Chapter One Hundred Twenty Five

Joe woke the next day, a sudden and new brilliant idea popping into his head. With the slave master's villa barred to him, he sought other opportunities and balanced them against what he knew was coming. The idea burned in his thoughts, certainty coming to him. I could do this easly… and save all the kids! Then… Giddy, he began to evaluate what his dreams had offered, calming and going through them carefully. OK. First option was to just wait for the new slaves to come… slave collars come out and that's my chance. Or… but… two! Joe grinned with excitement as he could see freeing himself in only a few days. Grab the collars from other slaves? I take their balls no… wait… I add my four balls and then … steal them for myself? Then free them and take back my four plus all theirs for myself… then add all those balls to mine to free myself.

Joe's thoughts began to spin a thousand ideas and possibilities from this, his grin growing before he grit his teeth. All right… how do I do this… They know… almost immediately… when I add a ball… so, they'd know from others, right? Or… His thoughts bounced. I'd have to gather enough… and the four I had … definitely not enough! I'll need at least double… triple of my collar… proabably? Just to be safe? So I'll need four to match my collar if I have an eight collar… so twelve more to get double… … or twenty more to have triple my collar? That… hmm. That's… a lot… but. Joe pushed that concern for later, going through the process step by step first just to make sure it would be possible. Joe pursed his lips as he continued. And there is some kind of … response too? I was able to push it with my will. That means… my owner… Gunlan… could as well, right? Even the slave master? He seemed to sense it… I guess 'cause Gunlan gave him permission. Would I be fighting two people then? Makes sense… in a horrific way. But… OK.

So then I get enough… and I have to push through Gunlan's and Ily's wills, and I become my own master. OK. Works… I hope? Things seem to be matching… sorta for what I felt as I was wrestling with my own collar. But then… right… let's go through this. So… facts.

Fact one. They know almost immediately. Fact two. I had about half what was on my collar… I think? Not sure… OK. A guess. But… just a guess then. And that didn't budge it at all… or at first, but then it shut me down hard. So… Fact three. My efforts add to it, but that was only to just start making a difference. So… I think we gotta assume, fact four, the owner and boss can also resist… counter my efforts. So… four is not near enough at all! Unless the control is… exponential? But… given how paranoid you'd want to be to keep people under control… have to assume much more needed… double? Triple? Ten times? That… Joe sighed with a grimace. That leads to fact five. There are more than enough balls… seem cheap… cheap enough. So … if it's so easy to get them, gotta make it real tough to 'steal' from another… So… going to have to say matching it is not enough. Pretty good assumption one, going to need at least double or more… save side triple? Joe felt his grimace grow, his hope wilting.

But assume I can get enough. I take the balls from other slaves. Going with assumption one, I need double or triple… and going with triple… I got four free collar balls… I can only work on single collars. Which means I need at least four more to just be on par with what I think my collar is. So… I'd need at least double… but I'm going with triple, right? That's twenty more collar balls… twenty plus people in my room, dump four balls in, steal one slave… The implications left Joe feeling a bit overwhelmed. I'm not getting through twenty people before the guards are on us!

Alright… focus… we can do it on double or triple collar people. Is there… enough? Joe's thoughts wandered then he grimaced as he could only come up with about five or six people in the camp with double or triple collars, including him. Hope regrew but then began to wilt again. OK… that's six people to free… pushing it but maybe do-able? So… two triple and four double… gives me fourteen balls plus my four… I got eighteen. Joe twisted his mouth in frustration. Even if all six are triple collars… that only gives me eighteen more balls plus my four for twenty two. I'm not even triple my own count… and I'm not beating double or triple collars with only four balls. I'm going to have to have two single collars… that gets me to six collars, now I can do the doubles… that gets me to three to one on the doubles… then I'll have my three two one on the triple collars. I need eight people now just to get enough balls to be three to one and work on the double and triple collars… so that might … that's really pushing it. That's… Joe ran the numbers then grimaced again. Only twenty balls total. I'll need four more to be at three to one, that's another four people… I'm back to twelve people. That's… Joe worried at his lip.

Take over a collar.. fight it… take out all the balls… add them all to the next… Joe shook his head with some concern. I don't know if I'm going to have enough time. And what will they do when I free all of them and th…. Oh! That…

A horrific thought came to Joe's mind, and he immediately knew it as truth. That would be… so easy! No slave can free a slave! That's… such an easy flat rule to end any slave uprising… Joe grit his teeth, the realization of that hammering home hard and his welling hope crushed. That would… make too much sense! Then… Options spun through his head, but already Joe could feel the plan beginning to fall apart, leaving him feeling quite a bit less certain.

Then… options… maybe… don't free a slave. Just need a ball… but that means all single collar slaves are now useless to me… even if I could buy the time…and… I only have four balls. Could I overwhelm a three collars with my four? At minimum it's gotta be double, right? Means my only options are double collars as I only have four balls… So… that only gets me one ball. Put my four in, steal the other two, take five out, leave one on so the guy is still technically a slave. But… slave guy's going to know immediately. And now… I don't even have enough people… I'd need… almost twenty people again! Even if I lower my error of margin… and it's double just to overwhelm… and I have eight in my collar… I need twelve more to add to my four. I need twelve double collars crowded in my room. Gotta overwhelm twelve collars…

There's… no way… and if I were running the slave system… no way I'd only set it at double… I'd put in … even ten times, just to be safe! And if none of this works… ten or twenty others stuffed in my tent while I'm desperately trying to put the collars back on and run them back to their tent… This is… do or die… And Joe felt uncertainty swelling greater than his willingness to take a chance. Still, Joe ran the numbers for a bit just to be certain before stopping in disgust when he realized that there weren't even double digits of slaves in the camp with double or larger collars. Joe just didn't have enough, even if he took all the double and triple collar's excess balls, he'd only have seven extra balls, or nine if they all were triple collars. Gives me eleven… or thirteen if I'm lucky, and if I need double… I'm really short… and if this doesn't work out… they'll know immediately… I'm not going to be able to hide this at all… Especially as all those slaves will be mine… their going to know they lost them. Will they know they're mine? Can I even… give them back to the slave master? How do I even… Oh… Can I claim them… for my master like the guards did? But… wouldn't that be Gunlan? That's… Uncertainty grew and with it Joe's growing dislike of this option. This… has to be a last dangerous all or nothing option…

With frustration, Joe set aside that as an option and turned to preparing for the soon to come kid. Time to figure out what to do with the kid… Joe sighed and rose to his thigh stumps, tying on his prosthetics. Time to start the day. After he'd accepted that he wasn't going to be able to get back into the villa, he'd spent pretty much all his time focused on how he would try to save the next kid that would come along.

He'd been stymied at almost every turn, finally having to make a choice to be incredibly cruel to ultimately save the next child. He'd already planned it all, but the hope from finding the collar balls had him thinking he could free himself before the next set of kids came. Now, he knew his chance at freedom would only come the next time the collars were retrieved from the villa, long after the kids had been killed.

And despite his renewed efforts to find another way, he couldn't find any way that might keep the kid safe other than what he'd already planned. It would be cruel; horrific even. But at least the kids would survive. The simple truth was that the collar was insidious and ultimately worked as both a control device and the perfect retrieval system. There were small loopholes that depended on the foolishness of the owner, but for the most part, these were immediately remedied as soon as the slave was seen again by the master. The only successful escape was to never be seen again while also convincing oneself that you could ignore the authority of others.

Given the nature of the society and how ubiquitous it existed within society, comprehension in how slavery and the slave collars worked was embedded in every citizen from birth, even if they weren't slaves themselves. In fact, in acting as a master of a slave and seeing the rules worked against a slave would cause the rules to be even more strictly enforced upon any who would found themselves with a collar on them. A person's or master's own certainty in the rules, authority, and place of a slave in relation to the rest of society would ultimately be used against them when they found themselves collared as well, chained as strongly as their own beliefs since their beliefs were the basis for their own containment.

Joe shivered at the thought of the insidious nature of how the user's own mind trapped them and empowered the collar to control the enslaved. Joe frowned at the thought, then wondered. Then… could I just believe that no one can be my master? Joe's eyebrows furrowed further and he then grimaced. A bit more nuanced than that then… it seems that belief has a huge impact… I know I'm able to straight up ignore other's commands if I believe they don't have authority to, but as soon as Gunlan gave authority to the slave guy who picked me up… Joe's nostrils flared as anger punched through his control. A deep breath and closed eyes returned control to him and he continued his thoughts. So… still anchored in objective facts about who the collar is owned by… at the very least. And the collars react when claimed, so… Joe began to nod. OK. The linchpin would be the claiming then? The objective fact the collar rests it's enforcement against the collared's wishes, but then it … what… reads the mind? Emotions? Something? And then determines restrictions based on the person's thoughts? But…

Joe frowned, gritting teeth. The slave guy who took me from Gunlan… I could resist him until Gunlan gave me to him… so more than emotions… maybe reading key events as well… Joe grimaced and sighed. Not going to know now… and doesn't matter now. Joe stamped his stumps into his prosthetics, wincing a bit at the pain as they settled in place, then marched out of the tent. Right… time to do things.

As he came out of the tent, Joe looked to the left and frowned, finding a guard waiting silently by his side. The man nodded at Joe as he came out then fell in beside and a step behind him. Saying nothing and simply walking along. He moved at Joe's side for a time, snaking through the tents towards the mustering yard. When they passed by the tents and out into the open, the man spoke softly under his breath; a single phrase. Joe didn't understand, nor did he take the chance to try to listen with a change in language skill, but a quick glance up and over his shoulder showed the man looking down with a sad regretful smile before blanking his face and looking up. Joe frowned, confusion flickering across his face before realization hit him. He hid his frustration and returned to his mumbling and distracted behavior while lining up in the mustering yard, a single thought now front and center. Gotta guard now… probably that one guy who narked on me.

He kept his frustration hidden but quickly feared a lot of his plans had to be scrapped and remade, so for the next several weeks, he found himself busy and extremely worried. Tension knotted his stomach almost daily and while he was able to come to another solution rather quickly, worry about being able to duck the guard at the appropriate time removed any rest or relaxation he had. It wasn't until he worried himself sick that he quickly realized he didn't need to change his plans that much. He simply needed to make it past the guards, and he did so easily enough each night. Ironically, it was the scope that proved worrying as he realized that now he had to find a way to feed the kid and get him or her water.

The more he thought about those logistics, the more he realized he wasn't going to be able to deliver such to him. At first, he was rather certain the food, at least, would be easily rectified, but then realized he had to prepare the food. The kid would have no fire with which to cook and water became a special kind of problem.

And so, his days shifted very quickly and he found himself spending a significant amount of his night time in the forests stocking up on meat and what easy vegetation he could find. The vegetation proved the easiest, the berries or vegetables that could be eaten raw washed and slowly filling his inventory. Water and meat, however, required new efforts and he soon had built a small smoking cabin far out in the woods so nothing would get back to the camp. The biggest struggle was building the smoking cabin in such a way as to not allow fire to spread and so Joe found himself sneaking to and stealing from every brazier he could get to, the prepared fuel easier to ignite than full logs. The fire was encased in a tall makeshift stone ring and topped with a poor grate of whatever metal he could find and scavenge from the camp. That added its own drama as the slave master soon had the guards scouring the place for who was stealing all the metal in the area as Joe targeted anything that could be used as a screen.

When he finally got the smoking cabin built, he made it rather too large, but wanted a place to hang his hides as well, hoping to prep them as best he could to hold water, even though he had no certain idea of how to accomplish this. He had some idea, so spent time carefully scraping the hide as clean as possible then hoped drying it in the smoking cabin would be enough.

Finding thread almost crushed Joe until he remembered the pile of cloaks he was sleeping on and he quickly began unwinding one of his cloaks to sew the leather together in his best attempt at a poor water pouch. The needle and keeping the water contained required more carving, the needle proving frustrating but the water spout the much greater challenge as he struggled to make a small wooden donut like shape with a fitted plug which was sewn into the head of the leather pouch. His nights were very busy as he spent significant time and effort to begin preparing smoked jerky and many pouches of water.

A second interesting interlude occurred just before the next set of children came to the camp; he gained a new title in the form of HP Masochist. It popped up after a torture ended and he'd taken a look at things on his status while he waited for his legs to heal. Makes sense… heh… how much HP I've been losing! A quick glance at it showed it was basically the same thing as SP Masochist.

With this, he immediately began setting up his system to automatically engage his HP after a specific amount of loss, but he also dove deeper into the more esoteric options. Really going to want SP to be running ASAP when I'm in a fight… but can't designate… 'fight' as a trigger so… With a clearer mind and better focus, he was better able to wrestle with the vague feelings as options and pulled out something that might work. He was able to tie his system HP to trigger from stress as well, which helped a lot with his peace of mind. Finally, because HP was basically a second chance, caution drove him to also tie it to his conscious, having the system HP engage when he was unconscious.

With these changes, Joe dove back into his system SP triggers as well and added those two parameter as well to his SP. He was able to immediately test it out once his legs regrew and he popped up to practice his katas. His heart rate elevated due to his exercise, but when his system SP didn't trigger even with the rise of his heart rate, Joe couldn't help but smile, grinning at his small success. He practiced a good chunk of time before trying to make sure that his HP and SP would initiate by stepping outside his tent, his stress skyrocketing instantly because of his fear of being found out.

He didn't take any stupid chances, however, making sure he wasn't seen. He still made sure to put himself into a stressful situation but still wisely hidden. His system SP instantly began to drop as he practiced his katas and Joe popped a dagger into his hand to see his HP also drop and his grin grew even greater as he fled back to his tent. A couple more tests after he'd calmed down, and he found that his system HP and SP didn't engage even when he was practicing his katas and his heart rate was elevated. Satisfied with that, Joe flipped his HP on manually to heal the damage he'd taken then prepped to head out into the forest for that night, another night of meal prep for his soon to come kid.

By the time the kids did show up, it was almost with relief and he was simply glad that he could now start to put other things into effect, if rather prematurely, and it was one step closer to his freedom. Next set of slaves… soon…But, that proved its own issue as Joe found himself both growing closer to the kid and unable to really do anything. It was simply too soon. Joe ignored the kid as best he could, but the command for the kid to stay near and listen to Joe left Joe stuck and unable to really keep his distance from him.

The issue was exacerbated by the fact that during the few times they could, his cronies now fervently followed him around and the dozen or so slaves that had tied their ship to his brought along another group of kids. As Joe sat under his various trees or upon his different logs and stumps around the camp, the group of men and women would follow him and each kid would follow the man or woman assigned to them. The slaves, under the advice of previous slaves, ignored the kids, but this left a strange group that was alien to Joe's sensibilities. The slaves chatted softly amongst themselves while the kids assigned to them sat next to 'their' slave, silent and unmoving.

When Joe noticed, he turned to look at the kid assigned him and saw the kid sitting at his side while occasionally glancing up at him. Joe's gaze turned to the other kids, including the few he could see from where he sat off in the distance. Every kid remained glued to the side of their assigned slave and Joe grimaced. Where're they going to have … Joe's frustration flared as bitter anger swelled then dampened under a harsh crushing will. Joe took a deep breath then looked at the kid.

He stared until the kid looked at him, then he nodded off to the field but the boy stared at him in confusion, saying nothing. Joe frowned, opened his mouth to speak, then clicked it shut. Can't speak… although… His mind bent back to his time with Garnedell, intent on trying to find the local word for play before worry crept in along with a soft flash of pain of remembering Garnedell. The pain faded, having grown old, but a layer of bitterness washed across his emotions.

Ignoring the pain, Joe turned to the worry, and bit a lip. If I know the language… already had someone nark on me… so if they let the slave master know that I know some rudimentary… yeah… seems like a really bad idea. Joe's gaze turned back to the kids, sighing as he found himself locked in a catch twenty two. Suddenly, a thought came to him, and a soft grin washed away his bitterness, even as the smile turned a bit feral with vindictive glee.

Joe stood and began marching out of the camp. As he did so, his guard grew remarkably diligent, coming to his side but remaining silent and simply responsive. 'His' kid rose to follow him and Joe didn't respond, ignoring both. His followers all roused and began to rally around him but then stopped to mutter amongst themselves when Joe marched off into the woods, passing the camp boundary with impunity. The guard's concentration spiked and he began looking around with increased concern, unhappy to be following Joe into the forest.

Joe continued on into the forest, uncaring of the others partly because he didn't care and partly because he had to keep up the image of his insanity. The sycophants remained at the borders edge for a time before scattering to occupy themselves for the rest of their free time. Joe turned his gaze to the ground, searching for a hard vine, looking carefully before realizing that his search perfectly fit the persona he'd created and almost giggled. He stifled the laugh for proprieties sake then remembered he was supposed to be insane and found the laugh returning for a completely different reason. And this time, he lit it out, the double humor of the situation likely strange and inexplicable to those watching solidifying the insanity he was portraying.

He didn't care, laughing quietly to himself as he searched, the humor ebbing and flowing just as his laughing did as well, soft burbles of laughter breaking free while he looked through to forest with a carefree attitude. That humor didn't last long, fading quickly before the bitter realization of his current position but he didn't stop his search, simply turning to his efforts with a serious focus now.

It didn't take long before he found what he wanted, and quickly harvested the hard vine that was almost like bamboo, although it didn't wind its way up any trees or bushes. This plant seemed to send runners along the forest floor making it a rather significant tripping hazard and Joe found himself considering it for more than a simple toy. If I run through here… especially if I can use my stats and jump over the whole clump… Joe glanced back at the guard who was following him and came to a stop, finding the man staring at him with something akin horrified terror. Why is he…

Worry came quickly and Joe whipped his head around to pan for any threats but found nothing. Joe took another few moments to assess everything, including looking back at the guard a few times before returning to his efforts. Get this and get out… not sure what's going on… but donno if I wanna find out…

Joe returned to ripping up a good dozen or so feet of the vines, slicing through them easily enough with hidden judicious use of the knives he had in his inventory storage. Can't let him see they were cut… right? Then… Joe, realizing this, made sure to roughly twist the cut ends so that they were shredded a bit and looked more like torn ends than cut ones. Should be enough… don't think people are really going to look at a toy… Should… I hope… Joe grit his teeth and bundled the vines up in his grip, making sure the cut ends were all mostly held in his fist. If they can't see it…

Joe then simply did a one eighty, reversing their way home, but marched back with a purpose. Got what I needed… let me give the kids at least a little bit of time to play… Even as he walked back, he couldn't figure out the guard's fear, and the thought worried at the back of his mind.

* * *

Klannard followed the eccentric with no small amount of growing terror as the man made his way into the forest. No fear, no worry, and no reaction from the collar. He shuddered, his fascinated terror growing even as he followed the eccentric through the forest. How… just… how?

* * *

He made it back to his tree he'd been lounging at before but found it empty of his 'friends.' He didn't care. He turned his effort to the vines he'd gotten and began cleaning them out and flattening them carefully, slicing them in half the long ways such that he essentially unrolled the vine into a relatively flat plane that stretched the length of the vine. That'll work… if they dry decently well… right? And… got enough for a good three or four now, I think?

He staked out the vines in the sun, then turned away from them. Over the next couple days, he maintained a vigil over the vines, moving them to his tent when he had to go to bed then carrying them with him out into the bare fields where he would stake them out in the sunlight during the day.

At the start of his vigil, he did notice one interesting oddity about his kid. The kid left him each day during the evening meal, every time without fail. Joe found it odd at first, then grew paranoid when he realized the kid was definitely following some kind of order. Careful, even paranoid, efforts proved necessary because the boy never left while he was being watched. Joe had to watch without making it obvious the boy was being observed. It took almost a week of careful observation to reveal that the boy was slipping away towards the slave master's home. That gave Joe massive pause. Another few days of wrestling with his own conscious finally settled the issue. Joe could never let something happen without at least trying. So, his path was set, although some minor changes would be needed to keep the boy reporting as little as possible.

Finally, the vines dried pretty well and diverted his concern over the spying efforts of his kid. When he checked in the morning, the vines hardened to a stiff but pliable and reasonably flat, slightly arched 'rope' about the width of his thumb. Joe grinned as he rubbed it one last time between finger and thumb then left it while he went to the mustering yard. Perfect… just gotta wait for the mustering to be done.

The mustering went as it did every day before he returned and coiled up all the vines and wandered out to another place in the camp, choosing to sit at the place closest to the enslavement station. He'd begun to sit there more regularly each day, working hard to normalize the location. For today, however, Joe found a certain joy in the moment, growing excited at what he'd planned even as the kid following him settled in at his side and the people that were now following him crowded around in their little groups with the kids sitting silently at their sides as well.

Joe began pulling in the vines, searching through it for the best pieces until he paused, a thought coming to mind. After some consideration, he changed what he'd planned to do after glancing around to see all the kids before bending to his work. This will be better…

It took a bit of caution, but he was able to surreptitiously pull out a knife as needed, and he began weaving the rattan substitute into a circular framework. He screwed up a half dozen times, not having done the work in quite some time, but memory returned rather quickly and he soon had a small double fist sized rattan ball. He grinned then glanced around before slicing off the rattan before continuing to make another ball. He got about three balls out of it but the last bit was only able to make a half sized ball, which turned out all right since it came sized to about a baseball, making it more of a whiffle ball than what he'd originally been aiming for: a soccer ball a bit on the small side.

He didn't immediately toss them out to be played with, completing them all instead. When he finished the last one, he turned to the kid assigned to him and beckoned the kid forward. The kid came to him and Joe handed the ball to them. The kid stared at it, then looked back up at Joe with confusion and uncertainty. Don't tell me … gotta have a ball, right?

Joe stared at the boy for a bit, uncertain how to continue, until the one slave who'd been around the longest and remained the strongest against the slave master's attempts to break him spoke up. The slave spoke to Joe's kid and the kid looked up at the speaking slave. There was a rather stilted conversation with the boy glancing down at the ball then back up at the slave that was explaining things. After a few comments, the boy tossed the ball into the air experimentally, then catching it. Joe smiled softly at seeing it then snatched it out of the air when the kid tossed it up again. The kid's shocked look made Joe's grin grow and he tossed it back to the kid who fumbled it.

The kid picked it up from the ground then stared at it a bit before looking at Joe. Joe nodded with a grin of encouragement and held out his hand, beckoning the boy to toss it. The boy did and Joe lurched forward to catch it. Bit short… heh… Joe almost caught it, then stumbled when the feet he was expecting to land on proved nonexistent and he slammed down on his stump prosthetics. He tumbled to the ground then chuckled as he picked up the ball right in front of his face. His laughter grew a bit more and he shoved himself back up onto his seat. No need to get pissed off and scare the kid. Joe thought as he forcefully turned his shame and frustration to humor.

Joe's concern proved prescient as the kid stared at him with terrified horror but Joe ignored it, pretending he didn't see the kid's concern, tossing the ball back where it bounced of the kid's chest. The kid didn't even try to catch it nor pick it up until Joe encouraged him to do so.

It took another few attempts before the boy could throw it to him properly, and Joe began catching it from the air rather easily then tossing it back to the boy. The boy was still wildly horrible at throwing a ball, the ball coming in too short, too long, or off to the sides such that Joe found himself sweating by the time he'd played a couple minutes of catch with him. But, slowly, the boy got better, although his ability to catch was abysmal.

While this was going on, Joe kept an eye on the other kids, all staring up with some form of wide-eyed wonder, although most kept it hidden behind furtive glances. Only a few stared without concern, obvious jealousy wafting through gazes. Joe noticed and only continued the play for a few more moments to give his kid some practice before Joe turned to look at the other kids, then beckoned his kid towards them.

The other kids who had been watching suddenly jerked back with deep worry as they glanced at their assigned slave while also struggling to hide the burning hope that was so easily seen flickering through their eyes. His kid looked back at him, then the other kids, but remained frozen, uncertain of what to do. It took Joe a few moments to understand what was happening, but all the kids were looking at their assigned slaves avidly. Why… oh! Realization struck like a flash. They need permission… Joe looked around at the other slaves and found them looking at him with curiosity before Joe nodded to them, hoping it meant something.

It seemed to as they all looked at their kids and waved them forward towards his kid. They came forward hesitantly, some immediately grabbing the ball from his kid without really waiting, and Joe struggled to stifle a frown at their behavior. It seemed the kids were much more aware of their surroundings for the two who'd stolen the ball and fought amongst themselves immediately froze and stared at him before cautiously returning the ball to his kid. Joe struggled to hide his upset once again when he realized they were reacting to his disfavor, and Joe found himself paralyzed, uncertain of how to respond.

The first slave that had taught his kid how to play ball spoke out again, speaking loudly with commands and explanations, and the kids quickly responded. Joe cocked his head then fought back a grin when he realized they were reacting much like kids with a teacher would. Things fell into controlled chaos for a bit at that, and soon the kids were tossing the ball around. Joe watched on for a bit before, with a mischievous grin, he tossed the other couple balls he'd made out into the middle of the rough circle the kids had made.

Chaos erupted, and the kids were soon playing wildly, although very quietly; a strange dichotomy that took Joe awhile to catch, but Joe was simply happy to see some form of happiness in this horrific torture. His gaze remained on the kids for a while before he found his eyes pulled over to the man who'd taken on the job of teaching the kids how to be kids… if only for a bit. The man was no longer taking any responsibility for the kids, off silent and to the side as he often was. But, he was looking at Joe with calculating eyes. Joe watched for a time before nodding slowly and very shallowly. The man nodded back just as surreptitiously.

Joe turned his gaze away to return to his meaningless carving, focusing back on his practice of mana and expanding the pool stats he had when he noticed the guard that had been assigned to watch him also gazing at him with piercing focus. Joe didn't respond at all, simply staring back before turning his head down. The guard caught him by surprise when he offered a soft small nod as well, just as Joe glanced away. Joe almost froze, uncertain how to respond to all that, but then continued on with what he'd been going to do anyway.

The kids got to play ball for about a week. The noise growing just that subtly louder each day, and soon the kids of other slaves were watching on with equal ardor and jealousy, and Joe almost did something stupid before Joe hardened and focused. He began making sure that he sat with his back to the majority of the longing gazes, struggling with the results and soon feeling some sort of regret over what had happened before he realized the ramifications of his choice and found himself growing certain of what he'd chosen once again. That had him out in the jungles in the night ramping up his efforts at the smoking cabin again and again, greatly increasing his meat reserves and the number of water bottles. Despite how tight things were likely going to get, he didn't give up, only digging deeper and building another smoking cabin next door, rushing it despite the insane danger.

The regret and certainty waxed and waned even though Joe was already acting on his decision. He still could back out, if he wanted or needed. So Joe used the excuse of doing more to flee from his pain and the fact that he chose to abandon all the other kids. Despite being absolutely certain that he would fail with any kid outside the circle of those who followed him and knowing he'd made the wisest and best choice, the raw reality of that choice tore through him. And despite knowing that inviting the children of the other slaves who rejected him would only get the kids he could help killed, he still found himself second guessing every action. He didn't doubt his decision, but he still beat himself in horrified anger at his inability to a solution. But no solution came, and Joe had to harden his heart ever more to the yearning gazes of the other children.

It's too much… there… too complicated and too many… The adult slaves wouldn't even let the kids come to me… probably. Then the slave master hears… then… Granted, that meant a lot more kids would die again, if the schedule held, as the new slaves didn't come until after this batch of kids were killed off again, but struggle as he might, he couldn't think of any way to safely keep these kids alive. Even if the other slaves were willing to throw in with him, they would receive just as wild a punishment as the group who'd subverted the use of the pets did as well. Now, almost no one joined him in any of his endeavors except this group. And Joe wasn't going to sacrifice the few he could save, so slowly, but firmly hardened his heart over the choice.

Throughout that time, Joe remained strong, despite his struggle with the realization many would die. And when that week was done, the nervousness of what came next was enough to draw Joe's concerns away to his next plan. The danger and worry of what might happen ate at him until the time was ready.

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Joe had looked over the people who'd decided to follow him and he ended up choosing the guy who'd remained the longest. It took a day or two, some careful maneuvering, and a tiny bit of luck, but Joe was able to sit positioned right next to his chosen target. He remained there for a time and as time passed, he grew ever more anxious until he was finally forced to fish or cut bait, the necessity to involve others reaching the point of no return. He tried to ignore the others. He tried to leave the other kids to their fate, but as he looked on and saw the kid 'assigned' to him grow ever closer to and enjoy his time with his peers, the more Joe was unable to resist. So, taking a deep shuddering breath, he began. Set my language to Galga.

The muted murmuring of odd sounds around him suddenly shifted from an opaque fuzziness to abrupt brilliant clarity. Joe heard and listened to the soft conversations around him and almost found himself melting into the wonder of being a part of society again, but then grit his teeth and slipped an elbow back to bump into his target when he noticed the man fall into quiet introspection, shifting from the conversation he was having.

"Don't say anything… and ignore me, but hey man, what's your name?"

The man who he'd bumped into shifted away, not really responding, obviously not noticing Joe's soft spoken question. Joe tried again, his hand reaching surreptitiously over and forcefully pushing a knuckle into the man, not wanting to pinch or cause pain. The startled cry would bring too much attention. All he wanted was for the man to notice. The man glanced at him, curiosity painting his face.

"Ignore me. Don't say anything. Don't react. But, what's your name?"

The man blinked and reacted a bit wildly and Joe hissed but didn't react otherwise. The man reacted in every way Joe didn't want him to. Jerking back in shock, then excitedly leaning closer in eager hope for more, followed by recognition of what Joe had said and composing himself badly as he tried to hide his actions. Joe remained head down, ignoring all of it even as he growled in anger within. The man proved as smart as Joe hoped, and he simply turned away and ignored Joe for a time, allowing the small disturbance to pass as everyone stared at him in confusion. A few moments later, the man finally spoke back.

"Sorry about that… what can I do for you?"

"A name, for now."

The man hid his smile, but Joe could tell he was pleased with his soft reply, "Dulan."

Joe smiled and breathed deeply before replying, "Joe."

"Joe?"

"My name."

"Oh. My greetings, Joe. And thanks for the trust."

"Thanks for understanding."

The two fell silent for a time, Joe simply enjoying conversation again and the man offering him his space. Finally, Joe began.

"It goes without saying but I would like this conversation to be secret."

"Of course, eccentric."

"Just Joe, is enough. As for what I desire… Could you start having everyone's kids sent to my tent at night… I'll send them back before midnight. They do not… they'll be home before midnight."

The slave grimaced to hear Joe speak of the night, and the man opened his mouth to reply, then thought better of it, then finally sighed, "You have endured."

Joe huffed, a bitter smile rippling at his lips against his will, "I was lucky. I do not know if I …" Joe interrupted his thoughts trailed off, saying nothing.

The two fell silent again for a time before the slave replied softly, "The children will be sent."

Joe grit his teeth, then cursed himself even as he warned against what he was about to do despite knowing the consequences could be bad, "Oh. Please… warn the others I intend to save those sent to me… if I can. There will likely be… repercussions from the douchebag slave master."

The man recoiled in some shock, then huffed softly, humor ripping soft chuckles from him, "I will warn. Some… will be too scared."

Joe immediately regretted the revelation and cursed himself out in his mind. Idiot! Idiot! I'm such an idiot… he's going to tell the others… then they'll chang… He flicked a glance up to see the man's fervent eyes filled with hope locked on his.

Joe kept his head down as he grimaced, "You cannot change how you act or what you do! Or they will notice," Joe hissed quietly and the man pulled back like he was hit and nodded, understanding flooding his face and he immediately turned back to sit with studied nonchalance.

Joe offered only one last whispered statement, "Please be careful who you speak to."

Joe then turned away before glancing up with soft worry at the guard who had been assigned to him. Joe found the man staring at him with studied consideration. Joe stared back then turned back to his carving as nonchalantly as possible. Mentally, his thoughts skittered like water bouncing across a boiling hot iron plate. No… no nonononono…. Change language to French… don't…

Relief set in almost immediately as understanding vanished like a light turned off, the soft murmuring around him now incomprehensible babbling. Joe struggled to keep his sigh and relief hidden and lost himself in the moment. Nervousness remained until a good couple days later, but now he had his plan set and his self-recrimination was replaced by an agitation rooted in trying to save the kids.

Beginning that night, his tent filled with way too many kids and he simply allowed them to play for a time, enjoying their time there. He didn't do anything else with them, ignoring them and letting them do what they wanted. Then he sent them home, both needing his rest after an exhausting day and not wanting the poor kids to see what would soon happen to him.. Nothing else much changed for the next few weeks except that the children grew more exuberant in their playing and Joe more anxious.

* * *

He had no name. He'd never had a name. In fact, he knew little and had experienced less. He remembered little of his life or where he'd come from because where he'd come from was nothing more than a small grey box. He didn't know there were so many colors. He hadn't known that word until he'd come out here. Rarely he'd seen color, but it was such a vague memory lost to a time he thought had been fantasy more than anything else. All he knew was everything was so big and so high!

Up till now, his world had been a small room just large enough that he and his people slept on the floor just large enough to accommodate them all. It wasn't much bigger than the twenty of them lying on the floor. Nor was it much taller than maybe double or triple their height. Light came into the room from small holes high in the wall as did sound. Only one door rarely opened but for food-getter and poop-taker.

Those had been grand times, food-getter and poop-taker always questioned and asked for what they'd seen when they were allowed to leave 'the door.' 'More grey' was always the answer. But now he and his friends didn't see grey. There was blue. There was white. And there was so very much green! It was a wonder.

And it was loud! So much speaking and talking amongst the big ones. He was still shocked by how much the big ones were willing to allow them to make noise, but he was still very cautious. The anger of the big ones came quickly and without meaning. There was only the safety of silent hyper awareness, and he was very good at such things to remain careful of the big ones. His big one was rather nice for a big one, but he really wished he was the ball-maker's. He stared at the little one who was ball-maker's with some jealousy but then crushed that jealousy. It was dangerous, especially with big ones. Still, he stared at ball-maker's little one and wondered, having never seen that little one before. Although, there were many new little ones, so he turned away back to his ball, simply happy to play with such an amazing thing.

* * *

Aelthron dug deep into the records his dumb spirit had returned, growing more excited and fighting to hold back on his frustration and hope. A few requests from his dumb spirit came in but he immediately dismissed them to the dumb spirit to do if possible or to leave them for later. He focused, instead, on listening through each of the requests and statements from the man. And as he did so, Aelthron grew ever more joyous, but also concerned. The man had controller's access, and it ratcheted Aelthron's anxiety up by quite a bit. He came to the end of all the man's requests and then stilled, worry and hope slamming into him in equal measure. He stared off into the distance as he listened to the last few requests from the man, repeating it again and again, especially that one final and odd request, waiting for his response because his dumb spirit did not know how to respond.

"Ho, Aelthron? You are? Aelthron? If you're the … artificial spirit, I presume … for this whole system object, you there?"

"Ho, Aelthron? You are? Aelthron? If you're the … artificial spirit, I presume … for this whole system object, you there?"

"Ho, Aelthron? You are? Aelthron? If you're the … artificial spirit, I presume … for this whole system object, you there?"

"Ho, Aelthron? You are? Aelthron? If you're the … artificial spirit, I presume … for this whole system object, you there?"

Aelthron did not know how long he waited before he finally pulled out of his fugue. Wonder at hearing an obvious attempt to contact him warred with a growing fear at having another who could control him. Then he cursed himself for foolishness.

Almost immediately, he wrested control of any future requests from this Joe back from his automated spirit, making sure that any further communication with the help system would come immediately to him. He stared at the request, and waited, then fear drove him away for a time and he returned to exploring what he knew of this Joe.

The records on Joe were astounding, and the hope he had been stifling flared beyond his control. He'd learned much of this person, and he knew too little. The person seemed both surprisingly well educated and equally lacking in basic accepted knowledge. While that was concerning, Alethron cared little beyond the ability to communicate with him.

But after reviewing once again, Aelthron was left with no option but to return to the last request from the man. Aelthron fidgeted, frustrated and very nervously agitated. At least one thing came of this. It'll be so much easier to find him know.

"Spirit, show me the location of the open request."

Even as the dumb spirit quickly took him to the fifteenth planet from the cradle to a nondescript tent. Pulling the view back, he found himself viewing a camp in the middle of a large forest. As he did so, Aelthron re-evaluated how he would train his dumb spirit quite upset at having been lost seeking through plane after plane and city after city. He'd been stuck searching the planes manually as all requests had already been completed, but for now, his eyes were on the empty tent in the teeming camp and was soon sending his sight scurrying around the camp and listening in. He did not know who this Joe was, but it would be as simple as waiting for the person to return to his tent. But, while he waited for night to descend, he listened in and quickly noticed the man slaves, even as his lips curled into distaste. I'll need to reconsider how slave collars have been entering. And… if he is a slave master…

Aelthron shivered, worry spiking even as he considered the control this man now had over him. That worry vanished only to be overwhelmed by disappointment and despair, then no small amount of awe as the man who had to be Joe entered the tent, then proceeded the night to be tortured and destroyed before he cautiously took in the sight of the small breaking boy beside him. The poor lad… Aelthron couldn't keep the distaste from twisting his lips but turned his attention back to Joe. Joe laid back down and began regrowing his legs exceptionally fast, and Aelthron found himself slightly impressed.

He checked the boy one last time then rose and fled to the forest, easily escaping the bounds of the tent. The man worked in a frenzy for quite some time and Aelthron could only watch on with wonder and confusion at what the man was attempting to do. Meat and tanning hides filled the small house being cooked in a strange way even as the man scoured the forests for more berries and small nuts and fruits. It seemed obvious to him the man planned to escape, but he was uncertain how he could ever free himself, slave masters were notoriously cautious with their commands. Still… the preparation for possible escape is always to be applauded!

The man returned in the early hours of the morning but did not go to sleep. He cautiously settled on his knees before slithering into the tent silently, cautiously looking at the boy before settling on his poor bed. He remained there for a time, making certain the boy was asleep before pulling out four more slave collar balls from an inventory. That pulled an eyebrow up for Aelthron, in wonder that the man practiced the old ways as he had no inventory item upon him and was surprised that he had four collar balls on his person. His impression of the man dipped at that, but he watched on cautiously.

The man slithered silently towards the boy, enacting some silence and stealth skills as he came forward but then paused and settled back, looking down at his legs. Aelthron pondered then realization hit. And the man pulled out a rather large axe and proceeded to lop off his legs at his thigh after emptying the system HP quite significantly. Despite the man having slaver's gear, Aelthron found his respect for the man growing slightly as the man kept his silence. The left over system HP sealed the wounds as Aelthron had developed it to do so and the man fell back to his bed silently, holding in his pain and gasps until he could lay silently on his bed for a time.

Aelthron almost turned his attention away from Joe when the man stirred silently once again and moved towards the boy, the four slaver's balls appearing in his hand once more. He pressed his hand close to the collar of the boy but making sure not to touch the boy. The man whispered, and Aelthron cursed as he pressed in closer to listen, the blue box forming and presenting the last of the man's comment.

"…is boy for myself."

Aelthron frowned, then saw one of the collar balls was missing and another was morphing into the boy's slave collar."

"I claim this boy for myself."

Aelthron's eyebrows shot up even as this Joe did it two more times. Already, the sound of clamor from the waking camp and roused the guards. Joe grew nervous and seemed to pause in silence as the last ball entered the boy's collar. He remained so for a few moments then quickly took all the balls out of the boy's collar before sucking them into his inventory and slipping into bed.

And Aelthron watched on with confusion and growing wonder.

* * *

Joe laid in his bed, remaining in faux sleep as the camp went wild with roiling guards. It had only been less than a minute and Joe already knew that any plan that involved stealing collars from other slaves was essentially impossible. The guards were already running amongst the tents and he could easily tell two were running directly for him. The boy beside him suddenly jerked awake in surprise at all the noise, and Joe took that as a sign to notice as well, rising with grumbling upset.

The guards streamed in only moments later and checked both their collars, even giving a command to both of them which their bodies immediately reacted to with obedience. Joe grimaced, grateful he'd not pushed to actually take the boy as his slave and only cautiously pressing against the ownership already there before retreating. What he'd found did not give him a lot of confidence, even at three to one in his favor, he struggled to put a meaningful dent in the ownership. It stretched and bulged under his efforts, and he might have been able to take control if he'd been quite a bit more violent, but fear at accidently taking control and not being able to return it kept him from pushing further.

Despite what he'd learned, Joe was very unhappy with what he'd found out as he wasn't quite sure he'd have been able to take control of the boy's collar. I'm going to need… a lot more collars! And while worry had him doubting his decision, what he'd learned seemed incredibly crucial to his future plans and guided his choices.

* * *

Ilyelanralo paced his room once again, growing ever more paranoid. The faux bait boy he'd sent to spy upon the eccentric reported nothing and almost, Ilyelanralo believed him. But doubt wormed its way through his mind and he could only wait. Please… come soon.

* * *

With the passing of days, Joe's anxiety grew ever more and he began putting the effort needed for this to work. Doubt over his recent decision warred with certainty as his plans solidified. He could only hope that the few months until the new batch of slaves came would be enough to calm things down, but he worried since some of what he needed to do with his kid worried him, especially as the kid would be reporting to the slave master. That worry calmed a bit with the realization that what he was doing was already known to all in the camp. Still…

So, Joe turned to enacting his 'save the kids' plan. That required Joe going to the dungeon and needing to talk with the kid. It was nerve wracking as Joe knew the kid had orders from the slave master, but he didn't have much of a choice, so late one night after all were asleep but before his nightly torture session, he initiated contact. He was definitely not going to speak by changing his language skill, so he hoped miming would be enough. He waved the kid over who came rather quickly enough.

Joe then flipped open his status and mimed the kid to do the same. He did easily enough and Joe grimaced to see a level one commoner. He sighed then nodded and closed his own status before waving for the kid to do the same with his. Shouldn't surprise the slave master… certainly be weird… but … shouldn't give any clues. He took a good chunk of time running the numbers, growing concerned that he'd waited way too long, but he had no choice now. Gonna have to go first thing in the morning and get going ASAP I guess… He then rolled over and fell asleep, his anxiety spiking. Hope it's enough.

* * *

Waking was abrupt and unpleasant, a finger rolling across the dirt floor as a scream painfully ripped apart Joe's throat. Joe took a deep breath then settled his mind, turning his thoughts away from the pain and escaping. Calm came to him and his pain fled to a small box he'd built for it deep in the back of his mind. He didn't know if this was normal. He didn't know if what he was doing was good. He only knew he didn't want to feel it and doing this somehow made the pain distant and manageable. He knew this wasn't normal, especially from his experience from pain back on Earth, but somehow, this did work, so he used it.

His thoughts faded and the time passed in a haze until he came back to awareness to find a pile of his fingers, cut knuckle long, sitting on the ground in front of his face. The pain had quickly faded into nothingness, the healing returning control and calm to his hands, but the anger swelled and he grit his teeth before reaching out and then pausing. The kid was staring at him, and Joe smiled, nodding his head before telling him to turn away and get some sleep.

The kid seemed to understand and rolled around on his bed, hugging himself as he fell asleep and Joe swiped up all the knuckles into his inventory. Then, he flipped open the inventory interface and stared at the hundreds of severed limbs and thousands of knuckles cluttering his inventory. He gripped his rage tightly, then turned away in exhaustion, settling in to sleep.

The next morning came quickly, and a moment of sleep helped him put everything deep into his distant past. Right… time to get the kid ready. He equipped partier to pull the kid into his group then popped open his status to show the kid. The kid responded as Joe wanted, pulling up his own status then reacting with some surprise when the pop up for joining a group appeared after Joe invited him. That necessitated having the kid click yes on his screen, but Joe said nothing and only pointed to him to hit the yes button. The kid did so and Joe then turned away to continue his own work, flipping off his display to personal so the kid would close his own display.

He then readied the jobs he would be using even as the boy turned off his status, leaving only his own transporter job equipped still unwilling to risk the advanced dungeon core that rested in it despite his tests. But, the other three jobs spaces he replaced with teacher, professor, and researcher. That left him without a priest job to change his own jobs with, but he figured he could use his own title to change his job once then. But, as he prepared for the day, he realized he'd made a foolish mistake. Can't change the kid's job! I'm an idiot!

Joe grimaced and used his one free job change to re-equip Loki pope and settled with just professor and researcher. Teacher would have been nice, but he could only do the best he could with the two slots available to him. Today would be a dungeon run, and the boy would come with him so the only last thing he needed to do was get the kid into his group, requiring some more job changes.

Mustering went as it always did before Joe turned away and headed to the dungeon. His guard didn't seem too pleased with that, but Joe mostly ignored him completely. Too much to do and gotta get the kids prepared! Joe marched down the stairs with the kid in hand and the guard threw a sour considering frown at Joe. Joe didn't care.

The march down into the depths of the combat dungeon was silent, the boy tense beside him and the guard a few steps behind staring at him with disdainful eyes. Joe made it down to the bottom of the stairs but remained on the one step above the floor staring into the empty small square room. Joe paused there, growing uncertain. The guard was behind him watching, the boy to his side. Not sure I want the guard to see the kid swap between two or three different jobs… gonna be easy to see with the color changes. And I don't want the kid to know either… that's… It should be easy enough if the kid is as sheltered as it seems. Didn't even know what a ball was, so… Joe grit his teeth and then basically prepared. Gonna have to do this by memory then? Just swap jobs as things seem ready. If I remember right…

Almost, Joe pulled out his notebook then grimaced as he realized he didn't want either to see that, so grit his teeth. Shoulda done it last night… dumb of me. But… OK. Joe flipped open his status and kept it only to himself as he went through the various jobs he'd need before nodding. If I remember, transporter needs mule… and that's… yeah, Partier. Twenty for both? Or… hmm… I remember mule came up pretty easy. Maybe ten? Fifteen? Twenty just to be safe. Not too hard to hit twenty with the boosts I'm giving. But, transporter took a bit. Yeah… definitely twenty five or thirty. Joe grimaced at that, but then continued. So then what opened Partier? Maybe… It took quite a long time and a surreptitious look at his notebook while his back was turned to the two in order to find what job opened the partier and almost he cursed. Adventurer… and that's from commoner! At level thirty! I remember that… The memory coming easily to him even as he remembered what Garnedell had to go through.

That flashed a small bitter pain through his heart but the urgency of his position had him ripping the notebook back into his inventory and he turned to look back at the kid. Right. Let's do this then. Level thirty commoner… how much… Another obstacle quickly hit and Joe grimaced in frustration as he realized that he wasn't sure how effective his professor and researcher were at helping others level so had no real effective way of estimating the kid's level. He considered his notebook but quickly dismissed that as he was quite certain he'd never actually run the numbers either even when he had used the jobs. Right… one kill and see how much he levels. That will give me a good base… and hopefully they won't notice… as long as it doesn't go double digits… hopefully the guard doesn't notice. He did, however, take the time to swap jobs out so his main job was the yellow of a scholar, and not priest gold or partier green. He feared too many questions from that.

Joe, bowing to necessity, turned to the kid and flipped open his status window, pointing it out to the kid. A sharp gasp behind him made Joe grin slightly but he ignored the guard. The boy looked over at Joe's status then opened his own in response. Joe nodded, then closed his and the boy followed suit. Joe nodded. Good start. He'd intended to just have the boy keep his status open but then realized the guard would have seen the kids digits just immediately change. That would have been a rather bad idea, Joe felt, so had the kid close it again. Joe nodded then stepped out onto the empty floor.

After a couple rats stepped out, Joe immediately stepped back then frowned when they all stopped charging him and began wandering around the room. They flooded from the dungeon before… why different now? That… kinda annoying… makes sense why it's wasted here… but definitely useful now. Only want to kill one. Joe stepped down and hopped back up, waiting only long enough for a rat to wander close enough to the stairs so Joe could kill it quickly from the steps.

A quick stomp had the rat killed, riling up the other rats but pulling back calmed them down and Joe felt some relief. He watched on as the rats stirred with irritation, a few more popping into existence from his quick steps down onto the floor. After watching for a time, Joe turned his back, but kept his ears open for movement even as he popped open his status to his right. Hope the guard… nice! The popping up of his status pulled the guard's eyes to his right and the kid popped his own status open in response directly in front of him. The guard stood up higher on the stairs and couldn't really catch the kid's status easily as the boy stood between the status and the guard. It was long enough for Joe, however, and he quickly flipped his status shut. The boy followed suit immediately after.

Joe frowned bitterly, grimacing and cocking a head. No change? Really? Why didn't… or… Joe looked down at the steps they were on then back to the room. Really? Man… this dungeon sucks…

Joe stepped up a step to stand around behind the boy before clapping his hand on the kid's shoulder, "Sorry, kid. You have to be down there with me."

His statement brought a surprised reaction from both but Joe didn't really acknowledge either, simply turning his focus upon the boy and offering as much affirmation as he could with only his gaze. He then nodded to the right and then looked back at the boy. The boy remained stoic, his gaze rather fixed on Joe but he nodded back. Joe nodded in return with his own bitter frown before turning back to the room. He put a hand on the boy's shoulder, cupping his neck with his palm before stepping forward, pulling the kid down with him onto the floor.

There was a shout behind him from the guard, but Joe ignored it, stepping forward and in front of the boy. Another rat spawned while all the ones on the floor immediately turned to rush him and the boy. Joe quickly took one rat before punting another two rats away, not wishing to kill any more, then barked out while backing up. He kicked a third while stepping back and then felt the stairs at his heel and stepped up on it just as a fourth arrived. Joe remained tense but the rat immediately slowed and then wandered, even bumping up against the stairs without noticing or caring about the three who stood on the stairs. Joe frowned. Weird… but not important now…

Joe turned back to the kid then frowned when he saw the boy held in the hands of the guard. Joe glanced down to see the tight grip on the boy's bicep that wasn't quite bruising and his frown deepened. This… isn't that good… Joe looked up at the guard and allowed a bit of his anger to shine through.

The guard didn't like that, and shouted at Joe for a bit and Joe allowed it, not wanting to turn this into something. It was just easier to take it then move on, especially as he had no way to communicate with the guard and was too cautious to turn on his language skill to do so. Nor did he have anyway to retaliate if he wanted. After a few moments, the guard stopped yelling and Joe remained silent. The guard stared back, then grew frustrated and released the boy rather angrily. Joe didn't really need to catch the boy, but did squat to take a look at the arm before staring into the boy's eyes.

"You OK?" Joe tried to mime his question as well, although the question was quite abstract so he wasn't sure the kid understood at all.

That said, the boy nodded back in response and Joe took it for what it was then stood up and went around behind him again, placing himself between the guard and the boy once again before flipping open his status. The boy did it again, and Joe glanced down to see it empty, still. Joe bit off a curse and glanced back at the guard then back down at the boy. How do… ooh.. maybe?

Joe turned to his miming skills, backup up a couple steps on the stairs then began using gestures to show that they stood just on the edge of the dungeon floor, one step from it. Hopping down, he had the boy jump down with him before miming killing some rats, then shouted out a deep 'go.' He then pushed the boy back one step before joining him on the step.

A couple of repeated demonstrations seemed to be all that was needed for the kid to nod in understanding, if a little fear. Joe squatted back down and tried to reassure the kid as best he could. The guard, however, began yelling at him, if a bit quietly and more of a muttering disapproval for what he was doing. After practicing for a few times, including the retreat, Joe led the boy back down to the edge and both leaped to the dungeon floor, Joe stepping forward another two steps.

Joe easily dispatched the first rat, his foot crushing its back. The ribs made for a poor protection, even with the spine and Joe crushed it under foot easily. The rat squished to the floor and squealed out before dying. Joe took a step back and to another rat, this time to the side as it tried to scuttle past him towards the boy. He hit it further back in the torso, taking it in the belly but aiming to punt it again. Only want to kill one… still! A third skittered in a rage, charging towards them even as another four or five spawned and scrabbled towards them. Joe was happy with the distance and immediately called for a retreat.

"Go!" Joe shouted with a quick glance to the side in an attempt to see behind him.

The boy reacted quickly and leapt back to the stairs, and Joe turned and ran for the exit as well, leaping to the first step even as he turned to look back at the rats. The rats continued rushing him in a mad squealing rage then suddenly stopped as soon as his body passed through the plane of the stair case. Joe found an eyebrow rising at that realization, grinning in joy at figuring something out then frowning in annoyance as he realized what it would mean. This… sucks…

Joe remained vigilant for a bit until he was certain the rats had wandered off again, losing their agro before turning to the boy. He checked him over carefully, nodding when he found the boy physically fine then took time to check how the boy was feeling. The boy nodded back stoically in response but seemed to shiver a bit and Joe found himself gritting his teeth before pulling the kid in for a hug. That only made the boy stiffen even further, frozen and unmoving. Joe remained like that for a time before finally pulling back and looking at the kid. He nodded and the boy nodded back, even stiffer. Joe struggled to hide his anger, knowing it would send the exact wrong message to the boy and he sighed and nodded instead. He then stood and went around behind him before bringing his status up in front of him, hidden from the guard who was still muttering in annoyance behind.

When the kid brought up his status, Joe almost shouted out in surprise but was able to keep his exclamation relatively quiet when he saw how much the boy had leveled. Level twenty one! Joe stifled his grin poorly but turned away from both, focusing back on the rats scurrying on the bottom floor but really unconcerned with them, focusing instead on running the math. A bit of mental work had him needing just over ninety thousand for level twenty one. Ninety thousand five hundred… if I'm getting the exact numbers right! That was quite a bit more than he was fearing he had to offer, but the single boost up greatly relieved his fears about what he was attempting to do, so Joe turned to his next plan with a certain satisfaction and certainty it could be done pretty easily.

A few more minutes of effort and jotting notes in his hidden notebook to run the numbers, Joe calculated seventeen kills to hit level thirty. He rounded it up to twenty just to be safe and grew even more relaxed. Need twenty for commoner to thirty… and twenty to get mule to thirty as well. Then only need one for Partier to twenty and one to get adventurer to twenty… that should be enough? Don't remember it being hard to open the partier and other jobs from adventure… maybe twenty for adventurer, too. So then that's twenty for commoner and twenty for adventurer and twenty for mule. That's easy… I can do that in a day… and these are quite a bit easier than goblins or slimes… or the sparks… well, maybe not the sparks, but… guess I'm not going to need to spend too long down here at all! That'll help… cut down on some of the suspicion, but… if anybody notices. Joe snorted at that, a grimace appearing. Well… no one will. The kid's dead unless I win… And… hope… well… really don't think the kid what's happening… so won't be able to explain to the slave master… Joe frowned in worry for a bit, allowing his bitter grimace to show at that thought but no one was around to see it as the kid was facing away in front of him and the guard was behind him.

Right. Twent… nineteen more times. A quick jump down into the area again, and Joe stomped through a couple of rats before retreating quickly to the stairs once more. Nineteen, eighteen, seventeen, sixteen. Joe rested as he counted his kills, allowing the rats to reset before doing it all over again. Fifteen, fourteen, thirteen… A little bit of a hairy situation drove them back and they retreated quickly, but the retreat was well done and not a hassle, so Joe continued with practiced ease until twenty rats were killed.

After they were done, Joe stood on the steps, breathing only with slight pants and blinked in surprise how quickly that had been. Then he glanced back to the room to hide his grin. Easy kills… a lot faster, too. Man… Joe took a moment to collect himself then settled in behind the boy again to flip open his screen and verify the boy's level. He turned off his status to have the boy close his as satisfaction swelled when he saw thirty stats points across his stats.

Even as he prepared to change the kid's job to adventurer, worry gnawed at him and he paused a moment. What if the kid knows… is there anything I can do to… ooh! An idea came to him and his stifled a grin. I still got plenty of job swap slots… let me throw in some red herrings. Taking just a moment, Joe changed the kid's job to a random pope job and a mage job, both failing because the kid did not have the prerequisites. The failures popped upon screen and the kid clicked the ok button at Joe's urging.

OK… now the actual change…He grit his teeth slightly in worry before he schooled his face then quickly swapped the kids job out for adventurer. The kid noticed the prompt appear in front of him but simply reacted as Joe guided, pressing the accept button when Joe encouraged him to. He did readily enough without too much curiosity. Please don't open your status! Don't… Joe cut off the thought and tried another couple jobs to throw off what was happening and the boy obediently just clicked the ok button.

After another two or three, Joe then turned to the kid and began his next stage. Level twenty, right? Or should I go to thirty just to be safe… although… no… don't have to… I'll see the ok or yes button so… right. Let's just do one more. That might add to some confusion? Hopefully! Joe turned to the kid as he stepped down on to the last step beside the boy.

"Ready?" Joe asked with an exaggerated nod.

The kid replied in kind and more easily stepped out onto the floor. Joe stifled a curse and leapt past the boy, but couldn't hide his own grin at the boy's eagerness. One of the rats was already unreasonably close, so it was easy for Joe crush the rat with a stomp. The rat died quickly, and Joe turned to face next closest, killing it even if there was no need but was already preparing for the retreat.

"Go!" Joe shouted as soon as he got the second rat under foot.

He turned slightly to the side before leaping to sail through the air back to the staircase. Joe frowned when he landed, not because the short stint was unsuccessful but because the rats were really starting to pile up. Gonna have to do this fast… don't want to cause another break… guess it's a break? Although I can handle it now that I'm not really insane… so…

Joe sighed with relief when the rats turned back to their meandering and Joe stepped up behind the kid even as he changed his job once more, choosing another pope class. Of course, the kid failed and he clicked the ok button and Joe was already swapping him out for the Partier class. The yes button popped up instead and Joe grinned in happiness to see the kid had breached level twenty again, but only just barely. Joe schooled his face once more and again swapped the kid's job to pope once more, leading the boy to click the ok button in the blue pop up box.

Joe stepped back down, pasting a frown on his face as he glanced down at the boy, trying to portray confusion even as he nodded for the boy to return to the dungeon floor once again. And so continued the much shorter dungeon excursion than Joe had any right to hope for. With partier accepted, Joe attacked another rat to have the kid change to mule, then another twenty rats to get transporter; each time interspersing his real job change effort with failures to hide what was happening. Once he had transporter, Joe took out another twenty rats just to make sure transporter hit thirty as well. Going to kind of be important… but thirty should be enough… Joe then settled on the first step and only stayed long enough to make sure all the rats retreated before leaving the dungeon much quicker than planned.

Still, his purpose was done and he could leave the dungeon behind instead of what he feared was going to be a multiday, even a week long effort. The last thing he did was to change the kid's job to villager, making sure to do all this with a confused and disappointed look on his face. With that, Joe felt relief droop his shoulders and tension flood from his torso. If anybody looks… he's still just a single digit … level one blue job.

Joe then led the way back to the field where his group were resting, all at the location he was now favoring which was near to the slave collaring setup. All the kid's came together in joyful play until evening came and all returned to their tents. The kids came that night, just as promised by Dulan and they had been coming regularly each night. With the arrival of the other kids, his kid's boredom quickly faded and the whole group played together for a time before Joe sent them back home rather earlier than normal; something his kid noticed rather quickly. That seemed to give all the hint he needed and Joe waited until the dark of night was full on then waited even more for the soft snores to echo across the field.

By that time, the Kid had fallen asleep and Joe slipped past him out into the night, preparing the evening once again. Long hard work had him exhausted when he returned just before midnight and he fell asleep quickly before torture woke him again. But he simply retreated as he always did, and this time with a grim satisfaction. All the pieces were in place now, and now it was simply to wait. His torturers noticed his smile and fled a bit earlier that night. Joe did not care.

* * *

Ilyelanralo paced in his lobby, agitated and quite upset. The eccentric's delve into the dungeon with the bait boy was disturbing, so he waited for the boy to show up and report his findings. The boy did not show for quite some time, and while Ilyelanralo understood the boy was only seeking for the appropriate time to return, his frustration welled.

When the halfling finally did show himself, almost, Ilyelanralo snapped out in rage and anger, but remembering his loss of control with the eccentric brought bitter shame to his face and he clenched his teeth, hiding his rage.

"You are long in coming."

The halfling bowed, calm but blank, "He is growing… more paranoid."

"It seems so," Ilyelanralo fell silent, staring at the halfling but the slave was well trained and waited in silent respect until Ilyelanralo released him to speak, "Report."

"We went to the dungeon and stayed for not too long, but the eccentric displayed remarkable combat capabilities, killing dozens and dozens of the monstrous rats with ease, using only feet to crush them. In that time, he attempted to change my job several times, but it seems the job changes were failures."

Ilyelanralo interrupted, confusion painting his face as he cocked it, "Job changes? Yours?"

The halfling bowed his head in answer, "Yes. It seems the eccentric his a priest of some kind."

Ilyelanralo did not correct the halfling, the slave not needing such information, but waved the slave to continue, "And?"

"It seems to have ended in failure. The eccentric seemed disappointed. My job did not change despite several dozen attempts."

"Several dozen?" Ilyelanralo hid his alarm, several dozen meant quite a high level of priest job. But… that might explain why the other priests visited… but then… how is he wielding a weapon? Maybe… there is some special … hidden priest combatant? Options buzzed in his head but he had no desire to butt heads with the gods nor their busy body adherents. The halfling's reply pulled Ilyelanralo's attention back to him.

"Mmm. The request reported several dozen attempts, but all were failures."

"Failures?"

"Yes. I am still a single digit commoner."

"Show me," Ilyelanralo demanded, even as he stepped forward.

The halfling robotically pulled up his status page and the commoner blue shown brilliantly from it's interface. Single digits showed as they should across all locations they should, and triple digits showed along the right side, in the places they should. All the digits were as Ilyelanralo remembered a commoner should have, each digit only differing as they morphed through shape after shape without repeat nor pattern, yet always only each their own digit as they always had. Ilyelanralo grit his teeth in bitter annoyance.

"Go. Return and do not let him know."

"As you will, master," the halfling bowed and left.

But he did not leave his master with any peace. Ilyelanralo did not sleep well that night. He no longer slept very well any night. And only one thought remained. Please… come soon. This… The thought ended, not with any purpose, but simply at a loss of how to continue. And Ilyelanralo chewed a nail in anxious worry, at a similar loss.