In the world of Unexpected Consequences.

David pulled his bedraggled daughter out of the Adventurer’s Guild building, he opened the trunk of his car and hauled out a tarp that he draped over the passenger seat before allowing his sullen daughter to get in. The short drive was undertaken in silence.

Once home David, pointed to the stairs, “go and get cleaned up, then get back down here, your mother and I want a few words with you young lady.”

João went upstairs feeling hard done by, nevertheless less half an hour later she was back in the lounge showered wearing a dressing gown over her pyjamas.

David Botelho sat arm in arm with his wife São on the old comfortable couch in their living room watching their daughter João squirm on the chair opposite them.

Barring the tick of the clock on the mantelpiece the room remained in silence until what could pass for a herd of elephants came thundering down the stairs. Two more children entered the room casting avid looks of curiosity and surprise at their sister.

“João what have you done to your hair!” exclaimed Luisa horrified at the sight of her younger sister’s dark blue hair.

“Oh wow, cool ears! What ya done now João?” asked Betito with a grin.

João just hunched her shoulders and looked back at her family sullenly.

David drew in a deep breath, “Well our little tomboy...”

“Am not!”

“... are – and her friends have been indulging themselves with some adventuring much to their parents distress and this is the result, Maria João Botelho Portugal’s latest sea elf. If the System handles the second stage of the Earth’s evolution to the system as the first wave we may all find ourselves in the same boat.”

“I don’t want blue hair!” exclaimed Louisa.

“More important than blue hair is the development and lifespan of elves. As babies and tor the first two or three years apparently an elf’s development is pretty much identical to that of a human then it drastically slows, your sister will need over thirty years before she attains the growth and development she would have at eighteen if she were still human.”

Said daughter sulked and pouted at the thought, having to wait eight years was bad enough, thirty...

“On the plus side, an elf will normally have a lifespan of over a thousand years.”

A generalized discussion ensued and as the other two children of the family realized the possible implications to themselves ad adulthood suddenly threatened to disappear over the horizon discussion was joined by recriminations and denial.

* * *

The next morning at breakfast João was formally informed of her punishment, she was grounded until she could restore her father’s prized hunting knife to its former glory.

She was handed a bag containing several blunt, rusty knives some with notched blades and a couple of whetstones and cleaning supplies. “Practice on these first, after you’ve dealt with them we’ll see about my knife. Then you’re coming hunting with me and Silverfin on Saturday so you’re in from some, well a lot of lessons on firearm safety and handlig.”

“But daddy I don’t want to go hunting, and why do I...”

“You will be coming,” interrupted her father, “and you will learn, I won’t have a Ranger in the family incapable of maintaining blades and firearms. And that is that!”

Pout. “How do I use this stuff?”

“That’s what the internet is for, you can use it for research and noting else.” Then David grinned, “and I’ll get your brother to check your usage.”

Betito grinned.

Thus started a tedious week, school then knife maintenance and repair interlaced with firearms safty drill, which progressed to stripping and maintenance of shotgun, pistol ant the H&K G3 that normally resided in her father’s squad car.

ting: Blades Maintenance skill level up.

ting: Firearms Safety skill level up.

ting: Firearms Maintenance skill level up.

Finally it was Saturday and João was seen off by her mother and siblings, all three profoundly grateful not to be in her new hiking boots. They picked up Silverfin at his home and drove into the hills occasionally passing fellow weekend hunters.

They parked their car in a layby and proceeded to David’s favourite hunting patch.

David snapped his shotgun shut and passed it to his daughter, she opened it in reflex, blinked and removed the cartridge that was sitting in the right barrel, a quick check showed her that it was a blank and she somewhat resentfully handed it back to her beaming father.

“Good,” said her father as he handed a mostly empty canvas bag.

Silverfin realized that he had just watched a test the girl had passed, he watched as João explored the bag and inspected the twelve cartridges contained therein.

“You wanted to know more about our firearms Silverfin, so we’ll start with the double barrelled shotgun I’ve just lent my daughter, it can use several kinds of ammunition, today we are after rabbits so most of the rounds contain numerous small shot, I’ve also included two rounds with solid slugs and two with buckshot for a demonstration after we’ve picked up dinner.” David gestured for his daughter to take up the lead and when she set off the two adults followed one to either flank.

As for João something seemed to click and she was soon receiving several messages from the System.

ting: Observation skill level up.

ting: Stealth skill level up.

ting: Danger sense level up.

João felt uneasy, something rustled in the bushes off to the right, she snapped open the shotgun ejecting the rounds she had loaded for rabbit and quickly slid in two new rounds while dropping to one knee and aiming at the bushes. She was just in time as a large – St Bernard sized – weird looking – dog? – with a quivering scorpion tail came charging out of the bushes at them. Two shots one after the other, buck to the face and as the thing threw its head back a slug to the chest. The dog thing stumbled and seemed to hesitate slightly then it resumed its charge. João had just enough time to reload her twelve gauge with a similar loadout and fired both barrels simultaneously at point blank range almost decapitating their attacker and tumbling away to the side aided by the shotgun’s recoil.

ting: Luck stat unlocked.

She climbed to her feet rubbing her sore right shoulder and was vaguely surprised to find Silverfin standing over the monster sword in hand while her father was making his pistol safe as he came to hug her in relief.

After murmuring some nonsense things into his daughter’s hair David looked up, “well Silverfin I had wanted to show you what a shotgun could do with different types of ammo but not like this. Any idea what that thing is?”

“A monster, either an evolution or something deemed suitable for this area. So what level are you now João.”

“Um, five?”

“So a very dangerous high level threat to boost your daughter by three levels, and I’m afraid a sign that the next stage of your world’s transformation is near.”

Silverfin stored the scorpion dog in his storage and by mutual consent they decided to call it a day.

The discovery of the scorpion dog led to several sweeps of the area and other similar areas by the army especially after several other of the things were found and killed.