu...¡± he muttered, trying to focus on things other than his back. ¡°Okay here we are...¡¯can naturally recover and regenerate¡¯. What does that meeeeean?! I swear it¡¯d be so much easier to survive in the middle of nowhere if someone just left me System to English dictionary. Well it¡¯s in this section so maybe...?¡± Standing upright, he looked down at the lumps that were his feet and tried to ¡®push¡¯ them into the ground. Experiencing the strange sensation of having his non-existent toes wiggle, he watched as roots spread out from the base of his feet, anchoring him in place. As soon as they were in the ground he could feel them, like another hand that had just been asleep this whole time. But now it was wide awake and feeding him not only nutrients and energy, which felt amazing, but also information. He suddenly knew that soil was drier than it should be, that there was an overabundance of nitrogen in the ground around him, that an ants nest was several metres below him and how to have his roots avoid there tunnels. ¡°Who needs a milkshake when you¡¯ve got dirt.¡± He said happily, but wincing as his movements pulled on his back. ¡°Ow, ok, what¡¯s next... plants need nutrients, water and...¡± he trailed off, looking upwards at the blue sky. Grunting, he managed to get his arms stretched out wide as he faced upwards. He took a breath then paused for a second. ¡°Why do I always ending up yelling at the sky lately? Is it still crazy if it works?¡± he wondered then shook his head and got on with his ¡®plan¡¯. ¡°PHOTOSYNTHESIS. PHOTOSYNTHESIS. PHOTOSYNTHESIS. PHOTOSYNTHESIS. PHOTOSYNTHESIS...¡± Fifteen minutes and the complete loss of his dignity later, the System made another appearance. -Through repeated actions, a racial effect has been unlocked.- -Sun Eater- Exposure to sunlight while rooted accelerates healing, growth and processing of nutrients. Can be used to replace sleep for a while- ¡°PHOToooooo yeah, that¡¯s the stuff.¡± He said with a happy sigh, closing his eyes as he felt the sunlight pour into him, the leaves on his body widening and turning to face the sun. ¡°This could definitely prove to be addictive.¡± He has warm, fed and could feel his back very slowly putting itself back together. It was the most peaceful he¡¯d felt since the Earth had vanished and he¡¯d ended up here. He rested there for the rest of the day, and went night fell, while it hasn¡¯t the same he still saw no reason to move on, happy to just...be. ¡°Wait, is this why trees don''t move?¡± Chapter 4 ¡°Identify is one of the most useful skills you can acquire, and is one that you should try and learn as soon as possible. At low levels it won¡¯t give you much information, but what it can tell you is if you should run or not. Its sole purpose it to identify things the System defines as living entities, and analyse their level, habits, nature and abilities. If the level of the enemy is more than double yours, at least to begin with, then you¡¯ll only see question marks. Two marks if it¡¯s between level 10 and 99, three from 100 to 999 and so on. Now levels aren¡¯t everything, and people beat opponents that are of a higher level all the time. But until you know what you¡¯re doing, trust the question marks. You won¡¯t be able to really understand what a high level enemy can do until you see it, but for now just stay clear of anything you can¡¯t identify.¡± ~Taken from Samantha¡¯s notes, written during System Lesson: Basic skills and you~ After two days, Marcus finally pulled himself out of his stupor. Retracting his roots and prying his feet out of the soil was like forcing himself out of a warm bed. Habits were a powerful thing, and were what he¡¯d relied on in the past to get him going in the morning. But with no hot showers, no coffee or the ability to drink it and no morning cartoons, there wasn¡¯t a lot to encourage him to start the day. It took more effort than he¡¯d like to admit to get moving again, but he wasn¡¯t going to find help if he just stood around. A bit of time later, some stretching and some cold water thrown on his face for good measure, Marcus was ready to start the day. ¡°Right then, finding civilization, attempt number three. Let¡¯s get to it.¡± After so many days of walking, the small stream he¡¯d been following had been joined by others, becoming larger until it was now a full river. Being a more major water source, the number of animal that came out to drink had increased as well. Now that he was less terrified they¡¯d attack him on sight, he could actually appreciate the scenery around him. Rainbow coloured birds flew over head while all manner of small animal raced through the trees. Though, small was a relative term he¡¯d begun to accept, stepping aside as a ferret the size of a greyhound moved past. ¡°Madness I swear. Wither I''m way smaller than I think, or this planets just huge.¡± He said, carefully stepping over a passing snake that looked like it belonged in a horror movie. As he pondered, the first animal that didn¡¯t seem to be oversized leapt from a nearby canopy and landed on his shoulder, making him shriek in surprise. ¡°No one saw that!¡± he shouted at the surround wildlife, who all politely said nothing about it. Turning his head, he saw a small brown squirrel pulling at the leaves on his shoulder, darting its head around as it looked for threats. ¡°Hey there little buddy,¡± he whispered, not wanting to startle it. ¡°I got no food on me if that¡¯s what you¡¯re looking for. But feel free to stick around, it nice to see something normal looking.¡± While the conversation wasn¡¯t exactly stimulating being able to talk to something, instead of himself, was a great relief. Marcus wouldn¡¯t call himself an extrovert, but it turned out he did like to be in a society. He also now had a greater appreciation for the effect pets had on people. As he walked the squirrel continued to clutch to his body, scampering around to keep out of sight as different animals passed nearby. ¡°So there we were, backpack full of hotdogs, David still tied to the front doors and the police were on their way... Sorry , enough about me, how about you? How¡¯s squirrel life these days.¡± He asked happily, enjoying the conversation he was pretending to have. -Requirements have been met. Basic skill ¡®Identify¡± has been unlocked.- He sighed. ¡°And then there¡¯s this guy, interrupting a perfectly friendly chat. Excuse me a moment, I should probably have a look at this.¡± -Identify- Lvl 1- Gain information on target- ¡°Ah, it seems you¡¯re my benefactor here, my squirrely little friend! Do you have a name? Shall we check?¡± Through a combination of staring, squinting, covering one eye, pretending to have glasses, and general foolery, he managed to get it to work by just focusing and wanting to see the information. -Datovian Brown Squirrel. Level: ???- ¡°Hmm, no name and the rest is a mystery, but still helpful I suppose. I get the brown part, So is Datovian your species or..?¡±Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Looking around, he saw another one of the large stags he¡¯s seen on his first day coming for water, sending everything else running for safety. -Datovian Great Stag. Level: ????- He gave a cheer, fist pumping in celebration. ¡°HA! I knew it! Its Jalamian as well! So is that the area we¡¯re in or the world? Do you know Mr. Squeaks? That¡¯s your new name by the way squirrel; feel free to tell me to changes it. Now will identify me as Datovian as well, since I was technically born here? Or can I check the planet itself? Staring at his had he tried to identify himself, but it just ended up opening his character sheet, the thoughts involved being the same. The planet worked fine though. -Great World Datov. Level: ???????- He nodded to himself, happy to be proven right, and began making notes, drawing in the dirt. ¡°Okay so the planet is called Datov, good to know that worked. That¡¯ll give me a point to map from if I can get some kind of distress signal going. Apparently it¡¯s a ¡®Great world¡¯ as well, so maybe will know it better and can come find me? Ah, hope springs eternal. Why didn¡¯t I go to more of those survival things with dad? For once in my life that stuff would prove useful.¡± Back when Marcus still lived with his parents, his dad had gone through a phase where, as the media kept hyping up the threat of looming war, had almost gone full doomsday prepper. They¡¯d stockpiled canned and dried goods, invested in solar panels for when oil ran out (a good investment) and several inflatable boats in case the water level suddenly rose (a terrible one). His dad had also gone to numerous first aid courses, survival training and even some self defence classes. Marcus had only attended one or two, but now wished he¡¯d studied them religiously, and hoped the information was helping his family now. The fear of oncoming war had been the original reason for the den at home, a ¡®need¡¯ for a bomb shelter. It was only when their neighbour, Mr. Lincoln, explained to him that the next time war broke out for real, any bomb shelter not half a mile underground with an farm inside, would be as useful as hiding under your desk. That particular statement had him cancel several pallets of rebar and concrete, and replace them with kegs and a wine rack. He remembered how to start a fire, but hadn¡¯t felt cold and didn¡¯t need to cook anything so it that wasn¡¯t useful. Ways to filter or boil water fell into the same category. The lesson about what to do if lost at sea... he¡¯d walked into the middle of the river and the water level only came up to his shoulder so not a lot of fear there. He did notice he was pretty buoyant, like all good lumps of wood should be, but he kept spinning about whenever he bumped a rock. At least Marcus hoped they were rocks. He¡¯d seen more than a few animals come to take a drink, only to be pulled into the water by things that would give Jaws a run for its money. He was broken from his reverie by the squirrel beginning to tear and twist some of his small braches, apparently having decided he would make a suitable place to live. ¡°What¡¯s that Mr. Squeaks? Why yes, I do have more to my plan. People build by water, it¡¯s pretty much a necessity. And eventually this river is going to hit either a lake, or the ocean, which is my best bet for finding someone else. Even if it¡¯s just a little village or something. Hell I¡¯d settle for someone¡¯s surf shack, just some kind of development I can use to get my bearings. From there, it¡¯ll be either build a big old help sign, or build a radio to call for help... you¡¯re right, help sign it is.¡± The squirrel continued to sit on his shoulder, chittering quietly as he crossed things out in the dirt, his hand slowing to a stop. Marcus began speaking slower emotion leaking out of his voice. ¡°I think I''m losing it Mr. Squeaks. I¡¯ve been trying to hold it together, the old ¡®fake it til you make it¡¯ trick, but I''m not that strong a person. I''m a follower more than a leader, and there¡¯s no here to help me figure this out. And I''m becoming more and more confident that there¡¯s no one else on this world at all. ¡°Maybe I''m wrong, maybe I¡¯ll find the capital city of this whole world right around the next bend. But there¡¯s been nothing. No planes in the sky, no cut trees, no traces of anything. All I''m asking for is a single sign, a bit of garbage in the water, maybe an old carved stone. I don''t think I''m going to find anyone no matter how far I walk, and I''m getting tired.¡± Marcus sat there for over an hour as he just starred at the word ¡®help¡¯ written in the dirt in front of him, his mind turning over and over. At one point the Stag he¡¯d identified had come over and taken a bite of his leaves, but he didn¡¯t even react, not even when the squirrel ran across his face to escape the terrible predator. Eventually he slowly began to move, raising one hand up. *Smack* Slapping himself across the face, he knocked himself out of train of thoughts he¡¯d become locked in, forcing the thoughts and emotions away. Shaking himself awake he forced himself to walk, using the act of moving to try and trick his brain into thinking he had somewhere to go. ¡°Ok, come on Marcus, you can do this. Find the people that are definitely at the little lakeside town just a few hours from here. Ask them for a lift to where humanity has settled down, go there and ask where Smalls and the folks are. Simple enough, just a few more hours and everything will be fine. Isn¡¯t that right Mr. Squeaks?¡± he said, turning to the squirrel that had begun trying to make a nest on his shoulder. He¡¯d turned just in time to watch as a previously unnoticed hawk-like bird swooped down and snatched the squirrel before it could move, only having time for very short cry of panic. ¡°MR. SQUEAKS NOOOOOO!¡± Marcus cried as he watched the bird fly away to eat. Having a momentary spark of anger, he thought about setting out and trying to seek vengeance for his furry comrade. His new quest was interrupted though when another squirrel, a grey one the time, began climbing his leg and continued working on the nest. Marcus¡¯s thoughts ground to a halt for a moment, before giving up on the idea entirely. ¡°Well,¡± he said in hoarse bemusement. ¡°Maybe we should keep an eye on the sky a bit more, aye Mr. Squeaks the second?¡± And so he set off again, trekking along the river¡¯s edge towards what he hoped would be the answers he needed. And by the time he and Mr. Squeaks the seventh had decided to walk further under the tree line instead of the open, Marcus¡¯s spirits had began to rise back up. Chapter 5 The bird pecked the leaves in front of it, eating the bugs inside with relish. The rain had just cleared up and the insects had come out, then the things that ate the bugs, followed by everything another step up the food chain. Unfortunately for the bird, humanity had learned to cheat the food chain long ago. It was choking down a particularly large beetle when the arrow pierced its side, killing it instantly. ¡°Excellent shot Ms. Gillian, your archery is coming along nicely. Did you feel the energy you absorbed from the kill?¡± Vork asked. ¡°I think so? Kind of a low buzzing in my... core? Is that the word?¡± Samantha answered, pressing a hand to her chest with a frown. The blue alien smiled. ¡°This particular lesson has much to do with the soul, so words will fall short more often than not. It is indeed in your core as you call it though it is called by many other names, the soul-heart by our own people. Likewise, the energy is also called by other names even within the System, as it sees no issue in renaming things for a culture to understand better. We just call it energy, though I am given to believe humans have something called experience?¡± She shrugged. ¡°That¡¯s what it says. The people on the news said a bunch of stuff about it ¡°being shaped by humanities collective consciousness¡±. Any truth to that?¡± ¡°I have no idea.¡± Samantha brow furrowed at the response. ¡°You¡¯re here teaching us all this stuff, but you don''t know how it works?¡± They laughed, hands on their knees as they wiped their eyes. ¡°Ms. Gillian, no one knows how it works, and anyone who claims they do is either crazy or trying to sell you something. The System is old, and was old long before the suns of my home world had even ignited. There is an old saying for questions like yours, so I suggest you remember it well: ¡®The System is older than time, larger than space, more complicated than reality and stranger than a duck¡¯.¡± ¡°...Why a duck?¡± Samantha asked after a moment, confused. ¡°Why indeed?¡± They replied, laughter in their eyes. ¡°Ok, so we have the experience, just because. But do we really have to do this?¡± ¡°You were the one who asked for extra lessons. You¡¯re one of the more promising students, so I agreed. Or are you upset with the extra training?¡± Every animal was affected by the System, so every animal could be a danger if it caught you by surprise. To prevent a constant stream of little problems, barriers had been placed around the town and the farms in the area. They weren¡¯t particularly strong, just enough to drive off small monsters that would make themselves pests in town, but those were exactly what they were out looking for. A ranger had to learn to hunt after all. So they¡¯d found their way to a small meadow beyond the protections the town offered, and were hunting for small game. Samantha had already learned how to look for signs of passing animals, now it had been time to put it into practice. Samantha shook her head. ¡°No, I''m glad you¡¯ve come out to help me Vork, I wouldn¡¯t be able to do this on my own, it¡¯s just that is this really- hold on, I see one.¡± Her teacher nodded in approval before talking quietly. ¡°Good, you spotted it, now as we discussed, if you haven¡¯t seen something before, identify it first.¡± She raised an eyebrow, gesturing at the furry creature hopping through the grass. ¡°I''ve seen a rabbit before Vork, they¡¯re harmless.¡± ¡°Oh? And when did you see a rabbit?¡± he asked. Sighing, she answered her teacher. ¡°Before entering the system, so it doesn¡¯t count. I remember the lessons. Fine, I¡¯ll identify it.¡± -Grey Hare. Level: 4- ¡°Its level 4!¡± she exclaimed with a whisper. ¡°Why is a damn rabbit twice my level?¡± ¡°You currently fight to better yourself and grow, it fights to survive. That is a constant battle, and why monsters can grow out of control if left unchecked long enough. But it is still an animal, and you are a hunter.¡± Nodding and taking a deep breath, she drew an arrow and notched it. Pulling the string back as she sighted her target and called up her mana, the unfamiliar feeling almost making her let go by accident. Getting it back under control under her teacher¡¯s watchful eye, she checked her target, and released as she activated the first skill she¡¯d unlocked as a ranger. ¡°Power shot!¡± The arrow lit up with blue light as it left her hand, accelerated by more than the bow and screaming towards the target. The hare had flinched at the shout, but it wasn¡¯t quick enough to get out of the way entirely, being struck deeply in the back and pinning it to the ground. ¡°I got it!¡± Samantha shouted excitedly. ¡°Just.¡± Vork said disapprovingly. ¡°You almost lost it when you readied your ability, and again when you activated the ability aloud. Both are the habits of children, which, given how long you¡¯ve been in the System, I suppose you are, but they are habits you must break.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll try, but couldn¡¯t you at least say something positive? You know, ¡®job well done¡¯ that kind of thing?¡± she answered with a huff. ¡°Perhaps, but not until the job is done.¡± He replied, taking a knife from his pocket and offering it to her. Taking it, she examined the blade. ¡°What¡¯s this for? New lesson?¡± ¡°Did you feel the energy from your kill? You did not, because the hare you struck still lives. A hunter must never cause unnecessary suffering in their prey. That way leads to darker thoughts and worse actions.¡± They said seriously. Taking the knife firmly in hand, Samantha swallowed hard, nodded and approached the hare. It lay panting on the ground, bleeding profusely from its wound, already having given up on escape. She lifted the weapon, hesitated for a moment then struck, ending the creature. ¡°...sorry.¡± she said to it quietly as the experience flowed into her, giving a small surge of energy as she pushed through to level three. She turned back to her teacher. ¡°Like I was saying, is this really what we have to do? Is killing things the only way to get stronger in the System?¡± Vork smiled sadly. ¡°A good question to have. A person can gain experience from many things but it¡¯s generally put into four groups. The fastest is to kill, and take part of their energy for your own, and as a ranger it¡¯s the most efficient for you. Quests give large amounts, but are very rare, since they only happen when the System needs something done, though some powerful beings pay for service in energy so that¡¯s an option. Producing something, repairing or generally adding to the universe gives some, it¡¯s how production classes like your parents level up, safe but slow. Lastly is living.¡±You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. ¡°Living?¡± ¡°Time passes for all things, and as it does, we soak up tiny amounts of energy from the System around us. The older you get, the stronger you¡¯ll get, until you die. Most powerful people in the universe are in a sort of race with death, needing to gain power to extend their lifespan, which in turn gives them a bit more power. They never win though, no one lives forever.¡± She nodded. ¡°So then hunting is...¡± ¡°A necessary evil I''m afraid, unless you want to be left unable to protect yourself from those that kill happily. Now, keep the knife, as I¡¯ll show you how to harvest useful parts from your prey.¡± ¡°Gross.¡± ~ He felt a twitch of guilt over it, but with the squirrels survival rate compared to the predators around it, he¡¯d started tracking time by how long they lasted, currently he was going through almost five Squeaks a day. He¡¯d come up with his brilliant idea three Squeaks ago, when his companion had raced down his leg for a drink from the river and hadn¡¯t made it back. Leaves had been thrown into the suddenly roiling waters as the squirrel vanished, but looking at the floating objects inspired him. If he was going to keep following a river, why was he walking? ¡°Come Mr. Squeaks, I have a cunning plan... Oh, right. You shall be missed 24th, or was it 25th?¡± Finding wood in a forest should have been, Marcus assumed, an easy task. But with things being as lush as they were all he could find were sticks that were too small, or logs almost entirely made of squishy mould, hardly useful building materials. ¡°Maybe try a canoe then? Those are simple enough right? You take a tree, and you...make a canoe out of it.¡± He pondered, looking around at the trees around him. ¡°With the tools, knowledge and skills I don''t have, yeah that¡¯ll totally work. If I needed a shopping mall to float down the river, that I could start on, but a boat? Not so much.¡± Thinking about what skills he did have he remembered he did have some according to the menu. He¡¯d been trying to avoid dealing with it as much as he could, the connection between it and his isolation too strong to ignore. But he was going to have to suck it up and get used to it eventually, so he thought he might as well start now. Finding a large tree he walked over to it and laid a hand on it. ¡°Ok, here we go, focus on Green Touch, focus on the tree aaand...be a boat!¡± ~ Waking up in the dark, Marcus had no idea what just happened, he¡¯d just touched the tree and then... ¡°System!¡± he complained. ¡°Why must you betray me at every turn? What do you have to say for yourself?¡± -You have activated Green touch on a plant with a substantially higher level that yours. Mana expenditure increased.- -You have attempted use an ability with zero remaining mana causing severe backlash- -Warning! 60% health remaining- He coughed embarrassedly. ¡°Yes, well, I guess this one was entirely your fault system. I will excuse this time. Now, how does a guy go about getting mana?¡± Finding the same tree again, he put a hand on it yet again, gingerly this time in fear of immediately blacking out again, and tried using a different ability. ¡°Hey there tree, fancy giving a neighbour a cup of mana?¡± -You have received 2 mana from Datovian red oak using Share the Burden- A trickle of warmth flowed through his palm, running through his body before settling deep in his chest. ¡°Only two?! But you¡¯re huge! I''m just a stick and I can hold six thousand! How much do you have left huh? A thousand? A million? Let¡¯s see what the last of the Systems tricks has to say about your selfishness!¡± he said rudely while triggering Greensight before becoming immediately overcome with vertigo. He could see the tree still, right in front of him, his hand still on it, but he could also see himself, a hazy green figure standing next to him, with a hand on his trunk. Marcus struggled to tell exactly where his body ended and the tree began, able to feel it like any other limb, not something he¡¯d prepared for at all. -Datovian red oak. Level: 23- -This type of tree is the common across Datov growing quickly in abundance thanks to the strong life force presence in Datov.- -Health: 460/ 460 Mana: 1/3- ¡°Who names something Greensight when it has almost nothing to do with seeing?¡± he groaned, still leaning on the tree as he processed the unfamiliar feelings. ¡°But also... sorry tree, you were giving me most of what you had, and I still whined like a child. Thanks for the two mana.¡± Before he took his hand off, he felt something else pass through, not the warmth of mana, but more of a feeling, it felt like... forgiveness? -Greensight has increased to level 2. Information can be processed more easily. Increased communication with stronger vegetation.- Marcus smiled, happy with the implications of the message. ¡°So I might have been crazy for talking to the trees before, but now they can begin to talk back? Does that make it less crazy or even more? Well you might have been nice enough to give me all you could spare, but I don''t think two is gonna be enough. Let¡¯s see if anyone else is feeling generous. ~ By the time the sun had risen, he¡¯d collected a little over three thousand mana, but more importantly, felt reinvigorated. As he¡¯d kept at it, reaching out to every tree and bush he¡¯d passed, he¡¯d felt more connected to them, felt like he belonged. The constant practice had increased his skills even further, his Greensight having levelled several times, the trees now passing feelings of greetings, curiosity and happiness. One particularly old tree had managed to complain about a rock wedged in amongst its roots, and while it had taken effort to pry free, it gave him a true sense of accomplishment. Both abilities had reached the point we¡¯re he didn¡¯t need to actually touch the plant to connect to it, though trying to do two plants at once still sent him to the ground. While his current shoulder resident, Mr. Squeaks the 27th, was still a valued companion, getting a response in a conversation was making his life bearable. Thinking he¡¯d have enough mana for his goals, he bowed to the forest in general. ¡°Thank you all for letting me borrow some of your mana, but now I need one thing more. Could I ask for one of you to spare a limb?¡± Checking with each tree along the shore in turn, he found one that signalled it would be ok with it, the limb in question having grown too much and causing problems for the rest of the tree. ¡°Ok then, let¡¯s try this again without passing out. Birds, get out of the way please, it¡¯s boat time.¡± Trusting it to work better this time, he pressed his hands on to the offending branch, and activated Green Touch. He could feel the mana in him being burned up, fuelling the changes he was causing in the wood beneath his hands. The trunk widened and rolled in on itself, leaves being pulled back in as it slowly melted into the image he was concentrating on. Rather than putting a further burden on the tree, the extra material came from the mana itself, creating the matter from seemingly nothing. Eventually the weight became too much for the tree to support, so Marcus had it break off, separating the limb cleanly, and dropping his new boat on to the shore. Using the last of his mana to clean up the break on the tree, he looked proudly at his work. It was only a rough, misshapen dingy but he¡¯d successfully grown a boat. Grinning, he pushed it into the water, watching it bob as it floated with the current already starting to pull it downstream. ¡°I¡¯d call myself a genius, but I should have thought of this a week ago.¡± The newly minted captain Marcus said giddily to his first mate, Mr. Squeaks the 28th. As he hopped in, the boat wobbled slightly and sat slightly lower in the water, but it worked, and with a push he began floating freely. As the current gripped it firmly he began to pick up some speed, not much faster than his own lengthy strides, but much more relaxed. Laying back with his arms behind his head, he began to doze as the rocking waves lulled him to sleep, before sitting upright in panic. ¡°Shit, oars! How do I turn, or stop?¡± he cried. Looking at the river in front of him, unchanging for as far as he could see, as it had been all week, he shrugged. ¡°Meh, problems for later.¡± And with that decided, he went to sleep. Chapter 6 Rolling along the river had proven effective, at least for the most part. A few small rapids along the way had threatened to upend the boat, and it had gained numerous cracks and one large bite mark from animals investigating him, but Marcus was still happy with how it was going. Being able to sleep and move at the same time let him cover almost twice the ground, but it was beginning to concern him. He¡¯d been travelling in a largely straight direction for weeks now, and at a decent speed at that. Yet there¡¯d been no change in scenery, no end of the forest around him, just an ever widening river. Gone were the days where it was something he could step over, now it was hundreds of meters wide, and deep enough to hold some horrifyingly large fish and lizards. A goldfish had nearly thrown him overboard when it swam past, as large as any shark he¡¯d seen in an aquarium. Mr. Squeaks hadn¡¯t managed to stay aboard then, and had left him alone as the squirrel became fish food. With no way to steer he was at the mercy of the current and it was beginning to be a problem. Trying to paddle to shore with his hands had proven both ineffective and dangerous, his ineffective flailing luring in fish that tried to take a bite at the movement. He was left just lying back, unable to reach the shore he¡¯d been close to all this time. It¡¯d been days since he¡¯d touched ground, and he was getting hungry, or at least the Wood walker equivalent of hungry. Empty, he supposed. After three days he wondered if he¡¯d reach a lake eventually, and be stuck out there instead. By five days he gave great thought to jumping out and trying to swim for it, but each time he got ready to jump in, something from the water would show itself and keep him on board. It was on the sixth day he began to hear it. It crept up so slowly that Marcus couldn¡¯t tell when it began, but there was a low drone in the air, a background noise that seemed to the world. As the day dragged on and he floated onwards, he swore it had gotten louder than when he first paid attention to it. Whether it was from his focus on it, being half delirious with hunger, or an actual increase in volume, by nightfall it had grown from a low buzz to hum that left odd ripples in the water. He watched how they caught the light until exhaustion took him, letting him sleep. In the morning when he awoke he thought he¡¯d gone deaf. But it wasn¡¯t that he couldn¡¯t hear anything, rather he couldn¡¯t hear anything else. The sound had become an oppressive wall of noise, so powerful it hadn¡¯t shaken the leaves off all the trees in the area, leaving it barren, and giving him a clear view of what was up ahead. The edge of the world. Marcus was at least seventy percent sure it wasn¡¯t actually the edge, given that there was still sky beyond it, but up ahead the river and surrounding countryside had a definite edge. ¡°I''m not this slow normally.¡± He thought groggily as the sound hammered on him, ¡°but that¡¯s a damn waterfall.¡± Sure enough, now that he could put a name to the noise, it was water hammering down on a scale he couldn¡¯t fathom. But unless he could think of something quick, was going to experience it firsthand. ¡°Okay Marcus, you got this.¡± He said to himself, unable to hear his own voice. ¡°What can I do? Can¡¯t steer the boat away, didn¡¯t work before and the currents are even stronger now. Change the boat somehow..? No mana for it, I¡¯d just pass out and go over unaware, and that¡¯s quitter talk. Call for help..? If that could work I wouldn¡¯t BE in this mess! That leaves... fuck it.¡± With no further reasoning he leapt from the side of the boat, diving into the freezing waters. He was buoyant enough that he didn¡¯t have to worry much about being pulled under, but the current still threw him about, his arms lacking the strength to fight it. As he desperately tried to swim for the water¡¯s edge, part of his mind noticed he was calmer than expected, wondering if it was the lack of adrenaline. And as he felt the waters shifting around him as he got pulled under and gravity took over, he wondered if he actually needed to breathe. ~ The area was a swampy morass, enough of the falls breaking up above to turn it into a constant rain that wore away at everything, rotting what it could and eroding what it couldn¡¯t. The rats were one of the only creatures that lived near the bottom of the enormous falls, and had evolved to suit such a niche. Deaf by nature, they were immune to the roar of the waters, though they still felt it shake the ground. They fed off the bodies of the fish that fell from high above the clouds at the start of the falls, cleaning up the mess of scattered seafood. A lone rat had moved out from the edge of the group, looking for any food that had landed that would be big enough to feed the swarm. They¡¯d gotten lucky with a particularly large serpent that had fed them for weeks, but that had run out a few days ago and now they were back to constantly scavenging scraps. The area was a swampy morass, enough of the falls breaking up above to turn it into a constant rain that wore away at everything, rotting what it could and eroding what it couldn¡¯t. It felt it had struck gold when it came across most of a fish that had struck the ground hard enough to bury most of it in the mud. Rushing up to the corpse, it began marking it to claim it for its own swarm before any other could find it, checking that it was safe from other scavengers. When it crawled over the body to check it over, it was startled when a chunk of wood on top of it moved, a mouth opening and closing for some reason. This close to the falls, even if it wasn¡¯t deaf, it wouldn¡¯t be able to hear the screaming. ~ Marcus was alive, but only just. Whether by planning, fate or pure dumb luck, his flailing in the water had caused a massive koi fish to try and bite him before they went over the falls. Nothing in his whole life, which had flashed before his own eyes several times, was as bad as falling to his death while a giant fish tried to eat him. Even when the world itself had disappeared from underneath him, it didn¡¯t hold the same terror as the several mile fall of trying to stay on top of the panicking fish. When they¡¯d hit the ground they¡¯d hit hard, and like he¡¯d prayed, the fish took the worst of it, but not nearly enough. Below his chest, his body was gone, a ragged stump that was oozing sap at an alarming rate. His right arm had gone the same way, and to make it somehow worse, half his head was gone, leaving him with just one arm, half blind and completely deaf.You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. And in pain. Everything hurt, more than he knew things could. Even though his wooden body had managed to survive so far, part of him still thought of itself as human, and that part wanted to die. Trying to move set off sharp new waves of agony, feeling splinters of his skin break off as it bent, his flinching at the pain only making it worse. He knew he was dying, and the system agreed. -Warning! 4% health remaining- ¡°The ground.¡± He thought, the pain snapping him into lucidity for a moment. If he could just get off the fish, and to the ground, he could pull in nutrients, stem the bleeding, and slowly recover. He just needed to move a little closer to the edge and get down... With agonizing slowness, he dragged himself forwards, choking down the pain as his wounds ground on the scales of the fish that had saved his life, but was now at risk of killing him. After minutes that seemed like hours, he got far enough that the rain slicked scales and gravity took over, sending him tumbling into the mud. -Warning! 2% health remaining- If he hadn¡¯t already been screaming, the pain from the last impact would¡¯ve broken him, causing him to black out momentarily. But he¡¯d made it, and could finally start to recover. -Unable to root into soil. Roots unavailable- His legs were gone. The roots that he needed to heal and regenerate his legs, were gone. He could feel the mud between his fingers, but couldn¡¯t do a damn thing with it, and was going to die. ... Mary. Thomas. Samantha. ¡°No.¡± Mom. Dad. Smalls. ¡°Not like this. Not now.¡± He growled silently. Burying his hand in the mud, he pushed down as far as he could reach, and then pushed further mentally, looking with his Greensight. There was nothing growing for as far as he could see on the surface, but he just needed something, a single drop of mana to try and force his injuries closed. The earth around him was rich from the river creatures being pulped into it constantly, surely something lived in it. A mushroom, a buried root, just a single blade of grass... -Warning! 1% health remaining- The warning was meaningless now, it wasn¡¯t that he was betting it all on this, he just had no other bets he could make. Deeper he pushed, ignoring the pain, the cold, the loss of feeling in his body. All that mattered was that he had to find a way to live, to get back to his family. He would not die here alone. With the last of his strength he reached out, and found nothing. Just more mud, dense and lifeless from the years of being battered by the unforgiving water. He¡¯d reached with everything that he had, and failed. Then something reached back. A blast of energy unlike anything he knew ripped through him, filling his mana pool entirely at the briefest touch, then kept on going. For a moment Marcus felt saved by this miracle, the energy giving him another second of life, but then he realised that too much mana was going to be just as bad as not enough. -Warning! Mana: 87286/6000- -Mana Burn imminent!- His mana pool was larger than average, apparently a hundred times what a normal person would have at his level, and it was nothing. Already forced far beyond the limits, he could feel a part of his soul beginning to buckle as it tried to hold the mana that was still pouring into him. Not knowing what else to do Marcus tried to push some of it into his body, hoping to replace his missing pieces the same way the boat had created more wood out of magic. It worked, if inefficiently, the mana being broken down and becoming new wooden flesh filling out his body and healing his wounds. -23% health remaining- -Warning! Mana: 214423/6000- -Mana Burn imminent!- It was like trying to bail out a ship with a thimble, and he could tell something was about to give out. He tried to break the connection with the source of mana, but it had a grip on him rather than the other way around, there was nothing he could let go of. He tried to push the mana out, let it go into the air, but he couldn¡¯t dump it fast enough. -Warning! Mana: 629431/6000- -You have entered a state of Mana Burn. His spirit broke, his soul cracked, and his body burned. The mana, no longer contained in his pool, ran riot through his body, ripping through muscles before violently leaving his skin in the form of searing blue flames. His body broke under the strain, falling to the ground as the mana flooded the area as it poured from him. The blistering heat of the flames hissed as they touched the water from the falls, bathing the area in steam, lit up from within by flickering blue. The mana kept coming in, adding fuel to the fire that was still growing inside him, that burned at everything he was. His family was still out there. ¡°I. SAID. NO!¡± he screamed as the flames lashed him. Knuckling down with every scrap of will he had, he grabbed mana from inside himself and forced it to heal his body. He had no control left in his state, the aspects needed burned away entirely, but at the moment precision wasn¡¯t needed. With the mana so dense around him that it was becoming a solid mass pooling on the charred ground around him, he just reached out and took all he could. Lumps of charcoal fell from his body, replaced by new wood, only to ignite and burn once again, then replaced again. The damage appeared to be on his body, but the fight took place in his mind. If he gave in for even a second to the pain, he¡¯d lose his grip on the mana he was using, and it would consume him. Unable to do anything but hold on, he lost track of time, his surroundings, even pain eventually faded compared to his desperate focus. The only thing keeping him going was a memory. He¡¯d just graduated from college, and had come back to spend time at home while applying for jobs. With him there, his parents had trusted him to look after his little sister while they went to work instead of putting her in day care. When they¡¯d come home, the house a mess, pancake batter on the roof while he gave Samantha a horsie ride, that trust had been taken back for quite some time. But that day, the laughter, the lightness of it all, became his focus. He had no idea how long it took, but with glacial slowness the burning began to subside, the mana flow not slowing, but becoming more bearable. With every fibre of his being he held on, pushing through what should have been his death, and took a single faltering step. Then another. A step became a crawl, then a staggering walk, but soon he began to travel away from the falls, towards ground not ruined by the flames that had burned through him. As soon as his foot broke through the burned crust of the ground and into the rich mud below, he sunk his roots in deep as they would go. Pulling in from the ground, the sunlight speeding up the process, he began to turn the tide on the pouring energy, forcing it back into the ground, spreading his roots deeper and wider each second to dump it quicker. He was dimly aware by the way that by the way the sunlight came and went that days had passed since he¡¯d begun, but he couldn¡¯t spare it any other thought. Then finally, as quickly as it had come, the energy stopped. Like a puppet with its strings cut Marcus collapsed, held up only by his feet buried in the ground. His vision burning, he could see the system trying to tell him countless things, but right now he didn¡¯t care about any of them. Before he passed out, he thought of only two things. Firstly that was alive, and still had a chance to see his family again. The second, was that now that it¡¯s finished, that it had run through him and turned his soul inside out there was more to it. In the midst of the searing torrent of power, had been a message. NOT ALONE Chapter 7 Marcus woke up screaming, the sound still suppressed by the barrage of noise from the waterfall. Without a moment¡¯s hesitation he ripped his roots free of the ground and ran as fast as he could, wanting to be as far from the site of his trauma as possible. His feet felt heavy as the mud clung to them but he was too eager to get away, to find a quiet place to come to terms with his trauma for it to slow him down. His mind was empty as he ran, unthinking, not wanting to think, just wanting to escape from everything. By the time he let himself stop his legs felt like jelly, forcing him to put down new roots and rest, whether he liked it or not. It was quieter now, the trees around him acting as breaks against the noise, peace settling over him. ¡°That,¡± he croaked. ¡°Was the worst thing. Ever. Of all time.¡± It had taken time but he was finally managing to get his head on straight again, but he was surprised how well he was actually doing. He hadn¡¯t been to therapy himself, but knew people who had and looked into it a bit, and he knew a person didn¡¯t just immediately get over something like this. Turning his attention to the sea of blinking lights in the corner of his vision, his suspicions rose. ¡°This is somehow your fault isn¡¯t it?¡± He told the System accusingly. -Through intense exposure, you have gained Mana Resistance - Lvl 1!- - Mana Resistance - Lvl 1: Reduces and resists the effect of direct mana based effects- -Through prolonged extreme exposure, Mana Resistance has evolved into Mana Immunity- -Mana Immunity: Completely negate the negative effects of mana based effects- - Through intense exposure, you have gained Pain Resistance - Lvl 46!- - Pain Resistance - Lvl 46: Reduces pain felt and increases recovery from pain effects by 92%- -Through intense exposure, you have gained Mental Resistance - Lvl 18!- - Mental Resistance - Lvl 18: Reduces and resists the effect of mental effects by 36%- -You have gone through extreme Mana Burn. Though you have survived, you are not unscathed. You are now Mana Broken- -Mana Broken: Your soul has been damaged beyond repair. You can no longer hold mana, your mana pool has been removed- ¡°Checks out so far.¡± Marcus thought blandly as he read the report that basically said he¡¯d suffered a lot but had learned to deal with it. The resistances seemed nice, especially the immunity, though he wasn¡¯t sure how they¡¯d help him in the future. Especially since there apparently wasn¡¯t much reason for him to go play with mana anymore. ¡°Okay System, what else have you got for me?¡± -By focused use, racial ability Green Touch - Lvl 5 has evolved into Personal Growth - Lvl 23!- -Personal Growth- Lvl 23- Use mana to directly change, grow or regrow portions of your body. Affected by Spirit and Body. Mana expenditure affected by scale.- ¡°Mom would be so proud, she¡¯s been wanting me to get that for years. No more boats though, but that¡¯s... probably for the best. What else?¡± -By forcing yourself to heal beyond the point of death for a prolonged period of time, you have acquired the Epic Title: Evergreen- ¡°Oh look, new words that make sense to me. It¡¯s been a few days since I''ve had this bit of fun.¡± -Title: a title is a special achievement earned from extreme actions. Each gives certain passive abilities, but only five may be held at any time. -Evergreen - Epic Title: Requirement-Survive beyond expected death under your own power. Power: The bearer of this title automatically converts mana into health when injured. Enough mana or healing can resurrect the bearer¡¯s body with no penalty- ¡°That¡¯s... that¡¯s just immortality isn¡¯t it?¡± Marcus said, surprised by the sheer idea of what he read. He couldn¡¯t generate mana, and couldn¡¯t hold it anymore either, but... if there were plants around, or if anyone else could give him mana he¡¯d live through anything, as long as even a little of his body survived. And if he didn¡¯t survive, apparently that could be fixed too. ¡°I really did die, didn¡¯t I? He whispered, looking at the reason why he¡¯d earned the Title. He¡¯d felt himself breaking down constantly, and he¡¯d fought back from the brink. But according to what the System had seen, he¡¯d slipped over that line more than once before somehow pulling himself back over. Looking at his hands, he flexed them, looking at his wooden fingers, wondering exactly when he¡¯d started thinking of them as his, rather than the body¡¯s. Was he even himself anymore, or had ¡®Marcus¡¯ died a long time ago, and he¡¯d just come back then as well? Before he got too deep in that existential nightmare, a slight pressure on his shoulder brought him back to the present. Looking over, he saw he¡¯d reacquired a squirrel companion, this one with steel grey fur, which had begun constructing a new nest where the old had been. ¡°Some things stay the same I guess, huh?¡± he said with a smile. ¡°You¡¯ll be Mr. Squeaks the 29th if I recall, may you live up to your family name proudly. Now any other messages you damn mortality questioner?¡± -You have assisted in slaying Datovian Grand Koi Lvl 563, experience gai- ¡°Oh no you don''t you bloody minded computerized spirit thing!¡± Marcus shouted suddenly in a rage, throwing the message aside. ¡°I didn¡¯t do a damn thing to that poor fish other than be on top of it when we hit the ground, and I''m not going to try to take some kind of prize from its death! You¡¯ve stuck me in your reality, you¡¯ve split me from my family and my entire species! But I am not going to start killing things for however you run things. I''m no soldier doing what¡¯s needed, I''m just a normal person. But I''ve always done my damndest to be a good person! So you take your damn blood money, and you keep it. I need to find my family, but I wouldn¡¯t want them to find me if that¡¯s the path I chose.¡± He finished with a snarl. He didn¡¯t have much to hang on to, but he¡¯d hold this last value tight. He understood death happened, how it was necessary, both for food and a huge number of industries. But there was a line somewhere, and he knew that killing something when leaving them alive would give the same result, was over it. Killing and hunting was natural, and he¡¯d had no problem with eating a juicy steak, but things like trophy hunting he¡¯d oppose all the way. To him this was the same, killing for power rather than earning it through hard work. It might be ok for some, but not for him. Silence reigned now that he¡¯d finished his rant, Marcus wondering if he was just yelling at the air, but a new light appeared in the corner of his vision. -By holding to your admittedly vague ideals and surrendering experience from your first kill, you have acquired the Rare Title: Bloodless-Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. -Bloodless - Epic Title: Requirement- Surrender a vast amount of experience from an indirect kill. Power: The bearer of this title cannot gain experience from defeating enemies, but gains increased experience from other sources- ¡°What do you mean ¡®vague¡¯, and I didn¡¯t kill it!¡± he shouted before uprooting and walking off in a huff.
Name: Marcus Gillian
Titles: Bloodless, Evergreen
Level: 1
Race: Wood Walker (lesser)
Age: 29
Health: 80/80
Body 8
Grace 7
Thought 11
Spirit 6
Presence 10
Racial Effects:
Plant Biology Thick Trunk, Shallow Roots
Bark Skin One with Nature
Sun Eater
Racial Abilities:
Green Sight - Lvl 6 Personal Growth - Lvl 23
Share the Burden - Lvl 5
Skills:
Identify- Lvl 1
Defences
Mana Immunity
Mental Resistance - Lvl 18
Pain Resistance - Lvl 46
Physical Damage Reduction - 2
~ As he walked, Marcus knew he was avoiding the thing that was scaring him the most. That torrent of mana that had saved him, that had technically killed him, hadn¡¯t been random. There had been a message with it, directed at him by something smart enough to use words. ¡°I might not be alone here,¡± he wondered. ¡°But is this actually any better?¡± The isolation had been all but killing him, but who or whatever had spoken had gone further. Did he even want to figure out what it was? It had power certainly; horrifying amounts, and was presumably strong enough to help him find his family. But by the same token it could kill him, and his family if it had a reason to. ¡°Where¡¯s a coin when you need one?¡± he said to the squirrel on his shoulder, looking around for a suitable rock. ¡°Ok, clean side, I try to avoid the thing and keep going how I have been. Dirty side with a beetle... I will try to contact them.¡± Spinning the stone into the air, he watched as it tumbled, before landing softly on the grass, revealing fate¡¯s decision. ¡°Well Mr. Squeaks, the beetle flew away, but it looks like I have a call to make.¡± Finding a spot to root into the ground, he hesitated. Even if he¡¯d decided to do it, facing the source of his trauma so soon again wasn¡¯t an easy decision. It was easy to say get back on the horse, but harder to do if said horse had trampled you. Knuckling down and taking a deep breath, he began to send his senses down again looking for the one who¡¯d sent the mana, and the message. The ground here was much richer in life, with roots pervading the soil for dozens of meters down, but after that it became empty once again. Further downwards he searched, concentrating on looking for a sign, an indication of where they were. It was because he was looking at everything so closely he saw, or more accurately felt, the wave of mana incoming. Trusting that System could be a bastard but wouldn¡¯t outright lie to him, he braced himself and trusted his apparent Mana Immunity. If a glass of water was harmless, but this would be like trying to drink from a fire hose, the energy so dense it had physical mass. Even though he was immune to the effects of the mana itself, the sheer quantity almost uprooted him, staggering him as it was. But he didn¡¯t burn. The energy hit him, rushed over and through him, seeping into every part of his being before exiting again, leaving him unharmed. And amongst the torrential cascade of power, there was another message. STILL ALIVE! ¡°Ok, I found them,¡± Marcus thought as the force of the words shook him. ¡°Now what?¡± FOUND? His non-existent eyebrows went up along with his headache. ¡°Can you hear me?¡± He thought, trying to project his thoughts back down the line of energy. CAN! QUIET ¡°Quiet..? I''m being as loud as I can to talk to you, but you¡¯re so loud it hurts.¡± HURTS? BAD? Marcus was starting to realise that power and intelligence weren¡¯t necessarily connected. ¡°Yes, bad! Can you be quieter? Like I am? Also, can you not send so much mana? It¡¯s so much it... did bad things to me before.¡± TRY. ONLY LITTLE. ¡°Better, but can you be even quieter? Try to match me. And are saying that this is only a little mana?¡± he said, waving with his hand at the energy roiling out of him into the sky Only little. Send more? He panicked. ¡°NO! No, don''t send more mana. Send less, or if you can talk to me without it, send none. And good job you¡¯re almost the volume as me.¡± Can try? No leave if no work? ¡°Leave? No, I¡¯ll stay right here, so if it doesn¡¯t work, you can... send more mana I suppose.¡± He thought to it, scratching his head. The mana flow slowed then ceased, leaving Marcus standing in silence, waiting for either another message, or another ¡®little¡¯ blast of mana. Just how much energy did this thing have to throw it around like that? ¡°Can hear?¡± A voice said in his mind. It sounded like a child, light with a strange echo to it. ¡°Yes I can hear you¡± he thought before speaking aloud. ¡°Can you hear this?¡± ¡°Can!¡± They answered, bursting with happiness. Marcus sighed in relief. ¡°That¡¯s great, it¡¯ll be a lot less impactful on the area if we can talk without setting the forest on fire.¡± ¡°Fire?¡± They asked curiously. ¡°The mana gave off a fair bit of heat before, and we wouldn¡¯t want a forest fire around here.¡± He answered, thinking of how bad it¡¯d be if the forest caught fire, considering just how big it seemed to be. ¡°NO FIRE!¡± Before he could question the strong response, the ground beneath him began to shake. Animals all through the forest began to panic and run, while every bird took to the air, trying to escape the ground itself. For his part, Marcus was shaken but managed to stay standing thanks to his roots, though began to pull them up. ¡°Where go?¡± the voice asked as he began to run. ¡°You didn¡¯t feel that? There¡¯s an earthquake going on and we need to get to a safe place. We can talk later.¡± He replied as he ran. ¡°NO! TALK NOW!¡± They shouted at him with desperation. As quick as it began, the earth around him settled, as if it had never happened. Slowing to a stop, Marcus stared at the ground for a moment, his brain making a few connections. ¡°Did you do that?¡± He asked slowly. ¡°Do what?¡± The voice answered evasively. ¡°Did you stop the earthquake?¡± He asked again. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°...Did you cause the earthquake?¡± he continued, the conversation reminding him of when he¡¯d found that his sister borrowed their mothers art supplies. And started painting the car bright pink. ¡°...Yes.¡± They answered after a while, more quietly than ever. ¡°That¡¯s... You shouldn¡¯t do something dangerous like that.¡± He responded without much energy. How do you scold something that can make earthquakes on a whim? ¡°Isn¡¯t it dangerous to do something like that underground?¡± ¡°Not underground?¡± They answered quizzically, leaving Marcus confused. ¡°You¡¯re not underground? But your voice and mana came from the ground... Wait a second, are you the forest? Or the spirit of it?¡± He asked, thinking he had it. ¡°No...¡± The voice said slowly, mirth in their voice. ¡°Not the forest? So more than the forest? Like all the stuff in the area or...¡± he trailed off a few facts and feelings leaking through his brain and making themselves known. They were powerful, they were below, and were more than a whole forest. And from a feeling that he¡¯d gotten from the mana that had washed through him, they were big. ¡°You¡¯re the planet, aren¡¯t you?¡± he stated weakly. ¡°Yes!¡± Datov answered joyfully. Chapter 8 ¡°Did you grab your jacket?¡± Mary asked concerned. ¡°Yes mom, and the scarf, and the first aid kit. Seriously, you¡¯re worrying too much about this.¡± Samantha told her mother as she finished her breakfast. ¡°Well I''m sorry that I''m not comfortable with my baby going off to another planet to fight monsters!¡± she said. ¡°Do you really have to do this?¡± ¡°Vork said that the sooner I start going to other worlds, the sooner I can get an exploration class. Besides, it¡¯s just an afternoon trip through a portal to a place that¡¯s already been explored. Since we¡¯re all at least ten levels above the things were likely to find there, It¡¯s basically a school picnic.¡± ¡°Speaking of which,¡± Thomas said as he came out of the kitchen holding a paper bag. ¡°Here¡¯s your lunch, toasted ham and cheese, and some carrot and celery sticks.¡± ¡°You know dad, the System actually takes care of vitamins and stuff based on your constitution score, so technically we can eat whatever we want.¡± Her dad nodded in deep thought. ¡°Really? That¡¯s amazing, truly a game changer for chefs everywhere. Eat your vegetables.¡± ¡°Fiiine. Thanks dad.¡± She whined before taking the bag and giving him a kiss on the cheek. ¡°Thomas, can you please tell your daughter to take this more seriously?¡± Mary asked. ¡°Yes dear.¡± He said with a sigh before turning to his daughter. ¡°Did you remember to bring a jacket? Your teacher said it¡¯ll be colder there.¡± She lifted her jacket from her bag and displayed it. ¡°Mom already asked, and I''ve got the rest as well.¡± ¡°Well have fun then.¡± He said before heading back to the kitchen. ¡°Is that seriously all you¡¯re going to say before she goes off risking her life?¡± Mary asked in disbelief, standing up, tears in her eyes. Thomas paused, then went and hugged his wife tightly. ¡°I know, and part of me doesn¡¯t want her to go either. But this is how life is now, and we¡¯ve always said we would support our kids no matter what. We chose to stay back and build up New Earth as production classes, because we knew who we were. I was a cook before, and I¡¯ll be a cook until I can¡¯t lift a saucepan, and I''ve never known you as anything other than an engineer. Though the way you argue sometimes makes me think I married a lawyer.¡± ¡°Hush you.¡± She said sniffling. ¡°Yes dear. But my point is our daughter hasn¡¯t chosen that path. She¡¯s decided she wants to boldly go where no one¡¯s gone before, starting with places her parents haven¡¯t checked out first. But that¡¯s her choice to make. We don''t have to like it, just be here when she gets back safely, after obeying all of her teachers instructions. Got that Samantha?¡± She nodded. ¡°Got it. I¡¯ll be back by dinner, and try to grab you a souvenir.¡± Wiping her tears away, Mary smiled. ¡°Okay, I... I can do that. I just don''t understand why you need to go to dangerous places at all.¡± Samantha pulled out her notebook, checking her notes. ¡°According to Vork, ¡®collecting resources from uninhabited planets is the main income of most societies in the System. It lets people find rare things, and gather the basics like wood and ore without affecting our home planets¡¯.¡± ¡°But it¡¯s still dangerous! I don''t want to lose you like-¡± ¡°Marcus isn¡¯t gone! He¡¯s just... off exploring on his own at the moment.¡± She interrupted, unwilling to hear different. That got her Dad to her frown at her for a moment. ¡°Don''t snap at your mother like that, but you¡¯re right. He¡¯s just out checking the frontier before we get there. But here¡¯s a question for you, little miss explorer: what do we do when the other planet has been mined as best we can?¡± Samantha shrugged. ¡°The System is big. There¡¯s always another planet.¡± ~ ¡°So, you¡¯re a planet then. How¡¯s that working out for you?¡± Marcus said as he walked, not really sure of where to go anymore. ¡°Working?¡± Datov asked eagerly. This was one thing Marcus had found while communicating with the apparently sapient planet. It wasn¡¯t dumb exactly, though hardly a genius either, but it struggled with communication. He¡¯d tried asking it where it had learned the few words it knew, but all he¡¯d gotten back was ¡®learned¡¯. How a planet learned a language at all was a mystery in and of itself, let alone one that he understood as well. Maybe telepathy is just weird like that, he wondered. ¡°Weird? Working?¡± Datov prompted again. ¡°Try to only listen to the stuff I say out loud, Datov, otherwise talking will get confusing. Now working means, well, doing work, but what I meant was how are you? Do you enjoy being a planet I suppose?¡± ¡°Happy! Talking! Weird?¡± It answered, jumping from one thought to another. ¡°Weird is something strange, or not normal.¡± ¡°Datov not normal? Good?¡± It asked, in wonder.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. He chuckled. ¡°Weird isn¡¯t good or bad, it¡¯s just not the same as everyone else. And I have no idea what¡¯s normal anymore, maybe talking planets are common, maybe talking trees are weirder. Everything¡¯s been pretty weird ever since I came here. To you, I suppose.¡± ¡°Not normal. Good. Datov best!¡± The planet asserted. ¡°I have to say, you¡¯ve got some lovely views.¡± He admitted as he reached a small hillock and looked out over the sea of green. In the distance he could see enormous mountain ranges, even higher than the ones he¡¯d fallen from. To one side he could see an ocean, its shimmering blue waters hinting at mysteries beneath. ¡°Don''t know if you¡¯re the best though. Some bad things have happened to me after I''ve arrived.¡± Marcus continued. ¡°Not Datov fault!¡± they said, sounding offended. ¡°Didn¡¯t say it was. But one of the deer that lives on you, god that¡¯s odd to say, took a bite out of me.¡± He said apologetically. ¡°Saw, stopped.¡± Datov agreed. ¡°Yes it stopped... or are you saying you stopped it?¡± he asked in surprise. ¡°Yes! Saved!¡± they answered with pride. ¡°You control the animals that live on you? All the Datovian ones?¡± ¡°Yes, no, little. Can push. Saved!¡± Marcus processed this. ¡°You can control them a little? Nudge them in the direction you want?¡± ¡°Nudge! Yes, Datov nudge, saved!¡± ¡°Well thanks for that I suppose, but I''m sure I would¡¯ve been fine. I¡¯ve managed to pull through other times on my own.¡± ¡°No, you bad. Datov save. Nudge wolf. Nudge bird. Nudge fish.¡± ¡°Bad? No I''ve managed just fine, a few scrapes but I kept getting... by...¡± He thought back to some of the close calls he¡¯d had. Getting away from curious wolves, having nothing else attack him out of instinct, even a fish grabbing him as he went over a waterfall and shielding him from impact. What were the actual odds of him managing all that on his own? ¡°Sounds like I owe you my life a few times over, though I think that¡¯s balanced out now. But just how much have you been watching over me? And why?¡± There was silence. Marcus kept on walking, deciding to head for the beach, knowing that Datov would speak to him when it was ready. It was almost an hour before the planet responded. ¡°...New. Felt arrive. Seen before. Never stay. Hope learn.¡± Datov said quietly. Stopping dead, Marcus¡¯s mind raced. ¡°¡¯Seen before¡¯? There are other people living here?¡± ¡°Some come. All leave.¡± It replied sadly. ¡°How did they leave? Are there ship¡¯s somewhere on you, which I could get on?¡± ¡°NO LEAVE!¡± Again the ground beneath Marcus began shaking, but this time he held his ground, knowing the cause. ¡°I need to get back to my family Datov, I¡¯m not going to leave them alone!¡± He told them firmly, refusing to sway. ¡°NOT ALONE!¡± ¡°They might be with each other, but not with me! I need to get back to them!¡± ¡°NOT THEM!¡± It cried desperately. Oh, he realised. The planet didn¡¯t want to be alone. ¡°What about the others who come? Can¡¯t you talk to them instead?¡± he asked, trying to reason with it. ¡°Try! No hear, no live!¡± That made sense, Marcus guessed. He¡¯d managed to get by with some fairly extravagant luck and fate. Even the system had considered the planet¡¯s touch extreme, so he had no idea how a person was supposed to survive it. He was also a bit upset that Datov was aware it would probably kill him, but filed that away for later. ¡°I get that, kind of. But I promised to get back to them. I don''t want to just abandon you, but I can¡¯t abandon them either. So what do we do?¡± The earthquake rumbled to a halt, but overhead the sky began to darken as rain began falling. ¡°Don''t want alone.¡± Datov cried. ¡°It¡¯s ok, I''m still here for now.¡± Marcus said, awkwardly trying to pat the ground in an effort to console the world. ¡°Maybe we can think of a way for others to talk to you. They could stay and talk like this, with no mana involved. But I need to find my family.¡± ¡°How?¡± they said, sadness still in their voice. ¡°I don''t know.¡± Marcus said honestly, ignoring the twinge of pain in his heart the words caused. ¡°But they aren¡¯t here, so I¡¯ll need to go to other places to find them. Do you understand?¡± ¡°Stay until?¡± Datov asked hopefully. ¡°I... can¡¯t promise that. I don¡¯t know what I¡¯ll need to do to find them. But I suppose I can promise to stay here with you until I need to leave. Maybe by then we can find you some more friends.¡± ¡°Promise?¡± ¡°Yes I promise.¡± As a feeling of acceptance and happiness came through the mental connection, the rain lessened clearing up as the clouds rolled away. As Marcus watched the weather shift, he wondered just how long Datov had been isolated like this. It¡¯d been over a month now since he¡¯d seen another person, and it was definitely wearing away at him. How much worse would it get in a year? Two? How long did a planet live for? ¡°Datov? How long have you been alone here? Can any of the other planets talk?¡± ¡°Planets? Nothing. Only Datov.¡± They answered sorrowfully. ¡°For how long? How many years?¡± He pressed. ¡°Year?¡± ¡°A year is... well it varies I guess but I guess it¡¯s something. How many times have you gone around the star while you¡¯ve been alone?¡± Datov laughed at him. ¡°Wrong. Datov centre. Datov best!¡± ¡°That¡¯s where you¡¯re wrong I''m afraid, though humans thought that too for a long time. You see the star is actually the centre of what¡¯s called the solar system, and then planets-¡± Suddenly, it was night. Not dark caused by a passing object, not super dense storm clouds, but it was the night sky. Then as he watched, the sun reappeared from below the horizon and raced across the sky before night fell again in seconds. This happened once, twice, three times before it suddenly stopped before, against everything Marcus understood about space, it started going the other way. It raced around one way then the other, turning 90 degrees and spinning on a whole different axis. Eventually it just started circling above, making the shadows around him dance all while Datov laughed. ¡°Star is Datov¡¯s! Datov is best!¡± ¡° ...I see. That¡¯s... I don''t have words for that, I take it you control your moon as well?¡± He asked weakly. ¡°All Moon is Datov¡¯s! See!¡± they declared, apparently wanting to show off. Sure enough not one but three moons span over the sky, spinning around with the sun in ways that would¡¯ve made a physicist weep. ¡°Yes, that¡¯s very impressive. Tell me if I''m wrong but... are those moons the same size as your star?¡± ¡°No.¡± Marcus sighed in relief ¡°Right, good, that makes sense. Because that would¡¯ve been-¡± ¡°Bigger. Star more hot bright!¡± Datov explained, making the wooden figure put their face in their hands. ¡°One day, probably far off in the future, I''m going to get a grip on this universe, then squeeze and demand to know why.¡± He muttered with a groan. Pulling himself together he considered everything he¡¯d learned. ¡°If you¡¯re not stuck orbiting a star, can you go somewhere else? Go find more people?¡± he asked hopefully. ¡°How?¡± the planet asked eagerly. ¡°How? Well you survive space. Obviously. So can¡¯t you just go somewhere else? It¡¯d probably take a while but it¡¯d work right?¡± ¡°Right! How go?¡± they agreed excitedly. ¡°How... Do you move? Can you move?¡± Marcus asked, now seeing the gaping chasm in his plan. ¡°Not know. How know if move?¡± He thought about it for a moment, trying to dial all his thoughts back to their most basic. ¡°If you¡¯ve moved,¡± he began slowly. ¡°Then everything else around you would look like it was in a different spot. But if there¡¯s nothing around you that you aren¡¯t moving, then we¡¯d have no way of telling if you¡¯re moving at all. Damn!¡± ¡°Damn!¡± Datov repeated with enthusiasm. ¡°And we have Samantha all over again. You share her gift of picking up the worst words the fastest.¡± ¡°Samantha?¡± they asked with interest. Marcus smiled as he resumed walking. ¡°Since it looks like we¡¯ll be spending quite a bit of time together, let me tell you a bit about my family...¡± Chapter 9 The waves gently lapped at the shore, seagulls over flying overhead as Marcus walked along the white sandy beach. With no trash, no ships and no annoying tourists everywhere, it was a perfect example of the kind he¡¯d only seen in movies. ¡°Now this is nice, Datov. If you have more visitors, this is definitely a place you should show them.¡± ¡°Beach good. Dry wet.¡± Datov agreed proudly. ¡°It indeed is dry and wet. Datov you really are a poet.¡± ¡°Poet! Good?¡± ¡°Mmm some people disagree but being a poet is fine, though I was actually poking a bit of fun at you.¡± ¡°Poking fun?¡± ¡°I was joking around, since you¡¯re still learning words. It is something that people do when they¡¯re friends.¡± ¡°...Mean. Learning.¡± Datov replied with a huff. Marcus laughed. ¡°You¡¯re right, it was a bit mean, I''m sorry. You¡¯re actually learning very well, though I know I''m not a good teacher. Now should we begin what we came here for?¡± ¡°Forgive. Start.¡± As He¡¯d walked they¡¯d talked about numerous things, and their pasts were an interesting topic for both of them. Datov loved hearing about earth, and had made Marcus promise that he¡¯d introduce his family to him. Marcus on the other hand was fascinated about the living planets first memories, when Datov said they¡¯d just woken up a long time ago. That everything before that was hazy and indistinct, as if it had all been a dream. In fewer words obviously. But a thing he had also realised was that neither of them had any idea what they were doing. Marcus had actively avoided touching the System as much as he could, and Datov wasn¡¯t exactly a deep thinker. So in order to begin trying a few things, he¡¯d come out to the ocean. ¡°Now remember, we want to move the smallest bit of water you can manage. We know you¡¯re strong, but we want accuracy.¡± ¡°Datov best! Watch!¡± they said, before Marcus felt the surge of mana. The ocean¡¯s surface rippled for a moment before the last wave rolled in and swept back. And kept going back. A single droplet was gently pulled from the water below, held still as it was suspended above as Marcus watched. ¡°See? One drop, Datov best!¡± they declared proudly, slight strain in their tone. ¡°Yes, one drop, very smooth, well done.¡± Marcus said carefully, keeping an eye on the problem. ¡°But we wanted the smallest bit you could do. I''ve seen islands smaller than that ball of seawater.¡± ¡°No! Tiny! Barely see!¡± ¡°It¡¯s massive! How could I not see it!¡± Marcus refused before realizing. ¡°Language is still hard. That¡¯s as small as you can see?¡± ¡°Mostly. Hard see smaller.¡± ¡°Okay, that¡¯s the sort of thing it¡¯s good to know. So how can you see me more easily?¡± he asked. ¡°Big Wobble, new, follow animals. Empty, reach, touch! Can find!¡± It took a good hour to translate Datov¡¯s explanation into one Marcus could understand. When the system had dropped him on to Datov, he¡¯d felt it, and it had been a lot stronger than the ones of visitors in the past. Once he¡¯d gotten the planet¡¯s attention with his arrival, they¡¯d nudged some animals in the area to try and get an idea of the visitor. Following the river had made it a bit easier, since it gave the planet a line to look along, which was lucky for Marcus. When he¡¯d been at the bottom of the falls, with nothing else of note around for such a long way, his act of searching downwards had made him stick out enough for Datov to make contact. Which had gone... poorly. But now that it had been made, it gave Datov a point to try and look for. It turned out that Datov wasn¡¯t so much talking to Marcus, as talking to a dozen square miles of landscape and listening closely for an answer. ¡°That¡¯s pretty impressive actually. I don''t think I could do that.¡± Marcus said after thinking about it. ¡°See! Datov best. Still need water?¡± ¡°Yes you¡¯re very impressive, and yes you can drop it now, it won¡¯t really help us.¡± Word choice is a dangerous thing when dealing with someone who doesn¡¯t speak the language. As soon as he¡¯d spoken he saw the edges of the giant ball of water begin to lose cohesion and fall. ¡°Datov, catch the water! If that all falls down like that the wave will kill me!¡± he yelled. ¡°Try! Too little!¡± The world cried in panic. Most of the water was stopped by an invisible hand, a cloud of visible mana around it indicating Datov¡¯s stress. But even if most of a mountain is stopped, what¡¯s left is still a mountain. ¡°CANT STOP!¡± they cried. Marcus closed his eyes, clenching his fists nervously before speaking. ¡°It¡¯s ok, we¡¯ll manage. When that wall of water hits me ill die, so after that, I need you to find my body, and push mana into it ok? Lots of mana, and it¡¯ll be fine.¡±Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ¡°NO DIE! NO ALONE!¡± ¡°Remeber Datov! Find my body and give it mana!¡± he said as he heard the rushing water getting closer. Without saying anything else he threw his arms over his head, did his best to curl into a ball, and braced for the inevitable. Then it was wet, then it was dark and then it was gone. ~ The snow crunched softly underfoot as their party walked, leaving a trail to follow over the empty fields. The wind had been blowing when they¡¯d arrived initially, but it had quieted down, leaving them marching in silence. Relatively. ¡°Go long.¡± One of them called as they threw the ball, sending another sprinting to catch it, earning a cheer as they took it after a majestic dive and face plant into the snow. ¡°Aren¡¯t we supposed to be moving quietly? You know, moving without attracting attention?¡± Samantha asked her teacher as they watched the others. ¡°You mean all that stuff you¡¯ve been taught for the past month and a half? No, all that was completely meaningless.¡± Vork said before sighing. ¡°They should be, obviously, but I''m not exactly surprised. They¡¯re stressed and incredibly far out of their depth, and are trying to find an outlet to hide it.¡± ¡°And I''m not stressed?¡± she questioned. ¡°Oh you¡¯re definitely stressed. But unlike your classmates there you¡¯ve chosen to bury yours under more training instead of releasing it by goofing off. Probably not as healthy, but it will serve you well in the coming months.¡± ¡°I''m not burying it, I just-¡± Vork held up a hand to cut her off. ¡°You¡¯ve been training with me six days a week, with your neighbour on the other and have been exercising or studying several hours after that every night. Your parents are starting to worry.¡± ¡°They told you that?¡± she asked, embarrassed. ¡°No, but I have a good perception skill, I notice these things.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± ¡° And your mother doesn¡¯t always... argue quietly.¡± They added. ¡°Oh.¡± She said, burying her face in her hands. ¡°Want to talk about it?¡± Samantha peeked through her fingers at him. ¡°Aren¡¯t you supposed to be guarding us all from deadly monsters, not trying to be a therapist?¡± They both turned back to look at the other dozen trainees who had begun having a snowball fight. ¡°I''m pretty sure I''ve got time to do both today.¡± Vork said with a raised eyebrow. ¡°So out with it, what¡¯s got you so rattled?¡± ¡°It¡¯s been over six weeks now. I''ve been giving it my all, doing everything I can to give myself the best chance of finding him, but... I''ve heard things from other members of your group. What are the odds my brother is actually still alive?¡± she said quietly, her voice catching. Vork put hand on her shoulders. ¡°I figured as much. I''m going to be as honest as I can, and I don''t have great news. With everything that¡¯s out there in the System, I''m afraid he¡¯d have even odds of not making it this far.¡± Tears began to form in her eyes. ¡°So he¡¯s probably..?¡± Vork shook their head. ¡°I didn¡¯t say that, I said even odds. But here¡¯s the interesting thing. Those that can survive and push through their obstacles, keep on surviving. It¡¯s a bit of natural selection that the System¡¯s taken and ran with. So the real question you have to ask yourself is: Is your brother a survivor?¡± Her shoulders straightened as she took a deep breath and looked him in the eyes. ¡°Marcus is alive.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I wanted to hear. Now let¡¯s get moving, I want to find a few kinds of- EVERYONE TO ME, NOW!¡± They suddenly bellowed, expression serious. The others were deep in their game at that time, but they¡¯d heard that drill sergeant tone enough for it to cut through to them, and they quickly grouped up. ¡°What¡¯s going on Teach?¡± one asked, confused. Vork held up a hand, calling for silence while scanning the horizon. ¡°No one leaves this spot, don''t say anything, and definitely don''t try to start anything. We¡¯re not alone here.¡± They waited for a few minutes, the true silence making the emptiness of the area all the more imposing, before the sound of an engine could be heard. From the distance, a grey ship came towards them, hovering above the snow. Its sharp lines, and low profile spoke of speed and grace, while the massive cannons mounted on top said nothing but violence. ¡°Scavengers.¡± Vork muttered darkly. ¡°What¡¯re-¡± someone began before being silenced with a glare. Before long the ship arrived before them, humming slightly as it floated before the engine was cut and it thumped heavily into the snow. A panel was forced open, releasing a cloud of smoke and noise. A laugh came from inside. ¡°Ha, well I¡¯ll be damned, we¡¯ve got a little kurtzy and a pack of rookies. Just our luck.¡± Stepping out was an imposing figure, an eight foot tall slab of grey muscle yellow teeth on display as he looked over the group, smiling at their discomfort. From behind him several others funnelled out from the ship, all with weapons at their sides.Samantha tried to identify the one in front, getting a glance her way for her trouble. -Storogian Scavenger. Level: ???- Samantha swallowed. If their level was in the hundreds, could they get out of here safely if things turned south? Vork was in the same category, but it was a big range. Vork stepped forward. ¡°This planet has been claimed for use by the Kurtza Empire, on behalf of the humans of New Earth. As per article 17-J of the treaty of the nine-¡± The grey figure waved him off. ¡°We all know your precious little treaty. We¡¯re all terribly sorry for infringing on the rights of the glorious Kurtza Empire. No one tells us poor defenceless scavengers anything. Ain¡¯t that right boys?¡± His men chuckled behind him, hand on their weapons. Vork¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°Cut the shit. The barriers used to turn this into a tutorial grade world are extremely obvious, even to someone like you. It is illegal for you to be here at all, let alone anywhere near my students. Leave now.¡± It was the scavengers turn to become serious. ¡°Careful Bluey, your empires far away from here, and nothing of what it used to be. Keep trying to push people around and you¡¯ll be surprised what¡¯ll push back.¡± Snapping back to a grin they continued, eyeing the students. ¡°Not to worry good sir, my little band already has what we need and will be off before you know it. And if this is the kind of forces your training up, we¡¯ve gotten more than we hoped.¡± ¡°What¡¯s he talking about?¡± one of the students asked quietly before being silenced again, but not before the scavenger heard them. They chuckled evilly. ¡°Keeping them in the dark are we? Classic Kurtza, holding all the cards until they need you to know about them. but never you fear, old Gorgson is here to explain your bright futures. You see, the System has taken steps to keep you and your planet protected for six months. Exactly six months, and after that, you¡¯re the same as everyone else. Except weaker. So while no one would dare even think of attacking you right now, don''t worry your pretty little heads about that, when times up you should be expecting a large number of... visitors. And while I''m certainly above such heinous actions, I and a good portion of the local universe will be placing bets on your race¡¯s survival. So thanks for the information, and good luck not dying, though I''m certainly not betting on it.¡± He finished, getting a laugh from his crew who¡¯d begun piling back into the ship. ¡°You bastard! How can you laugh at the idea of us all dying?¡± Samantha burst out, unable to restrain herself. Gorgson looked her up and down before snorting. ¡°I might be a bastard, but you¡¯re a soon to be dead little girl. Of the two which do you think I¡¯d rather be? Trillions die every day in the System on a good day, your peoples extinction won¡¯t even be a drop in the bucket. What it will be is a well televised event that I plan to make some money on. That¡¯s the way of it little girl, now get used to it or don''t, you¡¯ll probably die either way.¡± With nothing else to say the scavengers restarted their ship, having it lurch back up and speed off into the distance. ¡°How much of what that guy said was true Vork?¡± Samantha asked as she watched them disappear. ¡°...Let¡¯s get you lot back home.¡± Vork replied without looking at her. Chapter 10 ¡°Are you going to explain what that was all about?¡± Samantha demanded as soon as they arrived back on New Earth. ¡°Which part?¡± Vork said blandly as they removed their weapons and started packing things away. ¡°Which... ok you know what? Fine, let¡¯s start with who they were. You called them scavengers?¡± He grunted. ¡°Scavenger is a mid range class that a lot of a certain kind of person ends up as, so we call people in that group scavengers. As to who and what they are, they¡¯re scum. No allies, no communities, they just drift around to make what money they can, however they can. They go around raiding low grade worlds, looting battlefields and generally picking on anyone weaker than themselves.¡± She nodded, mentally checking it off her list. ¡°Ok, not great people, will avoid in the future. The treaty?¡± ¡°A few dozen millennia ago, Kurtza and a few other of the larger empires got together and formed the treaty, a bunch of laws on how to handle interactions between races. Since then they¡¯ve become the standard interplanetary legal system.¡± ¡°Great, the universe isn¡¯t entirely lawless, so let¡¯s get to the big one. What did they mean when they said we¡¯ll all be dead?!¡± she shouted at him, causing Vork to wince. ¡°First off, they were exaggerating. It¡¯s unlikely your species will be wiped out completely. It¡¯s far more probable that you¡¯ll just lose your home world and the survivors of your people will be forced into becoming nomads.¡± ¡°Do you actually expect that to make me feel better?¡± she questioned in disbelief. ¡°No, of course I don''t.¡± He admitted. ¡°But what do you want me to say? This is just how the System is, where the weak die out and the strong get stronger.¡± Samantha was shocked, the teacher who she¡¯d thought was supporting her honestly expected her to die. Not just her, but all of humanity. ¡°How can you say that? How can you look me in the eyes and tell me we¡¯re going to die so calmly?!¡± It was Vork¡¯s turn to look angry. ¡°Samantha, I care for all the pupils I''ve trained, and you are no exception, but humanities fate is neither my fault nor my problem. When the treaty was made our empire spanned over a hundred thousand worlds. Five hundred years ago we only had ten thousand and now we have lost half of even those. My people are losing worlds quickly, and those are the ones that matter to me. The reason why we took on this quest from the System, to raise and train you for six months, is because the rewards will help stabilize our people. Until the end of our time here I will do everything in my power to make sure that you and your race are ready for you¡¯ll face. But once that time comes I¡¯ll put my own people¡¯s well being first, just as I¡¯m sure you would.¡± ¡°Well then, when that time comes, I hope you realise that as you watch us rise above your empire, that you should¡¯ve been allies instead of abandoning us.¡± Samantha uttered before storming off. Breaking into a run once she was out of sight, she raced home as fast as she could. Throwing open the front door, she went for the kitchen to find her father and hugged him, bursting into tears. ¡°What¡¯s wrong Sammy?¡± he said as he held her tightly, looking her over carefully. ¡°Are you hurt anywhere?¡± She shook her head, trying to talk through her tears. ¡°W-we met some people, and Vork drove them off, b-but they said... and he said...¡± Thomas winced and rocked her gently. ¡°Ah that. You¡¯re mother and I knew you¡¯d figure that out pretty soon.¡± Pushing him back, Samantha looked at her father, her eyes wide. ¡°Y-you knew?¡± ¡°A lot of people are starting to work it out I think, the Kurtza are struggling to keep it a secret. Our trade instructor started sweating when we asked her about what to do in the future and we forced it out of her. I''m so sorry sweetie.¡± ¡°S-so that¡¯s it then? All this work and we¡¯re still gonna just... die?¡± ¡°Oh sweetie... that¡¯s nonsense. We¡¯re tougher than that. Sure, it¡¯s gonna get bad, and things will get pretty rough for all of us, but we¡¯ll pull through. Our family always does.¡± ¡°Promise?¡± she asked. ¡°Of course, the Gillian¡¯s are nothing if not survivors.¡± ~ Numb, was the best word to describe how he currently felt. Nothing hurt, but like the worst case of pins and needles he¡¯d ever had, he knew without a shadow of a doubt that the second he moved, he¡¯d regret it. Still, nothing gets better by ignoring it, so mustering up all of his energy, he forced himself to sit up. And was immediately proven right. ¡°Everything huuuuurts....¡± he whined to no one in particular. ¡°MARCUS FRIEND!¡± Datov cried, the thoughts echoing around his head. ¡°Datov, I''m ok now.¡± He called out weakly. ¡°You brought me back to life, good job buddy.¡± ¡°Friend alive? Buddy?¡± Datov quickly asked. Gingerly Marcus began to move, pushing away debris as he answered. ¡°Alive thanks to you. I died because of you as well, but accidents happen. And it¡¯s not what I thought I¡¯d be talking about, but buddy is something you might call a friend. Did you have any trouble... reanimating me?¡± ¡°Datov buddy! Looked, couldn¡¯t find! Give up, give mana everywhere!¡± ¡°Everywhere? For you, what counts as... ah.¡± Looking around as he struggled to his feet, he saw that the area for a good mile or two around the shore had been scoured clean, the sand of the beach melted into glass. The ocean looked like it had fared better, but judging by just how clean it looked, Marcus had a feeling that the original waters had evaporated, along with the fish in it.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. ¡°Sorry that we ruined your beach Datov, what I saw was really nice.¡± He sighed. ¡°Beach nice. Friend better.¡± Datov stated firmly. ¡°I''m touched.¡± Marcus said as he began to walk away from the scarred area. ¡°Well we¡¯ve learned a few things from this, even if it didn¡¯t go to plan.¡± ¡°Learn?¡± they asked. ¡°We did indeed. I learned that you¡¯re not able to manage what I¡¯d call precise actions. You learned that what¡¯s small for you isn¡¯t small for others. We both learned that you can successfully bring me back to life. I¡¯d still like to avoid that, so I need to accept that I need to get tougher.¡± ¡°Friend dying bad.¡± Datov agreed. ¡°We also need to figure out a way for you to locate me better. I don''t want you to have to blast the area every time.¡± ¡°Hard find...¡± Datov said, before trailing off. ¡°Hmm? Giving it some thought? Well you do that, meanwhile it looks like our friendly System wants to tell me some things.¡± Marcus said before pulling up his latest array of notifications. -You have been raised from the dead. Due to your title of ¡®Evergreen¡¯ you receive no penalty- -Through your experiences you mana affinities have changed- ¡°I think I''ve seen the word before, but does the system mean by affinities?¡± he muttered looking for an explanation. -Affinity ¨C Mana and magic come in limitless different types, which the System does its best to categorize. A person¡¯s affinity represents how well they can absorb, understand, use and resist that form of mana. Affinities can change through heavy training or extreme events- Marcus nodded. ¡°Magic flavours, I can get my head around that. So according to this sheet here, my affinities are...¡±
Affinities
Nature +50% Fire -50%
Light +25% Dark -25%
Mundus +10% Death +5%
¡°Well nature certainly makes sense, can¡¯t get more natural than a tree, and fire for the same reason I guess. Playing with photosynthesis leans me towards light so I can follow that, death... yeah I know that way better than I should. So what¡¯s Mundus?¡± -Mundus - A complex offshoot of the life mana type that makes up the imprint of entire planets. Rarely used, it can be found in powerful creation pr preservation spells- ¡°That is definitely Datov¡¯s fault.¡± He said upon reading. ¡°Datov¡¯s fault?¡± The planet asked, hearing its name. ¡°Nothing bad, I can just handle your mana better now. Which is still not at all by the way so don''t test it.¡± ¡°Mana... Datov remembers!¡± Datov exclaimed. ¡°You remember your mana?¡± ¡°Looking for friend. Hard. Find other wobble!¡± ¡°Other- hang on, are you saying you felt someone else arrive on you?!¡± Marcus shouted, stopping dead in his tracks. ¡°Yes! Other! More friends!¡± They said happily. Marcus thought quickly. ¡°Datov I need you to promise me something: do not try to talk to them.¡± ¡°But new friend?¡± They asked, confused. ¡°We got very, very lucky with how I survived, but if you try to talk to them, they¡¯ll probably die, and stay dead.¡± There was a moment of silence before he got a reply. ¡°...Ok.¡± ¡°Promise?¡± ¡°Datov say ok!¡± They said grumpily. He sighed with relief. ¡°Thank you Datov, and in return I¡¯ll do my best to talk to them for you. Now is it only one person or a group?¡± ¡°Think one. Hard see.¡± ¡°Right, and where are they now?¡± ¡°Lost when fix friend. Think come see mana!¡± ¡°The mana... the mana you used to revive me? You think they¡¯re coming here?¡± he asked. ¡°Yes! Go find?¡± Marcus thought about it before shaking his head. ¡°No, I think if they¡¯re coming here, it¡¯d be better to wait for them. Can you try and nudge the animals away from them? It¡¯d be sad if our new friend got eaten before they got here.¡± ¡°Try! But what friend do?¡± Datov agreed. ¡°Well, thanks to your efforts there¡¯s plenty of loose timber and flattened ground around here. if we¡¯re going to have guests, we should have a shelter for them to stay in.¡± ¡°Marcus make?¡± ¡°I was a trained architect, so I''m sure I can make a wooden hut or even a log cabin. How hard could it be?¡± ~ ¡°Is done?¡± Datov asked doubtfully. Marcus hesitated. ¡°...Sure. I¡¯ll admit it was harder than I thought it¡¯d be, so I had to change my plans a bit, but it¡¯ll do, I think.¡± The ¡®hut¡¯ had failed almost immediately, with Marcus realising that plans, power tools, workmen and construction materials couldn¡¯t all be replaced with sticks. The hut hadn¡¯t improved beyond a few piled logs before he switched his plans. Now it was a lean-to that, if you wriggled down and stayed low, you could technically go inside. ¡°Leaning.¡± ¡°A lean-to is a classic building, one of the simplest structures you can make to protect yourself from the elements.¡± ¡°Am elements. Falling.¡± Sure enough at Datov¡¯s words the layer of branches he¡¯d tried to weave together slipped off the side and fell to ground. This left him almost where he¡¯d started two hours ago, except now many branches were broken by his efforts. ¡°Well shit.¡± He swore. ¡°Shit!¡± ¡°Ah, sorry Datov, that¡¯s another bad word. But you¡¯re right, this isn¡¯t working.¡± Marcus admitted, looking at the sad pile in front of him. ¡°Give up?¡± ¡°No, I don''t like giving up, especially when I know I can do it. Maybe... I need a little help.¡± He said thoughtfully. ¡°Help!¡± Datov said, causing the ground to begin trembling. ¡°Stop! I have a plan. Now, I can use mana to move the plant around, but I don''t have any mana, where you have all the mana, but can¡¯t move a plant without levelling a forest. Do you see where I''m going with this?¡± ¡°... Give mana?¡± Datov offered. ¡°That¡¯s the plan, but don''t actually give it to me. Last time you touched me with mana it was way more than I could hold, and now I can¡¯t hold any. Can you just bring the mana... closer? Then I¡¯ll try to grab it myself.¡± ¡°Work?¡± ¡°I have absolutely no idea, but let¡¯s give it a shot. Ready when you are.¡± Rooting into the ground, Marcus didn¡¯t have to wait long before he felt the man moving below. Feeling like he was dangling over a raging river, he carefully reached out and tried to grab a piece, only to have it fall away from him, unable to hold the mana in his broken pool. ¡°Working?¡± Datov asked, intrigued. ¡°Not yet, but not failing either. Let me try something else.¡± He said, frowning in concentration. He could move the mana, he thought, just not hold it. So maybe if he just used it while it was still under Datov¡¯s control... Slowly, he separated a thin string of mana from the flow, guiding and stretching it up towards where he needed it. It still all flowed back into the main jet of power the planet was producing, but there was now a single point on it where it touched the wood that would become his hut. Then with the mana line in one hand and the wood in the other he activated his ability. Green Touch had been slow to move plants before, and now that it had become Personal Growth, he¡¯d assumed it would be slower. But whether it was the increased level or sheer amount of mana pouring through his hands the wood flowed like water. The dead twig he held sprang to life, growing faster than he could track, magically created wood pouring out into the image he desired. It was hard, the concentration needed for the image, using the ability, and holding the thread of mana without breaking it made it an arduous task, but after a minute he thought it was enough. Looking at the result, he was happy with it, though he did realise he¡¯d gotten a bit carried away. The hut was now a sprawling two story building, fully furnished with wooden furniture, a kitchen that served no purpose and a bedroom he¡¯d never use. But it was a house, one that he knew well. The one that he designed a long time ago, that he¡¯d always planned to build for himself once he settled down. And now here it was, made of wood on the blasted beach of a living planet in a far off corner of a foreign universe. But at least he had his double garage, so that was something, he supposed. ¡°Nicer. Not leaning.¡± Datov commented with approval. ¡°It¡¯s definitely several steps up. Thanks for the mana Datov.¡± He replied happily before spotting another message for the system. -You have earned enough experience to reach level 2!- ¡°Oh god what did I kill?!¡± Chapter 11 Pacing the edge and looking carefully, Marcus sighed in relief when he couldn¡¯t find anything squashed underneath the house. Thinking back on what he¡¯d done, he tried to remember if he¡¯d dragged the mana through anything living underground, but the area had seemed empty. So he was left with a lifeless beach, that was lifeless before he did anything, and his new beachfront home. ¡°What did I do? Did I kill the branch? Did I win a prize?¡± He asked the air around him. ¡°What do?¡± Datov asked, intrigued by Marcus¡¯s antics. Marcus rubbed his temples as he explained. ¡°I went up a level. As far as I know you get those from killing things, and I haven¡¯t done that, so I have lost what little grasp of the system I had.¡± ¡°Confusing.¡± Datov agreed simply. ¡°...You¡¯ve got a level, right Datov? How do you increase yours?¡± ¡°Don''t know!¡± The planet replied. ¡°You didn¡¯t investigate it at all?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t talk. Didn¡¯t help. Didn¡¯t care.¡± They said with a mental shrug. Marcus was about to comment on their lack of effort, but realised he only cared now to try to sort out his own problems. For the living planet, a bunch of numbers didn¡¯t do much, and certainly didn¡¯t make for good conversation. ¡°Fair enough, I guess. What level are you anyway?¡± ¡°Don''t know!¡± Datov repeated happily. Marcus paused. ¡°... Are you sure? It doesn¡¯t say it at the top of your status?¡± ¡°Don''t know. All wobble. No help.¡± ¡°Wobbles? You can¡¯t read it?¡± he asked. ¡°Read?¡± He sighed. ¡°Ok, backtracking a step then. Reading is... when you look at a bunch of pictures called letters, which go together into words and sentences, to share information. Did you understand that?¡± ¡°...No.¡± Datov admitted after a moment. ¡°Yeah, me neither. I''m really not a good teacher.¡± ¡°Best teacher.¡± They interjected defensively. He smiled. ¡°Only teacher, but thanks anyway. Let me check if the System can field this one.¡± Opening his own menu, he tried to search for a language setting, or whether it was like all those old sci-fi movies and English was just the default language of the universe. A few minutes of rolling through various descriptions and filters eventually gave him his answer. -System Language ¨C all communication between sapient users of the system is instantaneously converted into the System standard. Those born within the system usually only know this language since it is the only necessary, but certain skills allow for speaking other languages for codes, prayer or other reasons. The language set in the System menu is the one best known by the user when first logged as a user- ¡°Best known...¡± he muttered, deep in thought. Suppose you were a very old and isolated entity, that managed to come into consciousness all on your own. You have no idea of literally anything, but suddenly are, so you flail around. You manage to open the system with no concept of others, let alone communication or language, so what would you see? ¡°Wobbles.¡± Datov agreed sadly. ¡°Private thoughts Datov, but yeah, I think that might be the case. I couldn¡¯t see anything about changing it, but maybe we can eventually find someone who knows what they¡¯re doing to ask. Speaking of...¡± ¡°Soon, maybe?¡± ¡°Well, I guess I¡¯ll go make myself at home. ~ A loud crack rang through the air, causing Marcus to jump, leaping up from his seat. ¡°Near!¡± Datov said with excitement. ¡°Yes, the noise gave it away.¡± He answered dryly. ¡°Was that a gunshot, do you think? Do they have a gun?... I don''t expect you to understand these questions Datov, this is just nerves from finally seeing another person.¡± ¡°Datov not person?¡± the planet said, hurt. ¡°You¡¯re a good person Datov, I¡¯d just like to talk to one of my... scale.¡± He apologised quickly. ¡°Datov best scale.¡± ¡°Not what that means, but we¡¯ll cover that later, I think I see them!¡± Stepping from the remaining tree line onto the blackened shore, there was nothing else for them to hide behind. Wearing thick leather armour and a rich green cloak, it was clear that they¡¯d come equipped and ready to be here which filled him with hope. If they knew how to get here, they presumably knew how to leave. With a rough grey beard, weathered skin and the butt of what looked like a rifle slung over one shoulder, they were every bit the image of what Marcus expected a hunter to look like. The part where they were two feet tall threw him a little though. -Gnomish Light Gunner. Level: ????- ¡°A gnome?!¡± Marcus acclaimed in surprise. ¡°An idiot?¡± they responded sarcastically, giving Marcus a glare.Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. ¡°Er¡­ gonna admit I''m not sure of the social normalities anymore, but I''m going to take it that I was offensive?¡± Marcus said with a wince, taken aback. The person in front of him grunted while eyeing his surroundings, studying the house closely. ¡°Offensive, and a bit racist, yes. You often just shout people¡¯s biology at them, or you trying something new today?¡± ¡°Hey, I''m not racist, some of my best friends are races.¡± He said, feigning hurt, getting a snort from the hunter. ¡°An idiot more than an ass then? Could be worse I suppose. This shack¡¯s yours then?¡± Marcus didn¡¯t have to feign being hurt this time. ¡°Shack!? I¡¯ll have you know this is a three bed, two bath house with a large kitchen, butler¡¯s pantry, garage and home office, all design in colonial style! This is no more a shack than the ocean is a pond!¡± There was a twinkle in the gnome¡¯s eyes. ¡°...So it¡¯s yours then?¡± ¡°...er, yes I suppose it is. Want to come in?¡± Marcus said awkwardly. ¡°May as well, see if you can explain to me why you¡¯ve got a ¡®house¡¯ on what is supposed to be an uninhabited world.¡± They replied casually, stressing the word. Marcus kept talking as the gnome came over, opening the door. ¡°So this world is recorded somewhere? Like people do know about it?¡± They shrugged, studying at the doorway as he walked in. ¡°Somewhat I suppose. It¡¯s on a list as an empty death world to avoid unless you¡¯re a quad, so it¡¯s confusing as hell that you¡¯re apparently living here. Your turn to answer.¡± ¡°Ok, I guess turns works.¡± Marcus said, scratching his head as he wondered how to answer. Was he supposed to keep his nature a secret, or was their universe being absorbed public knowledge? Eh, what was the worst that could happen; he¡¯d already died once this week. ¡°So, bit of a question before I answer yours, do you know about another universe being... added to the System?¡± The gnome¡¯s eyebrows rose. ¡°I do, and I''ve heard a few stories of people ending up all over the place. You ended up here then?¡± He sighed in relief. ¡°I did indeed. I''ve been wandering about for... god only knows, a month and a half or so, I think? Time gets a bit fluid sometimes.¡± ¡°It does, especially when hopping between worlds. Check your clock.¡± ¡°I have a wooden house, but as lovely as it is, I don''t have a working clock.¡± ¡°I meant the one on your menu. You did know you had one right?¡± There was a lull in conversation as Marcus frantically looked through his menu, finding a ticking clock buried in the settings before dragging it to the main page of his menu. ¡°I do now.¡± He said, annoyed with himself. ¡°Fifty one days since I''ve logged in, about what I thought. Seriously if we¡¯re taking turns, most of my questions will probably be how the damn System works.¡± ¡°Careful with how you talk about the system, there are some people out there who worship it pretty devoutly. They can be touchy if anyone complains or bad mouths it. Touchy and stabby. I¡¯d say it¡¯s your question now by the way.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll open with the big one then. How can I leave this world?¡± ¡°No Leave!¡± Datov mentally interjected, but Marcus signalled for him to be patient. They squinted at him for a moment before scratching their head. ¡°Getting here takes a lot of effort, leaving will be harder for different reasons. I used a guiding stone.¡± Reaching into a pouch on his belt, he pulled out a purple orb the size of an apple. The stone sphere was covered in golden runes and symbols, several of which were lit up dimly. ¡°This thing,¡± he continued. ¡°Can take you to any place marked for it by putting in the right runes and a pile of mana. Had to rent the orb and pay a fee for the destination runes, but then it was just a matter of mana to get here.¡± ¡°So that could get me out of here?¡± Marcus asked, staring at the stone with naked desire. ¡°No chance I''m afraid. They¡¯re a two way device, but they can only take back the person they sent, nothing else alive. Even a flower wouldn¡¯t survive the trip, so you¡¯re out of luck there. There are a few magical tools that could work, but they¡¯re well out of my price range.¡± ¡°Friend promise no leave.¡± Datov said warningly. ¡°I won¡¯t leave yet,¡± Marcus thought back. ¡°But I need to know how to get to my family.¡± Out loud, he spoke. ¡°How much are we talking? Could you get one?¡± They shook their head. ¡°Only kind I could handle myself are used for kidnapping, and wouldn¡¯t reach a world this far out. Besides, you don''t have the mana for it, which leads to my own question. How is a level two like you alive here?¡± ¡°How¡¯d you know-¡° ¡°Identify, literally the most basic thing anyone learns, but I suppose you¡¯re a long way behind the curve. As a quad, my level is in the thousands if you looked, so I can see a lot more about you than you could of me.¡± ¡°So thaaaat¡¯s what that is! That¡¯s been bothering me for ages! So quads is thousands, I assume hundreds would be trips, less than a hundred are doubles?¡± ¡°Close, except people like you below ten are singles, rookies or my personal favourite, fodder. So again, how¡¯s a piece of fodder like you still alive after a month here?¡± He growled, pulling a knife from his belt. Marcus looked down at the gnome. ¡°You get that you¡¯re not exactly intimidating right? I mean I''m sure you could take me easily, but you still look like I could punt you out to see from here.¡± ¡°Don''t push me twig. There¡¯s no way you could survive this long on your own at your level. So you¡¯re either hiding your level, or acting as bait for someone else. So spill your guts now, or I¡¯ll spill them for you.¡± ¡°Don''t like.¡± Datov said, sounding distressed. ¡°Yeah I''m not fond of him either.¡± Marcus said aloud with a shrug, causing the gnome to glance around for the one he was talking to. ¡°He¡¯s still our best source of information though, so we¡¯ll keep talking. If he attacks me on the other hand, you can do what you¡¯d like.¡± The gnome advanced. ¡°Nice try, but I''ve set plenty of ambushes and spotted many more. I can tell you¡¯re on your own here, so start talking or I start cutting.¡± ¡°Really, you¡¯ve looked around? Let me guess, using identify?¡± Marcus said, ignoring the hunters threatening gestures and pulling up a chair. Or trying to, as he found that when he¡¯d built the house, he¡¯d made everything in one piece and the chairs were attached to the floor. ¡°What the hell are you on about? There¡¯s not a living thing within a mile of here, just you and me. And at the rate you¡¯re going, it¡¯s about to be just me. Now explain yourself!¡± ¡°Bad friend.¡± Datov said. Marcus chuckled. ¡°Yeah, I think you¡¯d be better off talking with the squirrels.¡± Focusing on the gnome he gestured to the doorway. ¡°You¡¯re right in a way, I''m not bait exactly, but I am here with a friend. In fact, I¡¯d say they¡¯re the best friend. So I¡¯ll tell you what, you go out there and have another look around for them, looking up and looking down, and when you spot them, we can talk.¡± They snorted. ¡°I really don''t think you understand the situation. The one with the weapon calls the shots.¡± ¡°Oh please, if you know enough about this world to doubt I could survive here, then you should know you are far from the most dangerous thing I''ve seen today. Now go outside, while I try to pry one of these chairs free.¡± Marcus said, turning his back and trying to snap the chair free. Something about the complete lack of fear Marcus was displaying was bothering the gnome, as well as the unsettling feeling of being watched. Knowing that any threat he faced wasn¡¯t in the house, they decided to risk it and stepped outside, keeping an eye on the struggling tree. Marcus had managed to get the front legs free with a few kicks and just managed to snap the back ones off when he heard a strangled cry of fear from outside. Looking outside he saw the gnome, pale faced and shaking, staring at the ground on their knees, a growing smell indicating their state of fear. ¡°Looks like he noticed you Datov.¡± Marcus said with satisfaction. ¡°Datov biggest. Very noticeable.¡± They said proudly. ¡°Biggest and best. Now, let¡¯s see if they¡¯ll be a bit more polite when answering our questions.¡± He waited a few minutes for them to move, but they just remained trembling on the beach. Sighing Marcus went and picked up the gnome, struggling a bit with the weight and brought them inside, sitting them on a chair before breaking off another for himself. Still not seeing any response, he tried snapping his fingers in front of them, yelling but eventually gave up and slapped the gnome across the face. It made a sharp noise, almost sent them tumbling off the chair, made Marcus feel much better about the day and most importantly got their eyes to focus onto him. ¡°Ah, back with us then?¡± Marcus said as he shifted his chair forwards. ¡°Wonderful, my very large friend and I have quite a few questions, so I think we¡¯ll be asking all the questions for now.¡± Chapter 12 ¡°I know I''ve said it already, but doing that doesn¡¯t change anything.¡± Marcus said with a sigh. ¡°Every inch between me and that is something I¡¯ll keep thank you very much.¡± The gnome answered with a quiver. The gnome, who initially claimed their name was Redshot, had become far more helpful with their answers after learning about their place on the totem pole. The first answer they¡¯d given when pressed was their name was actually Tobin Wiggledrop. Tobin had, on coming back to his senses, immediately climbed up onto one of the cupboards and refused to come down, unwilling to step on Datov¡¯s surface. ¡°Datov is more than the ground below us, they¡¯re the water in the sea, the sky above us and even the air we breathe... man that sounds preachy. Oh that¡¯s a good question, are there religions in the System?¡± Marcus asked, holding the notepad the gnome had been carrying in his back pack. ¡°Um, real ones or fakes ones?¡±Tobin asked back, now taking slightly shallower breaths. ¡°There¡¯s a difference?¡± Marcus said with raised eyebrows. ¡°W-well there¡¯s ones that are just some things people believe on rules they follow, more ways of living than religions. Then there¡¯s the ones that follow actual gods.¡± ¡°Wait, gods are real!?¡± he exclaimed. ¡°Beings that the System defines as gods, sure. Don''t know what the difference would be, they¡¯re entities with ridiculously high...¡± he looked down and shuddered before looking at the ceiling instead. ¡°A god is a hex, someone with levels in the hundreds of thousands.¡± ¡°Hear that Datov, you¡¯re apparently stronger than god¡¯s already, which is admittedly a little concerning.¡± Marcus said with amusement. ¡°Datov best!¡± They said with pride, the message causing Tobin to shudder. They¡¯d already worked out that he couldn¡¯t hear the planet, but the mass of mental energy was extremely noticeable, and what had tipped the gnome off initially. Now that he knew where it was coming from, he trembled every time Datov spoke. Their attempt at having Datov talk directly to the poor man had left them unconscious on the ground, seizing and bleeding from the ears. Marcus had been relaying things since. ¡°So does religion... do anything? System-wise I mean.¡± Marcus asked, keeping the gnomes attention in order to prevent another breakdown. ¡°W-well, it depends on faith, so I''m not really sure...¡± They¡¯d had him answering every question they had for over an hour, though many questions remained un-answered. While Tobin had used the system all their life, they were a thief, poacher and bounty hunter, not a scholar. But as Datov put it, sometimes the only teacher was the best teacher. They¡¯d learned that quads, as they were known in the galaxy Tobin was from, were the upper crust of what people could achieve. Those who reached five digits were considered lords, rulers and the most powerful around, generally only a handful managed it in a given galaxy, second only to gods. Third now. The gnome had no idea how nobody had noticed the planet was alive, and considering his reaction, Marcus believed him. While the majority of people who¡¯d visited Datov had died, either by the local wildlife or from Datov themself trying to say hello, he couldn¡¯t believe no one had noticed the planet below them and reported it. The planet becoming sapient wasn¡¯t a recent event, so it wasn¡¯t just the last few people and they were clearly noticeable with identify, so what was going on? ¡°So you haven¡¯t been to Datov before?¡± he asked, double checking. ¡°This is your first time here?¡± Tobin nodded furiously. ¡°First and last. The second my guiding stone is recharged I''m leaving and never coming back.¡± ¡°And how long do you have left before its ready?¡± ¡°Six more long hours.¡± They sighed. ¡°Oh don''t say it like that, Datov might get offended.¡± Marcus said, trying not to smile at the gnomes panic. ¡°I-I didn¡¯t mean-!¡± ¡°I kid, but I do have some more questions. For instance, what did you actually come here for? There¡¯s no one to rob, or steal from here.¡± Tobin scratched his chin. ¡°Normal hunting actually. The body of an untainted triple grade animal would be worth a small fortune to me, and things like guiding stones don''t come cheap.¡± ¡°Oh? Criminal industry been rough lately?¡± ¡°I know you¡¯re being sarcastic but yes, actually. The local governments being making a push to reduce the number of scavengers about the place, which affects me too.¡± ¡°Datov question! What think Datov forests?¡± Datov asked. ¡°Datov would like to know what you think of their forests.¡± Marcus relayed. ¡°They¡¯re great! Lots of trees and... Other trees!¡± They replied with panic. ¡°I''m more of a city guy, but this is definitely the best forest I''ve seen.¡± Marcus listened to Datov¡¯s next words before sighing and relaying them again. ¡°Datov wants to know what a city is.¡± Fifteen minutes followed of vague gestures, explanations of other words and a few drawings in the dirt outside. In the end they all settled for ¡®like the house but everywhere and for lots of people¡¯. ¡°Want see!¡± Datov cried once they¡¯d explained enough. ¡°Might be a little difficult, but we¡¯ll see what we can do for you.¡± Marcus answered the eager planet. ¡°Well Tobin? Datov wants to see other places, any ideas on how to make that happen?¡± Tobin looked at him in horror. ¡°You want to inflict that on other worlds? Are you crazy?!¡± ¡°Mean!¡± Datov grumbled, the ground shaking slightly in response, making the gnome go an even paler shade. ¡°I-I mean, if you wanted to I suppose you could, but Datov is the best planet, so why would you want go to others right?¡± They said frantically. ¡°Good save.¡± Marcus muttered, impressed. ¡°So any way to have a look? Phone call?¡± ¡°We¡¯re a long way off the grid here, otherwise you could try that I suppose.¡± ¡°How far? Actually, do you have a map of some kind?¡± ¡°Do you have any idea how hard it is to get a hold of a star map?¡± Tobin asked incredulously. ¡°I do not. But since you seem to know where we are, do you have one?¡±Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. They looked hesitant for moment before rifling through their pockets. ¡°Just so we¡¯re clear, these really are hard to get, they¡¯re just very handy for my line of work.¡± They muttered as they searched. ¡°Always good to know where to escape to. Is the table going to be big enough or do we need to go outside?¡± Marcus asked, moving his notes. Triumphantly, they pulled out a black plate and took a deep breath for climbing down off the cupboard. Moving as if the ground might swallow him up at any moment, they made their way outside. ¡°A table won¡¯t help. Space is three dimensional, so you need a three dimensional map.¡± They said before pressing a button on the plate. Lights rushed out of the map, leaving Marcus momentarily blinded and wondering if it had been a trick. But as his eyes cleared he found himself in space, surround by stars that were slowly spiralling to a stop. Tobin was still next to him in this illusionary space, and was consulting some information he was reading off the plate. ¡°Okay, so according to this, Datov would be right around...¡± Making a few gestures, the gnome span the stars around, the map moving and zooming in a particular galaxy, a particular arm and then finally a single area where they could see a green planet with a small star orbiting around it. ¡°Here. Gods they really are massive.¡± They said, awe in their voice. ¡°They¡¯re a planet, Isn¡¯t that kind of a given?¡± Marcus asked. ¡°Planets come in all sizes, and physics come second to the Systems rules. Datov is well over a million kilometres across, that¡¯s bigger than some life supporting stars.¡± ¡°Datov best?¡± the planet in question asked. ¡°Yes Datov, you¡¯re the best.¡± Marcus answered before talking to the trembling gnome. ¡°So where¡¯s the nearest planet with people from here? A place where we can make proper contact.¡± ¡°Umm, that¡¯d be...¡± again the stars moved this time flashing spheres around a number of worlds until two connected. ¡°Nekratain. It¡¯s not home to the most friendly people, but I have some contacts there that could give you some better communication equipment. It¡¯s actually one of the places I was going to go after here to sell what I hunted.¡± ¡°Ok then. Datov, want to go visit Nekratain and say hello to your neighbours?¡± ¡°Go! New friends!¡± ¡°So where is it?¡± Marcus asked, trying to make sense of the slowly shifting map. ¡°According to this, it¡¯s currently a few dozen light years southeast of here.¡± Tobin said as he studied the map. Marcus frowned. ¡°How can a planet be to the southeast? Isn¡¯t that kind of... relative?¡± ¡°Blame the System if you want, but according to it and its maps, there¡¯s a universal north, as well as an up and down.¡± ¡°That¡¯s dumb, but ok. Any issues about people being on top of the universe?¡± ¡°A few hundred empire wars, but no one takes it that seriously.¡± Tobin shrugged. ¡°...going to circle back to that one, but which way¡¯s southeast from here?¡± Swiping the plate, Tobin made a small glowing compass appeared in the centre of the map. ¡°Anything else? If not I¡¯d really like to hide in a corner until I can leave.¡± He asked hopefully. ¡°Leave the map here, but sure go sit inside if it¡¯ll make you feel better.¡± Marcus shrugged before talking to Datov. ¡°Can you try to move that way?¡± ¡°What way? Can¡¯t see!¡± Datov complained. Right, he thought, it was small for him so it¡¯d be invisible for the giant planet. What they needed were some larger markers that they could both use. ¡°Ok Datov, here¡¯s my plan, I need you make four things around here that we can both see, that are easy to tell apart and, this part is important, far enough away that making them won¡¯t kill me. Four things, one on each side. Do you think you can manage?¡± he asked the planet. ¡°Can.¡± Marcus was immediately glad he mentioned doing it far away as the ground began shaking, birds taking flight as Tobin screamed from inside the house. In the distance he watched as a mountain forced its way out of the ground, taking the forest up with it while a mass of ice began to coalesce out at sea. To the left and right two huge shards launched out of the soil, one of what looked to be stone and quartz, the other... ¡°Is that gold?¡± He asked in disbelief. ¡°Yellow metal! Can see?¡± ¡°I can see it very clearly. We¡¯ll talk about different metals and why certain ones might not be the best to build towers out of, but that works well. Ok now, are you able to turn around on my location?¡± The sky shifted randomly for a few moments but soon the sun was spinning above him in a smooth circle, the point of the compass matching its speed. ¡°Very good. Now slow it down, and ill have you turn until I can tell you which way to go. Keep going... okay, stop there.¡± He said with satisfaction, trying to ignore Tobin¡¯s gibbering in the background. ¡°Now, if we take the gold tower as north and the mountain as-¡± ¡°W-wouldnt it just be easier to put one thing somewhere and have the planet go towards it, rather than create a compass.¡± The gnome interrupted, trying to walk back over but having their legs fail them. Marcus frowned. ¡°That¡¯s... ok fine that¡¯ll be easier. Ok, you come here and tell Datov when they¡¯re lined up.¡± ¡°Me!? But I can¡¯t-¡± ¡°You know where we¡¯re trying to go, and even if you can hear them, Datov can hear you just fine. Now come on, steer the planet.¡± With bit more coaxing, and the subtle threat of Datov being upset with him, Tobin eventually got them pointed in the right direction. Now there was just one last step. ¡°Ok Datov, try moving in that direction.¡± Marcus said, pointing dramatically. ¡°Go! ...Working?¡± Datov asked, unsure. ¡°I have no idea. Tobin, does that map show if we move?¡± ¡°According to its data, it updates locations once a day. But I plan to be long gone by then, and I''m taking my map with me.¡± Tobin said, trying to hold his composure. ¡°Oh are you now.¡± Marcus stated, staring down at him for minute before sighing. ¡°Ok, sure. You¡¯ve helped us a fair bit, and it¡¯d be wrong for us to keep you here if you have somewhere else to be. I''m all for people going where they need to.¡± ¡°Family!¡± Datov agreed. ¡°Exactly, but so that we can check if this is working... Datov can you move your light; I want to see if the we can see changes in the other stars. ¡°Night time!¡± The sun span off to the other side of the planet, Datov even having the good sense to take the clouds as well, leaving them looking up at a perfectly clear night sky. ¡°Well Tobin, you¡¯ve got better eyes than eye do, and can probably do math as well. Are we moving?¡± Tobin just looked, mouth open wide. ¡°They can move the sun as well?¡± ¡°Moons too, faster than should be possible but like you said, physics comes second. But about that movement?¡± ¡°Oh right.¡± The gnome said with a start, pulling the rifle off his back. Rather than a normal gun that Marcus had been expecting, it was a collection of lenses and crystal between two brass rods attached to a large scope that was now put to use. ¡°It¡¯s not the most precise, but yes, Datov is currently moving. At this speed I¡¯d estimate your arrival in... four hundred years, maybe five. Again, I don''t have the right equipment, and star gazing really isn¡¯t my field.¡± Marcus¡¯s expression went hard. ¡°Four hundred years? That¡¯s not gonna cut it. Datov we need to go faster. Like, a lot faster, or we won¡¯t get there in time.¡± ¡°Time?¡± They asked. ¡°People don''t- Tobin, what¡¯s the average life expectancy in the system these days?¡± ¡°It varies by race, but normally, I¡¯d say about a hundred for a triple, maybe three hundred for a quad? Don''t know about the others.¡± ¡°Thanks. Datov, people don''t live that long. That means that before we got there, I¡¯d be dead, my family would be dead, and you¡¯d be all alone. We need to go faster.¡± ¡°No be alone!¡± Datov shouted, the force of their words shaking the sand around them. The one moon that had been overhead began moving, orbiting from one horizon to the other at speed, the other two matching pace with it. Slowly they accelerated, the lunar ring moving away from them and their destination towards the back of the planet. Just when they¡¯d lost sight of them, the sky lit up in that direction, a vibrant blue light flaring upwards across world. ¡°M-Marcus, do you have any clue what that is?¡±Tobin asked in fear. ¡°I''m thinking, and this is just a guess, that Datov figured out a way of using his sun and moons as an engine to travel faster?¡± he said slowly. ¡°You sound pretty sure of that for a guess.¡± ¡°Well I''m guessing at what they did, but I can see that those stars are moving now.¡± He said, gesturing towards their goal. Sure enough, the distant stars were now actively moving, not fast, but visibly to the naked eye. ¡°How¡¯s our travel time look now?¡± Tobin looked through his scope, made some notes, checked them, then checked them again. ¡°Assuming Datov can sustain this, as well as being able to stop appropriately, instead of four hundred years you¡¯re looking at... three and a half days to Nekratain. Give or take an hour or two.¡± ¡°Fast enough?¡± Datov asked, a serious tone in their voice. Marcus laughed, built up tension leaving his body. ¡°Plenty fast. Soon we¡¯ll have millions of people to talk to, and millions of things to see. And as for you Tobin...¡± ¡°Y-yes?¡± ¡°You¡¯ve been nothing but helpful after our first... incident, so if you feel like sticking around until our arrival, it¡¯d make life easier for us. Either way though, you came here looking for some things to hunt right? Well we¡¯ve got a few days before we come into contact, so how about we find you some game?¡± He offered. ¡°Really? Id kind of given up on it at this point, but that¡¯d be great, debts don''t clear themselves after all. As for staying... let¡¯s see how the hunt goes. Come on then, I remember seeing some bear tracks on the way here.¡± ¡°Really, you want to go right now?¡± ¡°Sure, why not? It¡¯s not like we can wait for daybreak.¡± They shrugged before beginning to march away, leaving Marcus standing there laughing. Wiping a tear form his eye, he looked up at the stars and smiled. ¡°Hang in there Smalls, I''m coming.¡± Chapter 13
¡°They¡¯re coming!¡± Samantha shouted, ducking behind cover. ¡°Casters get ready, tanks to the front!¡± As they¡¯d trained, the rest of the squadron moved at her orders, ready to stand against the incoming wave of enemies. They readied their abilities and took aim at the caves opening, waiting with bated breath. ¡°SCREEE!¡± As a solid mass of screeching bats poured out of the cave''s mouth, each with a wingspan a metre wide. The countless animals ran directly into the shield-carrying front line, ramming them in a crude attempt to attack. Their line faltered for a moment as the black wave hit, before they pushed back, holding firm. From over their shoulder a volley of projectiles was loosed, ranging from arrows to lightning bolts to vials of explosive oils, raining down on the swarm. Once the initial impact faded the bats began to spread out, seeming to realize being together was now working against them. Prepared for this, Samantha gave the order. ¡°Cease fire! Fighters engage, healers focus the tanks until the fighters have dispersed them, ranged units focus fire at the edges, do not shoot into the melee!¡± Swordsmen that had been holding back leapt into action, throwing themselves into the thick of it, eager to get to work. Against the combined efforts of the fighters the bats stood no chance. What made for a threat against the unwary at night was simple to deal with by those who knew what they were doing. Taking one last shot at a bat trying to escape back towards the cave, Samantha wiped her brow and looked over the battle site. People were mopping up the last enemies now, working together to lock their more nimble opponents in place to safely finish them off. As the last bat fell, people cheered. "Good job everyone, we managed to finish the job with no injuries." Samantha said to the group. Someone put their hand up. "Actually, Keith took a pretty hefty bite to the arm that took some healing." "Good job everyone; we finished the job with no one important getting injured." She restated to some laughter and a rude gesture from Keith. "So what now captain?" Luke asked. "I''ve told you before I''m not a captain." She said with a frown. "No, of course not. You''re just the one who plans what we do, where we go and gives us order in battle. Not like a captain at all.¡± he nodded sagely. ¡°Oh put a sock in it. Everyone gather up the bodies of the bats as best you can. Prioritize the¡­ Luke?¡± ¡°The most valuable parts of cave bats are intact wings, followed by the eyes and teeth.¡± he recited by memory. ¡°Right, grab the ones with full wings and intact heads, pile up and burn the rest.¡± People groaned. ¡°Can''t we just leave them? Other animals will eat them in a few days.¡± ¡°That¡¯s been done before in other places. Usually it''s fine, sometimes it leads to disease or an undead outbreak. Which would you prefer, Jerry?¡± she asked pointedly. ¡°...I¡¯ll grab a shovel.¡± They grumbled before walking off. She snorted in amusement, then sighed, her thoughts becoming more serious. Ever since she realised what was coming, she¡¯d begun training even harder, not just to go track down her brother now, but to do her best to survive. Her efforts had not gone unnoticed. Not only had her skills gone up significantly, but she¡¯d begun to amass something of a following of the other trainees, them seeing her as both a goal and an example. Choosing to put every tool she had to use, she¡¯d accepted them into her group, leading them to complete missions that she thought they were capable of and using their rewards to outfit them appropriately. As word spread and people looked for strong groups to attach themselves to, her small squadron had grown to just under a hundred people from multiple combat disciplines. Along with almost twice that number of non fighters who¡¯d agreed to support them, Samantha had ended up way out of her depth in managing the situation. Which was where Luke had come in. When Mr. Lincoln had noticed that she was becoming overwhelmed in trying to manage everything on her own, he¡¯d told her she needed to learn to delegate. Forcing his grandson to go and help her had been difficult for the old man, with Luke not wanting to fight and instead being far more interested in how the system technology worked. But after a number of deals, promises and a small brawl in the backyard, Luke now served as her second in command. The seventeen year old was still a gangly nerd, having put in more effort avoiding his granddads instruction than it would have taken to do it. Having taken the scholar class they hadn¡¯t initially been much use on the battlefield, but made organizing the movements of hundreds of people possible. He was also the first person Samantha knew who¡¯d manage to get a class upgrade. Scholars apparently got experience for learning and recording their discoveries, something very easy to do when you¡¯ve just entered a brand new universe. After reaching level thirteen he¡¯d been suddenly confronted with a screen offering him different class paths. According to Luke¡¯s own findings, you couldn¡¯t upgrade until you¡¯d qualified for enough options, even if you had the level for other offers. So now Samantha''s growing army had a Quartermaster, a scholar class skilled at managing people, supplies as well as having access to a limited system store. They didn¡¯t have the credits to buy anything worth having, but it did show them what things were worth according to the system. With their finances and equipment all being taken care of by Luke, Samantha had been free to work on training herself and her people, under Gordon''s watchful eye. She¡¯d given up on expecting much help from Vork, the Kurtza only going so far as to get them to the minimal level of ¡®good enough¡¯. If they were going to survive, Samantha knew, then New Earth was on their own. She just had to hope it would be enough.A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. ~ Nekratain sat in an interesting spot politically. While not a part of any group itself, the planet was right between the borders of three separate nations, giving it a certain amount of respected neutrality. And like all places in this position, it had two choices, the first being a careful meeting place where their neighbours could come together and make alliances on neutral soil. Nekratain chose the second. Having no real authoritative overwatch, it was home to more casinos, drug cartels and criminal enterprises than it did upright citizens. With the planets ruling council being made up primarily of the leaders of the largest criminal families, it did have laws, but they were so minimal that as long as you didn¡¯t commit mass murder in the streets, everything was permitted. But there was still a balance, since chaos didn''t lead to long term profits. Other criminal groups who tried to take a foothold on Nekratain quickly found themselves cornered, ill prepared for groups that were able to run their operations in the open. John Smith, one of many who¡¯d given up on dealing with their real name entirely, ran a small bar in the capital, not large enough to match the income of the drug dens and gambling halls, but did good business with the information brokers who wanted a more quiet place to work in. so they more than used to receiving calls from people who didn''t want to name themselves, who they wanted to talk to or what the call was even about. Sometimes not even the stack of stolen code books under the bar helped. Today though, the call was vague for different reasons. ¡°John¡¯s Bar, what can I do for you?¡± They said as they took the call. ¡°Go-od, finally--got thr--ough.¡± The voice came through, full of static. ¡°I ne--ed a signal boo--st urgently. Can yo--u ask if anyone can p--ut it thro--ugh on Redsh--ot¡¯s tab? Ti--me is a fa--ctor.¡± ¡°It always is.¡± John said with a sigh before covering the phone and addressing the bar. ¡°Got a call for a communication relay here! On a tab under the name ¡®Redshot¡¯! Any takers?¡± There were a few moments of silence as a number of operators quietly checked their books looking for outstanding accounts before one raised their hand and walked over, returning the bar to normal. Taking the phone, they checked their files. ¡°Redshot? This is Greenline, you currently owe me seven and a half thousand credits, and it¡¯s getting close for me to call in that debt. You want to add a signal boost to that?¡± ¡°De¡ªsperate times.¡± ¡°Ok, I¡¯m not going to talk you out of a sale, it¡¯ll be two thousand credits a day for the boost, three if you want it kept off the record, four if you want it kept off my records as well.¡± she said with a shrug, pressing a few keys on her tablet and activated the relay system. ¡°That¡¯s better.¡± Tobin said as the call quality cleared up. ¡°And by all means keep this on your records, I¡¯ll only need it for a day and this is all going to be very public very soon.¡± The broker paused. ¡°What exactly are we talking about here?¡± they asked. ¡°Heh, you of all people should know that good information isn''t free.¡± Greenline bit their lip, getting a feeling they''d regret this if they didn''t press it. ¡°I suppose I could waive the boost cost if this information is good enough.¡± ¡°Aaaand you could get rid of my debt and owe me a dozen favours and still not cover it, but we can go from there I suppose. I don¡¯t know what you''ll do with it, but I do know the value of this information. I need to go soon, and this is going to be public in two days time. Up to you.¡± ¡°And you¡¯re sure this information is worth something?¡± ¡°I can''t think of anything that''ll be a bigger deal once people find out.¡± He said with confidence. ¡°I¡¯ll hold off on the favours until I know what you have, but fine, let¡¯s see what you have that you think is worth some credits.¡± ¡°Well, to start with, what do you have on a planet called Datov¡­¡± ~ ¡°I didn¡¯t think you could make a call from here.¡± Marcus asked suspiciously as Tobin returned, putting away his phone. ¡°We¡¯re moving at light speed towards society at the moment. It buzzed me when we moved from no reception to awful reception. ¡° ¡°So we can talk to people now?¡± ¡°We can talk to Nekratain now, though it¡¯s expensive at this distance. You got someone you want to try and talk to?¡± ¡°I need to find my family. And the rest of species I suppose.¡± Tobin nodded. ¡°I suppose I can have them look into it. Shouldn¡¯t be that hard to find a planet of working sticks.¡± ¡°No no, they¡¯re humans.¡± Marcus said, waving his hands. Tobin raised his eyebrows. ¡°Nice of them to adopt a stick then. Wouldn¡¯t have thought pre-System planets had multiple races living on them.¡± ¡°I am a human! Or, I was until we got pulled into the system.¡± He clarified, looking down at himself. Tobin sucked air through gritted teeth. ¡°Race change? Those are rough, I''ve heard, especially big ones.¡± ¡°People change races? So I could turn back?¡± he asked hopefully. The gnome shook his head. ¡°People can sometimes evolve their race, from say... human to human superior. Or in my case Gnome to Grey Gnome. They give some general bonuses and sometimes a few specialized bits and pieces. But a full change is something else. That takes either a god level power to remake someone in their image, or the System''s direct involvement. They only ever work positively though, from what I understand, so you¡¯re supposedly stronger as a Wood Walker than you were as a human.¡± ¡°So,¡± he said thoughtfully. ¡°I could theoretically turn into a better human? One that¡¯s stronger again?¡± Tobin shrugged. ¡°Theoretically? Sure. The universe is wide enough that trillion-to-one odds do happen. Wouldn¡¯t bet on it though, you¡¯ll probably end up as a better wood walker, especially since you¡¯re currently a ¡®lesser¡¯ variant.¡± ¡°Right, about that...¡± Marcus prompted. He sighed. ¡°We¡¯re supposed to be hunting, you remember that right? But sure, last question. Dunno about you in particular, never seen your kind, but in monsters and animals it¡¯s a way of the system balancing things. It implies you¡¯re either a younger or weaker version of what the basic kind is. Probably means that a normal wood walker was too many steps above humans for you to reach, and why you couldn¡¯t afford a class as well.¡± ¡°So classes are-¡± ¡°Hunting.¡± Tobin said sternly, cutting him off as he drew his rifle. ¡°You know, you were a lot easier to get answers out of when you were terrified of Datov.¡± ¡°Oh I''m still terrified of them, I just know they won¡¯t kill me for no reason, and short of me attacking you, I don¡¯t think they¡¯ll have one.¡± He said with a smirk. ¡°True.¡± Datov admitted, something Marcus didn¡¯t pass on. ¡°Fine, I did say we¡¯d help you find something to hunt, so what are we looking for? You¡¯re a Quad, so should we find you a stag? Those are in the category.¡± He offered. ¡°No! Are you crazy?!¡± Tobin yelled frantically. ¡°Same category? Gods, I forgot that you have no idea about anything. The gap between levels grows as you go up, and there¡¯s obviously a big difference between level one thousand and level nine thousand nine hundred and ninety nine. Same category my ass. Not that I''d normally tell someone, but I''m in the low two thousands, while I know for a fact that a Datovian Great Stag is normally around the six mark. There¡¯s footage of what happened when some dumbass tried to keep one in his private zoo. A dozen cities burned down before they managed to push it off world.¡± ¡°They do bite a bit.¡± Marcus agreed. ¡°Bite a bit he says... Look, I can take a single animal in the low thousands or anything lower than that. What else have you seen around?¡± ¡°Some of the squirrels that lived on my shoulder were in the hundreds, and I got grabbed by a goldfish that was a bit over five hundred. Would either of those do?¡± he said thinking back. ¡°...Gonna circle back to that later, but no, I''m not gonna get much for a goldfish or a squirrel. Anything else?¡± ¡°I saw a stag chase down a bear a while ago? So I guess that¡¯s lower than the stag?¡± Tobin scratched his chin and nodded. ¡°Ok, let¡¯s go hunt a bear.¡± Chapter 14 With the sun being used as an engine to force their way across space, the forest was cast with strange shadows, stretching across the landscape. Marcus had to wonder at the animals that lived on Datov¡¯s surface, with none of them even acting like this was anything strange. Living on a world where the schedule of day and night was dictated by the whim of the planet probably led to a hardier mindset. "So Datov really doesn''t mind me hunting his animals? You said that they''re connected to them?" "From what I¡¯ve gotten from them, it''s kind of like us hunting down bacteria on his skin? And only one or two of them at that. Scale is kind of crazy to think about with Datov." Marcus replied. ¡°Then don''t think about it, just focus on keeping an eye out for our target.¡± Tobin replied with a shrug, checking his weapon for the umpteenth time. Marcus studied them. ¡°Are you sure you¡¯re up for this? You seem pretty nervous, so if you want to try for something smaller..?¡± The gnome hesitated for a second, and then shook their head. ¡°I''m good, just need to keep my wits about me. I''ve built myself up as a sniper and ambusher, so if I can spot the bear first then this will be a cakewalk. But if not, and it ends up being a proper fight, things are going to get a lot more hairy, so keep your eyes peeled.¡± ¡°Well, it¡¯s your hunt, so how exactly do we do this?¡± Over the next few hours the two moved quietly amongst the trees, or in Marcus¡¯s case, as quietly as he could. Tobin showed him what sort of signs to look for, pointing out things like faint tracks, broken branches or droppings. He wouldn¡¯t say he actually picked up much from the gnome¡¯s teachings, but the lesson itself was relaxing, reminding Marcus of studying at home. As they travelled they spotted a number of other animals, most of which they gave a wide berth, actively hiding when they spotted a passing stag. Tobin had pulled out his rifle and tried lining up a shot on it, but as they watched it topple several trees by accident as it tried to eat the leaves higher up, they decided not to risk angering it. ¡°There!¡± Tobin whispered excitedly, getting down on to their knees. ¡°See that print there? That¡¯s our target, and they should still be around. Stay back a bit from now on, and stop when I tell you.¡± As they began crawling forwards, Marcus watched him begin preparing his attack. In the strange twilight of the forest, Marcus watched as previously unseen lines and symbols covering the gnome¡¯s weapon began to light up and quietly hum with power. Finding a suitable stone, Tobin rested his now glowing rifle on it and held still, patiently waiting for their target to appear. Five minutes passed, then ten. After half an hour Marcus was getting cramps in his legs, but seeing Tobin still so deeply focused he kept quiet and just kept waiting. Eventually, as he began to start doodling in the dirt in front of him, he saw Tobin tense up suddenly, and a few moments later, he heard it. Datov was a massive planet, with a range of creatures both varied and horrifying. But no matter the planet, no matter what reality it was; a bear was still a bear. It may not have been able to go toe to toe with some of the true top predators found on this world, but as the bear came into view, Marcus wondered if they should have aimed lower. Ten feet tall at the shoulder, the hulking grey animal was covered in bone plate and spikes at seemingly random locations. Its fur was tattered and torn around these protrusions, as if they¡¯d burst through violently. ¡°That¡¯s not like the other bears I''ve seen.¡± Marcus muttered, frowning at the animal in concern. This proved to be a mistake as the bear¡¯s ears flicked at his words, its massive head turning towards the sound and began approaching at alarming speed. Swearing under his breath Tobin quickly repositioned his rifle and fired at the bear before it could reach them. Unlike what Marcus had expected from the rifle, there was no sound of gunfire, nor did a bullet fly from the barrel. Instead the glow from the weapon flowed towards the trigger before being launched forwards at incredible speed, a near invisible beam of light that hit the bear in the neck, piercing clean through the animal. But the wound, while likely fatal, was simply too small to bring the beast down immediately. ¡°Run!¡± Tobin shouted at Marcus, before blurring and vanishing before his eyes. Needing no more encouragement, the wooden figure stood and began running off back toward his cabin, putting his long stride to work as he tried to keep ahead of the now frenzying animal. Hearing its pained roars behind him was more than enough motivation to run faster than he ever had before, especially as they didn¡¯t seem to be getting further away. ¡°Bring them over here!¡± Looking up, he saw Tobin sitting high up on a branch in a tree off to the side, weapon in hand. Happy that his hunting partner hadn¡¯t up and abandoned him, he ran towards them with one last burst of speed. As he leapt forwards and reached the base of the tree he felt a blinding pain as the bear caught up, an enormous claw catching him in the back, ripping down and tearing one of his legs off. As he fell to the ground in pain Marcus turned to see the enraged bear, blood still pouring freely from its neck, stand up tall, roaring in anger. Then there was a faint flash of light and a small hole appeared in the centre of its forehead, sending it silently to the ground. ¡°Shit, are you alive?¡± Tobin asked urgently as he leapt down from his perch. ¡°I needed time to charge another shot up, but I didn¡¯t expect you to get caught like that. Damn mutants.¡± ¡°...eg¡± Marcus choked out. ¡°What? I don''t have any eggs... oh, right, leg. Um... here?¡± the gnome said, dragging the severed limb over to the wounded wood walker.The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. Feebly, Marcus tried to push his leg back into place, his struggling brain hoping that it would reattach with a bit of effort somehow. But the wound remained, vital sap continuing to pour out at an alarming rate. Cutting through the haze of his injuries, he felt Datov begin to panic, which gave him a burst of clarity. ¡°Tobin,¡± He gasped out. ¡°I''m not going to make it, and Datov knows it.¡± ¡°Oh shit. Oh shit! What do we- what do I do?¡± the gnome asked, eyes wide in panic. ¡°You need to get clear of here... can you take the bear quickly enough?¡± Grabbing a small pouch from his waist, the gnome opened it and pointed it towards the bear¡¯s body. With a complete disregard to physics, the massive corpse was vacuumed into a matchbox sized container. ¡°That¡¯s... really cool. Now run away.¡± ¡°What?¡± Tobin asked, confused. ¡°When I die, Datov will hit me with enough mana to bring me back. Last time, they weren¡¯t... accurate. You remember the state of the beach around my house?¡± he said, trying to hold on long enough. Their eyes widened even further. ¡°Got it. I¡¯ll head back there.¡± He said before running away. Marcus winced and lay back with a smile. ¡°Datov, you listening?¡± He asked weakly to the now empty area. ¡°Always. Dying. Help?¡± Datov responded quickly. ¡°Not yet. Let¡¯s make sure Tobin doesn¡¯t get caught up in your ¡®help¡¯. We don''t want to hurt our friend do we ?¡± he whispered, closing his eyes. ¡°Soon.¡± Datov promised, as everything faded to silence. ~ Tobin had been sprinting desperately for several minutes, but when he started to feel the hair on his neck stand on end, he wondered if he¡¯d gone far enough. Deciding that a few more seconds of running would change anything, he turned around to watch things unfold. In the sky above where they¡¯d fought and where Marcus¡¯s body lay, mana had begun to build up. Raw mana, before being put into a spell or ability, was normally invisible and undetectable, but the amount in the sky was not only giving off light but had begun condensing into a physical cloud. As the gnome wondered at the anomaly, it suddenly pulled in on itself, before slamming down towards the ground. While the bolt of mana moved silently, the result of its impact did not. The explosion shook Tobin even at this distance, trees and unfortunate animals all but evaporating against the forces involved. Looking at the small mushroom cloud that was rising over the site, he shook his head. Almost everyone wanted to find a way to live forever, but he hoped if he found one it¡¯d be a little more subtle. ~ Rosanna sat back in her chair, looking out over the city through her office window. Some of the other cartels set themselves up as kings and royalty, insisting on being called by titles to give themselves an ego boost. But the jouster family had always held true to what they were: a business, and sitting at the top of it was all she needed. Even so, she was still irritated when one of her secretaries came rushing in without so much as knocking. ¡°This had better be good for you to bother me like this.¡± She said, running a finger over the gilded crossbow sitting on her desk. One didn¡¯t stay in control of a cartel by letting people ignore your authority. The secretary paled slightly at the implied threat before gathering themselves. ¡°Apologies madam, but the message is supposedly time sensitive, so I felt it would be best if you were informed as soon as possible.¡± They said with a small bow, offering a letter. She raised a brow. ¡°Oh? What¡¯s it about?¡± she asked, becoming intrigued. ¡°I''m unsure of the details, but it¡¯s from an information broker who goes by Greenline, and they say that it is going to change everything.¡± ~ ¡°You need to figure out a way of doing that a little less destructively. Like, a way of reviving within a mile of anyone else who wants to stay alive.¡± Marcus shrugged but agreed. ¡°Datov says aiming is hard. Considering everything I''ve learned, I believe them, but it would be nice not to wake up in a blasted crater.¡± Still groggy, it had taken him a little less than an hour to stumble back towards the house, finding Tobin going through the process of preparing and butchering the bear. With nothing else to do and still feeling tired after having died twice today already, Marcus had sat down and watched the gnome work. ¡°So why does it look like that anyway?¡± he asked as the gnome cut away another of the bone plates. ¡°You can identify it yourself you know.¡± Tobin said without looking up. -Datovian Black Bear (Mutant-Unknown). Level: 873- ¡°So it¡¯s a mutant? What does that mean exactly, other than it now looks weird?¡± He asked, poking at the malformed animal. ¡°You read about class¡¯s, and how they work?¡± ¡°A little? The information packet I got was all but useless.¡± Tobin nodded. ¡°Sounds about right. I''ve said it a few times that I''m not a professional about this stuff, but the basic idea is that the same way a class can improve, so can your race. It¡¯s not as easy to do, when you have a class, but if an animal or other monster does enough weird things of note they can evolve. But when they¡¯re not sapient and able to think through their decisions, things can go a little... wrong. Like stronger than average bears with bones growing through their hide.¡± ¡°Does it hurt?¡± Marcus asked absently while reading. The gnome snorted. ¡°Having random bones through your skin? I¡¯d have to assume that this was almost a mercy killing. Normal evolution, not so much, at least mine didn¡¯t.¡± Marcus¡¯s brow went up. ¡°You¡¯ve evolved.¡± Tobin nodded as he pulled a smaller knife, getting in deeper. ¡°Unless you¡¯re lucky and have some highly evolved parents, most people start out basic, no modifiers to speak of. Most people change when they¡¯re a triple, same as I did. All my travelling let me grow from a normal Gnome to a Gnomad.¡± ¡°Gnomad. That¡¯s what you¡¯re actually called. Seriously?¡± They stopped their work for a moment and sighed. ¡°It¡¯s not exactly something I''m proud of, but there¡¯s a lot worse names for things out there than that. No one even knows how it decides the names, let alone why some manage to be puns, but it is what it is.¡± ¡°That¡¯s... interesting. Final question then, when you hunted down the bear I got experience for it even while having nothing to do with killing it, pushing me up to level fifteen. What¡¯s up with that?¡± ¡°You get experience for more than just landing a killing blow, and you helped both find and lure it.¡± ¡°I don''t want to be a killer.¡± Marcus said firmly. Tobin snorted. ¡°Trust me kid, you¡¯re no killer. Especially with that title of yours. But stop complaining about getting some power from someone who is. You think you¡¯re gonna keep your family safe as a level two? With your mighty powers of running slightly slower than a monster? Take what you can get, it¡¯ll be easier to hold on to those ideals of yours with some power backing you up.¡± ¡°There¡¯s more to it than that, but fine.¡± Marcus responded after a moment, deep in thought. ¡°You wouldn¡¯t be the first to fight against it, but only the victor gets to say what¡¯s right. But it¡¯s a little odd you only reached level fifteen, that bear should have pushed you higher... you get your class? That would have cancelled the rest.¡± He asked curiously. Marcus shook his head before sharing the System message he¡¯d gotten. ¡°Not quite, looks like for now I''m going the way of the bear.¡± -You have earned enough experience to reach level 15!- -Evolution is now available. Please make a selection before more experience can be acquired.- Chapter 15 Wood Walker - Uncommon Requirements - Level 15 A sapient plant-based life form, normally only found on densely forested worlds. Generally peaceful by nature, these tall genderless beings often stay clear of more built up civilizations, choosing to remain in the wild, leading them to be regarded as a more savage race despite a lack of aggression. Racial stat gains per level: 4 Body, 2 Spirit, 4 free points. ¡°I kind of assumed there¡¯d be a little more change. This looks almost the same as what I already am. Should there be more to it than this?¡± Marcus asked, sharing the information. ¡°You¡¯ll always be offered the straight upgrade or next step. In your case it¡¯s just going from the lesser to the normal version. So it shouldn¡¯t be that surprising that it¡¯s just more of the same, it¡¯s the others that should be a bit more interesting.¡± Wood Walker (Empty Ebony) - Rare Requirements - Level 15, Mana Immunity One of the most resistant materials within the System, as an Empty Ebony you are the natural enemy of magic and its users. Your immunity spreads all but the most specialized magic¡¯s and effects, at the cost of being unable to wield it yourself. While immunity to your enemies allows you to settle all conflicts with physical force, you are unable to receive magical aid from allies either. Racial stat gains per level: 6 Body, 4 Grace, 5 free points. ¡°Now this I''ve heard of,¡± Tobin said, reaching into his pack and pulling out a sealed jar containing what looked like black powder. ¡°Empty Ebony, the non-living version anyway, is probably the best magic suppressor out there. Put a pinch of ground bark in a mage¡¯s wine and they won¡¯t be able to so much as look at mana for days.¡± ¡°Sounds potent. I take it that it¡¯s not that easy to get a hold of?¡± Marcus said, studying the powder. ¡°Rare, trade restricted and illegal in most empires. It¡¯s also fairly limited in quantity since you can¡¯t grow it with any kind of ability which makes it worth a fortune. I know someone who had a meeting table made of the stuff, no one could influence anyone else sitting at it, kept things honest.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Well, he still got betrayed and stabbed, but honestly, you know?¡± ¡°Suuure.¡± He said, scratching his head with a frown. ¡°So that¡¯s the upside, but that downside...¡± ¡°Worried that you¡¯ll be hunted as a resource?¡± Tobin asked. ¡°Well I am now, but I was more concerned if it would block my communication with Datov. Think it would?¡± ¡°No block!¡± Datov interjected loudly, causing Marcus to wince as a tremor ran through the ground. ¡°So that¡¯s a no from Datov then?¡± Tobin asked nervously as things settled. Marcus nodded. ¡°That¡¯s a no, so let¡¯s move on.¡± Wood Walker (Peace Lily) - Rare Requirements - Level 15, Bloodless title, Mental resistance Level 10 Violence is avoided by the innocent, and prevented by the noble. But in the presence of a Peace Lily, violence isn¡¯t even an option. Those touched by its aura find themselves unable to take offensive actions unless strong enough to resist its sway. With a will of your own you can also exert your influence over them, leading them down the noble path you choose. Racial stat gains per level: 8 Presence, 4 Thought, 3 free points. ¡°Well that¡¯s a little more you. You seem to be pretty anti violence.¡± Tobin said after they read it. ¡°I''m not exactly anti violence; I just don''t want to be the one doing it..? It¡¯s complicated.¡± He replied, concerned with what he read. Exerting your influence... ¡°Am I right in thinking this is mind control stuff?¡± he asked. The gnome scratched their chin. ¡°Could be, the System purposefully tries to hide as much as it can with decisions like this to encourage people to go more by feel.¡± ¡°I don''t think I want to get involved with that.¡± Marcus said, looking at the option like it might try and bite him. ¡°Your call obviously, but are you sure? I get that it¡¯s a little shady, but a benevolent dictator can do a lot of good.¡± ¡°It¡¯s still got the word dictator in it. Moving on.¡± Wood Walker (Lichwood) - Epic Requirements - Level 15, Death affinity, Die more than five times, Resurrection based title, no holy affinity Where most plants grow life from death, continuing the cycle, the Lichwood seeks only more death, even its own. Thought to have gone extinct many times over the ages, these twisted trees appear randomly over the sites of great bloodshed. Pulling the vital energies out of their surroundings, if left unchecked they can reduce entire countries and continents to barren wastes. As a sapient version, your goal is the same to rob the world of life to fuel your own growth. You will no longer gain stats for levelling, instead gaining them based on the deaths you cause. He felt the pull of it, the whispered promise of power and strength. But even so¡­ ¡°No.¡± Marcus said without hesitation. ¡°Really, you¡¯re not even going to consider it? Not everyone can claim to be an epic ranked species, and a powerful one at that.¡± Tobin asked, his tone off. ¡°The Peace Lily was questionable, it wasn''t something I could stand but I get that it might have a place. But this? This is the closest thing to evil personified that I''ve seen. I''m not touching it with a ten foot pole¡± ¡°Good.¡± ¡°Good? I thought you were trying to sell me on it.¡± He asked, confused. ¡°Lichwood¡¯s are nasty, and have a standing bounty with every empire I can think of. That said they¡¯re potent, and can be used in some massive rituals that can best be described as war crimes. That power can be tempting, and if you¡¯d gone for it, I probably would''ve tried to put you down. Even with Datov watching over you.¡± ¡°No kill!¡± Datov shouted in Marcus¡¯s mind. ¡°There are times, Datov, when bad things have to be done. And if I became one of those, I¡¯d probably even try to hurt you. I don''t think I actually could hurt you, but I wouldn¡¯t want to let myself get to that point in the first place.¡±This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. ¡°...Don¡¯t want.¡± Datov whimpered. ¡°Me neither buddy, so I¡¯ll stay away from that one. Which leaves us with...¡± Splinter of Yggdrasil - Epic Requirements - Level 15, Mundus affinity, Make contact with a worlds core, Resurrection based title A Wood Walker may guide and nurture a forest, but as even a tiny piece of the world tree, you are tasked with taking whole planets under your charge. Able to forge permanent connections to the planets under your care, you substitute your own strength by tapping into the might of these worlds. Racial stat gains per level: 1 free point. ¡°Well this seems... understated.¡± Marcus said. ¡°Yggdrasil... I know I''ve heard of that somewhere...¡± Tobin muttered. ¡°I think, and don''t quote me on this, that it¡¯s a world tree, like the centre of everything and planets grow on it? Or attached to it? It was something from mythology from my world. You recognize it?¡± ¡°You¡¯d be amazed at how much mythology is real somewhere in the system. I¡¯d need to look into it, but I swear I''ve heard it mentioned somewhere. Maybe I stole something by the same name?¡± ¡°Stats are kind of low though. Only one? The rare ones had fifteen.¡± ¡°It¡¯s an Epic rarity race, which is rare enough that it actually bothers me a little seeing you getting offered two of them. That means the System is putting it at the same potential as the Lichwood, which is a known continent devouring doom, so it probably has a few things up its sleeve.¡± Marcus nodded, rereading the listing. ¡°Right, ¡®substituting your own strength¡¯. So it probably has something to do with that. Any evil horror about this one?¡± Tobin shrugged and let out a sigh. ¡°Again, I swear I''ve seen something about that name, and it¡¯ll bother me until I can figure out what it was, but I''m pretty sure it wasn¡¯t anything bad.¡± ¡°What about you Datov? What do you think about me sticking with you?¡± Marcus asked the world with a grin, already knowing the answer. ¡°Want! Be that!¡± They yelled gleefully. ¡°Then the choice is made. Tobin, should I sit down for this or..?¡± he asked. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t hurt, you never know with these things. If you pass out I¡¯ll just keep working on the bear so you do what you need to.¡± ¡°Here we go then.¡± He said mostly to himself, accepting the option. -Evolution in progress. Because of degree of changes being implemented, host will be rendered unconscious until completion- -Time until completion: 6 hours- ¡°Called it.¡± Marcus slurred, before toppling forwards unconscious. ~ ¡°What do you mean we can¡¯t use the gate?¡± Sarah demanded of the Kurtzian guard in front of her. ¡°No people of newly added realities can travel to another race¡¯s world until they¡¯ve become strong enough.¡± They repeated calmly. Sarah¡¯s forces were growing quickly, both in number and in level. Already she was getting calls from other groups of fighters looking to unite as well as politicians looking to latch on to her success. There were also plenty of businesses trying to organise sales and branding deals, but fortunately she was able to hand all of that off to Luke who had a proper head for numbers. But now they faced a new problem, that of the Kurtza empire itself. Ever since people had worked out that the empire didn¡¯t have humanity¡¯s best interest at heart, they¡¯d begun distancing themselves from their supposed teachers. In turn, the empire had begun dropping their front of offering real aid and instead doing little more than standing around occasionally transporting things through their warp gates. It was one of these gates Sarah was trying to use now, to meet with some connections others had made with their abilities. ¡°And what will define us as being ¡®strong enough¡¯?¡± she asked, trying to control her growing frustration. ¡°The empire believes your people will achieve this by the end of the grace period.¡± ¡°Oh please, we both know that''s bullshit, we¡¯ve spoken to some people and I know for a fact that other than actual fighters and adventurers, the average person in the system isn''t even level one hundred. They''ve even agreed to discuss trade with us.¡± Their grip tightened on their spear as their eyes narrowed. ¡°Contacting other organizations and nations is forbidden during the grace period.¡± Sarah crossed her arms. ¡°Really? Because we did it using the Systems abilities and gifts, so it seems like it''s perfectly ok with us reaching out. Instead, it sounds a lot like it''s you and your empire that wants us to sit and stay quiet.¡± The guard shifted slightly, going from a relaxed stance to one ready for combat. Sarah''s followers became nervous and stepped back but she herself remained unperturbed. ¡°You would do well to not question the grace of the empire.¡± They said firmly, warning in their voice. She laughed. ¡°We¡¯re not here by ¡®the grace of the empire¡¯, we¡¯re here by the power of the system. The same system that gave your empire a quest to help raise and support us for six months. I have to wonder if it thinks that trapping us and actively hobbling our growth counts as succeeding in that, or whether there''ll be some failure conditions coming.¡± ¡°You know nothing of which you speak!¡± the guard yelled, a bead of sweat forming on their brow. ¡°Don''t I? I know that your empire doesn''t have even a drop the power needed to pull humanity into the system, all your people did there was make the message so we¡¯d have a name to look for. From what we¡¯ve heard from some of the far more helpful nations we¡¯ve spoken to, we have a few more distant empires to thank, the ones that serve as administrators. Not a dying relic of an empire clinging to power by sacrificing us for their own gain.¡± The guard snarled at her. ¡°Pathetic girl, so what if we have? Our empire''s glory has existed for millennia, who cares if we sacrifice an upstart race that has been present for mere months to spread our righteous name once more you little- what are you doing.¡± they said, stopping in confusion as they watched Sarah laugh and fist pump in celebration. ¡°We¡¯ve been trying to pry an admission of guilt out of your people for days now, but you¡¯ve all been holding firm, but it seems all it took in the end was being challenged by a ¡®pathetic girl¡¯.¡± she said, gloating. ¡°We finally have enough evidence to put forth a claim. And it''s all thanks to you! You should be so proud.¡± ¡°Y-you dare!?¡± the guard said in a panic, raising their weapon and stepping forwards. ¡°Oh I dare a lot more than that.¡± She said, quickly pulling out a piece of paper and reading from it, shouting the words aloud. ¡°I, Sarah Gillian of New Earth, formerly of planet 13847J-2, call for the aid of the System in finding the Kurtza Empire in contempt of their System given duty and quest!¡± In response to her words and before the Guard could reach her, a ray of white light hammered down from the sky, knocking people over and forming a dome around her. Outside of this shield a figure now stood, one that hurt to look at. Dressed in a bright blue hoodie, sweat pants and sandals they seemed like they¡¯d just been lying on a couch. But where the figure¡¯s body should have been there was nothing but a void, as if a hole in the universe had lazily put on clothes. ¡°Man, your family really loves yelling at the sky. Ok then, Miss Gillian of New Earth, I¡¯m here to listen to your claim, but be aware that we take this sort of thing very seriously, and there will be severe repercussions if you¡¯re wasting my time.¡± They said, their voice seeming to come from all directions at once. ¡°R-right.¡± Sarah began nervously, taking a breath to calm herself. ¡°We of New Earth were to be given aid by the Kurtza Empire, but instead they¡¯ve been taking those advantages for themselves.¡± The administrator scratched their chin. ¡°That¡¯s definitely an offense if true, do you have any proof?¡± ¡°Proof?¡± she repeated, quickly flicking through the pages in her hands. ¡°Right, in accordance with order 3218954, section J-42, we were supposed to have received weekly shipments of mana crystals, none of which have been received.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not right.¡± They said, shaking their head. ¡°What? But-¡± ¡°That particular order, 3218954, section J-42, is in regards to the minimum quality of fruit sold by the system. I think you might have some numbers wrong there.¡± They chuckled. The guard laughed at her, ¡°Ha, the whelp knows nothing, she should be punished for-¡± -I am talking, and I will decide who is punished. Now silence- Beyond words or sound, the message went straight into the soul, and for a moment even the wind went quiet. As they reached out a hand, Sarah found her notes being pulled from her hand by a gentle, unseen but undeniable force. The figure spent a few moments looking over them flipping through the various points of data that humanity and painstakingly collected. With a subtle twisting motion the notes were pulled into two identical versions, one of which was handed back. ¡°Well, from all of this I''ve learned two things. One is that your people need some proper text books of system laws, something that definitely should have been handed to you. Seriously, I only saw about two rulings you had the right codes for.¡± ¡°...Some of that might have been me. I was never the best note taker in school.¡± Sarah admitted. ¡°What¡¯s the second?¡± ¡°The second is that you have legitimate grounds for having the empire¡¯s actions investigated, which is unfortunately above my pay grade. I¡¯m organising a taskforce for it at the moment but it¡¯ll take a few days to sort out however things pan out. Hopefully we can- you in the back there stop trying to identify me! Someone like you will have your head explode well before you succeed and that¡¯s not an insult, its physics!¡± They shouted, looking at a now sheepish man. ¡°Anyway as I was saying, hopefully we can reach an understanding that all parties will find acceptable.¡± The guard recovered and rallied for a moment. ¡°The empire has done nothing wrong and will fight against this injustice!¡± they yelled before vanishing suddenly as the administrator waved their hand. ¡°All innocent parties will find acceptable.¡± They corrected themselves. ¡°Umm, one last thing...¡± Sarah began hesitating. ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Before, you mentioned something about my family. Do you..?¡± ¡°You¡¯re talking about your brother? Yeah I''m the one who fielded his request to swap with you. Good egg that one, you should be proud. Actually that¡¯s the main reason I volunteered to field your call, figured you wouldn¡¯t be the kind to try and pull something.¡± ¡°Do you know where he is? Can you bring him here?¡± she asked eagerly, full of hope. ¡°Ah, sorry, no. I only have jurisdiction over this zone, and he ended up outside it somewhere so I don''t have any access to his information. And even if I did, we who work as administrators have taken oaths of non-interference. So I couldn¡¯t help you anyway.¡± ¡°But aren¡¯t you helping us right now?¡± She begged, a trace of desperation in her voice. They shook their head. ¡°We follow the System¡¯s rule, and it doesn¡¯t play favourites. It gives everyone the tools and potential to survive and succeed and leaves the rest up to you. When your universe was pulled in you were left below everyone else so it gave you gifts and aid in order to bring you in line with everyone else. That¡¯s the limits of the System¡¯s help. But if the empire has dared to interfere with one of the System¡¯s direct actions...¡± -It will not remain silent-