Dexterity: 11 [10 +12% Dungeon Guild Specialization] - In addition to making one more agile, each point of Dexterity improves the critical strike chance of physical attacks by +.3%; the critical strike damage of physical attacks by +3%; and improves chance to dodge by +.5%.
Unused Attribute Points: 0
Unused skill points: 5
Garath was impressed with himself. His Wisdom Attribute had skyrocketed since they’d entered The Tower. He was even getting close to Level 31 from the few monsters they had dispatched. Smiling to himself at his own awesomeness, Garath closed his MENU panels.
Chapter Thirty-One – Why Is He Cooking?
As evening swept across the realm of Natsilane, the sky shifted into a beautiful, vibrant clashing of reds and blues, mirrored by the ocean below in a picturesque dance. Waves crashed gently against the white sandy beach at the base of the brown mountain and a salty breeze brought welcome relief from the heat of the day. Birds of the night made their calls in the distance and frogs croaked their daily song. Garath didn’t notice any of that.
The day's constant action had him feeling drained to the point of exhaustion, but he only really noticed now that he had a minute to rest. Adrenaline had kept the whole Raid Group going hard all day but, as Garath looked around at his team, it was clear that he wasn't the only one feeling fatigued.
Auto hadn't even bothered to shift out of his Puma-Bear form after the fight with Si-am’ and was currently sitting on his haunches, staring despondently into space. Athios sat with her back to one of the lifeless trees, idly combing Daisy's hair with her hand. They both looked exhausted. The twins stood silently with Maimon and Sharon, their eyes unfocused.
It made enough sense, Garath thought. They had all entered The Tower early that day and hadn't stopped going since. They had fought and bled and grieved, then traveled who-the-hell-knows how many nautical miles before taking on Si-am’ Whimstick. Even with the marine prowess of an Orca form, expending so much energy had taken its toll. A rest break was well overdue.
"Let's set up camp here tonight," Garath said. "Get a fire going, have some dinner, then get some sleep."
"Is that safe?" Sharon asked. "To sleep in this place?"
Garath took a long look around the apparently lifeless coastal mountain, then shrugged. "Probably."
“That’s hardly reassuring,” Athios said.
"I believe it is safe to do so," Alice said. "The only life forms I have observed on this mountain are the salmon that we just sent upriver. Hardly a threat."
“Either way,” Jebawon chimed in, “we’ll want to set up a watch rotation.”
“We will when it’s time to sleep,” Garath agreed, nodding. Even if the salmon were the only nearby lifeforms currently, Garath knew all too well that nighttime can bring new perils. “For now, let’s set up camp. There should be plenty of dry wood to get a fire going. I’ll get Bill and Handsome to gather some. And then…” Garath trailed off as he gave his summoned demons a mental order to bring firewood. Bill put his front paws out in an excited play-stance then took off with Handsome following unenthusiastically behind.
“Dinner?” Daisy asked, her head tilting up, still resting in Athios’ lap.
*Dinner,* Auto agreed heartily. The Chimerist finally shifted back into his natural form and let out a long breath. “I’m beat.”
“I feel you,” Garath said.
“What are we having?” Athios asked, turning to look at the river. “We could have salmon, but I really don’t feel like fishing. Or like eating salmon ever again, honestly.”
Obawon laughed. “I’ve got some snack bars and granola in my Items panel,” he offered, “but we may want to eat something a little more substantial.”
“I’ve got dinner handled,” Garath told everyone. “It may not be gourmet, but I can cook well enough.”
Daisy looked a little hesitant. “Can Sharon maybe give you a hand?” she asked, her tone delicate.
Garath flushed.
“I don’t mind,” Sharon said. “What’re we making, chef Garath?”
“Don’t worry about it, Sharon. I've got this,” Garath told her.
Bill came hauling ass around the corner with a mouth full of sticks, and dropped the drool-covered kindling at Garath’s feet unceremoniously. Garath patted Bill’s head appreciatively before the demon-dog turned and ran off to gather more. “But I do need to borrow that huge pot you have.”
Garath willed open his Items panel to go over his food inventory just as Handsome dropped a single, tiny stick onto the pile that Bill had started near Garath’s feet. The Cambionic Flayer lazily flapped away, presumably to go find the smallest stick he could and bring it back. Sharon, seeing that the Necrologist had adopted the vacant expression of navigating the MENU panels, placed her cooking pot and its lid next to the little pile of firewood then left him to it.
Garath’s foodstuffs were limited, but he still had a solid selection from the pilfering of the mall’s canned and packaged goods. He pieced together what he could, a hand-sized black disk appearing each time he needed to retrieve an item. He pulled can after can from his inventory, stacking them next to the cooking pot. He’d never had to cook for so many people before, so he decided to err on the side of caution to make sure everyone would have enough to eat. In other words, Garath tremendously over-planned.
When he was pretty sure he’d pulled out everything he would need, Garath’s eyes wandered across the grid space of his Items panel to eventually fall on Warrion’s daggers. He wondered what the Assassin would say if he knew that Garath had not only looted his corpse, but was now planning to use his precious weapons as a can opener. The thought made him smile. He retrieved one of the daggers and closed his Items panel.
Ingredients ready, Garath stabbed open a few cans of pre-cooked and shredded chicken - only noticing then that Bill must have returned with several mouthfuls of firewood in the time
