Warbreaker's Rage: A LitRPG Apocalypse Adventure (The Connected System Book 3), page 19
When Joe Foster became a Classed Blacksmith, making farming implements was going to be high on his agenda. Aside from Larry, they hadn’t been able to find any other horses, and even though Larry was now strong enough to pull a plow, the one time they had tried, the horse had refused. He was now spending his time wandering the areas around the school. For whatever reason, he wasn’t going far, even though there was no fence to keep him in. Loch didn’t even know where the horse was currently. He wasn’t anywhere visible.
Larry would have to take care of himself.
“We cut through the woods instead of going along the road,” Kyle explained.
“The teams had already cleared out the monsters, and it’s quicker.”
They crossed the fields, stepping onto the sloping asphalt that had been the student parking lot. At the top of the hill to the right was another ballfield, which would become another farming field. To the left was a baseball diamond, and atop another hill, not yet visible, was the track. Loch hadn’t been that far down, others reporting that the asphalt was still there but now ringing a small pond.
He got his first look as Kyle led them along the edges.
Trees surrounded the field on three sides, the slope down to the baseball diamond on the fourth. There had been a lot of cleared space between the trees and the track. Space for spectators, equipment, and bleachers.
Which were now gone, with no evidence of their existence as the grass grew tall.
The asphalt track was cracked and pitted, with large sections missing. Grass, flowers, and weeds grew through the cracks. The flowers were tall, a single stem rising three or four feet into the air, petals along the sides, ending in a single purple flower.
“That’s pretty,” Piper said.
Purple had always been her favorite color.
“None of us have checked the flowers out,” Kyle said. “Don’t want to risk it. We lost someone the first day at the churches when out scouting. He’d gone and touched a strange flower and…”
Piper had started to take a step toward the strange plant. She stopped and backed up.
“Cerie,” Loch said, looking at the plant. The flower was beautiful. He’d never been a plant person and couldn’t really identify any of them beyond the most popular. It reminded him of a sunflower, just smaller. “Is there a Class or Profession that deals with flowers?”
“Yes. An Alchemist Class would have some knowledge of plant life and have the Skills to safely harvest it. At higher Levels, of course. There is also the Forager Gathering Class that would have similar Skills as the Alchemist.”
“Do we have any of those yet,” Harper asked as the group kept walking.
Loch had read the census when it had been completed, the most up-to-date one anyway, as the population of the school constantly changed. There was no one who had gotten the Alchemist Class, not yet, but there was someone they were hoping would get it soon. A former middle school chemistry teacher. Had there been someone with Forager already? He couldn’t remember. There had been a couple of people with some gardening experience, and one of the women had been a florist. Those would be the most likely to become Alchemists and Foragers.
When they returned to the school, Loch had to find them and start their training.
The pond wasn’t that big, maybe twenty feet in diameter. The middle bubbled up, indicating there was a spring constantly pushing water up into the pond. It caused ripples across the surface, the water lapping against the shore. Lily pads, cattails, and other water plants ringed the banks. Loch thought he saw a fish jump.
It was peaceful, not fitting in the devastation that was the track.
“We need to find out if that water is drinkable,” he said.
If they had access to a freshwater spring, that would help their future problem.
But if it was a spring, it was far enough from the school and the future walls that they’d have to post guards to defend it. Another place that would require an outpost. More construction that would need more guards.
More things they just didn’t have the resources for.
Was it ever going to end?
Chapter Twenty
Loch swung, ducking low, the axe cutting deep into the chipmunk’s side. It was large, the size of a wolf, and incredibly vicious. Onyx pulled out as the chipmunk’s momentum carried it past. Loch twisted, raising Bulwark as the chipmunk rolled along the ground, coming to a stop as it slammed into a tree.
He could hear more fighting around him.
More Mutated Chipmunks attacking the rest of his group.
An Evaluation felt like the chipmunk was around Harper’s strength Level. The thing was strong.
It pushed itself up, turning to look at Loch, small black eyes glaring at him. The bushy tail twitched. It chittered at him, the sound so familiar yet so very different.
He’d heard chipmunks before, the things running around the woods everywhere he’d been, but now it was louder, stronger, and harsher. There was an anger to it.
They had invaded the pack's territory.
Chipmunks had always been solitary creatures.
Not anymore.
Loch didn’t know how many there were. He could see three, including the one he was fighting. Were there more?
The animal leaped at him, front paws extended, sharp claws aiming for his throat. The chipmunk was fast, forcing Loch to twist, batting at the monster with his axe. He slammed the flat side of the axe head into the chipmunk, barely getting out of the way. It fell to the ground, recovering quickly, but Loch was quicker.
Barely.
Onyx sliced down, cutting deep into the chipmunk’s side. It squealed in pain. He pulled the axe out, swinging it down again, cutting the monstrous chipmunk’s head off.
Loch jumped back, twisting around and looking to see who needed help.
They had been walking through the woods, the sun barely visible through the thick canopy of leaves. The trees were thicker and closer together than Loch had remembered. He hadn’t been in that section of woods that often. Kyle had led them to a trail, one Loch recognized as leading to the power lines. The group had spread out along the trail, still keeping an eye on their surroundings.
Which was why it was a surprise when the chipmunks attacked.
One second, it had been quiet; the next, the trees had erupted as the pack burst out of the leaves. They had been silent, not moving, not even a snap or rustle of a leaf to betray their presence. Loch and the others had been taken completely by surprise. Their line, spaced out as they were, worked against them, allowing the chipmunks to land between them.
Luckily, Brian had been close to Kyle and Joe. Kyle had some offensive Abilities, but Joe had none. Loch had been at the rear of the line. Piper was close to Julia, which left Harper on her own up front.
She was the one Loch was least worried about.
He couldn’t see her or the chipmunks she was facing off against. Piper and Julia had managed to get their backs against two trees close together, silver blasts from Piper’s wand slamming into a chipmunk. Brian stood in front of the other two, only about ten feet from Loch. His club kept swinging, never stopping, hitting the two chipmunks. Another was beyond, waiting for its chance.
Loch took a step forward but stopped, instinct screaming at him. He turned, Bulwark ready. Claws raked across the translucent surface, cracking the energy shield. Loch took a step back, forced by the weight and momentum of the leaping chipmunk. He twisted his arm to the side, forcing the monster away, its rear claws getting past the edge of the shield. They slid along his armor, not penetrating. The chipmunk landed on its side, scrabbling to get up.
Onyx slammed down, lightning cracking across the chipmunk’s body. It writhed in pain, unable to move or avoid Loch’s second blow.
It gave one last shudder and died.
He Activated Windstep, shield held before him, taking a running step as the Ability tore him across the short distance.
Spikes erupted from the shield as Loch appeared next to a chipmunk. Using the Lightning Bulwark aspect of the shield Ability, Loch sent a wave of lightning into the monster. The spikes bit deep, keeping the chipmunk from moving as the energy crashed against it. The monster’s body convulsed, feet kicking feebly as Loch lifted it up off the ground.
The chipmunk wasn’t that heavy, and Loch was able to get it a couple of feet up. He deactivated the shield, stepping back as it fell to the ground. He was turning away from it before it’d even hit, body still convulsing as bolts of lightning sparked across it.
Onyx slammed into the rear of a chipmunk facing Brian, cutting deep. The creature arced, trying to get at Loch, leaving it vulnerable to Brian. The big man’s club slammed into its head, the crack heard over the sounds of fighting and Abilities going off.
Loch was already moving.
Onyx shrank, spinning end over end as it flew down the trail. The axe slammed into the side of the chipmunk facing Piper, an ink-black bear grappling with it. With a squeal of pain, the chipmunk twisted with the impact, its attention distracted from the bear. Not uttering a sound, the bear struck with its dark paw. Claws dug deep into the face of the chipmunk, ripping and tearing. The other hand grabbed the dying chipmunk, lifting it up, claws ripping into the monster’s chest. Loch turned away, not wanting to see the chipmunk ripped apart.
Why was that ink summon so vicious? None of the others had attacked like that.
Loch hoped that Piper wasn’t watching.
He heard the sound of breaking branches followed by a thud as the inkbear threw the dead chipmunk away.
Loch hadn’t stopped, moving past where he’d seen Harper last. He had no idea how many chipmunks remained.
A lone chipmunk, the body of another to the side, looked around. Blood dripped from many wounds across its body, and one eye was missing. The thing growled, nose twitching as it sniffed. Harper appeared out of the shadows behind it, tonfas stabbing forward, scoring two more wounds. More blood fell to the ground.
Loch slowed, seeing that Harper had it under control. He came to a skidding stop, turning to start running back toward the others. There was no need.
Brian and Piper made short work of the remaining chipmunks.
With a squeal, the one Harper was facing fell dead.
Notifications filled Loch’s vision, and for once, he let them.
YOU HAVE SLAIN MUTATED CHIPMUNK
YOU HAVE SLAIN MUTATED CHIPMUNK
YOU HAVE SLAIN MUTATED CHIPMUNK
YOU HAVE SLAIN MUTATED CHIPMUNK
He still found it weird that the Connection had taken away the amount of Spirit received. It hadn’t done much good since he had never been told the amount needed between Levels. It was variable, according to Cerie. What it took to go from Level Twenty-Two to Level Twenty-Three might be more than what it took to get from Level Twenty-Three to Level Twenty-Four. And those numbers wouldn’t be the same for other Classes or even people with the same Classes.
Quality over Quantity.
A Connected could just fight mob after mob after mob and eventually Level, but the Connection wanted challenges. Fighting a higher Leveled opponent would have more benefit in terms of Spirit gained at a lower Level than it would only one or two Levels higher.
Even fighting in a group versus fighting solo would affect what was gained and the amount required.
As the dance of multi-colored sparks entered his body, Loch felt his experience bar filling. It wasn’t a true bar, just how he visualized the feeling in his body. The chipmunks had given okay experience.
They had been tough, not as tough as him, but for the others, they had been. Had the ambush factored into it? It had to. Being caught by surprise and winning the fight had to count for something. Loch assumed his overpowering of multiple chipmunks might have worked against him in terms of Spirit gained. He’d overwhelmed the monsters with his speed and power. That wasn’t what the Connection wanted.
Those hadn’t been quality kills.
None of his Abilities had Ranked up. It had been a while. Cerie had said that weapons, armor, and Abilities were slow to gain their experience. Even though all were used all the time, they still were slow to rise. Loch used Bulwark nearly constantly, and there wasn’t a fight where Onyx wasn’t used. The axe had killed everything since he’d gotten it. There was no other weapon.
Just from sheer use, the axe should have been a higher Level.
Cerie had said it went back to quality versus quantity.
Using the weapon in the same way all the time wasn’t what the Connection considered quality. It was quantity. His gear and Abilities were gaining experience, just at a very slow rate because he wasn’t innovative in their use.
That was something he tried to work on, but during the heat of battle, it was hard.
YOU HAVE EARNED THE ACHIEVEMENT CHIPMUNK KILLER RANK 1.
CHIPMUNK KILLER RANK 1.
YOU HAVE KILLED YOUR FIRST MUTATED CHIPMUNK. CONTINUE KILLING CREATURES OF THE SAME RACE TO INCREASE YOUR BANE RANK FOR ADDITIONAL BENEFITS AND REWARDS.
RANK 1 REWARD: +1 TO STRENGTH, +1% DAMAGE INCREASE TO MUTATED CHIPMUNKS
The bane achievements were odd, Loch thought.
He’d gotten his first one after one kill. But even after killing so many similar monster types in dungeons, he hadn’t gotten one. He’d gotten one for killing a lot of hobs, but did the ones he’d killed in the grocery store resource event count? There was no way to know, as he couldn’t track the progress in bane Ranks.
He was sure Cerie could explain it. Again, it probably had to do with the Connection’s need to challenge the Connected. Where the kills happened was probably a factor. Inside a dungeon, where it was expected to kill multiples of the same monster, probably didn’t count. There were other achievements for dungeons.
The whole thing was confusing.
And frustrating.
Just like everything to do with the Connected System.
“Is everyone all right?” he asked, walking back toward Brian and the two mostly non-combatants.
“That was crazy,” Joe said. “Giant chipmunks?”
In his hand, he held a carpentry hammer, one of the long-handled ones. He held it in a way that told Loch he knew how to use it. Cerie had said that Crafting Classes were given some offensive and defensive capabilities. Not as much as a Gathering Class, which didn’t have as much as a pure Combat Class.
Loch looked at the bodies. Most were in decent shape for corpses. A couple were mangled, not worth harvesting anything from. He wondered if chipmunk hide would give any bonuses to items crafted with it.
“Do you have a skinning Ability?” he asked Kyle, not knowing if the man had a Class or what it was. He really needed to read the census again and memorize it.
“No, but I do have Meat Harvesting,” the other man replied. “Got it a few days ago when I finally hit Level Five and got the Hunter Class.”
Loch knew that was only a Common Class. There were already a couple of people in the Clan that had received it. It gave three Abilities and a Skill, none of them all that great, but enough to keep the hunters alive. Mark Prey allowed them to place a spiritual tag on a selected animal or monster. It allowed the hunter to follow that prey no matter where it went, or how far away it was. Because it was marked by the hunter, they got offensive and defensive bonuses against it. Hunter’s Strike was their only offensive Ability. It gave them an increased Critical Strike chance, using their inner knowledge of an animal or monster’s weak point. The last Ability was called Swift Dodge, a defensive one that allowed them to evade attacks.
The Skill was multi-faceted. Because Hunter was considered a Support Class, in the middle between Combat and Gathering, it was granted the Harvesting Skill. Many Classes had that basic Skill, which was then specialized based on Class and the person. Cerie had tried explaining it once, but Loch had given up listening.
It didn’t really matter the how or why, he just wanted to know what it did.
Harvesting was as the name implied. It allowed the Connected to harvest material. It could be ore, crops, herbs, or leather. Any kind of material. It then became specialized to match the Class. A Farmer Class got Crops Harvesting while a Hunter got Meat Harvesting or Hide Harvesting. Because they had the basic Harvest Skill, a Farmer would do a better job and get more material from harvesting nearly anything compared to someone without the Skill, but they would do much better at their specialization.
“Think you can get anything from these?” Loch asked, waving at the dead bodies.
Kyle walked over to one of the chipmunks, nudging it with his boot. Unlike the guards back at the school, Kyle just wore camouflage pants and a green jacket. He had on hiking boots that had seen better days. His long black hair was held in a ponytail. On his belt hung a machete, the edge of the weapon stained dark. He had a bow and quiver over his shoulder, a fancy-looking compound bow. Only five arrows remained.
He spent some time examining the body, walking around it.
“I think I can get something from them,” he finally said. “Might not be enough to make it worth the time. These things are bigger but still pretty thin overall. Meat might be stringy.”
“It’s still meat,” Loch pointed out.
“True,” Kyle agreed, drawing his machete. “Let me see what I can do with this one.”
He set the edge of the weapon against the chipmunk’s fur, drawing it smoothly down, a line of red appearing.
Piper and Harper looked away, walking off. Julia watched for a couple more seconds before joining the girls. Joe joined them soon after. Brian looked at Loch, shrugged, and headed down the trail to watch their rear. Loch took the front, watching the trail, eyes scanning the surrounding forest.
INTERLUDE THREE
