Chương 36: 35 – Talented Experimentation

We weren't the only Farmers in town. Not by a long shot. Mom sent me around to tell everyone about the wagons, but unsurprisingly, most of them already knew, and realized exactly what they were probably for as fast as Mom had. Reid stayed glued to my side the whole time. Night had fallen, but torches were lit all throughout the town. The vast majority of soldiers had started setting up tents between the western watchpost and the town center, but plenty of men and women had decided to venture into Pemolar.

Either heading to find clearer ground on the eastern side of town, or, on occasion, visiting family.

"Benethan! Oh, my Benny!" I heard an excited scream as the door of one of the houses along the main road opened. Ikara, a widowed woman that I didn't know very well, practically leapt into the soldier's arms. She didn't go to the bar much and was usually very composed, so it was shocking to see her so enthusiastic. Benethan was probably nearly thirty. Likely a lifer in the military at this point. I had no memories of the man, but I had obviously met him before. His need bubble was shining above his head.

The supplies were the same story as usual. Metal, wood, and a little stone. What was unusual was that he needed it for neither war trolls nor goblins, but to kill a Kerlunka.

"I don't understand how my fucking talent works," I hissed.

"Hmm?" Reid asked.

"That guy over there, Benethan? He needs… something, to kill a Kerlunka. I've only ever heard of Kerlunka! How does my talent seem to know things that I don't?"

"How does that work anyway? Knowing what people need. Do you like… see him killing a Kerlunka or something?"

"No. I still don't know what a Kerlunka looks like, beyond what I've heard veterans say about them. I just see a bubble floating over people's heads like an ingredient list, and bam! Suddenly, I know what they need. Not a lot of context either. Just, Benethan needs this item to kill a Kerlunka. So, I can infer that he's going to fight a Kerlunka." He chuckled.

"Oh nooo, my ridiculously high-ranked talent isn't simple! Whatever shall I dooo?" Reid joked.

"After Nemmikel, do you really think I need more sarcasm like this?" I asked him, flatly. He sobered quickly.

"No, probably not. Sorry. It's a little hard not to be jealous sometimes. Hadra and now you…? Us uncommon talents have to soothe our shattered egos somehow!" Reid had an Active talent, like mine, only his was uncommon. The way he'd described it was very similar to some games I'd watched April play. Whenever he was wielding a ranged weapon, he could filter out everything else. He'd described it as the entire world turning grey except for whatever he was aiming at.

This worked day or night, and had almost immediately begun paying off when he'd gained his talent last year. Very similar to the observe skill but significantly more potent and focused. Simple, but effective. He gained free points based on getting a kill. Typically, that meant a deer or a rabbit, but he told me that he'd grown three levels during the attack and had gotten sixteen free points. Not a bad haul.

"There's nothing wrong with having an uncommon talent, Reid," I said.

"It sounds like you really helped a lot during the attack. I think you're just fishing for pity."

"Hah!" he barked.

"Fishing for pity. That's funny." It amazed me sometimes how expressions that were common in April's world could feel so fresh and original here. I probably wasn't nearly as good a storyteller as I thought I was. I just had another world's worth of experience and expressions to draw from, giving me a leg up.

"Am I right?" I asked, teasingly.

"I don't know. Are you pitying me?" he asked. I grinned and wriggled myself under his arm. He was warm, and the night was getting colder. This was a fool's errand from the start. We probably wouldn't be able to hide all that much food anyway. They'd come too suddenly. In retrospect, the goblins and trolls might've saved us. During a normal year, we'd already be almost finished with the harvest.

This year, there were still entire fields we hadn't made it to yet, and I doubted Maulander would be willing to wait for us to finish the job. Wheat in a box was a lot easier to take than wheat in a field after all. We stopped, and I knocked on the door of Echa Farmer and her husband, Presten. They had three kids, too, but their oldest was only nine. I'd babysat them a few times, but they'd started asking Eysee somewhere along the way instead of me. I didn't mind. Unfortunately, they weren't home.

Either they were already beginning to stash portions of their harvest, or they were out somewhere else. If they were smart, they'd be back soon. The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. Reid squeezed my shoulder affectionately.

"I still can't get over how your Dad managed to upgrade his talent. We… if not for him, we really might've been overrun just like Mitoras," he said.

"Still, it makes me think I might at least be able to get a rare one someday." I hesitated. If I couldn't trust Reid, who could I trust?

"Dad didn't upgrade his talent," I admitted.

"It was the scythe I'd made him."

"Oh… of course. That makes sense," he said. He pulled out the bow and looked at it while we walked. It was shiny, but nothing special at first glance. Effect 1: Accuracy-based talent effects and skills are multiplied by three when using this bow.

"I didn't miss a single thing I aimed at that day, and my talent felt like it was on fire. They could've shown up a mile away, and I think I still would've been able to shoot them. My archery is good, but if I put this in my da's hands… well, his talent wouldn't benefit like mine does, but the archery skill being tripled? It's… insane, Mera." His need bubble was still greyed out. For Mom, I could see her next need, even though it was still greyed out, and Reid was no different.

His next need was something made with leather and steel that would protect him from goblin arrows. I was getting really tired of everyone needing something to protect them from goblins or war trolls. At least the Kerlunka had been unique. That soldier would most likely be returning to the rift. That begged a question. If no one was in danger of imminent death, would my talent offer up vitamin pills to extend their life or something?

Obviously, everyone who did not receive a crafted item from me could survive just fine. They'd been doing it for thousands of years. It was just that the items I made could help them survive whatever the next biggest threat to their life might be. I'd gleaned that from the changing needs of the patients in the bar. I wasn't vital. Everyone I didn't manage to craft for, for some reason, wasn't doomed to die. A huge relief, to be sure.

"Yeah… it is, a little," I said absently. We continued walking.

"Still, it doesn't mean you won't be able to upgrade your talent someday, if you really want to." We still had a few more houses to stop at, even though I was starting to think this was a waste of time. Mom was smart, but it wasn't like it was too hard to guess what all those wagons might be for. If we were lucky, the general would pay us something for the food.

"So… Benethan is going to kill a Kerlunka? They're the witch things, right?" Reid asked into the awkward silence. I ignored him, focusing hard on his need bubble. It was simple. So very simple. A vest or a breastplate, maybe. I sometimes wished I could see my own need. I would really like to have an attack helicopter or maybe a fifty cal. An idea was slowly forming. I'd long since determined that the needs I crafted were based on the person's perception of what would help them best.

Dad got a scythe, while in his shoes, I might've gotten a gun. What if I could change that? Right now, Reid needed some sort of armor that would protect him from goblin arrows. But he just told me he could probably shoot any goblin long before they were in range to shoot him, if only he knew they were there.

"Reid, could you do me a favor?" I asked.

"Always," he said.

"What do you need?"

"I want you to picture something for me. It's called a radar," I said. He blinked. Then chuckled.

"Story time, is it?"

"This is serious," I said.

"I can't craft anything else for you yet. You apparently haven't used the bow enough or something, but I'm trying to change what your next crafted item will be." He seemed suddenly defensive.

"Well, what is it now? What if I like my next crafted item?" I hesitated. This was my friend's life here. Did I trust myself to know better what he would need over the talent? … For the most part, yes. Talents weren't intelligent by themselves, though mine seemed to at least know some things that I didn't. There was the story about Geofram the Lucky and his Mythic talent. He could theoretically set an objective, and his talent would nudge him in the right direction.

He gained free points whenever he did something that got him closer to that objective. The story ended with him falling into a well and drowning, though. He'd achieved his objective in the drowning, for the girl he wished to love him did regret and love him so, after he was gone. Yadda, yadda, hubris of relying on talents too much, the end. It was actually a pretty damn funny story when told properly. There weren't any guarantees the story wasn't entirely fictional… but still. Which would I rather have?

A bit of armor, or a radar that detected rift monsters? I could throw on a tin can any time. There were two blacksmiths in town after all, but radar wasn't a thing here. I'd pick the radar. Then again… I was playing with theoreticals and magic talents here. Why not both?

"I think it's some sort of armor. You need it to protect you from goblin arrows. But I think I can get you something better. Follow me here. A radar is a device that detects objects around it," I said before kneeling down in the dirt and drawing a circle. He knelt down beside me.

"Okay, I follow."

"Crafted items can grant attribute points, or skills, and can even improve your mental abilities, right?"

"Sure….? Where are you going with this, Mera?"

"I want you to picture, and believe, that there is a breastplate or armor, that when you wear it, it allows you to detect all rift monsters around you, and know where they are. I drew little dots on the map and a cross straight through the middle.

"This is you in the middle. These dots are trolls and goblins. When you're wearing that armor, you get a mental picture of where all these enemies are around you, even if they're hiding behind trees or walls or hills. The radar ignores all the obstacles that might hide rift monsters from you. You can feel that there's an enemy there, even if you can't see it or perceive it with any of your other senses. You with me?"

"All… right? I believe it. There is an armor that can let me know my surroundings and sense rift monsters even if I can't see them," he nodded, but I could still sense a bit of amusement in his tone. I watched his need bubble.

"Uhm…" I watched his need bubble.

"Is…. something supposed to happen?" he asked, amused. I sighed, as nothing changed.

"I guess not. Keep thinking about it, though? Think about how that armor might work?"

"Sure," he agreed, as I stood up and made my way to yet one more empty doorway. This was a waste of time. The farmers were already scrambling, just as Mom was. We were nearly to the western watchpoint again, and I marvelled at how quickly the entire place had filled up. Soldiers were setting up tents in every patch of open grass they could find. Once again, I spotted that small group of men in the fancy armor. They were no longer on horseback, but they were striding purposefully down the road toward us.

"Let's hurry back to the bar. I don't think we're going to want to miss this," I said. Reid nodded.