This story was made for the Oracle tier patron.
This chapter is not required to read to understand the main story, this is only a side-story.
This is a teaser for the patreon-only side stories I'm writing.
Each chapter has 3 parts and the first part of any new storyline I will make public as a teaser. I'm planning for the main cast to have at least 3 chapters of side-stories.
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Today should be the 10th of the month of Birth of the year 50,465.
I wake up with the morning light. I see the sun rays seeping in through the bushes in front of my cave. I raise from the soft dirt and spread my wings, I shake the dirt from the feathers and stretch. Ngeru starts to rise and stretches her long legs.
"Nrrroww~..." She purrs and yawns.
"Morning, Ngeru."
I focus on the dirt still on my feathers and tell them to return to their Mother. The dirt turns into dust and slowly sets down on the earth, a little mana leaves my body. Nobody would notice the dirt on my brown wings but they feel filthy and heavy if I let them like this.
I look at my stats:
Info
Name: Kaka Haere | Age: 35 | Race: Metamorphic Chimera
HP: 100 | MP: 530/540 | Magic Power: 220
Level: 33 | Experience: 151/10000
Stats
Strength: 24 | Endurance: 19 | Dexterity: 13
Speed: 15 | Intelligence: 11 | Wisdom: 12
Willpower: 10 | Charisma: 10 | Piety: 4
Perception: 14 | Sanity: 18
Other
Status Effects: NONE: | Titles: NONE
Affiliations: NONE
Companions: NONE
Crimes: NONE
Kaka Haere Skill Report
Physical
Sword Use: 2 | Dagger Use: 4 | Quiet Steps: 4
Magical
Sense Mana: 12 | Mana Control: 7 | Mana Recovery: 6
Earth Magic: 10 | Nature Magic: 6 | Fire Magic: 1
Light Magic: 1 | Space Magic: 10 | Conjuring Magic: 9
Miscellaneous
Farming: 14 | Dismantling: 17 | Housework: 5
Cleaning: 4 | Washing: 2 | First-Aid: 5
Cooking: 9 | Sex Metamorphosis: 5 | Wind Aspect (innate): 5
Great, my MP increased by 10 and my [Space Magic] by 2. I always need more space on my [Item Box].
I push Ngeru out of my legs and stand up, I pat my body and clean my leg fur.
"Come on, girl," I tell Ngeru and she springs up. I pat her body and clean the dirt out of her gold and black-spotted fur, she licks the fur of my face while I clean her.
Once done we move to the entrance, I awkwardly have to walk in a half crouch so my horns don't scrape on the ceiling.
"I really have to open this cave more," I say and Ngeru sneezes in response.
I push the bushes away from the entrance and we relieve ourselves nearby.
"Having a penis makes this easier but eh, the townsfolk are more gentle with women," I say and Ngeru tilts her head at me. "Not that you would know."
I apply [Clean] to me and Ngeru and we go back inside to eat. I open the trapdoor and pick a large piece of smoked goblin, I quickly close it before Ngeru can get inside. I pull out of my [Item Box] the rest of yesterday's stew and divide everything in two bowls.
"I want some smoked orc now, or minotaur, maybe some cheese too," I say and Ngeru "mrow's" in response.
Once we are done eating Ngeru looks at me with wide eyes and purrs on my lap.
"No," I say but Ngeru pushes her head closer to me. "Nooo," I repeat and Ngeru shows me her white belly.
I can't resist and scratch her. "Bad girl," I say and Ngeru responds with a "mrow".
I don't give her another piece of meat so she closes her eyes and falls asleep again on my lap.
After the food settles in I store the dishes on my Box and wake Ngeru again. We move to the small stream nearby for a quick dip and drink.
I grab a handful of clear water and use it to look at myself. My goat head is perfectly combed, thanks to Ngeru's tongue.
"My horns need some polishing," I say and Ngeru flickers her ears at me. Why do the beastfolk even like horns? They are so impractical.
"I wonder why there's not more chimeras down here, the beastfolks like me so much even though I'm average-sized."
I wash the sweat out of my human torso and comb the fur of my horse legs with my brush. Then I brush my horse tail to remove any matting.
Ngeru is already done and waiting for me to brush her. She rolls on the grass and nearly falls asleep again as I brush her.
"Okay, done, go hunt," I say and tap Ngeru's ass. She springs up again and dashes into the woods.
I move through the bushes and find my patch of vegetables.
"Good morning my beauties, it's time to grow," I say and lower my ears to the ground. I feel the earth, there's life seeping out of it and being absorbed by the plants. "So much life being wasted, it's time for some redirecting."
I spread my conscience and throw it into the earth, I feel the life and follow it on it's journey upwards. I create tunnels and destroy others, I find the plants and guide the life towards them. I add my own life to the earth and aid the natural life in entering the plants faster.
One by one, every vegetable gets their share of life from Mother. Some are craving for certain things so I conjure them into the earth and guide them to the plant. Slowly my mana leaves my body and gives new life to the garden.
I keep this for hours and hours, slowly and carefully I trickle life into the plants. No good crop comes out of a rush job.
I see a nature spirit staring at me from a branch of a nearby tree. The wide eyed little spirit reminds me of the wereapes, I'm not sure what animal it's supposed to be.
I wave at it and it waves back then pops out of existence.
I wish I knew more about [Nature Magic], maybe the spirits could help me improve the growth of my veggies.
I close my eyes and return to concentrating on my work.
Once my mana is almost running out I stop. I sigh and open my eyes. The sun is up high and it will be noon soon, Ngeru has already deposited two small monster birds nearby.
I harvest the crops that have matured already and go back to the cave to make lunch. Soon after I start cooking, Ngeru appears with a third bird and lays down in front of the stove while I cook. Her long tail sways, the blade at the tip scrapes on the ground, making lines on the dirt.
Once done, Ngeru digs on her bowl like a starving beast.
"Not that you aren't a beast but you shouldn't be starving, you eat the same as me and I'm bigger than you."
"Mrow."
"Growing crops is just as tiring as hunting, sometimes even more."
"Mrooow."
"Hmpf," I snort and continue eating. Sometimes I swear that she can understand me.
Once we finish eating I grab my dress and put it on, I'll never go there naked again. I grab the rest of the crops and store part of it on my [Item Box], the rest goes into a basket that I'll carry on my back.
It's time to go into town, I dread it a little but any reason to fly is a good reason.
We go outside the cave and I spread my wings. I feel the light breeze coursing through my feathers. I focus on the force of the wind, it barely manages to lift a feather so I increase it. The wind gains more and more force so more and more feather rise.
I am the wind, the force that's constantly moving, constantly changing. I am movement, speed, force. I am weightless, invisible, and free. I am the wind.
I flap my wings and open my eyes, with just two flaps I'm already above the short trees. Flying near the ground is much easier than on the Sky Lands, there's barely any gust of wind to throw me off. Ngeru is patiently waiting for me, I flap my wings again and propel myself forwards, Ngeru immediately follows.
There are no flying monsters here and the trees are quite far apart so Ngeru has no problem following me. A bush or other blocks her way but her nimble and long legs allow her to easily dodge or jump over them.
Soon we reach the mountain pass and the forest dies out. Only short grass and shrubs are allowed in here, every tree has been cut and used to build the fortress. A small structure of rock and wood can be seen between two huge snow-tipped peaks. The Twins' Pass.
I pass by small groups of people coming and going out of the Pass, more than the usual today. Beastfolk, humans, elves, and the odd wereanimal all point towards me as I fly near them. It's like they never saw a mage using [Fly], actually they might have not, the land-dwellers need [Wind Magic] to fly.
I land near the gate, I stop coursing the wind through my feathers and I fold them. I pull out a small piece of smoked goblin for Ngeru and [Conjure Water] for her on a bowl.
"Good girl," I say while petting her, she answers by purring loudly.
"Miss Haere," a low bass voice greets me in Limba.
Here we go.
"Just Kaka, please," I say and smile.
The large bullfolk grins and nods, he tries to look as tall as he can yet still falls a few centimeters short of me. "Coming to sell your crops again?" He asks.
"Yes, I want to enter the town, please," I say and release Ngeru, she stands in front of me and stares at the bullfolk's eyes.
The man looks slightly unnerved, Ngeru is fast enough to rip his neck before he can properly defend himself. I'm not sure why they don't fear me but they certainly do fear her.
"This way, please," he says. He quickly turns but still steals a glance at my large chest.
The stares of the other beastfolk makes me uneasy but Ngeru is a deterrent against any one stupid enough to get handsy.
The customs is as slow as a death by slime, Buick is taking his sweet time measuring my veggies and stealing looks at me. I close down the buttons on my dress and set Ngeru closer to him, now he quickly picks up the pace and sends me off.
"Rip off, four silver for a bunch of veggies," I mutter and count my coins. "Sorry, Ngeru, no minotaur meat, maybe I can get some smoked orc."
"Meeow."
The people look tense, the beastfolk look out of patience, the humans look scared, the dark elves are keeping to themselves. The town should be bustling with activity this soon after the Turn of the Year and the prices for food should be returning to normal after the debauchery of the festivities but things are expensive. Even Ngeru is getting tense, something is going on.
I hear people talking in Andraste or Iezik much more often, the Limba speakers are in the minority now.
The buildings the land-dwellers build are so ugly, I think none of them know how to paint. I don't even have the [Painting] skill and I can make a proper mural.
"Look at that, most houses don't even have color, they are just raw materials," I say and Ngeru purrs loudly.
Well I guess that is one of the cons of living in the ground.
I find the restaurant I have been looking for and see Broasca outside, taking a break to smoke a pipe.
"Ah, Kaka, good to see you," says the female frogfolk after she stores her pipe back. Her green skin is shining and oily, her large red eyes are oddly attractive, her red hair is short and as well-cared for as a human's.
"Good day, Broasca," I say with a small smile and deposit my basket in front of her, I pull out of my [Item Box] every stored veggie. She immediately reaches over to examine the crops.
"As good as always, I will give ten silver for them," she says after a quick inspection.
"Ten? Broasca, don't play me," I say and frown.
She narrows her vertical eyes at me and sighs, "Look, Kaka, you might be living under a rock, literally, but even you should see that something is happening."
"Yeah, I noticed," I say and look around. Everyone is quiet and hurrying around, only preoccupied with their own business. An odd group of humans is discussing something and sending glances at me repeatedly.
"The Volnosht's are pushing back, the war is getting close to the Twins and that's bad for business. The whole of Bestiaram is being drawn into this conflict. I think that even I will have to move away soon otherwise I will just lose money sticking around," she says in a low, hushed tone.
So this is why the prices are high.
"That close? The Avgi aren't pushing back?" I ask and match her tone.
"No, something bad is going on. The Twins aren't safe, even with the war far from here the danger is still close by. You better leave this place soon too."
"Where would I even go?"
It took me so long to reach this place. A far and quiet little corner, not too many monsters but not too little, not many people but not deserted.
"You use the System, right? Converting wouldn't be a stretch and living among the Avgi priests is certainly better than the Volnosht's."
I frown and hunch over, Avgi priests are a pain in the ass, though. Ngeru turns to me and purrs, rubbing her head on my thigh.
"Thanks, girl," I say and scratch behind her ear. Ngeru helps me calm down, in any case we will stick together and muddle through.
"You understood the situation? Now, take this and leave," Broasca says and grabs my hand, pressing hard 11 silver coins into my hand, she quickly stores the veggies in another basket she took out of her [Item Box]. "Talking about trouble," she takes a glance at the group of humans and hurries back into her restaurant.
I turn around and see the group of 6 humans making their way towards me. Their gazes are strong and unwavering, they are not commoners and they are all wearing padded leather armor.
"Hey there, big girl," says one of the men, his lips smile softly but his eyes are hardened.
"What's a chimera doing in this continent?" Asks another one, the biggest among them all, looks like the leader.
Damn you, what now?
"I'm just a traveler," I say and Ngeru stands in front of me. The men stop from getting too close but they can still surround me.
"Uh huh," the leader strokes his beard while looking me up and down. "Someone as big as you can survive around here quite easily, right? There shouldn't be many monsters as big as you."
"I-I guess so," I say and shrug, I cross my arms so they don't see my hand trembling.
"You don't have any weapons but I heard chimeras are all good mages. You certainly don't need them with a Kish following you, how did you tame this beast, anyway?" He grins widely yet his eyes don't show happiness.
"I saved her while she was a cub, that's all," I say and look around, the streets are suddenly empty.
"But to keep her by your side, you must have some gained some skill, right? Or maybe a blessing? We have seen plenty of hound masters with those, right boys?" He glances quickly at the men and they nod. The men all have their eyes glued on me, their hands are close to the swords at their waist but not in a posture that looks threatening, not too much at least.
What are you testing me for? Damn you and your stupid holy war.
"I'm not that pious," I say. I start feeling up the wind in my feathers, I can't use mana so I'll have to prepare a burst. I hope Ngeru breaks through them and follows me, she won't survive if she tries to fight them.
"Uh huh..." The man mutters and we have a staring contest. Shivers run repeatedly through my back, Ngeru's fur is raised and she slowly raises from her sitting position, the blade in her tail starts to lift up in the air.
I'm sweating cold and my breath starts to increase in cadence. The men are all standing still like statues, their gazes are almost stabbing into my soul. You could hear a coin drop.
A bucket of water falls out of the second floor and hits the leader in the face, splashing water all over him and making him fall back on his ass.
"AH! I'm sorry, young man, didn't see the bucket and dropped it by accident. It seems that my eyesight is failing me," says Broasca in a raspy, old woman voice.
"STUPID DAMN TOAD!" He bellows and throws back the bucket into the window.
"I'm sorry young man but you don't need to to offend, I'm a frogfolk, not a toadfolk. My skin is perfectly moist and shiny, not all dry and rough like the ugly toads. I put on cream all day, you know? It comes aaaall the way from Avgi, I paid a good coin for it, they say the high e-..."
"I DON'T CARE! SHUT UP!" A tone of red takes over the tanned skin of the leader, his cheeks puff up like a real frogfolk.
"I'm sorry, young man, look at me an old woman who simply ca-..."
"We have a problem?" Says another man, loudly yet not yelling.
A tall red lizardfolk comes with 2 other lizards and Buick flanking him. They are all armored and wearing the town guard's tabard.
I'm saved!
The human leader freezes for a second, the red quickly disappears out of his skin.
"No, sir, we were just talking to this chimera over here" -he softly gestures towards me- "a very unusual visitor, is it not?"
The lizardfolk stares at him, his expression is stoic and his pupils blink vertically repeatedly. After a long moment he finally speaks, "Yes, quite unusual, but even so, a woman surrounded by 6 men is quite the sight, is it not?"
The leader smiles falsely again and speaks, "We are just taking a better look, those brown wings are beautiful, are they not? Surely the Gods had a hand in making such a beautiful woman."
"This is your only warning, scram," the red lizard says in a dangerous tone.
The leader bows lightly and turns, the others follow him silently, none take a second look.
"You too," the lizard turns to me and I get a shiver. His long mouth shows some sharp teeth and his scaly tail is stiff.
I nod and move away, my walk is stiff and awkward, my heart is beating like the flap of wings. I see Buick follow me with his eyes, his mouth is stuck in a wide grin.
I look for a random stall, I buy all the smoked goblin meat I can and some salt. I just want to leave this place for a long time.
When we finally get outside the town I breathe in relief.
"I felt like I was being strangled in there, in more ways than one," I say and Ngeru "mrow's" in response.
I'll have to thank Broasca one day, she put herself in danger to help me.
I take flight and move on a different direction than the way from home. When the Pass is beyond sight I turn towards the right direction.
I hear Ngeru growl and stop mid air. I look back and see she's engaging some goblins, after she's done with the fight and with her quick meal we continue back home.
I land near home and Ngeru growls again. I drop the empty basket and lower my ear to the ground, I close my eyes and feel the vibrations. There's something alive near my crops, not on top of them so it's not eating them. It's also a weak pulse, someone is dying or lying in wait for me.
Great, what a great day I'm having.
I focus on the life in the earth, I pull it to me and a large amount of life force comes. This is odd, could it be there's blood in the grass?
I lift up from the ground and quietly move closer, [Quiet Steps] was a good investment. Ngeru silently follows, her body is low and looks like her head slides on the ground.
I smell blood in the air.
We slowly gain sight on the intruder, it's a bloodbath. A disemboweled Vier is laying in a pool of blood besides a dying Wetiko.
The Vier is a meter tall round quadruped with spikes all over its body, its strong legs allows it to charge forward and skewer anything it wants with its long tusks. It currently has its innards all over the ground and a tusk missing.
The Wetiko is a beautiful monster. Over 2 meters tall, taller than me, it has a thin but muscular body, long arms that end in red hands and bladed claws, the tip of his finger can even touch the ground. It's body has a mix of fur and human skin, the head is of a coyote, and it has beautiful deer antlers on top. It is a male, a very well-endowed male.
The Wetiko has a tusk going through its belly but also multiple other cuts all over its body, they weren't made by the Vier.
I start to prepare an [Earth Bullet] to release it from its misery. The Wetiko opens his eyes and Ngeru prepares to pounce and keep him away from me.
"Please... help me..." He says in Andraste.
I get so surprised that I let the spell vanish completely.
"I-I'm sorry, what did you say?" I ask, not believing my ears.
"Help..." It mutters and falls unconscious.
A monster is asking me for help!?
I look at Ngeru and she seems more curious than cautious. There's definitely something different with this monster.
I lower my ear to the ground and close my eyes. I put all my focus around the life force of this monster. It's blood seeps out life force, I focus on that force and try to identify it, it's similar to the characteristic force that comes out of a monster. It has the mana of a monster but the force is different.
"What are you?" I ask but no answer comes.
Dammit, what should I do? It's a monster but a monster never speaks this way to humanoids, even when dying, so is it really a monster?
I look at it again. Such a beautiful and strong creature, he must have had a long journey here, just to die in the hands of a weak monster. Such a shame for a thing like this to happen, a Crime even.
I don't have time to think, the Wetiko will die soon and the blood will attract more monsters.
What is going on with me? I feel like I'm a young little bird again, naive and hopeful.
"Let the gust take me where it wills," I say and pat Ngeru. My curiosity needs to be sated, I want to know why he's asking for help.
First, I grab the Vier's body and fly away with it, I throw it a long distance so other monsters stay away from this place. Then I [Clean] as much blood as I can out of the vegetation.
Then I go back and drag him towards my cave. I pull out an HP potion and shove it on his mouth, he chokes and nearly awakes. I grab some rags and bandage the bigger cuts tight so the bleeding stops.
Then I grab the tusk and cast [Regeneration]. Slowly I try to pull out the tusk, when I feel the wound closing down on the tusk I remove more of it. Little by little the wound closes without too much blood escaping.
Ngeru stands beside me, her tail on the throat of the Wetiko.
My mana runs low but I manage to remove the tusk successfully and close down all the big wounds. Now he needs to survive the blood loss until I can recover more mana.
As a precaution I grab some rope and tie it around his body. If anything it will at least give me enough time to run if he tries to kill me.
"Now we wait."
Hall of Fame of Patrons
The patrons who support Rupegia shall have their names sung by the bards for they deserve the glory and honor. Their names are:
Oracle Maximillian Hübner.
Lord Andrew Meyers.
Lord SenilePenile.
Lord Hope.
Lord Samuel Lim.
Noble Salty Panda.