The Rifleman - Bk1 - Ch.59

Chapter Fifty-Nine

Sleeping through the end of the world.

Wesley woke from a deep, dreamless sleep, immediately knowing something was wrong. The silence in the safe room immediately made the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. 

For a short and heart-stopping moment, Wesley thought he was alone. Wes decided that the revelation of exactly how much that feeling terrified him would have to wait until he found out what was happening. 

Pushing aside his rising anxiety, Wesley leaped out of bed. He saw the drawn faces around the table and mentally counted them. Everyone was here. What the hell was going on?

“Morning,” Wesley said quietly. He had no idea why he was whispering, given he seemed to be the last to wake, but the atmosphere just seemed to demand it. “What’s wrong?”

Rupert just shook his head, unable to answer. Joy clutched her tail in her hands, ignoring everything around her. Even Malia seemed unable to find a single thing to say, merely pointing out the door. 

Wesley approached the door warily despite the bright sunlight that streamed in through the doorway. It looked kind of nice out there if he was honest.

“Am I going to get attacked if I go and look?” Wesley asked.

Malia mutely shook her head.

Wesley stepped out, his bare feet finding the white rocks warm and smooth beneath his feet. It was almost like they were warmed by a sun, which this freaky game world didn’t have. Ignoring that, he moved toward the edge and stumbled to a stop.

Slowly, he turned and looked up into a large, yellow sun.

He blinked furiously, trying to figure out what the hell was going on here.

Looking over the edge of the outcropping, he saw a world that was very different from the one he had left when he went to sleep last night. Gone was the mishmash of zones, with nothing but rolling water and waves below the cliff. 

Turning immediately toward the city, Wesley winced. The city, or at least part of it, was still there. A small island now stood where the city had been, littered with ruins from the rocky beaches all the way to the center, where the last remains of the city itself seemed to remain. 

Wesley stretched out his hand and slapped himself hard. Nothing changed.

A loud rumbling caught his attention, and he turned to stare across the zone at the distant cliffs on the far side. A large chunk of them sheared off, tumbling and breaking apart as it dropped into the waters below. The wave created by the collapse carried across the entire zone, splashing against their own cliff and threatening to swamp the distant city. 

Just as Wesley felt his knees begin to buckle, a barrier of some sort appeared around what remained of the city, the wave breaking around and upon it before the waters once more receded.

Wesley saw the shield, and felt the shock being pushed away.

The city still stood, and there were still people fighting to survive. 

He took several long, steady breaths and forced himself to stand straight, peering carefully around.

Every little point of detail mattered, especially now. 

Just like he had done when the pain of tempering almost shattered his mind, Wesley grabbed onto something to do in the hopes of keeping his sanity. 

So, he made a mental list.

• Why the fuck is there a sun all of a sudden?

• How the hell did any of us sleep through all this?

• Why can’t I see the zone boundary anymore? I should be able to see it clearly from here. I could last night. What changed?

• Are there things in that water?

• How the fuckity fucking fuck are we going to get down off this cliff?

• Does anyone have any idea how to make a boat?

It was admittedly not a very inspiring list, but it was a start. That was how you survived things going to shit. You started with taking a first step. Then another. No one could deal with the big stuff all at once. No, you needed to break it down.

Take it one step at a time.

Step one: Survive the end of the world. Done.

///////////////

Wesley walked back into the safe room, seeing the pale faces and hunched figures. Wes got it, he really did. Sometimes, everything just gets too much. The problem is, life really doesn’t give a fuck if you're ready.

“Well, that’s quite something,” Wesley said with a small smile. “At least we have a sun now.” He walked over to the fire and lit it, filling the room with the soothing crackle of flames. “Anyone fancy some breakfast?”

“Pardon?” Rupert blinked.

“Breakfast,” Wesley said again. “It looks like it is going to be a bitch of a day. Better to face it with a full stomach.”

“Are you insane?” Dolin asked, her mouth hanging open.

“Oh, I fucking hope so,” Wesley grinned. “Otherwise, I slept through the end of the world.”

Malia let out a short, barking laugh and seemed to return to herself a little.

“Anyone see it happen, by the way?” Wesley asked, throwing some thinly cut strips of meat into the pan with something he really hoped was butter or fat. 

“I’ll do that,” Joy said quietly. “You’ll burn it.” 

“Thanks,” Wesley gave her a quick shoulder hug. “But the burnt bits taste great. I keep saying that.”

“Because you can’t cook,” Malia said flatly.

“I’m not saying the two things are unrelated,” Wesley chuckled.

“No. Sorry, no one saw what happened,” Rupert said, visibly pulling himself together as he pulled his uniform jacket straight and polished one of the buttons listlessly.

“Put that on the to-do list, then,” Wesley said, sitting down at the table with a pitcher of water and some cups. “Find out just what the hell happened to the world while we were all napping.”

“What is a to-do list?” The question came from their last remaining Shield Bearer, Michaels. The man was a Greek god hiding out as a soldier in his spare time, at least according to his looks. If this world had a supermodel class, Wes would bet the man would have it at max level.

The concept of a to-do list took longer to explain than he anticipated, but it seemed to get everyone to straighten up and come out of their shock. A little food, some mindless chatter, and a drink can do wonders for the humanoid mind. Once everyone was on board with the idea of a list, he then explained it wasn’t an actual list, as they wanted an actual list to look at.

“It would just help; that’s all I’m saying!” Dolin protested.

“We’ll add making a physical list to the list; how about that?” Wesley offered.

“Thank you,” Dolin subsided.

“At the top of the list is figuring out how to get down off this cliff,” Wesley went on. “It looked like a bit of the opposite side just sheared off, so let’s not be here if that happens over here as well.”

“Which leaves us the problem of the waters themselves,” Rupert added.

“It does. Does anyone know how to make a boat?” Wesley asked hopefully.

“I’m pretty sure you need trees,” Rachael offered. “We don’t have a lot of them on this cliff.”

“In that case, we look at getting out of the zone or to some other bit of dry land.” Malia sat forward, her eyes looking much more focused now she had a problem to work on.

“I couldn’t see the zone border earlier,” Wesley said. “Has anyone seen it since we woke up?”

No one had, and Dolin and Rupert went to try and catch a glimpse of it. Besides Wesley, they had the best vision, as they had something similar to Hawk-Eye in terms of their class skills.

Five minutes later they had confirmation the zone border was apparently gone. 

The only way to know for sure was to go there and physically check by passing through it.

One problem at a time, that was the key for now.

“Okay,” Wesley nodded and stood. “In that case, we better tier up and get moving.”

“Tier up?” Malia asked. “Here?”

“Safest place in the world as far as we know right now,” Wesley shrugged. “We must all have some upgrades coming after all that shit we went through. I don’t know about anyone else, but I want to head out as strong as I can get.”

“How can we know we are really safe?” Joy asked him quietly.

“Because there will be guards up and about at all times,” Wesley said.

He had it all worked out, and more than that, Wes could feel the process already straining to start. 

//////////////////

Wesley managed to hold on for almost an hour, allowing Malia, Rupert, and several others to undergo their own Tier Ups. 

The feeling of holding back the changes was similar to fighting the urge to stretch when you have injured muscles. It just builds and builds, until eventually you have to do it, no matter how much of a bad idea it is.

“There was something weird when I tiered up,” Malia said, finally sitting up as she recovered from the experience.

“Tell me later; I can’t hold it back anymore,” Wesley let out a grunt as the pain started to spread through his body.

Malia nodded and moved aside as quickly as possible, allowing Wesley to crawl into the alcove beside her. All the others were already full of people tiering or recovering.

The moment Wesley was off his feet, the process rushed through his body.

Tier 7 (499%)

Tempering Threshold Reached…

Tempering….

Tempering x12

+65% Vitality

+60% Toughness

+ 35% All stats

+15% Agility

+15% Control

+10% Strength

+5% Perception

+5% Stamina

Choose one:

Temper again, or Tier Up?

“Tier,” Wesley gasped, delighted to be given a choice for once.

Choose One:

Sergeant’s Stripes:

Increase all stats by 20%

Sergeant’s Gift:

Increase all essence collection by 10%

Sergeant’s Oath:

Increase simulacrum’s durability by 25%

This was the first time Wesley didn’t have to think about what to choose. He didn’t need the stat boost, not with all the tempering, and he needed extra essence like a kick in the crotch. The tougher Simulacrums, on the other hand….

Wes chose Sergeant’s Oath.

Tier 8 Attained!

Tier 8 (350%)

Tempering threshold reached!

Tempering…

Tempering x13

+75% Vitality

+60% Toughness

+ 45% All stats

+15% Agility

+15% Control

+10% Strength

+5% Perception

+15% Stamina

Achievement!

Lucky Number 13:

The worst ideas in the world sometimes lead to fantastic results! Your repeated masochism has been noted.

Ability Unlocked!

Bind Weapon - Allows you to bind a weapon to your soul, making it a part of you.

NOTE: Bound weapons can still be modified.

Note: Bound Weapons can no longer be upgraded but are of the same Tier as you.

Eligible weapons:

M1 Garand 

Only one eligible weapon was detected, so binding will proceed…

SUCCESS!

NOTE: Ability Unlock has overridden skill selection in progress.

Choose One:

Temper again, or Tier Up?

“Tier,” Wesley gasped. Was this a thing now? Could he always skip the extra temperings from now on? With every fiber of his being, Wes hoped that was the case.

Tier 9 Attained!

Tier 9 (160%)

Tempering Threshold reached!

Tempering x14

+75% Vitality

+60% Toughness

+ 45% All stats

+15% Agility

+15% Control

+15% Strength

+15% Perception

+15% Stamina

Skill Selection proceeding…

Choose One:

Rifleman’s Resolve:

+25% Mental Resistance

Rifleman’s Reserve:

+25% Stamina

Rifleman’s Soul:

 +25% Simulacrum Intellect.

Wesley looked at the options and tried to figure out what the hell it meant by intellect. Were the Sims smart? They acted intelligently, but up until now, he had assumed that they were closer to computer programs than anything else. 

As for the other choices, the mental resistance thing seemed good, but he had never noticed anything affecting how he thought and could not see his own stat sheet in any real way. In short, there was no way to tell if that 25% would increase anything at all. What if his mental resistance stat was zero? Or two? If it was less than five, would it even change anything?

Honestly, it was so frustrating not having a way to check these things. How was he supposed to make a good decision if the basic details were always hidden?

In short, as an NPC, he wasn’t. 

Wes knew he had already gotten a 15% increase in stamina, and given that he could always shift to wisp form, which made movement a breeze, did he really need any more?

Sure, he got tired, but so did everyone else. Even Malia, who was Tiers ahead of him, was tired about the same time he was. So, that was a no, too. 

Wesley chose Rifleman’s Soul and hoped for the best.

It was all he could really do.

At the very least, he was done with the Tiering process and could get onto more important things…

Tier 10 attained!

Tier 10 (6%)

Class Evolution Requirements Met!

Class Evolving!

Rifleman (Unique) ---- Marine Rifleman (Unique)

All stats +25%

Accessing Skills….

Improved Flare (100%)

Charges - 5

Choose upgrade path:

Improved Flare — Light Bolt

Light mana replaces the heat element of the Flare spell.

-1 Charge.

Improved Flare — Fireball

Fire mana replaces the light element of the Flare spell.

-1 Charge.

Improved Flare — Marine Flare

Increased light, heat, and hang time.

+3 Charges

Wesley once again faced the agonizing decision to NOT take the Fireball spell. He really wanted it, but the Marine Flare was too good to ignore. The only spell he used more often was Reload so, basic or not, he was taking it.

Skill Upgraded!

Marine Flare

Charges - 8

Emergency Heal (93%)

Charges - 4

No upgrade is available at this time.

+1 Charge

Jolt (56%)

Charges - 3

No Upgrade is available at this time.

+1 Charge

Lesser Regenerate (100%)

Charges - 4

Choose Upgrade path:

Lesser Regenerate — Regenerate

Heal for 65% of health over 12 seconds.

-1 Charge

Lesser Regenerate — Vampiric Regeneration

Drain and ally or enemy for up to 40% of their total health.

Instant.

-2 Charges

Lesser Regenerate — Medpack.

Regenerate for 30% of total Health over 5 seconds.

+2 Charges

Wesley picked Medpack immediately. Regenerate might well give bigger numbers, but given everything Wes had seen it was clear the lower number, with more charges, would let him heal more people. Better to keep four people alive than fully heal two.

At least, that was the choice he would always make.

Skill Upgraded!

Medpack (0%)

Charges - 6

Armor Piercing Rounds (23%)

Charges - 2

No upgrade path is available at this time.

+1 Charge

Additional Class Skills Discovered Prior to Evolution:

Emergency Flare!

Hot Shot!

Healing Bullet!

Stunning Shot!

Skills added to Class Skill Pool. They can now be awarded to future Rifleman class holders. 

As their creator, you will now receive an additional Charge on Each Spell.

Emergency Flare (0%)

Charges: 2

Cast a flare into the air; it will radiate healing energy to all within its radius.

Causes damage to the undead.

Hot Shot (0%)

Charges: 3

Fire a bullet infused with both light and heat energy.

Bonus damage against undead or flammable enemies. 

Healing Bullet

Charges: 2

When you really need to heal someone. Enough to shoot them.

Bonus damage against undead.

Stunning Shot

Charges: 2

A shot infused with electrical energy.

His arm and shoulder seemed to explode into pain as multiple tattoos burned themselves into the skin there. It was a hell of a boost, especially if he could still combine the spells the old-fashioned way. Since it had not said anything about restricting them, it was safe to assume he could. 

Class Evolution Complete!

Proceeding to Profession Evolution.

The progression path is unavailable due to the Unique class.

Adjusting….

Accessing skills.

My Shield (100%)

Charges: 3-10

My Domain (100%)

Charges: N/A

My Will (N/A)

Charges: N/A

All skills ready for evolution…

Profession Customisation Underway…

“Oh, shit!” Wesley grimaced as his head exploded once more. If there was one thing he hated most in this system, and he really hated this system, it was the habit it seemed to have formed of rooting through his brain.

Information obtained!

Proceeding!

Error - Please remove all people from the ‘My Domain’ spell zone to continue.

“Well, since you asked so nicely,” Wesley groaned as he sat up, covered in sweat.

“We really need to talk!” Malia hissed.

“Can we do it while we get everyone out?” Wesley asked. “The safe room is getting an upgrade. I think.”

“Can it wait?” Malia looked anxious. 

“Not really,” Wesley admitted as cramps rippled through his body. “As long as it is still safe?”

“Well, yeah,” Malia said. “I think so.”

“Good.” Wesley doubled over as pains ripped through him again. “EVERYONE OUT!”