Jumping from one tree from the other in Naruto style might be fun, but it was actually pretty hard when you were looking for two young dragonesses that were kidnapped by some things of which I didn't even know the name of. My map was working full-time to find them, and so was I, moving as fast as I could. Apparently the system saw this as training, since I had also gained a DEX point in my rush.
I was starting to get desperate, when I fInally spotted a bunch of red dots surrounding two yellow ones. I dashed to their location with newfound vigor, and stopped within five meters of their location to assess the situation. In that moment my ability let itself known:
New quest!
Princess in another castle (story quest)
Star and Pyra were ambushed by the apes! Save them before they're brought away!
Kill all the apes []
Escort Pyra and Star to the village []
Bonus: don't let Pyra nor Star be wounded []
Completion reward:
2500 Xp.
increased closeness: Pyra Sun.
increased closeness: Star Polar.
Bonus: new title.
Failure penalty:
self-loathing.
hated by the dragon village.
possible death.
I didn't even think about leaving them there, so I pressed yes immediately.
There were apes surrounding them from every side, and they weren't in very good shape: I could see scrapes and bruises in a lot of places, and Star's wing was bent at an angle which didn't seem healthy.
Without wasting another second I jumped off my branch, landing between the apes and the dragons. In one swift movement I retrieved my sword, and pointed it at the closest ape, which also seemed to be the leader.
"Take one more step and you will all die."
The apes were looking at each other in confusion, while the leader actually took a step back, probably startled by my sudden appearance. That lasted for nary a second, as after that they all pointed their eyes at me, and charged as one.
I simply threw a Fireball at them, and watched them all flying a couple meters back, before getting back up looking no worse for wear. While it was impressive to shake off one of my Fireballs like that, I had more tricks up my sleeve. Using an Aeroblade I beheaded one of them, and fried another with a Thunder.
+ 45 Xp!
+ 50 Xp!
After that, I matched their charge, and kept parrying and deflecting blows until I could spot an opening. At the right moment, I threw another Fireball in the middle of the small group, and jumped back just before the usual explosion. I knew they weren't dead, so I threw a couple Frosts in the middle of the smoke.
I was rewarded in my endeavour with the sight of an ape with a frozen arm, another stuck in place by a foot encased in ice, and the last one was the least lucky, having been hit right in the head. I made quick work of the remaining two with a deliberate use of Wind spear.
+ 50 Xp!
+ 45 Xp!
+ 45 Xp!
Only the boss was left, but I couldn't see him anywhere. Activating my Radar, I heard a small movement over me, and leaped away just in time to avoid having a two meter tall ape fall on my head. My Thunders were doing a poor job at passing his thick hide, so I switched to Wind spears, yet it seemed he was just too resistant for it to work.
My hopes were thinning, and as I kept avoiding his slashes, I tried to find a way to kill him. My sword was unfortunately too weak to even scratch him, but maybe I could do something about that. So, I started to pour mana both inside and around my blade, sharpening and strengthening it.
*ding*
You created a new skill!
Fusing magic with swordsmanship, you made a new skill:
Acheomensis (active) Lv: 1 (00.0%)
'My blade is me. I am my blade.' By using your magic to empower your sword, destroy every enemy in your path!
50 Mp/second
+30% to all stats
+10% damage
?- reach level 50 to unlock
?- reach level 100 to unlock
In that moment, a surge of power like nothing else flooded into my body, and I knew exactly what to do. I dashed over the boss ape, and rolled underneath his swing. In my mind I kept repeating my motions while I was doing them:
'From right to left! Upwards from left to right! Downwards from left to right! Pierce!'
+150 Xp!
You created a new combo!
Once I finished, the skin in the point I targeted was so thin my sword speared his gut and cut his spine. Kicking the ape off my blade, I looked around myself to make sure that was the last one. Sure enough, there weren't anymore, and all the others started disintegrating. I turned my attention to the two young dragonesses, and said the first thing that came to mind:
"It's time to stop playing in the woods."
Pyra was staring at me with a mixture of fear and awe, while Star was struggling to even stand up. I picked her up, and motioned Pyra to follow me. During our walk back to the village neither of us said anything. Once we had reached the edge of the forest, I was about to leave, and just before I did I heard Pyra say:
"Thank you… if you hadn't been there, we would be dead, or worse."
I didn't turn, but replied:
"Just do two things for me: keep this story only to the ones that won't spread it, and remember that this is a dangerous place. Bring someone that can actually fight if you plan to go into this forest."
Having said my piece, I fell back into the midst of the trees, but didn't leave yet: my quest still wasn't completed, so I had to make sure they would get safely to the village. Thanks to my Falcon's eye I could keep watch on them as they approached the cluster of houses. A guard took notice of them, and sent someone away, probably to call medical help. I saw Tundra rush to his sister, followed by a bulky blue dragon that I supposed was their father, while Pyra was approached by an athletic but definitely male deep red dragon, and if my Observe was to be trusted, he should have been her dad, Sun Blaze.
*ding*
Princess in another castle (story quest)
Quest completed!
Kill all the apes [OK]
Escort Pyra and Star to the village [OK]
Bonus: don't let Pyra nor Star be wounded [X]
Reward:
2500 Xp,
increased closeness: Pyra Sun,
increased closeness: Star Polar.
Level up! Level up!
Having my good deed been completed, I took my leave and returned to my usual tree. I chose to simply relax for the day, as I had had way too much excitement for quite a while. In the meantime, I shifted between my menus to analyze all the new stuff I had managed to gain. The points from my level up, of course, went in the usual proportion, so I was left with:
Daniel Samuels
The Gamer (new titles unlocked)
G: 8.114
Lv: 12 (166/3000 Xp)
Hp: 1330/1330 (+16.3/s)
Mp: 1570/1570 (+20.2/s)
STR: 14 (17.3)
DEX: 16 (19.8)
VIT: 13 (16.1)
INT: 37
WIS: 24
LUK: 19
Stat points: 3
Alignment: chaotic good
The alignment was a new thing, and it was actually quite spot-on. Still, I hadn't noticed that I had unlocked new titles. Giving a once over to the list, I saw there were actually a good deal of them I could work on:
The Gamer: Your life is a game. No boosts.
Rising Alpha: +20% Xp to missions when in a party. Obtained killing an Alpha Lycan.
Pyromaniac: blocked. Bring a fire spell up to level 50 to unlock.
Apprentice Swordmaster: blocked. Bring swordsmanship to level 30 to unlock.
Apprentice Mage: blocked. Bring a spell to level 20 to unlock.
The 'Apprentice Swordmaster' one left me a tad perplexed: I didn't have a swordfighting skill, so why did that title appear? Flipping a little through my skills, I came across the reason: the Skill page had more layers to it: one was dedicated to my actual skills, while the other had a list of the different fighting styles I could master. Right then, the only style listed was:
Swordsmanship (fighting style) Lv: 4 (19.6%)
Known combos:
Scorpion sting – Lv: 1 (05.0%)
In all honesty, I didn't even get an alert for the fighting style, yet I did get one for making a combo. I wanted to test sonething, so I dropped off my tree and proceeded to mimic a set of hits I had seen once in a film: left hook, right hook, uppercut, and a punch to the gut.
You created a new combo!
Opening again my Skill list once more, a new fighting style had appeared:
Unarmed (fighting style) Lv: 1 (02.0%)
Known combos:
Dynamite buster – Lv: 1 (05.0%)
My hunch was correct, then: fighting styles were like a skill, but more subtle: as I got experience in a certain style, the better I would become, but it only affected my proficiency, not my power. Still, it was good to know: I wouldn't have to learn how to use a sword, as the system was already teaching me subconsciously.
With that doubt sated, I returned to my lazy day. The only thing left for me to check was this 'alignment' thingy. Touching it, the respective info screen appeared:
Your alignment dictates how you react to certain things and how you solve problems. It will change parts of the storyline, and also your closeness to some people.
The explanation answered some of my questions, but another one arose: what did the system mean by closeness? Fumbling around, I found an options screen, and in the lower right corner was a small button with a question mark on it. Pressing the button, the screen in front of me changed, and a list of options took its place:
Stats
Skills
System
Guide
Wondering about what I would find, I pressed the Guide option, and a smaller window overlayed the list.
Right now you are in the dragon realm, a place home to many creatures, some good and some evil. On Earth, a videogame series portrayed this land: 'The legend of Spyro'. You might have heard of it. The point being: since your death came way before schedule, and you had nothing to make amends for, you were given a new chance, and also the 'Gamer' ability, as a form of apology. Mind you, this is the only redo you're getting. If you die again, it's forever.
The last part made me shiver a little. It wasn't anything I didn't expect already, but being reminded of it made me a little more self-conscious. And 'the legend of Spyro'? I did hear of it, and could recognize the main characters, but I hadn't the foggiest about the storyline. Then again, I might have appeared way before or after the events of the story. There was no point to dwelling on that, so I stopped worrying and kept lazing my day off.
Nothing else worthy of note happened for the rest of the day, and at sundown I opened an empty ID to get some training in, focusing some more on my DEX. My gains were: 2 STR, 3 DEX and 2 VIT. I noticed that my increasing was getting slower, but that was to be expected. After all, the stronger you get, the harder it is to improve.
I came around to planning a schedule, and for the next few days I stuck to it, as nothing else required my attention: during the day I would go hunting in my ID, which in the meantime opened up a couple more possibilities: apes and grublins. I favored going after apes, as they gave more Xp than my other choices, and during my night I would alternatively work out or practice my spells some more.
During my hunting trips I started leaning a little more on the melee side, as evidenced by my Swordsmanship, which had just reached level 15. In this time, I had also made some new skills and combos:
Fira (active) Lv: 7 (21.9%)
Channel your mana through the lithosphere and incendiate the very ground around you or your enemies.
20 Mp per use
Max area: 2,75 meters
? – reach level 25 to unlock
Overdrive (active & passive) Lv: 13 (54.8%)
Enhancing your brain's processing speed with mana, you can react way faster than ever before!
45 Mp/second
+22% to DEX, INT and WIS
Max duration: 5 minutes, 15 seconds
Swordsmanship (fighting style) Lv: 15 (13.7%)
Known combos:
Scorpion sting – Lv: 6 (63.1%)
Aera mors – Lv: 3 (14.5%)
Final dance – Lv: 5 (37.8%)
That wasn't all, of course: also my status screen had taken quite a massive change, as applying both Enhancement and Overdrive gave me a huge boost now:
Daniel Samuels
The Gamer
G: 16.584
Lv: 15 (218/10000 Xp)
Hp: 1680/1680 (+21.3/s)
Mp: 1950/1950 (+25.6/s)
STR: 19 (24.1)
DEX: 23 (34.2)
VIT: 18 (22.8)
INT: 45 (54.9)
WIS: 28 (35.1)
LUK: 23
Stat points: 2
Alignment: chaotic good
I was resting in my tree, clouds lazily trailing around the sky and the occasional bird breaking trough the canopy. Normally, I would have been hunting at that hour, but in that morning I felt I deserved a little break from all the nonstop work. I stated wondering how Star an Pyra were faring. After all, it had been days since I last saw them. With a small grunt, I pushed my self off the branch I was seated on, and set onwards to the end of the still-unnamed-forest.
I took my time admiring the scenery there, as I noticed that until then, not even once did I just unwind and enjoy the beauty of my surroundings. Some small flowers could be seen here and there between the leaves, and I managed to spot a couple nests on some of the highest branches. Every small bit of information added up to indicate that it was early spring, perhaps March, or the beginnings of April.
My stroll was cut short once I closed in on the treeline, and I assumed my old observation spot, paying particular attention on making sure that I was well hidden. Once I was hidden enough, I used Falcon's eye to glance around town for any familiar face. It was indeed a hard task, as I could recognize only five dragons in the whole village, but I found someone: Blaze. Keeping my eyes on him, I spotted him entering a building that probably was his home.
I would have wanted to follow him also physically, but I didn't want to risk it yet, so I filed the spot in my memory, and returned to where I started.
It was time to work on something I had put off for quite a while: illusions. Most specifically, invisibility. Basing myself on what I knew, in order to achieve invisibility I would have needed to bend the light around my body. Thus, I began commanding my mana to perform said task. Many minutes passed like that, but just when I was going to give up:
*ding*
You created a new skill!
A skill to avoid being seen by others,'Invisibility' was created!
Invisibility (active & passive) Lv: 1 (00.0%)
Coating your body with a layer of mana, you can redirect light around you, making it easier to confound yourself with the surroundings. Higher levels increase the effectiveness of the skill.
40 Mp/second
While the skill was active, anyone who would look in my direction, would notice the blur caused by my movement, but if I would stand still in the shadows, I would be very difficult to spot. Adding my Sneak to the equation, as long as I was careful no one would spot me. To add to my chances, I chose to spend the rest of my day grinding Invisibility, and try sneaking into the village at dusk.
I managed to get the skill to level 3 by the end of the day. I could have done more, but I had to stop multiple times to recover my Mp. At sudown I moved again towards the village, and studied the movements of the guards around. There were way more around during thee night than the day, but it was to be expected, after all.
*ding*
New quest!
Child's angel (optional quest)
Sneak in the village to check up on Pyra and Star.
Find Pyra []
Find Star []
Leave without being followed []
Bonus: ? []
Bonus: ? []
Completion reward:
1500 Xp.
New title.
Bonus: increased closeness: Pyra Sun
Bonus: increased closeness: Star Polar
Failure penalty:
Capture.
Possible death.
Man, the system just liked to treaten me, didn't it? Nonetheless, it wasn't going to be too hard as long as I was careful. Plus, I could use every small bit of Xp in that period. Thus, I accepted the quest and returned to planning my moves.
Timing my movements carefully, I slipped between the guards, my cloak helping me blend between the shadows, as I opted for using my Mp only when in absolute need. Weaving between the patrolling dragons was tough, but it got somewhat easier as my Sneak skill gained a couple levels in the process.
My plan wasn't very thought out, as I had absolutely no idea as to what to do if I would manage to find either Pyra of Star, but all in all I just wanted to be sure that they were healthy again. No one could blame me, after all, had they seen the state in which I last saw them. Finally, I had reached the place where I assumed Pyra lived in. Checking from the windows, I managed to spot her on the first floor, and a quick use of Observe relieved me, yet made me worry even more:
Pyra Sun
The burning blitz
Fire dragoness
Lv: 8
Hp: 800/920
Mp: 940/940
STR: 7
DEX: 16
VIT: 12
INT: 14
WIS: 9
LUK: 35
Pyra is the daughter of Sun Blaze, and is supposed to become the next Fire Guardian. She's easily angered, and is very prideful of her future, but is also very caring of others when she deems them her friends.
Closeness: +15/100
Mood: dreaming, angry, scared
The closeness and mood were new, but probably the system implemented those because I actually cared at the moment.
A good part of her body was covered in bandages, but she looked good enough, all things considered. She was tossing and turning in her bed, fighting something that obliviously was only in her mind. I wanted to leave, having pushed my luck quite far, but I gave in to my instincts, and entered the room. I gave a quick look around, and all in all the room was quite simple: a bed, a desk, a small bookshelf, and some toys thrown around the ground.
To this day I can't say what made me do it, but I blame my brotherly instinct combined with loneliness. Point is, I started caressing Pyra's neck while humming a little tune I would sing to my little sister when she had trouble sleeping. After a couple minutes of that, she had visibly calmed down, and a small smile showed on her muzzle. A smile that was mirrored by me when I noticed a change in her status windows:
Closeness: +20/100
Mood: dreaming, peceful
Satisfied with myself, I jumped out of the window and started weaving through the alleys once more. Finding Star was going to be way tougher, but I was going to try nonetheless. Moving in the direction in which I had spotted Tundra and Star's father bring them a couple days ago, I checked all the houses I could peer into.
My research came to an end around five minutes later, as I noticed none other than Tundra leaving a building just a little further. I had no idea what to make of that, so I did the only thing I seemedd to do lately, and Observed him. Nothing had changed from last time, except:
Closeness: +5/100
Mood: concerned, confused, grateful
It seemed that he had gained some sort of opinion on me, as his status showed. I had no idea what his mood was about, tough, so I just stayed out of sight until he decided to return inside. Once he did, I waited for another ten minutes before checking the windows. Star's room was on the back side of the house, on the ground floor.
Surprisingly, she was awake: I could see her condition was worse than Pyra's, as many bandages were wrapped around her, but what really stuck out was her wing: it was completely stretched, and thoroughly covered in bandages, to the point where I couldn't spot even a scale underneath all that. Nonetheless, she didn't look bothered by it, as her whole attention was on a book open in front of her.
She seemed to be muttering something while writing, but I couldn't understand what she was saying, as the window was closed. I was simply going to leave, yet fate had other plans, as Star lifted her gaze from her book just in that moment, and locked her eyes with me. We simply stared at each other for what felt like hours, but must have been only a minute or two at best.
My brain had decided to flat-line, so I resorted to my last choice: I created an ID around the two of us, and opened the window. In that moment, Star backpedaled to the wall behind her, and stared me in fear. I wasn't in the mood to deal with that, so I said plainly:
"No, I'm not here to hurt you, I just was worried as to how you and your friend were faring, as you were quite battered last time I saw you."
Her expression morphed from fear to confusion, and then to embarassment, as the meaning of what I was saying sinked in.
"And, now that the explanation is out of the way, how have you been?"
Star had separated herself from the wall, and was keeping her gaze down for whatever reason.
"W-well, my wing is still aching a little, but the bone should be fine by next week. Everything else is almost as good as new, so I suppose I'm fine now."
I had sat down on the edge of her bed while she was talking, and I gestured for her to sit next to me. She was a little hesitant, but placed herself back on the bed by the time I replied:
"That's very good to know, but I have to ask: have you told anyone about what happened back then?"
Star started fidget, obliviously uncomfortable with the question, but answered nonetheless.
"I've told mom, dad, and my brother Tundra. I think Pyra told her dad, but I'm not sure. Mom and dad don't want to talk much about it, but Tundra would like to meet you, at least to thank you personally."
She was shaking uncomfortably by the time she finished, probably worried she might offend me or something. While I understood her worries, that didn't stop me from chuckling a little at the notion.
"I suppose we could meet sometime. He seems a nice fella, after all. But that will come later. For now, focus on getting better."
Getting up, I patted her head and moved to the window.
"It's late, you get to sleep now."
With that last sentence, I flung myself out of the window and destroyed the ID. Making my way outside wasn't hard, as I simply opened a second ID and strolled calmly out in the road. Once I reached the treeline, I closed the ID once more and headed to my 'base'.
*ding*
Child's angel (optional quest)
Quest completed!
Sneak in the village to check up on Pyra and Star.
Find Pyra [OK]
Find Star [OK]
Leave without being followed [OK]
Bonus: Quell Pyra's nightmares [OK]
Bonus: Give Star some more insight on you [OK]
Completion reward:
1500 Xp.
New title.
Bonus: increased closeness: Pyra Sun
Bonus: increased closeness: Star Polar
Once I reached my glade I brought my titles on to find what I had gained:
The Gamer: Your life is a game. No boosts.
Rising Alpha: +20% Xp to missions when in a party. Obtained killing an Alpha Lycan.
Guardian: +50% to all stats when defending someone of a lower level. Obtained by protecting and caring about someone.
Pyromaniac: blocked. Bring a fire spell up to level 50 to unlock.
Apprentice Swordmaster: blocked. Bring swordsmanship to level 30 to unlock.
Apprentice Mage: blocked. Bring a spell to level 20 to unlock.
That was actually pretty nice. I decided to make Guardian my current title, and readied my sword. I had to make up for the lost time in my training, and probably even more, as I had the feeling that shit was gonna hit the fan soon enough.
*ding*
A new skill was created!
Trough accurate premonitions of the future, the skill 'Foreshadowing' has been created!
…nailed it.
I know I'm a day late, but I had some things to do, so I managed to finish this only at 10 PM of last night. Anyway, as usual: I'm sorry for mistakes in spelling, sintax or anything of the sort, as I'm not a native English and I write on my phone. Hope you enjoyed, favorite, follow, and review.
Pirateboy1000: I still don't know about the Abyss auction, but I intend to keep this up for as long as I can.
Ratedn777: Thanks for reading, and I will do that, but most of the other characters are still children, tough I will try.
The Silen Insomniac: Here you have the alignment. It might change based on where the story goes, but I like it the way it is for now. BTW, it's Daniel.
NeonZangetsu: Thanks a bunch for the tips, and I will try to change my style towards the better. Nonetheless, I tend to be a little thickheaded, so my habits might slip a little here and there.
DarkLightShade: I definitely will continue, and Daniel does know that, but he already has a lot of time on his hands, so he just doesn't care.
That was all the reviews I can answer today, so see ya next Friday! Xeno out.
P.S. I don't own 'The legend of Spyro'. If I did, Sparx would be useful for something.
P.P.S. Yes, I noticed that I seem to be caring more about Pyra than Star, but she really is based off my sister, so it's a psychological reaction that I actually have when writing her character.