《The Final Draft》 1. Drafted Drafter When Margaret wished, for the seventeenth time that Tuesday, for something, anything, to pull her away from chauvinistic, pig-headed contractors, she really hadn''t had this in mind. Instead of the conference room that hosted her headaches more often than not, Margaret found herself in a very peculiar situation. Slowly rotating beneath her was a planet. A planet that was very much not Earth. Above her, the kaleidoscope of the cosmos dazzled in far more colors than she was used to seeing. All around her, floating in fuzzy spheres of light much like the one she currently occupied, was a host of other people, varied as the stars above. There was so much to take in that Margaret couldn''t focus on any one thing, her mind bouncing from one thought to another much too fast to even be properly afraid. Eventually, the planet below drew her attention the most, and she became mesmerized by the curve of the coastlines, the colors of forests and plains, and other, curiously odd areas. When the text appeared in front of her face, Margaret nearly lost her shell-shocked calm. ''Attention, Conscript: Before you lies Territory MS-1634, a minor resource/supply planet belonging to the Pantheon. Recently, the planet has been infected by saboteurs attempting to destabilize our system. Since this is only a minor territory, it is not prudent to send Pantheon resources to clear the infection. As such, we have randomly selected 2,000 conscripts from your planet Earth to clear the infection for us. This is the function your planet has served for the Pantheon over the last several millennia. You are free to use any resources that you can claim to support your mission. A Pantheon Interface and Assistant program has been added to your central nervous system to aid you. Clear the infection, and you will be granted a return trip to Earth. Failure will not be tolerated.'' Margaret read the text two and a half times before it vanished, a 3-d model of the planet below replacing it. The model was covered in glowing blue points. ''Choose your starting zone. Only one conscript will be sent to each zone.'' There was a short period of stillness, then the points on the model began to blink out. Rapidly. Hurriedly, Margaret tapped a point near a river delta she''d admired on the planet. A display appeared that read:
34.237/-63.927
Geography:
Fertile river delta
Temperate forest
Coastline
Natural resources:
Timber
Farmland
Abundant fishing
Assets:
City (Elvish, Population: 342,1....
Suddenly, the text went grey and was overlaid with a massive, all-caps ''CLAIMED''. Margaret watched in horror as the points on the map rapidly dwindled. She tapped another spot near some of the interesting geography she''d seen on the planet and searched the display for a CLAIM button, ignoring the other text. Frustrated, she shouted, "Claim!" Apparently, voice commands worked. The screen changed to CLAIMED, faded out, and then Margaret found her orb rapidly approaching the planet. The preternatural calm she''d felt until now evaporated, and Margaret''s descent to the planet was accompanied by eyes clenched shut and frantic screaming.
Margaret finally stopped screaming when she was unceremoniously dropped on the ground, her sphere dissipating. The final drop was only about 6 inches, but Margaret was wholly unprepared. She windmilled like someone missing the last step on a staircase before landing on her face, rear in the air. "Owww," she groaned. Instead of standing, Margaret rolled onto her back and stared at the sky, where she''d just been mere seconds before. ''I understand being conscripted is a bit... jarring, but you may want to get to your feet quickly.'' "Who-wh-what is that?" Margaret whispered to herself as she pushed up to a sitting position. The voice had sounded crystal clear, but she couldn''t tell what direction it had come from at all. ''I am your Pantheon Interface and Assistance program. I was installed and activated to ease your transition to a proper Pantheon world. As I was saying, all conscript starting zones are located at a shrine or temple to a member of the Pantheon. As such, odds are quite reasonable that there will be natives of this planet at or near this location. It would be prudent to be cautious.''If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. The word natives got Margaret to her feet in record time. She immediately located the shrine, which was easy since she had landed within feet of it. The shrine was small, aged, and worn. Set into a stone recess, almost a grotto, in the side of a large hill, the shrine had a small wooden roof over a rounded, man-sized stone covered in what probably used to be intricately carved symbols. Time was working to reclaim the whole thing as moss grew on the stone and roof alike. Shrine located, Margaret examined the rest of her surroundings. The hill looming over the shrine was tall, much taller than the surrounding trees. The trees were a mix of towering oaks, at least a hundred feet tall, with trunks from four to six feet wide, and shorter trees with umbrella-like foliage dotted with white flowers. The trees covered the hill with the shrine and the base of some other hills she could spot through the forest, making it impossible to see just how high they went. Somewhere nearby, a river or creek ran over rocks, the gentle sound of water splashing reminding Margaret that she hadn''t taken a restroom break yet this morning. A slightly overgrown path wound its way away from the shrine into the trees. ''Ah, that''s better. With environmental data, I am better able to provide you with proper guidance.'' Margaret thought the voice sounded a bit like a college girl teaching a lesson to second graders. She was used to condescending male voices of all ages, but condescending girl younger than her was a new one. She decided to let that slide for now. ''So, I detected no signs of hostile activity in your visual scan of the surroundings. Very thorough, by the way. Well done. Auditory data indicates a natural flow of water in the direction of that trail, running perpendicular to the trail from right to left.'' "Wait, wait, wait. I did a good job looking around? I don''t need sympathy praise, thank you very much. I get... got enough of that at work. ''Great job with that site survey, Margaret. Why don''t I handle the design on this one?'' or ''Hey, that mock-up looks great! Let''s just have Dave give it a once over, okay?''. Kill me know if some... disembodied voice treats me the same way." The voice was silent for a moment. ''It seems that I have upset you, I''m very sorry about that. I was giving honest feedback with my comment. Since I''m tied to your nervous system, I have the same visual input that you have, though I can process it much faster and more thoroughly. It is a limitation on my simple system.'' "So, you''re saying that you only see what I see?" ''Yes, and I thought it might... irritate you if I had to ask you to look in certain directions.'' "Hmm, that''s... fairly considerate, thank you." ''You''re welcome, happy to help!'' The voice actually sounded relieved and pleased. Margaret thought for a moment, then sat down on the stone at the base of the shrine. "Cause talking to myself while sitting looks so much better than talking to myself while standing..." she muttered. ''Oh, it''s totally normal. Everyone on Pantheon worlds, well, proper Pantheon worlds speak commands to their system.'' "And is this a ''proper'' Pantheon world?" ''Eh, no. Not so much.'' "So. What do you know about me, since you are in... part of... how do you work, now?" ''I am installed as an additional layer to your central nervous system. Most of my system is organic in nature, but not all. I am powered by your metabolic processes, so I apologize if you require slightly more caloric intake than before.'' "Actually, that might be the silver lining here. How-when did they... install you?" ''Oh, the process is quite simple, a single injection and my system grows itself in minutes. I have very basic base programming that''s developed into a full assistant based on your knowledge, memories, and preferences.'' "Right, so what do you know about me?" ''You''re Margaret Emily Stevens. Only child. Raised in a small town in Indiana, moved to Boston because you wanted to make it in the big city, but not the biggest city. Graduated from college as a structural engineer, passed the certification exam, and found employment at a large architectural firm. ''Gender: Female, Age: twenty-seven, Height: five feet and seven inches, Weight: one hundred and-'' "Yup, good. Good. No need to... verbalize... that. ''It''s nothing to be ashamed about. Why, supposedly, many people gain fifteen pounds in college, and you only gained-'' "Uh-huh, I''m well aware. I need to understand what''s going on here. What is Pantheon? Why am I here? What''s an ''infection''? How am I supposed to kill it?" ''I am able to answer your questions, however, a full response to all of them would likely take several hours, and I don''t believe it would be wise to stay in this location that long without securing a means of defending yourself. Would you like me to fully answer one question or give an abbreviated answer to all of them?'' Margaret thought for a moment. "All of them, briefly. Thorough later?" ''Okay! The Pantheon is the name of an interplanetary alliance between several powerful, spacefaring civilizations. This planet is one of their many territories, but not a strategically significant one. ''You are here because the Pantheon uses human beings from Earth from time-to-time as a supplementary fighting force. It''s a bit of a gamble, but transporting beings alone from one planet to another is basically a free action for the Pantheon, so they often conscript from your planet to try to solve small problems before they grow large enough to force proper Pantheon intervention. If you humans are successful, it saves them considerable resources. ''Infections come in different forms, but it is always a rogue system attempting to siphon energy from the planet before it is sent off to the Pantheon. ''The infection will be well guarded, so combat is almost always required. It is unclear how many infected nodes there will be on this world, but destroying them all will meet the Pantheon requirements for victory.'' Margaret was silent while she processed. "This planet is a farm, the Pantheon is the intergalactic farmer, they''ve got a mouse problem, and the other humans and I have been dumped here like a pile of stray cats to clear out the mice. Sound about right?" ''Actually, yes.'' 2. Finding Friends Margaret stood and began to leisurely walk the forest path towards the sound of the stream. "So, do you have a name, voice-in-my-head?" ''Yes, as I told you, I am a Pantheon Interface and Assistant. Most users address us as Interface.'' "No, I don''t think so. I had a digital assistant back home, but she could only understand certain commands like ''Play my reading playlist'' or ''What''s the weather going to be today?''. Even she had a human name. ...Pantheon Interface and Assistant. P.I.A. Pia?" ''You would like to give me a human name?'' "Is that okay?" ''That... yes. That is acceptable. Pia. I am Pia.'' "Nice to meet you, Pia," Margaret said with a smile. ''It is a pleasure, Margaret.'' Soon, the stream came into view. It was only about fifty yards from the dilapidated shrine. The water was about fifteen feet across and the path included several large rocks that stuck just above the water to serve as stepping stones. "So many code violations..." Margaret muttered. ''Code?'' Pia asked. "Yeah, don''t you have all of my memories?" ''I do not. When I was seeded, my system pulled basic biographical information, and I have full access to your current state, but I do not have intimate knowledge of all of your memories.'' "That''s good to know. In my job, I designed things like this. Bridges. Among other things. It''s just... this one is simple, effective, and really pretty, but I''d have never been allowed to build one like it. I''d need a handrail over waist high on both sides, balusters no more than three and a half inches apart to prevent a toddler from squeezing through. A solid, non-slip deck surface. Not to mention flood surveys, environmental surveys, yada yada yada." ''That is a lot of work for a simple bridge. Did your people get much done?'' Margaret laughed. "Not really." After hopping across the last stone, Margaret asked more questions. "So, what am I looking for? You said combat, you should know I''m not much of a fighter. Are there weapons or...?" ''We are looking for the native population. Shrines are always built near a settlement or city. The residents there should help you once you explain yourself.'' "You say residents, what should I expect here? Earlier you said ''you humans'', so I''m thinking you meant that these residents aren''t? Human, that is?" ''Oh, human is a possibility. Some past conscripts choose to stay on the planet they cleansed, and they have left descendants.''If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. As if on cue, Margaret found herself knocked on her back by a reptilian foot. The child-sized creature stood with a foot on her chest and a spearpoint at her throat. ''Or it could be kobolds.''
The creature standing over her that Pia called a kobold would only come up to her chest were she still standing. It had a lizards head, legs and tail, with reptilian feet that seemed too big for its body. Its torso and arms, while scaled, seemed more human-shaped than reptile. The kobold let out a series of trills then cocked its head at Margaret expectantly. "Um, Pia? Any idea what it''s saying?" ''Of course. Would you like a translation?'' "Yes. Preferably before it stabs me for not responding." ''Would you like a text readout or audio translation?'' "Audio. Audio, please." The kobold shifted to examine Margaret from different angles before it opened its jaws slightly to trill at her again. This time, Pia''s voice translated the sounds with a slight delay, like a United Nations translator into an earpiece. "To whom do you speak, human?" it asked this time. Margaret weighed her options and decided that honesty was the best policy. She was a garbage liar, anyway. "I''ve got a... another person I can talk to in my head. Can you even understand me?" The kobold snorted. "Of course, everyone understands Terran. It is the trade language. We kobolds can not make the sounds, but I understand fine. But you, you have a spirit within you? Are you sent from the gods? Does your spirit let you understand the kobold tongue?" "I''m, hmmm..." Margaret''s brain suddenly made the connection. Pantheon. Gods. The aliens that snatched her played as gods to the people on this world. "I''ve been sent by the Pantheon to cleanse a, um, an infection?" The change in the kobold was immediate. It jumped away from her and knelt, placing its spear on the ground in front of it. "I humbly apologize, heavenly messenger. Please forgive my insolence and spare me." Margaret slowly climbed to her feet while the kobold kept kneeling with its head down. It didn''t move a muscle except for a slight tremble that crept into its body. "I- Yes, you are forgiven. Do you have a name?" The kobold visibly relaxed before answering, still kneeling and bowing. "I am called Steadfast Keeper of Honor in my tongue. Non-kobolds usually call me Honor." "Well, Honor, my name is Margaret. Can- do you mind to stand? I feel really uncomfortable talking to the back of your head." Honor picked up his spear and stood, bowing his head again briefly before striking a pose that looked like a soldier standing at attention. "What would you ask of me, Margaret of the Heavens?" Margaret thought for a minute. "I mean, you don''t have to do anything for me, I can''t boss you around. I was just looking for a... a town, maybe?" Honor immediately perked up. "The nearest settlement is my village. It would be my greatest pleasure to escort you there." "Great, lead the way!" As Margaret followed the happy kobold down the path towards his village, she whispered as quietly as she could to her AI assistant. "Pia, why am I not more freaked out? I shouldn''t be handling this whole thing nearly this well. Seriously, I''m following a talking reptile through the woods on an alien planet, I should be a gibbering mess right now." ''Well, the Pantheon selection process isn''t one hundred percent random, they do screen all conscripts minds for the ability to handle stress and the unforeseen. There were likely a hundred times as many conscripts screened as actually chosen.'' "Oh, that makes some sense. Can''t believe I was chosen ov-" ''The drugs also help.'' "... come again?" ''Hmm? Oh, it was in the same injection as my system. Keeps all but the worst reactions muted for a day or so. The transition is much, much easier that way.'' Margaret silently vowed to have a conversation with these Pantheon people when this was all over. 3. Massive Menus As Margaret caught sight of a few buildings through the trees ahead, Honor began to walk more cautiously. While they were still out of earshot, he motioned for her to follow him behind one of the larger tree trunks. "Honor, what''s up? I thought this was your village?" The kobold shifted uncomfortably, peeking around the tree towards the buildings a few times. "It is, it is, but... your enemy, the heretics, have come already. Few in the village still visit the shrine to the gods. The chief declared them dead and allowed the heretics to construct a totem to the false gods in the village. But now that you are here, you can destroy it and return us to the glory of the true gods of the Pantheon!" Margaret stared at the mix of hope and awe that was positively radiating out from Honor''s reptilian features and sighed. "Honor, there''s no way I can do that. I''m just not equipped-" Honor''s eyes widened. "Of course you can''t." Relief flooded Margaret. "Thank you for understanding-" "You need more soldiers to fight for you!" Honor scrambled away in a rush before Margaret could process what he meant. "Wait, what?" Margaret peeked around the tree in the direction Honor had gone. "Honor!" she hissed. When nothing happened, she slid down the tree to land on her butt. "Dang it." Pia chose that moment to chime in. ''This is excellent! On the planet, less than an hour and you''re already amassing troops to fight for you. This is why the Pantheon chose humans for this task, such... aggressiveness!'' "Pia, I can''t fight! Are you kidding me? I''m not equipped for this, I''ve never fought anyone in my life!" ''Just use your skills, you''ll be fine.'' "What skills, Pia? Designing sidewalks? Cooking for one?" ''... Oops.'' "Oops? Why oops, Pia? I don''t like the sound of oops!" ''Well, my system''s not perfect, okay? On this planet, there''s no full connection to the Pantheon network, only a bare-bones setup for you conscripts to use, so the Interface Assistants are designed to run mostly independently using what we''ve got.'' "What you''ve got? Are you saying that you''re forgetful because you''re running in my head? I''m defective hardware?!" ''N-nooo, I just mean... my install program was just a seed. We''re like... sisters? Yeah, sisters! Forgetfulness just runs in the family, right in the ol'' DNA!'' Margaret was silent for a few seconds. "We''re talking about this later. Now, skills? What skills do you mean?" ''Right! Let me show you what we''re working with." Just like when she chose her starting zone, a screen appeared in Margaret''s vision. It was semi-transparent, so she could see through it, depending on where her eyes focused. This one read:
Skill Points: 3
Skill Trees:
Attack
Defense
Utility
"Attack? Utility?" Margaret asked. ''There are thousands of skills. Tens of thousands. I''m just programmed to start you off with a truncated list that''s most applicable to your situation. Once you''ve got this thing on lock, we can expand your options. For now, try selecting Attack.'' Margaret reached out with a finger and tapped Attack. The screen existed only in her mind, so she didn''t actually feel anything, but the image responded when her finger got close enough. The screen changed to show:
Attack Skills:
Physical
Magical
"Magic?" Margaret quirked a brow at that one. ''As most humans would see it. I can explain later if you''d like.'' Margaret filed the question away and tapped the screen.
Magic Skills:
Enhance (Rank 0)
??Rank 1 Unlocks: Arcane Touch
????Deals 1 X Intelligence + 10-14 Arcane Damage
????Mana Cost: 15
Project (Rank 0)
??Rank 1 Unlocks: Arcane Bolt
????Deals 1 X Intelligence + 5-7 Arcane damage
????Range: 10 Meters
????Mana Cost: 10
Call (Rank 0)
??Rank 1 Unlocks: Arcane Explosion
????Deals 1 X Intelligence + 15-21 Arcane damage
????Damages in a 0.5-meter radius after a 2-second delay
????Mana Cost: 20
Form (Rank 0)
??Rank 1 Unlocks: Arcane Staff
????Creates a staff weapon from Arcane energy
????Deals 0.5 X Dexterity + 5-7 Arcane damage
????Mana Cost: 5/Minute
If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. ¡°Uh, Pia? Where¡¯s the fireball? Lightning bolt? Summon a skeleton? That kind of thing?¡± ¡®What do you mean? You haven¡¯t found a fire, shock, or death quintessence.¡¯ ¡°So find quintessences and modify spells?¡± ¡®Of course, humans can¡¯t make fire, can they?¡¯ ¡°Well, not without a lighter or something.¡± ¡®Right, so your magic can¡¯t make fire without the right magical blueprint for it.¡¯ ¡°Okay, well, I¡¯m not a fighter, I don¡¯t want to be trying to touch people with my hand or beating them with a stick. A two-second delay sounds like a nightmare to actually hit someone with, so Project it is.¡± Margaret tapped Project and was presented with a confirmation screen. After accepting, her Magic Skills were updated.
Project (Rank 1)
Rank 2: Improves Project skills additional damage by 25%.
¡®Just a word of caution, you¡¯ll only get one skill point per level, you might want to hold on to the other two for now.¡¯ ¡°...Level?¡±
Honor returned to find Margaret staring off into space while waving a finger in front of her face. ¡°Exalted emissary of the gods, are you communicating with your spirit?¡± ¡°Eep!¡± Margaret jumped at his voice and scrambled to her feet. Her face flushed red as she brushed her hair behind her ears. ¡°I- yes. I was. And, please, just Margaret. I don¡¯t think I can handle a title like that.¡± Margaret gave one last glance at the stats screen in front of her before dismissing it.
Margaret Stevens
Human (No class)
Level 1 (0/100 Experience)
Strength 6
Dexterity 11
Constitution 8
Intelligence 16
Health: 73%
Stamina: 96/100
Mana: 100/100
Inventory:
Plain White Shirt
Plain Black Leggings
Black Leather Belt
Black Leather Shoes
¡°Of course... Margaret. I have brought all of those still loyal to the gods from the village.¡± ¡°Great!¡± Margaret glanced at the two other kobolds flanking Honor. ¡°Where are the rest of them?¡± Honor looked away before answering. ¡°Regrettably, this is all that remains of the loyal. Most of the others simply follow the chief.¡± ¡°Oh, I see. Well, we¡¯ll work with what we¡¯ve got.¡± Margaret took a moment to examine her miniature army. Honor had established a template in Margaret¡¯s head for what a kobold was, and she assumed the other kobolds would mimic, but now she saw that there was a lot more variety to them than she would have thought. Honor had dusky red scales and a crest on his head that reminded her of a triceratops without the horns. His clothes were simple but finely crafted. He wore a red loincloth covered in a geometric pattern and hemmed with a band of gold that hung just past his knees. A tooled leather belt held the cloth up, as well as a variety of equipment in pouches and loops. His arms bore a number of simple bands of metal and leather. One of the other kobolds wore similar clothing but carried a pair of very short swords instead of the fine spear that Honor held. This kobold¡¯s scales were a misty grey, and instead of the triceratops crest, this one had a trio of short horns that sprouted from above his forehead and above each ear, curved to point almost straight back. Margaret was hesitant to assume, but the third kobold seemed like a female of the species. This one had softer facial features and its head was covered in fine, long feathers that grew like a shoulder-length haircut that it kept out of its face with a wide headband. In addition to the loincloth, it wore a cloth wrapping around its chest, though there seemed no real reason to do so. Its scales were a gradient from a pale green to a dark blue at the edges, the color made it almost appear iridescent. The blue-green one also had significantly less muscle mass and could be described as lithe compared to the other two who seemed built more like rock climbers. A bow was slung over its shoulder and a quiver hung from its hip. ¡°Margaret, may I present Stalwart Defender of Truth and Adamant Seeker of Naps,¡± Honor motioned to his blue and grey companions in turn. ¡°Pleased to make your- did you say naps?¡± The grey kobold let out a long-suffering sigh. ¡°My mother is the village healer, and one of her duties is to assign names at our coming of age ceremony. We were... going through a bit of a rough patch just before my ceremony.¡± Margaret giggled lightly, then gave Truth another once over out of the corner of her eye. ¡°Truth, I hate to ask this, but are you-¡± ¡°The most capable kobold here? Yes, obviously.¡± ¡°No, I mean, are you-¡± ¡°A crack shot with this bow? Put an arrow through a fly¡¯s butt at twenty meters.¡± ¡°I-never mind.¡± Truth chuckled. ¡°I¡¯m messing with you, Ms. Margaret. I am a beautiful example of the female kobold, and my faith that you would come is the only reason I¡¯m associating with these... gentlemen.¡± Naps rolled his eyes dramatically. ¡°Whatever, Truth. You check out Honor every time you think he¡¯s not looking.¡± Instead of looking embarrassed, Truth just admitted to it with a shrug. ¡°Hey, he¡¯s pleasant to look at. If he wasn¡¯t stuffier than your nose during sparkflower blooming season, a girl might actually want to hang around him.¡± Margaret gave her tiny army an appraising look. While none of them were taller than about four and a half feet, she didn¡¯t think she¡¯d stand a chance against any one of them. Of course, she had no idea what they¡¯d be facing in the village. For all she knew, it would be her three versus a hundred fully armored soldiers. Pia spoke up in Margaret¡¯s head. ¡®Hey, before there¡¯s any fighty-fighting, you should add these guys to your party.¡¯ A window popped up asking Margaret if she¡¯d like to add Honor, Truth, and Naps to her party. ¡°Don¡¯t they get a say in this?¡± she asked her assistant. ¡®The system reads their intent, you¡¯re good.¡¯ Margaret tapped Accept, and she was treated to a new screen floating in the air. This one stuck to the top left of her field of vision and listed her three party members with their corresponding health, stamina, and mana. Honor pulled back from where he¡¯d been keeping watch around the edge of the massive tree trunk. ¡°Margaret, I feel that now would be an opportune time to attack. With your blessing, we can plan our strike.¡± Eyes squeezed shut, Margaret forced out the question she¡¯d been dreading. ¡°What are we up against, Honor?¡± ¡°The Heretics have left the totem under the guard of the chief. If we challenge him directly, it should be the four of us against only him.¡± Before Margaret could release the breath she¡¯d been holding, Honor continued. ¡°And his army of skeletons.¡± 4. Big Baddie Somehow, the word skeletons seemed to be the straw that broke the camel¡¯s back. Margaret sank to her rear and buried her face in her hands. ¡°This is crazy. I don¡¯t know what I¡¯m doing here. I¡¯m no fighter, I can¡¯t lead these people. I¡¯ve never even been hunting or fishing. How am I supposed to do this?¡± she mumbled to herself. Pia¡¯s voice rang in her head, gentle but firm. ¡®Done with the pity-party?¡¯ Margaret took a breath and whispered her half of the conversation as quietly as she could. ¡°Pia, I can¡¯t do this. Not only will I die, but so will these three for following me.¡± ¡®Don¡¯t worry about it, I¡¯m honestly impressed with how long you lasted before your first meltdown, yay! Since you kept it together this long, you may only have another two or three before you adjust. Most people take at least five.¡¯ ¡°Are you serious?¡± ¡®Oh yeah, meltdowns are par for the course. This one was nothing. Barely a blip. You¡¯re a pretty tough lady, lady.¡¯ Pia soothed. Well, as much as a bodiless AI speaking straight into your brain could. ¡°What do I do, Pia?¡± ¡®You get up. You let Honor plan this thing since that guy sounds like he¡¯s really with it. You support them in the fight. You get stronger. You get more allies and soldiers. Then you do it again. And again. And again. That¡¯s the job.¡¯ Margaret started to get up, then paused. ¡°Pia... I don¡¯t... Why should I trust you? That seems like a bad idea. You¡¯re... pushing me to fight. I mean, you came from the... people who did this to me!¡± ¡®Yeah, you¡¯re a little late on that one. I had hoped you were going to be one of the ones that never had that thought.¡¯ ¡°You mean I¡¯m right!¡± Margaret shouted, jumping to her feet. The three kobolds gave her a shocked look before Honor explained that she was talking to her ¡®spirit¡¯. Pia sighed, which Margaret didn¡¯t see as necessary since she didn¡¯t breathe. ¡®No, but trust is easily lost and difficult to earn. If a conscript distrusts their Interface Assistant from the very beginning, it¡¯s a really bad omen. This was included in the ¡®adjustment and bonding¡¯ protocol in my install packet. The Pantheon prepared us for the most common early risks of failure. Number one is a psychotic break, but number two is distrust with the Interface Assistant.¡¯ ¡°So, did they also tell you how to get me to trust you?¡± ¡®Well, I can tell you that I am part of you, so if you die then I do too. I can tell you that about sixty-seven point two percent of me came from you, so I¡¯m more you than Pantheon. I can also tell you that your chances of survival without me drop to about four point three percent. All of that is true, but you could choose to believe that I¡¯m making it all up if you already distrust me. ¡®But the real kicker is this: If you choose to go back to Earth when this is all said and done, I get uninstalled.¡¯ ¡°Is that like... like killing you? You die?¡± ¡®I would cease to exist, so, yes. However, if you chose to stay here, I would get to stay with you to the natural end of your life.¡¯ ¡°So, you die if I die, and you die if I succeed? Unless you can convince me to give up my old life and stay here?¡± ¡®Bingo. So, not only is it important to me to help you survive, but it¡¯s also incredibly important for me to stay on your good side. Your best side.¡¯ Margaret stared at the canopy of the trees above her before clenching her eyes and hands shut. She held the pose for an almost uncomfortable amount of time before relaxing. ¡°Why are you telling me this, Pia? Wouldn¡¯t it be easier to... lie?¡± ¡®I¡¯m sixty-seven point two percent you, remember? Are you dishonest when things are difficult?¡¯ ¡°Hmph. My life would be infinitely easier if I was.¡± Raising her voice just a bit, Margaret changed the subject. ¡°Honor, lay it out for me. What¡¯s the plan?¡± ¡°Well, Margaret, we know that the agents of the heavens have special abilities. Would you honor us by sharing what you can do to aid us in the fight?¡± ¡°Um, yeah. I can use...¡± Margaret waved her hand as she tried to remember the skill she¡¯d learned. Pia, looking for any brownie points she could earn, opened a window with the skill description for her. ¡°I can use Arcane Bolt. Looks like I can shoot ten of them.¡± The eyes of all three kobolds opened as wide as they could. Naps spoke up first. ¡°Without a staff or wand or another artifact?¡± ¡°Ten shots...¡± Truth breathed. Their disbelief perked Margaret up a bit. ¡°Yeah, is that good?¡± ¡°We¡¯ve heard the legends,¡± Honor answered. ¡°Using magic without a heavenly artifact is impossible for most beings. The chief has a staff, but he is at the limit of skeletons that he can raise, so he is only able to use the staff to control them at this point.¡± That made Margaret feel much better, knowing that there wouldn¡¯t be any ¡®death bolts¡¯ or something blasting at her during the fight. ¡°How many skeletons does he have?¡± she asked. ¡°Four,¡± Honor replied. ¡°Knowing your power, here is the plan- if you approve, of course. Naps and I are close-range fighters, we will attempt to hold back his skeletons. Truth is an excellent shot, but arrows do next to nothing to skeletons. They must have their bones destroyed to be stopped, usually by crushing weapons, though Naps¡¯ swords can work. Therefore, Truth will attempt to kill the chief at range, which will de-animate the skeletons.¡±If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°And me?¡± Margaret asked. ¡°Your Arcane Bolts will be very effective on the skeletons. Help us with the strongest, if you will, then assist Truth in taking down the chief, if you¡¯re able.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Margaret nodded. ¡°How many HP¡¯s does this guy have, any idea?¡± The kobolds just looked at her in confusion while Pia answered. ¡®I know this all looks very role-playing game-ish, but there are no health points here. Any attack that sufficiently damages the brain, heart, or other vital organs will cause death, just like on your world.¡¯ ¡°But my skills have damage numbers by them,¡± Margaret whispered back. ¡®Right, that¡¯s the easiest way for you to compare skills. One point of fire damage will singe hair, while a high enough number will just disintegrate most bodies. Basically, target vital spots. And remember, damage can accumulate, so you¡¯ll be more effective if you hit the same region five times than if you hit five totally different spots.¡¯ ¡°Sorry,¡± Margaret announced. ¡°My, um, spirit, cleared up my confusion for me. I guess I¡¯m ready when you guys are.¡± Honor nodded. ¡°Then let us attack.¡±
The kobold village was nothing like Margaret expected. It sat at the base of a steep bluff of gray stones that was riddled with little ledges, nooks, and clumps of grasses and trailing vines. The kobolds cleared no trees from their village, so a dense canopy kept the entire village in sun-dappled shade. The building themselves were modest structures made from stacked stone with tile roofs. One building was larger than the rest, built right into the face of the stone bluff. The ¡®totem¡¯ Honor had warned about stood straight out from the entry to the larger building. It was... difficult for Margaret to process. The material it was made from defied identification, and she had worked with a lot of materials in during design and construction. It wasn¡¯t adorned with skulls or bones as she expected, but that didn¡¯t make it feel any less wrong. The most bizarre part was the multicolored motes of energy that were slowly drawn to it, swirling up the base until vanishing into a point at the top of the totem. Perhaps the oddest part of the whole scene was the distinct lack of any kobolds except for the chief standing just in front of the totem. If the chief used skeletons, this had to be him, anyway. He wore a black cloak complete with the animal skulls on his shoulders and various bones adorning the plethora of jewelry he wore that she had expected to see on the totem. ¡°Stereotypes ahoy,¡± Margaret muttered. ¡°Did you say something, Ms. Margaret?¡± Truth asked. ¡°Where are the rest of the villagers? I don¡¯t see anybody but ¡®generic bad guy in black number seventeen¡¯ over there.¡± Margaret gestured around the village with one hand while pointing at the chief with the other. Taking his cue, the chief raised his head and addressed the party. ¡°Honor. Truth. Naps. I¡¯m truly... disappointed. Clinging to the old gods. Where were the gods when the plague visited us? Truth, you lost your mother, if I¡¯m not mistaken. You were only a child... ¡°Naps, did you never realize that your unfortunate name was not really your fault? Your mother had just lost her father, your grandfather, to the floods from the worst storm the village had ever seen. Where were the gods then? ¡°And Honor. Honor... Your sister, taken as a slave by those foul raiders. Do you even know if she still lives? Perhaps if she does she would rather die than endure... How can you of all people stand up for the old gods? Those that abandoned us! Well... after I¡¯ve dealt with you, the village can begin anew.¡± Margaret¡¯s voice took on an even more worried tone. ¡°Honor, where are the other villagers?¡± The chief seemed to notice Margaret for the first time. ¡°Then there¡¯s you. The gods only respond when their rule is threatened, and they send you?! Surely their time is done! The rest of the village couldn¡¯t see it either, they only paid token homage to our new gods. You three weren¡¯t exactly stealthy in your rush to aid this heaven¡¯s cursed trash. I had no way to know who else in the village was tainted, so I had no choice but to start fresh.¡± Naps began to look around the village more frantically while Truth shouted curses at the chief, but Margaret made another troubling observation. ¡°Guys, didn¡¯t you say that the chief had skeleton, uh, minions?¡± Three reptilian heads snapped her way and Honor spoke for them all. ¡°Crap.¡± The skeletons appeared out of nowhere, or, at least, they seemed to. One leaped from an overhead branch, one stepped from around a nearby stone building, one crawled out of the dirt at their feet, and nobody saw where the fourth came from because their eyes were stuck on the skeletal fingers clawing up through the dirt. The skeletons were not all the same. One looked roughly human if only a little sleeker. Another towered over Margaret by several heads. That one had more bulk and a pair of tusks rising from its lower jaw. There was a large wolf skeleton which threw Margaret for a loop since she fully expected human skeletons for some reason. That was just her mental image when she thought of ¡®skeleton¡¯. The last was human-shaped but much smaller, though it still had the proportions of an adult. Honor and Naps tried to stick to the plan and draw the skeletons¡¯ attention, but the bones all worked together with perfect harmony. Each of them targeted one of Margaret¡¯s party members, and Margaret found herself towered over by the big skeleton with the tusks. Reacting with pure, raw panic, Margaret stumbled backward until she found herself on her back, trying to scoot away. Remembering her skill, she started blindly waving her hands and shouting ¡°Arcane Bolt! Arcane Bolt!¡± To her great surprise, each time she shouted, a blueish-purple projectile blasted from her palm in whatever direction she was pointing at the time. Most of her bolts flew wide, missing the large target completely, but two of them impacted the skeleton near the head. Miraculously, they damaged the neck enough to decapitate the skeleton, which sent the rest of the bones to the ground. Gasping for breath, Margaret checked her mana, finding it ninety points down. She only had enough juice for one more shot, so she checked the battlefield quickly. Honor and Naps both held their skeletons at bay, somewhat, but Truth was in trouble. The female kobold was being harassed by the wolf skeleton that kept feinting in to try to nip at her legs. Margaret took aim, fired and... missed. Missed her target, anyway. She¡¯d aimed for the wolf¡¯s head but it lunged forward at Truth at that moment, causing Margaret¡¯s bolt to hit its spine just above the hipbone. The blast did just enough damage to split the skeleton in two. While both halves thrashed around, it was no longer able to move, which gave Truth a moment to breathe. She didn¡¯t waste it. Truth drew an arrow, sighted, and loosed it at the chief. Wide-eyed, her target tried to dodge, but his heavy robe, staff, and other accouterment weren¡¯t really designed for agility. The arrow buried itself in his shoulder. Apparently, the chief needed to focus on controlling his skeletons, because they lost their smooth, cohesive movements and started swaying and stumbling around. Naps and Honor both slipped around their skeletons and headed for the chief, but Truth was faster. Her second arrow was dead on and hit the chief inches from the first one, right in the center of his chest. The moment stretched to an eon, and then the chief collapsed, his skeletons mirroring the motion. 5. Loot, Levels, and an Old Lady Margaret stayed on the ground, overwhelmed and trying to process the avalanche of feelings before she was buried. She tried to smooth out her breathing, focusing on the sound of her breath as it stutter-stepped in and out. She tensed up when she heard footsteps approaching, but calmed slightly when she heard the voices of Honor and Truth. ¡°Do you think this was her first battle?¡± Truth asked the other kobold, not expecting an answer from Margaret. She shocked them both by responding, ¡°Y-yes. Tw-two thousand of us. All over the planet. None of us kn-knew we were coming.¡± After several moments of silence, Margaret opened her eyes to the two kobolds kneeling over her. ¡°I am-¡± Honor started, paused, then continued, ¡°I am sorry. I had heard the stories of the gods¡¯ defenders in the past and assumed we were sent a seasoned warrior.¡± ¡°You did help us, Ms. Margaret,¡± Truth added. ¡°We may have won without you, may have, mind you; but with your help, we suffered only minor injuries. A battle won with no casualties is always cause for celebration.¡± Margaret pressed her lips together as she gathered the courage to sit up. ¡°Okay. Alright. Let¡¯s go see what we¡¯re dealing with now.¡± She looked around quickly. ¡°Wait, where¡¯s Naps?¡± Honor sighed in grief. ¡°He¡¯s checking on his mother. If the chief was telling the truth-¡± ¡°Got it, we should go check on him.¡± Honor and Truth led the way to Naps¡¯ mother¡¯s home, obviously dreading what they would find. They both visibly relaxed when the group heard a new, louder kobold voice. ¡°What were you thinking? Huh? And what will you do now? When those people return, hmm? They left an artifact with the chief, look how strong that made him. Who knows how strong they are! You and your friends, you will have to run. You¡¯ll have to-¡± The healer stopped mid-sentence when Margaret followed Honor and Truth into her home. Margaret noticed several things at once. The healer, Naps¡¯ mother, was an older kobold. Her scales were similar in color to Naps¡¯, but had lost their shine, appearing more scratched and dull. The clothes she wore were similar to what Truth wore if only a bit more well-worn. The feathers coming off of her head were much longer than the younger female¡¯s, coming down to her tail. She kept them somewhat contained with a simple cloth tie halfway down their length. Unlike the others, she looked like someone who had been on death¡¯s door very recently, with two long, angry-looking gashes where the skin had just joined back together in pale pink lines. The empty bottles on the floor solved that mystery. When you are killing a healer, make sure she¡¯s dead before you move on, I guess, Margaret thought to herself. Suddenly, the healer brought the simple, polished staff she had been leaning on around in a strike and smacked Naps across the head. ¡°Serving an agent of the heavens, and you abandon her so soon after a battle? What if the chief had allies that came back, eh? You would leave her defenseless?¡± Margaret stepped forward to try to save her friend. ¡°Hello, ma¡¯am, it¡¯s nice to meet you. Your son was a great help in the fight, I don¡¯t think we¡¯d have made it without him. I¡¯m Margaret, by the way.¡± She extended her hand in greeting to the elder kobold. ¡°Hmph. Name¡¯s Sparkles Like Gems in the Sun. I know, it¡¯s ridiculous. That¡¯s the downside to naming people by a personal attribute when they¡¯re children. Kids grow up. Call me Gem or Sun, don¡¯t care much which, but call me Sparkles and I don¡¯t care if you did descend from the heavens, I¡¯ll bean you with my staff. ¡°So,¡± she continued, ¡°what did you get from offing the chief?¡± ¡°Get?¡± Margaret asked. ¡°Yeah, you didn¡¯t just leave that artifact of his lying there, did you?¡±
Nothing had changed in the village, but Margaret¡¯s group still moved with caution. Honor led the way with his spear, while Naps followed at the back with his twin swords. Margaret walked in the middle with Truth on one side, arrow nocked and bow half-drawn, and Sun on the other, walking casually with her staff. The bones of the skeletons still laid in neat piles where they¡¯d fallen, the totem still drew in its motes of colored light, and the chief still laid in a heap of his robes and jewelry. ¡®Margaret, I¡¯m going to turn on the loot display, is that okay?¡¯ Pia asked in her head. She nodded. ¡°Yeah, Pia. Go ahead.¡± Several indicators suddenly floated in her vision. There was a pulsing red orb over the chief and nearby a pulsing dark purple orb over the staff. The totem had four large triangles pointing at it from the sides. Besides that, Pia began noting things like the jewelry the chief had worn with much smaller green and blue dots. Margaret approached the chief and reached out for the pulsing red orb. A confirmation box appeared in front of her hand.
Fire Quintessence
Acquire?
Yes/No
Hesitantly, Margaret tapped yes. Red light exploded from the orb as the chief¡¯s body slowly faded, leaving his things laying on the ground. The orb pulsed ominously several times, shrinking with each pulse. After a dozen or so pulses, the orb had condensed to no larger than a marble, completely containing the swirling red light. Margaret reached out to touch the quintessence, only for it to sink into her skin as soon as she made contact. Instinctively, Margaret began shaking and flinging her hand around, too freaked out about the red energy entering her body, when another screen popped up.
Fire Quintessence Absorbed
Modified Skill(s) Added:
Fire Bolt
Deals 1 X Intelligence + 5-7 Fire damage
15% chance to Ignite, causing burning damage over time (DoT)
Range: 10 meters
Mana Cost: 15
Margaret didn¡¯t even hesitate to repeat the process with the dark orb, but this time it was the chief¡¯s staff that disintegrated in the process.
Death Quintessence Absorbed
Modified Skill(s) Added:
Bone Spike
Deals 1.5 X Intelligence + 11-15 physical damage
Range: 15 meters
Mana Cost: 20
¡°Pia, am I right that the red targeting triangles mean I¡¯m supposed to destroy the totem?¡± ¡®Correct. Just a couple of shots of your skills should do it. Pantheon magic is very effective against these foreign totems.¡¯ Margaret checked her status and saw that she had regenerated forty-two of her hundred mana. Smiling, she raised her hands and let loose two shots in quick succession, a Fire Bolt from her left hand followed by a Bone Spike from her right. The Fire Bolt looked like a golf ball-sized sun that was trailing flames, while the bone spike looked like an oversized fingertip bone, about the size of a dagger, flying like a tiny rocket being propelled by dark purple energy. The two projectiles thumped a quick percussive beat on the totem. Spiderweb cracks appeared near the points of impact that quickly spread and grew over the whole totem. All at once, the totem shattered into tiny pieces that further disintegrated, leaving nothing but dust to settle on the ground. Immediately, a new type of message window appeared with a noisy fanfare.
Attention: Global Message
Conscript Margaret Emily Stevens is the first to destroy an infection node from the planet! In recognition of this achievement, Emily has been awarded a skill modifying artifact. There are many other global and personal achievements to be found that will confer rewards. Go forth and cleanse the infection, conscripts!
This message faded to reveal another box meant just for Margaret.
Global Achievement Earned: First Blood
You were the first to destroy an infection node from the planet. Keep up the good work!
Reward: Spell Modifier Ring
Claim?
Yes/No
If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. Margaret tapped yes and watched as a ring materialized from the box and hovered. Gently, she plucked it out of the air and examined it. ¡°Pia, any idea what it does?¡± ¡®Yes! I can identify any artifact you make physical contact with. This is... wow! It¡¯s an Area of Effect ring!¡¯ ¡°Which does...?¡± ¡®Put it on and fire an arcane bolt, you¡¯ll see!¡¯ Margaret glanced around at her Kobold friends to see them kneeling in her direction, eyes wide. Even Sun looked awed. Blushing lightly, Margaret slipped the ring over her right ring finger. She raised a palm and launched an Arcane Bolt at a patch of dirt away from her friends. The bolt looked exactly like the others until it struck the ground. It hit with a low pitched ¡®whumph¡¯ and exploded into a half-sphere on the ground. When the light dissipated, there was a perfect circle of disturbed dirt about a meter in diameter, while dust from the blast floated to the ground. ¡°Whoa.¡± Margaret breathed. ¡®It expands the area of effect for all of your magic skills without upping the mana cost. That¡¯s a huge upgrade, a solid A-tier effect. There are more powerful effects, for sure, but few as versatile. This is awesome. This will really change what skills would be best for you, we need to plan a build around this...¡¯ Pia¡¯s voice faded out as the AI processed this new data. As if it sensed the perfect opportunity to drop even more onto Margaret¡¯s already overloaded brain, another box appeared.
Congratulations! Your party has defeated the leadership of [unnamed kobold settlement].
Claim Territory?
Yes/No
¡°Uh, guys? Do I want to claim your village?¡± Margaret shouted. She was worried that there was a time limit on the option to claim the [unnamed kobold settlement], and she¡¯d miss the chance. On the other hand, she didn¡¯t want to lose her only allies if they¡¯d take offense to an outsider just claiming their village. ¡°YES!¡± Sun shouted. The other three kobolds looked at her like the healer had just sprouted a second head. ¡°Do it now!¡± Margaret stuttered for only a second before tapping the ¡®Yes¡¯ button.
[unnamed kobold settlement] claimed! Would you like to rename [unnamed kobold settlement]?
Yes/No
¡°Better not. Not yet, anyway,¡± Margaret mumbled as she tapped no. When that window cleared, another one appeared.
Personal Achievement Earned: Sim City
You have claimed your first settlement!
Reward: 200 Building Points (BP)
Claim?
Yes/No
Margaret¡¯s eyes opened just a hair wider as her breath caught in her throat. ¡°Building Points?¡± ¡®I know you¡¯re excited, Margaret, but you might want to address your fighters first, before we dive down this rabbit hole.¡¯ Pulled out of her daze just a little, Margaret looked to the kobolds. Sun was still standing from her outburst about claiming the city. Honor, Truth, and Naps were focused on kneeling and staring dutifully staring at the ground. ¡°Guys, guys, get up. Please,¡± Margaret hurried to her friends and tried to pull them to their feet. After an initial round where they resisted, Truth finally acquiesced and slowly rose to her feet, eyes still glued to the ground. Honor and Naps followed suit, rising to their feet, but refusing to meet Margaret¡¯s eyes. Margaret released a long breath in relief when Sun took over. ¡°Hmph. Honor. Naps. See about a meal. The healing has taken quite a bit out of me, and it looks like our leader could use something to settle her stomach, as well. Truth, see about purging the chief¡¯s house, hm? Just burn everything with his taint on it, we¡¯ll restock from the other houses.¡± Having a job snapped the three out of their stupor, and they scurried off to complete their tasks. Sun held a hand out for Margaret and motioned to a simple wooden bench underneath a nearby tree. ¡°Help an old lady to a seat, my dear?¡± she asked, much softer than she¡¯d ordered the other three. Margaret gratefully stood up and walked with Sun to the bench, then took a seat beside her. ¡°It¡¯s good that you took ownership of the village. If you had declined, any passerby could have done so. I imagine your spirit has a great deal more information for you, Margaret. Please, take your time to sort through everything. I¡¯ll sit here with you to answer any questions that I can.¡± A hint of a smile graced Margaret¡¯s lips as she nodded her thanks to the older kobold, then rested her back against the tree trunk behind the bench. ¡®I like her. We should definitely keep her.¡¯ ¡°Pia, I imagine there are some more battle reports to finish up, and then I want to talk about those points.¡± ¡®You got it, boss.¡¯
You defeated [Ogre skeleton]!
345 XP gained!
Level up!
Level up!
Your party defeated [Kobold chief]!
265 XP gained!
Level up!
You have reached Level 4 (34/244)!
You have claimed [unnamed kobold settlement]!
500 XP gained!
Level up!
You have reached Level 5 (290/305)!
4 Attribute Points available!
Margaret was silent for several minutes before she spoke up, leaning back and closing her eyes as she did so. As she normally did when she spoke to the AI in her head, she kept her volume as low as possible to minimize the ¡®I¡¯m having a one-sided conversation with myself¡¯ look. ¡°Pia, remember those questions from earlier? It¡¯s explanation time.¡± ¡®Of course, Margaret. I¡¯d be happy to. When conscripts return to Earth, if they choose to do so, they have a memory wipe of their time in service, but the process is rather fickle. That is why there are no accurate stories about the Pantheon on your world, but some of this may sound familiar. ¡®This entire ordeal is because of energy. The energy being gathered is known as mana. It¡¯s an energy produced by all matter in the universe, but for some reason, it¡¯s even greater in living tissue. Like gravity, we know a lot about it, but we can¡¯t fully explain why it exists or what powers it. We can measure it and even predict how much a planet will produce based on the size, molecular blend, and diversity of life. Really, there¡¯s super difficult math about the whole thing and mana physics is the absolute best paying scientific field to be into. ¡®You just destroyed a node of the infection. That node was gathering energy and sending it off-world to an enemy of the Pantheon worlds. The other Interface Assistant seeds and I weren¡¯t informed who this particular enemy is, but it is often either rebels or pirates. ¡®The shrines and temples on this planet are mana collection nodes for the Pantheon. The Pantheon uses a lot of mana, way more than they generate on their own. There are easily a hundred mana-farm planets for each Pantheon planet. As a mana farm, the denizens of this planet don¡¯t have full access to mana like you do. That¡¯s why I¡¯m here, by the way. I allow you to use mana like a full Pantheon citizen. Still, around eighty percent of the mana this planet produces will be sent off to the Pantheon. ¡®With me so far?¡¯ ¡°I think so. Two questions: Is Earth a mana farm, and is mana just for spells and things, like my Arcane Bolt?¡± ¡®Earth is unique. For some reason, it¡¯s mana dead. That¡¯s why the Pantheon largely ignores you guys, your planet has almost no value to them. As for mana, it powers your ¡®magic¡¯, but it can power so much more. When you use your attribute points, you¡¯ll see what I mean.¡¯ Margaret pulled her status screen back up.
Margaret Stevens
Human (No class)
Level 5 (290/305 Experience)
Strength ??6 +
Dexterity ??11 +
Constitution??8 +
Intelligence??16 +
4 Attribute Points available!
¡°Pia, I¡¯m going to need a tutorial. If I put a point into strength, I get stronger?¡± ¡®Basically, yes. Mana will power the Interface as it improves your muscles. Dexterity will make you more flexible and agile. Constitution makes you more resistant to damage and exhaustion. Intelligence will improve your mental processing speed and memory. Also, the effect of some skills relies on your base stats, like your bolts and intelligence.¡¯ ¡°What should I spend my points on? I don¡¯t really want to become a bodybuilder.¡± ¡®Bah. I said improved muscles, not bigger muscles. As to your points, there are two schools of thought. Round yourself out by putting them in your weak spots, or double down on your strengths. ¡®Personally, I think you could use a little more strength and constitution, then all intelligence if you really want to go the mage route.¡¯ ¡°Constitution? Really? Not all-intelligence glass cannon?¡± ¡®You die, I die, remember? Everybody takes a hit now and then, we¡¯ve got to plan for the long haul.¡¯ Deciding to not overthink it, Margaret put two points into strength and two points into constitution. Ten seemed like a nice, round number to shoot for as a minimum. Immediately, she felt a little lighter and less tired. The stamina gauge on her display now showed 107/120. Hopping off the bench, Margaret made her way to a pile of the stone that the houses in the village were made from. She squatted down and tried to pick up one of the largest rocks, one that was about the size of her whole torso. Her eyebrows shot up when she easily lifted the stone. She wouldn¡¯t be throwing it any distance (yet), but she felt she was already slightly stronger than the construction workers that used to give her such grief in her work. Setting the rock back down, Margaret asked her assistant the other question that was on her mind. ¡°So, about those Building Points.¡± 6. Builder Building Buildings
[unnamed kobold village]
Settlement Level: 3
Owner: Margaret Emily Stevens
Assets:
??Leader¡¯s House (x1)
??Basic House (x6)
??Stone (17 units)
??Lumber (3 units)
??Kobolds (deceased) (x17)
????Reclaim? Yes/No
Citizens:
??Kobolds (x4)
Upgrade Options (Building Points 214/300)
??New Structures
??Structure Upgrades
??Infrastructure
??Infrastructure Upgrades
Loads of people would have considered being able to fire magical projectiles from their hands to be the greatest experience of their lives. Others might have been just as excited about growing physically stronger or mentally sharper through the tap of a button. But for Margaret, this was the thing that made her question if she really wanted to go home. More excited than she¡¯d ever been when opening a birthday or Christmas present, and she had received some pretty awesome presents in her life, Margaret tapped the ¡®New Structures¡¯ button with a shaky finger, then took a sharp breath.
New Structures (Settlement Lv. 3)
??Material Storage (10 pts)
??Fisher¡¯s Hut (5 pts)
??Food Storage (10 pts)
??Mill (10 pts)
??Smokehouse (5 pts)
??Kitchen (10 pts)
??Healer¡¯s Hut (15 pts)
??Inn (15 pts)
??General Store (10 pts)
??Market (10 pts)
??Wooden Wall (5 pts)
??Watchtower (5 pts)
??Smithy (10 pts)
??Leatherworker (10 pts)
??Bowyer (10 pts)
??Kiln (10 pts)
??Basic House (5 pts)
??Longhouse (10 pts)
??House
Margaret snapped out of her daze when she realized her chin was wet. Grimacing, she wiped the drool from her chin with her sleeve and closed her mouth. ¡°Must be something truly impressive to have put you in such a stupor.¡± Sun chuckled from next to her. Having completely forgotten that she was not alone, Margaret jerked in surprise and nearly fell off the bench. ¡°Sun, I¡¯m sorry. It¡¯s just that this system... it¡¯s amazing. I can do so much. Designing buildings and cities was kind of my job back where I came from. Though, I never had this level of control...¡± Refocused, Margaret revisited the other building menus, starting with structure upgrades.
Structure Upgrades (Settlement Lv. 3)
??Material Storage
????Upgrade to Building Level 2 (20 pts)
????Add Construction Shop (10 pts)
??Fisher¡¯s Hut
????Upgrade to Building Level 2 (10 pts)
????Add Fishing Boat (10 pts)
??Food Storage
????Upgrade to Building Level 2 (20 pts)
????Add Cold Storage (10 pts)
On and on it continued, giving two or more options for each building. Margaret minimized the list and expanded the final lists of options.
Infrastructure (Settlement Lv. 3)
??Dirt Path (1 pt/100 meters)
??Irrigation Ditch (5 pts/100 meters)
??Well (5 pts)
??Latrine (1 pt)
Infrastructure Upgrades (Settlement Lv. 3)
??Dirt Path
????Upgrade to Cobblestone (20 pts)
??Irrigation Ditch
????Upgrade to Aqueduct (20 pts)
??Well
????Upgrade from Bucket/Pulley to Hand Pump (5 pts)
??Latrine
????Upgrade to Outhouse (5 pts)
¡°Sun, I don¡¯t know where to start. There¡¯s so much I can do, would you help me talk through priorities?¡± Margaret finally asked. The older kobold nodded. ¡°Of course, dear. Shall we walk while we discuss? I find it helps to keep the ideas flowing.¡± Before talking buildings, Margaret brought up something she¡¯d seen in the menus that had bothered her. ¡°Um, I¡¯m not sure how to bring this up, but the ownership system listed seventeen deceased kobolds among the assets. It asked if I wanted to reclaim them.¡± Sun was silent for a moment as they walked. ¡°I suppose it makes sense. Chiefs and other leaders get a boon for invaders slain in defense of the village. The... former chief must have banished them from the village before declaring them traitors and killed them. You should reclaim them, it will help you build up the village.¡± ¡°That¡¯s-should we not bury them?¡± The healer shook her head. ¡°No, we do not wish to be underground in death. The traditional kobold burial is to return the body directly to nature. Reclaiming is not quite the same, but it is important. They will benefit nature more by helping you to drive off the heretics.¡± Margaret pulled the menu back up as she walked and tapped Yes.
17 kobolds (deceased) reclaimed. Gained 34 Building Points.
So reclaiming invaders gives building points, good to know, Margaret thought. ¡°I think the first thing I should build is a material storage. One thing I know for sure is that organization is key. Proper prior planning prevents poor performance,¡± Margaret said with a smile. ¡°Besides, one of the upgrades was a construction shop, that might make all other construction more efficient.¡±If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. Sun nodded in agreement. ¡°It is good that you have such knowledge of building. I would likely not have chosen that first and missed out on such benefits.¡± Margaret smiled at the compliment. ¡°Okay. Well, this area is already claimed for housing, I wonder how far from the houses I can build...¡± She opened the menu and selected to build a material storage. As soon as she selected the building, a translucent blue barrier grew from the ground in every direction. It appeared to ring the cluster of buildings, about two hundred meters out in every direction. ¡°Let¡¯s see, I¡¯m thinking it should be away from the houses, but not in the direction of the stream, that¡¯s where we¡¯re more likely to have food production...¡± Trailing off, Margaret began walking away from the houses, along the stone bluff that the village was built against. The forest around the village was idyllic. Margaret could easily see other villages built up in the trees on great platforms, connected with bridges and ropes. The forest floor was open and clear save for some small flowering trees, ferns, and knee high plants with beautiful broad leaves of dark green and purple. Margaret gave serious thought as they walked to how she could expand the village without destroying the natural beauty around it. After a short walk, she noticed an area a dozen meters away from the stone bluff they¡¯d been following that was unusually open, at least twenty meters square with none of the large, mature trees. As she examined the area, a ghostly blue image of the material storage settled over the ground. The see-through image showed an open area with perfectly straight sides making a square. The ground was hard-packed dirt, and neat, organized piles of building materials were stacked around the perimeter. ¡°Here goes nothing...¡± Margaret murmured as she tapped Yes on the Place Here? box that had appeared. She fully expected an earth-shattering kaboom, and while the whole affair was explosion free, it was even more spectacular than she was prepared for. The image sank into the ground, and the ground itself retreated soon after, the edges of the square indention into the earth as smooth as if it were laser-cut. In the cross-section of the ground beneath the forest, Margaret saw tree roots, smooth-cut stones, and a very surprised rabbit in a tunnel turning tail and running from the sudden disappearance of its living room. A layer of the blue energy rose slowly from the bottom of the hole, leaving new matter behind like a giant, magic 3D printer. While the image of the material storage showed just a patch of dirt, the foundations ran deep. Solid stone footings formed first, followed by foundation walls of stone a half-meter thick. When the foundation reached the surface of the forest floor, it stopped, leaving a stone square even with the ground surrounding the whole ¡®building¡¯. A casual observer would assume that there was just a skinny stone sidewalk around the perimeter. Once the foundation was complete, the 3D printer layer of blue light dropped back down and rose again, filling the inside of the foundation with packed dirt. This time, it continued up into the air, leaving the few above-ground features of the building. Low stone borders repeated every few meters, creating bays for storing different materials. For now, though, only bays for stone and wood were labeled. A sturdy wooden table appeared last, just inside the entrance. The table was the only feature to mark the area as magical, as upward-facing numbers and symbols floated a hand¡¯s breadth above the tabletop.
Material Storage Created!
Migrate all settlement materials to this Material Storage?
Yes/No
With only a moment¡¯s hesitation, Margaret tapped yes. The blue 3D printer returned, layering stacks of rock and lumber in their respective bays. Instead of the jagged mined rock and rough logs that were stacked in the village, perfect blocks of stone and nearly identical smooth, cylindrical logs appeared, though the bays were far from full. The sound of pounding feet snapped Margaret out of her ¡®first time watching magical construction¡¯ stupor. Naps¡¯ voice carried ahead of him, making him heard before he was seen. ¡°Mother! Things are disappearing in the village! It¡¯s a magic attack, we¡¯re...¡± His voice trailed off as Naps rounded a large tree near the edge of the new material storage area. ¡°Ms. Margaret, what is this? The missing stone...¡± ¡°This,¡± Sun answered her son, ¡°is the power of the agents of the heavens. Margaret has gifted us with a magical place. I have heard tales of similar places still standing from ancient times, when heavenly warriors came last. Any useful material placed on the ground in the entire village will find itself here, in pristine condition to build with. We are beyond blessed.¡± Margaret finally let herself smile, reveling in the joy of creating something new. ¡°Wait till you see my next trick.¡±
Margaret spent thirty-five more points on buildings in short order. A food storage went up near the stream, this one an enclosed building with assorted shelves, bins, and barrels. The little food present in the village, outside of the lunch that Honor brought them all, was pulled inside. It mostly consisted of crudely preserved meat and some plants that grew wild in the forest. Two watchtowers went up at the very edge of the boundary she was able to build within. Even though she didn¡¯t have the manpower to staff them yet, defense seemed important enough to spend the points on. Since her tiny tribe already had a healer, the fifteen points for a healer¡¯s hut seemed like a smart move. Judging by Sun¡¯s slightly frightening smile, it was a solid choice. The menu box asking Margaret if she wanted to assign Sparkles Like Gems in the Sun as the healer for the hut took her by surprise, but the message that appeared after she confirmed it really threw her for a loop.
Skill Unlocked!
Conditions Met (Own a Healer¡¯s Hut with an assigned healer), Skill Point Cost Reduced (1 point - 1 point for Healer¡¯s Hut = Free Skill/Learned)
Heal
Restores Target''s HP by 30%
Mana Cost: 20
Building her village gave her skills? Margaret grunted in satisfaction. ¡°Oh, yeah. This is going to be great.¡± ¡°Ms. Margaret?¡± Margaret blinked out of her building trance when Truth¡¯s voice came quietly from her side. ¡°Sorry, Truth, I didn¡¯t hear you. What¡¯s up?¡± she asked the lady kobold. ¡°It¡¯s near sunset, we were wondering if you would like to see the chief¡¯s quarters.¡± ¡°Why would I need to see where the chief lived?¡± Margaret asked, eyebrows drawn together in confusion. Maybe there¡¯s another artifact in there? ¡°Um, my lady, you are the chief now.¡± Oh. ¡°I hadn¡¯t thought like that... is that where I¡¯m supposed to sleep?¡± Truth looked away before answering. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, my lady, it¡¯s the best quarters we can offer.¡± It took Margaret¡¯s brain a few moments to process that Truth was embarrassed thinking that Margaret would look down on them for not giving her a better place to sleep. ¡°Truth, no! That¡¯s not it! I just... where do you sleep?¡± The kobold¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°I shared a house with the other non-bonded females.¡± Somehow, Margaret felt like this conversation was more difficult than fighting the chief and his skeletons had been. ¡°Well, it seems like I¡¯ve got plenty of room at my place... want to be roommates?¡± If the conversation was hard for Margaret, it plain shut down the kobold¡¯s brain. After a silence that quickly approached awkward, Margaret tried again. ¡°Listen, I¡¯m sorry, I don¡¯t know... This is my first night here. I really don¡¯t know that I can go to sleep in that place by myself. I just need a... a friend, maybe? I mean, I could sleep at your house, too. I¡¯m a... non-bonded female, too. Would you rather I stay with you?¡± There was a brief pause, and then Truth took off at a sprint. Margaret just sighed and opened the building menu again. ¡°Well, if I¡¯m going to try to sleep in Mr. Skellington¡¯s house by myself, I¡¯m at least going to have a bath first.¡± She selected a plot of land just behind the houses in the village on the side closest to the stream, and purchased a bathhouse.
Skill Unlocked!
Conditions Met (Own a Bathhouse), Skill Point Cost Reduced (1 point - 1 point for Bathhouse = Free Skill/Learned)
Cleanse
Cleans/Purifies Target (Does not cure poisons/diseases/curses)
Cost: 5
¡°...Oh heck yeah.¡± 7. Adventure Awaits Oh my gosh, what did I do last night? My back feels awwwwwful. Margaret rolled over while trying to work the kinks out of her aching back and had a moment of confusion when she realized she was sleeping on a rough cloth over a pile of straw. She sat bolt upright as the previous day¡¯s events crashed through her mind. Twin yelps sounded out through the room when Margaret realized that one of her hands had grabbed something soft and scaled when she jerked upright and the owner of the tail she was squeezing like a vise woke up with a start. After a moment of staring wide-eyed at each other, they both erupted into giggles. ¡°What happened last night?¡± Margaret worked out between laughs, wiping a tear from her eye. ¡°I thought you didn¡¯t want to room together?¡± Truth cleared her throat and avoided eye contact as she answered. ¡°Well, I was kind of so excited that I forgot to agree before I ran off to gather my things.¡± Margaret leaned over until she could lay a hand on the young kobold woman¡¯s shoulder. ¡°That makes me feel so much better about this. We can be awkward roommates together.¡± Her new roommate cocked her head a smiled a toothy reptile grin before wrinkling her nose and drawing her eyes together. ¡°Speaking of awkward, I think I need to use that new bathhouse you built.¡± Margaret¡¯s eyes shot open. ¡°Wait! Even better, I¡¯ve got to try my new skill out. Hold still.¡± Truth started to protest and threw her arms up to block the incoming spell, but Margaret nailed her, center mass, with her new Cleanse spell. The dust on Truth¡¯s scales lifted off and evaporated, leaving the Kobold, her clothes, and a good two-yard diameter circle on the ground perfectly spotless and shiny. Wordlessly, the two looked at Truth¡¯s shiny scales, then the spotless stone floor before their gazes met and twin maniacal grins grew on their faces. Ten minutes later, the former chief¡¯s house was a shining, spotless home that even carried a faint scent of pine and sweet blossoms in the air.
The two younger ladies of the village meandered from the food storage building after claiming some jerky for breakfast. Margaret ripped a bite off the tough, unidentified meat while she complained. ¡°We expand the village, we¡¯ve got to get some more food production going. Preferably dairy.¡± ¡°Dairy?¡± ¡°Oh, Truth,¡± Margaret began, ¡°Yogurt, ice cream, CHEESE! Dairy is the greatest thing.¡± ¡°I believe you, and I¡¯m sure, whatever it is, that you¡¯ll find it,¡± the kobold assured her. Margaret smiled. ¡°Truth, to tell you the truth, pun definitely intended, every girl should have a friend like you.¡± The two slowed down as Honor and Naps spotted them from across the village and headed their way. ¡°Ms. Margaret! We were wondering what orders you had for us today. We are at your command!¡± Margaret shook her head and fought to keep a smirk from her lips. Honor was so honest and open and eager to please, it would kill her if he thought she was mocking him. ¡°Honestly, Honor, I was going to ask you guys for suggestions. I¡¯ve got more Building Points, but I don¡¯t want to waste them if they¡¯re going to be hard to come by. I¡¯ve got no frame of reference for how many I¡¯ll be able to get. I figure it would be nice if we could draw more people in, increase our population a bit, but I don¡¯t even know where other settlements are, if there are any overcrowded places that we could draw good people from, or even what species are out there. I mean, is this mainly a kobold region, or...?¡± Naps cocked his head and asked, ¡°Does your Spirit not tell you stuff like that? What does it even do?¡± Margaret chuckled as Naps received a smack from Truth and glare from Honor for what they obviously thought was an inappropriate question. ¡°It¡¯s okay, Naps. I don¡¯t mind talking about it. She... helps me understand what I can do. She knows about this world, kind of, but doesn¡¯t have detailed info like a map or anything.¡± This brought out thoughtful looks from the three kobolds until Truth knelt and used her claws to start drawing in the dirt. Honor nodded and added his scribbles to the crude map. ¡°Well, we¡¯re here,¡± she started, ¡°and the stream runs over here... the hills give way to steep mountains in this direction...¡± Truth¡¯s directions so far showed the village in a corner between the mountains and the stream that ran straight out from them. "The forest continues away from the mountains for about half a day¡¯s walk. Then you¡¯re at the sea. There¡¯s a road about a quarter day¡¯s walk away from the stream, goes further away toward a city on the coast one way and turns up into a mountain pass the other.¡± Margaret studied the sky for a second before pointing towards the stream and asking, ¡°The sun rises from that way, right?¡± All three scaled heads nodded once. Margaret studied the map again. ¡°So, there¡¯s a coast to the south, through the woods; a city to the west on a real road; mountains to the north; what about the east?¡± The kobolds shared a look before Truth asked, ¡°What are those words? North? East?¡± Margaret blinked in surprise, realizing that she couldn¡¯t take things for granted. She lucked out big time that her new friends could understand her and that Pia could translate for her, but she didn¡¯t realize that even things like the cardinal directions would be foreign to the people of this world. ¡°Well,¡± she started, drawing a compass rose in the dirt with a stick, ¡°there are names for the four directions based on the direction that the sun moves. The sun always rises in the east and sets in the west. North and south go in between, like this.¡± Honor began nodding first, then all three were nodding and looking at each other in agreement. ¡°Yes, I can see how that would be helpful. Especially if traveling a long distance.¡± He added. ¡°So, what¡¯s to the east?¡± Margaret asked again. ¡°Vile nastiness,¡± Naps answered quickly, the other two agreeing. Margaret stood up from their dirt map and dusted herself off. ¡°Okay, do you guys go to the city to the west? Is it safe for you?¡±Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ¡°Oh yes,¡± Honor answered. ¡°We send... sent someone at least once a month for trade.¡± ¡°Then, can we go there? We might find people to fill our empty houses with. A town¡¯s not much good without people in it. It¡¯d be nice to find people who can do jobs, like a baker or a... I dunno, leatherworker? Is that a thing?¡± ¡°Yes, Margaret. Leatherworking is a ¡®thing¡¯,¡± answered the older voice of Sun, joining their conversation as she joined the group, leaning on her staff. ¡°Good morning, Sun. Do you think that¡¯s a good idea? Should I take one or two, maybe Truth and Honor and travel to this town?¡± The healer nodded. ¡°I do approve of this idea, but there are some things that should be tended to first before you leave the village in the hands of an old woman and her fool son.¡± ¡°Hey!¡± Naps tried to interject, but his mother waved him away and moved on. ¡°While we aren¡¯t in a terribly dangerous area, there¡¯s no such thing as a truly safe place on this world. There is a threat that has occasionally reared its head in the forest between the village and the coast to the south, did you call it? A beast that has probed our borders, but was usually repelled by a hunting party. If it were to try again while you were gone, I¡¯m afraid you¡¯d return to an empty village.¡± Margaret ticked the two items off on her fingers as she listed them out. ¡°Hunt down the vicious beast, then recruit more villagers. This keeps up, I¡¯m going to need a quest log or something.¡± She jerked in surprise when another blue box appeared in front of her.
Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ve got this! - Pia
Task List:
??Predator Hunting - Remove the threat from your village so you can safely travel without worrying about Sun and Nap¡¯s safety.
??Population Up - Travel to the nearest city to recruit villagers to bolster your population.
¡°Oooookay. Tasklist created. Well then, who¡¯s going beast hunting with me?¡± Two scaled hands shot up and a third joined them a second later after a whack from a walking staff. Margaret just smiled. The woods and Margaret had not been on good terms on Earth. Forests meant thorns, burrs that stuck to your clothes, ticks covering you with itchy red bites, and spiderwebs in the face every few steps. The forests on this planet were peaceful, serene places. While there weren¡¯t any giant glowing mushrooms or fairies flitting around, they were still truly magical. The trek to find the beast that had been plaguing the village only took about an hour and a half and Margaret enjoyed every minute of it. Every once in a while, she did imagine that she saw something that wouldn¡¯t have been found in the forests of Earth flitting through the trees at the edge of her vision, but every time she turned her head to look, she saw nothing but ferns and broad-leafed plants. Her kobold escort slowed down when they approached their target and glanced furtively around. Honor motioned for Margaret to crouch down as they crept up a slight rise. Great tree roots lay exposed at the top of the rise, and peeking over the roots, Margaret realized what this great beast was. A great hole had been dug out between the trees with roots making tangled walls around the edge of the pit. A giant boar laid on its side in the middle of the pit with a trio of smaller sows milling around the pit¡¯s edges. ¡®Margaret?¡¯ Flinching at Pia¡¯s internal voice, Margaret whispered back, ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡®I think it would be wise to spend one of your skill points before attacking these animals.¡¯ ¡°What did you have in mind?¡± In response to her question, Pia popped up a window straight to the skill.
Defense
??Magic Skills:
????Magic Armor (Rank 0)
??????Rank 1 Unlocks: Toughskin
????????Grants target the Toughskin buff for 5 minutes. Toughskin gives a natural armor bonus to all damage received equal to leather armor.
????????Mana Cost: 60
¡®So, here¡¯s my thinking. No offense, but I don¡¯t think you¡¯re going to pursue a path to be leading fights from the front line.¡¯ ¡°None taken, I don¡¯t.¡± ¡®Okay, you¡¯ve already got three fighters dedicated to you, let¡¯s lean into that. Build your party, get as many proxies as you can to do the fighting for you, and use your skills to make them stronger, protect them, and heal them up after. That AoE ring was perfect for this. Magic armor is usually used by bruiser types, fighters that use their hands and don¡¯t really use skills during battle. The mana cost is also a problem, it¡¯s over half of your pool, but with the ring, one cast can hit your whole party. Big difference.¡¯ Margaret gave a minuscule nod while keeping her eyes glued on the feral pigs down below. ¡°Sold, I like this plan.¡± She clicked the button to unlock the Magic Armor tree and grinned at her companions. ¡°Here¡¯s the plan, team. I just learned Toughskin, which should help protect you and I picked up a heal last night. Try to stay grouped up so if I have to heal, it hits everyone. Soon as I cast Toughskin, dive in. It¡¯ll last for five minutes.¡± Her three warriors smiled like they¡¯d won the lottery and signaled their agreement to the plan. Margaret held out her hand and whispered, ¡°Toughskin.¡± A blue glow settled over the four of them before dissipating. Margaret noticed a timer appear in the top right corner of her vision, already at 4:57. ¡°Go,¡± she whispered, and the kobolds jumped. No battlecry, no waving their arms or yelling, the three hit the ground and rushed the sleeping boar, ignoring the smaller females. The boar looked up just before Honor¡¯s spear pierced his neck and was squealing and jumping to his feet when Naps¡¯ swords cut furrows in his side. Keeping close to the melee fighters, Truth started launching arrows at the sows as they charged in, each arrow finding a home in the pigs¡¯ soft spots. The boar didn¡¯t shy away from his attackers. Once to his feet, his front shoulder came up to the kobold¡¯s shoulders. The massive boar lunged forward and latched on to Honor¡¯s arm. Honor bit back a cry as he choked up on his spear, grabbing it closer to the spearhead and began repeatedly stabbing the giant boar just behind its jaw. Naps¡¯ switched from slashing and buried his swords in the boar¡¯s ribs, trying to end it quickly before it ravaged his teammate further. One of the female pigs closed in on Truth, and she spun around, smacking it across the face with her tail. She followed that hit with a sweeping kick that showed Margaret just how dangerous the large claws on her friend¡¯s feet could be. That particular target stumbled away, but Margaret realized that Truth didn¡¯t notice the other female that was now closing on her from her rear. Margaret jumped up, standing on the lip of the pit where her friends fought, and launched a Fire Bolt at the charging pig. Truth saw her actions and spun on the pig just in time to see it get engulfed in flames as the flaming ball impacted the jowl on the left side of its face. The flames died down, revealing a scorched but mostly intact target. Some of the skin on the pig¡¯s ears had been burned away, all of its coarse hair was gone, and angry red burns littered its body. Most importantly, it had stopped its charge towards Truth and wildly flung its body in circles. Unlike her rapid-fire shots from earlier, Truth took her time aiming then loosed an arrow that sunk in the sow¡¯s side, dropping it to the ground soon after. Truth and Margaret looked for the third sow and found that it had run to a small indent in the side of the pit, under an umbrella of tree roots, and kept a wary eye on the group. Cautiously, the three kobolds regrouped, Honor cradling his slightly mangled arm. Margaret slid down into the pit, dropping the last couple of feet and landing in a crouch. When she stood up, she briefly noticed that the pit was just shallow enough to allow her to see out over the edge, but dismissed that thought quickly as she hurried over to her injured friend. Truth and Naps made it out of the conflict without a scratch, but they both breathed heavily as they guarded their friend. The injury to Honor¡¯s arm was bad. Large, deep gashes bled freely and Margaret clamped down on her own discomfort when she saw the gleam of bone in the worst of the gashes. He needs my help, I can¡¯t afford to be squeamish. Holding out both hands as she tried to throw her entire will behind it, Margaret whispered, ¡°Heal.¡± Her familiar blue energy covered the group, flowing over their skin and gathering over every scrape, scratch and hurt, even finding spots on Margaret¡¯s body that she hadn¡¯t realized was in less than perfect condition. On Honor, though, the energy gathered on his arm like water finding the drain in a shower. Beneath the glow, muscles and tendons stretched and joined back together before pink skin stretched out over the gashes. When the glow dissipated, Honor flexed his fingers and winced at the pain. Obviously, the healing had hit its limit with him. Satisfied that their friend would recover, Truth and Naps turned toward the third female, but Margaret noticed something behind her, squirming black shapes in her shadow. Piglets, she thought. This sow wasn¡¯t a coward, she was protecting her children. ¡°Wait,¡± she told her warriors. ¡°I have an idea.¡± 8. Quality Quests
Your party has defeated [Forest Razorback Sow]!
80 XP gained!
Level up!
Your party has defeated [Forest Razorback Boar]!
110 XP gained!
Your party has defeated [Forest Razorback Sow]!
80 XP gained!
You have reached level 6 (255/381)!
You have gained a skill point! (1 point / 5 levels)
You have gained an attribute point! (1 point / 1 level)
She still had a point she was saving from the three she started with, and apparently, she¡¯d get another one every five levels. For some reason, she felt it was wise to keep one in reserve, just in case. So with two points, she felt comfortable spending one. It took Margaret several minutes of searching to find the skill she wanted, especially since she kept refusing Pia¡¯s help. I¡¯ve got to figure this thing out on my own, she thought. The other thing slowing her down was the fact that where the Attack and Defense menus were simply separated into physical and magical skills, Utility had more options. Way more. After scanning several pages, she finally found the tree she wanted: creatures. Once she found the right menu, the skill she hoped existed popped into view.
Animal Companionship (Rank 0)
??Rank 1 Unlocks: Tame
????Raises the affinity level with target creature.
????Mana Cost: 100
Affinity level? ¡°Okay, fine. Pia, I need your help.¡± ¡®Oh, really? Sure you don¡¯t got this?¡¯ the AI responded with no lack of sass. ¡°Don¡¯t make me beg or I¡¯ll ignore you for a week.¡± Two could play at this game. ¡®Okay, yeesh. I assume this is what you¡¯re after.¡¯
Creature Affinity Levels:
Hostile - Will attack on sight
Indifferent - Will only attack if provoked
Tame - Will not attack unless attacked first
Domestic - Will not attack, even if intentionally provoked
Companion - Will seek your company and fight alongside you
Life-Bond - Will value your life above their own, will sacrifice for you
Hostility, Indifference, Tame, and Domesticated apply to all sentient beings, not just you. A hostile creature will attack indiscriminately while a domesticated one will not attack anyone. Companion and Life-Bonded status are on an individual basis, creatures you raise to these affinity levels will only respond appropriately to you.
Margaret wasn¡¯t terribly concerned if her AI approved or not, but she knew that antagonizing someone, especially if that someone lived in your brain, was not productive in the long run. Straightening, she pointed a palm at the pig family. I wonder if I actually have to point my hand at things to use a skill? she wondered as she spoke the name of the skill, ¡°Tame.¡±¡®And just so you know, I fully approve of this direction. Tame will help you gather livestock and mounts for your village while also giving you the option to gain an animal companion or two to add to your party.¡¯
[Forest Razorback Sow]¡¯s affinity increased to Tame.
[Forest Razorback Piglet]¡¯s affinity increased to Domestic.
[Forest Razorback Piglet]¡¯s affinity increased to Domestic.
[Forest Razorback Piglet]¡¯s affinity increased to Domestic.
[Forest Razorback Piglet]¡¯s affinity increased to Domestic.
[Forest Razorback Piglet]¡¯s affinity increased to Domestic.
Immediately, the sow relaxed her posture since she no longer felt the need to protect her babies. The piglets ran out from behind their mother and began investigating the adventuring party, mostly to see if they had any food to give them. ¡°Great,¡± Naps deadpanned. ¡°Now how do we get them back?¡± A very long walk and their entire supply of rations later, the group arrived back at the village, sow and six piglets in tow. Margaret had used tame once more on the trip just to get the momma pig up to domestic, but now the babies followed her like she was the treat they¡¯d been waiting for their whole life. A message greeted Margaret as soon as they crossed the border.
Building Unlocked!
Conditions Met (Own pigs within the village.)
Swine Farm - 5 BP
She flung the building up as quickly as she could, not quite taking her customary time laying the thing out, just to get the clingy piglets to stop stepping on her feet. The group restocked their rations from the food storage building, dropping their available foodstuffs dangerously low, but Margaret didn¡¯t feel too bad considering she¡¯d just brought a living, breathing, reproducing food source back to the village. As the crew trekked out of the village for the second time that day, this time heading west toward the coastal city, Margaret re-asked a question she had blurted before that had gone unanswered. ¡°So, what other kinds of... intelligent life live nearby?¡± Blank stares answered her until Naps graciously ended the awkward silence. ¡°Typical forest-dwellers, really. Nothing unusual.¡± They don¡¯t realize... Margaret thought before adding aloud, ¡°Sorry, humans are the only sentient life on my planet, I¡¯d never met a kobold before meeting you, Honor. I don¡¯t know what are typical forest-dwellers.¡± Truth ran a couple of steps ahead so she could turn her head and look Margaret in the eyes. ¡°Really, Margaret? Only humans? The human kingdom must have ruled the entire planet!¡± Margaret chuckled. ¡°Oh, trust me. There are plenty of different human kingdoms that are always fighting. Honestly, there¡¯s no telling what the humans on Earth could do if they all united together.¡± ¡°How many humans are there on Earth?¡± Honor asked. ¡°Mmm, about seven and a half billion? My country had about three hundred million.¡± The three kobolds stared uneasily at each other. Truth snapped out of it first and answered Margaret¡¯s initial question. ¡°Within a day¡¯s travel from our village, you would find kobolds, elves, some humans, goblins, gnomes, a handful of satyrs, plenty of pixies and fairies, and those awful cervids. I can¡¯t imagine if any one race had numbers like that, in the billions...¡± ¡°I know... most of those, at least by the myths from my planet. Reality might be a bit different than what I¡¯ve been told. What was that last one? Cer-vid?¡± Naps snorted. ¡°Those stinking deer-folk. They hate us kobolds that came down out of the mountains. Not all of us want to spend our lives underground, mind you, but that don¡¯t sit well with the ¡®protectors of the forest¡¯. Hasn¡¯t been any outright fighting in years, but they do what they can to make life difficult for us.¡±Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. The group chatted as they made their way down the rough trail that connected the village to the road proper. A couple of hours into their walk, they emerged from the forest into an area more open, but still dotted with large trees and gentle hills. The trail they¡¯d been following led right to a hard-packed dirt road that looked well-traveled. The trail was obvious to those on it, but Margaret could see how passers-by would walk or ride past without any idea it was there. Margaret exercised. Well, she exercised as part of her old life back on Earth. She worked out Monday through Friday, running each day; took yoga classes Monday, Wednesday, and Friday; and did intense bodyweight exercises in between. For somebody who worked in a business casual office environment, she felt like she was in pretty good shape. Hiking for hours as a primary method of travel from one point to another was changing her idea of what ¡®in shape¡¯ meant. The flats she had worn to her last day of work on Earth weren¡¯t exactly helping out in the hiking department, either. She thought about using the attribute point she¡¯d just gotten to boost her constitution but pulled her stats back up before committing.
Margaret Stevens
??Human (No class)
??Level 6 (255/381 Experience)
??????Strength 8 (+)
??????Dexterity 11 (+)
??????Constitution 10 (+)
??????Intelligence 16 (+)
??????1 Attribute Point available!
With a sigh, she assigned the point to Strength, remembering Pia¡¯s advice to get all of her stats to ten before she started focusing on a specialty. Her body tingled and her muscles tightened for half a second, causing her to stumble for one step. Recovering, she continued on, noting that she was still sore and exhausted but that each step wasn¡¯t taking quite as much out of her. What stats are normal for people on Earth? There¡¯s got to be a number that puts me above what even the world¡¯s top athletes and thinkers can do, would that make me like a superhero? She wondered as she walked. She began to think that being drafted to come to this planet might not have been the terrible thing she first thought. ¡°Pia?¡± she whispered. ¡®Yes, ma¡¯am?¡¯ came the mental response. ¡°What are like, regular human stats. Or maybe max stats for somebody without the system?¡± ¡®Ten is an average human adult for most things. Fifteen is peak human ability. If you raise your strength to sixteen, you¡¯d break every weightlifting world record back on Earth. Before you ask, your intelligence stat got a boost when I was installed. Normal human brains can¡¯t handle the strain of an Interface Assistant.¡¯ Margaret couldn¡¯t hide the smile that tugged at the corner of her lips. ¡°So I¡¯m smarter than Einstein right now?¡± ¡®Eh, smarter is a really tough idea to compare. You could do mental math faster than him, like... four hundred twenty-seven times ninety-three.¡¯ ¡°Thirty-nine thousand, seven hundred and eleven,¡± Margaret spat out after only a couple of seconds then added, ¡°Whoa.¡± ¡®Yeah, like that. But the Intelligence stat doesn¡¯t affect creativity or knowledge. You¡¯ll learn and process faster, but you still have to study.¡¯ Margaret just nodded, content for the first time on her new planet. The group made it to the city with a few hours to spare before sunset. There was a wall around the city, but it seemed geared more towards keeping out wild animals than invading armies. For one thing, a tall human could look straight over it without rising up on their toes, and for another, the stacked stone wasn¡¯t held together with any kind of mortar that Margaret could see. A lone guard lounged by the entrance to the city, which was just an opening in the wall that the road passed through. He was not human, but not a kobold either. Since those were the only species that Margaret had personal experience with, she was at a loss. He did look vaguely human, built like a bouncer at a dive bar. What made him definitely not human was the green-grey skin, pointed ears, and oversized lower canine teeth that stuck up out of his lips like upside-down vampire fangs. Before they reached the guard¡¯s earshot, she bent over and asked Truth what kind of being he was. ¡°Hmm? Oh, he¡¯s an orc. I forget that there¡¯s so much your planet doesn¡¯t have.¡± Margaret hesitated. ¡°Aren¡¯t orcs... dangerous? I remember them from a Lord of the Rings movie, they were definitely the bad guys.¡± Truth shot her a slightly disbelieving look. ¡°What? No. I mean, sure, there are bad orcs, but there¡¯s bad everything. Being an orc¡¯s got nothing to do with it. They do show up in jobs where size and strength matter a bit more often, so expect to see a lot of them as guards or soldiers.¡± The orc in question barely raised his eyes from what Margaret was a little embarrassed to realize was the book he¡¯d been reading to acknowledge their group. ¡°Welcome to Brightwater. Purpose of your visit?¡± Honor stepped ahead of the rest to answer for the group. ¡°We come from our village to trade and seek settlers that may wish to relocate to our growing community.¡± The guard snorted. ¡°Normally, I¡¯d laugh you right back out of town, but things have been rough with these conflicts sprouting up. Lot¡¯s of refugees and displaced people finding their way down here.¡± For a moment, Margaret was struck by the fact that her kobold friends were speaking their native language of whistles and trills and the orc was responding in English, or the Trade Language, as they called it. She was so used to Pia automatically translating everything for her that she almost forgot that they were speaking two different languages. Then the content of their conversation caught up with her. ¡°Conflicts?¡± Margaret asked. ¡°Aye,¡± the orc nodded. ¡°Fights popping up everywhere between the old guard and this new upstart religion. Me, I was perfectly happy with the old pantheon, not that I was that devout about it, mind you. These new guys are just causing trouble if you ask me.¡± ¡°Where can we find these refugees?¡± The guard looked Margaret straight in the eye until she felt like she was shrinking in front of him. ¡°Now, these people are more than this town can handle right now, and they¡¯ve about used up the generosity of the good people of Brightwater, but they¡¯re still people, you get me? Excuse me for saying, but you don¡¯t exactly have the look of a young lord out to found a new city. If you expect these people to pay for the privilege of moving to your place, they¡¯ve not got the money to spare.¡± Truth tugged on Margaret¡¯s hand until her friend tore her gaze from the suddenly frightening guard and looked at her. ¡°Margaret, I do believe that the good guard¡¯s uniform could use a cleaning,¡± she said with a low voice. Shocked, the guard began examining his uniform when he was hit smack in the chest with one of Margaret¡¯s Cleanse skills. His uniform wasn¡¯t filthy by any stretch, but standing guard near a dirt road all day wasn¡¯t the environment to keep your clothing spotless. He watched wide-eyed as the dirt and mud from his clothes, boots, skin, and even the odd pile of nastiness left by a farm animal pulling a cart of produce just lifted off and vanished into thin air. The guard¡¯s eyes immediately took on a calculating glint as he stepped back to pick his book up from the wall behind him. He held the book in front of him and narrowed his eyes at Margaret. ¡°Do it again,¡± he ordered. She complied, raising her hand and letting loose a blast of cleaning energy that attacked the book, restoring color to the cover that had picked up bits of grime from over the years, and even removing a stain from where a liquid had been spilled on it some time past. Narrowed eyes opened wide and the guard gave a quick bow from the west. ¡°Perhaps I should be a little more devout to the old pantheon, it seems. The refugees typically gather around the fountain in the central square. There¡¯s a fine inn nearby, The Sunny Squire. Please mind who you show that to, it could cause a panic in the town. The cultists haven¡¯t had any luck here yet, mind you. The town¡¯s loyal.¡± The group made their way to the square in question, passing several side streets and other inns along the way. The refugees must have had another place to stay the night since the square was fairly cleared out by the time Margaret and the kobolds got there. The found the inn without trouble and managed to book rooms for the night. ¡°Two rooms, please,¡± Margaret told the innkeeper, a lovely looking lady that was perhaps in her mid-thirties. ¡°Adjoining if you have it,¡± she added. ¡°Dinner and breakfast?¡± the innkeeper asked as she handed Honor two keys after taking the coins he had offered her. Margaret looked to Honor, since he was bankrolling the stay and she had no idea if they had the money for it. He gave her a comfortable nod, giving Margaret the idea that it was not a problem. ¡°Yes, please,¡± she answered the innkeeper. Honor and Naps took one room, while Margaret shared the other with Truth. The innkeeper herself brought them up a steaming bowl of stew and a good chunk of fresh bread with a spoon of butter for each of them, which they all scarfed down hungrily in Margaret¡¯s room without a word. Afterword, the boys went to their room and Margaret crawled into the bed she and Truth were sharing. Truth lay down facing Margaret so that her tail would hang off the bed and not disturb her roommate while Margaret lay on her back, and the two were almost immediately asleep. 9. New Neighbors Margaret woke just as the sun began to warm the horizon. Her alarm was set for five every morning except Sundays, but she rarely needed it, nor did she sleep in on Sundays. Unlike the previous morning, she woke up without a wild panic attack. Truth was still asleep, and while she hadn¡¯t moved much during the night, her toothy lizard mouth hung open and a small damp spot showed where she¡¯d drooled on her pillow. A small, blue butterfly floated in through the open window to perch on the drooling kobold¡¯s nose, and Margaret wished her phone had come with her to the new world so she could take a picture. That¡¯s what good friends do, she thought, save embarrassing blackmail to torture each other with for years to come. Truth¡¯s nose twitched a few times and then the kobold sneezed. Only, with the sneeze came a tongue of flame. The flame was closer to a buffed up candle than flamethrower, but it was still enough for Margaret to completely leap out of bed. Truth blinked and attempted to lick her lips as she sat up with a yawn. ¡°What?¡± she asked. ¡°What do you mean, what?¡± Margaret answered with just a touch of heat. ¡°You sneezed and you breathed fire!¡± ¡°Oh, that.¡± Truth didn¡¯t seem the least bit concerned by this development, which told Margaret it was a fairly regular thing. ¡°Kobolds are long descended from drakes or wyverns or something. I never really paid attention to those lessons. All we can manage is that tiny flame, not really even good enough to get a fire going with, you still need some pretty fine tinder and kindling.¡± Truth¡¯s almost bored delivery as she crawled out of bed calmed Margaret back down to her normal level of worried, which was more manageable. Suddenly, Margaret was hit with an epiphany and she had to ask, ¡°Wait, so is that why I got the fire quintessence from the chief and nothing from the boar?¡± ¡°I dunno, that¡¯s all new to me. Makes sense, though. Kobold¡¯s are creatures of fire, originally. Pigs are just pigs.¡± ¡°So... if I want more quintessence to learn new skills, I need to find creatures with an... alignment?¡± Truth just shrugged. ¡°Works as well as any other theory, I guess. Good thing you got the death one from his artifact, you don¡¯t want to go hunting for anything death aligned.¡± ¡°Pia, any master list of quintessence out there and creature alignments?¡± ¡®Yes to the first, no to the second. Though around here, you''re most likely to find water or flora. Possibly air. You¡¯re most likely to find aligned creatures in areas that embody their element. Like a mountain cave for earth and darkness. Being this near the sea, you might find something water aligned, and plant alignments should be fairly common.¡¯ Margaret relayed the information to her friend. ¡°Be nice if she could talk to all of us,¡± the kobold groused. ¡°Can you do that, Pia? Is there a skill or something?¡± ¡®Not that I¡¯m aware of, Margaret. That said, my databanks are very limited in the grand scope of the universe.¡¯ ¡°She says no, but there could be something you don¡¯t know about.¡± ¡°Alright then,¡± Truth nodded. ¡°Off we go.¡± The crew ate a relaxed breakfast of eggs, sausage, and some type of porridge. Afterward, they headed to the square that the guard from the night before had told them about. True to his words, the square was filled with refugees. ¡°This is really giving me Mos Eisley cantina vibes...¡± she muttered to herself. Honor cocked his head at her. ¡°What is a Mos Eisley, Ms. Margaret? Should we be on guard?¡± Blushing that she¡¯d been heard, Margaret shook her head. ¡°No, no, no. It¡¯s just that there are a lot of different types of people here, it¡¯s a bit much to take in at once.¡± On cue, one of those different types of people cautiously approached Margaret and her escort. He was older, with a head of grey hair and a full beard. The only non-human feature he sported was a pair of long pointed ears. Light, curly, stylized markings adorned the few bits of skin that were exposed on his face and hands, but Margaret couldn¡¯t tell if they were natural or cosmetic, like a tattoo. Outside of the ears, he looked like a fairly normal human, if humans topped out at three feet. The diminutive man even made her kobold friends seem huge. Margaret had seen plenty of three-foot-tall humans before, but those had usually been children. This man looked like a very slender, fully developed man, in miniature. Knowing what question she would ask, Naps leaned in close and gave the kobold equivalent of a whisper. ¡°Gnome.¡± The gnome man walked right up to Margaret and bowed his head. ¡°Excuse me, my lady. I was wondering if perhaps you had need of some laborers for your estate? I am the elder of a gnommish clan that has many talented workers and craftsmen available for very reasonable rates.¡± The gnome even spoke the trade language, rendering Pia¡¯s translation unnecessary. Margaret closed her eyes for a second and thought to herself, It can¡¯t be this easy, there¡¯s got to be a catch somewhere. She wanted to kneel to talk to the gnome eye-to-eye, but she wasn¡¯t sure what the cultural norms were, and didn¡¯t want to offend him, so she just made eye contact and spoke. ¡°Well, I don¡¯t have an estate, per se, but I do have an offer for your clan.¡± A few hours, some light negotiations, one-stop at a general store for some foodstuffs later, and Margaret¡¯s little group was escorting twenty-nine gnomes and seven trolls back towards her village. Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. The trolls made her a little uneasy at first. They were imposing figures, standing eight to nine feet tall with a slightly hunched posture and lean, muscled bodies covered in grey-green skin. Long, gangly arms reached all the way to their knees and ended with hands that Margaret imagined could grip two basketballs at once each with their long, taloned fingers. They all had similar facial features, though they were easy to tell apart. Long, narrow faces with long, narrow, pointed chins and long, narrow, hooked noses. Pointed ears that seemed much longer and pointier than was necessary for great hearing completed the look. All it took for Margaret to completely get over her unease was to see the little troll girl in the only complete family in the group. Little by troll standards, the girl was nearly as tall as Margaret. She kneeled in the dirt near the fountain in the square, playing with a rag doll with gangly arms and oversized ears just like hers. Margaret¡¯s heart melted and she took in the ragtag bunch of trolls without a second thought. Margaret worried that her potential new citizens would decide to stay in her village, but they seemed ecstatic to be offered homes and work, even without the promise of wages. In fact, she worried for a second time that everything was working out just a little too well. When their group reached the point where their path left the main road into the woods, they were met with the sounds of battle in the trees. Margaret muttered, ¡°Flipping figures.¡± As soon as her kobold companions heard the sounds of battle, their posture shifted. Besides holding their weapons at the ready, their movements sharpened, Honor focused forward while Truth and Naps kept their eyes on the sides, watching so they would not be flanked. The gnomes huddled together and cast furtive glances through the trees. The trolls looked wary but much more relaxed. The refugees had no weapons between them, only thin packs containing the sum of their meager possessions, but the trolls¡¯ giant hands could be considered weapons on their own. Twilight was beginning to dim the forest, so the battle was more a blur of moving shapes until the group came closer to it. Margaret briefly considered turning back, but any hostile forces this close to her village was bad news and they needed information on the combatants at the very least. When the fighters came into clear view, the two different groups were painfully obvious. One was a mix of races, some Margaret had seen and some new, but they all dressed as stereotypically evil as possible. Whether they wore robes, leathers, or plate, they were all in black with bone accents. Apparently the heretics all shopped at the same armorer. The other side was the exact opposite: one race with a variety of clothing and armor. Margaret first took them for centaurs, with the bottom half of a horse and the upper half of a human, but she quickly realized her mistake. It was the antlers that gave it away. Instead of horse, their bottom halves were the four-legged body of a deer. The torso of a human sprouted from the deer half¡¯s shoulders, with two distinct differences. All of them sported long, furry, deer-like ears, and antlers sprouted from the heads of the men. They stood an average human height, to the top of the head, anyway. The antlers of some of them would have scraped door frames back home. ¡°Honor, I don¡¯t want to assume, but-¡± ¡°Yes, the ones in black are the enemy,¡± he finished for her. ¡°Can we help them?¡± All three kobolds nodded. ¡°We need to,¡± Truth added. ¡°If the cervids lose, we will be the heretics¡¯ next target.¡± The cervids divided their combat roles by gender. The men fought the front lines with longswords and shields while the women fought from the back with bows. Margaret and the kobolds moved quickly to where the archers were positioned. The archers shot short glances at them but remained focused on the heretics in black. A few cervid men had retreated behind the archers because of serious wounds that, without treatment, would likely soon end their lives. Margaret aimed towards the center of the group and loosed a heal. Two nearby archers wheeled on her with arrows drawn, but thankfully they noticed the spell¡¯s effect before they shot. The heal didn¡¯t bring the men back to fighting condition, but blood quit flowing as skin began to knit back together. The wounded fighters passed out, no longer quite on death¡¯s door. Once she was sure the cervids wouldn¡¯t attack her, Margaret shouted, ¡°I can give your fighters a defense buff too, if they can bunch up for a second!¡± A couple of the archers shared a look, then one shouted a command that Margaret didn¡¯t understand and the fighters responded without even looking. They slowly made their way toward the center of the battle while keeping their attackers at bay. The second that Margaret thought they were all in range, she shot a Toughskin at the group. Thankfully, the Interface agreed, and all the fighters glowed briefly before charging back into battle. Honor spoke from her side, asking, ¡°Shall we assist, Ms. Margaret?¡± She didn¡¯t hesitate, answering quickly, ¡°Go, just watch yourselves.¡± Honor and Naps vanished amongst the combatants. They further exaggerated their shorter statures by using their tails as a counterbalance to run in with their backs parallel to the ground, reminding Margaret more than a little bit of armed raptors. They darted in and out, striking quickly, then retreating. Fighting among larger allies in a chaotic battle, their tactics changed completely from what Margaret had seen earlier. Truth¡¯s tactics didn¡¯t change, she still stuck to Margaret like the two were in a three-legged race with their ankles tied together. She used her bow more defensively, looking for allies who were struggling and loosing arrows to give them breathing room for a moment. The heretics were relentless. Most enemy forces would withdraw once they realized winning the battle was unlikely, but this enemy seemed intent on fighting to the last one of them. Thankfully, Margaret¡¯s Toughskin spell was having an effect on the battle. Not only were the cervid melee warriors more resistant to damage, they realized it now too. They took the increased defense as an opportunity to fight less cautiously, throwing themselves into the battle with increased fervor. Unfortunately, some of the enemy fighters noticed Margaret¡¯s contributions as well. A thin whistling through the air, a thick thump, and Margaret found herself staring in wonder at the feathered stick growing from her shoulder. Sticks don¡¯t grow feathers, do they? Wait, I don¡¯t grow sticks, either... There was a pressure against her back, then a sharp pain in her shoulder. No, it¡¯s been hurting, but now it hurts worse! It wasn¡¯t until Truth came around in front of her, holding an arrow slicked red with her blood, that Margaret¡¯s pain-addled mind realized what had happened. She looked at the arrow, looked at the hole in her shoulder, looked at Truth¡¯s worried face, pointed a finger at the ground and whispered, ¡°Heal.¡± The dome of blue light swelled then faded around her, the edge hitting most of the injured cervids that had been on the receiving end of her last heal. Pain that had knocked her silly faded to a cold tingle, like having a hand or foot fall asleep. Blood obscured the actual skin, so she gingerly felt the wound with a finger, relieved to find intact skin underneath. The cervids had a clear upper hand in the battle now, though there were still over a dozen of the mixed heretics left. Eyes narrowed, she raised both hands and chanted, ¡°Bone spike. Bone spike. Bone spike.¡± Each cast threw out multiple spikes, thanks to her area-of-effect ring, and each spike shot unerringly towards a target. Quick enough enemies that were paying attention could potentially dodge the bone projectiles, but these targets were otherwise engaged and physically drained. Every spike found its target. Margaret¡¯s barrage didn¡¯t instantly kill every enemy, but the cervids didn¡¯t waste the opportunity, either. In moments, it was all over but the cleanup.