1.06
Saturday, April 7, 2046
Defiance, Earth, Sol System, Terra Ferox Universe
The star's rays shine down upon you, beckoning in a most warm manner. You reflexively smile as you feel it, barely even noticing the seven continents of your homeworld beneath you, and Luna to your side. In the real world, your feet twitch as you rub them together. Sol's light rapidly grows as you do so, consuming the outer planets entirely, with you along with them.
Ziemia. Diqiu. Prithvi. Dikora. Chikyu. Tierra. Urutho. Zemlya. Dharati. Earth. Holy Terra.
The light cleanses you. Everything that could qualify as obviously negative leaves your body and mind entirely. Desire. Sinfulness. Even the odd feeling you get when you try to feel your internal organs and find them gone.
The cradle of humanity. The refuge for the Votans. A bleeding world.
You allow yourself to bask in the temporary enlightenment, before you reach out for the ball of light. Earth can be better. Earth needs to be better. You will make it better. Images flash into your mind. A spaceship, captained by a dark-skinned Castithan male, with brown streaks in his hair. It's leaving the atmosphere. Humans in some kind of jungle, all holding hands and chanting. A man ablaze. A soldier. The images grow increasingly unclear.
Is that some kind of purpose? Are you supposed to be seeking those goals? The future? No. No thinking. Just focus. An Irathient man lovingly kisses a smaller human. Two humans raise a flag over a ruined building, which looks unfamiliar to you. Snow-capped mountains fade into nothingness as a bright light comes over them.
Finally, you see a man. Human, mixed race, in ornate wrappings. He's stretching a hand out to you and you attempt to touch him...and the trip ends. You awake from the trance violently, panting as you do so. Isn't meditation supposed to feel good? Well, it did, but damn, was that a bad wake up. You take a look at your stats. Yep. 30 MP per minute, extra stats, it's all there. Kundalini Bonuses Unlocked! Active until 10:33 tonight.
While that experience was...odd, to say the least, it was rewarding, especially since it only took an hour. You head for the marketplace almost immediately after finishing the meditation, since you do need an alarm clock.
The woman at the stall hands you one that's perfectly functional, and powered by solar panels, too. Must be Votan tech. -15 Scrips. You take a note of the place's name. Kathy Xing, Defiance Electronics and Repair. You'll keep her in mind.
You put the alarm clock in your inventory, vowing to put it back when you return to your house. The next step is a restaurant called Delights of Daribo. It's sort of a Castithan cafe, and it needs someone to paint the exterior. It's a menial job, but it's good money, and you might get some cooking tips out of it.
Swoga Tilemso gives you a friendly, human handshake, as opposed to one of the many styles of greetings mentioned in the book on her species' castes. Interesting to note. "The handyman, I presume?"
Her English is a bit stilted, but it's a second language, so you really can't blame her. "Yes, ma'am. You needed someone to paint the building?"
The alien woman smiles. You take another look at her. Not high-class, not even wearing her species' usual grey or white clothing. She's wearing a human apron and a T-shirt and khakis. Not very becoming of a Castithan woman.
"Yes! Here, I'll set the paint out for you. Just deal with the walls, I've already dealt with the roof and the windows and such."
"Awesome. Hey, instead of giving me scrips, could you teach me how to cook Castithan food? I've always been sort of curious."
Swoga blinks, before taking a moment to consider the offer. "Of course! Why, I've always wanted to train someone in my craft!"
Quest Alert!
Paint The Delights of Daribo!
Miss Tilemso wants your help painting the exterior of her restaurant, the Delights of Daribo.
Completion Reward: 26 EXP. +2 to Cooking skill. Increased relations with Delights of Daribo. Increased relations with Swoga Tilemso. 40% chance of Housework skill.
Completion Failure: Decreased relations with Swoga Tilemso. Decreased relations with Delights of Daribo.
You get to work. It takes around an hour and a half to paint the restaurant, and another ten minutes to clean up after yourself. You lug the mostly empty paint jugs into a back closet Miss Tilemso pointed out to you earlier, before wiping your hands with a wet rag.
When you walk inside the restaurant, Miss Tilemso is handing some kind of dessert to a young Castithan woman. You stand back, and let the purchase take place, before you turn the quest in. "I'm finished, ma'am."
Swoga smiles. "Excellent! Just give me a moment to check it out."
+26 EXP. Increased relations with Swoga Tilemso (Neutral to Friendly). Increased relations with Delights of Daribo (Neutral to Friendly).
Skill Unlocked! Housework 1/100. You know how to paint walls, sweep the floor, vacuum the rugs, and the various menial tasks that go into keeping a house nice and fresh. +1% speed to all housework tasks like dish washing or vacuuming.
The next hour is spent learning how to cook Castithan dishes. Swoga only really tells you the very basics, but it's an impressive amount on its own. +2 Cooking! Cooking 3/100. Bulgur ashkan, bahimi ( a type of cookie with whipped cream on the inside), and fizhilo (a vegetable/meat stew) are the three dishes you learn how to make.
They are basic dishes, but you gain an addendum to the Cooking skill's description. The most basic art for survival of any sapient and sentient species. You understand the basics of boiling, brisking, baking, and all that nonsense in regards to foods familiar to the average North American. You're even beginning to grasp how those odd Castithans make their consumables. Food tastes 1% better, requires 1% less ingredients, and gradual development of subskills. Percentages increase by 1 with each level up of this skill.
Nice to know. Very nice. It's not late enough to go to either the haryiv or the Need/Want, so you walk home, excited to read another book.
Hello, New York! is the story of a daughter of a human and Irathient couple named Stephanie Yardash, and her life growing up in New York among two worlds. You open the book, noting the prologue recognizing her parents and their accomplishments as responsible for her current prosperity.
Sammy Collier married Grizar Jandir in 2032, a romance born of a combat medic from the Earth Military Command falling in love with an Irathient prisoner of war. The two moved to New York mostly due to their relationship being unique, and Columbia wanting to show its capital as a place where humans and Votans could cooperate after the brutal Pale Wars.
Sammy and Grizar moved there in 2033, given an almost rent-free home near the dams that kept parts of New York above water. Aggressive terraforming during the war had sunk most of the old city, but, as a matter of prestige, the Earth Republic was working hard at restoring it. After all, New York makes a more impressive capital than Concord or Fredericton, two more logical choices.
8th Neighborhood, or Dariborough, as it was called by the residents as a joke of sorts, was where Stephanie Yardash grew up. She was adopted in 2034, as part of a social experiment conducted by Columbian officials. She was ten years old when she moved in with her new parents. The book explicitly does not mention the orphanage very often, only that it was an unpleasant experience.
Stephanie went to school in a mixed species classroom, with mostly humans and Castithans. The classes were generally arranged to cover Terran history first, with Votanis history as an elective at best, many years having no teacher to speak of for it. The food was almost entirely Terran, despite the enormous number of Votan cooks willing to volunteer their time.
In short, the John Bolton Institute for All Races, or JBI, as it was usually called in casual conversation, was human-biased at best, even if it was subtle. Stephanie was part of the student government, and with four other students, went to the City Council to speak up for an expanded curriculum, that incorporated new materials for this new Earth.
Finally, despite the wishes of the Terrestrian Party, bills were passed, expanding the JBI's options. The student government wasn't entirely active afterwards. Stephanie started dating an Indogene named Wer in her junior year of high school, and the two were together until a tragic incident in 2044, when both of them were about to graduate.
Dark Matter is a Votan supremacist organization that seeks the eradication of humanity and Earth being converted into a planet entirely for the five races. At the graduation ceremony, there was a horrific massacre committed by those extremists. Nineteen humans, two Castithans, one Sensoth, and one Indogene died in the attack.
Stephanie doesn't go into detail about the aftermath, only mentioning that a Columbian stratocarrier paid a visit to a Dark Matter base in the ruins of Baltimore, and that was that. She describes life after high school. She was preparing to join the Columbian Special Forces, as sort of a vengeance for Wer, and right before the implants were put in, her father came rushing into the operation room.
"Don't do it, Little Bear!" Grizar shouted at her in L'Irathi, as two Earth Republic soldiers grabbed him. "Wer wouldn't have wanted this! We don't want this! Boulders, you don't want this!"
That was sort of a turning point for her. She spent several months in therapy, and when she felt better, she went to college. The book was primarily written during this time, and there are more details. Stephanie tells of her embarrassing relationships, her trysts with other classmates, and even one time that she met Trent Adkins at a concert.
Stephanie finishes the book with a very inspirational speech, that you take to heart. Humanity isn't based around biology, or culture, or religion, or anything like that. I think we all learned that during the Pale Wars, and before and after.
Humanity is a concept. We are born of a united spirit, a respect for this planet so many have bled for and loved for. We are one, regardless of whatever species you are. This holy world of ours, it belongs to everyone. I call upon you, the reader, to make this Earth a better place by showing tolerance and respect for your fellow person. It's the least you can do.
It was a heartwarming story, and you're very happy that you read it. Unfortunately, it didn't really teach you anything besides the factoids about postwar New York. You stop to consider what you just thought. This Gamer power is messing up your thinking process. You're only focusing on rewards, and ignoring the simple pleasures of life. That's a bit messed up.
It's 6:22, which is a reasonable time to put the book back in your inventory and head to the haryiv. You get there ten minutes later, early for the classes. Avizu shakes your hand human-style as you enter. The older man smirks at you. "Ready to learn?"
"I suppose I am."
"Well, in this haryiv, learning is...overcoming," he pauses slightly on that last phrase, before he slouches closer to the ground, sweeping one of his legs underneath you. You yelp as you fall to the ground, before you narrowly dodge the instructor's bare foot attempting to slam down upon your face.
"The fuck?" you mutter. You take Avizu's leg into your chest, which hurts, but it isn't that bad. A try to grab it fails, since Avizu is quicker and more dextrous than you are. Your arms flail out in front of you at the failed grasp, and the instructor takes full advantage, kneeing you in your chest.
You stumble backwards, and Avizu presses your weakness, going for another sweep of his leg. You jump upwards, letting the attempt to impair your balance go to your right harmlessly. You launch a quick jab into Avizu's face as he slides with his leg.
The punch sends Avizu sliding into the floor, but the man displays a remarkable recovery, and actually back flips backwards to get back onto his feet. The two of you rush each other, and the battle turns into a quick trade of jabs, before the instructor apparently realizes how many punches you can throw, and goes for another leg sweep.
This one causes you to fall, and Avizu has his foot over your neck before you even hit the ground. "Impressive stamina, good speed with the fists. Your natural dexterity and vitality are notable. You need work on everything else, however. Stand."
He releases your neck, and you rise shakily. "That's your way of greeting students, huh?"
Avizu smiles. "Would you have preferred a brochure?"
"Kind of."
That makes the man laugh. "The other students will be here shortly. Wait for them, and I'll start the lessons in...fifteen minutes."
Seven others walk in, as Avizu said. All but one are Castithans, the other being a human male like you. Wade LePage shakes your hand after dropping off his boots and jackets by the door. "Didn't expect to see a fellow pinkskin in here."
Must be a Castithan slur for humans. "Well, only martial arts place in town. Figured I'd try it out."
Wade nods. "Same here."
Avizu speaks up before you can continue your conversation. "Alright, children! You know why you're here. House, Varuk, both of you get up here. You're the newbies, so you get to be my test dummies."
You and a young Castithan, who can't be more than a teenager, step up next to Avizu. "Varuk here is quick, dextrous, but he's a complete banggo at nefkee or any other martial art I try to drill into his head. House here is a bit of a blockhead, but hell, he's got enough stamina in that hard skull of his to keep fighting."
He gestures to two Castithans standing at the front, already in uniforms. You and Varuk are the only ones not wearing them, and you feel a bit awkward about that. "Kyrij, Chano, you two are going to spar with House and Varuk. Show them how it's done."
The Castithan with the short hair, Chano, heads towards Varuk. The poor kid's practically half his size. You're guessing Kyrij is around the same level of prowess as Chano. The Castithan, a man with a swimmer's build, literally looks down on you by a few inches.
"Fight."
You don't see Chano and Varuk's fight, since you're focused on Kyrij. The man starts the fight, aiming his palm at your chest. You take the blow, since it doesn't do that much to you, and then you take advantage of the fact that one of his limbs is distracted by striking him with a single blow to the cheek.
Kyrij stumbles backwards, and you press him, activating a Power Strike using both of your fists and pelting the martial artist in the stomach. He gasps and sputters for a few moments like a fish out of water, before collapsing.
Avizu snorts as he looks over the four of you. Varuk's lying on the ground, moaning, so you're guessing his fight lasted about as long. "Sorry, House. I meant for you to lose that one. Oh well. Chano, House, help Varuk and Kyrij get up. We'll start the lessons now."
Skill Unlocked! Nefkivaniro 1/100. The most famous martial art native to Daribo. Nefkee, as most practitioners refer to it in short, relies on dexterity and finesse, as well as being the one to strike first and quickly take your foe. Nefkee focuses on destroying the balance and swiftness of your enemy. +1% damage to Unarmed Mastery per level.
Awesome. +2 Unarmed Mastery! Unarmed Mastery 15/100. +1 Observe! Observe 10/100. +1 Dexterity.
You're very glad that your stamina recovers quickly and your injuries disappear around the same rate. Still, a break at the Need/Want is exactly what you need. You take a seat by the bar, in the only empty seat, which is nice and convenient. The Sensoth next to you is drinking whiskey cheerfully, while singing some bar song in a native tongue.
You look to your left, and see another human, this one in miner garb. He catches you looking at him, and tells you his name. "Eric Lambert. Miner."
"Sam House. Handyman, I guess."
"Any good at plumbing?" he asks, in a half-joking manner.
"No. Sorry."
"Damn. The toilet's stopped up."
You laugh. "They don't make plungers anymore?"
"I just don't feel like doing it."
"Heh."
"You looking for work?" Eric asks, putting his drink down, signifying that it's empty. Jered walks over to refill it.
"Kinda, yeah. Not urgent, though."
"You want to stop by my house and clean up the backyard? It's all filled with weeds and rats, and I don't feel like cleaning it up. 20 scrips for you if you do it."
"I'll think about it."
"Cool."
You finish your beer, give a goodbye to Eric, and head home. After setting up and activating your alarm clock, you go to sleep.
You did quite a bit today. What are you going to do tomorrow, on April 8, 2046? Remember that you have seven actions to take.
[ ] Meditate. Become one with the stars, the Earth, and yourself. Take the path towards ascendancy. Unlock the benefits of Kundalini Meditation for the day. +1 to Kundalini Meditation skill.
[ ] Read the books. Could give valuable information on the cultures of this brave new world. You can choose up to two. 1 action each.
---[ ] The War of the Three Hells
---[ ] The World Hatched Anew: Our Love for Our Gods
---[ ] Waiting for a Land to Call My Own
[ ] Visit the library to acquire some new reading material. 40% chance of one being a skillbook. You can buy library books for 10 scrips, although Miss Gonzalez won't like it. Counts as 1 action. You can choose 1 books/book subjects below, or write-in.
---[ ] Get the book Our Flag Was Still There, describing the survival of the United States after the Pale Wars. You could use some patriotism right now.
---[ ] More stuff on post-war human culture.
---[ ] Focus on human geopolitics post-war.
---[ ] Write-in. Please don't be a smartass and write 'something that's a skillbook'.
[ ] Look into jobs. Eric Lambert, some guy you met at the bar, wants you to clean up his backyard. 100% chance of success. +20 Scrips. 20-40 EXP. Increased relations with Lambert family. Counts as 1 action. +2 to Gardening skill.
[ ] Look into jobs. Mowing lawns isn't a very impressive career, but Mr. Lawson needs someone to do it. 90% chance of success. +30 Scrips. 15-30 EXP. +1 to Gardening. Counts as 1 action.
[ ] Look into jobs. The local boxing organization is looking for anyone who wants to let off some steam. Prove your worth, and they'll let you in. You'll do miscellaneous actions, like sparring, repair of gloves and punching bags, and such. Very much a day to day job/part-time job, though. 80% chance of success. 75 Scrips. 30-50 EXP. Increased relations with Defiance Boxing Club. Counts as 1 action. Will unlock the Boxing Club Worker job if successful, which will in turn unlock many options for your future.
[ ] Look into jobs. Defiance is a mining town, and almost all of its mines are controlled by a fellow named Rafe McCawley. Maybe you can get a job as a miner? Rewards 120-160 scrips per day. 80% chance of success. Counts as 1 action, unless you succeed, in which case, it's 3. New skills, potential rewards, EXP. Job has unreliable levels of security (cave-ins, scrappers, hellbugs, etc.). You'll compete with other workers for who gets the more profitable shafts or exploration duties.
[ ] Look into jobs. Maybe Clancy needs a junior Lawkeeper to help out? Rewards 3200 scrip per month, other benefits, new skills, allies, EXP chances. 60% chance of success. Counts as 1 action, unless you get the job, whereupon its 4 per day, and you get a new Title.
[ ] Look into jobs. There's an Earth Republic recruitment officer giving out pamphlets on joining the Terran Unitary Expeditionary, a place for people to get a new life serving in the military. Life will be hard if you get in, but you think you can handle it. See new places, kill interesting people. It'll be fun. Rewards 2500 Scrip per month, other benefits, new skills, EXP chances. 60% chance of success. Counts as 1 action, changes the quest entirely if you succeed. You will get a new title.
[ ] Explore the town on your own. 1 action each. Rewards are a surprise. Will expand Sam's knowledge, allies, and armory in varying ways.
---[ ] Go to the Need/Want and just talk to people. Might meet someone interesting.
---[ ] Find some Irathients and strike up a conversation. You want to grind up your L'Irathi. 80% chance of success.
---[ ] Go to the bookstore to see if they have any particular skillbooks you might want. 60% chance of success.
[ ] Go exploring on the outskirts of town, while staying within the stasis net. Who knows, maybe you can find a hellbug to kill or some interesting loot. Write in mandatory. Counts as 1 action.
---[ ] Write in.
[ ] Go to the bazaar/shop section. 1 action each. Write in for details. I will respond with the cost if not stated.
---[ ] Buy weapons.
------[ ] Buy a machete. Costs 20 Scrips.
------[ ] Buy a hatchet. Costs 15 Scrips.
---[ ] Buy new clothes. Costs 15 Scrips for each change of clothes.
[ ] Talk to Fozzi at the garage about getting an apprenticeship in vehicle repair. You're probably one of the more knowledgeable people in town, and you're willing to work for a few hours every few days. Counts as 1 action. 60% chance of success. Unlocks the Garage Apprentice shop if successful. +5 to Basic Vehicle Repair.
[ ] Grind your skills.
---[ ] Write in with elaboration.
[ ] Write in. Within reason, please.
Sorry that this update took so long. I'm getting back into the daily grind of school, but at least there are only two months left. Anyway, usual stuff happened this update, with the new inclusions of the haryiv and...that's basically it. The meditation was fun to write, though.
Finally, the boring stuff. Here's what you gained in this update.
-15 Scrips.
+26 EXP.
Skill Unlocked! Housework (goes under Housework category).
Skill Unlocked! Nefkivaniro (goes under Combat category).
+2 Cooking.
+1 Observe.
+2 Unarmed Mastery.
+1 Dexterity.
