《Test of the lost》 Prologue The world began with a bang, not a big bang as popular science would have you believe but a little bang and a whirl. As the hard drive spun up an Age ended and another began. Something awful and amazing this way had come. A new beginning for some and a nightmare for others¡­ In the offices of the Quantum Energy Technology and Development Bureau Dr. Edgar Fitzgerald a polymath of great renown finally put the finishing touches on his latest project of matter transference. So far he has transferred base metal cubes surrounded by vacuum from one point to another with zero loss of mass. But today he took the next step, moving a living creature. Beginning with one of the smallest, a prokaryote. Bacillus Subtilis to be exact, and everything was going as expected. That is until it no longer was. He had accounted for everything, being a perfectionist with an eidetic memory he could not understand what had gone so tremendously wrong. The problem was not that the bacterium had transferred, just that it had simply not arrived. He had taken everything into account but one thing. The bacterium had a goal, it wasn¡¯t so intellectual as to have a day to day list of plans or life goals. No, it had two simple goals, to survive, and to reproduce. So, when the good doctor decided to transfer his first living organism, he made one fatal error. An error he could have never foreseen. That the bacterium would affect the outcome of his test with its wants and desires. Leading the doctor to transfer the bacterium to an unassuming lab technician currently residing two hallways down outside the quarantine zone for advanced testing. Leaving the unassuming technician to bring the unwanted hitchhiker home to his family of four, his wife and two children. And what self-respecting bacteria does not take advantage of such a sweet and welcoming family¡¯s hospitality. But by doing everything in its power to spread. And spread it did to such a degree that in no sooner than a week went by, that nearly the entire town of Goodwin falls, Arizona had been infected with this new and improved bacterium. Now, normally Bacillus Subtilis is not enough for any kind of worry or consideration. Being as the scientific community thought on B. Subtilis is that it is safe for human and animal consumption. Being a part of many kinds of food and animal feed. So when the mass epidemic of minor mutations started to occur In the year 2346, there was no correlation between B. Subtilis and the epidemic. Leaving the medical community stumped. Mass panic spread among the empire of humanity. Many leaving the core worlds at speed, which in turn spread the bacterium much faster than should have been possible. Leaving nearly sixty percent of the empire with minor mutations after just one month of the onset of this mutagenic plague.The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. Now the strangest thing about the fast spreading plague of change was, there had been no fatalities. None of the young or old or even critically ill had died from these mutations. In fact, some few had felt even healthier after showing symptoms of change, saying they felt full of a strange living energy. Like drinking multiple cups of coffee on top of their best night¡¯s sleep. And with these rampant changes in the human genome, the bacterium¡¯s first year anniversary comes to pass leaving many to wonder the mystery of the great change. Had it been evolution at work, some kind of government test gone horribly wrong or simply an act of God. For modern medicine had no idea of the cause of these mutations that these simple bacteria spread so quickly with their mysterious mutagenic energy that was currently untraceable with modern science. In the empire of humanity, there was one common denominator. Eternium, the latest and only fantasy VRMMO played by all, from the youngest in kindergarten to the most powerful in the Senate. Its technology was used as a learning tool for school as well as an entertainment system. From teachers reenacting famous events with near limitless control in special school zones in the game, to scientists testing advanced molecular construction projects with real-time data. But the true obsession or use was the conquering of monsters and exploration of the world. For the possibilities were endless in the game as long as you had the levels and talent. It was a truly living, breathing, fantasy world. Anything you could dream or want was possible. All from the comfort of you own home. Thanks to the quantum real-time network the game utilized. But with every great idea and fantasy comes a nightmare. You cannot live in a game and play in a game and for a great many work in the game and not have some consequences. And they all began with one woman in the Carolina 9 colony starting up her eternal helm with a whirl. Wishing as she did every day, that the world of Eternium was real. That magic and the power to bring back the dead and heal the sick with a wave of your hand was a reality. With a small Bang, the world changed, for some the better, and others a nightmare. For in that North American colony, in that apartment, at 7 am Universal time a woman''s dreams became a reality. Her wish was answered as well as 32.8 billion others. For she was the catalyst for the trace amount of that mysterious energy coursing through her veins. When a small plug in the back of her helmet blew out with a small bang that caused a sliver of electricity to jolt her frontal lobe linking for a short millisecond that mysterious energy to the world of Eternium. Causing the minds of everyone contaminated with that power, connected to the game to link for a microsecond, initiating a huge upsurge of power. A catalyst that caused belief to become a reality and two worlds to collide. As well as many universes to begin their inevitable merge. All from the small amounts of mysterious energy from some small bacteria that for a second was transferred through space and steeped in the undocumented mutagenic primal energy that will be eventually called MANA. Chapter 1, part 1 Fixed~ Waking up is supposed to be a warm and comforting feeling, like hot cocoa on a cold morning or at worst, struggling out of bed for an early shift at work. Not feeling like a tractor is sitting on my chest while simultaneously scooping out my brain. Peeling open my crusty sleep filled eyes. I gasp and attempt to hold down yesterday''s fiesta of beers and a burger. "Wregh!" Failing miserably, I squeeze my eyes shut against my pounding headache. Aiming my head as best I can I spew what feels like the past weeks worth of beer and synth food all over what I hope is nothing important. By the cold stone pressed against my naked backside and not the comforting feeling of sani-rubber, I guess that I must have ended up at Lizzy''s last night and not my kitchen or bathroom floor. Slowly pushing myself to a sitting position. I crack my eyes and see that I am lying on what seems to be a smooth rock shelf inside of a cave. To the right of me is a web of light flashing and shifting on the ground, coming from a tunnel about 6 meters away. And directly to my left the tunnel is sealed with old-timey bricks with faint traces of something glittering between the stones. with the far side of the cave just a meter away. Feeling a slight chill on the family jewels, I look down. "AIIIIEEEEEE!" I scream while flailing my arms. Looking up at me was the ugliest looking animal head I have ever seen; its skin dried like a piece of soy meat sitting too long in the sun with flecks of gray and green crisscrossing its skin. It''s snout looking like a pig with large tusks jutting from the sides of its mouth. Someone it seems was kind enough to drape me with the ugliest blanket I have ever seen. Taking deep breaths to offset my oncoming panic attack, I smelled faint traces of dampness, mildew, and green growing things on the air. Thinking back I couldn¡¯t remember the last time I had the spare cash to get into the parks. Or anywhere outside of climate controlled work zones. Stranger and stranger. Hesitantly I look beneath the pig head hoping for the best and expecting the worst. Naked, great. So someone either drugged me last night or I went on a wicked bender, hopefully, the latter. Otherwise, I got into some weird shit. Or at least I think it was last night.... Thinking it over I couldn''t remember the last time I had such a bad hangover. Usually, it takes a good amount of synth beer to get a buzz let alone an actual hangover. leading me more towards the idea of drugs or something else...Definitely got drugged. Never having blacked out in my life on synth beer. I doubt I would begin now. Especially considering I would need a stomach the size of a hundred liter drum to fit all the beer required. Trying to remember the night before, it all seems kind of fuzzy. Not that it is gone just old. More of a distant memory rather than a dozen hours. All I know for sure is that I left work and wanted a bite to eat on the way to Lizzy''s apartment. Stopping at Josh''s Place outside the warehouse sector, salivating over the thought of a burger and beer. Focusing as much as I can all I remember is taking that first sip of beer and a bite of meaty flavored goodness then nothing. Damn, I definitely got drugged. Never having blacked out in my life on synth beer. I doubt I would begin now. Especially considering I would need a stomach the size of a hundred liter drum to fit all the beer required. Slapping my cheeks to get out of my head, I swing my legs over the edge of the shelf avoiding the slimy green vomit as best i can. Thinking happy thoughts I try to hold down the remaining bile trying to climb my throat. With shaking hands, I lower my feet to the floor a meter below. Overestimating my strength I almost take a nose dive, luckily catching myself at the last minute against the far wall. Feeling my strength ebbing at an alarming rate I rest against the wall letting my heart rate slow. After a few minutes of catching my breath, I grab the blanket from where it had fallen and secure it to my waist as best as I can. Feeling the furry stubble along the blanket as I do so. Strange, this blanket feels like what I expect real leather would feel like. But there hasn''t been a living pig outside of government control to my knowledge for about fifty years now. No way someone wasted that much cash on an antique or jail time stealing from the big man. Just to punk my scrawny ass. Considering even small crimes carried a minimum of 20 years of weekend community service and a full neural rewrite for those unsavory tendencies. Turning criminals into upstanding zombies. Most wouldn''t risk it, for any amount of cash. And those that would well, they are just plain scary. Be it connections, money, or bat shit crazy.Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. Speaking of a scrawny ass. Looking down at my chest and arms they seem unusually thin. I mean I''m not ripped or anything but I do work out on occasion at the office gym. Peering down I still seem to be my near two meter height, but my skin looks like a strong breeze could bruise me. It is somewhat sallow with my veins and muscles showing through like thin paper. Feeling cool air on my head I reach up and touch my scalp. "No, No ,NONONONO!" Someone shaved me! my beautiful hair! I run my hands across my head and face, then check my arms and legs. "What kind of sick bastard does this!" They didn''t even leave me my eyebrows! I don''t feel a trace of hair on my entire body, not even the stick and berries! "Damn someone is gonna pay for this shit, gonna take forever to grow back. Not to mention whatever they gave me made me look like a damn monster...Skins all messed up, looks like I''m an ehead or something..." I mutter while checking the rest of my body. Well, first things first I need to figure out where the hell I am. Thinking back, I tried to remember if any of the parks had cave systems running through them. Drawing a blank I began to stumble my way towards the non-metaphorical light at the end of the tunnel. Pissed and looking for some answers. Sliding my hand along the wall I walk to the cave entrance. Reaching the opening, I wait for my eyes to adjust to the blinding light leaking its way between vines blocking the entrance. With one hand securing my makeshift skirt I use the other to push and pull the vines from my path. Pushing through to the small clearing just outside. Peering around I could tell I was in some deep shit. The cave opened halfway up a hill covered in flowery vines. The beautiful almost too vibrant flowers meandering across the creeper-covered hill like an explosion of rainbowy vomit. With the cave opening up at canopy level showing an ocean of trees undulating in the wind and faint mountains in the distance. Having never seen so much green in my life other than in holo-movies or games I could feel cold sweat beginning to drip down my back. Maybe I had gone a little beyond blackout drunk or drugged. No way was I still in my colony, as far as I knew there weren''t even this many trees left on earth. Most have died off and been replaced with the giant terraformers working to fix the planet and keep the few remaining wild animals outside the colony biome''s alive. Feeling a sharp pinch on my leg, I come back to reality. Looking down in shock I see the biggest damn bug I have ever seen. With a glance, it looked like one of those Hercules beetles in old earth nature vids every kid grows up watching in school. Except on steroids with a massive bluish tinged shell reaching up to my knees. And a giant jagged horn about a meter long, piercing my left calf just below my makeshift skirt. Tensing its leg¡¯s, it pushes deeper into my calf breaking me out of my stupor. Screaming I fall onto my back dropping my pig skin and wrenching the horn from my leg in the process along with a good chunk of flesh. Kicking out with my good leg as the beetle lunges at me I catch its horn with my foot lacerating my sole but knocking its tip between some vines on the hillside. ¡°Shit, shit, shit, Shit, SHIT!¡± I mutter while scrabbling backward towards the cave. Looking around for something to defend myself with I don''t see any more of the giant beetles but I also don''t see any large branches or rocks that I could use as a weapon. Everything is covered by the vines. Shit, that thing is totally going to gut my ass and eat me! Starting to hyperventilate, I look at the struggling beetle and realize I''m going to have to kill it before it gets free. No way could hide from it In the cave while bleeding everywhere, it will just follow in after me. Psyching myself up I crawl towards the beetle on my hands and knees while leaving a trail of blood across the greenery. Working my way to the back side of its shell; while being leery of the claws on the rear legs I grab and flip the beetle onto its back with adrenalin fueled strength. Snapping off the tip of its horn in the process. With shaking legs, I stand up then stomp with my right foot with my full weight into its soft underbelly. Stomping over and over again on its belly, leaving bloody footprints. Gaining a few small gashes from the beetle¡¯s claws while it tries to defend its self. Finally, I feel it start to give. With one last stomp, my foot smashes into its gooey insides. "SQUEEEEEE" The beetle lets out a high pitched shriek and stops its struggling. Feeling exhausted from the adrenaline leaving my body. I wrench my foot from its corpse and fall to the ground. Worried about a parasite or infection I attempt to clean as much of the ropey gray entrails from the bottom of my bloody foot as I can with the nearby vines. When I suddenly hear a loud. *DING* Followed by a bright blue window popping up in front of my face. The hell is this.... Chapter 1, part 2 *Ding* What the hell... Hearing a loud ringing sound I look around when suddenly I feel light electric shocks running from my head to toes and back again followed by a giant blue wall of text.
Level 1 Forest Beetle Defeated!
Level Up!
Please Choose Leveling Setting! Level will be locked at Zero until setting is chosen.
Default: Level with default world settings. Base stat growth for race. Stats may be gained through training with unlimited potential. World settings locked to default until criteria met.
Settler: Level with custom world settings. Base stat growth for race. Stats may not be gained from training. Bonus stats applied per level based upon the median stat gains for corresponding level of intelligent humanoid creatures upon the world. Base world settings unlocked with options for advancement.
Pioneer: Level with custom world settings. Base stat growth Forfeited. Stats gained from training increased by 250% with unlimited potential. Advanced world settings unlocked.
The hell is this?! Staring in shock at the blue windows in front of my eyes I try waving my hand through the boxes. Turning red and shaking they refuse to be just a stress dream. Blinking and looking around they follow in front my eye¡¯s almost completely blocking my vision. Augmented reality of some kind? Taking a moment to look them over I realize they read just like a game.... What is this, a joke? Thinking I may have gotten a virus on my core. I slap my wrist to bring up my helper menu. Not seeing the normal screen show on my arm, I began to get nervous. These damn things are supposed to be nearly impossible to remove or even turn off. Hell, I remember hearing about a guy last year who lost most of both arms and his legs in an Exosuit malfunction and having to use his leftover nubs to access his workplace VR platform to pay off his regrowth treatment. Trying to calm down the only thing I can think is that I am already in a game. But that pain! Speaking of, my leg feels amazing! Actually, my whole body feels amazing! All the little pains I have accrued over the years seem to have melted away with those little shocks. Getting tired of trying to look around the blue text to check my leg I decided to quickly look them over and pick an option. Not having the most experience in VR games, I wish Lizzy was here, she usually picks this kind of stuff. I usually just play for the lore. She¡¯s all about the gun toting or sword swinging, whatever the flavor of the month currently is. Bah. Well, default settings look bad, especially with being locked into game settings that I may, or may not hate with the only chance of change being special criteria. Maybe it¡¯s something easy like sleeping in a bed or having a delicious meal¡­ Nah probably some stupid quest like defeating an ancient god of juicy bowel movements or some shit... The pioneer doesn¡¯t look terrible except for the having to constantly train part. With this realistic pain setting, I would rather get stabbed again than have to worry about muscle cramps every day or god knows what else the developers added. Then again with advanced setting already open maybe it has of offline training like that space game me and Lizzy played a few months back. Hmmm¡­.Thinking about the settler option it looks like the best choice. Workout grind fest or crazy training just to be equal with everyone else, umm no thank you. May never be the best player but at least I will never be behind the curve, with half the work. And an added bonus of have some options already unlocked. Yeah, definitely settler. Making my choice I try pushing my hand at the settler option instead of swiping the screens away.
Settler: Level with custom world settings. Base stat growth for race. Stats may not be gained from training. Bonus stats applied per level based upon median stat gain for world for current level of intelligent humanoid creatures. Base world settings unlocked with options for advancement. *Warning* Settler option chosen. Setting is perminate once chosen. Please Confirm:
YES NO
With a hesitant touch, I confirm the settler option. Eh, no going back now¡­. *Ding*
*Congratulations! You are now level 1* Basic menu options have been unlocked! Character sheet is now available! Titles and achievements have been released!
Heading back inside the cave while reading the next text box. I decide to log out and find out what Lizzy knows about the game, she¡¯s practically an encyclopedia about games and tech, hopefully she will have some info. Thinking about the pain settings and how realistic this is, I begin to worry that this could be the one that puts her over the edge into becoming an ehead. I can barely get her into the real world as is. But then again this may as well be real with how everything feels. Thinking about that level up I swear I feel like I¡¯m twenty again. Maybe this will be the one that gets me to take the dive with her, if there is something in the options that gives me access to my media library in game this could be perfect. All this green and fresh air sure beats that stale recirculated shit they pump into our housing sector. Making my way past the vines and over to my shelf I sit down and swipe away the latest notification. *Du du da duuu*
Achievement earned! Alpha and Omega: The first of the race HOLLOW! Current Bloodline has been lost! The Perk Store has been unlocked! +1000 Fame. Title unlocked, PROGENITOR, while equipped increased attraction from opposite sex and guaranty that offspring will be hollow race. Achievement earned! Timeless: You have surpassed the ravages of time. Immortal perk gained. Title earned ANCIENT, while equipped skill and level experience requirements decreased by 10% Achievement earned! Slow and steady wins the race!: Stay level zero for more than one year. Title earned THE TORTOISE, while equipped gain +100 stamina and 30% increased regeneration.
Damnit! Hearing the sounds of trumpets playing my vision is flooded again with Notifications. Quickly glancing through the text, I notice that it seems the game decided to change my race. Weird I wonder if I just got lucky and its randomized. Looking through the rest of the notifications I start to get a weird feeling in the pit of my stomach. Holding my breath I quickly swipe the notifications away. ¡°Ahhhhh¡± I let out my breath. That was the last of them. Saying ¡°Menu¡± a new screen opens.
Menu
Character Sheet Skills And Magic
Settings Perk Store
Quickly I look through the settings and the character sheet. ¡°Where the fuck is the logout!¡±. Checking the skills and magic tab I frantically start looking through each tab and setting. This cant be right! ¡°Logout! Help! Customer Service! Emergency! Bug report! Moderator!¡± Saying everything I can think of. I try to bring up a logout or force logout feature. Then I begin waving my hands through the air like I am controlling my core, trying every hand motion or word I know for logout. Why isn¡¯t anything working! Every VR program is supposed to have a failsafe, just so this doesn¡¯t happen!Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. Starting to hyperventilate my mind goes back to all the horror stories of eheads stroking out while gaming, leaving supposed ghosts in the machine. Is that why last night is so fuzzy, did I die while gaming? Or hell did the company push me into beta testing Eternium?! I know Lizzy said they were rolling out the testing phase, but people were lining up just for the chance to get in. No reason for me to be inside, everyone knows I prefer the real over VR. Even if most of it is shit. Or hell would that be a reason for them to bring me in on the testing phase?! Get one of the few people that prefer life without VR to prefer life inside? Gasping for air, I feel myself becoming light headed. With a splitting headache, I open my eyes. Damn, I must have passed out. Taking a deep breath I try to stay calm. Talking out loud to hear a person¡¯s voice even if its my own I begin to list off what I know. ¡°Ok so I woke up in a cave. I have a fancy pig skin that is maybe starting gear? I gained level one after killing a beetle, oh and pain is real here. I have strange achievements, pointing to either me being inside a game for at least a year with no memories or this is a premade character for testing. A game the odds point to being Eternium due to it being so realistic. Lizzy is in the landscape design department for the game and I work for the company doing maintenance in the massive server farm east of the company¡¯s Carolina Biome. I cant log out.¡± Damn, maybe she mentioned my hate for most things VR, and the wrong person overheard her? Feeling like im just grasping at straws I try to think back to my debt contract. Hmm was there anything in there that would let them put me in the game without permission. ¡°Bah¡± Who am I kidding the big corporations get away with pretty much anything they want, and if they wanted me as a tester. It would happen no questions asked. This is getting me nowhere. My thoughts are just running in circles now. Whats done is done, I just need to deal with it and take everything one step at a time. Usually these things have a time frame, so I should hear from a moderator or something sometime. Unless they have a weak AI dedicated to just watching me¡­Taking a deep breath and letting it out I decided to look over my character sheet instead of going back down the rabbit hole. Bringing the menu up I swipe the character sheet tab.
Michael Black
Title: N/A
Bloodline: N/A Age: Immortal
Race: Hollow Level: 1
Class: N/A Profession: N/A
Health: 50 Stamina: 55 Mana: 75
Armor: 2
Thirst: ---/100 Hunger: ---/100
Fame:1000 Infamy:0
Constitution:5 Intelligence:7
Strength:6 Wisdom:6
Agility:5 Charisma:3
Dexterity:7 Luck:3
Unused Status Points: 4
Resistences: N/A
Looking over the character sheet I notice most of the stats have different numbers. I Wonder if the starting stats are random or if they are based on what my real world values. I try pressing each stat to gain more information. It seems constitution increases health as well as health regeneration. Strength does what it sounds like, but also increasing melee damage. Agility increases running speed and attack speed. Dexterity affects fine motor control and accuracy with spells and physical attacks. Intelligence increases mana pool and power of spells. Wisdom increases mana regeneration and adds a bonus to skill and experience gain. Charisma is apparently how people view me and luck doesn¡¯t have a description. Looking over the rest of my sheet I tap my age which just shows an infinity sign as a description and my title which gives me one of the three options I earned from achievements earlier. Going ahead and slotting the tortoise title for now, increasing my stamina by 100. Both class and profession are greyed out so I probably earn or purchase them later, along with bloodline maybe? Wait, one of my achievements earlier said I forfeited my bloodline. I guess that¡¯s out for now. My resistance is showing a blank so I probably gain that from gear, looking at my two armor it probably comes from my only piece of equipment the pig blanket. Leaving just my race which shows a large detailed box.
Hollow: A race that has evolved from ancient humans by subsisting on pure mana. In high mana density area¡¯s thirst and hunger become null, also gain +5 to both health and mana regeneration. In low mana density areas required sustenance at 1/10 the normal amount. In Null mana areas gain -5 to both health and mana regeneration as well as gaining hunger and thirst at three times the normal amount for humans. Gain +5 Mana per level +1 Con, +1 INT, +2 free stat points.
Closing out my character sheet I check my skills and magic tab, looking at both I have one ability listed.
Mana Leech(U): Directly attack targets mana pool, draining mana for a maximum of 5 seconds by touch. Cool down, 30 seconds.
Looking at thirst and hunger I guess those explain themselves. Going Back to the main menu I look at the world settings next. It has a small list of things you would see in most games. Enabling the health along with stamina and mana bars. My vision suddenly shows a small red, blue and green bar in the corner of my vision. Looking around they track in the corner of my eye just like the text screens. Nifty. Next, I enable friends list. As well as showing buff and debuff durations and notifications under my bars. Then I change my notifications to auto minimize, hopefully that should keep me from getting wrecked mid fight if something pops up. The rest are greyed out like map options and inventory management. There are a few other lines showing as N/A I guess those are the advanced options I can unlock in the future. Getting exhausted from looking through all the information dumped in my lap I decide to head back outside. Walking through the cave entrance I notice my red and blue bars loose some of their glow. Not noticing any notifications I check my character sheet, it shows the hunger and thirst sections now having a numerical value of 100/100. I guess the cave is considered mana dense. Good to remember if I need to heal up or I begin to get hungry. Can use this place as a base before I start looking for people. Hiking my makeshift skirt up I head outside. Looking around I immediately notice another beetle facing away from me eating the last few remains of my stomp happy session. Comparing it to the bug from before this one looks almost twice the size with the back of its shell coming to about waist height. While looking intently at the critter suddenly i see Level 3 forest beetle floating above its head. Hell yeah good guy options, guess now i know what level everything will be before i try and take it down. But damn, the level 1 version almost gutted my ass, guess I''m not going anywhere till that thing moves on¡­ Creeping back inside the cave carful to not make any noise. I head back over to my trusty shelf. Sitting down I decide to look through the perk store on the menu, and distribute my stat points.
Perk Store
Tier 1
Inventory (200) Map (200) The warrior(150) The Thief(150) The Sage(150) The Leader(150) Hunger pains(150) My First job(150)
Credits: 300
Tier two >
Taping each option, I get no additional information. And the tier two option just flashes me insufficient level notifications when I try to scroll to the next tier. Looking through the different option¡¯s it seems the only sure picks are the inventory or the map, the rest may add some stats or something but the sure picks are probably for the best. Looking between the two. The map would help keep me from getting lost but not having any need of a camp or having been anywhere. I will probably have to explore before it shows anything. To find the nearest town I can just keep heading in one direction and hope for the best... Inventory is probably the better option of the two, better to keep anything I find on me than having to drag it along. Need to find the closest civilization, and other players. Maybe they will have more info. Making my decision I purchase the inventory perk.
Inventory Unlocked!
Opening my character sheet back up I go ahead and put my points into constitution boosting it up to 9. Thinking about the giant ass beetle I decide more health is the best option for now, at least until I get a better idea of how my character progression is going to go. Finished with checking over the menu and fiddling with the options I bring up my character sheet for one last look over.
Michael Black
Title: THE TORTOISE
Bloodline: N/A Age: Immortal
Race: Hollow Level: 1
Class: N/A Profession: N/A
Health: 90 Stamina: 175 Mana: 75
Armor: 2
Thirst: ---/100 Hunger: ---/100
Fame:1000 Infamy:0
Constitution: 9 Intelligence:7
Strength:6 Wisdom:6
Agility:5 Charisma:3
Dexterity:7 Luck:3
Unused Status Points: 0
Resistences: N/A
Chapter 1, part 3 Sitting on my ass for the past hour has given me some needed perspective to come to terms with my new life. I realized if I could log out or not didn''t truly matter. Nor If the company is watching me or not. The company may play somewhat loose with human rites and laws, but there are two things they will never do. Waste money, and cause unnecessary paperwork. Well, the former at least. And covering up a body is both. The best choice is to just enjoy my current life and find out as much as possible about this new game. Hell, the one thing I do know about my contract is that there is nothing about releasing information about their games. Having never signed an NDA I plan to sell any valuable info once I get out and disappear. With how big this game is, we will be set for life. Trying to remember as much as I can about the game. All I come up with is that it is based in a medieval setting. With a near infinite amount of skills and classes with more being created every second by the AI, and that they are all based on rarity levels. Supposedly the inhouse AI gauges the gaining of new skills as well as other achievements. Their selling point is that the world is eternal, everything you do or gain has an effect on everything else, a true sandbox. With no cap on levels or skill gain, with everything having the ability to evolve. Even if the skill hasn''t been created, the AI is supposed to come up with new paths on the spot based upon the player''s actions. So even if you have the exact same class as another player, every action you take could affect your future and current skills to a degree. Speaking of skills, I bring up my skills and magic list and look at my one ability Mana Leech(U). Looking over the tooltip it has no description on how to cast spell, magic, racial. Whatever it is. Holding out my hand I speak in a clear voice "Mana Leech" while looking around for any kind of effect. Seeing nothing happen, I Pick up some loose grains of rock from the cave floor and focus on them as a target while Speaking the skill out loud with no effect. Thinking I probably have to have a living target or perhaps a target with a mana pool. I leave it for later. Waving away the skills list I bring up the menu and look through the options to the newest, inventory. Selecting it a five by five grid appears in front of my eyes. Looking around for something to place inside I look down at my makeshift skirt. Unwarping the skin from my waist I Push it against the screen to see it disappear, just as a miniature picture appears in one of the boxes. Using my hand I can shift it around the inventory screen freely while thinking over the possibilities for storage I leave my hand resting against the item causing it to be suddenly outlined in green followed by a new screen. Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.
Level 172 Trollkin Boar Skin Rarity: Epic Durability: 32/220 ? ? ?
The hell, why would I start with such a high level epic item, unless maybe that¡¯s random too. Just like my race. ¡°Bah¡±, thinking about re-equipping the boar skin, suddenly it appears in my hand. ¡°The hell!¡± Looking from the inventory grid to my hand and back again, I visualize putting the skin back into storage then bringing it back out. The Skin follows my thoughts by blinking from my hand to my inventory then back to my hand. Woah trippy, I guess they figured out skills without a verbal component or hand movements. I guess it''s not such a jump considering the game is directly affecting the senses. On a hunch, I hold my hand out while thinking about mana leech, at first nothing happens. But as I concentrate on the ability after a few minutes my hand begins to warm up and glow with a soft violet color. Focusing on my hand the glow intensifies for a few seconds before slowly fading away. Trying to cast the ability again, I feel a pinch in my hand followed by a tingle. Ah that''s right the skill has a thirty-second cooldown, well I guess I know what happens when casting something when it''s not ready. I spend the next hour or so meandering around the cave and playing with my inventory and Mana Leech. Looking at everything''s stats once selected. Unfortunately sand and the occasional pebble just show a gray box with rock listed followed by a durability value. Too bad I¡¯m sure an epic level rock could come in handy. Deciding enough time has passed. I make my way to the cave entrance and stealthily peek outside. Glancing around I see no signs of the beetle or the carcass. Sighing I look for any drops or items in the clearing, Damn I should have tried looting the body. Trying to be as sneaky as possible I leave the cave and look around. Feeling a cool breeze on my skin I realize the sun is barely peeking behind the distant mountains. Worried about possible higher level monsters at night I head back inside the cave. Bending the vines around the entrance to leave as small an opening as possible. Back inside the cave I spread my boar skin on the rocky shelf for a makeshift bed and lie down. Planning for the next day as I fall into a deep sleep.
  1. Gain a few levels
  2. Find a town
  3. Find a player
  4. Find out how to contact support/moderators
  5. Talk to Lizzy¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­.
Chapter 2, part 1 The first thing I notice upon awakening is the sound of rain striking the ground outside. And the distinct lack of hunger and thirst. Quickly checking my character sheet, I see that they are still not showing a value. One less thing to worry about. Climbing to my feet I notice the faintly glowing lines in the back of the cave. Being distracted the day before, I had forgotten to check it out. Scratching between the bricks with a small pebble I am unable to scrape any of the glowing mortar from the wall. Giving up until I have some tools. I head to the front of the cave and prepare to climb outside. Peering between the vines I don¡¯t see any sign of monsters, beetles or otherwise. Crouching down I try to be as stealthy as I can while exiting the cave. Looking around the clearing I see no sign of any giant insects. In fact, I don¡¯t see anything alive, looking around I don¡¯t see any creatures or even tiny insects. Straining my ears, I don¡¯t hear any of the associated buzzing or noises one would expect in a forest or nature. Peering up into the morning light I look through the lightly drizzling rain searching my memory. I don¡¯t recollect any sign of life from the day before. Tentatively I place my left hand into the rain. Feeling nothing but cool water. Eyeing my health bar, I don¡¯t seem to take any damage or gain a status effect. Damn did the developers cheap out on ambiance and the small stuff or is there a reason for this¡­ Shrugging my shoulders I head out into the rain, being as stealthy as possible. Keeping my eyes peeled, I climb down the flowery hillside into the tree line below. Taking special care with the rain-slick growth. The climb isn¡¯t too bad only about a 70% incline with lots of hand and foot holds thanks to the vines. Reaching the bottom of the hill after about half an hour I find myself in a sun-dappled clearing with small shrubs underneath massive trees. Looking up I realize they are easily as large as the famed ancient redwoods that used to be on the old North American west coast before the San Andreas quake of 2142. Not having to worry about food or water and already having a place to spend the night I decide the first order of business is a weapon. As much fun as kicking shit to death is, bleeding my own blood is not. As I search the sparse undergrowth for branches I collect a few throwing rocks. Coming upon a Large fallen tree I manage to break off a few of the smaller branches. Testing them, I end up tossing all but one away after they snap on one swing. Smacking my head, I remember my inventory inspect function. Quickly bringing up my inventory I check the branch and rocks I collected.
Dry Adder Branch Rarity: Uncommon Durability:16/20 - -
Granite Rock Rarity: Common Durability:200/200 -
Looking over the rocks it seems their overall durability is based on their size and they don¡¯t stack. And neither the branch or rocks have a damage value. Hopefully, it is just hidden as I expect the pig skin is, as they are shown as crafting material and not a weapon. And if not hopefully it much less painful than punching something to death. Seeing as how my character sheet doesn¡¯t show any damage values either I have high hopes. Picking up one of the broken branches I check its status in my inventory to find out the difference.
Rotten Adder Branch Rarity: Uncommon Durability:1/5 -
Getting all the information, I need I toss it back on the ground. Thinking about my only source of food and shelter I mark the occasional tree with a rock as well as creating a few piles of loose branches to point my way back. As I make my way what seems to be the 50th big ass tree in the past hour. As I swipe the tree with my handy branch I suddenly hear a loud *Ding* sound. Checking the notification while keeping an eye out for beasties I see I gained a new skill.
New Skill Unlocked! Pathfinding (Novice rank 1, 0%) The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. (Passive) Rarity: Common You gain the inherent ability to find your way.
Looking around I don¡¯t notice anything different right away. But as I pass around the back side of the tree I see a giant bush at least ten meters tall with arm length jagged thorns covered in fist sized red fruit. As I walk towards the bush I feel a tingle between my shoulder blades. Quickly crouching down, I check the vicinity. As I turn to look behind me I feel the tingle move across my side to my chest. Twisting my body, I feel It always on the side of the direction facing the bush. Checking my skill list, I look at the new pathfinding tool tip. Hmm, so it seems to be giving me a direction, assuming its north I should be able to use this. As I test the direction by twisting my body. *Craack!!* Suddenly I hear a loud snapping sound coming from the fruit bush. Swinging towards it I Ready my makeshift club and begin quietly sneaking back to the large tree behind me. Closing the distance, I strain my eyes for the slightest movement. Hoping for a small fuzzy animal, not something matching the size of everything in this forest. Suddenly a beetle half again as large as my first encounter comes charging out at me. Almost stumbling over a root poking from the ground, I quickly look around and see that I am less than a meter from the trunk. Crouching as close as I can to the trunk I prepare to jump to the side as the beetle rampages towards me. As it gets within a few meters from me suddenly it horn gains a reddish glow as it accelerates even faster towards me! *Hugh* With a gasp I leap to the side just in time. Feeling a rush of air just centimeters from my leg. Hearing a loud *Bang!* I jump to my feet and face the flailing beetle. Thinking about my first fight I couldn¡¯t help but wonder how it would have turned out if it had used a similar ability. Rushing closer, I swing my branch down onto its side with a loud *Thump* not leaving a scratch on its tough shell. Taking a step back I see that it has gotten half its length of horn stuck in the side of the tree. Not passing up such a good opportunity for testing I begin pounding its leg joints over and over. Leaving its legs a pulpy mess. All while the insect is thrashing and screaming in agony. Keeping an eye on my surroundings I bring up my character sheet to check my hunger and thirst meter to test a theory.
Michael Black
Title: THE TORTOISE
Bloodline: N/A Age: Immortal
Race: Hollow Level: 1
Class: N/A Profession: N/A
Health:90 Stamina:102(175) Mana:75
Armor: 2
Thirst: 98/100 Hunger: 97/100
Fame:1000 Infamy:0
Constitution: 9 Intelligence:7
Strength:6 Wisdom:6
Agility:5 Charisma:3
Dexterity:7 Luck:3
Unused Attribute Points:0
Resistances: N/A
Seeing that my hunger and thirst had gone down slightly I prepared Mana Leech and placed my hand on the back of the insect¡¯s shell. In all my earlier tests, I couldn¡¯t get the ability to go beyond making my hand glow, so I guessed that it had to have a target with a mana pool. Activating the skill my hand suddenly glows with a violent light sucking beads of bluish water from the back of the bugs shell like water collecting on a plate. Feeling a jolt of energy beginning to enter my hand it lasts for the five-second duration before fading away. Leaving me feeling slightly refreshed I check my character sheet to see the values for thirst and hunger returned to full. Excellent if I can hunt something with a mana pool sustenance is taken care of. Looking down at the feebly struggling beetle I put it out of its misery with a few good strikes to its head. Checking over my blinking notification it shows.
Level 3 Forest Beetle Defeated!
Looking down at the body, I place my hand on its shell and say ¡°Loot¡± not having anything happen or windows pop open I begin going through past game Loot commands ¡°Loot all, Plunder, pillage, items, seize, scrilla, cash, creds, DAMNIT!¡± Losing my composure, I end up screaming and kicking the corpse. All the stress and worry that I have been locking inside bubbling out all at once. ¡°GIVE ME THE LOOT!!!¡± Taking a breath, I relax my shoulders and picture the first time I saw Lizzy. Her hair a reddish golden halo framing her petite nose and lips, her eyes a beautiful Grey like the eye of a storm. Mesmerizing, like the best drug trip without the washout after. Thinking about her face always calmed me down without fail. Before her, I ended up in more fights than I care to remember, the term my better half was never more apt for us. I still don¡¯t understand what she sees in me¡­. Shaking my head, I focus once more on the body, thinking it over I take a hint from the mana leech ability. Placing my hand on the body I bring the beetle to my mind¡¯s eye, focusing on the corpse I begin by superimposing a blank inventory screen over the body *Ting*. Opening my eyes, I see a blue screen floating in front of my face. Huh, that was easy...
Carapace x1 Beetle meat x3
Placing my hand against the loot screen suddenly both items disappear. Bringing up my inventory I see them listed next to my rocks. ¡°Hmmm¡±. Thinking it over I concentrate for a moment and visualize my character sheet then menu quickly bringing them both up. Hmm seems the best way in to just visualize everything not the verbal, good to know. Looking around one last time, I head towards the giant thorn-studded Bush, time to get a better weapon. I¡¯m sure there is more than just big ass bugs here¡­¡­. ***
Michael Black
Title: THE TORTOISE
Bloodline: N/A Age: Immortal
Race: Hollow Level: 1, 30%
Class: N/A Profession: N/A
Health:90 Stamina:175 Mana:75
Armor: 2
Thirst: 98/100 Hunger: 97/100
Fame:1000 Infamy:0
Constitution: 9 Intelligence:7
Strength:6 Wisdom:6
Agility:5 Charisma:3
Dexterity:7 Luck:3
Unused Attribute Points:0
Resistances: N/A
Skills And Magic
Mana Leech
Pathfinding (Novice rank 1, 0%)
chapter 2, part 2 Stealthing towards the giant bush I keep my eyes peeled for anything out of place, well anything more than what seems to be a giant strawberry bush with fist sized strawberries and arm length thorns. Arriving at the base of the plant I begin grabbing as many of the fruit as I can, odds are the food in the game gives a benefit of some kind even if I don¡¯t need to eat. Hell, that beetle was hanging out here maybe I can use them as bait or something. Suddenly hearing rustling, I look between the twisted branches to see a large shadow passing on the far side. Freezing in place I slowly push my most recent acquisition into my inventory and remove my trusty branch. Checking it over for cracks or dents it seems to be holding up sufficiently. Beginning my attempt to sneak to the far side I take care to stay hidden from the shadow, passing the side of the bush it is walking away from. I let it gain some distance while I get into position. Passing the far side of the bush I get my first glance of my newest prey. It is another beetle, maybe of a different species instead of the dark shade of blue like the two previous, it is more of a mottled brown and gray with a large head resembling a rounded cylinder with little-jagged spikes forming intricate swirls along the sides. Blending into the forest floor and sparse undergrowth almost perfectly. If I couldn¡¯t see it moving, it would be almost invisible. Focusing my eyes just above its head I suddenly see
(Elite) Level 2 Adolescent Forest Hunter
Eyeballing the elite title, I consider if it is worth attempting the kill, on one hand experience. But on the other elites are typically much harder, with much higher base stats and abilities. But it is an adolescent¡­ Hell with it, without a little risk, there is no reward. And if it does drop an amazing item, it can only help at my low level. Looking over the bush, I wish I had taken the time to grab a thorn. Then again with all the noise breaking one off would have made, I would have most likely alerted the hunter. Watching the beetle, it stops every meter or so to eat the lower hanging fruit. Like something out of a nightmare, the front of its head splits down the middle opening into a gaping mouth filled with what looks like large human incisors. Shit... Repressing a slightly hysterical giggle I creep my way up towards the backside of the oblivious monster. Watching it eat another fruit I get an idea. Bringing out my latest haul I gently lean my wooden rod against my leg and toss a double fistful of the red fruits into the inner branches of the bush along its side. Following the sudden movement, it swings its enormous head towards the sound, pushing its way between the branches it begins rooting around. Using its obliviousness to my advantage. I grab my stick and hold my makeshift kilt, and begin softly stepping up behind the forest hunter. Making my way forward I get within a meter of its backside before it finds the thrown fruit. Making crunching noises. Knowing I only have a second to act. I wind up and swing with everything I have against its rear leg joint, hopefully slowing its movement. Hitting the shell, I smash completely through the leg, leaving just a nub dripping a syrupy green fluid. The beetle begins thrashing, swiftly pulling itself between the branches and swinging around. Knocking me onto my back in the process. Quickly getting to my feet I bring my club around just in time to fend off a sideways swing of its head, the jagged spikes catching on the wood ripping it from my hands and flinging my weapon into a distant tree. Crawling backwards I do everything I can to stay away from the rampaging creature. I can feel the wind against my legs from Its head swinging back and forth smashing into the ground missing me by a hair''s breadth. I can hear my self releasing whimpering sounds every time the beasts head comes smashing down. How is this happening! It is so much stronger than the other beetles, and it¡¯s a lower level than the last one I fought. That elite title easily doubled its power if not more. Shit, I don¡¯t want to feel what death is like or feel my legs pulverized. Feeling my back catch up against a tree I roll to the side, just as the beetle''s head comes crashing down. Getting to my feet I make my way around the backside of the tree as the beetle sits there in a daze. Feeling adrenaline rushing through my system, I look around trying to find any kind of weapon, seeing nothing but dirt and dead leaves. My branch! Where did it go, If I can get to it I may have a fighting chance. Shit, I should have just hunted around for those other beetles, what happens if something else hears our fight. I should never have messed around with an elite, I don¡¯t have any magic or skills yet. Quickly sprinting around the backside of the enormous tree. Peering around the far side I catch a glimpse of my weapon sitting on some roots next to a tree about 20 meters away. Suddenly I hear a squeaking cry followed by the sound of the beetle charging behind me tracing my steps. Sprinting as hard as I can I head towards my only chance. Gasping for breath I scoop it up, dodging between trees roots; praying to any god listening not to trip. Making it to the nearby tree, I place it at my back. Steadying my shaking hands, I watch as the beetle charges my way. You got this Michael! It is just like the last one, only a baby, oh fuck that¡¯s a baby! So, they get bigger¡­. Failing to psyche myself up I steady my hands as best I can as the monster nears, now or never. Tensing my legs, I prepare to jump to its bad side before it crashes into me leaving it hopefully to hit the tree and not my sweet meats. Suddenly the beetle catches one of its clawed feet on a root, completely ripping away its leg with a spray of greenish mist and face planting into the ground, causing it to roll forward onto its back directly in front of me. Looking at the beetle in shock, I shake my head. Now is my chance! Not wasting my good fortune, I pound away at its abdomen, working my way across its shell to its legs as I see it trying to right itself. Suddenly I Feel like a weight has been lifted from my arms, and my club becomes slightly lighter. Looking at my stamina bar it is still mostly full so nothing to do with exhaustion. Finally, I finish breaking the legs off one of its sides. Taking a moment, I consider using mana leech, before deciding it is too dangerous. This fight has been going on long enough and I have no way of knowing what could be coming to investigate. With the bug immobilized on its back, I glance at its highly armored head, with no chance of breaking through that shell I raise my branch up high and jam it as hard as I can right between the armored plates on its underbelly causing large cracks to form. Lifting it again I stab downward into its abdominal shell, striking completely through. I feel my trusty branch pierce into the opposite sides shell with a jolt. With one last pitiful squeak, the monstrous insect falls still. I quickly loot the corpse leaving the inspection for later. Grabbing my branch, I give it a pull. Feeling it stuck fast, I brace both legs and get a good grip. Straining with my back I jerk as hard as I can, as I feel it start to give I suddenly hear *Crack!* Looking at my hands I see the broken off remains of my only weapon. Damn, searching around I catch sight of the fruit covered thorn bush. Heading towards it I keep a wary lookout for any more monsters. Not seeing any movement, I race towards the bush and make my way between its branches. Finding a small area clear of vines and thorns I drop down exhausted. Taking a moment to catch my breath, I look over my notifications.
(Elite) Level 2 Adolescent Forest Hunter Defeated!
Level Up!
New Skill Unlocked! Blunt weapon mastery (Novice Rank 1, 0%) (Passive) Rarity: Uncommon Increased skill with blunt weapons, 1% increased damage, attack speed, and critical chance.
Achievement Earned! David and Goliath: You have defeated Elite creature of a higher level solo while under level 10, +100 fame. Title earned HERO, While equipped you deal 10% more damage and take 10% less damage to and from all sources.
Damn, I finished out my level and earned an achievement on top along with a new passive damage skill. Should probably avoid elites for now, until I have actual gear that is and better offensive abilities. Once I do I''m betting they are a treasure trove of experience.Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. Too close of a call the only reason I wasn¡¯t sent for respawn is pure luck. If the beetle hadn¡¯t fallen over that branch and rolled, I would be a red smear in the dirt, getting eaten by an overgrown bug. Hell, if anything else had wandered up during that fight.... No better to not think about it. I decide from here on out I can no longer treat this as just another game, between the pain and unknowable amount of time I¡¯m going to be stuck here. I need to plan everything and be careful. Build myself up safely. Some risks I will have to take if I have any chance of gaining info to sell once I get out. But that¡¯s no reason to be a noob about it, I need to plan everything, every time, every chance I get.
Michael Black
Title: THE TORTOISE
Bloodline: N/A Age: Immortal
Race: Hollow Level: 2, 37%
Class: N/A Profession: N/A
Health:90 Stamina:102(175) Mana:75
Armor: 2
Thirst: 96/100 Hunger: 98/100
Fame:1100 Infamy:0
Constitution: 10 Intelligence:8
Strength:6 Wisdom:6
Agility:5 Charisma:3
Dexterity:7 Luck:3
Unused Attribute Points:4
Resistances: N/A
Taking a quick glance at my character sheet I see I have the same amount of points to distribute as my first level, as well as already having a good amount of experience into the next level. I decided to mull over my options on the way back to the cave, being too hasty only leads to an early grave. If I was a little stronger could I have crushed its back instead of its leg on my first swing or if I was a little bit faster how many more legs could I have taken out? I made it through without taking any damage so were all my points to Constitution truly necessary. Things to consider. Glancing at my stamina bar it shows barely a tenth missing, with the bar regenerating at an extreme rate now that I am no longer moving. I decide to leave the turtle title on for now. More damage dealt and less taken is nice with that hero title but until I have a shit ton more stamina, no way can risk running out. The title alone doubles my current amount and adds an insane regen effect, far too valuable for now. Not knowing the consequences of running out, I add it to my mental list to test. Feeling once again full of energy I break off one of the massive thorns to use as a make shift weapon until I find a new branch. Then I check my inventory, seeing that the fruit from earlier is stacking in one slot I begin collecting every piece I can reach In and around the bush. I finish up the collection about thirty minutes later, looking in my inventory I see that the fruit stacks up to 99 pieces per slot for a total of 321 pieces so four slots. Not bad in thirty minutes of work. Looking at the decimated bush I go for round two. I start with harvesting the thorns inside the small clearing in the bush. Going almost on auto pilot I keep watch while adding thorn after thorn to my inventory. As I reach for another thorn I grasp nothing but air, peering around I realize there are no more on the inner reaches of the bush. Checking my inventory, I see 37 thorns in one stack. Sufficient for now. Hmmm so everything is stacking but those pebbles and branches, maybe they must be the same item and almost uniform in size? The testing list just keeps growing. Shaking my head, I wish once again for a watch or time function. With no way to tell how close to dark it is other than guessing, I decide to head back to my cave entrance. I may not be physically exhausted, but my mind is starting to feel like it''s stuffed with cotton. With the chance of higher level creatures and elites spurring me on I make like a ninja, going from one tree to the next always looking around and listening before moving onward always following my markers. Interestingly, as I was looking for the next marker I suddenly see a small glimmer on a tree trunk followed by a notification.
Congratulations! Pathfinding is now Novice Rank 2, 3%
Pausing for a moment to read over the notification I then check the glimmer. It''s the scar I left on the tree earlier when I marked it with a rock. It is flashing like sunlight on a prism. Guess it wasn¡¯t kidding about always finding my way, so if it ranks the skill progresses and gains new traits. Good to know. Leaving the mark behind I pick up speed. Not having to waste time looking for each mark just the glimmer, I keep my focus on my surroundings. Watching for any monster sign. Arriving at the downed tree from earlier I quickly go to the remaining branches and break as many off as I can. Smashing each one against the ground testing for rot, ending up with two sturdy arm length pieces and three pieces about a meter and a half in length. I load them into my inventory and continue onward towards the hill. Feeling much better with a tried and true weapon than an untested thorn shiv. Once I get to the base of the hill I look around for any loose vines. Not catching any luck, I hitch up my man skirt and begin my climb. As I climb I think about my inventory if not for the ability to hold such a large number of items I would not be returning with even a twentieth of the amount I found. As much as the map would have helped, the pathfinding skill almost takes its place. After I reach the clearing I pull out some of my rocks looking for one with any kind of edge. Finding one that is a little flatter than the others. I go to some of the thinner vines covering the ground and place my biggest rock beneath then I use the flatter''s edge to cut the vine between the two. Taking little breaks periodically to check my surroundings I see by the time the sun is starting to set I only have six lengths of vine, all of which are between three and four meters in length. Each had taken me almost an hour to cut through. Heading inside the cave I check my level gains for the day. Looking at the sheet I see that the points I gain from my race per level have already been distributed leaving myself with the two free points and two bonus points. Hopefully, at some point players start gaining more than an average of just 2 points per level from training or whatever it is they are doing. Or NPC¡¯s too if the stat gain is taking them into account as well. I could do with a few extra points. Looking over my attributes I decide to go ahead and drop one point into luck bringing it up to an even four if it affects random events and loot drops I don¡¯t think it could hurt. Then boosting my overall combat ability by adding one point into strength, agility, and dexterity respectively. Feeling a small tingle of energy run through me I wave my arms around testing my new strength. Not feeling much of a difference if any. I stretch and look over my updated character sheet and skill levels. As well as the item''s I looted from the earlier elite.
Larval stem fragment x 1 Carapace x1 Beetle meat x5
Michael Black
Title: THE TORTOISE
Bloodline: N/A Age: Immortal
Race: Hollow Level: 2, 37%
Class: N/A Profession: N/A
Health:100 Stamina:185 Mana:90
Armor: 2
Thirst: ---/100 Hunger: ---/100
Fame:1100 Infamy:0
Constitution: 10 Intelligence:8
Strength:7 Wisdom:6
Agility:6 Charisma:3
Dexterity:8 Luck:4
Unused Attribute Points:0
Resistances: N/A
Skills And Magic
Mana Leech
Pathfinding (Novice rank 1, 19%)
Blunt weapon mastery (Novice Rank 1, 0%)
Spoiler: Spoiler
Inventory
Acienth Thorn x 37 Dry Adder Branch Vash Vine Vash Vine
Acienth fruit x 321 Dry Adder Branch Vash Vine Granite Rock
Beetle Meat x 8 Dry Adder Branch Vash Vine Granite Rock
Carapace x 2 Dry Adder Branch Vash Vine Granite Rock
Larval stem fragment x 1 Dry Adder Branch Vash Vine Granite Rock
Chapter 2, part 3 With the fading sunlight, I inspect my haul for the day.
Carapace Rarity: Uncommon Durability: 1/1
Pulling out what I thought was going to be beetle shells ended up being little baggies filled with what I guess is the insect''s shells ground to a deep gray powder. Strange, so no assuming what it is. So much for possible armor. Now I know I can get actual items from my kills. Putting the baggies back into my inventory I pull out a piece of beetle meat and fruit next.
Beetle Meat (Raw) Rarity: Common Durability: 2/2
Acienth Fruit Rarity: Uncommon Durability:1/1
The meat is an appetizing grayish green color, that hopefully looks better cooked. Putting it back into my inventory I plan on leaving it as a test to see if it stays fresh. Not at all because of its disgusting look¡­. The Large strawberry shaped fruit is a bright red color and covered in thumbnail sized seeds. Sniffing it, it has a sweet almost spicy scent. Putting it away, for now, I leave it for when I need to eat. No reason to test the realism of the game. Not having taken a piss or shit in two days I don¡¯t want to start now. All I need is to get attacked while I pop a squat to really brighten my day. Damn was it only yesterday when I awoke here. It feels like I have been here a life time. Stretching my arms, I inspect my last few items of interest.
Acienth Thorn Rarity: Uncommon Durability:10/10
Larval Stem Fragment Rarity: Rare Durability:1/1 ?If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.
Vash Vine Rarity: Common Durability:50/50
The Thorn is well, just a big ass thorn about the length of my arm and about five centimeters across at its thickest section tapering down to a needle sharp point. I could probably use it as a small spear or break it and use it as a dagger or something. Holding the thicker end, I plant the point against the stone wall and lean into it. The sharp end snaps after I put most of my body weight behind it. So, they are mostly sturdy, I was a little worried about how easy they broke away from the fruit plant. The vine I am not too worried about, it is almost as flexible as rope and took a huge amount of effort to cut through, and not being more than a few centimeters thick it should make do to make something decent. Lastly, I look over the fragment, it looks like a tiny yellow crystal half the size of my pinky nail with a clot of blood floating in the middle. The inspection in my inventory had shown it as a consumable but no way am I eating this. Or maybe it means consumable as something to throw like ammunition? Hmm, could be something just to sell if I ever find a town, don¡¯t want to waste a rare item on testing. With the sun going down I decided to place everything back into my inventory and get ready for bed. Climbing upon my shelf, I hug my newest club and fall into an exhausted slumber¡­.
Upon awakening I check around my cave for intruders, seeing nothing out of the norm. I sit on the cave floor and pull out a handful of thorns, my branches, and my half dozen vines, spreading them on the ground in front of me. First things first, I grab the longest length of vine from the pile and stand up. Securing the boar skin around my waist, I then tuck the front of the skirt over my dangly bits to my ass, then reach between my legs while holding it in place and pull the back of the skirt and boars head between my legs to my waist so it sits over my crotch. Using the vine, I begin to wrap it around my waist and legs criss crossing from one leg and back to the other and back around my waist. Threading the vine underneath itself every so often to make it as secure as possible. Standing up I look over my creation. What was supposed to be Tarzan-Esq shorts, turned out to look more like a giant man diaper. Well shit, still better than having to fix it every five minutes and I don¡¯t have to worry about a critter grabbing hold of the precious. With the pig head sitting right on my crotch it does have a certain mystique to it, heh¡­ Feeling like a new man, I look over the rest of my crafting material. So, I could make a spear, but beating shit to death with a stick has done wonders for my stress, ¡°hmm.¡± More options are probably better no matter how good it feels. But what I really need is armor and some shoes. Luckily, I haven¡¯t stepped on anything sharp or painful so far, but with my luck, it is just a matter of time. My constitution and regen could also be affecting what I feel, well maybe. I haven¡¯t exactly been careful walking around and I have seen a ton of pebbles and assorted painful shit to step on. No way I missed everything so shoes just in case. Making my decision I grab a length of vine and starting with one end I hold it up to my foot and begin to wrap it. Weaving it over and under, I go from one end of my foot to the other then up my calf almost to my knee before I run out. Tucking the last bit of vine up under the rest I stand up. Taking a step to test out my handy work. Watching the makeshift boot, I can barely bend my foot and the vines begin loosening almost immediately clumping and unraveling. ¡°Damnit!¡± Swearing I pull the vines from my leg, survival man I am not. The old Holo-Vids always make it look so damn easy, bunch of liars one and all. Giving up on the dream of shoes, for now, I decide to wrap my calves instead, a little protection is better than none. Going to just have to hope for the best for my poor feet, at least they will heal thanks to passive regen. Looking at my character screen I see that my armor has jumped from two to three, so securing my boar skin with vines has added a small amount of protection. Wrapping one leg then the other, I completely cover both legs from ankle to knee in vines. Standing up I kick my legs in the air and march around the cave a few times. Not feeling any loosening, I give it a mission accomplished. Checking my armor, I see that it has gone up another two, nearly doubling the previous amount. Feeling emboldened I grab another vine and begin to wrap my chest. I Start by wrapping it around my abs then over each shoulder like a bandolier. Working my way up to just above my pectoral and below my arm pits, leaving enough room so it doesn¡¯t infringe on my arm movement. Tying the last length of the vine to my chest, I stand and stretch. Only feeling a little tightness when twisting my waist and bending I leave it as is. Working my arms and doing stretches I check for loosening. Feeling only a little give, I decide it is sufficient for now. Checking my status once again I see that I have gained another armor point bringing me up to six in total. Looking over my last two vines and my stack of wooden sticks and thorns I decide to make a piece of armor for my left arm. Not having anything to split my branch tips to better bind the thorns, I leave off making a spear for when I have better resources. No way can I trust my life to a spear bound together with some vine. Better to just use my club, for now, I know what it can do. Taking two of the meter and a half branches, I break each into three pieces. Then I place them in a row using one of my remaining two vines to weave them together, creating a makeshift shield. Using my last vine, I bind it to my left arm by threading it through the bindings. Creating a makeshift shield, with a loose vine sleeve attached that I can slip my arm in and out of. Looking at my last creation, it looks like shit. But if it keeps me from getting eaten, that¡¯s all that matters. Plus it gives me another two to my armor when I have it on my arm. Standing up I slip my new shield onto my arm and look down at myself. I look like a jungle man reject but it gets the job done. Hopefully, I will have a chance to change before I meet anyone. Not a chapter So as it turns out, in a fight between a laptop and stairs. Stairs always win. Always.... So on that note, my new chapter probably won''t be until Wednesday at the earliest. Sorry for the inconvenience.Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. And apparently, chapters also have to be at least 500 characters long so... BlahBlabhBlahblahblahBLahblahblahBlahBlabhBlahblahblahBLahblahblahBlahBlabhBlahblahblahBLahblahblahBlahBlabhBlahblahblahBLahblahblahBlahBlabhBlahblahblahBLahblahblahBlahBlabhBlahblahblahBLahblahblahBlahBlabhBlahblahblahBLahblahblahBlahBlabhBlahblahblahBLahblahblahBlahBlabhBlahblahblahBLahblahblah