Medium Ballista Tower - Complete!

+10 XP awarded to builders and the keeper crystal

It was finally ready. The stone tower’s foundation was finished, the walls, turret and cap stood tall, ready to weather any assault. Finally the new weapon was placed, and hammered into the floor. Carter and the dwarf had spent hours designing this one, it would function well. Until it destroyed itself too, we needed better ways of refining materials.

The dungeon must grow.

Yeah, yeah. I was making it grow, lots. I led our band through the darkest days and used all we had against the horde of bones and magic. With our dedication we prevailed, thanks to me.

Dan sat up on the box and looked into the shiny trowel he had, seeing his reflection. He looked up and watched Scott prance around the new weapon gleefully. In truth any minion could use the siege weapon, but it was tradition that fighting class minions got to do it.

George the guard minion sat beside Dan, slouching down so their heads were level. Dan didn’t know how he had managed to do it, but George had grown, and that irritated him. He was the first minion, the first that had graced this odd world and the first to shape it for the great keeper. He needed more power, he needed more abilities to lead his fellow minions.

He also wanted to be taller.

Visions entered his mind. A world far away full of speeding machines on the ground, on the sea, and in the sky. Another vision showed Josh sitting in front of a magical viewing screen with images of small creatures getting into man-like suits of metal as tall as mountains to wage war. Dan wanted one, then he could be the tallest.

“Merp,” George said, offering Dan a berry. “The building project went well thanks to your leadership, have a berry.”

It had gone well thanks to his leadership talent that boosted everyone’s working skills. Sadly Dan still did not succeed in his goal and was stuck as a commoner.

Dan, Minion, Level 3 Commoner

Strength 8

…

In addition to gaining levels all the minions had received minor additions to their stats. Dan had hoped pooling some into strength would fix his height issue, but alas, it did not. The crystal had once shown him a line of text that Dan wanted almost as much as more height. A powerful prestige class that could aid him, the crystal, the strange friends, and of course, the mighty keeper. Aiding the keeper was always the priority. But such power was out of reach, for the moment.

Dan shook himself from his thoughts and thanked George. He bit into the sweet juicy berry. They didn’t need to eat, in fact it was almost detrimental for them to feast as it took away resources. Yet the keeper insisted on it, and the minions always rejoiced, for such a show meant they were living in luxury.

Many minions that returned to the great nexus spun tales of hardship of never ending work with no play. That was the life of a minion, and the fact Dan and George were sitting and enjoying the sun meant that they had lucked into working for a great keeper. The keeper however wasn’t very lucky, and Dan remembered barely setting up the roots of the dungeon before they were attacked by the fearsome stag hare.

“Merp, how-w are…merp,” Dan grumbled. “Thank you brother for the treat. How-w are… your new powers coming? Sorry, the strange tongue these people use wear on me.”

George nodded and waved a hand to show his newest talents.

Blitz assault - Rank 1

After expending a moderate amount of stamina the user increases their might and speed as if they had +3 Strength and +3 Dexterity for a short while. The first attack made during this ability gains additional potency.

Guardian’s Aura - Rank 1

Passive Talent

Friendly creatures within a short distance gain a +1 to all saves against magical effects. If a friendly creature suffers damage within the aura the Guardian can reduce the damage in exchange for stamina.

Dan was impressed, these talents would allow George to be invaluable during the next siege. Mere beasts of the forest would fall to him, if they could get him better equipment. Dan looked in dismay at the barrel lid shield, crude spear and pot helmet George still wore.

“Why-y?” Dan asked, pointing at the spear.

“Me m-make…at…h-home,” George said, sounding the strange words slowly.

Dan nodded in understanding. It was sentimental, something the keeper had taught them. They had created a secret shrine down below and had stored away the things the keeper had asked them to hide. They even had a spot for the shattered sword he had once used in the defense of the dungeon. A time when he sent them to safety and braved the dangers himself.

“G-good?” Carter asked, calling them over.

They gathered at the siege ballista at the top of the strong stone tower. The tower rose three stories into the air, clearing the tops of all other buildings in the town. It was a good vantage point for Scott, and the rooftop they made would protect him from the weather.

“Ah, reminds me of home,” Sten the mighty dwarf said.

The strange dwarf of formidable strength and fancy words had brought a sketch to them detailing the ins and outs of stone block tower design. With it added to their recipes it had been short work to harvest large blocks of stone and build the tower from the ground up.

“No shooting at my workshop,” Burn the jumpy goblin said.

Dan found the goblin the strangest addition to the dungeon. He had heard they were once the minions of this world until his kin came along. Dan felt a sense of rivalry with the goblin and had pushed the minions to outperform the goblin’s work. Yet the mixtures the goblin crafted with his knowledge and magic made the keeper happy, so he stayed.

They looked out the open windows and saw down below the other dungeon friends had gathered. The first of the dungeon friends was Lin, a cat girl that could sneak around the dungeon without the detection of the crystal. She had kept the keeper safe, but also brought him into danger many times. Dan still liked her.

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“Ro-la-da,” George shouted, getting the attention of the people below. “Hi.”

The happy fox girl waved up to them as did the dungeon friends. Among them he also saw the pretty fox woman who was kin to their dear friend Rolada. The two fox women had quickly become the favourite among the minions and Dan made sure he accommodated any of their requests. However, Rolada’s kin, Sliva, Dan feared. She was powerful, so powerful that when Dan was near her he felt the void dust within his veins tremble.

Then there was Bent Plate, the tall one. He was a threat to the very fabric of Dan. He was far too tall, and could not be trusted. Dan leered his gaze down at him, pleased at how small the ogre looked from up here.

“We are going on a short trip Dan, be back in a day or so. Can’t wait to see some progress when I get home, but don’t stress yourself,” Josh the keeper shouted.

The keeper, the most important being in this world, spoke directly to him, Dan. Not George, not Carter, not Sten or Burn, but him. Dan was pleased at this and the crystal hissed at the back of his mind. Dan told the crystal he was the prime minion, the most important and here the keeper yet again showed it.

“B-bye,” Dan shouted back, waving.

He would make the dungeon grow, he would make it strong. He would do it for the keeper, the crystal, for himself and his brothers.

…

“We’ve been walking all day, are you sure it’s this far?” I asked, jumping from stone to stone, following Lin.

Lin kicked a chunk of ice off a rock she stood on into the icy river. “It’s winter time, so our marching pace is reduced. Gotta keep that in mind you know.”

I jumped over two rocks, clearing the rest and landing on the far bank with Lin. I checked to make sure everything was still on me and looked behind us to see how far we had come. The elevation had made the journey difficult, but from up here the effort was all worth it.

I breathed in the crisp mountain air, and blew out a long cloud of mist. “Look at that…ah!”

I waved my hands as a sudden pop up startled me. Lin laughed beside me and held onto me so I didn’t slip and fall into the river.

Athletics Check : Success!

+3 XP gained.

“Is there a way I can tell what will or won’t give me experience?” I asked.

“Well it’s up to Ewyernar,” Lin said. When she saw I wasn’t getting it she cocked her head to the side. After a brief pause her mouth hung open in a wide O. “Does dirt not manage stuff for you guys?”

“Lin, we have been over this. Magic isn’t there, levels and stats aren't there. It’s also called Earth. Not dirt, Earth,” I said.

“Sorry, it's just hard to wrap my head around that gunk. Like how can you tell if someone is stronger than you besides the obvious looks? How do you tell if someone has higher intelligence?” Lin asked.

We got a move on and I had to explain to her yet again that Earth didn’t have magic. You got stronger from working out and the only way to really tell who was better at what was with testing. I walked ahead and lifted a few snow covered branches up out of the way for Lin to pass through without having to crouch.

“Your world is weird Josh. Well to put it simply Ewyernar’s power is always watching and when we do something she thinks is valuable you get experience points. The easiest way to get it is by learning something new,” Lin said.

“So the world…is watching us like a person?” I asked.

“Not all of us. She’s pretty damn busy keeping everything going. Keeping portals intact, keeping the flow of magic stable and delegating powers to gods. A lot of those gods then use spirits that use scrying pools to watch everyone and when you do something they think is worthy, they give you experience, talent unlocks, stuff like that,” Lin said. She let out a huge yawn and looked at the horizon. “It’s getting late. Guess we might be snuggling up in a tent tonight.”

“I wouldn’t mind that,” I said, giving her rump a little squeeze. Lin slapped my hand away with her tail and pointed at my nose. I chuckled and smiled at her. “What?”

“We are in wild, probably dangerous territory. Don’t get my blood going now or I’m going to ride you in these bushes,” Lin said, wagging her finger at me.

I chuckled to myself and followed Lin over a fallen log, and up a snowy ridge. After making it up and having enough air to still chat I thought back to my last encounter with the strange god that had an interest in me.

“Do they hand out cards with abilities on it often?” I asked.

Lin looked at me quizzically. “Not often. The only time I ever had it happen was in a dream. It was about a minor goddess of luck in the guise of a beautiful woman that handed me a gold coin after…a night of fun we had. Next game of luck I played I was guaranteed to win and I used it to score a jackpot.”

I whistled and raised my eyebrows. “You fucked a god and got powers? Mine just sent me on this dumb errand.”

Lin’s smile went ear to ear and she led us up a path to the next ridge. Finally with the sun beginning to set we saw our destination. It was a mountain top fort with a huge brass dome at the top of it. It was still a far distance away, but I could pick out a ton of buildings behind its tall crumbling walls.

“Looks in good shape,” I said.

“Hmm, now there's some good loot to rob,” Lin said. When she looked back at me glaring she quickly back peddled. “I meant archeology work. We are doing important archeology work.”

“Fine,” I sighed, shaking my head. “I just need the book he wants, but I don’t even know what kind of book I need to get.”

“Exactly, let’s just take all the books. One of them is bound to be right. Also some other things kicking around in case the old lad wants a new candle set or something. Maybe you would like to persuade him to give me another power?” Lin asked, elbowing my side.

“Hey, you already have one amazing power, maybe I want one,” I said.

Lin got close to me, and leaned into my ear. She playfully nipped at my earlobe and let out a purred moan that made me weak in the knees. She let her hands get close to my thighs, so close I could feel the heat from her hand but she held back from touching me.

“Are you sure I couldn’t convince you otherwise?” she asked, licking at my neck.

“Lin,” I coughed. “Shouldn’t we look for a campsite?”

“You mean like right there?” Lin asked, turning hotly on her heels and bouncing with joy.

A few hundred feet ahead nestled between a massive oak and a few saplings was a camp. There were four tents in a loose semicircle with a roaring fire between them. I could smell the stew they were cooking and it smelled delightful. Lin began to skip towards them and I quickly pulled her back to get into cover behind a thin bush.

“What if they are dangerous?” I asked in a whisper.

“Third tent, see the holy symbol of Heinekia?” Lin said, directing me. “Little more on the left, can barely see it in the dim lighting. That’s not an ordinary version of it, that’s the one for one of her questing paladins. That means we found a team of adventurers.”

“That’s worse Lin!” I hissed. “I’m the kind of guy they hunt down.”

“Well don’t tell them you're a keeper silly,” Lin said, tapping me on the forehead. “Duh. Just smile and make a new fun friend.”

Lin slipped out of reach and I hurriedly chased her. When we reached the campsite we found it empty with only a boiling pot of hearty stew. That was until we heard a groan inside the paladin’s tent.

Worried for the safety of our potential new allies Lin and I crept up to the tent. We heard a cry of what could have been pain and we rushed at the tent, opening the flap with weapons in hand.

I could not tell if the inside was the outside too, for what awaited us was a rather big room stuffed with white, soft pillows and plush blankets. Stretched out on a bed roll in the centre of the room was a young woman. The colour of her unblemished skin and immaculate hair challenged that of fresh snowfall.

Glistening beads of sweat dotted her body and her head was burrowed back into a cluster of pillows. One of her hands squeezed a fist sized breast, groping the supple skin while the other was firmly placed between her wide spread thighs, revealing her wet sex and a toy lodged inside.

She was biting down on a roll of fabric, suppressing another moan. Yet it died in her throat when her ruby red eyes locked with ours.

A tense moment passed and Lin elbowed my side pointing at the pair of goat horns protruding from her head. “Hey look, handlebars!”