I dreamed of flying. I soared effortlessly over the eternal forest, starting deep in areas undiscovered. I saw massive beasts roaming, fighting, eating and slumbering. Beasts of all manner, I saw another, or maybe the same Eleuthari, walking through trees that made even that massive panther look small. I saw beasts I had never seen or heard of moving in great herds, climbing and swinging from the trees. I flew over old ruins, towns that had surely not existed before the integration of the framework. I glided effortlessly amongst these giant trees, dodging branches, even a town built entirely in the trees, humanoid looking beasts walked over woven walkways, going about their daily lives.

Avoiding their gaze this time as I turned and sped towards the mine. I saw two of the forest apes on guard high in the trees, someone was in the outpost but it was too far down to tell who. The clearing was still littered with the supplies of the first army but the bodies had been removed when the army left. Out over the forest I soared, going above the canopy towards the great plain that separated Eter and Norx.

This time I turned south and flew towards the great city of Etes. The proud, strong walls stood out starkly above the plains. There were tent cities formed outside of the gates. Crowds were pushing and shoving each other attempting to gain entrance to the city, they were rebuffed by the guards trying to control the chaos. The city looked to be in turmoil, there were fires in parts of the city I have never visited.

I saw crowds gathered at street corners and markets, there were priests speaking to the masses. I flew on towards the King’s residence in Etes Castle. The castle sat upon a hill near the middle of the city, surrounded by a deep and long moat. The drawbridge was shut and the walls were manned by the first army. The citizens rallied outside the moat and across from the bridge. They were demanding the King speak, calling on him to right some injustice. I felt a sense of danger and banked backwards towards the city when an arrow flew right by me. The archers on the walls were preparing to take another shot. Just as I was trying to turn and escape the city I was struck by multiple arrows.

I woke with a jolt of total panic in my bed in the mine. Frantically scrambling out of bed I began to call for Marci. The dream felt so real just like the last one when I saw the Norx emperor sacrifice his wife. Marci wasn’t in the room so I triggered See What I See out of desperation. The room around me vanished as my sight was replaced with a view of the forest floor.

Marci let out a shriek as she sensed my panic and began to fly towards the mine. She had been out hunting for dinner when I woke up. The feeling was strange and my head was swimming at the rapid adjustment. Marci slowed and landed on a tree branch which gave me time to acclimate to the change. See What I See would take some practice to get used to, I was glad I didn’t use it in a combat situation for the first time.

Ending the skill and returning to my body standing in my room was just as jolting and uncomfortable as the first transition had been. I sat back down on the bed and took a few moments to decompress. This was the second time I had dreamed in that way, it felt so real. No one else at the mine had reported such vivid dreams after the framework. It must have some connection to Beast Companion as both times I had been flying like a falcon.

Arthur was almost ready to begin the funeral by the time I walked over to the mess hall. The seven bodies were laid out on tables and draped over with spare sheets and bedding. It was in the old Eter funeral style as Arthur hadn’t wanted to burn the bodies out in the clearing. These would be buried near the entrance to the mine that they had given their lives to defend. Of the seven I only knew Ryen well, the rest I had only met in passing.

Arthur stood up at the front of the mess hall to address the crowd. “We are here tonight to honor the ultimate sacrifice made by the seven men laid here before me. Each of them knew the risks, they knew the odds they faced. Belayed by belief in a community, in others, in service to those we love and cherish. It takes bravery to be a guard, to engage in combat. It takes courage to stand against a superior foe and overwhelming numbers.” He let silence fill the hall.

Openly weeping, I sat transfixed as the large man continued. “The King of Eter has committed the ultimate crime! He has attacked upstanding citizens. No charges were levied, no trial held.” He was yelling now, the veins bulging out in his muscular neck as he spoke. “I will not speak for all of you. I will speak only for myself. I denounce this false King! I denounce the house of Bearn! While I am Mayor of Old Mining Camp it will never bow to this cowardly and cruel King!”

There was silence following Arthur’s proclamation. Rian was the first to stand, “I stand with Arthur, I stand with the dead.”

Rocks was next as he began to clap and a wave erupted through the crowd. The entirety of the mine was on its feet cheering. The mood had flipped from sad and somber to angry and defiant in a blink. Arthur’s words chilled me to the core as I remembered the events of my dream. Etes was on the brink of rioting, Toul had spoken of other towns that refused to join the King. The situation was a bomb waiting to explode.

Arthur concluded the funeral after the crowd settled down. The bodies were carried outside to be laid in already dug holes that butted up against the cave wall. There were small wooden plaques standing at the head of each hole that read, “Here lie the brave, never to be forgotten.” Each plaque had a corresponding name carved into it.

The residents of Old Mining Camp paid their respects and began to filter back inside the town as the sunlight faded. It would be a somber night for the remaining forty three residents. The mine would need an influx of population if it were to thrive cut off from the Kingdom of Eter.

With the loss of Ryen and two other guards, Arthur had to bolster the rotation with some that were less than suited to the role. Camile had volunteered, as had many of the women of the camp. Taking guard rotation in groups of four to help offset the loss of the guard classes. The average level of the residents was now above ten after the fighting. Any who partook in the defense, even if they did not directly kill any of the soldiers, received experience for it. As it was not designated as a framework survival event, there was no contribution leaderboard and rewards.

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I walked over to where Arthur stood next to the gravesites. “I’m going to attempt the dungeon tonight. I’m taking Marci and Van as well as whoever you want to come. Anyone who comes must understand the risks, I almost died on the first level. There is no way to know how difficult this level will be. There is a chance we can’t safely leave once we start.” I told him.

“I know. It will be myself, Camile and Rocks joining you in the dungeon.” I started to respond but he held up his hand. “I know what you are going to say Syl but I have to come. I need to level so that I can choose a combat class, I need to be stronger to protect the girls and the other residents of the mine. Camile is level 12 and has a specialized class that might be useful. Rocks is level 14 and one of the few combat classes we have. We need to be stronger to survive.”

“If you think that's best Arthur, I disagree with bringing Camile, she's too young. I’m still too young!” I added out of exasperation.

He clapped me on the shoulder and turned to walk to the mine. I followed him in and saw the preparation underway. Rocks and Camile were preparing their packs and dividing up the remaining major health potions. Camile was dressed in leather armor that must have been left behind by the army. She had a bow and a quiver full of arrows. The armor made her look even younger than she had without it. Rocks was wearing the heavy plate armor of the elite infantryman. He had two swords, one was a smaller one handed sword at his side and the second was a massive two handed sword that was in a scabbard across his back.

“Syl! We went through the stuff left behind by the army with Father and picked out some gear. You need to take a look and see if anything would fit you.” Camile said when she saw me. She flashed me a smile and my spirit lifted. Was this her class working on me or genuine?

“Thanks Camile. I’ll take a look.” I replied and returned a nod from Rocks.

I took a few minutes looking over the piles Camile had indicated for myself. There was a lot of great quality gear here. When I used Identify I could view the name of the item and the armor quality as well as if it had upgrade patch spots. I picked out a helmet and pair of bracers since I didn’t already have some. I upgraded my leather chestpiece to a hauberk made of metal with a thick undershirt. My pants were leather with metal plates sewn in on both sides of the thighs and calves, the metal plates were part of an upgrade.

Equipment - Armor

Head

Sturdy Leather Helm

15

Chest

Metal Hauberk

25

Arms

Metal Hauberk

15

Hands

Thick Leather Gloves

10

Belt

Stryker Bandoleer

10

Legs

Thick Leather Pants (1/2)

25

Boots

Standard Leather Boots

15

Cloak

Stryker Cloak(2)

25

Rings

Basic Ring of Strength

+2 Strength

Amulet

Basic Amulet of Healing

Increases rate of Health regeneration by 2%

My armor rating had increased to 115. That was a great improvement and the new armor felt sturdy and fit well. My cloak was already better than any of the other options and I wanted to keep my upgrades for future use to hide my appearance. I had learned to separate my armor and weapon interfaces to make them easier to read. There were two new options in the pile of equipment, an enchanted ring and an amulet. The ring would grant me +2 strength while it was worn and the amulet was a 2% increase to my health regeneration. There were only a few of the enchanted rings so we each took one.

I picked up a new spear to use as my primary close range weapon and kept my bow and dagger. There were no enchanted weapons in the pile that I could use, nor any upgrade patches for either of my current weapons. The spear was a standard issue army spear of high quality wood and steel.

Weapons - Base Damage

Stryker Dagger

35

Stryker bow

20

Standard Eter

Army Spear

40

The spear had a base damage of 40 and had multipliers for my strength and agility. Each point of strength and agility equated to 0.2 points of damage. My current values combined equaled 86 and added 17.2 points of damage to each strike totalling 57.2. The spear felt comfortable in my hands and added a sense of security that I had been missing. I looked over at the other two just as Arthur walked back in the hall in his full set of Armor. I hadn’t paid much attention after the battle but I could see now that it was full plate armor and he had a massive hammer strapped to his back.

“Everyone ready?” He asked the three of us.

“As soon as Marci and Van get down here I will be.” I responded. I sent out the thought to both of them and felt them respond and move closer. They arrived a few minutes later, Marci riding on Van’s shoulder and then hopping over to mine. Van wore no armor but had a naturally high armor rating. He used his fists and brute strength for combat. Marci was well...Marci.

“Ready,” Camile said in a shaky voice.

“Ready,” Rocks said.