by Tao Wong
As per Dungeon World Development Schedule 124.3.2.3, inhabitants assigned to a region with a recommended Level 75 or more above the inhabitants’ current Level will receive one Large perk.
As per Dungeon World Development Schedule 124.3.2.4, inhabitants assigned to a region with a recommended Level 100 or more above the inhabitants’ current Level will receive one Greater perk
What the hell? I jerk forwards and almost fall immediately backwards, the sleeping bag tangling me up. I scramble out, pulling my 5’ 8” frame into a sitting position as I swipe black hair out of my eyes to stare at the taunting blue message. Alright, I’m awake and this is not a dream.
This can’t be happening, I mean, sure it’s happening, but it can’t be. It must be a dream, things like this didn’t happen in real life. However, considering the rather realistic aches and pains that encompass my body from yesterday’s hike, it’s really not a dream. Still, this can’t be happening.
When I reach out, attempting to touch the screen itself and for a moment, nothing happens until I move my hand when the screen seems to ‘stick’ to it, swinging with my hand. It’s almost like a window in a touchscreen which makes no sense, since this is the real world and there’s no tablet. Now that I’m concentrating, I can even feel how the screen has a slight tactile sensation to it, like touching plastic wrap stretched too tight except with the added tingle of static electricity. I stare at my hand and the window and then flick it away watching the window shrink. This makes no sense.
Just yesterday I had hiked up the King’s Throne Peak with all my gear to overlook the lake. Early April in the Yukon means that the peak itself was still covered with snow but I’d packed for that, though the final couple of kilometers had been tougher than I had expected. Still, being out and about at least cleared my mind of the dismal state of my life after moving to Whitehorse. No job, barely enough money to pay next month’s rent and having just broken up with my girlfriend, leaving on a Tuesday on my junker of a car was just what the doctor ordered. As bad as my life had been, I’m pretty sure I wasn’t even close to breaking down, at least not enough to see things.
I shut my eyes, forcing them to stay shut for a count of three before I open them again. The blue box stays, taunting me with its reality. I can feel my breathing shorten, my thoughts splitting in a thousand different directions as I try to make sense of what’s happening.
Stop.
I force my eyes close again and old training, old habits come into play. I bottle up the feelings of panic that encroach on my mind, force my scattered thoughts to stop swirling and compartmentalise my feelings. This is not the time or place for all this. I shove it all into a box and close the lid, pushing my emotions down until all there is a comforting, familiar, numbness.
A therapist once said my emotional detachment is a learned self-defence mechanism, one that was useful during my youth but somewhat unnecessary now that I’m an adult with more control over my surroundings. My girlfriend, my ex-girlfriend, just called me an emotionless dick. I’ve been taught better coping mechanisms but when push comes to shove, I go with what works. If there’s an environment which I can’t control, I’m going to call floating blue boxes in the real world one of them.
Calmer now, I open my eyes and re-read the information. First rule – what is, is. No more arguing or screaming or worrying about why or how or if I’m insane. What is, is. So. I have perks. And there’s a system providing the perks and assigning levels. There’s also going to be dungeons and monsters. I’m in a frigging MMO without a damn manual it looks like, which means that at least some of my misspent youth is going to be useful. I wonder what my dad would say. I push the familiar flash of anger down at the thought of him, focusing instead on my current problems.
My first requirement is information. Or better yet, a guide. I’m working on instinct here, going by what feels right rather than what I think is right since the thinking part of me is busy putting its fingers in its ears and going ‘na-na-na-na-na’.
“Status?” I query and a new screen blooms.
Status Screen
Name
John Lee
Class
None
Race
Human (Male)
Level
0
Titles
None
Health
100
Stamina
100
Mana
100
Status
Twisted ankle (-5% movement speed)
Tendinitis (-10% Manual Agility)
Attributes
Strength
11
Agility
10
Constitution
11
Perception
14
Intelligence
16
Willpower
18
Charisma
8
Luck
7
Skills
None
Class Skills
None
Spells
None
Unassigned Attributes:
1 Small, 1 Medium, 1 Large, 1 Greater Perk
Would you like to assign these attributes? (Y/N)
The second window pop’s up almost immediately on top of the first. I want more time to look over my Status but the information seems mostly self-explanatory and it’s better to get this over with. It’s not as if I have a lot of time. Almost as soon as I think that, the Y depresses and a giant list of Perks flashes up.
Oh, I do not have time for this. I definitely don’t have time to get stuck in character creation. Being stuck in a zone that is way out of my Level when the System initializes is a one-way ticket to chowville. The giant list of perks before me is way too much to even begin sorting through, especially with names that don’t necessarily make sense. What the hell does Adaptive Coloring actually mean? Right, this system seems to work via thought, reacting to what I think so, perhaps I can sort by perk type – narrow it down to small perks for a guide or companion of some form?
Almost as soon as I think of it, the system flashes out and only the word Companion appears. I nod slightly to myself and further details appear, providing two options.
AISpirit
I select AI but a new notice flashes up
AI Selection unavailable. Minimum requirements of:
Mark IV Processing Unit not met
I grunt. Yeah, no shit. I don’t have a computer on me. Or... in me? No cyberpunk world for me. Not yet at least, though how cool would that be with a computer for a brain and metallic arms that don’t hurt from being on the computer too much. Not the time for this, so I pick Spirit next and I acknowledge the query.
System Companion Spirit gained
Congratulations! World Fourth. As the fourth individual to gain a Companion Spirit, your companion is now (Linked). Linked Companions will grow and develop with you.
As I dismiss the notifications, I can see a light begin to glow to my right. I twist around, wondering who or what my new companion is going to be.
“Run, hide or fight. Ain’t hard to make a choice boy-o.”
Look, I’m no pervert. I didn’t need a cute, beautiful fairy as my System Companion Spirit. Sure, a part of me hoped for it, I’m a red-blooded male who wouldn’t mind staring at something pretty. Still, practically speaking, I would have settled for a Genderless automaton that was efficient and answered my questions with a minimum of lip. Instead, I get… him.
I stare at my new Companion and sigh mentally. Barely a foot tall, he’s built like a linebacker with a full, curly brown beard. Brown hair, brown eyes and olive skin in a body-hugging orange jumpsuit that’s tight in all the wrong places completes the ensemble. Ali my new companion has been here for all of 10 minutes giving me the lowdown and I’m already partly regretting my choice.
Partly, because for all of his berating, he’s actually quite useful.
“Run,” I finally decide, pulling a
part the chocolate bar and taking another bite. No use fighting, nothing in the store that could scratch a Level 110 monster is going to be usable by me according to Ali and while there’s no guarantee one of them will spawn immediately, even the lower level monsters that will make up its dinner would be too tough for me.
Hiding just delays things, so I have to get the hell out of the park which really, shouldn’t be that hard. It took me half-a-day of hard hiking to get up this far in the mountain from the parking lot and the parking lot is just inside the new zone. At a good pace, I should be down in a few hours which if I understand things properly means there aren’t that many monsters. Once I’m out, it seems Whitehorse has a Safe Zone, which means I can hunker down and figure out what the hell is going on.
“About damn time,” grouses Ali. A wave of his hands and a series of new windows appear in front of me. Shortly after appearing he demanded full access to my System which has allowed him to manipulate the information I can see and receive. It’s going a lot faster this way since he just pushes the information to me, letting me read through things while he does the deeper search. The new blue windows - System messages according to him - are his picks for medium and large perks respectively.
Prodigy: Subterfuge
You’re a natural born spy. Intrepid would hire you immediately.
Effect: All Subterfuge skills are gained 100% quicker. +50% Skill Level increase for all Subterfuge skills.
“Why this?” I frown, poking at the Subterfuge side. I’m not exactly the spying kind, more direct in most of my interactions. I’ve never really felt the need to lie too much and I certainly don’t see myself creeping around breaking into buildings.
“Stealth skills. It gives a direct bonus to all of them which means you’ll gain them faster. A small perk would allow us to directly affect the base Stealth skill but at this level, we’ve got to go up to its main category.” Ali replies and continues, “If you manage to survive, it’ll probably be useful in the future anyway.”
Quantum Stealth Manipulator (QSM)
The QSM allows its bearer to phase-shift, placing himself adjacent to the current dimension
Effect: While active, user is rendered invisible and undetectable to normal and magical means as long as the QSM is active. Solid objects may be passed through but will drain charge at a higher rate. Charge lasts 5 minutes under normal conditions.
“The QSM – how do I recharge it?”
“It uses a Type III Crystal Manipulator. The Crystal draws upon ambient and line specific…” Ali stares at my face for a moment before waving his hand. “It recharges automatically. It’ll be fully charged in a day under normal conditions.”
“No Level requirements on these?”
“None.”
I picked Ali because he knows the System better than I do, so I can either accept what he’s saying or I can do it myself. Put that way, there’s really not much of a choice. It’s what we talked about, though that Perk Subterfuge isn’t really going to be that useful for me. On the other hand, any bonuses to staying out of sight would be great and the QSM would let me run away if I was found out. Which just left my Greater Perk.
Advanced Class: Erethran Honor Guard
The Erethran Honor Guard are Elite Members of the Erethran Armed Forces.
Class Abilities: +2 Per Level in Strength. + 4 Per Level in Constitution and Agility. +3 Per Level in Intelligence and Willpower. Additional 3 Free Attributes per Level.
+90% Mental Resistance. +40% Elemental Resistance
May designate a Personal Weapon. Personal Weapon is Soulbound and upgradeable.
Honor Guard members may have up to 4 Hard Point Links before Essence Penalties apply.
Warning! Minimum Attribute Requirements for the Erethran Honor Guard Class not met. Class Skills Locked till minimum requirements met.
Advanced Class: Dragon Knight
Groomed before birth, Dragon Knights are the Elite Warriors of the Kingdom of Xylargh.
Class Abilities: +3 Per Level in Strength and Agility. + 4 Per Level in Constitution. +3 Per Level Intelligence and Willpower. + 1 in Charisma. Additional 2 Free Attributes per Level.
+80% Mental Resistance. +50% Elemental Resistance
Gain One Greater and One Lesser Elemental Affinity
Warning! Minimum Attribute Requirements for the Dragon Knight Class not met. Class Skills Locked till minimum requirements met.
“That’s it?”
“No, you could get this too.”
Class: Demi-God
You sexy looking human, you’ll be a demi-god. Smart, strong, handsome. What more could you want?
Class Abilities: +100 to all Attributes
All Greater Affinities Gained
Super Sexiness Trait
“That’s not a thing.”
“It really ain’t,” smirking, Ali waves and the last screen dismisses. “You wanted a class that helps you survive? That means mental resistances. Otherwise, you’ll be pissing those pretty little Pac-Man boxers the moment you see a Level 50 monster. You wanted an end-game? The Honor Guard are some mean motherfuckers. They combine magic and tech making them one of the most versatile groups around, and their Master class advancements are truly scary. The Dragon Knights fight Dragons. One on one and they sometimes even win. Oh, and neither, and I quote ‘makes me into a monster’.
“If these are Advanced Classes, what other classes are there?” I prod at Ali, still hesitating. This seems like a big choice.
“Basic, Advance, Master, Grandmaster, Heroic, Legendary,” lists Ali and he shrugs. “I could get you a Master Class with your perk, but you’d be locked out of your Class Skills forever. You’d also take forever to level because of the higher minimum experience level gains. Instead, I’ve got you a rare Advanced Class - it’ll give you a better base stat gain per level and you won’t have to wait forever to gain access to your Class Skills. Getting a Basic Class, even a rarer Basic Class would be a waste of the Greater Perk. So, what’s it going to be?”
As cool as punching a dragon in the face would be, I know which way I’m going the moment he called it up. I mentally select the Guard and light fills me. At first, it just forces me to squint but it begins to dig in, pushing into my body and mind, sending electric, hot claws into my cells. The pain is worse than anything I’ve felt and I’ve broken bones, shattered ribs and even managed to electrocute myself before. I know I’m screaming but the pain keeps coming, swarming over me and tearing at my mind, my control. Luckily, darkness claims me before my mind shatters.
Read Life in the North now! - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B073PNL3BP
