bookpower 2.66 Epilogue
2.66 Epilogue
66 – Epilogue
The sunrise was painting the eastern sky shades of yellow, pink, and orange when Andy walked with Lucy to the head of the trail, ready—but not ready—to send her off on her hunt. They moved down the trail a short distance so as to remove themselves from the scrutiny of the other community members who’d come to wish her good luck, and after a long moment of hugging and several kisses, Lucy smiled up at Andy who had to squint against the sun’s glare.
“I feel like I should stay—at least until the Lurikeens are gone, but...”
“But you feel that quest calling your name.” Andy sighed, smiling resignedly. “I get it. Things are different now, and we all have new pressures, new goals, and—”
“Part of the pressure I’m feeling is to be sure I don’t fall behind. I don’t think it’s really fair that my class has this hunt I have to complete, but it makes sense, you know?”
“Yeah, I mean, you’re a Monster Hunter, so...” Andy smiled again, shrugging.
“Smart-ass.” She leaned her forehead against his chest, and he hugged her again, careful not to shift her bow off her shoulder.
“Ho-kay,” she sighed, straightening up. “One more kiss?”
Andy was quick to oblige, savoring the feel of her soft lips against his, trying to memorize the smell of her; somehow she smelled clean, and something like perfume tickled his nose. He supposed perfume wasn’t something that would go bad and there must be millions of bottles of it in the cities—
“What are you thinking about?” she asked, pulling back again.
“Um, just thinking about a present for you.”
“If you want to give me a present, then figure out how to make me a ring like yours!”
“Sheesh, already demanding a ring?”
She punched his shoulder. “You know what I mean.” Before he could respond, she took a step back and turned. “This won’t get any easier, so I’m just gonna go. See you when I get back!”
“Soon!” Andy called after her.
She turned, holding up a thumb as she walked backward.
“Be careful!” Andy cried, but she was nimble, and he doubted there was any chance she’d fall off the edge. He stood there and watched her go, her steps light and easy, and when she reached the bottom, she pulled the hood up on the cloak he’d given her and slipped into the foliage. He probably could have watched her walk for an hour prior to the storm, but now that everything had grown and the canopies of shrubs, trees, and even the cacti were so much larger, he lost track of her after just a minute.
Sighing, he hooked his thumbs in his pockets and turned, shuffling up the trail to the top of the mesa. People were hard at work near the gate; Tucker had come up with a plan to create a much grander entrance to the underground, and all the dirt they’d been digging out made for excellent brick-making material—thanks to Mari’s Claywright class and the skills she’d been teaching others. That said, the old fence was gone and a sturdy block wall was going up in its place.
They were still using the old gate for the time being, but Tucker and some of the other handy folks in the community had plans for that too. Of course, many of their plans centered on getting supplies from Grace Refuge, and so far they’d only made one post-storm delivery. Lydia and her people had made the trek a few days before with Omar, Bella, Jayce, and a few others for escort.
The plan was to bring as many supplies as they could to the mesa and merge the two communities, but the trip was slow going with only horses to pull the wagon and with the roads all washed over with dirt, sand, and debris from the storm. Still, things were moving along, and many folks from the big-box store were already setting up their new homes on the mesa. That was another whole ordeal that made Andy very grateful for people like Violet and Eduardo.
The industrious couple had spearheaded the efforts to divvy the mesa into plots—residential and “garden” plots on the edges and commercial and “community” plots toward the middle. They’d even broken up the lake cavern into public fishing plots and over two-dozen residential ones. The council was still working on criteria for awarding or even selling vacant land to future citizens, but the current community members of Mesquite Mesa were all grandfathered in; every family unit was receiving a plot on which to build.
Most people had been happy with that arrangement, but there were a handful who thought Andy was trying to take too much control—that in this new world freedom was even more essential than in the old one. It was a worthy debate, but Andy’s closest supporters, those whose opinions mattered the most to him, all thought that strong leadership was important in their new reality. In other words, the council was completely behind him, and even grateful that he was including them in the decision-making process.
James had said something that neatly put a bow on the whole thing: “There will always be squeaky wheels looking for grease; sometimes you gotta know when to put on a new wheel.” Andy had taken it to heart and the word sort of spread on its own from there: if someone didn’t like the way Mesquite Mesa was operating, then there was a whole big world out there, and they were welcome to go find a place to do things their own way.
One of the first things Andy did in the days following the storm was to spend the Boon Point he’d earned from settling matters with the Fae. He’d spoken to the council about his visit with the System Guide, mentioned what it told him about “node upgrades,” and everyone had agreed to purchase the System Trade Beacon. It was with that in mind that he angled his steps toward the underground, intent on going to the cavern where he’d moved the System Node.
When he’d first purchased the Beacon, it had increased the size of the Node and caused it to pulsate more rapidly. On the surface, that was the only change; rather than the size of a softball, it was now the size of a bowling ball, and it increased in brightness then dimmed with a regular rhythm, almost like it was breathing. On the Settlement Menu, however, there was a whole new page called Trade Prospects. As of the night before, all it showed was a single word: Updating.
“Hey, Andy!” Omar called as he approached the massive hole where the hatch used to be. There were five or six people hard at work with shovels and pickaxes—tools Andy had helped to enchant earlier that morning. They’d already dug out a twenty-yard-long ramp and though they were waiting for pavers from the Refuge, they’d already spread some sand and gravel over it to keep the mud to a minimum.
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Andy stood at the top of the slope, waving down to his friend. “Looking good!” He could see the old tunnel entrance behind Omar and the chisel marks where people had been working to widen the sandstone passage. Eventually, they’d install tracks and a mining cart that would lead to a bucket-winch mounted at the center of the open stairwell—that was the plan, at least, but they had a long way to go.
“Man, this is a big job, but at least we’re digging up all kinds of clay.”
Andy started down the slope, nodding. “We’ll need it, though I figure when this is done, we’ll have to start gathering from down by the lake.”
“Hope Tucker knows what he’s talking about when it comes to lift winches.”
“Well, it’s not just him; I mean his class helps, but there are other people who know what they’re doing. Your buddy, Rigo, for instance.”
“Yeah, Rigo’s smart as hell, and that class...”
Andy filled it in for him, “Colony Mechanist.”
Omar nodded, chuckling. “I get the mechanist; I mean he used to rebuild transmissions, but how the...” He shrugged, trailing off again.
“It’s all about intention, man. He was helping Tucker with settlement things, and the System took note.”
“Yep, yep.” Omar stepped aside as one of the others working on the ramp pushed a wheelbarrow past him. “I guess I should get back to it. Are those Lurikeens gone yet?”
Andy shook his head. “Soon.”
“At least they’ve been friendly. I guess James has been working with that girl—Orla, right?”
“Yeah, but she’s probably older than all of us combined, so not really a girl.” He smiled as Omar made a face. “Anyway, yeah, he’s been trading with her, but he’s clever about it.”
“Yeah, Violet told me he never takes any help without offering her something in exchange.”
Andy grinned, remembering how frustrated Orla had been with the older man, insisting that her tutelage didn’t have strings attached. He gestured to the tunnel. “I’ll come help in a few minutes. I’m gonna check the Node.”
“Right. See you in a bit.”
As he walked through the tunnels, Andy’s mind drifted back to James. The Tinkerer had improved a couple of secondary classes, but he was still eager for Andy to find the ingredients for the spear recipe. Thanks to other hunters and foragers, the only pieces he lacked were the “phoenix ash” and the “sunblight crystal.” Of course, they were the two items Andy had no clue how to find. He was hoping the Settlement Trade Beacon might help solve that problem if it ever finished “updating.”
In the main cavern, he passed by the kitchen area and supply tents, only to have Bernice call out to him, waving him over. Andy glanced to the corner where the Node awaited, but pushed his anticipation aside and walked over to the former park manager. “Hey, hey. What’s up?”
“I wanted to let you know that those harpies of yours left us another present by the waterfall.” Andy chuckled. “Those harpies of his” were Lyta and her flock, and they’d been delivering fresh kills almost every morning since they’d taken up more permanent residence down in the Whisperwood Grove. Apparently hunting was much improved after the storm. They’d brought all sorts of fresh game—javelinas, giant jackrabbits, snakes, lizards, and even a cow on one occasion. How the harpies had carried the huge carcass up to the waterfall, Andy couldn’t guess, but he figured magic had to be involved.
“What was it this time?”
“Another big damn snake.” She laughed, shaking her head. “I mean, honestly, we’re going to need to start smoking this meat if we don’t figure out a way to use magic to cure it. I think Miriam and Monique are close to something, though; they both learned spells for enchanting salts yesterday. Doesn’t hurt that they share everything they learn with each other.”
Miriam and Monique both had classes that focused on cooking; the thing was, Bernice also had a Cook class, but she’d recently changed when the System offered her a new one. Andy tilted his head and said, “My money’s still on you. Supply Master sounds like the kind of class that would get magic for preserving things.”
Bernice shook her head, frowning. “Maybe, but the damn class is hard to level. I still haven’t found any tricks to it. I barely got any experience for organizing the supply tent.”
“Well, let’s sit down with Eduardo and see if we can brainstorm some ideas.” Andy nodded over to the corner where the Node softly pulsed. “I’m going to check out the Trade Beacon, but let’s talk after lunch.”
“Okay. Thanks, Andy.” As he walked toward the Node, she called after him, “Hope you like snake meat.”
He waved his gloved hand over his shoulder. “Tastes like chicken!”
When he reached the corner, he put his hand on the pulsating orb, then scanned the main status page, looking for any notable changes. Nothing seemed to have changed since his last inspection; they still had 118 citizens, and the settlement was still level four. He didn’t see any new quest opportunities, so he mentally selected the Trade Beacon page, and his eyes widened at the blinking message on the screen:
1 open-trade settlement found within a fifty-mile radius: Titan Silo SocietyGoods for trade: mana-tempered blades, heavy armor, rare monster trophies, alchemical recipes, mercenary servicesGoods requested: non-perishable foods, precious metals, weapon-grade ore (enchantable), medicinal treatments, coal, oil, diesel fuel, dungeon coordinatesTrade note: Envoys received at San Xavier Mission; violence will be met with deadly forceBeneath that message was another:
Beacon active, set up trade message? Yes/No
“Uh...shit,” Andy whispered, his mind reeling at all the implications. Apparently there was only one other settlement that had opened a Trade Beacon in the Tucson area—so far—and they seemed a heck of a lot more organized than Andy’s little community. Still, they were on the other side of the city, and at that moment, fifty miles might as well have been a thousand in his mind.
“For now,” he said, considering everything they were figuring out. Things—classes, magic, and everything else—were progressing, and the world might not seem so huge after he and his friends gained another ten or twenty levels.
At that thought, he said, “No,” and closed the menu. He’d talk to the council about it; they’d have to be careful about drawing the wrong kind of people to their community for trade, so a place to receive “envoys” was probably the kind of idea they ought to steal from the Titan Silo Society.
Thinking about levels and magic and how they might make the world feel less enormous got Andy thinking about his own plans for advancement. He had every intention to keep working on enchanting, but he also wanted to gain more Improvement Points using the techniques from the Codex entry he’d been awarded. Of course, those sorts of activities would have to be balanced against managing the settlement, exploring, hunting for monsters, and a thousand other important tasks.
Despite the almost overwhelming list, he felt good. As he’d discovered in Scarag Heights, he felt fulfilled in a way his old life could never have matched; he had people to look after, and people who were looking after him. He never woke up wondering what the “point” was. No, the apocalypse had been a harsh and truly awful thing for many, many people, but Andy, for some inexplicable reason, seemed to thrive in it.
As he perused his status sheet, a warmth settling into his chest, he realized that despite everything he’d lost, everything that had happened to the world, he felt lucky. So much worse had happened to so many people; it would be selfish for him to complain.
STATUS:
Name: Andrew “Andy” West
Species: Human
Bloodline:Echo of the Vanir
Active Class: Brimstone Stalker
Level: 27
Inactive Classes:
Glyphwright (6)
Unclassed (2)
Experience toward next level: 71%
Mana: 690/690
Perception: 8
Will: 8
Strength: 9
Vitality: 9
Speed: 13
Improvement Points: 5
Notable Skills or Spells:
(* denotes active Bound abilities)
Butcher’s Insight: 3
Leadership: 3
Tracking: 1
Spears: 4
Short Blades: 1
Critical Mastery: 5
Sneak Attack: 5
Smokescribe: 1
Harden Enchantment: 1
Evaluate Material: 3
*Balefire Lance – Bound: 4
*Deepsmoke Shroud – Bound: 5
*Flame Sight – Bound: 5
*Smoke Cloud – Bound: 4
*Cinderstorm Blast – Bound: 4
*Smoke Drift – Bound: 1
*Firewalk – Bound: 1
Glyph of Fate – Bound: 3
Glyph of Resilience – Bound: 1
Glyph of Defense – Bound: 3
Strip Enchantment – Bound: 1
Notable Distinctions:
Mark of the Predator
Reaper’s Instinct
Vanguard Striker
Horde Slayer