Day 16

Through dried blood, sweat, and mud, my eyes cracked open. Wind howled, blowing dirt in my eyes as howls echoed over the wind. My mouth felt dry, and my throat cracked, and bloody every beat of my heart reminded me I was alive and alone. The gate to the inside of my home was cracked in places, bent to scrape the ground after repeated slams had broken the henges. I gripped the railing and pulled myself up with my good arm as the gate hinges protested.

I managed to pull my sword free and walked through my Gemini Waltz steps on my way through the gate. My every step was a rendition of that dance to drill the only weapon I had into my soul. That tamer unleashed a rank 2 monster on me. If I could prove it, that would be his license in a fair world.

My movements repeated themselves down the road to my tent. The few chickens in their coop freaked out as the wind blew. I had a clear shot to kill that bastard's monster, but I forgot that Ogre hearts are a little more to the left. My mistake had cost me that little bit of revenge.

Cracking sounds filled the air as my Regeneration skill went to work on my broken hand and face. Bones healed slowly and popped back where they belonged. I made my way back to my tent and turned to Gwen's nest she made on my bedroll.

When I found my chair, I collapsed in it and stared at my reflection in my mirror. My nose was crooked. Slowly I raised my hand and gripped my nose and felt something break as I snapped it back into place. It was time to check my gains. What did resisting that monster give me?

Ping!

Gemini Waltz lvl9

Training lvl23

Regeneration lvl25

Berserk lvl27

Adapt lvl24

Lingering Will lvl25

+1 Constitution

Constitution 10

+2 Dexterity

Dexterity 5

Skill Points: 28

Skill Trees:

Embers of Fallen Heroes I 38/250

Black Rage II 0/100

Way of the Homestead 0/50

Alter of Change 0/50

Resistance is Elemental 0/50

Beginner Adventuring 0/25

Adding the points to Beginner Adventuring might help with a dungeon, but I didn't want to use my skill points yet. I had a skill I gained not long ago. Silver Strings was a good way to make lots of cordage if I had the mana for it.

Getting mana wasn't like it was in games. Having certain attributes didn't automatically give me a pool to draw from. I needed to create a spiritual avatar to hold my mana. Once I got the avatar right my system should populate numbers based on how much mana my creation can store. The problem was images were based on mental attributes.

If I didn't create an avatar to store my mana, then I would be completely reliant on ambient mana for my skills. There wasn't enough of that to go around.

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Gwen wasn't here to talk to me about my problems, her dreams, or about what she wanted to eat. It was lonely without her. I sat in my chair and let my mind explore images that could be used for my avatar.

…

Day 16

I left my tent under the cover of night when the sounds of strange animals grew louder. My gate swung open, shown under the full moon above. A large black wolf starved until the skin hung on its bones approached me. Its eyes glowed red under the moonlight, and despite its appearance, there was a strength to it that couldn't be denied.

My sword found its way into my hand, and I fell into the steps. I started practicing wherever I went. The steps repeated until my every step was the Gemini Waltz. Lingering, Will felt cool in my bones as the monster seemed the crush in on itself before launching at me like a spring.

I moved, and the wolf bit at something that wasn't there. The waltz had grown stronger after my brief fight with Loki. It seemed stronger enemies forced skills to level faster. I stabbed with my sword and felt it skid off of the wolf's hide. My body spun when the wolf struck back, biting and slashing with its every breath. I struck, searching for an avenue of attack; each strike was nearly a death blow; its hide wasn't so tough.

Steel flashed under the moonlight as I fought in a deadly dance with a predator-starved but still incredibly strong. More howls fell in with the raging wind as I started feeling desperate. The wolf hadn't slowed down since our fight started, and I had to find a weak point.

It lashed out with its mouth agape, and I chose that moment to hit a soft target. My blade pierced the hard palate of the wolf's mouth.

This time, blood seeped down my rapier as I stabbed forward. I felt the monster scramble to get off my weapon as blood continued flowing as I picked the beat off the ground. It was so much lighter than I imagined.

I yelled when one of the wolves took a bite out of my calf. I raged and punched out at a similarly retched beast that had its jaws on me.

My blade withdrew, and I slashed with precision, slicing through the joints in the wolf's mouth. Six more wolves circled around me as I tossed the second wolf off my blade. Blood flowed from my leg, stopped too slowly by Regeneration. I needed other skills to help out and to adapt to have something to work with.

"Why is it always wolves?" I asked the heavens. Clouds moved in, nearly blocking out the moon and leaving me in darkness. One wolf lunged for my throat while the other hit my flank. I stabbed out for the opened jaws, and when my blade stabbed into flesh, I turned and punched with all my might. The wolf bit a chunk out of my hand while I spun to face the other wolves. I held my arm up to guard my throat with my left hand and gave death with my right. Gemini Waltz made the wolves hesitate in the moments I needed them the most, allowing me to kill.

Like the wolves themselves, I stalked and hunted, killing with the bite of my blade until all I was left with were corpses. Covered in blood, I buried the bodies in my field before returning to my tent. My every step was the Gemini Walz as I continued to struggle and gain one more skill level.

As I was, there was no way to get Gwen back. I needed whole blocks of skills to even think of chasing that tamer. Getting myself killed wouldn't do me any good.

My rage was all I could feel, but I couldn't let it take me because then that bastard would win. I doubt he expected me to recover. There are good odds he'll be back, and I needed to be strong enough to take on the man's entire team. Because after I killed him I planned to take his tamer card and use it to start selling monsters.

It wouldn't be weird if an obviously failed tamer started living on a farm to make some extra money. Tamers on a farm could make quite a lot of money.

Research contracts weren't easy to get out of, and it might only be a week or two before the tamer was forced to return. Until then, I needed to take care of my weapon and make sure my sword was nice and oiled. I made sure to take the time to wipe the blood off and oil it before returning the weapon to its sheath.

…

Day 17

The dungeon had gone through some changes since last I entered it. I could have a sword. I heard breathing inside the tunnel to the first floor when I entered it. The ground was warm, met, and covered in wrinkles, while the air itself was humid. Pools of strange liquids dotted the sides of the tunnel, and the air flowed in and out of the cave in slow, almost breaths. Small spiders crawled along the walls, always watching with beady black eyes. The furry orange monsters looked wet like the rest of the cave.

Further in, I stopped at the door closed tight like a sphincter; strange wet flesh covered the passage, only to open when I approached it. It opened slowly, almost yawning until I walked through then it closed slowly behind me. The first floor was an unsteady, muscular place that completely changed from my first experience. I turned my attention to a tall, furless monster with rabbit ears and long-taloned tipped fingers. It's overdeveloped legs gave it a steady stance as it withdrew a sword unlike anything I've seen before.

Scraps of armor covered its body as it watched with black eyes, alien and unfeeling. I turned to see a mass of bones shaped like a centipede covered in spider silk move in the distance. The rabbit jumped, cutting through the distance as its weapon buzzed to life. It was a chainsword, and I was unprepared to fight it.

My first clash started with our blades locked, and I could feel my blade prepare to give up the ghost. A kick from the rabbit knocked me back, and it scored first blood. A line raked over my chest down to the bone. I moved in, forcing the rabbit to hesitate, and stabbed it in the leg.

Our fight continued with us trading injuries, but I was on the losing side. More injuries piled up while I searched for the one slash that would turn it all around.

We continued fighting until our weapons were locked. This time, I was ready, and despite the sparks flying from our weapons, I turned the clash into a battle of strength. I overpowered the rabbit soldier and slashed its throat. My weapon cracked down the middle as the rabbit died, and I took its chainsword.

I went on a rampage, unleashing my anger and slaughtering monsters. When I found a second chainsword, I really began killing. From my hall, I found health potions instead of skill shards and crossed into a new part of the dungeon. By the deaths of many, I believe I had found the boss room. Wounds covered my body, slowly healing, but I managed to get through the difference in attributes.