The meeting ended shortly after, with little of note transpiring as I answered a few minor questions. Eventually, everyone departed, presumably for their homes or cultist activities. The Boys had finally woken up from their slumber, and after feeding them several carcasses of what game I could procure from hunters, I shrunk them down so they could fit inside the house. Hopper, Ribbette, The Boys, Skull, Nanu, Gambino, Bambina, It-Has-Pockets, and myself retreated to the privacy of my abode after Chooka went to bed, for we had to discuss matters of our own.
“Okay, boys and girls, after-action report, go,” I stated for all to hear as I started our second meeting of the night. “I want opinions of what went well and what went poorly and how we can improve.”
“The Boys got lured in by a honeypot!” exclaimed Bambina excitedly, eager to participate and show her value through contribution. “They left without telling anyone. That led to a series of circumstances that caused an ambush. We still love them, though.” She showed no shame in throwing The Boys under the wagon.
Turning my stern gaze upon The Boys, I applied some pressure, “Well, what did I say about wandering off like that?”
“It is mating season and she was looking like a snack.” Aristotle didn’t answer my question, but I understood his motives.
“Don’t blame me, I just got here.” Okay, to be fair, Chrysippus was not to blame. Moving on.
“These brothers you gave me, they made me leave. I could not overrule them to control our legs.” Plato seemed to be fishing for an excuse, but to be fair, they could have overpowered him. He gets a slight pass.
“You said not to do it, but you were not around to ask for permission.” Socrates actually answered the question. I guess I technically did not leave any stipulations for how long they should wait to ask before just doing what they wanted, so maybe that is on me. Still, he broke the rules overall.
“We kicked ass out there. You should be thanking us.” Diogenes is just Diogenes. He certainly has not been overburdened with overflowing wisdom or humility. I still love him though.
I translated their words to the group and made a show of pondering their fate. The Boys grew increasingly contrite, sans Chrysippus, who literally was not at fault. I made a show of ruminating on their punishment while I let the tension mount.
“I am disappointed in you four. Chrysippus, you did nothing wrong, and welcome to the team.” Chrysippus smiled at me as best as a hydra can, which probably would have intimidated most people with his toothy maw of death on full display. “The rest of you could have at least told someone where you were going, but you didn't even do that. Nor did you inform Chooka first. Your actions endangered everyone, including yourselves. You nearly died in that fight, and I don’t know that I could ever forgive myself if you perished in an ambush meant for me. I love you dearly, but you need to consider how your actions impact those around you.”
“Sorry, Papa,” The Boys whined as they rolled over, belly up, and continued to sing a song of lamentation and a desire to do better. I waited for a moment to let my disappointment really sink in, then I indulged them with a belly rub.
“Just so you remember for next time, Chrysippus gets all your snacks for a week. Plato gets half snacks.”
Their song turned to a remorseful whine, but none of them backtalked, for they remembered how such disrespect had earned them harsher punishments in the past. After they calmed down, I shrunk them even smaller, such that I could set them in my lap and pet them, which I did as the meeting continued.
“Alright, Nanu, you are next,” I stated as I stroked The Boys, all of which sans one were almost asleep, their eyes wet with the beginnings of tears.
“We faced overwhelming odds, and we would have certainly died without two Titans helping us. Granted, dragon hunters of that caliber are Platinum Adventurers, but typically, they hail from places with lower standards for entry into that rank and they are not known to be the best or most disciplined. Considering they dared to take on an Emperor, they were probably the most desperate or least educated in the dangers involved. However, over 500 against us should have won handedly. How they managed to get so close to camp is a matter that we already covered in other meetings and changes to camp security have already been made.
“Overall, we did well. We protected each other and eventually lured away the remainder so you could duel one of the strongest opponents, which is ideal. Ribbette complimented my fighting style well, so our practice fights have been worthwhile and we should continue them. I don’t know what we could have possibly done better in such an impossible situation, for we are beyond lucky to have all survived.”
Her lecture finished, we all took a moment to contemplate her words. Feelings of pride and comradery emanated from those gathered. After a short while, I continued the meeting so that we would stay on track.
“Skull, how about you?”
Skull straightened up in her seat as she commanded the room. Her helmet was off for the meeting, but she still struck an imposing figure in her armor.
“Though we were ambushed, we swiftly seized the initiative and directed the flow of battle, which is paramount to survival in such a situation. Quickly sowing fear and crushing morale gained us the breathing room we needed to take them a few at a time instead of all at once. I think such shock tactics would serve us well in the future.
“I spent most of the time fighting Bamborax, whom I should have recognized, for there could not be many axe-wielding Diamond Adventurers who are direct descendants of Berxerxes himself. He must have had some trinket on him to evade such notice, and were we not in the heat of battle, I would have recognized him. I believe he went along with the hunt because he sought death, for he would have to have been over 400 years old. To die a warrior’s death is the dream of old orcs, and what better way to die than to try to do so in the manner of his grandfather by fighting an Emperor?
“Hopper did an amazing job saving me and then harrying Bamborax until we could learn how he fought. Hopper then bought me an opening to deal the finishing blow. Without his help, I would have lost. It was the hardest battle of my life, and considering Bamborax was closer to the peak of Diamond than not, I am probably on the threshold myself by now. That may attract individuals who seek glory and fame by killing me, so we may need to be mindful of that going forward. That’s all I have on that topic.”
“We need more kobolds for the troupe,” Gambino declared the moment Skull finished. “I will work on finding more. With your victory, and considering the scale of the fighting, we will surely have many kobolds eager to join. However, at the time, we had insufficient numbers for a proper escort, which could not be helped. Give us a few months, and we may have over a thousand. If those numbers exceed what the camp administration deems acceptable, then I will have auditions so that we only accept the best. Having a bigger choir would do wonders for strengthening your allies and causing your enemies to lack coordination and prudence.”
Well, that certainly confirmed my suspicions as to the point of the choir. They were a force multiplier, and as my entourage grows, they will be more and more valuable. Had my enemies not been so bold, they would have worked together to defeat me. Instead, most rushed in on their own and were cut down quickly. I would definitely be whispering in a few ears so that we could get more kobolds around camp.
The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
“It-Has-Pockets.”
“It was exhilarating and terrifying. I danced for my life and killed more people than I ever had in honor duels. When I got caught on your tail and we went sailing through the air, I thought that would be the end for me. I was cutting down people left and right, afraid for my life, but never feeling so alive before. It was quite the rush, but I don’t know that I want to do that again so soon until we have more practice. All it would have taken was for you to be knocked down on top of me and I would be dead. We need more practice where your allies are fighting that close alongside dragons, for we haven’t done much of that in our sparring.”
A worthy bit of advice at the end. I could feel the predatory enthusiasm in Skull as she focused on It-Has-Pockets. Skull wanted to turn It-Has-Pockets into a battle junky, and the sweet young thing was only a push or two away from it. I would have to be careful that Skull did not go overboard with her efforts.
“I agree that we could all use more practice as a team. Now that our individual skills are at least passable in a fight, we can focus on fighting together. May the gods show mercy upon us, for Nanu will not,” I finished with an overly dramatic expression of reverence and prayer to the gods, although I still caught the glint in Nanu’s eye and the wicked sneer on her face at the prospect of pummeling us as a group.
“Hopper and Ribbette, how about you?”
They both sat there for a moment before finally sharing a glance with one another, the latency of their comprehension by no means an impediment to their verbose replies. I had to translate all the croaking for the team, but Hopper waxed on and on in a poetic manner about the display of skill everyone demonstrated during the battle and of the spirit of comradery that filled him to push beyond his limits. It was easily a ten minute speech, and either he had Skills to make such a speech on the spot or he had been planning it for a while now. Conversely, Ribbette uttered such indecencies that would make the saltiest of sailors and the most shameless of whores blush. One vile invective followed another as she riled herself up with her account on events, mostly focusing on her contempt for the insolence of our audacious and foolish foes. A quick peck on the cheek from Hopper was enough to calm Ribbette down once she finished her tirade, and I don’t think anyone missed how her personality changed completely to be on par with a fair maiden experiencing romance for the first time.
“I guess that just leaves me,” I stated after letting everything sink in after the translation of monologues. “I don’t have anything profound to add that has not been stated. We got caught with our pants down because we lacked proper scouting. We were beyond lucky that two Titans showed up to help us. With my flight now established, I will meditate upon my Blessing and see if I cannot find a path forward for our combat doctrine. Expect some sort of change in how we do things. Until then, enjoy the rest of your night, for I call this meeting adjourned.”
Some small talk followed, but within a short while, just Nanu and Skull remained at my side. The Boys remained in their shrunken state, and I carefully deposited their mostly sleeping form onto a cushion on the floor, for Chrysippus kept watch while the others enjoyed a good snooze. Skull watched over us while Nanu and I meditated on our Blessing, for we both had a great amount of Experience Points to spend.
The first thing I noticed was I could not even access my Skill webs, and for lack of a better word, a popup appeared over them, one which demanded my attention. It displayed the following text:
“Congratulations, Emperor, on establishing your flight. Choose a Greater Focus, an Intermediate Focus, and a Lesser Focus for your personal Skills. New Skill webs will be provided (if not currently available), each with unique Abilities based on your achievements, experiences, and talent. Some of these Abilities would not otherwise be available to your Blessing without these Focuses. Choose wisely, for once selected, these Focuses cannot be changed, and rare are the opportunities to acquire more. Only through diligence, discipline, and danger will such opportunities be realized. Make no doubt, the other Emperors strive for such.”
The ominous words burned into memory, I dismissed the popup, only for another to appear, one with a large list of Focuses to choose from. Their descriptions were enough to understand the gist of what they would provide, but vague enough that they raised more questions than they answered. All bones and no meat, as the saying goes. Considering I almost found myself on the ass-end of an ass-kicking just the other day, I already knew what I wanted to remedy my shortcomings; I just had to find the Focuses that matched up.
I clearly lack in my combat ability to directly fight an opponent. I have versatility in spades, but lack any real punch unless I can manage to get a good trap lined up. [Traps] are great at punching down for my weight class, but as I can imagine, would be little more than whimsical unless I can somehow go all-in on them when it comes to fighting Kings or higher. Going heavy into [Traps] felt like, well, a trap, so I opted to not make that a focus group.
A metaphysical smile adorned my metaphysical face in… whatever this place is. It isn’t my inner world, but it isn’t the material world; I am not asleep, nor am I fully conscious. Younger me could access my Blessing while fully alert and awake, but as I grew in power, so too did the complexity of managing my Blessing, such that I needed to meditate to access it. Such a drawback feels intentional, as if the powers that be want strong individuals to have moments of vulnerability. Either way, I found my Greater Focus.
My Flight would not be strong on its own merit. Certainly, the individuals would be powerful, but with our numbers being laughably low, I would require the loyalty and assistance of mortals. Comparatively, most mortals are weaker than dragons, and so I needed the great equalizer, one that could be easily disabled if I were to find myself betrayed, and only one Focus lined up with my interests and talents that could facilitate strengthening my flight through auxiliary forces: [Enchanting].
No doubt about it, the capacity to churn out powerful magic items like a walking, talking factory would be the key to empowering my followers. Magic items are expensive, and kitting out even a retinue of bodyguards would bankrupt me. Making magic items myself would be far better, and as I have already discovered through my own means, I have a knack for it, even if I disregard everything I have been taught and march to the beat of my own drum. Even with my modest investment of Skills into [Enchanting], I am exceptionally good at it. With it packing versatility and power, going all-in sounds more than wise.
However, [Enchanting] is not cheap, and while rare materials are not always better materials, sometimes they are when it comes to [Enchanting]. Getting the quantity and quality of materials I will need for my enchantments would be taxing, even with my good [Enchanting] skills allowing me to use cheaper materials. As such, [Material Arcane Science] fits the bill to solve that problem. It doesn’t exactly turn lead into gold, but it does focus on processing mundane and magical materials to enrich them. I just knew my [Basic Thermal Bottle], my key Skill at processing materials, was the poster child of what that Focus was all about. It would also help me build roads a lot better if I could upgrade that Skill and get more of them in the same vein. And magical materials don’t play nice when you try to use magical Abilities directly on them, which is why magical ores are mined with a trusty pickaxe. Acquiring the means to ignore that pesky limitation would vastly accelerate my means of production, and with all that considered, [Material Arcane Science] won the position of my Intermediate Focus.
As for my Lesser Focus, there were many valid options, and considering I had to choose it here and now, I considered a few. Combat-related Focuses would help me in a fight, but it felt like the ceiling for that was low. I don’t hear tales of Emperors fighting each other directly, which is a problem. That probably means all of them take a Focus in combat to dissuade conflict, or none of them do because they have a way to circumvent a fight. Through effort and growth, I feel like I can overcome my shortcomings in a fight, so focusing more on not getting in a fight and letting my powerful bodyguards protect me feels like a better plan. Sadly, no options were available to focus on my flight, not even one for [Whelps], which may be a reflection on how my options are “personal”.
[Illusions] had merit, to both hide me and make spiffy decorations along my roads, but I feel like [Enchanting] can do much of what [Illusions] does, provided I don’t need it on the fly. I ruminated on it for a while before ultimately dismissing it. Likewise, any that dealt with Detection, Perception, and Stealth, while tempting, felt too narrow in scope. After considering what I probably could not achieve with [Enchanting], I discovered a little gem that garnered more interest the longer I looked at it: [Spatial Manipulation].
[Spatial Manipulation] would give me better pocket dimensions, maybe even a demi-plane some day. Most importantly, it could lead to the coveted [Teleportation] Abilities. I would not be allowed to make any perpetual motion machines unless I wanted to be smitten by Echludoro, Light god of Time and Space, but it otherwise offered a great deal of utility, most noticeably for avoiding conflict. Presumably, I could either teleport away from my enemies or stop them from teleporting past my defenses or accessing their dimensional storage when within my territory. It is only a Lesser Focus, and with no frame of reference for how weak that would be, I may not get everything I want out of the gate, but it is a start.
And with my mind made up on the matter, I locked in my choices for my Greater, Intermediate, and Lesser focuses, with [Enchanting], [Material Arcane Science], [Spatial Manipulation] being those choices respectively.