Wayspring Wanderer - A Desert Druid LitRPG

// Alright, I don't want to come across as all snark. Some of the other PUBS I've known in the past can really lean a little too far into the snark, and it can get tiresome. I really do want you to succeed, and since you've got a lot of other challenges to face, I feel like this is the best way to handle your stats.

I’ve set it up this way so you aren’t overloaded. If you really want a different way of looking at it, just imagine peak F rank as a 10 out of 10, but a breakthrough into the next rank, D, is gonna feel more like a 15. Top of D is gonna feel like a 25, though, not a 20.

As you ascend, the numbers blur, but it’ll be obvious when fighting anyone ranked higher than you in the early stages. It grows incredibly more dangerous fighting above your weight class as you progress, even within the same ranks, but you won’t really have to worry about that till C-Rank.

It feels like your body, mind, or spirit just remembered it was superb at something, be it jumping or lifting something, understanding concepts related to the world, or getting in touch with the ethereal.

F, D, C, B, A, S

It’s basically just like a grading system at school with the addition of a S for those who surpass what’s usually possible. Although, with the state of the world, I’d be surprised if anyone on the planet were anywhere NEAR A-class anything. Something pulled you here for a reason. I don’t know the details, but it’s not an easy thing to do.

Speaking of pointless numbers: mana, as you understand it, doesn’t exist. It’s more like capacity, and because of its constant variability, it’s not something I can really read.

I know when it’s being used, and after you use it all up, I’ll have a general idea of what you’re capable of, but every use of your abilities cost you more or less dependent on where you are and what type of magic you are using.

I will say this, though: as a Druid, you’re made for this. You gain capacity from mind and spirit, meaning you have the best of both worlds. Mind capacity is larger, but spiritual capacity is efficient. Add in your unique class ability to regain capacity naturally and you’re coasting on easy street. Except for the fact that you have to create all your own abilities.

To simplify: The upside is, you’ve got the capacity and efficiency to sandbox anything your little brain can imagine. In fact, barring constant, prolonged battle with no breaks, you’re not likely to see the bottom of your capacity. The downside is, you’ve gotta create your own spells. //

Impressively, the PUB actually was almost completely serious throughout that explanation. He wondered if all the PUB’s robust defiance early on tuckered the poor little thing out. Oskar was curious what the PUB got out of all this and why it wanted him to succeed, but he was getting information overload. After all, he'd probably just had years worth of knowledge and a language shoved in his head. It felt as natural as English to him.

It's real. This isn't a dream, and I'm not gonna wake up in a straight jacket in a hospital. I mean, I might be a little crazy, but this situation is crazier.

Information overload aside, this entire world rode a delicate balance somewhere between “no one is gonna believe this,” and “I’ve completely lost my mind.” Shaking his head, Oskar muttered to himself as the sweltering heat bore down on him, “Onward, I suppose. To glory, or whatever.”

He stood again, wiped his head and tried to remember how he’d been able to ignore the heat of Iraq as he started making his way towards the direction the dune valley took him, his strange spear in hand. When you are totally lost in an endless desert on a strange planet, any direction is as good as another.

***

Sand blasted Oskar in the chest and face as something the size of a car tire with copper scales slammed into the sand in front of him, totally submerging itself in the dune. He dashed backwards into a stumble and caught himself on the butt of the spear, which, for some reason, stopped on the top of the sand like hard packed earth instead of spearing through it.

He watched as the bulge in the sand moved back around the bend of the dune ahead of him and disappeared. Oskar snuck forward against his better judgement to see what kind of creature had almost killed him. His eyes widened in shock as the largest snake he'd ever seen raised its diamond shaped head ten feet into the air. The remainder of its massive body remained curled-up in a loose circle in the clearing ahead of him.

This thing was massive, covered in small sand colored scales that twisted and curled with its every movement. There appeared to be a green fungus or something growing all over it, along with splatters of bright red blood, showing obvious injury.

A large, brown, armored creature curled up behind it, shuddering with what Oskar assumed were the aftereffects of the massive serpent’s venom. It looked to be a much larger version of whatever had crashed into the sand in front of him a moment ago, but was covered in darker, brass covered scales.

Suddenly, the sand under the massive snake exploded as the smaller, copper scaled creature launched itself at the wounded serpent from under the sand. It hit with bone jarring impact, smashing into the snake’s body with an admittedly cute squeak that sounded something like “kwinn!” The snake swayed backwards with the impact, but struck back with its long fangs, narrowly missing.

It wasn’t looking good for the little guy. Oskar wasn’t sure how safe it was to intervene… scratch that, it was imbecilic at best. Why was he trying to intervene in a fight between two things that could probably kill him without breaking a sweat? But… he couldn’t ignore the smaller creature fighting for its life. Moreover, if he were forced to fight the winner, he would prefer to take his chances in the championship bout with the smaller pangolin-like creature than big Snaky.

As if his Goggles read his mind, the sky dimmed slightly and everything became crisp. Did the interface have some sort of battle mode? When he focused on the serpent, it came into sharp detail as if zoomed in but without any depth perception or disorientation issues. The fangs were lightly outlined as what he assumed were threat factors. The scan information showed a high level threat from the two larger creatures, indicated by a brief red flash of an outline that settled into a subtler red that didn’t obstruct, and even threat from the smaller, indicated by a yellow outline that faded over a second just like the red.

Oskar hesitated, unsure of the best way to engage. Surprisingly, the Goggles responded to his dilemma, showing him a misty outline of a form stalking forward, keeping the point between the serpent’s head and himself with a low center of gravity.

Is the PUB giving me freaking combat tips?

He moved forward, low and steady and with a posture of confidence, and for some reason, the snake immediately shifted its attention to him after a brief snake-brain threat reassessment.

Dumb snake- I have no idea what I’m doing.

// Spear Mastery Upgrade – 0.01% Uh, probably not a great idea to give you updates into the hundredths of a percent in combat. Sorry, still waking up. //

Oskar blinked away the notification, glad the PUB could adjust automatically, preventing notifications from popping up during combat. He suspected the AI system inside the PUB was piggybacking off the notifications to save energy, adding to the growing list of questions he had.

Again, something to address when he wasn’t about to be killed for sticking his nose in a fight just because the little creature was like a cute 75lb scaled puppy.

The snake was trying to keep an eye on Oskar, but nearby movement under the sand caught its attention and It's ready to self to strike at the scaled creature when it next came up out of the sand. It must have caught him trying to sneak closer though, because it suddenly turned to stare him straight in the face.

I've never really been afraid of snakes before, but I think I'm developing a sudden phobia.

With the big snake's full attention on Oskar, he stopped moving, hopefully out of immediate striking range, but kept his center of gravity low and balanced, ready to dive away at the first sign of movement in his direction.

I was really hoping the smaller creature was going to be a better distraction.

Turns out, Oskar was the distraction.

Talking advantage of the giant serpent’s focus on him, the smaller pangolin creature burst from a wall of sand on the sunward-side dune wall and crashed full body into the side of the snake’s head, stunning it. Snakey quickly recovered, but Oskar knew real damage had been done. The serpent momentarily stopped swaying in its confusion, and Oskar saw deep cuts through the mossy colored scales covering its belly. They must have come from the larger pangolin, who was now lying still a few feet away. The snake, groggy, turned its head around looking for the little creature.

Not wanting to waste the moment, Oskar dashed forward with his spear and stabbed it deeply under its fanged head, dancing quickly backwards to safety, keeping his spear between them as it seemed to get a second wind despite its grievous injuries. Its follow-up lunge was halfhearted, though, and Oskar easily avoided it.

The pangolin made a sound in its throat that Oskar couldn’t identify – he guessed it was a growly version of its kwinn sound.

“Kwinn-ing” a few more times, the small… Well, smaller… creature darted behind him, now peeking around Oskar as the great serpent slithered towards him drunkenly. Oskar tried to ignore the little pangolin to address the threat in front of him.

The serpent lagged to the side a bit as it lunged forward, and Oskar again easily side-stepped the clumsy attack from the dying snake. He balanced himself and leaped forward, swinging the butt of his spear like a baseball bat, connecting with a solid counter blow. The heavy swing bashed into the side of its diamond shaped head, and it fell over.

Thankful for the Marine Corps bayonet training that at the time he'd been sure he'd never use, Oskar drove the point of his spear into the back of the snake's neck to finish it as it hit the ground.

Its neck? The whole freakin thing was a neck.

// Spear Mastery Upgrade – 0.3%

And that's not for the baseball swing. That's not how you use a spear at all.

Also, pedant alert: No, it’s not. The neck of a serpent would be the region where its cranium is suspended on its spine before its major internal organs show up. //

The little pangolin creature made its little sound and darted to the side of the still form of what was probably its mother, nuzzling into her side. She stiffened before seeming to relax as she recognized her child. Oskar carefully stepped into its view and took a knee, observing from a safe distance as the mother watched him warily.

The smaller pangolin ran over to Oskar, and then back to its mother, as if telling her the story of how they beat the huge serpent, kwinning the whole time. Telling its mother how brave it had been. It had been brave, after all.

“You should be proud,” Oskar whispered.

He wasn’t sure she could even understand him, but he was surprisingly moved by the entire situation and saw a great deal of intelligence in her eyes.

“I’ll take care of the little one. Or it’ll take care of me.“

He smiled, eyes a little wet behind his Goggles.

Okay, I must be getting soft.

She glanced at her little one as it nuzzled her, and then seriously back at him as if she was holding him to his word.

How smart ARE these things?

He felt a small sense of weight on his chest as words entered his PUB interface.

// Gambit Accepted: Protect the adolescent Pangolor until she reaches adulthood.

Difficulty: Unknown Variables

Reward: Companion Evolution, Insight

Knowledge must be earned. Access to Insight is the benefit of having a matched Goggle and Bracer PUB set. You can earn access to information via Gambits and your own learning, as well as some skills or abilities. Insight is the easiest way to learn, and experience is the hardest, obviously. The best way is to use both, so don’t rely on Insight alone to guide and teach you.

Companion Gained 1 out of 1 //