After finding an in for the night Sam settles in opening the store feature to see if her items have sold.
{Current items in store:0
Profit from Store: 4 gold, 239s
Would you like to withdraw your profits?}
Sam confirmed she would and the going transferred to her inventory.
{Current balance:
1296 Copper
6861 Silver
490 Gold}
"Wait! How the…for someone with my perception level you'd think I'd have noticed this earlier." She said, shaking her head. "Well, I guess money won't be a problem now."
The next day Sam and her tames set off. She was done most of her quests, so she figured now was as good a time as any to head back. She had more things to make and dungeons to explore. She also wanted to take on The Lab before her level made the first few levels a waste. Though the loot drops and coins would probably be worth it.
They had travelled all day, not encountering anything too troubling, they had veered off the main road to a clearing not too deep in the woods, but far away enough to be hidden from bandits.
As she had just finished off the last of her daily quests sparing with her tames she heard a rustling in the bushes not too far from them.
The forest near the Glade had darkened dramatically and unnaturally. Clearly some kind of beast with a shadow affinity.
"Alright…girls, this one's tricky. Keep your distance. I don't want Sunblaze near this fight—incubator's still on her saddle," Sam whispered.
A low growl echoed through the underbrush. Before Sam could react, the panther slinked out of the shadows using Shadow Stalk, almost invisible. The panther launched Pounce, aiming for Sam's midsection.
{-32HP}
Rolling out of the way Sam struggled to get up. Anticipating the panther's leap, Sun unleashes Root Snare entangling its landing legs.
{-14HP, 3 second immobilized}
It was just enough time for Tempy to use Chain Dash, zipping along branches, shocking the panther with lightning arcs.
{-23HP + 1s stun}
Iggy seeing her chance uses Campfire Spark, she flicks tail toward the forest floor, distracting the panther with sudden fire glimmers.
{-17HP}
Having shook off the Panthers first stun debuff, Sam leaps to the side, dagger in hand, slicing with Bleed Enchantment.
{-63HP total}
The panther shakes off the initial effects, using Territory Mark, creating a fear aura. Lesser wildlife scurries away; only Sam and her tames remain. It uses its Maul skill, quickly striking three times in a matter of seconds at Sam with its claws.
{-33HP}
Sam switches to her Tempest Blade, striking the panther across its shoulder and knocking it back 5 meters. The panther flies into the woods hitting a tree trunk.
{-92HP}
Using Vine Lash, Syn retaliates stunning the weakened panther.
{-14HP}
Tempy quickly follows up using Static Pounce, delivering a critical stun, she hits the panther again with Chain Dash
{-23HP, 1s stun}
Sam switches to her spear and strikes with Blightbane, poison seeping into the beast.
{-85HP}
Panther attempts Maul one last time, but misses due to Tempy's Static Speed dodge boost.
Putting the spear away Sam takes out her bow and fires a Piercing Bow Shot.
{-60HP}
Bleeding and poisoned, the Shadowshade Panther crashes to the forest floor, defeated. A few seconds later,
{Ding! You've killed a Level 17, Epic, Blue Shadowshade Panther, +50% XP level discrepancy}
Panting, Sam sends her bow back to her inventory. Just as she's about to turn back towards the camp, she hears more rustling in the bushes.
"Not another one." She says summoning her spear. She waits to see what is going to pounce and eat her this time. Glancing at her map she doesn't see any red dots in front of her, so she slowly makes her way forward. Using the top of the spear to push the beaches of the bush away, what she sees isn't what she expected.
Mew, mew grrr
Hiding in the underbrush were two black-furred cubs, one slightly larger than the other, the bigger one subtly shielding its sibling. Sam backed up a few feet, kneeling into the dirt, and sent her spear away before activating Animal Empathy Surge.
"Shh, it's okay. I'm not going to hurt you," she murmured, reaching into her inventory for a piece of meat. She sliced off a few chunks and tossed them lightly toward the cubs. The smaller one peeked around its sibling, sniffing the air cautiously.
"That's it… see? I'm a friend," Sam continued. The larger cub crept forward, sniffing at the first piece of meat before snatching it up and retreating a step, only to return for another. It dropped one piece in front of the smaller cub, who hesitated for a moment before nudging it with its tiny black paw.
As they ate, Sam ran a quick Inspect:
{Name: Shadowshade Panther (Male)
Age: 4 Months
Species: Melanistic Jaguar
Level: 1
Rarity: Epic
Tier: Blue
Strongest Stats: Vitality (6), Instinct (6)
The smaller one—female—was nearly identical, save for her slightly diminutive size. She stayed close to the male, peering out from behind him as he ate. Sam tossed a few more meat chunks slightly closer to her. Slowly, curiosity overcame caution, and both emerged from the bushes, never taking their eyes off her.
Their black fur seemed to drink in the shadows around them, faintly shifting with each subtle movement—as if the darkness itself clung to them, molding to their forms. Even at this young age, the shimmer of magic in their coats hinted at their future stealth, the silent predatory grace that would make them nearly invisible in dim light.
"That's it, good kitties," she said, cutting more meat. "Would you like to come home with us? I have other kitty tames you can be friends with… and a big wolf you can climb all over." She chuckled when Syn grumbled in her head.
She leaned forward, holding the meat in her palm. The male was bolder—he sniffed her hand, licking the residual blood from the meat, then darted back with a piece. The female, seeing her brother unharmed, mirrored his actions.
Sam slowly extended her hand, letting the male sniff it before gently stroking the sleek black fur along his neck and head. He leaned into her touch, purring softly, and for a brief moment, the shadows around his form seemed to ripple as if acknowledging her presence. The female, seeing her brother receiving attention and still safe, approached more confidently. Sam repeated the gesture, scratching behind her neck where she knew he loved it. Her heart warmed at the tiny purrs vibrating through the young jaguars.
She sat back on her heels, letting the cubs come to her at their own pace. Within moments, both were at her side, tails flicking, eyes bright with curiosity. As she rested her hand on the male's head, a soft notification pinged in her vision.
{A connection has been found between you and a wild shadowshade panther cub. Emotional trust 100%, Would you like to add it to your Tame List?}
{Yes/No}
She mentally says yes and a series of notifications appear.
{Ding! Congratulations you've tamed a Shadowshade Panther Cub. Beast Tames 6/6.}
{Ding! Quest Complete! The More The Merrier. Elemental (Done), Light (Done), Mental (Done), Darkness (Done).
Reward One: +800xp
Reward Two: Beast Tame Level Limit Restrictions Removed.}
The little male panther starts to purr and climb into her lap. The female, looking very jealous, starts to climb up too. Sam lays her hand in its head and yet another notification pops up.
{A connection has been found between you and a wild Shadowshade Panther cub. Emotional trust 100%, Would you like to add it to your Tame List?}
{Yes/No}
She agrees again, and the confirmation dings in the background as she scoops the kittens up into her arms.
"Well it's official, I have become the cat lady of tamers. Alright, time to meet the gang."
The rest of her tames are waiting at the campsite. Iggy and Tempy are excited to make new friends. Though their size difference is huge, they're actually younger than the cubs. Sam did a quick T.O.U.S and they both shrink down to a more equal size as the little panther cubs.
"Ok first things first." She says placing them on the ground for Tempy and Iggy to sniff. "Names…hmm. Oh! I know, for you," she points to the little girl cub. "Nyx, the Greek Goddess of Night. For you, little man. Nox, the Latin word for Night. We'll just totally ignore the fact that Nox is the Roman version of Nyx. It sounds like an androgynous name. Plus you're twins, so I stand by my choice." She looks at the cubs staring at her. They don't seem to mind.
"Ok, second," She lifts Abe from his pouch and bends down. "This is Abe. He is a member of your new family. We do not eat or maul members of our family, understand?." She says, in a stern voice.
'Yes, mouse family.' she hears two little voices say.
"Excellent, more introductions then. This is Tempest or Tempy for short, she's a Stormclaw, or will be soon, once she reaches her last stage. This is Ignite or Iggy for short, She will be an Embercat when she reaches her last stage." She turns to point at Syn. "This massive beast is Syndrome. We call her Syn for short. She is a Grove Warden Wolf, she'll help protect you when you're old enough to help fight. I swear Syn I will try to not tame any more feline beasts. Last but certainly not least, we have Sunblaze." She motions to her horse who's grazing on some grass nearby. "She is a Dawnsveil Courser and my mount. If you're not in your beast space when a fight breaks out, stick with her ok?" She says looking at the cubs making sure they got all that.
'What's your name?' the little female says.
"Oh, right, I'm Sam." She says "Since I'm your Beast Tamer, I'll be able to understand what you say, and you'll understand me. There's also one other thing." She pulls off her Beast Space pendant. "This is my pendant for your Beast Space. It's a place all of your own. It will be filled with whatever kind of environment that is best for you." She places the pendant on each of their heads and they disappear. She calls them back soon after.
'What was that big glowy thing?' Nox asks
"Big glowy thing?" Sam says tilting her head. Having no access to their beast space she had no idea.
{" Ah yes, allow me to explain. The Beast Realm is connected to your tame's beast space. A portal will now appear in their space in a colour that is only associated with them.
Syn - Green and Brown
Tempy - Silver and blue
Iggy - Red and Black
Sunblaze - Gold and Silver
Nox - Black and Blue
Nyx - Black and Pink
Abe - Brown and Blue
When they pass through the portal they will arrive in the Beast Realm. Only they can use their own portal back to their beast space."}
Sam relayed the information Jarvis just explained to all of them. She then sent them all to their spaces, assisting with Sunblaze's saddle first, so they could test it out. As she waited Jarvis gave her some more information that would prove quite useful later.
{"In addition to a social and training area. Should you choose to tame other beasts that have a more agriculture support class, they will be able to grow resources there. If your inventory contains seeds or plants that can be replanted there, they can be sent to the realm and will automatically be planted in a sectioned off area. Once they are ready for harvest, the resources will automatically be sent to your inventory.
It's also an environment all on its own. Populated with prey that your more carnivorous tames can hunt down and eat. While they won't be integrated beasts, they will provide training opportunities for any younger tames who may not be ready for a fight against stronger opponents.
Any skills they use inside the realm will advance normally, but you will still need to use their SKP to officially advance them once they leave the realm."}
"Wow, so does my Resource Farmer Skill still apply or does it only work out in the real world."
{"It still applies, It is a passive skills and will work in the realm just like it would in the real world."} Jarvis explained.
Once everyone was back, they each told Sam about the realm. She just hoped they wouldn't want to stay there all the time. Just as she was about to pull some meat out to feed her tames she heard a ding from her notifications.
{Embercradle Alert! Peakwing Eagle Eggs have reached hatching stage. Eaglettes will hatch momentarily.
Expected Outcome: Imprint Success 100%
Expected Tier: Purple
Expected Rarity: Rare
Expected Survival Rate: 100%
Expected Growth Rate: 75% Faster than Wild Eagles. Maturity estimated in (3) Three weeks}
"Well, that's good timing I suppose. Better than them arriving before getting the Beast Realm and the level restriction removed, but seriously?" Sam lifted the embercradle and sat down near the fire looking through the clear dome. The eggs had started moving, cracks had appeared on all four. Clear indication that none of them had been duds like the notification said.
"Nox, Nyx. Just like with Abe these four will also be family. So play nice ok?" She looked over to the cubs to see them wrestling with Tempy. Diving into the shadows before pouncing on her. In return she dialed down her skills, just the usual static shock that covered her body occasionally giving them a very mild shock. Not enough to cause any actual damage. Shaking her head she looks back to the eggs. They had progressed a little further in the time she had looked away, and she could see four little beaks poking through the shells.
"Jarvis, will I be able to tame them right away?"
{"Typically, a Tamer has to wait until hatchlings are in the adolescent stage. Imprinting doesn't usually take effect at 100% until the Tamer spends some time with them. Since the embercradle has a 100% imprint rate that won't apply to you. Also, much to your delight I'm sure, you won't need to try and teach them to fly.
Once in their beast space, they will be provided with a kind of pseudo trainer. An eagle that will teach them what you can't. With their accelerated growth they will also have an accelerated instinct to fly and hunt. Your job will be to acclimate them into working with the other tames and using their skills outside of normal hunting for food."}
"Alright, good because I have no idea how to even begin to teach them how to fly."
She watched as the little chicks broke more and more out of their shells. Once they were done, to her shock they started eating the broken shell pieces.
"Uh…is that normal?" She said lifting the dome.
{"Yes, the shell contains mana not too dissimilar to mana cores. It will give them a slight boost in their vitality and mana pools."}
As they ate, Sam spoke to them. Welcoming them into the world. They looked slightly larger than she thought newborn chicks would be, but she chalked it up to the accelerated growth rate. She stuck her fingers inside the incubator to gently nuzzle them.
Apparently the shells would be enough to feed them for the next few days. She had minced some of Phantom Rams meat and a couple cores into food for them so she'd be ready when the time came.
With nothing else to do for them at the moment she started to prepare dinner for her other tames.