Grand Game 415: The First of Many (Patreon)
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âA followerâŠâ Nyra mused, her brows crinkled. âIâm assuming you donât mean in the general sense of the word?â
My lips twitched. âNo, Iâm referring to what the Game terms followers.â I paused. âA follower is a player who binds themselves to another⊠player.â
Despite my resolve to be open with Nyra, I couldnât tell her everything. For one, if I told her I was a Powerâeven if only an Initiate oneâsheâd likely run screaming. And for another, I still didnât truly believe I was one myself. Not yet.
âAnd why would any player do such a thing?â Nyra asked. âBind themselves to another, I mean.â
I shrugged. âFor many reasons. But in your case, I will offer you attribute points. You remember what I told you about them?â
She nodded.
âFor context, a level one player begins the Game with only two attribute points. I will give you thirty.â
Her eyes widened. âAnd what do you want in exchange?â
âYour pledge of loyalty,â I said bluntly. âTo me personally. If you agree to become my follower, the Game will enact a Pact between us.â Iâd explained what a Pact was to her earlier and didnât do so again. âThe Pact will require you to follow my orders. In return, I will pledge to equip you, help you advance in the Game, and finally protect you from the Gameâs Powersâand if I canât do that, revenge you.â
I held her gaze. âThis next bit is important, so listen carefully. The Pact is not irrevocable. You retain your free will and can break it, but if you do so, the Adjudicatorânot meâwill exact a price, and I warn you, it will be steep.â
Falling silent, I watched Nyra intently, waiting to see what she made of my offer.
She took her time, thinking it through. âI understand what I can get out of this⊠deal, but what is in it for you? Why take on a level one player as a followerâone ignorant of the Game too! Surely, there are more suitable players out there?â
I chuckled, but my amusement was only fleeting. âActually, there are not. Trust, you will learn, is a rare commodity in the Game. And there are not many I dare trust.â
I paused, reflecting how to phrase what I needed to. âYou see, Nyra, Iâm not just any player. What I amâand I will not explain fully what that is, right nowâis a player who is anathema to most of the Gameâs Powers. They will kill me, and any who follow me, just for what I represent. So, before making your decision, understand that tying your fate to mine will likely mean being huntedâruthlessly.â
Surprisingly, Nyra laughed. âThat, at least, is something Iâm already familiar with.â
âYouâve convinced her,â Ghost declared, with a prodigious yawn.
I smiled. âThen, have you decided?â
Nyra inclined her head. âI have. I will become your follower⊠Michael.â
â” â” â”
âExcellent,â I said, with a heartfelt smile. âThen the first step is to take up your Class.â
Nyra turned back to the four stones awaiting her on the table, and I could almost see the question running through her mind: a spy, a sniper, a spellslinger, or a sharpshooter. Which was best?
This time, Nyra didnât deliberate over her options. Reaching down, she plucked up one of the stones and glanced at me. âNow what?â
âWill your choice to the Adjudicator,â I replied.
Her brows furrowed in consternation, but I knew sheâd done what I asked because a second later, the bronze marble disappeared from her open palm.
Nothing about Nyra changed, not visually, anyway.
But I knew everything had. She was a player now, irrevocably, and evermore. Curious to learn her choice, I reached out and analyzed her.
The target is Nyra, a level 1 human sniper. She is a player and bears no Marks.
My eyebrows rose. âWell, well, a sniper. I admit Iâm surprised. I really thought youâd go with the spellslinger or sharpshooter.â
âWhyâs that?â she asked absently, her eyes turned inward as she read through the Game messages that were probably still unfurling in her mind.
I smiled. âMagic is hard to resistâin any form.â
She focused on me. âThey tempted me, I admit. But in the end, I found the idea of dealing death from afar while safe and hidden more attractive.â
I laughed. âI know what you mean.â
She squinted at me. âYou donât look any different, though. I thought...â
âYou thought youâd be able to tell other players on sight?â
She nodded.
âYou will. First, though, youâll need to obtain the trait, Markedâwhich you will soon enough.â She opened her mouth, more questions on the tip of her tongue no doubt, but I waved her to silence. âIâm sure thereâs much more you want to know, and I promise, Iâll tell you what I can. But later.â I glanced at the door.
Algar and Horlick hadnât reappeared, but they had to be getting impatient. âShall we finish up before weâre interrupted?â
She nodded, knowing what I meant but looking only slightly anxious at the prospect.
âGood, then letâs begin,â I said, more than a little nervous myself.
I was about to take on my first follower. In some ways, doing so would be no different than becoming the alpha of the arctic wolves. Like I had with them, I would be pledging to protect and aid Nyra.
But in other ways, what I did today was different.
This time the Game itself would be involved. And in a very real sense, this would be my first official act as a Power. Only Powers could form Pacts. And here I was about to create one.
There would be no denying what I was after this.
Seeming to feel the weight of the occasion as I did, Ghost rose to all fours, and stood stiffly at attention. Inclining my head one last time to Nyraâwhether the gesture was meant to reassure her or me, I wasnât quite sureâI closed my eyes, and reached out to the Adjudicator.
Initiating a Pact between Wolf Lord Michael and the player NyraâŠ
â” â” â”
Finalizing the wording of the Pact took longer than expected.
The concept of a follower Pact was simple enough to understand, but the details were more difficult to iron out, especially since the Pact could be tailored differently for each follower.
It took several iterations, but eventually, Nyra and I reached consensus on a Pact whose terms both us and the Adjudicator found agreeable.
You have formed a follower Pact with the player, Nyra.
She will unquestioningly obey all your commands in battle. Outside of combat, Nyra will retain greater autonomy but must still obey any directives you issue. These include a call to arms, truces, and any declaration of friends and foes.
In exchange, you pledge to protect and aid Nyra against other Powers, and any enemies of your chosen faction. Additionally, you will grant Nyra a boon of 30 attribute points.
This Pact will terminate once Nyra reaches level 249.
Opening my eyes, I exhaled slowly. âThere. It is done.â
Nyra tugged at her hair doubtfully. âIt is? I donât feel any different.â
I shook my head. âYou wonât. As I said, the Pact will not impinge on your will. You may break it if you wish, so long as you are prepared to accept the Gameâs punishment.â
Then, too, the commitments Iâd asked Nyra to make were not onerous. Outside of a few carefully selected obligations, Nyra was free to play the Game as she desired. It was no less than I wouldâve wanted had our positions been reversed.
Surprisingly, it was the Pactâs termination clause that the Adjudicator had found most objectionable. I was not sure why that was the case, but perhaps it was because what I attempted was non-standard. I couldnât imagine many follower Pacts being created with one attached.
Iâd tried wording the termination clause differently to account for Nyraâs possible evolution at some point, but the Game would not accept any variation I put forward, and in the end I had to define the termination point in the simplest way possible, by Nyraâs level.
At level two-hundred and fifty, Nyra could potentially become a Powerful Initiate, and I was the last person who was going to rob her of the opportunity of doing soâassuming she got that farâhence the Pactâs automatic termination at level two hundred and forty-nine.
I couldnât say for certain that being my follower would prevent Nyra from becoming a Powerâafter all, followers and Sworn were different, and technically, Nyra was still unSwornâbut until I knew for certain the differences between the two, I wasnât going to risk compromising her.
âWhatâs this bit about âchosen faction?ââ Nyra asked. Sheâd been intently reading the Pact while Iâd been lost in thought, I notedâwhich was a good thing. I didnât want her to take her responsibilities lightly.
âIâve yet to join or create one,â I replied. âIt is another matter we must discuss later.â
âIf you say so,â she muttered, clearly overwhelmed. She glanced at the door. âNow what?â
âThereâs two more things we must do before we can rejoin the others.â I paused. âThree, actually.â
Saying nothing, she waited for me to go on.
âFirst, there is the matter of your attribute points. We must deal with that before the Pact can be fully sealed.â
Turning my attention inward, I checked my player status and specifically my attribute ranks.
You have 0 attribute points available.
Strength: 15. Constitution: 19. Dexterity: 71. Perception: 56. Mind: 117. Magic: 43. Faith: 0.
Bequeathing three of my hard-earned attributes to another was going to hurt, but there was no doubtâgiven the conversion ratioâthey would better serve Nyra than me. And I had come to the decision that if I was going to all the trouble of recruiting followers it served my interest to make them as strong as possible.
And truly, thirty free attributes would be game-changing for a level one player like Nyra whereas the loss of three attributes would hardly impact me at all.
So, what to cut? I wondered, studying my attributes.
Magic, I decided after a moment.
Of all my attributes, Magic was the area where I had the greatest surplus. Yes, it powered my void armor, and yes, Ghost would need it for her own abilities, but lowering Strength and Constitution would weaken the pyre wolf even more, and Dexterity, Perception, and Mind were too important to my own abilities to compromise.
It had to be Magic.
On that note, I willed my intent to the Game.
Your Magic has decreased to rank 40.
Commander ability triggered. 3 attributes have been transferred to Nyra in the form of 30 attribute points.
Your Pact with Nyra has been sealed, and she has been sworn into your service as a follower. Total followers: 1 / 100.
As a result of her new status, Nyraâs spirit signature has been etched with a new Mark. She now bears the Mark of Michael!
Congratulations, Michael, you have bound your first follower and have accomplished the feat: The First of Many! Requirement: attain your first follower. As a reward, you have been awarded 1 Class point.
I stared at the Adjudicatorâs messages with a half-strangled expression. The free Class point was certainly welcome. But Nyraâs new Mark was⊠troubling.
Not to mention revealing.
Iâd feared something like this, though. Now, I could only hope my plan for dealing with it would work.
âWow,â Nyra exclaimed. She, too, had no doubt been inundated with Game alerts. âWhat do I do with all these attribute points?â she whispered.
âIf you want my advice, you will invest everything in Perception,â I said.
She glanced at me. âNot that Iâm disagreeing, but why Perception?â
âPerception is the governing attribute of your longbow skill. The higher it is, the easier you will be able to pick out and hit your targets. And if weâre going to stand any chance of leveling you up in Dravenâs Reach, you will need the added boost it provides you.â Withdrawing an object from my backpack, I placed it on the table. âAlso, there is this.â
The target is the rank 5 longbow: quaker. It increases the damage you deal by 50%. Additionally, all arrows fired from this bow will bear the enchantment: paralyzing touch. Any target hit that fails a physical resistance check is stunned for 3 seconds. This item requires a minimum Perception of 20 to wield.
Nyra stared at the weapon in fascination. âIs that as nice a bow as I think it is?â
âQuaker is a bit more than nice.â I smiled wryly. âCertainly, itâs much better than anything I ever had when I started off. Invest in Perception and you will be able to use it.â
Nyraâs hand moved hesitatingly to the weapon, then paused. âItâs for me?â she asked incredulously.
I nodded. âI found the bow early on in Dravenâs Reach. Unfortunately, itâs nearly the only piece of equipment I have that is suitable for you. Itâs yours now.â I grinned. âBut only if you want it.â I had no doubt that she would, though.
âThank you,â she said fervently, closing her hands around the bow. âAnd I will do as you advise and increase my Perception.â
âGood. That takes care of the second thing.â
âWhatâs the last thing?â
I inhaled. âConcealing your new Markâif we can.â
Her brows creased. âYou mean this âMark of Michaelâ thing?â
I nodded.
âWhat is it?â she asked, still sounding confused.
âItâs a spirit signature and will let every player you come in contact with know that youâre my follower, which for many reasons is not ideal, and not something I wish for.â
She nodded slowly. âHow do we hide it?â
âLike this,â I said, laying a hand on her and willing my intent to the Game.
Commander ability triggered.
Do you wish to pass on your secret blood trait to your follower, Nyra?
âYes,â I said aloud.
Analyzing playerâŠ
Shifting impatiently, I waited.
âWhatâs going on?â Nyra whispered.
âThe Adjudicator is checking your bloodlines,â I replied absently.
âMy bloodlines?â
âItâs yourââ I began, then broke off as more alerts scrolled through my mind.
Analysis complete.
The player Nyraâs blood is unawakened and she is unbound to any House. She carries 17 bloodline strains, one of which is of Wolf. You may pass on the secret blood trait to your follower.
Note that doing so will not awaken her blood. In order for Nyra to acquire blood memories of her own, she will have to undergo a blood awakening.
Do you still wish to proceed?
My shoulders sagged in relief. I hadnât been certain that granting secret blood to Nyra would work, but after I had learned that the Adjudicator had told her to find me, Iâd suspected that the odds were better than even that she had some measure of wolf blood. The Game didnât do anything without reason, and the Adjudicatorâs tasks, Iâd long begun to suspect, were a subtle means of guiding players.
Still, I had gambled. Correctly, it turned out.
Now, to find out just how this works. Willing my answer to the Gameâs question, I waited.
Nyra has been awarded the trait: secret blood (lesser). As a weaker variant of secret blood, this trait will only hide a single aspect of Nyraâs ancient lineageâher Marks. Players and Powers alike will be deceived. The effects of this trait are untraceable and permanent. However, it will only apply to her Marks.
âIt worked!â Laughing in delight, I glanced at Nyra. Her eyes were unfocused again.
âSo many messages,â she murmured.
âDonât worry about them,â I said, still grinning. âTheyâre only informing you that no one will be able to see your Mark of Michael anymore.â
She frowned. âYouâre sure? What about this bit about becoming a âwolf-friend?ââ
My grin faded. âWhat?â
She glanced sideways at Ghost. âIs that because of her?â she asked doubtfully. âBecause somehow I donât think weâre friends yet.â
Ghostâs ears perked up. âPrime, sheâs not lying! She has the Wolf Mark. I can see it.â
For a second, I could only stare at Nyra and Ghost in shock. Nothing I had done should have granted Nyra the Wolf Markâso why had she received it? And it was not that I doubted Ghost, but I had to be certain. Reaching out with my will, I analyzed Nyra again.
The target is Nyra, a level 1 human sniper. She is a player and bears a Mark of Michael (hidden) and a Mark of Wolf (hidden).
Note that only you and others who follow you can see Nyraâs Mark of Michael.
âYouâre right, Ghost,â I murmured, âbut I donât know whyââ
The arrival of yet more Game messages interrupted me.
Your follower, Nyra has completed the hidden task, Join the Wolves, and has received the Mark, Wolf-friend.
Your follower has accomplished the feat, Play the Game, and has received the trait, Marked.
âAh,â I exhaled.
It seemed Nyra was destined to be more firmly bound to House Wolf than even I had anticipated. Something weâd done must have triggered the completion of a hidden task for Nyra.
âYou know what all this means?â she asked, correctly interpreting my reaction.
I nodded, then sighed. âI do, but explaining it is going to take a lot longer.â I headed for the door. âCome on, Iâll explain on the way.â
âWhere are we going?â she asked, hurrying to catch up.
âTo find something to kill.â I glanced at her over my shoulder. âPreferably without you dying in the process.â