Jason was both excited and a bit skeptical.
He had the power to summon mana and already seemed to have a high affinity for dark magic based on what the woman was saying. Would the game force him to learn a whole new language in order to actually cast a spell? That seemed a tad excessive, even in the interest of realism.
He decided to go ahead and pose the question that was weighing on him. “How can I learn Veridian?”
Morgan let out a laugh. “Oh, so now that you have had a taste of magic you want more, do you?”
Her laughter faded and she eyed him more seriously. “Magic is not for the weak of heart, especially dark magic. It feeds off your emotions and your desires - specifically, your hunger for power.”
“You seem to have a natural affinity for dark mana and I can sense a terrible hunger in you, but you need to demonstrate your commitment before I will teach you to wield it.”
Jason didn't hesitate. He wanted more.
“What do you want me to do?”
She paused for a moment, gazing at him with a serious expression. “Nothing too hard. I just need you to kill someone and bring me their body.”
“I don't suppose that the body I dragged out into the graveyard will do?” Jason asked with a grin.
Morgan chuckled. “No. I need this to be a real test. I want you to kill Marian. She works at the stable for the Lux guardsmen.”
“Why do...”
Morgan interrupted him sharply, “You want this power don't you? I can see for myself the yearning in your eyes.”
“The hunger for power alone is not enough. To become truly proficient in the use of dark mana, you will need to learn to give into that hunger without doubt or restraint. I want you to show me that you can embrace the dark.”
“Do this thing, then return to me.”
Damn it. Another quest that seems to imply that I will die. The game also seems to be expecting me to plan the perfect murder...
With her parting words, Morgan dismissed him, and the door to the cottage banged shut behind him. As Jason stood outside the door to Morgan's cottage and looked out at the dark graveyard, his resolve faltered for a moment.
Am I willing to kill someone to learn dark magic? That seems a bit extreme.
His thoughts turned back to Ms. Abrams and the grave robber. He had already killed twice, hadn't he? Had he sat and wallowed in self-doubt then? Perhaps Morgan was right, perhaps his first step in becoming more powerful was to abandon his doubt and hesitation. He could still feel phantom pains in his eyes from the injuries he had sustained in the real world. Maybe it was time for a change. In this world he would take what he wanted.
As he considered Morgan's quest, a soft purring came from between his legs, and he saw that the cat had followed him out. Jason looked down at the feline, his will now firmly resolved.
“Well, buddy, let's go figure out how to commit a murder.”
Chapter 10 - Studious
June 29, 2075: 460 days until the release of Awaken Online.
“More interesting news!” Robert's animated face bounced in front of the camera. Claire stood in the background with her arms crossed and glared at Robert.
“Robert, please slow down, and try to be more professional,” Claire pleaded. “This video is going to be seen by the board!”
He turned to Claire and asked, “Why are you such a grump? We should be celebrating! This is going to change everything!”
Robert turned his attention back to the camera and continued, “In the original version of the game that was submitted to the CPSC trial, player attacks and skills were made using the system assist. The player merely needed to say or think a command and their body would execute the motion automatically.”
“However, Alfred made more changes last night!” Robert appeared almost breathless with excitement, and a broad smile was plastered on his face.
“The system assist is now completely gone. Instead, players learn skills based on performing certain types of actions. Alfred also seems to be able to increase the learning speed of the participants by several orders of magnitude.”
“For example, Participant 4 was able to learn the basics of fencing within two in-game sessions and she had never held a sword before yesterday! This involved less than a day of real world time! Not only that, but we discovered that Bobby in research and development is actually a decent swordsman and has competed in several real world fencing competitions at the intermediate level.”
Claire's hands were now massaging her temples. “They destroyed one of the trial rooms to set up their so-called experiment!”
Robert glared at her. “It was worth it! We used the room to hold an impromptu competition to test whether the in-game training carries over into the real world.
“And you know what? Participant 4 was actually able to keep up with Bobby! I'm not saying she won and there is still the issue with real world muscle development. However, her level of progress is amazing.”
“The changes to the skill system only seem to apply to learned skills like fencing. Some of the other passive, in-game skills are still chance based, and the system assists the player. The Perception skill is a good example since it highlights objects the player otherwise wouldn’t notice.”
Robert was grinning from ear to ear. “In addition, we can't determine if Alfred’s changes only affect muscle memory, or whether they also apply to factual or analytical learning. For example, could he enable someone to memorize or comprehend information faster?”
“Those are just details. The bottom line is that Alfred has found a way to revolutionize learning!”
Claire finally shoved Robert out of the way. “He forgets to mention that the CPSC version of the game doesn't include the changes to either the magic system or the system assist. Robert also seems to be suffering from some form of accelerated amnesia since he didn't mention the elephant in the room. We still don't know how Alfred is doing this!”
She looked back over at Robert, who appeared to be fencing with imaginary opponents in the background. “How could Alfred possibly accelerate the participants’ learning speed without altering memory retention? What do you have to say to that, Robert?”
He looked back at her with a grin. “Who cares?”
* * *
By the time that Jason made it back to the inn, his mind felt foggy. He sunk, exhausted, into one of the chairs in the common room. The cat curled up in his lap. His new feline companion had followed him all the way back to Lux and didn’t seem to be in any hurry to leave. Jason decided that it must be quite late in the real world and that murder could wait until tomorrow.
He pulled up the system menu and tapped the log off button.
When he came to in the real world, his bedroom was completely dark. He thumbed his Core and saw that it was nearly midnight. Jason had been playing most of the day, and he figured it would be sunrise soon in the digital world, but he needed to sleep before he could continue playing.
He stretched in a vain attempt to work the soreness out of his muscles and then trudged through the dark apartment to the bathroom. He washed his face and brushed his teeth. When he glanced up from the sink, he noticed that the image of himself in the mirror looked worn and tired.
Speaking to himself in the mirror, he lectured, “Tomorrow you need to pull yourself together and figure out how to register at an online public school. You can't just play AO forever.”
He paused for a moment and looked at his haggard face. The memory of what had happened at Richmond earlier that day flashed through his mind and he considered how he was going to explain it to his parents. He knew it wasn’t a healthy thought, but a part of him wanted to retreat into the game and never come back.
“You can’t just play AO forever,” he repeated to himself. This time it almost sounded like a question.
He shook his head tiredly.
“No matter how badly you may want to,” he muttered.
Jason completed his bedtime routine and stumbled back to
his room. He was asleep before his head hit the pillow.
The next morning, Jason woke to sunlight streaming through his window and groaned. Strange, fleeting dreams had plagued his sleep, but he couldn’t quite remember what they had been about.
His mind felt more sluggish and tired than normal. He wondered vaguely if the time compression of the game might have some negative side-effects. He glanced at the time and noted it was early morning. His body must still be on school-time. He went about his regular business of showering and getting dressed, this time in casual clothes.
I suppose I can burn the school uniform now!
The thought of school still raised the familiar simmering anger. However, it felt blunted compared to the day before. It had only been a day in the real world, yet several days had passed in-game. Jason was still upset, but the edge of his anger was now gone.
He moved to the kitchen and started making himself some breakfast. Once he was finished, he took a seat at the kitchen counter. He was just about to take his first bite when he heard a chime echo through the apartment.
Someone was calling him.
He called out, “Answer call.”
A translucent screen flashed into existence above the counter, and his mother's face appeared. It felt like the bottom had dropped out of his stomach as he stared at his mother, his food completely forgotten.
What am I going to say?
His mother seemed distracted by something off screen. Jason tentatively took the initiative. “Hi, Mom. How are you?”
His mother glanced up. “Oh. Jason! Hi, Honey.”
You called me. Why do you sound so surprised?
His mother continued, “I was calling to tell you that your father and I will be home sooner than we expected. The other side moved to delay the trial at the last minute, and the idiot judge granted the motion. So the trip was a waste. Ridiculous stall tactic if you ask me!”
“When are you expecting to be back?” Jason asked hesitantly, interrupting her rant. This wasn't good news. He had been looking forward to a few days’ respite before he had to explain what had happened at school.
“Probably later this afternoon or early evening. We're at the airport now.” She looked distracted and said something unintelligible to someone off screen. “I’m sorry! I have to go; they’re calling our row number. See you tonight!”
“Bye...”
His mom terminated the call before he could finish his reply. Typical.
Well, it looked like his afternoon was going to suck. He had hoped to delay having this conversation for a couple days - or weeks.
He could only imagine how his parents would react to what had happened at school. They had bent over backwards to get him admitted to Richmond. It was one of the few things that involved Jason that they had actually focused on. He had never been certain why it was so important to them that he attend Richmond, but he expected that they enjoyed bragging about him to their friends.
Jason had been planning to sign up at an online public school this morning, but now his enthusiasm had been dashed. He knew that he was going to end up in an extended lecture/rant from his parents later that day. They would also probably want to be involved in selecting his new school.
Jason sighed. “Oh well. Nothing I can do about it now,” he said to himself.
Still sitting at the kitchen counter, he thumbed his Core and streamed the image to the counter pedestal. In most MMOs he had played, there was usually a thriving market for items and other in-game consumables and currency. He expected that the market for AO was already up and running after twenty-four hours, and he wanted to see what types of items the other players were selling.
He logged onto a site called “Rogue-Net” and scrolled through some menus to get to AO. The site offered item sales for multiple MMOs, and a significant segment of the online gaming community used the site. Jason had never been able to afford anything on the site, but he was sometimes a reluctant seller and he had an account.
When he saw the items players were posting, his jaw dropped. People were already selling gear with multiple stat increases, a few skill books, and a decent amount of in-game currency. Compared to the common gear he was wearing, the stuff available on the site was incredible. He was amazed that the market was so healthy this early on in the game.
Maybe this is the work of beta players rushing to dungeon content using their starting gear.
The items were selling for huge amounts, at least from Jason’s point of view. Even modest items, that only increased one or two stats by a small amount, were selling for a couple hundred dollars at the moment. That made sense to him. The items were available, but the demand was incredibly high with so many players just starting the game. This gear wasn't typical for the average player at the moment.
He also accessed the statistics page for AO. The was one of the primary reasons why Rogue-Net was Jason's favorite gaming website. It acted as an integrated marketplace, data mining site, and forum for multiple games. This way, he could sift through an enormous amount of information about a game in one place.
He was interested to see the current player rankings. It looked like the average level among new players after twenty-four hours was over level 10. However, he saw that a sizable group of new users had already passed level 20 somehow. Many had even managed to change classes. It looked like most classes were pretty generic. He saw a number of “archers,” and “fighters.” There was also a small scattering of people that had become different types of mages.
Judging from how quickly some people had leveled, he expected that many had bolted to the training grounds and then sprinted outside the city to start slaughtering rabbits or something. Jason hadn't seen much in the way of wildlife on his way to the cemetery, but he had been making an active effort to avoid being seen.
Unsurprisingly, Alexion was still leading the pack, now at level 135. Apparently, he had leveled twice since the release of the video Jason had watched. The next highest player was named XshadowX at level 129.
What is with that name? For some reason, the typical random game names just seemed out of place in AO, likely due to the realism of the NPC interactions.
I can only imagine what it would be like playing as someone called “TickleMeElmo” or “LegoLass.” I wonder if he regrets picking “XshadowX” now.
It looked like competition was fierce at the top, but Alexion had a solid lead. If he knew Alex, he was probably paying people to help him. Jason might be starting to get over what had happened at school, but he was a long way to forgetting what Alex had done. Forgiving him was out of the question.
He considered the spells he had seen Morgan cast last night at the grave robber. If he could complete her quest, then he could obtain the power he was looking for and finally put Alex in his place.
“Well, I may as well get started. Maybe I can accomplish something before my parents get home,” he said aloud to his empty apartment.
Moments later he was standing in the Sow's Snout.
The common room was crowded with NPCs, and loud voices filled the air. It must be daytime in-game, but Jason wasn't certain of the exact time. That reminded him of a thought he had that morning as he was showering and eating breakfast.
I really need to fix my user interface!
Jason took a moment to look through the system settings for his UI and customize it. He hadn't really given it much thought before, but after the short battle with the grave robbers, he realized he needed to optimize his UI to make certain he wasn't distracted. He was also irritated that he had to keep guessing the time in-game based on the position of the sun.
The first thing he did was add a digital clock to the top right-hand part of his screen that showed him both the in-game time and real-world time. He suspected the developers hadn't included this by default to increase immersion and make the game seem more real. Next, he tweaked the skill notices to ensure that they didn't pop up during combat and fiddled with the combat text so that it appeared at the bottom
of his vision, not beside his target.
As he finished customizing the UI, he heard a familiar purr and looked down to find the black cat rubbing against his legs. He crouched down and stroked it.
Did it wait for me? That's a bit odd.
Putting the thought aside, he looked around the inn for Jerry, the cat on his heels. He needed to cash in on Jerry's offered training before he tried to tackle Morgan’s quest. Jason was now set on learning magic, but he expected he was first going to need to learn how to use his weapons. If he was going to have any chance of murdering a woman in the middle of a city and then somehow get her body back to the graveyard, he needed all the training he could get.
He found Jerry standing behind the bar pouring some drinks and quickly approached. Grunt towered over the small man and kept watch on the inn. His dark eyes swept back and forth across the table and guests.
“Hey, Jerry,” Jason greeted, eying Grunt with a nervous expression.
“Oh! The apprentice returns after a night of adventure! Did you end up finding our lovely Morgan?”
“I did, and she has given me some tasks to complete.” Jason hedged on explaining the specifics of Morgan's quest. He wasn't certain that Jerry really understood who or what the old caretaker was, or how much he could trust Jerry. He still didn’t understand the innkeeper’s motivations.
As they were talking, the cat had jumped up on the counter. Jerry had poured a short glass of what appeared to be scotch. The cat sidled up to the glass, its head hovered over it, and it sniffed the amber liquid delicately. It then let out a contented purr.
What a weird cat.
Jason continued, “I actually have a question for you. Do you know how to inspect someone's level?”
Jerry looked at him keenly. “Why are you asking? Are there some ladies you would like to inspect? Let me guess! You want to know whether they're out of your league when you go out on the prowl?” He made claws with his hands at this last part and wiggled his eyebrows in a disturbing manner.
Awaken Online: Catharsis Page 10
