by Adam Drake
“I saw it,” I said, when he didn't say more. “The skagg. It was gigantic!”
“They need to be in order to gulp down bodies,” he said. “They always appear when a body is around. Always. That is why its best to salvage a corpse right after a kill before a skagg gets to it.”
The priest ran his hand over the gems, caressing them and mumbling under his breath. Suddenly, one of the gems brightened like a light.
“Ah! Yes! Perfect. It slumbers, but can be wakened.”
“What slumbers?” My eyes were drawn to the large yellow mound. “Whatever made that?”
Chak turned to me, annoyed. “Nevermind that. You will learn soon enough. Tasks. You have tasks to perform. So far, you have served the Blood God well, but his enemies are legion and are in need of purging. If you see any burned men or their ilk, slay them with impunity.”
You have been given a quest: Slaughter the Enemy
Slay ten Burned Men and help weaken the power of the Molten God.
0/10 Burned Men Slain
Reward: 2 Skill Points
I would have thought that went without saying. Of course I'd kill them on sight. It's what I'd been doing so far, after all. It would have been nice if the slain counter on the quest was retroactive.
Chak waved a hand toward the mound. “This needs to be cleared and will require many hands.”
“You want me to dig through all that?” I said, shuddering at the thought.
“No, that is not a task for you, but for slaves. Find and capture slaves, then bring them here. There should be some about, the burned men have many uses for them.”
I remembered the two burned men eating the dead slave woman. Many uses was right.
You have been given a quest: Slaving Away
Round up a dozen slaves and bring them to the clearing to help dig. If there are tools present, bring them as well.
0/12 Slaves captured.
Reward: 400 Blood Points
“Where am I going to find them?” I said, looking around the perimeter. There were countless pathways that could be taken. But to where?
Chak scowled, annoyed. “Bah! Must I think of everything for you? Those two burned men came from somewhere, maybe a place with slaves. Head in the direction they came from. Now leave me be until you are finished!” He turned back to the pedestal, again, mumbling angrily.
Guess I'm dismissed. I left him there and tried to locate which pathway Shorty and Big Guy had come from. As I circumvented the mound, I gave it a sidelong look. What the heck could be inside that thing and why was Chak so interested in it?
Passing the crafting table and inventory stone, I paused, hefting the axe in my hand. Should I break it down for its schematic? It was better than the club in terms of damage and I liked the feel of its weight. Doing so would mean having to use the club, but I wanted to try out my new toy.
I shook my head and moved on to the path entrance, stepping through the rocky perimeter. Cautiously, I followed the new pathway which became very wide, all the while watching out for skaggs and burned men.
That skagg fascinated me. I'd never seen an animal so huge. And it was part of an ecosystem I'd only gotten a peek at. Still, I hoped to never run into one again.
As I walked around a high jumble of rocks in the middle of the path, I spotted something ahead. I froze, axe at the ready.
A burned man sat on a snarl of rock, his back turned to me. Next to him, growing on a mound of dirt, was a cluster of large green mushrooms. As I watched, he reached over, pulled one out by its roots and bit into it.
He hadn't noticed me, and I was initially uncertain what to do. I noticed the long thin spear propped up next to him, and the strange shirt he wore.
I squinted. Not a shirt. It appeared thick and was strapped to his body in a makeshift fashion with cord, or string.
Well, I am here to kill burned men. May as well add this one to the counter.
As quietly as I could, I padded over to him, practically tip-toeing my way. He didn't turn, so absorbed in his meal. Belching loudly, he reached over to grab another, then saw me from the corner of his eye.
Damn. He wasn't far away so I broke into a run, axe held high.
To his credit, the burned man only froze in surprise for a split second, then he quickly stood, dropping the mushroom. In an instant, he had the spear in his hands.
Unfortunately, I'd underestimated my speed and nearly ran into the spear as he thrust it forward. He should of had me, spearing me right through my guts. But at the last possible millisecond, as I attempted to get out of the way, I felt the Mark on my shoulder tingle.
My torso then twisted at an unnatural angle, something I shouldn't physically be able to do without snapping my spine. But I did, only catching the edge of the spear across my midriff.
Barely registering the pain, I brought my axe around and struck him in the back. He grunted with the impact, but his shirt seemed to take most of the blow.
Spinning to face me, he whirled the spear around in a wide arc, catching me off guard.
Again, he should have had me, or at least a piece of me. The Mark tingled again, and I quickly ducked, contorting my body as the spear passed over me head.
A clump of black hair landed on the ground. He'd sliced my ponytail off!
Not one to doddle in the middle of a fight, I sprung up from my crouch, axe traveling in an upward swing and used Bash.
The axe caught him fully under the chin. The bony blade easily crunched up through the jawbone to bury deep into his head from below. He went limp instantly, and fell to the ground, pulling the axe from my grip. Its handle stuck out of his face.
1/10 Burned Men Slain
I paused, breathing heavily. It all had happened so fast. The entire encounter had lasted five or six seconds, tops.
I stood over him, grimacing at his horrendous injury. I'd nearly sliced his head in half. Nasty. If it wasn't for the Mark of Dodge, I'd be fighting my way out of the blood pool right at that moment. Now I can see why the Big Guy so easily avoided my attacks.
I grabbed the axe handle, braced my foot against his chest, and pulled. It took several tries, but the axe came loose with a sickening sound. I frowned at the gore dripping from its blade.
I picked up the spear and tested its weight.
You have taken an item: Simple Short Bone Spear
Durability: Usable
Damage: 2-6
Tradable
It was strong and light, but would be almost ineffective once an enemy got in close, as demonstrated. I hefted it over my shoulder. It could be thrown, too. Maybe as an initial attack before running in with the axe?
I looked over the man's odd shirt. It was simply two large rectangular sections of what appeared to be hide, tide around his chest and waist with cord. No, not cord. Sinew.
Curious, I figured out how to untie it and pulled it off of him.
You have taken an item: Simple Ghourda Hide Shirt
Type: Light
Durability: Good
Armor: 2
Tradable
Armor! Finally. I'd wondered if such a thing existed, or whether everyone and their murderous uncle just ran around naked.
I ran a hand over the hide's surface, which was covered in very course hair. What was a Ghourda?
You have found a quest: Ghourda Skinning
Find and slay a Ghourda. Remove two units of Ghourda Hide and one unit of Sinew from its body.
0/2 units of Ghourda Hide
0/1 unit of Sinew
Reward: Simple Ghourda Hide Shirt Schematic
Well, now I'd know how to craft one, not that it looked difficult to make with the right parts.
I slipped the two sections of hide over my head and pulled them down over my body. Then I tied the sinew cords together as I'd originally found them. It was snug against the body, but the cut of the hide didn't hinder or limit my body's movement.
Armor: 2
Oh, that's new. I checked my character stats and sure eno
ugh the armor rating was listed there. I assumed the higher the number the better. The skagg had 12, a number which now had more significance to me. What if I could get a skagg shirt?
A message also appeared.
You have learned a new skill: Light Armor
This passive skill grants the wearer of any Light Armor a +1 Armor bonus with every 5% increase.
All that was left was the green mushrooms which got the burned man killed in the first place. They were large, like a muffin, and oily. I risked picking one.
You have taken an item: Green Mushroom
Consumable
Eating this mushroom regenerates 5 Power points over 30 seconds.
Tradable
I looked at my Power which was at 17. Running, fighting and using Bash had drained it. I'd no clue how long it would take to regenerate on my own.
Staring at the mushroom in my hand, I shrugged and took a tentative bite. It tasted like what I'd imagine plaster might taste like. Still, I finished it all and watched as my Power nearly topped up.
I also noticed that the wound on my side was closing up and healing on its own. The initial cut took 5 Health Points, of which I'd already regenerated 1.
My eyes snagged on all the messages I'd been ignoring at the corner of my vision and I glanced through them.
Since the last time I'd checked, my Club skill had increased to 3% and Hand-to-hand to 6%. Also, I'd gained the Axe skill which I apparently learned the moment I attacked the spear guy.
Spotting an inventory stone nestled behind a flourish of rocky spikes, I picked the remaining mushrooms and placed them inside. The spear wouldn't fit no matter how I tried to angle it. Guess I'd take it with me for now.
I checked over the corpse, but it didn't have anything to salvage. I'd leave it for the skaggs.
Carrying the spear and axe, and outfitted with new skills and armor, I moved on. All in all, it was a good haul for such a brief fight. I hoped the rest would be just as easy.
Only a few minutes later, I was brought up short by someone shouting at me.
“Can you hear me?”
I spun about, searching the area for who it was. The strangely distorted voice came from everywhere and nowhere.
“Who's that?” I shouted, tensing for a fight.
The voice spoke again, more clearly, and this time I recognized it.
“Captain! It's me! Thank the stars I've found you!” Otto said.
CHAPTER NINE
“Otto!?” I shouted in disbelief.
“Yes, Captain, it's me,” Otto said. “I am so glad to have located you.”
For a few stunned moments, I was at a complete loss for words. I wasn't alone anymore. Maybe now I could finally get some answers.
“Are you still hearing me, Captain?” Otto said when I didn't respond immediately. I was getting a little choked up.
“Yes! Yes, loud and clear,” I said, trembling a little. “Give me a sitrep. What happened?”
“The planet somehow warped us directly to a low orbit around its equator. An incredible display of power. But, whether intentional or not, the Corena's hull began to immediately fracture under the sudden strain. I was in the process of initiating emergency protocols when the ship completely vanished.”
My eyes grew wide as he spoke. “Wait? Vanished. The Corena is gone?”
“Correct.”
“Then where are you?”
“Currently, I am orbiting the planet in satellite number six. A subroutine of the emergency protocols called for me to copy myself over to any other corporate entities in the immediate area, to maintain my files. Unfortunately, the satellite's hardware is tiny compared to the Corena's, and barely one percent of my program was ported.”
I felt a chill shiver up my spine. “Okay, if the ship is gone, and your on one of the satellites, where the hell am I?”
“That is a tricky question, Captain.”
“Humor me.” The chill moved into my chest.
“Currently, you are standing within a chasm roughly two hundred kilometers north of the equator. The chasm happens to be the only feature on the entire planet. The rest is as barren, or blank, as before.”
My breathing stopped. “Wait. I'm physically in this chasm. You can see me?”
“Correct, Captain.”
“How can you see me on the planet's surface if I'm in a sim? Because that's what I've been experiencing for the last few hours; playing some star-blighted game!”
“Yes, I can see you, although it is only your biosignature. The strange cloud cover greatly distorts the satellite's sensors. But I'm at a loss as to what you are referring to as a sim.”
I quickly gave him a bullet point version of what happened up until he contacted me.
“I see,” Otto said, sounding concerned. “So you believe you've been logged into a sim, or game this entire time?”
“Yeah!” I said, alarmed and confused. “Are you trying to tell me all of this has been real?”
“That's the tricky part, Captain. Yes, you are in a chasm, and yes you are standing within it. But none of it is real. And neither are you. The signature is nearly perfect, but not quite. You are somehow controlling a copy of your body.”
I found my head starting to hurt, and I slumped down on a large boulder. What the hell was he telling me?
When I didn't say anything, he said, “From what you just explained, I believe you really are in a sim, but unlike any seen before. It appears to be using a technology vastly superior to what is currently available. It is rendering the game world on the planet's surface. And rendering you as well.”
Okay, keep it together Zee, I thought to myself. “So this is an avatar, right? This body?”
“Yes, but it is a physical rendition of it. By analyzing the electrical activity in your brain, I can see that your body is receiving messages, sent from a place I haven't located. I believe that copy is being controlled by you from an unknown location.”
“So you are communicating to me through this body, correct?” I asked, thinking what a bizarre conversation to have.
“Correct. Perhaps your real body is still on the Corena, wherever it may be.”
My mind boggled at this screwed up jumble of information. So all of this was real, yet simulated. Was that why I could feel pain?
Before I could ask another question, Otto suddenly said, “Captain. I am moving out of range. I can only manipulate the orbit of the satellite to a certain degree. On the next pass, I will attempt to make contact with you again if the cloud cover allows.”
“Otto, what about the crew? Have you located any of them?” I found myself shouting to the air.
Silence. I called for him several more times, but nothing. I envisioned the tiny satellite scudding over head and disappearing behind the horizon.
What a lot to take in. Yet it was a relief to get some answers, even if they still raised their own set of questions. I already knew this was a game, but something far beyond mankind's capabilities. So, if humanity couldn't create this, who did? And why was I stuck inside it?
Lost in my thoughts, I didn't immediately notice the two burned men appear from around a cluster of rocks to my right.
One of them said, “Making enough noise, aren't ya?” His nose was a bulbous mutation that threatened to consume his face.
“If you wanna scream, we'll give you a reason,” said the other. He grinned, revealing no upper teeth.
Both were armed with axes.
Why couldn't this damned sim just leave me alone? I felt a sudden rage build up inside me and I turned to glare at them. “Now isn't a good time, fellas. Save yourselves from a humiliation and piss off,” I said, tightening the grip on my weapons.
“Ha! Listen to this one,” Nose said. “Got some fight in her. I like when they try and fight back. Gets me all excited.”
“Yeah, fight right up until we're done with you. Then we cut ya up and eat ya!” Toothless said.
As they spoke, I slowly switched the spear to my right hand.
Nose cackled. “Bet you taste good, too, huh? But first will jam you up with added flavor.” He gyrated his hips and leered at me.
“That's a good one!” Toothless bellowed, overcome with the highbrow humor. “We're gonna jam her up with our fla-.”
I stabbed Toothless through the throat. Sitting there, waiting for a chance to strike, I'd casually angled the spear in his direction. When Toothless turned to congratulate his friend, I lunged forward with it.
The spear pierced a jugular and lanced out the back of his neck. Gargling in shock and spurting blood, he fell back, eyes wide.
But Nose was quick, having anticipated an attack. With a short swing, he managed to hit me on the left shoulder as I'd lunged forward.
As Toothless fell back, the spear got stuck, and was pulled from my hand.
You have learned a new skill: Spears
Ignoring the message, I switched my axe back to my right right then swung at Nose, but he easily dodged it. My anger was almost blinding. Whether it was because I now knew for certain there was no immediate escape from the sim, or because of these idiots' taunts, I flew into a rage.
Nose and I traded swings back and forth for several moments. Sometimes I cut him, sometimes he cut me. But it became quickly apparent neither of us was getting the upper hand. The entire time, my Mark only kicked in once, saving me from having my throat slashed.
Consciously, I circled around him so he had to turn and face me. Then, I worked on making him back up under a series of swings. With his focus entirely on me, he didn't notice the body of Toothless until he tripped over it.
With a shout, he fell back, stumbling to keep his footing.
As he did, he lowered his guard. I jumped forward bringing the axe down over my head and used Bash.
The axe cleaved through his right collar bone and down into his chest, shattering his rib cage. He collapsed, but still tried to strike at me.
I batted away the feeble swing, then brought the axe down again and smashed his lower face, severing the jaw.
As the light went out of his eyes, I said, “How'd that taste?”
Standing over their corpses, I found myself at a loss as to what to do next. Thanks to Otto, I had a better understanding of my situation. The problem was the situation hadn't changed.
