《Monster Me》 Prologue: The Before I blinked my eyes slowly at the fluorescent light that was blaring in my face, trying to relieve the pain in my skull. Staring at a computer screen for, let''s see, twenty-eight and a fourty-three minutes might do that to you. But then again, I had given up on anything else in life, other than the damn computer. My dingy, tiny ass apartment only had a bed and a dresser, which came with the package. The only other add on was a desk I pick off the street one day, and the chair that I took from home. It was pretty much the only thing I took from home, other than some clothes and money. But I liked the chair. So even though my mother watched me with appalled eyes as I wheeled it out, I had already decided I didn''t give a fuck about what she thought of me. And if the chair made her add on to the list of mental problems I had, it was no sweat off my back. Of course, the computer was something I had to find, piece by piece, at the cheapest of prices, and build myself. It took me about two years, scrounging for the money, but it ran better than I probably could. That''s when I finally found this abysmal shack of mine and made it my home. Set up the computer, place my throne, and I was set. Then I sat there for days on end, most of the time forgetting to eat until my stomach would cannibalize and start eating itself. Or so it felt like. Could be a viable option one day. Then I would never have to eat again. Heh. Now, this all paints me in a shitty color, and I have to tell you, friend, that I''m completely, 100%, high-quality manure. I''m that person in that one MMO that''s constantly spamming your Global Chat with trade offers, the person that helps the noobs out of the beautif- cough- horrible knife they found, the jerk that pvp''s you over and over again, until your gear is shot, and you just log out. Yes, that''s me. Of course, I''m also the person that heads one of the most well known guilds, full of honor and shit. Hey, give what people want, and they eat it up. And who says I can never have multiple accounts? I play at least two games at a time, sometimes three, and I have various players spanning over fifty MMOs, from Japan, Korea, China, America, and even some Euro ones. You want to know who the top player is in your favorite game? It''s me. This piece of shit, the lowest of the low, and I rule them all. I stretched back, my chair making a squeak, and stared up at a water mark in the ceiling. I''d finished what I decided was my quota, spamming mobs, dungeons, and players, to the point that people were completely fed up with me, or I was being praised as a God. That last one mostly for the six hour dungeon rush I just completed on one of my solo accounts. Considering the dungeon was meant for a full raid, and lasts five hours at least, when I finished, the game decided to do a mass announcement about it. Normally, I would be fine with that, but this was the one account I had wanted to keep hidden. A simple two handed warrior, and it was the one character I had friends with. Like, people I enjoyed talking too. But as soon as the message got out, I was being spammed by randoms. Disgusted, I blocked any messages not on my friends list. But then I got messages from my friends. "You did that raid by yourself?! You said you were too weak to do it with me just two weeks ago!!" "Hey, did you get any good drops? I''ve been low on gold lately, so it would help..." "Wow. I want to congratulate you, but why haven''t you told me about it? Pretty selfish." That water stain kinda looked like the Milky Way. Or maybe it''s just a shitty water-mark from a shitty rundown apartment, in a shitty run down neighborhood. Just like my shitty life. I leaned forward again, staring at the messages. Then I systematically deleted every person on my friends list. After that, I deleted my character. Then I went on every other MMO I played and deleted all of my characters, one by one. My mind was empty, my face was blank, and my hands moved as if pulled by strings of and evil marionette. After the last one, my hands dropped to the keyboard. Then my head joined it with a bang. I groaned, more from the bottled up pain from my psyche than physical damage, because all I was on the inside was pain. That and a void full of nothingness. I thought if I gave life to characters, made them the best or, hell, the worst, somehow, the real me might show up. Just pop into existence like my fairy Godmother, and go, POOF, you have a personality, you have feelings, there are no strange things you see at night, and you are a person, not some creepy alien. That''s why I walked out of my house at sixteen, when all of my mother''s "treatments" just weren''t working. I''d seen doctor, both professional and crazy, priests and voodoo, and she switched to some herbal all natural crap when I gave up. Nothing she did was going to fix me, and I couldn''t stay and pretend I was normal. So I left, chair in tow, and I lived on the streets, took up a few jobs, tried to stay mostly legal, until I got the apartment and started what I thought was my best chance. I mean, you can be anyone on the internet, right? Maybe I could even find myself. Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. Of course, I shouldn''t be surprised all I found was shit. That must be who I am. Just the bottom of the barrel, the weird fuck at those freak exhibits. I didn''t want to sleep. Sleep meant dreams, and the dreams weren''t nice. Mostly, they ended up with me dead in hundreds of different ways before I woke up in a cold sweat. Sometimes I''d be walking down the streets, then there''s a knife in my back and two rounds in my chest. The doctors told me dreams shouldn''t actually have pain, which I guess is why people pinch themselves when they think they''re dreaming. But for me, every single wound was like the real thing. Every cut, shot, stab, burn, you name it, it all felt real. I know, I tried. When I was eight I stuck my finger in a candles flame. I was able to hold it there for about ten seconds before my mother screamed and rushed me to the hospital. By then, my pain tolerance was so high, I didn''t even cry. Oh it hurt, but I was used to a much bigger hurt. That was when the doctors and my mother found the various wounds on my body, some stitched up, some just left to scar. That was also when my mother realized I wasn''t... right. It was when she started to try and "fix" me. She also took me out of the karate class that I had been in since I was three. "Too dangerous." She said to me with a glare, despite the fact I was already a black belt at that age. She also took me out of school and homeschooled me. Mostly it was about the bible, as she thought I was demon possessed, so I took to learning things online. Of course, she had locked me out, so I had to find the key. And that¡¯s when I learned hacking, and of the dark net. Also, it was my first look at dark gaming, where you play to make money. But I also found gambling sites, ones that used real money. Mother was always moaning about money, so I thought I should make some for her. I was a little guilty over the fact that the reason we were low on money was because of me. When she came in my room one day, I was fifteen. She seemed... confused, and almost scared. "Honey?" Mother asked, "Why do we have a separate account that has $672,902,433.12 in it? And why have I never seen this." Whoops. I had kept it hidden from her, because I wanted it to be a surprise, but I thought she would find it sooner. Like, maybe when it only had a few thousand. But over the years, I had accumulated a lot of what I called "dark money". Money that I earned from gambling, games, whatever when just on the wrong side of the legal line. I would filter money from the Dark Account to hers very slowly, so she wouldn''t notice. In fact, I might even have accumulated a billion if I hadn''t spread it to her. I cleared my throat. "You need money, so I just...uh, made some. On the internet." She exploded. "The INTERNET?! You''re not even allowed on the computer, it contains viruses and horrible people and Lord knows what else!" Yes, my mother was not the smartest. She grew frantic. "Won''t we be in trouble for having this money? I never even knew about it! I don''t--!" "Mom." I said firmly, cutting off her charade. "It''s an off-shore account, but if you have to know, I''ve been doing the taxes since I was ten. It''s fine." Mother got a look in her eye, one that I had gotten used to all to quickly. It was a mixture of horror, disgust, and overall¡ªfrightened. She used to try and hide it, when I would say something I should not know about, or when she saw the wounds on my body, but as each year passed, that look happened more and more often, and she didn''t hide it anymore. After a long few seconds, she left the room. I looked down at my hands. They looked pretty normal to me. I don''t keep a mirror around, but my hair was brown, as well as my eyes. My skin had a light tan, even with the normal lack of sun I normally had. I was skinny, "underweight", the doctors had said, and I knew I was about 5''7". But to my mother, I was a monster. Somehow, I couldn''t refute that thought of hers, because I thought I was too. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This is just the set up. Give you a slight intro to the character. I don''t want to spoil anything, but if you''ve looked at the tabs, there will be VR. So look forward to that. Thanks for reading. Chapter 1 I''m changing the point of view up this time. Mostly to keep you on your toes. Might switch depending on the part of the story, but we''ll see. CH.1 Three Years Later A group a people wandered through a murky swamp, furtively looking around, as if scared something would jump them. A towering man, fitted with full bodied plate armor, carefully led the party, a massive shield on his back, and a sword in his hand. He was followed closely behind by another man in a dark colored cloak, the hood pulled over his head, disgust clearly written on his face. He clutched a staff to his bosom, as if it would shelter him from the foggy depths of this dismal place. Picking her feet carefully over a log, a woman came next. Her white cloak somehow keeping it''s clear color, even with copious amounts of mud scraping over it. There was no hood on her head, leaving her blonde hair uncovered, long ears poking out from golden curls. Unlike the man in front, she seemed calm, a small scepter in her hand parting the mist with a soft light. Next was a burly short man, heavy in armor and hair. His beard almost scraped the ground, and her carried a double-headed war axe that was around the same size as him with ease. As the party covered a few more meters, suddenly there was a shadow that appeared in front of them. The tank startled, which caused the mage behind him to scream in a very feminine manner. "W-w-w-what is it??" The mage stuttered out. Slowly, the shadow was given shape, a vaguely human presence was deciphered. In all black, and as most would describe as "ninja-like", the person had every part of their body covered in cloth, except for their dark brown eyes. Slight of stature, the ninja tilted his head at the mage. "Why are you always so jumpy, Claus?" A muffled soft tenor voice came from the ninja. "I''m back from my recon, Garreth." This time, directing the statement at the tank. "Ah, well, good job Shade," Garreth said, pulling himself up to his full height. "What did you find?" "The prisoners are being taken into a fortress that is hidden in the swamp by magical means. To slip in unsuspected is impossible. I only got in because of my Skill." Shade made a dismissive gesture with his hand. "So that plans out." The tank, Garreth, put on a thoughtful pose, when someone spoke up from behind. "Does that mean we rush? Because there''s no way I''m leaving those poor villagers to the goblins. Those evil beasts must die." A crystal clear voice spoke the words firmly, with a noble accent. Garreth turned to her and said, "Yes... That''s probably the only option, Bell, and with our levels, and you healing us, we should be able to take down this fortress..." He trailed off. As the Leader, he always carefully considered each plan of action. "What do you suppose, Das?" "Look, I just want out of this damn, stinking, mother-fuckin'' piece of shit, mud-infested, BUG-infested--" The dwarf started ranting, but was cut off. "We got it, Das. You don''t like swamps." Garreth sighed. "I guess we''re goin'' in hot and ready." Plan set, they followed the ninja to what looked like a moss covered mountain. It rose up out of the swamp, and was lit by torches every five meters. They paused, Garreth turning to Shade. "I see your point. How did you get in there anyways?" Shade barely glanced at him, before saying, "Like I said, it''s a Skill I have. Makes me less noticeable. I found the location of the prisoners, but I wasn''t able to free them myself. We''re gonna have to be in and out fast. They have twenty soldiers on them, and about fifteen on the way to them. I''m not even gonna hazard a guess of how many we''ll have to fight our way out of." The party looked at each other, all but Shade who was staring at the fortress. Whispering started, the mage fighting with the elf, the dwarf grumbling at the tank, their volume slowly rising. "--This is a death trap--" "--we just have to kill a few--" "No way in hell''s anus am I--" "--It''ll be fine--" "STOP." The party looked up at the shadow that was still staring off into the hill. "I can get them out if you all cause a distraction out here." "But what?" Garreth asked. Shade looked them over contemptuously. "In the quest we got, all it said to do was get the prisoners free. It says nothing about killing the goblins, and it says nothing about actually taking them back to their village. For all we know, they can find their own way back." Doubtful, the rest of the members made a horizontal line through the air, from left to right. That gesture opens your menu. They looked over the quest log. Free the Villagers Difficulty F The goblins have ransacked and captured ten citizens of the village of Barrum. Find where they were taken and free them. Reward Increased affinity with villages in the area Undetermined "Quick question," Shade muttered. "Why is this quest only the second lowest difficulty, when it should be at least E or D. I''ve been on harder quests, and they call for higher levels or more people. There''s something fishy about this whole thing." "Are you saying this quest is bugged?" Claus stated imperiously, his face affronted. Shade finally looked at the group, then said, "I think this is a trap." Garreth said slowly, "What do you mean?" The ninja shook his head, "I read on a forum about a situation like this, where a fairly simple quest turned into a ranked A as soon as the objective was found. None of the group knew what happened, and they died in barely a few seconds. They said they had just been to focused on saving the villagers, but someone kept urging to kill the goblins..." Shade slowly turned toward the elf, his eyes blank. "Wait," Bell said incredulously. "You think I''m some hacker? Or PvPer? I''m a healer for christ''s sake. How would I even be able to kill you all?" "Well," Shade shrugged, "Probably because you¡¯re an AI, and the actual boss of this dungeon, which is why you joined up with us. Right Bell? I mean, Beelzebub." The elf''s face screwed up into a grimace, her eyes turning dark. "I usually get the adventurers into my lair before I destroy them, but I guess I''ll have to kill you now." In a flash, her scepter whipped out, but instead of a healers wand, it was now a mace, and it slammed into the dwarf''s face. Flying backwards a few meters, Das didn''t get up. He was probably stunned, if not dead. The elf''s formed was slowly changing, in what seemed like a dark angel''s fa?ade, as her blond hair stayed gold, but her eyes were red, and her skin was black. Large wings rose from her back, and they seemed to buzz in anger. A blurred move later, and the mage, who had been standing there stupefied, was flung out into the fog, blood flying behind him. Garreth barely recovered from his surprise to put down his tower shield, covering his huge body. To bad this boss was at least fifty levels higher than he was. She swatted at him like he was a bug, bursting a huge rend in his shield, making it fly from his hands. She then with a maniacal smile, slammed her mace down on the tanks head, his helmet unable to protect him, crushing his skull into his neck. His body slowly fell to his knees, a headless corpse, before falling over. "One more left~" The monster sang out in a beautiful voice that contradicted her horrendous body covered in blood. She turned to the ninja, only to find him gone. "Oh Shaaade~ Are you hiding from me? In the--" She giggled, the sound high and tinkling, "Shade?!" The Devil laughed, caught up in her own humor. Suddenly, she whipped around, as if she heard a sound. "I fou~nd you." She sing-songed. Then she lunged, her movements so fast they blurred. A nasty, anticipating smile revealed long sharp teeth, and she was almost to where-- Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. *Squelch* "Wha--" The Creature exclaimed, before what looked like a dark cloak fell onto her in her trapped state. "Shade! What awr yau doeen!!" Underneath the so called cloak, mud dripped all over her body, and, struggling, she slowly collapsed to the ground. She was stuck like a fly to a fly trap, slowly sinking into the quicksand-like swamp.The cloak lowered until it was flat on the ground, then everything went still. You''ve Won! Congratulations on beating the demo of World''s Online. We hope that you consider being the full version when it is released in [2 days]! You have beaten the demo in the fastest time! What name do you want to represent yourself? "Monster." A voice said, muffled by the sound of the VR helmet. Bypassing the rest of the end-demo schematics, a slim figure got out of the chair the VR Caffe provides, and walked out of the 2x2 meter room. Putting on a beaning and sunglasses, they bypassed the screens that showed what each of the people in various other rooms were playing, walking to the counter. They swiped they''re card to signify they were done with gaming, and headed out the door. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "What the hell was that!" A teenager exclaimed, looking up at one of the screens in the VR Caffe. It showed the time completed at the upper left corner, 15.35 minutes, and the screen repeated the fifteen minutes over and over, as it was the new best time. Not only that, but it was center screen, the one that showed the best play-through in the Caffe. The Demo was for a new game that was coming out in two days, called World''s Online, a VRMMO, with servers all over the world. A collab of Korean, Japan, and American game makers, it was supposed to be a game you could play no matter where you were, as the language barrier wasn''t there, because no matter what you say, they other person will understand. It was even hinted that a few dark gamers, the ones that stopped playing three years ago, had a hand in the game, making it one of the hardest games, because even though it was advertised as a RPG, there were whispers that the AI were incredibly intelligent, even down to the easiest of monsters. They AI, if enough of the intelligence stat was given to them, would be on par or better than Chess AI''s. Overall, you can play for fun, but if you want to get serious and be number one, the more challenging and confusing it will get. Traps, lies, and discrete happens frequently, the higher level you get. Because the Main AI doesn¡¯t want you to beat the game. There were AI''s on your side, but you will always question if they wanted to stab you in the back. The Demo was a perfect example of this. You got to pick one character out of the five to save the villagers in this quest. The Tank and leader, which had high defense and the control of the party; The Mage, whose specialty was fire, and in a swamp, was an iffy choice; The Healer, who was a High Elf, whose only good point was she could probably keep herself from dying; The Warrior, who was a Dwarf, and was a master with is double-bladed axe; The Ninja, who scouts the area, and other than a Skill that makes them less detectable, most find useless. Once you have picked a character, the AI randomly generates the Boss out of your own group. They never act different, and it is almost impossible to kill them. The few people that did picked the Tank, and got the Ninja as the Boss, luckily killing them with the help of the entire party. So most people used this strategy, hoping the Boss would be the Ninja, aka, demon dog. But as the crowd slowly surrounded the screen, they watched four people trudge through a swamp, until a shadow shows up. Seeing it''s the ninja, many people think that the AI this time must have been the boss, and the guy who played it must have gotten lucky. But as time went on, they got confused, as the characters conversed, and suddenly the Demon was revealed¡ªAs Bell/Beelzebub. Beelzebub was by far the hardest boss, as she tends to kill you before you even realize what''s happening. But, someone, the player had figured out the healer was the Boss AI... Wait, then, the player was the Ninja? As Beelzebub quickly killed off the party members, the view shifted, following the ninja. He was rushing to a clearing in the swamp, neatly jumping over the huge placid seeming ground. They watched him climb up a tree, quickly grabbing the huge leaves that covered the branches. Pulling something out of his bag, he slapped what seemed like some adhesive like this to the leaves, sticking them together, and making them almost impossible to let go of in turn. The ninja looked up as a blurred shape ran in his direction, but was stopped in the clearing her had bypassed. Throwing the cloak of leaves, his gloves with them, it settled on the monster that was struggling to get out of the swamp. Slowly she sank, until the WIN screen came up, all in just fifteen minutes. The watchers were dumbfounded. Where did he even get that adhesive stuff? Wasn''t he on recon? And how did he even know it was Bell? The tape replayed, and the crowd watched the four adventurers trudge through the swamp again. "Wait," The original guy said. "Where the fuck is the Ninja? We should be seeing his feed?" That''s when one guy pointed out, "There!" To a shadowy existence that crept along the side of the group. As they walked, they picked up some various flowers and globs of what looked like mud into his bag, and kept a careful eye on the group. He walked with them for a few minutes, then appeared in front of them, and they saw the same scene play out again. But now they realized that he had lied. There was no recon, at least of the fortress. He had been reconning the AIs, to see which one was the one who would turn. "But," A new guy asked, his face confused, "How did he know that it was Bell?" Multiple people tried to figure it out, hypothesizing that they had probably played it a million times, and they caught them because somehow the AI was being different. They were arguing over what had happened, when they were interrupted by the store owner. "Just gonna tell you guys, but that person''s never been here once. The card they swiped was new, and I didn¡¯t recognize their face ever being here." The original guy walked up to the owner, "Then how the hell did they DO that?" The Owner shrugged. "You know how they had those dark gamers to make the game harder, to make you think, to wonder? I think that was one of them. I couldn''t see they''re full face, and they''ve never had and pictures taken of them, but one of those gamers goes simple by the name ''Monster''." He pointed up at the screen. Monster. The crowd started whispering. "You mean--" "--a Celeb!" "Why would they come here?" "Probably because the game comes out in two days." The owner stated simply. He messed with a tablet and turned it to the crowd. It had the ''World''s Online'' Logo, and underneath it, "Can you beat the dark? We''ll be watching." ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Monster walked back to their apartment, this time a nice high rise, security manning the desks and watching for intruders. A definite step up from before, but these material things don''t matter. They rode the elevator to their floor and got in their room with the same card they used back at the VR Caffe. It was a black card, and it could be used for almost everything, something they had configured themselves. It also needed they thumb and forefinger print to use, so it was relatively secure. A sign called House rules graced the wall before the door as the slim figure walked in. House Rules: No Shoes No Pants No Shirt No Boys Stripping down revealed a very slim figure, only covered in the light muscle of a runner or fencer. Clad in only panties and a bra, scars from knives, guns, burns and more covering her body, Monster walked over to her favorite chair, and leaned back to the perfect angle. There was no water stain up there, instead, a beautiful painting of the Milky Way covered the entire ceiling. "You''re getting there. Soon." A soft murmur, a promise to a broken child that was never pieced together. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- First real chapter. Still sort of a set-up. But yes, it does reveal the gender of the MC. Of course, it also introduces more mysteries. I like mysteries... so much I want to punch them in the face. Then why the hell am I writing them? Chapter 2 Okay, so I wrote this in two hours of I-Can''t-Fall-Asleep Mode, so hopefully, there aren''t too many mistakes. Hopefully, the words in my head will quiet, and I can finally sleep... CH.2 Darkness surrounded me. I knew I was in a dream, because I had a gun in my hand. Sometimes, my dreams gave me weapons, to protect myself, and I didn''t own a gun. I wasn''t mentally stable enough for the license to be armed. Which brings me back to my dream. It senses you. But we sense it too. Just up to the left. A cliff. Too bad you''re gonna die. ''Ssssh,'' I sounded to the voices in my head. ''He''s coming. Focus.'' Right. A claw swiped my right side, but I had already leapt back a second before, and shot a round into the Monster''s face. He shook it off as if it were a gnat and circled me. He never gives you a chance-- Left below! A sweeping kick flew out of the darkness, and I jumped backwards, evading the leg but slamming my back into the-- Cliff! He circled you! Hurry, run to your-- Too late. With that last voices words, an enormous claw slammed against my chest, grating my back with small abrasions as he slowly pushed me upwards until my feet couldn''t touch the ground. I coughed, blood mingled with spit, and attempted to shoot the monster with the gun still in my hand. I pulled the trigger, only to have my only weapon wrenched from my grasp by another humongously clawed paw. "Now," the voice whispered, causing me to shiver, then convulse when he tightened his paw''s claws on my chest. "What pain will you endure today?" I starred into the yellow slitted eyes that haunted my every sleeping moment, and knew that this was going to be a painful session. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I jerked awake, my hands going to where my heart was¡ªis. I sighed in¡ª Relief. Exhaustion. You won''t be able to stand much more of this. Then you''ll probably die. ''Ssssh'' I thought. Relief. That was what I was feeling. It was just a dream. One with the monster. And Fourth was probably right. Too much more of my sessions with the Monster and my heart might stop. Or my brain implode Or you could just stop breathing. We can do that for you. Or that. I considered the value of that input, but shook my head. No, I was actually doing something now. I was on the track to finding me. Dying would be giving up to soon. Then don''t forget us. We help. We give you strength. Even when your broken and bloody. These voices had always been there as a whisper, but as the Monster got stronger, so did the voices. They helped me decipher my feelings, gave me advice from four different sides, and, most of all, acted as a sixth sense. It made my reaction times quicker, so I didn''t get as injured as much as I did as a child. They gave me... Hope. Yes. Hope. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Welcome to World''s Online, Monster Would you like to keep the same account? "Yes," I voiced through the helmet I was wearing. I leaned back in my chair, and pretended that I could see my ceiling of the Milky Way. Following overriding commands, your name with now be ''Oni''. Your physical image has also been changed to specifications. "Wha--!" I almost fell backwards out of my chair, before righting myself. "Who authorized this?!" The overiding commands come from ''Ami'' Message: Don''t forget to get me, Onee-san! You promised! You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. I blinked. Only one person called me that, and I did have a promise, but what does that have to do with-- Entering World''s Online''s Hard Mode. Conquer the Land, Oni. And then everything faded, only to fill with a radiant light. Squinting, I raised my hand to block the sun and adjust my sight. I looked around, finding other people who were raising their hands in a similar fashion. Hello other players. Skrubs. Lol, noobs. I think some of them look nice. Nice enough to eat. ''Hush'' I thought, absentmindedly. But it was true. Most of these players seemed new to VRs, of course, considering this was the first VRMMORPG, those types would probably be the common denominator. A few, pointed out by Third, did seem to be less confused, so they were probably the hardcore gamers that used pre-VR games to get used to it. It being how fucking realistic everything was. I would think I was dreaming, but there was no Monster, and no one trying to kill me. Yet. Then I must get strong. First pointed me toward the map of the town. ''Fluegerveagen''. Well then, is this German, Swedish, or some weird game town that just mixed everything? I looked around at the AI, or NPCs, as most people would call them, to see what they were wearing. Lederhosen, aprons, braids, that funny hat that Robin Hood wore.... What the fuck were they thinking when they made this town? Amusingly enough, Fourth kept pointing out the AI that were also distinctly uncomfortable with their outer-wear. Because, unlike NPCs in other games, each AI had the chance to be just that¡ªIntelligent. That''s what made this game so great. The AI were actual people, with actual thoughts and dreams. They also lied and deceived you, but like humans, most were socially correct. Nice. No human is Nice, the only pretend. I ignored Third and Fourths bickering, since First was the one actually helping me. She caught sight of the armorer, and Second got excited. Second likes knives. I sighed. ''I need money first, Second.'' Most people would think I was crazy, thinking to myself, but they really were nothing like me, so I didn''t care. A sound whisked by my ear. "--too many of them, Marge! How do you expect me to gather the crops with all them vermin--" Quest, Get. I turned quickly and followed the voice, and First''s directions. Rounding the corner, I saw what looked to be a farmer and his wife, both a little angry and... Desperate. Yes. This was definitely a quest. Now I only had to find the right way of doing it... I looked around, hoping to find something... Hmmm, a barrel. Ok, let''s get to work. I hoisted the empty barrel, then proceeded to pass the arguing couple, then started mumbling under my breath, "Always making me do the heavy lifting, even though I''m better at running around catching things than he is. Always a lazy ass. ''Hey! Let''s make the quick one do the heavy lifting!'' God damn..." I continued to mutter curses as I passed them, then groaned and put the barrel down. "I swear, they give me no pay for the stupidest shit. Why don''t they just send me hunting like usual?! I always bring back all the game they want..." I trailed off, then, sighing, I went to pick up the barrel again. "Wait!" A calloused hand dropped down on my shoulder, and I had to fight the urge to throw him, even thought First had told me the skrub had taken the bait. I turned around slowly, my eyes in a suspicious tilt. "Yeees?" I dragged it out, and started turning back to my barrel when the farmer stopped me again. "No, no, wait! You see, I was listening to your complaints, and I thought that I have the perfect job for you!" The farmer smiled at me, sweating a little. I cocked a suspicious eyebrow at him. "You were listening to me? Why would you do such a rude thing?" The Farmers face was hit with -surprise-, but he quickly reiterated,"It was only because it seemed like you were having a hard time, and I''m having a hard time, and if we work together, then maybe we all would be happy--" "You want me to help you?" I cut him off, then scowled at him. "It better not be for free. I already have to lift this barrel because that damn son-of-a-bitch--" "Yes, yes, money! I''ll pay you money if you just catch the vermin on my farm. But only if you bring back the tails to prove it!" Rid the Farm of Rats Difficulty G Kill 50 rats on Bob''s farm before his wife leaves him. Reward 1 copper per rats tail Increased affinity with the village of Fluegerveagen I barely looked at the quest that popped up in front of me, but instead looked the Farmer--pphhh, Farmer Bob¡ªSsssh-- in the eye. These were people too, and they responded to body language. So I looked him straight in the face when I said, "Ok, Bob, you''ve got a deal." First Quest¡ªGet! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- So this is the first time I''ve really been able to showcase her voices. The tense wasn''t right previously, and I kinda wanted them to be a secret for a little longer. Of course, my pretty MC has bushels of secrets, one of them being her actual name! Look forward to that and more, because this story is haunting me even in my dreams. Question: Do you mind the interruptions of her voices? It''s what happens in her head, and this was the best way i though of bringing them to life. Don''t be afraid to comment. Finally, Thanks for reading! Chapter 3 Ch.3 *World''s Online-Forums* ''"I can''t figure out how you get any quests! All I''m doin is fighting some damn slimes everyday, and I still haven''t leveled!" "How do you look at your Stats?" "Why is this God Damn F*cking game so HARD?!" Among the threads of outrage and confusion, there was one that facilitated calmness. "If you would like to understand World''s Online Hard Mode, come here. -Fairy" The masses flocked to this thread, because of two things; one, they sucked at the game, and two, FAIRY was hosting it. Most people recognized the handle as one of the top gamers, one that always played a fae class if available, elf if not; a beautiful girl that would smile and laugh... as she destroyed mobs with her ice magic. Even though she was quiet violent, a fan club full of rowdy fanboys sprung up to support her. It was quite popular, you could say, coming to the two millionth mark. "Now, you came to this thread, confused, angry, and possibly ready to quit this game. I can''t let that happen, mostly because I''m one of the people that helped make it. So I''m going to give you a few clues, just a few, mind you. If you can''t figure out the rest yourself, just switch to normal mode, it''ll be just like any other MMO you''ve played. Okay, now to the clues. 1.Don''t think of the people in the game as NPCs. They''re AIs. And probably smarter than you. 2.There is no Stat Chart. At least for awhile. You still have them, but you''re not going to be able to look and see what they are. 3.You can see your level, yes, but most of you probably see a big, fat 1, don''t you? Well, you''ll probably see that for a while, from the way your going. The only way to level is to either (1) kill mobs stronger than you or (2) get quests. 4.And now we''re back to the AIs. I don''t know where you spawned, as it IS random, but depending on the town or village or big city you got, the AIs act accordingly in trustfulness. I know most of you suffer from social interaction, but this is the way to get quests. Oops, did I give too much away? Teehee, no, this game is so confusing, I just scraped the top of the ocean, boyos. Good luck, and try not to die! It huuur~ts. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- In the middle of the farm, I stood surrounded by a moving ocean of wheat, whisking one way and back, moving in designs to spark and artists imagination. Oh, and there were about fifty rats the size of rottweilers showing their fangs in a most gang-like manner. I settled on the balls of my feet, wondering if I could just stare at the wheat some more. It didn¡¯t seem as if the rats circling me were going to make the first move, and Three was flittering with "oo"s and "ah"s at the farm. It was pretty, I guess, but Third''s reactions made me smile. She was always the more innocent one, ready to stop and smell the roses. A small grin slipped on my face at her antics-- They''re coming. I snapped my attention back to the horde, to watch them rush me. Most leaped, and I dodged those, carefully stepping on the ones that thought they could bite me from below. Skipping from their heads I knocked about five to the ground before a scream of rage burst from their throats. Beady eyes turned red, showing their enraged status, and they charged me again, this time covering all angles. Well, until I punched a few out of the way, their limp forms flinging past the wheat, buried by beauty. I punted those coming at my feet, and twisted, in a move I had combined from the various martial arts I had learned over the years, to snap a side-kick at the rats behind me, palm slapping the ones in the air. The remaining rats backed off, startled. Half of their numbers were reduced to twitching corpses, none seeming to have the ability to get up again. Humph, like these peasants can- HA! Did you see the looks on their faces--! Aww, poor little rats... though they ruined the wheat... *Snort* Do you see the look of fear in their disgusting eyes? ''Ssssh'', I thought to them. The rat''s seemed to be rallying. A bigger one, the size of a bear, swaggered forward, fangs descended from his muzzle. ''Probably the big bad boss,'' I thought. "Get off my land, you meat sack!" The Boss rat squealed at me, rather comically, with his high pitched voice. I couldn''t help it, I snorted. A clamor of laughter filled my head, so it wasn''t just me amused, but, I mean, come on. He was a rat the size of a brown bear, and he SQUEAKED. Of course, this just made the squeaker¡ªI mean, Boss rat, even more enraged, as he squealed, "I was going to let you go, but after that, forget it! Charge!!!" Oh God, I was dying. Figuratively of course. His voice... Snicker. Waves upon waves of rats rushed me, way more than the initial count of fifty. Just as I was thinking that-- You have Enraged the Area Boss! Quests are raised one difficulty A box popped in my view, followed quickly by-- Rid the Farm of the Area Boss and his minions! Difficulty F Kill the Boss Rat Reward 1 Silver for the boss'' tail Increased affinity with the village of Fluegerveagen Wow, a Boss on my first try¡ªToo bad he''s a squeaker toy¡ªShhh, Fourth. I swiped away the boxes then concentrated on the incoming rush of furry bodies. I thought came to me, and I decided, what the hell, let''s do something fancy. So I jumped, closed my eyes and-- Left. Kick. Do that Matrix thing. Bottom Behind. Twist Kick. Flip, Hammer foot. Palm Strike. The instructions continued to come, and I systematically demolished the horde of over a hundred rats, leaving only the Boss remaining. I landed on the ground, slightly winded, and popped my neck. Turning, I looked at the stunned face of Squeaker Toy, aka the Boss. He seemed to be shivering. Was that a puddle of¡ªIt smell''s like piss¡ªThank you, Fourth. Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit."U-u-uh. Y-y-you know, we c-c-could j-j-just let this pass, r-right?" The Squeaker stuttered out. I think his voice even rose a few octaves. It was actually hurting my ears to hear him speak. I tilted my head, as if I was thinking about it, and Squeaker got a hopeful expression on his face. Sucker. I smiled, the one that Fourth said made me look like a scary SOB, and simple said, "Nope." Before Squeaker could run, I rushed his position, punching him in his little snout, then kicked him in the air. Airborne, he flailed until I punched him in the diaphragm, then jumped and slammed him back into the ground. I considered the sack of fuzz and blood in front of me, and punted him about ten meters. Walking calmly over to him, I set a foot on his throat and pressed down slowly. Muffled squeaks could be heard, until a quick snap sounded out, and poor little Squeaker''s head lolled to the side, the light going out of his eyes. Level Up! You are now Level 2! Ranked F Quest Complete! Take your findings back to the farmer. Ranked G Quest Complete! Take your findings back to the farmer. With a ding, three boxes inserted themselves in front of my vision, and I swiped them to the side. Then I looked around. The field was in disrepair, bodies bloodied and lying everywhere, wheat crumpled down, and I think Third was crying in my head. But it w-was so p-pretty... Sigh, I never knew how to soothe Third. She felt things I barely even thought about. I shifted her crying to the back of my head, and got to work. Since I had no knife or any sort of sharp object, I just picked up one of the rats, grasping the bottom end, since the front was still dripping blood. Firmly holding the butt¡ªPffffft¡ªSecond, you have the Humor of a two-year-old. Firmly. Holding. The butt. I grabbed the tail and pulled. With a pop, the tail came cleanly off, like a gecko''s tail, only difference was the spray of blood. "Really?" I said, my arms covered in red goop. Giggling started in my head, but I ignored them as I proceeded to gather 50, as per the quest wanted. Finally, I dropped the bundle next to the now-dead Squeaker, and studied it. I looked at my hands, covered in blood and on the small side, and looked at the tail. It was about the size of a fire extinguisher, and my hand would just slip off... It''s just TOO big... Some people just have a hard time getting a GRASP on things. I donno, it looks kinda like an octopus. Dick joke, dick joke, Big Black Dick joke. I would put my hands in my face, but, blood. "Shut up you dinguses. Why am I stuck with you?" Because you love us? I smiled at that. "Yes, Third I... like you all a lot." Love wasn''t in my vocabulary, but that''s why I had Third. She was the good side of me. Now, back to the problem. I shrugged, then stepped on the back of the rat with both legs and picked up the tail with both hands. Staring down uncertainly, I gave it a few test yanks, then pulled with all my might. The tail separated with a sickening pop, but I pulled too hard, my momentum flying backwards, and I landed ass-first on Squeaker''s bloody, broken back. Well, that went swell. To make it even better, the crowd in my head were an orchestra of laughter, from a high pitch giggle from First to Fourths booming laugh. Sigh. I got up and dragged my sore ass over to the other tails. Taking the giant one in my hand, I bundled them all up and tied them all up with Squeaker''s tail. There. It''s like a present, complete with a bow. No one wants that as a present. I tilted my head at First''s words, but since I didn''t have many good memories of presents, I didn''t argue. Throwing the load over my shoulder¡ªMy clothes were already covered in blood, so what the hell¡ªI walked out of the field. Entering the village was a little of a hassle, as the guards tried to stop me, but I just pointed with my free hand to the tails and said, "Quest." Both males in their thirties, the guards hesitantly stepped back, but their hands were still on their swords. As I walked through the village, most people gave me one look and ran. I was used to it, so I didn''t notice, but the chorus in my head were making a racket. Ignoring them, I strolled down the alley to where the farmer was before. Sitting on a bench in front of a little cottage, a bag at his feet, he had his head in his hands. His body language said he had given up on life... or something. I never could get emotions right. Tired of holding the bundle, I thumped it down at his feet. He jumped, and did a quick take at my face, then the bundle, then my face, then the bundle, then-- "Ok. Yes. Hello. I finished your quest. Oh, and I also beat the area boss." I stopped the bobble head motion before he got a concussion or something. Now he was just staring up at me, open mouthed. I motioned to the tails that were bleeding into his shoes, and he quickly looked down again, then up at me. I sighed. Was this man simple? He''s probably just shocked Or and idiot. I was more leaning toward Fourth''s line of thought, when the farmer said, "Umm, w-well, yes. Thank you for, um, defeating the vermine and, um, the area boss." Under his breath, he muttered, "Thank God, I can go back to my house." Level up! Level up! Level up! You are now Level 5! I heard three dings, as the level up signs popped up. I guess I got the experience only when I turned the quest in. Looking down at the farmer, I saw he was fiddling with his bag, until he pulled out a small purse. "Um," The farmer started, "Here''s the 50 copper and 1 silver. Thank you for ridding my crops of the pesky things. I was almost out of a livelihood!" Don''t say anything, cautioned First, so I didn''t mention that the farmer didn''t really have any crops... unless he was in the business of rat meat. But I got what I came for. Opening my inventory, I walked away, inserting the pouch. Inventory was pretty much the only thing this game''s menu provided, other than your name and level. I already had a pouch of 5 copper, which you''re given at the start of the game, and ten pieces of bread. Placing my jingling reward into the interdimensional space that held your goods, I took out one piece of bread. Like in real life, my body was slow to hunger, and I rarely ate. A doctor I went to once said that my digestive system baffled him, and he was uncertain how I was able to even function. He told me that nutrients was the only thing I was lacking, and suggested that I at least take vitamins once a day. Back then, the voices in my head were barely a whisper, but I got a positive note from them, so it''s been my habit to eat one every morning. Of course, when I did finally obey the summons of my stomach, it was usually some bread or jerky. Tearing into the bread, I smiled in...happiness-- right, happiness, at the familiar taste. Oni Level 5 55c1s ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- So, this one ended up longer than I thought it''d be, it just kept GOING. Welp, hope you like it. Comment and shit, that''d be great. :P Chapter 4 I wrote this in a span of an hour, and haven''t yet had the chance to proofread. So, sorry if there are any errors! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ch.4 Finishing off my delicious bread, I headed over to a well. Dehydration is no joke, and I always drink at least 2 liters, but that was only if I wasn''t active. Sometimes, it felt like I was always thirsty, and that I could never get enough. Reaching the well, I proceeded to pull up a bucket. Ignoring all the strange looks I was getting, I took a long drought from it, then poured the remainder over my head. I looked down at myself, but there was still blood griming up my clothes. I went to drop the bucket and get another pail of water when a shy voice spoke from my side. "I-if you would like, I could make you a new outfit? I heard about how you helped out farmer Bob, a-and I know I''m just an app-prentice, but I can make you a new set of clothes for ch-cheap?" The girl was a tiny thing, wringing her hands in her smock, and fleetingly glancing up at me before returning them to her feet. I sized her up, the chorus making their opinions known. Hmm, maybe this is from the whole "Increase affinity with Fluegerveagen". Why do you need new clothes? These seem fine to me. I like her, she''s so cute, it makes me want to hug her tight! New clothes, new armor, better stats, could be a good idea.... wait, how the hell do you remember this God-forsaken villages name, First?!? Ignoring the ensuing battle coming from my head, I went with majority rules. Catching her eye during own of the brief times she raised them, I asked her what Ami said should always be your first question. "What''s your name, lass?" Emotions come hard to me, and sometimes I forget all together what they are, but I am very proficient in faking it. I tilted my head in a questioning manner, running my hand through my water-logged hair, brushing it back so I could see her clearly. -Smile- I tilted my lips just the slightest, hoping I was doing the correct thing. The voices said something I couldn''t understand. They do that sometimes when they don''t want me to hear, but it made me hurt a little on the inside. I only caught Third''s -poor thing...- and I couldn''t understand why they would think she was poor. Her clothes were pretty nice. Oh, but maybe that was because she was a seamstress. I realized that the silence had gone on for too long, and I realize my fo-paux. "Oh, right," I said. "I''m supposed to introduce myself first. My name''s Oni." I tried the smile again, and this time it seemed to work. The girl grabbed her chest and gasped a deep breath before saying breathly, "I''m Irianna." "What a pretty name," rule number two, give compliments. "If it wouldn''t trouble you so, I have been in a bit of a predicament with these bloodied garments." Channeling First''s polite voice, I gestured down at my sub-par outfit. Adding water to the whole thing made it look even worse, as if I was some sort of walking corpse. Luckily, I keep my hair short, so that was relatively clean. The girl--Irianna-- right, Irianna, smiled a hesitant smile up at me. "It would be my pleasure, Oni." she said, with nary a wobble. She led me to a small shop that had the sign of a needle and thread going through the eye, opening the door for me and beckoning me in. I took a step inside, but was uncertain if I should move any further. There were cloths of silk and cotton, dresses made up in the manner of the town, and equally male outfits of the same. And there I was, dripping blood. Irianna followed me. only to stop too. "Oh!" She said in complete startelement. "I forgot!" How the fuck did she forget when-- ''Hush, Fourth.'' I reprimanded him, because it seemed the girl had a plan, as she hurried around gathering cloths from some bins. "Ahah!" Irianna exclaimed, pulling out a big, stained-to-all-hell, cloth. She triumphantly laid it down on the floor, then turned to me. "You can step on this and strip off all those nasty clothes! Then I''ll measure you, and choose some cloth, then start the cutting..." She trailed off and started muttering to herself, then abruptly looked up. "Why haven''t you stripped?" I tilted my head at her. "I don¡¯t have clothes to change into, and even if I did, I''m covered in blood." I said blandly. Her face turned red as a tomato, and she slapped her hands to her face. "Aaaauuugghhh, Irianna, you''re so STUPID!" She ranted at herself. "Wait, do you have a tub?" I interrupted her. She looked up at me with reddened eyes. "Yes," she said with a sniffle. "But it''s in the back." "And does this fine establishment have a back door?" I asked. If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation."Oh!" Irianna''s eyes widened. "Yes! We can go around back!" Omg, this girl is a rollercoaster. I swear, just give me some popcorn, and I can watch her antic aaaaall day. Says you. I feel like slapping her once or twice. Second and Fourth always seemed to have opposing sentiments. Well, rather, Fourth didn''t agree with anyone, most of the time. I liked to think of him as the dark time of night that people never wanted to talk about. He said the things that most kept unsaid. But he was fairly rude about it. I followed the little apprentice to the back of the shop, where there was another door, and just inside sat a basin of water. Placing the stained cloth down in front of the basin, Irianna turned to me. "Um," She started. "Here''s a cloth to dry yourself, I promise not to watch!" After setting a towel down, she ran off to what I assumed was the front of the shop, tripping over something loud enough to make a bang, then yelling back, "I''m ok!" With a sigh, I carefully peeled the beginner''s shirt and pants off, trying to not to drip blood all over the place, and put them in a pile on a corner of the floor cloth. Next, I carefully took of the sandals and sat them next to the clothes. Then, reaching for the towel, I quickly cleaned my body of the blood. Holding my hands in the basin in an attempt to get the gunk from under my fingernails, I heard a scuffle around the corner, then Irianna''s voice saying, "I got you a smock. You can wear it until we make you your outfit." It hung in the air by hesitant fingertips, so, after drying off my hands, I gently took it. Hearing quick, pattering footsteps leading off, I shrugged the smock on. It was pretty loose, but servable for the time. I stepped around the corner, deciding to leave the sandals, and made my way to the front. Irianna jumped up from wear she was muttering to herself and she exclaimed, "Oh, you look so much better without all the blood." I tilted my head at the obvious statement, but didn''t say anything as she continued. "I''ve picked out some underclothes, but I thought I''d leave the armor to you, since I don''t know how you fight. Oh, and I only do leather, so if you need metal, you''ll have to take it to the blacksmith. But first, I need you measurements..." She pulled out a rope and started muttering as she flung it around my shoulders, neck (I didn''t like that), chest, waist hips, side length, legs... uh, is she measuring my crotch? "Inseam," I heard her mutter, so I continued to stand there, bemused, as she measure what seemed light every part of my body. "Wow!" She proclaimed at the end. Startled, I looked around to see what had excited her, but the shop was empty. Chest 83cm, waist 64cm, hips 79cm, mmm, well, you could use bigger hips, but I guess smaller ones are more useful in fighting. Your neck''s 15cm, and you back''s 57cm, what a long torso! And your inseam is 79cm, you''re just like some noble lady!" I stared at her, wondering where she was going with this. Yes, this was my body. I didn''t change a thing except reduce the scars to white lines to make them less noticeable. I don''t think Irianna even noticed some of my more gruesome scars, she seemed so distracted. For once, the voices were quiet, as if in on a secret that I didn''t know. "So..." I started. "What can I get?" "Oh, right!" I swear this girl is always startled, her big blue eyes constantly as wide as they can go. "Well, I can make you a simple undergarment set in cotton for 10 copper, normally 15, but you have a discount--" "I''ll take it." I said, interrupting her. "Can I also get some leather armor?" "Y-yes!" She bobbed her head, "Which-" Interrupting her again, I said, "Bracers with soft leather on the inner part, hard on the outer, just for my upper left arm. Soft leather jerkin and soft leather boots also. And stockings." Irianna blinked, then started muttering, "Bracers are 15, special 20, but 14 with discount, jerkin is 40, discount 27, boots are 25, discount 17, stockings are 5, discount 4, which leaves..." "72 copper is you add the undergarments," said, math being easy. I also noticed that my discount was about a third of the price taken off, which was a hefty sum. I guess that area boss was a big shot or something. I pulled my purse out of my inventory and fished out the silver. "Will this be enough?" I said as I offered her the money. "O-of course!" She stuttered out. "Let me get your change." She ran off to the back, tripping over something, but came back quickly. "Here...is...twenty...eight...copper." She panted out. I calmly took the coins and put them in the bag, then back in my inventory. "So we got ourselves a deal?" She beamed up at me. "Yes!" Then her eyes flickered to the side of me. I had heard the door slowly open then close, but pretended not to notice. This would be a test. I knew there would be one. Mostly because I helped to make this game. Mostly because I never trusted anyone. I heard a whistling sound, and I dropped to the floor. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ooooo, a cliffhanger. Oh noooooes. Meh, I''ll have the next chapter up in a day or so. I''m building myself a new pc, so might not be til later.