---===---
When in dreams, you follow their rules.
Though nothing of this felt like it was a dream, it was too hot and sweaty and uncomfortable and most importantly, that innate sensation of things making sense that all dreams had wasn't present.
This place, it felt like one of my delusions, through and through. That sense of wrongness, of missing critical pieces of the picture.
I mean, lost in a wasteland on a planet with two moons, with a tall, nearly naked woman speaking a strange language, that's right out of a John Carter book right?
A pity it had been on my 'to read' list and not my 'have read' pile, it might have had pointers or tips I could use.
Like how to learn a language from seemingly another world.
No doubt it had a chapter where the eponymous John Carter spent months learning how to speak Martian, typically reduced to a paragraph or two for the reader (
And then Rome was built!), but it would be better than nothing.
I just had to make do.
The words came in fits and spurts, a sort of, "I say 'Axe' you say '
Bat'leth'", at first, and when I got a pair that matched it just
clicked.
Clicked. Like pegs and latches in my mind. A strange sensation.
I quickly knew the words for '
sky' and '
rock' and '
mountain', though she called it the, "
Fucking bad bad fucking mountain", and '
bag' and '
canteen' and yes even '
axe' when I lugged it over from where I'd left it like the fifty pound edged barbell that it was.
Naturally she plucked it from me with one hand and did a few test swings from her seated position at a casual velocity that I would be able to match using a cardboard tube, or maybe a light broomstick.
A single hit from that thing even clipping me would probably break half the bones in my body.
I felt a little bit better about my choice of Minder.
If I went bad, she could put me down, even if she was a terrible wrestler from what I had experienced.
Numbers came along with the word for '
finger' and thankfully they used a base 10 system like I did, Metric bastards they may be, but that could have been a lot worse, like using two or eight or sixteen like those computer 'wizards' liked to use. Ugh.
Connecting words like '
and' came to me for no real reason, I'm not sure why, but I had a couple now.
After running low of interesting things like 'shoes' which she apparently translated as '
foot slot' for some reason, we got to body parts.
Three guesses which body part we started on? Not my fault, her thumb went straight for them.
So,
apparently, her language didn't have a word for 'breasts' but they did have one for '
tits' specifically.
The reasons why I didn't understand, but the second the word '
tits' clicked it was like a spike to temple.
Somehow, just by learning the basic meaning of the word I learned
nineteen others. All words for tits.
It was like the word snow for an Eskimo I suppose.
There were
tits, but also
tits, and some even had
tits, but this girl, she had
tits.
Why did that sentence make sense to me?
I hate brain. I hate brain
so much.
After the spike of pain went away, one I might add she didn't seem surprised at me having, I made sure we deviated course as I didn't need to know a bevy of different words for her ass. No doubt it would come eventually, but maybe after a few more beers.
Instead I went for the big one.
"Male.
Human Male." I said, pointing to myself, Then I turned the finger around. "Female..." and waited.
Like I said, she was pretty sharp.
"
Female. Tro'Gorc Female." She even got the pattern right.
And took it a step further. "
Female, Lady
?" She quickly extrapolated further. "
Male Human
?"
So, she was not a Human being. And, they had a specific word sound to make things a question. Good things to know.
And was the fact that she knew what a
Human was, there was a word for it in their language, and then the second I said the words '
female Tro'Gorc I had a much smaller spike of pain.
Tro'Gorc had four different ways to pronounce, based entirely where they put the emphasis on the syllable.
And depending on the species.
"Sir." I whispered, dizzy at the revelation. "
Male, Sir."
Then I pointed at her and tried my new word. "
Tro'Gorc?" Both using the new question sound and the term for the primary species.
"No." She used my English word, having picked it up.
"
Tro'Gorc?" The secondary species.
"No." She used her own word, and I picked that up.
"
Tro'Gorc?" The third species.
"No."
"
Tro'Gorc?" No emphasis on any syllable. The generic term for them as a whole, and to denote the lesser species.
"
Yes." She nodded and I got that word as well. "
Female Tro'Gorc M-Type."
M-Type? The word didn't do anything or mean anything yet, but I imagine it'll gradually get there.
"Human?" I used their word, noting it had no subterms, which meant that whatever the types of Tro'Gorcs there are, it's not a skin color or phenotype thing. And she confirmed I got the word right.
I was picking them up really fast, and when I got them, they pretty much stuck there, so much so it was like I had to focus to use the English term.
"So," I said, leaning back slightly. "There's,
Humans,
Tro'Gorcs, and uh... what's the word for puce?"
---===---
In this, she didn't catch on, at least not at first. And I didn't have the words for puce, purple, or two left hands. It took me fishing up the last answer I had gotten from Mr. Puce to get the point across.
Mr. Puce said:
"Human, if you want to get punched in the face, all you need to do gesture like this." And he showed me.
It was like throwing up the horns in a AC/DC concert, only you stuffed your thumb inbetween the middle and ring finger so it stuck out. Apparently seeing the thumb was important.
At the gesture though, her face brightened in realization.
"Demari."
Demari.
Naturally, it sounded a bit like demon. Might as well.
"Okay." I nodded "
Humans, Tro'Gorcs, Demari, and..."
"Drankin and Litho." She finished.
Repeating those back and getting a nod from her, I stewed in my thoughts.
So, four species and a species that had at least four within them. Call it eight for the moment, eight sentient species on one planet.
Did the human race ever have more than a few subspecies alive at any one point? Africans, Neanderthals, um, the Asian one, and Aboriginals maybe? I was probably missing some. You'd be amazed on what topics were vetoed in an institution, even seemingly benign ones.
Nevertheless did any of ours walk around in their underwear swinging an axe like a Boris Vallejo fantasy painting?
That lead to the word 'Fantasy'.
Tolkien-esque stuff.
Wizards.
Right, time to try some words I wouldn't like.
---===---
'Fantasy' didn't click, nor did 'Tolkien'. Naturally '
Wizard' did as we'd covered it, though just saying the word aloud had her glancing around, as if one was lurking behind the rocks.
And also naturally, to a person like me dealing with a person like her, whom sharp rocks and the blazing sun didn't bother her a whit but that word
did, I had to investigate.
With my luck there probably were actual wizards here, with the robes and the pointy hats and the failing to be punctual.
Busting out my Scrabble champion druthers, a number of synonyms were tried, just to see what stuck when she dubiously repeated the word back at me. After all if 'Wizard', a 19 point word in scrabble, made her flinch, what other variations would?
As I said, she was sharp, and quick to pick up what I was doing and offering a list of her own.
- Astrologer, 11 points, didn't appear to exist in her language. Also, while technically a legal word, there was no way to reach the word without the Stacking Rule in effect (In an asylum, you learned all the variations of Scrabble, and made up new ones).
- Conjurer, 17 points, sort of clicked, though not as a noun.
Conjure did, as something someone did, but there was no specific person.
- Clairvoyant, 19 points, though I hadn't used it as technically while a valid scrabble word, there was no legal way to get the word in seven letters, and only with stacking over the 'B' in boyant was it even remotely possible.
- Diviner, 11 points, also sort of existed, only as a verb, not as a person. One could
divine things, but not be a Diviner.
-
Enchanter, 14 points, that existed, both as a person and a verb.
- Fortuneteller, 16 points appending to either 'fortune' or 'teller', didn't exist.
- Hypnotist, 17 points and technically a legal word, but only if you went with the Draping Rule variation, appeared to click, or sort of. I'm not sure what that meant.
- Magician, 13 points, didn't exist. Nor did the variation Magus, even with the 8 points efficiency that could snag any M or S.
-
Necromancer, 17 points, both clicked and had her narrow her eyes a bit. Something to note.
-
Warlock and
Witch, worth 16 and 13 respectively, clicked both as a noun and as an insult? Good to know.
- Occultists and Palmists, Seers and Shamans, Soothsayers Sorcerers, none of them existed thankfully, but she had five words that I didn't know left over, so I had more work to do later.
Moving away from the pile of dross, I moved onto what they did.
Spells.
Bibbity bobbity boo.
Ala Kazam.
*Zot* from Wizard of Id.
Whatever mangled Latin those British kids kept shouting while waving their sticks (not allowed in the Asylum, in either book or video form).
None of those bullshit words meant anything to her, nor did me wiggling my fingers, gesturing or waving a tooth, or standing dramatically and declaring "You shall not pass!", nor anything else I could demonstrate the peak wizardry I had seen in the asylum. It took me going back to
Warlock and
Witch, appending '
bad' to them, and letting her put it together.
Spells finally clicked in my head, which lead to the word
Speller somehow.
A
Speller spelled? Did spells? Had spells? Whatever, not important in the desert at the moment.
And finally, when it came to the word 'magic', she got that word on her first try.
Like it had always been there.
Magic in English was
Magic in Tro'Gorc.
The exact same word.
The exact same sound.
Good to know.
---===---
After an hour of talking and me taking sips from my beerified water canteen, which apparently was sticking around, so yay me, we were finally conversing at a four-year-old's pace.
Or Caveman-style I suppose, and one of us even was wearing the outfit, me.
Hers was like a Gucci-style Caveman gear to my own crude efforts.
Regardless, we could talk. Barely, yes, but enough that getting out of this desert in one piece might not be an impossibility now.
Now I had to put my thoughts in order before I cooked some bacon.
What to ask her first?
---===---
While working on your pouch tonight (which passed it's roll) as the sun goes down, you can try to ask questions of your Minder.
[X] Ask a question.
-[X] For bonus respect points, try doing it caveman-style.
If you can't, don't worry, I'll whip something up for you in caveman-speak, but it might not be exactly what you want to know. I'll try my best.
I do have some of my own, and if you don't get to them, I'll do it, just to keep the story flowing well.
Behold the new and improved (slightly) system.
-
Baphema
-
| |
| Baphema Fisteye | Tro'Gorc / M-Type / 12/11 / Female |
|---|
| Warrior [Slab] / - 29 | 69,213,420 / 134626900 | 0 |
|---|
| 28 / 1500 | 2 per Day |
|---|
| Ministrated | █ █ █ █ · |
|---|
| 10 / 170 | 2 per Day |
|---|
| Ministrated | █ █ █ █ · |
|---|
| Strength: | [50] =|40| +5 +5 |
|---|
| Vitality: | [40] =|30| +10 |
|---|
| Willpower: | [17] =|12| +5 |
|---|
| Focus: | [17] =|12| +5 |
|---|
-
Skills
-
-
Strike 8
-
Tier 8: Deal 2.0x damage or 1.5x offhand damage to an enemy.
| Instant | Short |
| 40HP | Weapon |
| 8 | 3120 / 3400 |
-
Smash 6
-
Tier 6: Damage terrain or objects with your weapon for 2.0x weapon damage minus durability.
| Instant | Short |
| 30HP | Weapon |
| 6 | 1110 / 1300 |
-
Ram 10 {Focused}
-
Tier 10: Apply 2.0xSTR to forcing something to move, or, for you not to move. 2.0xSTR field extends as far as your reach.
| Instant | Short |
| 50HP | Movement or Bracing |
| 10 | On the way to Mastery |
-
Defend 10 {Focused}
-
Tier 10: Take 50% less damage for 1 minute, cannot take more than 90% of your HP in damage in a single attack.
| Instant | Short |
| 1 HP | Consumes 1/10th of maximum HP to activate |
| 10 | On the way to Mastery |
-
Grab 7
-
Tier 7: Apply 2.0xSTR to grab something. Can cling to if smaller, or cause [Grappled] condition if larger or stronger.
Can grapple two things at 1.0xSTR.
| Instant | Short |
| 35HP | Free limb or applicable weapon or tool. |
| 7 | 1890 / 2100 |
-
Strong 10 {P}
-
Multiply your base HP by 3.
| Passive | Self |
| Strength 20 | Yes |
| 10 | 23100 / Maxed |
-
Enduring 10 {P}
-
Multiply your base HP Regen by 3 under normal status.
| Passive | Self |
| Vitality 20 | Yes |
| 10 | 23100 / Maxed |
-
Precision 10 {P}
-
Reduces Skill HP costs by 50% under normal status.
Up to [4] HP based Skills can be Focused.
| Passive | Self |
| Vitality 10 | Yes |
| 10 | 23100 / Maxed |
-
Cleanse 10
-
Purge an area of one metra in intensity equal to the Tier of the spell of all Toxins, Disease, Filth, and Corruption.
Range expands one metra per three additional Tiers.
| Instant | Short |
| 10 mana. | Weapon |
| 10 | On the way to mastery |
-
Recovery 10 {T}
-
Tier 10: Your HP Regen is considered at Rest while Recovering.
| 10 seconds | Short |
| 1 HP Fatigue Bar | 1 HP Fatigue Bar |
| 10 | On the way to mastery |
-
Conjure Weapon 2
-
Create a [Normal Quality] weapon.
Lasts 5 minutes per tier.
Only one Conjured weapon can exist at any time.
| 5 Seconds | Short |
| 50 mana + Variable. | None |
| 2 | 125 / 200 |
-
Conjure Armor 2
-
Create [Normal Quality] armor of whatever design you can envision.
Lasts 5 minutes per tier.
Only one Conjured armor can exist at any time.
| 5 Seconds | Short |
| 50 mana + Variable. | None |
| 2 | 50 / 200 |
-
Conjure Item 4
-
Create an item of [Low Quality] up to medium size.
Skill with mana manipulation determines final creation, as does ability to envision object in it's entirety.
Lasts 1 hour per tier or until suffering 20 points of damage.
Only one Conjured item can exist at any time.
| 5 Seconds | Short |
| 20 mana + Variable. | None |
| 4 | 360 / 500 |
-
Interception 10 {Focused}
-
Instantly move to intercept an attack meant for another. Lasts 1 minute or until used.
Ally must be under attack to activate.
Can move 1 Yard outside your reach per Tier.
| Instant | Short |
| 1 HP | Consumes 1/10th of maximum HP to activate |
| 10 | On the way to mastery |
-
Silent Movement 5 {T}
-
Your footsteps generate no noise.
-90% movement speed.
Any damage taken or attack in short range will end your Silent Movement.
Cannot be encumbered.
-1HP per additional Tier above 1
+10% movement speed per Tier.
| 10 Seconds | Short |
| 10HP Per minute | Working Legs |
| 10 | 740 / 800 |
-
Trot 10
-
Travel at jogging pace without being winded.
Any damage taken or attack in short range will end your Trot.
Cannot be encumbered.
Can use other skills while in Trot.
-2HP per additional Tier above 1
| 10 Seconds | Short |
| 20HP Per minute | Working Legs |
| 10 | 23100 / Maxed |
-
Canter 3
-
Travel at Sprinting pace without being winded.
Any damage taken or attack in short range will end your Canter.
Cannot be encumbered.
-5HP per additional Tier above 1
| 10 Seconds | Short |
| 50HP Per minute | Working Legs |
| 10 | 250 / 300 |
-
Gallop 10
-
Travel at the same pace as an ally without being winded.
Any damage taken or attack in short range will end your Gallop.
Cannot be encumbered.
-10HP per additional Tier above 1
| 10 Seconds | Short |
| 100HP Per minute | Working Legs |
| 10 | 23100 / Maxed |
-
Quests
-
Bring Death Both Great and Little
Great: 214
Little: 336
-
Class
-
-A Slab's Skin absorbs double damage.
-Blunt damage upon you is only half as effective as normal.
-Recovery's recovery is twice as effective.
-
-
-
-
Equipment
-
| [Heavy1] Iron Battle Axe |
2GP |
Superior |
2d6+Str Slashing |
| [Plated2] Battle Bikini |
1GP |
Superior |
Upper Body | Socketed {*}3 {*}4 |
| [Plated] Battle Thong |
1GP |
Superior |
Lower Body | Socketed {*}5 {*}6 |
| [Heavy] |
1 |
Passive |
Item's weight increased but STR added to damage |
| [Plated] |
2 |
Passive |
Item's weight increased but +25 Blunt/Slash/Pierce Resistance |
| Amazonite |
3 |
Enhance |
+10 Strength |
| Danburite |
4 |
Enhance |
+10 Vitality |
| Charoite |
5 |
Enhance |
+5 Willpower |
| Kyanite |
6 |
Enhance |
+5 Focus |
-
Inventory
-
Inventory currently empty.
I may break off the effects into their own tab.
