Eventually, Suzette had Rolly cornered, but her arms were tired and her pillow had lost most of its feathers. He gave up, and they started gathering up the feathers and restuffing the pillow. More beer was brought up from the tavern.

"So, what's bothering you?

Suzette just shrugged and said, "Nothing, why?"

"Because you were thinking way too hard while we were going over possible classes, and then you missed way more than you should when you started throwing mugs at me." Rolly wasn't as good with people as he was with animals, but they'd known each other a long time.

"Well shit, yes, something's bugging me. I feel like I'm not keeping up with you guys. I'm holding you back from tier 2. I've got a hot mess of skills, cantrips, and oddball stuff. Out of seven cantrips, I only have one attack spell. The others summon bugs, light small fires, make illusionary doors, consecrate rocks, and purify bottles. I can brew some potions, but I can't toss explosions - not with enough accuracy to protect the rest of you. My only weapon is a dart. And it's not like a barmaid's dress has much protection."

She absentmindedly began juggling darts and a dagger. Squirmie retreated to a perch in the rafters, just in case. "Meanwhile, Ben is roaming the world summoning goddesses, Ozzy is killing bosses with his bare hands, and you and that bug are an overpowered dynamic duo."

Rolly looked at her and sipped his beer for a bit, "You know, Ben came to me a couple of weeks ago, all depressed because he wasn't contributing?"

"Ben? But Ben is awesome. He always is."

"Nope. Not always. You should see the crap jobs we've done in the past. We lost nearly as much as we won, but the difference was, when we did win, we won with style - and you remember it."

"You saw Ben wearing fancy clothes. What you didn't see was him creeping along in a donkey cart and barely able to fight fat rabbits with that whip. He put points into weapons he didn't even have yet. Hell, before Squirmie and I met up, I was barely able to herd sedgebeasts. Face it, all of us sucked." Rolly leaned back and Squirmie landed on his head.

"Yeah, but now the three of you are doing great."

Rolly pointed at the milk jug full of coins. "I notice you have a jug of money, own half a bar, and control a dungeon."

"Money doesn't help me kill things. I keep hoping for some decent magic item I can use, but a ton of the loot is weapons and armor."

Rolly sighed and shook his head, "Don't look at what you can't do. Look at all the stuff you bring to the table. You have a decent attack cantrip and some versatile cantrips that we just have to figure out how to use better. You've got money to burn on potions - plus poisoned darts. Eventually, you should get some nifty magic from the dungeon droppings you earn. What we need to do is focus on a few things and get you set up for dungeons. Then we can go in some night and practice on trash mobs, pop some bosses, and get you up to tier 2."

"Meanwhile, you make money by running the dungeon and the tavern, keep teaching the other workers how to improve their skills, and drive all the men wild with your crazy ears."

Suzette knew Rolly wasn't going to give up on this. He'd keep badgering her until she felt better. "Fine, so what do we start with?"

"We start with what you already have. For attacking, you have darts and a cantrip. Darts are better with poison, are you working on that?"

"Some. More than some. A lot actually...but, it's...hard to explain." Telling Rolly that she dreamed about working with some ancient assassin who was instructing her in the lore of toxins would just lead to too many questions and give away secrets she'd promised to keep.

"So, don't explain. But think about getting an assortment of poisons made that will come in handy. We can get you some way to carry them easily so they are accessible in fights. And think about potions as well. Basic healing potions, that crazy strength one you gave Ozzy, and any other useful ones that would be nice to have. Most adventurers don't have a staff alchemist on hand. They have to buy them. That's a huge contribution."

Rolly was right. Suzette hadn't thought about how much potions helped in a dungeon. She and Aleister were always whipping up batches for Timmy's raids and charging him a good deal of gold for them.

Rolly continued, "Next up is gear. Did you ever test that Ring of the Ram? And what about the staff Ozzy got off that fire wizard?"

"I tested the ring. It can hold three charges of a spell that can knock back an opponent and do 100 points of crushing damage but needs 500 mana to recharge it. The staff I'm unsure on; couldn't identify it." She walked over to the corner and tossed the oak staff to Rolly. He stared at it for a few seconds and then shared the information with her. "It's an odd piece of wood. But I think that a certain fire mage is pissed off that he lost it. I can see some ways to use this that would be fun for any Mage."

[Enhancing Staff of the Versatile Magician

Sometimes a big stick helps to compensate for what you lack in other places.

This staff can enhance the effects of one Rune, one Aspect, or one spell effect. The enhancement is versatile, meaning it can be changed to another enhancement with 10 minutes of meditation. Current enhancement: Aspect of Fire

If the enhancements are made permanent, the staff will enhance one selected Rune, increase one Aspect, and increase one spell effect of a chosen spell (Example: always increases the radius of a fireball.) These enhancements cannot be changed later. Choose wisely.]

"Wow. Yeah." Suzette knew this thing would go for a lot if she gave it to Layla to sell for her. But she didn't need money as much as she needed to be able to hold her own when fighting with the guys. "I'm going to have to get some advice. I think there are some combinations of runes and effects that could make my Solar Arrow cantrip a lot better."

Rolly asked "Do you know what runes do? How do you enhance them?"

Suzette took a piece of charcoal and drew two runes on the floor. "I'm just starting to understand the basics of them. Each one represents some sort of magical effect or natural phenomenon. They get used as part of the process of making magic items, and the dwarves are probably the race that uses them the most. That shield I sold for a handful of gold had dwarven runes on it."

"These are two of the runes I think might be good. The first represents sunrise and is used a lot in spells from the domains of the sun gods. The second is a basic protection rune. Protection runes get put on a lot of armor or wearable items to increase mitigation of damage."

Rolly thought for a second and then pointed at the first rune. "Go with that one - protection is always nice, but I think you should focus on DPS more. Find your niche and let the rest of us protect you. Sunrise and Light Aspect should supercharge your arrows. What parts of the spell can you enhance?"

"It's a damage spell with one target. I can increase the range, reduce the mana cost, or increase the damage. I have a lot of mana, plus mana potions, so I don't think reducing the cost is good. Go with increased damage?"

"Nope. Go with range. Trust me on that. If you want to not get hit, you'll need to be behind the group and have the range to hit things from further off. Everyone always goes for more damage if they can, and that can work, but in this case, you have one spell to attack with. You need to have the room to use it."

Suzette remembered getting too close to the meat monster. "Yeah, range sounds good. Let's give it a try."

[Change the Enhancing Staff of the Versatile Magician? You must state 1 Rune, 1 Aspect, and one Spell Effect from a specific spell to be enhanced. Warning: These may never again be changed.

Chosen Rune: Sunrise

Chosen Aspect: Radiance

Chosen Effect: Spell Range of Solar Arrow.]

The staff started to rise into the air and glow, the light quickly becoming blinding. Rolly shielded his eyes and Squirmie hissed and flew out the open window. Suzette stared at the light, transfixed as a large figure appeared, and grasped the staff.

"Ra blesses you this morning. Remember him when things are darkest."

Then the light was gone the staff clattered to the floor. The head of the staff was carved into the likeness of a hawk's head, and the rune for Sunrise was burned deep into the wood.

Out in the yard behind the tavern, a confused rooster was crowing, certain that the sun had risen way too early. Rolly took a look at the new item.

[Sun Blessed Staff of Enhanced Light

Here comes the sun do, do, do, do

Here comes the sun,

And I say, it's all right

-Spells cast from the domains of Light or the Sun will have +50% increased damage.

-The Solar Arrow spell has double its normal range.

-While this staff is in their possession, the bearer increases their RAD stat by +1

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

Suzette stared for a few more seconds at where the hawk-headed apparition had stood. Then shaking her head to clear it, she picked up the staff. " Oh, yes. This will do." She ran her hands over the smooth wood. It felt perfect and she couldn't wait to try it out.

"OK, what else can I do to gear up better, Rolly?"

Rolly got a grin on his face. "I was thinking of thigh-high boots and a slinky black leather skirt".

----------------------------------------

"You need what for Suzette?!"

Rolly answered with a serious look on his face, repeating what he had just said. "A pair of mid-thigh leather boots. A leather knee-length skirt. Sleeveless leather bodice. And fingerless leather gloves that go up past her elbows by a few inches. I think black would look best, but maybe we can add some white lace for highlights."

Ben looked at him confused. "Is something going on between you two I don't know about? And if so, please, I'd love to hear all the details."

"Dungeoning, Ben, dungeoning."

Ben looked at the drawings again. "Oh, that makes more sense. Disappointing somehow though. This is a barmaid outfit? What are all those extra squiggles and notations?"

Rolly explained. Places to hold two dozen of her darts. Handy spots to securely hold vials of poison. A potion satchel. More potions on a wide leather belt. Goggles to protect her eyes that they'd get from Aleister. "She's a barmaid. So, the basic outfit has to be for someone tending a bar. Then she can still use her evasion skills and she'll get the protection from the leather. Use the same leather you used in your Courier gear, but it has to fit the criteria that her class allows."

Ben nodded. "So, a leather barmaid outfit, that certainly doesn't count as a set of light leather armor, got it. We've been to a few bars where I remember seeing stuff like this."

Rolly grinned. "Where do you think I got the designs?"

[Leather Armor of the Barmaid

Stylish and sexy, this outfit is equally at home while scooping up extra tips in a tavern, or slaughtering goblins in a dungeon!

Total mitigation: 8 physical, 8 fire, and 8 dark.]

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Joe was happy as he looked around the start of his root cellar. "Not a bad job, son. Maybe make that cellar go about three paces further into the hill and dig the floor down another pace and that'll do it. Nice to see you up so early."

The smoke golem moved around the pit, pushing smoke from the slow-burning fire over to the cooking sedge beast carcasses, wrapping the smoke around the meat in heavy layers. As the smoke from the fire moved into the meat, the dark-aspect mana was burnt up, leaving a good amount of mana in the meat, but without the bitter aspect. This added significantly to the taste and its nutritional value. Joe had cooked up nearly every type of critter from swamp rat to unicorn, but he greatly preferred meat with a good mana quality to it.

The boy was working out just fine. He'd been surprised when the new master hadn't bound him to the pit, which would have essentially made him a slave. Not binding something like him after summoning him was a novice mistake that often ended in the death or enslavement of the summoner. Joe had been surprised as hell to figure out that Ozzy hadn't forgotten - he didn't even know he was supposed to! The boy had somehow stolen a reward meant for someone else.

Luckily for the new master, he hadn't insisted on the usual protocol. Joe had long ago gotten tired of the bowing and groveling as most masters demanded. The constant kissing ass and laughing at dumb jokes annoyed the hell out of him. Then there was the constant war as he struggled against the bindings and the master worked to keep him in his place. Not having to go through that was giving him a lot more time to bar-b-que and work on the pit.

It was a little strange to have a master who let him pick his name and who ran errands to improve the pit. He might never have to chain Ozzy's soul and take over his body. The Butcher wasn't binding him, and he sure as hell wasn't going to betray that trust.

Joe looked over at the hole that would become his root cellar. It was open to the sky now, but once dug, they'd roof it over with heavy logs and put back about six feet of soil on top. The cellar would be mighty fine. Joe had talked Ozzy into making it six paces wide, and twenty paces deep with a ceiling about a foot taller than Ozzy.

A pit needed a good cellar to keep the spices dry and the barrels of sauce cool. They'd line the floor with stone and the outer door would be plenty thick to keep the heat out. The boy said he had a load of peppers on the way, and more of that potent horseradish he'd found. Joe was impatient to start mixing up some nice hot rubs with those ingredients. With the right sauce, he could make a stack of ribs that would burn through a man's stomach and char his soul. Tasty!

Ozzy took a break to down a half-gallon of water late in the afternoon. The new pit was nearly finished. The circular walls were lined with stone, and there was a set of stone steps leading out. The firepit was now ten feet across and had four wrought iron rods that held up a grill for sausages to cook on, and a conical metal roof to keep the rain off of it. Ozzy just had to finish backfilling all the dirt into the area above the cellar and it would be complete.

[Quest Completed: Upgrade Charnel Pit of the Butcher to Level 2

You have earned 500 points in Pit Alchemy.

Pit Alchemy is now at rank 4.

You have earned 500 points in CHA.

CHA is now at rank 4. Total CHA is 4.

You have earned respect from Smokey Joe. Current status: Liked

You have earned the following recipes:

Dragonfire Sausages

Ham of the Apocalypse

Tasty Dark Roasted Rabbit

Tasty Dark Roasted Rat

Shredded bar-b-que mystery meat.

Ur-Bacon

Fiery Ribs

Horseradish glazed loin of Beast.

Pepper stuffed creature, slow-cooked.

Roasted haunch of Dragonling]

Ozzy took a look at the recipes. Some seemed unlikely to ever be used, but he didn't know all that much yet about this world. It never hurt to have a big cookbook. But the last one seemed like a surefire way to piss off a mama dragon.

Joe floated over to him, packing his billhook. "Good work on the Pit. Here's your pigsticker. It's been attuned to the pit. If you need it, just whistle. And if you don't need it, just toss it over your shoulder and it'll pop back to the fire. Ozzy took his weapon - it seemed none the worse for being in a fire for a few days. "Thanks, Joe, might need this tonight."

Looking over at the smoke golem, it occurred to Ozzy that he might know a bit about his tier 2 classes. "Say Joe, do you know much about how a butcher levels up?" Ozzy shared the options with him.

Joe scratched his head. "Wow, you managed to impress and piss off both the light and dark boys? Good for you. Little shits get too caught up in their little pissing contests and it never amounts to much - not compared to the really big wars. I'd recommend skipping both of those options. They'll have you running around doing crap work and never have time to cook or eat."

"If you're fond of the killing, go for Slaughtermaster. I'll try to get it all cooked up. Won't be as good, but man will we fill the larder with meat!"

"Apprentice Butcher is boring. Not much there you don't have now."

"The two gems are Pit Boss and Pit Master. Either of those would be fun. This town's a bit small for Pit Boss, we'd run out of people to fuel the pit pretty quickly. If we go that route, let's move on up to Gadobhra. We could probably work a deal with the guy at the big pit to take over some of the side business."

"You have to know that my preference is Pit Master. We’d get to move this pit up a lot higher and start cooking up some nice stuff. Plus, you'd get access to some magic. A Pit Master can work with Smoke and depending on how you work it, some Fire and Shadow as well.

Ozzy liked the sound of that. He liked his pit. The heat coming from the fire was comfortable and the smoke didn't bother him. Slaughtering was just killing, but cooking in the pit reminded him of when he ran a kitchen. He'd enjoy that.

"Do you like beer, Joe? How about I get a few flagons from the tavern and you tell me more about Pit Master?"

"Thanks for the offer, son, but it goes right through me. But if they have a good whiskey over there, I'll take some. That lights up my insides really well. Grab your flagons and a bottle for me and I'll tell you all about what you can look forward to."

----------------------------------------

Billy was pacing and worrying about the upcoming skirmish with Famco. He had fifty mercenaries hired and ready to go, but he was worried as hell about ACME's main group of fighters. Vern insisted he had them hidden nearby and ready to go. Billy hated not having control of them. He didn't like Vern's 'spectacular ambush plan.' He had to tell his workers about what was going to happen. They were coming up on the three-day mark when all the NPCs would start leaving town or boarding up their houses and staying inside.

[Building Points have been earned for your town: 25 Building points.

Your butcher has increased the level of his pit bar-b-que to Level 2. ACME has earned 5 building points that you may use in Sedgewick or can be transferred to the main building fund. Build more and earn more points!]

Billy smiled as he read the notification. Damnation! Ozzy and his cooking were already paying off. The Legion contract was three times as profitable, and now he was earning Building points for ACME to use. And just when things were going well, Vern decided to start a war. He'd better end it quickly. Billy had work to get done, and a city to open up.