Chapter 17: Now We’re Cookin’!
I had to say, getting to level 3 so soon seemed to have its perks. They really roll out the red carpet the more you buy into their sky mileage programs. I don’t even have to choose one of each Skill and Power this level. I can pick any two I want?
But was that normal to get two levels up in less than twenty-four hrs? Was that normal for video games? Or were the first levels just easy?
Granted, I hadn’t known for actually how long I had been stuck in a hole. Nor did I know how long I had been unconscious after Gardencrafting a tree.
Actually, how long was an hour on this planet? Or days? Back in my solar system a single “day” on Venus lasted for over two hundred Earth days.
I had to presume this planet was at least very similar to Earth. Otherwise there wouldn’t be exactly the same species like humans, oak trees, or house cats
I decided I wouldn’t look this gift horse in the mouth any longer. I dived into the option menus with the intent of quickly choosing anything that would immediately help us out. If anything required extra thought I would save those selections for later. Any of the previous Skills from before, like ‘Empty Nester’ or ‘Trapdoorcraft,’ seemed like they would come in mighty handy.
My heart dropped when I saw there were less options this time. And none of the previous options had returned. Really now. Budget cuts already? At least they still offered me the option of increasing my current Skill levels.
My Skill selection still seemed… lackluster. Awfully 1950’s housewife choices, dontcha think? Sweeping? Making pretty doilies? Gee, thanks. You couldn’t offer me a way to teach my Minions carpentry? Or a shotgun home defense upgrade to my avatar? I’ll pass on that domestic life for the moment.
I didn’t want to jump to any conclusions though. I moved onto the Powers.
Mums the word, you hear? If you must know, this kooky Power gives your Dungeon’s first floor–and only your first floor–a little pep in its step. Literally. Chicken legs and all. As long as your Core is situated on your first floor, you can pluck yourself off the ground and go for a stroll around the countryside until you find a new place to settle down. Believe me, hun. You ain’t ready for a road trip in your mobile home. Save up for retirement, then get this Power later.> Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. <20/20 Vision>: Good for seeing intruders in advance or scouting out resources.> This Power unlocks a new Construction Recipe for your Dungeon, the Neverwatch Pot. All you have to do is Construct it in the Pyreplace that holds your Core. Then you throw in any leftover ingredients from your Garden that you want to grow, like any souls or corpses you’ve got on hand. Feed it a pinch of Mana, then let the Pot Simmer over time, nice and slow. (I hear Minion bone marrow simmers quite nicely.) Unlike Gardencraft, this Power is not quick. And it won’t level up with use. But you won’t have to keep an eye on it. It’ll never boil over. Promise.> A Life Affinity would suit your current Skills well. If you’ve got a hankering for justice and mercy, Light makes for a great choice. If you’re feeling spicy, Fire has a bit of a kick to it. If you want to play it safe, there’s always Water. You don’t strike me as the type with a taste for Ice or Wind Affinities, but who knows? I’ve been wrong before. I can see you’re still thinking it through. Take your time. I’m in no rush.> Yeah, yeah, Milly. I heard you. Loud and clear. I should have picked Elemental Affinity. You don’t have to tell me twice. Or maybe you do. I need a lot of things repeated… And I didn’t see any Powers that would improve my hearing. It would help if you would actually tell me what Elemental Affinity actually did. It was the only Power that made a second appearance from the last list. Yet I seem to be getting along just fine without it. You want me making another darn choice regarding the periodic element table? My dear, I haven’t been to chemistry class in a few decades. Fine, I’ll take it. Oh, hush you. I closed out the window. [PLEASE MAKE A SELECTION - ] I closed that window too. You’re almost as bad as those self checkout ladies! I’m placing my item in the bag right now! Please stop yelling at me! Look, I’ll get to it when I get to it. I have another Power I want to choose first. Truth be told, I was grateful for Milly’s advice on Dungeon Stroll. I would have been tempted to take it purely just to see myself become some sort of Baba Yaga. The children would run from me in terror! Despite the warning, I probably still wouldn’t have taken it. Probably. Not unless this house actually belonged to me. And if the home did belong to me? I can neither confirm nor deny what sort of choice I would make. Ahem. Moving right along… I had to say, that increased sight range Power looked pretty swell. I would snatch that one up if I didn’t have a feeling I’d see it again. All the puns intended. I also couldn’t help but notice there was nothing related to Minions this time around. Well, wait one moment. I read Pyreplace Simmer again carefully. Why would there be this seemingly silly cooking Skill amongst these other neat Powers being offered? Yet Milly had no warnings against it? Hmmm… I do like cooking. And good soup. Hmmmmm… I did have some sort of Stew amongst my other Powers. Welp, nothing ventured, nothing gained! Milly, dear? I’ll take that one, please. Ohhh, Spinemess! Look at this lovely Neverwatch Pot I got you! My status screen now read as this: [MERRIWEATHER DUNGEON GEOBLOOM CORE (LEVEL 3) MANA CAPACITY: 20/20 MANA RENEWAL RATE: 2 MINIONS: SPINEMESS, UNDEAD SKELETON MAGE (LVL 2) JELLYBEE, UNDEAD SKELETON SAPPER (LVL 3) JIMBO-NO, UNDEAD SKELETON BRIGAND (LVL 6) TIPTAP, UNDEAD SHADOW CAT (LVL 1) TRAP INTEGRITY: N/A LOOT VALUE: TBD AVAILABLE SKILLS: LEYLINE KNITTING (LVL 3) GARDENCRAFT (LVL 4) MANA DUSTING (LVL 10) SOUL STROLL (LVL 2) UNLOCKED POWERS: BRITTLE BONES AURA ELEMENTAL AFFINITY (TBD) PYREPLACE SIMMER SCRAPBOOK SOULSTEW TITLES: HOMEWRECKER]