[Voidknight Ascension] Chapter 117: What are we, Ewoks?

With the last of his MP, Sam cut down the rest of the trees and Chompers hauled them into the gap in the wall.

Sam paused just on the other side of the wall and admired the work they had done in just two days. Two days!

Bathed in golden light, Sam marveled at the design.

The palisade wall was tightly bound together so there were no seams. Somebody had placed green moss between the logs, considering it could get pretty cold at night and there was next to nothing to stop the constant wind, that was a smart idea.

Probably Lenal’s.

Behind the palisade were trees twice their height with shading branches that hung down with wide green leaves that obscured the sharp tips of the palisades and made it look—from a distance at least—like a [Forest Tile].

Up close, the illusion was somewhat spoiled, but that was always going to be the case. However, if they found out how they could create a gate, the illusion would be far more complete.

At least from the side of the opening.

Sam walked through the wide gap between segments of the wall. Kai was already hard at work planting more trees with the aid of the dullahans.

What little light there was suddenly winked out into dappled darkness.

Sam looked up and chuckled. So that’s what he’s up to. Smart.

It hadn’t occurred to Sam, though it really should have, that people looking at their settlement weren’t just looking from the sides.

They might be able to fly above them as well and look down.

Well, good luck. With every new tree that Kai transplanted, the spreading canopy of their boughs hid more and more of the settlement until they were beneath a green ceiling.

The stars were peeking out by the time he finished, with Sam already resting up by the cookfire they had going outside. Things were definitely shaping up faster than he would have thought possible.

They each had rooms. There was plenty of space among the walled-in settlement to make new houses, workshops, and whatever other kinds of buildings that they could think up.

Lumber was plentiful, and if Sam could find some tools designed for the task—rather than repurposing weapons, which required him to spend time using [Basic Maintenance] on them—he felt confident he could use the [Barren Tile] for quarrying purposes.

But for now, lumber was far easier and faster to get access to. The trees were so damn big. It was hard not to use wood for everything, and they were so hard that they could have been used to replace steel beams back on Earth.

Of course, everything on Il’dran was far stronger than back home, so it stood to reason that many—if not all—of the materials were significantly stronger.

He doubted he could have even nicked the things with his starting stats. Probably not even with what he had prior to entering the first Dark Vault.

Before Sam could bring up the issue of covering the entire settlement with trees that made them invisible from above, Matt and Lenal were hauling out rough-built braziers containing glowing green [Nature Crystals].

In the presence of so many trees, the crystals shone brightly, illuminating the underside of the canopy and brightening up the space considerably.

I am so glad I don’t have to come up with everything,he thought to himself with a smile.

Between all those crystals, the campfire, and the glow of the Sourcestone, the place was decently lit. The dense canopy overhead would keep almost all the light contained and away from prying eyes.

For now, they were safe. The settlement, such as it was, was hidden.

As far as anybody would know, this was just another abandoned Skyshard with a few [Forest Tiles] and a couple [River Tiles] on it. Probably placed by its first inhabitants that couldn’t cut it.

At least, that’s what Sam hoped a roving band of marauders would think.

He didn’t shy away from the thought of killing another person—though he was glad he hadn’t been forced to yet—but the loss of life was sad when there seemed to be so few people around.

The skies should have been filled with people. They had seen several other Skyshards, but none that were inhabited and not many that were close enough to check.

At least he felt comfortable in the knowledge that if anybody came with the intention of killing and stealing… well, they’d find a very nasty surprise waiting for them.

They ate in relative peace and calm. The typical howling night wind quieted to the point that the flames hardly danced. If you squinted hard at the faint, green-lit canopy above, you could imagine the glittering leaves were distant stars.

“What would you like to tell them?” Raiko asked him, showing him a hand sign that he couldn’t remotely guess at its meaning. “In their language.”

Then, while she had his attention, she showed him another one that… he already well understood. A rude gesture.

“Hey!”

She laughed at his response. “Was too tempting.”

“Jokes on you,” Sam told her. “I already use that all the time. But if you want me to teach the dullahans that, I’ll gladly take you up on the offer.”

“Hardly think I can stop you. Their personalities have already begun to change from your influence. Not saying that’s a bad thing, they seem more… alive.”

Sam was about to ask her what that meant when they all received a notification from the startled expressions around the campfire.

Skyshard Milestones unlocked.

Milestones are measures of progress for your Skyshard, a means of gaining Experience through momentous and unlikely events. These are declared Faction wide, should its leaders keep this permission toggled.

Additionally, Milestones earn both Honor and Celebration depending on their rarity and difficulty, opening up festivals and loot.

Skyshard Milestones Accomplished:

Establish a Faction (Uncommon)

Establish a Faction with a Necram undead (Rare)

Establish a Faction with a Soul Aeder (Rare)

Found a Kingdom (Rare)

Found a Kingdom with lifeforms from Islegard, Earth, and Reistole (Unique)

Create a Dual Settlement Core Skyshard (Unique)

Found a Kingdom with a Dream Incarnate (Unique)

Found a Kingdom with a War Incarnate (Unique)

Your Skyshard gains colossal Experience!

Your Skyshard Levels Up!

Reward:

[Kingdom’s Festival Box]

[Soul Aeder’s Festival Box]

[Linked Royal Signet Rings]

Sam looked at Raiko in surprise. “All that?”

“It would seem so,” she said thoughtfully, studying the prompt closely. “Reistole? Who is from Reistole?”

Her gaze swept from Komachi to the Sacred Tree, puzzled.

There was a faint plonk sound as two chests dropped between the pair. They were far more ornate than anything Sam had seen before. Even the Hidden God’s chests didn’t look like these.

Chompers perked up and trundled over on his dozens of corgi paws, sniffed—or whatever it was a mimic could do—then immediately grew disinterested and settled down.

“Aw,” Sam said, a little saddened. “Maybe we should get another mimic—”

“No!” Raiko said sharply. “I mean… no. One mimic is quite enough. Who’s to say Komachi can work her magic on another one?”

“Oh fine,” Sam said dismissively. “I still think he’d like a little buddy to play with. You don’t get one kitten after all, you get two.”

“You’re right, though you only had one kitten, didn’t you?”

“I tried to get another. Komachi kept returning it to the shelter.” Sam shook his head. “I’d wake up and the other kitten would just be gone, then I’d get a call from the shelter apologizing and saying there was a mix-up and they had no idea how it happened, but could I please come get the kitten as soon as convenient?”

“That’s horribly sad and amusing at the same time.”

“Three times, Raiko. That happened three times. I eventually got the hint, and Komachi seemed very pleased to have me all to herself. But, as we both know, she’s not a normal cat.”

“I’m not sure what that would’ve been like for her. To not quite realize she’s a soul aeder, but know that other cats aren’t like her either.”

Sam looked affectionately over at his slumbering cat. “I knew something was up about her,” he said. “Looked up her fur pattern and what kind of cat she was. Golden chinchilla is what I found. Not a very common type, and by the looks of her, she was very well taken care of and obviously purebred.”

“Has she said anything about where she came from?”

“I haven’t had the heart to ask her.” Sam hunched his shoulders and looked into the flames. There was no Archflame out here. That was tucked safely into their “living quarters” and it burned merrily, keeping the whole place warm on even the coldest nights.

“Truthfully,” he said, “I put up pictures of a lost kitten because after looking at the price tag on the little buggers, I realized somebody probably paid thousands of dollars for this kitten from a good breeder and she must have gotten loose. I dreaded every time my phone rang.”

“I’m sorry, Sam.” Raiko’s voice was full of sympathy. “That must’ve been hard. I know how well one of those little creatures can worm their way into your heart.”

“It’s all right. There were a few scammers, obviously. But each day Komachi was just… the sweetest thing in the world. I didn’t have much back then. Ironically, despite not having a real home or anything here, I have far more than I did on Earth. But at that time all I really had was Komachi, and a leaky roof over my head.”

She took his hand in hers and squeezed it, though the gesture was muted by his gauntlet. “Wish I met you sooner. You deserved better, but at least now you have magic again.”

Sam squeezed her hand back as carefully as he could, since he didn’t want to break anything. He had several mishaps already of breaking common things just by… doing what he’d always done.

With nearly 200 Strength, he was far beyond what any human should be, and it was difficult to adjust.

“I appreciate that, Raiko. Really.” He looked around at what they’d done in just a few short days. “I can’t help but think how long all of this would have taken back on Earth, or even if we didn’t have the levels we did. A handful of days to join our Settlement Cores together, found a kingdom, build an outpost, and surround it with stout walls.”

“It’s been wild,” she agreed.

“How much more will things change when we finally get to the Academy, do you think? With so many Professions available, even if we can’t pick anything up immediately, Lenal makes it seem like the professors might join us. Having so many who can make things here….” He shook his head. “I can’t imagine what they could do to change this place. But I bet we won’t recognize it.”

“Considerably, in some ways,” Raiko said. “Others, it won’t necessarily be more of the same, but we’ll most assuredly discover more. What’s beneath our feet? What Professions will we gain, and what will their powers let us shape the world around us?”

Sam nudged his boot against one of the chests of red metal, edged in silver. “What Profession were you thinking of getting, if you could get anything that is?”

“It’s a bit of a complicated answer. After the loss of my family, I largely depended on myself.” Raiko smiled sadly. “I developed all my magic towards a solo build. But that’s not really the case anymore. I could do just the same, but there are far greater things created when people work together.”

“I definitely couldn’t have made this place on my own. It’d be a bunch of lopsided, piled-up logs that would probably collapse in a stiff breeze because I can’t do half the shit Kai or you can.”

“I did mess up most of the doorways,” Raiko admitted. “You’re not supposed to have to climb a foot into your room.”

“I figured that was done on purpose,” Sam said. “For uh, drainage purposes. Like if we get leaks, then at least all the water goes into a central area.”

“No, I was just exhausted. Although it’s funny in retrospect.”

Sam remembered his stubbed toe. “Funny. Yes.”