Mark walked out of the cabin and looked around the Lakeside Settlement. There were a few people milling around town. Mark waved and walked toward the nearest one, which was a lady. “Hello, how are you doing?”
“Hello, my name is Mae, a food preservationist. I saw that you were talking to Jean and Edwin. Which direction did you come from? I don’t think I have seen you before.”
“My name is Mark. I come from a camp that is way east of here, across the stream and into the forest past it.”
“Did you come for trade?”
“Well, I came to help a young lady from my camp named Ava. She wanted to explore, and I did not want her running off alone.”
“We have a few young folk; they tend to like to look around. At my age I would rather settle down and stay where I’m at. I run the smokehouse here in Lakeside.”
“One of the guys in my camp has started to preserve meat and do a little smoking of it. We found some salt, which was helpful.”
They chatted for a few more minutes before Mark followed her to the smokehouse. It was seriously a house, not just in name. Mae showed him the meat and fish being smoked and the drying racks.
She let him know that if he needed things smoked, she would do it in trade for some of the meat or other items. She hinted to him that maybe she could trade for salt. Mark then left her and went over to one of the pens holding the goats.
He met Orin, a gruff herdsman who did not talk much. Orin took the goats out to graze and cared for them, while Edwin was the settlement’s goat keeper. He met two younger people, perhaps a year or two older than Ava: Caleb, a fisher and scout, and Iris, a goat tender who also collected eggs.
At this point, Ava walked over to him and let him know that she and Bramble were going out to hunt; someone told her a good hunting area suited to her level.
He then found a man named Nolan who introduced himself as a gatherer and then took off to deliver some firewood to one of the homes. At long last, he finally found Garrick, who was the carpenter and wheelwright. Mark was most interested in his skills in building the cabins and the wagons.
Ava and Bramble went down the trail heading west. She was told that if she followed the path, she would come to a spot that had rocks stacked on both sides of the trail. At that point she could turn left and head through the trees. She was told there were a bunch of animals in that area that she could hunt.
They hunted with Bramble in the lead. He drove animals from the bushes or caught them in his jaws, and Ava finished them with her bow or spear.
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After their first kill, the bird showed up again. It circled around her and then landed about 10 feet from her. It watched her as she looted the body. Then it flapped its wings and then stepped forward one step. Ava could sense that it wanted something. Since they had just killed an animal, she pulled some of its meat out and cut off a chunk and tossed it toward the bird.
The ridge glider quickly hopped over and picked up the meat and flew away. Ava watched it as it flew; it was a beautiful bird. It had a 5-foot wingspan and was the general size of a bald eagle from back home; she had seen one once in a zoo. Ava was amazed at how powerful its wings were and how fast it could fly.
The two continued deeper into the trees. Ava was close to leveling; a few more kills would do it. They found another animal and had to chase it. Bramble was not able to catch this one like the previous ones. But a few minutes later Bramble finally caught up to it, and they finished it off.
Sadly, this one did not level her, so she just looted and continued hunting. They continued finding a few but lost their tracks. This went on for a while until Ava had given up and was about ready to go home. They turned around and started heading back toward Lakeside.
All of a sudden, she heard the shriek of the bird, and it flew down and picked up a raccoon-looking animal in its claws and then flew back to her, dropping it near her feet. Of course it was still alive, so Ava, with the help of Bramble, finished it off.
After it was dead, the bird flew back and landed 10 feet from them. The bird then looked at Ava and then stepped toward her. Then a system message appeared.
[Wild Bond Formed]
The Ridge Glider has willingly accepted you as a companion.
◈ ◈ ◈
Ava then received another message.
[Skill Acquired]Wild Bond Level 1
Allows:Increased animal affinity.Minor emotional awareness between bonded companions.Improved awareness while traveling together.
Warning:Wild companions remain independent creatures.Trust must be earned, not commanded.
◈ ◈ ◈
Ava just sat there and looked at the bird. Then she looked over at Bramble and back to the bird. This was different from the relationship she had forged with Bramble. It was new and it was different.
Then another system message appeared.
[Level Up]
Character: Ava
Level: 6
+5 Stat Points Awarded
◈ ◈ ◈
[Skill Improved]Wild Bond Level 2
Allows:Stronger emotional awareness between bonded companions.Better understanding of a bonded companion’s intentions.Improved coordination while working together.
◈ ◈ ◈
Ava turned back to the bird again. She was so excited. She had a new bond and leveled up. She would have to show Mark the bird. Before she had finished thinking, the bird flapped its wings and flew off. Ava just watched it as it flew out of sight.
“Okay, Bramble, let’s get back to the lake and tell Mark.”
Garrick invited Mark over to his cabin, and they started talking. Mark asked him dozens of questions about the cabins. How he made them, how he prepped the wood. How he made the doors and hinges. Then without taking a breath, he continued asking about the carts, the wheels. How long he had been doing it.
When Mark finally gave him time to answer, he talked about the process of building the cabin and how the process had started. Living in a lean-to, he started making bigger and better things until he became a carpenter, and that was when it all started to become easier to do.
Mark said, “Carpenter? Is that a craft type?”
Garrick replied, “What level are you?”
“Level 6, almost Level 7.”
“Oh, so you have not gotten a class yet!”