Marci woke me with a short tap on the forehead before dawn. I slept longer than anticipated, still healing from the encounter the day before. She gave a short chirp, staring down at the ground. Following the direction of her sharp eyes, I studied the forest floor below me. The darkness was broken by movement as a slender shape wandered the clearing. Triggering Identify quickly had become second nature.
Forest Panther - Intelligent Beast - Level 17 - Health 132/132
Another of the forest panthers. I had encountered many of these so far in the forest, though this one was the highest level. It looked up at the tree I was sitting in for a brief moment before wandering away. I was thankful the panther hadn’t chosen to fight, it was a beautiful creature and I didn’t want to kill it.
Memories of the Eleuthera floated up, the massive panther that was worshiped as a god. It had been level 50, the strongest beast I had seen so far. One of 4 country beasts residing in Eter, the residents of Burch had been in disbelief when I told them about their new neighbor. It hadn’t been seen since and everyone was content to let it stay that way.
I grabbed one of the hallowed light potions from my pack and slipped it into the lantern given to me by Arthur. It created a sphere of light that would reach about 10 feet in every direction and it would last for one week. Beasts were more active at night but I felt confident in being able to travel before the dawn light began to filter down.
I reached a new marker for unknown resources shortly before daybreak. This time it was a deep pool of water that was letting off steam as I approached it. The water was remarkably hot, the cool air giving way to a mist near the pool. This was the first time I had ever encountered a hot pool like this, it was fascinating.
Marci hopped down from my shoulder where she had been sleeping and dipped her beak in the water. She squawked and hopped to the air giving an angry shriek as she looked down at the water. I felt pain and annoyance through our bond. I laughed and tried to send calming thoughts back to her.
There was a small clearing around the pool of water with many plants I didn’t recognize growing in the area. I began to Identify them and read over the descriptions.
Banshee Brier - Small purple flower that blooms in the late fall near hot springs. Poisonous when ingested.
Ovloss - Moss that grows near hot springs. Used in traditional medicine by the people of Sumain.
My Identify continuing to level had increased the amount of details that would be shown. Both of these only grew near hot springs, which must be what the framework called the water. Marking the location on my map, I harvested all of the flowers and moss that would fit in my pack. There were already 7 marten flowers stashed away from the day before.
Marci gave a warning chirp from my shoulder and I quickly backed away from the pool. She flew up to a tree branch overlooking the hot springs. There was a dense thicket of brush a few dozen feet away so I ducked under it and hid against the ground. My bow was ready near my arm and my dagger was drawn. There was a sharp intake of breath near the pool just out of my sight.
There were a few sentences spoken back and forth between two not quite human voices. The language was one I had never heard, one of the voices sounded panicked, the other angry. My dream as the falcon had shown me humanoid like creatures living in the deep forest, these two must belong to one of those races. I briefly thought about announcing myself but decided against it. My negative charisma would make them suspicious before even considering the language barrier.
The two voices spoke for another minute then left the area. Marci circled back down near my hiding spot so I got up and quickly moved away back towards the direction I had come. I marked the area on my map as possible borders for another town. There was no need for violence over mistaken boundaries, I would need to warn Arthur to have the residents of the mine stay away until we knew more.
There were no more resource markers on my map in this direction that didn’t involve traveling past the hot springs. Not wanting to disturb the race of humanoids or having to fight them. I decided I would curve around north and then head back to the mine. There were another few markers for marten flowers about 20 miles north of the mine, well past where the portal had been.
Heading back through the part of the forest where I had battled the apes, I was surprised to find one of them standing near the corpse of the former pack leader. I slowed as I approached it and readied myself to fight if it came to that. The ape turned to me and began to slowly beat on its chest. I triggered Identify.
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
Forest Ape - Intelligent Beast - Level 22 - Health 200/240.
It was a higher level than the pack leader that I had fought against. I felt a mental pressure build up against my mind. It felt slightly different than Marci trying to communicate before we bonded, different from her mother before her. I couldn’t quite describe it but the ape felt different, more intelligent. I pulled up the description to Beast Companion with a thought.
Beast Companion - Level 20 - Passive - Form a companion link with up to two companion beasts.
Two? When had that changed? It had to be an upgrade that had triggered at level 20, I hadn’t even noticed it. The ape continued to stare at me and beat on its chest, just like the ape that had called the pack leader. I slowly turned in a full circle to look for other apes, there were none in eyesight. Marci was on my shoulder giving the ape a quizzical look. I reached out to our bond and tried to ask her opinion.
Marci turned to look at me and then bent down for a soft peck on the head. Feelings of warmth, happiness and companionship flooded the bond. A powerful feeling swept through after the others, in words it felt as if the falcon was saying “just like me”. She jumped off my shoulder and flew over to the ape. It studied her as she approached and stopped beating its chest. My heart was racing as the fragile falcon landed on the apes shoulder and gave its head a peck. The ape returned the gesture by leaning its head against the falcon.
The ape walked over to stand directly in front of me, Marci jumped back to my shoulder. I felt the mental pressure again and accepted it this time. It sent a well formed image of me straddling the pack leader and stabbing down. The feelings it sent with the image were surprising, it felt relief when the pack leader died. The pressure built and suddenly I was no longer in my own body, but that of the ape.
The ape was sharing its memories with me, Beast Companion allowing me to understand and see them through the apes eyes. It didn’t feel like the bond I had with Marci, this ape didn’t want to bond with me, it wanted to share. It wanted me to understand, understand and watch, so I did.
It was a strange sensation, I was the ape in the same way I had been the falcon during my dream. My name was Halev or as close as I could pronounce it with a human tongue. I watched from the sidelines as a colony of apes existed in peace and harmony not far from where we were standing. There were hundreds of them in varying sizes, males and females, children and elderly. They traded with other intelligent beasts, living off the abundant resources of the eternal forest for years.
I watched as one day a new ape came from deeper in the forest. These apes didn’t speak like humans did, they communicated through actions and emotions. The newcomer was larger and stronger than the apes of the colony. It grew frustrated when it wasn’t allowed to claim the female ape of the pack leader. It challenged the pack leader and viciously beat it to death, standing over the previous pack leader's corpse, it roared its challenge, none met it. The colony began to change dramatically.
The apes became more aggressive, the young males responding to the new pack leader. They began to hunt beasts that had previously been allies. They destroyed two other colonies of forest apes, traveling far to wreak havoc. Some of the older apes disagreed with the new pack leader. Afraid of confrontation with the powerful ape.
I watched myself confront the pack leader, challenging him for the rule of the pack. We gathered at the base of a great tree, surrounded by the colony. The males formed a ring around us and slowly beat their chest in a rhythmic way. I projected peace to the apes of the colony, a return to the old ways. The new pack leader projected humor, accepting my challenge. We fought in the traditional way, melee combat between the two prospective pack leaders.
I lost badly, beaten to a sliver of health but not killed. I was forced to watch as my mate was brutalized by the pack leader. I was forced to watch as she was taken by the younger males of the pack, apes I had known for years. They tortured her and threw her off a tree, her body lying broken at the bottom. They threw me down next, agony filling every breath as my body hit the ground. I didn’t die, forced to wait for my health to slowly regenerate laying next to the corpse of my mate.
I was back in my own body now staring at the ape. Profound sadness pouring across my bond with Marci. The helplessness, the unnecessary violence and horror of it all. I felt the apes' emotions still as strongly now as I had then. Forest Apes mated for life, Halev would never take another. The ape sent another image across the connection, the corpse of the pack leader. It sent a strong feeling of gratitude and friendship. I tried to return the emotions but found myself choking up.
The ape turned to a nearby tree and made a hand motion while projecting safety. I watched as a young male ape walked out from behind the tree. I used Identify.
Forest Ape - Intelligent Beast - Level 10 - Health 100/100
It was the offspring of Halev, I could feel that from his emotions. He motioned the ape forward and it came to stand by us. A new presence formed in my mind, this was certainly the young ape. It projected friendship and gratitude albeit in a less clear manner than Halev. I returned the emotions and the older ape gave me one last long look before turning and walking away, back to all fours now.
Congratulations! You have earned a new skill!
Symbiosis! - Passive - Allows for two way communication with non-bonded beasts!