Sorry about the delay guys, just wanted to release some chapters for Slime Dungeon to keep people hyped for the book release. I must say, you fans out there won't be disappointed by this chapter heh heh heh

Enjoy!

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"Now let's see; if I was wolf, where would I be?" Steel muttered to himself as he made his way through the forest. The fence surrounding the farmlands actually enclosed a small forest within it. Apparently, this was the area where the wolves were said to appear, according to his min-map at least. So far, he hadn't had any luck.

"Maybe my curse is driving them off like with the rats." He wondered as he walked by a stump, "That would suck if all animals avoid me because of it." He kicked the stump in frustration, instantly regretting his decision when the rather realistic pain in his foot kicked in.

'Just my luck.' He angrily muttered to himself.

A sudden growl directed his attention around to his back. A wolf was growling at him from next to a tree. The wolf was level 7 and was obviously displeased by Steel's presence. Steel grinned evilly; just the thing to work off his frustrations.

"I worked on my attack skills with those rats, so let's test out my defensive skills with this wolf." Steel planned out. As he equipped his weapons from his back, the wolf gave a howl and rushed at him. Snarling, it leaped forward with it's claws outstretched and it's mouth wide open.

Steel narrowed his eyes and raised his shield, activating 'shield block'. The wolf landed against the shield and bounced off, landing gracefully in front of Steel. It threw it's body into the shield, forcing Steel back under the weight of it's blow.

"The timer takes too long." Steel muttered as he watched the skill icon for 'Shield Block' recharge. In game, skills all had recharge times so a player couldn't constantly span a move. Fighting skills had the longest cooldowns but could be cast instantly, while spells required a charging up period before activation and had lower cooldowns. As skills and spells leveled up, the cd could be reduced, but never eliminated. His 'Shield Block; skill could completely nullify a single attack, but it had a long recharge time as a result.

Naturally, the wolf was not going to wait around for him. It ran around to his unprotected side and began snapping at him. Steel winced as his life began to decrease and used 'Spear Thrust' to drive it away. Unlike the rats, this wolf was posing a bit of a problem for him.

The wolf charged him again, but this time Steel rushed forward with his shield, activating 'Shield Bash'. The blow sent the wolf tumbling back, but failed to trigger a 'dazed' condition.

"A skill that relies on luck isn't worth much." Steel observed as he 'Triple Striked' the wolf, "It's better to rely on things that never fail you, otherwise disappointment will arise."

As the wolf reached half-health, it reared back and howled. A notice popped up in front of Steel's face, notifying him that additional enemies had been called. He paled slightly.

"Dammit, it has a summoning desperation skill." Steel was really pissed now, but he wasn't about to retreat and let the wolf win. He rushed forward and stabbed the wolf repeatedly before it could move and finally shield bashed it into the tree. He was pleasantly surprised to see the bash had inflicted terrain damage from heavy contact with the bark.

"Good to know for the future, now experience my thanks for your help." Steel smiled happily as he used 'Spear Thrust' on the wolf's head, inflicting an automatic critical hit. With a pitiful whine, the wolf dissolved into light as it dropped fangs and a pelt onto the ground. Steel nodded his approval as he stored away the material.

A loud snarling alerted him that the wolf reinforcements had arrived. 3 more wolves ran out of the forest at him, biting and barking as they rushed him.

"Nope." Steel said before he used 'Triple Strike' to create three foot holds on the tree. With the agility of a monkey, he quickly climbed the tree to it's lowest branch and sat on it as he gazed down at the infuriated wolves. He wasn't sure how much intelligence the game granted to these animals, but they were pretty pissed that their prey has escaped them. They barked at him as they ran around the tree and jumped up to snap at him.

"Piss off." Steel thrusted into one of the leaping wolves, critically striking it's ear. The wolf fell with a cry and began to run in circles as it repeatedly fell to the ground. Steel nodded his head, "Nice, the game even acknowledges the conditions an injury would cause, like loss of balance. Wonder if that applies to me too?" He wondered as he casually impaled another wolf's eye. This wolf fell to the ground and disappeared into light. Steel was shocked.

"No way, how could I cause an instant kill? It's a level above me; even with a critical hit it should have at most removed half it's health." Suddenly curious, he inspected the two remaining wolves closely with his scan ability. To his surprise, the two were already injured and had minor bleeding debuffs on their bodies.

"I wonder what hurt them." Steel thought out loud as he jumped down and began fighting the last wolf. The wolf was weaker than the first one, and easily died under Steel's spear, soon followed by it's last brethren. Steel happily gathered the additional pelts and fangs as he turned curiously toward the direction the two wolves had come from.

"I wonder if something interesting is happening over there." Resolved to find out, Steel began walking into the forest. As he walked forward, his eyes noticed small amounts of blood on the ground and plants. He bent over and rubbed it between his fingers, thinking that it was from the two wolves.

You have learned the skill: TrackingDescription:You are a hunter, capable of following hidden paths to your targets.Level:Beginner 1Effects:Improves chances of noticing hidden paths and trails

Passive: Your sight has improved, +5% dexterity

"How does sight translate into dexterity?" Steel wondered as he dismissed the notification. "Must have something to do with perception, which I guess is involved with that." Not completely satisfied with his logic, Steel shrugged and returned his attention to the forest. Now, however, he could clearly see a transparent red path that led deeper into the forest.

Satisfied, he followed it while keeping his eyes and ears out for any signs of danger. As he walked along, he began to pick up on the sounds of animals fighting. He could hear howls, cries, snarls, and the rather pointed sound of flesh being teared.

Steel knelt down and slowly walked over into a bush and moved aside a few leaves to stare out. Ahead, a clearing was currently the battlefield of two opposing animal sides. To Steel's shock, he saw wolves fighting against rabbits; or rather, as he looked closer, devil rabbits. The ferocious variant beasts were ripping into the wolves with shocking aggression, while the wolves worked in coordinated strikes to shred the devil rabbits.

"The hell is this?" Steel muttered as he gazed out in shock.

NoticeDuring your experience in Everlife, you may come across two warring factions fighting for control of an area or resource. You may choose to help a side and contribute to their success in order to acquire intimacy and knowledgeCurrent Skirmish:Wolf Pack vs. Rabbit Herd

Steel's eyes bugged out as he read the surprise notification. "The hell, even animals have territory disputes?" He couldn't help but marvel at the sight, "How the hell do you raise intimacy with animals in the first place?"

Steel suddenly remembered the existence of beast-tamer classes, the pet system, and druid related classes. "I guess that answers that. Now, who do I help?"

Naturally, Steel didn't have a good feeling with either side. The rabbits were obviously ferocious man-eaters that devoured everything but their fluffy brethren. On the other side, the wolves were the exact same way.

"Why did those three weakened wolves leave this fight to attack me?" Steel sudden realized, "Don't the wolves need all the help they can get?"

His question was answered as a enormous howl shook the forest. Out of the shadows, a large black wolf ran out and tore apart the unsuspecting devil rabbits in front of it. Steel was shocked as he read the beast's information.

Demon Wolf, lvl 9

"I guess that's the boss." Steel sighed. He knew that the level 6-7 devil rabbits stood no chance against this monster while the other wolves were helping it. He decided to let the wolves finish up and he would swoop in after to take the leftovers.

As he thought this, a small mewing sound grabbed his attention. He turned in the bush to look over, and found himself staring at a small baby rabbit. Actually, it was a small devil rabbit, but it's teeth hadn't grown out yet and it looked quite cute. It wiggled it's nose at him and mew'd again, hopping away. Steel's eyes followed it as it ran into a burrow, where he saw mother rabbits and other babies shivering.

"The wolves are invading their home." Steel realized with a jolt. This wasn't an ordinary skirmish, the wolves were trying to exterminate the entire burrow of rabbits. Steel didn't care too much about animals fighting, as it resembled humans too much, but his vengeful spirit would not allow such weak innocents to be slaughtered in front of him.

"Shit, how annoying." He groaned as he picked himself up. Resolving himself, and taking a swig of one of the few health potions Eric had given him, Steel roared like a madman and dashed into the battle field, waving his weapons wildly.

His plan was so successful at shocking the animals that they all paused for a moment to stare at the crazy human. In that time, Steel used 'Spear Throw' and killed the wolf in front of him. Not pausing, he picked it up and roared again as he threw himself on top of another wolf and began to stab over and over into it's neck. This wolf also died in a flurry of lights as it whined sadly.

The battle resumed as the wolves were forced to separate into battling him and the rabbits. Seeing the wolves trying to coordinate themselves into a pack again, Steel quipped his beginner spear and launched it at the head wolf, missing it's body but landing a solid blow on it's leg. Crippled, the lead wolf gave a pitiful howl as the other wolves were forced to break formation, making them easy targets for the remaining devil rabbits.

The demon wolf turned to glare at Steel angrily, as if blaming him for the sudden turn in tide. Steel grinned evilly at it and heft his spear, "Well? Come on then you little bitch."

Not the best choice of insult in hindsight, as the demon wolf immediately roared in rage and charged straight at him. Slightly paling, Steel unashamedly turned and high tailed it out of the clearing with a loud, "Oh hell no, what was I thinking!"

He was forced to once again climb a tree at the edge of the clearing as the demon wolf was much faster than him. However, this wolf was more clever than it's brethren and began to ram the tree with it's body, causing to groan and shake at the attack.

"Shit, I can't reach it from here." Steel muttered as he eyed the large wolf. His other spear was still back at the clearing, so if he threw this one he would be weaponless. On the other hand, the tree was going to fall soon s it was not very thick or young.

"Think, what have I learned today?" Steel muttered to himself as the tree shook again. "Well . . . that's an idea."

Smiling aggressively, Steel returned his spear to his back as he grasped his shield with both hands. He waited until the wolf was about to charge the tree, then jumped in the air and fell down with his feet and arms inside the shield like a human cannonball.

"Shield Bash!" He cried as he slammed into the wolf's head as it rammed into the tree. Steel had learned that he could inflict damage with the environment, and that injuries sustained provided related pain and debuffs; like when his toe got hurt from kicking a tree. The demon wolf not only received impact from slamming into the tree, it also received Steel's full weight as well as an impact skill strengthened by the games' physics. The daze chance rose from a mere 15%, since it was a slightly larger creature than Steel, all the way to 100%. It gave a very strange howl as it staggered backwards in confusion.

"Chance!" Steel cried out, ignoring the obvious;y painful backlash from his insane tactic. He rushed forward and began stabbing every part of the wolf's head that he could reach: eyes, nose, mouth, ears, tongue, and even the lower part of the neck. With the wolf unable to dodge, all of his blows landed as critical hits.

Still, the wolf was 4 levels higher than Steel and recover from the daze. Snarling at it's pain, it slammed Steel backward with a paw swipe and knocked him onto his back with leap. It's snarling head snapped at him as Steel used his shield to desperately hold it back from his face. As it's claws began to scratch into the shield, Steel's hopes could only plummet as he watched it's durability begin to fall. Also, his stamina meter was almost empty from the successive blow he had just landed, so soon he would be unable to resist the wolf's attack.

"Shit, I guess this is the end." He muttered as he watched his stamina bar hit zero, "Stupid wolf!" He cried out in defiance as his arms collapsed under the wolf's weight.

However, the wolf reared back in pain and left Steel as it whined. Steel leaned up to find the devil rabbits leaping onto the demon wolf and biting it repeatedly. The demon wolf did everything it could to dislodge them, from rolling on the ground to slamming into trees, but the little devils would not give up. Eventually, the wolf howled and fell forward dead.

Steel sighed as he watched himself level up to level 6 as his stamina meter recharged right after. Cursing at the realistic pain, he dragged himself up, only to find himself surrounded by rabbits and devil rabbits. They all stared up at him with their rabbit expressions.

Steel began to sweat, "Um, I come in peace?"

The rabbits tackled him and fell to the ground, buried underneath a pile of white, bloodied fur. He struggled to escape, but their rabbit softness and weight forced him down.

"Help! They's eating me!" He cried out, only to find the rabbits were all licking him, every. single. bit. of. him.

Intimacy with Rabbit Burrow of Rostwood Forest has reached maximum[tr]

[tr]Congratulations on being the first person to befriend an animal pack. Title: Rabbit Friend has been acquired. When equipped, intimacy with all rabbit related creatures will become maximum.The grateful rabbits will present you with a gift

"How do rabbits have enough intelligence to give gifts?" Steel cried out at the sudden unrealisticness of the game. In response, a rabbit on his head popped on his nose, filling it with a horrifying stench. Steel shot up and sent rabbit flying as he frantically removed the offending pellets form his nose. He gave a glare, but couldn't identify which rabbit had committed the deed. They all stared up at him with an air of innocence.

"Fine, whatever. I just need the wolf fangs and some devil rabbit fangs anyway." He muttered quietly.

The rabbits, who all had large ears, separated into three groups. One group shot away into the forest, the second began dragging the wolf corpses back to their burrow, and the third actually began to bring him back fangs. Steel raised an eyebrow at the two piles of fangs in front of him.

"Oh, thanks I guess." He said awkwardly as he scratched his head, "I guess devil rabbits are a lot smarter than I gave you credit for." The rabbit left and joined the second group in dragging the wolf bodies away.

"I guess when players kill things, we get loot but when NPCs kill things the bodies remain behind." Steel observed, "Now, let's see what's this fellow have." He walked over to demon wolf corpse and inspected it. While the corpse didn't disappear, it did have a sparkle to it which begged to be touched. As Steel touched it, an inventory menu popped up, displaying a demon wolf pelt and a demon wolf fang. Steel clicked on both, and the two moved into his inventory.

"I guess shared kills have this option." Steel watched as the rabbits dragged the demon wolf away, "Better get back to the city now since I have all the fangs." As he turned to leave, however, he found a few rabbits blocking his path. Steel tilted his head curiously, "What's wrong; I can't leave yet?"

A sudden rustle alerted Steel to his right. Two rabbits exited a bush and dropped a figure at his feet. One, to Steel's surprise, was the baby rabbit that had approached him earlier. To his shock, the other was wolf cub, who was crying pitifully as it had not yet opened it's eyes.

[tr]The rabbits have gifted you with a devil rabbit cub and a demon wolf cub[tr]

Before Steel could react, the two cubs turned into light and flowed into his body. His character menu popped up, and the two cubs appeared in his picture on either side of his avatar, along with two character sheets.

Steel could only stare in complete shock.

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It's not Hunie. Hunie is later in story. Nice try hoping for that though.