《Karma Online: Awakening》 1 Choices, 2 Funny Familiar, 3 learning curve Karma Online: Awakening ByZalenBloom Page BreakCopywrite page? By: Robert W. Thomas as,ZalenBloom Page BreakDedication page Page BreakPreface Page Break 1 It was a bright autumn day. I see a ball bouncing into the street, then lights begin to flash. On, off, on, off, on. Darkness . . . Cold . . . An oppressive quiet and an overwhelming empty space envelops me like warm honey. I become frightened and I feel choked by the dark vast space. If I had a body, it would be shaking uncontrollably. I''m floating in the pressure of the darkness; like being drawn deep into the ocean, but feeling the lightness of zero gravity. The sensations were so contradictory my mind was reeling. I can''t move or speak. Am I even thinking? How long have I been here? I have no body that I can sense. I, me, Despair. Days, months, centuries pass. Who am I? Infinity¡­ What am I¡­ Why am I¡­ A buzz softly echoes in my head and again and again the buzz is growing louder. Then a final buzz as if to shake the void and who I am to the core. Then an explosion of colors, if you had to give it a description, washes over me. Bright clean white light radiates around and within. Almost like I¡¯ve been born anew. I am, I was, I will be. ¡°Welcome,¡± a kind female voice announces calmly. The voice reverberates within me, instilling such a sense of relaxation and peace. I find my emotions engulf me and I sob. There is more to this existence than fear and oppression. Gravity takes hold as I feel my feet touch down, but I still cannot see the ground nor the feet I should be standing on. The room I''m in now is maybe 20 by 20 feet. The walls become gray, soft, and friendly compared to the brightness of becoming. ¡°We need you,¡± the voice says. ¡°We need you to choose. You may choose to move on, in the great cycle; or, as I recommend, pick a form that is most appealing and well suited to you. The ideal representation of yourself. Once you have chosen you will be given a new life in which many great and terrible things may confront you.¡± "What... are you? Where... am I? How did I... get here? What... do you mean... new life?¡± I say in groggy confusion. The voice replies, ¡°All will become apparent in time. I can understand this is all confusing to you, but rest assured everything that has happened will be known to you in time. I am not able to give you any more information than that at this time. Once you have entered the worlds, you will learn much of yourself and what became of you before being brought here. Now choose, I have little time left here and you must make a decision.¡± Suddenly, thousands of bodies, or rather avatars, appear before me; shuffling through almost too fast to notice. Humanoid, alien like forms of every shape and size flash through my vision, continuing to flash by until the shuffle slows then stops. The very idea of who I feel I am stands before me. It''s roughly akin to if I were standing in front of the mirror looking at myself. The avatar is tall, a solid 6¡¯3¡± and well built. I get a sense that the musculature is not from working out, but rather the body works hard to survive, and has earned the build from many grueling hours of toiling away. The face is ruggedly handsome with a wild beard. The hair of the avatar is a glossy black, almost like dark carbon fibers. The unruly mop stands untamed, not quite long enough to pull back into a fighter¡¯s knot. The eyes are hard, sharp, and glow a liquid orange, almost like the burning coals of a fire. The skin is a deep tan bordering a metallic bronze that seems just as tough. The face of the avatar is kind, smart, and sharp like a mysterious teacher. The grandiose smile of the avatar was bright white with elongated canine teeth, but not quite vampiric in length. The overall sense I get from what I see before me is a very animalistic man. A sense of danger emanates from the being like a cloak that can¡¯t be cast aside. The voice begins to speak once again. ¡°Ah... what a fantastic choice. It has been ages since such an avatar has found its soul. If you wish to know more about your avatar, simply think it and you will be shown.¡± ¡°If you are familiar with VR games, then you will be able to interface in a similar fashion and progress will be easily tracked through the various displays. We tend to not give our new players much information on the Worlds because it ends up slowing their progress. We find that intuitive action and learning for oneself is the best way to maximize your potential.¡± ¡°The Worlds themselves have few rules and restrictions, so anything may be possible as long as you have the skill, fortitude, and flexibility. The best and only advice we give to the newcomers is: explore, experiment, and enjoy your new form.¡± As quickly as it came the voice was gone. The presence of the being I was with vanished and once again the world felt empty. A dread quickly gained purchase in my gut, and the very thought of being suspended in the darkness again gnawed at my bones. ¡°I don''t understand!¡± I yell to no one. ¡°Who am I, and why am I here!?¡± After several minutes I come to a terrifying, but apparent conclusion; I must power through this and find out what''s going on. Nothing will come from continuing to agonize about my situation. I look to the avatar and shrug. I might as well get to know my new body, I thought. As soon as the thought came into being, my essence, my very soul sweeps toward the avatar like a wisp of fog being sucked into the body. I stagger under the new sensations and the form I now inhabit. I am no longer a shade without a body, but a being of superior might. After a few moments of filling out my body, I grow to feel like it has been mine for a million years. It is as if I have grown up being this person; like this is who I¡¯ve always been. I concentrate on the idea of myself and see a character type sheet appear with the name of the race being UNKNOWN. The information given about this race is that they can absorb memories, skills, knowledge, and powers. I expanded the information on this section. It reads as such: This ability is activated through the drinking of any being''s life essence. This could be through mutual consent or through combat. Although great perks can be affiliated with this power, it is easy to lose sight of who you are. The memories might become so overwhelming you get lost in your own mind. This can cause great stress and danger, especially in the heat of battle. So be warned, partake of the essence at your own risk. Only the strong of will can make the greatest use of this power. My new body also came with dark vision, resistances to physical and magical attacks as the other inherent abilities. There were no other bonuses to the avatar that I could see. The stats for the avatar were all gray and set in part by my own physical and mental abilities before I came to this reality. As I look over the stats each one explains exactly what they do, and I find what useful information I need to know about them. The voice was right, this is almost exactly like a VR game. It¡¯s crazy I can remember what that is, but can¡¯t remember a damn thing about who I am. Maybe this information was made available to me through the process of joining with my avatar. With the knowledge I have, I begin to go through the stats one by one. ~Strength 10, this stat directly influences your physical attack, ability to carry heavy objects, and resistance to physical damage. ~Agility 30, this stat directly influences your speed in combat, your ability to dodge and make attacks, and can influence accuracy. ~Constitution 10, this is your ability to resist ill effects such as poison and curses. It also affects your base health. ~Intelligence 10, this stat directly influences how well you learn new skills outside of your given abilities. This also directly affects your magical damage and resistance. ~Wisdom 10, this stat will aid in the recovery of stamina and mana, as well as your ability to use the knowledge you have more effectively. These are all the base stats any given character has. As I finish reading through those I notice a smaller section below that read ¡®Variable stats (not adjustable)¡¯. ~Will 20, the ability to power through. This is used in conjunction with strength, intelligence and constitution to create your resistance modifiers. Will has the greatest effect since it¡¯s a multiplier and not a base stat. Adding constitution and strength with a multiplier of will, will give you your resistance to physical attacks. The same goes for intelligence with magical resistance. Constitution is your resistance to everything else such as poison and curses that do not fall perfectly into any one category. This Willstatis given based on your resistance ability. ~Luck 20 this stat will influence everything. Not everyone gets Luck as a stat. This is given as a racial stat in your case. ~Absorption 30%, this stat is given as a racial ability stat. This affects how much you gain from the essence you take. There is a subscript for Absorption to expand even further how complicated and dangerous this stat and ability is. It explains for instance, if you were to absorb a skill from a master artisan you would be only 30% of that given master''s ability. So, you would be at the apprentice stage. You would have all the knowledge, but would lack the practical skill to use all that knowledge appropriately and efficiently. The abilities you gain will be listed by ability level. Novice, apprentice, adept, expert and master. Practicing any absorbed powers, skill, and abilities will quicken the process of learning and excelling in those you¡¯ve become acquainted. Once you have learned something new through absorption it is as if it was yours all along. ¡°That¡¯s a lot of information to take in all at once,¡± I think to myself. ¡°It''s not going to be easy to keep this character in balance.¡± I continue to familiarize myself with the stat sheet and find that the Will, Luck and Absorption skills are variable and will grow with my character. I have no direct way of changing them. Strength, Agility, Constitution, Intelligence and Wisdom will also grow with my character through daily work and study. All the stats will grow depending on the stress in the areas that are being used. On top of natural growth, a character will level up and be given 5 stat points per level to distribute through these physical stats. Levels can be gained through: questing, study, crafting, and/or achieving milestones, especially lucrative ones where no others have achieved them before. ¡°Well... the system for growth is easy to understand. At least I have that going for me,¡± I grumble. I keep getting this nagging feeling that I¡¯m forgetting something and that''s when it hits me. I have no class. In the place where a class designation would be, was a completely black void; like anything listed there would be sucked into oblivion. I mentally prod the class section of the sheet and this error message displays. ERROR: Due to the chosen race, your classcannotbe appointed. No one class will ever fit the race selected. I begin to panic and it''s almost like I hear a maniacal laughter from somewhere. ¡°Well shit, not only am I dealt this unsavory hand, I''m stuck in what seems like a terrible avatar. How am I to grow if not through a class progression? Am I even going to be able to craft? What is this avatar good for?¡± I think to myself. I sit there a little longer, thinking what I should do next, when I see a strange blinking in the corner of my eye. It says ENTER and there is a count down. 10... ¡°Shit!¡± 9... ¡°What the fuck am I going to do?¡± 8... ¡°I don''t know anything about this reality?¡± 7... ¡°Here we go. What can I do but meet it head on.¡± 6... ¡°Why is this happening to me?¡± 5... ¡°When I figure this shit out someone''s going to get an ear full.¡± 4... the room begins to fade, 3, 2, 1. 2 Darkness takes me again, only to feel like I am being dropped from the sky. Wait... I really am being dropped from the sky! ¡°This... sucks...¡± I bellow. With a slew of expletives to follow. I¡¯m speeding through the sky like one of those meteors that destroy entire worlds. Even now through the turbulence, I can hear someone laughing hysterically at the misfortune I''m about to encounter. As I rocket towards the ground the landscape grows closer and closer, my ass puckers like it knows it¡¯s about to get violated. I resolve myself to leaving this world in a flash and that''s when I begin to slow. Right before my demise I gently land on the ground. If this body wasn''t so new I probably would have shit myself. I feel a bit nippy and realize that I''m bare ass naked, and I notice that I have several tattoos that were not part of the previous character building process. I look around in frustration at the clearing, where I so elegantly landed, and begin to feel an itching across my skin. One of the tattoos begin to wind its way around my neck, across my torso, getting closer and closer to my junk. It was the one I noticed in the form of a dragon. I slap at the tattoo and it stops moving. It slowly begins to raise off my skin weaving hypnotically. Its eyes glow a malicious fiery red. It rears back as if to spew fire from the depths of its draconic form. I try to cover my face and prepare for the attack, but it never comes. I hear a little voice laughing uncontrollably. I peek around the safety of my hands and I see a small woman, perhaps a little bigger than 3 feet tall. She is slender, quite beautiful and exudes a sense of confidence I find admirable. She is dressed in a tightly wound layer of gray fabric around her torso with loosely fitting practical pants to match. She has no shoes or any other ornament. The laughter continues, and she falls to the ground rolling, unable to control herself anymore. I clear my throat, ¡°Hmm hmmm. What¡¯s so funny and why did you just come out of my body?¡± The little form calms herself. ¡°I am Waverly, I was given to you to be your familiar. My job is to guide, teach and help you inanywayI can. As for why I came out of you this was the chosen method of attaching me to you. I was given as part of a kit to assist you in your adventures. If you don''t mind, I think you should put some clothes on or a girl might get the wrong idea with you waving your club around like that.¡± she sheepishly eyes me.Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. ¡°I don¡¯t have any clothes.¡± I grunt in frustration. ¡°Nonsense!¡± Waverly replies. ¡°Simply tap the tattoo on your chest in the guise of a shield and you will be equipped with your starter gear.¡± I look down seeing that I have a tattoo on my left thigh just where a pocket might be, a dagger tattoo on each wrist, and finally a shield over my left pectoral. I raise my hand, tapping the tattoo over my chest. As if the clothing came bursting out of my skin, I am clothed in a soft leather jerkin, pants of the same material, a worn pair of shoes and a cloak. The jerkin and pants are dyed a dirty brownish green. The shoes although worn were comfortable, broken in and an earthy brown Shade. The cloak was a mottled gray-green with worn tattered edges, perfect for blending in. ¡°Ah, that''s much betteryaperv,¡± Waverly remarks sarcastically with a look of sly satisfaction. ¡°Now we can have a conversation without me thinking about you whacking me over the head with your fleshy bits.¡± ¡°As you may have noticed you have several other tattoos on your person. Each one has its own unique specialty. As you have already found I am your dragon tattoo. I can return to your body and appear as you see fit. We can communicate telepathically, but I find that it''s easier in the beginning to create a bond through good old-fashioned speech. We can communicate in this manner up to about a mile away. The longer we are together and the higher level you become the greater the distance our communication bond will grow.¡± ¡°The daggers are as you can imagine daggers, however if you find yourself looking to new or advanced weapons you can swap them out with the daggers you have from your kit. Each dagger tattoo holds 5 daggers. You will have to play with balance and find what suits you best and how much the tattoos are willing to compensate.¡± ¡°The shield tattoo holds your current armor set. If you wish to upgrade simply don a new set, touch your shield, and it will attune to the new set. You can have 4 sets attuned at a time. I would recommend having a nicely tailored set of clothes, a travel set, and 2 sets for battle/adventuring. All you must do is picture the set you wish to equip and tap the shield.¡± ¡°No one else can change the settings of these tattoos but you. As you level up and grow you will find that these tattoos will adapt to you.¡± ¡°Last but not least is the tattoo on your thigh. This is a very special tattoo, it is a dimensional pocket. This is what you will use to store your items. Nobody, not even the best of thieves can enter your storage.¡± ¡°The number of items in the dimensional pocket is calculated based on your strength intelligence and will stats. The strength lends to the weight it can carry, the intelligence expands the dimension, and your will is the glue that holds them together. Your current weight capacity is currently 200 pounds. This may seem like a lot but as you quest and adventure you will accrue many items and necessities to survive in the worlds.¡± ¡°Now take some time to get familiar with your new tattoos. They are very unique and expensive to have. I am not at liberty to let you know who gifted you such rare abilities, but rest assured they are given freely and without expectation.¡± I clear my throat, once more overwhelmed with the sheer amount of information she was flooding me with. ¡°That is very interesting, I suppose I should thank you Waverly. Even if you spoke so quickly I could hardly keep up. You are the first being I¡¯ve seen or had the opportunity to converse with. There was a voice that got me started a while ago, but it was not helpful in the least. Do you know who I am?¡± I asked pleading. ¡°That I am afraid, I do not know. I was given some basic information about you and your abilities, but we both must learn about who you are. I am simply an aid for you to use in understanding the Worlds, game play, and to give minor help in combat. Although I can take care of myself, I have no actual combat abilities at this time. I was given your name in this reality, and that is all. They told me to call you Salvino O¡¯Shea.¡± ¡°SalvinoO¡¯shea,¡± I say out loud, ¡°I think I can get use to that. It just sounds right.¡± Waverly smiles at me and says, ¡°Sorry about the laughter, but everyone gets the same treatment when entering the worlds. It''s sort of a hazing ritual thing that the creators of this realm came up with. It¡¯s supposed to make you more feel more relaxed and accepting of the surroundings you''ve been mysteriously thrown into.¡± I whisper, ¡°It¡¯s ok I¡¯m a total noob, I didn''t expect to be welcomed warmly into this game. If it were anything like the games I vaguely remember, I would be in for a steep learning curve.¡± After our conversation Waverly just sat there watching, waiting for me to ask questions or direct her. The calm relaxing demeanor was wearing on me like one of those ugly Christmas sweaters. They were just created to make you cringe. In the end I ignore her and attend to my first problem, that being everything else. I laugh internally. I begin with the most important thing, I was still so new to this body and tattoos. I decided to get to know my body and various aspects of control I¡¯ve been given. I open my dimensional space to see if I have any items and find that I have 100 gold, 10 days of travel rations including water, a sleeping bag, tent, tinder box and 3 vials labeled health potions. They heal instantly up to 100 health points or HP as they are noted on my sheet. I look once again at my sheet to see how much HP I have and find its calculated based off strength plus constitution plus will and uses level as a multiplier. That means I get 40 HP to start. ¡°Not bad,¡± I say to myself. ¡°I can soak up some damage, I am already quite ahead of the game with my will boosting everything.¡± Done with that I focus again on my daggers and Waverly, sensing what I¡¯m trying to do, calls out. ¡°Imagine the knife falling into your hand, twitch your hand back slightly and a dagger will fall into your palm. You should practice this as the timing will be a little difficult at first.¡± Boy was she right, I kept dropping them repeatedly. It seemed like I took hours of time trying to get this to work out. Finally, they start falling into place at just the right time. I keep practicing until I haven¡¯t dropped a knife after about 20 consecutive tries on each side. When I thought I had enough mastery of getting the daggers into my hands, I begin to practice throwing them. First, standing stilland,asI became more comfortable, I tried it as I was moving. This was much more difficult, but I was enjoying the challenge. I continued like this for quite some time. I was in such a trance and in my own special place, that hours had passed. It had grown dark without even the slightest perception of it, since I had night vision it was less noticeable than it should have been. As I came out of my training daze, I notice a flashing in my vision. Not urgent but a steady blinking. It was just out of normal view in my periphery and I wouldn''t have notice it unless I was completely relaxed or unburdened with work. I focus on the blinking and several notification pop ups. ~Congratulations! You¡¯ve leveled agility 5 times through sheer will and determination! You trained for 16 hours on a finesse weapon skill and have been rewarded for your effort. ~New skill obtained - Calling the Blade. This skill allows you to call your blades from your marks of power, allowing you to use them as you see fit. ~Congratulations! You are the first to have such a skill and have been rewarded 2 intelligence points and 2 wisdom points. Your will also has increased to 25 due to your tenacity in learning the skill. ~Congratulations! 10 experience points earned. 90 experience points required for next level. So that brings my intelligence and wisdom to 12. My strength and constitution are still at 10, I will have to figure a way to work on that. My agility got a nice boost and is at 35 and so did will at 25. Hmmm my luck is still at 20 no surprise there and my absorption is still at 30%. I will have to work on ways to train each skill and see what and how much I can affect the stats through training alone. Well that''s enough training for now, I¡¯m starting to get hungry, and I think while I¡¯m at it I will get some rest. ¡°Waverly, can you wake me up if you notice anything strange or possibly dangerous around.¡± I ask aloud, startling the little halfling familiar. ¡°Sure, Sal. Get some rest¡± Waverly replies. ¡°Sal? Hmmm, not a bad nickname.¡± I think aloud Waverly snickers and rolls her eyes. She waves her hands in a shooing motion, implying that I¡¯m somehow bothering her. I simply turn and look more closely at my surroundings. Since I literally landed here, I haven¡¯t taken the time to look around. The trees all have a familiar feel to them, they look like they simply belong. I notice nothing out of the ordinary about the inviting green canopy. I decide to walk out of the clearing where I landed and entered the forest. I find a nice spot under a large tree and make myself comfortable. The air is warm, pleasant, not too humid. I remove a ration out of my dimensional space and stop. That''s a complicated way of thinking about it. I should just call it my pack, it makes it easier to think about. I close my pack and nibble away at the dry bread, meat, and fruit. Oddly enough it was not bad for pack food. Once I finished eating I closed my eyes and fell fast asleep. *** I begin dreaming of another place, and time. There were buildings reaching into the sky like hungry fingers. The noises were defining like a chaotic orchestra tuning their instruments. I could see multiple vehicles flashing by like small versions of spacecraft entering hyperspace. My eyes are drawn toward a ball bouncing toward and into the street. Then suddenly I''m standing in a kitchen. The surroundings were warm and welcoming. I hear laughter and see a woman working vigilantly over the stove. The smell is so amazingly savory and appetizing. My olfactory sense did a little jig. If I weren¡¯t dreaming I swear I would be salivating without remorse. Page Break 3 ¡°Sal wake up! Wake up! Wake up! Wake up!¡± Waverly yells in my mind and aloud. ¡°Wake up dumb ass or you might get eaten.¡± I can¡¯t see her anywhere, but as I look down I notice a giant wolf with hackles raised inching closer and closer. A deep rumble emanates somewhere from within the horse sized wolf¡¯s chest. I try to back away from the beast to give myself some sort of chance, but I¡¯m cornered. The jaws open, spittle dripping from dagger like fangs. The muscles of the wolf start to coil like a spring and it pounces strait for my throat. I scream, putting my hands up in defense. I hear the rumbling start to rev up and down first slowly then more rapidly. I feel its teeth sink into my flesh, and as I imagine the beast starting to devour me. It just licks me and while it continues to lick me, the rumbling turns into laughter. Waverly¡¯s voice speaks in my mind. ¡°Always be prepared noob. You could have just died relying on me to know and see everything. You¡¯ve put your trust in me, but you have no reason to do so. This is your first lesson. First, trust must be earned and never given in whole. I am part of you now, so we share a bond that cannot be easily broken. We are reliant on each other for survival, but you did not know it when you fell asleep. Second, especially in the wilds which is where we currently are, never fall asleep without a plan of escape, and always with a weapon close at hand. Remember those fancy tattoos you have?¡± She said rhetorically. ¡°Yeah the ones you practiced with for so long yesterday. You forgot about them even in the moment where it could have been the difference between life or death.¡± she sighs. ¡°This is going to be a steep learning curve for you. You must learn to defend yourself. Thrive in a world where death comes easy and life must be fought for every breath of the day. When you die here it is terrible and painful. You may resurrect if you wish. It will always be your choice to live here. You lose nothing in dying since you have your pack. Yes, I know that''s what you''re calling it now. Remember, I am part of you. It retains all items and currency without fear of losing anything. The same goes for your other tattoos. Everything you adapt and attune to will be soul bound until you move on to the next best thing.¡± she shakes her head and mumbles to herself. ¡°You my friend are going to need a lot of work. I can see that you are upset with me at the rouse with the wolf, but you must understand it is how I teach, and I find it most effective. I can also sense you don¡¯t like that I am pretty much in your head. It is my obligation to keep any information gleaned through you to myself unless you otherwise state I can share. If you feel the need to keep anything to yourself that you wish for me not to be privy to you must will it. The information will be blocked from me until you deem it relevant for me to know.¡± She puts her arms palm up at her sides shrugging. I eye her suspiciously and begin to relax once more. ¡°Let me get this straight you basically can know anything I know, unless I feel like I don''t want you to know something?¡± I ask skeptically. ¡°You got it Sal. See there is hope for you yet. This Is a one-way street however. You will not have access to my knowledge until it is requested, or I think it relevant. The information I know can really damage your chances of survival and growth if given at the wrong time. You must trudge forward and experience things and learn as you go, otherwise you will be the weaker for it. ¡°This world is built for the strong and those who work hard for the skills, knowledge and power they seek. No one here is given anything except a chance. If a greater being finds you interesting, you might get a gift at the start of your journey like you have. Those gifts although rare and unique will only give you a slight edge on the other inhabitants of the worlds so take my warning to heart and be careful.¡± Waverly replies in a long-winded torrent of information. ¡°Ok I think I get that now. Can you go back to the part about resurrecting though?¡± I reply with a huff. ¡°Well yes you have the choice to be resurrected or not. If you chose to not be resurrected, you will be given a while to make sure you won''t change your mind and then you will go to the great beyond. ¡°No one knows what is after this, but that''s a whole new adventure isn¡¯t it. When you do resurrect it is painful and makes you wish you were dead again. You can feel every ounce of pain your body went through before you died. ¡°This is what we call The Dead Man''sDebuff. The pain will last what seems for hours and you will have to endure it until your health and mana both replenish to 100%. ¡°You may not take any potions during this time and spells will not be effective to heal or replenish you. The only thing that will affect your recovery is your stats, skills, or abilities you might have to aid in the recovery of health and mana.¡± She smiles and shrugs once again as if saying it''s not my rule, that''s just how it is. ¡°I suppose that there has to be some consequence to dying, especially if given the chance to come back. I will just have to do my best not to die.¡± I say aloud. I guess that''s another thing on my list of things to do. I must try to get my recovery up by learning or absorbing some skills or abilities. ¡°Waverly, what affects my recovery again, I seem to remember reading that wisdom aids in mana, health, and stamina recovery.¡± I ask curiously. ¡°The best thing about you is that your race affords you some benefits. Wisdom plus intelligence plus will divided by 60 seconds is how many points you gain in mana. Stamina is basically how quickly you get tired and is based off the same calculation as health. Strength plus constitution then multiplied by your will. So, stamina and health will recover basically at the same rate per second of strength plus constitution plus wisdom plus will divided by 60 seconds. Working on your stats will be important and depending on the type of character you build you will want to focus on building your stats to compliment your play style.¡± She says with a sigh. ¡°So, if I get this nice bonus to my stats how do other people calculate their stats.¡± I ask stupefied. ¡°Well that is fairly easy. In the place of your will the other beings simply do not have the stat to add or their multiplier is a flat 10. This multiplier can change depending on the class of the player, items, skills or abilities that they might have picked up.¡± she states with a flippant wave of her hand. ¡°Okay, I think I''m starting to get a grasp on how everything relates and how much of a head start my selections have given me.¡± I reply frankly. ¡°I can also see the disadvantage I am starting with by not having a class.¡± ¡°Well Sal you can¡¯t win them all,¡± she says cutting me off. ¡°Think of this, you have to have balance in anything. Without balance the worlds and life would be in chaos. You might think you are at a disadvantage now, but in time you will fly far above any at your level. You can learn anything given the time. ¡°Just remember your greatest ability is the power to absorb anything your heart desires. The only thing you must worry about is the backlash of information and losing your identity in the process. Remember try not to take too much at once or you will regret it.¡± Waverly warns stoically. ¡°I will surely rely on you as my compass to guide me through the trials ahead. Make sure I don¡¯t do anything too stupid.¡± I retort. Waiver laughs at that and says. ¡°Oh, you don¡¯t give a girl much to work with. I¡¯ll have my hands full that''s for sure.¡± With that we fell silent. After a time, we decide to head out. Waverly explains to me through our mental link that I have a map interface, and to open it I only must think about it. After taking some time to get my bearings and finding out that I was familiar with the directions. I head toward the nearest village. By the looks of it, it will take several days of walking to get there at an average pace. Waverly chooses to walk along with me in companionable silence for much of the first and second day of our journey. By the third day she begins to twitch and can¡¯t hold her silence any longer. I begin to laugh a deep rich bass. ¡°What''s so funny we¡¯ve been walking for hours and you are stuck in your own head. I¡¯ve been suck without anyone or anything to talk to for what feels likea millenniaand you''re just ho humming your way without a word.¡± She says testily. My laughter fades, I become serious and say, ¡°has it really been so long. Why don¡¯t you tell me about yourself? What you can tell me anyway.¡± Waverly pouts for a few more seconds and begins to tell me of her past. ¡°I can tell you about who I was before I came to the worlds, but I can tell you nothing of my adventures and such here. I just like you came from another place. I did my time in the worlds and one day I was just done, once again floating in the darkness. I will be able to explain more someday, but for now you must understand each of our roads come together at one point or another. Ok enough of the World''s! I grew up a normal human child of earth. I was raised in a healthy home with plenty going for me. My parents were not rich, but we lived a comfortable life. I was an above average student and did my best to stay out of trouble. I excelled in sports and was the top swimmer in my high school. This got me recognized by some of the local universities and I was given a scholarship. I refrain from telling you anything about my appearance and such because it matters not. Suffice to say I was attractive and well liked. I was brought up to be nice to people and give them the benefit of the doubt. One night in college on my way home from a late swim practice, I was approached by a man. He looked homeless. He had dirty clothes on and had a dirty long bushy beard. He asked me for some change and I gave him a few dollars. I told him to take care and god bless. I turned and took a few more steps and the man grabbed me from behind and stabbed me. The pain was unbearable. I lost count of the times he stabbed me after 10. My vision faded into a deep darkness much like the one you were in. The next thing I know I am part of the worlds and this ¡°game¡±. The thing I remember most about that man is his eyes they were deep almost a void of pain and darkness. I thought I could give him a little kindness and hope. In return I died and was reborn here. As you see me now is how I entered the world. My avatar was a shape changer and that is all I can tell you about that. What I can tell you about me now is my stats were reset as I was joined with you. I was given the ability to level as you do, and you won¡¯t ever outgrow me.¡± she wiped a tear from her face. The story brought a lot of sadness and anger. Although she seems to be strong on the outside she really is lonely and in need of companionship. ¡°I promise that I will never put you back into that tattoo without a good reason Waverly. You might have been given to me as a tool, but you are a part of me and I will treat you with respect befitting a friend.¡± I say seriously. Waverly smiles the tears away and rushes at me, she throws her arms around my neck and says ¡°Thank you, I know we were put together for a reason, and while it''s not apparent to you I think I have an idea of why. I still cannot tell you anything about that, but in time you¡¯ll know. The big picture is always hard to see at first.¡± She thanks me again and we continue in introspective silence. Unfortunate Misfortunes All Around 4 ¡°Old McDonald had a farm e I e I ohhhh. And on that farm, there was a maid e I e I oh. With a eee eee here and an iiii iiii there here and eeeee there an iiiiiii everywhere an eeeeiiiii¡± sang a lovely tenor crudely. We have been hearing him sing for a while now, but he has been so far away we haven''t been able to understand what he was saying. It turns out he is quite the rascal. I see no sense in hiding from him. I simply keep walking and have Waverly keep an eye out for him. When she expects him to crest the hill we are ambushed from above. A heavy fleshy feeling blanket falls on us and we hear a voice call out. ¡°well what do we have here a snack perhaps,¡± the voice mischievously ponders. ¡°I¡¯ve been watching you two for half a day now and you seem like a nice enough couple. What I don''t understand is why that beast of a man hasn¡¯t made his move on that lovely little lady.¡± Waverly struggles and starts screaming. ¡°We are friends you creep. Wait until I get out of here, I¡¯m going to show you a thing or two.¡± We hear the muffled laughter of the voice and the blanket rhythmically shaking with his laughter seems to cover us so completely, we can''t move an inch. The only thing I have left to do is to try and bite my way out. I open my mouth and take the fleshy blanket into my mouth and bite down as hard as I can. I rip and tear to gain any sort of freedom. A flood of coppery fluid seeps into my mouth. What is this I think to myself, as the voice bellowed in agony. It¡¯s, it¡¯s... blood, I begin to absorb some of our captor¡¯s skills, abilities and memories. With the flood of information, I black out and find myself floating in the great darkness again. This seems to be a recurrence with me, I think sardonically. My vision blurs and I¡¯m sitting in a small hut. I get the feeling this isn¡¯t me, but maybe a memory of our captor. The hut looks like it was recently vandalized. The roof was in shambles and the door and half the wall were missing. The interesting thing about this is that the wreckage looks like it was blown out from the inside. The form I am in is small and humanoid in shape. The hands are the things that draw my attention the most, they are more what I would consider a paw. The hairy hands clasping at the figures robes as if in frustration, the small claws at the tip of the digits dig furrows into the dark blue cloth. I hear echoes of sobbing as the vision of the creature blurs. The last thing I notice before my vision completely fades are 2 dark pools of blood seeping from the wreckage within the hut. Another vision takes me now to something that feels much more familiar. Like this one belongs to me like a sweet remnant of something only a fond memory could leave behind. I am lying awake in a bed; the room is warm dark and comfortable. It seems like I have been sleeping on and off for several hours as excitement grows within my chest. I can barely see the sun through my open curtain and there is a gently snowfall drifting quietly outside. I jump out of bed in feverish anticipation, running around my room pulling on clothes haphazardly. If anyone had seen me at that moment they would have thought I was a vagrant wearing a motley assortment of cloths, but I didn''t care it was Christmas the best time of the year. I had to have been less than ten years old at the time and I feel a compelling sense of joy as the small figure of myself rushes out of the room yelling, ¡°Wake up, wake up, the sun has come up lazy bones, how can anyone still be in bed when the day has already begun.¡± The very words that rush out of my mouth seem to resonate within me, like I¡¯ve heard them many times before. Then suddenly, a screen showing several new skills abilities and powers are listed in my vision. The sudden change disorients me even more. I slowly gain my senses and It seems I get to choose two options from the list before me. There are 2 blank grey slots to fill, let''s see what we have available. It looks like Sneak, Shape Shift, Alchemy, and several druidic and magical spells. Fire Spear, Ice Spear, and Illusion are the listed magical spells. Wooden Hide, Speak with Animals, and Untraceable spells are the ones listed for druids. I think about the listed spells and skills. I come to the conclusion that I know what I want to take. I select the Sneak skill, and the ability to cast Ice Spear. With that the information is simply mine, the darkness begins to fade, and I notice one last ability that causes me to gag. I wake up and vomit profusely bile finding its way out of my mouth and nares. I try to get the foul gamey flesh and blood out of my mouth. I start licking the ground trying anything to get the awful taste out of my mouth. This was the only thing I could do to get the memory of the rubbery texture, and the sweaty after taste that radiated in a revolting array of conflicting flavors out of my mouth. When I describe the sensations, I simply cannot do it justice, but imagine a piece of steak made of rubber band and the flavor of a dirty jock strap marinating in sweat as the au jus. Waverly seems ok as she''s laughing and rolling wildly on the ground not even looking up at the sound of my retching and our captor is hopping around crying about how the evil fiend bit his sack. As if it were the last thing that he could have imagined happening. I stare daggers into the figure. It was a man, well not quite a man he was a strange dog-racoon hybrid like man. His sack was hanging and dragging along the ground. He had a nice hand full of the injured section in which he was applying a poultice and bandage to help it heal faster. The first words that come out of my mouth are.¡± What the fuck are you and why, just why were we covered in your sack.¡± The strange figure dressed in well-worn kimono type robe made of a hearty greenish brown cloth. ¡°I am Sullivan O¡¯Sullivan and I my dear animal of a man, am a Tanuki. I am a magical being that can shape shift. One of our racial traits is the ability to change the shape and size of our scrotum. ¡°I am simply walking the wilds to collect some herbs for my special potions and cures. I unfortunately am also racially compelled to be a trickster. When I saw you pass me some time ago, I couldn''t help but play a trick on the both of you.¡± ¡± Well, besides tea bagging us.¡± Waverly says, ¡°you didn''t do much damage, but startled us quite a bit. My friend here seems to have taken a liking to you though. I mean he literally took a bite out of you. I¡¯m willing to let bygones be bygones since you seem to have a grievous wound not only to your pride, but your manhood as well.¡± Waverly continues to laugh while miming a man carrying giant balls around like a monkey trying to carry two large barrels. ¡°I guess as long as you haven''t hurt me or Waverly here we can part ways peaceably.¡± I continue to eye Sullivan. ¡°I will heal in time and I suppose I got what was coming to me. If you don''t mind would you take this potion as an apology.¡± He hands me a potion similar to the health potions in my bag.If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°Thank you,¡± I say in mild satisfaction, ¡°apology accepted. and I¡¯m sorry about your erm coin purse. We are on our way to the village that''s just a few days away.¡± ¡°That just happens to be where I was heading. I had heard that the town needed some minor healing remedies and since that is one of my specialties and something I find quite enjoyable about being a druid, I decided to make my way there. I have been traveling for several weeks going from village to village giving help where it was needed and a bit of tomfoolery where it was not.¡± Sullivan says pointing emphatically toward his damaged goods while waggling his eyebrows. ¡°That sounds for the most part like a pretty cool thing to do. How would you like to at least join us until we reach the village since we are going the same way? I¡¯m still new to this area and wouldn''t mind gleaning some information about the local regions on our way.¡± I say in earnest. Sullivan looks us over and shrugs ¡°It is better to travel in company even if its bad company,¡± he smiles and winks. ¡°I will wow you with my vast array of knowledge both big and small.¡± We all introduce ourselves and fall into a comfortable pace. Sullivan turns out to be a very smart and easy-going companion. He tells us what kind of plants he is looking for that he can use to make his healing components, and we eagerly join him in his search, to help pass the time. After a day of traveling and many a plant collected later, Sullivan tells us he must stop for the night. He explains he needs to prepare some of his ingredients for alchemy which turns out to be how you can make different potions and various other concoctions. We set up camp and he informs us it might take a while. With nothing else to do, I mention to Waverly that I have a new skill and a spell that I was able to absorb through the unmentionable incident. We walk into the forest and I tell Waverly I''m going to try my sneak skill out. I crouch and begin to move forward, I fade slightly, and she tells me it''s kind of hard to see me. I take another step, and when I break a twig and fall out of stealth. ¡°I suppose with anything I will have to practice this sneak skill and as I get better it will become harder for you to see and harder to fall out of stealth.¡± I say out loud. Waverly nods and tells me to try my spell. I raise my hand, think the spell, and nothing happens. I try again and still nothing. I start to get frustrated and throw my hand forward, but unfortunately toward the ground and my foot. The ice spear shoots through my foot pinning me to the ground. I scream in agony and the chill creeps up my leg. I notice a debuff to agility. The spell does damage and slows the target. That''s good to know I think through the pain coursing through my leg. Waverly smacks her head and whispers. ¡°Safety was off numb nuts¡± she laughs. ¡°Ok, so I guess I not only have to think this spell, I have to use my hand as if throwing a spear.¡± I wince and stutter. Waverly nods ¡°Good thinking Sal, you are starting to use your noggin to understand the wide world around you. Spells have different aspects some require thought, motion, and big spells require components. Most spells however use some combination of the three.¡± Once the spell wore off I sat and let my mana and health replenish. It turns out that the spell used 10 points of mana out of my pool of 220. Waverly mentions to me that mana is calculated using constitution plus intelligence multiplied by will. I open my stat screen and read through the spell information on ice spear. It turns out that it does level with the caster and one can charge the spell to make it more powerful. There was a warning at the bottom saying that if you overcharge the spell you run the danger of complete mana drain as well as the spell backfiring. Waverly suggested I slowly increasing the time I hold the spell for charge to get comfortable with the extra boost. The way you charge the spell is by holding the thought in your mind, willing more mana into the spell, and you release the spear as I did before by throwing my hand forward. The spells are listed under the skill tab. They are organized by level and currently the spell is novice level for me. It turns out that the more I use the spell the more naturally it will come and the less work it will take to use. I practiced with ice spear while moving around the forest. I had been sneaking and firing the spear for about 2 hours when I notice a rabbit bouncing by unaware. I had been in sneak mode for a while, when I heard it coming. I reach back and prepare an ice spear. I launch my hand forward and I strike the rabbit killing it instantly. I run forward filled with excitement that we get to eat fresh meat tonight. I get to the rabbit and place my hand on it and it vanishes. ¡°Waverly, what gives?¡± I ask in a hurt tone thinking that I lost our meal. ¡°check your pack noob¡± she says sarcastically. I tap my thigh and my pack opens showing its contents. I see my delectable catch. I think about the items I want to look at an item information screen pops up. ~1 rabbit meat: This item can be used in multiple ways to create a number of meals. ~1 rabbit fur: This can be traded or used in the leatherworking craft. ¡°Awesome¡± I cheer jumping and fist pumping in the air. Now all we must do is find a few more. I return to stealth and continue to search for more tasty morsels. Hunting for another hour and 6 rabbits later, we decide to return to camp. When we get there Sullivan had a giant tent set up with all sorts of different vials beakers and measuring implements. It seems he took his alchemy seriously. He had something cooking in a pot on the table that smelled of spice and cherries. At that point he caught us gawking at his setup. He smiles and waves us toward the table. ¡°This is my mobile lab. I can create just about anything I desire that doesn''t require long term brewing. Right now, I''m working on my Nature''s Bond potion, it helps me focus and really mellows me out. It''s almost like I become part of the forest. ¡°I also have this in a smokable form that I''ve already set up for later use, but potions are easier on the run.¡± Sullivan replies sheepishly. ¡°what have you guys been up to for the past several hours.¡± Waverly shifts into a cat and curls up on the table. Well I think to myself, I guess I''m answering. I say, ¡°Well you know when I um bit you, I kind of learned some stuff from you through your blood. It¡¯s a racial ability I have.¡± Sullivan looks disgusted and shocked, but doesn''t interrupt as I explain in more detail. ¡°Listen I didn''t choose this race, it chose me. In any case, I¡¯ve learned ice spear and sneak from you. ¡°While we were in the forest, I was training those to get a better idea of what they do and how I can use them.¡± The Tanuki relaxes a bit. ¡°I see, I also did not choose this form, I was born into it. I can understand that you are just trying to get by with what you¡¯ve been given. I can tell you''re not a bad person by how we''ve gotten along so far. I will keep this information to myself however, since it may end up ostracizing you.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± I interrupt ¡°I haven''t done anything wrong¡± I pleaded. ¡°Sal my good friend, it is a great power you have and anyone who has worked hard towards their skills, power and abilities covet them like they were their own children. I would not repeat your abilities to anyone with whom you do not trust.¡± I nod my head in understanding and thank the Tanuki for his straightforwardness and honesty. ¡°Well as you were playing around here with all your toys, I caught us dinner.¡± I pull out the meat and show my spoils to Sullivan. He takes the meat and heads towards a second fire with a stew pot. He tosses the bits of meat in and tells me the stew has been on for several hours. ¡°It was lacking some meat.¡± he said, ¡°Rabbit will be a perfect complement to the delicate balance of the pot. It''s going to take several hours for it to finish so you might want to find something else to do. The day shall leave us soon to the waking night perhaps you could practice some more of your skills while I work on finishing up in my lab.¡± He turns away while calling over his shoulder. I ask Waverly if should would like to join me and she changes into a great owl and flies into the sky. Okay then I say to myself someone''s in a bit of a mood. With that I head north into the woods sneaking my way into the darkening forest. Man or Mind Reader 5 I continued to sneak through the forest becoming attuned to the skill in such a way it feels natural. It¡¯s at this point I notice the flashing in my periphery. I acknowledge the notifications and they pop up in my field of view. ~Congratulations Skill level up. Sneak has moved from novice to apprentice level. This will make it easier for you to move undetected. ~Congratulations Stat level up. Agility has increased 2 points for continuously sneaking for an extended period. ~Congratulations stat level up. Strength has increased 4 points due to continuous stress on several muscle groups, and strain on stamina while sneaking. ~Congratulations stat level up. Will has increased 2 points due to your tenacity in training skill sneak. ~Congratulations stat level up. Constitution has increased 4 points due to the strain on stamina while sneaking. ~Congratulations you¡¯ve learned a new skill. Due to your continued sneak training through rough forest terrain, you¡¯ve be granted the passive skill Chameleon. While sneaking in forest terrain you gain an additional 25% to the sneak skill. ~Congratulations stat level up. Intelligence has increased 2 points due to learning how to move through difficult forest terrain and acquiring skill Chameleon. ~Congratulations stat level up. Wisdom has increased 2 points due to learning how to move through difficult forest terrain and acquiring skill Chameleon. I am totally shocked at the incredible progress I just made, but it makes sense. The training is working my entire body and mind and it''s very taxing. I enjoyed the exercise so much I think I will make it a daily thing. One final notification is left and this one makes me jump for joy. Through the hard work I¡¯ve put in the past several days my experience had been leveling and I had totally missed it. ~Congratulations you¡¯ve leveled up. ~You have 5 stat points to allocate. I decide to wait until I get back to camp to deal with my extra stat points. This will give me some time to think about where I might need a boost. Since I haven''t had the chance to work on my knife skills as they are the only real close combat weapons I have. I should try training in in fighting. I think it¡¯s time I call Waverly back to spar. She''s supposed to be my teacher and all she''s done is watched me.Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. ¡°Waverly¡± I call out, ¡°I know you¡¯re out there I can feel you watching me.¡± I close my eyes and get a tug from our connection. When I open my eyes, I see a chipmunk sitting on a log staring at me menacingly. As soon as our eyes meet the chipmunk Zips its way across the forest floor. The tiny form is so quick, I lose sight of it. As I scan the forest in front of me a giant weight falls atop me. I see two clawed paws covered in brown fur touch down in front of my head. Knowing due to our bond this is Waverly, I roll onto my back and flick my wrist calling blades to my hands. I swipe at what appears to be a brown bear and then shifts into a hummingbird before any of my strikes can land. I lose sight of Waverly again and smile. She''s upset with me about something, but I haven''t figured it out yet. Unfortunately for me she''s going to make sure I feel her rage. I settle into a comfortable stance and continue to look for my target. Again, as I was scanning the forest ahead I sense something coming from behind. This time expecting it, I side step and lash out laterally scoring a shallow cut on the lithe form of a panther. ¡°Fool me once shame on you. Fool me twice shame on me.¡± I playfully say. Waverly swats at me with her massive paw, the claws reaching hungrily for my flesh. I turn only taking a glancing blow, but that was enough to open 4 painful red stripes across my ribs. ¡°Damn it Waverly what¡¯s your problem. I thought you were unable to do combat.¡± Waverly shifts back to her natural form and growls, ¡°You haven¡¯t been giving me any attention since we met Sullivan. You aren¡¯t training enough while we¡¯ve been traveling and I''m just tired of being out here in the wild with two douchebag men. For your information I said I couldn''t help you in combat, not that I couldn''t do combat. I am here to insure you survive training means I can and have to beat the shit out of you from time to time. Our levels are nowhere near close to each other.¡± ¡°I''m sorry Wave, but I¡¯m basically a newborn here. I have no base of which to compare how I should or shouldn''t interact with you.¡± I say compassionately. ¡°I don''t even have a way to convey my thoughts properly because I have no sense of background no way to imply from knowledge that you have forgotten I lack.¡± Waverly looks away ashamed. ¡°I know all this it¡¯s not my fault you are here. Do you think if I gave you some information you would be more companionable?¡± she asks breathing heavy seeing me shrug. ¡°fine then she says take it, take all the nooks and crannies and become cultured in the world of which we came. I was holding out until I thought you were ready, but maybe I was wrong. Maybe I was keeping the information selfishly, so you would be more reliant on me.¡± she yells in frustration, and information starts to flood my head. ¡°I don¡¯t know what I would do if it weren¡¯t for you¡± she says quietly. My nose starts to bleed, and it feels like my head''s about to explode. ¡°Waverly, I need you!¡± I struggle getting the words out. ¡°Remember day one? You told me we are one and since I rely on you for all my information you are the most valuable thing to me besides my own life.¡± Waverly begins to cry, ¡°today is my birthday, and it''s one of my most favorite days not only because it''s my birthday, but because of the special times I¡¯ve had with my loved ones from home. This is the first time I¡¯ve really thought about it since being part of the Worlds.¡± Everything becomes so much clearer to me now. ¡°All you had to do is tell me Wave, and I would have done anything I could to make it special. I feel like we are closer than I have been with anyone. I know I have no way of knowing if that''s true, but deep down in my soul our energies have become one and no one can ever take that from us. We can never be truly separated and if something is important to you it''s important to me.¡± With my last bit of energy, I smile at Waverly and collapse. Fighting for as long as I could from the darkness. I was overwhelmed with information and emotion. She fed me all the information she could pertaining to earth. A flood of history, knowledge, fighting techniques, pop culture, and although she did not intent to a bit of her own memories seeped through. All this in but a few seconds and my brain short circuited knocking me out cold. Man or Mind Reader 5 I continued to sneak through the forest becoming attuned to the skill in such a way it feels natural. It¡¯s at this point I notice the flashing in my periphery. I acknowledge the notifications and they pop up in my field of view. ~Congratulations Skill level up. Sneak has moved from novice to apprentice level. This will make it easier for you to move undetected. ~Congratulations Stat level up. Agility has increased 2 points for continuously sneaking for an extended period. ~Congratulations stat level up. Strength has increased 4 points due to continuous stress on several muscle groups, and strain on stamina while sneaking. ~Congratulations stat level up. Will has increased 2 points due to your tenacity in training skill sneak. ~Congratulations stat level up. Constitution has increased 4 points due to the strain on stamina while sneaking. ~Congratulations you¡¯ve learned a new skill. Due to your continued sneak training through rough forest terrain, you¡¯ve be granted the passive skill Chameleon. While sneaking in forest terrain you gain an additional 25% to the sneak skill. ~Congratulations stat level up. Intelligence has increased 2 points due to learning how to move through difficult forest terrain and acquiring skill Chameleon. ~Congratulations stat level up. Wisdom has increased 2 points due to learning how to move through difficult forest terrain and acquiring skill Chameleon. I am totally shocked at the incredible progress I just made, but it makes sense. The training is working my entire body and mind and it''s very taxing. I enjoyed the exercise so much I think I will make it a daily thing. One final notification is left and this one makes me jump for joy. Through the hard work I¡¯ve put in the past several days my experience had been leveling and I had totally missed it. ~Congratulations you¡¯ve leveled up. ~You have 5 stat points to allocate. I decide to wait until I get back to camp to deal with my extra stat points. This will give me some time to think about where I might need a boost. Since I haven''t had the chance to work on my knife skills as they are the only real close combat weapons I have. I should try training in in fighting. I think it¡¯s time I call Waverly back to spar. She''s supposed to be my teacher and all she''s done is watched me.You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. ¡°Waverly¡± I call out, ¡°I know you¡¯re out there I can feel you watching me.¡± I close my eyes and get a tug from our connection. When I open my eyes, I see a chipmunk sitting on a log staring at me menacingly. As soon as our eyes meet the chipmunk Zips its way across the forest floor. The tiny form is so quick, I lose sight of it. As I scan the forest in front of me a giant weight falls atop me. I see two clawed paws covered in brown fur touch down in front of my head. Knowing due to our bond this is Waverly, I roll onto my back and flick my wrist calling blades to my hands. I swipe at what appears to be a brown bear and then shifts into a hummingbird before any of my strikes can land. I lose sight of Waverly again and smile. She''s upset with me about something, but I haven''t figured it out yet. Unfortunately for me she''s going to make sure I feel her rage. I settle into a comfortable stance and continue to look for my target. Again, as I was scanning the forest ahead I sense something coming from behind. This time expecting it, I side step and lash out laterally scoring a shallow cut on the lithe form of a panther. ¡°Fool me once shame on you. Fool me twice shame on me.¡± I playfully say. Waverly swats at me with her massive paw, the claws reaching hungrily for my flesh. I turn only taking a glancing blow, but that was enough to open 4 painful red stripes across my ribs. ¡°Damn it Waverly what¡¯s your problem. I thought you were unable to do combat.¡± Waverly shifts back to her natural form and growls, ¡°You haven¡¯t been giving me any attention since we met Sullivan. You aren¡¯t training enough while we¡¯ve been traveling and I''m just tired of being out here in the wild with two douchebag men. For your information I said I couldn''t help you in combat, not that I couldn''t do combat. I am here to insure you survive training means I can and have to beat the shit out of you from time to time. Our levels are nowhere near close to each other.¡± ¡°I''m sorry Wave, but I¡¯m basically a newborn here. I have no base of which to compare how I should or shouldn''t interact with you.¡± I say compassionately. ¡°I don''t even have a way to convey my thoughts properly because I have no sense of background no way to imply from knowledge that you have forgotten I lack.¡± Waverly looks away ashamed. ¡°I know all this it¡¯s not my fault you are here. Do you think if I gave you some information you would be more companionable?¡± she asks breathing heavy seeing me shrug. ¡°fine then she says take it, take all the nooks and crannies and become cultured in the world of which we came. I was holding out until I thought you were ready, but maybe I was wrong. Maybe I was keeping the information selfishly, so you would be more reliant on me.¡± she yells in frustration, and information starts to flood my head. ¡°I don¡¯t know what I would do if it weren¡¯t for you¡± she says quietly. My nose starts to bleed, and it feels like my head''s about to explode. ¡°Waverly, I need you!¡± I struggle getting the words out. ¡°Remember day one? You told me we are one and since I rely on you for all my information you are the most valuable thing to me besides my own life.¡± Waverly begins to cry, ¡°today is my birthday, and it''s one of my most favorite days not only because it''s my birthday, but because of the special times I¡¯ve had with my loved ones from home. This is the first time I¡¯ve really thought about it since being part of the Worlds.¡± Everything becomes so much clearer to me now. ¡°All you had to do is tell me Wave, and I would have done anything I could to make it special. I feel like we are closer than I have been with anyone. I know I have no way of knowing if that''s true, but deep down in my soul our energies have become one and no one can ever take that from us. We can never be truly separated and if something is important to you it''s important to me.¡± With my last bit of energy, I smile at Waverly and collapse. Fighting for as long as I could from the darkness. I was overwhelmed with information and emotion. She fed me all the information she could pertaining to earth. A flood of history, knowledge, fighting techniques, pop culture, and although she did not intent to a bit of her own memories seeped through. All this in but a few seconds and my brain short circuited knocking me out cold. 6 introspection and foreboding 7 Information hangover 6 While Waverly and Sal were off doing god knows what Sullivan was just finishing up brewing his potions and remedies. He was sitting across from the pot cooking effortlessly. With pipe in hand Sullivan sees what looks like a meteor crashing down to earth. This interstellar mystery was not what you would typically call normal. After streaking through the sky for several moments it began to slow and then it was out of sight. Sullivan ponders the implications of this strange, but familiar occurrence. He too once streaked across the sky, just as Sal had just a few short days ago. The most interesting thing is that Sullivan had never heard of so many travelers entering the worlds so close together. What did he know though, this was not his grand experiment? He didn''t know all the rules or what to really expect the endgame of this all was for. What Sullivan did know is he had a good smoke and some unlikely friends to further adventure with even if it was for a short time. He wasn''t sure what he was going to do next, but if things persisted to go well perhaps he would continue his travels with the friends he met. His own exploits into the alchemy and druidic class were very interesting and worthwhile in his eyes. With one last puff on his pipe, Sullivan closes his eyes and savored the quiet of the night. *** Screaming through the stars a dark and menacing entity enters the worlds many miles away from our unsuspecting travelers. As the inky figure touches down a sense of dread and chaos infects the land. The creatures of the forest in the surrounding area go mad with anger, frustration, fear, and hate. What the figure looming over the forest is thinking cannot begin to be understood, but if you were in his destructive tainted aura the overpowering gravity of terror radiating from it, would make you wish yourself out of existence.Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. The figure takes its first steps towards the south where his quarry can be felt. The figure so dark in its being the light in the area seems to be pulled out of reality. A grown shaking bellow rushes forth and the first sign of any light emanates from the hunter''s eyes and mouth burning with a black and blue flame. The very earth cries for a reprise from the torturous lament. *** Sullivan wakes with a start his very soul being bound to the land feels its quivering fear and subsequent death many miles away. Tears begin to fall down his face and his heart breaks. He thinks to himself something terrible has just happen, and it scares me to the very heart of my essence. Whatever that is must be dealt with and soon or we may all perish. The worlds was never meant to handle that sort of evil presence. When the others return we will have to either go our separate ways or find a compromise to quell the storm that¡¯s coming for us. 7 Waverly patiently waits for Sal to wake. She has been pacing for what seems like an hour. Her worry is palpable, and she knows she overdid the transfer. She continues to hope Sal will be ok, and they will be able to continue to bond and move forward in this part of the Worlds. She looks at this man laying at her feet his face a pale, painted ghost of what he normally is and smiles. She hopes he can remember soon because the weight of the knowledge is burning her from within. Taking a few more steps in contemplation she hears Sal stir. ¡°It''s about time you woke up. I was about to leave you to the wolves.¡± she says with a tooth grin. ¡°How long have I been out?¡± I say with a grimace sitting up. ¡°Only about an hour, I wasn''t worried about you or anything. I was more worried you messed your pants and would have to go commando.¡± she says in mock horror. I laugh and begin to get a shooting pain in my head and a strange feeling in the very core of who I am. ¡°Well now that I''ve been infused with all the important garbage you think is important I might actually get your pathetic jokes. You''re almost as funny as carrot top.¡± I begin to laugh even though the pain was excruciating. Waverly just rolled her eyes and whispers ¡°jackass.¡± She takes the form of an owl once more and begins to fly back toward camp. She''s in rare form tonight. One minute she''s mad at me the next worried and then she just zips away into the night. My headache subsiding, I take a drink of water and a few pieces of food to tide me over while I walk back to camp letting all the new information soak in. I still feel a deep pit in my stomach and a sense of unease further to the south. Perhaps this will be my next destination. I feel like it''s not something I can or should run from. 6 introspection and foreboding 7 Information hangover 6 While Waverly and Sal were off doing god knows what Sullivan had just finishing brewing his potions and remedies. He was sitting across from the pot cooking effortlessly. With pipe in hand Sullivan sees what looks like a meteor crashing down to earth. This interstellar mystery was not what you would typically call normal. After streaking through the sky for several moments it began to slow and then it was out of sight. Sullivan ponders the implications of this strange, but familiar occurrence. He too once streaked across the sky, just as Sal had just a few short days ago. The most interesting thing is that Sullivan had never heard of so many travelers entering the worlds so close together. What did he know though, this was not his grand experiment? He didn''t know all the rules or what to really expect the endgame of this all was for. What Sullivan did know is he had a good smoke and some unlikely friends to further adventure with even if it was for a short time. He wasn''t sure what he was going to do next, but if things persisted to go well perhaps he would continue his travels with the friends he met. His own exploits into the alchemy and druidic class were very interesting and worthwhile in his eyes. With one last puff on his pipe, Sullivan closes his eyes and savored the quiet of the night. *** Screaming through the stars a dark and menacing entity enters the worlds many miles away from our unsuspecting travelers. As the inky figure touches down a sense of dread and chaos infects the land. The creatures of the forest in the surrounding area go mad with anger, frustration, fear, and hate. What the figure looming over the forest is thinking cannot begin to be understood, but if you were in his destructive tainted aura the overpowering gravity of terror radiating from it, would make you wish yourself out of existence.The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. The figure takes its first steps towards the south where his quarry can be felt. The figure so dark in its being the light in the area seems to be pulled out of reality. A grown shaking bellow rushes forth and the first sign of any light emanates from the hunter''s eyes and mouth burning with a black and blue flame. The very earth cries for a reprise from the torturous lament. *** Sullivan wakes with a start his very soul being bound to the land feels its quivering fear and subsequent death many miles away. Tears begin to fall down his face and his heart breaks. He thinks to himself something terrible has just happen, and it scares me to the very heart of my essence. Whatever that is must be dealt with and soon or we may all perish. The worlds was never meant to handle that sort of evil presence. When the others return we will have to either go our separate ways or find a compromise to quell the storm that¡¯s coming for us. 7 Waverly patiently waits for Sal to wake. She has been pacing for what seems like an hour. Her worry is palpable, and she knows she overdid the transfer. She continues to hope Sal will be ok, and they will be able to continue to bond and move forward in this part of the Worlds. She looks at this man laying at her feet his face a pale, painted ghost of what he normally is and smiles. She hopes he can remember soon because the weight of the knowledge is burning her from within. Taking a few more steps in contemplation she hears Sal stir. ¡°It''s about time you woke up. I was about to leave you to the wolves.¡± she says with a tooth grin. ¡°How long have I been out?¡± I say with a grimace sitting up. ¡°Only about an hour, I wasn''t worried about you or anything. I was more worried you messed your pants and would have to go commando.¡± she says in mock horror. I laugh and begin to get a shooting pain in my head and a strange feeling in the very core of who I am. ¡°Well now that I''ve been infused with all the important garbage you think is important I might actually get your pathetic jokes. You''re almost as funny as carrot top.¡± I begin to laugh even though the pain was excruciating. Waverly just rolled her eyes and whispers ¡°jackass.¡± She takes the form of an owl once more and begins to fly back toward camp. She''s in rare form tonight. One minute she''s mad at me the next worried and then she just zips away into the night. My headache subsiding, I take a drink of water and a few pieces of food to tide me over while I walk back to camp letting all the new information soak in. I still feel a deep pit in my stomach and a sense of unease further to the south. Perhaps this will be my next destination. I feel like it''s not something I can or should run from. Finders keepers 8 I had been traveling for several minutes when I come across something odd. At first, I am not sure what to make of it until I come closer to what turns out to be a body. It looks as if it had been there for a long time. Inspect the body and find that it has several arrows sticking out of it. The torso was riddled with them and what was likely the killing blow through one of the skulls eyes. I feel a strange power emanating from the body and decide to see what it could be. At first, I was sure what it was until I find two scabbards hanging from the rotten belt. The scabbards were once resplendent with their intricate filigree, but have given much of that beauty to the ravages of time and weather. The scabbards hold a dagger each. I think to myself they must be in as bad a condition as the rest of this guy. However, with closer inspection I find that the pommels and handles are just a bit dirty. I pull one of the daggers out to see just how badly damaged they are and find the metal of the blade to be gleaming and bright as if they were newly forged honed and ready for sale. I look to the other dagger and see the same result there. The handles of the blades were a dark ebony, rich and fit almost too perfectly into my hand. The blades themselves looked wickedly sharp. The blade of the dagger was also a lot longer than I would expect a dagger to be, but they were not quite long enough to be considered swords. Come to think if it they were what I would consider tantos a straight one-sided blade forged by the Japanese smiths. The wondrous weapons had no guard and were truly beautiful weapons. The blades each had its own unique design. One of the blades looked like it had fire emanating along the edge. And the other looked like waves. The tanto with the fire along the edge had a fiery red ruby embedded in the pommel and the other blade had a cool blue sapphire in the same location. Each blade held in my hand hummed with a power I was not sure of. I almost dropped them but thought better of it. I placed them into my inventory to ask the others what they thought of them. I search the rest of the remains and find several hundred gold and what looks to be some various gems. The skeleton had a ring on each hand one an almost white band with an odd deep black hypnotic design. The white of the band was almost transparent in comparison. The other ring was flat black almost so obscure I could have missed it. I put both into my pack as well since I wasn''t about to don anything I wasn''t sure of. I had no way of identifying these items and thought better of getting cursed the first few days in the worlds. The last thing I notice was a necklace the heavy chain held several stones of different colors and at the skeletons breast an intricate shield locket. Within the locket there was a diamond of pure clarity and beauty. It was one of the most perfect things I¡¯ve ever seen. This item was easily the most expensive and powerful item I have found. Even with my limited information of the worlds I could sense how wondrous this was.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. Once I had finished searching the body, I laid it out as best I could and said a few words aloud. ¡°Through your misfortune you have given me much. Although I¡¯m not sure what I¡¯ve found here, I know they can no longer be of use to you. I thank you for the bounty and wish you the rest you deserve. Be at peace My unfortunate benefactor.¡± As I say the final line the earth mysteriously opens, and I jump back drawing my daggers. The body gently sinks into the ground leaving nothing behind but a patch of grass. In my head I hear a voice that fills me with joy. ¡°Salvino O¡¯shea, put away those silly things¡± the voice sings about my daggers, ¡°you have done a great thing. You gave a soul its peace, when you had not reason to do such. I know that you have found some of his possessions, but they are yours now. The Man you had seen before you died saving a great many people and his body has been missing for a very long time. His soul was bound to this corpse due to the nature of his death. Your actions in giving him peace freed his soul to reenter the great cycle once again. For this above what you have found I give you a gift. ¡°Hold out your hand dear one.¡± she says kindly. Seeing as I have no reason to decline I put my daggers away and I reach out my hand. The being I feel I know so well and in the very core of who I am get the feeling that this being is the creator of this place. My hand begins to burn, and the feeling radiates up my arm into my whole body. The burn although painful is more like that feeling you get after a good workout. As quick as it started the sensation ceases. ¡°Continue doing great things dear one. This is but a small gift for your trouble. Go now and grow, as I will continue to watch your progress.¡± and with that the entity is gone. The power that was just before me although I could not see it spoke directly in my mind. It was similar in the way Waverly talks to me, but even more intimate. It is almost as if the being and I knew each other. Thinking on it more the thought itself fades and I only seem to recall having a brief conversation with the creator. Having spent enough time dawdling I continue to head back to camp. After taking several steps, I realize yet again that there is a flashing in the corner of my vision. I have some notifications that need to be addressed. Opening them while I continue my way I see what I was gifted from the creator. ~Congratulation you have leveled up you have 5 stat points to spend. ~Congratulation you have leveled up you have 5 stat points to spend. ~Congratulation you have leveled up you have 5 stat points to spend. ~You have 20 unused stat points to allocate ~Congratulations you received the blessing of the creator, she has deemed it befitting to bestow you with a gift for your good deeds. ~Congratulations will has increased to 30 ~Congratulations Luck has increased to 30 ~Congratulations Absorb has been increased to 40% I have to say I am quite proud of myself. I didn¡¯t expect anything like this to happen. Although it seems like I didn¡¯t gain any stat points in fighting Waverly. I did gain experience through that fight and the gift of the creator gave me several levels so, I have nothing to complain about. After several minutes I can begin to smell the stew and hear the bustle of camp. Waverly and Sullivan speaking in a heated discussion. Well, I guess the peaceful walk is over I think to myself as I enter the camp. Munchies and sweet suprises 9 ¡°You damn stoner, you nearly ate all out stew.¡± Waverly admonishes. ¡°Whatever is left will barely feed one person, let alone satisfy two.¡± ¡°Listen babe, I got the munchies, and everyone knows you can¡¯t just ignore the munchies.¡± Sullivan says in a calm whimsical voice. ¡°This is medicinal alright it gets me back in touch with the land.¡± ¡°Don''t give me that bullshit and stop playing with your sac.¡± Waverly says scornfully. ¡°I am a lady and I shouldn¡¯t have to see you flapping that hardware all over the place. You had plenty of time to do that before we came back.¡± Sullivan eyes heavy with his newly intoxicating dose of ¡°medicine¡± says, ¡°If you had a sac that was so magical and amazing you¡¯d be playing with it too. But really man this stuff here.¡± he points at his pipe and a few vials laying around ¡°it is what gives me my druidic powers. I originally came here and was fated to be a mage, but it did not suit me. I worked endless hours babe and finally I found what I needed. I found nature in all its splendor, and in that I needed a way to become closer to my desire. I created this medicine to help me be nature''s advocate man so stop trying to kill my buzz. Give me a few minutes and I will come down for my nirvana. This part of the process usually doesn¡¯t last long.¡± Disgusted Waverly waves her hands in the air and points at Sullivan as if saying you believe this guy. I only smile and shrug, who am I to judge. ¡°If this is what he says makes him happy and helps him do what he loves to do, then by all means, toke it up. Now if it effects our travels or puts us in undue danger then we will have to address that in the future.¡± I say as far as meals go I tell Waverly to eat the stew and just let me know how it was. I take out a ration from my back and begin to nibble on some cheese and dried berries. I recant the finding of the unfortunate soul in the forest, and how I found several items of note. I show Waverly and Sullivan the items and they both stare at them in shocked awe. Waverly was the first to speak identifying the tantos. ¡°Those blades are pretty bad ass Sal. They are both magical and charge holding an amount of mana in each. They siphon off the mana from the user to fill their charge and can also be used as a focus allowing you to channel your mana through them creating a greater effect. It looks like the one with the ruby is a fire based magic and the blue a water. Elemental weapons are strong in what they do but it takes a while to master all their powers. I think you will find these to be very difficult to replace in the worlds. You can attune them to your tattoos, but I''d try charging them a little first to let them get a good feel for your mana. They have been empty and hungry for a long time, so you don''t want to get a massive drain all at once attuning to them.¡± While Waverly identifies and explains what the knives to I see a notification pop up. I open it and find that through Waverly¡¯s explanation the items have been named and the stats become clear. ~Congratulations you have found a set pair of tantos. They are so named The Divergent Blades for they are as different as they are deadly. ¡°Awesome¡± I say clapping my hands together. This was a fortuitous find. I wonder what the other items are. I look over to see Sullivan poking at the rings with a stick while he gives his pipe a quizzical puff. His intoxicated gaze gone momentarily due to his curiosity and bringing all his will to bear on focusing. ¡°These rings here,¡± He points at them with the half-smoked pipe, ¡°I think you will find them very useful, especially since you haven¡¯t really found a fighting style to call your own.A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. ¡°The Black ring is what some would call a shadow walker band it allows the wearer to use shadows within a certain space as doorways between each other. You will become invisible in darkness with this ring on your finger and if I am not mistaken this can also cast darkness a number of times a day. This will probably be linked to how much mana you have and how well the ring balances with you through attunement. ¡°Most magical items will allow anyone to use them, but to use them effectively and use all their abilities one must attune to them. In attuning you will know if the items have a liking for you. I can see you are puzzled by the thought, but all magical items hold some part of a soul. It might not be a lot but the item itself has a sort of personality; although, it has no will of its own. The item will grant those they attune with at a higher rate, more abilities, extended use of them and possibly lower the cost in utilizing them. ¡°Now one doesn¡¯t get something for nothing so attuning allows the item to draw from your power to function, each ability an item has will cost a different amount. Some items will use mana, while others use stamina or Hit points. The effect the item has will usually determine where the power will draw from. Keep this in mind as it may have various negative effects during use. I would suggest practicing with these items before you find yourself in a precarious situation. This ring has plenty of utility and will be very useful. ¡°This other ring is very rare indeed. It is a ring of blinking. It allows you to jump into another plain of existence. you will still be here but slightly not, it is hard to explain, but you will be able to see and move in that other space. You will not be able to take any other actions while utilizing this aspect of the rings powers. ¡°The best thing about this ring will be that you will seem to have vanished without a trace. The feel I get from my identification of this ring is that the space you enter moves at a speed that is exponentially faster than our own. Once you leave with the ring it will seem as if not even a second has passed when you return. As with the shadow step ring this ring¡¯s powers will become more apparent as you attune to it.¡± ¡°These seem like pretty amazing rings¡± I say to Sullivan, but it seems he¡¯d fallen asleep where he sat. ¡°These will be useful in any number of ways.¡± I look to Waverly and she has gone a pale shade of her former self, her mouth hangs open, and she seems visibly shaken. I ask her what''s wrong, but she can''t speak. She looks up at me asks me if I really found this on a corpse. I nod, and she begins to tell me all about the necklace I found. ¡°This is easily one of the most amazing things I¡¯ve ever seen in the worlds. It holds a vast amount of power, but I don''t think you will be able to fully realize its true potential until you are much stronger then you are now.¡± she says dryly ¡°This necklace holds gems from multiple magic classes. It will allow you to store power in each one. It will give your magical abilities an incredible increase. However, it will take a lot of power of from all 3 types of energy to see this item in its glory. When you have fully mastered the gems, the locket will be empowered. Even I cannot tell you what will come from that. The gem inside the locket is perfect in every sense of the word. I suspect that this will give you a base protection from all the classes and can siphon some of the energy of those attacks so you''re not the one that''s going to fully power this. You will find that as we adventure our travels will not go as smoothly as they have been and this item itself will save you when all others expect you to perish. ¡°Just as Sullivan has suggested you should get to know your items. Feed each item a bit of your mana stamina and Hit points and see which likes what the best. You can do this by meditating with the item of your choice. Once you have giving some of your power to the item simply equip it and you will become aware of what abilities will be granted and if there are any that will become available to you at a later time. I must warn you, when you meditate with an item, the soul of the item comes to life and will meet you in that immaterial place. The soul might ask you questions or simply sit there in silence weighing you. What I recommend is to be yourself and as honest as you can be. You could almost consider them to be genies of a sort, a being bound to an item. If they find you acceptable you will be granted use of the item and further directions may be given.¡±