Eloria's Beginning: A LitRPG/GameLit Epic (Enter The louVRe Book 1)

by Tom Hansen

  Leveling up. He had heard of it before, he just never thought he would be blessed by Spiritmother to have such abilities. Very few of their kind were ever called like this. He wanted to stop by a shrine to meditate on his newfound life, but the pipettes in his satchel reminded him he had a quest to finish. Maybe he would have a brief respite once he handed these over to Eldermother?

  He walked through her door, pipettes in hand, and a broad smile on his face.

  He felt like a hero; full of vigor and spice. He could take on the world. His recent accomplishments almost overshadowed the immense guilt that still stuck with him for not being there to protect Sonvey. Still, it would do no good to wallow in self-pity. Completing quests was a good distraction.

  Eldermother bustled about her small hut, dodging around the tables as he relayed his findings about the corn field. She was especially happy to see he had brought the sample of blood from the broken stalk and had put that in a jar for testing later.

  “Why don’t you go relax while I run some tests,” she said after he had finished his report. “It’s going to take a while, so don’t rush back. I will find you when I need you.”

  He agreed and stepped outside to watch the fading light of the sun dip below the horizon. He had meant to find a place to meditate but found that the fading orange glow was as peaceful and serene as any shrine.

  Sitting on her stoop, he closed his eyes, keenly aware of the chill air coming off the ocean. The gentle lapping of the waves calmed his mind and lulled him into a place of peace and tranquility.

  He stayed like that for a while, not thinking, just feeling. Behind him, Eldermother coo’ed and aww’ed as she mixed various tinctures with the blood samples.

  To the east, he heard Nitene’s rhythmic chanting as she continued to weave spells.

  The song of the Tau’ri filled the air as they marched toward the bighouse for supper. He found himself humming that ancient tune.

  Twilight marked its special notch in time. Soon the moon would rise and bask their village in a ghostly blue glow. It was going to be a large moon tonight, and their bonfire ceremony would begin right as the moon hit its apex.

  He was at peace for once today. Centered and grounded. His body brimmed with spiritual energy, and he was glad that he spent the evening running quests for Eldermother. It kept his mind from darker places.

  He held up his hand, calling to the magic. Mouthing the words for Mending Force, he felt the surge of power pull from deep inside, coursing up to his extremities. His hand felt heavy with the burden of the magic, wisps of green leaves swirling above his palm. He held the spell in his hands. He worried that he wouldn’t be able to sleep with this newfound power surging through his bloodstream.

  “Matuk,” Eldermother’s soft voice thundered in the silence.

  He released the magic, jumping to his hooves, his heart pounding. “Eldermother, I was —” He didn’t even know why he felt the need to justify his magic. She already knew. Through his sudden panic, he saw her calm face and polite smile.

  “It’s okay, Matuk. It’s a strange thing when you first come into your powers.” She raised her right hand, palm outstretched, and pointed to a spot in the center of the road. A small cyclone of dust and wind appeared, about half the height of his body. It didn’t move, just spun and spun, throwing tiny rocks from its center.

  She closed her hand and the cyclone dissipated. “But you grow to understand it. It’s part of you. It always has been, but it decided this was the time to manifest itself in you.”

  She looked up at the stars, twinkling in the heavens. “Spiritmother smiles down upon you, Matuk. ’Tis very rare for one of our own to be exalted, to be called upon by our ancestors to be something greater than themselves.”

  She looked like she had more to say, but she just continued to stare at the heavens. Silence grew between them, and his heart calmed.

  The stars seemed brighter tonight, like he was closer to the heavens than he had ever been. It filled his chest with pride and anticipation and helped calm the ever-present fear of failure.

  Finally, she spoke up. “Come, I have something to show you.”

  Inside, she had laid out the pipettes in a row on the table. A clear glass bowl dusted with white powder lay beside them.

  He frowned in concern, the powder reminding him of the battles he’d had today.

  “You recognize this too, don’t you?”

  He nodded. “I’ve seen this dust too many times today already.”

  Her face took on a grave expression. “I’m afraid that this might be what drove the pig and the Kobolds to attack you today. It is in their blood as well. Though the ones you obtained were mostly low levels, two, in particular, had very high concentrations of the substance.”

  “There were two just inside the cave that were…” he was too embarrassed to say.

  “They were mating?” The corner of her mouth crooked up. “One was a female, I assume?”

  Scarhoof nodded, replaying the events of Misty Cave in his mind, a detail tried to make its way to the surface but he couldn’t quite grasp it; a color?

  “Yes, I got that by testing the blood. One of them was female, and she was in heat. She and the other one had very high concentrations of this substance.”

  “Yes, the big one.”

  Big one.

  He had seen a few big ones when he had glanced into the cave, but one of them wasn’t green like the other Kobolds. One of them was blue. He hadn’t even gotten a good look. He had been too busy fighting off the Kobold that had latched onto his back, but he remembered the flash of blue inside the cave. Luckily his subconscious had recorded more detail than he thought. Anticipation and fear mingled in his mind as he realized what he had missed.

  “I think the Nagos is in the Kobold’s cave.”

  Eldermother’s eyebrow quirked. “How do you know?” After relating his story with more detail this time, she nodded in contemplation.

  “I need you to do more investigation in that cave. If the Nagos is there, he might be working with, or controlling the Kobolds.” She pushed past him to look out the window at the moon just starting to peek up over the western horizon. “It’s a Spiritmoon tonight, and the Kobolds like stealing things from the village while we’re at the bonfire. I was going to station a number of the larger Tau’ri around the perimeter to keep them out, but after Sonvey’s death at the cove entrance today, and the Nagos, I worry there might be more trouble brewing than we know.”

  She walked to the table near the back wall and picked up a twine-wrapped parcel. “I need you sneak in and place this poultice into the well inside the Kobold cave. The water there is magic. It comes from the tears the Spiritmother cried when the first of her Tau’ri were killed after the White Rive. The magic in the waters will react with this poultice. Observe the effects and report back to me.

  “While you are there, look for the Nagos. I will want any details you can give me about him. We also need verification that there is indeed only one. We might need to protect our village tonight, and we will need to know everything we can about our enemy. Will you help?”

  Quest Update! Mysterious Blue Scale:

  Look for evidence of the Nagos in The Misty Cave. (Gained 25 XP!)

  Quest Update! Killer Kobolds:

  Place the poultice in the pool inside the Misty Cave. (Gained 25 XP!)

  “Of course, Eldermother,” he replied. Scarhoof spun on his hoof and headed out of her hut.

  “Wait!” Eldermother rushed out after him. “I wasn’t done. You forgot the best part. Come back inside. You won’t want anyone to see this.” She winked, then ducked back into her hut, causing the door covering to wave.

  Something about the glimmer in her eye disturbed him. It was mischievous, not malicious. He trusted her, had for twenty years, but something about that look gave him pause.

  He took a long breath of the cooler evening air, the darkness around him becoming singular as the last glow above the ocean faded away. “Whatev
er she’s got for me, let’s get it over with.”

  She stood with a scroll in her hand, a look of childish giddiness across her face.

  “What is it?” He pointed to the scroll.

  “Oh, you’ll see in a minute, but first, I want you to stand right here.” She pointed at the ground and he shuffled to the spot, watching his tail to make sure he wasn’t going to knock anything over. His stomach clenched, and he could feel his heart rate increase.

  She smoothed the scroll out on a table, placing teacups on the corners to hold it flat, and scanned over it for a moment, murmuring under her breath.

  He didn’t recognize the language, but it had a familiar lyrical quality to it.

  She waved her hands and chanted in the same language, louder this time. Magical power poured over him. He closed his eyes.

  It felt like being dipped in water without the wet. The cold worked its way up his spine until he couldn’t handle it anymore and shivered.

  The stream expanded until his entire body was covered in it. Bigger and bigger buckets of flowing magic.

  His skin tingled, tightening and drying. He curled his hands into fists, fighting off the chill.

  I trust Eldermother, I do.

  The waterfall feeling subsided, and an effect popped up on the side of his vision.

  Effect Status: Kobold Disguise:

  Duration: One Hour. You look, sound, and smell like a Kobold. Eww! Certain features inherent from your race will remain, but you will pass for a Kobold, especially to casual glances.

  Kobold Disguise?

  He opened his eyes, looking around. The whole room looked bigger! It was disorienting, like he was in the same room, but not. Seeing Eldermother smile at him, he realized what was wrong.

  The room hadn’t changed, he had. He was short. The table that had come up to his thigh was now eye-level. Eldermother towered over him, and he had the overwhelming urge to run from her.

  She took a knee to be closer to his size.

  “How do you feel?”

  His hands and arms were green. He looked in the wall mirror. His new thick, leathery hide was wrinkled and folded. His knees and elbows were spindly recollections of their former selves.

  He poked and prodded his chest, stomach, and legs. Everything seemed to be there, just smaller and stranger.

  “I … I guess I’m fine.” The voice that came out of him wasn’t his own, it was higher and smaller. He wasn’t even speaking Tau’ral! It was a squeaky language and it sounded just like the one the Kobolds had used while attacking him!

  Eldermother patted him on the head, making his long ears bounce.

  He wasn’t sure how to process all of this, but the timer in the corner of his vision reminded him that he’d better get going. He’d have to process this sudden change in appearance while he traveled.

  He nodded and saluted to her, a motion that felt foreign to him now.

  She frowned. “You are going to want to do it this way.” She crossed her arm across her chest, holding her shoulder, and put the other hand palm down on her forehead, her fingertips curled, barely touching her head.

  He mimicked the motion, and it felt more natural.

  Behind him, he heard a dull thudding sound like a bag hitting the ground.

  “What are you doing, Mother?” The voice was deep, feminine, and suspicious.

  Scarhoof whirled around and looked up at a very perturbed Nitene.

  Eldermother stood.

  Did Nitene just call her Mother, he wondered.

  “Nitene, this is Scarhoof. Notice the tail and the black horns?”

  Eldermother indicated to him with her outstretched hand, and Nitene’s expression changed from incredulity to curiosity as she bent down to scrutinize him closer.

  The scent of juniper berries and driftwood hit his nostrils as she got closer to him, something he hadn’t noticed before. Perhaps the Kobolds had better sense of smell?

  He felt like a Tau’ri again, small and insignificant, with adults talking over his head. The thought was accurate, but he was on a mission.

  “I need to be going. I don’t have much time.” He held up the poultice to Eldermother. “I’ll let you know what effect it has on the Kobolds.”

  Nitene’s face lit up. “Oh, are you going to Misty Cave? Can you help me with something since you’re already traveling there?”

  His eyes kept glancing at the timer in the corner. It was going take him longer to run to the cave. Still, he wouldn’t want to have to be a Kobold twice. “What is it?”

  “Seems I ran out of Tears of the Mother, and I need some for the testing. Good thing you’re going to the cave!” She produced a gourd jug with a stopper and handed it to him. It was a little large for him, but it came with a strap to sling about his shoulders.

  Quest Update! A Spreading Sickness:

  Retrieve Tears of the Mother from Misty Cave in the gourd provided by Nitene. Ensure you obtain the water prior to contamination. (Gained 25 XP!)

  “I’ll bring some back.”

  He turned to go.

  “Oh, Scarhoof.” He stopped and turned around to find out what Nitene needed. “I see you’re progressing well in The Way. Next time you level up, come see me. I need to teach you about your new skills and to discuss further what it means to be a Shaman. Will you do that?”

  He realized that he hadn’t used his new Spirit Shock skill once since he gained it two levels ago. It could have come in handy while he was obtaining the blood samples.

  He nodded, his smaller high-pitched voice sounded almost comical. “Of course. I best get on my way.”

  As he reached the road, he heard the unmistakable sound of the two cows quietly giggling.

  Chapter 09

  The last trip to Misty Cave, he’d had the sun at his back and a stalwart confidence guiding his every step.

  This time, Scarhoof was barely ten hands tall. His spindly legs felt like they would shatter if he tripped and fell.

  Getting there hadn’t taken as long as he’d thought. The Kobold’s bizarre body structure allowed them to lope along using their long legs to cover great distances with minimum effort. No stranger to speed and longevity, Tau’raj used their massive size and beefy muscles to keep up. Fourhoof helped too, but the Cove was too rocky and small to use it.

  But in this new body, he didn’t have any of that. He was short, and light. He had to admit that smaller bodies did have some advantages.

  As nervous as it made him, he needed to act like he was just one of the Kobolds. Creeping up to the entrance would just make everyone suspicious. So, with a confidence he didn’t feel, he strode out of the shadows and up to the cave entrance.

  All four of the guards assumed defensive stances, holding spiked clubs and sharpened sticks out as weapons to block his entrance.

  “Halt!” The one on the left called to him as he approached. The guard was a little smaller than he was and had a bandage between his pointy ears. He carried one of those clubs made from the passionflower plant that was stained red with dried Tau’raj blood. Scarhoof recognized him as the one that had clawed up his back and bit his ears. “Who be ye, and what your business?”

  Scarhoof knew he was speaking in Ko’bali, but despite the foreign language, he understood the meaning perfectly.

  He’d already thought up a plausible excuse on the way here.

  He stopped, and bowed at the waist, his floppy ears hanging down past his face, and tickling the side of his cheeks. He fought the urge to scratch his face.

  “My name is Matuk—” He caught himself, almost stating his full name. “My name is Matuk. I come from the Ko’bllz tribe of the Eastern Eternal Plains. I have been sent here by my Chieftain to parlay with my cousins who are subjugated by the evil Tau’raj.”

  They stared at him with blank expressions, then glanced at each other. One called out behind him, paraphrasing Scarhoof’s greeting. A burly Kobold came waddling out of the cave entrance and gave him the once over. Scarhoof recognized him.

/>   “Oi, we haven’t heard from no clans in a couple lifetimes. Where you say you from again?”

  Scarhoof felt his chest constrict with nervousness. He hoped he didn’t say the wrong thing.

  He bowed again, more from anxiety than from planned acting. “I’m from the Eastern Eternal Plains Ko’Bllz Clan.”

  The big guy pushed through his guards and toppled one of their stools as he wedged past.

  He grabbed Scarhoof by the horn and yanked hard. The act would have been a massive violation of personal space and honor for a Tau’raj, but, he didn’t have much choice.

  “And what’s this? Your mum been making with a smelly Bovine eh?” The others giggled behind him but stopped the second the boss glared at them.

  “No, Sir. It’s just how we look out on the plains. Gotta blend in, right?”

  The boss released him with a shove and grabbed the satchel hanging from his shoulder. “But you never said why you here.”

  Scarhoof tensed, hoping he didn’t look inside.

  He was taking a chance here, but he figured it was the only one he would get. He needed to get inside the cave. “I was sent after the Nagos. I brought some things he asked for. I arrived late because of my short legs, see?”

  The four smaller guards cringed when he mentioned the larger race. The Guardboss tightened his grip on the satchel, drawing it closer to him, and pulling Scarhoof to his tip-toes.

  Now that he was closer, Scarhoof could see that this guardboss had the same white eyes as the other feral Kobolds. He also had incredibly four breath.

  After a tense moment, the boss dropped the satchel and broke his gaze. “Let him in. He’s a Kobold even if his mum was a whore for the Bovine. If he’s with the Disruptor, I don’t wanna be in the way.”

  Pent up nervousness dissipated. Scarhoof bowed again and thanked him for his generosity.

  The rest of the guards parted, and he followed the Guardboss into the cave. Dried blood coated the walls, a grim reminder of his trip here a couple hours before. He gripped the satchel close and wiped his leathery brow.