Slaying forty scavenge beetles earned Scott 260 experience points. Overnight he surpassed level 3, and he was on his way from level 4 to level 5.
He did not tire of smashing beetles as large as cats. Every gain of experience spurred him farther up the coast. 3 stat points went unallocated, and considered placing them in something besides strength for the moment. He asked to allocate his stat points in each stat, but the system notified him that he did not meet the requirements, which were all fortifications: of body, of mind, and of soul. Constitution required all three.
Scott beelined for the surf. The sun was rising, whether from the east. He mused that the crest of morning blue in the sky was like an eye, and the rading starlit night was a lifting eyelid. He hoped the day would be clear of the elements and hoped that with a little more exploring, perhaps he could gain clarity on how to acquire fortifications. That was all he needed. Just a small stepping stone, something to piece it all together.
White movement drew Scott’s attention from the predawn sky. A humanoid skeleton lumbered down the beach. Scott backed away, alarmed. He thought that the bones seemed to glisten, like they were clad in druzy. The bones were so white! As if they had been cleaned and polished. Forget the beetle; a true monster drew near!
Scott’s branch popped into his hand, and he charged. Sand arced behind his heels. He watched the skeleton pause, and it seemed to lock its sockets on him. With all his strength, and a full stomach grunt, Scott brought his branch down on the skull.
Wood cracked the bone then crushed the skull. Ribs snapped one by one as Scott followed through with his strike. As each bone shattered beneath the branch, it sounded to him like he was destroying a wooden xylophone. The skeleton fell to a heap.
Scott knelt, inspected the remains, and he discovered that the bones were so white because they seemed to have been meticulously cleaned. Every piece bore slight hatches.
Level 1 human skeleton slain.
50 xp gained.
Human? A human skeleton?
Scott realized he’d been hoping to find someone—a fellow human—to help him with fortifications. However, it was the skeleton that made him wonder how humans were already here on this new planet. Were the dead also relocated from earth? Did humans exist on other planets?
Scott gazed at the skeleton’s tracks in the sand. “Where did you come?”
Under the sun and the warming air, Scott strode beside the tracks. As he went, he wondered if the skeleton had been traveling with purpose. Its tracks were beeline-straight. Perhaps a skeleton simply wandered. But the tracks curved along the sand, and it seemed to have avoided both jungle and sea.
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“If the beetles might know of ny presence, did the skeletons know too? What else is there to know?”
From the jungle, a large beetle stumbled out and scurried over the sand. Scott wrung the wood of his branch as he waited. He couldn’t believe the size of this one. It was the largest by far, nearly the size of a truck tire laid on its side. Its wings were raised obtuse. Scott wondered if they were stuck over a weird bump upon its back.
The wings fluttered. The beetle came upon Scott with a disjointed, jumpy gait. Scott whacked the beetle’s face, whacked its back, broke its legs, then beat its back until its exoskeleton cracked. Scott saw his win, and he doubled his efforts to slay the beetle.
Level 3 scavenge beetle slain.
30 xp gained.
Level 5 has been reached.
1 stat point acquired.
Experience is 502/1000
498 xp until level 6.
Select new ability:
Sand Affinity: All other abilities receive 10% improvement near sand terrain.
Jungle Affinity: All other abilities receive 10% improvement near jungle terrain.
Water Affinity: All other abilities receive 10% improvement near water.
Lootist: Some items are made available to loot from deceased.
Lesser Audial: Hearing radius increased by 10%, hearing sensitivity increased by 10%, 10% improved stereo imaging.
Sunlight warmed Scott’s teeth as he smiled. He tasted the salty sea air. He shook out his hands from the shocks he received through the branch he had wielded. Finally. The first realization of power. Which one would he select? The affinities would immediately be defunct until he garnered more. Looting was attractive, but not next to Lesser Audial.
Lesser Audial has been selected.
Scott’s head rang. He crushed his eyes, and he massaged his temples while he ground his teeth. The ringing faded, and the pain abruptly ended.
His eyes went wide.
He saw in his mind that the jungle was a living thing. Leaves rustled where breezes passed in currents. By the sound of the rustling, he could see the currents in his mind’s eye. The jungle bent to the wind’s will. Bird feet scratched branches when they landed or kicked off. Meaty vines cracked together. Dozens of beetle legs punctured the jungle floor.
In his mind’s eye he saw sharp feet strike both the jungle floor and the sand because no other feet could make such sounds than skeletal ones. A shoe would crush the sand, not slice it. The surf of the sea never seemed more chaotic and as lethal and edge than it did now.
Scott held his breath enough that it was shallow. He held two fingers to his lips in awe. He wondered if this was how bats saw, through sound so strong and exact that it forced images in the mind’s eye.
The dozens of beetles were heading toward him. The volume of their stabbing legs grew. A crowd of skeletons sliced the sand with their phalanges and metatarsals while their heels softly depressed the sand. Two hordes approached.
Scott filled his lungs and wrung his branch with both hands. He would not flee and take them on little by little. Let them come. Bring the xp.
Scott’s stat sheet:
Level 5
Experience 502/1000
Stat point (4)
Strength 10
Wisdom 0
Intelligence 1
Dexterity 5
Constitution 4
Abilities:
Lesser Audial
Inventory 01/10
Awesome branch