[Carrie] Chapter 5: Chasing the Slavers

[Throndir]

You shot again, putting another bullet into the giant boar. With multiple bleeding wounds that would have already felled a normal boar, the boar continued to ferociously attack you. Landing a hit and causing you to be badly wounded. The boar was dying, but through its sheer ferocity, continued to remain conscious. Just the act of attacking you, seemed to cause the boar pain. Judging from its movements, you knew you probably could outrun it.

M4 Ammo: -6
Beretta: -1

[Erynn]

As the boar continued to tear into Carrie's arm and side with its tusks, Carrie has finally had enough. Pissed off, frustrated, in considerable pain and pressed for time, Carrie decides in a flash of inspiration to treat the boar to the business end of high-pressure water, much like a CnC machine produces. Carrie quickly opens the channels directing mana to her hands and draws out a large portion as she steps away from the wounded creature.

"Water, condense and pressurize, aqua slicer!"

The young hero then casts her hand across her body in an arc, sending a similar arc of high-velocity water racing through the air at the boar, likely shaving its way through any flimsy brush along its path.

Overcharging this spell to the max.

Attack:

Rolled 1d20+10 : 14 + 10, total 24

Damage upon a hit:

Rolled 4d10 : 5, 5, 1, 8, total 19

[Throndir]

Your spell triggered as water sliced into the boar. The water sliced in deeply, both splattering blood in the air and finally killing the boar as it crashed down with a loud thump. A set of notifications appeared as well.

You have gained a new title『Animal Slayer』
You have gained +4 HP.
You leveled up.
You leveled up.
You are now level 28.

[Erynn]

As the boar collapsed in front of her, Carrie likewise collapsed, breathing heavily from the exertion and mental strain the encounter with the giant hog had caused. For a few minutes, Carrie lay there, bringing her breathing back to a somewhat steady rhythm. Unfortunately, as the adrenaline wore off, the pain began to make its presence known along the length of her arm and her left side.

Carrie rises to a kneeling position and retrieves her first aid kit from its pocket on her pack and pops it open. She proceeds to rinse her wounds of debris as best she can, then wraps them in gauze before once more donning her now bloodied uniform overshirt and gear. The gauze felt rather bulky beneath the sleeve of her uniform and moving her left arm hurt like hell, but Carrie had fought through worse. The thought brought to mind the most recent example, Paris Island, and Carrie had to shake her head to dispel the image.

Carrie found herself with a new train of thought in her head, however, Caused by the sudden appearance of a new window in her field of vision stating that she had gained a new title, 4HP, and had leveled up twice. This prompted an obvious next move as she returned to her feet and collected her M-4.

Carrie utters the word "Status.", wondering if she would be able to see just what this new notification window meant for her.

[Throndir]

We can begin Treat Deadly Wounds, the time it takes is 1 hour and will use up 2 uses of your healer's kit (first aid kit), go ahead and roll a Heal check.

Carrie T. Cook
Animal Slayer
Level 28

Condition: Badly Wounded, Drowsy

HP: 33/66
MP: 20/56
STR: 21 +
DEX: 21 +
CON: 23 +
INT: 28 +
WIS: 8 +
CHA: 13 +
MAG: 21 +

Blessings: Quick Learner, Mana Sensitivity, Translate Languages, Personal Status, Magic Reflect, Programmer

You have 5 unspent ability points.

Since the last time you had used the status window, a couple of your statistics went up.

[Erynn]

Heal:

Rolled 1d20+2 : 19 + 2, total 21

As the status window appeared once more, Carrie noticed several changes. Changes that clearly correlated both with the notification window that had just appeared and with the reality she was experiencing firsthand. It reminded Carrie of video games that her friends often played. Though she never really took much interest in them herself, Carrie realized that the statistics in the windows that were appearing in her field of vision had a direct impact on how she interacted with the world around her. In particular, she took notice of the fact that the manner in which she interacted with the world was likewise having an impact on the contents of these windows. She noticed that she had leveled up after slaying the boar, and had gained a title from it. Carrie quickly reaches the obvious conclusion that this new world she occupies appears to reward the act of slaying things. This revelation unnerves Carrie for a minute before realizing that if such rewards were overzealously sought, the world she was currently a part of would have torn itself apart already. Whether through lack of knowledge, social control, or....

It is it this moment that Carrie's train of thought bringing her to the subject of divine intervention in this world causes her to remember what she had told herself earlier about thanking whatever deity had lent her aid earlier, and now wonders if encountering this boar, coupled with so thoroughly screwing up her escape from it may be related. Knowing full well that higher powers do in fact exist now, Carrie makes a point of addressing the possible issue before going any further.

"If this mess happened because I should have thanked you sooner. I apologize.", Carrie says aloud, feeling rather foolish as she does so despite her newfound knowledge, but continues none the less, "Whoever it was that decided to pitch in when I needed it most, I owe you one. Hopefully, I can repay you at some point."

Carrie's attention then turns back to the window in front of her, but with an ear out for any disembodied voices that might reply. She didn't actually know what form a reply might take, and as much as hearing a disembodied voice might cause her to question her sanity Carrie knew that in this new world anything was potentially possible. If the reply did take the form of a disembodied voice, Carrie would deal with the question of sanity by crossing that bridge when she came to it.

In the meantime, Carrie focused her attention on the seven entries that she conjectured were the abilities for which she had unspent points. She started with the uppermost entry and began trying to think of ways to interact with it. She started with the most intuitive first as she thought though and reached out to see if this object in her field of vision was something physical that she could touch. Now that Carrie knew that the contents of these windows had a bearing on what she was capable of, she realized very quickly that she couldn't afford to ignore them or to put off interaction with them any further. Her ability to complete her mission and rescue Synithise might very well depend on it. In fact, Carrie realized, she may have suffered less harm by this point had she made a point of understanding these windows earlier.

Carrie stewed on that thought as she tried to grasp what was clearly some manner of interface in front of her. This world was still very new and strange to her, and she was slowly beginning to understand just how clueless she really was. Though Carrie knew that she was currently in the best position to rescue Synithise, the more she learned the more her confidence in herself began to ebb. She had rushed off into a forest where the boars were giants, completely unaware of the danger.

"What else is there I don't know about?" Carrie wondered, "And will I realize the danger before it's too late next time?"

[Throndir]

Hero point earned.

After your thanks, there wasn't really anything new or different. You still heard the chirping of birds somewhere in the forest, the sound of rustling leaves as wind blew through them.

Attempting to interact with the status window brought up a couple of descriptions of them.

Focus on 『STR』
Represents muscle and physical power.
『Increase』

Focus on 『DEX』
Represents agility, reflexes, and balance.
『Increase』

Focus on 『CON』
Represents health and stamina.
『Increase』

Focus on 『INT』
Represents learning and reasoning capabilities.
『Increase』

Focus on 『WIS』
Represents willpower, common sense, awareness, and intuition.
『Increase』

Focus on 『CHA』
Represents personality, personal magnetism, ability to lead, and appearance.
『Increase』

Focus on 『MAG』
Represents the users mana capacity, as well as the user's innate control of magic.
『Increase』

You noted that with each description, an option to 'increase' it was available.

[Erynn]

As Carrie reached out toward the status window, it changed to show her further information about the ability she had chosen to focus on. As she reads the description of each ability in turn, Carrie begins to understand how the interface works. She is still left with one question though. "Was it the physical interaction, or was it mental?", She wondered as she read through the list, then also wondered while looking at the list again. "Last I knew, I was stronger and tougher than I was quick or accurate, not to mention being nowhere near a brainiac. How could that possibly have been changed? My strong suit is my mind now?"

Now understanding what the numbers in front of her meant, Carrie's confusion began to build steadily. She wondered if the cosmic being that had sent her here had shaped her abilities to suit its own whims before recalling that if it was being truthful, this second life had been given for her own benefit. Perhaps the changes were a boon?

Regardless of the reason for the discrepancies between Carrie's memories and the numbers in front of her, Carrie knew that she needed to deal with spending whatever unallocated points she had before she proceeded, and that time was of the essence. She thought briefly about the role that she was seeking to fulfill and made her choices. This time, without raising her arm to reach for the status window, Carrie focuses her attention first on the increase option beneath the WIS entry, then INT, followed by DEX three times over. If the intent to increase an ability didn't work by itself, Carrie would physically reach out for the option instead.

All the while, Carrie couldn't help but notice the clear, crisp sounds of the forest around her. Despite the report of gunfire, Carrie's continued presence, and the bloodied boar corpse resting on the forest floor, the forest wasn't silent. Carrie found this rather strange and wondered if it might actually be some form of subtle reply from whatever being she had thankes for its aid. Whatever the case, Carrie at least knew that there wasn't anything or anyone else in the immediate vicinity that the local wildlife was concerned about. If there were, the forest would no doubt have gone silent by now.

[Throndir]

Since you had been summoned as a hero, there were certain things that you had found easier to absorb and remember. One such example had been when Synithise was teaching you magic, along with going over the various runes and magicka circles.

Once you focused on each of the options, the entries went up by the expected amount.

[Erynn]

"So it actually is just intent that operates this.", Carrie mentally confirms as she spends the points she had up until now neglected to allocate, "That's unusually convenient."

With the upgrading of her abilities complete, Carrie then returns to task. Once more, she treads lightly as she moves through the forest looking for any sign of the party that had escorted Synithise and the rest of the lamia priestesses to the northern edge. Up to this point, Carrie hadn't found a trail so she knew that the group hadn't come this way. That said, Carrie wasn't necessarily concerned with following them exactly so much as she was with making the best possible time to the point where the group had been left. She only hoped that she wouldn't be too late to make a difference.

Carrie was also concerned that the cavalry, both figurative and literal, might not arrive quickly enough to provide Carrie with any aid in dealing with whatever situation she might find at the end of her trek. It further concerned Carrie that the sound of gunfire, almost certainly unknown to the people inhabiting this world, might spook any hostile elements into leaving early. If horses were involved, Carrie knew that she'd never catch up should an enemy decide to abscond with Synithise and her cohort. Her only hope was to arrive as quickly as possible.

With that thought in mind, Carrie's feet once more propelled her through the forest, anxiety building all the while.

Perception to spot anything out of the ordinary:

Rolled 1d20+7 : 16 + 7, total 23

Stealth:

Rolled 1d20+10 : 8 + 10, total 18

Survival looking for tracks:

Rolled 1d20+7 : 3 + 7, total 10

[Erynn]

Knowledge geography roll, as requested.

Rolled 1d20+13 : 16 + 13, total 29

[Throndir]

Location: New World - Lamia Priestess Tunnels - Dining Room
Date: Day 3 - 6 AM - 9 AM

The trees became sparser as the distance you could see increased as well. Up ahead was a break in the forest altogether, and the moment you reached it, you realized you were at the northern edge of the forest. Beyond that was rolling plains, and clear skies. By your estimation, it was around a 3-hour journey. It was still relatively early in the morning. Your injuries, though still pretty bad, seemed to have healed up from your treatment. That said, the gore wounds themselves probably could have done with proper modern day treatment, it wasn't everyday a near 10-foot long boar attacks after all.

You recognized what looked to be a large rock perhaps a couple hundred feet to your west, and it was then that a memory triggered as well. It was an early memory from Eveleen, back when the dullahan matriarch was being first introduced to the lamia priestesses who share the forest.



"Eveleen, as the elite guards of our nation, one of our jobs too is to protect the lamia priestesses as you know. We'll show you the other exit tunnels later... But if trouble ever arises, look for these outcroppings." Eva said. There was a richly adorned lamia next to her. She vaguely resembled Synithise, but wasn't quite the same either. The lamia's clothing looked similar to the rest of the priestesses that you had seen.

"Yes... They serve as markers really. You'll find a few of them through the forest, and some at the edges of Thura forest. They connect our tunnels together." The lamia then pressed her hand on the cool surface of the rock. "They're enchanted with earth magic, simply state 'for the Darmona people, tunnels open'." As she finished her sentence, sections of the rock outcropping gave way as it seemed to fold in on itself, and shortly after that a tunnel entrance was visible.



In your memories, you remember Eveleen being shown to a couple more of sites like these as well, and you instantly recognized this one as such.

[Erynn]

As Carrie approaches the edge of the forest, she slows her pace to pay closer attention to her surroundings. The fact that she had managed to arrive at the edge of the forest without catching sight of any evidence of the Lamia Priestess's passage was extremely concerning to her. She could say with certainty that the group hadn't followed the path she took, despite it being the fastest route she could find. Having arrived at her destination and found no evidence of Synithise was setting Carrie on edge more than she would like to admit. As fatigued and injured as she was, the worry was truly beginning to wear at her nerves.

As Carrie paced the area searching for any sign at all of the presence or passage of a large group, she caught sight of a large rock that seemed somewhat out of place, yet also seemed strangely familiar. With a great sense of Deja-vous, Carrie recalled being in this place before. She also recalled being told the nature and purpose of the rock in question. She also recalled being given this information by a lamia who vaguely looked like Synithise.

"I'm not sure I'm ever going to get used to that.", Carrie muttered to herself, immediately realizing that the memory was Eveleen's, knowing that she had never received any such information from Synithise, or anyone who resembled her. Carrie quickly put two and two together, remembering that the dullahan are essentially immortal, and surmised that the individual in question was likely Synithise' mother. Regardless, now that Carrie knew of the existence of an underground route to this location, the lack of any tracks to follow or get ahead of through the forest made a great deal more sense. It also told Carrie that the tunnel network within Thura Forest was significantly more developed than she had at first suspected or realized.

With at least one of her concerns now seemingly addressed, Carrie settled down somewhat and began searching the immediate vicinity of the tunnel exit for any signs that a group had recently used the tunnel attached thereto. She also retrieved her binoculars from her pack and made pointed use of them to search for any signs of an encampment or Caravan in the immediate vicinity. All the while, Carrie did her best to keep a low profile so that she would hopefully detect any potential hostile elements before they detected her.

Meanwhile, Carrie began doing a bit of mental math in her head. She had taken roughly three hours to reach the northern edge of the forest on foot at a jog. Carrie reasoned that the riders that had been sent to each of the other two tribes likely moved at twice the pace, so assuming that their homes were the same distance or less from the Lamia Priestess' tunnels Carrie could likely expect that if Jasna and Eveleen had understood the message they would likely be arriving at the tunnels right about now. In fact, it was probable that they had been present for some dozen or two minutes already giving Misophe all manner of headaches. Carrie, therefore, reasoned that the earliest she could expect any search parties to appear in her vicinity would be roughly ninety minutes out.

A thought then occurred to Carrie while she searched and did the mental math on the logistics of any possible aid.

"Well, shit. If I ran that fast for that long, I've probably run nearly a full marathon at this point."

Stealth:

Rolled 1d20+10 : 10 + 10, total 20

Perception:

Rolled 1d20+7 : 8 + 7, total 15

Survival:

Rolled 1d20+7 : 10 + 7, total 17

[Throndir]

Looking around, you managed to catch sight of a few things in particular. First, near the rock outcropping was indeed evidence of fresh trails. There were many tracks coming forth from the rock outcropping. Primarily there were long snake-like track patterns reminiscent of the lamia, along with what looked to be at least two wagons pulled by some sort of beast of burden. The tracks went northwards, and it was here that it seemed a bit more interesting. There seemed to be a flurry of activity, with various marks on the ground telling you of rough movement of people hustling quick. You found one splotch of blood that had already been drying.

Whatever the altercation was however, those first set of tracks eventually merged with those from another farther out, it seemed as if there had been another group waiting for the first group. This second group included at least one wagon, with tracks in the dirt that you recognized as hoofprints. The first tracks from the outcropping merged with those here. Then judging by the tracks, they headed northwards. It looks like all the wagons were included as well. The tracks of the lamia on the other hand, went back towards the outcropping. Pulling out your binoculars you looked northwards but found no sight of anything out of the ordinary.

[Erynn]

As Carrie read the tracks she could see on the ground before her, she could feel her skin beginning to crawl. While she had up to this point suspected Misophe of selling her sister into slavery, having such clear, vivid confirmation right in front of her was gut-wrenching. Carrie's mind went through additional math, noting that the caravan could have up to a four-hour head start on her. Depending on the speed at which the caravan was traveling, Carrie might be able to either pace it or catch it if the occupants weren't too spooked. If they were, however, pacing the wagons would be a best-case scenario, with an outright escape from her being the worst. Regardless of what the case would be, Carrie didn't anticipate encountering the wagon train for at least eight hours worth of travel time.

Carrie then realized that she had a few decisions to make that could very well determine the outcome of her mission. First and foremost, Carrie was about to leave the forest. If Eveleen and Jasna weren't able to receive the same information Carrie had, they likely wouldn't realize what Carrie was doing until significantly later on. This raised the possibility of the trail being obscured or destroyed by the time they arrived, so Carrie concluded that the two would likely need some indication of where Carrie had gone from the edge of the forest, as well as a way to recognize that she had been present here. To this end, Carrie collects a nearby tree branch and carves a universally recognized map compass into it with her Ka-Bar. She then omits every cardinal direction but North.

"For the Darmona people, tunnels open.", Carrie states plainly to the rock outcropping and places the branch inside once it had opened. Carrie doesn't enter, simply leaving the outcropping open. Compromised as it is, little new harm could come of it. Carrie wondered for a moment if the opening might have some sort of magical alarm if left open for too long before recalling that the Lamia practiced elemental magic. It was Carrie's hope that the discovery of an open tunnel with a directional marker would lead anyone following her to conclude that this was the direction she had gone from this location and that the tunnels had been used by outside elements to engage in foul play.

Carrie then mentally acknowledged that this situation wasn't going to resolve itself any time soon. If eight hours of pursuit was the soonest she could expect to catch up with the caravan, she was going to need to have the energy to keep her pace up. To that end, Carrie collects a bit of firewood from the nearby tree line, assembles it and some tinder, and reaches for her pack of waterproof matches before coming up with an idea. Facing the fuel she had gathered to create a small campfire, Carrie points her index finger at the tinder and incants,

"Fire, spark and ignite, Firestarter."

As the tinder quickly catches and burns, spreading to the more substantial wood, Carrie retrieves her mess kit from her pack as well as an MRE and sets about cooking up a small meal to sustain the hours of pursuit that would no doubt come after. She wasn't concerned that the meal would cost her time. At some point during the following eight hours, the quarry would no doubt also be stopping to cook a meal. In fact, having a large group to feed would almost certainly result in the quarry taking more time to dine than Carrie would. The downside to taking the time to eat however was that now Carrie had a chance to sit and stew in the building anxiety and self-doubt that had been dogging her ever since she had arrived in this new world. To combat this, Carrie decides to further explore the status menu as she cooks and eats.

"Status", She utters, followed by focusing her attention in on each listed blessing in turn.