Authors Note:
Hi, first of all I'm literally back to fanfiction since a couple of days ago, so everyone who PM'd me - I have not yet had a chance to read them. I haven't been ignoring anyone intentionally.
Basically my mother decided to kick me out of the house in the middle of my exams so yeah... been more concerned with getting hot water than with getting access to the internet. Things have sorted themselves out for now, but updates might be sporadic at best.
Thanks to Flux Casey for beta-ing. (No, I haven't changed Beta, Casey W has changed their username.)
And with all of that stated thank you for reading chapter 10 of A Video Game of Thrones. I hope you enjoy it.
Temairine
His head hurt. A lot, to the point where Jon Snow wondered exactly how much he had had to drink last night. He blamed Robb. Robb was the heavier drinker and thus deserved to feel as if there was an axe lodged deep inside is skull. The dream had been quite vivid though... But it couldn't be one of those prophetic ones, could it? There was no way that Jon would be able to defeat the Kingslayer two out of three times!
"Stupid imagination going wild.", he muttered to himself as he rubbed the painful spot and promptly yelped, his hand withdrawing rapidly. Hangovers were not supposed to leave large painful bumps in the hairline. Unless he had gotten so drunk Robb had hit him over the head with a flagon or something. Jon's eyes squinted as the light of the steadily rising sun began to enter the room.
As a matter of habit he reached for the book which had changed his life so much and flicked through the pages. A recent habit to be sure, but an important one nonetheless. When he reached the page titled statistics though... Memories began to slot into place, one after the other, informing him exactly how he had managed to raise them to their current state.
Rapier was now 60, an increase of 10 literally overnight. Water Dance Style had increased a lesser amount, but was also substantially higher at 85, an increase of 6 in total. That was shocking enough in itself, especially since his brain was still throbbing, making thinking something of a chore. But as he looked over the new skill he had obtained the most important realisation sank in. Prowling Lion Style was now at 20/100, classing him as an competent amateur in a way of fighting that he had only heard about in some wine induced dream of his...
Which meant that it wasn't a dream. Which meant that he really had managed to triumph against Jaime Lannister. Which meant that the powerful Kingsguard member was going to have it out for him. Which meant that...
"Arya!"
Storming down the stairs, Jon took the opportunity to mutter some choice curses under his breath. He had learnt that from experience Arya had sharp enough hearing to discern expletives from a distance - and cheek enough to use them at wildly inappropriate times. Where was the little scamp! She had hit him with a cast iron pot for goodness sake! And he had had to be carried back unconscious in front of just about the whole of the Royal Court. No wonder people were staring and whispering at him.
Skill Unlocked: Sexual Appeal: 2/100
"Wai... Wha... How...!?"
He had somehow unlocked the weirdest skill yet (in his opinion), and it was already 2/100? That would mean that he was currently using the skill, as according to the book unlocked skills started at 0 - much like Intrigue had done. Glancing around at a group of giggling young ladies, some of the Queen's handmaidens most likely, the screen that told him how others viewed him appeared.
Gizette Jaycob
[Gizette] thinks this about you: Handsome, Cool, Mysterious, Looks great without a shirt
After reading the last description Jon's first thought was about when on earth she had seen him topless. Then as his eyes tracked the direction of the pointed fingers and covert gazes he looked down. He was indeed shirtless. But how? How had he missed the rather major fact that he was only half dressed?! The answer came to him instantly. The Ice Resistance Merit meant that he hadn't felt the cold in the slightest. It was nice that the floor no longer made his feet recoil in horror when morning came but now Jon simply wished that such a thing that had never changed. It would have saved him this embarrassment.
Sexual Appeal: 3/100
If he was a direwolf his tail would be firmly between his legs by now. And there was no way he was searching for Arya like this. With as much dignity as he could muster he turned round and attempted a casual walk back to his room. Though at the speed he was going - all the while not running - it probably resembled a military step. And all the while Jon was trying to convince himself that it was no big deal, and that even if it was, that the newly unlocked skills would be useful. The latest one was definitely an improvement on the first one.
Skill Unlocked: Composure: 0/100
That would actually come in handy at some point. By which he meant today. When Robb found out and oh-no-Arya-was-never-going-to-let-him-live-it-down. By this time he was in his chamber once again so no-one saw the look of panic on the face of the man who had bested the Kingslayer, terrified of his little sister. Even if she was deadly with the cooking pot... and was never going to let him forget it.
Once dressed in a clean tunic and pair of trousers, Jon decided that he would lie low for a few hours. He really wanted to remain here until the Kingslayer left. There was a nagging feeling that Jaime Lannister would not be happy about any of this unreal situation. Even Jon wasn't happy about it and he had won! Maybe he should see about spending some of the skill points he would have gained from the two levels obtained? Idly he wondered if there was an invisibility merit.
First thing to be considered was his Stats though, having 20 points to spend... or more like 10. Now that Jon no longer urgently required Dexterity, he did not want a repeat of the situation with Bran. While the boy was thankfully alright for the most part he was not going to be placed in a situation where he was unable to do anything due to something as trivial as having no free Stat Points.
So since his newfound problems were not of the physical class, 5 points went to Intelligence and the remaining 5 to Charisma. This brought them up to 22 and 30 respectively. But upon turning to his skills he was quite surprised to see a new page, which brought back the memory of the message that had not been fully processed by his brain when it appeared subsequent to the duel. Still, what exactly was Skill Synthesis?
Skill Synthesis: A process which allows for the merging of compatible Skills to form new ones. The chance of success depends on the compatibility of the chosen Skills, and your Fate Stat. Failure leads to a decrease in the selected Skills.
So not something he should try with a Fate of 22 then. And he wasn't going to assign any Skill Points yet before he had taken a look around for potential teachers. That left one area untouched, Merits, of which there were a fair few that were newly unlocked. And given that he had kept one point in reserve, a total of 3 Merit Points existed for him to spend. Though, rather than immediately purchase the best ones available he was also going to consider those which he would be able to unlock without too much trouble. So he began to browse...
Merit Points [3]
Dragon Speak: Allows the player to talk to dragons in their own language
But he could swear that dragons were extinct? But by now Jon knew not to take anything for granted.
Valyrian Steel: Grants 10 Token to spend at the [Valyrian Steel Forge] per Merit Point
Same argument as before - there was no way he would ever be able to keep a Valyrian Steel item.
Masquerade: Those with Perception lower than your Charisma cannot read your emotions - unless you let them
Potentially very useful in a political situation, providing that he wasn't facing a skilled opponent. Definitely one to pick up.
Blood Is Thicker Than Water: Ensures that no children you conceive with a relative suffer from inbreeding
Just no. Jon refused to think about that. Moving on...
Heart of Gold: Quests which help people always award a monetary bonus
That was a trickier one, it had long term benefits, but since it didn't specify the amount of money it could be useless. There was no point getting it in exchange for an extra copper penny. Something to wait and see about.
Phoenix: Once a month the ability to heal all ailments affecting you personally becomes available
Jon thought that that sounded pretty good. As long as he wasn't killed before he could respond he had what was effectively an extra life - all he had to do was activate it and he would be healthy. And ailments included wounds as well as illness's and poisons. Invulnerability sounded pretty good, especially when he had some pretty powerful enemies. Lannisters weren't known to be the forgiving type. So that was his second Merit Point gone.
Orion's Belt: People may now be tracked and identified on the mini-map
This would have been the end of Jon's available points, but unfortunately this required his Tracking Skill to be maxed, instead of at a meager 31. Even with two levels worth of Skill Points he could only get it up to 81! Jon did make a mental note to keep an eye out for Quests that would improve his tracking skill. It appeared to give numerous possibilities, spying or identifying imposters being the least of it, so yes, one for the future.
But it was by now well past dawn, and he couldn't realistically hide here for more than an hour. As unfortunate as that was. So he picked out his clothes as best as he could, unlocking a new skill as he did so.
Fashion: 0/100
Maybe he should reconsider his first choice of outfit. Or maybe not. It wasn't like he was going to have any need of courtly fashions anytime soon. Hopefully. He really shouldn't think things like that with a fate as low as his currently was. Jon's internal monologue on life and luck ended as soon as he entered the courtyard, and gritting his teeth, tried to filter out the useful information that was being bandied about from the everyday gossip that seemed to dominate the conversations. It made his head hurt, and that was with increased Intelligence.
So it was with great relief that he saw a friendly face approach. At first glance Robb looked to be in his usual good cheer, but to Jon it was evident that he was quite nervous. As soon as he was near enough, hushed words were exchanged between the pair.
"Come on. The King is making an announcement alongside father, and unless you want to make a grand entrance it might be best to get there early."
Jon groaned, praying that the King was not as drunk as he was the night he announced the duel between himself and the Kingslayer.
"Any idea what it's about? And any chance we could water down the wine this time - I really don't fancy having to fight another living legend in single combat!"
Robb did laugh at that, replying with equal jest.
"Well, if you wanted to fight me, you only had to ask..."
Jon simply groaned.
"Come on, let's get this over with."
Entering the main hall should have been something of a challenge since word of the upcoming announcement had evidently gotten out and the entire court was converging on a single room. However people seemed to be giving the two young men space to walk through, some of the lower ranking courtiers even going so far as to step aside to make way.
Robb handled the attention with moderate dignity. Jon... handled it with all the skill one would expect from a man with a Composure score of 0 as they parted and moved to their respective seats. That is to say, not well. Thank goodness for the Masquerade Merit, which provided a small reassurance that not quite everyone in the room would notice his discomfort. Only those with a high Perception score could. Which wasn't much better since that was going to include most of the important people. Was it too late to hope that the wine wasn't watered down? Then maybe everyone would get drunk and forget about this.
When all the people that could be accommodated were seated - and then some more people were standing around the banquet tables in order to be there - King Robert Baratheon stood. Silence promptly fell over the crowd, giving the hall an incredibly tense atmosphere. The royal gaze swept over those assembled before turning to where Ned Stark was sitting. Who was now, by royal decree the new Hand of the King.
Applause sounded out once, then twice and finally thrice as following the first point, the betrothal of Sansa Stark and Prince Joffrey Baratheon was announced, alongside the news that a number of Stark retainers would be accompanying the head of their house to King's Landing in order to compete in the tourney that was taking place. Jon was rather preoccupied with the fact that he faced being without his uncle while in a Winterfell managed by Catelyn Stark. Yes... He probably wasn't going to be welcome in the slightest. But there weren't many options available to an illegitimate son of a Great House, save joining the Night's Watch.
That thought gave him pause, it was definitely a viable option, and Benjen Stark, his uncle served there. He made a mental note to seek him out and find out more about this intriguing possibility. Jon then returned to listening to the end of the speeches, mostly congratulations on Ned's appointment and Sansa's marriage arrangements. Nothing that affected him, until the discussion turned to which retainers from the North would be granted the honor of participating in the tournament.
Jon groaned. He really should have known better. Having fought with the Kingslayer and winning, even though it was by a hairsbreadth, he should have expected that his name would be nominated. But no, he had assumed that his birth status would bar him from consideration. Not to mention the fact that he wasn't even an anointed knight, which could very well put him into conflict with the Septons. Ha! As if he needed more hostile relationships!
Still, nominated he most definitely was, by none other than the King. Well, ostensibly it was His Majesty who proclaimed that he wished to see Jon fight again but Jon knew better than to discount the glances between a pair of golden-haired twins. And the hushed words the Queen had spoken to her husband. Yes, he could make a more than fair guess about where that idea came from!
But of equal horror to his newfound prominence was the engagement. Joffrey Baratheon had his siblings terrified, to say nothing of what cruelties he would be capable of towards Sansa... No, maybe the situation wasn't quite so dire. His uncle was a good man, and the King's Hand should be able to intervene if Joffrey was a threat to Sansa. But a voice in the back of his mind whispered otherwise. Speaking from his experience with Catelyn Stark, Jon knew that a person could be perfectly cordial, and simultaneously spiteful.
"...And will those who have been selected stand and bow to the King."
This time it was Ned Stark's voice which boomed out, with an ever so slight echo adding emphasis. Jon stood, as did approximately six other knights. The problem was that while they were all seated at a high table, Jon was sitting with the higher ranking craftsmen and merchants. That meant that in order to see him people had to turn, and turn they did. Drawing even more unwanted attention towards him. There went his plan to enquire about joining the Night Watch, he was heading to King's Landing.
"Damn!"
And then Jon realized the exact reason why Jaime Lannister was so smug at this moment. His knowledge of Westeros law told him that he would have to compete in the main event. Jousting. Which he had never done in his life before. He did not excel at riding. He had never used a lance. He owned no plate armor to protect himself. The Old Gods, or the Seven, or some higher unknown power really, really hated him. Another glance at a beaming Jaime Lannister exiting the hall reminded him that fear of the unknown wasn't Jon's only problem. He had enough on his plate with the known as it was!
The side door was opened. He snagged some breakfast leftovers and walked out, intending to return to his room and eat in peace. However that option was closed due to the fact that to get there he would have to navigate that most fearsome occurrence to one plagued by gossip; a crowd. Looking at the plate in his hands, completely untouched and laden with chicken his path changed and he reached the kennels where Ghost lived in record time.
Stealth: 0/100
And that was still happening?! He'd better get that higher quick - Jon had people to avoid!
"Well, at least you're here Ghost, I swear you're better company than most of the court!"
A cheerful yip followed a gulp, and pleading eyes flicked back and forth. First to Jon, and then to the empty plate.
"No, not going to get more. You have meat here, just because there's no stuffed chicken doesn't mean you can fuss."
...How could a dangerous predator look so - dare he say it - cute?
"Fine, I'll get you some later when the crowd disperses, alright?"
The direwolf nodded and settled down to chew on a large bone as Jon enjoyed the peace and quiet. However, he had a sinking feeling that he was missing something important. What had he forgotten? He'd fed Ghost, remembered to wear all his clothes and spent his Merit Points. What else was there? Pondering the matter for a few minutes left him with no more information than when he started. Stretching his arms and legs back, Jon leaned against the Kennel wall and groaned when his head touched it. Oh... Ah... Yes...
"ARYA!"
And far, far, away in the safety of the women's quarters a young girl giggled, looking at the cooking pot by her bedside table.
Jon Snow: Statistics
Physical
Strength: 19
Endurance: 18
Dexterity: 38
Mental
Intellect: 22
Perception: 33
Willpower: 25
Social
Charisma: 30,
Wisdom: 22
Supernatural
Fate: 22
Spirit: 40
Skills
Lore
Northlands Lore: 18/100
Westerlands Lore: 17/100
Religious Lore: 5/100
Ranged Combat
Crossbow: 66/100
Longbow: 66/100
Short Bow: 66/100
Mounted Archery: 0/100
Sharpshooting: 0/100
Wind Arrow: 0/100
Melee Combat
Fist Fighting: 28/100
Short Sword: 64/100
Bastard Sword: 100/100
Long Sword: 64/100
Greatsword: 25/100
Rapier: 60/100
Water Dance Style: 85/100
Fire Dragon Style: 0/100
Ice Gale Style: 28/100
Storm Hawk Style: 29/100
Prowling Lion Style: 20/100
Armour Wearing: 30/100
General Skills
Hunting: 42/100
Tracking: 31/100
Survival: 34/100
Riding: 10/100
Stealth: 4/100
Social Skills
Sewing: 13/100
Manners: 15/100
Singing: 5/100
Gambling: 5/100
Cooking: 10/100
Dog Training: 15/100
Composure: 2/100
Sexual Appeal: 3/100
Mental Skills
Plant Identification: 5/100
Poisons: 5/100
Medicine: 10/100
Finance: 15/100
Intrigue: 0/100
Politics: 15/100
Management: 10/100
Lock-Picking: 5/100
Blacksmithing: 5/100
Strategy: 5/100
High Valyrian: 5/100
Experience: 2580/7000