Hydrablood Chapter 1 March 19, 773 FF
Icepaw stared at the strange elf that was sitting across the table from him in the galley. Hydrozeno’s skin was tinged a yellowish color in the places where it was visible. Most of his body seemed to be covered in dark gray, almost black scale. His hair was white his eyes an unnerving gold, but Icepaw could tell that the elf was young, perhaps even his own age. He was also hungry. Icepaw shook his head as he watched Hydrozeno down his sixth bowl of stew. Icepaw was still on his first.
“So you lived in a cave for ten years?”
Hydrozeno nodded to Icepaw’s question as he scarfed the stew down.
Icepaw glanced at the nearly bare cupboards. He would need to find some more food soon. The ship stores were almost gone and the nearest town Icepaw knew of was a day and a half up the river through the monster infested jungle. That would be a delightful trip.
A soft whimper came from beneath the table. The small black dog was begging Hydrozeno for food. Hydrozeno rolled his eyes and reached into the fur back slung over his shoulder and pulled something out. Icepaw’s eyes went wide and he jumped to his feet as Hydrozeno fed a skill crystal to the dog.
“What are you doing?!”
The elf looked up.
“What? He likes them.”
Icepaw’s stare turned from incredulous to flat.
“You don’t have any idea what those crystals are, do you?”
Hydrozeno shrugged.
“Not really, are they valuable?”
Icepaw’s ears went flat against his skull. This stupid elf had just fed a small fortune to his dog without even realizing what he had done. Icelaw took a deep breath.
“That was a skill crystal.”
Hydrozeno stared blankly back at Icepaw. This sounded important. Icepaw’s ears pressed even flatter against his skull.
“You have no idea what those are, do you?”
“No.”
“Did your parents teach you nothing growing up?”
“They died when I was six.”
“Ah.”
The conversation immediately turned into an awkward silence. Things were starting to make sense to Icepaw. He sat there contemplating how to tell this poor, stupid elf that he was an uneducated numbskull.
Hydrozeno was also realizing at this moment that the crystals he had been using as dog treats might actually be important and that he might have made a mistake. Good thing he had only fed the dog seven of them instead of the whole bag. Hydrozeno pulled out the bag and dumped its contents on the table to count.
Icepaw nearly fainted as the pile of small, extremely valuable crystals rolled onto the small table and Hydrozeno began to count them. Icepaw had never seen so many crystals at once. Even stories rarely told of stashes of more than a couple dozen. Icepaw watched as Hydrozeno proceeded to count all ninety seven crystals.
“Where did you find those?”
Icepaw’s question was a whisper of awe.
“Oh I found them in the cave.”
Icepaw stared at the fortune glittering on the table and for a moment was tempted to grab the wealth and run. Each one of the gems sitting there was worth a hundred gold coins. That was enough money to let him live comfortably for six months and there were nearly a hundred of the gemstones. Icepaw studied the unusual elf appraisingly and immediately knew that trying to steal them from the scale covered elf would probably be a terrible idea. Icepaw knew by watching Hydrozeno that the elf was clearly trained to fight. He had a balance in the way he walked that indicated he knew how to move properly and a hard edge in his eyes that Icepaw knew meant that Hydrozeno had killed before.
Hydrozeno, for his part, was not stupid. He knew Icepaw thought the crystals were important and was wondering if he would have to kill the fox. Still maybe he could convince the fox to tell him why they were important.
“So, they are valuable.”
Icepaw’s ears rose up to alertness and his tail went still. The golden eyes of Hydrozeno were locked onto him with all the intensity of a hunter studying its prey. No, this was not someone Icepaw wanted to cross. He nodded.
“Yes. Those crystals can be ingested to increase a person's abilities, both physical and magical.”
“So they can make me stronger or heal faster.”
“Among other things, yes.”
Hydrozeno picked up one of the skill crystals and eyed it dubiously.
“So I eat it and then what?”
“Just focus on the skill you want to improve. Do you have a particular skill you are good at? What skills do your Gifts affect?”
“I am good with a bow and scimitar and I heal really fast. I don’t know what you mean by gifts.”
Icepaw twitched his eyes in annoyance.
“You don’t know about Gifts?”
“I think I remember hearing something about important gifts when I was really little before…”
Hydrozeno trailed off, his eyes glazed over as he remembered the distant past. Icepaw nodded slowly. Clearly something traumatic had happened when Hydrozeno was small and the result was nobody taught him properly. Icepaw stood up and started to pace as he thought about how to explain everything.
“So Gifts are… How do I say this? Items that are given us on the day of the Forging of Fates, which actually should be sometime soon, tomorrow I think. Are you sixteen?”
Hydrozeno shrugged uncertainly.
“Ok, well basically you go into this magic door and come out with two items that enhance skills that will help you.”
“Like a scimitar or a bag?”
“Yeah, actually weapons are one of the most common. Wait, how did you know that?”
“Oh it happened to me earlier today. I got this scimitar and bag.”
Icepaw stopped and looked at Hydrozeno with his eyes narrowed. Then he looked down at the coat he was wearing and vaguely remembered the sword he found this morning that w as currently leaning against the bunk in the other room. Icepaw could not remember where or when he had found them. At the time he had been feeling so miserable with his cold that he dismissed it as too much to think about it but now.
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
Icepaw closed his eyes while his tail flicked back and forth anxiously. Had he lost track of the days? Had he really gone through his Forging without ever realizing it? There was no way he could have. The settings were supposed to be unique to every person’s desires. Beautiful places to put all those who entered at ease and feel safe.
Icepaw sneezed. With a groan he picked up a nearby handkerchief and wiped at his snout. The cold had gotten much better since the bowl of soup earlier but it was still stubbornly sticking around. That’s when it clicked in Icepaw’s brain.
What better and more comforting setting for a sick and tired fox than a familiar cozy kitchen with a nice warm pot of soup that could ease the symptoms of a cold. It did not seem to be cured, but even magic had trouble curing a common cold.
With the realization of what just happened finally sinking in Icepaw looked down and really focused on the lovely blur and white coat he was now wearing. There was a brief tingling in the back of his mind as he stared at his Gift, the Coat of Changing. It amplified his illusion magic. That would be very useful. Icepaw looked up at Hydrozeno who had been staring wordlessly at him while he thought.
“One moment, I need to grab something.”
Icepaw dashed out of the small galley and down the hall to retrieve the sword, his Gift, from the other room.
Hydrozeno eyed the door Icepaw had fled through, startled, then he looked down at the dog, who he had just decided he would name Black.
“That fox is weird.”
The small dog cocked its head up at Hydrozeno and just stared. If anyone else had heard the comment they would have laughed at the irony of Hydrozeno’s statement.
A minute later, Icepaw dashed back into the room with the blue and white sword and sheath. Hydrozeno’s hand flew to the hilt of his scimitar but the first thing Icepaw did was lean over and give a loud hacking cough that lasted several seconds and left the white furred Kitsune doubled over gasping for air.
“S-sorry… about that.”
More coughing followed the apology. Hydrozeno just nodded his acceptance of the apology and slowly removed his hand from his blade’s hilt. This sick and enfeebled fox was clearly not a threat. Even if healthy, Hydrozeno doubted that the Icepaw would be a serious threat to him. After all, Hydrozeno was literally created to be the perfect soldier.
Icepaw finished his coughing and settled back into his chair, placing the sword on the table as he did so. Once he settled back into a comfortable position, Icepaw studied the blade.
“This is my Gift.”
Icepaw drew the elegant and thin sword from the blue sheath. The steel was an icy blue that seemed almost transparent and Icepaw thought he felt a chill run through the air. He knew that any magic he sent into the Rapier of the Frozen would be converted into ice that would slow anyone it cut.
Hydrozeno drew his scimitar. It was not a fancy weapon. The hilt was simple bronze and the blade was an unremarkable appearing steel to Icepaw’s eyes.
“What does it do?”
Hydrozeno sat for several seconds before he answered so quietly it was almost a whisper.
“It makes fire.”
Icepaw flicked his ear in amusement.
“Fire and ice. Fate is poetic don’t you think?”
Hydrozeno shrugged. He did not know anything about poetry, but if Icepaw said that was the case then Hydrozeno was inclined to believe him. Icepaw seemed to know a lot of things that Hydrozeno did not. The two sat there admiring the two weapons that lay on the table and both thinking hard to themselves. Hydrozeno finished his thinking first. He reached out and slid a portion of the crystals that still sat heaped upon the table towards Icepaw.
“These crystals are valuable, right? This lot is yours if you will teach me everything you know about them and Gifts.”
Icepaw hesitated, then picked up one of the crystals. Then he counted the others that had been pushed towards him. There were twenty still on the table and the one in his hand. Icepaw knew that he would likely never see such a bounty of skill crystals again. This many skill crystals would not make him a powerhouse in the grand scale of things, but it would allow him to compete with slightly older more experienced individuals and put him far ahead of the curve compared to other people his own age.
Icepaw eyed the elf sitting across from him and reassessed his opinion of him. He had thought Hydrozeno an uneducate, stupid brute at first but now Icepaw saw the calculating gaze behind the gleaming golden eyes. The elf knew that he had almost certainly offered far more in trade than any information Icepaw could offer was worth. This was an offer for a partnership. Icepaw to lead and guide and Hydrozeno would follow. If Icepaw led well and did not try to betray Hydrozeno it would work well. If Icepaw failed to uphold his end of the bargain, well the remaining seventy six skill crystals sitting in front of Hydrozeno would give him a significant advantage in taking his revenge on any double crossers.
Icepaw nodded slowly and smiled. Hydrozeno grew up in a cave and was uneducated, but he was most certainly not stupid.
“Alright my friend. Then let's start ingesting these skill crystals and increase our skills. Incidentally, did you know you can strengthen your gifts with them as well? No? Let me show you how.
Name: Hydrozeno
Age: 16
Race: Hydrablood Elf
Mana:
Blessings:
Scimitar of Flame: Level 1 0/2 Does 1 point of fire damage
Bag of the Companion
Health Level 2 2/4 Health 2/2
Claws Level 2 2/4
Bite Level 2 3/4
Fur Level 1 1/2
Skills:
Health: 19/19
Longevity: Level 4 1/16
Darkvision: Level 4 1/16
Bow Range: Level 1 0/2
Bow Damage: Level 3 1/8
Bow Accuracy: Level 3 0/8
Regeneration: Level 9 0/256 9/9 points used
Regeneration: Level 3 0/4
Instant Regeneration: Level 3 1/4
Swimming: Level 2 1/4
Scimitar Accuracy: Level 3 0/8
Scimitar Damage: Level 3 0/8
Scimitar Parry: Level 1 0/2
Light Armor: Level 1 0/2
Acidic Blood: Level 1 0/2
Cooking: Level 1 0/2
Intimidation: Level 2 0/4
Poison resistance: Level 1 0/2
Name: Icepaw
Age: 16
Race: Beastman
Mana:
Basic Mana 3/3
Blessings:
Rapier of the Frozen Level 2 0/4 Adds 2 point of ice damage per mana spent
Coat of Changing Level 3 0/8 Adds 3 levels to Illusion magic and spells
Skills:
Health 19/19
Darkvision: Level 4 1/16
Animal Handling: Level 4 1/16
Unarmed Accuracy: Level 1 0/2
Unarmed Damage: Level 1 0/2
Unarmed Evasion: Level 2 2/4
Tracking: Level 2 0/4
Survival: Level 2 0/4
Climbing: Level 3 0/8
Basic Mana: Level 3 0/8
Crafted Illusion: Level 3(6) 0/8 3(6)/3(6) point used
Illusion Size: Level 2 0/4 Illusion has max size of 2 foot squared
Illusion Duration: Level 2 0/4 Illusion lasts 10 seconds per mana spent
Disguise Self: Level 2(5) 2/4 disguises oneself in an illusion for 2(5) minutes per mana spent
Sleight of Hand: Level 1 0/2
Sailing: Level 1 0/2
Perception: Level 2 1/4
Insight: Level 1 1/2
Ice Mana: Level 1 0/2
Notes on skill crystals and their economics: Skill crystals are not easy to obtain. They can only be found when a creature is slain. It does not matter if the creature is a simple monster or a sentient race. All creatures can drop them, but just because all creatures have the potential to drop them doesn’t mean all of them will. Only creatures who have achieved a certain level of power will drop them and the amount of crystals dropped will only give you a tiny fraction of that creature's power. In a way this is fortunate in that it means you cannot just go out on a murderous rampage to obtain massive quantities of crystals. After all, ninety nine percent of individuals do not achieve the power necessary to leave behind even one crystal(the exceptions being elves and dwarves and other long lived races).
This makes skill crystals relatively rare to find and this in turn makes them valuable. Of course a single crystal is not truly enough to make a significant difference in an individual’s overall power. It just brings you slightly closer to the next threshold. So why then do skill crystals sell for such ridiculous prices? The answer is economics and nobility. The nobility and richer castes often have tens of thousands of gold to spend on as many crystals as they can find. So when a poor adventurer or soldier or some other poorer individual finds a crystal they find themselves in this position. They could ingest the crystal themselves but it probably won’t help them much if at all as they will likely never get their hands on another one for years if ever. Or they can sell that crystal and feed and house themselves and their families comfortably for months. In the end they almost always sell.
And in this manner the rich and powerful accumulate more power and the common masses remain powerless. The only race to not follow this economic rule is the elves who are so long lived(typically 500-700 years) that it is almost a certainty they will acquire sufficient power to find many more opportunities for crystals. -
-Excerpt from the notes of Dan Del Torrre