“Is there a hidden stat called “Dignity”? Because I feel like it would be at zero now.” Seamus complained as the three brothers bounded forward at the speed of world class sprinters through the forest parallel to the river. He could not run that fast, so he was now luggage thrown over Bruce’s shoulder.
“There isn’t but you might gain a point in resilience if I throw you into a tree.” Bruce snide response came back. How was this big lug not even out of breath?!
“Shut up Bruce; we need him in one piece. In order what are your stats? You said you were level 7 so you should have 35 remaining status points to allocate.
"Strength: 5, Dexterity: 8, Fortitude: 4, Intellect: 10, Resilience: 12, Sense: 8"
Seamus reported back quickly, between panting for breath from having his chest smashed against a titan’s shoulder.
Brian was running alongside and without skipping a beat delivered a full lecture.
“Hunters can specialise according to different priorities. Classic hunters, snipers, spies, scouts all have slightly different priorities. The big ones you want to focus on are strength, dexterity, and sense, but you can’t just reject the rest. If you come too specialised the other parts of you can’t keep up. If you’ve got the strength of an Ogre and the body of a mouse, you’ll rip yourself apart by going for a walk. If your strength is too high, you’ll run into a tree without any dexterity.” Brian explained.
He wasn’t out of breath either! This was just like walking to them!
“Wait how the hell are you keeping up?! Aren’t mages supposed to be weak?!” Seamus complained.
“Nicely spotted. One thing you’ll notice is that nothing is simple. Its why I told you to keep your arrows even with your recall skill. Deceit will be your first weapon in life, let alone combat”. Brian grinned.
“The second is decorum. Do not ask what people’s gifts are or their powers without a damn good reason. Since we’re a team for now, my gift is “Force”. My magic looks like telekinesis and can be used for attacks, defence and other uses. My strength is weak, my constitution is fairly high so I can “force” myself forward with magic. Of us three I can be the fastest.”
Roughly two hours passed between running, the occasional break and a crash course in stats points and distributions.
“We’re here” Brock grunted slowing down. He was the quiet one, but he was the first to help. I like him the most, but that might just be because he has my bow… Seamus thought, being thrown off on to a soft grassy road, a huge city behind a stone moat had appeared right behind him. The sun was fading down over the horizon.
“This is Haluren then?” Seamus asked in awe of the stone walls. They must be 10 meters high at the least.
“This is home.”
“Mmm, beer, beef and brothels. Heaven” Brock flashed a grin as Bruce chuckled.
I don’t want him carrying my bow anymore. Seamus eyed up Brock’s hands. They were…remarkably clean for a slave to those…vices.
“Job isn’t done, no pay, no healer to fix your little brother Brock.” Brian remarked snidely. They walked slowly across the stone bridge, the water beneath completely still. “We’ll need to report in, rest, restock and guide Raum. His life has been ruined and rescued in a day. His home is gone, he knows no one here and everyone he did know is or will be dead. I think he needs time to decide. And probably beer, beef at the least.”
“I’m right here you know.” Seamus remarked, his face unchanging in understanding miserable.
“You need to understand your exact position right now. You have a gift. You have potential. You have freedom and right now you have more guidance than that village ever gave in us and I need a smart hunter in our team. You’re in a major city in a party that requires you. Let’s see how far you go. We’ll put you in the inn first. Go think”.
“Wow the triplets are back, Brian you’re early.” A steel plated guard nodded to his friend opposite before turning towards the quartet.
“There’s trouble Vik, I’ll need to meet the captain and the guild.” Brian reported solemnly.
“Oh come on, is it that bad? Everyone’s still reeling from that last wave.” The guard held his hand in his gauntlet.
“Worse, I think it’s a gold class problem if we leave it. Can you inform the Captain that he’ll get a call for a meeting either tonight or tomorrow with the Guilds and the Kops.”
“Getting the Kops involved? I think only one team is still in the city– the other is out scouting the border. Anyway, who’s your fourth wheel? Since when do you guys take extras.”
“Aye Vik, you might want to stock up on the essentials. The young guy is our hunter-in-training. He’ll be staying with us and hopefully he’ll survive this mess.”
“Name’s Raum, starving villager, new hunter and hopeful survivor. Good to meet you Vik.” Seamus piped up.
“Well if three Bronze rankers vouch for him then fine. If you break the law then they’ll be paying for your crimes as well. That normally means imprisonment or slavery so don’t make a mess.”
“Yeah yeah… He’ll be good.” Brian was dismissive after he watched his two shorter brothers dash inside like dogs after meat…In fairness they might also be chasing after cooked meat – They had just run a marathon or two.
Brian followed Seamus through the streets basking in the day’s final light. Shops abounded selling a myriad of adventure and civilian gear. Seamus even spotted a home gadget store – Seamus knew an oven when he saw one, and he couldn’t but help look forward to a fresh bath. The river dip may have washed the surface but a lot of…cleansing was needed before Seamus started feeling human again.
They eventually walked inside a tidy looking inn with a sign over the door naming the place as “The Weary wonderer’s inn”. The man behind the bar counter was suited in full light armour and wiped down glasses quietly as the few patrons drank quietly. Brian bought the single large with a nod and the jingle of a couple coins. Silence seemed to be a cardinal rule here.
Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.
“This place will be peaceful. You can talk downstairs but if you’re drunk or too loud you will be thrown out. Shan the bartender down there stopped Bruce’s axe with a glass and then knocked him out with it.
“…I’ll stay out of sight by the sounds of it.”
“I wouldn’t, you want to try his wife’s cooking. Just don’t be picky, her cooking is amazing but you better be polite, otherwise you’ll deal with her.”
“Isn’t that better?”
“Fuck no; piss her off and you can go back to the necromancers. It’ll be less painful. She’s a retired gold from two decades ago. Shan we can stall briefly. Janice? We don’t know you.”
“Are all inns and shops like that here? With retired high level people guarding it?” Seamus asked nervously, if everyone was like that and he said the wrong thing he’d end up in pieces after a week.
“Not necessarily, you’ll want identify from the Human core of the skill tree. It’ll help you with seeing who not to fuck with. Here we go…” Brian opened the door at the end of the corridor to a large room with 2 bunk beds and a bathroom joining it. “Top bunk’s yours, Coalstick and paper book here… Yep that’s it. Ask at the counter in an hour or two for food – its all paid for.”
“Are you helping me with skills?”
“I’ll do that when all three of us are back, I may have to drag brock out the bar early but I need them back here for you. First, I have to make my report to a man that could crush me effortlessly if he doesn’t believe me. Its going to be a fun night. Faster the city reacts the less damage this will all cause.”
“So what should I do? I’m not going to get much sleep after my first…kill.”
“You’re going to have to decide who you want to be. Who you want to be, how you want to live, and how you want to use your gift. Gift evolutions are guided by the individual, your desires, choices, decisions and survival help to shape your skills and growth. Someone with a hammer gift can be a great axe-master or berserker; but they can also act as a blacksmith or runesmith. Similarly a power gift like mine can come out as a force mage, lightning mage or a strong warrior, or they can turn into a priest that specialises in enhancements.” Brian continued passionately.
“You love this don’t you? Thinking about people’s potential and growth?”
“It makes life interesting” He responded with a massive grin. “Your arrow gift pretty much limits you to the Hunter tree as a base, but that doesn’t mean you can’t use other skills in the warrior, mage or priest tree – but it will require more points to get the better, more focused skills. There are so many skill varieties and so much potential… You could be a lightning archer by enhancing “charge shot” with mana… or or or creating massive fires with arrow shower tipped with fire magic.
“Right right right slow down, I get it.” Seamus shook his head in fatigue.
“But at the start of it all, you’ve got to decide how you want to act and who you want to be. Put your thoughts on paper, talk to yourself – spell it out. Every issue you think you’ll face. Things you want, things you hate, and things you can tolerate. To slaughter or save, truth or deceit, kindness or cruelty, morality or efficiency. Write it all down and you’ll make your choice – then we can reflect yourself in your skills.”
“You’ve practiced this.” Brian looked back at Seamus animatedly, but matching Seamus’ gaze, his eyes lowered in sadness.
“That was what our old Mum used to repeat to us…”
“Is she…”
“Never mind. Start writing. I’ll drag the other two back in a couple hours. Enjoy.” His smile disappeared as he walked out the door. A deep sigh could be heard from the other side of the door.
“Things I’ve learned in the past two days” Seamus began scribbling on his bed.
~ In the upper districts of Haluren. ~
“Good evening Jensen, is Mr Dras in?” At the counter of the Adventurer’s guild Brian asked the middle-aged receptionist.
“The manager is upstairs; I remember you were supposed to be dealing with the local necromancer problem?”
“The info was bad. The brotherhood was supposed to be filled with iron rankers meshed together at the border but those fuckers have worked out the Necrus ritual quickly.”
Jensen dropped his paper back on the desk “follow me, now.”
Jensen approached the cramped staircase leading up, dragging his hand across certain parts of the walls, small runes stopped glowing as he did so.
“So.” The voice of an aged general echoed through the walls. Jensen opened a large double door and stood to the side.
“The Kops fucked up did they?” behind the desk was a silver haired man, seemingly in his 50s wearing a smart ornate red robe.
“Confirmed skeleton servant sighted within 60 miles of the city, sir.” Brian reported stiffly, not daring to mince words. Just the aura of bloodlust from “Bloody Dras” put the shits up him. Never mind his Raw mana pressure.
“Confirmed how?” He asked in a way allowing only the truth or pain.
“Recovered the selected sacrifice originally from Luren village. He confirmed via history and that he awakened the gift upon successfully killing the apprentice necromancer. Sir.”
“Verified by interrogation?”
“Basic tool registered truth. Sir.” Brian was sweating now, he pulled out a small cube with 3 protrusions. It lit up full green, authenticating the truth was spoken.”
Dras meshed his hands together in thought.
“Jensen, how many rejects did the brotherhood have? That cross border inquisition by those tree humping zealots only ended last year. Everyone over level 30 was killed and we have the paperwork and the corpses to prove it. That ritual needs a gold ranker at level 60 at the least.
“We knew the acolytes there numbered around 50 or so at last report. Most under level 20. Both us and the Burnleas Kingdom agreed to not exterminate them as Iron hunting grounds in the west needed to replenish after the Platinum hunts. The brotherhood got scanned every two weeks.
“Let’s assume that 50 count is low. Clearly the Kops scan has gaps. We need to assume they’ve got a Gold ranker organising them now instead of trying to turn each other.” Dras sighed deeply.
“Jensen call a meeting for the local admins and a Kops rep. We’ll have a confirmation by tonight and a plan in place by tomorrow. I’ll send a request to central to motivate a Kops team to shift since they’ve already fucked up. They owe us that much.”
“Confirmation, sir?” Brian couldn’t help but ask.
“I assume you brought the little guy back to your inn. We’ll return him in one piece so long as his report agrees.”
“He’ll be deciding his skills and stats this evening. Also woke up with some memory loss. Can I ask that he come back without too much trauma…Sir.”
“I’ll pass it along.
Seamus was still scribbling on paper as Brian dragged in his brothers. He made the door shut with a finger flick and took out a small lozenge from his bag and forced it down Brock’s drunk throat. He fell over gagging and holding his throat
“Right Raum, how did you get on?” He asked without batting an eyelid.
“Is he going to be ok? He’s turning blue.”
“Don’t worry about him, m y alchemy skill is enough to make basic cleanse balls. He’ll be sober enough soon.”
“They taste like ass though. I told him not to get drunk.” Bruce piped up self-righteously.
“Who was the one betting on him to win his drinking match?”
“…It was easy money. Who can’t out-drink a Cat-sith?!”
“Raum help me out here before I commit fratricide please.”
Processing how ridiculous these brothers were, Seamus stammered: “I…I want to help. I want to survive, and I’d like to see everything?” Seamus forced a look of embarrassment. Ideally, he wanted to go home but until then he’d have to just focus on surviving.
“Nothing wrong with that. You don’t want to go back to your village? If your memory is still vague you could find more answers there? Family?” Brian asked calmly.
“If they sent me off as a sacrifice, then its safe to say I won’t be wanted back. A fresh start would be a good thing – I’ve even thought about changing my name. How does ‘Seamus’ sound?”
“The name change shouldn’t be a problem. Once we get you signed up at the guild it’ll be fixed from then on. Brock you back with us?” Brian called towards the bathroom. Brock came out the room looking a lot more human and nodding quietly.
“Ok Seamus, think we’ve teased this long enough. Let’s get started.