Two days later. . .
"Why do you bother taming creatures?"
"Care to explain?"
"The purpose of taming creatures. Why do you expend so much effort for a creature who could die anyway?"
Jarvis shook his head, "I believe you are looking at this wrong. I do not tame creatures for strength. I am fascinated by them, how do they think? How do they work? How do they live? Such thoughts crowd my head and I truly wish to know the creatures. Ever since Whitelash's death I have taken extra measures to ensure the safety of my own tames. I cannot stand the thought of losing one."
"Even if their strength proves inefficient in the future?"
"If their strength is inefficient then it's my fault. Like it is currently."
"What about your current tames? Haven't you gone through extra effort to have them on your side?"
"I never asked them to join me. They all offered."
"That seems like a lie."
"Want to hear the story of each of them?"
". . . Make it short."
Jarvis excitedly opened the book and pointed at the Quintuplet Man-Eaters, "These small creatures are vicious carnivores. Yet for some reason they are inseparable. Going so far that they will all die if they are missing one. Why? What compels them to do so? I came across these guys when I came across these guys Leny was critically injured. The others were dejected and hardly moving. I assumed they were waiting for him to heal or die I guess. I nursed him back to health which greatly improved the mood of them. I left them to their lives and continued traveling, until I came across them again. It was at that point I realized they wished to be with me."
Jarvis flipped the page which showed Staff, "Staff wields electricity through his horn. I couldn't help but wonder, why the horn? Why is it shaped like that? I stumbled upon him mourning the loss of his mate. I felt sorry for him and helped him take revenge. After doing so Staff wished to follow me. It was only after that did I learn that this species chooses only one mate. He's quite the fighter, I supposed that's because he has no regard for his own life anymore."
The page was flipped and showed a large armored mantis, "This is Mantid. A species that eats rocks and minerals to strengthen its own armor. Apparently the quantity isn't as important as the quality. For Mantid is capable of taking a small mineral and learning what it consists of. Then is capable of reproducing that same mineral for its armor. Why hadn't this been used more? With some mutual trust natural resources wouldn't ever run out. Yet I think their natural desire for stronger armor may make that difficult. I simply fed it some interesting rocks as I traveled. I guess it got attached to whatever I was feeding it, because it wanted to stick with me."
Extreok watched the human excitedly explain his tames and how he obtained them. Slowly her impression of the human was improving. She was beginning to think that perhaps becoming a tame of the human wasn't bad. He seems to genuinely care about them. Besides she had been spending the last decade or so sitting in this spot. Perhaps some adventure would be best?
Extreok sighed, she still owed Whitelash a favor as well. So be it.
Jarvis noticed Extreok standing up and walking over. His voice slowed as she walked up to him, "You have convinced me, I shall assist you."
Jarvis nearly wanted to jump with joy, yet he contained such emotions and patted her snout, "Thanks, I won't forget this."
Jarvis accepted Extreok faded into colors, filling an empty page in Jarvis book. There a majestic wolf stood, lightning and wind rampant around it.
Jarvis smiled and closed the book. He then took a deep breath, "Ah!!!!! I am in such a bad condition!"
Jarvis logged off immediately and decided he would take a day off. He needed to rest and properly care for himself.
"Please don't let the others be like this!", He prayed to no one in particular.
~ ~ ~
Boom-!
Tilia slid back, "Well, I seemed to have bitten off more than I can chew."
A boss version of the monsters she has been slaying was in front of her. She had been slowly fighting these over the past few weeks. Amassing quite a bit of their scales. However it seemed to have called a hidden boss, for one stood right in front of her.
Tilia rubbed an aching shoulder, "But. . . you might help me figure this out."
The beast roared and charged forward. Tilia put up her arms to defend herself.
Boom-!
Tilia's knees buckled as the ground cracked beneath her. As her HP dropped she struggled to lift the limb that attacked her.
"This isn't it! I feel like it's right there! So why can I not control it?"
The beast roared and slammed a limb into her side. Sending her crashing into a tree. The poor tree was splintered from the impact. Tilia lay still from the attack, "This sucks."
"Are you okay miss?"
A small girl appeared over her. Tilia struggled to get up, "You should get out of here. It's dangerous you know?"
"Dangerous..?"
The beast roared.
The little girl looked up, yet was unafraid of the monster. Tilia mustered her might and stood up. The beast's limb slammed into her. This time she was driven further down. Her HP plummeted, some of her armor cracked.
The little girl called, "Papa!"
"Lou! It's dangerous!"
"Dangerous? Put Papa's here?"
An aged man ran up and shot an arrow at the beast, "Lou run back to Mama alright? I am going to play a little game of tag."
"Can I join?"
"Next turn okay?"
"Okay!"
The little girl ran off and the man shot several more arrows, "Hey! Are you still alive?"
Tilia's vision flickered as she stood up, "Barely. . ."
"Good! I thought you died, this beast isn't something many can afford to take a hit from."
Tilia felt mentally and physically fatigued, "You're telling me. . ."
"H-Hey now! Stay awake for now! I cannot kill this thing, but I can try to drive it off!"
Tilia pointed a finger and mumbled something. Runes covered the man's body and his eyes widened, "What is-?"
Tilia closed her eyes, "Good luck."
Tilia's vision went black.
. . .
Tilia made a sound.
"Papa! She's waking!"
"Get me some stew Lou, I will make sure she is well."
Tilia opened her eyes and saw a woman with a kind look, "Who?"
"Shh, rest for now. You have been seriously injured. It's best to let it heal."
"Seriously injured? It will heal soon, I have had worse."
"Still, rest for now. Gerald should be back soon, he will talk to you then."
Tilia's mind was slowly clearing and she began remembering the events that occurred before she blacked out, "Is he fine?"
"He hasn't died after all these times, I doubt this time will change. Here, have some food."
Tilia graciously accepted the meal, slowly eating the delicious stew. Soon she had ate it all, leaving her quite satisfied.
"Would you like some more?"
"No thank you, that was great."
The woman nodded and proceeded to mix a few herbs together. Tilia watched with interest as she asked, "Who are you?"
The woman conversed while messing with the herbs, "My name is Ryla, my husband who saved you is Gerald. This is our daughter Lou."
Tilia then remembered her manners, "Thank you. For saving me."
Ryla shook her head, "It's not me you should thank. I should be thanking you. Lou would have been crushed by the monster had you not stopped it. It scared me half to death!"
"That's partially my fault anyway. I had angered it somehow."
"Regardless we have been careless with Lou around. Had she died I wouldn't know what to do."
Tilia heard her voice crack and remained silent. After a minute Lou walked over to Tilia, "Your strong! You blocked the big monster's attack with your arms!"
Tilia smiled, "I know some people who are stronger."
"Like Papa?"
Tilia agreed, "Indeed, he did chase away the monster after all."
"Papa is very strong! He hunts big monsters all the time!"
Ryla gave more information on this, "Gerald used to be an adventurer. However he gave up that life to live with me out here."
"Do you like it out here?"
"While it has its dangers. . . it's pleasant. We live off the land and do not have to worry about laws or taxes..."
Thump-
Tilia heard a sound outside, yet it Lou and Ryla didn't seem to notice. Slightly worried Tilia got up.
Ryla saw this and immediately put down the herbs, "Please, you must rest!"
Tilia made a light laugh, "You underestimate my recovery. However I am worried something might be outside, just a moment okay?"
Ryla nodded, albeit hesitantly. Tilia smiled and walked outside. A few moments later she shouted:
"Ryla! Come outside!"