by Edward Brody
One day, I told myself. One day…
As my breathing started to normalize, I could hear the faint sound of grunts and steel smashing against something brittle. I straightened my back, and looked through the trees of the tiny wooded area, but I couldn’t see anything from where I was standing.
I bent my knees to enter into sneak mode and crept quietly towards whatever was making the noise. The grunts and fighting sounds grew louder as I approached, then suddenly went silent out of nowhere. A couple hundred meters deeper, I peeked between two thick shrubs, and could see an olive-skinned man with short, wavy, brown hair sitting on the ground, looking ahead to what appeared to be a giant anthill ahead of him.
Name: unknown
Race: human
Level: 8
Health/Mana/Stamina: 140/100/130
Status: unknown
Surrounding him were the corpses of three giant ants about the size of the howlers, and I could see other giant ants sporadically crawling in and out of the hill.
The man stood back to his feet, and I could see that he was tall with a wide, hearty frame. He was wearing a poor excuse for plate armor. The legs and chest were rusted, and there were hundreds of dents in the metal, big and small. He had no helmet, arms, or gloves.
He lifted a short broadsword from his back and bent down to pick up a rock.
As soon as the next giant, orange ant emerged from the ant hill, he flung the rock at it, doing little but pissing the ant off and causing it to charge. As the ant scurried towards him, he pulled a round, wooden shield from his back with his free hand and squared his legs up for battle.
Name: giant wood ant
Race: insect
Level: 7
Health/Mana/Stamina: 75/20/95
Status: unknown
The ant lunged towards the man, but he blocked the attack with his shield and slammed his sword down at the hard, outer shell of the ant’s body. The ant hissed and jerked, then lunged its pincers at the large man’s legs.
The attack seemed ineffective, blocked by the slick metal of his armor, but when the man swung down again, the ant dodged and countered, striking upward with its pincers and clipping him on his uncovered arm.
“Argh!” The man grunted and kicked out with his foot, knocking the ant’s head to the side. Again, he swung down at the ant, this time connecting hard and causing a chunk of its shell to fly off and thick, white fluid to spill to the ground.
The ant screeched and turned around, thrusting the pointy stinger attached to its ass towards the man but finding nothing but the rough wood of his shield. The fighter hammered his sword down a final time, landing a clean cleave through the ant’s body and ending its life in the process.
He wiped the edge of his sword against the fallen insect’s body, clearing most of the guts from the blade, then holstered both the sword and shield on his back before sitting down again to regain his energy. It was an entertaining sight to see. I wasn’t sure what the person’s agenda was, but it appeared that he was just trying to grind out XP.
I decided to hang around a little longer to enjoy more of the show, but just as I made that decision, I noticed that right behind the man, two sets of glistening eyes had appeared and were patiently edging closer and closer.
Howlers.
I stood up from the bush, but right as I shouted, “Hey!” to alert the man, the two wolves pounced simultaneously, one latching on to his arm and the other getting a good swipe at the back of his neck before dragging its claws against his chestpiece, causing a sound like fingernails against a classroom chalkboard.
The man shouted in pain and jumped to his feet, swinging around his arm in an attempt to dislodge the jaws that were clamped on to it.
“Fucking hell,” I spat and ran towards him as I pulled out my sword.
I wanted to use my magic to make quick work of the howlers, but if I used my magic, there was a good risk that I would catch the guy on fire or harm him in some way. A miss might cause him to attack me or even worse, kill him. And unfortunately, using my sword—at least on the howler attached to his arm—wasn’t going to be much safer.
I swung out as the man continued flailing, barely missing an amputation of his hand, and landed a swift blow against the howler’s back. The attack hurt it enough that it unleashed its grip and dropped to the ground.
The second howler gripped onto my ankle, and I jabbed the tip of my sword down, striking it right in the back of the neck. It yelped loudly and jerked away, dislodging my blade in the process.
When I turned to attack the other howler again, the man had already equipped his sword and shield and hurled a heavy swing right in my direction. Apparently, I had pissed him off even without causing him any damage.
I ducked and jumped back. “Hey wait!” I shouted, but the man lunged forward slamming his sword towards my neck.
I rolled to the side, and the man had no choice but to turn around and swing at a howler as it had started snapping at his legs. The other howler targeted me, and I raised my sword in defense right as it pounced.
When the howler jumped on my blade, the impact didn’t seem to be enough to kill him, but I quickly yanked the sword back, causing the wound to cut deeper into its flesh. The howler’s eyes went wide, and it flopped, lifeless, to the ground.
The man slammed his shield into the other howler’s head, and it turned around to run away. When the wolf was only a couple meters from the man, he took a step forward and shouted loudly at the beast, his voice booming in my ears and causing a strange, dark chill to crawl up my spine.
The howler turned back around—seemingly forgetting its dire injury and little hope for success—running straight back towards the man to receive a final cleave to its skull. He must have had a taunt ability of some sort that the wolf simply couldn’t resist.
You have gained 220 XP!
The fighter turned towards me but remained squared up as he raised his shield in front of his body. “What do you want from me?” he asked with a thick, southern accent.
“I was just trying to help you,” I explained.
“Didn’t look like it,” he replied. “You about cut my arm off. For all I know, you lured those wolves over here to me.”
I sheathed my sword and held up my hands. “Really, I mean no harm. I saw the howlers about to attack you while you were fighting the ants, and I just jumped in to help.”
“You were spying on me?” he asked.
I rubbed the back of my head and shrugged. “Well, when you put it that way…”
“That’s creepy, man.”
“Hey, sorry,” I said. “I was just admiring your fighting skills is all.”
“Alright.” The man relaxed his posture and started putting away his sword and shield. “But that’s still creepy.”
I stepped forward and held out my hand. “Gunnar.”
He eyed me suspiciously then reached out for the shake. “Ozzy.” He tilted a shoulder towards the ant hill. “Did you come for the ants?”
I shook my head. “I was just finishing a quest when I heard you.”
“Something about you seems odd,” Ozzy said.
“Yeah, you too. You’re ughh…” I creased my eyebrows. The guy didn’t seem eccentric like Aaron, but he was less put together than most of the NPCs that I had encountered, and he was also the first person I had encountered whose voice had a country twang. “Are you a Reborn?”
“What the hell is a Reborn?”
I cleared my throat. “Are you a player from Earth?”
The guy’s eyes went wide, and his shoulders perked. “Oh, shit! You’re a real player?”
I smirked. “Yeah, apparently, we’re called Reborns in here.”
The man smiled wide and put his hand out for another shake. I thought it was a bit awkward, but I just grabbed his hand again, and he squeezed hard and bobbed it up and down erratically. “You’re the first real person I’ve met so far! At least as far as I know. Sometimes I forget that the NPCs aren’t real people.�
��
I chuckled. “Yeah, they’re pretty damn real. Where are you from?”
“I’m from Austin, Texas. And you?”
“Los Angeles.”
“Well then you must be one of those dirty liberals.” He crossed his arms and just stared at me, but his huge smile never left his face.
His comment caught me off-guard, and I didn’t know what to say. I just looked at him with my face twisted in confusion. Was he going to pull me into some left-wing, right-wing bullshit?
Ozzy chuckled. “I’m just fucking with you, man! I don’t give a shit about politics in here. Give me a hug!” Before I could even reply, he yanked my arm forward and pulled me into a bear hug. “Nice to meet you!”
I gave him a light pat, pulled away from him as quickly as possible, and started straightening my armor back out. I had grown more socially adept than I had been a week prior, but hugs with men I didn’t know was still a bit out of my comfort zone. “Nice to meet you too.”
“If you want to join me killing some ants, you’re welcome to. They don’t seem to drop anything, but they’re good XP. With the way they go in and out of their hill, it’s pretty easy to pull one at a time.”
I looked up to the sky. There was still a bit of light out, but I knew it wouldn’t last long. “Sorry, I’ve got to turn in my quest and head back to Thorpes before it gets dark. But you’re welcome to join me or just meet up with my friend and I later tonight.”
The guy nodded. “I’ve been staying over in Newich, but I’ve visited Thorpes before. Let me kill a few more ants so I can gain another level, then I’ll catch up with you at the Thorpes inn later. Shouldn’t take me too long.”
“Sounds good,” I said with a nod. I smiled and tilted my head back towards where I came. “I’m going to head out.”
“Alright, Gunnar,” he said. “Thorpes, tonight—I want to hear you and your friend’s story!”
“And yours too,” I replied. “Be careful with those ants.”
Ozzy nodded.
I turned around and headed back towards Conrad’s home with a smile glued to my face. Had I just met future guildmate number three?
Chapter Six
01/08/0001
You have completed the quest: Garden Trouble!
You have gained 500 XP!
“I knew you were the man for the job,” Conrad said. He reached inside his purse and counted out my gold reward.
You’ve received: 150 Gold Pieces
“Thanks,” I said.
“No! Thank you,” he said with a smile. “I’ll finally be able to tend my garden again.” He walked across the room of his house and dragged a stool that was sitting near the far wall up beside the rocking chair in front of his fireplace. “Why don’t you stay a while? I’ll cook us up some dinner and hot chocolate. It’s always nice to have a visitor.”
“I’d love to, but I need to go check on my friend back in Thorpes.”
Conrad sighed. “Alright then.” He circled to the front of his rocking chair. “There’s a little bit of wine and water in the cabinets. You’re welcome to help yourself if you’re thirsty.” He turned away, sat down, and started rocking back and forth, his eyes locked on the fireplace.
Sora crawled up to me and nuzzled her neck against my legs.
I chuckled. “I wasn’t gone long, you know, but… I missed you too.” I kneeled down, placed my face atop hers, and enjoyed the feeling of her soft fur against my cheek. I scratched behind her ears as I looked into her eyes. “Let’s get out of here, okay?”
She just stared at me, but I got the feeling that she was agreeing with me somehow.
I headed for the door, and right when I was about to grab the handle, I paused and once again looked down at the scroll that was sitting on the desk.
Level 6… Igniting Touch. Damn.
The spell sounded useful as fuck.
I turned back towards Conrad who was still rocking in his chair, paying no attention to what was going on behind him. I wanted to add the spell to my repertoire badly, and it seemed like an easy enough item to steal.
I recalled other RPG games that I had played in the past, and I couldn’t think of a single one that I hadn’t stolen something in, even when I was playing as a ‘noble’ character trying to save the world from evil. Hell, most games seemed designed to reward you for walking inside homes and checking every chest, bookshelf, and cabinet, to steal from respectable individuals in order to get the best items in the game.
So, shouldn’t I just steal the damn thing? I wondered.
I grabbed the magic scroll and opened my bag to drop it in, but right before I let the item slip into the Otherworld, I stopped.
Eden’s Gate wasn’t like other games. It was definitely no RySkim or World of OrcCraft. And I couldn’t consider it a game anymore. I was in my home, and I was living my life there. Taking the scroll from Conrad’s house wasn’t the same as deciding to abort my agreement with Jax. If I chose to nick the scroll, it would be straight-up stealing. Did I really want to be a thief?
To be perfectly honest, I wasn’t sure. Being a thief player actually sounded fun and potentially very rewarding. But being a murderer might be rewarding in Eden’s Gate too. The possibilities were endless.
But…not yet, I thought. I need time to think about it. Because of how real the world was, red-handed thieving just didn’t sit well with me. Conrad was a good guy, and he obviously trusted me by turning his back while such a valuable item was out in the open. How could I just steal from an old man like that?
I guess I was starting to view NPCs like real people.
I sat the scroll back down on his desk and left his home, Sora right behind me.
Maybe one day I’d be a thief. Who knows? I thought. Maybe the guild I had planned would turn into a thieves’ guild? But I was only level 10 and still knew far too little about the world. Immortality was a long time with plenty of opportunity for change. For the moment, I decided to act consciously and try not to make too many rash decisions. I had already seen how easily a single, seemingly-insignificant move could change things in the world dramatically when I completed the Unfair Trade Practices quest for Eanos.
I didn’t want to harm Conrad the same way that I had harmed Gerard.
I climbed over a small hill and looked down at the lights pouring from the buildings in Thorpes.
“Well… guess it’s time to go.” I kneeled down and petted Sora on the back of the head one last time. “I mean, I guess you’ve got to go.”
She jumped up and started licking the side of my ear like she had when she was a cub. She pushed hard against my knees, trying to knock me down for another round of ‘roll around in the grass’.
“Sorry, I can’t play anymore. It’s late, and if I bring you to town, people will freak the fuck out, I’m sure.” I pulled her head into a hug and whispered, “You’re released… Go now.”
When I let go, she reared her head and growled before running off over the hill.
I couldn’t believe how fast she was growing and even more how much I was growing attached to her. Why had I never had a pet before? It was such a fulfilling experience.
Oh yeah—oppressive, Nazi landlord and a studio apartment. Not only would the owner of my old room never allow pets—not even fish—I wouldn’t have wanted to keep some poor animal cooped up in that tiny little place anyway. And before that, my grandma would have probably forgotten that we had a cat or dog and thrown it out thinking that a stray had wandered in.
I guess my situation on Earth had just prevented me from ever trying the pet thing. Boy, had I missed out.
I sauntered into town and to the inn, which was lively as usual, but this time there was a crowd gathered in a corner.
Aaron was shaking a die in his hands, and sitting opposite to him was a man in a full suit of pristine plate armor with the insignia of a yellow lion on his breastplate. His dirty blond hair was long and he had a strong jawline that matched his tall frame.
The die rolled and l
anded on a 3.
“13!” several of the onlookers said together.
I slid up behind Aaron and could see a large pile of gold coins sitting beside him and another large pile sitting in the center of the table. “You’ve been gambling this whole time?” I asked.
“Dude!” Aaron said. “Sizzler is on a roll now! I’m up 100 gold already. This pot here is for another 50.”
“Holy shit!” I whispered sharply. “I thought you were doing 5 and 10 gold bets. Now you’re doing 50!?”
Aaron rolled the die again and it landed on a 2. “Once I started winning a little, I didn’t mind increasing my risk.”
“That’s 15, Sizzler,” Bruno, who was sitting at the table, said. “You going to go again?”
Aaron nodded and gathered the die back in his hands.
“And they’re calling you Sizzler now?” I asked.
Aaron chuckled and started shaking the fingers on one of his hands around like he had just burned them on something. “The Sizzler has hot hands tonight!”
He rolled again, and the die jumped around until finally settling on a 5.
“Whooo!” Aaron cried. “That’s 20, baby!”
“You going to hold or go again?” Sully squeaked through his missing teeth.
Aaron stuck his hand to his chin and thought as the people around him buzzed with discussion about what he should do. After a few seconds, he said, “One more!”
The crowd cheered, and the ones who were holding mugs of ale all knocked them together and tipped them to their lips in unison.
Aaron rolled the die again, and it landed on another 5.
“25!” two or three people said all at once.
“Alright, I’ll hold,” Aaron said.
The man in the plate armor leaned forward on the table and smiled. “A fine hand, Sizzler,” he said in an eloquent, educated-sounding tone. I noticed several other patrons in the inn were wearing matching gear with the same yellow insignia on the front. They looked important.
