Tilly crept through the trees noticing that his ability to move silently had increased significantly with his Stealth Skill and improved Dexterity Stat. He wouldn't say he was undetectable by any means, but it no longer seemed like he was tromping through the woods on a weekend hike. The sounds of combat grew as he drew closer and stopped short of entering the clearing where the snarls and yips originated. He double-checked his notifications to make sure he hadn't been noticed in his approach.
You have entered into Stealth.
You have avoided detection by several hostile creatures.
Something about the scene in the clearing struck Tilly as wrong. Despite his unfamiliarity with the ways of this world, he knew what he was witnessing was not an occurrence in the natural order of things around here. Four skinny Hyena-like creatures with bulbous heads surrounded a majestic white stag-like creature with a set of antlers so thick they resembled brambles. Scattered around the clearing were numerous gored bodies of the hyena creatures.
All of their bodies, including the four still alive were riddled with the same veiny black affliction that had marred the face of the Jakalope. They had obviously been harrying the stag with attacks for a long while, and Tilly noted that it alone was free of the infections that had marked every other creature Tilly had seen in this forest so far.
While the Stag had held its own against many opponents, it was clearly on its last legs. Its beautiful white coat was covered in an oozing network of cuts and teeth marks. Tilly called up his log for more information on what he was seeing.
You have identified a level 4 Corrupted Crocotta.
You have identified a level 4 Corrupted Crocotta.
You have identified a level 4 Corrupted Crocotta.
You have identified a level 5 Corrupted Crocotta.
You have identified Level 47 Carnonos.
Caution This is a Local Forest Spirit and holds sway over this domain.
As he was reading, two of the Crocottas rushed towards the Carnonos’ front with gurgling yips and snaps of their black frothing jaws. The Carnonos lowered its antlers to meet the charge, but their attack was a feint, and a third Crocotta lunged from behind, latching its teeth onto the Carnonos’ bloody flank like a yellow and black stained vice.
The Carnonos’ antlers glowed bright green as he thrust them forward and Tilly was surprised to see some of the antler tips vanish and appear to stab into the opponents who had feinted ten feet away. The glow faded and the antler tips returned leaving gaping holes with rivulets of dark blood pouring from the hyena's sides. The move had depleted whatever remaining energy the Carnonos had and it drunkenly swayed from side to side, trying to dislodge the Crocotta from its hindquarters.
Tilly ground his teeth as he watched the stag fighting to its last breath even though it was outnumbered and surrounded. A burning sensation started to build in the pit of his stomach. Almost like his anger at the sight had manifested a physical sensation giving weight to the dissatisfaction he felt at the injustice playing out in front of him. The black substance, or “Corruption” as the System called it, was clearly attempting to infect everything in this forest. The idea of this stuff spreading through the local wildlife evoked memories of all sorts of movies and books that told him this kind of thing, if left unchecked, would quickly become a calamity for everyone in this region.
He didn't know what he could do against such a huge problem, but a long time ago he had learned to follow the tug in his guts. He once again found himself moving before he had consciously thought through his actions. He needed to level, and these assholes seemed like a great place to start. He lifted his right hatchet above his head and let it fly at the Crocotta still flanking the stag and charged one of the two in front with the fresh wounds.
While the infected creatures were slow on the uptake, the Carnonos’ eyes lit up with renewed energy as it spotted him. It suddenly leapt back ramming its unwelcomed rider against a tree.
That was all he was able to take in before Tilly's entire attention was taken by the enemy in front of him. The creature had begun to turn its head, but it was too late, Tilly had it. He arrived at its side in a full sprint and brought his hatchet down in a crossbody chop that eviscerated the already wounded torso and knocked the Crocotta flat, exposing the interior of its infected and nearly liquified chest cavity.
A vicious gurgling snarl sounded to his right as he regained his balance from the half-tackle, half-chop. He stumbled back to his feet from what was a much more effective attack than he had anticipated and instinctively threw up his right arm to shield his body, as foaming jaws chomped at him.
In a sickeningly familiar twist of fate, his right arm had been pierced again in several places under the creature's chomping onslaught. Yelling in defiance at the shock of being mauled, Tilly brought around his hatchet in an overhand strike. The head of his weapon lodged in the creature's neck even as the creature began to try and rag-doll him in the grip of its jaws.
Tilly planted his feet and ripped the head of his hatchet free in a spurt of dark blood. The creature weakly swiped at his leather-clad legs with its front paws before falling completely still. Tilly quickly worked his arm free of its jaws and looked up to try and locate the other two. He shook out his injured arm and was surprised to find that while the sleeve had holes in it, the armor had held up fairly well, keeping the wounds superficial.
The Crocotta that had clamped onto the Carnonos’ hindleg was in a boneless heap on the ground, with a possible broken neck, and the other was pinned against a tree by several ethereal antler tips. Surprisingly it also had Tilly’s other hatchet lodged into its back.
'Score one for ax throwing at the county fair!'
The Carnonos however was barely any better off. Its sides were covered in weeping gashes that seemed inflamed even from a distance, and worse, the Crocotta it had managed to dislodge from its back had taken a significant chunk of its flank with it. It was now free-flowing with bright arterial blood.
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The creature's features however seemed calm. It settled down into the grass of the clearing as if to rest and stared at Tilly.
Tilly was at a loss for what to do, it was clearly beyond help, yet his heart went out to the thing. He moved slowly with deliberate steps towards the Crocotta pinned to the tree, and with a quick jerk, he pulled his weapon free. He then turned to look at the Carnonos once again, at a loss for what to do.
“You may approach Son of Flame.” A bass voice resounded in Tilly’s thoughts.
Tilly stood stock still for a second, completely shocked to hear a voice in his head.
“CAN YOU HEAR MY THOUGHTS?” Tilly shouted in his head like a senior citizen using speaker phone.
The creature just looked at him placidly.
“Guess that's a no.” Tilly thought with a shrug, before approaching slowly.
“Uh, the first thing I have officially met in this place...” Tilly began, lamely trying to find what would pass for small talk with the Forest Spirit.
“I was once the Elder Spirit of this area, but my authority has been usurped, and what you see now is a result. I am a shadow of my former self, and even that shadow now fades.”
Tilly slowly closed the distance between them until they were just a few feet apart, keeping his movements calm and measured. It didn't seem like it held any animosity against him, but just to be safe he made sure to appear unthreatening.
“Is that how you know my class name?”
“It is how I know many things, none of which can help me now. But perhaps I can help you.” The Carnonos answered tiredly, his large eyes beginning to droop.
Tilly almost sagged with relief, the unnoticed feeling of being abandoned had been subtly grinding down any hope he had of actually surviving such a hostile environment. To find someone even slightly sympathetic to his plight was a huge relief. Even if that someone was a giant magical deer-thing.
“That would be incredible! I could use any help you can give me. They kind of dropped me off here yesterday without a tutorial or guide or anything..." Tilly's ramblings cut short as he saw the creature's head begin to dip as if finally succumbing to the weight of its numerous antlers.
"Wait. Is there anything I can do to help you? Those wounds don't look too good.”
“My time has passed. If I linger too much longer I will become like one of them... No, I would rather give up the rest of my power to one who will fight.” It said, some ferocity entering back into its voice as it thrust its head upright by sheer force of will.
Tilly felt that same strange burning stir behind his navel at the sound of those last words of defiance. The fire there churned and intensified and he could feel the slight nausea of doubt and anxiousness begin to burn away.
'This isn't a game, and I will survive! I can't let this thing go without getting some information.'
“What is infecting the forest? How is it getting into the creatures around here?”
“It is not just here, it is many places across the Land. The time for choosing sides has come, and I realized it far too late. It has taken root in the temple dedicated to the old one, not far up the mountain from here. There it is attempting to claim a place of power and grow unstoppable. Hold out your weapons to me. My time comes to an end, and if I am to give my gift, it must be now.” The voice finished urgently in his head, as the Spirit dipped its antlers forward again.
Well, whatever this thing wanted to do, Tilly was pretty sure it wouldn't hurt his chances at survival. He wasn't so sure about getting caught up in this conflict, but as things stood, he didn't think he had much of a choice. The infection was raging all around him, and he would need every resource he could get to survive. He slowly lifted his two hatchets before the Carnonos. As he did, the new fire at his center roared in approval, and he realized it was tied to the part of him that was tired of running. It might have been reckless to choose another life on this plane and risk whatever reward he had earned. But he had done it. He had rolled the dice, and now it was time to see just what he could do in this new world.
No more running from pain, or other people's problems. Tilly didn't know exactly what he could do against something like this. He was used to simple problems. Someone in front of you is dying? Save them. You pull up to a burning building? Put it out.
But this? An infection growing to threaten all of the 'Land'? He didn't know if he would be able to do anything about it, but he was going to try. He was done quitting on life before he even tried.
The Carnonos nodded to him as if it could sense his decision and lowered its head until his huge brambly rack of antlers touched the ends of his weapons. As they made contact, the handles of the hatchets and the antlers began to glow.
The light grew brighter and brighter until, in a flash, Tilly was blinded. He tried not to panic and continued to hold up the weapons, but his world had become a blueish-white haze. With the light came heat and that heat grew until even Tilly couldn't stand to hold onto them any longer. He dropped them with a grunt and shook out his hands while blinking rapidly to try and gain back his vision.
He squeezed his eyes shut and rubbed them with the heels of his hands for a few long moments and then opened them again.
As soon as he did, he found the Carnonos was gone. Lying on the grass in front of him were his two hatchets with completely new handles. They now seemed to be made out of an antler-like material and were covered in indecipherable markings.
Tilly began to reach for them, and they popped out of existence before his eyes, reappearing in his hand instantaneously. He stood there marveling at them when Identify triggered.
Origin’s primitive stone hatchets: +10% to Dexterity. (Legendary, growth type)
+Imbued Ability Recall.
“Oh hell yes!” Tilly exclaimed loudly to himself. Without another thought, wound back his arm and threw one away, sending it soaring through the trees. Then he made a grasping motion with his hand and it reappeared back in his grip.
“Hello, very exploitable power!” He said in triumph as his DM mind started furiously processing the possibilities of such an ability.
He did note that the two recalls had depleted his mana by 2% each, which while negligible was still something to keep in mind. He was about to throw both off into the distance to further test his new power when more of the gurgling barks sounded from outside the clearing.
“Shit, I guess they are still looking for this guy!” Exclaimed Tilly as he realized he was already caught in the crossfire of this conflict. Hoping to evade pursuit, he tucked his hatchets through the loops on his belt and dashed in the opposite direction from the sounds.
This time, as he moved, he prioritized speed over stealth. He needed to find a way out of their reach and none of the thin, pine-like trees surrounding the clearing were going to work. He leaped over bushes and swiped away branches as his eyes roamed his surroundings looking for something climbable and tall.
The gurgling barks had grown more aggressive as they entered the clearing he was just in, before pausing and then continuing on in his direction.
Tilly spotted what he needed up ahead and took a running leap to catch on the lowest hanging branch before hauling himself up. The whole action might not have been quite to Spiderman level yet, but it definitely would have been impossible for him just yesterday.
He continued to climb until he was comfortably two stories off the ground. He then turned back towards the ground and found a brand new pack of Crocottas milling around the bottom of his tree. There looked to be about eight of them and just as Tilly started to wonder what he was going to do now, one of them looked up and started to bark manically.