Day 3.10

The fire crackled as he pushed another stick into position, but most of his attention was focused on Ladybug, who seemed to be attempting to clean one of her spikes with her fur, but it didn’t appear to be going very well. August reached out and carefully took hold of the spike and held it near the light—mud, most likely from the digging, was caked onto it.

“August, I know you must be tired,” Rittan said apologetically, “But I would very much like to speak with you.”

August used his thumbnail to dig under the piece of dirt, scraping it off of the spike. He glanced up, strangely unsettled by being asked to talk—it reminded him of the many times he’d gotten into trouble when he was younger.

“We’re stuck on an island, man,” August said, shaking his head, “You don’t need my permission, do whatever you want.”

“Very well,” Rittan said, amused. “I’ve been wondering about how you brought me here and if it was something that could be repeated.”

August nodded, brushing some of the dirt off the spike before spinning it around to get at the other side.

“This is new to me as well, so keep in mind that I’m not really certain about anything.” August cautioned before continuing. “I checked before; there’s a timer attached to the [Summon] spell; it’s counting down from twenty-four hours—provided that nothing changes once that timer finished, I should be able to use it again.”

“Once every twenty-four hours,” Rittan murmured, “To perform such a deed, are you sure you aren’t of Gaia?”

“I’m not,” August affirmed, checking to make sure the spike was as clean as he could make it. “Human’s have done some terrible things throughout our history, but at least we learn from our mistakes—sometimes.”

These Gaian’s didn’t seem to learn much—they’d made a race of subservient machines; instead of moving past such a shitty idea, they’d turned around and done the exact same thing again with the Voithos, only this time in a way that was even more morally objectable.

Rittan’s focus was easy to see; from what he had described, Limbo seemed like a terrible place, and he’d just met someone capable of interfering with that process.

“You want to know if I’m going to summon more of your people,” August said, voicing his conclusion. “Rittan, was your time in Limbo really worse than being trapped on an island with no clothes, no safety, and where monsters might eat you? You want to inflict this on someone else?”

Rittan closed his eyes, actually seeming to give the question some real thought. August took the time to return the spike to Ladybug, smiling at the monster before blinking as it dumped another mess of chain into his lap, the expectation clear.

“Limbo is an unbroken experience of self,” Rittan said, biting down on his lip. “There is no light; there is no other; there is no future. You can not act; you are inert. You are present and aware that time is passing, but there is no end and no potential. You know that the filter is just before you and with it an escape from all that you are, but you know that you will not reach it. There is a terrible certainty in Limbo.”

August’s mind scuttled away from the thought of it.

“An island overrun with monsters is a fearful place,” Rittan decided, “It is likely filled with struggle, pain, and discomfort. I may be killed or eaten alive. I may grow sick or become injured. There is compromise, sacrifice, and hard work in my future.”

Rittan nodded to himself before opening his eyes.

“This island is a paradise, and I sit beside the warmth of a fire, having been gifted a great uncertainty,” Rittan said, “I am here, but my kind are still certain.”

August swallowed, unsure how to deal with the weight of something like that. He had been assured of his conclusion—that bringing someone here without their consent was not morally permissible. He’d been far too flippant about the subject when instead, he should have been thinking more carefully.

“I’ll take your word for it,” August said, avoiding eye contact. “Once the [Summon] timer hits zero, you can make the choice.”

“Thank you, August,” Rittan said smiling.

There were a number of considerations if they really were going to start summoning more of the Voithos. The amount of food two people required was one thing, but if that number started to grow, they would need to work on something more substantial than a single Sadapple tree.

“If we start bringing more Voithos here, we are going to need better shelters and a more reliable source of food,” August said eventually, using a piece of stripped bark to clean the spike up. “More people means we can get more done in a day, though, so there are upsides as well, I guess.”

“I’m afraid I hold no special knowledge of food procurement,” Rittan admitted, “I have participated in hunting wildlife, albeit it was when I was much younger.”

“Hunting is one way to do it,” August agreed, “We’re surrounded by ocean, though, and we have a lake—fishing should be possible.”

Rittan perked up a bit at that, and August recalled that earlier, the Voithos had said he had an inclination towards eating fish.

“Careful, Rittan,” August nettled, “You’re drooling.”

“My apologies,” Rittan said, amused. “I understand the basics of fishing, but I am not certain how we would begin.”

Given how this Blueprint and Role system seemed to function, August thought he might be able to direct that process somewhat.

“I unlock blueprints by making things, and then I get an information dump on how to improve them,” August offered, “I could try to make some kind of primitive fishing rod or a fishing spear.”

“Such a useful ability,” Rittan said, impressed. “With access to those tools, I am sure that eventually, we will discover how to use them more effectively.”

“Yeah,” August agreed.

Ladybug trilled, butting its head against his hip; the attention he was receiving from the monster reminded him he still hadn’t used [Delegate] to return her to guard duty. August paused as that led him to recall that another skill might help here.

“Hold on,” August said, thinking. “I have this other skill, called [Assign Role], I was able to use it to give the [Defender] to Ladybug.”

Saying the skill name was enough to open the [Menu], and August checked the [Target] drop-down, finding both Ladybug and Rittan listed. He selected the [Role] drop-down; [Gatherer], [Evader], [Defender] were all present. [Ruler], [Leadership], [Survival], and [Striker] were not present at all, and while the latter was the role that Rittan had chosen, the other three were more telling in their absence.

“I can give you some of the other roles I’ve encountered,” August said, “There’s a role for finding resources—[Gatherer], there might be a role for fishing, or hunting maybe.”

“Fascinating,” Rittan said, leaning forward.

“You want to try this out?” August asked, leaving the choice up to him. “It worked for Ladybug, but I’m not going to force anything on you.”

“Thank you for the consideration,” Rittan said, smiling. “I am interested to see if it works—please go ahead.”

August nodded, making sure everything was correct before locking in the prompt.

Rittan has unlocked the Gatherer Role.

“You didn’t lose [Striker], did you?” August wondered.

“No, it is still present,” Rittan said curiously. “It appears that I have also unlocked [Locate Object]—I see, much like the [Striker] skill, merely saying the name is enough to activate it.”

“Yeah, need to be careful with that,” August said, “If either of us unlocks a skill called instant death or something, may want to hold out on testing it.”

“Yes,” Rittan said, amused. “That sounds like a relatively prudent safety measure.”