Omen: 18, 18

“What are you doing?” Sonarot asked.

“I’m writing rules for the system,” Adam replied, staring down at the paper, tapping his lip with the stylus.

“Yes?”

“Oh, sorry. It’s a system for a game.”

“What game?”

“One which should be fun, and should help the children,” Adam replied, not wanting to let it slip just yet.

“How will it help them?”

Adam smiled. “You’ll have to wait and see, Aunt. I can’t spoil the fun just yet.” He winked at her before returning back to his thoughts.

‘It looks like you are having fun,’ Sonarot thought, leaving him to his work.

Adam spent the entire morning working on the project, taking short breaks to play with Lanarot, or to check on her as she napped.

“It is done,” Jurot said, revealing the die over lunch. “I have rolled it at least one hundred times to check.”

“You did?” Adam said, looking at the die, which was complete bare, before taking it from him. It was smooth to the touch, and light in the hand, even if it was unwieldy. ‘I wonder how he tested it.’

“You know, Jurot,” Adam began with a sigh, “I’m very jealous of how you’re able to make stuff like this.”

The other Iyrmen shot him a look, wondering if he was poking fun at the Iyrman.

“I have my skills and you have your own,” Jurot replied, simply. ‘What is a die to Phantom?’

“Yeah, I guess you’re right. Oh, Jurot! Do you have any wooden creatures you’ve made before? I need them for the thing.”

“Mother has kept much of my previous work,” Jurot said.

“Yes,” Sonarot replied, smiling at him. “You need Jurot’s old carvings?”

“Yes, please. I need creatures specifically, but if push comes to shove, we can use other stuff.” Adam recalled all the times he used buttons as figures for the game.

Lanarot tossed a well aimed piece of fruit at Adam, clapping her hands happily.

“Watch it, pal,” Adam grumbled at her, wiggling his head from side to side. “If you wanna fight, we can wait for Nightval.” Adam picked up a piece of fruit for her, which she bit into.

Sonarot eventually brought them to another room, which held stairs going upwards. She held Lanarot in her arms. Adam had been in the room before, one which had been cleaned seasonally or so he gathered.

Adam spotted a box he had seen before, which Jurot opened for him, revealing a large number of old wood carvings of various shapes and sizes.

“Jurot’s carvings from a few years ago,” Sonarot said, picking one up for Lanarot to hold.

Adam noted that though all the carvings were of varying degrees of quality, all of them had been finished.

“You should throw them away, mother. They are no good.”

“Throw them away?” Sonarot asked, rubbing a hand along the edge of the box, staring down at them. “My precious Jurot’s work? Never.”

Adam spent a moment taking in the wholesomeness, watching as Jurot’s ears turned red and his lips formed a coy smile of a little boy.

“They’re not no good,” Adam said, picking one up as Lanarot sucked on the wooden figure. “They’re perfect.”

“What are you planning?” Jurot asked.

“I suppose it’s time I reveal it,” Adam said, smiling at the pair of them. “You two can be the first players of the game. No, we should also call for Turot, since it was partly made for him.”

“I shall call for him,” Sonarot said.

“Isn’t he in school?” Adam asked.

“It is Nightval,” Sonarot said, simply.

“Alright, well, I’ll grab all the stuff then,” Adam said, going off to grab a blanket to use as a battle map, and creating sheets for each of them quickly.

Turot appeared, covered half in fur and half in snow. “I have come, Cousin Adam,” he declared.

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

“Are you ready, Turot?” Adam asked, staring at him seriously.

Turot puffed out his chest again. “I am Turot, son of Mirot!”

“Good!” Adam said, before motioning to the area around the blanket. Turot sat opposite him, and Sonarot and Jurot flanked him. “You two need to sit closer to that side. This side, is the purview of the GM.”

“GM?” Jurot asked as he shuffled to the side.

“The Game Master,” Adam said.

Lanarot sat down beside her mother and played with her blocks, stacking them. Sonarot picked her up. “One moment,” she said, leaving with Lanarot. “She needs to be changed.”

Adam sighed with relief, before quickly jotting down some notes, trying to figure out what to run.

“What are you writing?” Turot asked.

“Secrets,” Adam said. “For the Game Master.”

Eventually, Sonarot returned with a fresh Lanarot, who went right back to playing with her blocks.

“Welcome to Warriors and Wanderers,” Adam said, raising the sheets and handing them to the others. “This is a world of fantasy, where the only limits are your imagination and whether or not I’m power tripping.” Adam cackled. “You need to pick a class. Priest, Fighter, Mage,” Adam said, normally.

“I am a Rage Dancer,” Jurot said, furrowing his brows. “It is our way.”

“It’s just a game, Jurot,” Adam said, sighing. “Pick which one you’d like.”

“I will be a Fighter,” Turot said. “I do not need magic, only my axe and shield!”

“I will be a Priest,” Jurot said. “It brings my family great honour.”

“Then I am a Mage,” Sonarot said. “I can use Tricks to make my bread taste like cheese.”

Adam assisted them all with filling in their sheet, explaining the various statistics to them. He had simplified the sheet to its absolute essentials, he didn’t want to make it complicated for children.

“You begin in a dungeon, sent out by a local Chief to find out the issue there,” Adam began. “He had heard of noises coming from the area, long thought cleared.”

Jurot was unable to spot a trap, and they were caught by it, causing Turot to gasp.

“I cannot be caught by traps,” he stated, firmly. “I am too fast for traps.”

“Roll your save, Turot,” Adam said.

Turot picked up the die and tossed it. “Nine.”

“Add?” Adam asked, motioning his sheet.

“Strength?” Turot asked.

“This is about being nimble, Turot, so it’s your Dexterity.”

“Nine. Add. Two.” Turot closed his eyes for a second and bounced his head as he counted. “Ten. Eleven. Eleven!”

“You failed your save, Turot,” Adam said. “Even though you’re normally too quick, the trap was far too wicked, and was delayed for a moment in order to strike you after you tried to dodge. This was not a trap for Adventurers, but great Warriors like you.”

Turot shook his head. “They must be great Warriors that made the trap.”

“An apt observation, Turot,” Adam said, nodding his head. “They are great warriors, for as you look up from the pit, you find a number of Orcs.”

“Orcs!” Turot said. “They are great Warriors, they made the traps!”

“Detective Turot, solving cases one by one,” Adam said. “Yes. The Orcs apologise, for they did not know who you were, however, they ask for assistance to face against a great foe.”

“Orcs need our assistance?” Jurot asked, raising his brow. “They too are great Warriors. This must be a dangerous creature.”

“It is,” Adam said, rolling, “a Chimera!”

“Orcs do not need help against Chimeras,” Turot said. “They can defeat Chimeras.”

Jurot nodded his head. “There is the tale of-“

“This Chimera is a special Chimera,” Adam stated, quickly. “The Orcs need your assistance against it.”

“Aba boo?” Lanarot asked, raising up the figure in her hand.

“Exactly right, Lanababy,” Adam said. “This is a Chimera which was made to face against the tactics of the Orcs, which have proved to be ineffective.”

Turot nodded his head. “A wicked creature. I, Turot, son of Mirot, will slay it.” He picked up the die.

“Calm down,” Adam said, raising a hand. “No need to roll, yet. There’s no Chimera about.”

As the game progressed, they managed to make a deal with the Orcs, and faced the Chimera. Sonarot’s magic managed to slow its impeding charge for the others to attack it, with Jurot using his magic to heal, and Turot using his axe to hack apart the Chimera.

“Lanababy, come,” Adam said, picking her up. He gave her the die. “Go on. Throw.” Adam made a motion with his hand and Lanarot tossed the die, squealing with joy.

Betrayal Check

D20 = 2

Adam puffed out his cheeks, raising his brows in alarm. ‘How the hell is your luck as bad as mine?’

“Turot,” Adam began, “as you hack the Chimera with your axe, you hear a whistle, and as you all look around, the Orcs, who are battered and bruised like you, turn their weapons against you. You, Humans, who have forced us away from our land, must now pay!”

Turot gasped. “They have betrayed us? How can they do so when we fought alongside each other!”

“They are no Iyrmen,” Sonarot said, patting her nephew’s head.

“No! They are definitely not!” Turot huffed.

Jurot stared down at the battle field, which had used miniatures Adam had taken from those he had crafted years ago, many of which were humanoid in shape, and one which was a Chimera he had carved as one of his later pieces, the tail of which was immaculately carved, some of his finer work.

“I lost myself in the world,” Jurot said. “This game is fun.”

“Right?” Adam said, smiling at Jurot. “I will need someone to write up a session summary for next session. It is a very important task, can I trust it to you, Turot?”

“Okay,” the boy said, nodding his head towards his Cousin.

“Is there any help you need from me?” Sonarot asked. She had let the boys mostly play as she made sure Lanarot wasn’t bothering them, using her magic when she thought it would assist.

Adam shook his head, whispering as Turot grabbed his book to write down what had happened. “Hopefully, he can learn his numbers a little better, and the summary will help him with his letters.”

Sonarot raised her brows. ‘Did you think so far ahead?’

“So?” Adam asked. “How was it?”

“Fun,” Jurot said.

“I will defeat the Orcs,” Turot said.

“I hope I am able to cast more spells,” Sonarot said. “It is difficult for Mages when they have so few spells.”

“Well, you never know,” Adam said, smiling. “If you survive next sessions encounter, you’ll probably Level Up.”

“Level Up?”

“You’ll gain access to more spells and greater spells,” Adam said. “You too, Jurot.”

“What of me?” Turot asked.

“You will gain greater abilities too, more attacks every so often.”

Jurot nodded. “So we have gained greater strength after our adventure.”

“Exactly.”

“The game imitates our life so well,” Jurot said. “Though we play the stories of others.”

“Where I’m from, this is all fantasy,” Adam said, before throwing a quick look to Turot, whose tongue was stuck out as he wrote.

“Is it a popular game?” Jurot asked.

“Kind of?” Adam replied. “It was used as the butt of many jokes, and its roots were rather embarrassing, but it was a game which had brought much joy to a great many people. It also stopped the showers of quite a few people too.”

“Stopped the showers?” Jurot asked.

“There were people who took to being Trolls too literally.” Adam chuckled.