Uncle Moren looks at Garut meaningfully. He nods in understanding and walks over to Gael.
I look at Uncle Moren in confusion before asking somewhat jokingly,
“Is everything ok Uncle Moren? Did someone die or something?”
“No, but… listen kid there’s some things you need to know before we continue on this little ‘adventure’ of ours.”
“Things like what?” I ask suspiciously.
“Well first off who I really am.”
“You name’s not Uncle Moren.”
“Not what I meant Rowan.” Uncle Moren says clearly not in the mood for jokes.
“Ok well what do you mean then?”
Uncle Moren stops and think for a second, before gathering his breath and speaking,
“Well I suppose first off all I should let you know I also work for the Kingdom of Fillith.”
“Really? So what, are you gonna force me to join their military or something? Is that what this has been about?”
“No, definitely not. In fact, it’s the opposite. I’m gonna ask that you don’t join their military. Actually even better, I’m gonna ask that you stay the hell away from war as much as you can. I want you to train get strong, fight and kill a few enemies if you have to, but just stay the hell away from War as much as possible.”
I stare at him in contemplation.
“Why do you want me away from war so bad? It’s just killing, which apparently you deemed so important for me to do that you literally made me fight some guy to the death. So what’s up?”
“Rowan, you don’t understand. Whether it be the Empire, the Kingdom, or any other multiversal superpower like that, they will squeeze you dry until you’re nothing but a hollow husk of your former self. They’ll make you do things that even the vilest being in the multiverse would think twice about doing.”
“Like what? Kill people on a battlefield? That’s the whole point of war I thought.”
“No Rowan, things much worse. This is also the reason the Kingdom is somewhat more favorable than the Empire, they don’t force talented kids, like yourself, into that kind of stuff. For the Kingdom, it’s voluntary whether or not you join the army.”
He continues,
“Also, the Kingdom is much more reserved when it comes to committing atrocities, though that may be the reason they’re losing the war in the first place. There are some lines they aren’t willing to cross, and the Empire is.”
“Why are you telling me all this? I mean, I appreciate it and all but if you work for the Kingdom and all, wouldn’t you, I don’t know, get like a bonus for recruiting me from the Empire.”
“Maybe, it’s definitely a possibility, but Rowan I want you to understand that I don’t do this for money or power or anything like that.”
Uncle Moren sighs before continuing,
“Rowan when I was your age, I too was poached from the Empire. I was talented, gutsy, and hot-headed, the perfect type of person for the Empire to take advantage of and put through the test of war.”
“So why didn’t you? Go to war I mean. If you didn’t know anything about multiversal conflict back then, and you were as hot-headed as you say, wouldn’t you be excited for such an opportunity?”
“So yeah, that’s another thing. I, uh, actually already kinda knew Gael before all this. He’s the one who poached me from the Empire and told me what to really expect from war. That things into perspective real quick, especially when he went into… details.”
“I see…” I say deep in thought.
“I’ve seen first hand what the Empire does to it’s talents. I had a friend… or more like a brother, and instead of heeding Gael’s advice, he went out to fight the war. A year later when he came back… he wasn’t the same. Dull, unfeeling eyes, no trace of humanity in what was once the brother I knew my whole life. He killed himself not two days later, Rowan, dead to the horrors that his mind could not escape from. The horrors that the Empire put on him.”
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.
We sit in silence for what seems like hours, Uncle Moren’s face filled with grief and shame.
“If only I had convinced him Rowan, or better yet stopped him before it was too late. If only I’d seen what was going on inside his head, maybe I could’ve stopped him…”
Another bout of silence commences, as I’m utterly flabbergasted at seeing Uncle Moren with such a face.
Of all the however many years I knew Uncle Moren as a boisterous guy with sketchy morals and a soft spot for kids in need. The juxtaposition from that Uncle Moren to the one I see in front of me, conflict ridden on his face, is jarring to say the least.
After a while, Uncle Moren finally speaks,
“So yeah, kid, that’s about all I wanted to tell you. Just understand that these superpowers don’t care about you, all they want is an unfeeling machine that the human mind is not ready to become. I’m going to bed, and you should too, you’ve got plenty more goblins to kill after all. Goodnight.”
I stare in silence at Uncle Moren’s shrinking back.
‘Wow ok, that was a lot to think about I suppose…’
As I slowly walk back to the fire, I quickly make a decision on which trait I’m going to go for.
‘I’d rather be versatile in all situations than just one or two.’ I think to myself before locking in Willful Gains.
I decide to augment my dexterity, my thinking being that the more I increase my dexterity, the more progression I’ll have with Swords Mastery, which means the stronger I’ll be and the more stats I’ll gain. Snowballing further and further in strength.
I take a look at my status sheet.
Name
Rowan Attain
Level
8
Class
Race
Human/Janin
Attributes
Strength – 13 (+2)
Agility – 18 (+2)
Dexterity – 24 (+2)(+1)
Endurance – 9 (+2)
Perception – 14 (+2)
Intelligence – 10 (+2)
Willpower – 22 (+2)
(7 AP Remaining)
Masteries
Swords – 19
Temperance – 14
Stealth – 10
Sprinting – 7
Exercise – 6
Thievery – 3
Deception – 3
Killing – 4
Blending In – 1
Misdirection – 5
Monster Hunting – 8
Skills
(6 SP Remaining)
Feats
Early Killer - The deadliest killers started young, and once you've killed once, what's another? Kill a sentient being before level 1. Very slight increased progression towards your Killing Mastery.
Swords Prodigy - You've trained and begun your path of sword mastery strong. Get Swords Mastery to level 10 before level 1. Slight increased progression towards your Swords Mastery. +1 to all Stats.
Temperance Prodigy - You've tempered your mind to be as solid as stone. Get Temperance Mastery to level 10 before level 1. Slight increased progression towards your Temperance Mastery. +1 to all Stats.
Early Enlightenment - Form your core before level 1. One trait can be chosen related to your core.
Reversal – Become critically wounded in an ambush and escape/kill your ambusher(s). One trait can be chosen related to your recent ambush.
Core
Sword – Your sword resonates with omnipresence.
Traits
Indomitable Swordsman - Your will remains steadfast and unbroken while holding a sword. Receive a slight boost to perception when in a tough situation. Scales based on willpower.
Meager Swordsman - A true swordsman needs nothing but himself and the sword. Increased progression towards your Swords Mastery while living humbly.
Sword of Silence - Your sword is silent until it strikes true. Harder for enemies to detect your sword coming. Very slight increased progression towards Stealth.
Dedication to the Sword – When without a sword, even the smallest of foes may slay you, but with a sword, giants bow to your might. +2 to all stats when holding a sword, -2 to all stats when not. Increased progression towards Swords Mastery, decreased progression towards all other weapon and combat masteries.
Willful Gains – Permanently gain 5% of your willpower in any stat. Affect continues to scale with willpower. (+1 Dexterity)
While one dexterity may not seem like a lot, and it isn’t, in the future when I have thousands of points in willpower, I’m hoping that my dexterity will increase by the hundreds.
Who knows maybe I’ll get a few more traits that do something similar, allowing me to stack even more points into other stats from my willpower.
I get back to the fire to find Gael sitting by the fire alone. I’m not quite ready to go to bed just yet, so I decide to sit across from him and engage in some conversation.
“So you and Uncle Moren have known each other for a long time?” I ask curiously.
“Hmm I suppose a long time from your point of view. I’m almost 500 hundred years old young man, so you’ve got to understand what may seem like a long time to you, is not so much to me.”
“Well how long ago have you known him?”
“Well, it must’ve been close to thirty years at this point. Back then he was so foolhardy, so oblivious to the outside universe, much like yourself right now.”
I want to argue against that, but deep down I know it’s true. After all before this, I barely left the perimeter of Justice City. A small, inconsequential city on some nobody planet.
“I want to change that, I want to see more of what the multiverse has to offer, good and bad.”
“Do you though? Many think that’s what they want until it’s too late. So I ask again, are you sure that’s what you want?”
“I’m positive. I want to see and change the multiverse for the better.”
Gael grins excitedly,
“Well if that’s so, then I might have just the opportunity for you young man.”