Chapter Thirty Seven - Babel Town
Cadence Lee's (as a yet nameless Gale Wyvern) POV:
I had no clue what anyone around me was saying, but it did look like I wasn't about to be attacked. Sure, I wasn't particularly careful with my life - although I blame a lot of that on my monster instincts - but I would rather not die so long as not dying was an option. I would risk my life for another, but that was just good economics, wasn't it?
They had one life; I had many lives. Ergo, their life is worth more than mine.
...Yeah, no. Calling my life worthless in comparison to other's lives seems kind of… Wrong? I can't really articulate why right now, because I also feel it is right too. It was too much to think about right now.
Which might be a good thing, because this was hardly the time for philosophy. A mix of monster instincts and human impulses had dropped me into the middle of a bit of a mess. I had no idea this town was even here before today, and now I was in the middle of it being watched by a few men dressed in light armor and carrying bows - guards, I presumed because their armor was all the same like a uniform.
The town was situated north of a large hill that had hid it from my view, but it is still shocking to see just how much I had missed while I was flying. That was probably a good thing, because I really had not noticed just how lonely I had been and I would have tried to interact with the town and gotten shot for my trouble.
Now I was here and not shot, so everything worked out for the best!
...I may have also entered into a magical contract I don't know anything about to an elf that I also know nothing about and can't understand.
In my defense, it didn't feel like it was designed to take control of my mind or even control me. No, I had gotten a feeling of communication - which is incredibly odd, because I don't even know what a feeling of communication is - and I had accepted it without thinking about it much. Now I was linked to this elf girl and could somewhat sense her feelings and desires in a corner of my mind. I am pretty sure she had the same from me.
If the worst happened, the link did not feel particularly strong. I am pretty sure I could break it just by deciding to do so, but why would I do that? My entire goal for this life was to do better than my previous ones - to try and gain points - and I think I would be more effective working with someone. Not that I had been giving much consideration to that goal this past year, but after fighting the Blood Moly and evolving into a Young Gale Wyvern I felt I had a bit more wiggle room to worry about that goal instead of just worrying about survival.
The little elf girl caught my attention, asking me to follow her. It actually was a somewhat fascinating experience. I could not understand her words, but she made expressive gestures and our link gave me a glimpse of her feelings and desires. She felt… Nervous and scared, but mostly hopeful with a pinch of determination. I could tell she wanted me to be near her, but she was moving away.
I obliged her; following her through the streets while internally debating exactly how I should behave. I didn't have to let them know how intelligent I was, although the cat might be out of the bag with that. Still, it was somewhat tempting to pretend to just be a relatively intelligent creature. Although that was probably a really stupid idea…
I noticed that the guards were shadowing us as we walked, and my wyvern instincts really hated that. It felt like being stalked by a predator but it wasn't so hard to ignore when I focused on the feelings Ray sent over our link.
(Hey, could you have the guards back off a bit more? They are really making her nervous.) Ray said something and the guards made a face and backed off a couple of feet more. It wasn't much, but it was something, and it was nice to have some confirmation that she could feel my emotions and desires like I could hers!
The building we stopped in front of was three stories tall and had a bunch of interesting looking people in front of it as well as peering out from the windows. They weren't soldiers or guards, but they had weapons and armor - often mismatched - and some definitely seemed to be magic users. All of them were staring at me, but I had gotten over that being an issue in my last life.
A gruff, well dressed, man stepped outside, along with a terrified looking young woman. I imagine that the man is in charge of whatever this is and the young woman was probably some kind of secretary or administrative assistant. She probably hadn't expected to meet a monster today and I certainly could bite her head off, but weren't humans supposed to taste bad? I feel like I had read a clickbait article back on Earth to that effect, but I have no idea how accurate it was.
I suppose I could test the taste of a criminal, there has to be bandits around somewhere, right? But bandits don't exactly have a reputation for bathing, so eating them would be disgusting. More importantly, why don't I feel worse about the thought of eating people?
(A runner came by and told me of the situation; was hoping for a quiet day. Is there even a point to this? It is following the gal, I don't see how doing a Status Check will make it less likely to flip out.) The older man sounded a bit like an asshole, whatever he was saying. The poor assistant next to him looked about to faint and he didn't seem to care at all!
(She is very smart,) the little elf was praising me! I think… (I would ask for a Status Check regardless of what the Guard wishes, just to be sure.)
(Well let's get this over with.) He just pushed his assisstant forward, rude! Maybe I should try eating him first!
Poor girl, don't worry I won't eat you. I might not have the same instinctive revulsion I am used to, but I do still have morals. Anyway, I am curious what this is all about. Is it a test of some kind?
Eventually, the terrified girl was coerced into coming close to me and laying her hand on one of my wings. She held a stone in her other hand and after a second a magical picture was projected from it! I recognized it even though it was in a different language than I was used too, that was my Status!
(Name: - Species: Young Gale Wyvern Level: 0/10 Experience: 000/260
Class: [Hunter] Class Level: 26 Health: 415/415 Mana: 48/48 Stamina: 42/100
Statistics:
Str: 136 End: 157 Vit: 129 Agi: 182 Dex: 121
Per: 153 Acy: 103 Wil: 108 Cha: 99 Mgc: 96
Lck: 163
Abilities:
[Prey Sense](class) [Hunter's Rest](class) [Breathes through her Skin](racial)
[Poison Spice](class) [Blood Trail](class) [Endless Hunt](racial)
[Toxic Skin](racial) [Toxin Control: Minor](racial) [Regeneration: Minor](lesser)(racial)
[Scale Armor: Minor](racial) [Envenomed Bite: Hatchling Komadus Lizard](racial)
[Infravision](racial) [Salutivore](racial) [Strong Stomach](racial)
[Aerokinesis](racial) [Gale Wyvern Hide](racial) [Lesser Wyvern Hide](racial)
[Poison Resistance: Major](racial) [Disease Resistance: Minor](racial)
[Better First Impression] [Healthy Thoughts] [First Words] [Killing Blow]
Skills:
Air Magic: 1 Ambush: 4 Analysis: 3 Cartography: 1 Charge: 5 Cleaning: 3
Climbing: 3 Composing: 1 Construction: 3 Cooking: 4 Charm: 1 Crafting: 5
Dancing: 2 Dagger: 1 Digging: 6 Dodge: 4 Drawing: 1 Etiquette: 1
Flight: 3 Intimidate: 2 Jumping: 4 Leatherworking: 2 Mana Manipulation: 2
Manasense: 3 Meditation: 6 Poetry: 1 Pottery: 2 Reading: 1 Singing: 2
Spear: 3 Sprinting: 4 Swimming: 4 Stealth: 6 Taunt: 1 Throwing: 4
Tracking: 4 Trap Making: 7 Weaving: 2 Writing: 3)
I had evolved after the Blood Moly, and wasn't that a slog of a fight? For all my apprehension about jumping down to fight it, it turns out that there was a good reason for it to inhabit corpses like it did. It had basically no way to hurt me.
Of course, the damn thing also refused to die for hours of me struggling to cut it up with my claws, so I can see why the Lynx had avoided it. If I didn't have my human mind I doubt my monster instincts would have wanted to engage in what - from start to finish - was a ten hour fight.
Anyway, the most interesting and powerful Evolution I had seen was the Young Gale Wyvern.
Young Gale Wyvern: (Very Rare) Wyverns are known for adapting dramatically to mana and their environment. The Gale Wyvern is an example of a Wyvern that lives at high altitudes and has adapted to be one of the most dangerous predators in the sky. Although lacking the powerful offensive capability of Blazing Wyverns or the defensive hide of a Stone Wyvern, their [Aerokinesis] racial ability allows them to move through the air in ways that seem impossible. +60 Agi, +40 to all other Stats, +6 Str, End, Vit, Per, Mgc, and Agi per Level, +5 Dex and Wil per Level, +4 to Acy and Cha per Level, [Aerokinesis](racial), [Gale Wyvern Hide](racial) Note: Draconoid Evolutions have extra Level and Experience requirements!
Unlocked By: Being a Hatchling Wyvern, having the Skill Air Magic.
(Look! It has a Class!) Apparently my Status was interesting to the crowd. It was pretty impressive compared to what it was, but I suspected that most people who could fight could crush me easily. (Is it a Demihuman then!?)
(Nah, look at it. One Class, no open Class Slots. Probably was a monster that stumbled on a Demihuman Evolution and then Evolved back into a monster. One Class Slot means it happened in the First Stage Evolutions and not later.) The old man just snorted and shook his head before drawing a pipe out.
I, as a moral and upstanding individual, tried to blow the pipe out of his hands with air magic because smoking kills. Unfortunately, his grip was too strong. He just snorted again and lit the pipe with a flick of his finger. Everyone else freaked out, and suddenly there were a lot of weapons being pointed at me!
(Calm your tits, you wimps. You saw its Stats, I could kill it by petting it too hard and you weaklings who call yourselves adventurers outnumber it a hundred to one.) Thankfully, my stupidity doesn't seem to have gotten me killed. I could feel the worry pounding through the bond right now, I need to take this more seriously. Admittedly, it is hard to pay attention when I have no idea what they are saying.
(So? How intelligent is she?) The little elf asked a question anxiously, but the emotions were a bit too complex for me to catch in their entirety.
(Hard to say. Can't tell what Demihuman it Evolved into, but since it only has a single Class Slot it probably is about as smart as a five year old child at most. Wyverns aren't dumb either, so it could possibly be pretty smart in some areas when it gets older.)
(Then… I can keep her?) Oh, now that is a lot of hope coming over the bond! That is probably a good thing for me.
(Yeah, but you could've anyways. Everyone around here is acting like they've never seen a gods damned [Tamer] before.)
(Few [Tamers] can handle a wyvern. It was best to be sure.) Oooh, a guard in a fancy outfit! Their captain, presumably? He doesn't seem agitated so I am pretty sure I am home free now.
The crowd seems to be dispersing, and the secretary had fled back inside the building, so it seemed the show was over. Fancy Pants Guard was sending the other guards away, so it was just me and the little elf left.
(Ray) She made a sound and then pointed at herself. Her name?
I tried it out but my current body wasn't made for speech so it came out as, "Rawgh?"
(My name is Ray. Name. Ray.) She said with a bit of a giggle. I could feel her through the bond. The sudden relief of her stress from fighting, helping to rescue her teammate, and then dealing with me had left her in a kind of giddy high and apparently my attempt at her name had amused her greatly.
(You. Name. Is?) Curiosity now, over the bond; the desire to know about me. She was asking my name! But I don't have a name in this life yet. I can't even name myself, which was frustrating in the extreme. I pushed my feelings to her and I think she understood.
(Then I will call you Hewka, how does that sound?)
[Rei'Reihammara Solily is attempting to name you Hewka. Do you accept this name?]
Sure, why not? It was sure a lot less to say than "Rei'Reihammara Solily." I can easily see why she said to call her Ray.
[You have accepted a name from Rei'Reihammara Solily. You are now Hewka.]
***Cadence's New Team!***
Note: There are many possible ways to unlock every Class. The unlock requirements that are shown are the ones that the character unlocked them with.
Name: Rei'Reihammara Solily Species: Elf
Classes: [Ranger] Lvl. 25, [Wyvern Rider] Lvl. 0
Open Class Slots: 6
Health: 890/890 Mana: 82/82 Stamina: 100/100
Statistics:
Str: 240 End: 190 Vit: 351 Agi: 290 Dex: 220
Per: 280 Acy: 185 Wil: 175 Cha: 185 Mgc: 165
Lck: 122
Abilities:
[Prey Sense](class) [Hunter's Rest](class) [Thrill of the Hunt](class)
[Forrest Cloak](class) [Eagle Eye](class) [Awareness](class)
[True Shot](class) [Elven Archery](class) [Long Shot](class)
[Fortitude](class) [Power Strike](class) [Herb Sense](class)
[Herbal Remedy](class) [Deadly Poison](class) [Wild Pact](class)
[Longstride](class) [Dragonheart's Ember](class)
Skills:
Air Magic: 2 Alchemy: 13 Ambush: 25 Archery: 53 Cartography: 18 Charge: 10
Cleaning: 16 Climbing: 24 Composing: 11 Cooking: 12 Charm: 7 Crafting: 11
Dancing: 18 Dagger: 21 Digging: 2 Dodge: 22 Drawing: 7 Earth Magic: 1
Etiquette: 20 Gardening: 22 Interrogation: 5 Intimidate: 2 Jumping: 22 Leadership: 2
Leatherworking: 1 Mana Manipulation: 5 Manasense: 18 Meditation: 22
Mercantilism: 2 Painting: 5 Poetry: 15 Pottery: 2 Reading: 20 Riding: 2
Sheild: 5 Singing: 23 Spear: 13 Sprinting: 27 Swimming: 14 Sword: 16
Stealth: 34 Taunt: 5 Teamwork: 13 Throwing: 12 Tracking: 30 Trap Making: 26
Unarmed Combat: 3 Water Magic: 1 Weaving: 2 Writing: 21
---
Name: Rauvin Kassid Species: Human
Classes: [Heavy Infantry] Lvl. 20, [Officer] Lvl. 11, [Vanguard] Lvl. 16, [Merchant] Lvl. 3
Open Class Slots: 6
Health: 966/966 Mana: 81/81 Stamina: 100/100
Statistics:
Str: 372 End: 382 Vit: 297 Agi: 225 Dex: 198
Per: 210 Acy: 217 Wil: 258 Cha: 238 Mgc: 162
Lck: 96
Abilities:
[Fortitude](class) [Long March](class) [Armor Instinct](class)
[Stamina Recovery: Major](class) [Armor of the Victor](class) [Voice of Command](class)
[Forward!](class) [Weighted Charge](class) [Stunning Impact](class)
[Lead the Charge!](class) [Value Sense](class)
Skills:
Ambush: 10 Archery: 11 Cartography: 7 Charge: 21 Cleaning: 12
Climbing: 9 Composing: 1 Cooking: 9 Charm: 14 Crafting: 16 Dancing: 1
Dagger: 25 Digging: 15 Dodge: 11 Drawing: 2 Etiquette: 29
Interrogation: 15 Intimidate: 20 Jumping: 8 Leadership: 22 Leatherworking: 1
Meditation: 2 Mercantilism: 25 Poetry: 2 Pottery: 2 Reading: 22
Sheild: 35 Singing: 10 Spear: 27 Sprinting: 20 Swimming: 11 Sword: 22
Stealth: 11 Taunt: 30 Teamwork: 40 Throwing: 19 Tracking: 22 Trap Making: 1
Unarmed Combat: 9 Writing: 18
---
Name: Ylma deVon Jassui Species: Human
Classes: [Witch] Lvl. 19, [Fire Mage] Lvl. 21, [Noble] Lvl. 3, [Commoner] Lvl. 6
Open Class Slots: 5
Health: 793/793 Mana: 258/258 Stamina: 100/100
Statistics:
Str: 181 End: 191 Vit: 201 Agi: 219 Dex: 248
Per: 268 Acy: 337 Wil: 311 Cha: 244 Mgc: 517
Lck: 67
Abilities:
[Witch's Eye](class) [Reap what you Sow](class) [Wicked Curse](class)
[Mana Guard](class) [Fire Resistance: Major](class) [Ignition](class)
[Manaburn](class) [Everything Burns](class) [Noble Bearing](class)
[Hunger Resistance: Moderate](class)
Skills:
Air Magic: 11 Alchemy: 24 Ambush: 11 Cleaning: 7 Climbing: 6 Composing: 9
Cooking: 3 Charm: 2 Crafting: 2 Dancing: 15 Dagger: 1 Divination: 11
Dodge: 2 Drawing: 17 Earth Magic: 17 Enchanting: 12 Etiquette: 25
Fire Magic: 24 Gardening: 15 Interrogation: 1 Intimidate: 8
Jumping: 3 Mana Manipulation: 21 Manasense: 40 Meditation: 32
Mercantilism: 1 Painting: 15 Poetry: 8 Reading: 29 Ritual Magic: 9
Sheild: 1 Singing: 16 Sprinting: 9 Summoning: 5 Swimming: 18
Sword: 1 Stealth: 3 Stealing: 11 Taunt: 5 Teamwork: 11 Throwing: 3
Tracking: 1 Trap Making: 12 Water Magic: 13 Writing: 28
---
Name: Chaurl Kent Species: Human
Classes: [Acolyte] Lvl. 16, [Brawler] Lvl. 15, [Chef] Lvl. 20
Open Class Slots: 7
Health: 782/782 Mana: 86/86 Stamina: 100/100
Statistics:
Str: 272 End: 334 Vit: 224 Agi: 180 Dex: 203
Per: 178 Acy: 168 Wil: 280 Cha: 178 Mgc: 172
Lck: 111
Abilities:
[Prayer](class) [Ambition is Life](class) [Journey to the Peak](class)
[Pride in Accomplishment](class) [Drunken Fury](class) [Pretty Face](class)
[Brutal Knuckles](class) [Food Sense](class) [Unusual Ingredients](class)
[Campfire Cooking](class) [Monster Cooking](class)
Skills:
Air Magic: 1 Alchemy: 21 Ambush: 4 Archery: 1 Cartography: 5
Channeling: 29 Charge: 13 Cleaning: 11 Construction: 1 Climbing: 5
Cooking: 32 Charm: 11 Crafting: 7 Dancing: 9 Dagger: 1 Digging: 1
Dodge: 32 Drawing: 1 Earth Magic: 1 Etiquette: 31 Fire Magic: 1 First Aid: 20
Gardening: 3 Interrogation: 15 Intimidate: 12 Jumping: 15 Leadership: 3
Leatherworking: 1 Mana Manipulation: 1 Manasense: 3 Meditation: 22 Mercantilism: 6
Painting: 1 Poetry: 11 Pottery: 1 Reading: 30 Riding: 7 Ritual Magic: 22
Sheild: 1 Singing: 17 Spear: 1 Sprinting: 32 Swimming: 1 Sword: 1
Stealth: 5 Taunt: 12 Throwing: 3 Tracking: 1 Trap Making: 1
Unarmed Combat: 29 Water Magic: 1 Weaving: 1 Writing: 30
---
Name: Karlin Species: Human
Classes: [Rogue] Lvl. 27, [Swordsman] Lvl. 17, [Skirmisher] Lvl. 18, [Gambler] Lvl. 9
Open Class Slots: 6
Health: 859/859 Mana: 121/121 Stamina: 100/100
Statistics:
Str: 326 End: 275 Vit: 292 Agi: 419 Dex: 436
Per: 323 Acy: 281 Wil: 242 Cha: 335 Mgc: 242
Lck: 299
Abilities:
[Fortitude](class) [Fast