[The Primeval Apocalypse] - Chapter Eleven (collaboration with u/hydrael)

LitRPG

The Primeval Apocalypse by Robert Keene and Alex Raizman

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With the promise that we could work together to make my new friend a horrifying deity someday, a pact was struck. The Baby Baurusuchus became my first pet.

Making it my pet changed a lot. First of all, the lizard creature was added to my equipment, which gave me knowledge of its stats and abilities. I was also aware that the pet system included a growth system that would let me upgrade the pet as I wished in order to customize its stats and abilities.

Baby Baurusuchus [Set Nickname]
Level 5 Pet (Beastmaster)

HP: 375/375
MP: 250/250
SP: 100/100

Attitude: Friendly
Growth: 2/100

STR: 10
CON: 15
DEX: 13
AGI: 8
INT: 14
WIS: 12

[Class Abilities]
Teamwork (Passive): When a pet or master uses an activated buff ability that affects only themself, the buff applies to the other as well, and 50% of its effect will be applied to all allies within 30 feet.
Howl (120 second cooldown): With a fearsome roar, increases the DAM rating of all attacks by 50% for 30 seconds.

[Skills]

Bite: 20

Claw: 20

Dodge: 20

Detection: 20

Stealth: 20

Athletics: 20

Swim: 20

Survival: 20

[Growth Tree]

Juvenile Baurusuchus
Physical Path
Requirements: Beastmaster achievement “Sic ‘em II”**, pet consumes 1x Savory Shank, Growth > 90
Ability Unlock:
Kick Out (30 second cooldown): Affect a conal area with a bellowing blast. Knocks enemies back and reduces their DEF rating by 10% for 15 seconds. Enemies pushed into walls or other obstacles take physical damage on impact.

Apprentice Baurusuchus
Magical Path
Requirements: Beastmaster achievement “Best Friends”**, Pet consumes 1x Peppered Steak, Growth > 100
Ability Unlock:
Comet (120 second cooldown): Call down a magical strike from above. Deals magic damage in a circular area at range, and inflicts Irradiate for 90 seconds, dealing minor damage over time and reducing enemy DAM rating by 10%.

My original objective had been to go for a pet that was more powerful than me in order to carry me to greatness. Now it seemed that I had a pet weaker than me that needed my support to grow into something powerful. Its stats were mostly lower than mine, and it appeared that the pet didn’t have any achievements to shore up its abilities.

At the very least, it looked like it wouldn’t be long before I could make the creature into something powerful. Making my friend into a scaly little artillery piece or a fearsome area denial monster sounded like a lot of fun. It was just a shame that it was going to be a long-term goal instead of something I would benefit from now.

As usual, the system didn’t give me enough information. I didn’t know how to get those achievements, how to find or make those food items, or how the Growth mechanic worked. But, also as usual, I would figure it out. It might have been sampling bias, but I had adapted to all the weirdness the system had thrown at me so far. It would just take time for me to figure out this new stuff.

At the very least, the creature’s abilities were very promising. Affecting DEF and DAM ratings directly was tremendously powerful with the way the damage formula worked in this system. With Howl active, I might even be able to hack through the alpha’s thick hide. Not to mention the ability to share that buff with all my friends. And if I could grow it up to the next stage, cutting enemy DEF or DAM would make them significantly less effective combatants.

I felt a tickle of an urge to find new pets and see what options they would offer. Would an adult Aurochs have options for growth to develop its abilities? What abilities would it have? How about skills?

Without more Stable slots, I couldn’t investigate right now. But I was excited for the possibilities.

Either way, my Challenge was complete. There was a satisfying sensation as the system rewarded me for stealing my first pet from the Mandrill camp.

For its part, the critter puffed up with a little bit of pride. All the uncertainty drained from its demeanor, and discomfort that I hadn’t even noticed it was feeling towards me. It might have been just my imagination—or the censer’s vapor escaping the room and letting my senses get a more accurate read—but the reptile seemed stronger and healthier now. As if becoming my pet had made it more powerful than it had been before.

More than that, though, when it communicated with me, it was much clearer and more understandable. It was less of a vague series of sensations, and a lot more like speech, even if it wasn’t verbal.

Power, the Baurusuchus said. Much power. Satisfying.

“There’s more where that came from,” I said, taking a quick peek out of the narrowly open door towards the Mandrill town. No sign of any patrols yet, but even with the vapor thinned as it was, my Detection skill wasn’t working. “But we need to get out of here without being seen if we want to collect it.”

Fish? the critter asked.

I looked down in my arms to find that I was hugging the wooden case of smoked fish to my chest. I didn’t even remember picking it up.

“Listen, bud, we need this,” I said quickly. “Adding you to the town’s population might be a hard sell, and having a big box of food is going to go a long way towards getting James on our side of that fight.”

Not arguing, the reptile said, conveying a grin to me without actually changing its expression. Fish good.

“Stay close to me on the way out,” I instructed. “This might get a little spicy.”

Experimentally, I activated Hide In Plain Sight. There was a tingle as the Teamwork passive did what I hoped it would, applying the effect to the Baby Baurusuchus as well. Though to my perspective, it was a clearly-visible shaded outline, the Hide In Plain Sight effect would make it much easier to sneak out of here.

A part of me wanted to make off with the censer as well as the fish. It would prove a useful tool back in Jamestown. But I simply couldn’t justify the risk. So long as the room was shrouded from Detection skills, the alpha would never know its prize was missing. I could be all the way back home before the Mandrills even knew I was here. That was worth more than a little alchemy toy.

Also my hands were full of a big box of fish. Don’t judge me.

There was also the matter of the jugs of Masquerade Poison. I could smuggle one or two out and still have plenty of ability to carry the fish. But I didn’t know if it would work without the censer, and it was a lot of risk to find out. There was no telling when the alpha would return.

As soon as the Baurusuchus crept down the ramp, I slid the door closed behind it.

I was glad the creature had Stealth skill already, so that I didn’t need to carefully instruct it to tread carefully. At the far end of the pen, the docile Aurochs barely seemed to notice us. That was a good sign. I was afraid that they might react poorly to a big toothy predator in their pen. Obviously, though, they identified that the baby reptile was not a threat to their near-impenetrable hides.

I considered jumping the fence again, but discarded the idea quickly. My new pet was pretty large, meeting me at the hip with its shoulders, but it didn’t have any Climb skill, and its low-slung body would make the effort an absolute mess. The pen had a crude wooden gate to the south, though.

It seemed silly now that the entrance was facing out of town. Obviously the entrance being on the north side of the pen would allow more security, making it harder to steal away with their livestock. But I’d long since recognized the purpose during past raids.

Once upon a time I’d considered riling up the aurochs for a diversion once by driving them through the town on a stampede. The powerful beasts would reduce the Mandrill’s homes to matchsticks in seconds, and take hours—if not days—for the primates to control and recover. But the gate pointing out of town meant that unless I busted through the thick clay brick wall, the hard-shelled cattle would only stomp around in the woods for a little while until they blundered into one of the Mandrill farms, calming down once they ate a little.

Now, though, the tables were turned. I was able to open the simple latch on the wooden gate, open it just a few feet wide for my new friend to slip out, and we were as good as gone, circling around the nearest farm and heading on a straight shot south, moving nice and slow to avoid lighting up any guards’ Detection skill, and leaving as little trail as possible.

“Alright,” I said, once I was confident that the only thing around us were forest-dwelling vermin and the distant creatures in the forest canopy above. “I think we need to settle one thing first, before we go any farther.”

Settle? the critter asked, giving me a curious look.

“Yeah. This is possibly the most important decision of your life, too,” I added, “besides choosing to join me.”

Decision, the reptile said, conveying to me that it wanted to help. Tell problem. Make decision.

“There’s one surefire way to make sure that nobody has a problem with you,” I said, holding up a finger. “Trust me, this works one hundred percent of the time on humans. We get this right, and everyone in Jamestown will love you.”

I pulled up to a stop and knelt down to look the critter in the eye. It stopped as well, meeting my eyes in return. Without proper meaning, it conveyed preparedness. It was ready to handle any task, so long as it could continue to be fed and grow stronger.

“You need a name,” I said at last.

Posted Mar 30, 2023, 2:11 PM UTC · edited

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