HP recovery rate: 3% per minute
ATK: 218 +90
DEF: 196 +69
With four attribute points to assign, one because of my Player Killer bonus and the other three from the level up, I decide to bring MIND up by one point, STRENGTH by two, and WILL by one, which because of my ring, also gives me an added point in DEXTERITY.
Attributes
STRENGTH: 14
WILL: 14
DEXTERITY: 14
MIND: 12
SPEED: 12
I notice a change almost immediately. My mind expands further and as the galaxy of my thoughts settle, my veins pulse with an inner fire lit by the desire to see to the Obelisk’s wish and my own personal quest to their completion. I also feel a sense of anger towards Governor Talonas. Why is he suddenly so anxious to see me die?
I step over to the man’s shield.
Armor: Electric Shield
Grade: B
Weight: medium
Def: +37
Special: Charged with electricity, activated when held.
“Definitely keeping this,” I say as I turn to Lothar. Deathdale stays back a moment longer, watching the bound merc bleed out.
(^_^)
Lothar sits on his knees, his big fingers pressed around the arrow, which even with its small size, has still caused a good amount of bleeding.
“Do you want me to pull it out?” I ask him.
He looks away from the arrow and nods. “I’ve never been shot before.”
“I hate to say that you’ll get used to it, but, um, you’ll get used to it. This is barely a flesh wound because of your size, but you are a bit of a bleeder,” I tell him as he lowers towards me. “I’m not climbing on you either, so you’ll need to lower even more.”
“Okay.”
“Once I get it out, I can whip up a salve of some kind, although this would be like someone throwing a dart at me. Sure, it stings, but it’ll heal; you don’t need to go to a hospital or anything.”
Wolf approaches Lothar and the giant sticks his hand out. Wolf sniffs it for a moment and turns his head back to me.
“Can I pet him?”
“Um…” I consider their sizes and nod. “Sure, go for it, but wait until I’ve pulled the arrow out.”
I get both hands on the arrow, remind him to look away, and using my legs as leverage, I yank the arrow out.
“Ouch.”
“That didn’t sound like it hurt,” I say as I snap the arrow in half and toss it away.
“It didn’t. Well, it stung a little.”
“You can pet Wolf now, but just use your finger. I don’t want you crushing him.”
“I’d never do such a thing! And before you ask, yes, most giants have accidently killed animals, people too. I did, when I was younger. An animal though, not a person. I stepped on a sheep. Poor guy. In my hometown of Tael, if a giant mistakenly kills a person, it is no longer considered accidental manslaughter.”
“What is it considered?” I ask as I look up at him.
“Just accidental, that’s all.”
“This is why most sane people don’t visit Tael. At least in Tagvornin there are rules and there’s the giant district.”
“You’ve been?” he asks, his eyes filling with curiosity.
“This isn’t my first rodeo, not by a longshot.”
“I see.” Lothar stops petting Wolf, then looks to the dead bodies across the road and back to me. “So did the man give you the information you wanted before you killed him?”
“We wouldn’t have killed him if he hadn’t.”
“And correct me if I’m wrong … He would have been tied to that tree, unable to logout until he died, correct?”
“Sort of. It’s why he told us what we needed to know.”
He considers this for a moment, his eyes fixed on me through his oval glasses. “What happens in your world if a person can’t log out and they don’t have some sort of life support system? This is something I’m very unclear about.”
“Are you familiar with NV Visors?” I ask.
“Neuronal Visualization Visors. Yes, I’m quite familiar. I mean, I’ve never seen one in person, obviously, but I have seen sketches and diagrams. The amount of information we have available in the Occult Athenaeum is awe-inspiring.”
An image of the great room of forbidden records flashes across my mind’s eye. The Occult Athenaeum has books and scrolls that go from floor to ceiling. It is a place of wonder, knowledge, and exclusivity. “If a person is stuck in the game because of something like what we would have done to the bearded guy – leaving him here, tied to the tree – their NVA Visor will turn off after a six-hour cycle.”
“Then why wouldn’t he just wait it out?”
“Good question. One answer is he doesn’t want to lose his avatar. Now this guy, that wouldn’t be the case, but a six-hour wait tied to a tree would go by very slowly. And he’d likely endure an animal or two picking at some of his limbs, which would be painful. He won’t get to a hospital unless someone happens by. Then again, look at this mess of bodies. Most Unigaeans would move right past.”
“But if he were patient, then he’d be forced to logout.”
“Correct, and still lose his avatar. Remember, that’s if he’s not diving here using something like a dive vat. In that case, it would keep him logged in twenty-four hours, which would really suck, especially if he were tied to a tree and consciously getting eaten alive. This is one reason people give up on Unigaea pretty quickly. Further, the NPCs do not understand this. They even have a term for a person going mad while trying to logout.”
“Sufferers of Tommy-Rot,” Lothar says. “And to be clear, a dive vat is the full-immersion tank?”
“Yes.”
“Is your body in a dive vat?”
“It is.”
“Do you like it?”
Rather than answer him, I call over to the Solar Mage. “You about ready?”
Deathdale now stands with her back to the man, eating a small burrito-like item. Just seeing her eat makes me hungry, so I go for a little jerky and before I can pop it in my mouth, Wolf comes around and tries to snap it out of my hand.
“Hey!”
I toss him a piece and the big Tagvornin puppy gobbles it down.
Chapter Thirteen: Wake Up
Lothar never seems to shut up. As we travel further north, and as the temperature continues to drop, the giant explains everything he knows about everything he knows, talking constantly for our entire five-hour walk, and asking as many questions as he can conjure up regarding the process of diving to Unigaea.
The only sound other than his talking and my responses is of the wheels of his meditations box rolling on the road.
“ … And that’s what I use my dashboard for,” I tell him as we come to another public camping space. Night is upon us, and the crimson sky has turned to the deep shade of coagulated blood. The air is nippy, crisp in a way that reminds me of Chicago in November. None of the moisture, but the chill is there.
Several ravens lift into the air as Lothar comes to a stop. They take refuge in a copse of trees to the west, cawing loudly and snapping their beaks.
“Interesting.” Lothar looks around for a place to rest his feet. He gives up pretty quickly, and sits on the ground with his legs crossed. Once he’s settled, he pulls his meditations box next to him, opens it, produces a giant-sized sheepskin canteen and drinks from it. “I believe it will be cold tonight, and there may be snow. We should build a fire.”
“We will definitely do that,” I tell him, “after we find something to eat.”
His stomach grumbles.
“Yes, you too,” I tell him. There’s something juvenile about the scholarly giant, something I’ve noticed in many of the academics of Solidus – most have never had to work a day in their lives, nor face the hardships of the common folk of Unigaea.
“I don’t know how to hunt.”
I laugh. “How were you going to get all the way to Solid
us without food?”
“There are a few families that live along the Western Splits who host communal dinners at night. I’ve befriended them, and planned to stop there.”
“Got it. You gather firewood and stack it there,” I say pointing next to the fire pit. “Deathdale and I will hunt.”
Deathdale turns to me and gives me a look that tells me she doesn’t like being volunteered for anything. Her frown thins and she equips a form-fitting fur coat. I glance from the fur to Wolf.
“Tagvornin wolf fur?” I ask her.
She nods.
“That’s a little inappropriate,” I joke.
Deathdale shrugs.
“You forgot to cover your legs,” I say as she moves past me.
“It is interesting watching people equip things, don’t you think?” asks Lothar as I turn away from him. “No one questions when Player Characters such as yourself pull things out of thin air. The rest of us can’t do that. We just accept it. I believe it is wired in us not to question or wonder about things like that. There’s another phrase I’m fond of: No questions asked, no answers questioned. It seems we’ve been programmed.”
“Where’d you hear that quote?”
“A book written by an unknown goddess.”
Wolf yawns and collapses onto the ground. I drop next to him and scratch him behind the ear. “I know you’re tired, boy. Just rest and let me take care of dinner tonight. Keep an eye on the giant too; make sure he doesn’t step on you.”
He looks up at me, concern in his eyes. “Don’t worry.” I scratch behind his ear just a little more. “I’ll be back with dinner before you know it.”
I join Deathdale at the edge of the forest. Once I have confirmation from her, we press into the woods, dipping under some low hanging branches. The woods are quiet, murky, dire. The fact that the sun is setting doesn’t only adds to the darkness before us.
“I hope you don’t mind Lothar.”
A halo illuminates above Deathdale’s head.
“Is that a joke?”
She smiles at me. “Lothar is fine.”
“He’s chatty, but he means well. He could come in handy, especially with hard-to-reach places. Okay, dinner plans: I’ll chase something out, you kill it.”
She nods and I brandish my Splintered Sword, certain I’m currently carrying a wild look in my eyes. My hand tight around my sword’s grip, I press forward into the dark forest.
Something wet touches the exposed part of my arm. I move past it as quietly as possible, step into a small puddle, and keep on going. I slowly creep through the thick forest until Deathdale’s halo is a soft beacon behind me.
Something moves to my right.
I stop dead in my tracks.
It moves again, and whatever it is, it sounds big. One big gulp in and I just barely manage to get out of the way as a bear slams into me from the side.
The bear roars and throws its claws out, connecting with the back of my neck. My dashboard flashes, the blackness of the forest accented by sparks of red.
Rage.
My muscles pulsate just as the bear tries to broadside me again. My vision pane constricts and my heart explodes in my chest, blood rushing to my extremities.
RAGE!
I bring my Splintered Sword up just in time and connect with its incoming paw.
-164 HP!
It cries out. Scurries back into the darkness.
I breathe heavy now, seething as power and fury roll over me in waves. Nothing is as it seems. Darkness be damned, I can hardly focus on anything, even with the handicap red outline of the bear throbbing on my vision pane.
Every noise of the forest comes to me until I hear the brush move behind me.
“Arggh!” I go to meet the towering bear as it comes at me on its hind legs. I bring my Splintered Sword against its thick flesh, sending a trail of blood into the air.
My heart is a sledge hammer in my chest, my sword an extension of my rage, my movements the gallop of wild horses. I breathe heavily as the bear moves away, dragging its injured paw against the soil.
The hunter becomes the hunted.
I charge after the sound and slam my shoulder into a tree, completely oblivious to the pain. Swiping my sword before me, blind with an uncanny rage, I cut through shrubbery and leap over fallen tree trunks as I pursue the terrible creature.
In a last-ditch effort to survive our encounter, the bear whips around with its claws extended.
It connects with my chestplate and I’m tossed backwards into a patch of bramble.
My agility completely takes over what little bodily control I still possess. I hit my back and flip forward onto my feet. Pressing off my heels, I slam into the bear and dig my blade deep into its gut.
-97 HP! Critical hit!
Its head next to my shoulder now, the furry beast roars, spit flying out of its mouth.
We collapse together and I roll on top of it, digging my blade in deeper.
Hello, Chicago. I stand on the small beach closest to the Navy Pier. A man in a swim cap swims towards me, his form cutting through the glistening waters of Lake Michigan. My feet in the sand, I take a few steps closer to him, trying to recognize his face.
Where have I seen you before?
The sun is a glowing orb in the sky. My veins fill with ichor as it approaches me, its vibrant light warming my face.
Eric.
18th Street station submerged in Lake Michigan.
Eric Renfro.
The sun is warm, the sun is good.
“Oric … ”
Rage laid waste to the place of distaste.
“Oric Rune.”
The voice is real. I am not real.
“Oric … ”
I tunnel through a spiral of glittering lights and awaken in the arms of a stranger, her skin warm to the touch, her gaze cold and calculating.
Deathdale.
“I killed a fucking bear,” I cough, my voice barely audible.
“I see that.”
The Solar Mage helps me to my feet and keeps her arm under mine. I let her hold on as long as she likes. “Thanks,” I tell her after an awkward moment passes. “I’m still getting used to my rage ability. It … does something to me.”
The light over her head gives us just enough brightness to see the bear. The beast is by no means small, about eight feet long from what I can tell.
“How are we going to lug this thing back?”
Deathdale cocks her head at me. “We?”
“You aren’t going to help?” I ask, each passing moment adding more clarity to my surroundings and what has just transpired. You fought a big bear. Pat yourself on the back and get over it.
“I mean, I can try to drag it out. Fuck. I don’t know, though. My strength is pretty much shot. The rage ability depletes me. I was out an entire night the first time I used it.” I suck in another deep breath, feeling better now.
“Try.”
“Easier said than done, Deathdale,” I say as I take the rope given to me by the rhino merchant out of my list. I tie it around the bear’s feet and try to drag it.
Nope, not going to happen.
I’m lucky this thing didn’t come down on top of me.
“Any ideas? Don’t tell me you can levitate shit.”
“Wolf.”
“He’s not going to like that,” I say as I turn back to the encampment. “But he’ll do it if there’s food involved. Stay here, and keep that halo burning bright so I can find you when I return with him.”
The halo around Deathdale’s head forms a solid pillar of light that pushes through the top of the foliage.
“That works too.”
(^_^)
Lothar takes over once Wolf and I get to the clearing. The redheaded giant easily drags the bear, and looking from the bear to the giant, I realize we’ll likely need more food, at least for Wolf and me.
Just then, four white rabbits run out of the forest and die at my feet.
My vision still a little sh
aky and my nerves on fire, I glance from to the rabbits to Deathdale and shrug. “The Obelisk,” I tell her. “And thanks,” I say to the sky.
Wolf falls onto his back and curls his legs.
“You did good back there,” I say as I roll up the rope we used to tie the bear to Wolf’s chest. “Don’t give up on me now.”
He whines, paws at the sky.
“I’m not carrying you,” I tell him.
Deathdale laughs and Wolf and I look to her. She stops laughing and her face hardens. Sensing an opportunity, Wolf bats his paw at her and rubs his lower back against the ground, his tail kicking up dust.
“Cute.”
The Solar Mage turns away from us and makes her way to the camp.
The aftereffects of my rage ability are hard to define, nor do I know quite how long the power can last. It seemed to have lasted much longer when I fought the Tagvornins in front of the bandits’ hut, but truthfully, I passed out too soon to tell.
I make my way over to the large stack of wood Lothar has collected. Wolf, having given up on being cute for the time being, follows and sighs once he sees the towering stack.
I glance down at him. “Really?”
He looks up at me with his blue-green eyes and nods.
“Wolf thinks it’s too much.”
“Not tonight!” says the giant. “It is supposed to be very cold. You do have a blanket or something, don’t you?”
“Um.”
“I have one.”
I turn to Deathdale. “Is it large enough for us to share?”
A bit of color paints her face as she raises her nose to me.
“Is that a yes?”
“She didn’t say ‘no,’ which is a legal defense in Tael. Sad, isn’t it?”
I shake my head at the giant.
“Fine,” she says, turning away.
Lothar claps his big hands together, startling the ravens in a nearby tree. “Glad that’s settled. Do you have a fire kit?”
“I do.”
For the next hour or so, as the biggest bonfire this side of Karuna cackles and spits, I go about prepping the meat, both rabbit and bear. Wolf whines until I just give him two of the rabbits to eat, fur and all.
Lothar doesn’t whine, but does talk a lot about the different meats he has eaten in Solidus, and is about as helpful as a kick in the ass while I deal with his dinner.
The Last Warrior of Unigaea Box Set: A Fantasy LitRPG Adventure Page 32
