Autumn pulled me past the central area where Mara prepared dinner for the expedition. The other expedition members chatted and laughed and waved.
I didn’t hear them.
Instead my thoughts spiraled ever downwards, Earth’s words playing through my mind. I felt stuck; my worth was inconsequential compared to Autumn’s, and our friendship - was it nothing but an artifact of some soul bond? Did such things even exist back on Earth? Did our growing up together mean nothing? Did I simply let Autumn forge her own path of greatness while I scraped together a mediocre existence for myself in this strange world?
Autumn led me away from the camp to where orange-tinted twilight shimmered across its surface of the Serpent river. I stared at it, my mind blank.
Something hard hit my shoulder. I started at the pain, looking over to see Autumn reaching back to punch me a second time.
“Hey.” I said, flinching away. “Don’t”
“Then listen! Have you not heard a word I said since we left the tent?.” I could hear the worry in her voice.
“No.” I admitted. “I was thinking.”
“Then stop thinking and look at me!”
I did. I looked at her and saw a strange yet familiar sek’heli staring back at me. She was the Kevin I knew, and yet not. She was someone more whole than she’d ever been before. She was Autumn, and in her eyes I saw anger and fear and uncertainty.
“River. I don’t care about ‘talent’ or ‘destiny’ or any of that. There is more to life than being special or famous. I… I need my friends. I want to see this world, but I don’t want to do it without you.”
I swallowed, not knowing what to say. She wanted me with her now, but was it right for me to hold her back from her future? Could I really make that choice?
“What about the other things she said? About the bond. About us going different ways” I mumbled. “This won’t last forever.”
“River, I’ve been a female sek’heli for two days now. Mates, children, and love interests are too much for me to think about right now.”
“But it’s possible.” I said.
“I don’t know.” She whispered. “It’s too much right now. Between this new world and this new body,… I need you River. I need a friend.”
I said nothing, but I looked at her. I saw the way the sunset shimmered through her silver-white fur and reflected from her eyes back to mine. She was cute. I could admit that much to myself. But more than that, she was my friend.
“Earth doesn’t know you as well as I.” Autumn said. “You’re the smartest person I know. You’ve always figured out a way through the games at home. Maybe you can figure something out here? I’d think this world would be like a playground for you, with rules and stats and skills.”
“Maybe.” I sighed. I looked back to the Serpent river. Maybe there was something I could do. I owed it to her.
“River…” Autumn whispered.
“I won’t leave you.” I said. “I’ll figure something out.”
**********
We returned late to dinner, after which Autumn and I joined Badger, Brook, and Rose to finish our brushes, securing the cured heads to a wooden handle and bringing them back to our tents to dry overnight.
Level up! Vul’heli (Shadowclaw) has increased to level 3.
Attributes:
+1 Intelligence
+2 Free
I got the level up notification as soon as I attached the handle. This time, however, I decided to leave the free points alone until I figured out what to do.
I went to bed early, my brain churning over the rules of the system. What did I know about it? Was there anything I could exploit? The more I thought, the more I realized I didn’t know enough to solve anything. I needed time. I needed information. I needed the internet to give me answers.
Hah, the internet.
Name:
Dancing River
Species:
Vul’heli (Shadowclaw): Level 3
Age:
18
Mana:
80/80
Stamina:
36/50
Total attributes:
51
Primary Path:
N/A
Secondary Path:
N/A
General Abilities:
4
Total attributes:
51
Strength:
4
Dexterity:
4
Constitution:
5
Perception:
8
Willpower:
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
6
Intelligence:
14
Spirit:
8
Free:
2
I looked through the silver text of my status screens, reading every description, ability and box for inspiration. Nothing struck me as obviously strange or different, and I realized that if an entire world of people backed by superhuman attributes couldn’t find a loophole in the system, how would I do myself what others could not in the space of a day or a week? The simple answer was that I couldn’t.
Maybe I didn’t have to.
What did Autumn tell me? You’re the smartest person I’ve ever met. I never saw myself as truly smart. I was always oblivious. I spent my life making dumb choices without considering the consequences, my ability to think or react on the spot was questionable, and as Gretchen said, I couldn’t write my way out of a cardboard box. However, when it came to solving problems I cared about, or even learning a strategy game, no one I knew could match me.
Maybe I just needed to play to my strengths. I didn’t need to be some flashy warrior with a sword or a mage slinging lighting at their enemies, I could pick something more subtle. Something that would give me room to think and learn and prepare for every situation. Something that would let me turn every battle into a chessboard where I held all the pieces.
I resolved to talk to Wind in the morning. If anyone knew of a path that fit, he would. If Wind refused to help, then I would forge my own path forward.
**********
I awoke much as I had the day before: curled up between Badger and Karl. Someone banged on the wall of our tent to rouse us in the darkness of the cool Autumn morning. Karl grumbled and rolled over while Karl and I began the long process of brushing our ruffled fur.
Karl roused himself by the time Badger and I looked somewhat presentable, and together the three of us headed to breakfast where we caught the tail end of the morning meal. I spotted Earth eating near the command tent and I had to bite down on the surge of anger rising in my chest.
Autumn, Brook, and Mirrin joined us halfway through breakfast, the coat of the former two looking freshly groomed.
“Morning!” Brook waved at us.
“Good Morning.” Autumn said and sat down next to me on the bench. “Wind came by to wake us this morning. Rain is trying to get a group together to head back to the ruins as soon as the sun comes up.”
“And you’re going?” I asked, and Autumn nodded.
“I’m Wind is going to mentor me, which means I need to shadow him for a while. Have you thought any further?”
“Yeah, but I need to talk to Wind first. I have a fuzzy idea, but I don’t think Earth will like it.” I said with a grimace
“River…” Autumn began, but I held up my hand.
“I know, I know, I won’t let her get to me. Besides, I’m going to join the expedition today. I’ll just tell Earth I plan to talk to Thorn about inscription. That’s not even a lie really. We need two paths after all.”
“So you’ve decided to choose a combat path as your primary?”
“Yeah, but I’m not sure what.”
**********
I left breakfast early to look for Wind before the expedition gathered and found the vul’heli, his group, and Rain near one of the supply tents. They busied themselves cleaning and gathering gear in preparation for the expedition up to the plateau.
“River.” Rain said, intercepting me as I approached the group. “I wanted to apologize for what Earth said last night, but -”
“Stop at the apology.” I said. “I don’t want to listen to you justifying her.”
“I wasn’t going to justify anything.” Rain frowned. “Your choice is ultimately your own, and the harshest life lessons are often only learned through experience. Just remember that we are all trying to help.”
“Right. Thanks.” I said, swallowing a rather more sarcastic remark. I stepped past the Patriarch to help the Wind and the others. Rain didn’t stop me, but instead turned and headed back through the camp without another word.
“Good morning River.” Wind nodded in my direction. “Earth told me you still hadn’t decided on a path. It sounds like you two had a bit of a disagreement.”
“Not yet, and yes we did.” I sighed, wondering what else Earth said about me. “But I was hoping to bother you about a few path ideas.”
“If it’s a combat one you’re looking for, one of us can probably help. Although as I told the others: we don’t have the exact requirements for any given path memorized. All we can do is set you working in the right direction. The rest is guesswork.”
“I’m just looking for ideas and a sense of what’s possible.” I said. “When we talk about combat paths, it’s easy to think of warriors and mages, but I’m not sure that’s for me. I’m looking for something more subtle. Not a rogue exactly, but something that uses magic.”
“What affinity do you have?” Melwyn asked.
“Arcane.”
Melwyn grimaced. “Arcane is a tough one for combat mages since the path skills tend to be more utility-focused than offensive.”
“I don’t mind utility.” I said.
“I’m not sure I follow.”
“I’m looking for something that will allow me to control a conflict from the shadows rather than charge in spells blazing. Flashy can be useful for misdirection.”
“If that’s the case then how you use your path will matter a lot more than which path you choose.” Wind said with a thoughtful look. “You might want to think about a hybrid one that uses a combination of casting and physical skills. Something like an assassin for example.”
“I’d rather not spend my life in the murder business.” I said.
Wind snorted. “All combat paths are in the ‘murder business’ if you want to get anywhere, although it doesn’t have to be sapients. A path is just a set of skills and attributes. It’s up to you how you use them.”
**********
Thirty of us gathered in the clearing as the morning sun first crested the Eastern hills and bathed the murky waters of the Serpent River in a golden glow. Wind and his crew were here of course, along with Rain, several ‘heli warriors, four inscription specialists, and more than a dozen others. Earth remained at camp with the rest of the expedition.
Sarah, Autumn and I spent the better part of the twenty minute walk to the plateau nervously chatting amongst ourselves about our path choice. “Remember that you can reset your path once per year if you don’t get a good option. Just pick a common one to start with and keep working at it.” Melwyn told us. “Honestly I’d be surprised if you were able to learn enough in just a few weeks to qualify for much more than a tier one or two. Unless your experiences from your previous world contributes.”
When the group climbed the long ramp and stopped at the center of the octagonal ruins, Rain spoke to the group. “Today we begin excavating the ruins. Every new block, carving, inscription, or any other object must be shown to the inscription team before being removed. Some inscribed magic is still active after all these years, work with caution.” When Rain finished his short speech, the expedition members sprang into action. I watched with amazement when even the lowest level of the workers seemed to be able to lift the massive stone blocks around with ease. A few of the adventurers, namely Hendric, stayed to help with the excavation while the others spread out across the ruins to watch for danger.
I spotted Thorn and a group of three other ‘heli inscriptionists off to one side, setting up a makeshift table on a large stone block with a veritable stack of old books they’d carried up from the camp. One, and older Vul’heli, split off from the group to head towards the lone tower where the strange runes awaited inside.
I didn’t take part in the activities. Instead I followed Autumn and Wind to a section of empty grass in the corner of the plateau near the broken tower.
“I’ve decided I’m going to pursue one of the mixed paths we spoke about earlier.” I told Wind. “But I don’t want to interrupt what you’re doing with Autumn.”
“There is enough overlap that we can work on some things together.” Wind replied. “But not everything will be applicable to both.”
“That’s alright.” I said. “I will need some time to figure out my secondary professional path.”
Wind nodded. “Then let’s begin. My short term goal is to impart basic concepts over the next couple days to help you achieve your paths. I cannot promise that what I teach will get you what you want, for only the gods know the exact requirements for each path. However, what I do know are basic attribute thresholds for certain types of paths, and the skills you may need to understand at some basic proficiency.”
“Attribute thresholds?” Autumn asked.
“All paths have minimum values in specific attributes that you reach in order for that path to become available. These thresholds reflect the relative importance of the attributes to the path, as well as the tier of that path. An assassin, for example, needs high dexterity, while ranger classes tend to require a more balanced distribution of physical stats, and to a lesser extent, mental stats.”
“Which means my professional and combat paths should be focused on similar attributes for a more synergistic build.” I concluded.
“While this is true, do not base everything around attributes.” Wind warned. “This is still your life: if you do not enjoy your profession enough to level it, then all your worrying about attributes becomes pointless.”
We nodded.
“In any case” Wind continued. “We’ll start with the basics of tracking and stealth since your intended paths overlap in these skill sets.”
The ‘basics of tracking and stealth’ ended up being more interesting and difficult than I expected. We started with Wind asking us to find and identify the difference between my pawprints and Autumn’s in the grass we had walked over to get here just minutes before. He taught us to look for small things that differentiated our tracks: claw marks in the dirt, tiny scuffs on the surface of the rocks, but most importantly, he taught us to use our noses.
“We ‘heli don’t quite have the scent capability of a wolfen.” He explained, “But we’re not nearly as useless as humans or elves. With a few stats in perception, it will be the easiest way to track something through most environments.”
We spent the next hour with our noses sniffing dirt and rocks trying to figure out which rocks Wind had stepped on when we weren’t looking. It made me feel like a dog, but I admit that I’d been neglecting using that sense over the past few days.
After much failing and a quick snack for lunch, we switched to lessons in stealth. Wind emphasized to me the dangers of trying to hide with red-orange fur in a green woodland when tracking creatures who could distinguish between the two colors. He recommended I cover as much of myself as I could with a proper cloak depending on my target.
We paused for lunch around midday, Wind running off to check on the other groups while Autumn and ate lunch together atop the crumbling wall at the edge of the plateau.
“You look much more energetic than you did this morning.” Autumn said, staring out to where black smoke still rose above the northern mountains. “What made you choose the assassin path?”
“I didn’t really.” I said. “This morning Wind told me that what I did with a path mattered more than which path I chose. I’ll learn what I can in the skills I care about, but in the end I’ll just have to see what choices I have.”
Autumn gave me a wide smile. “That’s a breath of fresh air after Earth.”
“She’ll choke on her own words once I’m finished.” I said, returning the grin. “I’ll be a legend with whatever path tier I get. You’ll see.”
“You will.” She agreed.
“So,” I continued. “What are you going to do for your professional path? Have you thought about it?”
“I’m not sure. I was planning to major in biology back on earth, so maybe something similar?” She shrugged. “I may just take a note out of your book and see what options I have.”
**********
After lunch Wind challenged us to use our meager knowledge to sneak up on him while he sat on a rock with his eyes closed and cloth stuffed in his ears. We failed of course, but every mistake brought a new lesson I latched onto. I was so enwrapped in the lessons and the bright afternoon that I almost didn’t hear it: The low, eerie call of a horn in the distance.
I ignored the sound at first, but then I saw that Wind’s body language had changed from easygoing to worried. In a blur of motion he leaped some twenty feet off the ground to land atop the crumbling wall. He stood in silence, his ears and tail twitching as he waited.
Another horn sounded, even deeper than the first, and from the rolling hills to the North. From the same direction as the black smoke in the mountains.
Then Wind leaped back down beside us.
“What was that?” I asked.
“An orcish hunting horn.” Wind said. “It could mean trouble. Come.”