The path that she had claimed appeared to be completely lacking in terms of spawners, but it had been rather cheap and had given her access to multiple buildings. Each building, however, was unclaimed. It would take some time to bring them all into her dungeon's territory. This was definitely the first expansion to come without a spawner - she'd looked for it everywhere. That irked her somewhat. She turned to address her group - Tetra, Ajax, four skeletons, Azazel and two ghosts.
"We will be expanding to the west. I have six anima currently and it will take... eight, to expand into the northwestern section of the village. That is without mentioning the cost of claiming the farmhouses and farmlands that are accessible to us. It may be best to capture the closest farm in the short term and use my anima to upgrade my spawners, so your goal is to capture any chaka in the northwestern sector. Bring them to me and I will have them slain under controlled conditions. If you are forced to kill, then kill. However, I do not want to waste anima if I happen to reach full capacity. Take the boy with you." His life is worth more than that of my normal skeletons, but less than Tetra's and yours. She sent to Ajax privately, ordering those not in the small group to patrol the street that was now hers. It would be important not to stretch her forces too thin, so it might be pertinent to upgrade her spawners. Assuming that an upgrade would bring more numbers with it, she would be better suited to upgrading a skeleton or zombie spawner. She needed more minions and knew that the gargoyles - her shock troops - would be more expensive to upgrade. As for the ghosts, six was enough for now. She needed more solid bodies.
Thankfully, she had discovered how to use her dungeon map for more than just a visual representation as she had meddled with its functions. It now displayed her active spawners, allowing her to select them from afar. Bringing the window into the corner of her vision, she stood watch with her patrolling guards and waited for her 'hunting' party to return with results. To expand into the northwest sector of the village, she would once again need eight Anima. To upgrade the spawner, it would be ten. She weighed her options. More soldiers... or the ability to travel to the farmland and assist at range? Most of the chaka had fled during the battle, routing at the sight of her gargoyle's destructive power, but now they would be aware of its presence. The ghosts, too, would be known. She couldn't rely on surprise any more, and she wasn't sure if her claimed areas could be 'reclaimed', either. She resolved to grow her numbers somewhat. She would attempt a spawner upgrade, note its changes relative to its cost, then plan from there.
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Tetra followed the big skeleton, Ajax, excitedly. Combat could be scary to some, but it was hard to be afraid when her side had such overwhelming power. The large stony monster could pulp her with a single punch! With that on her side, how could she be in any danger? She just had to focus on fighting and unlocking classes to assist her master. At first, she had wanted to speak to the boy, curious and wishing to learn about him. But the baleful glare she had received upon approaching him had her quickly putting space between them. She'd never felt such killing intent from... well, anything, really, in her short life. When the group reached the well, overlooking the farmland, Ajax paused and sent commands to his underlings and herself. Unlike her master's more verbal commands, these were more urges and images. More primitive, but perfectly understandable. She would stand behind the main force, using them as protection, and follow Ajax as a rear guard. If she saw an enemy, she would speak up - as the only minion capable of both speech and receiving orders - and alert the group.
With the recent battle, it was unlikely that any soldiers would be skulking around. But it paid to be safe. At least, that was her guess. She brushed her wild, shaggy mane out of her face, tucking her hair behind her floppy ears and kept watch, pulling her bow from her hip and preparing to fire on any would-be ambushers... but none came, and soon they were in the farmlands proper. Few chaka were here, less with weapons, but all looked up in shock as the party approached. They shrieked as the skeletons, gargoyle and human burst into action, rushing them. A yellow chaka, holding a basket, ran towards their encampment, possibly to call for aid! Tetra grabbed one of her flint arrows, aiming haphazardly and letting loose an arrow. It whistled through the air, the chaka screaming as it embedded itself in their calf and they dropped to the dirt. She swiftly returned her bow to its holster and drew her sword, sprinting after the wounded chaka and . Reaching the yellow farmer, she plunged her blade into his back and twisted. He clawed desperately at the ground as she withdrew her blade, stabbing again and again and again.
Chaka Forager, Lv. 3, has been slain!
You have unlocked the [Fighter] class!
You have unlocked the [Archer] class!
Blinded by the notifications, and the excitement she felt, she didn't see the skeleton rushing towards her. Turning as she heard his rapid footsteps, her eyes widened as he leapt at her! He tackled Tetra, knocking her to the ground, and she yelped in surprise! Had they mistaken her for an enemy!? What was happening? A startled cry came from nearby as a ghost wrapped its ethereal arms around a chaka that she had only just noticed, who immediately drew an arrow and attempted to plunge it into the ghost's body. Had the skeleton just saved her?
"Thank--" she began, but the skeleton hauled her to her feet and rushed off before she could finish her sentence. She stood awkwardly, then crouched to retrieve her weapon. Perhaps she had been too rash... She let out a soft sigh, turning to ensure that nobody was approaching the group. Once the chaka were incapacitated, one mutilated corpse notwithstanding, they began to drag their prisoners back. Tetra opted to heft the one she'd slain with both arms. It was almost too heavy, but she ignored her straining, protesting arms. This was her fault and her benevolent master would, at least, expect the corpse to be brought to her.
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One fatality was acceptable. As long as the anima didn't rush in and overwhelm her, she wouldn't be too rushed to spend it. Upgrading her skeleton spawner appeared to double the capacity but gave her no new paragon to spawn. Additionally, the upgrade cost had increased to 20. Would it double every time? She shrugged. Five new bodies was good, regardless. She found, interestingly, that she could 'reserve' capacity as she played with her the menus. The spawner could be set to stop spawning new skeletons once it reached eight out of ten, allowing her to manually spawn her own minions as she wished. That would be useful in situations where she wanted to spawn a specific variant, at least. Although, currently, she couldn't say what the benefits of variants were, if any. It seemed that zombies could be spawned with new variants depending on their method of death. Drained zombies appeared relatively unharmed, but emaciated. So would a person that, for example, burned to death result in a new variant? That would certainly be an experiment for another time. Now... would five more skeletons be enough to defend her territory? Perhaps with her gargoyles serving as shock troops. Zombies would be next to upgrade. She also planned to spawn a rat once she hunted down the final one necessary to unlock the pattern. They had been surprisingly sparse since the last one she'd killed. Perhaps they were simply being stealthy... or perhaps the chaka had managed to herd her skeletal hands away by chance. As her group returned, she took in the mutilated corpse that Tetra was struggling to carry and nodded calmly. Another body for the pile, then.
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"We'll start with a simple test. Erichthonius, kill this one." She ordered, motioning to a weak, emaciated chaka. Seems that the ghost fed well from this one. She fell to her knees as her captor let go of her, drawing his sword and slashing in one smooth motion... the blade dug into her throat, then stuck fast. The chaka gurgled softly, blue blood streaming down her neck as the boy struggled to recover his blade, then swung again. And again. One final time and the chaka's head dropped from her shoulders, rolling to a stop nearby as a rush of anima entered her bones. She ignored the rest of her captives' cries for mercy. They had brought this on themselves, really, by decimating what would have been a loyal group of followers. Sacrifices had to be made, and she was willing to make them. The sacrifices themselves, however, not so much. Most of her notifications had been unnecessary, and so she decided to leave only the important ones active in her view.
Chaka Archer, Lv. 4, has been slain!
"I'll need to devote some of my minions to producing higher quality weapons when able," she sighed, reaching down to pick up the head and examining the wound curiously. "Yes... definitely. Hm, I wonder if I can create a headless zombie. It certainly bares thought. Another, if you would."
It couldn't be said that Erich truly took his time with the next captive, but he certainly appeared to savor the act of executing them. His particular lust for revenge was certainly exploitable. The pause in his actions once the chaka's breath stilled was becoming familiar to The Master and, claiming the north-west path with her anima, she strode up to the boy and placed a bony hand on his shoulder.
"You've levelled up. What skills are available to you, Erichthonius?"
The boy didn't even flinch, staring at something in front of him - his skill selection, most likely. "[Power Strike], [Second Wind] and [Enrage]." He responded simply. When she didn't speak, he elaborated. "[Power Strike] is an extremely common offensive ability. Near enough every melee combatant will gain the skill early on as it builds into a much stronger, more personalised skill as you level it up. [Second Wind] lets you regain your stamina and keep fighting if you're starting to feel winded in a battle. My father said that you feel the strain afterwards, however, from exerting so much energy. And [Enrage] feels like it fills your mind with nothing but anger. You'll fight much harder but it's harder to focus... that's what it seems to be, anyway. If I may, [Power Strike] is the best choice here. I can pace myself just fine, so I'll be taking that. Is that acceptable?"
"Certainly. Your choices are, for the most part, your own. I merely wish to know what options you have." The Master replied. "Besides, I find myself in agreement. [Power Strike] is certainly a force multiplier in theory. If the results of levelling it are anything like what my own skill has received, it will be quite useful to you" She turned to Tetra as she ordered her skeletons to slay... hm, three more chaka. "Report." she stated.
"[Fighter] unlocked by fighting in combat and killing enemy. [Archer] also unlocked... but only used one arrow. Hit him, then finished with sword." Tetra listed off her class unlocks, a nervous smile on her face.
"I see. So you are the one who killed the chaka you carried back. One death is acceptable, as long as the rest are under controlled conditions." The Master shrugged. "It is tempting to have you become an [Archer] outright, but I would prefer to see what other classes you can unlock first. Hold off on selecting a class for now."
With only a single chaka left, and her anima high enough to take more land, she opted to take claim a single plot of farmland. Then, placing her palm against the chaka's forehead, she cast [Osteobolt] and pierced its skull easily with a soft crunch.
[Osteobolt] has levelled up!
With that, she claimed the chicken coop as well. Ordering her minions to spread out to guard her new land, she dismissed Tetra and beckoned to Erichthonius. With Ajax as her guard, she returned to the church. "I'll need to borrow that farmer boy for this," she hummed. "Now that we can produce food, I intend to begin doing so immediately. Tell me, Erichthonius. You have spent time with these youths. What would you make of them? Who else is a suitable soldier?"
Erich looked up, surprised that she was asking for his opinion. He had always assumed that The Wanderer was far more knowledgeable than he... though perhaps she was just making a show of valuing his input. "Well... Nera is really protective of his sister, Ramie. He already has a combat-oriented class and would gladly do what he can to keep her safe. Lysander... hates fighting, so he's out. And you said he's useful for growing food, anyway. Ramie is quite young, so I'd count her out as a fighter too. Brichtrede, the older girl, though? She's... well, unlike Nera, she believes that classes like [Thief] and [Thug] are above her." He smirked, though it was lost on The Master. "If you can get a class that is more... honorable, that would definitely motivate her to fight. She's, uh, ambitious, though, and I don't know if she'd want to be a soldier long-term. Nera is the only one who I can guarantee would be a willing soldier. Brichtrede really depends on if she's able to get something 'worthy' of her."
"I see. In that case, we'll bring along Ramie to tend to the chickens and Nera to guard her. That should keep him..." loyal. "Happy." The master shrugged. "As for Brichtrede... I'll speak to her when there is time." Searching the map, she was pleasantly surprised to find that both new locations possessed inert spawners.
Entering the bell tower, she stared down at the surprised faces of the youths. "Lysander. Nera. Ramie. You are required. Brichtrede, I will speak to you regarding your duties soon. Memna, do as you wish. The rest, follow me." Turning and leaving, she led the group outside of the gates, stopping briefly to allow Nera to gather a weapon and shield, and strode briskly to the chicken coop. There was a large, fenced off plot of land dedicated to the birds, though the coop appeared to be the entire area's namesake. "Ramie is young, and so I believe that she would be best suited to rearing these birds. It is unlikely to be dangerous and, for the time being, you will be guarding her personally." She addressed Nera. "As we gain more territory and her position is less dangerous, you may find yourself moved. But her safety will be ensured. Is this acceptable?"
"I... guess so, yeah." Nera nodded. "Thank you for this, great Wanderer. I--"
"I will require you to undergo a pledge of allegiance to me." She interrupted. "Both of you."
"O-of course... and you'll keep Ramie safe?" Nera asked, searching the skeleton's expressionless face.
"She will be a high priority in terms of defense." The Master replied honestly. "As a producer of food for my living minions, this would be guaranteed. You need not 'take me at my word', although it is in your best interests to do so, because I am your god. Regardless, no food means that some of my minions would perish. Therefore, she will be protected."
"That makes sense. So I'll just..."
Nera, Level 3 Thug, is pledging his allegiance to you.
[Accept] [Decline]
Ramie, Classless, is pledging her allegiance to you.
[Accept] [Decline]
Accepting both notifications, The Master nodded. "Excellent. Before you begin your work, however, I need to check something." She entered the pen, the chickens ignoring her, a brief search ensuing before her gaze was suddenly pulled towards the coop itself. Within was an off-colored egg, lifeless and ignored. This was her spawner, then. It cost a surprisingly low two anima... likely as the chickens were considered fauna? But weren't they larger than the rats? Was it their temperament, then..? "Every new piece of information just raises more questions." She grumbled, claiming the spawner. The entire pen's activity ceased immediately. And then, something odd happened. Immediately, she felt a tiny connection to every single bird appear. She hadn't only claimed the spawner, but retroactively gained all of the pen's inhabitants.
Spawner claimed - Chicken Spawner activated.
Chicken pattern unlocked.
Chicken Capacity: Unlimited
Spawn Paragon [5 Anima]
...
A chicken paragon?