As I run out of town, I keep a wary watch on my surroundings the entire way. Before I know it, four hours have passed with nothing happening. I arrive at the base of the Grapevine and contemplate the best method to travel through it. I decide to pull off into a hotel and ask someone who lives at the base about what I might encounter on my journey. The desk clerk informs me that they've seen some beasts at the higher reaches of the Grapevine, mostly flying monsters that swoop down and carry people off. There's also a reservoir about halfway through where monsters pop out and try to attack if you get too close. It's roughly 2 p.m., and if I run at full tilt, I can reach my in-laws' house by dusk. Taking the chance, I head up the Grapevine. I'm able to spot the birds coming from a mile away and shoot a magic missile at them to scare them off.
Congratulations! Your Ability Earth Strider has leveled up to level 13.
Scaling the hill is easier on foot than in a car since I can bypass all the traffic on the side. It's faster and just easier to make it over the Grapevine. As I see the upper San Fernando Valley, I know my goal is within sight. The rest of the trip passes without any events, and I arrive at the front door of my in-laws' house.
I knock on the door, but there's no reaction, so I do what I usually do and go around to the back. I let myself into the house, only to be greeted with a shotgun shoved into my face. I quickly put my hands up and say, "Whoa, it's me, it's Havoc."
"I tried knocking at the front door, but nobody answered," I explain, still with my hands in the air.
"Oh my God, Havoc, you scared us half to death," Helen says in relief.
"Yeah, Havoc, I almost blew your head off," Richard adds.
"Are you guys okay? Is everything okay here?" I ask with a look of worry.
"Yeah, surprisingly, everything is fine here. The military keeps patrolling this area regularly. But what happened to you looks like someone chewed you up and spit you out," Richard comments.
"Well, it was a giant spider, not someone, and they didn't exactly spit me out, but rather cocooned me. Bakersfield was a nightmare. Anyway, tell me how things are going here, and I'll share my story while we relax."
"Everything has been pretty solid here. We were lucky enough to be home when it happened, so we haven't really left. I can't imagine traveling across California with everything that's happening," Richard says.
"Other than the occasional monster prowling the area or a manifestation, which is what the government calls it when a monster from our society appears, things have been relatively calm. Apparently, they have a short shelf life. The government says they're supposed to last a couple of months, and by the end, they go completely berserk," Helen explains.
"The last reports we heard were that the government has been mining the Stream for any and all information on magic, monsters, and the universe," Richard explains. "They've been encouraging people to earn stream points. If they come across common or uncommon information, the government will pay cash for it with pretty sizable rewards."
"We don't have many stream points, and we haven't really leveled, so we don't know much about all that. We just want to go back to our lives," Helen adds.
"Well, I've learned quite a few things since this whole thing started. I can teach you guys some easy ways to level up, and then we can get you a class. This will open up a ton of options for you to get back to the new normal, and most of it shouldn't involve much combat," I offer.
So I explain to them about earning skill XP through jobs and quests, going into all the details. We talk about this throughout the night until they eventually go to sleep. As I explain, I guide them through the non-combat leveling process, and by the end of the night, they both gain two levels by leveling their skills. As we settle in for the night, they thank me once again for coming to help them through this trying time, and I assure them that it's no problem. It has been a rewarding journey just getting here, and once we figure out what's going on, I'm going to find my wife.
After we turn in for the night, I decide to relax by sculpting some clay. Without a specific image in mind, I let my thoughts reflect on everything that has happened so far. The weight of the problems I have taken on, the hopes for my brother and sister's safety, the stress of ensuring Valerie's parents are safe—it all weighs heavily on me. I take a deep breath and focus on the problems I can fix, letting go of the stress from the ones I can't address right now. Holding onto things I can't change does me no good. I bring my focus back to the present, allowing my mind to shift away from the accumulated stress. For now, I let go of the burden, knowing it won't be long before I have to carry it again.
Feeling lighter, I examine the sculpture I've made while contemplating. It's a cute little fox curled up at the roots of a tree stump. Looking at it brings a sense of both loss and contentment. As I gaze at the fox, an idea crosses my mind. I wonder if I can sculpt using the spell Contour Nature. I take a fresh chunk of clay and cast the spell. As my aura expands over the clay, I can feel and see all the spots where it's knotted and stiff. With a bit of willpower, I smooth out those areas, and after 10 seconds, I have a very smooth, flat piece of clay. Taking the first step, I begin sculpting an owl. Working with the spell turns out to be a completely different perspective, as I'm working from the inside to affect the outside. It proves to be more challenging, but after a learning curve, I adapt to the new approach.
I found the work to be more taxing, but it was worth the effort. As I watched, the clay began to slide around, and the two layers shifted, revealing the shape I desired. The wings seemed to emerge from the clay, taking on a rough form as I guided the spell to complete the image in my mind. I realized that I wasn't actively shaping the clay, but rather holding the image of what I wanted and subconsciously guiding the spell. While guiding the spell, I contemplated changing the wings into blade-like tips, but an odd feeling arose.
It seemed like the spell was resisting the changes. After attempting various techniques to make the spell align with my vision, I was on the verge of giving up and starting over. Then, a possible solution occurred to me: What if I provided more power to compensate for the desired alterations? Holding the image in my mind, it felt as if I grabbed it with a ghostly hand. I smoothed the feathers, transforming them into blades, while curving them to mimic the wind's flow. As I made the changes, the pattern in my mind materialized on the sculpture, which at some point had lifted off the table and floated in the air. When I refocused on the object, I noticed a flashing red bar—a sign of Mana Depletion. Though this time the physical impact wasn't as severe, the mental anguish persisted. I remained on the ground for the full 30 seconds, contemplating how this newfound power would transform my art.
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Examining the sculpture, I noticed it was nearly complete, with only the feet remaining. I immediately hopped up, finished off the feet, and placed it in the oven to bake so I could later paint it.
Congratulations you've learned the skill sculpting.
Congratulations your skills in sculpting and couture nature have leveled.
Congratulations your skill sculpting has reached The Novice rank you have been awarded 1000Xp. You have gained the rank bonus Imagery.
Imagery: allows for the imprinting of a mental image onto the sculpture increasing the speed at which it is formed.
After painting the statue, I felt relaxed enough to sleep, With 18 stat points available I threw 6 into con, 6 into int, and wis. Nightmares plagued me that night. In my dreams, I witnessed people burning to death in cocoons made of webs, their silent screams and charred bodies haunting my subconscious with vivid imagery.
NAME: Havoc Deamhan
LEVEL:14 XP: 4,994/ 8,925
CLASS: Arcane Arborist
Race: Human
HP: 225 / 225 real 250
MP: 315 R 30.5/ 1min.
Stamina: 125 R 23.5/1min.
Profession: ???
Titles bonus consolidation
+2 basin
+10% to all stats
+5% to sneak attacks
+20 damage Physical
+10 damage spells
TITLES:
Bold quartz hunter: Gives a +10% to all stats
Arcane Catalyst: +5 damage with arcane spells
First of the basin: +1 Basin rank
Mass Butcherer: +5 damage Physical attacks
Butcherer of Hundreds: +10 damage Physical attacks
Bathe in Blood: +5 to all damage
The unseen reaper: +5% to sneak attacks
Earthshaker: Area of effect damage +5
Spare the Young: +10 luck
savior of cities: +1 Basin rank
STATSbase+2lvl ADD= Unspent points: 0
STR: 43 (+10%) = 46
DEX: 40 (+10%) = 55
CON: 46 (+10%) = 50
INT: 55 (+10%) = 60
WIS: 58 (+10%) = 63
CHR: 47 (+10%) = 51
LUCK: 21 (+10+10%) = 34
Stream Points
Generated per lvl: 11
Available: 98
Basin Rank: +2 ranks
Bonuses: +1 selection
Mana Affinity Percent: 75%
Active Quests:
One with nature. Class
Peer into the Arcane. Class
a memory of the Lost:
Passive bonuses
+3 to Perception
+1 selection from basin, -10% helath plants
Trauma from the mall murder.
storage means flower
Opalescent Baby Blue Eye
Bloodroot daisy
piece of metal about 5 inchs round about 2 ft long
SPELLS
Gen. Magic Missile Lvl. 3
Gen. Earth spike Lvl. 2
Gen. gift of focus Lvl.1
Gen. Healing hands Lvl. 7
Gen. mage armor Lvl. 2
Gen. Minor CleanseLvl. 2
Gen. Ice blast Lvl. 1
Class. Contour Nature Class. Lvl 10
Class. Summon Plant elemental Lvl.1
Class. Earth Strider Lvl. 13
Class. Nature's Bounty Lvl.3
CRAFTING SKILLS aka SKILLS
Arborist lvl 5:
Blacksmithing lvl 4
carpentry lvl 5
Channeling lvl
Combat Casting lvl 2
Commune with Nature lvl 6
Harvesting level 7.
Herbalism lvl 3:
Inverse Ingredients Lvl 30: Gain knowledge of uses from ingested ingredients
Novice Rank: Increase uses found by 1
Student Rank: chance to learn ingredients from ingesting finished products. Potions, poison, and everything between.
Gunslinger lvl 1 30% Dam. 1% per/lvl
Language translation
Perception lvl 3 40% hidden enemies, rooms,
Polearm Mastery. lvl 1
Scan lvl 4
short sword mastery lvl 1
Sculpting. Lvl. 17
Novice Imagery: allows for the imprinting of a mental image onto the sculpture increasing the speed at which it is formed.