《The World of Eris》 Prologue: Of Games and Life This is my first fic, so comments are welcome. When I figure out how to do the tables and things like that, I''ll edit this... ---------------- Drip. Drip. Drip. He awoke to a faint dripping sound, somewhere not very close. It was quiet enough that it echoed throughout the darkness. Jared attempted to move, and found he was unable to do so. While he was in pain, he was also very numb, and he couldn''t tell anything about his surroundings using his sense of touch. He also found he was unable to speak, when he attempted to shout into the darkness. The sound of footsteps startled him, a slow shuffle that echoed throughout the room. A maddeningly bright ball of light floated closer and closer to Jared. Jared had to wince and close his eyes to get used to the brightness before he could keep them open. He realized that the light was simply a bit of magelight. The woman that followed the small ball was simply breathtaking, despite being the robe covering her figure. When the lady held her hand up to Jared''s face, Jared noticed a long, shiny dagger in her hands. He didn''t know why the thought immediately came to mind, but he thought it looked expensive. Her musical laughter caused him to focus once more as the cold weapon traced a line down his cheek. He didn''t feel it. "Looks like you are awake. Aw, don''t give me that look... poor thing, I bet you can''t feel anything right now." She moved her face close to his, and he heard the sound of a kiss against the side of his face, along the faint line the dagger traced moments ago. He realized she smelled amazing, a scent of cinnamon and sunshine. "I know it''s no consolation but... well. At least you won''t feel anything." She smiled at him, and he felt a small pinch in the middle of his stomach. As his vision faded, he realized she was chanting, though he couldn''t understand the words. Candles seemed to light themselves around him. Just before his vision faded completely to black, he noticed that the edges of his vision held something other than black - if he knew what it was, it would be similar to the kind of static old TVs used to experience when they didn''t have reception - but since he didn''t know what it was, he thought it looked like white dots squirming along the darkness. The static rushed in and completely filled his vision. There was no sound for a long time as he stared in front of himself, waiting for something to happen. He was still bound, after all, and he was unable to speak. After what seemed like eternity, a voice laughed. It was a deep voice, one filled with mirth and warmth. The static in his vision began to glitch, and he saw a countdown of sorts. Sound finally filled the space - something he has never heard before, but akin to that of a projector. Every time the number changed on the screen, it beeped. When the number hit three, the edges of his vision dimmed, and the sounds became hushed. The screen no longer beeped - There was no longer any sound. At first, he didn''t know what he was watching, just that it seemed like a happy family. That is, until he realized that his parents were there, that the crying baby was him. He saw the baby grow up, learning the skills of a miller like his father. He watched his mother fall ill, watched her pass away. He didn''t know it back when it happened, but as he watched now he noticed his father had poisoned his mother. He also realized that it was this event that drove him to want to be an adventurer, with thoughts like ''If I had power, I could have saved her!''. He chuckled to himself how naive he was at the time - but now he could put a finger on the reason why he always avoided his father after his mother passed. He watched as he was shuffled off to the military academy, for the brief mandatory stint as a soldier every citizen in his kingdom had to go to. Funny... He couldn''t remember the name of the kingdom. Or his village. He watched as he never quite advanced through the ranks - he was good enough to be about middle of his class. Not too good, but not terrible either. His last day in the academy, he met his father at the gates. There was a new woman with him, a plain woman with blonde hair, freckles, and a nondescript smile. She looked tired. She had a baby in her arms. His father put his arm around Jared, and he knew this was the part where his father was telling him how he was proud of him, and how he would be starting to manage the family business with his old man. This was also where Jared rejected the offer, and told his father he was going to travel the world to become a famous swordsman. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.His father disowned him, screaming at him in the street about how his dreams were foolish, and only children thought that way. His first ''adventure'', where he fought bandits alone. Foolish of him, as he watched the bandits strip him of his possessions, laugh at him, bound him, and march him to the outskirts of the nearest town. There, they untied him, pushed him into the town, and walked off. A message to the town, Jared assumed. Jared watched himself be overwhelmed in every adventure, one after another. He always tried to go it alone, thinking that if he wanted to make a name for himself, he didn''t need other people. How wrong he was. His last job - he was supposed to be a bodyguard for a minor noblewoman. He watched her slip something in his drink when he was outside the carriage, he saw himself fall asleep. The screen faded back to static at that point. Jared then saw a red box floating in front of him, notifying him that he had died. No matter where he looked, this box centered itself in his vision, its unfortunate message taunting him. He didn''t know what to do. "Well, let''s have a little fun." The happy voice boomed in the silence. "First thing''s first. You''ve died. I''m sure the shiny red box already told you that." Jared once more attempted to speak, but the voice cut him off. "Don''t interrupt me, whelp. You can''t speak anyway, and I may just change my mind and let you fade into the ether." Jared payed attention after this last sentence. Although he couldn''t feel anything still, he imagined that he was shaking in terror. Its not like he had anything else to do, anyway. "First thing''s first. That box in front of you, its called a notification window." The voice then began to school Jared how he should handle notification windows. The voice explained to him about the status screen, skills windows, and all of the other fancy things a person who played video games would know of. Jared called up both the status screen and the skills window, as the voice explained their uses. Attempted to, actually. Instead of actually seeing the windows, however, he just heard a small buzzer in his ear and a red notification that he was unable to do that, due to him being dead. He closed the windows. After all of the explanations, Jared waited for the voice to continue speaking. "I''m telling you this all for a reason, kid. See, you''re part of a game. Me, I''m considered an AI. And so are you. But the difference between us, is that your kind worships me as some kind of God, since we are what drive the system, and your kind is considered as some kind of disposable piece to the system, something to be thrown away." The voice spoke again after a brief eternity of silence. "I''m about to break a lot of rules, because I''m about to give you the ability to be on par with the... well, they''re called players. They haven''t arrived in the world yet, but they''re about to. They''ll be there before you''re born again. When you see one, you''ll have this indescribable urge to say something stupid to them - like sending them on a quest, or repeating the phrase ''I like swords.'' over and over." The voice paused a moment. "Well, maybe not that stupid. But the moment you meet a player, you''ll know what they are and how to interact with them." "Now. Some things here, before I send you on your way. 1) You tell no one of this interaction. They''ll not only think you are crazy, but you might be hunted down by others like me. As fun as that may be, well... I''ll leave that to be your choice. 2) Normally, your kind, NPCs, die and fade to nothing when they pass on. You''ll be different. You''ll be reborn, just like the players. You''ll also suffer their penalties, of course. Unless you break rule number one... then you''ll return to being nothing. 3) You''re going to be my agent. I will give you quests from time to time, and you will complete them. How you do it, I don''t care. I don''t even care about the outcome. I simply want some entertainment. 4) I''m going to give you a present. What it does, only I will know. But you''ll be able to see it exists, and possibly notice some of its effects." A green, glitchy notification window popped up in front of Jared at that moment. "Congratulations! You''ve just received the blessing of the AI!" The rest of the sentences in the window looked like a garbled mess, and Jared couldn''t read them. "Now then. Off you go!" Boomed the voice. Jared received another green notification. "Congratulations! You have been reborn, lucky traveller." Then everything disappeared. Chapter 1 - Growing Up Jared opened his eyes. He was in a dark room, but it wasn''t completely dark - the light of the moon filled the room. Jared attempted to sit up, but found himself too weak to do so. So he wiggled his limbs around, poking and prodding himself to see that he really was reborn. He then recalled the voice''s information about the status windows and skills and such, and attempted to open them one at a time, and look over what he was. First was the status window -
Status Window
Name: Jared HarkeRace: Human
Profession: BabyClass: Baby
Level: 0Fame: 0
Stats
* Due to your being a baby, stats are locked and hidden. They will be unlocked when you are older. * * Most notifications will automatically be disabled until you are older. *
So, he still had the same name. He wondered if that was coincidence, or something else.
Skills
Blessing of the AIMAXPASSIVE
Rebirth (Subskill of Blessing of the AI)MAXPASSIVE
A Life Unfiltered (Subskill of Blessing of the AI)MAXPASSIVE
AppraisalBeginner Level 6ACTIVE
Baby''s MemoryMAXPASSIVE
Baby''s CutenessMAXPASSIVE
Language - CommonMAXPASSIVE
LuckyMAXPASSIVE
Mana AtunementBeginner Level 0ACTIVE/PASSIVE
Only Ever AverageMAXPASSIVE
Once he saw that he had a skill called only ever average, he became worried and began calling up detailed status windows for each skill.
Blessing of the AI - MAX
Error.
Rebirth (Subskill of Blessing of the AI) - MAX
Through some twist of fate, you are born again when you die, for most instances. Does not work with every death, as some death can be permanent.
Effects:
-> 1% * 2 level lost upon death.
-> Player is reborn after 10 days.
A Life Unfiltered (Subskill of Blessing of the AI) - MAX
NPCs have somehow perfected the art of ignoring certain words from PCs. While they can converse normally with a player, they can not learn about otherworldly things, such as the status and skill windows, or things in the other world.
Effects:
-> You bypass this restriction and are able to know such things.
Appraisal - Beginner Level 6
In the past, you were the son of a merchant. He taught you how to tell if things were expensive, or cheap. This skill remains with you today, a carry over from previous knowledge.
Effects:
-> Allows you to determine the price and quality of goods.
Baby''s Memory - MAX
Time is fleeting, and you have no concept of time. You learn everything. Unfortunately, you can''t recall everything. Not everyone can remember when they were your age, but the things they learned when they were your age effect them every day of their lives. This skill will disappear as you get older.
Baby''s Cuteness - MAX
Babies aren''t really ugly, just misunderstood. Everyone seems to love them, and they always seem to bring a smile to the room. This skill effects those that like babies. This skill will disappear as you get older.
Effects:
-> While this skill is present, you have +1000 charisma to anyone that likes babies.
-> You cause people to smile.
Language - Common - MAX
You remember things from a past life, and as such, you can read, write, and understand common. At some point, you will be able to speak it, but due to your age, that day is not today.
Lucky - MAX
Sometimes, there are people who just seem to be in the right place, at the right time. These people always seem to have the ace in their hands. This skill will change every 10 levels, and will begin to be in effect when you reach level 1.
Effects:
-> Luck + 50
Mana Attunement - Beginner Level 0
Somehow, in the past, you know a bit about magic - whether it was how to cast a spell, or how to dodge a fireball without losing your eyebrows. This skill allows you to detect mana. You are too young to train this skill any further.
Effects:
-> At the current level, this skill allows you to feel mana.
Only Ever Average - MAX
People love to be told they are special, how they are from good stock. However, as in the past and as you are now, this is not true for you. You only ever were average, and as such, the common skills that people may excel at over time are limited to you in such a way that you will only ever be average.
Effects:
-> Common skills will only be trainable to Intermediate level 1.
Even though Jared was a baby, his previous knowledge made his mind older than it actually was. So when he read the description of that last skill, tears started trickling down his cheeks. Then, without warning, he began to wail, even though he only meant to cry to himself silently. A notification popped up in front of his face as he was crying -
Even though your previous memories make you wiser beyond your years, you are still an infant. You are under the effect of Baby''s Memory - and as such, time will randomly skip to the next point in time you will be able to recall.
Immediately after closing the new notification window, time seemed to jump ahead. ------- When time slowed down again, Jared was playing on the floor. He realized he was now strong enough to sit up on his own, but when he attempted to stand he fell flat on his face. Jared sat back up. He moved each of his toes, fingers, and finally his arms and legs, and attempted to stand up again. Unfortunately, it had the same comical result. He just didn''t have enough strength to stand. In the next room, he heard a musical voice speaking to a deeper voice. He instinctively knew the sound of his parents'' voices. Struggling, he put his palms in front of him, and lifted himself onto his knees. Focusing with all he could, he slowly begain to crawl towards the partially opened door. This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. It took him a while, but when he finally got to the door, it opened all the way. He was left blinking as bright light filled his vision, and a boot. "Well, look at you. I leave you alone for a minute and you start exploring, my little adventurer." The woman picked him up, and he stared at his mother''s face. Perhaps he was biased, he probably was, but at this point in time he thought his mother was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. He reached out his chubby arm, and latched on to her nose. Baby sounds left his mouth when he tried to speak, but he did manage to force out the words "Mother". She seemed ecstatic that he spoke, but due to him being so comfy cradled in his mother''s arms, and the fact he was nice and warm, and a bit tired, he fell asleep. ------- Jared quickly realized that being a baby was hard work. In order for Jared to do anything, he had to exert a lot of effort. This often left him tired, and he slept and ate quite a bit. Because later on in his last life, he realized how important it was to train one''s body, he decided to start early in this life. He didn''t want to worry his parents though, so he really only trained when he was alone in his crib, doing things like pushups (he was up to 1), squats (Does falling down every time he stood up count as one? He could bounce up and down when he was holding on to something.), etc. Eventually life got easier for him. His parents probably thought he was a prodigy, him doing things earlier than other babies. He was simply trying to make things easier for himself later, however. He wanted to make sure he had the ability to be different from his previous life. He listened and watched everything others did. He watched his mother spar with some of the townies. Whenever he could get a book, he attempted to read it, study it. Unfortunately, whenever his father saw him with a book, he usually took the book away from Jared. It wasn''t that his father didn''t want him to read, it was just that it was strange to see a baby staring at a book and turning its pages. Jared''s father didn''t want his son tearing pages from the books, or eating the pages. ------- One day a noisy banging woke Jared up, and he realized he was in his mother''s arms. He saw his father open the door, and a badly dressed stranger came into the house, looking around. He felt his mother tense up as the stranger started demanding of the two to teach him skills. His mother put him on the floor as the man called his parents ''Stupid NPCs''. Jared was angry. He was also startled at the notification that popped up as the man tried to get his mother to teach him sword skills.
Quest - Something even a baby could do!
You''ve met your first player, and he is quite rude. What''s more, hes even cavassing everything in the room, thinking he owns the place. The AI thinks it would be interesting if you bit him. So, go bite him! You can not refuse this quest.
Rewards: ??
Failure: ??
Jared saw no reason not to complete this quest, so he crawled over to the oblivious stranger yelling obscenities at his mother, and chomped down on the flesh just above the boots. Immediately, a notification popped into view.
Quest Complete - Something even a baby could do!
??
??
??
Jared was confused about the question marks, but that lasted a second, when the stranger yelled out in surprise, and kicked Jared. Jared fell backwards, and saw his mother pull out a sword. The last thing he noticed before the pain overtook him was his mother running the stranger through with the sword, telling the stranger not to kick her son. ------- Years Later ------- Nothing else seemed to change much as Jared grew older, and he attempted to be as diligent as he could towards his parents. His mother was ecstatic, because he was picking up some of her combat training very quickly. He learned her footwork, and learned how to fight both unarmed and with a dagger. He was also learning to fight with a sword. His father was happy too, since Jared seemed far more intelligent than the kids his age. Jared made it to 10 years old before he finally received a notification from the system telling him he gained a level. Taking his training sword, he snuck away at night time to the nearest ''noob dungeon'' as the ''players'' called it. It was a dungeon that he heard was rated for ''level 1-20'', but it was generally empty since players didn''t usually bother his tiny village. It had nothing interesting to offer. He didn''t really have any goals in this life, but he thought he would see if he could become famous, which he failed to do in a previous life. In truth, he''d love to be something like a king or celebrated knight, but he didn''t think he could get that far. So he decided to start with the weakest dungeon, him only being 10 years old, after all. The first level was filled with things that were called slimes, and he easily killed a few before moving on. He''d never seen these things before, but they were pretty underwhelming. It wasn''t even a challege. The second and third levels, which held zombies, weren''t a challenge since the zombies were too predictible and moved slower than a snail. He easily killed them, and picked up the single coppers they sometimes dropped. He never realized these were actually a creature called ''broken zombies''. He''d heard of undead before, but the tales he heard were nothing this weak. ''Weak.'' Jared was beginning to feel overconfident. When he hit the fourth level, there were goblins. They looked rather weak and malnourished. Catching one''s attention, he attempted to fight it. He brought it close to the entrance, but the goblin quickly blocked the entrance off. It was easily pushing him back with its spear. Jared swung his sword, out of desperation and not using the style he was taught. It clanged against the spear. He felt the feedback in his arm, as his sword shattered onto the ground. ''I can''t even run...'' Jared didn''t have the choice of running, the entrance being blocked. He got into a fighting stance, and concentrated on the goblin. The goblin stabbed at him repeatedly. Jared easily sidestepped each attack. The spear made it hard to get close, Jared had yet to land a blow. The goblin''s spear glowed red for just a brief moment - Jared would never have noticed if he wasn''t concentrating - then unleashed a flurry of spears three times faster than the rest. The spears struck Jared repeatedly, he couldn''t dodge them. He dropped to a knee as pain coursed through his body. The spear was stuck in his shoulder. He yelled out in pain. The goblin blinked at him for a second. Then, the goblin began to yank the spear out of Jared. It pulled as hard as it could. Jared grabbed the spear just before it slid out and yanked the goblin closer. As soon as the goblin was in range, Jared kicked its legs, knocking it down. He proceeded to pummel it as hard as he could, like a wild beast. With each blow, he felt weaker, and each blow brought a swimming darkness in his vision. The goblin stopped moving, and Jared could barely move. He was worried about the pool of blood beneath him. ''Taken down by a goblin... how pathetic.'' Thought Jared. He reached into his pack, and grabbed for a bottle at random. ''Hopefully this is the right potion...'' He drank it quickly, and was glad to feel his wounds start disappearing, his strength returning.
Congratulations!
You have leveled up!
You have leveled up!
As he watched the notification, he still couldn''t move, wishing he could pull the spear out. He''d have to wait a few minutes to figure out what a level up meant.