Chapter 3: Past Actions affect the Present
Turning around, Venkix faced the Great Elder. The Great Elder’s name was Tharn and as much as Micheal didn’t like it, she was by technicality Venkix’s Great Grandmother. He always stirred clear of her to avoid getting caught but it was inevitable now.
[Great Elder, what a coincidence!] Venkix stepped closer to the elder, Micheal was driving the emotions Venkix felt about her on full throttle. [I was planning on speaking with the other Elders, to ask if they can watch over the competition.] Tharn let out a huff of air, her eyes gleaming with some hidden thought or intent. The look she sent at Venkix was a common one Micheal faced for the past years he had been in control of him.
In the past, it would’ve driven him up the wall on the mere thought of finding out what the look meant. Presently, he was already used to the looks she sent towards him. ‘Hm…’ Venkix without hesitation activated Hunter’s Insight, an illusory dome visible only to him, spread out to the surroundings that centered at Venkix. The surrounding was devoid of any tribe member as majority of them were competing against one another while the rest were hatchlings and elders spectating them. ‘She picked an opportune time to confront me.’ Micheal inwardly narrowed his eyes on her. Her already narrowed eyes moved a little bit to the surroundings, surveying the area.
[I have a question for you, Chieftain.] She said, her eyes looking back at Venkix before she widened them. Her eye colour was a striking clouded blue, yet it still had a sharpness that caused Micheal to suppress flinching back. The feeling of her eyes piercing through Venki X and directly looking at him, made him shudder and complain inwardly on why she didn’t try becoming a Chieftain. Acting like nothing happened, Venkix raised a brow and nodded his head as permission. [You…]
Elder Tharn’s body then tensed and miniscule spread her hands in a stance, not an offensive one but a defensive one. [You are not truly the chieftain, are you?] The way she vibrated her needles to finish her question had a high tone and simply buzzed, showing the way she was unsure yet sure at the same time. Meanwhile, Venkix was thinking up ways to answer her question properly by hastily opening two system windows and began mentally scrolling the Market and double checking the description of his abilities as a “God”.
‘Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck!~’ Repeatedly cursing, Micheal had found a few abilities in the Market that focused on illusions and a few reality warping that only affects the target. After a few more scrolling, Micheal found two of the best combinations of abilities.
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Clay Puppet
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The Host has the ability to create a puppet of their own design on the cost of 100 Civ points or more depending on how much work and attributes the Host Gives. The Clay Golem can last as long as the created core made from Civ Points is not destroyed or taken out.
Cost: 35 IP
Illusory Shade
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The Host can give this ability to a target, in which case it will degrade and become a lesser ability. Using the ability Cost 355 Civ Points per illusion which will last only for 3 minutes. (Upgradeable)
Cost: 100 IP
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Micheal double checked the other possible abilities, and probably much cheaper, he only noticed that these two were both the best and cheapest ability that he could currently stomach. ‘For Fucks sake.’ Swallowing drily, Micheal closed his eyes inwardly before pressing the buy button on the two of them.
|| The Host has bought two Abilities, total cost 135. ||
|| Support System has deducted 135 IP, Remaining IP: 119 ||
Closing the Market panel, he proceeds to check his Host status and sees his two newly bought abilities. ‘Civ Points can be regenerated by rate from the shamans or any new inventions the tribe made or explorations. I can only get IP by completing random generated missions or Era quest.’ Without hesitation, Micheal proceeds to activate the Clay Puppet but what happened next was a complete surprise; from behind Elder Tharn, a dark brown lump of clay appeared before beginning to climb up and form into a featureless humanoid body. With it, Micheal set up to work as fast as he could.
With harness foreign to his current self, he began to form and manipulate the featureless puppet into an average height Xinzunian but more on the muscular look, glancing at his status window, specifically his Civ points. He noticed that 50 Points were taken for just forming it into a Xinzunian without his knowledge. ‘I need to experiment this for later, Now though I need to focus.’ Adding as much detail as he can, Micheal split his attention and took the reins of Venkix once more.
Letting out a huff of air, a sigh somewhat, Venkix raised one of his arms and proceeded to scratch the back of his neck while looking terribly exhausted. [They warned me that you had a feeling about it.] Tharn raised a brow of confusion at Venkix's reply. She unconsciously relaxed her body a little before tensing them again after Venkix moved his head and directly glared at her. Tharn narrowed her widened eyes, Venkix was not looking at her but directly behind her.
Using her years of being a warrior and innate instincts, she quickly turned around with her talon like claws in the air. Her tail whipped behind her causing Venkix to dodge backwards and distanced himself from her by 3 metres. [You always were the best of the best.] A new vibration joined them, one deep and had a slight rumble. What Tharn met, who she thought was an enemy, was actually a Male Xinzunian with Black scales but covered head to toe in battle scars, his right eye missing only leaving a hole with a large scar the reached the crown of his twisted horn that almost appeared like a spire and down to his spiked chin. The vine pattern centred to his chest and spread out to the rest of his body had a deep blood red with spikes rose up the vines and had a slight tint of green on them. His tail was slightly shorter but the end thick and wide, best for bludgeoning attacks.
He had different animal bones worn on each of his arms and forearms, one long spine on his waist with stone knives and a curled vine whip. Letting out a gasp, Tharn raised a hand and placed it at the front of her snout, shock spreading through her body causing her to freeze on the spot. Micheal had merely used his new ability to cast an illusion on the clay puppet. The Illusory shade uses the puppet as an anchor to appear, Micheal had also used a rock he made Venkix picked up on the ground adn casted the same ability at it to hide the puppet. ‘Hopefully this works.
The Xinzunian, Micheal used as an illusion, was the previous Chief of the tribe before the chieftain before Venkix, Tharn’s Grandfather. [Even so, seeing you live past us and even becoming a Great Elder eases my spirit that you are walking strong.] The Xinzunian placed a hand to the right of his chest and softly patted it, a gesture made for showing calm or eased worry.
[Chieftain Goruun? H-how are you…] Tharn was speechless, I mean who wouldn’t be when your dead grandfather is standing in front of you in his primes. Goruun let out a huff, one that didn’t affect the air but the expression was understood. [Every Chieftain of the tribe, as a spiritual path to the ancestors, becomes one with us.] Goruun pointed towards Venkix before using one of his left hands to point at himself.
[Through this, we as chieftains gain the knowledge and wisdom of the ancestors, hence that singular spot of markings on our scales.] Goruun stepped closer to Tharn before he passed through her, she on the other hand quickly patted her body in confusion and surprise. The furred clothes on her shoulder that connected with bones of small animals made a clicking sound against one another from her movement. [For now, I am the only one the ancestors allowed to appear because of our relationship and I am more composed unlike the others.] Micheal wanted to facepalm himself from the embarrassment. Bullshiting was not one of his best personal skills, and he prayed to anything, even the system, that his bullshit could fool her.
[The reason why I feel different, is that as a chieftain, we are to be advised by the Ancestors to be the physical guide of the tribe while they are the spiritual guide.] Venkix looked around the cavern, checking if there were any tribesmen nearby. Paranoia is a normal side effect when you have to lead an entire tribe. Learning from the consequences of his actions to the Creedull race, he double and even triple check everything he knows and updates the map just in case. There are Pros and Cons for this that Micheal clearly knows about. But being cautious and Paranoid was the path he had to thread if this tribe and race was to advance past its current era. [I have to keep it hidden because challenges will become more frequent and the tribe will be weakened.] Venkix glanced at Tharn while Goruun silently turned around and faced the tunnel to the meeting caver.
[The Tribe has flourished since my passing, and it will flourish more as long as it is led correctly.] Goruun let out an audible huff, his body slowly turning transparent. [My time in this plane is running out and I’ll return to the spiritual plane with the ancestors. Young Tharn, Young Chieftain, Be wary of the forest and don’t recklessly do something out of desperation.] He finally said before he turned more transparent and disappeared. Micheal then hastily deactivated the Clay Puppet, his civ points going down by one point every time he let the Illusion of the past chieftain talk.
Tharn looked towards Venkix, her expression eased and her stance was relaxed while her hands twitched from time to time. [Well, young Chieftain, I have confronted you to ascertain who you are.] Tharn sent a look to him, it also carried a hint of amusement and her eyes shone like a perfect shade of its colour. Holding an emotion of certainty, she straightened her back and stood proud. [I cannot wait to tell that old shaman, I managed to speak with an ancestor face to face.] Venkix rolled his eyes good naturedly, he still smiles and laughs inwardly at the mention of the Great Shaman. Both of them had a friendly rivalry that Venkix saw as a common situation. Both of them were old and had faced the passing of the past tribesmen.
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