1 Pact
Ren stared at the thing. He was dreaming, but he'd never had one as lucid as this. It was pretty disconcerting for him.
The 'thing' he was staring at was actually an omnipotent interdimensional creature from what it called the Beyond. Ren wasn't good with people, or any other sentient creature, as a general rule, but even he could hear the Capital Lettering of its home.
"So," he started, "You want to make a pact with me?"
The being did not speak, but Ren felt its intentions clearly. It yes, in fact, did want to make a pact with Ren. "The terms?"
Ren also did not trust anyone, as a general rule. He didn't want to become the being's slave.
A list appeared in Ren's mind. He grinned and spoke articulately,
"I agree to the terms of this Pact."
»»»«««
Ren shot straight up, ignoring the dirty rags wrapped around him like a blanket. He then proceeded to sit straight back down. Don't attract attention. Just don't.
Ren mentally called up his full status, eager to see the changes.
† Ren †
† Health: 90/90 R0.8/h ‡ Stamina: 98/100 R0.8/m ‡ Mana: 80/80 R1.5/m
† Race: Half-Aeth †
† Racial Traits: Darkvision ‡ Fay Ancestry †
† Class: Warlock (The Being from the Beyond) †
† Level: 0 ‡ 024/100 to level 1 †
† Class Features: Otherworldly Patron ‡ Pact Magic †
† Otherworldly Patron: You have made a Pact with a being not of this world. †
† Pact Magic: You may use Charisma as your magic modifier. You may use Charisma to decide maximum mana. You may use Willpower to decide mana regeneration. †
† Class Skills: Eldritch Arcana ‡ Light Weaponry (Choose between: One-handed ‡ Small Blades ‡ Hand Crossbows ‡ Light Crossbows) ‡ Light Armour ‡ Insight †
† Attributes †
† Strength: 11 ‡ Agility: 12 †
† Constitution: 9 ‡ Vitality: 8 †
† Endurance: 10 ‡ Vigour: 8 †
† Intelligence: 13 ‡ Wisdom: 9 †
† Charisma: 8 ‡ Willpower: 15 †
† Spells available: Eldritch Bolt ‡ Eldritch Hands ‡ Eldritch Gaze ‡ Command ‡ Pierce the Veil †
† 0/0 Spells †
† Skills: Deception (12) ‡ Athletics (4) ‡ Small Blades (3) †
† Deception: Increases effective Charisma when deceiving by skill level. Correction: 12% (Buff: 12%). ‡ Athletics: Increases effective Strength, Agility and Endurance when performing athletic acts Correction: 4% Increased attributes are only effective attributes – they will only apply for athletic acts. (4%) ‡ Small Blades: Increases effective Agility while using small blades. Correction: 3% (3%) †
Ren cursed furiously. If his magic power was derived from his Charisma now, he was doomed. At least his Will was high. He sighed, and decided to do what everyone decided to do when they got a combat class. Time to hunt some monsters. Ren never did have he highest Wisdom.
But first, preparation. Ren selected the Hand Crossbows option in the Light Weaponry tab. Sure, he didn't have one, and the ammunition would cost him, but he already had Small Blades, and he never had he intention of fighting close up anyway.
Ren sifted through his rugged bag for a small few moments and pulled out a rusty knife. It was nothing pretty, but it was something.
Ren took a long, hard gaze at the streets and alleyways he had grown up in – not even completely, he was only still fourteen – and silently thought, I need to wee.
»»»«««
Business done with, Ren looked across the fetid streets, moss and fungi growing along rotted wood walls; It was an honestly depressing sight. Of course, that was to 'normal' people. Functional members of society. But Ren, and all its other residents had long since grown numb to it.
There!
Ren scurried over to a sewer entrance, because that was where all the monsters were supposed to be. He heaved up the cover, which weighed little – it was wood, no one could afford better, even the residents, who lived in houses – and peeked inside. It was dark, and stunk of... Unmentionables. He could see inside because of Darkvision, but he really wished he couldn't. A half-rotted corpse of an unfortunate person drifted down on a sea of piss and shit. That initial sight alone, was, somehow, enough to make Ren realise, even the state of the sewers was enough reason to stay out. And that was a half hearted glance.
Hell, even the worst of the slums were better than that!
Outside the city it was.
Avoiding diseased beggars and their rotting corpses, Ren then made his way to the edge of the city. It wasn't very far, only a few hundred meters or so, as the slums were on the very outskirts, not even within the walls themselves, just a flimsy wooden palisade. A half rotted one.
Ren ignored the structure that looked like it would collapse on his head at any moment and stepped through the gate calmly as a newborn kitten.
Once he had cleared it, he saw. It was he most beautiful site he had ever seen! Hills of vibrant green, spirits dancing upon the grass, farmers tending to their farms, Ren saw it all.
This was not some mystical ability that let him do this, oh no. The city had been positioned on the very peak of a large-very-large hilltop. This granted Ren an extraordinary view of the surrounding landscape. It was the greatest thing he had seen in his short life.
Forgetting the gangs and criminal groups, corrupt guards and city officials (the guards of which were never not absent), the dead and dying, the dead peoples' complaints and sob stories, as Ren was going to hunt.
»»»«««
Ren heard a noise. Ren stopped. The noise stopped. Is the noise me? Nope. The noise started again while he was stilled. A man stepped out of the bushes, clad in a faceless mask and white, but muddy robes. Ren couldn't recognise the robes at all.
The bush that had served as a hiding place was actually very large, and had bright red berries dotted all around on it. It created a nice aesthetic contrast with the dark and looming ten-meter trees, which had ultramarine fruits that Ren could not identify – Ren had never left the city before. A fox spirit, green, red and blue furred with two long tails flitted to his right. The man did not notice of course, as he could not see spirits, nor interdimensional beings of great power.
"Halt!" the man shouted. "Become a member of the church of the faceless or die!" Ren walked up to him, curiosity etched into his face. The man, sheer smugness oozing out of him, grinned. "Yes! You will not regret your decision, young acoly- hurk!"
He stumbled back, shocked and coughs up even more blood. Ren looked on dispassionately and thrust his knife into the man's chest again, making sure to flatten the blade so it wouldn't catch on a rib.
In. Out. In. Out. In. Out. In the throat, man now dead. Pathetic. He was so weak.
† Killed Cultist (Lvl2) (Faceless). Gained 32 experience. †
Ren frowned. It hadn't been enough to level to two. Disappointing. He would need to hunt more. A lot more.
