Limitless Seas 2, Chapter 20.

Chapter 20.

Larson slowly regained consciousness, the long sleep leaving him groggy just as it had before. Thankfully, it appeared very infrequently, but there was little warning as to when it might happen. It was yet another danger of his new life, but he would take a long and uncontrollable time of sleep on rare occasions in return for the few seconds of sleep that his body normally needed. He was still in his cabin, but given the glow from under his door, dawn had broken over the horizon. Before he left to face his day, Larson remembered that he had leveled, it was time to see what he had gained.

Larson, Privateer Captain, Level 5. Water Naga, Constrictor.

Experience: 1%.

Magic Affinity: Water.

Your naga heritage manifests itself in the form of a new ability. As a constrictor, your body will continuously improve and grow in power, and you have now reached a crossroads in your development. Choose one of the following paths.

1. Path of the Great Constrictor. Many of your kind evolve to become colossal beings of great power. This is the first step on that journey and if selected, your overall size will immediately increase by 25% and then a further 5% each time you level. Powerful melee attack options will be available to you, but your overall agility will be slightly reduced.

2. Path of the Warrior. Your body remains close to its current size but will evolve to become more powerful. The changes may be unusual, but once mastered, will make you a very formidable opponent.

This wasn’t going to be an easy choice for Larson, he wanted more power to forge his destiny in this new world but was unsure how much he wanted his body to change in order to gain that power. The system wasn’t granting him much detail, but then again, when had decisions in his old life been made with a complete understanding of every possible consequence? One guarantee was given, that the Path of the Great Constrictor would make him a giant, and a giant wasn’t something that fit very well aboard a ship. Bug Bartholomew was about as big a being as you could house appropriately on a vessel, and from the description of this path, he was eventually going to be much larger than that.

It looked like the Path of the Warrior was the correct choice, and as soon as Larson made his decision, pain flared in his chest. At first, he wondered if he was having a heart attack, but the pain was now spread all over. Ribs and back popped and cracked, his torso elongating before the bones reformed. New growth started below his arms, stubs flowed into something familiar, but also entirely bizarre as a second set of arms began to take shape. New shoulder joints were created just below the existing pair, and over several minutes, the limbs grew and formed, becoming slightly shorter versions of the original pair.

The pain subsided, but he wasn’t sure what had happened to him. A quick test showed he could move the arms, but it was an unnatural feeling and they just flopped about, hands clenching and unclenching randomly, outside of his control. New pain flared, this time inside his head as his mind and nervous system altered themselves to assert control over the new and unruly additions to his body. When the pain diminished, the arms began to obey him, control over them was unnatural, but he could direct them to do what he wanted. Larson spent some time testing them out, his control over the new appendages improving gradually. A system prompt confirmed what he had already learned.

Your Path of the Warrior choice has resulted in a second set of arms. These arms have a 10% higher agility rating than your original pair but are 10% weaker overall. While you can function immediately with your new body, the change will take some time to acclimate to. The second set of arms will have a 50% penalty to any task they attempt, whether it be combat or normal shipboard duties. Over time your mind and body will learn to work as one, and the penalty will be reduced by 5% every day until it is completely eliminated. The Path of the Warrior will unlock new upgrades to your body as you level.

It wasn’t what Larson had expected, but he was happy with the change. A few quick tests showed he could wield small weapons in his new hands, but it would take time before he was comfortable using something heavier than a dagger. He knew they were slightly weaker than his other arms, but they looked just as muscular and strong. Once he had better control over them, he would work on new weapon combinations, it was time to evolve his fighting style to match the evolutions of his body. He could spend all day trying out his new arms, but there was more to gaining a level than the path choices he had made.

Class Abilities:

Command Presence. Officers and crew within 100 yards of the vessel receive a 7% bonus to shipboard duties. The bonus extends to combat skills when engaged against threats outlined in the letter of marque. This ability is only active when the crew morale rating is at 45% or higher.

Chart A Course: This ability grants you a modest bonus when choosing the best route to take and dangers to avoid in the open ocean. This ability activates when actively looking at a chart, and scales with your level.

Weather Eye: The Weather Eye ability allows the captain to judge weather and sea conditions more accurately. You can eke out extra speed when needed by catching an elusive breeze or a helpful current.

Personal Abilities:

Armor/Weapon Skills: You are proficient with light armor, medium armor, and shields. All simple and shipboard weapons skills are available to you, including commonly mounted siege equipment.

Shield Bash: Lash out with your shield, damaging and potentially stunning your foe. Now that you have reached level 5, your Shield Bash ability has the chance to score a critical hit. This ability can be used 3 times per day.

Magical Abilities:

Imbue Weapon: Enhance your weapon with water magic, adding deadly piercing, bludgeoning, or slashing damage to your next attack. You have now unlocked the ability to imbue the ammunition of ranged weapons. At this level, the ability can only imbue the ammunition of a personal ranged weapon and not any siege weapon you may be operating.

Create Water. Conjure up to five gallons of fresh or saltwater each day. This spell can be cast anywhere within your line of sight.

Racial Abilities:

Venomous Bite. Like all variants of the naga race, water naga possess a set of fangs that can deliver venom to their prey. You have been granted the subtype Venom Spit. You can accurately spit venom up to 15 feet. Once you have used this ability, it will take your body up to 4 days to replenish your venom reserves. You may now shape the venom you spit, choosing to keep it a tight stream for a longer range or spray it widely over an area directly in front of you. If sprayed widely, the venom will have some of its strength diluted.

Your specific venom subtype is a powerful cytotoxin that creates rapid necrosis of any living tissue or organic material it touches. When you are underwater, this ability creates a small cloud of venom that will remain in place for up to 15 seconds depending on water conditions before diluting. As you attain higher levels, this power will improve.

Sense Disturbance: When in a large body of water, you can sense the disturbance of creatures moving nearby, even in complete darkness. This ability provides a limited chance to track specific targets. At this level you may now also taste the water around you, using it to track a foe or potential prey.

Command the Currents: You can use your power to control the seas around you and your vessel, speeding your passage and calming dangerous conditions. This ability slowly drains your mana, and some degree of concentration is required.

While not as dramatic as growing a second set of arms had been, his other abilities had gotten a nice boost. His magic was improved as well, and with having more hands, using multiple ranged weapons might be an option for him, especially now that he could imbue the ammunition they fired. With the improved mana pool gained from reaching level five, he could now cast Imbue Weapon twice, even with Cassia draining most of his total mana. Next up, the system informed him of how his Privateer Captain class had chanced since hitting level five.

As a Level 5 Privateer Captain with multiple vessels under your command, you have unlocked additional features for your class. The ship you are on and command as captain will become the flagship for your fleet, with some additional bonuses to its operation. Other ships in your armada will be placed under a captain of your choosing. That captain’s abilities will determine any bonuses that the ship receives, but you will confer a small bonus to the assigned captain based on your current level.

The number of crew under your command is limited. If you recruit outside of this limit per vessel, they will begin to accrue a morale penalty. Acquiring too many vessels or too many crew may result in mutiny across the fleet. The limit of officers you can command is now ship-based and will improve as you gain additional levels. Assigning yourself as captain of the flagship does not take up an officer slot. You will also have a limit on the number of specialized crew on each vessel. Specialized crew currently consists of your marine contingent, but other classes of specialized crew may be unlocked at a later date.

The number of ships in your fleet is also limited. You may exceed maximum fleet size for a short time, but any vessel outside of your fleet command limit will not enjoy the benefits of your class bonuses. The officers and crew aboard any ships that are outside the fleet maximum will become discontent over time, eventually separating from the fleet to go their own way.

Maximum Ship’s in the Fleet: 2.

Flagship: The Sea Venom.

Maximum Crew: 80.

Maximum Specialized Crew: 8

Maximum officers: 4.

Fleet Vessels:

The Lost Soul. This ship is under the command of Captain Tarley.

Maximum Crew: 80.

Maximum Specialized Crew: 8.

Maximum officers: 4.

While Larson liked the idea of building a fleet, he was even more pleased to see the total number of officers and crew he could command were growing. What wasn’t so welcome was the potential of revolt and mutiny if he tried to bite off more than he could chew. Larson wasn’t quite sure how the system that governed this world would enforce the limits it had placed on him, but given that it could grow arms on his body, he wasn’t willing to test the limits just yet. He would have to grow his level to increase the size of his fleet, which was something he had already intended to do. Last on the list was a quick review of the equipment and gear he had acquired. With additional hands to work with, Larson would need to see about upgrading his gear once he reached port.

Equipment:

Steelwood enhanced, leather jerkin made from dire shark hide. This medium armor has enhanced protection against slashing damage, average protection against bludgeoning damage, and limited protection against piercing damage. Crafted by a superior-rated armorer, this gear has enhanced durability.

Prescient Shield. This round steel shield is enchanted with minor protection spells and can sense incoming attacks and inform the wielder of impending danger.

Twin-pronged short spear. This steel-tipped weapon is of above-average quality and generates piercing damage.

Lesser Manastone Amulet of the Elements. This amulet provides a small boost to the wearer's mana pool and regeneration rate. Only useable by elemental mages.

Salt-Stained Map. This map is magically enhanced to record everywhere the owner has visited. Other charts the owner has studied will be copied over to the map, but until the owner views the location in person, much of the detail will be obscured. Hidden dangers, hidden treasures, and places of interest may be revealed on the map. The longer the bearer spends exploring an area, the more likely he is to find a hidden secret. This map is linked to the sea and only functions within one mile of the shore. When the map passes from one owner to another, it will erase any previously held information.

“My captain and mage, you are awake. I could feel your power grow when you returned to me, and as you grow, so do I,” Cassia said to Larson as he finished checking on his gear. She filled his mind with an image of her. The scales had spread from just covering the bow of the ship to midway down the length of the Sea Venom. He could feel the scales that covered the deck and hull granting the structure a strength greater than that of simple wood. As her power grew, the requirements on his mana pool reduced, and in addition, their bond had granted him a new power.

A new boon from the bonded vessel Cassia the Sea Venom has been unlocked.

Serpent’s Scales. Call upon the power of the Sea Venom to temporarily strengthen your body with armored scales. This ability can be used 1/day and greatly enhances your armor as well as resistance to elemental damage. When active the Serpent’s Scales will also enhance your natural immunity to poisons, flushing even the most powerful toxins from your body. This ability lasts for 1 minute and will improve as you level.

Larson was tempted to use his new ability but didn’t want to waste it this early in the day. You never could predict the dangers that might be lurking out at sea, and every advantage he could muster might be needed. As an added bonus, Cassia had reached level two and the demand on his mana pool had lessened, going from 90% down to 70%. He could sense she was still slowly growing in power and that she wasn’t all that far from reaching level three. She had gotten a boost when he leveled up, but her mana drain continued to slowly feed her and would eventually bring the bound ship up to match his current level. With the leveling completed, it was time to return to work and get his ships home.