Then again sheÆs associated with Randidly Donny thought with a wince She might just be a weirdo
But because of the early morning he wouldnÆt have time to go to his home and shower he would need to meet the representative without looking anymore imposing than an unshaven young man Basically none of any of the trappings of power he normally liked to have when meeting foreign dignitaries would be present
Still it couldnÆt be helped They hadnÆt been given much warning Only six hours ago in the middle of the night the delegation from Zone Seven arrived at Star Crossing and met with their Tribunal After exchanging pleasantries the representatives requested permission to use the transporter in order to visit Donnyton
After a brief delay they had been given permission
Which was why Donny now slowly walked toward the heart of Donnyton the System Village itself
There were currently thirty or so shops operating in that area most of them bought with points earned through the village In addition they had a cathedral and several facilities for processing equipment that was advertised by the System as intensifying the power of production based Skills within
Sam thought it was a waste of points to buy such facilities but Donny had agreed with Daniel that buying it was a good idea if nothing else they would learn much about the trick that the buildings provided With that information they would be that much closer to finding the trick to the System
Ultimately that thought didnÆt come to fruition truths were not so simple things as that But they did learn that not everyone was affected by such buildings Most of the high Level craftsmen in Donnyton wouldnÆt bother with the forges they had the expertise needed to finish basic processing already In addition something about what the forges did weakened certain aspects of the forging process
Sam was of the opinion that the three high Level pieces of equipment that Zone Seven had sent over were made in just such facilities Each possessed a strange weakness in its aspects Or rather than weakness it was a lack of intensity in some aspects According to Sam the numbness from the System assistance would cause exactly that sort of result
But of course for those starting out the System forges were a blessing that would give them a feel for imbuing a vivid character into the weapons and armor that they made Just for the experience of that feeling alone the facilities were invaluable
There were higher tiered facilities available as well But Sam told him not a bother
Now Donny was wondering if ignoring those possibilities was such a good idea
There was an ornate gazebo at the far end of the Village near enough to the walls that it had been built of sturdy materials in case of monster attack but far enough away that it didnÆt feel crowded by the grimly honed walls
As per DonnyÆs instructions the representative from Zone Seven was already waiting there for him Well there had been no other choice Donny had been down at the hospital watching an extremely irate woman insist she was fine in spite of the fact that the Dungeon Operator claimed she had been in there for what would have been almost six months
Donny pushed his hair back He was a busy man leading Donnyton It was perfectly alright to be slightly late to a meeting like this
Ascending up the short stairs to the gazebo Donny smiled at the calm man who sat at the central table But as he looked that smile faded somewhat The man was sitting with his eyes closed
excuse me Donny said slowly so as not to startle him I didnÆt mean to keep you waiting A situation came up that I needed to deal with
Now Donny extended his hand as the manÆs eyes opened They were mild and brown IÆm Donny VIllage Chief And you are
Han Yazhu The man said His smile crossed his face quickly like ripples across water A messenger of the people It is a pleasure to meet you I have heard much about this Village And to see it it certainly lives up to its name as the center of New Earth
At that DonnyÆs smile turned a fraction more genuine But Yazhu continued to speak
Which is why I come from my humble Zone Seven with a simple request please allow us to connect to your transportation network I believe direct teleportation between the capitals of our two Zones will be beneficial to both sides
When he was sure that Randidly wasnÆt looking Kerrar fished one of the wooden blocks that the man had tossed into the water and studied it
Very quickly he swore and dropped the block waving his hand Wincing Kerrar looked at his hand it was burned
Then he frowned down at the block and watched it slowly smoldering into ash Somehow the burning happened regardless of the presence of water It simply was foretold that the block would burn somehow so it did It didnÆt cause KerrarÆs Dangerous Depths to activate but still
Was this some sort of equipment that Kerrar didnÆt understand that allowed Randidly to kill the monsters Then this burning was some sort of magical chemical reaction
That made Kerrar feel somewhat better about the situation If this was an external tool it made a bit more sense than that this strange man with burning emerald eyes was simply dropping blocks of wood into the water and then killing monsters
Yet it somehow made Kerrar more miserable If this character had obtained so many high Leveled pieces of equipment that he could simply toss them away every ten minutes or so Had Kerrar made a mistake to not research him a bit more before taking his money Had he been lured into association with some sinister figure from the other Zones
Should I have charged more Kerrar wondered as he gnawed at his lip
Very quickly all of those thoughts and worries were wiped away from KerrarÆs mind Dangerous Depths activated again And this time it was ringing at another octave higher than the previous warnings
There was something strange about the signal on this occasion but Kerrar bolted to his feet and swiftly climbed up the mast to get a better view of the surrounding area Unlike most warnings there was no direction There was only a deep sense that they had wandered somewhere they shouldnÆt But Kerrar was a practical man he knew his Skill wouldnÆt provide all the answers Some things he needed to find out by himself
Although he was getting older the System had given him a bit of his old spark back which enabled him to fly up toward the crowÆs nest Although the world was becoming more fucked up every day with dangerous wooden plank weapons of all things those that didnÆt die obtained capability from the System
Once up in the crowÆs nest it only took a single glance to find the likely culprit of the suffocating feeling that Kerrar had in his chest
A huge vessel fully twenty five times the size of KerrarÆs modest ship cruising swiftly toward them It had fucking cannons for christ sake This was not a fishing vessel or even a monster hunting expedition that boat was made to kill and plunder men
And the black flag flying above the ship was a snide declaration of that very intent
On the way down Kerrar didnÆt bother with the ropes He simply leapt and landed the boards of the deck quaking from the impact Very quickly he picked his way across the vessel to Randidly who stood on the starboard side and seemed to be contemplating the waves
We have a problem Kerrar said without any real greeting As time passed the urgency that Dangerous Depths warned about seemed to grow even more hysterical Pirates Murderers General characters of ill repute
DonÆt worry Randidly waved a hand Stay the course If they try anything IÆll handle them
They have cannons Kerrar hissed How much clearer could he be Immediately Kerrar felt a flash of regret He shouldnÆt have even bothered to inform this fool This calmness was that of someone who doesnÆt know how seriously out of their depth that they are Kerrar should have just turned the ship and dealt with RandidlyÆs ire They arenÆt here to make friends
Unless cannons have gotten a hell of a lot more powerful since the System arrived I think I can handle it stay the course Then Randidly stopped speaking as he glanced up and frowned