The Saiyan Gamer
Chapter 7: The Cave
It was early the next morning when I realized that I'd left my sword back in the cave. I considered going back to get it, but that idea was shut down immediately when I realized that I'd have to go back to the town to get to the entrance to the cave turned me away from that idea. I'd just have to make a new one.
When I finally stood up and got ready to leave, Undecided stirred behind me. Her new size and sudden change in attitude were still strange, but I was slowly getting used to it.
"You coming with me, Undecided?" I asked her. Once she was done stretching herself out, she gave me an odd look, before nodding her head.
"You understand me now?" I asked, a little surprised but not entirely shocked. She nodded her head again, her lips curling into what looked like a small smile.
"Cool! Well, let's go hunting. I need to make a new sword," I told her as I turned away from her and towards the exit. "I need 20 Meta-Wolf teeth and three Giglamarina Bone daggers. I'm not sure where the Meta-Wolves usually are, so I guess we can head down to the lake first."
Undecided had a concentrated look on her face for a few seconds, before she nodded her head at me and took off going further up the mountain. I watched her leave, my eyebrows raising the further that she got away. "Well… So much for being smarter, the lake is this way…"
I sighed, before rolling my eyes and heading in the opposite direction. It was empty as always when I got there and diving down to drag the Giglamarina out was even easier than usual. While I was waiting for it to suffocate and die, I saw a notification saying that I'd gotten some experience, separate from the Giglamarina, seeing as it was still alive.
This wasn't unusual. Once in a while, it would happen randomly, usually when Undecided was out and I was relaxing in the cave. However, considering the timing, I began to wonder if it was related. Do Undecided's kills give me experience points too?
The answer came about 10 minutes later when Undecided came running into the clearing of the forest and stood next to me proudly. I looked up at her and raised an eyebrow, only to be shocked when she looked at the ground in front of her intensely, and three Meta-Wolf cubs appeared.
They were all dead, killed in various ways. One had its throat cut, the other's brain was bashed in, and the last one was missing its eyes. Slowly, I stroked my hand over Undecided's fur, before kneeling down in front of the bodies and putting my hand on one of them.
Weird, the option to loot is there… I looted all three bodies while I thought about the oddity presented by this. When Leeku had killed the animal with her arrow, I couldn't loot it, but when Undecided killed animals, I could. In addition to that, Undecided just pulled those bodies out of thin air, like I just found out that I could do.
Undecided and I are connected in a strange way, aren't we? I continued to pet her while also looking over her new, much larger body. That's probably what all the partner stuff means.
In any case, the connection was only bringing good things to me. After looting the Giglamarina, Undecided and I took a swim in the lake to get all of the blood from yesterday off of us. Then, we headed back home to the cave to craft my sword.
It went about the same as last time, and once it was done I examined my new sword with a grin on my face. It helped a lot during that mission, even if I couldn't put my energy around it in the same way that Leeku could.
Next, I thought about the Meta-Wolf Fur that I was using as a cape. It didn't help me much at all back at the mountain, but that was because it was on my back. There was an option to craft Meta-Wolf fur into armor before, wasn't there?
[Craftable]
1x Meta-Wolf Fur [Adolescent Sized] = Beast Mount
2X Meta-Wolf Fur [Adolescent Size] = Meta-Wolf Body Suit
2X Meta Wolf Fur [Adolescent Size] = Meta-Wolf Pants
4X Meta-Wolf Fur [Adolescent Size] = Meta-Wolf Full Body Suit
2x Meta-Wolf Fur [Cub Size] = 1 Meta-Wolf Fur [Adolescent Size]
[More…]
Pulling all of the Meta-Wolf furs that I had out of the safe place, I put them in front of me. In total, there was 1 adolescent-sized piece of fur, and three cub-sized pieces of fur. I combined the two cub-sized furs, to create another adolescent-sized one.
Okay, so I can either create a bodysuit or pants… I looked over the pieced of fur, contemplating which one. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a rush of energy and excitement filled me, the fight against the Wyvern springing to mind, and a grin spread onto my face. I just have to kill two more adolescent-sized Meta-Wolves and I can get the full body. That'll be easy. And if it's not, at least it'll be fun.
Standing up again with resolve, I put my sword into the safe place and stretched my body. Relaxing for the last couple of weeks was fun, but now that I had a taste of real adrenaline, it was hard to put it to the back of my mind.
In the night, I'd tried to figure out why exactly the fight against the Wyvern and the entire trip to Avaross mountain was so different from the rest of my fights and experiences. In the end, as strange as it sounded, I realized that it was likely because of the thrill of almost dying. Or rather, not being certain that I was going to be able to make it out alive, but surviving despite the odds.
On X-32, there wasn't any threat to my life in the slightest. They could barely touch me; their strongest attack only managing to draw a little blood. It was like squashing small, helpless insects; There was no thrill in it.
Fighting Undecided when she was an enemy didn't give me any thrill either, because I never actually thought that I could die. Even if she had managed to injure me to the point where I couldn't fight back, I could have always flown so high that she couldn't reach me. The bigger Meta-Wolf that I'd killed was similar.
But seeing the looming, gigantic form of Raphalos struck in me a terror that I hadn't ever felt prior. It was even worst than the shock and horror I'd felt when Brussel threatened to pull out my tail. It was the first time in my entire life that I actually thought that I might die...
Surviving that was an incredible feeling.
It only intensified when I was fighting the smaller Wyvern in the cave. Knowing that each one of those lightning bolt energy attacks could have wiped me off the face of the planet was exhilarating, even if the feeling didn't strike me until I was free and safe. I wanted to feel it again.
The suns were bright and high in the sky when we stepped out of our cave once again. I turned to Undecided and then looked further up the mountain.
"Let's go kill some more Meta-Wolves. I need two more to make some armor," I said to her, into which she nodded. Remembering yesterday, and the fact that the entire reason that Raphalos woke up was because of her hunger, I added, "Let's kill three. I'll give you the teeth and claws to eat and my metal spike."
Her tail wagged in response, and we had an agreement.
"Alright, lead me to them," I commanded her. She turned to look up the mountain, before running off. I followed behind her loosely in the air.
It wasn't long before the trees disappeared and were replaced with the pure crystals of Coronett mountain. We passed the first entrance to the cave that I'd originally found when running from the pack of Meta-Wolves, and we kept going. Just like on Atross mountain, crystal structures were everywhere, forming weird and wacky shapes at random.
Eventually, we got most of the way to the top, and interestingly enough, it looked flat at the top. I wanted to explore it, but we stopped before we got any higher, turning right and going until we found what we were looking for.
A large cave opening presented itself. At its mouth, a strange blue flame flickered from atop a torch. It definitely looked more like something that a Saiyan would put down, not a Meta-Wolf. Maybe the bigger Meta-Wolves get, the smarter they get. Just like the Wyverns.
"Hey, how about you draw a few of them out, and we'll kill them out here?" I suggested to Undecided, who agreed with me immediately.
While she strutted off towards the entrance, I thought back to Raphalos and the pure recklessness that got us to that point. While it was definitely fun, it was also the stupidest thing that I'd ever done, and I wouldn't repeat it to that extend. The Wyvern fight, definitely, but not stealing from something whose power level was so high that it only showed question marks.
I wonder if the Queen of the Meta-Wolves is as strong as Raphalos… I stared at the entrance of the cave. I doubt it, but that would be something.
It took a few minutes before Undecided came running out and towards me. Behind her, five Meta-Wolves followed. Three were older ones and two were cubs. Not exactly what I had planned, but nevertheless, a smile still graced my face. I put my hand out, my sword appeared in my hand.
"Let's do this!"
Level Up
6 Stat Points Awarded!
Stat Sheet
HP: 1466
KI: 3740
Strength: 34 +
Endurance: 10 +
Charisma: 2 +
Intelligence: 10 [Basic] +
Available Stat Points: 6
Power Level: 440
My sword slid smoothly out of the torso of the final Meta-Wolf, at the same moment that Undecided tore out its throat. It was already dead, but that was just for good measure. I looked down at the five new bodies around us through extremely labored breaths.
That was way more tiring than I'd expected it to be. Twice during the fight, I had to grab Undecided and flee to the sky to just rest for a few minutes and catch our breaths. The explanation about the energy manipulation hadn't lied either. When I tried to use it, it definitely worked and I turned one of the meta-wolves into a fine paste, but I used almost all of my ki doing it. Thankful it was closer to the end of the fight, so it wasn't much too much of a problem.
I'd have to save it for a finishing attack until I learned how to control it properly. It was too unreliable.
Nonetheless, the battle was won and I'd leveled up. One look at Undecided, who was glancing over her sheet, and it was clear that she had leveled up too.
Before choosing where to put my stats, I stopped for once and thought about it, instead of immediately putting everything into strength. It was clear that putting points into strength not only made me strong but also increased how much energy I had. It also increased my health, but not by much. The probably now was that, even though I was much stronger, I couldn't fight for a long time without feeling absolutely exhausted.
It was hard not to dump everything into strength, but after convincing myself, I managed to put four of the six points into endurance and the remaining two in strength. I realized upon examining my sheet after I'd allocated the points, that the endurance stat was a big factor in how much health I have. So it's more important than I thought.
I briefly wondered if maybe the other stats were important too, but decided to think about it another time. I didn't know what charisma meant, and who cared about intelligence anyway? I was already plenty smart.
No Name came strutting over to me once I was done, covered in the blood of our enemies.
It wasn't just her appearance that was different, and I only noticed it when she started fighting. She was much faster than before, and stronger too. Much, much stronger. I petted her head gently, before taking a look at her stats again.
Partner Status Sheet
Name: [Undecided]
Species: Meta-Wolf
Gender: Female
Reputation: Unbreakably Loyal
Age: 6 Months
Level: 9 (3503/9000)
HP: 1428
Ki: 1530
Strength: 20
Endurance: 14
Intelligence: 15 [Basic]
Available Stat Points: 0
Power Level: 306
I continued to stroke her fur while I read and thought. Her power level went up four times since the day that I met her, which was incredible. Equally, if not more amazing, was the fact that my power level was already five times what it was during that fight. After I'd applied my points, it went up to 500.
I read it over a few times before the realization hit me that her Ki no longer said that it was locked. When?
"When did you unlock your energy?" I started asking her, while also sitting down. "It was when you leveled up back at the cave, wasn't it?"
Undecided nodded her head, wagging her tail as she did. No wonder she was so much stronger than before.
"You figured out how to put your energy into your muscles, haven't you?" I asked rhetorically. I didn't need an answer. The way that she moved and crushed our enemies told me the answer. She wagged her tail once more, before laying down her to me and resting her chin on my leg.
The fight had moved us a little further down the mountain and we ended right next to a large crystal wall. From that point, I could see almost everything on the ground at the base of the mountain.
The town was admittedly much larger than I originally thought. Even when I was in it for a short time yesterday, it didn't look near as huge as it really was. The town wrapped around close to half of the base of the mountain, which was incredibly huge. Metal walls wrapped around the entire thing, which I found slightly odd considering that most things on this planet could either jump over the walls or fly over it.
Am I strong enough to be accepted yet? I put my hand in front of me and stared at it, before clenching my fists tightly until my knuckles were an even paler shade of white.
"Kakarot!"
The shout caught my attention immediately. It sounded pretty close, so I wasn't too shocked that when I poked my head out from behind the wall, I saw someone flying around, higher up the mountain. They were hovering around the mouth of the Meta-Wolves cave, and after a few more seconds, they called into it again.
Even though he was far away, his information appeared in front of me. Just as it did, a notification popped up.
Observe Skill Leveled up!
Level ?
Turles
Race - Saiyan
Gender - Male
Age - 15
Reputation - Neutral
HP - ?
Ki - ?
Power Level - ?
Turles is the firstborn son of Bardock and Gine, and the oldest of three brothers. Due to his parent's reclusive nature, he hasn't met many other Saiyans his age and therefore has no friends other than his immediate family.
Recently, he has been at odds with his parents; his desire for friends and exploration clashing with their very secluded and protective lifestyle.
He is currently looking for his youngest brother, Kakarot, who wandered off in search of a fight.
Wow, he must be strong if I can't see his stats. I stared at the other teen's blanked-out power level in amazement before my attention went to his physical appearance. Even from a distance, I could tell that he had the same hairstyle as Bardock. It was pretty unique.
I watched for a few more minutes as Turles paced around the entrance of the cave, calling for his missing little brother while he did. I wasn't sure when I decided that I would help him, possibly when I saw his annoying stalking turn into frantic pacing, but I quickly looted the bodies of the meta-wolves around me and went to work at the full-body suit.
It was formed in little under 5 seconds. The entire outfit was covered in the shiny, black fur of the Meta-Wolves, forming a piece of clothing that would cover my entire body from neck to ankles. On the back, it had a small metal thing on it that I shortly found out was used to zip the outfit onto my body properly.
It wasn't too tight on my body, but not baggy at all. The fur stuck out a good few inches, and it was just as hard as Meta Wolf fur tended to be. When I put it on, I looked over it again to see its benefits.
Meta-Wolf Full Body Suit
Status - Great Quality
Durability - 20 Armor
Additional Effect - All Meta-Wolves below your level who see you with this bodysuit on will automatically flinch, giving you an opportunity to attack.
Description: This is a bodysuit made from the Meta-Wolves that you've killed. Combining the fur from four different Meta-Wolves, this armor uses the strength stat of the strongest one as the base for its durability.
I loved it already.
Hoisting my sword over my shoulder, I stepped out from behind my rock and started walking over to Turles, who was still peering into the cave. He didn't notice me until I was about halfway to him, unto which he stared at me with a confused expression on his face. By the time I got to ten feet from him, he threw his fists up and narrowed his eyes.
Up close, I could see that the only difference that separated him from his dad was that Turles had slightly darker skin. Apart from that, Turles was basically just a shorter twin of Bardock.
"Who are you?" He asked me finally. I stopped in front of him and placed the tip of my sword in the ground.
"Wait, you can't see the wo-" I started to say, but was interrupted by Undecided's tail striking me hard across the leg. It didn't take off much damage at all, but when I looked down at her, her eyes were narrowed in a way that made me think that she was trying to tell me something. I didn't figure out what she meant before Turles replied.
"Wait, is that your Meta-Wolf?" Turles asked his attention now on Undecided. His fists dropped to his sides, and the uncertainty on his face melted away.
"Oh, yeah she is," I replied, putting a hand on her back to reinforce the point.
"How'd you tame her?" He asked. A second later, he kneeled over and began to stroke her head, a very small smile making its way onto his face.
"Well, I'm not entirely sure, to be honest," I said slowly, giving a small glance down at Undecided to make sure that she wasn't going to hit me again. "I beat her in a fight, and ever since she's been following me around."
"Cool," Turles continued to scratch her, and she was definitely enjoying it. "I was taught that they weren't tamable, so I never tried."
"I heard that too, actually," I said. "Maybe I'm just lucky."
"Maybe," Turles hummed, before finally standing up straight and bringing his attention back to me. "I haven't seen anyone come this high up the mountain ever, apart from my family."
"I live like halfway down, but I needed to get some more fur to build this armor," I said while also taking a step back and showing off my bodysuit. "Undecided brought me up here and we hunted a little."
"You live on the mountain?" Turles asked. "Not in Omato Village?"
"Nope."
"I didn't know that anyone else lived on it except us."
"Well, technically I live in it. So you wouldn't be able to see it when flying around," I explained. "It's a pretty cool cave, and I'm the only thing that lives in it, so it's safe."
"You live on your own?" He asked, eyes wide again. "No parents? What's that like?"
I paused for a second, eyebrows furrowed. Do I tell him that technically I did have parents, but that I didn't live with them because they were disappointed in me? I decided against it after a moment, before saying simply, "It's nice. Relaxing."
"I wish," Turles grumbled under his breath, before sighing loudly and turning back to the entrance of the cave. "I know you just fought a few Meta-Wolves, but can I ask for a favor?"
"I'm not sure what a favor is but sure?" I said slowly.
Turles didn't look phased, and continued a second later, "I think my little brother went in there, and my mom sent me to go find him before he gets himself killed. I don't want to go in there on my own, just in case their Queen catches me, so do you want to tag along?"
Mission Created!
Save Kakarot
Main Objective - Help Turles retrieve his little brother, Kakarot, from the depth of a Meta-Wolf nest.
Bonus Objective: Kill more than 20 Meta-Wolves (Difficulty Level - X)
Bonus Objective: Kill one of The Six (Difficulty Level - XXX)
Reward:
3000 EXP
Turles Will Owe You A Favor
Failure:
Decreased Reputation with Bardock, Gine, Raditz, and Turles
Accept?
I accepted straight away, before realizing that I'd completed a mission yesterday with the Golden Egg mission. I hadn't received my reward for that, had I?
I didn't have much time to think about it, with Turles waiting for my answer. I nodded my head at him, and he grinned back at me.
"Thanks! I'd have asked my other brother, but he's probably lazing around somewhere anyway," Turles said. "What should I call you by the way? I didn't get your name."
"Oh yeah, my name is Sprout," I introduced myself. The realization that he didn't know my name straight away, which meant that he might not see the words as I could, left an uncomfortable feeling in my stomach, but I ignored it for now.
"Cool name. Mine is Turles," He said, before turning fully towards the entrance and clenching his fists. "You ready?"
"As I'll ever be," I said while lifting my sword and putting it over my shoulder. "Let's do this."
Hope you enjoyed the chapter! We have our first introduction to Turles, who will continue on as an important part of this story! Leave a review about what you thought, and your predictions for the future of this story!
