Disclaimer: I don't own the Legend of Mana or the Final Fantasy series.
Update (11/26/19): There won't be a new chapter for Thanksgiving since I've been busy with school work. However, I have been writing down ideas for this story and I've got at least 20 pages worth of them now. Chapter 7 will be released some time next month after finals are done with. I intend to have Chapter 7 uploaded before Christmas. Anyways, have a good Thanksgiving and the next chapter will appear later.
Update (12/22/19): It looks like there won't be a new chapter for Christmas either. I apologize for this, but I was busy with college finals until a little while ago and this Chapter 7 has been giving me trouble. My current progress for Chapter 7: Page 14 with 5,681 words as of 12/22/19. I'm going to try to get Chapter 7 up by New Year's Eve. Thank you all for your patience and for reading my story. I really appreciate it.
Note: Anyone who read the First Version of Chapter 5 should go back and reread the chapter. The story can still be understood if you don't, but there may be a few things you'll miss otherwise. I posted a second version of Chapter 5 back on October 5 and I changed quite a few things.
Chapter 6: First Encounter
"Are you guys all right?" Sean asked once he and Biggs finished digging out Mark and Wedge from the pile of debris. Duelle kept a watch for any monsters while the two men were stuck casting large pieces of rock aside, but there was no need since the earlier fight scared them off. The onion came over and joined them in looking down at the dirt-covered Mark and Wedge.
The item shop owner was still crouched over the injured officer, but lowered his shield to give everyone a better look at Wedge's condition. Biggs looked past him in poorly hidden at his friend and knelt down by the other officer's side to check on him.
Wedge lie on his back in a semiconscious state with the corner of his mouth stained with a dried up trail of blood. His helmet was dented in three places, nothing the Repair spell couldn't fix, and the rest of his armor was scuffed. His chest plate took the worst beating, the back caved in from when Du'Inke slammed Wedge into the floor.
Though his vision was blurry, Wedge could easily make out the shapes of his friend and the other party members and smiled in relief that they were all okay.
"A little dirty, but no worse for wear, chum." Mark replied standing up, little pebbles and pieces of rubble falling off of him. "Though I believe our friend here needs medical attention."
"Really, you think?" Biggs spoke irritably to Mark with a frown, looking at the proud father like he was stupid. "You couldn't tell by how he's not getting up." Biggs pointed down at the wounded Wedge.
"Jeez, man. You could show a little more gratitude," Duelle replied, moving to stand by Wedge's other side. "Your friend's still alive and we'll heal him up just fine." Duelle spoke calmly to placate the visibly angry Biggs. Duelle turned to Sean and asked, "Do you still have those potions on you?"
Of course, Sean did, but he didn't really feel like using the potions on Wedge. He thought it better to save them for the Domina battle when they'd likely need them more.
Rather than saying that, knowing that it would piss everyone else off, Sean instead replied, "I do, but is he really in a condition to be downing potions?" He asked with a raised eyebrow. "I don't want him to choke on them. Plus, I can just use the Cure spell on him anyway."
"You can use healing magic?" Biggs asked in quiet surprise. His mouth hung open at this discovery before returning to a frown. "What are you waiting for then?" Biggs asked angrily.
Sean gave him a look. "Someone obviously wasn't paying attention." "Well maybe if you move the fuck out of the way, then I can get to him." He responded back in an annoyed tone. The younger man healed Duelle only a short while ago so he assumed Biggs had his head up his ass.
The red officer huffed and got back up, standing aside so that Sean could get to Wedge.
Wedge: 2310/3360
Kneeling down, Sean's hands glowed with a light green energy that bathed Wedge in light as the blue officer was healed. The process took multiple casts to finish.
+105 HP (x3)
Cure Lvl 5 → Lvl 6
+126 HP (x6)
SPI 21 → 23
With Wedge back at full health, Mark looked on in puzzlement since the lieutenant was still on the ground in pain. "How come the good officer is still hurt?"
"He's not hurt," Sean replied while Biggs helped Wedge to his feet. Wedge threw an arm around Biggs' shoulders for support and Biggs put his right arm around Wedge's back. "The Cure spell doesn't completely nullify pain. It offers some alleviation, but I recommend that he takes it easy for the rest of the day."
Since Sean had Gamer's Body, he wasn't sure to what extent the Cure spell rid the recipient of suffering. In his experience, any pain usually vanished before he could cast the spell.
Sean put his hand on his chin and pondered the matter. "Although, Duelle didn't feel any more pain once I healed him. Then again, his injuries were nowhere near as severe as Wedge's, not even close."
"C-can you do anything about my armor, Sean?" Wedge stuttered politely, lifting his head to properly address the young man. He could feel his damaged armor digging into his back. Wedge's voice shook Sean from his reverie and made him turn to the officer.
"Oh, yeah." Sean shook his head and cast the Repair spell.
He used it on Wedge first, the officer breathing a sigh of relief, before moving onto Biggs, Mark, and finally himself. With each cast, the magic fixed any damage done to their armor and equipment and got rid of all the dings and dents.
Repair Lvl 1 → Lvl 3
Aside from the dirt covering them, the party was mostly back in the same pristine condition like when they first entered the caverns.
"You guys ready to get the heck out of here?" Sean asked aloud, already knowing the answer.
Before anyone could answer, Duelle spoke up. "Hey, Sean," he started and held up a book for the 21-year-old to inspect. "Don't you want to keep this stuff?"
Sean took the book from Duelle and his eyes widened when he saw it was the Blizzard spell book. "Where'd you get this?" He inquired of the onion.
Duelle raised an "eyebrow" at him. "You told us earlier that money and other stuff would appear when we beat an enemy, remember?"
Sean shook his head. "Damn am I out of it today," he muttered. Sean wanted to smack himself for how forgetful he was being lately. He blamed it on stress. "Was there anything else?"
Duelle nodded and pointed to a pile of stuff that appeared where Du'Inke's corpse previously lied.
Among the assorted items, there was a wad of cash which amounted to 5,000 Lucre, 2,000 more than what Sean earned from completing the Going Ape quest. Sean had no intention of telling the others about his gain in profit, except for maybe Duelle.
The rest of the drops were the following: two health potions, a couple of throwing knives which the onion picked up and put back in his bandolier, a bar of chocolate with silver foil and pink paper wrapping, the Water tome, and a powerful-looking, glacier blue sword.
The blade of the sword actually appeared to be made of ice and the guard was wrapped in fur the same shade as Du'Inke's, a couple shades darker than the blade. The guard was bone white and bejeweled with an indigo-colored gem in the center of either side. The handle was wrapped with a gray material and the pommel was silver.
'Observe'
[Rare] Frozen Fury [1H Sword] (Ice) Durability: 500/500
Crafted from the bones and teeth of Du'Inke, this blade is enchanted with the freezing power of the creature's internal flame. A cut from this sword can leave enemies frozen in their tracks.
Attack: +50
Effect: Deals +20 Ice-elemental damage
Effect: Has 30% chance to inflict [Frozen] status effect
Observe Lvl 6 → Lvl 7
[Common] Bar of Chocolate
Upon consumption, this item will heal the user for 75% of their Max HP.
Sean immediately claimed the blade to little fuss from the others since his Menos Bronze 1H Sword only added +10 attack and nothing else. His first weapon was too weak for the trials ahead.
Sean saw no need to Observe the health potions since they were the exact same ones as the two he already possessed in his inventory. He quickly observed the Water tome which was self-explanatory in its function and grabbed the book. The two health potions, he offered to Biggs and Wedge since they were probably going to need it later and because Sean didn't want to come off as too selfish.
The chocolate bar went to Duelle since the onion warrior was the weakest of them and needed it the most. With how strong Mark was, Sean reasoned that Mark would need healing items less than the rest of the group. It was something the older man was fine with.
"Since there are five of us here, do you all want to do a five-way split?" Sean asked holding up the wad of money. Biggs raised his free hand and opened his mouth to argue, but Wedge slowly shook his head and whispered, "Just let it go." Biggs lowered his hand, but was still upset. He felt like Sean came out better than the rest of them from this adventure.
Duelle and Mark agreed with Sean's logic and all of the party members became 1,000 Lucre richer.
"If that's everything," Sean said, still wanting to leave.
Duelle lifted up something else and a mild look of disgust crossed Sean's face. "Is that the monster's tail?"
The onion simply nodded, not at all bothered by holding the nasty thing. "The tail didn't disappear with the rest of the body. I figured it'd be important."
'Observe'
[Rare][Crafting Item] Du'Inke's Tail
This item, while not as valuable as a Du'Cate's tail, can be sold for 15,000 Lucre to the right buyer. On the other hand, it can be used to craft certain items.
"Hm?" Sean wondered if the item could have an impact on a later quest. He's played games like Skyrim before where seemingly insignificant items turned out to be important later on. He turned and addressed the others. "Does anyone else want this thing?" Sean asked pointing at the severed tail.
"Why would we want that nasty thing for?" Biggs asked in revulsion. The Major looked like he just smelled something rotten, like a corpse that's been left to dry out in the sun for a few days. Wedge gave no input on the matter and Mark shook his head. The happily married man didn't think his beloved would appreciate having such an item in the house.
"I'm just asking," Sean replied calmly before taking the tail from Duelle and sticking it in his inventory. He looked back to the onion and asked, "Is there anything else?" Sean expected another interruption, but Duelle simply shook his head. Sean then smiled and clapped his hands. "Great. Now we can get the fuck out of here."
It took some time, what with Wedge's current state and watching out for any returning monsters, but the party eventually made it out of the caverns unbothered. The whole trip to the caverns only took an hour plus some change. Sean felt like it should've been longer, but he did have a clock in his view.
"Just how did you defeat the creature, Sean?" Mark asked, this being the first time the man actually used his name.
Sean smirked. "I cut his balls with my sword and Biggs sent explosives down his throat."
Duelle showed little reaction since he saw what they did and Biggs grinned and puffed out his chest, letting the victory go to his head. Mark frowned, but didn't reply their actions meant that everyone was okay. Wedge just continued walking. Being a police officer, Biggs and Wedge knew that fighting fair wasn't always an option and had seen things that would make many other people retch.
The group traveled to Domina where Sean disbanded the party to drop Biggs and Wedge off at Mark's place to give Wedge time to recover. Sean then formed another party named "Fishing Trip" and left with Mark and Duelle to his home.
On the way, Duelle asked, "Why'd you name the group that?" He couldn't help but find the name weird.
"I'm going to perform a summoning when we reach my house." Sean replied.
"Is that like Conjuration?" Duelle has witnessed wizards using magic to call upon servants in the past and never liked the look of it. "Because if so, things can turn out pretty badly. I once saw a mage get his face melted off by a lava spider," he told Sean as a precaution.
Sean shook his head. "It's nothing like that," he responded while thinking a lava spider sounded cool. "From my understanding, summons are creatures that can be called upon to fight for you, but they have their own freewill. Conjuration, on the other hand, is more like a master-slave bond."
Summons (Part 1)
Summons are creatures and beings that can be called upon to assist the summoner in a multitude of ways ranging from attacking the enemy and boosting attributes to healing the party and curing status effects. Summons go by a number of names including Espers, Aeons, Guardian Forces, and Eidolons. Most of them are sentient and may require a pact or agreement to be reached before they can be truly called upon. Building a good relationship is crucial to the development of both parties and can bring hidden rewards.
"That's only partly true," Duelle replied, going into teacher mode. "Conjuration doesn't always involve a bond in order to be successful. This is the case for simpler creatures like a rat. Creatures such as the lava spider and the Daedra need a bond to work. The reason is that they're more powerful and the bond acts as a collar to keep them under control so the conjured beings don't disobey orders and cause untold destruction. Of course, this also necessitates the conjurer being powerful themselves and possessing a vast knowledge and mastery of the arcane."
"The Daedra are a thing here? Shit." Sean's beaten The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and was aware of their existence. He completed the main game, but never played the two DLCs: Dawnguard and Dragonborn. "Just another thing to add to the list." He accepted the fact they existed with a resigned expression.
"I never plan to get into conjuration," Sean informed after the little lecture. It genuinely sounded like a bad idea, tethering your soul to something otherworldly. "Besides, summons are better anyways. I contact them and they can choose whether to help me or not."
"Can they attack you?" Duelle suspected the answer was "yes."
Sean nodded. "Yeah, but the one I'm calling shouldn't present too much of a threat." Thinking back, Sean remembered some of the stronger summons from throughout the Final Fantasy series. There was Knights of the Round, Bahamut, Eden, Anima, and the Magus Sisters. "I'm hoping they'll appear scarier than they are, kind of like a basking shark."
"I don't know what a 'basking shark' is," Duelle replied, looking around at the empty World Map. "Is that a creature from your old home?"
"It's from back home, yeah. But it can't be found near where I lived," Sean answered. He thought they were located in the waters near Ireland. "They're scary-looking, but mostly ignore you."
"Where did you live before now anyway?" Duelle never heard of the creature nor of the ones Sean listed off to Biggs earlier.
Sean exhaled and stared off into the distance with memories of home flooding his mind. Of playing video games while drinking ice cold soda or going out to see a movie with friends with no tall hurdles to tackle. Sean didn't know how long he was gone for due to the time difference, but from his perspective, it was only a couple of days and he missed regular life already.
"Some place so far away that you'll never reach it," Sean finally answered and let the subject drop.
When they arrived at his house, the young man reached into his inventory and pulled out a green sphere that crackled with energy. Small bolts of lightning traveled around the inside of the orb.
"Duelle," Sean addressed, catching the onion's attention. "I think it'd be best if you went inside. These things might be dangerous."
Duelle considered staying, but nodded due to his unfamiliarity with Eidolons. "I'll stand in the doorway in case you need help." The onion opened the door to Sean's house and stood next to it with a neutral expression. He kept a hand on his bandolier, prepared and ready to attack if the worst happened.
Mark anticipated a fight and readied his sword and shield.
Sean nodded at him, receiving one in return, and activated the sphere which he suspected was Materia.
Cracks formed over the globe's glass-like surface as the lightning inside sped up in intensity to the point where the green energy inside nearly became blinding. A field of blue electricity arced around the sphere and danced up Sean's hand and lower arm, giving him a feeling of pins and needles. The young man clenched his teeth and held onto the orb with strong determination until it burst with a clap of thunder.
Sean shielded his eyes with his other arm before the sphere exploded and when he uncovered them, he found himself surrounded by his new summon.
A school of 8 fish swam around him and Mark, seemingly presenting no threat to them. Duelle looked on in alarm and gripped the handle of one of his throwing knives, but stayed his hand. He kept a close eye on the fish for any sudden movements.
Each fish looked like a golden-colored piranha with unblinking, soulless black eyes and open mouths, revealing razor-sharp teeth. Even more terrifying was the fact that each of them was the size of a basketball, at least three times bigger than a typical piranha. Their undersides were white and they swam on the air with no water visible near them.
Mark tensed at their appearance and raised his sword, but Sean held up a hand to stop him. The young man didn't want to piss these things off and maintained a close watch on them. His gaze was like a hawk and his shoulders were tensed while he kept his breathing to a slow rate.
After a couple of minutes of them doing nothing, Sean lowered his hand and took on a confused expression. Mark, meanwhile, watched them move around in circles with his weapon lowered.
"Is something supposed to happen, my friend?" Mark asked quietly so he wouldn't startle the summon.
Sean shrugged. "I don't know," he replied in his regular voice. He waved his hand in front of one of the remora's faces, but it didn't do anything other than butt its head against his palm. "This is new territory for me." He rubbed the fish's scaly head and grimaced at the slimy texture.
A notification suddenly popped up as a green window.
New Summon Gained! Pact Formed!
Remora [Thunder/Water] Cost: 50 MP Cooldown: 30 Minutes (Upon Defeat)
Link: Lvl 1 Next Level: 0/50 AP
Standing: 0/1000
HP: 4,000/4,000 (500 HP Each)
TP: 0/0
MP: 2,000/2,000 (250 MP Each)
STR: 30
VIT: 20
DEX: 20
INT: 10
WIS: 2
SPI: 20
LUK: 3
Overdrive: [El Niño]—El Niño is an ability where Remora unleashes an intense, swirling vortex of water upon the enemy, sucking them up before hitting them with a powerful geyser. DMG Formula: SPI + (SPI * 300%)
Summon Effect: +50 Thunder/Lightning Affinity (Passive)
Summon Effect: +50 Water Affinity (Passive)
Summon Effect: Grants the user +1 SPI every time the summon or user levels up
Description: Remora is a species of golden-colored, river-dwelling fish similar in appearance to the piranha. This creature is unusual in that while it is indeed aquatic in nature, it is also thunder-elemental. This summon normally travels in schools of up to 7 or 8 fish and can constrict or tear apart weaker enemies in a matter of seconds.
Summons (Part 2)
The summoner and the summoned share a symbiotic relationship. The summoner can learn new abilities and better themselves through different Aeons while the Eidolons can gain strength and new skills in turn.
The [Link] refers to the level of the connection between the two parties. Raising the [Link] level will increase the Esper's stats. However, the stats shown are separate from the Summon's own. The attributes first seen are from the link level. When Observed, the user will see three stat windows: one for the [Link], one for the training the Eidolon did separately from the user, and one for the two combined.
The [Link] level can be grown by earning AP (Ability Points). AP is earned through either training together, defeating enemies, or the use of special items.
Despite being able to learn new abilities from the user, the item required to do so is currently lost. A similar item acting as another means to raise an Eidolon's stats is also missing.
Summons (Part 3)
The [Standing] stat works similarly to the [Reputation System]. By improving their [Standing], the user and the Esper will be able to work together better. Both [Standing] and [Link], at higher levels, will open the pathway to new abilities and skills. Each Aeon has different limits to how far [Standing] can be improved.
When not summoned, the [Link] level will not rise, but [Standing] can increase based on the user's actions. The effect of said actions may differ depending on the Aeon.
"Info dump," Sean thought idly, noticing these mechanics were a mix of The Gamer with Final Fantasies 6, 8, and 10. He entered his house to rinse off his hands from touching the Remora and the whole school followed after him, not giving Mark or Duelle a single nibble or glance.
"This summons seems stupid," Duelle remarked since the remora were just bumping into things. With the fear of them being diminished, he prodded one with the bottom of his spear and received no reaction.
Sean stuck his hands under the tap and started washing off the gunk. He was glad he wasn't able to decorate his house yet or else there would be broken glass on the floor right now. "Yeah," he replied, wishing he was rewarded a better summon. "But I'm sure it has its uses. I mean look at them." He gestured at the flying fish with a soapy hand. "A school of floating piranha is bound to scare the crap out of someone."
"Did you need me for anything else?" Mark asked with the perceived danger having passed. "I really should get back to town to see how my family is doing."
Duelle sighed in exasperation. "You saw them less than two hours ago." Sean didn't comment and kept his head down, his attention focused solely on his hands.
"But I need to let them know that I'm all right."
Sean snorted at the worry in Mark's tone, and with his head still down said, "Dude, you're a tank. I don't think your family has anything to fret about." He grabbed a hand towel and wiped off his hands. "But yeah, it's not like I can keep you here. I just needed you in case things were south." Sean waved his hand at the fish again.
"Very well, good sir." Mark made for the front door and was soon on his way back to town. "I'll see you later when we valiantly defend the town from those miscreants." The door closed once he finished his sentence.
Sean rolled his eyes. "That's the hammiest dude I've ever met."
"I've met worse," Duelle replied, internally glad that Mark wasn't as bad as certain other people. "There's this centaur named Gilbert who's a real creep around the ladies. He is much worse than Mark could ever be." There was a lull in conversation. "So what now?"
"I planned on going back to—" Sean stopped talking due to a knock at the door. "Wonder who that is," he said, tossing the hand towel onto the counter.
Upon answering the door, there was an embarrassed Mark rubbing the back of his head.
"I'm sorry to bother you," the father said. "But it seems I'm unable to leave your place."
Sean, rather than asking, prompted Mark to show him what he meant. Duelle and the school of Remora followed them to the edge of Sean's property. Mark reached out his hand and tapped the air with his knuckles. His hand knocked against an invisible barrier and produced a sound like tapping on a TV screen.
"Huh?" Sean said, stepping forward and meeting no resistance. His summon went through the barrier just fine, but Duelle was stopped. The young man then realized what was going on. "I forgot to disband the party," he said awkwardly. "Sorry about that."
After his quick apology, Sean went to check up on Li'l Cactus before leaving and received "Bananas" in response from the cactus in his young boy voice.
Making sure to lock up his house, the group traveled back to Domina and dropped off Mark.
Sean found it interesting how the Party System worked. Aside from what's already been mentioned, Sean could leave for the World Map and his party members would be teleported there upon his arrival. They also couldn't leave a location without him as long as they were still in the party. A double-edged sword that Sean would have to remember.
"As I was saying," Sean picked up from where he left off. "I'm gonna head back to Mekiv Caverns since I'm Level 10 now." He pointed at the Remora who were still present. Sean didn't know if summons had a time limit. "Plus, with these things around, I think I can handle myself alone."
"Need any help?" Duelle offered, not quite ready to be done yet. The power boost from earlier made the onion feel great afterwards and he wanted to benefit more from it.
Sean nodded. "Sure, I just need to do a few things real quick." Sean placed his Menos Bronze 1H Sword into his inventory and equipped Frozen Fury. He then pulled out and absorbed the information from his three new tomes.
Thunder [Lightning] (Active) Lvl 1 [0%] Cost: 10 MP
This is the most basic lightning-elemental spell and deals a small amount of damage to enemies. Upon use, a small bolt of electricity is sent slamming into the enemy from the user's hand. This spell serves as a good beginning ranged attack. Mastery of the spell can increase lightning affinity.
Deals lightning-based damage according to this formula: Total = (SPI + Lightning Affinity)
DMG = Total + (Total * 2%)
Current Level: Deals +2% Lightning Damage
Effect: Has 1% chance to inflict [Paralyzed] status effect
Blizzard [Ice] (Active) Lvl 1 [0%] Cost: 10 MP
This is the most basic ice-elemental spell and deals a small amount of damage to enemies. Upon use, the target is struck by a blast of freezing cold, causing parts of their bodies to frost over. Mastery of this skill can increase ice affinity.
Damage Formula: Same as Above
Current Level: Deals +2% Ice Damage
Effect: Has 1% chance to inflict [Frozen] status effect
Water (Active) Lvl 1 [0%] Cost: 10 MP
This is the most basic water spell and deals a small amount of damage to enemies. Upon use, rapid water surrounds and pummels the target. Mastery of this spell can increase water affinity.
Damage Formula: Same as Above
Current Level: Deals +2% Water Damage
Sean received a headache from the information overload and rubbed his head while it faded. "I'm good to go now," he said looking down at Duelle. The onion nodded and they left Mark's front yard for Mekiv Caverns with Sean forming another party before they got there titled "Feeding Frenzy."
The young man also made sure to turn on Exp. Share, something he didn't bother with before because he and most of the others were too far apart in level for it to work. Sean really wishes he possessed the Forbidden Ring, but he wouldn't see Daena for some time still.
Something they quickly noticed was that the enemies outside of the caverns respawned. Sean smirked while Duelle just accepted it with a shrug. "You ready?" He asked. The onion didn't reply, but drew a knife for the fight. "All right. Let's see what these things can do."
Sean then pointed his finger at the poto and said, "Get 'em."
The Remora all focused on the mob of monsters and bared their teeth like serial killers before darting forward to turn the poto into mincemeat. Sean quickly dumped the rest of his stat points into STR and VIT and ran after them with Frozen Fury in his grip.
STR: 40 → 52
VIT: 32 → 40
Stat Points: 20 → 0
For reaching 50 STR, you've gained a new skill!
Beginner Physique (Passive) Lvl Max
Everyone has to start somewhere and this skill is just the first step on the user's path to gaining a body men envy and women dream of. Get those muscles moving!
Effect: Grants +25% to STR and +25% to HP Regeneration
STR wasn't the only stat to get him a new skill at 50 since there was one Sean received for reaching 50 in DEX earlier on.
Ambidextrous (Passive) Lvl Max
This skill grants the user the ability to use their right and left hands equally no matter the activity whether wielding weaponry or drawing a picture. This skill helps to unlock ?
Sean slashed away at the monsters, remembered not to go too deep into the caverns in case another Du'Inke showed up, while Duelle used the poto for target practice. The next four hours were spent training here before heading back to Domina and parting ways.
Sean dismissed Remora once he got back home and continued training alone. He did, however, briefly ponder the strange seeds he picked up as drops from some of the monsters they defeated. Unfortunately, he couldn't use them yet.
Elsewhere, the other four members of his party spent their time preparing for the fight ahead.
Wedge's pain eventually left him and he bought a few supplies from the item store before he and Biggs returned to Police Headquarters in another town.
Biggs stocked up on ammunition for his gauntlets and prepared a few types of his own making.
Duelle chatted with Inspector Boyd some more about how things would go down since Sean forgot to the previous day. The onion made sure to inform Boyd of some of the Chobin Hoods' racial traits.
Mark went to spend time with his daughter, not knowing this was the last time he would see her for a good long while.
The Next Day…Day of Jinn
Duelle POV
"Have a good day, sugar blossom!" Marked called exuberantly, bidding goodbye to Rachel as Duelle left to escort her to work. The proud father was glad to have such a fantastic family friend.
"Bye, daddy," Rachel returned quietly before they stepped out the door.
"Having second thoughts?" Duelle asked. He knew the girl still loved her father despite his eccentricities.
Rachel shook her head. "No. I need to do this. I'm just nervous since I've never left town before."
Duelle patted her knee. "You'll be okay. I was nervous when I first set out to see the world." He completely understood how she was feeling. "I remember my heart almost leapt out of my chest when I saw my first monster."
"How did you get used to it?" Rachel inquired.
"Time," Duelle replied in a neutral tone. "With time you'll find that exploring the world won't bother you as much." He waved his spear in the air with a smile. "It also helps to be able to defend yourself. That's something the teachers at the Academy will teach you."
"Are they pretty knowledgeable?" Rachel heard good things about the school, but with her father constantly hovering over her, she couldn't do too much research on it and the teachers' competence without arousing suspicion.
"They know a decent deal," Duelle responded as they walked through the Park of the Mana Angel. "But they can be kind of quirky."
Capella looked as happy as ever in spite of the incoming danger while Diddle still wore the same sorrowful smile. The monkey excitedly juggled 5 balls at a time and Diddle continued cranking the joyous accordion music that did nothing to lift the kid's mood.
Rachel scoffed. "They can't be any worse than dad."
"You'd be surprised," Duelle spoke calmly to avoid the impression of defending her father. "Many who practice magic can be pretty strange."
They soon reached the post office and went inside to buy a stamp. Standing outside, Rachel stared at the stamp in her hands in trepidation, knowing that this decision would change everything. She didn't move for two minutes nor did she blink. Once those two minutes elapsed, she took a deep breath while closing her eyes and opened them on the exhale.
"Are you ready?" Duelle looked at her like a proud uncle, happy that the girl he met years ago grew into such a nice, young woman.
"I am," she replied with steel resolve. "I just wish that Teapo was here…and that I had everything with me."
Duelle nodded in understanding. A mother-daughter relationship developed between the cockney teacup and Rachel ever since Mark had her delivered from Geo all those years back. Teapo was always around and was kind and caring to the growing girl, traits her actual mother was missing.
"Teapo sends her love and wishes you the best," Duelle replied with a smile. Someone needed to remain at Rachel's house to keep her father distracted in the off chance he had to step out. "And there will be plenty of books in Geo for you to read when you get there."
"I just wish I knew who damaged my books." Rachel felt annoyed that someone would destroy her precious tomes, but was somewhat mollified she got her money back. "I guess this is it then." She took the stamp and placed it on her head, knowing that Pelican would be there shortly.
"This isn't goodbye," Duelle smiled at her like she was going off to college. "We'll see each other again and I can always come visit."
"I suppose you're right." Rachel bent down and hugged the onion closely, something the onion gladly returned. She placed a gentle kiss on the top of his head and stood back up with her luggage in hand. "See you laterrrR!"
Pelican swooped down too fast for either of them to see and Duelle watched the bird fly off into the distance with her feet holding onto Rachel's arms.
"Oh joy! Another delivery-wivery To Geo I go!" Pelican sang while Rachel screamed in her grasp.
Duelle simply waved as the two disappeared into the great blue yonder. "You'll do well, Rachel. I know it."
Elsewhere…
Sean POV
Sean looked up when he heard a teenage girl scream and gazed at the sky. It didn't take him long to spot Pelican flying away with Rachel being taken along for the ride.
Sean chuckled. "That's a lot funnier when it happens to someone else." He was sitting at one of the outside tables at Amanda & Barrett's with a tankard of warm apple juice. A cooling breeze blew through his black hair and caused the leaves on the nearby trees to rustle.
He took a bite out of a slice of rich chocolate cake he ordered, having already finished off a succulent, medium well steak with a side of Caesar salad and garlic potatoes. The pub wasn't too busy that day with the impending threat, but remained open for customers like himself and the traders and merchants who are delivering and peddling their wares. Sean felt he deserved a good rest and a nice meal with all of the training he just completed.
The young man watched people go by and took another sip of his juice before pulling out a tome. "It just sucks I had to bribe that guy though. Eh, whatever."
Sean visited the marketplace earlier after the trade caravan arrived and came across two new tomes for the spells: Haste and Restore. The trader informed him that someone else, Sean didn't know who, purchased the two books for 500 Lucre each.
"Can I buy those books off you?" Sean asked, especially wanting the Haste spell. He suspected the Chobin Hood tribe didn't use magic and thought he could maybe outmaneuver them.
The trader shook his head, the man's skin tanned from working in the sun. "I can't do that. Someone already ordered these and they're supposed to arrive soon to pick them up."
"How much did they pay for them?" Sean asked.
"500 Lucre a piece. Why?" Back home, a businessman would've known right away where Sean was heading.
"What would you say if I paid you 2,000 Lucre and doubled your profit?" Sean flashed him a smile and waved the money in front of his chest to where passerby couldn't see.
The trader looked uncertain. "I don't know. I might lose business doing such a thing."
"But if you do this, then the town will still be standing the next time you return," Sean responded. "I'm part of the group that's going to fix things."
"You are? Truly?" The trader asked with hope in his voice. Sean found the man to be conveniently gullible.
Sean nodded. "I sure am." He didn't have any proof other than his word, but it was enough for the trader. Sean found this world to be much cleaner than home and he actually liked that a lot. "So, 2,000 Lucre for the tomes."
The trader smiled, glad that he was helping out the town, and handed the books over while accepting the money. "Pleasure doing business with you, sir."
"Don't mention it." Sean replied simply.
The trader was then struck by a sudden thought. "Hey. What should I tell my other customer?"
Sean waved his hand in the air before walking off. "Just tell them someone stole or destroyed the books. With all those bandits running about, I'm sure they'll buy that."
After Sean was gone, another thought struck the trader. "Wait a minute." The man paused and his face twisted in confusion. "Since I don't have her books, won't I have to give her money back?" In the end, the man only made his original profit.
Unfortunately, Sean didn't meet the requirements to learn either of the spells. On the upside, he wasn't as far away in meeting them like he was with the Teleport spell.
Requirements:
70 INT
70 WIS
70 SPI
"Oh well," Sean muttered. "I'm sure I'll do fine without them." He wrote down a reminder in his new notepad not to forget about them nor the strange seeds he'd feed to a certain someone at a later point.
Through his notepad, Sean was reminded of the Plant Care 101 quest and observed the Sproutling who was walking around the center of Domina by the inn.
Name: Sproutling
Race: Sproutling
Title: ?
Age: ?
Level: ?
Description: Little creatures that seem to appear out of nowhere and end up living in any town. They all share the same mind with each other.
"Maybe the Sproutlings work like a hive mind?" Sean wondered. He recalled from the game how all the Sproutlings acted and talked in a similar way. "Were the Sproutlings the only ones who were connected or was it all plants?" Sean rubbed his chin in thought before another a new question arose. "But Li'l Cactus wasn't aware of this connection until a certain point which kind of contradicts this. Doesn't hive mind mean they all share the same knowledge?"
Sean had too much on his plate to get too worked up about this and wrote down a note to revisit the subject after this mess with the tribe was sorted out.
That Night…
Name: Sean Rent
Race: Human
Title: Artificer
Age: 21
Level: Lvl 15 Next Level: 7,853/59,300
Affinities:
Water: 60
Lightning/Thunder: 60
Wind: 35
HP: (Base: 1250/1250) 1662.5/1662.5 Regen: (222.2) per minute
TP: (Base: 3250/3250) 4697.5/4697.5 Regen: (458) per minute
MP: (Base: 500/500) 575/575 Regen: (17.25) per minute
STR: 60 + (33%) + (25%) = 94.8
VIT: 48 → 50 + (33%) = 66.5
DEX: 70 + (33%) = 93.1
INT: 20 + (15%) = 23
WIS: 15 → 20 + (15%) = 23
SPI: 32 → 55 + (15%) + (25%) = 77
LUK: 4
Synchro Effect: [HP Recovery Lvl 1]
Stat Points: 25 → 0
Perk Points: 30
Lucre: 5000 L
Skill List: [For a full list of the user's skills, call up the 'Skills' window]
Yoga Lvl 9 → Lvl 11
Breath Control Lvl 5 → Lvl 7
1H Sword Mastery Lvl 5 → Lvl 7
Sense Danger Lvl 4 → Lvl 6
Iai Strike Lvl 3 → Lvl 5
Fire Lvl 5 → Lvl 7
Flamethrower Lvl 2 → Lvl 3
Aero Lvl 5 → Lvl 7
Protect Lvl 5 → Lvl 7
Prayer Lvl 3 → Lvl 4
Physical Endurance Lvl 6 → Lvl 8
Cure Lvl 6 → Lvl 8
Repair Lvl 3 → Lvl 4
Thunder Lvl 1 → Lvl 5
Blizzard Lvl 1 → Lvl 5
Water Lvl 1 → Lvl 5
For reaching 50 VIT, you've gained a new skill!
Oak Body (Passive) Lvl Max
Through this skill, the user's body becomes tough like the mighty oak tree, lessening the damage taken from physical attacks.
Effect: Reduces all physical damage taken by 25%
For reaching 50 SPI, you've gained a new skill!
Novice Spellcasting (Passive) Lvl Max
Every journey begins with a single step and this skill marks the first steps the user has taken towards becoming a great magic wielder.
Effect: Increases SPI by 25%
"I've come pretty far," Sean said, impressed at his own progress. "Just wish the 'Sense Danger' skill worked better." He rubbed his ribs from the phantom pain of being kicked there. Were he a regular person, they would definitely be broken. At least Physical Endurance went up a bit.
The Sense Danger skill picked up danger within a good distance of him, but not good enough since Sean still needed to be fast enough to avoid the attack. Plus, it didn't activate 100% of the time. It was something that needed fixing later.
Sean was currently standing outside of the St. Mana Church with his back resting against the wooden building underneath a crescent moon. The wind howled ominously through the countryside on the Night of Jinn, whispering of future troubles.
Unlike the other places in town, the St. Mana Church had a shingled roof and was painted a light blue, just a shade off from white. The double doors were a sky blue with a lit lamp on either side of them. The light emanating from them gave Sean's green eyes an ethereal glow.
Sean could hear a ruckus from inside, but ignored it and stared out at the rolling hills. He missed having street lights around and wasn't used to the darkness of the country yet. Still, he stood there and waited for Duelle and the police to finish rounding up the last of the townspeople.
The doors to the church opened and light spilled out accompanied by a short shadow and Biggs' voice.
"All right, people, calm down. Everything is going to be fine. We're the police. You can count on us." Biggs spoke confidently to quiet down the kerfuffle. Wedge stood quietly by his Major and waited for him to stop talking.
"Yeah. We could really tell by the amazing job you've been doing so far," one person responded sarcastically.
"What was that?" Biggs scanned the crowd with narrowed eyes for the person who dared badmouth them.
"We've been dealing with this for 2 weeks now and not one of you has done a damn thing to help," the man smiled mockingly before giving a salute from where he was sitting. "Keep up the great work, officer." The citizen spat out the word "officer" at the end.
Biggs angrily stomped towards the man with the townspeople giving him a wide berth.
The Major got in the man's face and yelled, "And what have you done to fix the situation, huh!" Biggs replied back angrily, getting a little spit on the man's no longer smiling face. In fact, the man shrank against the bridge in a futile attempt to get away from the officer. "I don't see you out there risking your life." The muscular major towered over the much smaller man scaring him into submission. "You should be grateful people like me risk our lives for weaklings like you."
"What the Major means is that we're doing everything we can to sort out this problem and that we appreciate your patience." Wedge spoke in a much calmer, more even tone which did little to ease the crowd after Biggs' outburst. This was something Wedge has been doing ever since he and Biggs first met.
The noisy townspeople soon start chattering again even as the doors closed and Inspector Boyd stepped out of the church. The Inspector shook his head and said, "What a mess." He then lit his pipe and took a deep inhale of the toxic tobacco.
Sean used Aero to blow the smoke away. "You should really quiet that shit, man. It'll be a real bitch trying to catch Alexandra with blackened lungs." Sean accidentally let slip out. His eyes widened at his mistake, but he remained calm.
"Don't you mean the jewel thief Sandra?" Boyd adjusted his coat to shield himself from the chilly wind.
Sean wasn't completely sure if he should tell him the whole thing or not so he only gave Boyd a piece. "Her real name is Alexandra. Someone who passed through town recently mentioned something about a Jumi Core being stolen."
"Did he say where?" Boyd was now completely alert and Sean had his undivided attention.
Sean shook his head. "No. He told me this happened a year ago. Apparently, the thief left a note saying they were going to steal a topaz or sapphire and signed it 'Alexandra.'"
Inspector Boyd started shaking in fury and clenched his fists. "So, she took on a false name to hide herself. Damn you, Sandra!" He became so angry that clouds of steam shot out of his ears like in the cartoons.
Before the Inspector could give himself a heart attack, Sean said, "I think the name's a pun."
Inspector Boyd calmed down, but was still angry. "What do you mean?"
"There's a type of gemstone called Alexandrite and she's a jewel thief who is hunting down Jumi for their precious jewel cores." Sean actually didn't catch the pun as a kid, but he did notice close similarities between two specific characters. "That being said, Alexandra is likely a pun on the word 'Alexandrite.'"
Inspector Boyd shook his fist. "I'll catch you one of these days, Sandra!"
"Hey," Sean said, catching the Inspector's attention once more. "While I have you here, how did someone like Biggs become a Major? I've only known him briefly and he doesn't seem like a good fit for the position."
"He's not good at leading the men alone." The Inspector exhaled and put out his pipe. "Major Biggs is too bossy and overconfident, but he and Wedge make an exemplary team and none of my other officers were prepared to fill the positions of Lieutenant and Major."
"Are they just filling empty spaces then?" Sean thought that sounded like a crappy system. The type that some corrupt asshole could really take advantage of.
Boyd shook his head. "No! They do good work!" He practically shouted loud enough to wake the dead. "It's just that Biggs had the strength but not the mind to handle the job. Wedge does, but he's too timid and is easily bossed around. They keep each other in check."
"Do you know where they moved from?" Sean inquired, wanting to confirm something.
"They just appeared out of nowhere one day." Boyd answered before narrowing his eyes suspiciously. "What's with the sudden interest?!"
"I'm pretty sure I've seen the two of them somewhere before," Sean answered honestly. "I just can't remember where and it's bothering me." He wanted to confirm if they were this world's version of Biggs and Wedge or if they were plucked directly from Final Fantasy 8 like he was from his home.
"To find out anything more, you're better off asking them yourself!" Boyd replied.
The two men stopped talking when they heard a women shouting and the noise grew louder with every second. Jennifer, Mark's wife, soon appeared and she was being escorted by two officers with a quiet Duelle walking a good distance behind them.
"Where did Rachel go, Duelle?!" Jennifer hollered hysterically, trying to grab the onion but being too weak to escape the officers' grasp. "Where did you send her?!"
"Move along, mam," one of the officers said evenly. "It's not safe out here. You need to go to the church."
"But my daughter's still out there!" Jennifer struggled against the officers' hold. Duelle just sighed and stood by Sean and Boyd while the cops opened the doors to the church and forced her inside. They heard a "honey bun!" from Mark at seeing his wife and a "Rachel left because of you!" from Jennifer.
"What a bitch," Sean thought derisively.
The young man thought about asking Duelle if he was all right, but changed his mind and stayed silent.
A dejected Mark walked out of the building with his head hung low. Biggs and Wedge exited the building after him and the doors shut for the last time that night.
"Have all of the townspeople been found?" Sean asked to break the uncomfortable quiet.
"Everyone is accounted for, Sean," Wedge replied. He was the only other person who wasn't sad or upset about personal matters.
A translucent white barrier then formed around the church before disappearing as quickly as it appeared.
"What was that?" Sean asked.
"That is a protective barrier," Duelle answered, pushing away any personal issues for later. "Reverend Nouvelle put it up around the church to keep everyone safe while we fight."
"Good idea," Sean replied before asking. "Are all of the other officers in the church?"
Boyd shook his head. "Some of my men will be keeping a close guard of the townspeople while you lot take care of things out here. The rest will be waiting just outside of town to make the arrests." This was also a good idea since Sean observed the other cops and found the highest of them went up to Level 10, surprising for an officer of the law. Then again, Sean has seen more than his fair share of fat policemen.
"Has the tribe been spotted yet?" Duelle asked, staying composed yet unsurprisingly more nervous than usual.
"They're about 10 minutes out," Wedge answered. "Before shutting themselves inside, a couple of our men reported a band of 20 approaching."
"They brought a wagon with them too," Boyd picked up where Wedge left off. "It's being pulled by four Chocobo, surely to haul back their ill-gotten gains."
Sean perked up at this little bit of news and fought hard to keep his excitement down. "Did you just say Chocobo?" Sean felt like a kid on Christmas morning.
"He did." Duelle adopted an inquisitive expression when he saw how thrilled Sean suddenly became. "They can be pretty mean too. You don't want to mess with one."
Biggs scoffed. "What's the big deal?" He didn't see what was so amazing about what he viewed as a mundane animal. "They're just a bunch of dumb, yellow birds."
Sean looked at Biggs like he should be committed to an asylum. "Dude, do you have any idea what Chocobo are capable of?"
"Excuse me, Duelle," Wedge interrupted. "But do you have any last minute words of advice for us?"
The onion nodded. "Members of the Chobin Hood species possess excellent hearing and a sharp sense of smell so stealth won't work on them." He coughed into his fist. "And, since they're archers, fighting out in the open is a death wish."
"Would it be right to assume we should let them into town?" Mark voice, trying hard to focus on the missing at hand and not his angry wife or missing daughter.
Sean nodded firmly. "There's really no other way to go about this." This was especially true considering there was little to no cover outside town. "The best route to take would be a surprise attack. Maybe some of us could fire down on them from the second story windows at the inn."
Biggs grinned. "You leave that to me," he said while patting his gauntlet. "I've got a special treat for them. They won't even see it coming."
"Make sure not to kill anyone," Sean spoke with a dead serious expression. "We're only trying to capture them."
"Roughing them up a bit isn't gonna hurt us any," Biggs replied, not seeing the danger in inflicting too much harm.
Duelle then spoke up and pointed out exactly why Biggs was wrong. "There will be injuries in this fight. There's no question of that. But, if we do too much damage or actually kill someone, then the response could be fatal."
"Yeah," Sean said. "Like having the whole tribe march over here and raze the town to the ground." He couldn't afford for that to happen since there was nowhere else for Sean to go. "If we capture some of them, then maybe we can work out an arrangement with the rest of the tribe."
For thinking logically, you have gained +2 INT and +2 WIS
INT: 23 → 25
WIS: 23 → 25
"You should stick to your Sleep Rounds, sir," Wedge said. "I'm sure they'll do an excellent job against the enemy." Biggs just huffed, annoyed at not getting his desired payback.
"Exemplary work, all of you!" Boyd complimented before looking at Sean and Duelle. "You two would make ideal officers."
"No thanks," Sean replied quickly. "I'm not one to take orders and I enjoy my freedom." Duelle nodded along with this. There was a brief pause. "Is everyone ready?"
The other members of the group nodded, sans Boyd, and Sean formed a new party called "Domina Defense" which everyone promptly joined.
"Make sure not to tell anyone about my abilities." Sean looked Boyd straight in the eye with a flat expression and spoke in a serious tone. "There are people out there who could cause a lot of trouble if they learned of me."
"I won't tell a soul," Boyd said firmly. "You have my word as an officer of the law."
Sean nodded. "Good," he said regarding the rest of the group. "Let's head out."
"You two watch each other's backs out there!" Boyd shouted at Biggs and Wedge while they walked away. "I don't want to lose any more of my officers." He spoke the second part more quietly.
Wedge nodded and snapped a quick salute, but Biggs' back was turned to Boyd. Biggs looked over his shoulder and gave Boyd a thumbs up and a cocky grin. "You've got nothing to worry about."
The group left the church grounds and made their way through the marketplace to the "Mana's Blessing" inn.
Sean was dressed in brand new attire, having gotten tired of wearing the same thing day in and day out since being brought to Fa'Diel. The money from completing the Going Ape quest and training in Mekiv Caverns really helped with his financial issues a lot.
He wore a simple black shirt with a pair of blue jeans, something he was thankful existed in this new world. The Menos hauberk he bought two days ago laid over his shirt and he kept on the same pair of shoes which he'd have to look into replacing eventually. Sean wanted to buy new armor, but there was nothing suitable amongst the traders' goods.
But his clothes were a trivial matter when it came to the Robbin' Hood quest, even more so when the notification appeared again with a few changes.
Quest Chain!
Robbin' Hood
For the past two weeks, there has been a string of thefts and break-ins within Domina, making some residents fearful and driving away business. Face the perpetrators and bring them to justice.
Success: 300 Exp, 500 Lucre, Item Encyclopedia, Equipment Encyclopedia, ?, ?, ?, ?
Failure: Potential Death(s), Chance of quest failure: Bring Home the Bacon, Further Damage to Domina, Possibility of Missing Later Quests
Bonus: All of the Chobin Hoods survive
Success: ?, ?
Failure: ?
Sean wasn't entirely sure why, but the question mark next to the bonus failure made him feel deathly afraid as if the objective wasn't a bonus at all. Rather, it was the main goal.
The party moved to the Center of Domina and entered the inn. Sean, Biggs, and Duelle ascended the stairs to the second floor. Biggs took one of the front windows while Sean and Duelle went to another. Wedge and Mark stayed downstairs in case the enemy tried to break in. Anyone who came through those front doors would be in for a bad time.
On his mini-map, Sean saw a gathering of red circles, 15 to be exact.
"The other five must be guarding the wagon then." Sean reasoned soundly.
The young man quietly conveyed this information to Duelle. The onion simply nodded, ready with his knives, while Biggs was getting ready to aim his gauntlet from the other window.
The members of the Luon Highway Chobin Hood tribe soon came into view in the town's center and upon seeing them, Sean summoned Remora. Duelle didn't say anything. He assumed Sean had a plan.
Chobin Hood –Demi-human—
STR: ?
WK: ?
A master bow-hunter species. They look cute, but they could be pretty mean.
Observe Lvl 7 → Lvl 8
Each of the fifteen tribe members wore a green tunic with either an orange or red hood. They all had light brown fur with fluffy ears sticking out of holes in their hoods and long, soft-looking tails. Buckteeth was common amongst all of them and so were the whiskers on their cheeks, something they used to navigate their way through dark places. Every single one of them was barefoot, or rather bare pawed.
The way to tell them apart was how they varied in height, weight, eye color, shade of fur, and other small details such as those. The tallest of them came to Sean's waist while the shortest was just an inch or two taller than Duelle.
Chobin Hood (x15)
Level: 12 to 23
HP: 1250/1250 to 2250/2250
TP: 2500/2500 to 5250/5250
MP: 500/500 to 1000/1000
STR: 30 to 70
VIT: 50 to 90
DEX: 70 to 140
INT: 20 to 40
WIS: 20 to 50
LUK: 10 to 30
SPI: 0 to 10
The fifteen tribesman stood close together, some alert, but none of them had their bows drawn. There was an air of cockiness about them, a certainty present that no one in town nor the police presented a threat to them. This was evidenced by the few small conversations going on and the smiles some of them wore.
When they reached a certain point, Sean had Remora execute its attack just as one of the tribesmen finally noticed him up in the window.
El Niño!
A swirling vortex of turbulent water suddenly sprang from out of nowhere around the tribe and sucked them up like a vacuum. The wild aqua crashed into them violently and slammed each of them into the others. Finally, a geyser shot up from the base of the vortex and sent them flying skywards.
The water twister disappeared as the tribesmen hit the ground and they groaned in pain, some of them having lost their weapons.
-400 HP Each (x15)
Sean briefly paused, his breathing having picked up and his eyes widened in mild panic. Sure Du'Inke had been dangerous, but these people were sentient and Sean has only been in a single fight in his life. Well, from a certain point of view it was a fight, but to him it was taking preemptive action.
He never admitted to anyone how nervous nor fearful he was about going up against a race who were clearly much more dangerous than some moronic ape.
He also needed to beat these people yet keep them alive and the thought of killing one of them made his worry even worse. The young man wanted to end things quickly before they could get out of hand and he'd be forced to do something terrible.
Sean's moment of hesitation passed when he saw some of the Chobin Hoods starting to get up and he took advantage of their soaked states and the area of water that El Niño left behind. Mana swiftly gathered at his finger tips and he fired a bolt of lightning at the shallow pool.
Thunder! Super Effective!
The Chobin Hoods suddenly seized up and started to spasm violently from the electricity coursing through their bodies. The others watched the effect of Sean's attacks while sounds of vibrating pain escaped the tribes' mouths.
-600 HP Each (x15)
For planning ahead, you have gained +10 INT and +10 WIS
INT: 25 → 35
WIS: 25 → 35
"Dang," Duelle uttered in amazement at the strength of the attacks. He witnessed Remora in action when he trained with Sean at the caverns, but prior to this he was completely unaware of the Eidolon's Overdrive and the power behind it. He did catch how uncomfortable Sean was though and quickly realized that he didn't have much experience fighting against sentient opponents either like with the monsters the day before.
Sean's breathing started to slow down and he took a calming breath. He couldn't help but draw comparisons between now and the incident that got him suspended from school.
"It's a good thing I filled the Overdrive bar earlier." Sean's body was a bit shaky and he slowly got the trembling to go down. "In FFX, I would do that for all of the Aeons before fighting bosses and I'm sure many other gamers did the same thing."
Biggs' mouth hung wide open in astonishment from the other window, not aware that Sean was packing that kind of power. Wedge was much the same, but kept his mouth closed and Mark recalled spells from his younger days he saw traveling wizards perform.
"You okay?" Duelle asked Sean, who swallowed and shakily nodded.
"I'm f-fine," Sean stuttered. "I just need to g-get used to fighting."
Wedge and Mark exited the building and made their way towards the downed group who were still twitching and groaning. Mark proceeded to pick up and snap each of their bows with his hands while Wedge patted each of them down for any hidden weapons. The Lieutenant found small daggers on them and a couple of whips and promptly confiscated them.
"You did a great job for your first time," Duelle complimented. "None of the rest of us had to do anything."
"Be careful saying things like that," Sean replied. "I don't believe in Murphy's Law or that fate crap that everyone and their sister feels the need to bring up, but there is such a thing as asking for it."
Duelle looked out the window and saw no other threats approaching while Biggs exited the hotel and shot a bright red flare into the sky. Shortly after, Inspector Boyd and his men caught the signal and arrived on Chocobos to arrest the tribesmen.
Funnily enough, they already had two muzzled Chobin Hoods in custody when they arrived. Both of them were seething in anger and glaring at whoever fell in their line of sight. Their anger became even more pronounced when they saw their fellow tribe members being detained and placed in handcuffs.
Duelle and Sean left the hotel to meet up with the others and Sean was thankful that everyone was still alive. Some of the tribe members' fur was signed and there was a slight burnt smell in the air which caused some of the men to wrinkle their noses, but otherwise they would all be right as rain after being healed. This was something Sean was set on doing.
"Gotta love game mechanics," Sean thought with great gratitude. There were so many things that could kill you in real life that amounted to nothing in a video game.
"Not so tough now are you?" Biggs asked mockingly with a shit-eating grin as he watched the Chobin Hoods being taken into custody. "You lot never stood a chance."
"You shouldn't kick someone when they're down," Duelle stated evenly. "It could come back to bite you."
Biggs waved him off. "Eh, what the heck are they gonna do? Without their bows, they're nothing but a bunch of pus-gah!"
An inch from Biggs' face, an arrow was held in Mark's steel grip. No one there saw the man move and Sean really wished he knew the man's level. If he had to guess, Sean would say that Mark was at least Level 50.
The projectile was fired by one of the three Chobin Hoods left who glowered at Biggs' arrogant demeanor. She was sitting on top of a powerful-looking Chocobo, the mighty bird primed to run away at a moment's notice. Sean looked at his mini-map and saw the wagon leaving with two red circles being moved along by four white ones. The only other symbols on the map aside from his own and his allies was the pink dot of the rider and their mount.
The father gazed sternly at the woman who returned the look right back and they held a brief staring contest. The Chobin Hood then took ahold of the Chocobo's reins and rode away into the darkness of the night.
Mark released the arrow and it hit the ground with a dull thud.
Sean was busy collecting all of the arrows, quivers, and broken bows as loot from the fight, if it could even be called one. He only looked up to see Mark catching the arrow that would've killed Biggs before resuming what he was doing. He even managed to obtain a pair of daggers and one of the whips from Wedge since the Lieutenant was such a nice guy. Sean didn't forget to grab the arrow that Mark dropped either.
Wedge went to stand by his Major and calmly said, "You shouldn't antagonize an opponent when they're down, sir. It will only lead to trouble."
Calming down after almost being killed, Biggs' smug attitude returned though to a lesser degree than before. "I probably would have been fine." Still, he turned towards Mark, who was now speaking with Inspector Boyd, and said, "Hey, Mark!" When the two turned to look at him, Biggs let out an awkward "Thanks."
Mark just smiled and replied, "Think nothing of it, my good man."
"That was really stupid, dude," Sean said, now finished collecting all of the drops. "If Mark wasn't here, you would have been toast."
Biggs became annoyed and turned to give his reply.
"AAAhhhh!" Biggs screamed like a girl and landed on his butt due to the remora that swam directly in front of his face. Wedge and the police were initially alarmed by the Eidolon's presence, but soon overcame their fear when they saw the fish weren't attacking. Still, many of them remained wary.
Some of the officers laughed at Biggs' expense while Wedge offered a hand to help his friend up.
"You sure are a tough guy," Sean said sarcastically before receiving a new notification.
Quest Completed!
Robbin' Hood
Reward: 300 Exp, 500 Lucre, Item Encyclopedia, Equipment Encyclopedia, Perk Shop Opened, Reputation System Unlocked, New Title: Town Defender, Numb Spell Book
Bonus: All of the Chobin Hood survived!
Reward: Access to Blue Magic, Daily Quests Unlocked
Failure: Game Over
Sean closed the notification and followed the others as the tribe members were lead a short ways out of town and loaded into police wagons. A second notification appeared telling Sean of his gain in reputation, but he closed it and decided to look at it later.
He was ready to go home, completely unaware of the Domino Effect he just started.
Author's Notes: Here's Chapter 6. I meant to post this chapter a week or two ago, but I've been busy with school and other things popping up. I don't think I really have too much to say here today. I left a note above about reading the previous chapter again since I changed it.
Hopefully, the explanation for summons isn't confusing. Raising [Link] boosts the stats for different summons while [Standing] works like the Reputation System or Compatibility from Final Fantasy 8. In FFX, Aeons become more powerful from increasing Yuna's stats and from the number of battles you participate in. I thought that was stupid for the purposes of the story and that they shouldn't get stronger simply because Sean does.
I might make it to where [Link] reveals abilities that Sean can learn, but [Standing] allows him access to them. I'm not sure yet.
Thanks to everyone who has read, faved, followed, and reviewed this story. I would really appreciate some more reviews to get a better idea of how I'm doing.
There won't be another chapter up this month and I have nothing special planned for Halloween like some other writer's might. Still, I hope you all have a Happy Halloween and stay safe while trick-or-treating. Make sure to carry a fully-charged phone with you and maybe wear reflective clothing or something similar so you can be seen in the dark. You could even carry a flashlight.