Equalize
Page 8
Wisdom seemed to increase ambient Ether absorption and also thought processes. Rocky felt like he was back in school in a class that was too advanced for him because the description of how they both affected thought processes was far too complicated for him.
That’s when her explanations got even more confusing, and Rocky stopped skinning to try to focus on her lesson and absorb more. Charisma was a big unknown and so was Luck. It would seem that those characteristics were theorized to function in a multitude of ways.
The only sure parts were Charisma would affect how much people liked you, at least initially, and Luck would somehow help you find things that could be equally useful or deadly.
Sounding just like one of his old teachers when Rocky didn’t understand, Sela finished by saying, “Look, I can start going into every theory on every statistic, Rocky, but honestly, when I was alive, some scholars studied statistics their whole lives. What I just told you were the only definitively confirmed data through multiple lifetimes of studies and experiments.”
With that mostly useless conversation finished, they quickly began looking through the leadership classes.
Leadership Class Options
Listing 1-9 of 9
Monarch, Politician, Chieftain, Totem, Seer, Craftsman, Charismatic, Emperor, Strategist
Monarch
The power of a Monarch lies in their people, and the power of the people lies in its monarch.
+1 Strength per level, +1 Stamina per level
This leadership line requires that the monarch is defeated or the death of the currently appointed leader before Territory can change hands.
Politician
Crafty and deceitful, this leader will rely on honeyed words to get his way.
+1 Charisma per level, +1 Luck per level
This leadership line requires the people of the Politician to actively decide to remove him or the death of the current leader before a Territory can change hands.
Chieftain
The strength of the chieftain is in his fighting prowess.
+1 Agility per level, +1 Strength per level
This leadership line requires the death of the current chieftain or a one on one fight to transfer the Territory to the strongest combatant.
Totem
The strength of the totem is in the force of the creatures it controls.
+1 Intelligence per level, +1 Charisma per level
This leadership line requires the champion of the totem to be defeated or the death of the current leader to transfer the Territory.
Seer
The strength of the Seer is in his ability to plan and outsmart his opponents.
+1 Intelligence per level, +1 Wisdom per level
This leadership line requires the death of the seer to transfer the Territory.
Craftsman
The strength of the Craftsman lies in the power of his creations.
+1 Dexterity per level, +1 Wisdom per level
This leadership line requires the destruction of the town hall or the death of the current leader to transfer the Territory.
Charismatic
The Charismatic leader’s strength is in the admiration of those around him.
+2 Charisma per level
This leadership line requires that someone more charismatic then the current leader sway his people or the death of the current leader to transfer the Territory.
Emperor
The power of the Emperor is in his divine right to rule.
+The ability to promote people to the position of monarch and split up a Territory.
This leadership line requires the destruction of the Emperor’s home or the death of the current leader to transfer the Territory.
Strategist
The power of the Strategist is in its ability to increase the power of the people and organize them.
+1 Charisma per level, +1 Wisdom per level, +The Ability to promote Military Ranks
Military Ranks will add +1 stat per level based on the position held.
This leadership line requires the death of the current leader or the death of 50% of the top military leaders to transfer the Territory.
After reading, Rocky looked to Sela who pointed at Totem, Seer, Charismatic, Strategist, and Politician. “These five will help you balance your stats quite a bit. However, I would strongly recommend Totem. It will help you tame your Chimera, and once the Chimera gets stronger, it will be nearly impossible to defeat.”
Rocky considered that option and immediately dismissed Charismatic and Politician because he didn’t like the feeling he got when he thought about them.
So, between Totem, Seer, and Strategist.
Rocky wasn’t much for leading, and he tried to look at this decision from that point of view. Only two of the leadership positions allowed you to strengthen people within your Territory. Emperor was easy to dismiss for Rocky as it didn’t provide any stats per level, which would significantly weaken him.
That left Strategist as the only option that seemed to fit with his thought process.
Examining Strategist further, Rocky liked the fact that it gave him good stats and would allow him to help others increase their statistics as they leveled. Rocky, of course, was thinking primarily of his family, and it seemed like a simple decision to him. This tree would allow him to power level them in ways that no other leadership tree could.
It also seemed like it would allow him to possibly increase levels of others in his Territory which may make it more defensible for survivors. His pulse quickened and a shiver of excitement reverberated through his limbs as he momentarily envisioned trying to turn Algonquin Park into a city where people could live and be safe. With a sinking heart, he realized that it would have to wait until he found his family.
Still not seeing a downside, Rocky brought it up to Sela who winced, clearly not loving the idea. “Look, Rocky, I will try to be as honest as possible with you. If you choose this tree, then a nefarious character could just take your Territory by going around and killing the military leaders in it, one after another until he reached half of your current numbers. It was the way we used to handle Strategists.”
Rocky grimaced, seeing her point, but he also felt that it was the right choice somehow.
Sela continued, “I am terrified of going back to whatever place I was in before. I may never come out again, or I may come out again to a whole new world! However, I do agree that Strategist is a decent option, especially if you consider the fact that there is probably no one else currently who understands leaderership classes.”
Rocky could see her shaking and realized she was hoping he would pick the safest option for extending his hold on the Territory and, by extension, for her. Rocky’s felt his lips press together, and he examined the Leader Class of Totem again.
Sela really wants me to choose Totem, but taming a pet through some sort of forcible compulsion feels absolutely disgusting! Also, with Strategist, I can make everyone around me stronger, especially my family.
Something inside of Rocky warred with him whenever he looked at Totem. It got even worse, seeming to almost cause physical pain, when he glanced at the Chimera. The idea of using a leadership class to forcibly tame a pet felt abhorrent. The best description for his reason to choose Strategist came down to a feeling that Totem was not meant for him.
Leadership Class Chosen
Strategist
You are now a Leader - +1 Charisma and +1 Wisdom per level. (Retroactively assigned)
Sela’s whole body trembled as the choice was made. Rocky felt his stomach sink and couldn’t meet her eyes, but he wasn’t sure how to help the tiny woman with her uncontrollable fear. Instead, he decided to check his notifications and his stats page.
Congratulations! You have learned the craft skill. Skinning!
Current rank Apprentice Skinning Lvl 1
Rockland Barkclay Level 9
Health Pool: 140/140
Personal Ether Pool: 130/130
Class: A
pprentice-(Azrael) Revenant
Level 1 Strategist
Class Skills: Revenant Blade
You have 1 stat point and 4 skill points to distribute.
Stamina
14
Strength
12
Agility
20
Dexterity
18
Intelligence
13
Wisdom
17
Charisma
19
Luck
5
Weak Skills
Combat Skills (Non Class)
Common Skills
Endurance 3
Analyze 1
Profession Skills
Skinning 1
Would you like to assign stat points?
Yes
No
Rocky glanced at Sela, and she attempted to smile back at him but failed miserably. Before he could say anything, she flew off at full speed in the direction he had come from.
Shit, I hope she is going to be okay. Whatever place she was in must have been absolutely terrifying.
With a heavy heart, Rocky got back to work, skinning and butchering the wolf corpses around him. He always began with looting to satisfy his greed penguin and, in each case, got one Crystallized Ether. When Sela returned, he would get her to go play with the Chimera kitten elsewhere and tackle the mother's body.
Chapter Six
After skinning and butchering the Alpha, Rocky had become faster and faster at the process as the day progressed. By the end of the day, many of the wolf pelts, meat, bottles of Chimera milk, and the Chimera quills had been stored in his Territorial Inventory. In addition to the skinning, he had started a fire around noon and had kept it going all day.
At first, Rocky had to fight the bile that threatened to rise at the thought of butchering and eating the wolf meat. It was truly a grisly process, but by the end of the day, he was shocked to find it became an easy task. The fire had allowed him to cook the butchered meat for both meals of the previous day, even if he had burnt the meat quite badly.
After the ridiculously straining day, Rocky had been unable to keep his eyes open, and with only one thought on his mind, he fell asleep.
Where had Sela gone?
The following morning, Rocky awoke to coals in the fire pit and a feeling of procrastination that made him want to turn over and fall back asleep. He had another long day of skinning and butchering in front of him. Perhaps if he wasn’t sleeping on the ground in the open air, he would have slept in, but he was covered in early morning dew, which left him cold and damp.
Oh, what I would do for a bed and a roof!
In the distance, Rocky could hear the baby Chimera playing, and the splashes were accompanied by giggles and snorts that could only be Sela. The sensation of waking up and not feeling his knees crack or his shins feel like they were trying to tear out of his leg was fantastic.
This must be how Superman feels every morning.
Every fiber of his being was alive and alert instantly. With all the fighting and injuries he had sustained, sore muscles would be the least of his worries in the old world. He probably would have woken up in a hospital bed or worse. A joyous inhalation later, he detracted one point from this new world.
In the old world, I would have had a shower. I stink!
After smelling his marinating armpits, Rocky chose to begin his day with a trek down to the water. As he started his hike, he picked up a large piece of deadwood and accurately tossed it into the coals. By the time he was back, the log would have caught, and then he could start breakfast.
As he walked to the river, he simultaneously checked his new inventory.
Territorial Inventory
“Steel” Wolf Pelt
Lesser Wolf Pelt x 3
Chimera Quill x 47
Level 3 Golem Orb (Cracked)
Level 10
Golem Orb
(Cracked)
Metal golem foot x 2
Crystalized Ether x 14
3217 lbs Wolf Meat
Metal golem claw x 2
Kayak Oar
Bottles of Chimera Milk x 3
Chimera Claw
Access to this space can be granted to anyone the owner chooses. People who can access this ethereal space:
Rockland Barkclay (owner)
Selaphelia Ardensai
Upon his arrival, Sela flew by, leading the baby Chimera back into the water. The baby Chimera began to approach Rocky, took a single sniff, and crashed on to its side. Rocky caught a quick glimpse of a package between the Chimera’s legs as he lay on his side in the dirt. The Chimera’s eyes went wide as it slid down the bank into the water.
Okay! I get it, boy. Thanks for being subtle!
When the baby Chimera hit the water, a look came over his face and he leaped to his feet in surprise, before he tried snapping at the liquid. Soon, the cute creature was leaping in the water trying to defeat it, but he only accomplished splashing water through Sela who laughed each time the Chimera pounced.
Here was a creature who was still utterly perplexed by the substance it had just encountered. It climbed to the river bank. Rocky stripped out of his clothes and switched places with where the Chimera had been. Once in the middle of the river, he began cleaning his dirty clothes and scrubbing himself vigorously.
As soon as Rocky jumped into the river and began washing, the pair went strangely silent, which forced him to eventually look up. He stood there, waist deep in water with two pairs of eyes regarding him and was quite confused by what had them standing so still. A moment later, the question was answered by both in a very unique way.
The Chimera leaped from the edge into the center of the river, and Rocky swore it performed a cannonball, splashing him. The splash re-engaged Sela’s laughter, and she broke eye contact with his glaring and sputtering form.
Soon after, he was joining in the laughter as the Chimera and Sela continued to play. Once Rocky was finished scrubbing viciously at his skin and the Chimera dragged its sopping body towards the shore, Sela pointed at Rocky and a screen popped up.
Selaphelia Ardensai has requested access to your user interface.
Grant access to Selphelia Ardensai?
Yes
No
He looked at the box and then at her; she shrugged. “I think it will help me help you. I can set up your displays better to make it more friendly to use. I can also explore and see if you are missing anything important. Up to you.”
Rocky shrugged because he couldn’t see the harm in it, so he selected yes then headed back to the camp to hang his newly washed, and thoroughly shredded clothes. He withdrew one of his final remaining sets of usable clothes before hanging up the other shredded ones. Even a casual observer would notice these were ruined.
Well, I better find some more rags soon, or I will be running around with my twig and berries flopping around.
After he choked down a breakfast of fire-charred wolf meat and prepared a combination of raw wolf meat and Chimera milk for the kit, Rocky had Sela lead him to the other wolf corpses. Then with a nod, promptly got down to business while re-checking his notifications periodically, starting with a recap of the ones from the day before.
Congratulations! Your rank in Skinning has increased.
Current rank Apprentice Skinning Lvl 2.
Congratulations! Your rank in Butcher has increased.
Current rank Apprentice Butcher Lvl 2.
Congratulations! Your rank in Skinning has increased.
Current rank Apprentice Skinning Lvl 3.
Congratulations! Your rank in Butcher has increased.
Current rank Apprentice Butcher Lvl 3.
Congratulations! Your rank in Skinning has increased.
Current rank Apprentice Skinning Lvl 4.
Congratulations! Your rank in Butcher has increased.
Current rank Apprentice Butcher Lvl 4.
With his increased speed, Rocky estimate
d, with a break for lunch, he would be finished skinning the beasts just before dinner.
While he worked, Sela was making other changes. Sela asked small, prodding questions after each change in hopes she was getting it more to his liking. First, a health bar filled the top middle of his vision. With his direction, Sela shifted it slightly higher, so only the bottom half of it was visible and only when he wanted it to be.
Then the bar became two-toned and split vertically as Sela added his personal Ether Pool to the interface. He also mentioned how annoying it was to wade through simple skill up notifications, so she began looking into that. Finally, Rocky also was adamant about removing all flashing screen notifications.
After her adjustments, Rocky would only be notified of new skill acquisitions but would just be updated via his character sheet for skill progressions. Today, he was continuing to loot every corpse he came to by thinking ‘loot’ when he touched them. Each body dropped a single Crystalized Ether into his inventory, but none of the wolves carried any sort of item.
As he finished skinning a wolf, his vision flashed once and his eye twitched. He glared at Sela while opening the notifications.
Congratulations your rank in Butcher has increased.
Current rank Apprentice Butcher Lvl 5.
Congratulations your rank in Skinning has increased.