SNAPCRAFT | BONUS CHAPTER 15.5 - Street Town (Patreon)

This is a bonus chapter because you guys are the best, and you deserve it!

Have fun!

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As soon as Oli landed on the stage, he took off runnin’. Never stop. Never give 'em a clear shot, echoed the words of his street’s cap’n as he darted past the rock piles.

Even as he ran, his eyes took in the new battlefield. Above him, there was an impossibly blue sky. The sun shone majestically and unimpeded, makin' every color and shape too evident and defined. Was this what the sun looked like beyond the gray haze that plagued his sector? He had never imagined that the sun could look so yellow.

He pointed the camera up and took two photos of it.

Capture successful!

Tries left: 19 of 20.

Sun (Common)

1 of 4

Hp: 0

Vp: 3

Capture successful!

Tries left: 18 of 20.

Sun (Common)

2 of 4

Hp: 0

Vp: 3

After checkin’ what was above him, he studied the rock wall encasin' him in all directions. It was too high and steep to climb, and even though the yellow sun illuminated its rocks, it still reminded him of the darkness of the pit. Memories of hunger, cold, and strife rushed through him, and several old wounds ached in response to the memory. Whenever their crew was thrown in it after a lost turf war, they came out of it with new scars. Shudderin’ at the thought of his crew bein’ thrown in that nasty hole if he didn't do well, he hurried.

If this was like the perfumed forest from the previous round, he would find somethin' special in the middle of the arena. Even as he moved through the stony pillars, he studied the cliff walls around him and estimated the center. There was a chance that the walls were an illusion. He entertained the idea of tryin' to reach the wall to check if that was so, but he heard his captain’s voice again. Overthinkin' is a waste of time, cap’n always said. Following Capn’s orders, Oli didn’t overthink; he just ran.

After a few daft dashes and zig-zags through the rock columns, he reminded himself that obstacles didn’t matter here. He could go through stuff as if he were made of wind or somethin’. So, to save time, he just ran in a straight line.

Sure enough, Oli found a pond at the center of the map. The water was crystal clear, almost perfectly transparent. When Ol’ Reggie had told 'em stories of a world with no smell, soot, or grease, with water as clear as mornin' air, he and the rest of the gang had made fun of him. He owed Ol’ Reggie an apology.

Although he had to admit that he enjoyed seein' a blue sky instead of gray, everythin' here was too clean, too scentless, too perfect. It wasn't natural. Even though he appreciated the added clarity the yellow sunlight provided to his surroundings, the lack of smell and the information it offered disturbed him deeply. He felt like one of his eyes had gone blind.

He pointed the camera at this location and shot a photo.

Capture successful!

Tries left: 17 of 20

Pond (Uncommon)

1 of 3

Hp: 2

Vp: 2

Capture successful!

Tries left: 16 of 20

Pond (Uncommon)

2 of 3

Hp: 2

Vp: 2

He took two pictures of the little pond and moved on to the next objective. In the Daisy World, just do what you would in a turf war, Cpt'n always said.

Had this been a turf war, the first thin' he'd do would be to find somethin' to defend himself with. There was no point in findin' water, food, or shelter if he didn’t have a weapon to protect the valuable resources. No, in a turf war, one first secured the means to stand their ground, and only then did they find a ground to stand on.

Unfortunately for him, this place had very little. In his streets, there was helpful stuff everywhere. Old pipes, broken bottles, and sharp pieces of metal were the buildin' blocks of Stree Town. But here, there was only rock. That would have to do. He searched for a piece of stone he would have used in a turf war. Most of the rock in this place was made of huge blocks that were next to useless, but he soon found a piece of rock that had some use.

It was heavy enough to deflect a blow from a pipe or a knife but light enough to be thrown if needed. A thrown rock could do wonders. He scratched the scar on his right temple. He knew from experience.

Oli pointed the magic box at the rock and took a photo.

Capture successful!

Tries left: 15 of 20

Stone (Common)

1 of 4

Hp: 1

Vp: 2

Capture successful!

Tries left: 14 of 20

Stone (Common)

2 of 4

Hp: 1

Vp: 2

Double-shot activated.

Stone (Common)

2 of 4

Hp: 1

Vp: 2

Oli smirked, seein' the upgrade he’d bought last round bein' put to work. He’d learned he could only get two of each card in the previous stage. When he found this out, there was nothin' to think about. You take what you get in the streets, always said the cap' n. If you find food, eat it all until you’re full, then keep eatin' until you burst. If the cap' n were here, Oli reckoned he would take two pictures each time without blinkin'.

Once he reached the end of the round, he discovered a new upgrade that he grabbed without a second thought.

Double Shot (Camera Upgrade)

Requirements: To take nine or more two equal shots durin' a round.

Description: Whenever you capture two equal cards in a row, there’s a 30% chance of getting a third copy.

He had spent 50 coins on this thin', and it was provin' its value already.

With this stone, he had a clumsy tool, and with the pond, a water source. The next thing' he needed was food. Oli kept runnin', all the while lookin' for somethin' edible. Had this been Street Town, he’d been lookin' out for cans to loot and stashes to ransack. But here, he had to adjust his search.

Seein' a pop of yellow color in an otherwise grey landscape, he ran to it and took a photo.

Capture successful!

Tries left: 13 of 20

Lichen (Common)

1 of 4

Hp: 0

Vp: 3

Capture successful!

Tries left: 12 of 20

Lichen (Common)

2 of 4

Hp: 0

Vp: 3

Double-shot activated.

Lichen (Common)

2 of 4

Hp: 0

Vp: 3

He knew this stuff could be eaten. His gang had mapped out a route to find patches of it when there was a lack of better food. He ignored the patches of moss near the yellow lichen, though. That stuff was nasty and too bitter. He had tasted it before and knew from experience to avoid it. As for the other plants with meaty leaves, those he also knew he could eat. They didn’t need much water either, and ol’ Reggie had ‘em in his herb garden.

He pointed the magic box at it and took two pictures.

Capture successful!

Tries left: 11 of 20

Stonerock Succulent (Common)

1 of 4

Hp: 1

Vp: 2

Capture successful!

Tries left: 10 of 20

Stonerock Succulent (Common)

2 of 4

Hp: 1

Vp: 2

Sadly, [Double Shot] didn’t activate this time, but no worries. He had food, water, and a weapon. A hidden lair trumps a strong one, he remembered his cap’n say. Where would he hide in a world where this yellow light showed everythin'?

He ran toward the cliff wall. The center was too exposed for a proper shelter. He avoided the cliff wall hit directly by sunlight and ran toward the shade. Slightly reducin' visibility was a start. If he could go through the rocks in the middle of the map, he could do the same in the cliff wall.

He ran with his hands against the cliff wall, lookin' for a place where the rock protruded away from the shield enough to shield him from an enemy’s vision, and sure enough, after a careful search, found one. As his figure melted into the rock, he found a deep, dark tunnel. There was a lamp.

Light could give away one’s position to the enemy, but it could also be a valuable resource if used carefully. He pointed his camera at it and took a photograph.

Capture successful!

Tries left: 9 of 10

Gaslamp (Uncommon)

2 of 3

Hp: 2

Vp: 2

Capture successful!

Tries left: 8 of 10

Gaslamp (Uncommon)

3 of 3

Hp: 2

Vp: 2

It looked like this wasn’t a good hideout since his opponent had also found it. He’d been stupid enough to leave some of the stuff to him so he would ensure they paid for the mistake. He looked for whatever else was of use. He found a weapon lyin' against the wall. If one swang this thin' right, it would cause a lot of damage.

He bumped into the invisible shield. This had to be the edge of the arena. He pointed the magic box at the weapon and took two photographs.

Capture successful!

Tries left: 8 of 10.

Rusty Pickaxe (Uncommon)

1 of 3

Hp: 4

Vp: 0

Capture successful!

Tries left: 7 of 10.

Rusty Pickaxe (Uncommon)

3 of 3

Hp: 4

Vp: 0

Double shot activated.

Rusty Pickaxe (Uncommon)

3 of 3

Hp: 4

Vp: 0

Funny. It looked like they had taken a picture of this stuff simultaneously. Laughin', he tried lookin' for more stuff to photograph. He pointed at the distant tunnel and thought he could make a card of this shelter.

Capture successful!

Tries left: 5 of 10.

Tunnel (Uncommon)

1 of 3

Hp: 0

Vp: 4

Capture successful!

Tries left: 4 of 10.

Tunnel (Uncommon)

2 of 3

Hp: 0

Vp: 4

Double shot activated.

Tunnel (Uncommon)

2 of 3

Hp: 0

Vp: 4

Now that he had everythin', he would look for more stuff outside. Maybe there was a second shelter he could explore.

*

Oli’s figure returned to the white room. This was the space that disgusted him the most in the exams. Nothin’ that could be used as a weapon, all painted in an unnatural white. He felt like he was in heaven or somethin’.

He approached the strange table and reached for the cards he wanted to mix. The first ones he grabbed were [Stone] and [Gaslamp].

[Stone] + [Gaslamp]

[Stone] | Hp: 1→0

[Gaslamp] | Hp: 2→1

Crafting successful! You've crafted [Glass].

Glass (Common)

Hp: 2

Vp: 1

Gas (Uncommon)

Hp: 1

Vp: 3

Crafting successful! You’ve crafted [Gas].

He smiled as he looked at the card with beads of sharp glass. If he had to fight somethin' later and use these cards to defend himself, this was much better than a rock. That wasn’t all there was to it. He had wanted to get his hands on [Gas].

Cap'n had Oli sneak into their hideout and blasted their supplies in the turf war between Sixth Avenue and Coal Street crews. He had used a similar lamp to make it happen. All he needed now was a spark. Thankfully, he had seen somethin' that could help him with that.

[Rusty Pickaxe]+[Rusty Pickaxe]

[Rusty Pickaxe] | Hp: 4→3

[Rusty Pickaxe] | Hp: 4→3

Crafting successful! You’ve crafted [Spark].

Spark (Common)

Hp: 1

Vp: 2

Oli smiled with his almost toothless grin. How many times had he seen sparks when he and his crew spared with metal pipes or when they fought in the turf wars, or worse, when they were sent down to the pit? All that was left was makin' it bang.

[Spark]+[Gas]

[Spark] | Hp: 1→0

[Gas] | Hp: 1→0

Crafting successful! You’ve crafted [Explosion].

Explosion (Rare)

Hp: 0

Vp: 7

He went on to make one more [Explosion] card. He didn’t bother countin'; he wasn’t too good at it.

After that, he turned to food. The only two things he got that he could eat were [Lichen] and [Stonerock Succulent], but, sadly, [Lichen] didn’t light up when he put it on the table. He just put two [Stonerock Succulents] together instead.

[Stonerock Succulent] + [Stonerock Succulent]

[Stone] | Hp: 1→0

[Gaslamp] | Hp: 1→0

Crafting successful! You've crafted [Meaty Leaf Salad].

Meaty Leaf Salad (Uncommon)

Hp: 0

Vp: 4

After this recipe, he didn’t know what else to do with the cards, so he left them on the table.  He sat on the floor, waitin' for time to pass.

Oli spat as the quiet of the room crept on him. This place gave him an unsettlin' feelin' he had never experienced before. It was thick like oil and pervasive like fog. There was no danger of him bein' ambushed or their turf bein' raided. ‘Peace,’ he believed it was called. The enemy of man, Cap’n called it.

Oli once asked his cap’n why the streets had to fight turf wars against each other. Cuz we’re all in on street smarts, he had said, and only street rats have street smarts. Oli leaned with his back against the wall, a position acquired out of habit. One less side that an enemy could attack. Hopefully, he could bring more food, medicine, and kids to the sector. Hopefully, he wouldn’t have to spend the rest of the week in the pit.

Ch. 15 - Obsessive Rumination

INDEX

Ch. 16 - Topographical Disorientation