《The Force Missileer》 The System Message With a blink of his eyes McOris Fiels woke up in his hospital bed to something familiar and yet never before seen in quite this way. A blue box filled with words, similar to any in a game, and yet this was no game.
Welcome, People of Earth, to the System
The System is your oportunity to acquire power sufficient to keep you and yours safe from the terrors coming for you and all other life. Your planet is not the first, and will not be the last to be given access to the strength of the System.
The System will not grant power freely. All strength must be earned through experience. Gaining experience is a simple matter of using skills, and accomplishing goals appropriate to your class. Experience for your skills are specific to each individual one of them.
Classes do not start out unique to each individual. Through continued work and effort a class can evolve over time. This process is based on a wide range of factors.
Each person will be given the choice of taking any one of base classes
  • Warrior - melee physical combatant
  • Ranger - ranged physical combatant
  • Mage - magical combatant
  • Rouge - stealthy combatant
  • Socialite - charismatic support
  • Crafter - item creation support
  • Gatherer - resource accumulation support
  • Administrator - general support
  • Trader - mercantile support
All people brought into the System now understand common, to the same degree that they understood their native language. Common is the language of the System, this message and all others from the System will be written in common. You still understand and can speak your native language with concentration.This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
Everyone currently alive is recieving this message at the same time. All physical maladies have been fixed upon entry into the System.
All children have been placed near their closest guardian. Please note, injuring children is punished severely by the System. It is expected that adults of each people brought into the System take care of their children in accordance with cultural norms.
Your planet will shortly be experiencing significant changes as the System assimilates it, and the beings from beyond take their shapes upon it. Once initialization is complete the surface of your planet will be shifted around, and you will all be transferred to your closest safe zone. Please note, these safe zones will vary in size and shape.
Once you are transported to your safe zone, you will have access to your inventory, a pocket dimension tailored specifically to you. This pocket dimension will allow you to carry significantly more gear than would otherwise be possible. In addition to your inventory, you will also be able to check your status and choose your class upon entering your safe zone. Inside your safe zone you will find a trainer for each class. Treat them with respect as they are people from the previous System Circle who have chosen to help establish your planet into the system.
The System further introduces its own monetary system, called Currency. Land, buildings, equipment and other things can all be bought for Currency at safe zones and other designated trade centers. The monsters that will soon plague your world will also give Currency from the System. This is in addition to any Currency you might gain from selling the remains.
System Initialization finishing in 3... 2.. 1.
There was a flash of light, and with another blink McOris saw that everything he''d ever known had changed forever. Now he just needed to figure out how he was going to change with it. The Safe Zone Standing in a field of grass, surrounded by a crowd of people McOris Fiels looks around, trying to come to grips with this new reality. The whole crowd is facing one direction though, while some people are starting to panic he looks towards where everyone was obviously positioned to be able to see. In front of the crowd is a raised platform with 9 beings positioned on top of it. Each looked completely different from everyone else there. The one standing in the middle of the group was tall. 10 feet tall easily, thin and lanky with a angular face covered in scales. Its hands were more like claws, though with opposable thumbs. The fingers of each hand were covered in rings of a variety of cuts and styles. It wore a a diaphanous black robe filled with stars of red an unusual style, something similar to a toga, and yet with a half hoodie seemingly designed to cover the back of the head while still showing off a row of spines above its brow. To the left of the one in the middle is another being, this one much shorter, only 3 feet tall if that. Looking like a child next to the others on the podium, and yet its eyes were fields of stars, its skin a mottled black like the depths of the night, it had a staff as tall as it was made of a gnarled piece of something that might have been a vine, but seemed incredibly solid colored black as its skin. Opposite the short one is being of more human height, but wider by far 5 feet tall and 5 feet wide. Fur covers what parts of it can be seen outside of its thick plate armor. It has 4 arms with oddly normal looking hands, in its bottom two hands it has shields while its top two hands hold a heavy looking hammer, with a spike on the other end. Its armor and weapons are all covered in glyphs that sparkle in the light of dawn. One more step to the right is a beingofhuman proportions but made entirely of what appears to be ruby. Its entire body is sharp angles and flat planes. Where a face would be for a human is instead two glowing spots in an otherwise flat surface, burning with an inner blue fire. It has a belt full of tools of various types, similar to, but just slightly off from anything on earth. On the other side there is another furred form. This one taller and much thinner than the other, wearing an outfit made almost entirely of something that appeared to be leather, obviously designed with ease of movement in mind. On its back is a bow of strange design, at its waist some kind of pistol with a gem glowing with a soft light where a magazine would normally be. Pouches and quivers adorn the being in a cluttered hodgepodge. It stared out at the crowd before it with predators eyes, watching everyone there. Standing one more layer to the left is another being made of crystal. This one appeared to be made of something akin to onyx. Its hands had nails as sharp as knives, and even standing there plain to see it seemed to disappear into the background if you didn''t pay attention to it. It held deathly still even as its the dark glow of its eyes seemed to shift about the mass of people before it. One back from the edge on the right is another of the short statured beings, skin just as dark, but eyes of gold and silver. It had a drill in hand, and clippers on its belt. A brand poked out from behind its back. Dressed in a set of thick, yet soft cloth. It stood there calmly, looking not out at the crowd gathered before it, but at the fields that surrounded it. At the far left of the group is a 4 eyed being with no apparent nose and an oval mouth. Its body is thin and its limbs spindly standing around 6 feet tall, it nevertheless showed its strength carrying a massive rucksack on its back, pouches at its sides, bulging outward as if stuffed full. It wears a richly decorated robe covered in gems and silver thread. On the far right is another of the 4 eyed beings. This one wears a similar robe, but of a plain cut and design, in simple blue. It carries with it a book and some kind of pen, and continues to write into the book even as it looks out over the crowd arrayed before it. Before long the tall being in the center raised its hand, and silence fell over the crowd, as everyone there found themselves compelled to look upon the being and listen to its words. "Welcome people of Earth. This safe zone is designated for adult batchelors and batcherlorettes of zone 42. This group dynamic should allow you to form the groups necessary to accomplish the goals that will allow you to leave this safe zone and create places for your own people to grow."
Leaving the safe zone!
Goal 1/?: Obtain a starter class.
Reward: Choice of free first skill based off class chosen.
The tall being continues "At this point you should see a System message telling you the first goal for leaving this safe zone. Those of us upon this platform are your trainers while you are here. Each of us have trained in all the basic skills the system gives out as choices for obtaining your first class, as well as many of their higher forms. We will teach you what you need to know in order to pick the right class and starting skills for you, and guide you to your futures in the system. I am Xerthul, my class is Master of Ceremonies. I can start you on the path of the Socialite. To my right is our Mage specialist, Rukoan Arcanist. My left has Zeebo an Armored Alpha, trainer of Warriors. To his left is Roobu, a Creator of Wonders, and the one who will start your path as a Crafter. To Ruko''s right is Arbela, a Dark Hunter, who can start you on the Ranger''s path. Her right has Brandish, Silent Stalker and the one who can help you to become a Rogue. At the end there is Zzander, Merchant Prince, who would be happy to help you to become a trader of goods in your own right, likely in the hopes he can get a good deal with you later. Standing next the right of Roobu is Ander, a Resource Scout, here to teach you in the ways of a Gatherer. Last but not least is Ssindry, an Information Specialist, and our Administrator." As Xerthul gives each name, the person in question bows, waves, or otherwise indicates who they are. "Now before we split up for our own areas and give you the chance to get your classes, let me answer some frequently asked questions of people recently brought into the System. Yes, this is a permanent change. Yes, if you are not careful the monsters that are outside the safe zone can and will kill you. Yes, that goes for all of you. Yes, you will have to leave the safe zone, and the sooner the better for you and your planet. Every day you spend in the safe zone, is another day for the horrors the System keeps in check to grow stronger without you. This safe zone design was created because it was found to lead to significantly less loss of life than going without, even with the disadvantage of the time lost in it. Yes, there are ways to communicate with others via the System, though the cost can be exorbitant depending on distance. Eventually you will be able to use System currency to buy permanent communication hubs, or if you have Crafters that decide to go that route, you will be able to build your own. We are here to get you started in the System, to give you a chance to begin to grow before you face the full fury of the outside zones. The safe zones are created relatively near each other, but you will have to work together to clear a path to each other. This is intentional, and is meant to foster cooperation. Your species will need it in order to survive and thrive with these being from beyond. The Form these monsters take is based off the collective conscousness of your species. Your tales, fables, stories, myths, and legends will all be pulled from in order to give them a form your species can understand. Without the System, these horrors are immaterial and can not be destroyed, but can still bring death and destruction to you. Now, we will split up, and go to our respective areas of the safe zone, from there you can ask us the questions you have related to the classes you can get, and the skills you''ll be able to choose from, so that you can make an informed decision. When you make your choice let us know, and we will direct you in how to obtain your class." Finally done speaking to the group Xerthul walks off the podium, and heads off to where a proper stage has been set-upbehind the podium. The rest of the trainers each go to their own area, designed with their class in mind. The crowd is silent at first, before breaking out in murmuring, the enforced calm of the Master of Ceremonies is still in effect, and the people are coming to grips with everything far faster than McOris expected, including himself. Finally able to walk, move, act again, he decides to head out for Zeebo''s training ground. As he approaches, he finds that many other people have gone for the same thing. Zeebo has everyone practicing with a seemingly never-ending series of practice weapons available from inside a shed. The goal is apparently to give them a chance to see if close-combat is actually something that fits them. Upon entering the shed, McOris finds that its significantly bigger on the inside, filled with all manner of melee weapons, a seemingly endless collection, as there are stand after stand, in every direction, as far as the eye can see, save for where the door is, standing freely in the center of the area. Looking around, McOris finds and grabs a sword, the classic tool of the warrior. Stepping out of the shed, he goes to find a sparring partner, along the way he sees many others fighting, and some getting hit. The weapons look fully deadly, and yet, they leave at worst a bruise on even the strongest of hits. Apparently this training ground is very effective indeed.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Finally he approaches another person looking for someone to practice with. "So, should we just start? Or is there something special we are supposed to do?" McOris asks the other guy He responds with a shrug. "Everyone else just starts that I''ve seen, but I haven''t asked." McOris smiles, and proceeds to hold his hand out palm up, then curls his fingers a few times, in a come at me, gesture. His partner does so, and McOris swings his sword in a two handed grip from left to right, swinging fit to knock the others head off. A swing that is promptly ducked under and McOris finds himself sporting a new bruise across the face from the others quick strike, before he dances out of range. They go at it again, this time McOris on the defense. His partner attacks, swinging low, and McOris lowers his sword to defend against it, only for the other''s sword to change angles and come back high, swiping across his chest. The two continue for another few passes, McOris is determined to win at least one exchange. Zeebo looks on, nodding at his partner, and sighing at McOris attempts. Finally, after dozens more passes McOris is too exhausted to continue, and covered in bruises. Zeebo walks over to the two, and turns to other. "Boy, you seem suited to the Warriors roll, if you wish to continue, wait for me by the dummies at the far end." Turning back towards McOris, "As for you. You have heart boy, but you''ve got no sense of balance, no feel for your weapon. I suggest trying something else, go and look for another teacher." McOris is less than pleased at this turn of events, but acquiesces. He''s got more options, and he''s sure something will stick. Reaffirmed of purpose, he heads towards Arbela''s training area. Here he is sure, he''ll find his way. The test here is to use any of the provided ranged weapons to attack their designated targets. There are dozens ofsets,and a far smaller crowd testing them than were at the Warrior''s area, though that may be because so many have already passed. McOris starts with the bow and arrow. A classic, picks up the bow, puts the arrow to the string, and fumbles it. One of the others there walks over and shows him how to hold with to a polite, if embarrased thanks from McOris. Finally holding things correctly, he tries again, and manages to fire the arrow. In the general direction of the target, if nothing else. Luckily, there is no one behind it. He tries again, and the arrow soars past the target again, on the other side this time. He continues until the quiver is empty, never hitting the target once. Overshooting it, undershooting it, too far to the left or right. After that failure, he moves on, throwing daggers. An excellent choice. What could be cooler? He picks up the brace of daggers near the target, its not nearly as far away as the bow''s target. He''s sure to hit it this time. His very first throw in fact does hit the target, barely, on the bottom of it, with the hilt. His next tries are significantly worse. Shuriken, ninja weapon of choice. Meant to be accuretly surely, even in the hands of a novice. No such luck. Throwing axes. A man''s man weapon. This is what he needed to start with. He hefts an axe, getting a feel for the weight, he rears back, for the windup, and launches forward. The axe thuds to the ground, right next to his foot. Apparently, he needs more work on timing the release. Sheepishly, he tries again. This time it actually gets near to the target, for certain definitions of the term "near" but he''s sure its a sign he''ll get it eventually. He continues until his arms are tired. Managing to sink the axe in the target once. Happily he looks at the tests expections, listed behind the target. Apparently just one hit is actually not very good. At least out of 50. Dejected, he moves on. Stealth is his way. So he heads for the rogues encampment. This time, its an obstacle course. Filled with strings and bells. Apparently, the goal is to get through without ringing any. He can walk again, he can move. His body feels as great as it ever has. He''s got this in the bag, how hard could it be? After the fifth time he''s found himself entangled in the strings, with bells ringing clearly all around him. He decides that maybe this isn''t quite right for him either. Apparently, physical pursuits aren''t his strong point. Spending years in a hospital after the accident apparently left him unable to actually use his body they way he wants, even after it was fixed. Determined to be able to do some kind of combat, even if its not the physical kind like he wanted, he heads to Ruko''s area. There he finds barely a dozen people still working on getting a class. This test seems simple, create a ball of mana in ones hand. The process described is easy enough. Metitate on one''s body, notice the new energy that''s been added to it since the System came to the planet, and once you get a feel for it, move the energy like you would any muscle to bring some of it to your hand. He''s spent years in bed just trying to move a muscle. He hopes this time, he''ll have more success. He sits down, crosslegged on the ground, closes his eyes, and begins to feel out his body, one sensation, one muscle at a time. Gradually his breathing slows, his focus turns ever inward, until eventually he feels something new. He focuses on this new sensation, trying to understand it, come to grips with it. Slowly he prods at the feeling of potential inside of him. It is small, but there, circulating through him. He first tries to squeeze the muscles around it, trying to change the flow, but it just flows through unimpeded. He continues to try a variety of different things to get the energy to move, until eventually he just gives up trying to do something to it. Instead he simply tries to will the energy to his hand, and here he finds success. Its sluggish, the energy seemingly unwilling to move, but move it does. His open palm slowly fills with a green energy that casually forms a sphere as it grows. He stares at it in fascination. Amazement crosses his features as he stares at mana, at actual magic. Here it seems, he can succeed. He can be a force that actually does something instead of just reacting to everything around him. He notices though that the energy inside him seems drained, significantly less than it was when he started. He tries to will the energy in his palm back inside, but it doesn''t seem to work. The energy simply bleeds off into the air around him. He''s not certain if that actually does anything to the local area, but hopes if so its nothing bad. He stands up, and walks to a tent that has a sign hanging over its opening, "Successful applicant enter here." Apparently this is where he needs to go to actually get his class. He walks in and finds much like the shed from the Warrior area, this tent is much larger on the inside. Or, maybe it would be better to say that the tent''s entrance doesn''t actually lead to the tent, but to some other structure entirely. Inside is a room with walls, floor, ceiling. The tent flap behind him the only indication of a tent he can see. There is only one way forward, and he walks along the path. Inside are a variety of decorations, from furniture sized for something of Ruku''s size, to pieces large enough for beings bigger than Xerthul. Eventually he comes to a room with a few other people inside of it, waiting apparently to also become mages. As soon as he walks in, the door the others are stopped at opens, as if the person on the other side was waiting for him. For all he knows, they were. From beyond the doorway, which even open, is covered in shadow walks Ruko. He looks at all of them and nods to each. "Congratulations Earthlings on passing my trial for becoming a Mage. Magic is the greatest tool of the System, and with it, you will be an incredible force for your planet. Never let some Warrior tell you otherwise." He says with a smirk for Warriors at the end. He walks towards the center of the group of waiting people. "Now then, it is a simple process for gaining a class. Though kept from you until this point to help ensure you do not pick something you are unsuited for. In order to obtain your class you must first access your status screen, indicate your currently empty class, and then choose from the basic options the System provides you. To open your status screen, simply think Status. Do so now." The group look at each other at first, nonplussed at how easy this apparently is. Shortly though, they turn to their own thoughts and do so.Status McOris thinks to himself.
Name: McOris Fiels Class: None, please choose
Race: Human Level: 0
Age: 20 Exp: 0.00%
Organization: None Health(Regen):80/80(.5/s)
Mana(Regen): 170/170(1.2/s) Stamina(Regen): 100/100(1.0/s)
Strength: 6 Willpower: 10
Constituion: 5 Mental Fortitude: 12
Dexterity: 5 Mental Acuity: 10
Perception: 8 Charisma: 7
Woah McOris thinks to himself, seeing his status. Its just that easy? Still though, he looking at his stats, he can see why the more physical classes didn''t work out for him. He''s pretty proud of his mental stats though, those should make being a mage a piece of cake. Looking up from his status screen, he sees Ruko looking around at all of them, with some kind of emotion on his face he can''t identify. Hopefully a positive one. Seeing that everyone has their status screen open, Ruko continues, "Now you''ll see that your class is currently set to None, please choose. In order to do that, all you have to do is focus on the class section of your status screen and the options will pop up. From there its the same process for choosing your class, simply focus on it. Go ahead and choose Mage now." McOris nods to himself, and focuses back onto his status screen, pretty happy with how it seems to get out of his vision when he doesn''t want to be looking at it. Simply staying in his peripheals until he tries to focus on it. Now looking at his screen again, he focuses on the class portion and a new window pops up.
Choose your Class
  • Warrior - melee physical combatant
  • Ranger - ranged physical combatant
  • Rouge - stealthy combatant
  • Mage - magical combatant
  • Socialite - charismatic support
  • Crafter - item creation support
  • Gatherer - resource accumulation support
  • Administrator - general support
  • Trader - merchantile support
MageMcOris focuses on. A new window opens in front of his eyes, and his life changes forever. Dungeons, Parties, and Quests
You have chosen the Mage class to begin your journey in the System
Class: Mage Attribute gains per level:
  • +4 Mental Stats
  • +1 Physical stat
  • +1 Secondary stat
Class Skill Bonuses:
  • +50% Increase in experience gain for Magical Skills
Class Pool Bonuses:
  • +25% Increase to max mana
  • +25% Increase to mana regeneration
May choose one of the following Skills to learn now:
  • Firebolt
  • Icy Wind
  • Earthen Wall
  • Winds of Haste
  • Force Missile
  • Shield
  • Mage Armor
  • Flash
  • First Aid
  • Curse
McOris looks away from the screen towards Ruko, "Soo... what do all these skills do exactly?" he asks. "Ha, a good question. Though one easily answered by yourself. Just focus on the skills, and your question of what they do, as opposed to focusing on them as definite choice. The System will let you know the specifics for something like this" Ruko responds with something approaching a smile. McOris turns back to the message with a nod, and focuses on the firstlisted.
Firebolt: Creates an orb of contained fire, and shoots it at enemies within range. May cause target to catch fire. Range, size of orb, intensity of flame, chance of burning target all increase with skill level and Willpower.
Easy enough to understand. Though the lack of specifics is a bit annoying. Clearing away that notification, he focuses back on the list, and the next option. Still though, throwing fire around sounds both very dangerous, and totally awesome.
Icy Wind: Creates a chilled breeze in targeted direction. May push targets back, slow them, cover them in frost, and potentially freeze them. Speed of wind, range, depth of chill all increase with skill level and Willpower.
Battlefield control in this one. The debuff is a pretty nice effect. Much more suited to group combat and seemingly deals significantly less damage. Would probably be better if he actually had a team to work with already.
Earthen Wall: Raises a wall out of the ground. Maximum size, durability, and control over the shape increases with skill level and Mental Fortitude.
Now, this one is interesting. Create walls out of the ground? How fast is it, could it be used to build a house? Potentially incredibly useful in figuring out a way to give everyone here a home. Not really something he''s interested in though. He''s far more interested in something more directly combat oriented.
Winds of Haste: Your target is surrounded by helpful air. Increases speed and reaction times of target.Speed, reaction times, and numberof targets increases with skill level and Willpower.
Another support skill, though this one improves allies instead of hurting enemies. Potentially extremely helpful in conjunction with more dexterity based classes. Though, still not what he''s looking for in a skill.
Force Missile: Hits a target with a missile of pure force. Can not miss. Amount of force, number of missiles, and range increase with skill level and Willpower.
Oh, now this one has promise. Can''t miss? Might have found a winner here. That firebolt seems wonderful, but it apparently needs aiming, or at least it can miss. Thinking back to the Ranger tests he did earlier, he''s pretty sure that would work rather poorly for him. Still though, best to check the others, just in case.
Shield: Creats a shield of force near the target. Automattically defends target against attacks. Size, durability, and longevity of shield increase with skill level and Mental Fortitude.
Useful defensive skill. Still though, he''s looking for something that will let him actually defend himself, not just survive. Maybe something to learn later though.
Mage Armor: Creates an armor of force around the caster. Durabilty and longevity increase with skill level and Mental Fortitude.
Rather similar to the Shield skill. Too defensive minded for his tastes. Still though, also potentially useful later. Something to think about.
Flash: Causes a flash of light centered at designated point in range. Bright light can daze or cause blindness in those who see the flash. Caster is immune to negative effects. Brightness and range increase with skill level and Willpower.
Another pure support skill. Doesn''t seem to be worth getting in comparison to the other skills on offer at this point.
First Aid: Heals target for a percentage of missing health taken in the last 10 seconds. Number of targets, range, and percentage healed increase with skill level and Willpower.
Now, this one is very nice. Seems like it''d be extremely helpful in a group. Having someone with a skill like this seems mandatory, but almost worthless for someone alone.
Curse: Decreases a random stat of the target by a percentage for a period of time. Multiple stacks of curse from the same source will effect a different stat. Percentage and time increase with skill level and Willpower
Well, that seems like it will be very nice to have around as well. Still though so many different kinds of support skills. Nothing specific either, wondering why McOris looks up from the list of options and he asks Ruko, "So, why doesn''t it tell us specifically what the skills do?" Ruko turns to focus on McOris, "None of you have the skill, and the values often change with every skill level to at least some degree. Giving a specific value for the damage of a skill is deemed rather worthless. For example, the Firebolt skill is capable of causing great damage to any foes made of ice, and yet it would do nearly nothing against something made of fire, assuming it didn''t actually heal the thing instead. As for range, there is no maximum, and the minimum values vary dependent on your stats, and other skills that you may have. The descriptions for the skills you are seeing are generalized things for everyone who sees them. When you actually pick a skill,it''ll go on your Skill List. Your Skill List tells you what every skill you have is, and its level. From there you can look at the specifics of it for you at the time. Now, pick your skills, and I will lead you to your next destination." The rest of the group nod thoughtfully thinking over their skill selections. At least one person seems rather excited by it. McOris is rather confident in his choice, Force Missile seems like the best skill for him. He hasn''t seen anyone he knows here, and he''s less than certain in his ability to form a group. Best to be able to work alone. He nods to himself, then makes his choice.
You have learned Force Missile
Well that''s not very informative,McOris thinks to himself, before recalling what Ruko said about the Skill List. So he tries to bring his up.
Skill List
Force Missile: Lvl 1
Still not what he''s looking for, so he focuses on the skill itself.
Force Missile, Lvl 1:Hits a target with a single missile of pure force. Can not miss. Range: 20 meters. Cost 20 Mana. Amount of force, number of missiles, and range increase with skill level and Willpower.
Alright, now he knows what it does exactly. He can''t wait to actually use it. This time someone else asks the question first though. "So, how do you actually use the skill?" A woman standing across from him asks. With a chuckle, Ruko answers, "Simple really, but I think it best I show you after I give you a target, just in case. Follow me." and he proceeds to walk through a door the rest of the group were pretty sure wasn''t there before. The group walks through the door cautiously, McOris keeping himself near the middle of the group. Through the door they see a wide field of grass. Looking at Ruko they see his name and level floating over his head.137McOris thinks to himself, how long would that take to get?You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. Wait a second, the hell is up with that even being there?He quickly asks, "Uh Ruko sir? Why do we see your level now?" Moving through he notices that its not just Ruko, everyone there shows their name and level. "Ah, right, none of you have seen this kind of thing before. This is actually the normal way the system works. This is a training dungeon. For very low level folks like you. Normally this is reserved for children, but well, at the moment that''s basically what you lot are. When you leave the safe zone, most of the world will be like this, showing you the names and levels of every monster and person around you. There are skills that can give you additional information, especially about the new resources the System has introduced into your world, but those aren''t usually acquired by mages. Anyways, I digress, I brought you lot here in order to get some combat under you belt against something reasonably certain not to kill you. Here you''ll find an enemy that apparently shows up in quite a bit of your fiction as fodder. Zombies I believe the term is. Nasty pieces of work those, still though, I''m sure you''ll be able to handle them quite well." "Wait, did you say Zombies? We have to deal with Zombies? What the hell is this? Where do their bodies come from, will they turn us into one if they get a single bite? How is that fodder?" The youngest looking member of the group asks, clearly distraught. "We did say that the System is giving form to these horrors from your species myths, legends, stories, and fictions yes? Every culture will have at least some monsters and the System fills the horrors from beyond into shapes and forms that your species knows how to counter from their fictions. The System first tried giving them random forms, or forms from the System creators fictions. Neither worked terribly well. Thankfully things have changed since then. Giving your people a chance to combat these things. Now apparently there are different kinds of zombies. This type is the Necromantic Zombies, the easiest of the lot. No real intelligence to speak of, just wandering hordes of mindless undead. Course, this is just a training dungeon, so, not really hordes." Having walked out into the field a hundred meters or so, he pulls a chair from nowhere and sits down. "Now, your goal is to amongst the group of you, kill 100 Zombies. In order to do that, you are going to form what is known as a party, in order to keep track of it, I''m going to give you a Quest. Quests come in all kinds of formats, but the basic gist of it is simply do a thing, and the quest-giver will give you something for it. Very useful for getting things done, and since the System keeps track of things, you don''t have to worry about anybody trying to cheat."
Quest: Kill 100 Zombies as a party!
Steps:
  • Create a party with other people here
  • Find and Kill 100 Zombies
  • Return to Ruko
Rewards:
  • 10 System Currency each
Failure Penalty:
  • None
Accept: Yes/No
They all looked at this new notification and decidedYes.
Quest Accepted
"Excellent, now then, you need to learn how to create a basic party. The simplest method is simply to say, Local Party Invite, do that and a party invite screen will pop up for everyone in your level range. Its level range restricted because the System doesn''t want high level people forming parties with low levels and just going out to increase their level by taking on things far outside their league. See these basic parties make it so everyone shares in experience and System rewards evenly. Please note, attempting to use that to cheat the System has... consequences. I''d suggest you don''t find out what they are. So do actually try to help out the party when you are in one. On a lighter note, the party also lets you see the pools of your party members as well. Extremely helpful for ensuring you know if you have a member in danger. Now go ahead and make your party." An older gentleman is the first of the group to do so. Before everyone''s eyes, a new window appeared inviting the new people into the party.
Local Party Invite sent. Would you like to join the local party? No party Leader is available for this party type. All rewards are shared equally among members. Current Members:
  • Maximilian Alexander
Join Party? Yes/No
Easy enough to answer.YesMcOris thought and then a new screen appeared before him. Somewhat expected at this point.
You have joined the Local Party, all rewards are split evenly. Current Members:
  • Maximillian Alexander
  • McOrris Fiels
  • Sarah Smith
  • Westen Reeder
  • Amy Carter
  • Randolf Busman
  • Barny Griffen
  • Elizabeth Anders
  • Caleb Young
"Alright folks, so before we go haring off after Zombies, which are apparently a thing now. God I''m too old for this. Anyways, back on topic. We should probably tell each other what skills we got. Hopefully we have a good range of skills so that we can see about using them intelligently." Maximillian seems intent on being the leader for this party, and no one else seems to mind. He''s an older gentleman, greying at the edges, wrinkles in his tanned face. He stands straight and tall, wearing a blue button up shirt, and slacks. "I can cast Icy Wind, slowing and damaging enemies at a distance." McOris is standing directly to his right. Short, thin, pale from lack of sun, and still wearing the cloud pajamas he was in that morning. "I chose Force Missile, I''m not too good at aiming, so it seemed like the best choice of those listed." "Well, I went for the Earthen Wall. I really like the idea of it, and it seems like it''ll be really useful for building things. SInce apparently the wall it makes stays there. I''m looking forward to seeing just what I can do with it," Caleb, standing nearly 6 feet high, lean, shaved head, and wearing a runner''s outfit, continues the clockwise trend. Amy speaks up next. "Well I went for Winds of Haste. I, really really really didn''t want to not be able to run away from something scary. I know its going to come up eventually, and this way I can make sure I can stay far far away from aynthing trying to hurt me. And since its far away, I''ll be able to blast it with other skills, and fucking slaughter anything that gets in my way." She starts off rather shy, with her long green dress, red hair in waves down her back, but as she continues to speak, her mouth curves into a slightly too wide not to be creepy smile. Sarah, brunette with a heart shaped face, is in the middle of the women there, and speaks up next. "I went for Firebolt. I always dreamed of being a witch when I was a child, and now I can be. Fire is the standard start, and I''m going to have a ton of fun with it. Even if I have to use them against Zombies of all things. Actually... ha! This is going to work out great, fire does amazingly well against Zombies doesn''t it?" She''s short at only 5 feet tall, but quite curvy with it, wearing a low cut teal blouse, and a green skirt. Elizabeth is next and is wearing a victorian style dress, black with red highlights, with a pale face, and black hair falling straight down her back. "I went with Curse, fits my personality, and means I''ll hopefully be able to learn more of these kinds of dark arts. Hopefully I''ll be able to become an actual Necromancer." Barney is next in line, and grins at Sarah before telling everyone, "I picked Firebolt too, wanted to be a pyromancer, slinging fireballs all over the place. Destroying these monster things by the hundreds. Figure Firebolt is the best I''m going to get to start with." He seems quite pleased with himself. In a t-shirt and shorts, he has brown hair, combed over to his left. Little chubby, but obvious humor in his eyes. Westen has a more serious look on his face. Standing taller than anyone else there at around 6''2, he''s tall, dark, muscular,with his hair incornrows. "I took First Aid, figured few other people would, and I know we are going to need it. Mistakes get made, especially with everyone as new to this insanity as we are. Hopefully I won''t need it much, but at least if we do, I''ll just keep getting better at it. If you get hurt, say something, there is a time limit on me healing you, don''t try to shrug it off, none of us are Warriors." Randolf is nearly as short as Sarah, skinny, with thick glasses. His hair is frazzled, and doesn''t appear well kept. He''s wearing a 3 laws of robotics shirt, and jeans. "I decided to go with Flash. I... I um, I want to be a Laser Mage. If I can control light, I could maybe make a sword out of it, or just shoot Lasers everywhere. This is just the first step." Maximillian looks around the group and nods approvingly. "Alright, now that we know what everyone here can cast. How many times can you cast it? I can use mine 7 times in a row. Takes about about 2 minutes in order to get my mana back." "Well I can use mine 8 times in a row, takes around 2 minutes too." McOris responds. Feeling rather proud of himself. "Oh dang, 2 and 90 seconds." "8, but 2 and a half minutes." "Oh... 4 times for me. But a little under 2 minutes" "3 times, I''m assuming all these skills have different mana costs. Ah, yes 2 and a half minutes to fill back up." "Ha! 5 times, butalmost 3 minutes." "6 times, and 2 minutes as well." "Oh wow, Flash is cheap then I guess, I can cast it 14 times, and it takes about 3 minutes to recharge too." Having finished going over everyone''s numbers in order, Maximillian motions everyone to start walking. "Alright everyone, we should probably plan out how we are going to use our skills. I''m thinking we''ll have Caleb create a wall between us and any Zombies we find. Amy, you''ll save yours for if we get surprised by one. Elizabeth, try and use yours on any lead Zombies we come across in groups. Damage dealers, take turns shooting at them, try and make sure that something is going out to hit them in a constant cycle. I''ll be slowing any that try to go around Caleb''s walls. Westen, I believe you already know you are on the lookout to stop anybody getting too hurt. Randolf, do your best to Flash every Zombie we come across, starting at the closest ones. Hopefully it''ll disoriente them even though they are undead. Now then everyone, let''s go kill us some Zombies." So saying, he starts walking off further into the field, and towards a hill ahead. The rest of the group follows, ready to start their first real test under the System. Zombie Hunting for Beginners McOris and his new party walk to the top of a small hill, and immediately see a singular lone zombie. Its about 15 meters away, shuffling along and apparently entirely oblivious to the group on the hill. Beyond the Zombie are more hills, going off in every direction in front of them. Its going to take awhile to search through all these, especially if its all 1 Zombie at a time. Still though, this is their first enemy. A Level 1 Zombie. None of them are terribly worried about it. "Alright team, for this first Zombie, we should probably all use our skills. Just to test them out. Support skills first, then damage. Well except for you Westen, hopefully we don''t need you to cast yours at all during this. Alright, Caleb, you go first. Try and create a nice wall halfway between us and the Zombie, or as close to it as your range allows. Then Randolf, Flash the thing. I''ll Icy Wind it, Elizabeth can Curse it. Amy, I guess just Haste yourself." Maximillian starts, before being interrupted by Amy. "Its Winds of Haste Maximillian, actually can I call you Max while we''re out here, Maximillian takes forever to say." She says with a huff to start, and then a smile at Maximillian as she finishes. With a sigh he responds, "Yes, Winds of Haste, and I suppose while in this Dungeon you can call me Max. Moving on. Once the support skills have all been used, the rest will use their offensive skills. Firebolts first, see if they do any extra damage to Zombies, or have any impact on the Icy Winds effects. Then the Force Missile. The three of you can just repeat that until it goes down. Which hopefully won''t take many shots to do." The group nods their understanding and agreement, and Max turns towards Caleb and motions for him to start. Caleb steps forward, and reaches out his hand to point towards where he wants the wall to rise. Willing the skill to start, he feels his mana leaving him, and a wall slowly rises from the ground, only half a meter high, 2 meters long, and a tench of a meter thick. Its made of dirt, but keeps its shape fairly well, just a straight rectangle. Caleb stares at the wall, not sure if he should be impressed that he did actual magic creating out of nowhere 100+ kilograms of dirt, or disappointed that its really not exactly the best wall. Still though he turns and nods toward Randolf. Randolf takes his cue, and points at the Zombie directly, causing a bright burst of light that seems to startle the Zombie. It stops its slow shuffle, and starts clawing at the air in front of it, clearly not able to understand what just happened. Max then steps forward and waves an Icy Wind towards the Zombie. A light dusting of frost covers it, and its movements slow noticeably, at the same time Amy motions towards herself, and a breeze starts ruffling her clothes and hair, all her movements suddenly becoming a bit faster. With the wind, the Zombie seems to notice something, and turns towards the group. Seeing living things there, it starts hobbling towards them. Its all alone, and slow, leaving the group still fairly confident of their success. Elizabeth is the next to act. She gestures towards the Zombie, moving her fingers in a witchy way. The Zombie quickly darkens, though no other noticeable change occurs in it. She frowns slightly at the apparent lack of effect, but steps back out of the way, leaving things clear for the damage dealers. All the while the Zombie slowly moves towards them. Now that all the support casters have finished casting their spells, Sarah and Barney step forward. Barney turns to Sarah and smiles at her, saying "Ladies first!" and gesturing for her to go first. She nods in reply, pulls her arm back, and makes a throwing motion, mid way through, fire appears in her hand and as it reaches the end of the throw, she releases it towards the Zombie. It flies towards it, but lands a little low, hitting it in the legs. There is a small explosion of fire, and the Zombies pants catch fire, which slowly starts spreading out. The Zombie starts smoking, and its flesh seems to obviously burn. Barney nods at her, steps forward and holds his hand out. The Firebolt shoots from his hand towards the Zombie, and hits it in the torso. This knocks the Zombie back a bit, and catches its shirt on fire. The fires slowly continue spreading as the Zombie keeps up its relentless walk towards the group. At this point, getting close to the wall between them. McOris points his finger at the Zombie, and wills his skill to activate, thinking Force Missile as he wills the skill to fire. A faint green cone shoots towards the Zombie, and aims unerringly at its torso, knocking it back again with the force, though it still continues on. Seeing this the group look at each other. "Well, I guess we just keep cycling through attacks until it stops. Gotta work eventually, right?" Barney says, shooting another FIrebolt at it. This time when he does so, it hits the Zombie in the head, and it crumples before them. "Oh, well hey that was easy!" As he says this, a screen appears before the group.
Quest Progress 1/100 Zombies Killed
"Alright, that''s a start at least, but we''re going to take awhile if they are all solo like that. Hopefully, that won''t be too much of a problem." Max states, before waving the group forward towards the next set of hills. As the group walks up, the start to crouch lower, trying to reduce their profile on the hill, hoping to make sure they keep surprising the Zombies, and not the other way around. The valley beyond it has nothing though, so they continue on. Continuing their wary progress, they crest another hill, and come upon something significantly scarier. A group of 5 zombies. This group is shuffling slowly away from them, so they have the chance to blindside these Zombies as well. With 5 of them though, this group is significantly more dangerous than the lone one they fought before. "Alright team, we''re going to have to be careful here. With so many of them, our best bet is probably going to be killing them one at a time, keep our distance, slowly back up and just kite them to death. Those of us who can slow them down, or distract them do so. We''ll try and make sure that the closest one is left alone, so you damage dealers can get rid of it, and hopefully we can get them into a straight line, and just blast them down. With this many, taking 3 Firebolts and 1 Force Missile for the last one, we probably can''t kill them all before you run out of mana for your skills. Should be able to take out 3 of them before you run out. So you''ll kill the first 3 as fast as you can. That will leave just 2 of them, and we''ll have to just have to stay outside their range while you 3 recharge your mana." Max is quick to form a plan, and tell the group what to do. The previously nervous group is now feeling much more confident. Barney steps up first, and immediately raises his hand and fires a shot. "I''ll get the party started then." He comments as his Firebolt flies towards the Zombie closest to the group. It lands off center, hitting the thing in its right shoulder. Still though, it catches fire and begins to burn. Immediately the group of Zombies stops, and turns back towards the group. They all give out an eerie moan and begin to move towards the party. They aren''t in any kind of formation, they''re just all moving in the same direction. Sometimes even getting in each other''s way. With the Zombie group heading towards them, Sarah unleashes her own Firebolt, throwing it at the lead Zombie, this time she hits it in left leg just as its taking a step with it, causing it to stumble. As it does so, the Zombies behind it run into it, knocking it further off balance and to the ground, as it continues to burn, now from its shoulder and leg. The other Zombies groan as they step over their fallen but not dead comrade.If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. At this point, with the Zombies grouped up on top of each other, Max signals to Randolf, and the two of them use their abilities. Max manages to get the whole group with his Icy Wind, whilst Randolf''s Flash skill manages to temporarily daze the new front Zombie. McOris starts using his skill now, pointing towards the new lead, he unleashes a Force Missile. It zooms towards his target, taking it directly in the chest. Slowing its advance slightly. The Force Missile doesn''t seem to have done a lot to the thing, so he unleashes another, just as Barney fires a Firebolt. The missile collides with the Zombie first, but the Firebolt hits it right after, both attacks land on the things torso. The whole front of its shirt is now on fire, burning away, revealing that its ribs appear to be pushed in slightly, likely from the Force Missiles. Sarah comes in with her own Firebolt now, hitting the thing in the waist. Its still standing but still burning nicely. McOris launches another missile, and this one finally takes it down. Sending it falling to the ground, no longer moving. Its quickly stepped over by the others, as the first downed Zombie gets itself back up, still lightly burning. Meanwhile Amy has herself and Westen buffed with the Winds of Haste. Elizabeth is ignoring the front Zombies, and is placing curses on ones in back. Caleb decides to try something new, and tries to raise an Earthen Wall right in front the newest leader of the Zombie pack. It works like a charm and trips the thing. Causing the whole group to slow down again. Every second they can get these things distracted, or otherwise away from them, is more time for them to recharge their mana, and finish them off. So he''s feeling pretty proud of himself. The attack team keep going with their spells. It seems to take 3 Force Missiles and 2 Firebolts, or 3 Firebolts and 1 Force Missile to kill one of these basic Zombies. The second one to fall does so from the 3 Firebolt set, 1 from Sarah, and 2 from Barney. Both of them are running low now, only 1 shot each, it''ll be another 15 seconds before Sarah gets enough to cast again. Barney will take longer. McOris has enough for 4 shots left, so they can take out one more before running dry. Trying to take down a third Zombie, McOris leads them off. Activating a Force Missile towards the next closest Zombie, it still strikes directly at the center of the torso. Sarah and Barney are quick to add their own skills, causing their target to burst into flames from two different areas. McOris starts spamming his next two missiles, as fast as he can. Trying to finish the thing off quickly. Now there are only two Zombies left. The one in the back, still burning, and one last Zombie, that''s still relatively untouched save for a sheen of frost over it, slowing it down slightly, as it keeps the burning one behind it, both dedicated to getting to the Mages. The party quickly start moving back, and giving themselves plenty of room. These Zombies aren''t terribly fast, but better to keep their distance, just in case. Still though, as the last two Zombies move in, they suddenly become one. The Zombie that had been burning all this time, finally falls to the ground its flesh burnt far too much to still be viable. Leaving just one Zombie left. Now the group is feeling much better. They''d learned something new about how the Zombies worked, and about how effective Firebolt could really be. Leaving both Sarah and Barney looking quite proud of themselves for their choice. The party easily dispatch the last Zombie as their mana recovers. Once the last Zombie falls with a groan, the group get a new window, telling them how many Zombies they have left. Now that they realize the Zombies can come in groups, they are a bit more worried. The party hunkers down on their hill and wait out the recovery of their attackers mana. It only takes a few minutes, but it gives everyone a chance to calm down, and think about how crazy this whole thing is. They are in a group of people with actual Magic, fighting off against Zombies. Its incredible, and terrifying. They''d done well so far, but with only 3 people that can attack. What are they going to do if they get surrounded by groups, or if they come across a much larger group. Ruko only said that they had to kill 100 of the things, not that there were only 100 in this training dungeon. Having thought about this issue, Caleb finally speaks up. "Uhh, guys? I think it might be a good idea for us to wait to go attack more Zombies for a bit. I''ve got a little use in a fight by tripping a Zombie or two, but that''s not terribly useful. I think though that if I can take a little while. I can set up some decent walls. If I do that, we may be able to set up a kind of fort or something. Give ourselves a place to fall back to if we run into anything crazy. I should be able to build something useful like that with a bit of time. I think it could really come in handy if we need it." Afterwards he looks around the group, asking with his eyes if anyone else thinks its a good idea. Amy speaks up next, "If he''s going to be fortifying the area, maybe I should take someone with me, and scout around with my Winds of Haste? Get a better idea of the area, and where Zombies are, hopefully with just two people, they won''t notice us even if they aren''t looking away from us when we spot them... Could get a better idea of what kind of size Zombie groups are in. We''d run away as soon as we get spotted, stuff like that. If we do this right, we could even help tell Caleb where the biggest groups will be coming from, so he can make those sides extra tough right?" Max is nodding along at these idea. "I think this could work, would have to be very careful with scouting though. Make sure neither of you leave the other behind. I think it would work best if you brought someone with Firebolt. Should be able to shoot it into the air once if you find yourselves in trouble. Kinda like a signal flare. We''ll be watching out for it, and know to come to you if you do so. Not really big on the idea of splitting up, but knowledge is power, if you and whoever you bring can find a few different groups, we can all go together and clear out the smaller ones first. Get used to things." As soon as Max stops speaking Barney speaks up, "Oh! I''ll go with her, keep her company, and keep her safe!" He says the last bit with a grin on his face as he looks towards Amy. She just rolls her eyes at his antics, but nods her head in acquiescence. With the scouts picked out, they head off, moving quickly but staying low, trying not to be spotted early. As they leave, Caleb starts working on fortifying the hilltop they are on. Thinking about it, he decides to just but up a circle of walls to start with. Luckily he finds he can curve the Earthen Wall he makes around the hilltop. It takes quite a bit of sitting around waiting for his mana to regenerate, but he''s able to get a single layer wall all around the hill, save for a single wall section''s width, back towards the direction Ruko is waiting for them. It seems like the safest direction, and they need some easy way to enter or leave the wall. With that done, he starts working on adding a second Earthen Wall on top of his previous wall. Luckily it works as he''d hoped. He starts slowly adding to the wall. The rest of the group waiting there, decide to just look over the nearby hills, just to make sure they aren''t all about to get attacked by any groups of Zombies nearby. They are slow and careful about it, and only find a single Zombie beyond any of these hills. They quickly take it out, and head back to Caleb''s slowly growing fort to wait. When Caleb is nearly half way done with his second layer of the wall, he jerks to a stop suddenly with a smile on his face. The rest of the group notice this oddity, and get up to walk over to him. "Caleb you OK?" asks Elizabeth. "OK? HA! More than OK, I just gained a level in Earthen Wall. Now its bigger and stronger than ever. Most expensive skill, but the first of the group to gain a level in it. Hell yeah!" after getting brought out of his inspection of the new effects of the level, he''s quite happy with himself and his plan. He still has to wait for his mana to regenerate, but he''s no longer sitting around waiting for it, instead he walks up to his wall, and starts inspecting it, looking forward to seeing just how the changes present themselves. The rest of the group go back to what they were doing. Most of them are chatting softly together, McOris though is sitting with his back to the wall, and practicing the mana gathering technique that first showed he had good potential for being a Mage. Quietly playing with and manipulating the little ball of mana between his hands. A few minutes after Caleb finishes his wall, the scouts return. They bring news a dozen Zombie groups, of various sizes nearby, most of which are larger than the one they already fought. They gather everyone up, and start heading towards the smallest of them, a group of 3. Something simple and hopefully easy to kill.