Stumbling Up: A Loser's Guide to Progression - Chapter 68: The Butterfly Effect

The journey through the canyon lands was odd. The path wound in and out of different slots, with varying elevations and widths.

Sometimes the canyon walls grew tall and narrowed so much that we had to climb the walls wedged between two faces. Other times, the space between the walls would widen in a bend, frying us in the sun. The ground went from moist to frozen to baked.

Carve-outs of various heights had formed, little alcoves where insects and rocks nestled. They looked like little altars to the gods of the desert, waiting for an offering. Some of these sat at eye level, while others were halfway up the canyon walls. Some were just large enough for a small offering, and others could have fit our entire party in the mini-cavelike structure.

“I wonder how this landscape formed.” Meredeath surprised me with her question. I’d never thought about how a landscape formed. “There’s no river carving the rock. It’s not volcanic.”

“Maybe it just is?” I said, tracing my hand along the wall. If I pressed hard enough, dust and sand would scrape off in a puff. The rock was soft.

“Leo, you talked to some of the other groups. Are we supposed to join up with one of the other [Adventurer] teams?” Tandy wiped sweat from her brow, taking a moment to get a sip of water.

We'd been hearing the horns of other groups all day, but our path had been pretty straightforward. The canyon had only deviated into narrow dead ends that were easily explored.

“No, the Hunt coordinators just assigned us this trail,” Leo explained, grabbing the canteen Tandy handed him. “They said if we hear a fight, that we have to wait to get permission from the engaged team to jump in.”

We’re slower than the other groups. They’re already ahead of us.

I kept that nugget of wisdom to myself.

"We just got to keep pushing." Leo handed Tandy the canteen back. The break, apparently, was over. The sun had risen to the highest point in the sky.

"How long is the Hunt supposed to be? We’re not camping out here tonight, are we?" I asked. We’d need to head back soon to get to our campsite before dark.

Outside of the iron tree guard and a few loose scorpions, we had encountered no real hints that we were on the right track. Worse, we hadn’t really encountered anything worth our time. This [Raid] event was turning out to be much less exciting than expected.

"He told me to follow this canyon to its end," Leo insisted, and I realized in that instance a problem. Tandy normally got our quests. Leo wasn’t a planner. He didn’t care about stupid things like the details.

I looked at Tandy, immediately concerned.

"Yes, we've gone over this, Leo. Everything seems in order, did the guy say something about using horns?" Tandy asked, giving side-eye that told me to keep my mouth and opinions to myself.

“Maybe.” It was Leo's turn to look abashed. “But it doesn't matter, because we're on a single-track path. We’re supposed to blow our horn,” he held up the ox horn strung across his neck, “when we have a creature in sight.”

A group of horns sounded in the distance, as though triumphantly announcing a victory to the entire Hunt.

[Raid Notification:

Your [Raid] has killed 1 of the 3 legendary creatures. Your reward will be calculated based on the percentage of your contribution. Caution impact to your [The Mercy Ledger: Beasts] will also be calculated on this measurement.

You receive: 0 experience and 0 loot.

Your [The Mercy Ledger: Beasts] quest relationship status has dropped by 10 points. Although you did not take part in the kill, you belong to a [Raid] who committed the act. If you or your team harms such a creature, it will significantly harm your reputation. Your reputation with Legendary Beasts is +40.

Caution: if you drop below 0, you will lose this quest and all previously earned benefits.]

I gaped at the notification. Seriously? I knew there would be implications, but this seemed extreme.

A quick glance at Ash showed he was frowning. Looked like he got the same notification.

One reason I’d been walking so slow was that I figured it wouldn’t be the worst outcome if we missed out on the killing. I didn’t realize that simply being in the [Raid] was going to jeopardize my quest.

"Guys, we have to go. I just got a notification that my [Initiate of the Hunt] patroness is unhappy. If we don’t start moving faster, I’m going to lose more reputation. I don’t want to endanger my class." Leo's words triggered a nightmare scenario.

His reputation with his goddess directly opposed mine with the legendary beasts.

"You took a reputation class without consulting the rest of us?" Tandy’s voice was sharp. I cringed at her words, being guilty of almost the same thing. She pressed her hands to her temples as she shook her head. “We will not be successful if we don’t plan, and I can’t plan anything if I don’t have all the information.” She quickened her pace, leaving Leo in the dust.

So many secrets were stacking up. I still hadn’t told them about the Faction Points from the dungeon because of my stupid promise to Richard. And now I had this [The Mercy Ledger: Beasts] quest.

Confusion marred Leo’s face. "I didn't realize there was reputation associated with it until they gave it to me."

I felt that. Things weren’t always as black and white as Tandy made them.

I decided to keep my secrets to myself for now.

Ash, however, didn't have a filter. "I've got a reputation-based chain quest too." I tried grabbing his eyes as Tandy slowly turned around. For the love of the Everbear he needed to shut up. "Cole and I picked it up..." His voice trailed off as he finally met my look.

Tandy and Leo were staring at me.

You’ve stepped in it this time.

"Is it true?" Tandy asked with the heat of the desert sun.

I couldn't meet her gaze. "Aye, I did, but not by choice."

Originally when I’d told them about our catch, I’d left out the [Legendary] status of the [King of the River]. Tandy had me walk through the story again. I shared the details but tried to keep the exact wording of the quest out of the conversation. I hate secrets, but I knew revealing all of them now would destroy Leo.

“I didn’t think it was relevant because I couldn’t share it. It’s a [Hidden] quest you have to discover on your own,” I finished lamely.

They looked at me. Leo at least seemed to nod. Tandy, however, split her ire between the two of us.

“Have I been the only one following the rules? We’re a team, which means no secrets.” Tandy looked between the two of us, her hurt plain. I crossed my arms, remembering the burn of being Richard’s [Pet]. Apparently, I wasn’t good at being the [Heart] of the team.

“Yes? Maybe? It’s not that I was keeping this from you—” Okay, that was a lie. “—to hurt you.” There. I could live with that statement.

She looked at Leo. He just shrugged, looking away in guilt.

I pressed on. “The world isn’t just black and white. Meredeath didn’t tell us she was from Kansas right away. Or tell her class. Richard obviously knows more than he lets on. And they both have been hiding dimensional storage from us for who knows how long!”

None of that, though, was on Tandy.

Don’t bring me into this. I promised nothing.

I was really terrible at this team thing.

“What’s the problem?” Leo took up the cause. “These reputation stats don’t harm anyone. But this is the basis of my entire [Paladin] class. If I don't have a patron, I don't have the class." Embarrassment disappeared from Leo’s voice. Instead he stood, arms crossed, eyes stony, as he stared Tandy down.

Leo’s statement was a slap in the face. Intellectually, his class-based reputation associated with the Hunt overruled my [Hidden] quest. I just didn’t expect to get smacked with the truth. It was like a bucket of ice water had been thrown on me. This was the [Heart] of Leo’s build. Of course, it outweighed my quest.

Tandy looked like she was about to pull her hair out.

Meredeath stepped in, a theoretical neutral party. "Look, at this rate, we're not going to find one of these beasts, anyway. Until we meet one, none of these reputation gains or losses matter. Let’s deal with the secrets once we are done with the Hunt."

A butterfly caught my eye as it flitted through the air, behind Leo's head. It was incredibly bright orange until it shifted to the side. Then, the red in the undertone of its wings melded it perfectly into the canyon walls. With a twist of her body, she'd disappear, perfectly camouflaged. I wondered how long she'd been following us.

[Achievement Unlocked: Mistress of the Canyon. You have uncovered the [Legendary] Camouflaged Rock Mistress. Few spot the Camouflaged Rock Mistress who hides in the cool air of the slot canyons. She is curious about your intent, recognizing you as a friend of the beasts. You must satisfy her before being granted any rewards.]

Fuck my life.

The butterfly carrying my doom flitted around Leo's head, as though taunting me to say anything. What could I do? It was as though she'd purposefully picked that moment to reveal herself.

You see her, right? What are you going to do?

My back had tightened until Richard bumped my ear.

What could I do? If I shared her presence, Leo would try to kill her. And like the [King of the River], I knew that would be wrong. She wasn’t harming anyone here among the rocks. I knew what was right, even if it hurt Leo.

"Alright, are we going to venture onward?" Tandy frowned at me, translating my stress as impatience. "Look, we've got a problem here, but like you said. Until Leo finds one of these legendary creatures, there isn't a decision. He may never find one."

[You have received +20 Reputation Points with the legendary beasts. This puts your total at +60.]

I'd made the right decision, so why did I feel so bad? But as the team ventured forward, my little butterfly friend followed, flitting above Leo's head. This was going to be a long afternoon.

The canyon grew deeper the longer we walked. The heat that'd been pelting us all day dropped off. Ice crystals had formed in the puddles sitting in the shadows.

I suspected some sort of ancient water event formed the canyons. Maybe a magical act that produced water in the desert? Looking up, the canyon's tight walls left a narrow ribbon of sky. It had grown darker with gray clouds rolling in. I shivered, the day’s sweat cold in my clothes.

Every once in a while, a raven would stand on an outcropping and caw at us. Or a little canyon sparrow would slice through the air in a display of acrobatics, dodging rock outcroppings as it twisted and turned through the canyon.

Outside of the birds and the Rock Mistress, I had spotted no other wildlife. Which in itself was notable. We had heard none of the [Raid] horns since the [System] notification of the kill.

"We've got a problem," Leo called as he stood in a knuckle of the canyon. The rest of us piled up to look. An enormous boulder sat wedged between the walls, blocking the next leg of our journey.

Leo kneeled down, examining the slim gap under the boulder. "I think we can squeeze under it. It looks like the canyon opens up on the other side." I watched as the Rock Mistress flitted up and over the large sandstone boulder.

"Let me send Richard over, so he can check it out for us. Wasn't there a tributary canyon an hour ago? Maybe we were meant to go down that path?" I didn't relish trying to squeeze under the stone. Leo'd begun using his hands to dig out the wet, sludgy soil, trying to widen the gap.

Tandy watched Leo, arms crossed in disapproval. She didn't revel in tight spaces either. "Go ahead, Cole."

I'm not going under that rock either. I'm [Immortal], not stupid. Just toss me over.

At least we were unanimous in our distaste for wriggling under thousands of pounds of rock. I took Richard in my hand and underhand tossed him up, trying to land him at the pinnacle of the rock. He landed with a light squeak and a wet plop.

I waited as Richard slowly glided to the edge to gain a better view. Ash was making hand gestures to Meredeath, muttering about some sort of lever. Leo was still hand-shoveling sand.

Boss, we've got a problem. A big one.