Skill Outtake & Revision Note (Patreon)

Here is the skill outtake I mentioned last update!

He’d start with [Envenomate].

[This uncommon skill produces lethal venom. When applied, the venom initially paralyzes, blinds, and then kills. Skill level and lethality advances with Grade level.]

Before he’d broken up with his girlfriend, she’d forced him to watch a ton of nature documentaries. Logan could take them or leave them, but he remembered watching one that featured an octopus who had a neurotoxin that was lethal to humans. Something like the thing being so dangerous that it could kill over 20 humans within minutes.

That was a lot of potential death in such a small package. [Envenomate] was tied to his Grade level, so it might not be that lethal to start, but he could see the practical applications.

The two other skills that advanced with his Grade were passive skills. Logan only had to glance at something to activate [Idiot’s Inspect] and [Regenerate] had already started growing his severed limbs without any conscious decision on his part. [Envenomate] had to be the same.

The problem was that if that was the case, where was the venom?

Logan glanced at his hands, but they were dry; and other than the unsightly new growth, nothing seemed out of the normal. Snakes injected their venom through a bite. Through fangs. Logan didn’t have fangs.

Using the index finger on his good hand, he touched his front teeth, tracing his incisors. They seemed normal. Glancing into the mirror and opening his mouth, he stared, but that looked normal too.

He flexed his tongue.

Normal. Everything was normal.

Logan expanded the skill again, hoping for a hint.

[This uncommon skill produces lethal venom. When applied, the venom initially paralyzes, blinds, and then kills. Skill level and lethality advances with Grade level.]

It didn’t say he could inject it, like with a bite. Just that it ‘produced’ venom.

How?

Logan furrowed his brow. If the skill was passive, he might have an inkling of what that meant. It was the only possible answer. He didn’t like where his thoughts were taking him and what that could mean for his future, but he wouldn’t put it past the System. If he were expecting it to allow him to have a normal life after this whole thing was over, he’d first have to survive.

Cautious, Logan grabbed his bat and then inched to the edge of the lake. The sun was dipping below the horizon, an explosion of orange and purple in the sky creating a hell of a sunset. He had enough light to still see the edge of the water, and he walked along the shore until the sand become rocky ground and he found an overhanging large boulder hanging over the shoreline. Logan clambered on top of it and looked down at the water. It was deep even at the edge. That should work.

Plopping down on the base of the rock, he let his bare feet (and his still unsightly growing appendage) dip into the water and then willed one of the small fishing nets from his spatial storage device.

He needed to be careful here. Logan wouldn’t want Ernie to get the wrong idea—that he was fishing for himself and not catching fish for the octopus—but unless he wanted to stumble into the forest in search of another rabid squirrel, this was the easiest option.

Minnows were flush in the Okanagan Lake. Although Logan had never considered catching them for food due to their tiny size, they would be perfect to test out [Envenomate] in a pinch.

Logan was still, as motionless as possible, not moving his feet or toes, letting the fish get curious.

End of Outtake.

After writing this far, I suddenly started to realize that this skill was making me go in a direction I didn't want. Suddenly, Logan was thinking how he'd never get to kiss anyone again, also, I didn't want Idiot's Paradox to go into a monster evolution route! So I scrapped it.

Update Two!

Over the holidays, I decided to revise the whole "leave Martin in the supply room to gestate" chapter, which meant revisions needed to be made to chapter 19 - 23. If you'd like to read the revisions, please start at Chapter 19 - The Gestating Undead Minion. Altogether, it's an addition of around 1K words.

If you'd prefer not to read, I've listed what I've changed in point form instead:

-Logan does not leave Martin in the storage room to gestate; instead, he has Tasha kill Martin.

-Both Tasha and Logan think she killed Martin and leveled up.

-However, undead gestating minions now have a quirk. Like zombies, unless you bash them in the head, they come back. Tasha only received a 'subdued' message, which also allowed her to level up.

-Martin still escapes by tunneling out.