“Dance of the Earth.” Kevin nodded respectfully. “What exactly are the Lost?”
“Call me Earth.” The vul’heli matriarch began. “I know little of the Lost beyond old stories and what is written in history books. The Lost are you: those brought the Rift to the Myriad Realms. Though it has been centuries, you are not the first to arrive on this world, and certainly not the last.”
“What troubles me is not the Lost themselves, but the upheaval heralded by your arrival.The stories tell of the gods awakening and digging their claws through mortal affairs. They tell of divine games and grand wars reshuffling the balance of power among the realms.” The sek’heli Patriarch Rain spoke up for the first time. Where Earth was short and stout, the patriarch was both tall and lanky, his fur a mixture of silver-white and gray.
“I certainly don’t intend to start any wars.” I said. “I’m not much for politics.”
Rain gave me an amused look. “Why don’t you all tell us a bit about yourselves and the world you come from?”
“It’s a lot more technologically advanced than this place, that’s for sure.” Paul grumbled.
“Barren of magic then?” Rain asked. “I’ve heard of some realms like that.”
“Yeah. No stats, no strange text boxes.” I agreed. “Just technology and biology.”
“You will find that some technologies function differently or not at all in worlds saturated with magic.” Rain nodded. “It also explains why you are all unpathed. A blank slate would be a useful starting point were you not stuck here in the Heartwood.”
“Can you start by explaining why we’re a bunch of fucking animals!” Paul burst out. “I’m tired of dancing around the point.”
“Animals? And what point?” Earth said, her expression flashing with anger. Rain, meanwhile, just looked amused.
“He means vul’heli and sek’heli.” Kevin clarified.
“Are you implying that you were a different species before?” Rain asked before Earth could give an angry retort.
“Of course I am. I was a human! We all were!” Paul crossed his arms. “Now if you don’t mind I’d like to go back to not being covered in a rug.”
Earth, Rain, and Wind shared a look.
“Humans were the only sapient species on Earth.” I supplied. “That’s the planet we come from.”
“I’m afraid we don’t have answers for you.” Rain said, heaving a sigh. “As Earth mentioned, we only know of the Fusing and the Lost from the old records. Beyond some magical beasts, I’m not aware of any legal magic, skill, or path that can change an individual’s shape with any sort permanency, and certainly not their entire species.”
“What a load of crap.” Paul spat. He froze when Karl put a massive scaled hand on his shoulder.
“Paul be quiet. They are trying to help us.” The sanask rumbled.
“A change in species certainly complicates things,” Earth said, glaring at the older vul’heli “but I’m honestly surprised you’re not more… distraught. Perhaps we should start with your names and work from there.”
“Human names.” Rain mused after we each gave our names in turn. “It’s amazing how many concepts traverse across worlds. Of course if the tribe decides to accept you, then you will receive a more fitting one.”
“Wind.” Earth looked to the vul'heli scout. “I would like to announce a tribe meeting and a feast this evening. Please inform the expedition so as to begin the preparations. There is plenty of fresh meat to be eaten and we could all use the excuse to relax and celebrate our safe passage through the heartwood.”
Wind gave a nod and swept out of the tent.
“Jennifer, stay here with Weston.” Earth nodded to the young sek’heli mother. “Karl. Go have the alchemist check over that wound before it decides to fester. I'll see if I can get your coat cleaned and mended before the winter arrives in full force. The rest of you can just relax and introduce yourselves to the camp. There will be more than enough time tomorrow to worry about things.”
**********
By the time we emerged from the tent, many curious gazes were tossed in our direction.
“Let’s go introduce ourselves to everyone!” My sister said brightly, and I swallowed a groan. All I wanted to do was sit down after the events of this morning. The others seemed to be of the same opinion. Karl headed to search for the alchemist while Paul and Mirrin excused themselves and walked away. When Sarah looked to me, I shook my head.
“Fine, I’ll just introduce myself enough for everyone.” Sarah said, stalking off to leave Kevin and I standing alone in the camp.
You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.
“So?” She asked.
“The river?” I offered. “I wouldn’t mind sitting down for a bit, and I’m not sure I’m up to being social just yet.”
Kevin shrugged. “Sure.”
We strolled through the camp past the firepits and the bustling camp to where a flat patch of grass extended the last fifty feet to the water’s edge. Instead of a gentle slope, the water butted up against an ancient stone wall that rose from the depths. Nearby, one of the massive trees had fallen over to lie halfway in the river. Its torn roots revealed the polished flagstones of what might have once been a street or plaza.
I then sat down on the edge of the wall with a relieved sigh, letting my sore legs dangle above the river. Kevin soon joined me.
“Only here for a few hours, and I’m already exhausted.” I groaned.
“Yeah.” Kevin agreed. “It hasn’t been so bad though, besides the bugs.”
“Do you think we’ll still be here when we wake up tomorrow?”
“I hope so.” Kevin whispered. “I really do.”
She paused. “I… don’t think I could return to the old Kevin. Not anymore. Not after spending a few hours as… this.” As a girl. I read the implication of her words.
“Then for your sake I hope we stay here.” I said. “Maybe it won’t be so bad.”
The two of us sat in silence for many minutes, half dozing and enjoying the afternoon sun as it crept across the sky. It was then that the sun dipped behind the bank of encroaching clouds and snowflakes began drifting down from above. They settled down upon the tips of the brown grass and melted into the dark waters of the river.
I looked at the sky in confusion and then down to the thin fabric of my sleeveless vest. Perhaps my thick fur coat was useful for something after all. I glanced over to Kevin, watching as the snow settled upon her fur.
Sek’heli: Level 2
“You know.” I said after a while. “Do you think it’s strange that we only got one level for killing a creature so many levels higher than us? How do you think experience works?”
“I’m not sure.” Kevin mused. “As realistic as this world seems, I doubt we gain levels solely through killing monsters. And to be fair, the ‘experience’ from that bug would have been split four or five ways.”
“Maybe it’s feat-based and I can get another level through an incredible feat of dexterity.” I said half in jest.
“You? A feat of dexterity? I don’t think I’ve seen you do anything remotely dexterous beyond videogames.”
“Hey! Vul'heli get a dexterity bonus. I’m basically an acrobat now. Here, I’ll show you.” I said, eyeing the massive tree half-floating in the river nearby. With a grin, I jumped to my paws and scrambled up the exposed roots. I stepped out onto the base of the trunk which had become slick with a dusting of snow.
“See Kevin?” I said, standing easily. “I will be the single greatest acrobat this world has ever seen!”
“That ‘log’ is at least ten feet wide.” Kevin observed dryly.
“It’s covered in snow! That has to account for something.”
“Start dancing and I’ll be impressed.” She called back, scooping up a pebble and tossing it at me.
“Hey!” I yelled, dodging sideways as my paws began to slip on the log. I wobbled comically for several moments before falling flat on my face and sliding down its length until I was suspended partway over the river.
I glanced down to see something long and scaly move beneath the murky surface of the river. With sudden motivation, I scrambled up the slippery log on all fours before sliding off the top to land in a heap beside Kevin.
I broke out into laughter and Kevin joined me, falling backwards so that her silver-white spotted coat blended in near-perfectly with the newly fallen snow.
“You two are ridiculous.” I heard my sister say. Still catching my breath, I glanced up to see her standing above us
“The feast is starting soon.” She continued. “I figured I should give my brother’s antisocial self a kick in the rear. You didn’t even offer to help set things up!”
“Erm. Alright.” I said, feeling a bit guilty. She was right after all; Kevin and I did just disappear.
“Yeah let’s go.” Kevin said, standing up “I think I’m ready.”
My sister marched us back to the camp where a massive bonfire now burned in three of the five firepits. Two cauldrons steamed and bubbled beneath the eyeful watch of the sanask cook while two deer-like carcasses hung from a stake nearby.
I watched as four expedition members carried the trunk of one of the massive trees into the open space between the fires, after which an axe swing from Hendric cleaved the log lengthwise in two perfect haves. A couple wedges of spare lumber later, two makeshift tables were set up and ready to use. More expedition members swarmed the logs, placing all manner of bowls and utensils upon them.
“Isn’t mid-afternoon a bit early for a feast?” I murmured to Sarah.
“They take these ceremonies very seriously.” She nodded and then leaned in close to whisper in my ear.
“I heard you call ‘K’ Kevin.” She breathed. My blood froze. I was supposed to protect that information.
“You must have heard wrong.” I murmured with an unconvincing smile.
Sarah’s grin brightened. “Bye James! I’m going to keep meeting everyone!” She called out, bouncing away. “By the way, did you know there are 87 members of the expedition, not including us? I expect you to have said hello to all of them before the ceremony!”
Taking Sarah’s advice, Kevin dragged through the camp to mingle with the other expedition members. We introduced ourselves, exchanged passing pleasantries, and even learned a thing or two about what each of them did. We met everyone from the red-scaled sanask blacksmith to farmers, woodworkers, weavers, a clothier, and many more. Everyone seemed to have something of a specialty or skill built around their chosen path.
What surprised me was how little the paths and the jobs of the expedition members seemed to match up. Paths and levels granted supernatural skills and attribute points, but a system skill and skill gained through hard work and practice seemed to be different things. There was no general ‘smithing’ skill to make one better at blacksmithing for example - that only came through practice, but there were skills to precisely control the heat of the forge to achieve a perfect temper or do other fantastical things.
I like this revelation. It required hard work, but in the end it meant our selected paths were malleable in a sense.
“You know, I’ve been introduced to a few dozen vul’heli and sek’heli now and I don’t think I can tell most of them apart except by clothing and fur color.” I said to Kevin during a lull in our socialization. “Does that make me racist?”
Speciest maybe.” She snorted. “I can’t tell half of them apart either to be honest. Although, I expect that will change pretty quickly.”
The loud metallic clang of a ladle banging against the side of a cauldron echoed across the gathering, interrupting us and stilling the expedition to silence. Everyone turned their attention to the cooking fires where Earth and Rain stood side by side.
“Fellow brothers and sisters of the Shadowclaw Tribe.” Rain’s voice carried over the gathering.
“As many of you have heard, Wind and Hendric discovered eight individuals within the Heartwood. They were confused. Disoriented. Lost. He brought them here.
“We the Shadowclaw Tribe are here for our own purposes and with our own deadlines. Taking these eight in and sheltering them will slow things down. With that in mind, I believe it is important to maintain our community and our morals throughout the coming trials. I propose that we not only offer shelter and guidance, but welcome these Lost into the Shadowclaw Tribe with open arms.
This brought murmurs and nods of agreement throughout the crowd.
Rain silenced them with a raised hand. “However, this is a decision to be made not just by the matriarchs and patriarchs, but by the tribe as a whole. I give the newcomers and the tribe the remainder of the afternoon to consider the options in full. The tribe meeting and the Naming Ceremony will begin tonight. Until then we will celebrate our successful journey through the Heartwood. Let us feast!”
Cheers rang out at his words. The sanask cook heaved one of the cauldrons across the clearing to set it down beside one of the makeshift tables where an entire raw deer lay on a wooden platter. The second, smaller cauldron was placed beside the other table where a spread of fruits, vegetables, and starches contrasted the meat of the other.
“Lost!” The sanask cook roared. “Come speak with me before you eat! Everyone else: FOOD IS SERVED!”
At the cook's declaration, the crowd descended upon the feast.