Path to the Apocalypse

"Or not." Victoria muttered as she frowned at the bear's status page. “You'd still need to do a lot of work to have enough points to affect your stats in any meaningful way."

"Points?" The bear asked in confusion. He was still struggling to process the strange illusion that had suddenly appeared in his vision. What were these tasks? What were points? What were stats?!?

Victoria considered the bear's status page, ignoring his question as she struggled to think of a solution. The problem was, they didn't have time to wait for the bear to gain points on his own. He needed to be powerful now if they were going to face his handler. Suddenly, Victoria paused. What if… what if they didn't need to face the bear's handler? She glanced at the gender section of the status page. If the system could change someone like that, could it also change them in other ways? Hesitantly, Victoria added a new entry to the status page: Species. "Holy shit!" She muttered in a mix of excitement and awe. She pulled up the options and there it was.

[Change to Human: 420 pts.]

It was expensive, but it was affordable! It was the perfect solution as well! The Tamarins were looking for a bear! If the bear turned into a human, he'd be completely safe! He'd just need to stay hidden for another week or two as he built up his points! Which… Still wasn't great, but it was better than the months it would take to significantly affect his strength. Now if she could use her points- Victoria frowned. Could she use her points? When everyone had died back on Earth, all their points had come to her, so… could she reverse that process?

Victoria focused on the bear, trying to send a single point over to him, and… it worked! Victoria grinned, about to transfer over the rest of the points needed for the change, when suddenly she paused. If she transferred over that many points… all her stats would fall by forty-two, which meant… she sensed the pressure her Runes were giving her. She couldn't handle losing that many stats. "Shit!" She cursed.

"Would you mind explaining all the cursing you are doing?" The bear asked with a frown. "Or anything really? You have altered my perception of reality with no warning or explanation, and I am not amused."

Victoria looked up at him, eyes widening at his tone. "I- I'm sorry, I- well, I knew this would help you and I didn't think you'd believe me without seeing it for yourself. Uh, basically, this is a system which allows you to do tasks and gain points, then use those points to increase your abilities, increasing your strength, level of cultivation, etc. Now, you don't have enough time to gain enough points to face your handler before she shows up, and I don't have enough on hand either, but I did find another solution. Since your handler is looking for a bear, what if you weren't a bear? What if- what if you were human?"

The bear's eyes widened. "Are- are you suggesting that this system of yours could actually- it could make me human?!?"

Victoria nodded. "I'm certain of it." She assured him. "However… There's a small issue. The process would cost four hundred and twenty points and I only have five hundred and thirty-seven. This wouldn't be a problem except those points are being used to support the three initial and one tier one- oh, crap, now tier two Runes in my Runescape. If I used the points to change you… I would definitely break down."

The bear's eyes widened even further. "What insanity led you to condense that many Runes at your level!?! You haven't even reached the level of Core Strengthening yet!" He asked incredulously.

"I have points! I didn't expect to run into a bear that needed a species change! Plus, I needed to get all three types of Runes, you know? I'm trying to join a sect, because… Well, it's not important right now." Victoria replied.

By this point the bear's eyes looked like they were about to pop. "You've condensed all three types of Runes!?!"

"Yes. Oh! Uh, try to keep that a secret though, please? Apparently I could get in trouble if people found out." Victoria explained.

The bear stared at her incredulously for a moment, before letting out a rumbling groan and covering his face with his paws. After a few moments of processing, he uncovered his face and took a deep breath, before fixing Victoria with a serious glare. "Okay, so, let me summarize the situation to make sure I have everything correct. You have given me a system, which will allow me to become powerful, but not fast enough. Therefore, you want to use this system to make me human, which would hide me from pursuit, but if you did so, you would be endangering your own life, because you do not have enough capacity to handle the Runes you have Acquired without those points."

Victoria nodded. "That would be an accurate description of the situation, yes."

The bear let out another breath. "Okay then, tell me, how do these… 'points' help support your Runes?"

"Well, for me at least, points give me a general boost to well… everything. Sort of like Spirit or Qi, actually, except it doesn't focus on any one thing…" Victoria trailed off, something occurring to her as she said that, but she pushed it to the side since it wasn't relevant at the moment.

The bear frowned. "Then what is the point in the spending of these points that you told me about earlier?"

"Oh, well, the general boost is only really a me thing. It doesn't work that way for anyone else. But, even then, I can spend points to increase a stat I want to focus on, like problem solving or comprehension." Victoria explained.

The bear scratched his head. "Then why not spend points on some sort of Capacity stat?"

Victoria paused. "Well… obviously that's because I didn't think of making a Capacity stat. Hold on."

Victoria quickly opened up her status page, the Capacity stat already appearing as the system responded to her will. The stat was quantified by the number of Initial Runes she could currently support, which was four at base, and nine with the addition of her points. It cost ten points to raise her capacity by one Initial Rune, so Victoria quickly spent the fifty points needed to raise it to fourteen, so that when she transferred the four hundred and twenty points to the bear, it would be more than enough for her current amount of Runes. Plus, she'd still have some points if she needed to increase it further.

"Alright, problem solved!" Victoria announced with a grin. "Now, are you ready to be a human?"

"Wait! Wait, hold on! I haven't agreed to that part of the plan yet!" The bear stopped her before she could do anything.

Victoria frowned. "But… it's perfect, isn't it? You can escape from your handler for good, plus you could join human society! You'd keep your cultivation, so you'd be welcomed practically everywhere!"

"I don't want to join human society! I like being a bear! I've seen what you humans do to each other, and it's even worse than how you treat us!" The bear retorted. "Why would I place myself at the mercy of your politics and wars?"

"It isn't all like that…" Victoria countered hesitantly, though she did sort of see his point. Humans could be shitty, especially to other humans. "But, it isn't like this has to be permanent either. If you want to turn back to being a bear, you just need to gather enough points, and you're good! It'd only take you a few weeks."

The bear paused, considering that. If the change was only temporary… it would allow him to escape his handler, and he couldn't think of any better solution. Even if he used the points to change his appearance, a powerful bear would probably be captured either way, simply to add to their army, and turning into a different creature was just as distasteful as turning into a human. "Hmmm… very well, as long as I can return to being a bear once this all comes to an end, I will agree to being… human." The bear agreed, a tinge of disgust creeping into his voice as he released that final word.

Victoria frowned at him. "You know, I'm beginning to feel offended." She commented, before attempting to send over the necessary points. "Here, some lifesaving points from a human."

The bear blinked, staring off into space. "Uh… what do I do?"

Victoria frowned. "Just click on the species menu and select human."

"Click?" The bear asked.

Victoria rolled her eyes. "For the love of- ugh, just- try not to resist this, alright? If you can." She sighed, going through his system and trying to push through the species change. There was a bit of resistance at first, but once the bear realized what was going on, he quickly relaxed and let the change go through.

The moment she switched his species, the bear's form began to sink in on itself. His head deflated like a balloon, while his hide turned baggy, crumbling like a collapsing circus tent. The process was oddly silent, and weirdly, it didn't seem like all the bear's parts were being used. Suddenly, the skin on the bear's chest sloughed open, falling to the side as a man's head suddenly emerged with a gasp, followed by the rest of him as he slowly emerged from the remains of his previous form, leaving a pile of fur, pieces of bone, and bits of bloody, fleshy bits. The man took a staggering step forward, stumbling a bit as he adjusted to walking on two legs, though he quickly got the hang of it. After all, he was still a high level cultivator, with the stats to match.

He looked back at the pile of leavings with a disgusted expression. "This is much more disturbing than I had expected." He muttered, before turning to Victoria, who was looking away and covering her eyes. "Hey, this is your mess, not mine." He commented with a frown.

"It isn't that!" Victoria protested, still covering her eyes. "It's…" She trailed off, gesturing vaguely towards his pelvic region, which was completely exposed. "Could you cover that up?"

The bear raised an eyebrow as he looked down, noticing his new dangly bits hanging in the breeze, for all to see. "Ah, yes, your human obsession with modesty. So embarrassed that the gods denied you proper fur that you insist on covering your natural form. So strange." He shook his head, before looking for something to cover himself with. Unfortunately, the only thing at hand was the fur remaining from his transformation. The bear glared at it for a moment, before sighing in exasperation. He picked up the fur, and phantom claws appeared from his hand as he quickly cut himself out a section, which he wrapped around his waist casually, making some holes and using some extra sinew to tie it securely. "There. Modesty has been observed." He announced, spreading his arms in presentation.

Victoria peeked out through her fingers, before letting out a sigh of relief. Maybe it was her new biology catching up with her, but seeing a naked man felt wrong. She shook her head, climbing to her feet and pacing over to observe the pile curiously. "Huh… I really expected all of you to be turned into a human. Though, I suppose I shouldn't exactly be surprised. A human is nowhere near the weight of a bear, and where would all that extra mass go? I guess it just used what it needed and left the rest. Very efficient." Victoria paused as an idea occurred to her as she examined the pile. She turned to the bear. "Hey… How would you like to have saved my life from a vicious Tamarin War Bear?" She asked with a slight grin.

*

Marquis Albert Tyverus sat in his hall, leaning forward with a frown on his face as he listened to the story of the strange, less than clothed, man who claimed to have saved his daughter's life. "I had spent a few weeks hunting deep in the woods, with little result except the loss of my clothes and equipment to a Rune Beast with a particularly potent acidic Rune, and an annoyingly effective camouflage Rune, when upon my return I noticed the tracks of a large beast that had ventured from deeper within. I, of course, felt it to be my civic duty to handle the beast, as creatures venturing from deep within the forest to the outskirts are likely to harm innocents or novice Hunters as they roam outside their natural habitat. I began tracking it as best I could, before finally locating its den. However, as the beast was not there, and I could not tell which tracks were most recent, I had no choice but to wait until it returned. That is, until I heard a scream. Thankfully, what I lack in tracking ability, I make up for in speed. I quickly arrived where the bear had trapped the young miss and her… chaperone, in the trees, seemingly deriving some sadistic pleasure from toying with the girl as she screamed pitifully. I quickly rushed into action, bravely tackling the beast, driving it from the trees, before we engaged in vicious combat. The beast was a worthy foe, but my wits and experience eventually won me the day, and allowed me to rescue the young miss unharmed." The man explained in a calm, but somewhat cocky tone, before sighing bitterly. "Unfortunately, the last attack I made destroyed much of the beast’s body, leaving me with little to bring back to sell, though that is a small price to pay for the young miss's safety." He commented, his overly sincere tone undercut by a slight hinting look shot at the Marquis.

Flynn was standing nearby with an ashamed and aggrieved look as the man told his story, completely blaming himself for everything Victoria had faced, kicking himself for not realizing how powerful the bear was before it'd had a chance to see them. Meanwhile, Maurice was standing on Albert's left, a bit behind his chair, rolling his eyes at the man's chicanery. He was immensely grateful for the man's timely arrival ensuring Victoria's safety, but there was no need for him to solicit a reward from the Marquis, as if Albert wouldn't rain blessings on the man who'd saved his precious daughter.

Albert himself found the man's blatant insinuations amusing, appreciating the man's political ineptitude. It was a breath of fresh air compared to the insidious nobles he usually had to deal with. At least he hadn't outright demanded a ransom for his daughter's life, or pretended he was above worldly concerns, considering the saving of a life its own reward. Finally, Victoria stood with Melissa, who was tending to her like a mother hen, a slight grin on her face as she praised her own brilliant plan, as well as the man's, or should she say Ursa's, acting. It was clear that no one suspected any ulterior motives from Ursa, or at least, nothing beyond a bit of greediness, which was a minor sin. Everyone was sure it was merely luck that led to his appearance that night, and they were thankful for it.

As Ursa finished, Albert let out an amused cough. "You are clearly an honorable and upright man. I know you wouldn't think to accept any reward, but if I fail to reward the man who had saved my daughter's life, how could I even call myself an honorable man myself? Please, tell me, is there any compensation you would desire, so that I could make my gratitude clear?"

Ursa seemed to hesitate, looking unsure how to respond without giving away his act, when his eyes gleamed with an idea. "My Lord, I am a simple Cultivator. I wish to remain here for a while, to hunt within the deep woods of your territory, to temper myself. All I should desire is a small lodging and some simple provisions, and I would be satisfied. I could not imagine asking for more for simply doing as any honorable individual should." He replied with a bow, not forgetting to hint with his eyes yet again.

Albert couldn't help but chuckle slightly, before responding. "I cannot simply leave it at that! If word spreads that I am a stingy lord, the next passer-by may not be as noble as this good sir, leaving my daughter to whatever unfortunate predicament that has befallen her! No, I simply must grant you more." Albert paused, with a considering expression. "You are a dual Qi-Spirit Cultivator, yes?" Ursa nodded firmly. "Then I shall grant you three cores each of Qi and Spirit, all three of the sixth stage of Core Strengthening. Additionally, you shall be appointed to the finest guest suite of the castle as your residence for as long as you may stay within my lands, complete with servants who will see to any provisions you may require. Finally, as my daughter's savior, I invite you to dine with my family and I each night you are available, as our honored guest."

"If your Lordship insists, then I must humbly accept." Ursa stated with a bow as Albert finished, barely hiding his satisfaction with the reward.

Albert chuckled, gesturing for one of the maids to lead Ursa off to the guest room, dismissing the rest of his attendants as he stood to his feet, turning to Victoria. He suddenly took a large step towards her, pulling her into his arms and hugging her tight. "Thank the gods you're alright!" He choked out emotionally.

Victoria froze as she was suddenly pulled into the crushing hug, not entirely sure how to respond. "There, there?" She hesitantly patted Albert on the back. "I'm fine, really. Ursa exaggerated the whole thing. I only screamed once and the bear seemed more curious than sadistic. I'm not even sure it really wanted to hurt us. It had more than enough opportunity to do so, and it didn't. It seemed more like it was just trying to keep us quiet, like it was hiding from something."

Albert pulled away, giving her a strange look. "How do you mean?"

"Well… I mean, you know how Tamarins are with their War Bears. I assume this one had escaped, you know? He probably just wanted to keep it that way. Though, the best way to do that would have been to kill us… But it almost looked like he was looking for any reason not to." Victoria explained with a frown. "Maybe I was reading too much into it, but I swear, the bear almost looked scared."

Albert frowned as he pondered Victoria's words, before shaking his head. "In any case, you're safe now, and that's all that matters. I hope you'll reconsider any future excursions into the wilderness."

Victoria cocked her head in confusion. "Why? I wouldn't be much of a Hunter if I never went into the wilderness."

"Victoria, you almost died!" Albert exclaimed in frustration. "How can you consider going back out there?!?"

Victoria shook her head. "I still have goals I need to accomplish and I still need to go into the wilderness to do so. Just because something is dangerous doesn't mean you can just hide away from everything. Besides, it isn't like I'm going to run into a Tamarin War Bear every time I leave the castle, you know."

"You very well could! That's the problem with the wilderness! It's unpredictable! Any time you go out could be the time you face a danger you cannot escape from!" Albert exclaimed.

"And you could have a heart attack just walking down the hall too. Life is dangerous, I know, but that doesn't mean I can just stop. I'll do everything I can to prepare myself, but I still have to do what I have to do. Nothing will change that." Victoria retorted firmly.

"You-" Albert began.

"Albert, enough!" Melissa interjected. "Our little girl is growing up, and you have to accept that!" She countered him firmly, before turning to Victoria. "And you. Stop trying to rush everything! You need to go into the wilderness. Fine. But you don't need to go now! Take some time to increase your cultivation first! Have some actual power before you go out and risk your life for the gods sake! Don't you have a Rune to comprehend? Do that first, then you can go back out!"

Albert and Victoria stared at her with wide eyes for a moment, before Victoria coughed. "I wasn't planning on going back out immediately." She muttered, earning herself a sharp glare from Melissa. "Fine, yes, I'll work on comprehending my Runes and advancing my cultivation before I go out next." Victoria relented. She really needed to build up her points again anyways. She still had her Spirit core which was boosting her mental stats, but her physical stats were pathetic at the moment.

After a bit more doting from Albert and Melissa, Victoria finally managed to tear herself away, returning to her room. She fell on her bed with a weary sigh, before pulling up the system and starting a call. *Well, that went better than expected.* She sent Ursa through the system's mental communication function.

*Indeed. Your plan worked perfectly. I never imagined that pretending to be greedy would make me seem more trustworthy in human eyes. Your species is rather strange.* Ursa replied.

Victoria chuckled. *Yeah, we're a crazy bunch.*

*Indeed. Though, I would have appreciated being warned about your species mating season.* Ursa sent back with a grumble. *I lack the proper knowledge of your species mating rituals, and I seem to have offended one of your maids.*

Victoria froze. *Mating sea- what did you do!?!* Victoria immediately sat up, a jolt going through her as she imagined the naive bear man molesting one of their maids. How would her father react? How would her mother react?!? She made the perfect plan so that Ursa could remain nearby, and now he'd ruined it!

Ursa coughed awkwardly. *I simply informed her that I noticed she was in heat and that I was available to mate whenever she was. Then she slapped me and ran off, calling me a pig.*

*Oh, good. I was worried you'd actually done something to her.* Victoria sighed in relief. *Okay, listen, first, humans don't have a mating season. Or, I guess you could say we're always in our mating season.*

*What.* Ursa sent back in a dead tone. *You- you mean to tell me that these- these urges are never going to go away?!?* He asked incredulously. *How do your males handle this?!? Do they simply mate constantly?!?*

Victoria paused. *Actually, they kind of do… uh, see, humans, males in particular, will sort of… mate with themselves to relieve the pressure. Uh, you just kind of use your hand and… pleasure thyself.*

*Use my hand?* Ursa asked, sounding confused. *Wouldn't it be better to find a mate?*

*Well, that's the other thing. You can't just mate with anyone. Humans have these things called relationships where we build emotional connections with each other, then we mate, which takes time. If you just try to pull any random girl into bed, you're going to get yourself into trouble.* Victoria explained.

*That sounds complicated.* Ursa sent back, and Victoria could tell he was frowning.

*You have no idea. Relationships are the eternal frustration of many, many people. Honestly, you should probably just stick with your hand.* Victoria replied, chuckling slightly.