Chapter 6 Stats and Abilities
Almost in a trance, Jake pondered the choices. In most games, magic powers are overpowered at later levels but early on they're extremely vulnerable. The fighter archetype however excels at early levels but is often outshined by magic users late game. Hybrid classes are a mixed bag; however, they are typically where exploits are found to cheese the game. He wish he had a manual or guide to see what sub-classes would be available. With that, he chose the Hybrid base class. With that, a new screen popped up:
“Warning Error
Mental and Physical Characteristics do not match the starting level.
Recalculating...”
Starting Stats:
STR 15
END 18
DEX 16
FOR 18
INT 13
WIS 17
For further information think or say Statistic description, or continue.”
Jake thought “Stat description.”
“Strength. The amount of physical force one can exert. Adds Damage to Melee weapons.
Endurance. is the amount of time one can exert physical force. Governs toughness and recovery.
Dexterity. Hand and eye coordination. Allows for precision. Adds Damage to ranged weapons and dodge chances
Fortitude. Mental strength. Allows for concentration, pain tolerance, and spell-like ability manipulation(damage, range, secondary effects).
Intelligence. Ability to learn and think fast. Governs long-term memory. You may be able to learn more complex spell-like abilities depending on your class. Governs casting energy amount.
Wisdom. Ability to think deeper and be creative. Governs short-term memory. Governs energy regeneration.”
Jake wondered why his starting stats were higher than they were supposed to be but he wasn't complaining. Now he just wanted to see what this game was about. “Continue.”
“Class selected. For slaying enemies 20 or more levels above your own you gain bonus (16x) experience and a new Title of: Giant Slayer. +5 to all base stats.
+12 Levels
+1 to all stats
Congratulations you are now a Lev 13 Hybrid
Choose 3 spell-like abilities and place 3 attribute points”
Jake Immediately put a point into Fortitude to round it to 20 and a new message popped up:
“Congratulations, you are at the pinnacle of humankind for Fortitude. Your mental toughness allows you to keep your cool in the toughest of situations and ignore pain like it doesn't exist. Your casting manipulation will let you stretch boundaries in new and interesting ways. Title gained: Mind of Steel (immune to pain and negative mental effects).
Jake felt a weird sensation like something crawling under his scalp. He felt compelled to ignore it and Continue. He put a point in END to get it to 20 also and got another message: Congratulations, you are at the pinnacle of humankind for Endurance. Title gained. Energizer (Immune to fatigue, sleep requirements reduced by half) He now felt that crawling sensation everywhere but as before was compelled onward. He dropped the last point into Dex. then looked at his final Stats:
Stats:
STR 16
END 20
DEX 18
FOR 20
INT 14
WIS 18
Jake thought if he did his math right he got a free point every 4 levels and +1 to all at every 10 if this trend continues. Now for spells. As he thought this a spell/ability Tab opened up.
Spell/Ability:
Available;
Mana bolt
Mana blast
camouflage
night-vision
Far Sight
Silence
fire bolt
flame
ice dart
ice cone
acid dart
acid cone
telekinesis
launch/Breaks
slow/speed
stench
shield
Chapter 7 Decisions Decisions
Jake went through the options and there were a few standouts looks like each damage type had short range/wide area and vice versa variants. The ones that interested him were camouflage, Telekinesis, Launch/Breaks, slow/speed, and shield. Telekinesis allows you to interact with people and objects remotely like your physical body is there. Launch/Brakes allow you to control your speed. Slow/speed allows you to control other people and objects' speed as long as they are already in motion but not in direction. The stench was for smells... Camouflage affects how others see you. He already had binoculars, NVGs, and guns to cover those contingencies... At that thought he realized this wasn't a game. Whatever this system was, it had been directing him in self-improvement. He still felt the mental effects but it was less now probably due to his stat increases. This system was in his head. It was making physical changes in there just as it was subtly changing his body... The tumor was gone. He knew it, whatever this System had done it took care of that too.
So these powers... he had to be careful about this. If others have abilities like these he needed Shield to protect himself as well as launch/breaks. Shield was a force shield to stop attacks but he needed breaks if someone else could control his speed. As for the last spell he chose Telekinesis. He could interact with anything remotely that he could see well. That's just too useful to pass up.
With his choices made he looked around. He still could not see anything. The screen didn't put off the light. It must just be projecting in his head. He felt around his way back to his tent. He found his NVGs and powered them up. He would have to conserve batteries. He had a small solar panel but it would take over a day to recharge anything substantial. At that time though the NVGs were necessary. He had been sitting here in the dark with two dead cultists for god knows how long.
Speaking of dead cultists, Jake went to each body and searched them for intel. He didn't find anything. They didn't even have pockets under their robes were just Renaissance fair costumes. He noticed they had jewelry and as he removed each piece he got a message:
This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
“You have found A greater spacial ring of holding. You have found a ring of holding. You have found a necklace of protection. You have found a bracelet of mana storage. You may bind storage items to yourself making them unusable by others while you are alive. Proceed?”
Jake mentally agreed and the display showed the contents of each. He found a few bags of various coins and some extra clothes, but the real value was in the storage items themselves. Any item you wanted to store just disappeared and reappeared at will. This would be extremely useful as he no longer saw his quad as he looked around the cavern. Thankfully all his supplies were stored in the tent for the night. He quickly broke down camp by willing most of his gear and supplies into the storage rings. He made his way in the dark to the only exit of the cavern. As he crept along the corridor he could just make out the outline of stalagmites, stalactites, and the outline of the cave wall. As he progressed he noticed other corridors branching off the main path; however, they were covered in thick webbing. The arachnid that could spin such thick webbing or any arachnid for that matter was not something Jake wanted to encounter. The webs gleamed faintly under the scarce light filtering from above, almost giving them a surreal, phosphorescent appearance. They were wet and sticky to the touch, hinting at the recent activity of their spinner.
The air grew colder and more damp as he ventured deeper into the cave, and an eerie silence settled around him. The only sound that could be heard was the soft pattern of his footsteps echoing against the cave walls. Despite the chill, Jake felt a bead of sweat roll down the back of his neck, his senses on high alert for any movement or sounds that weren’t his own.
He came across a larger chamber, and in the center, he noticed a shallow pool of water. The reflection of the water mirrored the ceiling, showing intricate patterns of the rock formations. The pool seemed to be the source of the only light in the chamber, emanating a soft, bluish glow. Jake paused to take a sip from the water, filling his flask for the journey ahead. As he crouched by the pool, he noticed tiny creatures, almost shrimp-like, swimming in the water. They were translucent and glowed with the same ethereal light as the pool.
A sudden rustling noise from one of the web-covered corridors snapped Jake back to attention. His heart raced as he tried to pinpoint the direction of the sound. It was faint, but he could discern the unmistakable sound of something large moving.
He decided not to wait around and find out what it was. As he picked up his pace, he constantly looked back, trying to catch a glimpse of whatever might be tailing him. The path began to ascend slightly, a hopeful sign that he was heading toward an exit.
The faint light at the end of the corridor grew brighter with every step. Jake couldn’t help but feel a wave of relief as the exit came into view. Bursting out into the open air, he took a deep breath, letting the cool night air fill his lungs.
He was greeted by the familiar sight of the starry night sky. His quad was nowhere in sight, likely taken by whatever had inhabited the cave. But for now, Jake was just grateful to be out of that eerie underground maze. He knew he'd have to find shelter soon, and possibly a way to get his quad back. But for now, the world seemed full of possibilities, and Jake was ready to face them head-on.
Chapter 8 Navigation Proclamation
While the stars above looked familiar the terrain was not. Jake looked around and all he could see was a swamp covered by a low mist. Each step he took was met with the squelching sound of mud and water beneath his boots. The chirping of unseen nocturnal creatures and the rhythmic hum of insects created a symphony in the darkness.
Jake recalled the Land navigation and SERE training. Using the stars as guides, he tried to discern a direction. The North Star, his usual compass in the night, was strangely dimmer than he recalled. As he looked around there seemed to be fewer stars and the moon he was able to glimpse through the canopy looked much darker.
Flickering lights in the distance caught his eye. They seemed to dance just above the swamp water, shifting in hue from blue to green to purple. Were they bio-luminescent creatures or perhaps something man-made?
Pulling his coat tighter around him, Jake decided to move towards those lights. They were the only semblance of a landmark in this seemingly endless marshland. As he trudged forward, he occasionally saw the silhouettes of tall trees, their twisted roots emerging from the water like ancient, slumbering creatures. The occasional splash nearby reminded Jake that he wasn't alone in these waters. Whatever creatures lurked beneath the surface, they were best left undisturbed.
Hours seemed to pass, with the landscape remaining relatively unchanged. But as Jake drew nearer to the source of the lights, he noticed they weren’t just aimlessly floating above the water. They were orbiting around an ancient-looking stone obelisk, covered in moss and etched with symbols that seemed familiar yet alien at the same time.
Upon reaching the structure, he felt a strange pull, a sort of magnetic urge to touch it. As his fingers grazed the surface, the symbols lit up, emitting a soft glow that mirrored the dancing lights. An ethereal voice, soft yet commanding, echoed around him.
"Traveler of the unknown, you seek direction in the mists of chaos. The path is never straight but listen to the stars, heed the song of the swamp, and let the proclamation of the ancients guide you."
Jake jumped thinking “WTF was that?! This is some straight BS.” Like a flash, his pistol was out of his holster and in his hands. The obelisk then projected a map in the air, showing pathways through the swamp and marking certain landmarks. Jake quickly re-holstered his sidearm took out a small notebook from his pocket and began sketching the illuminated map. The obelisk’s glow faded, and the dancing lights retreated into the swamp, leaving Jake once again in near darkness.
He now had a tangible guide, albeit cryptic, and greatly unnerving, to navigate the treacherous swamp. With renewed determination, he began his journey anew, hoping the Navigation Proclamation would lead him to answers, safety, and perhaps a way out of this shit show.
Chapter 9 Violent Encounter
As Jake trudged along he froze in place drawing his weapon. He felt eyes on him and he trusted that gut feeling. An instant before it struck Jake heard the whistling of a branch being swung for his head. With seemingly superhuman speed he ducked and pivoted away. What he had originally mistook for just another tree stood with vines whipping. It looked like a cross between swamp thing and a treant. Jake fired shot after shot into the thing's barky flesh. That only seemed to have minimal effect. Jake backpedaled quickly looking for an escape. Finding a normal-looking tree he dashed for it as fast as he could with the monster hot on his heels.
Jake leapt upward grabbing onto a low-hanging branch and pulled himself up. Just as he thought he was free and clear, vines wrapped around his calf. He cursed and drew his fighting knife hacking away at the vines. He looked down and saw the creature's face morph into a tubular form. The creature started sucking loudly drawing in mist and air. Jake thought, either it's trying to suck him off the branch or it's about to spit something nasty at him. Just then he remembered the fuel oil mixture he had packed for the quad. He quickly willed the container out of the storage ring dumping it down at the thing below.
The creature sucked up the fuel and its dark eyes grew wide. It jerked back sputtering and making a strange gurgling noise. Jack didn't give it a chance to retreat as he willed an emergency flare into his hand quickly striking it and pitching it into the thing's open maw. With a whoosh, the monster lit up like a Christmas tree. It burned brightly giving off a thick black smoke. Jack turned his head away from the bright light-catching movement all around the tree line. It would seem the area had been rife with hidden creatures that were now moving away.
A notification appeared. “You have slain a level 35 swamp troll. You have slain an enemy more than 15 levels above your level. Bonus Experience gained (12x). 4 Levels up. Level 20 reached subclass earned. As a silver mist poured out of the still smoldering monster corps absorbing into Jake all he could think of was, “Fuck, only one level off from getting a (16x) bonus.”
Chapter 10 More Choices
Jake opened the class tab menu and it now had sub-class options to choose from:
Hybrid Sub-classes Available:
Arcane archer
Adept
Paladin
Artificer
Beast Tamer
The arcane archer sub-class looked interesting. It allowed for magical effects on ranged weapon attacks. Adept was more complex. It focused on movement, concealment, buffs, and trickery. Paladin allowed for magical enhancements to recovery, defense, and melee attacks. Artificer was geared towards using, improving, and creating magical equipment, tools, and items. The description for Beast Tamer was interesting but not what Jake wanted. It allowed as the name inferred to control beasts in increasing numbers as you leveled up.
Jake thought about it and chose adept. He needed to get out of this swamp. He felt that fighting here would not be a winning strategy and Adept would provide movement and means of escape. Arcane Archer would be an attractive option if circumstances were different. He could imagine shooting fire bullets. Now though his priority was to survive and escape.
As he made his choice new abilities became available. “You may now choose 3 general abilities and three class abilities.”
General Abilities Available:
Available;
Mana bolt
mana blast
fire bolt
flame
ice dart
ice cone
acid dart
acid cone
slow/speed
stench
Jake already had his eye on slow/speed and camouflage, but camouflage was missing from the options as were night-vision, far-sight, and silence. So he chose Slow/Speed. Now he had two more choices and was stuck in indecision. He settled on fire bolt and mana blast. He figured it was pretty much flavoring at this point but the ability to set things far away on fire seemed to be a good choice and Mana blast would clear his immediate surroundings pushing foes back.
Once he made his selection he moved to class abilities. These were tailored to his subclass Adept:
Sub-class Abilities available:
Haste
Enhanced Senses
Unimpeded movement
Imbue Weapon/Ammo
Stat boost
Meditate
Climb
Chameleon
Jake had an extremely tough decision as he went through the options available. These options were all great and he knew he needed at least 4 of them but he could only choose 3. Haste made all movement faster. Enhanced Senses had Night-vision and far-sight built-in in addition to a 360-degree sphere of perception. All senses would be enhanced. Then there was unimpeded movement. It would allow for movement across any surface even across water or wall running. Imbue Weapon/Ammo allowed for secondary effects on weapon attacks such as burning, corrosion, or freezing, provided the weapon or ammo was imbued ahead of time. The stat boost was just unbelievable. You could boost any one stat up to your unmodified rank in fortitude depending on energy use. Meditation was also a must-have. It greatly increased energy and health recovery passively out of combat. The climb was good but not needed currently. It would allow you to stick to any surface. Chameleon was the capstone though. Depending on the energy expended you could allow light to pass through you up to invisibility.
When it came down to it he chose Unimpeded Movement, Enhanced Senses, and Meditate. Jake activated Brakes with a thought and jumped out of the tree. He slowly drifted to the surface of the swamp landing on the surface like a water strider. He could see everything around him clearly as if it were daytime. At the same time, he could still see the darkness and shadows as if it were overlapped with his vision. It was like he was seeing everything with his own eyes but like he had a third eye seeing something else. It was the same with his other senses. He could both hear and not hear every little thing around him simultaneously. Once he got to a safe place he would have to test his other abilities. With that, he activated Launch at half-power and jumped.
Jake flew up above the canopy and soared through the air. He could see some overgrown ruins of a temple up ahead and as he activated Brakes he arrested his momentum. With a new eye, he could see everything. There was a road passing the overgrown temple with a town in the distance. He saw a large expanse of sandy desert to the east and snow-covered mountains to the north. To the south was more desert with mesas and red dirt, and to the west was a huge forest. The trees there had to be hundreds of feet tall. It was green as far as he could see. He floated here for a while sketching terrain features, and points of interest, and drawing a crude map. Meditate almost completely offset the energy drain so he had time to get a pretty detailed map done.
The sun started to rise and Jake drew in a legend annotating cardinal directions. He checked his compass to make sure it agreed. It seemed to be slightly off but close enough. He annotated the degree difference and stowed the map lowering himself back to the earth. He was surprised to find he could stand on the canopy. He gingerly tested his footing. He started to jump from tree to tree. He was gaining confidence, moving faster, and jumping further. Using his new abilities he was making good time. He was lost in thought, thinking about how absurd this situation was when his ultra-sensitive hearing picked up a scream.