First Login (The World Book 1)

by Jason Cheek

  Instead of releasing my hands, Ines continued speaking in a hushed tone. “If you’d like, young Halfling, I have one more spell I can teach you. I saw Yun’s head jerk up in surprise at her question from the corner of my eye. It’s a little pricey but, if you like, I could also teach you Resurrection?” As the old priestess spoke the words, a pop-up appeared on my screen.

  Do you want to learn the spell Resurrection? Cost is 2.5 silver.

  Accept: Yes / No

  Wow, the cost of the spell was pretty freaking steep, but it was probably the most important spell a healer could have in the game. The ability to bring back party members from the dead without having to wait for them to respawn was a game changer. Who knows, it might possibly be able to bring back even NPCs from the dead. There was no question; I needed this spell. Without hesitation, I selected ‘Yes’ as another golden ray of light flooded into my eyes. Immediately, the knowledge of the spell filled my mind as another pop-up briefly appeared before my eyes.

  Congratulations! You have learned a new spell: Resurrection.

  Cast Time: 20 sec

  Mana Expenditure: 1000

  Brings a dead player back to life with 25% health and mana. Cannot be cast when in combat. Range 40 yards.

  Wow, a thousand points of Mana was a lot for a spell but I didn’t even think about complaining. I’d been able to get the spell I needed plus a bonus. If not for my extra stats from the P&M exam, I probably wouldn’t have been offered the spell. I focused back on what the old Elf woman was saying … something about coming back once I reached skill level 5 in my Light magic. When she was finished with her spiel, we said our goodbyes and left with a promise to return. As soon as we were standing out in front of the temple, Yun stopped me with a questioning look.

  “How the hell did you manage that?”

  “What, the Resurrection spell?” I asked with a secretive grin.

  “Dude, you just learned Light Magic. I’m level five and I only just got my quick heal over time spell.” Yun said exasperatedly.

  I pulled up the information on the spell trying to figure out how I’d manage to get the spell at level 0 in Light Magic.

  Spell: Resurrection:

  Cast Time: 20 sec

  Mana Expenditure: 1000

  Brings a dead player back to life with 25% health and mana. Cannot be cast when in combat. Range 40 yards.

  “I’m not sure, all of my spells are for level 0’s, but-” I minimized the interface looking at Yun thoughtfully. On that HOT spell. Do you have a level requirement for the spell?

  I saw Yun’s eyes glaze over as he went through his character sheet. “Huh, it says here the quick heal requires a skill level of 5.”

  “I betcha that’s it then. There’s no level requirement for Resurrection, only having a 1000 Mana.” I said with assurance.

  “How the hell do you have that much mana?” Yun asked incredulously.

  “Uh, I paid the extra money for the P&M exam,” I replied with a shrug.

  “Oh, wow. I hadn’t thought about that.” Yun paused taken aback. “That was a little too pricey for us once we purchased the VR units and everything else needed for two. I guess it was worth it if you have over a 1000 Mana …”

  “It helps a lot and is well worth the money if you can afford it. Still, the Nightmare start hasn’t been a cakewalk.” I said with a frown at his reaction. A lot of people were acting like the P&M exam was a huge cheat for people with money. While on some level this was true, it didn’t make the game easy. Also, the gap would close up once people started leveling up. And, to be honest, I considered the P&M exam to the dividing line between normal and hardcore players.

  “Damn man,” Yun said, still eyeing me in surprise. “The forums have been exploding with pissed off players complaining that they were slaughtered during their Nightmare start and that it was freaking impossible to complete. Did you wipe out on yours already or did you complete it?”

  “Let’s just say I haven’t wiped out yet,” I said with a sigh of relief. Until that second, I hadn’t realized how much I’d been dreading Yun’s reaction. “I was able to get enough knocked out that I had time to run into town for two days. I just wasn’t sure the reaction I’d get. You’d think with nearly 80 in charisma that the NPCs would be a little nicer to me.”

  “Whether we’d been there or not, if you hadn’t had nearly 80 in charisma the guards would have probably just run you through instead of letting you pass,” Yun said with a thoughtful look on his face.

  “Thanks,” I said sarcastically.

  “No problem, man,” Yun said suddenly clapping me on the back. “Might as well swing by the Frost Mages while we’re here before we head out to do the Goblin instance.”

  The Frost Mage tower was on the outskirts of the central square. One of four towers to be exact. Although, it took us two tries before we found the right tower. The first one we tried was barred closed with a squad of guards out front blocking entry. Yun wanted to go up and ask the soldiers about what was up with the tower, but a quick jab from my elbow brought him up short as I pointed out the scroll work on the archway above the doorway. The Arcane Spiral. He gave me a questioning look as I tugged him towards the next closest tower.

  “What the hell man. Why not just let me ask the guards why they closed the tower?” Yun asked, annoyed as he tried to shake my hand off.

  “Dude, I’m a Half-Elf in a Light Elf city which obviously is a thing. Also, the Light Elves here are hating anyone using the Black Arts. Is Arcane Magic the Black Arts?” I said, making air quotes. “My House of Kayden moniker is associated with the Black Arts. Trust me when I say we don’t need me standing out any more than I already do, so the last thing I want is to be hanging out in front of the closed arcane tower being questioned by a bunch of city guards that already want to give me a hard time.”

  “Okay … okay, we’ll do it your way.” Yun said rolling his eyes as I let him go. “Sheesh, I still think you’re overreacting.”

  “Seriously dude, you can ask all you want once I’m out of town. I just don’t want to be around when you do.” I said following after Yun who seemed to settle down as we approached the next tower. Its great double doors were wide open with plenty of players heading in and out. The name of the tower above the archway was ‘The Frozen Spiral’ which seemed pretty self-explanatory. Still, you’d have thought they could’ve come up with a better name besides that. I guess this was the KISS principle at work. A simple apprentice in bluish-gray robes greeted us at the entrance and directed us to one of the three lines near the back of the round room.

  The room had shelves with various components and devices displayed in cases and shelves along the walls. Looking closer, I realized they were all for sale. Wands, staffs, orbs and other artifacts all with a hefty price tag of several hundred silver and even a few were for as much in gold. The dividing line on items seemed to be based on the highest number of bonuses. A device for several hundred silvers usually had two +3 stat increases while the ones for several hundred golds started at +10.

  Although the line seemed to be moving relatively quickly for so many players, the people I saw walking out all seemed to be angry. I was trying to listen in to their conversations to understand why, when we suddenly found ourselves at the front of the line. Sitting before us was another mage apprentice wearing a plain, unadorned blue-gray robe who didn’t even bother to look up at us as we approached the Elf’s writing desk.

  “Reason for visit?” The Elf asked with a bored nasally voice.

  “I’d like to learn to be a Frost mage,” Yun said with a start as I goosed him forward.

  “That will be two silver.” The apprentice said laying out a rolled-up scroll on the blank area of the desk in front of him. He didn’t even bother to look up from his work.

  “Wow! That seems like a steep price to pay for learning how to cast a level 0 spell.” Yun said with a frown reaching into his pouch.

  “Master Isundir, the mage trainer, has been called awa
y but has left scrolls for training during his absence. The increased price is due to the cost associated with the creation of the scroll and transferring the spell onto the parchment.” Mage Apprentice Obeteliol Filmalad quoted his spiel from memory.

  “How do I learn the spell?” Yun asked confused.

  “Just read the spell, and it will automatically load into your spellbook. If you do not have a spellbook, you can purchase one from The Codex of the Magi Spiral for five silver. The Spiral is directly on the other side of the main square across from our doorway.”

  “Ah, okay,” Yun said unrolling the parchment. A second later the paper disintegrated in his hands as the apprentice’s voice called out. “Next.”

  My heart leaped into my throat as I eyed the chest full of scrolls the mage apprentice had casually reached into without a second look. I tried to mentally calculate how much money I had available. If my figures were right, I had almost two gold worth of coins. There were forty NPCs at the camp. If I could get them all casting Frost spells the next time the shit hit the fan, we wouldn’t lose anyone to a surprise attack. It would also give me a core force to try to take back BrokenFang Hold. Now the only question would be if they would sell me all the scrolls I wanted.

  “Two requests, Mage Apprentice Obeteliol Filmalad,” I said stepping forward and shouldering Yun out of the way as I tried to keep the excited smile off my face. “First, I was wondering what spells you have available for a skill level of 11?”

  The mage apprentice looked up at my words with the first sign of surprise showing on his scowling face. Turning around, he shuffled around in the chest on the floor behind him for a minute before turning to face me again. This time giving me an appraising eye as he spoke.

  “Then you’d be looking for a Frost Nova level 5 and Ice Lance level 10 scroll.” The elf frowned taking in my shredded leathers. “Although the cost will be quite pricey. Maybe you should come back once you have some money.”

  “How about you just tell me how much the spells will cost before deciding if I have enough money to pay.” I acidly replied, giving him a matching frown as I worked to hold in my temper.

  “That will be four and six silver respectively.” The mage apprentice said tartly, expecting me to turn away.

  “Thank you.” I snapped back, stiffly laying out ten silvers as I scooped up the scrolls. The shiny coins seemed to change the Elf’s attitude as he visibly relaxed. Immediately, I read the scrolls to memorize the spells as my interface popped with the system messages.

  Do you want to learn the spell Frost Nova? Cost is four silver.

  Accept: Yes / No

  Congratulations! You have learned a new spell: Frost Nova.

  Cast Time: Instant cast

  Mana Expenditure: 50

  Blasts enemies within 10 yards of the caster for 100% Frost damage and freezes them in place for up to 8 sec. Damage caused may interrupt the effect. 30-second cooldown. Requires frost magic skill level 5.

  Do you want to learn the spell Ice Lance? Cost is six silver.

  Accept: Yes / No

  Congratulations! You have learned a new spell: Ice Lance.

  Cast Time: Instant cast

  Mana Expenditure: 40

  Deals 400% Frost damage to an enemy target. Ice Lance damage is doubled against frozen targets. Slows target by 50% for 15 seconds. Requires frost magic skill level 10. Range 40 yards.

  “Please excuse me, Sir Ironwolf. The last few days have been somewhat trying. We’ve had a number of uncouth newfars coming in to make purchases. More than a few have been disturbed at the increased prices and have been making life difficult for my colleagues and me.” The mage apprentice apologized profusely wiping at his forehead.

  “Normally we have only a handful of new magi coming through Delonshire every month that Master Isundir trains himself. The scrolls were only created as an emergency for the random mages that might travel through Delonshire but the number of new mages requiring training this week has been nearly impossible. We’ve had multiple requests coming in every day, and Master Isundir will not be back until the end of the week, and we are stuck selling scrolls until we run out.

  “No problem at all Mage Apprentice Filmalad. I understand completely. In fact, I believe that my second request will help to resolve the current issue you’re experiencing with these rude newfars.” I said still holding in my excitement. “At least to a point.”

  “How could you possibly help with these cretins? The city guards are well aware of the problem we’ve been having but they refuse to arrest people for being uncouth.” Mage Apprentice Filmalad said somewhat tersely.

  “I would like to purchase forty each of your Frost Blast, Frost Nova and Ice Lance spells,” I said holding my breath. Here was the moment of truth. Here was the angle I needed to complete my quest successfully.

  “You want to purchase forty of each! That’s nearly our entire stock!” Mage Apprentice Filmalad squeaked as I saw Yun’s head jerk around to look at me incredulously. “How … how will purchasing so many scrolls help to solve my problems with these rude newfar?”

  “If you have no more spells to purchase then you won’t have to deal with anyone being angry about the expensive costs for level 0 spells. You simply can say that you’ve sold out of your stocks and won’t be able to help anyone until next week when Master Isundir returns. That way you will have met your requirements to sell scrolls until you’ve run out, but only have to deal with me.” I could see the hopeful looks from the other two apprentices standing nearby who were quietly listening in on our conversation as the players in front of them bitched to one another about the cost of training scrolls.

  “Hmmm … that would solve a lot of problems.” Mage Apprentice Filmalad thoughtfully said while eyeing his aggravated associates. “There were no requirements to sell them to individuals.” The Elf’s eyes focused on me with a smile. “Sir Ironwolf, if you have 480 silvers I would be more than happy to offer you the scrolls you’ve requested.”

  “Excellent Mage Apprentice Filmalad, I’m glad I could help.” I counted out the money still talking as the Light Elves began happily gathering up all the scrolls I’d requested. ”But before I go, maybe you’ll allow me to purchase any level 15 spells you might also have available.”

  “Normally we don’t give out any spells unless the mage is of the appropriate level, buuutttt…” Mage Apprentice Filmalad drew out the word thoughtfully. “Maybe this once we could make an exception.”

  Five minutes later we were on our way to The Codex of the Magi Spiral. The ground level was a massive bookstore, but from what the clerk I’d asked explained, the entire structure was one great library of magic. I thanked the Elf as I bought forty spell books to the same shocked expression as the mage apprentices. Still, the process only took a few minutes before we were heading back out. Luckily the books stacked up in my backpack like thin magazines but between them and the scrolls, my backpack was noticeably heavier. My last stop before we left the magi quarter was to swing by The Burning Spiral and purchase the first level spell, Flame Blast.

  The last place Yun took me was the Guild Master’s House for the city. We jogged through the streets dodging players in our way until we came to a stop in front of a standalone building. It was just off the main square in the direction we’d originally entered the city. The building’s front office looked to be still under construction, but it was being manned by an old Light Elf. As soon as we walked in, he came shuffling around the desk to greet us.

  “Welcome … welcome … welcome, my name is Garang Ralith. I’m the in charge of the Guild Master’s Hall for Delonshire. Are you younglings looking to purchase a guild charter?” Seeing the hesitation in Yun’s eyes, Ralith spoke hurriedly. “It’s only ten silver pieces. Not too much for some brave newfars like yourselves.”

  “Younglings? Did he just call us younglings? What the fuck, man?” Yun whispered to me in mock horror as I struggled to keep a straight face.

  “Yes Master Ralith, I’m here fo
r one of your guild charters, but I’d like to ask a few quick questions first if you don’t mind,” I said giving the old man a friendly grin. The main issue I needed to make sure of was that the charter would count in every region. The last thing I wanted to do was find out the hard way that I needed something special for a guild that stretched over multiple species and locations.

  “You want to ask questions?” Yun hissed in annoyance elbowing me in the ribs. “Just get the freaking paper and let’s go. Sarka is already wanting to know what the hell is taking so long.”

  “Dude, just give me just a moment. I promise it won’t be longer than two minutes, tops.” I whispered back focusing on the Guild Master. “Master Ralith, once I form my guild is it only valid in the Light Elf domain or is it good everywhere?”

  “Don’t worry young Elf. A guild is a sacred contract that once formed cannot be broken unless disbanded by the guild leader. It is recognized in all the lands and by every race. For example, even if House of Kayden fell in disrepute with the Light Elf’s ruling council, your guild’s charter would still be honored. Nothing would change that.” Garang Ralith said with a loud, obnoxious laugh as if he’d made an amazing joke. “Just bring me back the form with five signatures and your Guild Charter is good to go.”

  My mouth hung open in surprise as I looked over at Yun who just gave me the hurry up hand signal. Sir Ralith’s example did not make me feel any more comfortable about the Light Elves or Delonshire. Obviously, there was some major baggage going on for my people. The best thing I could do right now was get everything I needed and get the hell out of dodge before the shit hit the fan. The major problem now was getting another four signatures.

  “Fine, then please give me a guild charter for The Revenants, Master Ralith,” I said running a hand nervously through my hair as a message window popped up before my eyes.