Well, I’d like to hang out if you’re down.
...........................
Dale deleted the message without responding. He hated cold emails from people trying to hook up. He wondered who she was, and then thought maybe she might end up being some hot chick, so he took the email out of the trash but didn’t respond.
He saw an email from Smith, so he opened that next.
...........................
Subject: Can you believe this ship?
To: Brown, Dale
From: Smith, Jeffery
Dude, this place is freaking crazy. They are showing a Star Wars marathon on deck 17, Alpha Center, and it’s an open mic theater. Let’s grab a pizza and make fun of Chewbacca.
...........................
Subject: RE: Can you believe this ship?
To: Smith, Jeffery
From: Brown, Dale
C U at Flight Deck Pizza at 20:00
...........................
Dale looked over the rest of the emails in his inbox.
The most important one explained the nature of their trip. The ship, after launching, would move away from earth and after two and a half days would do an ISRA, which stood for Intradimensional Space Relocation Action. Dale tried to read about the science behind leaving the universe, but it was far too confusing and involved screen pages filled with math. He accepted that it worked and that he wouldn’t end up stuck in suspended animation for a million years, reliving Star Wars movie marathons and pizza for infinity.
There was nothing Dale would gain from worrying about any of this. There was another email which explained that the ship’s clock would remain on Central time and that it would take a week to get into orbit over Almaach.
The next email he opened had the subject line Space Elevator.
...........................
Subject: Space Elevator
To: Brown, Dale, Distribution Ship Wide
From: Engineering Department
Welcome to the Jabez!
All personal:
The initial drop team expects a 12-24 hour turn around time before the space elevator is fully operational.
Upon completion, the engineer units previously assigned will proceed to planet surface for base establishment duties.
This process is expected to take 24-36 hours.
Upon completion, advance teams will be allowed to drop.
The following rotation will be in effect until further notice:
00:00-04:00 Down Traffic Only
04:00-08:00 Up Traffic Only
08:00-12:00 Down Traffic Only
12:00-16:00 Up Traffic Only
16:00-20:00 Down Traffic Only
20:00-24:00 Up Traffic Only
Please be on Deck Alpha 30 minutes prior to your assigned drop time.
Command & Control Unit has the final say on all drop priorities, you must wait your turn, please do not ask to be allowed to jump the line.
Thank you.
This message approved per Section 345.tc-05h
Messages or problems? Please contact Cynthia at [email protected]
...........................
Subject: Drinks
To: Brown, Dale
From: Lyang, Amy
Hi Dale,
I hope you’ve been settled happily and are ready for battle. I was thinking you might like to hang out? We could try the Korean barbecue, I’m missing home. I am sorry if you thought I was mean to your lizard friend, it’s in the nature of my people to have fear and mistrust towards other races, especially strange ones. I’m sure your friend is okay and we are all fighting on the same side.
Can I buy you dinner to make up for my rudeness?
Sincerely,
Amy
...........................
Subject: RE: Drinks
To: Lyang, Amy
From: Brown, Dale
Okay, that would be nice. When were you thinking?
...........................
Dale finished scanning his emails. There were a few minor patch notifications, nothing to worry about. After a couple of minutes he received an email back from Amy with the name of the restaurant and a suggested time for the next day. He replied and confirmed. A date. He wasn’t sure about accepting a date. But she seemed like a nice person. He’d talk to Smith about it later. Maybe.
3rd Platoon had a meeting scheduled the next morning at 08:00, so there was nothing on his schedule for the rest of the day except meeting with Smith for dinner and Star Wars movies. He decided he needed to study more, so he opened up the Nagant Wars guide to continue reading about races.
He would be expected to have his shit in order by tomorrow’s meeting.
...........................
Flidais Guild
The following is the authorized summary of the Flidais Guild, per article 15:y78.b per EUDA, auth. 54b.
Please note the following:
All official guild statements are to be found in guild literature.
All such information is subject to change.
All information, wikis, audio/visual/written, which are not official guild literature may not be accurate.
The Flidais Guild was established as a hunting guild. Its purposes include: animal hunting for meat, fur, and other by-products (note, fishing skills apply equally to hunting). Animal tracking. Defense against animal attacks. Hunters also make good soldiers as long range DPS, and can have skills comparable to assassins.
Hunters can specialize in tech or magic depending on race and class.
The Flidais Guild has agreements in place with the Nojus Guild regarding the collection of DNA and maybe given quests to aid in Project Noah.
The Flidais Guild has agreements in place with the Hephaestus Guild regarding the collection of furs, bones, tusks, antlers, teeth and other items that can be used in crafting (see: Guide to Feathers, for additional updated information regarding this subject).
The Flidais Guild has agreements in place with both the Druantia Guild and the Elidar Guild regarding the collection of various animal organs, as well as other animal-based items used in magic (see: Guide to Magic, section 17:45.b).
Note: An informed hunter can complete multiple quests with one hunt, collecting for multiple guilds.
Becoming a hunter can be very lucrative, please see guild literature for more information.
...........................
Prometheus Guild
The following is the authorized summary of the Prometheus Guild, per article 15:y78.b per EUDA, auth. 54b.
Please note the following:
All official guild statements are to be found in guild literature.
All such information is subject to change.
All information, wikis, audio/visual/written, which are not official guild literature may not be accurate.
The Prometheus Guild was established as a thieves guild. Its purposes include: Stealing plans for tech, spells, and enchantments for magic, war plans, maps, and of course gold, loot, crystals, jewels, and anything else they can get their hands on.
The Prometheus Guild and the Thuban Guild are assumed to work closely together, however, this relationship is a closely guarded secret between thieves and assassins.
Thieves can specialize in magic or tech, depending on race and class.
The Prometheus Guild is assumed to have many agreements in place with other guilds (perhaps all of them).
This information is completely secret.
The United Earth Defense Army has many official quests in place for thieves (usually regarding stealing secrets and war plans from the Declan Faction). These quests are dangerous but lucrative.
Please see official guild literature for more information.
...........................
Dale read about guilds for another hour. There were twenty-one of them.
Prometheus, a thieving guild.
Thuban, an assassins guild.
&nbs
p; Avogadro, engineering.
Hephaestus, crafting.
Ymir, mining.
Kartikeya, soldiers. This was the guild that Dale was excepted to join. But he didn’t have to.
Nojus, this was the guild that Dale had already joined as his personal guild. Smith had recommended him, and he was immediately accepted. Once he and Smith were on the planet, the guild would supply them with a list of available quests.
Ugaritic, a priestly guild. Dale had little interest in this.
Tyr, a philosophy guild. He did have some interest in this guild; it had interesting quests that required finding scrolls and relics that helped develop libraries and knowledge.
Demosthenes, an alchemy guild. This one sounded interesting to him as well.
Hermes, a merchant guild. Boring to him.
Plutus, the banking guild. Dale would just as soon join a guild of demons that feasted on human flesh.
Flidais, the hunters guild. This was a strong possible match because the connection to Nojus on questing could earn him lots of extra XP and gold by completing two quests in one when he hunted animals.
Barbagian, the barbarian and berserker guild. This sounded fun for awhile, but Dale enjoyed building things far more than destroying them.
Balarama, a farming guild. He thought about an old online game called Farmville and he laughed out loud. Nothing sounded more boring, but he recognized that troops and armies required food, so he was glad that some people really enjoyed support roles.
Hesiodian, the art guild. This guild worked on art, music, and writing. It did offer quests to most other guilds for obtaining lore, scrolls, and artifacts, so Dale made a mental note to study the things they wanted collected.
Waltheof, the guild of ambassadors and negotiators.
Njord, the guild of ship building.
Shennong, the guild of botany and especially medicinal herbs for magic and alchemy.
Elidar, the guild of spell casting. Spells were for damage and destruction.
Druantia, the guild of enchanting. Enchantments were for healing, growth, and protection.
Dale realized he needed more time, and he decided he would talk to Smith about his options before he had to choose.
...........................
Dale knew most of the races, but he read a quick overview again, scanning the list for anything that jumped out at him. He liked several races, but he couldn’t make up his mind. And he had to decide soon; his company was requiring every member to be registered, affiliated, and ready to go by the meeting in the morning.
Humant, the humanoid race. Not necessarily human, but an amalgamation of the humanoid races involved in the war. Dale dismissed the idea of playing himself or anything like his own species. What would be the fun in that?
Erin, can you provide any guidance?
I can only give you facts and figures; I cannot be involved in strategy decisions or personal lifestyle choices. I can, however, comment on decisions once you make them. That Amy, by the way, a hottie. Nice decision, bad boy.
God…
So Dale kept reading.
Sigtrygg, a dwarf-like race. Humanoid, short, and good at mining, spelunking, and other underground activities. A very versatile race for crafting, mining and also good at being merchants and bankers. Low innate magical abilities, highly gifted in tech. This race has the most affinity with the Kanawa. Least affinity with Nefyn, Gohyoh, and Nagintia.
Sidheagin, the wolf race. Amy was in this race, so Dale had some idea about them. She seemed intelligent and friendly, so maybe looking like a werewolf wasn’t an indication of being dark. Then again…
Mugron, a dark, blood sucking, undead race. Strong magic, weak tech. Good at nighttime campaigns and working in dungeons. Sidheagins and Mugron do not work well together.
Gahmkah, a lion-like race.
Isca, a jaguar-like race.
Sagittalian, gorilla-like. Smith was in this race, so Dale did not consider this race as he’d have access to certain abilities due to his bond with him. There was no point in doubling up. Sags, the nickname that Smith had referred to himself, made excellent tanks and became good at destroying things. They were especially powerful if they were in the Barbagian Guild.
Gohyoh, the race that reminded Dale of orcs. They were a hybrid breed that combined old world dwarves and elves, and were excellent tanks and destroyers, but unlike some tanks that relied on tech, this race was highly magical, especially in the more destructive spell casting arts.
Nagintia, a goblin-like race. The legends stated that Gohyoh intermixed with demons and produced the Nagintia which were similar to the Naphil, although these two races hated each other. The Nagintia were best for doing lone quests and tasks as they didn’t get along with any other race, with the possible exception of the Mugron and Asakku, but both of those races couldn’t be trusted, so alliances were taken with caution.
Sihir, the genie race. This was the race that had offered Dale a gambling opportunity in the dungeon. He had no desire to be a Sihir, but he found them fascinating. Supposedly they granted wishes. How that worked, he hoped to find out. Sihir were the only race that were able to work magic that allowed the transfer of soul bound items between people, the same ability Dale and Smith had between each other, because they were bound.
Pareerou, the fairy race. One of only two races that could naturally fly starting at level one. They were gifted in magic, but not good for tanking or other direct attacks, due to their small size and inability to use complex tech. The Pareerou do not get along with the Draenen, the only other race that can naturally fly.
Draenen, the bat-like race. This race was based upon, according to rumors, an actual race in the universe that evolved to become intelligent, self-aware mammals, who could fly and use echolocation. They are able to fly at level one, and have no affinity for the Pareerou. Daytime activity requires the Draenen to wear special eye protection. At night they are highly skilled soldiers, often the best in nighttime battles, with the possible except of the Mugron.
Kanawa, a non-flying race of fairies. They get along with the Sigtrygg, have high magical abilities, and are good long range DPS. They like being underground and work well in the dark.
Phainopepla, a tall, slender race of desert elves who are enemies of the Nefyn because the Nefyn banished them from forests after a bloody civil war. Because of the survival skills they acquired living in deserts, they are excellent hunters (some claim the best hunters and trackers of all the races). The also make excellent thieves and assassins. They can find water anywhere it exists and are masters at camouflage. They favor spell casting over enchanting, preferring to damage and break things.
Nefyn, a tall, slender race of elves who dwell in the forests. They are magical, especially gifted in enchanting, preferring to heal and charm. They have for many years tried to reclaim an alliance with their former brothers; however, the Phainopepla refuse to discuss the issue. Nefyn usually do not get along with races that like the underground or those with magically dark affinities.
Ningishzida, the lizard race. A powerful and cunning species, equally skilled in tech and magic, the Ningishzida are generally not trusted by the other races; however, their reputation of loyalty and honor is also acknowledged.
Dale knew they loved to eat raw live insects, and that in itself was enough to get him to think about something else. Also, since he was forming a bond and friendship with Dyfrig, he wanted to spread out their talents for future quests.
The last four races shared many of the same attributes and mystery. The guide books had incomplete information. It seemed that these races had a view similar to American Marines: If you join us, it’s to be one of us. Your specialties and skills will be revealed after you commit.
Asakku, the pure demon race. How they differed from angels, nobody knew for sure, although it was assumed that Asakku were damage dealers while Gavreel were healers and support.
Gavreel, the pure angel race. Similar to Asakku, but gifted in the enchan
ting arts. Assumed to be the most powerful and skilled in enchanting.
Zuharah, the witches and warlocks race, wizards. Considered to be similar to the Naphil. Some suspect the Naphil are hybrid humanoid and Asakku, while the Zuharah are hybrid humanoid and angel. They are gifted in magic and tech, making them a versatile choice.
Naphil, a hybrid race (there is a suspicion that Naphil are a mix between humanoid and witches or warlocks, making them one-quarter Asakku). There is no definitive answer at this point in time. See Nagant War Text Update Section 24.65 for updates to information. Naphil are sneaky, tricky, and should not be trusted. They make excellent hunters, assassins, and magical damage dealers. They are also one of the most versatile races, excelling in magic and tech. There is a suspicion that they could have shape shifting abilities, however, this rumor cannot be confirmed.
Dale thought about Captain Redding.
This explains a lot.
True.
Oh, I didn’t mean to…
It’s okay, Dale, I went into sleep mode…
God…
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
Folks, I could have done that, walked around being a millionaire and franchising myself but no, I had to have this weird thing about trying to illuminate the collective unconscious and help humanity. Fucking moron.
Nagant Wars: A LitRPG Novel (Nagant Wars Series Book 1) Page 20