Irrelevant Jack

by Prax Venter

“Lex,” he began. “I think I’m going to focus on Dodge from now on.”

  “Oh? Find something interesting in there?”

  He turned to face her with his left fist up. “Notice anything off-handy about me?”

  The blonde Bastion’s golden eyes unfocused as she Inspected his items and nodded slowly.

  “That’s a fantastic unique Off-Hand, Jack. I know you hated taking damage through your blocks. The random element could be good or bad, though. I’ve heard of items like this. Be warned that the damage value has the potential to come up negative.”

  Jack’s smile faltered. “Oh, I didn’t even think of that.”

  “I suppose we’ll just have to try our luck,” Lex said.

  Jack’s smile returned. “Mmm clever… anyway, what about the Town Upgrade? Any thoughts?”

  “You’re probably right about the Lumber Mill, but it feels… wrong leaving someone out.”

  Jack crossed his arms. “We could let random chance decide, but that hadn’t been doing Blackmoor any favors. It’s time to take control and guide our Town to prosperity.”

  Lex stepped forward and put her hand on his arm, her eyes soft with affection.

  “That was the first time you called it our Town.”

  He reached out and pulled the shorter woman into his arms. Lex quickly returned the embrace and rested her head on his chest. Jack really wanted to kiss her, and right now might have been a great time to do it, but her head was angled down, and something in her body language told him that it would still be rushing things.

  He settled for pressing his lips onto the top of her golden hair, instead.

  Jack paused there, breathing her in slowly and then let her go, breaking the embrace.

  “Come on, there’s still a lot of work ahead of us… and a few surprises when we get back home.”

  Lex healed him with her voice, and just before she touched the softly glowing Orb that sent her back outside, she cast her eyes on him once more. She took a deep breath, smiled sweetly and then she was gone.

  Jack walked over to the Exit Orb and looked up into the streamer-decorated ceiling.

  “Hold the upgrade on the Lumber Mill, Alt,” he said before slapping the glassy Orb himself and following her to the gray skies of Blackmoor Cove.

  Ryea clomped over to them quickly and thrust out her hand. Cupped in her palm was a slightly oversized, vividly blue egg.

  “We’ve got eggs!” she said. “Whole bunches of ‘em.”

  Jack gave her a wide smile. “That’s great, Farmer Ryea, but we’re about to get a lot more than eggs. Hold on to your butts, ladies.”

  Lex and Ryea exchanged glances, and even though the Bastion knew what was coming, the phrase caught her by surprise.

  Jack went over to the fountain and held his hand, initiating the transfer of items into the chest.

  “You wish to keep that new shield and the fork still, correct?” Alt asked in his mind.

  Jack sent him back an affirmative. A few floors ago, Alt had offered to automate the process of dumping in items as the task became more laborious with every Floor they climbed.

  There was an all-encompassing flash, and then everything changed.

  The first thing Jack noticed was the fountain, as it was right in his face. Gone was the mossy, crumbled stone and in its place was a brand new and polished granite work of art. Along the rim of the basin were small decorative protrusions and the water itself was now reaching over Jack’s head.

  Turning to look at the girls’ reactions to the change, he saw them staring at the Tower behind him. He spun on his heel and found that the infinitely tall structure had changed in appearance as well. Instead of loose, weather-beaten stones, the sides of the impossible structure were also now smooth, and the whole thing seemed to have been built yesterday.

  Movement on the right drew his eye, and a huge canvased windmill with an attached building now stood on the cliffside across from the farm. Jack smiled. That had to be the new flour mill.

  “Is that…” he heard Ryea start behind him.

  Jack turned to face her. “Yup. Better get growing that wheat or I’ll have to replace you.”

  The freckled woman just stared at him, blinking, the precious egg in her hand forgotten. “I’m kidding, Ryea. I’d never replace you. That’s a beautiful, blue, future baby bird you have there.”

  Lex gripped the larger woman by her shoulder and gave her a little shake. “Snap out of your stupor, and let’s go eat.”

  As they walked to the Eye ‘o the Storm, Jack noticed a new wooden fence lining the dirt path and when they got to the inn itself, he saw the old wooden shutters had been painted a midnight blue. Beneath each of the windows sat a flower box with clumps of what looked like white dandelions.

  “Ooh, I bet Demi is going to be in a good mood,” Jack said, pointing at the spruced-up inn.

  “Everyone is,” Lex said. “Especially since their homes are whole again, too.”

  Jack looked to his right and saw a few of the fishermen and guards jumping up and down in the road in front of their houses. He couldn’t help the wide smile from overtaking his whole face. He was doing it. He was turning this place around.

  Jack, Lex, and Ryea entered the inn and Demi waved from behind the counter.

  “A grand Exit to you, Heroes!”

  Lex shot a sly look over to Jack, wordlessly communicating, “You called it.”

  They sat down in their customary spot in the corner, and every Townsfolk that walked through the front door came up to their table to thank them. Jack stood and shook the hand of each one.

  As the night went on, Demi danced around the room, serving a variety of dishes and humming a sparkling melody as she moved. Jack expected to see a status effect from the way her tune seemed to elevate everyone’s good moods.

  Then Sol kicked open the door.

  “You did this!” he yelled, and everyone turned to look at Jack. Behind the tall owl of a man stood his daughter, Haylee, staring at the ground. Jack hoped that deposing her father as Wharfmaster didn’t shake up her life too much.

  Sol took one long step into the inn, letting the door close behind him and his teenage daughter. He looked about to speak again when the equally tall form of Demi appeared in front of him.

  “Sol, what brings the Master up from his Wharf and into my fine establishment?”

  The man snarled before he spoke. “I no longer hold that title. That old fool, Garl, is your new Wharfmaster, somehow, and it must be the black work of this evil devil of a creature sitting in your fine establishment!” The balding man looked around at the rest of the Townsfolk. “When was the last time you heard of someone’s very livelihood being stolen? I ask you! Is it natural to suddenly gain a farm outside a Town Level? This demonic creature was sent from the Tower itself and will bring doom to us all!”

  The ex-wharfmaster was shaking as he spoke, the bare scalp on the top of his head practically glowing red from fuming rage.

  “Harrak was right all along. I say we drive this beast from our home- before it’s too late! Who’s with me?”

  Quiet settled over the common room of the Eye ‘o the Storm for a few heartbeats and then Jack heard the sliding of a bench against the stone floor. Three of the Townsfolk he recognized as guards stood and moved over to stand by Jack, their hands on his shoulder.

  Then, one after another, all the Townsfolk, stood and made a wall in front of the Irrelevant Hero. Finally, the silver-haired innkeeper backed up to stand in front of the group and crossed her arms.

  “Seems like the entire Town disagrees with your assessment of the current situation.”

  Jack stood, and moved around the group of Townsfolk, patting shoulders in appreciation. He came to a stop in front of Sol and then looked down at his black-haired daughter. She kept her eyes turned down to the floor, and he genuinely felt bad for her. Jack locked his eyes back on the angry owl of a man scowling down on him.

  “I’m not going anywhere, Sol, and I only do what’s
best for my Town.”

  He paused and heard positive murmurs from the Townsfolk arrayed behind him. Jack continued. “Let’s let these people have their meal in peace and talk outside, shall we?”

  “What’s there to discuss? We’ve been kicked from our home, and I am now to serve as a lowly guard! You’ve practically murdered myself and by extension, my daughter, and if none of you cowards will do anything about it-”

  “Enough!” Jack shouted, cutting him off. “The only coward here I see is you.”

  Louder cheers came from behind Jack, but the last thing he wanted was to completely destroy the man or make him an outcast. Sol was a resource- a piece of the complete puzzle, and if he truly wanted to do the best for Blackmoor Cove, he would find a way to fit him into a good place.

  Jack turned and held his hand up to the slowly transforming mob behind him, and they settled into quiet once again.

  “Sol, please. Allow me to buy you and your daughter dinner. She can stay here under the protection of Demi while you come walk with me alone.”

  He opened a trade interface with Sol, moved 30 coins over and tapped the accept button.

  The other man’s eyes narrowed, but Jack knew he had begun to speak his language. Sol loved his coin.

  The tall, frowning man accepted the trade. He then got on his knee to face his daughter.

  “I am sorry, my dear. This is what we’ve been reduced to… scraps and handouts.”

  Demi stepped up and held her hand out to Haylee. “You know she’ll be safe here.”

  Sol stood and seemed to open a trade menu with the silver-haired innkeeper. While they did this, Jack took the opportunity to inspect the ex-wharfmaster.

  Sol - Townsfolk: Wall Guard | 13% Proficiency

  [Health: 5/5]

  Relationship -

  [Disposition: Loathing]

  Alt’s electronic voice echoed in Jack’s mind. “It’s a worse fit than his previous job but seeing as we’ve taken two people from guard duty, Ryea and Blevins, the system apparently sought to correct this imbalance. I’m sorry. I should have known.”

  Jack sent his friend a mental pat on the back. They’d figure something out.

  After a final glance down at his daughter, Sol locked his huge eyes on Jack, and the dark V-shaped eyebrows were pulled almost to his nose. He looked about to say something, but the tall robed man turned and stalked out of the inn. Jack cast a glance back at Lex, giving her a nod before he followed Sol into the twilight.

  His long strides had the new Wall Guard halfway to the crossroads before Jack caught up.

  Jack considered his words carefully. The only way to win was to have Sol working for the Town’s benefit, not against it… no matter how much he wanted to spit venom at this grown man’s childish tantrum.

  “Sol, let me start by apologizing to you.”

  The owlish man wasn’t expecting that, and he slowed his steps slightly. Jack continued while he had his attention. “You are correct. This was my doing, just like the farm and just like everything else that I will make happen to bring this Town back from the edge of oblivion.”

  Sol stopped abruptly in the middle of the dirt road and turned to face Jack.

  “What exactly are you apologizing for, abomination? I must have missed it.”

  “You were a bad fit for the Wharfmaster position, everyone knew it, even you. I wanted to correct that but it was not my intention that you become a guard. It’s not where you belong.”

  The angry man was about to say something, and Jack held up his hand.

  “Look, you know I am trying to guide this Town on the correct path. It’s true that I have this ability, and I am going to use it as best as I can. Eventually, as I gain in power, I will find a fitting position, Sol. I vow on my life that I will do this for you, but not just for you- for everyone in Blackmoor Cove. Stick with me… work with me, and you and your daughter will have a long, happy life.”

  The owlish man crossed his arms and cocked his head to the side.

  “A long life? Hard to accomplish as I’m to battle on the front lines as a Wall Guard.”

  Jack sighed. He looked around and saw the new flour mill’s blades gently spinning in the salty sea breeze. He pointed out the structure to Sol.

  “Can you see that?”

  “The new mill? What, am I supposed-”

  “Ah!” Jack held his hand up again, cutting him off. “You can see it, right?”

  “Of course I can see it, I’m not blind!”

  “Good,” Jack said as he pointed to the fountain. In the fading light, he could barely make out the stream of water against the Tower. “How high is that water reaching from the base of the fountain?”

  “About six and a half feet,” Sol said, eyeing the fountain. “Are you trying to prove how wonderful you’ve made things for everyone else but me?”

  “No. I’ve spent every morning for the last nine days training with Harrak at the Wall. I know how things are handled there. Until I figure out how to reassign your job, you’ll be placed on top of the Wall as a lookout. You’ll be as far away from combat as possible and serve as a spotter. Kron is no fool. Getting you killed helps no one.”

  “I don’t like change, Jack. And I don’t like you.”

  “I know. You don’t need to like me. You only need to love this Town. And as far as not liking change- you better get your damn stubborn head right about that fast because I am going to really shake this place up.”

  A flickering flame down in Jack’s gut flared into something new. Now that things were finally happening, and he was growing stronger, Jack could clearly invasion a future where he became a true leader. He was going to absolutely max this Town, then blaze a swath across this whole world and fix every last broken part. He turned his eyes back to the frowning tall man in black robes standing in front of him.

  “Mark my words, Sol. My destiny is to burn out every mote of corruption in this world. You can get in my way, or you can come along for the ride. The choice is yours.”

  With that, Jack turned his back on the ex-wharfmaster and went back to eat his dinner with his friends.

  - 28 -

  Over the next ten days, Jack and Lex climbed the Tower, one Floor at a time, and after a week of celebration, the Townsfolk had finally settled into their new and improved lives. Everything in the dreary, run-down Town of Blackmoor Cove had a new shine to it. Jack discovered that not only had their rooms at the inn become larger, the building had also grown a new third room. Additionally, Ryea had quickly cultivated a whole field of wheat for the mill and began to slaughter the renewable domesticated Orb Pheasants. They definitely didn’t taste like chicken, but they were deliciously edible. Especially since Demi baked fresh bread from the flour and added grilled onion and pheasant sandwiches to her growing menu- complete with blue mayonnaise from their eggs. Even Sol settled down and quietly did his new job. Kron had him handling the finances for paying and feeding the guards when not perched up on the wall as a lookout. Garl excelled as the new Wharfmaster and came up to shake Jack’s hand as he delivered the fish himself daily. The Townsfolk saw the price for seafood come down considerably. When Jack inspected the old fisherman, he saw a 99% proficiency rating, the highest he had ever seen.

  He expected his relationship with the beautiful, golden-haired Bastion to grow as they worked together to tear apart each new Floor Boss, but over the last few days she had become distant, withdrawn. He wanted to talk to her about it, but he knew it had to do with her mother. Jack told himself that if she continued to remain withdrawn after they both hit Hero Level 25, he would confront her. It seems her father had been paying attention to their daily progress as well because when he came to train with Harrak the day they intended to tackle Floor 24, he found the bygone Knight sitting against a rain barrel with his old wooden pipe clenched between his stained teeth. “Not today,” was all he said, never looking up.

  Jack thought of Lex being locked at that Hero Level for years and felt unfaltering determination
to stand by her side, helping her finally burn through this blockage and grow into a new chapter of her life. Hopefully closely intertwined together.

  Jack, Lex, and Alt quickly climbed the first twenty Floors, but after that, things got more difficult. Monsters hit harder, there were more traps, and Bosses had more Hit Points, but with Alt morphing to fit the situation, they defeated Floor 23’s Boss- a four-armed giant with a serpent body and a terribly sharp scimitar in each hand.

  Jack kept his eyes on Lex as she walked up to the arched wooden door with the number 24 seared into it. They were finally here. If they defeated the next Boss, both of them would reach Hero Level 25 and boost their Paths to the second tier. Jack couldn’t wait to see how Mining Laser improved- his bread and butter skill, but helping Lex put her past behind her occupied most of his mind.

  After looting the Boss chest and putting the unfortunately useless items into his inventory, he approached her and laid his hand on her shoulder.

  “I’ll be by your side the whole time,” he said softly. Alt, the Angry Sun, floated up to her other side and hovered silently, lending his own support.

  Lex turned to face him, her golden eyes glassy and her cheeks wet with tears. She wiped her face with the back of her gloved hand and nodded. Then she reached out for the door to Floor 24, and a white void of light filled their vision.

  Jack -38 | HP 247/285

  Alt -47 | HP 3/50

  Terrible pain in his side and a series of Hit Point updates assaulted Jack the moment they appeared on Floor 24. On instinct alone, he drew his sword and hacked at the black creature attached to his leg with Double Strike.

  Off-world Terror -90 | HP 155/245

  He heard Lex scream next to him. “No! This isn’t possible!”

  Angry Sun Alt zipped out of range from his attacker and fired his eye beams on the alien creature attached to Jack. The vile things seemed to be nothing but shiny, black legs and teeth.

  Off-world Terror -90 | HP 65/245

  Then Jack activated his Mining Laser, taking one more hit before finishing it off.

  Off-world Terror -45 | HP 20/245

  Jack -38 | HP 209/285