Jack became aware of the small group of people on the coast of the river way, way before the other side did the same, though his course of action- or more precisely the path his raft took- remained the same, slowly approaching the other side as the wind kept moving the raft closer and closer to the ever expanding coastline, taken over by further expanding fields of green grass as far as the eye could see. It seemed that Jack was about to step out of a monster ant infested amazonian type jungle into the endless Eurasian steppes, or its counterpart of this world, or at the very least as far as Jack was aware for the time being. Who knows, there could be larger ones still out there somewhere in this world. This world was numerous times larger than the earth he knew after all to the point he was already questioning the laws of physics at play, what with the no doubt many, many times larger mass of the cosmic object this planet was and clearly the identical- or so it felt at the very least- amount of gravity their bodies experienced. He did make a hypothesis that mana was the core 'equalizer', allowing species from other worlds, dimensions more likely, to exist in their full capacity.
'Should probably create some sort of a linked compass and send one half over to kids side. Would at least give me the straight line towards them if nothing else.' Jack mused as his mind returned to the obvious need of reaching the kids and what he had already built in this world as he focused on observing the small group of people he was slowly approaching.
"Hmm?" a few minutes later, his brow furrowed as he noticed a change on the coast. One of the women drawing water was clearly looking in his direction, soon followed by a slight commotion, with the ones further up the slope of the coast frantically looking his general ways as well, clearly looking to spot something, or someone in this particular case, only to seemingly fail their attempt.
What followed was one of the men in the backline stomping down the slope, only to stop halfway there as another gaze locked on Jack and stayed there. 'Noticed me, did you?' Jack smirked inwardly 'About time. Not that it matters. My immediate plans remain the same.' he though as he remained as he was, lounging on his raft and holding his fishing rod, seemingly unaffected by the other party noticing and locking on his form one by one. One glance and a quick appraisal later, reading only their bare statistics like name, race, level and class due to the still large distance between them, Jack lost all interest in the group, their obviously low levels- not going past fifteen even- dousing any possible care he might have given. His mind, in its slightly chaotic beauty immediately jumped over to other thoughts and ideas, suddenly filled with memories of a certain movie he had seen, bringing a small smile to his face and a desire to fool around. It seemed that the decade plus he had spent in the abyss, slaughtering endless tides of monsters while fighting through pain, exhaustion and near non stop extreme adrenaline flush through his system, he had gone just a little bit insane, with half a foot in the abyss and laughing maniacally.
His rafts set path brought him near shore another ten minutes later, some solid fifty meters away from the group of humanoids drawing water who were watching him like hawks now, with the men glaring at him suspiciously- this veiled form not giving them much of a reassurance. Regardless, with a glint of a certain madness in his eyes, one that called for a spontaneous tomfoolery, he jumped of the raft just a few meters before reaching dry land, his feet sinking into water knee deep. Then, with almost excruciatingly slow and exhausted steps, with one hand half pressing against the same sides thigh, he slogged through the last few steps of water, reaching the shore and moving another meter further on land. Then, he fell on his knees, seemingly exhausted as though he had just swam unreasonable length of distance, finally reaching land.
He exclaimed in a slightly weak, but clearly enthusiastic voice "Home. Home! England!" as both of his palms fell in the sand and he bowed forward to kiss the sand a few times.
"Chmu, chmu" he kissed the sand a couple of times, then rose back to his knees, his back straight once more as he spat out the sand that had sneaked in his mouth just moment before. Then, slowly rising to his feet, he spoke once more. "Horse. Horse! A kingdom for a horse!" as he seemingly slogged forward a few more steps, only to stop a few more later and laughing for a short while, all while being observed by the same group of people that had been there to begin with, the armed men slowly moving closer and closer his disembark position.
Jack snorted, the reenactment complete and spontaneous urge sated, his mind refocusing once more on the larger picture. "Now then, lets see about finding the nearest town." he hummed to himself "Good thing we have clearly willing guides." he added as he slowly turned towards the approaching men.
"Keep your distance and lower your weapons. Wouldn't want anyone of you to get hurt, now would we?" Jack spoke as he slowly turned towards the men, their weapons drawn and raised while he still kept his own neatly tucked away in his spatial storage. Two of the approaching beastmen guards had their spear and shield combo in hand as they were a slight step ahead, while the remaining two were just a bit behind, their bows drawn and an arrow notched in each, ready to launch an arrow in Jack direction at a moments notice.
Unfortunately, or as expected- Jack should have seen this one coming to be fair- the guards response was in a language Jack did not recognize, though their tone of voice did indicate that the one speaking was not at all friendly. Jack could perceive both hostility and arrogance- not something you wanted projected when facing with an unknown entity. He did appraise the four once more, deciding that it was about time to get a better understanding regarding the weaklings he was dealing with.
Wako Wolftail(27)
Level- 15
Class- Guard(uncommon)
Ruhi Snarlsnout(30)
Level- 15
Class- Guard(uncommon)
The remaining two- Boax Stripefur(28) and Vezo Quickpaw(25) were the same, with the only difference being level fourteen. Seeing as they were clearly locals of this world, Jack was quite disappointed at both their class rarity as well as levels, though he supposed it was only natural. Not only did gifted level faster than locals, they also generally had higher potential than most locals, with only the greatest geniuses of the world rivaling or surpassing most of the gifted. Some of the summoned ones were always more equal than others, or had a special caveat that served as both a blessing and a boon, much like Kenji and Kaede with their special hidden title.
"What to do with you now? The language barrier is a bit of a bitch." Jack shook his head, slightly annoyed at the current predicament, only to come up with a rather ingenious solution thanks to a quick glance over towards the women further back as they remained almost rooted in place.
"Do tell me you understand english at least?" he tried, switching over from Arukian to english, aware that at least one of the women further back should be able to speak it, a certain title 'descendant of a gifted' she held making it a possibility. She was clearly human in appearance, with not a single speck of any animalistic traits like animal ears, tail or other such obvious tells. She also seemed caucasian based on her skin tone and overall appearance, perhaps even a bit slavic in origin if her blonde locks and blue eyes were to be believed. All in all, she would be quite attractive, with her blonde locks, height of around 1.8 meters and rather appealing body figure, if not for the clear signs of malnutrition- no doubt a result of poor living conditions the last few years- as well as the clear signs of overwork.
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Luckily, the moment Jack spoke in english- having specifically spoken loud enough for the women in the back to hear- the woman reacted, moving slightly closer and calling out to guards, in that foreign language of theirs, no doubt informing them about her ability to understand Jack's speech.
"Sunduk krito!" the beastman in charge, apparently, then called out, calling her over, though Jack barely registered what happened so long as he was not attacked, his subconscious readiness for a combat scenario and violent response not the least bit dulled, while a certain memory surfaced from his time in the divine realm.
He had been introduced to a certain, slightly annoying but hilarious looking pug like creature with what could only be classified as a tail of a peacock and cocks comb. The divine pug was called Merovane Akrostious and was a deity of beasts where he came from, having ascended millennia ago. It was there that he had heard a similar phrase, spoken as a slave of the divine pug was called over. He remembered it quite well due to having internally laughed how the phrase sounded like 'chest is open' from a certain east european language he was somewhat familiar with.
'Let's just hope they don't have the same superiority complex as the little pug.' Jack added mentally, though also preparing for precisely that, well aware just how bad it was for Merovane. The diving pug nearly drowned in his arrogance and complexes, though he became nice and proper real quick when confronted and beaten up just a bit. While proper 'to the death' and the like fights could not happen in the divine realm, a small scale exchange of fists, claws or tails did happen from time to time- conflict was inescapable when divine entities with too much ego were forced to live around one another for centuries, millenia or eons in some cases. With Merovane big mouth and near non existent filter, it was only expected when the pug annoyed Jack one too many times and was beaten to a pulp, bringing said divine dog down a notch to behave properly. Once the quote on quote 'pecking order' was established and Merovane was put down a notch, he was actually funny enough and an okey divine to be around- at least as far as arrogant and self important super powerful entities were concerned.
Thankfully, the woman seemed to be either much smarter than the guards or her instinct was the one that surpassed the beastmen's. Whatever the case, Sindu spoke with much, much more leveled voice, filled with uncertainty and caution, all while making sure she got the point across.
"Who might you be and what are you doing near Avalente?"
"What's Avalante? The city you hail from?" Jack asked in return, his english obviously much better, though Sindu spoke well enough for there to arise no misunderstandings between the two.
"Y-yes. Avalante is a city. The largest one around. R-regarding my question?" she replied cautiously, though it seemed she was more afraid of the men of her own side than Jack, prompting him to go full Sherlock on her, using his appraisal as though it was some sort of a magnifying glass, scrutinizing each and every part of her appearance. No way was she so timid. Jack turned out correct, too much for his liking even, the moment his appraisal inspected and revealed the details of the relatively beautiful choker Sindu, along with the rest of the women had around her neck.
Maralun slave collar(epic)- A special slave collar made with two main specialities. Firstly, like any true enslavement artifact, they ensure that the one bound by it cannot disobey or betray their imprinted master, resulting in excruciating pain if done so. Secondly, the collar is infused with subtle, yet quite strong compulsion magic, making the bound slave believe that there is a hope in the future, one where their slavery ends and they can go free once more, ensuring that no suicidal thoughts can manifest, resulting in continuous servitude until the master deems otherwise.
Sinister and insidious. That was the only way Jack could classify the item he had just appraised. It might very well sound hypocritical from someone like him who had his own 'slaves' back in the divine realm, but there was certain rules Jack had imposed for himself regarding the matter. First, he would never enslave or affect the soul of his servants in any way, leaving their spiritual existence untainted and pure. Secondly, he would treat all of his people well, becoming more of a permanent employer than an actual slave master, with his servants receiving wages and all. He was quite proud that none of the 'slaves' he had acquired and employed in his manor ever tried to betray him, and there were plenty of gods whose servants did precisely that, even with knowing the possible consequences. Hell, plenty of 'his girls' tried to draw his attention and sneak into his bed- quite a few also managed and were all the more pleased with it- both because of the physical pleasure received as well a way to thank him for the way he treated them.
These collars though, they did quite something to his established set of rules, doubly so when his appraisal of the titles the women with said collars held showed not a single one that indicated they were wicked or deranged. And yes, while under normal circumstances he would most likely turn a blind of on the local customs, the perversion before his very eyes urged him to act.
"Just coming through, looking for my way back home." Jack replied, his mind already turning and calculating his next move. He clearly had no desire to leave the place as is, with the bare minimum required before he departed was the utter annihilation of the slavery collars of this particular type and all those that held knowledge of how to make them. It seemed he would have to stay here possibly longer than he had thought initially, what with all the money making he would probably have to engage in.
"Do warn them to tone down the aggression though. Even without understanding his words I can sense it in his voice, let alone that stance of his and his compatriots. He keeps it up I might just have to make an example." Jack added, waiting for what's coming next.
With each word spoken, Jack could, more or less, perceive more and more of the general thought conveyed as Sindu explained what Jack had said and clearly the guard by the name of Wako was too stupid to realize just how much of a shitstorm he was dragging himself and his compatriots in.
'Wrong move.' Jack thought with a metaphorical sigh as he reacted to what happened next with clear and precise response.
-----------------
The day was getting worse and worse for Sindu ever since the moment her senses hear the whisper of wind that warned her of the stranger. Not only was she sure she would feel the whistling whip lick her skin as soon as they returned, but she was sensing the arrival of a quick and brutal beating even before they got back to town. Not only was the stranger somewhat rude, entirely disregarding the overseers as unimportant, but even his words seemed to imply they were somehow lesser than him. Talk about birds of a feather.
Worse still was the reaction of the overseers, as based on their ever growing anger and disgust, their noses no doubt had informed them that the stranger was either a human just like her, or something similar. Anything but a beastman for sure, as their almost bark like sentences grew increasingly aggressive. How was she supposed to keep up with both sides while filtering and adjusting what was said so no side became incredibly violent. She had to live on, tomorrow might just bring....
'Damn collar!' she almost cried in her mind once again, well aware of the compulsion but unable to do anything about it. 'Just kill me already someone.' she cried internally while doing her best to not show any signs of her internal agony on her face, but it was hard. Incredibly so.
"Fuck it!" growled Wako finally, clearly having grown tired of this charade "Take him out. We will see what he has on him, and if he lives, master will decide what to do with him."
He raised his shield higher while stabbing forwards with his spear in an attempt to surprise the stranger and catch him off guard, only to fail and regret it moments later. The spear tip was moved to the side like some sort of a toy as the stranger used the back of one of his hands to knock the spear off its trajectory, followed by a straight punch of his other hand that connected with Wako's shield, releasing a loud cracking sound as the metal on the shield groan and bent, sending Wako flying like some sort of a rag.
The next moment, the stranger moved, his body tilting to one side as two arrows flew past him, clearly launched by the overseers holding bows, all while Ruhi as the second close range fighter for his particular encounter did the same thing Wako had just done, no doubt thinking that the first time had been a fluke on the strangers part. Oh, how wrong Ruhi was, mere moments later experiencing the same, overwhelming physical force as it impacted his shield, launching him back in a similar way as Wako.
"Good heavens." Sindu murmured as she fell back on her ass, her legs weakly yet desperately paddling to get her as far away as possible from her current location. If even the overseers were this helpless, what could she ever hope to do? She had to survive and see another day. There was always hope for tomorrow after all.
"Damned collar!" she hissed again, compelled by the collar once again.
Jack Raja(?)
Age- 27
Species- human(?)
Level- 30
Class- Awakened twin aspect of Creation and Destruction(Ex)
Stats unassigned: +4
Attributes:
Strength- 24 (14+7+3)
Vitality- 23 (12+8+3)
Dexterity- 21 (15+6)
Intelligence-15
Spirit- Spirit- 30 (20+10)
Skills- Wisdom of Creation and destruction(EX), Choice of the creator(EX), Eyes of procurer(EX), Matter storage(EX), Arukain language(C), Spark of inspiration(EX), Origin of matter(EX), Unbound by laws of the lessers(EX), The end made manifest(EX).
Spells- none.
Titles(unlocked): The real Monster, Big Game Hunter, The brilliant rookie, The insane Solo. Monster debugger.The actor. Executioner. Survivor. Pioneer, Record breaker.The new champion supreme.
Gear: amulet +2 vit: weapon- Gundao+3 str. Rings- spatial storage,
