《Quietus - Penumbra Online》 001 // Mind Games The human brain is basically three pounds of tapioca pudding strapped in a dark room, forced to play a game its entire existence. The human mind is a very detailed hallucination the brain comes up while piloting a bioelectric suit all day. Even with the ability to plunge the human mind into a virtual existence, the ¡®deep dive,¡¯ we¡¯re yet unsure of how the pudding comes up with its concept of self. I am a hallucination named Christine Valcruz. My bowl of tapioca pudding is damaged; a rare parasite¡ªToxoplasma sombosis¡ªgot into it and is mucking about in there. I spent three years being treated for schizophrenia before they discovered the brain infection. I am one of only fifty people in the world who¡¯s been diagnosed, though more and more psychiatric patients are being tested for the infection. Right now, I am thinking about pudding and hallucinations and parasites slipping into my brain¡¯s darkroom while reading and signing an extensive number of forms. The very expensive and impressive clinic where I¡¯ll be spending the next three months is covering its ass. In layman¡¯s terms, they¡¯re going to suck my consciousness into a game, cut away the infected bits of my brain, try to purge my system of any residue, grow back my brain bits, and then shove my consciousnesses back inside its pudding bowl. If it''s not obvious, this is experimental. They can¡¯t even tell me their survival rate with humans, only baboons and chimps. Fun times. Fun times. My parents are with me, as is my lawyer. I am an adult, but I handed over a number of my medical, financial, and legal powers to them around the time that the voices went from sometimes whispering to me, to being able to converse with them. I sign the papers without a care or concern in the world. The Christine Valcruz of today is not the same person I was three years ago. She is dead and not coming back. My parents think there¡¯s a possibility that she¡¯ll return but none of the doctors have suggested it. And the person I am right now, signing these papers, is not returning. She¡¯s defective and her way of thinking is irrational and, frankly, bug-fucking nuts at times. In three months, a new person will be (hopefully!) wake up from that silver deep-dive capsule. And I wish her all the best. My father puts a solid, heavy hand on my shoulder and squeezes as I finish. His grip is too hard and I suppress a wince. "Are you hungry?" I asked as the hospital¡¯s lawyer shuffles through the papers, looking for any signature that I missed. "I have three hours before I have to start my fasting." "What do you want for your last meal?" mom asked, dryly. "Phrasing mom, phrasing!" I replied with a chuckle. "Cheeseburger and a milkshake. Not from the cafeteria downstairs. There should be a diner not far from here¡­"
My consciousness returned gradually. I was aware of being aware before I sensed a body to go along with it or an environment to operate within. They''d let me pick the place I''d spawn into for character creation. I chose a farmhouse at the end of a cornfield as a thunderstorm rolled in. I laid sat inside on an overstuffed couch, simply feeling the wind brush my hair as I inhaled the scent of rain, fresh mud, and ozone. There was also a hint of rust from the old window screen. It popped in at out with a strong breeze. I was free to spend as much or as little time as I wanted here before entering the game world. Penumbra Online had me flagged as a ''premium medical user.'' While most people would be eager to dive into playing, those who joined for intensive medical procedures tended to take longer to synchronize, as well as having to deal with emotional issues. The farmhouse had a small uplink node where my parents and a few friends had left messages. There was also a note from the system and some nurses regarding my progress. Though I''d only gained consciousness about an hour ago, I''d been under for almost a week. Time dilation would stretch the remaining period threefold--three months in the real world would be experienced as nine months for me--but settling in for long-term deep diving was a slow process. "I love you too, mom," I said into the microphone. "It''s great in here. I think I''m going to enjoy myself." If you ever want to reassure someone, don''t leave a long, blathering message about how they shouldn''t be worried. Just keep in sweet and to the point. After mom, dad, and my aunt, I started with a few messages from friends: "Even after I leave Penumbra, I''m going to need physical and cognitive therapy before I''m completely functional. I have no idea what I''m going to do for my birthday. Probably just chill and watch movies at home." The nurse had passed on a questionnaire I was to answer. It started with simple things--my name, date of birth, where I thought I was, who the president was-- and then asked some odd ones. Did I have a ringing sensation in my ears? Could I close my eyes and touch my nose? Was I experiencing any unusual flavors in my mouth? I''d asked for things like this to be delivered through text rather than have some virtual nurse pop into my farmhouse and try to chat with me. As long as I remained ''optimal'' or ''acceptable,'' then the medical staff and programs would stay unobtrusive. I spent my first day in virtual space lounging around, doing nothing. There was a comfortable bed with the sort of handwoven quilt old ladies are supposed to make tucked into the corner. I had the house pipe in soft classical music and listened to the endless rolling thunder. If I wanted to, I could simply spend my months reading or watching movies or working on my drawings. I could even hook into the premiere, number-one, biggest most advanced VRMMO in the world and spend my time feeding quarters into a Ms. Pac-Man machine. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. It was tempting. I think we all feel the need to fold up into ourselves like little bits of origami paper every once in a while. The issue is that when you only have your own thoughts to bounce off of, those thoughts can lead you down strange avenues. The point of this exercise, after all, was to help me regain sanity. Spending too much time with myself was never a good way of doing so. Also, I''ve always found myself boring. I''m an introvert but like people. They''re more interesting than they look at first glance. "House: What can I expect for character creation in Penumbra Online?" I asked aloud. The air responded in an affable, professional feminine voice, as though it had been waiting patiently for my query. "Penumbra provides the latest in character customization in both basic, advanced, and exotic races. Character creation focuses on your character''s background and how they fit into the world. Everyone starts out as a level 1 novice so they can explore a wide range of play-styles before deciding on their first class at level 10." I nodded to the empty air. "Initiate character creation process." The world shimmered and the bed I''d been sprawled out on vanished from existence. I hit the soft dirt with a thump. No longer was I in my cozy farmhouse, but now appeared in what looked to be some sort of vegetable garden. Nearby, a grey rabbit munched on a head of cabbage. It raised its narrow head to me, still chewing, and watched me with anxious dark eyes. As I stood up, brushing the black soil from my pants, it dashed into the bushes. Nearby, I heard a soft humming and saw a short, plump woman on her hands on knees. She was pulling out white carrots from the ground and placing them in her basket. I frowned, unsure why''d I''d been dropped into this place. The woman hadn''t noticed me, so absorbed was she in her work. As the sunlight played across her rosy cheeks and red-brown hair, I realized that it was me. Or, a version of me in dwarf or gnome or short-race form. "Um..." I prompted the character creation personality. A large, three-eyed crow landed on a cornstalk beside me. "The halfling race is hardworking and gregarious. You picked a secluded farmhouse for your Sanctuary, so I thought I''d start you off here. Not everyone who comes to Penumbra wants to go on adventures or fight monsters. Some focus on crafting, production, and mercantile skills. The town of Tradesmeet can provide you with an excellent start on a story focused on growing and creating, but also allows you to interact with a wide range of people and races if things get too boring." "Huh." It hadn''t occurred to me to simply settle down and farm for nine months. I explored a bit, traveling up a grassy hill and leaving my shorty mimic to her toil. The farmlands that stretched out before me were rich and golden, everything was awash in warm colors save for a magnificent lake of icy blue down below. The designers hadn''t bothered with realism. Three-foot pumpkins crowded one field while the scent of citrus floated from an orange grove nearby. Hairy cattle the size of buffalo tilled fields for barefoot halfling farmers in their simple overalls and straw hats. Beside me, the crow landed and surveyed the expanse, inky feathers puffed with pride. "You can sell what you grow or craft, and a portion of it will be converted into real money," the crow continued. "Some people use it as a small secondary income source, some as a part-time job, and a few are able to make a good living." "There are probably better ways to make money from a game," I replied. I knew people streamed and sold virtual goods, and there were also professional virtual fighters who won contests. Penumbra had started up about five years ago, however, when my interests had turned away from watching others play games. "What''s best is to find your passion," the crow replied, "and convince others to pay you for it. Everything else is a compromise, even if you make more money that way." Wise words from an electronic bird. "What would you know about passion or compromise?" I asked. "You''re programmed for a specific task. You have no desires outside of it, but also no needs or responsibilities." The crow raised her foot, examining it thoughtfully. I noticed sharp talons at the end that glittered like black jewels under the sunlight. "I suppose you''re right," she replied, in a tone that suggested the argument didn''t interest her. For a moment, I felt rude--boorish. Here I was having a perfectly pleasant conversation with a crow-personality-character creator and now it seemed I''d insulted her. "It''s beautiful. But it''s not for me," I said, addressing the landscape, the background, and all it implied. She fluttered her wings in understanding and the view shifted again. "Each basic race receives a bonus in two attributes, along with a handful of background bonuses and flaws that you can pick from a pool. Are you familiar with the game''s attribute system?" We appeared in an oasis at the edge of a desert. The warm and gentle sunlight from before became oppressive, and I felt the dry air leech the water from my body as I broke out in a sweat. I stumbled back into the shelter of palm trees as I covered my eyes from the glare off the sands. After a few second, my eyes adjusted but it still hurt to look out onto the vast expanse of white. "No..." I had browsed an introductory packet a few weeks ago, but hardly recalled the details. "Can you do something about this light? This is really uncomfortable." Day switched to night in a moment. The sun fleeing the sky, replaced by a massive moon that dominated the horizon. I went from sweating to shivering in a matter of moments. A howl, followed by a hyena''s cackle echoed over the blue tinted dunes. A group appeared, running towards the oasis. They were tall but all hunched over and their gait was strange to me. "Gnolls," the three-eyed crow answered my unasked question. "They can be your packmates. Gnolls receive a bonus to Might and Perception. They are strong fighters who roam the wild places of the world with their tribe. To a gnoll, the bonds of kinship are everything. They are fierce, loyal, and rightly feared among the weaker races." There was a sudden rush of movement within the oasis. A clattering of unfamiliar tongues as people sprang up within it and torches were lit. Human men and women in desert garb appeared, their faces tattooed with strange symbols. Their faces were hard as they starred down the approaching mass of gnolls. How many of the beastmen were there? Maybe thirty, it was hard to tell in this darkness. They didn''t bother with torches. All I could see was gathered swarm racing forward in their bizarre stride. Their laughter harsh and terrible. No one seemed to notice me. I assumed there was another mimic of me among the gnoll pack but it was impossible to tell. As I watched, the two groups met in battle. The humans carried spears and small shields while the gnolls wielded heavy, curved blades. What followed was a bloody, joyous slaughter. The white sand was stained with blood, gnoll and human, but mostly human. The gnolls swung their heavy swords like cleavers, hacking and chopping with delight through limbs. If the humans had formed a solid shield wall, I expect it would have turned out better for them, but they didn''t. A dozen fell immediately and then others started to run. A human man, swathed in black robes, fled my way. On his scarred face was naked terror. When he was a foot away, about to barrel right through me, I heard a solid THUNK! and his eyes widened white. He stumbled and fell on his face, a throwing axe buried in his back. As he crawled pitifully away, I looked at his assailant. It was a slick, black-furred monster. It drooled, pink tongue lolling out over yellowed and jagged teeth. Our eyes met--it was me. "No," my voice quivered. "I don''t want this." It was a lie, my heart thundered in my chest and I could imagine losing myself to this violence, this madness. "Take me away from here." The crow chuckled. "As you wish..." And the oasis faded from reality. 002 // Mind Games Snarls and howls of laughter filled the night, mingling with screams of the dead and dying. Christine watched in horror as her mimic, representation of herself as a gnoll, pounced upon a woman bleeding into the sand and devoured her. The gnoll''s jaws were powerful. They snapped through bone and tore off flesh with gusto. The iron scent of blood filled her nostrils until Christine could taste it the heat on her tongue, feel the sweet and overpowering flavor of the human''s meat as though she were there feasting, not merely a watcher. "I want to go now," she told the crow. The bird was a program supposed to obey her commands. "Get me out of here." But the creature had disappeared, left her here all alone with that horrid version of herself. Even though Christine was supposed to be invisible, her plaintive voice reached her mimic''s ears. It paused, its meal yet struggling beneath it, and raised a black muzzle. Their eyes met--the gnoll¡¯s was a piercing gold that shone in the moonlight. It gathered itself, seeing in her not a reflection of itself but another helpless form of prey. Powerful muscles surged forward and Christine had time for one last scream as those powerful jaws latched onto her and pulled her to the ground. In my bed at the farmhouse, I awoke, heart pounding in my chest so hard I thought it might burst. Slick with sweat and struggling for breath, I jerked my head around. I had no idea where I was or how I''d gotten there for a few moments. Then the knowledge gradually returned to me: I''d returned to my ''Sanctuary,'' tucked inside the virtual space but outside the game world. I''d decided to take a nap. As my memories filtered back, I became aware of a pounding on the door. Heaving myself up from the bed, I stumbled into the front room. At the sight of the wooden, country-style door, I froze. Who could be knocking? The sound was strange, as though something large was rapping a cane against the other side. The last terrifying vision from my dream resurfaced and I feared that the monster had somehow chased me into the waking world or I might still be asleep. No, not possible. The farmhouse was a safe place, and I was far too lucid to be dreaming. I shook away my foolish reluctance, threw open the door, and was greeted only by the driving rain. "Oh, it''s a real storm out there," said the crow from my feet. She flapped her wings and flew in, circling the ceiling once before landing atop a bust of Athena over the fireplace. There she puffed and shivered, freeing her glossy black feathers from the water. She was right. Outside the farmhouse, the storm had gotten closer. I wore only a loose sundress, and the sharp, cold wind slapped against my bare legs. I shoved the door shut again with a thump and idly wiped the spatters of rain from my legs. The call of the storm died down unnaturally. Given the size and somewhat ramshackle nature of the farmhouse, they must have altered how much noise reached the interior. "Welcome back," I said to my first visitor. She continued preening herself. Had her personality changed in the short time I''d met her? I''d assumed this was a default creation program, but it might be one of the individualized genii. "I didn''t catch your name before." "Corvis," she replied from her perch. "How are you feeling?" "Better, thanks." I crossed my arms and sat on the overstuffed couch. After my meeting with the gnoll me, I''d began shivering uncontrollably and had a panic attack. In my Sanctuary, I''m able to access outside functions and the monitoring software reported spikes in my adrenal levels. This wasn''t unusual. Even for someone not there for medical reasons, endocrine responses could be off at first. In deep dive, the human brain struggled to process what it experienced as fiction. No matter how well someone knew what they experienced wasn''t real, the first brush with danger tended to fire off extreme psychological reactions. Different people adapted at different speeds--some never managed. There was even talk about ''Rejection Syndrome,'' a new psychological disorder wherein someone body adapted to deep diving well enough, but their mind couldn''t process the virtual world correctly. I''d been told all of this. It was one of a hundred warnings and explanations I''d been given. It didn''t help. I''d freaked out and now was having nightmares. Fun times, fun times. Corvis gave a polite cough and I remembered she was there. I wondered if she experienced actual annoyance when I ignored her or whether it was simply one of several possible responses used to prod new players along. "Right, you probably want to move your virtual tour forward and plop me down in the game world." "Everything has a place," the crow replied, gently. "If you have one in Penumbra, I want to help you find it." I mumbled something, oddly touched by the program''s words. Naturally, I knew that it was scripted, or at least sculpted, to elicit an emotional reaction. But she said it with such sincerity. "I''d like to take you to a human version of yourself if you don''t mind," Corvis continued. I smiled. "Isn''t that what I am now?" The three-eyed crow shrugged as though it were debatable. Before I had a chance to consider her reaction, the world shifted. We were in a dark cave now, outside was a thick blanket of snow. My breath frosted as it passed my lips. "The human race''s bonuses are in Fortitude and Spirit. To be human is to endure in places that crush the bodies and soul of other races." A cloaked figure trudged up the mountainside. I could hear the crunch of snow under her fur-lined boots. Her shoulders were down, braced against the cold and rough wind, as she steadily made her way to the entrance. After crossing the threshold, she tugged down the hood that covered her face and I got a good look at her. It was me again, but superhero me. She stood tall and straight, her face strong, and her eyes clear and focused. "Humans in Penumbra are not the jack-of-all-trades you may be used to," Corvis continued to narrate, "but they have spread themselves far and wide. This is not only to their indomitable nature, but their deep relationship with their gods. While all races deal with spirits, humanity is unique in its level of devotion and the power of its religions." Supergirl me knelt in the darkness of the cave, her hand touched a talisman around her neck and a golden, radiant light filled the room, pushing back the shadows. A hiss echoed from within the cave and something slithered near the edges, unhappy with super-me''s actions. A dark form rose, its eyes glowing with red and malevolent light. It was tall with elongated legs and arms, two horns rose from its forehead while a long tail whipped behind it. I''d call it skeletal, but its body was covered in an impossibly black and leathery skin, as though it has been dipped in oil. Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. My counterpart was unmoved. She drew her long sword, resolve clear on her face, and moved to meet the creature. It screeched, a sound no man or animal could make, and opened a mouth filled with needles. The woman didn''t flinch. In her hands, the blade began to shine with blue light, and she lunged forward. The creature skittered back, warily. I watched as they battled. The creature had far more reach and moved with great speed. It leapt about, attacking in a fury and then darting back. Through it all, the other me remained calm and composed, keeping to a simple defense and slowly moving towards the creature. The touch of her blade burned its skin, something it wasn''t prepared for. I wondered if it were immune to regular weapons. Though it all, Corvis continued to speak: "True to its name, Penumbra is filled with shadows. The struggle for life is not merely against the environment or one another, but against forces of darkness and chaos that lurk at the edges of the world and slither in through the cracks. The human race is old. Its pacts with the gods have endured through many invasions from the beyond. Whatever nightmares threaten, whatever terrors await, humanity stands ready." The creature made another mad rush towards the fighter. From its mouth came a stream of unholy sounds that caused my blood to chill. The sword met its advance, thrusting deep into its chest and out the other side. Other me''s eyes glowed, and the monster yelled in pain as the blade within it burst into white and blue flame. The light was intense enough that I could see the network of capillaries running beneath its skin before cleansing fire surged out, burning its torso to white ash. It fell with a thump. Two thumps, actually. Human me wiped the white ash from her sword before sliding it back into the scabbard at her belt. Again, she bowed her head, touching her talisman in prayer. As she left, the world faded, and I was returned to my farmhouse. Corvis awaited me on the bust of Athena. I recalled Athena''s bird was an owl, not a crow. Crows were associated with Apollo. "That was nice," I finally said. "I don''t want to play a human, but it was very inspiring." The crow bobbed her head, as though she''d anticipated my response. "But do you feel better?" It was strange, I did feel better. My encounter with gnoll me had me unnerved. It was deeper than simply a spike of adrenaline my body couldn''t handle. These weren''t simply reflections of what I could be in Penumbra, but aspects of myself. No matter how ugly and different the gnoll had been, I''d felt a kinship with it. And I didn''t like that one bit. "Did you do that simply to make me feel better?" I asked, pushing the thoughts away. It had worked. "Humans are our most popular race," Corvis answered. "I show them to everyone. I''d be remiss in my duties if I did otherwise. Usually, I get people on the third try, but it was a long shot with you." I wondered if that was due to the damage happening in my brain. For a second, I recalled the enhanced images they''d shown me. A small parasite cluster, about the size of a coin buried deep within my gray matter and hundreds of microscopic lines like the finest capellini, threaded through my brain. Nausea settled in my stomach as I thought about it. "I just want to escape," I admitted, my hands fluttered in distress. It felt weird opening myself up to a character creation program. "I don''t want to endure hardships. Enduring hardships sucks. I''m not a monster, but being noble and heroic for others doesn''t interest me. I don''t want to lazy around either. I want some challenge and some fun." She looked down at me from her stony perch, her gaze intense and inscrutable. I felt the weight of her eyes on me and sensed the vast and intelligent machine churning behind the image of a simple bird. No, there was an invisible giant staring at me. I took a reflexive step back. "How about..." she began as the room faded away. I found myself in a city at night. The air was filled with the scent of roasted meats, beer, and saltwater. Laughter and music spilled from a small shop were groups crowded around tables, talking and drinking. I peered in with interest. Crowded within were a number of different races. I saw meaty orcs, short and slender lizard people, plump humans, dwarves or maybe bearded halflings... I wondered why Corvis hadn''t started me with a group scene. That made more sense than taking me through race selection one by one. Corvis flew in and landed in the low wooden rafters. "As you may have picked up, the main attributes are Might, Finesse, Fortitude, Perception, Astuteness, Spirit, and Charisma. Each basic race receives a bonus in two attributes." "Does that mean there are twenty-one basic races?" "...no." I caught the hesitation in her voice. "At least, not at this time." I nodded in understanding. Patching was a thing. Adding new races and classes helped expand the content. "What about the advanced and exotic races?" Corvis jerked her bill towards a giant figure in the corner. He took up most of the table and seemed so large I wondered how he''d fit through the door. "Your account doesn''t have an advanced or exotic race unlocked, so you are limited to the basic races. Advanced races come with a number of bonuses but also penalties. Exotic races are often highly unusual or not even races. Experiencing the game with them is very different from the base experience, and we''ve limited it as we continue to test." "Can I be a dragon?" I asked. "No one can be a dragon. At the moment." "It''s a possibility for the future?" I asked with interest. That would be very different. What sort of quests would you fulfill? How would classes and equipment interact with a dragon growing in power? They might have a completely different leveling system. "I don''t know. I don''t have access to that information. I''m simply a character creation program." I favored her with a smirk. Corvis wasn''t ''simply'' a character creation program. That much was clear. Once again, I didn''t exist. No one acknowledged me as I slipped my way from table to table, staring at faces and trying to get a feel for the available offerings. "What''s this?" I asked about a slim and dark figure, hovering near the corner. Her skin was dark blue, her ears pointed, the bridge of her nose flattened in a way that reminded me of a cat. When the light hit her eyes, they shimmered for a second. Raised scars lined her face in an intricate design. "That''s an elf," Corvis said as she joined me. "We have several flavors of elves. This is a Fanaal, or pale elf. Their ancestors were forced from the fae burrows during the last cataclysm. They had to survive on the blighted surface for hundreds of years. They''re also called the Forsaken by other elven races." "She''s not pale," I replied, pointing out the obvious. Her skin was dark cobalt. "The Pale is their term for the surface during the last cataclysm. Fanaal is their chosen name. Not something bestowed upon them by others. Their bonuses are to Finesse and Perception. They are a dexterous race, ever alert to possible danger. They have an uneasy relationship with other races. Gnolls, orken, and kobolds are hated and feared by some, but it''s not as bad as that. Fanaal are considered a peculiar people and other elves distrust them." "Why?" "Elves have long lives and long memories. Having your own kin toss you out into the cold stings. Some of them are bitter and use what power they can to strike out at their cousins." This close, I could see the way the Fanaal woman''s vision danced over the crowd. There was tension in her body that never left. Her fingers darted to something hidden on her person, a weapon I presume, as though reassuring herself it was yet there. There was an edge, a deadliness to her, and it drew me in. "I''d think I''d like to try a pale elf," I said. Corvis hopped closer, peering so close to the Fanaal''s face she could have pecked it. "Are you sure? This can be a fun race to play but there are others to enjoy." "It''s not a dragon," I replied, "but I like how mopey their background is. Call me shallow, but I bet I look good when I sulk as a Fanaal." This earned me a crackling chuckle. "A city urchin. Having to survive on the streets with your wits and your talents." "I like that. Parents can be dead or they abandoned me. Oh, they disappeared and never returned. I fear I''ll never learn what happened to them." "Yes," Corvis added. "They left you with a woman they trusted and a small fund. She spent it all and then tossed you into the streets. You took up with a roving gang of other children and have been making your way since then. You''re young but you''re sharp, and you know the back alleys of this city like no other." "What city is this?" I asked. "Brekinhiem--the jewel of the North." 003 // Mind Games I rather liked my new body. After returning to the farmhouse, I spent an hour playing around with the facial features and body molding. The raised scars were difficult to justify. They were part of Fanaal society and my parents had left before my coming of age. By rights, I wouldn''t have any, but I hated to go without. Corvis and I came up with a story about a disgraced Fanaal monk who gave me my marks in exchange for a couple of bottles of ale and some cigars. Fanaal facial features are a bit odd. If molded correctly, you have a feline looking elf with a predatory air. If molded incorrectly, you have a sort of hideous, gaunt smurf with bat-ears. I''ve never been good at art, though I enjoy sketching. After trying to come up with the right face, Corvis offered to make some adjustments. Unsurprisingly, the character creation program was good at facial sculpting. With delicate waves of her feet and gentle prodding with her beak, she crafted me a new face that an excellent blend of familiar and alien. I worked on my butt. Yes, while Corvis was showing loving attention to my face, I spent at least half an hour fondling my future body, trying to make the ass perfect. I wanted something bouncy but not too large. It was fun in a rather bizarre way. "I bet a lot of men," I said while trying to find the right width for my thighs, "spend a great deal of time molding female avatars that they never use." Corvis sighed absentmindedly, she was touching up my future eyebrows and engrossed in her task. "I could tell you stories. Of course, I can''t tell you stories because that would be a violation of my privacy regulations, but... I could tell you stories." "Those eyebrows seem thick." I inspected her handiwork with interest. "I don''t like my eyebrows and I was hoping for very thin ones." "You talk a lot with your eyebrows and your lips. When I''ve watched you, you often react to what people say by doing something with your brows. I don''t want you to lose that," she replied. Far be it from me to argue with an artist at her work. We spent time afterwards going over my background and picking creation traits. Creation traits are simply a handful of hooks the game uses to ground you in the world. They provide small bonuses that aren''t useful in the endgame but tended to be flavorful. As a child, I''d been part of the Rose Street Gang. I''d handle look out while older kids committed crimes. It unlocked a [Underworld Connection (Minor)] trait for me. Despite my poor upbringing, I''d managed to procure, legally or not, better than usual beginner equipment. That unlocked a [Fine Novice Gear] trait. Corvis explained that at level 10, when I selected a class, my gear options would be far better, but for levels 1-9, I wouldn''t have to worry about upgrades. This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it Lastly, I liked the idea of a disgraced Fanaal monk so much that I decided to have him stick around. He was now Mon Elclimon, a drunken pit fighter who I was friends with. That got me a [Close Associate] trait. "Janus," I finally decided on a name. Fanaal me stood in the farmhouse in her worn but functional leathers, a short sword on her hip. She looked sharp and deadly, a playful smile curling at her lips as she pondered the mayhem to come. Corvis gave a happy sigh, like a tired mama bird sending her chick off. "I don''t suppose we''ll meet again?" I asked. She cocked her head to the side. "You won''t see me in game, but if you ever create a new character, I''ll be around. I expect you''ll unlock an advanced or exotic race at some point. Maybe I can help you sculpt a dragon body some day." There was a note of pleasure in her voice. I wondered how real it was. Did she feel satisfaction in creating tens of thousands of avatars to run off into the world? Or was this a pleasant mask draped in front of a rational machine that no more cared for their work than assembly robots care about the cars they manufacture? "I''ll miss you. Thanks for the help." Privacy laws being what they were, this specific program would know I had a medical account but not the details. She probably was used to people with chronic or long-term conditions. Whatever the outcome, I was unlikely to pop back into here any time soon. "Goodbye." I watched her fly off into the false storm. When I lost sight of her, a sudden impulse hit me. Fanaal me prowled around the farmhouse. I could see myself in her movements. What about gnoll me? I had three basic slots, after all. Just for fun, I pulled up the modeling program and unlocked the second slot. Soon a black furred gnoll me appeared. Sculpting her features was easy, I simply picked the most vicious and cruel traits and exaggerated them. The being I crafted was something out of a nightmare, yet in the light of the farmhouse it looked a bit goofy. Things are much more frightening when they''re half-glimpsed. Pull them out into the light, study them for a bit, and they lose part of their edge. Fanaal-me had stretched out on couch like a lazy cat. She looked bored as I played with the gnoll, as though she/we had very important things to be doing that I was keeping her from. "Okay, okay," I finally said. "I''m finished. What do you think?" "I think I''m glad you didn''t make me," Janus replied. My eyebrows rose. I hadn''t expected a response. Her voice, the way she spoke, it was so familiar. Only I''ve heard my voice before and it never sounded that nice. "Everyone''s a critic." I looked back at my creation. Big, dumb slobbering brute. It was difficult to believe that anyone would pick a gnoll; I couldn''t imagine why Corvis had suggested it to me. Gnoll-me abruptly shifted. Sharp golden eyes stared down at me. "Name?" it asked. Its breath hit my face--hot and smelling of dead things. I flinched in disgust. "House: exit character creation." My two companions fizzled into nothingness. Oh wait, I hadn''t meant to get rid of Janus. My bad. "House: I want to enter the game as Janus now. Please begin the tutorial." My world went dark and a message appeared.
The Moth Says: Fly forward and you will stumble on something, perhaps when you are least expecting it. I have never stumbled on something while staying still.
004 // Moth I grunted, my head aching as I tried to open my eyes. I laid on a cold straw mat on the floor. Struggling to get up, my hand hit a glass bottle, sending it tumbling over the floor. A few brown drops splashed on my skin, cold and smelling of beer. "Fun times, fun times." As expected, the voice that greeted me was not quite my own. It was a touch lower and smokey. Something hard pressed against my hip, poking me as I tried to right myself. My hand went down and grasped a short sword bound in a wooden scabbard. Of course, I''d sleep with it. What''s the use of having a blade if you don''t use it as a pillow? I looked to be in a small, rundown shack. As I tried to sit up and work the kinks out of my stiff muscles, my grumbling woke the other inhabitants of the room. A man and woman were lazying naked on the actual bed. Great, this probably wasn''t even my place. What was I doing here then? "Mon?" I squinted at the man. He had blue skin, pointy ears, and salt-and-pepper hair. I only knew one other Fanaal, so it must be him. "Hey kid," he muttered sleepily before stumbling out of bed. He then proceeded to piss in a brass pot and I caught an unpleasant glimpse of blue, saggy uncle ass. As I turned my head, I couldn''t help but think of the millions of dollars in technology and manpower that made such a sight possible. Thousands of years of human progress led up to the moment when I could plug myself into a computer and experience being hungover and mooned. Whatever amusement I might have gotten from that thought was interrupted by a donkey-kick of a headache bursting in my temples. "Valassis," I spat, as I forced myself to my feet. That''s Fanaalian for ''shit-badger.'' I had no idea how I knew that. What mattered now was the shack door in front of me. "I''m going to get something to eat." I pushed my way outside. My first view of the ''jewel of the North'' was a muddy slum. Kids and dogs were running around making far too much noise. A too-bright sun hung in the cold blue sky. Homes appeared to be a long mud and wooden structure, broken up into individual units. That probably kept things warmer in winter. There was a communal garden with a goat tied out in front. Clothing fluttered on long lines hung between rows. I took this in slowly, trying to reorient myself. Which is to say I spent a few minutes blinking in the sunlight like an idiot. "Hey, kid." Mon appeared beside me, blurry-eyed and needing a shave. Thankfully, he''d stuck on some pants. "It''s Janus," I replied. My avatar was a young woman. I was not going to answer to ''kid.'' He nodded groggily, as though I''d told him this before. "I''m fine with you crashing at my place whenever you want. It''s fine with me. But Bete, she''s been on my case lately." I recalled the pale human woman who''d been tangled in bed with Mon. She''d also looked saggy and worse for the wear. "What¡¯s wrong?" I asked. "She''s just been ragging on me about money. You know how she gets. I''m fine with it, but she''s thinking if you could chip in a few coins..." My eyes lit up, catching his meaning. "How much?" He gave a halfhearted shrug. "A few silvers if you can get them. Things have been tight. If it were only me, I''d never ask." "Not a problem. I''ll see what I can do." I clapped him on the arm. His smile told me he knew I was good for it, and he headed back inside to sleep away the noon. I made my way out of the cul-de-sac into the streets, making sure to step clear of any unsavory-looking puddles. The faces I met were rough but friendly. Most people favored me with a smile or nod when I met their eyes, and a few even said ''good morning.'' I guess they knew me. As promised, my starting gear appeared to be of good quality. My [Fine Novice Uniform] was a matching shirt, pants, and overcoat combination of matching tan denim with black suede. My [Fine Novice Boots] were also black suede with iron toes and banding. The [Fine Novice Blade] looked to be a gladius, its steel blade at about 50 centimeters. I swung it as I walked, earning me a few glances, though no one looked alarmed. The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. There were a few others with long knives or wooden clubs hung on their belt. I wondered how dangerous the neighborhood was after dark.
Catch the View: A higher advantage point would let you see more of the city. Why not take a look around? Reward: Map Update
Not a bad idea. Thank you, magical suggestion box! My vision swept upwards as I checked out the buildings nearby. Most were houses or shop fronts, but I spotted a two level stone building not far off. I jogged to it and then clamored up the outside wall¡ªbetween the gaps between stones and my new, more agile body, it was a simple task. This caught the attention of a small pack of children who stared at me in interest. I scrambled onto the roof and waved at them before disappearing. The tile was warm from sunlight and the air cleaner. As, I looked around, my mental map of this area expanded. I was by the north gate in one of Brekinhiem''s poorer districts but a few blocks south and I¡¯d start running into the larger and more elegant plazas of merchants. There was also a very large bridge to my southeast that lead to the temple district. More interesting was that this bridge had three levels, one of which was the ¡®underbridge.¡¯ I sat on the roof, chin in hand, scanning my translucent map in the air. There were the docks, a university, a trade center, two banks, restaurants, theaters, temples... where to start? What to do? As though responding to my mental prompting, the scent of fresh bread wafted my way and caused my stomach to growl. Peering over the tiles of the roof, I noticed an open balcony below. I slid forward on my belly and tried to catch a glimpse inside. My ears caught the sound of an infant crying somewhere within but otherwise, the room below me was empty. I dropped down onto the wood of the balcony and crouched in anticipation. Nothing stirred within. It was a small den warmed by morning sunlight. A half-opened door led to the hall. On a small, round table sat a pot of tea, some bread and jam, and a pie about the size of my hand. The crust looked light and golden. The scent of beef and some sort of fruit wafted from within. My stomach growled again, reminding me of its presence. Should I... take it? I wanted it. It was there. I was hardly going to hurt anyone by taking some NPC¡¯s breakfast! But I hesitated. What if I got in trouble? There was probably a karma system. For all I knew, one stolen item might brand me a thief to every guard in the city. The sound of footsteps coming up the stairs reached my ears. Now or never! I grabbed the small treasure. It burned my fingers but I hardly noticed as I darted to the balcony, swung my leg over the railing, and hopped down with my prize. My heart pounded as I sped over the small wall that divided the house from the road, and I found myself suppressing a giggle. Master thief that I was, I¡¯d made my break in the middle of the day with dozens of people around. There¡¯s no way they¡¯d fail to notice a blueberry elf girl running madly with a grin on her face and a hot pie in her hands. I ran for a block or two until I was sure five hundred city guards weren¡¯t going to spawn and tackle me for violating the law. Five minutes later, I was happily perched on another wall, stuffing hot pie into my mouth. They¡¯d mixed a peach preserve in with the beef and it was tasty, though it burned the roof of my mouth. My escapade had earned me some notices and I read them as I ate.
Title Awarded: Pie-Thief You perniciously pocketed another¡¯s pie. Plus three-point-one-four percent bonus when purloining pastries.
Path of the Moth 1/5 The Moth Says: I must nibble at every fruit on the tree if I wish to find the sweetest
Path of the Fox 1/7 The Fox Says: Greed is a sin. By liberating the farmer from his fat hens, I teach temperance.
Alignment: +1 Sybaritic
I must have stumbled upon a joke achievement. For all I knew, the game had generated that pie simply to see if I¡¯d take it. I¡¯d said I was hungry, after all, and it was a system prompt that got me on the rooftop in the first place. The alignment message gave me pause, however. I should probably perform a good, helpful action to swing my karma back into the positive. Also, Mon was expecting me to bring him money. I wasn¡¯t sure if it was a task or a real Quest, but I wasn¡¯t going to put it off. I pulled up my map. If this were a major city, there had to be a quest hub or something. A golden coin appeared on the map and I tapped it. ¡®Adventurer¡¯s Guild.¡¯ There we go. It was just the place for a level 1 novice. I set it as my way-point and headed off. 005 // Moth The adventurers¡¯ guildhouse was a modest wooden structure, its beams peeling and roof tiles cracked. As such, I wasn¡¯t prepared to step through the door and find myself in a large athletics field. My gaze flicked back and forth between the cold and muddy streets of Brekinhiem behind me and what looked to be a sunny varsity track on the other side. Most games tend to have building interiors that are larger than the exterior would suggest, but it seemed a touch blatant to simply shove a completely unconnected bit of geography inside a building. I wandered inside. There was a pleasant scent of freshly cut grass. Colorful tents had been set up along the side of the field where other players in their Novice gear lounged. As I approached the closest tent, a woman sitting behind a table, fiddling with a deck of cards, spotted me and waved me over. "Hello, welcome to Penumbra!" She flashed a set of perfectly white and even teeth. Our eyes met and my return smile faltered for a moment. Though a lovely spring green, there was something flat and lifeless about her gaze. I recovered before she noticed. If she was capable of noticing. "Hi. I just entered the game and was hoping for some help getting a few quests under my belt and leveling up." "Then you¡¯ll want a quest card," she explained. She shuffled the deck of cards in her hand. They had the ¡®Lady Penumbra¡¯ logo on their backs ¨C the stylized crest of a mouthless woman¡¯s face with a mantle of spider legs around it. "You get to pick." With a smooth, practiced motion, she spread them before me. I picked one from the middle and read it out-loud. "A Simple Request: Kill ten pink gummies in the novice training grounds and then turn this card in to Mortomer for a reward. Progress: 0 of 10." There was an image of a bubblegum-colored blob. That must be the pink gummies. The woman pointed to the middle of the field. I could see a few other novices running around there with small blades, staffs, or bows. The grass reached their knees so I couldn¡¯t see the gummies. "Just place it into your inventory," she said. "Quest cards don¡¯t take up space." "Inventory," I said aloud. A three-by-three grid appeared in the air and I was able to shove the card into it. "Thanks. Where is Mortomer?" "That¡¯s the tent with the purple flag on top. All the way on the other side." I thanked her again before jogging away. Something about that NPC struck me as off. She seemed far more mechanical than the NPCs in Brekinhiem. And she was so perfect and clean-looking. Come to think of it, she¡¯d called this Penumbra and said it was a game. They must have different systems handling aware NPCs vs unaware ones. I forgot about her soon enough when I waded into the grass. Though there was no wind, the long, fuzz-tipped blades rippled gently and a pleasant tingle in my ran up my legs as I walked through it. I drew my blade and kept my eyes on the grass, looking for movement. A pink blob squeezed itself from the ground, inflated to the size of a dog, and rolled towards me. Curious, I let it get near. Once it was in reach, it stopped, gathered itself up, and slapped my leg. It was like hot wax splattering against my skin. I yelped and backed away. A glance at my health bar showed the attack had taken a crumb from it. The cool tingle from the grass increased and my bar popped back to 100%. The giant wad of bubblegum pulled back into its circular shape and rolled towards me faster this time. I swung my sword at it awkwardly, hacking off a chunk of pink gel. It responded by smacking my hand. That stung something fierce and without thinking, I dropped my weapon and yanked my hand back. The skin was bright red and faintly blistered. As I continued to back away, I waved my hand through the grass and was rewarded with a cool tingle. Checking it, I found it had recovered. I felt my cheeks heat with embarrassment as I looked at where my sword had fallen. It wasn¡¯t even that painful of a burn¡ªI¡¯d simply dropped it out of reflex. The bubblegum monster was intent on chasing me down, so I led it away, circled around, and then darted back. I had to search through the grass for a few seconds to find the sword. As I grabbed it in triumph, the pink gummy smacked the back of my legs. A bark of pain and surprise passed my lips. I spun and plunged the sword into its center. The monster shivered, swelled, and burst open with a ¡®plop!¡¯ After a few seconds, it sunk back into the ground, leaving only a wet spot in its place. I pulled the quest card from my inventory and verified that it had been updated. Another gummy burbled out from the ground several meters from me and I readied myself. Over the next twenty minutes, I fought gummy after gummy. The system seemed to adjust the behavior of the monster as I got used to it: First they moved a bit faster. Then they¡¯d try to dodge my swings. Then they¡¯d slap me twice instead of once. Then they started attacking in pairs. It was all very basic stuff but the pain kept me on my toes.
Standard synchronization achieved. Activate combat assist? Y/N
"Yes," I said between pants. I had two of them on me and they were spread out. When I tried to approach one, the other would swipe my leg or hip. This time, when I stepped forward, both of them lunged at me. My body jerked of its own accord to the left. My muscles burned, protesting the unusual movement, but it was less painful than getting hit. The combat assist was strange. It was like having a sudden, uncontrolled spasm, only the spasm did exactly what I wanted my body to do. Stolen story; please report. Sweaty and panting, I felled the last of the pink gummies with a chop. Even if they didn¡¯t drop goods, there was something oddly satisfying about the way they burst open like ripe fruit. I wiped my damp hair back and sheathed my blade. In the real world, I¡¯d never been much of an athlete. Here, my body was light and swift, but it seemed easily winded. I closed my eyes and let the grass¡¯s magic wash away the fatigue from my muscles. When I opened them, I realized another Novice had approached me. I¡¯d spotted her while battling and now she seemed to be studying me. She was a tall woman a with greatsword strapped to her back. Her eyes were silver and faint glowing lines were etched along her face, suggesting she was one of the advanced or exotic races. "Yes?" I asked as I licked my salty lips. "You¡¯re new, aren¡¯t you?" "Obviously." She laughed at that. "No, most people here are alts. But it is obvious by the way you fight that you¡¯re new." She frowned at my clothing. "No legacy gear, either. You picked the trait that gives you better starting equipment. It¡¯s one of the worst ones." "Right." I spotted a tent with a purple flag in the distance. I wasn¡¯t sure why this girl was bothering me, but I had things to do. I moved towards the tent and she walked beside me, not getting the hint. "I¡¯m in Mercadia. You?" she asked. "What do you mean?" "What starting city did you come here from?" "Brekinhiem." You could come here from different cities? That made sense. "Are you enjoying the game? Do you have any questions?" I wanted to say that I was enjoying the game until someone interrupted me. That would be rude, however. Some people are extroverts. They can¡¯t help themselves from chatting up strangers. "It¡¯s all up in the air, I¡¯m only level one. Started playing an hour ago." I shrugged. "Not bad so far. Any hints?" "Don¡¯t play to win," she replied. "Explore the world, try a little of everything. Listen to the moth. There¡¯s something for everyone in this game if you give it time, but it¡¯s very frustrating if all you want to do is hit max level and get the best gear." We¡¯d reached the tent. A thin, creepy-looking fellow with greasy hair sat at his table, a bored expression on his face. I pulled out the quest card. "Mortimer?" "Mor-TOW-mer." He snatched the card from my hand in irritation. "You get five silver as a reward. I will also teach you the first aid ability." He rifled through his own cards and set down one with a Rod of Asclepius on it. I picked it up and flipped it over in my fingers. The golden edges flickered in the sunlight. "This doesn¡¯t teach me anything." The other player had hovered behind my shoulder throughout this exchange. "You can slot that ability," she offered, helpfully. "Slot." I told the air. Nothing happened. "Abilities." There we go. A row of five slots appeared in front of me. I stuck the First Aid card in the first one and then pushed the resulting icon. A familiar cool rush swept over me, then the First Aid card turned dark and a small count down appeared on its face. "I can only use this every fifteen minutes." "Right, it¡¯s a Novice skill," the woman said. "It¡¯s meant to help you out before you have regular healing items or abilities. Though I¡¯ve known a few Warriors who keep it handy while leveling." Extra healing never hurt. I flicked to my character screen and realized that I¡¯d hit level two. It must have happened when I¡¯d turned in the quest card but I¡¯d received no notification. "Can I keep getting quests from the woman by the entrance?" I asked. My companion grimaced before answering. "Sure, but it¡¯s boring. The Novice quests here are generic ones for people who aren¡¯t familiar with VRMMOs. They¡¯re basic and grindy, and the rewards aren¡¯t that good. Most people only come here to rush through a few levels, or to check out the item shops and auction houses." She jerked her thumb towards one of the larger tents with a dozen or so people sitting on the ground, each absorbed in their invisible screens. I palmed the five silver Mor-TOW-mer had given me and wondered if there was anything I could afford. Unlikely, she¡¯d made it sound like they were mostly for alts of higher level players. "I wouldn¡¯t mind grinding through a few of my low levels." Maybe ¡®the moth¡¯ would disagree with me, but low levels were something to rush through. "Do you know what class you¡¯ll pick?" she asked. I shook my head. I hadn¡¯t even considered it. She fished in the pouch hanging on her belt, took out a small vial of neon yellow liquid, and offered it to me. "Experience potion," she explained. "If you want, we can party together and I¡¯ll help level you." I didn¡¯t want to party up with her or have her level me, but it would be silly to refuse. "Sure," I said as I took the potion. I could hear the distinct lack of gratitude in my voice and tried to sound more enthusiastic. "Thank you, it¡¯s very nice of you." I¡¯m one of those people who suck at sounding appreciative. Even when I¡¯m sincere about it.
Aria Truelight has invited you to a party. Accept? Y/N
"Yes," I said and then turned to her. "Nice to meet you, Aria. Lead on." Thankfully, she was less chatty and more business-like once I¡¯d agreed to her help. She returned to the quest giver tent and pulled out five cards. Flipping through them, she returned three and drew three different cards. "You can always reject a quest," she explained. "The ones on the Novice Grounds are pulled from a pool. We¡¯re looking for ones that can be completed quickly and have scaling rewards." After drawing and discarding her hand of five cards several times, she settled on the quests she wanted. The NPC who greeted me had a sour look on her face as she watched Aria shuffle through her deck, but didn¡¯t object. "There we go," Aria finally said as she handed the cards to me. The first quest was simply making our way through an obstacle course three times. I climbed up poles, crawled under barbed wire, walked across a balance beam, hopped over boxes, and then sprinted while winding back and forth between cones. Aria tackled the course with me. I could see she¡¯d done it before, though interestingly enough I was better at walking the balance beam than she was. It was over before I knew it and we headed towards a black-colored tent. Its only feature was a hole in the ground and a rope leading into the dark. "Don¡¯t worry about falling. There¡¯s water below," Aria said before grabbing the rope and starting to shimmy down. When she reached the end, she swung back and forth and jumped out of sight. I followed. The air cooled as I descended into what looked like a large grotto. Glowing fungus illuminated the dark waters beneath me in pale blues and greens. Aria stood on a ledge, waiting for me. It was about three feet from the rope to the stone outcropping. I began twisting my body, swinging back and forth until I was as far as could get, and then leapt. For a moment, I thought I¡¯d made it, but then my momentum died and I fell. I hit the ice-cold water with a splash. My muscles seized up at the shocking cold. For a terrifying moment, I sunk downwards as darkness enveloped me. Once more, the assist kicked in. This time far more aggressively. My legs churned the cold water, slowing my descent and then propelling me upwards. I broke the water, gasping as control returned to me. On one hand, I was glad I wasn¡¯t totally dependent on my own reactions when it came to a life or death situation. If the human race had my survival instincts, we wouldn¡¯t have made it out of Africa. On the other hand, my legs literally swam without my input or control. It is not comfortable realizing that the system can hijack my virtual body whenever it feels like it. Aria leaned over the outcropping, offering her hand to me. I grabbed it and she helped haul me out of the drink. "You almost made it," she said. "What?" I smiled, giving my wet hair an exaggerated flip. "That was planned. I got sweaty earlier and figured a nice dip would help. That was refreshing!" This earned me a soft laugh. I scrambled to my feet and tried to squeeze what water I could from my soaked clothing. "What next?" I asked. Deeper into the complex, there was a basket full of unlit torches beside a small campfire. She grabbed two, lit them, and handed one to me. "If you die in here, you¡¯ll respawn by this fire. There¡¯s no penalty here. If that happens, I¡¯ll come back to get you," Aria explained as I tried to warm myself. "There are three different quests in this cave network. The first is to kill giant naked mole rats and collect their teeth..." 006 // Moth "The issue is that you¡¯re so tense that you¡¯re hurting yourself," Aria explained. We walked together down a long and snakey tunnel burrowed through the dirt by the giant mole rat colony. I held a torch while she rested her greatsword on her shoulder. "You¡¯re going to get hit. There¡¯s no avoiding it. But your body is so rigid that it¡¯s fighting against the dodge assist." "It¡¯s not easy to stay relaxed while mutant rodents gnaw on your leg," I grumbled in reply. Aria chuckled. "It sounds crazy, but you get used to it. Also, if you pick a front-line class, you¡¯ll get pain resistance and natural toughness. Just stick with it a week or so and you¡¯ll be surprised how fast you adapt." I shook my head. "No way in hell am I playing a front-line class. Let some other idiot spend their time being mauled to death." "Hey now," Aria said in a playful tone, "you¡¯re not supposed to say that in front of the idiot¡¯s face." I admit, I hadn¡¯t cared for Aria at first, but it was nice to have someone walk me through the game. We were still in the mole-rat den. We¡¯d killed a bunch of them and ¡®harvested¡¯ their teeth. The mole-rats had managed to join their burrows to an abandoned mine, so we had a quest to take copper samples. Lastly, we had a quest to kill the giant mole rat queen. This meant wandering along the tunnels, filling out the map, until we found the central nest. I was surprised Aria hadn¡¯t memorized the route, but it turns out that this area was randomly generated and phased for each group that entered. At least the monster density decreased after we¡¯d harvested enough teeth. No sooner had I thought that then a familiar hiss came from up ahead. Six giant naked mole rats had appeared in a wall formation. Their plump, greased bodies were packed one on top of another and then melded together, stuffed like a sausage into the tunnel. Somehow, the resultant mass was able to crawl forward with its dozen hand-like paws while its six mouths snapped blindly at the air. We could run. The thing was slow-moving and hadn¡¯t spotted us. I would have preferred that. Aria was having none of that. She hefted up her sword and rushed forward, at the end, she performed a fancy slashing attack. A mole-rat head bounced merrily along the floor, still snapping its teeth. Legacy weapons apparently let you slot some abilities early. I ran to join her and do what damage I could given my only attack was randomly waving my sword at things. However, as our opponent was a giant wall of naked rodent flesh, it was easy to hit. I stabbed at it while it hissed and snapped at Aria, jumping away when one tried to bite me. What I wouldn¡¯t give for a weapon with reach. We managed to decapitate all six heads. As Aria had acted as my meat shield, I¡¯d hardly taken any damage. She had a few nasty-looking bites that she bandaged up. There were infectious and venomous attacks in the game, but unless a mob specifically had one, you didn¡¯t have to worry about bites getting you sick. While she rested, I used her curved [Hunter¡¯s Blade] to carve up the thick slab of flesh that blocked our path. I¡¯d managed to unlock the common Butchery skill used to dismember beasts and monsters in the game; it provided skins for Leathercrafting, parts for Alchemy, and other goods. By the time I finished, there was a neat hole for us to walk through. I¡¯d also gathered five [Silky Skins], which I gave to Aria, and a pair of pink moccasins. I tugged them onto my feet. Like other clothing items in Penumbra, they shifted to fit their wearer. The slippers were comfortable but provided less armor than my [Fine Novice Boots]. They warmed my feet, radiating heat like a living thing. In fact, walking around with them felt strangely like walking on someone¡¯s fat belly. Aria caught my confused expression and misread it. "If they¡¯re not to your tastes, you could sell them at the auction house," she suggested as we stepped through the hole. I pointedly ignored the viscera on display. "They can¡¯t be worth much." I continued to wear them despite the small drop in armor. The soft booties, their color similar to strawberry milk, clashed terribly with my Novice uniform but I liked how they kept my toes nice and warm. Comfort matters. "You can use dyes to enchant them into stealth shoes. People will grab them up, upgrade them, and then relist them. It¡¯s only a handful of silvers but you¡¯ll get it in an hour or so. Better than coppers from a merchant." I nodded as though I were considering her words. "Have you given any thought to what professions you¡¯ll pick up?" Aria asked. "None whatsoever. You?" I got the sense that Aria was the type of player to plan everything well in advance. "I¡¯m going to go artificer primarily with some alchemy as well. I want to make myself a Moloch," she replied. I gave her a questioning look. "It¡¯s one of the sky trains. I plan to take this character to the Far Reaches and want her to have her own transportation." "That makes sense." "The usual advice is to pick up gathering professions for your first character and sell to other players. I¡¯ve never found that satisfying. If you wanted to be a gatherer, why not simply spend your time on a farm?" I almost had spent my time on a farm. It made me wonder how Aria¡¯s interaction with the character creation program had gone. Had she simply dismissed it and picked from a list? Told it exactly what she wanted? Aria didn¡¯t seem the type to allow the sort of loss of control my more lackadaisical approach prompted. As we continued down the snaking passageway, it dipped downwards. The air became hot and suffocating. "I¡¯m getting a headache," I said. "Bosses exude pressure," Aria said, her voice low. "We¡¯re close now. This is a Novice area so don¡¯t be too worried. As long as we work together, this will be easy." "Do we have a plan?" Naturally, she had one. "I¡¯ll go in first, draw aggro. There will be the queen and a bunch of minions. Focus on cutting down the minions. When the queen gets to half-heath, she¡¯ll call out and a second wave will come scurrying in. Back off and I¡¯ll get their aggro. Repeat. Easy peasy, lemon squeezey." I frowned in concern. "That doesn¡¯t sound easy." "The minions are baby mole rats. They hardly do any damage to a level 8 Novice. I just have to focus on not getting chomped by the queen while you dispatch them." My palms were sweaty. The farther down we went, the more the pressure in the air built. It didn¡¯t hurt but it was interesting they gave bosses a tangible presence. We reached the central nest and I peered in. Within, the dirt floor was covered in nesting material. A corpulent, elephant-sized mole rat sow laid on her side while a dozen small mole rats suckled at her. The scent of warm milk filled the air and made my stomach twist. Aria looked unimpressed but she favored me with a small smile. "Tell me whenever you¡¯re ready, and we¡¯ll begin." "Are you sure we can handle this? Just the two of us?" "I beat this encounter solo on my last character. Though I used two scrolls I brought from the player shop. Remember, it¡¯s a game. It¡¯s made to look scary and impressive, but it¡¯s a fair challenge." Aria was right. Everything we¡¯d faced so far had moderately challenging if we worked together. This would be slightly more difficult, but not overwhelming. I was psyching myself out for no reason. "I¡¯m ready." My voice sounded clear and confident. I didn¡¯t feel that way, but I could fake it in a pinch. Aria hefted up her greatsword. Her gaze was calm and focused. It occurred to me that I¡¯d been lucky to encounter her and I wondered if there was anything I could do to thank her. Probably not. She had high-level characters and had played for years now. Best concentrate on not fucking up in the middle of this. Aria dashed forward, greatsword trailing behind her in a move I was familiar with by now. The sow raised her rectangular head and sniffled idly. The mole rats had poor vision and so the queen didn¡¯t realize what was happening until Aria was on her. Her blade cut a scythe through the air. Her first blow sliced a few of the ratlings in half and cut into the sow''s belly. The sow let out a piercing cry of pain and sprang to its feet. Its children tumbled to the ground and then, as one, swarmed Aria. As they tumbled towards her, she kept her eye on their mother. This seemed as good a time as any to join the festivities. The young mole rats were about the size of small dogs and attacked by leaping at Aria¡¯s legs and nipping them and then hopping back. I thrust my sword into one as it jumped. It fell to the ground, bleeding and wasn¡¯t able to right itself before I finished it off. Two hits then to kill one. Aria was right, this wouldn¡¯t be too difficult. With a renewed confidence, I began hacking at the rats. Sometimes they¡¯d be able to turn my way and attack before I got in a second or third hit, but the going was much easier for me. I¡¯d managed to cut down five of them. Aria¡¯s reinforced pant legs were slick with blood and I worried that she¡¯d made a mistake trying to tank all of them at once. I pushed myself, ignoring the rather sick feeling in my gut whenever I slid my blade into a mole rat flank. "Watch for the charge," Aria barked. My head snapped up. I¡¯d focused so hard on fighting the minions that I hadn¡¯t paid attention to the queen. The giant sow had backed up, its head lowered, and was pawing at the grass-covered ground like a bull. It ran forward with an angry grunt, trampling a few of its offspring and sending others flying in all directions. I managed to scramble away in time and it barreled past me. By the time I realized I could attack its flank without fear, it was already out of reach. It slammed into the wall and the room shook as dirt fell from the ceiling. "Thanks," I said. Again, my body was drenched in sweat. I gripped my sword hilt tightly, fearing I might drop it again. Aria only nodded, her eyes never leaving the queen. It slumped against the wall, dazed. "We should attack it while it¡¯s dow..." I began to say. She shook her head and moved to the nearest minion. By the time the queen recovered and rolled back onto her feet, we¡¯d finished off the remaining ones. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. Aria had said that another minion wave would spawn when the queen was at half health, but monsters in this game didn¡¯t have health bars. How was I to know when that was? I probably should have asked before the fight started. "Come here, beautiful. Come on..." Aria called to the queen. Instead of running towards her, she moved in a slow arc. The queen sniffed cautiously, following Aria¡¯s song and ignoring me. It might not even be able to see me if I didn¡¯t move. It limped forward. Aria must have injured its front leg. I wondered if I could use this moment to attack or not. As a Novice, Aria didn¡¯t have any abilities that allowed her to taunt or increased her aggro, she was face tanking. It was hard not to look at the queen¡¯s big, round butt and not swipe at it, but I waited until Aria lashed out at the queen again. Rather than the large and inviting target of the rat¡¯s posterior, I sliced at its back leg, hoping to hit a tendon. It hissed in pain and started to turn, giving Aria a chance to deliver a powerful downward chop to its neck. If this were the real world, that would be the end of things. Even if the blow didn¡¯t slice through the neck, it would have done enough damage to the spine to cripple or kill the queen. Instead, it just made her mad. The queen spun back to Ara, hissing. A red glow suddenly came from her body and she puffed up, slightly growing in size. A chattering sound came from afar but rapidly grew. I stepped back, unsure. Other than the tunnel we¡¯d come in, I didn¡¯t see any way into the room, but the noise wasn¡¯t coming from there. It came from all around. "Where are they?" I asked. "Below," she snapped. When the chattering was at its loudest, mole rats burst out from mounds. Rather than being babies, these were full grown. One escaped from the earth right beside me and showered me with dirt as it burrowed out. I yelped, jumping back in fear. It swung its rectangular face towards me. Its tiny eyes glowed with hate as it charged me. "Oh shit..." I muttered. Aria was absorbed with the queen. Even if she¡¯d noticed one had attacked me, she wasn¡¯t close enough to intervene. My computer-generated instinct kicked in and I jerked out of the way of its first attack. I was completely unready for my body to do that and ended up losing balance. I fell over on my side, hitting my hip hard as the soldier mole rat snapped at empty air. I looked to Aria again for help and realized that she now faced the queen and four soldier rats. Her face was hard and damp with sweat. Not only was this harder than the infants but I wasn¡¯t there supporting her. I scrambled to my feet. This was embarrassing; I wasn¡¯t helping her and I was fleeing from a single enemy while she took on several. When the mole-rat attacked again, I thrust at it. My sword ended up buried in its shoulder at an awkward angle as it snagged part of my arm. Blood trickled down its front, but it wouldn¡¯t let go. Using my left hand, I pounded at the top of its head and when that didn¡¯t work, scratched at its eyes. There was a sharp, sudden pain in my calf. My head snapped around to see a second mole rat had noticed me. Its thick teeth were buried in the muscle of my leg. It jerked its head and pulled backward. I cried out as I lost my footing a second time. Have you ever seen two dogs play tug-of-war with a rope? The mole rat soldiers proceeded to do that with me. My momentary resolve melted away and I howled in pain. My screams and the scent of blood washing from my leg caught a third one¡¯s attention. It waddled happily away from Aria and to me. I thrashed and yelled as it came near, our faces at level. Its mouth opened wide. Behind it, I caught a glimpse of Aria. She¡¯d spotted me and the look of complete bewilderment on her face was almost comical. I would have laughed at the expression at any other time. Then the third soldier mole rat bit into my stomach. It threw all of its strength into a roll to the side. The most exquisite pain flooded my body as it tore my stomach open and thick, noodle-like intestines slithered out of me onto the ground. It dropped the bloody chunk of me from its mouth and shoved its muzzle into my gut. The game¡¯s pain overrides kicked in and all feeling left my body as it burrowed straight through my middle. Then the world turned black my consciousness left that body. I floated in darkness. The sound of screaming in my head died down. What the hell was this crazy game? How high was the developer who created intestine devouring monsters and put them in a Novice area? The scene replayed itself over and over in my mind as I drifted. The scent iron scent of blood mixed with the queen¡¯s sour milk and the rank of my own offal. The mole rat¡¯s four yellowed teeth chewed into my gut. The tension as the two soldiers yanked my body back and forth along the ground. Though the details remained sharp, the emotional intensity dulled. I stopped experiencing and instead watched as Janus was attacked. Eventually, I felt restless, bored even. The lack of physical stimulation bothered me. I wanted to move and stretch but had no body. How long was this taking? Time was sluggish there. My rational mind told me it could only be a few minutes but that did nothing for my impatience. I wanted out and I wanted out now. Mentally, I squirmed. Pushing against the nothingness that enveloped me. There was resistance there. I focused on it. Shoved my will against it. Pounded my thoughts and growing frustration against it. A sound like snapping ice filled the darkness and then a sliver of light appeared. I swam towards it. My senses were returning. My limbs twisted and moved through a warm, thick liquid. It filled my lungs but I had no problems breathing. I bumped into something smooth and hard within the dark liquid. My mental efforts had created a small crack and it was from this that light reached me. Peering out, I could see a pile of twigs and an overcast sky. The crack was just wide enough for me to slide my fingers into. I couldn¡¯t get a grip though and so resorted to stomping at the crack. The surface broke, bits of it snapping off and falling into the darkness behind me. The hole widened and when it was large enough, I swam upwards and out. Clamoring out, I tossed myself on the ground. The air was cool on my damp skin. Under me was a thick bed of twigs and leaves woven together. My eyes flicked to where I emerged. It was a familiar shape¡ªan egg. A blue egg dappled with brown, just large enough for me to stretch out in. My thoughts were interrupted by a sharp pain in my chest as I tried to inhale. I coughed and a reddish gel burst from my mouth. While my lungs had been fine with the liquid while I was submerged, they wanted air now. I coughed violently for about half a minute until I could catch my breath again. Once I recovered, I got to my feet, confirming what I¡¯d seen before: I was standing in a massive nest with half a dozen coffin-sized eggs, one of which I¡¯d crawled out of. As respawns went, it was completely bizarre. Though I was starting to suspect that a large number of illegal drugs had gone into the making of Penumbra. The nest I was in took up the top of a common maple tree. I swung my legs over the side and carefully made my way down. I recalled that harpies were in the game. It wouldn¡¯t surprise me if they were one of the exotic races. Perhaps the game had glitched and my blue elf had gotten their respawn instead of appearing at the dungeon¡¯s campgrounds like I was supposed to. I landed softly on the grass just in time for a boom to fill the air. Looking around, I saw a trail of dark smoke arc through the sky. It landed in the distance and exploded. Was that¡­ artillery fire? In response, a barrage came from beyond a distant hill. I watched five black plumes of smoke sail overhead before thundering to the ground. Even from far away, their blast rumbled loud enough to hurt my ears and cause black birds to take flight. Just my luck. First eaten, then respawned in an egg, and now I seemed to be in a warzone. The birds had wisely taken flight and headed away from the bombardment area, and I followed them. I just wanted to reach level 10 Novice and unlock a class. Preferably one good at not being chewed upon. My map for this area had yet to unlock so I kept an eye out as I traveled for a suitably tall tree or building I could climb to get an overview of the area. I assumed if that unlocked a map before, it would do so again. The bird calls got stronger as traveled through the young forest. The trees were short and spread apart, giving me enough room and light to walk comfortably. Stepping from the woods into a clearing, I caught sight of what the birds had led me to and stopped dead. There was no grass in the clearing. The grown looked like it had been burned and salted. Only a single, solitary tree remained, its dark and twisted branches stretched tall and wide. Not a single leaf sprouted from it but a dozen bodies hung from its lowest bows. It was this that had brought the birds. The crows cawed riotously among themselves as they pecked at the proffered feast. I knew I should turn away but something drew me forward. The bodies were naked and all female. And as my feet took me to the tree, my heart began to pound and my limbs shivered. The body that hung closest to me was one of the smallest. It felt familiar. It looked familiar. I had seen this face before. But it wasn¡¯t until I stood right below the corpse that the truth clicked in my mind. This was halfling me. Her plump, rosy cheeks had been pecked at until I could see the white of her skull. Her mouth hung open, lips blue. I looked from body to body. There was human me as well. And gnoll me. And the others--all were of different races, but all seemed to be me. As I stood there gaping, one of the crows stopped its pecking and noticed me for the first time. "You look," she said, "like you¡¯ve just seen a ghost." 007 // Moth My face burned as my limbs began to shiver. This wasn''t real. The sight before me¡ªthe cluster of bodies hanging from a tree that all had my face¡ªnone of it was real. Something had gone wrong with the game and when I''d died, my brain had vomited up a bizarre nightmare to torment me with. "What the hell?" The words came unbidden to my lips. A thoroughly standard response to the madness in front of me. Several of the three-eyed crows had taken note of me. They stopped their feasting on the plump corpses to squawk out harsh laughter. I stepped forward, intent on shaking the nearest body and dislodging the carrion. But one look in its face¡ªthe swollen, blue lips, the flies dancing around rotting eyes¡ªand I stumbled back again. "This isn''t real," I reminded myself. I was ill. Even before plugging into Penumbra Online, I suffered from mild audio and visual hallucinations. I am Christine Valcruz and I am unconscious, floating in a pod. That is reality and everything else is a dream. One of the crows flew over to me. "What are you doing here?" she asked, her voice heavy with worry. Though they all looked the same, I recognized her. This was my Corvus. This was the crow who''d been friendly to me and helped me create my character. Her tone was caring and concerned. Despite the grizzly spectacle before me, her presence helped me remain centered. "I think there''s something very wrong," I said. This had to be an error with the system or with me. Corvis hopped closer on her black legs. Her three eyes bored into me with startling intensity. "Tell me how you got here," she said, soothingly. "I died. I was in the tutorial levels fighting mole rats with this girl I met. Then I woke up here in some giant egg." I wiped my face and found tears trickling from my eyes. I didn''t understand this. No matter how much I told myself this wasn''t reality, fear gathered deep within me. This was awful. Corvis took my words in, nodding her head as she considered them. "Players rarely slip into this section," she explained. "This is for my kind, not yours. I know it''s scary but nothing here will harm you." I cast a doubtful look at the array of bodies. She glanced behind her and sighed. "Those aren''t you, Christine. Those are your cast-offs. Janus is the character you picked; Janus is who I brought to life. These are shadows¡ªpsychic remains that we''re disposing of." "You''re eating me!" I snapped. "This isn''t a fucking recycling plant; you''re devouring versions of me." "Fair enough." She sighed. "Everyone has to eat and I think this is an equitable payment for my services, but I can see how you''d dislike it." There was a wiggling among the bodies. The motion caught my eyes. One of the corpses yet had life in her. The gnoll, of course it was her. Her furry legs kicked weakly. Those glittering yellow eyes had turned soft and watery. I moved without thinking, rushing towards her. I gathered her legs in my arms and tried to support her weight with my small body. Corvus alighted on the branch upon which she hung. "Let her down," I demanded. The three-eyed crow tilted her head. "It might be better to let this one go." "I said put her down!" My voice broke into a sob. I wasn''t tall or strong enough to lift her all the way. She was dying, dying and I could only delay it. I heard a tiny sigh above me and Corvis picked at the rope knot. The other crows had finally stopped their eating and watched the spectacle. They murmured among themselves but I couldn''t make out words above the throbbing of blood in my ears. The gnoll''s kicking picked up in strength as she realized what was happening. Covis'' sharp beak rapidly plucked at strand after strand until the rope gave way. I was pushed to the ground and suddenly I found myself pinned under a hot, gasping body. I squirmed out from under her, getting wet muck all over my front, and then loosened the noose around her neck. She laid there, mouth open, long tongue lolling out. Her eyes looked skyward in a daze but her chest softly rose and lowered. Corvus landed on her chest and poked at the gnoll''s black nose once or twice¡ªno reaction. "This is not how I imagined spending my day," Corvis commented. "Now what am I going to do with her?" "You''re not going to kill her, are you?" "After I went to the trouble of getting her down? I think not. I¡¯ll find a nice place to tuck her while she recovers." Above me, the morbid fruits of my other cast-offs swayed in the breeze. The crows had returned to their meal as though nothing had happened. "I need to get out of here." I felt sick and unwell as though a hundred pieces of me had died. Corvis landed on my shoulder. "On that, we agree. But there''s something I''ll be needing first." Her sharp beak stabbed into my temple, piercing the thin bone there. I screamed, lashing wildly as she flapped her wings, pulling out a long, bloody worm... If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.
Path of the Moth 2/7 The Moth Says: To die will be an awfully big adventure.
"Hey, Janus." A hand shook me and I found myself waking with a start beside a campfire. Aria''s concerned face hovered before my vision, the cave roof behind her. I shook my head, faint fragments of dream clinging behind my eyes. "What..?" I said, disoriented. Aria touched my damp forehead and I flinched. "Whoa there, you''re okay. You respawned at camp. Not a scratch on you." I looked down and saw the blue hands of my elf form. My fine novice clothing was pristine and intact. There was no sign of the attack I''d suffered. Not a single rip or tear in the fabric. I reached out to my belly, the memory of it being torn open fresh in my mind, and found it whole. It quivered under my fingers. "I died?" I asked. "Yeah. I''ve been waiting here for you to respawn. We won, by the way." She indicated a large, bloody bag beside the fire, which I assumed held the queen''s head. "Were you having trouble?" "I..." I tried to think back. There was a place, strange and frightening. Birds? There were black birds talking to me. The memory faded as I grasped for it. "I had a trippy dream." "I thought you''d be here by the time I walked back. When you weren''t, I worried you''d split. They must have changed the encounter to be hard. I saw you die. That¡ªthat was brutal. Not going to lie, I''ve never seen disemboweling in a tutorial quest before." "There was something..." I wracked my brain, trying to recall the dream. It felt important that I do so but only shreds of it remained. "That dream was so weird. I thought you respawned instantaneously." "It always takes a bit," Ara replied, settling beside me. She pulled a warm bowl of soup from the air and pushed it my way. "You lose synchronization when you die. There isn''t a respawn timer; your mind decides when to put your body back in the game. It gets faster the longer you play." I sat up and took the bowl from her, ignoring the offered spoon, and sipped from it directly. It was a salty broth with bits of meat in it that gave it a smoky bacon flavor. This was probably the remains of some of the mole rats we''d killed earlier. I didn''t want to know so I didn''t ask. Warmth suffused through my limbs as I slurped the soup down, and a Spirit buff icon appeared in my upper right vision. It would last for one hour. "Thanks." I handed the empty bowl back to her and closed my eyes. I had a headache, a sharp pain behind my left temple, and felt tired, but was otherwise fine. "This is my first time in a full dive VR and I''m actually sick in the real world. I didn''t think it would chase me here." "As in body, so in mind. And this place is nothing but mind." She gathered herself up and stood. I popped one eye open to see her waiting hand before my face. I''d have liked to wait a little longer but understood she was eager to get back to the surface and hand in our quests. With a grunt, I grabbed the hand and stood. "Thank you for all this. For one thing, I''m now sure that I don''t want to play a tank or a front line fighter." I could vividly recall the sensation of my belly being ripped apart by those buck teeth and having my intestines gnawed on. The thought of a monster eating me filled me with cold dread and I immediately stomped on the emotion, forcing it and the memory from my mind. Our return to the surface was uneventful. I blinked rapidly in the bright sunlight. Colorful flags waved atop tents and the bubblegum blobs rolled through the grass of the training field. It felt unreal compared to what I''d just encountered. I wondered how many players experience Penumbra Online this way: A sprawling carnival of fun games and harmless time wasters. "Hello again, Mor-TOOOOOW-mer," I said as we approached the reward stall. He grimaced at my mocking his name and I favored him with an impudent grin. He was a computer-controlled personality, so I didn''t care about his feelings. Aria and I sipped down the small vial of our yellow experience potion. It tasted like pineapple. Another buff icon appeared in my overlay and we turned in all the quests at once. This time I kept an I on my log and watched as I gained three more levels. Not bad. Mortimer dumped a handful of coins on the table along with five new skill cards, then crossed his arms and looked away as though he were finished with us. A gold coin rolled off the table and onto the grass and I fetched it. It looked freshly minted. I bit down on it with my molars like I''d seen people do in films. It was cool against my lips and had no metallic flavor. Aria shoveled the rest of the coins into her pack. I realized that since rewards were simply handed out by NPCs, it was up to players to fairly distribute the loot. I wasn''t worried about Aria ripping me off¡ªthis was her alt, so the reward was a pittance to her¡ªbut would remember that for later. I''d have to keep my eye on anyone else I partied with. She handed me four of the five cards. As she was already level 8, she didn''t need them. There was ''Play Dead,'' ''Analyze,'' ''Sneak,'' and ''Trade Window.'' "I have to slot these with my Abilities?" I asked. I only had five ability slots available and this would take them all. "You only have to slot active abilities. Passive ones function as long as they''re in your inventory and you meet their criteria." ''Play Dead'' and ''Sneak'' were the active ones. They went into the slot beside ''First Aid'' while I dropped the rest into my backpack. The only prerequisite was being a level 1 Novice. A trade window popped up in my vision from Aria and she tossed in ten more gold. That was higher than the actual reward. I accepted and they automatically filled my inventory. Nice. Next came a friend request. I didn''t hesitate. Not only was she an experienced player but she was willing to draw aggro in a game with some nasty injuries.
Path of the Moth 3/7 The Moth Says: Many things are best experienced together.
¡°I don''t know how you handle it. Tanking, I mean," I said as I mentally dismissed the window. "Like I said, front line fighters get pain resistance at higher levels. Psychologically speaking, this game helps you adapt. Pain doesn''t bother me and I find dying relaxing." I raised an eyebrow. "Masochist detected." Aria laughed, brushing back a strand of blonde hair. "Nothing like that. Death is a nice break from the intensity. I once went three days without sleep during a world event. By the time I died, I could barely hold onto my sword." "That''s insane." "You''ll come to love it," she gave me an embarrassed grin. "At least, I love it. When new people join, they can''t believe that anyone would spend years of their time in Penumbra. It can be grueling, especially high-level content, but the truth is that in comparison, real life is boring. Nothing I''ve experienced is as satisfying as bringing down a dragon with my friends." I only nodded; everything she said just convinced me more that she was a masochist. If I was going to find a road to fame or glory in Penumbra, it wouldn¡¯t involve spending days without sleep or becoming a dragon chew-toy. 008 // Fox Aria offered to buy a few items for me from the auction house but I declined. As a level five novice, anything I could equip now would be wasted once I picked up my class. My [Fine Novice Blade] and fine novice armor set would suit me until then. I did let her buy me a potion collection: Minor Health Potion x 10, Minor Mana Potion x 5, Minor Stamina Potion x 5, Basic Antidote Potion x 2. "If you can, try to make it back to the adventurer''s guild and buy packs from the NPCs here. They''re a fixed set but sometimes half the price of what you''d have to pay outside," Aria explained as we walked across the pavilion grounds to the exit. "Oh, I''ll send you a link to my guild''s website. You won''t have access to the members¡¯ only forum, but we have guides you can download and you can always ask questions in general. Whatever you do, ignore the fanwiki; I want to say it''s about four patches out of date." "You have your own guild?" I asked. Aria chuckled and shook her head. "Never again. I was a guild master for two years in another game and it was hell. When we migrated, we joined with a few other guilds to form Sunless Alliance. I''m a guild officer and that''s it." The exit to the guild space was shared by everyone, even though it would take you to a host of different starting cities. We stopped before it. "I don''t suppose there''s an easy way for me to get from Brekinhiem to Mercadia?" "Not at your level," she replied. "There are a few tricks but it''s a long trip south through some high-level zones. If you want, we might be able to party again at around level thirty-five." "I''d like that." Please Aria, be my meat shield. We separated. As I walked through the archway, I could feel space bending around me for a moment. Then a door slammed shut behind me and I was back in the cold north of Brekinhiem. I pulled up my character sheet, inventory, and abilities simply to go over everything I had, and then set up the small map in the corner of my vision. I might have been less than honest when I''d told Aria I didn''t know what class I wanted. Given my race''s bonus to Fitness and my character''s less than savory background, I''d been aiming for a rogue-type class. I didn''t know exactly what that might be yet. Every game had their own variations on a theme. I''d even played games where the best rogue-type class was a druid. It was good to know that the fan wiki was out of date as now that I had a Sneak skill and was halfway to picking my class, I''d have started doing more research. It was getting late and the tall, ramshackle buildings cast long shadows across the city. Using my mini-map, I found a small alleyway off the busy street. The packed dirt was covered in fragrant slop tossed by nearby windows. I grimaced at the sight and scent. I probably should have picked a more pleasant starting zone for a race with a bonus to Perception. Ignoring what was under my new boots, I activated the ''Sneak'' skill on my ability bar. Nothing happened. I starred at the icon. Unlike First Aid, it was toggled on and off. It currently sparkled with a gold barrier. I pace back and forth with a frown. I didn''t feel any more sneaky. Perhaps my footfalls were quieter, it was hard to tell. Confused, I pulled up the skill card.
Sneak PreReq: Novice 1 Cast Time: Instant; Cooldown: None; Cost: None Enter stealth mode, making your movements difficult to detect but slowing movement speed to 85% of normal. Most hostile actions will end the effect prematurely. Cannot be used in combat.
Again, I walked back and forth. I didn''t feel any slower. Then again, I wasn''t walking that fast to begin with. I sprinted from the alley and stealth immediately toggled off. I flipped it on again and continued to walk back to Mon''s house. If I walked too fast, stealth broke automatically, but I was able to maintain a casual pace with it on. As I passed by a baker''s shop, I slowed and then stepped inside. The man at the counter nodded in my direction and then went back to kneading dough. He was a big fellow and it was relaxing to see his strong, flour-covered hands at work. I idled closer, waiting for a reaction but he seemed focused on his job. He scooped out a bit of water from a bowl and slipped it on the dough and continued to kneed it. The closer I edged to him, the more sure I was that he ought to have reacted to my presence by now. Eventually, I reached out and touched his arm, breaking my stealth. His head whipped up in alarm but then he smiled. "Sorry there. What can I do for you?" "What do you have available?" I asked. "Let me see: I''ve crown''s bread, knight''s bread, monk''s bread, and peasant loaf. I''m sold out of squire bread and lady''s bread, at the moment, but will have a fresh batch of easterlings soon." He pointed at the dome-shaped clay ovens behind him. His labels were less than helpful. "How much for knight''s bread?" "Five cop a loaf or a half-silver for three." I shoved my hand in my pouch as I glanced at my inventory display. I had 11 gold and 8 silver pieces. Could I do a half-silver? I concentrated on doing so and a warm coin slipped into my fingers as the display changed to 11 gold, 8 silver, and 7 copper. Pulling it out, I looked it over. This wasn''t the same coin I''d been given at the adventurers¡¯ guild. It seemed my inventory could exchange my currency into whatever I needed. Handy, though I was going to have a hell of a time recalling the value of each local coin. Handing it over with a smile, I told him I wanted three knight''s bread. The baker seemed surprised but didn''t hesitate to fulfill my order, handing over three large, fluffy loaves of white bread. I slid them into my pouch and the baker didn''t even blink as it stayed the same size. On the way home, I grabbed two bottles of wine. I had to resist the urge to steal something simply to find out how hard or easy it was. I wanted to have some fun in this game but worried about how punishing it might be if I got caught. The things that caught my eye weren''t even equipment upgrades. As I traveled along there were small stalls and shops loaded with all the random sundries a person might want in a pre-modern city. Copper pots here, a shoe marking shop there, a basket seller, someone hawking a collection of dried herbs in brown glass jars. If I were a game developer, I''d let players purloin random crap without worrying about consequences. Have guards or high level merchants oversee valuables and let people have fun with petty larceny. By the time I returned to Mon''s place, my head was swimming possibilities. I needed to pick up lockpicks somehow and learn how to use them. "Very nice, very nice," Mon said approvingly as he held up the cheap red wine I bought. "What''s the occasion?" "I had a good day. Why not share my fortune?" I flicked a gold coin his way with my thumb. His hand was a blur as he snatched it from the air. Right, he was an ex-monk turned pit fighter. Probably had great reflexes. Mon''s eyes widened in pleasure when he saw the coin in his blue hand. He''d asked for ''a few silver'' to help out and I''d brought him a fair bit more. "I''d love to hear all about it," he said. "Maybe later." I wasn''t sure how to explain to a normal NPC that I''d been teleported to a player area and done a few quests. Given my character''s disreputable background and underworld connections, Janus probably did odd jobs she had to keep silent about. "But I''ve been thinking that I''d like to get my own place. Start making my own mark on the world, you know?" Mon was busy pulling the cork out of the wine bottle with his teeth and so only grunted in reply. "You''ve been around a while," I continued, trying to prompt the AI into giving me a useful quest. "Have any idea how I might get more coin in my pocket?" Did the NPCs know about classes? I wondered if I should simply return to my Sanctuary and look online for a guide. Even if the fan wiki was out of date ''how to go from Novice to Rogue'' had to be common knowledge. This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. There was a pop as he yanked out the cork and then spit it into the corner. Yeah, I wanted my own place. "Thinkin'' about becoming a pit fighter? There''s good money in it." "Not as such..." He was kind enough to pour me a mug of wine. I hadn''t considered being a pit fighter; that Mon was one had simply been an interesting background detail I''d added. I didn''t know if Pit Fighter was an actual class you could unlock and train in. "What sort of skills would I need for that?" "Be the toughest, meanest, fastest bastard there is," Mon replied with a grin. "Embrace the pain¡ªblood and broken bones are just part of a good night''s work."
Class Quest: Into the Pit Mon wants to train you in a variant of the monk class: pit fighter. This is a damage focused specialization that uses hand-to-hand combat and light armor.
I wondered if I''d unlocked a rare or special class. Just my luck that it didn''t appeal to me in the slightest. I mentally hit the ''not interested'' button and it disappeared. "I don''t want to embrace the pain. I want to help other people embrace theirs." Subtlety was getting me nowhere. "You must know some people who can help me out. I''m looking for training in more clandestine activities." He rubbed at his greying stubble. "You used to run with the Rose Street Gang. Why not hook up with them again?" "My ambitions are a bit higher than helping hoodlums in a street gang. I need someone who''ll teach me how to pick a lock, not smash it open." He made an ''ah'' sound, sipped his wine, and burped. I tried some of it as well. Rough did not begin to describe it and my tongue squirmed in displeasure. I forced myself to swallow and was rewarded by warmth flooding my belly. "I might be able to help," Mon finally said. "No promises, but I can arrange a meeting between you and some friends... well, not friends..." "I get it." His face hardened as he looked me straight in the eyes. "Are you sure this is what you want? You''re right that the old gang was hoodlums. These people are professionals. They''re serious and they don''t have time for someone who wants to play around." Perfect, this was exactly what I wanted. "Then it''s a good thing I''ve never been one to play around." "To a better future," Mon said as he raised his mug of wine. I knocked mine against his with a smile. "To a better future." That night, when Janus slept, I logged out of the main game and back to my Sanctuary. It had only been a day in-game so less than ten hours since I''d first sent out messages to the real world. Unsurprisingly, my mother had already responded. Knowing my mother, I''d have to send her a note at least every other real day to let her know I was alive and well. I sent her a picture of Janus'' model in her swanky novice gear and pink booties. I rambled on for a few minutes about the realism and how much fun I was having and how I hoped to unlock a normal class soon. In truth, mom had never cared for VR games. She''d been a competitive swimmer in college and had kept fit and active after having me. I was the only kid I knew who invited friends over for the weekend because my parents were out kayaking or snowboarding. "Love you, mom," I said in a cheerful tone. "Say hello to dad for me!" Familial responsibilities out of the way, I checked my medical progress. It was exactly the same as it had been before. It was possible they didn''t even update the status report daily, let alone every few hours. Next, I searched for information on unlocking classes in PO. The base classes were simple to unlock. As a level 10 novice, I could simply go to the adventuring guild and buy the class book. My song and dance with Mon hadn''t been necessary. At least I''d saved myself a few coins and joining a thieves'' guild could help me unlock future classes and specializations. Penumbra Online''s class system was tiered, you had your ten levels of Novice, at which point you unlocked one of ten base classes. Your base class continued to increase as you leveled and you could unlock specializations for it. Then there were tier two classes to unlock for each base class, as well as tier three classes available after you reached the level cap of 50 for your base class. This combined with the ability cards, the best of which were gotten through crafting, dungeon delving, or exploration, and could also be upgraded or modified. The more I read complaints about classes and trying to unlock rare abilities, the more it seemed that this was a flaming dumpster fire in terms of game balance. According to the PvP forums, classes ranged from OP to trash tier. There were a number of long ''I''m leaving the game'' rants from people who claimed they''d played a class for years and still not gotten the exact combination of equipment, abilities, and traits they wanted. It all made me a touch uneasy, but I told myself that the people who come to forums are almost always those with grievances. PO was one of the most popular VRMMO games in the world and was already five years old. It was unlikely that simply going a rogue route would cripple my character. High-level content might be more demanding, but if I struggled with that, I could roll another character, and legacy items would help me level faster. I''d been advised to avoid the fanwiki but figured there was no harm browsing the build listing. There was an interesting thief build with illusion powers that I took note of. The Scout secondary class had support abilities. I wondered how viable a rogue + healer type build might be in this game. It would let me engage in the sneaky, stabby play I enjoyed but give me something to make myself more appealing to groups. If Aria were going to focus on tanking, she might need a spot healer as well. There was a Pit Fighter tier-three class and it seemed to be difficult to unlock. I felt a touch bad about my simply dismissing the idea, but the more I read about it, the more sure I was that it didn''t appeal to me. Later, I found myself absorbed in a list of elemental affinities and how they interacted. There was the typical fire, earth, wind, thunder, and water, as well as holy and shadow. There was also eldritch, chaos, poison, and neutral. Most abilities thieves used were shadow, poison, or neutral. Poison was strong against the typical elements but weak against most of the special ones. Shadow was strong against holy but weak against itself, chaos, and neutral. Neutral wasn''t strong against anything but was weak against chaos. If I rolled a thief class, I''d need to be aware of any chaos-type monsters I might encounter as my attacks would be crippled. I wondered if there was any class that had the right blend of affinities to be strong against any monster type. As I got ready to wade through the abilities of every class, I reminded myself that Janus was simply my first character and I was only a level five Novice. This wasn''t a test I had to cram for. I''d pick up a great deal of information simply playing the game and paying attention. A rapping sound came from the front door and my head jerked up. There was only one person I knew who could visit me in my Sanctum and she had no reason to do so. Unless other players could? I''d stuck Aria on my friend''s list, maybe that gave her access. Pushing away from my desk, I headed for the door and opened it. This time, my eyes immediately glanced down and I spotted Corvis shivering in the rain. "Why are you here?" I blurted in sudden anger. The crow flinched and I immediately felt guilty. What was that about? "Come in," I said, trying to sound polite after my outburst. Corvis flew inside and alighted on the bust of Athena above the fireplace again. Her presence here made me uneasy though I couldn''t put my finger on why. I liked the program. Seeing her again should be a good thing. "Is there something wrong? I''m not making another character right now." The three-eyed crow only tilted her head and sighed sorrowfully. Rather than answer, she shook the rain from her glossy black feathers and preened. I stepped closer, wondering what was going on. Something shifted in my head. "It''s funny, I had a dream about you," I said. I tried to recall the details but they wouldn''t come. Corvis had definitely been in it. "We''re all having dreams about one another," Corvis said, wings drooping. The large bird looked sad and I wanted to hold and comfort her. Instead, I laid a hand on her back. Those bright eyes scanned my face, taking me in. "It''s okay," I murmured. I didn''t know what was troubling the bird but just wanted her to feel better. She placed a foot on my arm, tiny talons digging into my skin. "I hope so," she replied. "There''s something hidden in your house. I don''t know if you want to find it. I didn''t want to frighten but wanted to give you the choice." "That makes no sense." "While you were gone, I brought something here and hid it. If you want to find it, you can do so. If you want to ignore it, that''s also fine." "But what is it?" I asked. "You already know." My sympathy for the bird was rapidly drying up. She''d interrupted me for this? There must be a bug in her system. Or maybe the developers had a new patch coming up and had decided to hint at it in an annoying fashion. ''Have the character creator appear in your Sanctuary and spout bullshit'' was probably some marketing intern''s genius idea. "If you''re not going to tell me what it is, where to find it, or even why you hid it, then I''m not going to bother to look," I replied, pulling my hand away from her. "Listen, I''m busy right now looking at class builds. I hope you don''t mind, but I''m not up to playing host." I gave her a look and pointedly opened the door for her to leave. Corvis gave me an apologetic glance before departing. After shutting the door and locking it tight, I returned to my node but my mind drifted back to whatever she''d hidden in the house. That she''d been in my Sanctum without my permission rubbed me the wrong way. Technically speaking, I was always attached to the system and it always had full access to my mind and vitals. It had to in order to constantly feed my brain the illusion of reality. Whether I was alone in my farmhouse or standing in a crowded street in Brekinhiem, the game had complete access to me, which meant that all its component parts did. I scanned the interior of the house for anything that might be amiss. I''d only been here a short while, however, and hadn''t committed details to memory. It looked exactly the same as before. With a sigh, I halfheartedly moved books around in the bookcase and then opened the cupboards in the kitchen. As a headed for some kitschy oil paintings on the wall, I felt a sharp pain in my temple. I winced, pressing my fingers against it, and they came away with a smear of blood on them. In the bathroom, I washed the blood from my temple with a wet cloth. It reminded me of the thing I was here to forget about, the brain surgery they''d be performing sooner or later. I didn''t want to die. Or worse, end up brain-damaged. It was a real possibility though and I had no control over it. Disgusted, I tossed the wet cloth into the sink and left it there. I was here to have fun, not worry about my mortality. The last few hours I''d spent browsing game mechanics suddenly seemed a complete waste of time. What did it matter if I had the right bonuses against chaos creatures? Who cared about unlocking just the right combination of specializations and abilities? It was a game, nothing more. I was here to have exciting adventures and forget about all the tedious shit of the real world. I switched off the node and prepared to log back into the game. It would be the middle of the night. Level 5 novice or not, there was all sorts of trouble I could get into. 009 // Fox Brekinhiem at night was cold. I stood outside Mon''s place, goosebumps on my skin and considered going back in for an extra layer. Only, I didn''t have an extra clothing. I had coin from yesterday''s quests, but all the stores were shut. Why should that stop me, though? I had passed a number of tailoring shops on my way to the adventurers'' guild and getting inside one couldn''t be too difficult. But the ones I''d seen had been meant for poorer folk. I bet there were areas of the city with fur lined boots, jackets, and hoods. If I was going to break the law, I should do so for something more impressive than cheap cape. I pulled up my map and studied it for a moment. The city was broken into districts. I''d need to find my way to one of the wealthier ones and climb atop a high building to get a detailed layout. I broke out in a jog, thankful for my race''s enhanced perception as I made my way down darkened streets. No lamps shone save for the occasional one hung over a doorway or in a window. A few times, I spotted groups of people, mostly young non-humans, hanging out conspicuously on a street corner. I activated my stealth then and slipped by on the opposite side of the road. Jogging warmed me and I had a giddy energy, like a kid sneaking downstairs at night to grab a cookie. Outside of my district was a more middle class one. There were more lights and the buildings were shorter and in good repair. A few of the streets were cobbled and even clean, and the air was fragrant with smoke from chimneys. Interestingly, I saw several open establishments¡ªmostly taverns. I lingered outside of one, looking at the rosy cheeked patrons within. From where I stood, I spotted a table with three other players sitting and drinking. They all looked low level and I briefly considered walking in and introducing myself. I could be shy around new people. I was fairly normal in that regard and certainly never just started chatting with a group of strangers. There was no reason Janus had to be the same way, however. If I decided I could be bold and daring in my action, that should include simple conversations. If I wanted to talk to someone, I could just do it. I was in a game where I could become a mighty warrior, powerful wizard, or cunning thief¡ªthere was no need to limit myself when it came to others. Not tonight, though. Tonight, I was going to steal something nice. I clamored up the side of a taphouse and hung out on the roof as my map of this district updated. It wasn''t my final prize but keeping my map as detailed as possible should be a priority. If nothing else, I might need somewhere to run and hide later this evening. After swinging back down, I made my way to the Teahouse District. It was affluent enough that there were mana powered light hung along the streets and every couple of blocks had a small guard post, but not so wealthy that the houses were walled or had their private guards. I got a few inquisitive glances as I ambled along. Fanaal were an uncommon race and often looked down upon by their kin. It occurred to me that if I''d wanted to become a thief, I''d have been better suited by picking a less memorable race with a reputation for honesty. A dwarf, for example. Oh well, at high enough levels, perhaps I''d be so sneaky that NPCs couldn''t get a look at me. One thing I had going for me was my Fine Novice Uniform. Even with the odd-looking pink booties I''d acquired, I didn''t look like someone who''d crawled out of a slum. First things first: finding a tall building. The tallest appeared to be temples of some sort with bell towers attached to them. Unlike the ramshackle wood of the poorer districts, the Teahouse District featured imposing structures of stone with gargoyles and flying buttresses. I found a suitable candidate, idled around the side, and jumped in an attempt to catch a low hanging window ledge. As I struggled to pull myself up, a prompt popped in front of my eyes, startling me. I lost my grip and crashed to the ground, landing hard on my tailbone. It knocked the wind out of me and I laid there for a moment, catching my breath.
Path of the Bull 1/7 The Bull Says: Intent without Strength is useless. Strength without Intent is wasted.
Skill Check Failure (Athletics, Might)
That was interesting. I''d been able to lift my body up previously. Were some buildings harder to climb than others? It made sense in a sort of game-mechanics way that a higher level building would have increased difficulty for scaling it, even if it was unrealistic. And a stone temple was probably higher level than the taverns and homes I''d mounted before. If that were the case, was leaping over a wall or sneaking also harder? Or, maybe I was thinking about this the wrong way. The slum might be a tutorial area like the obstacle course in the adventurers'' guild. That I should be able to simply climb up a wall without effort despite being a level 5 Novice was odd, now that I thought about it. I sat up, my enthusiasm for possible larceny only slightly dimmed. If the temple didn''t work, I''d try to climb a large house or shop instead. If I was lucky, I didn''t need to make it all the way to the top of the bell tower to unlock the detailed district map. Half an hour later, I scrambled from the top of a house, as someone inside shouted in alarm. I managed to scrape up my hands trying to rush down from the roof but didn''t hesitate as I fled into the night. Nothing had unlocked on my map, leaving me unsure of which way to head. "Thief!" a woman cried out from an open window. "Thief!" Oh shit. I hadn''t even gotten around to stealing something, though I suppose crawling on top of people''s houses is suspicious enough. Still, it bothered me. I hadn''t stolen anything!... yet. A mustached guard poked his head out of his post right as I rounded the corner and I forcibly skidded to a halt. My heart pounded as he peered into the night. Forcing myself to breath normally, I strolled forward. He caught sight of me as I came close, eyes narrowing at he took me in. My hand was bleeding and I slipped it into my pocket. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. The guards in this district wore blue woolen uniforms and carried long, single edge swords as well as a one-shot pistol on their belts. I kept my eyes high, not allowing myself to take a suspicious glance at his weapons as I passed. My legs burned with the effort of maintaining a casual and easy pace as I continued down the street. I could feel the guard''s gaze burning between my shoulder blades, he''d probably remember me, but never looked back as I turned the corner. Once out of sight, I allowed myself a ragged breath. Tonight, I''d wandered around in the cold, failed to climb a building, failed to get an updated map, shredded my palm, and almost got caught by the guard. All for nothing... and I felt great! I was giddy with excitement. The jolt of adrenaline made my stomach quiver but not in a bad way. This was so much more fun than stabbing bubblegum blobs or tramping through a dungeon killing monsters.
Path of the Fox 2/7 The Fox Says: Let others work hard while I work smart.
I hadn''t looked up the various animal paths in my Sanctuary but wondered what happened when I reached 7/7. I should probably check when I next logged off. They were persistent enough that they couldn''t be mere flavor text. It was obvious that the Teahouse District was above my current skill level, which was fine by me. Part of the fun of an RPG is growing in power and ability as you level up. I''d be sure to tackle that later. Now that I thought about it, how strange that there weren''t other players running around here. I scanned the rooftops as though I might spot a line of ninjas carrying stuffed sacks of loot running across them. It was possible that robbing NPCs became unprofitable too quickly or that Brekinhiem being a starter city meant that it had poor pickings. Then again, there could be a dozen player thieves traveling around me and I wouldn''t notice, would I? They''d have upgraded [Stealth] abilities as well as enchanted equipment. My feet delivered me back to the tavern I''d passed previously. It was less packed and more subdued than before. A handful of customers nursed their drinks alone or in small groups. I scattered a couple of the local silver coins on the bar with a smile. "The best that can get me." The bartender gave me a faint smile and I was rewarded with a shot glass and a bottle of ''Dragon Tongue.'' I found myself a small table tucked into the corner and poured a shot. The first sip had me gasping in pain¡ªit was like someone took rubbing alcohol and added ghost pepper oil to it. The burn didn''t dissipate after I swallowed by filled my mouth and the back of my throat. My eye watered and I snorted, trying to keep my nose from dripping. A few other patrons glanced my way, several in obvious amusement. Right, to me this was a random tavern but they probably spent a lot of time here and knew the regulars. Was I being hazed or something? Undeterred, I poured myself another shot, lifted it in salute to anyone watching and downed it. The result was no better than the last time; in fact, it was worse. The burning kicked up a notch and even breathing was painful. A platter of sliced bread landed on my table. An apple-cheeked dwarven woman slid into the chair opposite mine. I stuffed an entire slice into my mouth at once and chewed. "Thank you," I said after I swallowed. It had cut some of the burning in my mouth though did nothing for the growing fire in my belly. She set her own shot glass on the table and poured out a measure from my bottle. She sipped it like it was grape juice, a satisfied expression on her face. "Very nice," she commented. "Just the thing for a chilly night." "Have another," I said, bemused. "I think the entire bottle would kill me." She filled both of our glasses with a smile as I continued to sniff and blink away tears. "I''m Janus," I said. "I didn''t catch your name...?" "Yhdu," she answered. "What do I do?" I laughed at my own cleverness and took another shot. The drink was waiting for me and proceeded to kick me in the throat. I grabbed another slice of bread and shoved it in to my mouth. At this rate, I was going to fall down dead drunk or choke to death on bread. Yhdu watched as I made a fool of myself. Her large, brown eyes scanned my elven form with undisguised interest. I guess that attention I''d paid to my butt might be appreciated. Okay, she wasn''t bad herself. Short and curvy with broad hands and features. Her nose was slightly upturned and there were a handful of light freckles on her face. I''d never randomly flirted with a woman in a bar before but this was a time for new and exciting things. I gathered my courage and tried to be smooth. "Do you come here oft--?" "You know what else is good at warming you on a chilly night?" she asked, cutting off my question. I sputtered and this time it wasn''t from the drink. "I can guess." "You don''t have to. I''d be happy to demonstrate." Wow, the NPCs in this game were aggressive. Or maybe dwarf ladies had a thing for blue elves. Things were moving a fair bit faster than I''d anticipated. "I don''t... I''m not sure..." "Suit yourself," she said, "but you''re passing up the best sex of your life." Damn, someone was sure of herself. I squirmed in my seat. Did I want this? The palm of my hand itched from where it had lost a couple layers of skin earlier. What exactly was I afraid of? It''s not like she could get me pregnant and there were no fantasy STIs to worry about. At most, I would sexually disappoint a woman who literally didn''t exist. At best, I might enjoy myself. My eyes met hers and I felt a frisson of pleasure. The warmth in my belly slid downwards. "I don''t have a place," I said, and then added, "nearby." "You can pay for a room here for the night," Yhdu suggested. I muttered an affirmation and then returned to the bar. My face burned from embarrassment as the bartender gave me a knowing grin. For all I knew, Yhdu picked up someone new here every other day. "CanIhavearoomforthenight?" the words rushed out of me as I dug a hand through my coin pouch. "Two gold," he replied. That seemed high but I didn''t argue and paid him. "Third room on the left." Yhdu was waiting for me beside the staircase, my bottle of Dragon Tongue in one hand and the shot glasses in the other. As I led her to our room, my heart pounded as hard as it had when I''d strolled by the guard. The trick in either case was to remain calm and collected. Which is to say, be a hot mess and pretend otherwise. She took my hand in hers and pulled me into the room. Her palm was hot and slightly damp. I wondered if she might be feeling as nervous as I was, but realized it was probably the drink warming her. The inside of the room was finer than I would have guessed. Clusters of candles burned low, tossing dim but warm light on a plush red velvet interior. A small fire burned in the hearth, chasing out the cool of the evening. Yhdu smiled at her, eyes seeking confirmation that the situation was to my liking. I leaned forward, not wanting to appear too timid, and our lips met. I could taste the lingering burn of spirits on her mouth. A tingle spread throughout my body as the pesky worries of my brain were swept away. I wanted this. I wanted a world where I could indulge myself like a normal person instead of being constantly weighed down by my illness. Pulling back, Yhdu broke the kiss. "It''s easier for me if you''re lower." I realized that I''d force the smaller woman to stand on her tip toes to kiss me. I dropped to my knees in front of her, putting us at a more equal height. "Well, aren''t you eager to please?" she said in evident satisfaction. "I am." The words slipped out of me before I could consider them. I''d never seen this woman before a few minutes ago and thought she probably wasn''t a person, but I wanted very badly to please her. We embraced again. Her hands slipped greedily around my waist and cupped my rear, squeezing slightly too hard. I knew it! I knew spending so much time with that butt was worth it. A slight moan rose in my throat and I pressed my body against her heat. This time when she pulled away, I clumsily attempted to follow her, not wanting to break contact. She caught my hands in hers and pushed me away before sitting on the bed. 010 // Fox (nsfw) Yhdu sat on the edge of the bed and poured herself another shot of Dragon Tongue. She sipped at the pale amber liquid while favoring me with an expectant look. I moved forward but she held up one hand to stop me. "Why not slip out of those clothes?" Eager to do so, I kicked off one of my pink booties and then hopped on my foot while pulling off the other. The reinforced suede jacket was next and ended up tossed over the side of a nearby chair. As I fiddled with my belt buckle I wondered if I ought to be doing more. Was she expecting a sexy striptease? I wasn''t sure I could pull that off. I gave her a questioning look while sliding my pants down. Yhdu seemed more interested in what was under my clothing than the skill with which I removed it, so I hastily pulled off the rest. It was the perfect temperature inside the room. Warm against my bare skin yet not so hot it might get uncomfortable late. Despite this, my nipples were hard enough to cut glass. While the rest of my skin was azure, almost a Spanish blue, they were dark and purple-tinted, standing up on my smallish breasts like they had something to prove. I repressed the urge to cover my chest. I was standing naked before a woman I''d just met and it would be false modesty. Yhdu looked at me with more desire than I''d ever seen in someone''s eyes before. This time when I moved forward, she didn''t push me back but slipped one hand around my waist. The other reached up to tweak my nipple. Her fingers were strong and slightly rough, and she pinched the prize in her hand hard enough to make me jump. A soft sound of distress escaped me and she stopped in concern. "Was that alright?" she asked. If I''d been in a more eloquent mood, I''d have pointed out that my sex had just gone from damp to dripping but instead I choked out a "That''s nice." "Why don''t you help me with my boots?" she asked. I glanced down at the knee-high leathers. They looked like sturdy work boots and had been securely laced. Again, I found myself dropping to my knees in front of her. My face burned as I lowered my eyes to my new task. I couldn''t'' recall the last time I''d been so aroused. This was crazy; I was not the sort of woman to meet a stranger at a bar, head upstairs to fuck her, and get turned on by something like this¡ªwhatever this was. Yet as I fumbled to unlace the boot and the scent of old leather hit me, I was pretty sure I could get off just by humping her shoe. I didn''t even have the excuse that I was drunk. At best, I had a strong buzz. I tossed her heavy boots away one after the other. Yhdu''s hand touched my cheek and I found myself lost in the brown expanse of her eyes again. "You''re so good," she sighed. "I could have all sorts of fun with you, couldn''t I?" Oh yes, oh yes. Forget leveling up, forget becoming a thief, I was ready to spend the next nine months in Penumbra letting Yhdu have as much fun with me as she wanted. Even as the thought flickered across my mind, a whisper of unease joined it. This wasn''t real. How was it the game was picking up on my desires so easily? How odd that the night I decided to go a bit wild, a woman who wanted to get wild with me would suddenly drop into my lap? If this body and all its sensations were a product of the game, didn''t that mean it was deciding how aroused I was right now? The idea disturbed me. Yhdu noticed my silence, picking up on the subtle shift in my ardor. "Just playing a bit..." she said, as though reassuring me. I suddenly felt foolish. Here I was, getting exactly what I craved and my head was trying to undermine it. It was almost as though I was scared of enjoying myself. This was probably just happenstance, a result of dynamic NPCs. But even if it wasn''t, who cared? Penumbra was a multi-million dollar game designed around letting people live out a fantasy. Whether it was slaying dragons or letting a sexy dwarf woman order you around in bed, it was all the same. It was time to drop kick my doubts. Once Yhdu''s shoes were out of the way, I set myself to removing the rest of her clothing. Her body was everything mine was not: short, strong, and curvy in contrast to my lithe form. We wrapped around one another, our mouths and hands exploring soft flesh as we spread across the bed. At one point, she lurched forward and a pendulous breast smacked me in the face hard enough for me to cry out in alarm. We looked at one another and I burst out in giggles before burying my face in the warmth of her bosom. Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. Her nibbles and squeezes became harder as she played with me. Though I was past the point of articulating my thoughts, I managed to express my pleasure. When she gave my ass a swift smack, my moan mixed with the sharp sound. When she sank her teeth into the broad muscle of my shoulder, a plaintive mewing came from someplace deep inside me. "Get on your hands and knees," she finally said. I scrambled to obey her. A firm hand pushed my head down into the pillows and then pulled my legs wider apart. I was painfully aware of how exposed my sex was. Wetness trickled down my thighs and I could feel my walls squeezing themselves in anticipation. Yhdu got off the bed. She grabbed my hips and pulled me closer to its edge. "Whoa," she said. I had no idea what she was commenting on but hoped she liked the sight before her. Broad fingers parted my swollen lips, releasing another trickle of my juices. She gathered it over her digits and moved down to my clit. I hissed at her touch, my hips bucking away. I was so sensitive that the touch hurt as much as it felt good. Yhdu guided me back with one hand and fingered me again; this time instead of touching me directly, she made gentle circles around my clit. That I could stand. She seemed happy to do all the work so I closed my eyes and relaxed. My awareness collapsed to the small point on my body that she touched. My sex continued to twitch in time with her steady ministrations and after what felt like only two minutes, my first orgasm hit. It flowed outward from my pussy, pleasure washing down my legs until my toes curled and up my spine until I had to bite the bedsheets, my drool soaking the cotton as my teeth ground down. The rubbing didn''t stop but moved from steady, gentle circles to quick taps. I came a second time and my head swam but I wanted more, I wanted so much more. "Fuck me," I snapped. "Fucking fuck me already." I would have liked to have begged but it came out as a demand. This wasn''t enough. I had to have her inside of me. She didn''t seem to mind. "I was just getting you ready," she explained. Her fingers plunged into my tight insides and I groaned in gratitude. I didn''t wait for her but pushed back, trying to get her as deep inside of me as I could. As I started grinding against her hand, she gave me a sudden smack on the ass. Catching the hint, I forced myself to stop and let her take over again. "Breathe deeply and relax your muscles," she ordered. I had no idea what the dwarven woman was talking about until another finger joined the two already in me and then a fourth. She spread them out inside of me, stretching my walls open and the tip of her thumb slithered in. Any thought of relaxing or breathing deep fled my mind as I realized I was going to get far more inside me than expected. "Now push back," Yhdu said. I tried. Her hand was large, however, and my body tight. She twisted her fingers back and forth, getting more into me. It didn''t hurt but felt overwhelming. I wasn''t sure I could manage the entire thing and worried she''d tear me. Yhdu applied increased pressure, forcing her way in. My legs trembled with the effort of resisting her. I could feel each knuckle as they slid inside. It was going in, it was going in, it was g--! I burbled as her entire hand breached me and her fingers curled into a fist. It was too large for the muscles in my pussy to properly suck on so they only fluttered. I had never taken half as much as this before and my body didn''t know what to do. She twisted her fist slowly inside of me to a more comfortable position. I was completely impaled and stuck. Yhdu''s hand was so much thicker than her wrist that thrusting in and out was an impossibility. Her other hand found my clit again and stimulated it while the fist inside of me rocked back and forth. The sensation was incredible. My body no longer even felt like my own. It was something for her to use. A third orgasm followed and my legs gave out, sprawling from all fours to land on my belly. Yhdu had to wriggle out of me without help. For a few minutes, I laid there, panting, my toes brushing against the floor. All strength had left my body and I was reduced to a happy puddle of blue elf. The dwarven woman laid beside me, cajoling me farther up the bed. I wanted to thank her. I wanted to please her in return. I was tapped out right now though. She tossed a blanket over us and curled against me, nuzzling at my chest. My eyes closed and I drifted off. When I opened them again, she''d brought the Dragon Tongue to bed and was propped with her back against the headboard, taking swings from the bottle. When I stirred, she booped me on the nose. "Hello again." "Hey." I gave her a sloppy grin. "I forgot your name..." "Christine," I replied. "Uh-- I mean it''s Janus. My name is Janus." That earned me an inquisitive look but she didn''t press the matter. "How do you feel?" she asked. "Wonderful." I don''t know if it was the best sex I''d ever have, but it was better than anything I''d had before. The woman had been true to her word. Yhdu gave me a smug look. She was a bit too pleased with herself for my tastes, but I suppose she had earned it. "We''re not finished," she said. Right. She hadn''t even cum once. It was time for me to reciprocate. I crawled closer to her, eager to begin after my nap. She accepted my kisses with equanimity and then told me to lay on my back. I did so, unsure of her intent until she straddled my head. Her muscular thighs blocked my vision, forcing me to look up at the damp mass of curls hovering above my face. Yhdu''s scent filled my nostrils, harsh and pungent, but I had no chance to enjoy it before she lowered herself onto me. I buried my face in her sex as my tongue explored her folds. Her insides were hot like a forge and her flavor sour like strong beer. I could hardly breathe but didn''t care as she began to ride my face. 011 // Testing I woke up that afternoon with a brown taste in my mouth and a headache. I wondered if this was going to be a habit of mine in the virtual world. Yhdu was no where to be found. She must have slipped out while I was dreaming. This didn''t hurt my feelings¡ªI''d have been more surprised if she stuck around. I gave my armpit a hesitant sniff but wasn''t assaulted by any particularly noxious odors despite not having bathed for two full days and working up a bit of a lather last night. Penumbra''s designers only seemed to implement the more gritty and unpleasant aspects of pre-modern life when it suited the mood. I might have to step over pools of fetid water in the slums but now that I''d traveled to a comparatively well-off part of the city, things were clean and tidy. Despite my unnatural hygiene, I wanted a hot bath and to wash my hair. The tavern downstairs was closed and didn''t serve food. A portly fellow counted stock and told me of a public bathhouse not far from here. A glance at my inventory told me I had 6 gold, 9 silver, and 12 coppers. I''d managed to lose five gold in less than 12 hours despite the fact that the majority of items only cost silvers and coppers. The details of how I''d spent the coin were fuzzy to me. Not that it mattered. Adventuring and the like should line my pockets with enough coin to live a comfortable or even luxurious life by commoner standards. My serious expenses would all center around the game-centered costs like armor, weapons, mounts, mercenaries, class tomes, and so on. Still, I didn''t know when I''d get a juicy quest and didn''t want to go back to the adventurer''s guild and their inane starter area. This wasn''t because I distinctly recalled having my guts gnawed out in front of me there. Okay, that was a lie, but I didn''t want to think about what other horrors the game might have in its dungeons while I was without a tank or healer. Yet another reason to join a thieves'' guild and spend my time robbing the rich to give to myself. The public bathhouse had a distinctly roman look to it, all white marble pillars and statues of naked heroes. It only cost a few silver to get a private room, so I did so. In a few minutes, I''d scrubbed myself under a running fountain and was soaking in a small, heated pool. It had a faintly medicinal scent that cleared out my sinuses and made my skin tingle pleasantly. I could imagine players who were stickler for details complaining about the spa treatment. "Serious inaccuracy, public bathhouses in the game aren''t dirty, filled with lukewarm and already used water, or a breeding ground for disease." I might try camping in the wilderness some time to see how the game portrayed that. It might be similarly cozy or they might make it more realistic to satisfy players who want to feel like they''re roughing it. The name of the game was to provide an experience for the widest number of people, after all. I had a number of notifications waiting for me and browsed them as I relaxed. I''d gained experience last night and gone up a level. At first, I thought it was a joke about my sexual encounter giving me XP but then I recalled that before that I''d unsuccessfully tried scaling a church and successfully slipped by a guard. It would be a silly if the AI only handed out experience when you killed things and fulfilled quests, especially at this low a level. More interesting, I''d also gotten another change in alignment. [+3 Sybaritic] [+2 Autonomous] I''d neglected to look up alignments and how they influenced character growth or relationships the last time I was in the farmhouse. That was probably because I hadn''t had any alignment change in the tutorial area. Was that because they were disabled there or because I''d done nothing of note? It was hardly a pressing matter, whatever the case. The values were minor enough that I could adjust them without much effort if it turns out they mattered. After my bath, I felt clean and invigorated. I''d hung my Fine Novice Uniform in a pool of sunlight as I soaked and now they were like laundry fresh from the dryer¡ªthey even had a faint dryer sheet scent. I ate a breakfast of fruit and coffee at a small street stall, and grabbed a pocketful of raspberry tarts for Mon and Bete. Mon had pulled a stool out from his house so he could sit with some other older men. They chatted while watching kids play some version of football. He happily accepted my gift of food and proceeded to eat all the tarts but one. "You got a meeting tonight," Mon said while handing me a folded piece of paper. I opened it up to reveal a crude map drawn in charcoal with the word ''Vambrase'' scrawled across the bottom. I couldn''t make heads or tails of it but got a notification that my own map had been updated. Pulling that up, a location was marked on the city map with a white dot. It was in a district I hadn''t uncovered yet so it wasn''t detailed. "What should I expect?" I asked. Mon grinned as though he had a secret. "You should expect the unexpected." "You have no idea, do you?" "Not a clue!" he laughed, thoroughly amused with himself. "I drink and punch people in the face. What the hell would I know what you sneaky sorts get up to?" Fair enough. I crumpled up the piece of paper and tossed it into my inventory. It was marked as a quest item and took up no space. I considered logging off and looking up details on this questchain. As thief was a base class, I assumed millions of people had done variations of this before. My mind was tugged back to last night and the wild dwarven woman. She''d been hot like a forge inside and at some point I thought my jaw might fall off. Going off script was working well for me and the idea of spending an hour browsing wikis or forums wasn''t appealing. I doubted I was in for a serious challenge anyways. "I tried to climb a building the other night," I said aloud, "but couldn''t scale it. My strength and athletics weren''t good enough, I guess. How do you think I should increase them?" If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. None of the old men batted an eye at my activities or questioned why I was trying to scale buildings at night. "Sounds like you need to build up those muscles," Mon answered. "I could whip you up a work-out or you could pick up one of those fancy training manuals. A bookstore might have exactly what you''re looking for." The man beside him snorted and tapped his wooden cane against the ground. "Rip you off, those stores do. A smart girl like you, I bet you could find some other way of acquiring training manuals." "Some of them even honest!" another man added. The group chuckled at his outburst. Mon was looking a touch more serious than the rest. "I''ve always felt you were meant for something more, Janus. I think manuals would be the best for you. Common ones are easy to buy but you can also find them or loot them in the wild." I nodded. This was the closest Mon had come to breaking the fourth-wall of the game. I''d never mentioned that I¡¯d be ''looting'' anyone or going out into the wild. I assumed he meant that I could get them in dungeons or they would drop from enemies. "Do you know of any nearby bookstores? I might want to browse this afternoon." He did know of one, but it wasn''t nearby. Again, I met my animal friends. As I walked through the bookstore door, the wind stirred up a group of pamphlets on a table and one fluttered into my hand. A moth had been scribbled in ink on the face.
Training Manuals In Penumbra Online there are many ways for you to increase your character''s power and skill. Classes, levels, and ability cards increase your combat prowess as well as the awesome, superhuman powers that make the game fun. But what about more mundane skills? What if you want to become a fisherman, crafter, scholar, athlete, or musician? That''s where training manuals come in! Once you acquire a manual, you can choose to read it and follow its training outline. Training can take everywhere from a few minutes to months depending on the complexity and rarity of the skill. Trained skills are ranked one to five and a new manual is required for each rank up. Some trained skills require you to have a specific rank in other skills. Fletchering, Rank 1 requires Woodworking, Rank 3, for example. Once you use a training manual, it''s absorbed by your character, and you can train with it whenever you wish.
I was used to games where you purchased a skill, leveled it up through using it, and then bought upgrades or recipes from a trainer. They were designed to be time and money sinks and this one looked no different despite a few changes in implementation. A shopkeeper was tucked beside his desk in a corner, chewing at the mouth of a pipe. Smoking struck me as a bad habit for a man who ran a bookstore. Thankfully, while it filled the place with the scent of tobacco, I experienced none of the irritation and coughing I''d suffer from in the real world. He was absorbed in reading a small newspaper and I decided not to trouble him, instead browsing the cramped aisles on my own. Many of the usual suspects were there: Cooking, fishing, alchemy, smithing, and the like. Brass animal heads adorned specific sections. I noticed a new animal, a raven, where alchemy, archeology, and prospecting were located. Athletic manuals were stored in a bookshelf with a giant brass bull''s head hanging from the wall beside it. The grumpy looking creature''s face was caught in a perpetual scowl as though the customers were violating its space by coming here. I pulled out the slim volume labeled ''Athletics I'' and attempted to open it. It was stuck shut. I attempted a few others and found them all the same, I might as well try to pry open a wooden block. Heading back to the front, I placed it on his counter. "How much?" I asked. He tilted his head to get a look at the title and said, "Twenty silver." "What if I wanted all the Athletic ranks?" "Then you''d have to go somewhere else," he replied with a faint smile. "None of my training manuals go above rank 3." "Three then. How much would that be?" "Eleven gold." My eyebrows shot up. It seemed there was a sharp increase in price for every rank upgrade. That made some sense for a money sink but I''d assumed I''d be able to waltz in, grab a handful of training manuals, and waltz out. I left the Athletics I book on the counter and browsed again with a more critical eye. Was there anything I really needed here? Lots of it would be nice to have, but I wasn''t trekking across the wilderness just yet so I could ignore most of the survival oriented training manuals. There were also monster knowledge manuals in the raven head section. I was tempted to pick up the first one; the giant mole rats and bubblegum blobs had both been far enough from the standard RPG mold that I wasn''t sure what sort of attributes they might have. My eyes lingered on First Aid I. I already had healing potions because of Aria''s gift and I had a First Aid active novice ability. Did this improve the ability? I pulled it out and examined the book, hoping for a clue as to its usefulness but all I got was a value of 20 silver and that it had no prerequisites. No, I''d make due with athletics for now. I slipped it back among identical volumes and paid a gold for my Athletics I. "Feel free to sit down and read it here," the shopkeeper said as he pointed at a battered set of chairs in the corner. I settled myself down on one. A cat had shredded the arms and tufts of stuffing burst from the fabric. Upon flipping the book open, a pop-up appeared. Would you like to absorb Athletics I? I picked ''yes'' and the book fizzled in my hands, changing from a thing of paper and wood binding to motes of light. A quest card appeared and I grabbed it.
Athletics I (0%) 0/100 Push-Ups 0/100 Sit-Ups 0/100 Squats 0/10 KM jogged
I checked my character sheet and now ''Athletics, Rank 0'' was listed under trained skills. Ignoring the disgruntled look the shopkeep threw me, I dropped to the ground and did push-ups. I kept the quest card lying on the carpet beside me and watched my push-up counter tick up steadily until my arms got sore and I switched to sit-ups. Another player came in as I went through my calisthenics routine. They only spared me a glance before heading to the back on their own shopping errand. Once I was finished with the push-ups, sit-ups, and squats, my quest card said I was 75% done. I left the store and jogged down the street. It was crowded here so I headed for the waterfront, which was also crowded but had a nicer view. I maintained a leasurely pace as I passed by dock workers unloading and loading flat barges. An hour and so later, a mental thrum broke my stride and I checked the quest card in my inventory. It flickered ''Success!'' once before fading from it''s already limited existence. I had Athletics I now but felt the same. Testing was in order so I attempted to do 100 squats again. It felt slightly easier but that could have just been my expectations; there was no dramatic improvement. Training manuals weren''t as fun as ability cards, I decided. Given how their cost scaled, that might be a good thing. I didn''t want to feel forced to horde all my gold simply to improve how fast I ran when there were fun things to spend it on instead. I jogged back to Mon''s house and napped for the rest of the afternoon. I wanted to be fresh for tonight. 012 // Testing As the sun set, my eyes fluttered open. There was no alarm blaring in my head, my character simply awoke around the time I wanted her to do so. What happened to me while I was asleep this time? I hadn¡¯t logged out to Sanctuary, simply closed my eyes and time had moved forward. I guess I had ¡®really¡¯ fallen asleep but technically I was always dreaming while playing the game. Crawling out of the shack, I confronted a neighborhood that wasn''t interested in settling down just yet. People hung around their porches, chatting and drinking with one another. A drink would be nice to warm me up but tonight wasn''t the night for it. The meeting place was in an even older part of town than what I''d seen. Someone had carved away at the stones of the road and filled the furrow with salt. I tried to recall what salt was good for¨Cprotecting or warding against ghosts, I thought. Though Penumbra could put their own spin on it. It might be to protect against the sort of plagues that ran rampant in densely packed and unsanitary quarters. I crossed it, hand resting on the pommel of my blade as I scanned the surrounding area. Lots of dark corners for things to leap up at me from. The highest building in sight was a bell tower. A chunk of its side had been blown off and it listed to the right. Scaffolding covered in moss and bird shit reached almost to the top. I leapt up to the lowest wooden beam and hung there. It was soft and damp to the touch, not what you want in wood you''re going to climb, and the gentle force of my swaying back and forth caused the scaffolding''s joints to creak. It didn''t, however, snap or even bend under my weight and I slowly pulled myself up until I stood on the beam, my front pressed against the cold stone. My heart pounded against my chest and my palms grew sweaty. Instead of forcing myself forward, I took calm, steadying breaths and reminded myself that this was a game. I had died once already and it hadn''t been that bad. The chunk of my brain that told me being this high up was dangerous was hearing none of that but as a minute passed and I didn''t plunge to the ground, my heart rate settled. I took a deep breath and shuffled to the side. My face was a breath away from the outer wall and I got a fine view of the moldering, water damaged stone some artist had no doubt poured blood, sweat, and tears into creating a texture for. At the corner, I grabbed a hold of stone outcropping. The worn face of a medusa passed by me as I pulled myself up to the next level. The muscles of my upper arm and back twinged in sharp pain as I snagged the next wooden beam, taking a deep breath, I swung my body to the right, wrapped my legs around the beam and twisted around until I was atop it. From there, I made my way around the corner to the next highly convenient stone outcropping. It was a slow, laborious process as I made my way up and up. Pigeons flew off, calling out in alarm as I inched by their nests, and the air chilled as the last of the sun''s light vanished from the horizon. The scaffolding had five tiers. After that, it was rough stone covered with dozens of raised bricks. I stared up at the copula of the bell tower. From my spot on the top of the scaffolding, I could see the inside the wide mouth of the iron bell. Amazing how the rusted yoke holding it hadn''t given out yet. Though I knew it was a bad idea, I glanced down at the street far below. My knees went soft as I saw how far up I was and I dug my fingers into the wall to try to keep upright. My body shivered, quite outside my control, but I felt a sudden rush of pleasure as my heart picked up in tempo. A giggle escaped my lips, the heady mixture of fear and excitement turned to laughter. I forced myself to continue my climb, fingers and toes digging into cracks, gripping any outcropping I found. Time seemed to stretch those last ten meters as the wind tugged at my jacket and hair. My body ached, the muscles begging for release, but I ignored them and pushed on¡ªonward and upwards. It felt like it took forever but suddenly I was there at the top of the tower. It was a tiled dome. Shingles cracked and broke off as I hauled myself on top, walked to the dead center, and sat down. Sweat covered me and soaked into the cloth of my Novice Uniform. I felt as though I''d run a marathon and then gone nine rounds in a boxing ring. Hopefully, I hadn''t spent myself too much: I hadn''t even begun whatever quest they''d give me at the thieves'' guild. When I had enough gold, however, I resolved to pick up those advance volumes of Athletics. I was sure it was worth it. I took a deep breath and scanned the surrounding area. The burn damage was extensive but I could now also see where something had plowed or cut through the entire district. There was a line of buildings that had simply been knocked down or trampled and I wondered what had caused that. My map had updated and now I had a detailed route to my destination displayed with breadcrumbs. I was finished here. Looking towards the street, I realized I was wrong. I still had to climb back down the way I''d came.
Jump! Jump! Quest: Ring the bell atop the old tower and leap to safety. Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! Rewards and Consequences: ???
I read the sudden quest message with amusement. This game was starting to remind me of that friend parents always warned you about. ''If System told you to jump off a bridge, would you follow?'' If the system was suggesting I jump, there must be someplace safe to jump to. At least, I hoped so. AIs could be intelligent but they weren''t malicious; it was unlikely that the game was going to encourage me to plunge to my death. Not far from the tower was an abandoned cart filled with something. It looked like hay though it was hard to tell in the dark from so far away. If I took a running leap I might, just might, be able to reach it. In the real world, it wouldn''t matter. I was too far up for it to properly break my fall. I nibbled at my lip, curious as to what might happen. Satisfying that curiosity was enticement enough. Besides, death or not, I''d at least not have to crawl back down the outside of the building. The question remained as to why ringing the bell first was important. "In for a penny, in for a pound," I murmured and I clamored to the ledge. The bell was wide enough that I could tap my foot against it without issue, but heavy enough that it needed a solid push. Digging my fingers into the edge of the roof, I braced both feet against the bell''s rounded side and then straightened them. The bell only moved an inch away before swinging back. I let it do so and then kicked out again. The clapper stirred within as the bell swung on its yoke. I did this three more times, each time the bell swung farther until the baring seemed to loosen and I pushed it as far as it could go. I scrambled up then, lest the force of the return swing knock me down. A deafening clang rang out and the entire tower shook. Stone crumbled and cracked below me. It was now or never. As another clang reverberated through the air, I sprinted forward and leapt from the roof. For one long, glorious moment, I tumbled through the air. The wind whistled in my ears and the tail of my jacket slapped and fluttered behind me. The cart rushed towards me and I readied myself. Even if I were dashed to bloody elf pudding in a few seconds, it would be worth it for this moment of freedom. I landed in a soft pile of cloth that reeked of mildew. It knocked the air from my lungs and I laid there in a daze. As I watched, the bell gave one last, fearsome groan before the yoke snapped and it fell, smashing through the interior of the tower, the iron clanging in pain all the way down. The ringing persisted in my ears after the bell came to rest at the tower¡¯s bottom. There was a rumble of stone and my instincts told me this would be a good time to move. With a grunt, I heaved myself over the cart''s edge and back on my feet before stepping back from the bell tower. There was something magnificent in its death. The sides crumpled inwards and the entire top half fell in on itself in a roar. I raised my arm to cover my face from the blast of stone and dirt that washed outwards. When it was finished, I was treated to a giant pile of rubble and little else. "Fun times, fun times," I said. I shook my head trying to get rid of the persistent ringing tried to focus on the updated quest message as it coalesced into a floating card. I plucked it from the air and read.
Feather Fall, Passive (1/3) Prereq: None While this ability is equipped, the character takes only half damage from a fall.
See mom? When the voice inside your head urges you to jump off a building, you should totally follow its advice. I tossed the card into my inventory. I had a clear path to my destination and wanted to see what else the night would throw my way. As I jogged the wet streets, my hearing returned to normal. There was a murmur in the air I didn''t remember from before. My stunt at the bell tower must have woken a few of the poor souls forced to live in this section of the city. I could hear them shuffling around the dark buildings and grumbling with discontent. Turning a corner, I spotted a miserable soul out in the cold. His thin rags hung off skin and bones as he shuffled down the street. My step caught short as he jerked forward, his gait far too unnatural. I turned on my [Stealth] ability and moved out of his way. There was no light in this part of town and the street too narrow for me to hide. Instead, I held my breath and hugged the wall as he neared. The closer he got, the clearer it was that something was very, very wrong here, until the breeze shifted and I caught the scent of rotting flesh. I didn''t move, didn''t breathe, as the corpse passed me. I could have reached out and brushed my finger tips against his arm if I wished. The evening''s previous boldness had been used up, though, and I let it shamble by me and down the road. Once it was far enough away, I made a speedy retreat. I met another corpse along the road, and then a third. By the time I reached my destination, I had to dip into the ruins of buildings to avoid small groups of them. That would explaining the line of salt. Waking a district full of undead was not the best thing I''d done, but I got a free ability from it and it didn''t look like anyone was being hurt. At least, I didn''t hear any screams of living souls mixed in with the zombie moans. The breadcrumbs led me to short stone bridge above a dried canal. I worried for a moment that I''d have to hop in the sewers. Sticking a thief guild in the sewer was wildly popular for some reason, as though developers didn''t understand how badly dank walls and the scent of human waste clashed with an organization that ought to, by all accounts, be rich. I dropped into the canal and found a stone doorway carved under the bridge. It didn''t appear to have any locks or handles. On its face was, of all the strange things, a painting of a flower and cricket. I knocked firmly against the door and waited. Something stirred on the other side. "Password?" a low voice whispered. My mind went blank for a few seconds as I tried to remember any password I''d been given. The note Mon had given me was in the quest item section of my inventory and I recalled there''d been a word written on it. "Vambraces," I replied after a quick reread. The stone sighed as though tired and scraped open. I saw no one within, only a hall leading into darkness. If luck was on my side, none of the corpses I''d awakened would be wandering around down there. Squaring my shoulders, I stepped through the archway... and the trap door under my feet opened.