by Jamey Sultan
“Whoa, there.” James raised his hands. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. I’m looking for someone called Cairn. Do you know where I can find him?”
The look of confusion slid off of Veryn’s face, as if he realized that he’d finally found the sole person in the barracks, possibly the entire town, that knew less than him. The corners of his mouth tightened in determination, and he stood up straighter. “I can take you to Commander Cairn.”
Veryn spun on his heels and marched off, dodging through the crowd with practiced ease. James had no problem following—his high school had had over 3,800 kids in it. He knew how to traverse a crowd.
They nimbly wove through the barracks, miraculously not bumping into anyone as James struggled to match Veryn’s pace. Eventually they came to an enormous set of double doors, made from a rich red wood and set with two enormous, gold lion-headed knockers.
“The Commander is in here.” Veryn gestured, pointing at the door.
James tried to raise one of the knockers, but it barely budged. He had to use two hands to lift it, his muscles tense against the weight. When let go of the knocker, it hit the door with a heavy reverberation.
A deep voice boomed from behind the door. “What?”
“Sir,” Veryn called out. “I brought someone to see you.”
There was a pause, then the heavy doors swung open, revealing a wiry man in his fifties.
Name: Cairn Erin
Race: Human
Level: ???
Class: Legion Commander
The Commander was one of those people who didn’t need bulk to have a presence, and could snap James in half without breaking a sweat. He made a note to stay on the Commander’s good side. Cairn stared back at James, clearly confused as to who he was. “Thank you Veryn, you’re dismissed,” he said, beckoning for James to enter the room.
The Commander smiled as he shut the foot-thick door with a thud behind them. He gestured to an empty chair across from him at the desk. “How can I help you?”
James appreciated the Commander’s to-the-point attitude, but for a reason he couldn’t put his finger on, the Commander terrified him. “W… well, sir…” he choked out, sweat beading on his forehead.
“Are you okay?” the Commander asked James in concern. “You’re sweating an awful lot.”
James nodded, unable to speak under the Commander’s crushing gaze.
A look of realization flashed across Cairn’s face. His eyes glazed over as he checked a few notifications and then, suddenly, James was no longer sitting across from a monster. He now faced a kindly man with a salt-and-pepper beard framing a concerned smile. “Is that better?”
“Yea, thanks,” James said, his voice coming out much stronger now that he wasn’t in immediate danger of pissing his pants. “What was that?”
Cairn rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment. “We raided a Goblin settlement last night and I may have forgotten to turn off my Conqueror’s Aura,” he admitted. “Sorry about that.” He steepled his fingers and regarded James. “Now, then. How can I help you?”
“Nana wanted me to ask if you could help train me in swordsmanship,” James said.
Upon hearing Nana’s name, Cairn’s face split into a wide grin. “Oh, Nana sent you! Why didn’t you say so?” He stood up and clapped James on the back. “Of course I’ll help. I just need to figure out who’s going to train you.”
You have completed the quest: Help the Helpless I
+ 1 experience
Cairn turned to look out a window, muttering to himself before he turned back to James with a gleam in his eye. “Come here.” He gestured for James to look out the window and pointed to a group of soldiers training in the courtyard. “Go to Lamia. She’s one of our Captains. Tell her I sent you.”
You have been given a quest: Help the Helpless II
Help the Helpless II: Report to Lamia for swordsmanship lessons.
Suggested level: 2 - 10
Reward: Swordsmanship Skill training.
Penalty for failure or refusal: No Swordsmanship lessons.
James nodded, then saluted. “Yes, Commander.”
Cairn laughed. “No need for that, you aren’t one of my soldiers,” he said, walking over to the door and opening it for James.
***
Three hours later James lay in the dirt, spitting grass out of his mouth for the umpteenth time. His body was basically one giant bruise—he couldn’t believe he hadn’t broken anything yet.
Then the Words came. Oh, how he hated the Words.
“Get up.”
Lamia’s emotionless voice cut like ice through the fog surrounding James’ brain as he slowly pushed himself to his feet, too tired to even groan. After what felt like hours, he stood once again on legs made of jelly, only to be immediately knocked down again as Lamia struck him with the flat of her blade.
Honestly, it wouldn’t have been so bad if she’d show any emotion at all. After the original warm greeting, she’d tossed him a sword and asked him to show her his skills. Needless to say, she wasn’t pleased.
She grabbed his shoulder and helped him stand. He focused on Lamia, who grinned at him as the terrified recruits looked on. “Anyone else want a go at me?” She asked. No one said anything, and Lamia laughed.
“Good job today,” she said to James, then noted his skeptical look. “No, really. For someone who’s never trained with swords before, you did an adequate job.”
“Thanks, I guess,” James wheezed.
“Go rest up. You said you had a month, right? I want you to report back to me here every morning at sunup for the next few weeks. I’ll hammer the basics into you. Dismissed.”
James thanked her and stumbled away to a nearby bench where he promptly collapsed. He needed to get back to Bartram’s to help the innkeeper out, but first he needed a rest. He reviewed his notifications from the morning’s training.
You have gained the skill: Swordsmanship
Swordsmanship (Skill Rank 1):
+1% Attack speed and damage with swords.
Careful. Flailing around like that can’t be safe.
You have gained 4 Skill Ranks in Swordsmanship.
You are now Skill Rank 5.
Those bruises look like they hurt.
Quest Progress: Help the Helpless II (1/30 beati-lessons)
James groaned, dismissing the prompts. In an attempt to put off standing for as long as possible, he pulled up his character sheet. He hadn’t really gone over the full sheet since he’d appeared in Novis, and he thought that maybe looking at his improvements might make him feel a little better about the savage beating he’d just gone through.
James
Human (n/a)
Level: 3
Health: 121/121Regenerates 1.6/hour
Mana: 97/97Regenerates 1.2/hour
Stamina: 130/130Regenerates 1.6/hour
Stats
Strength: 12Dexterity: 14Constitution: 12
Intelligence: 9Wisdom: 10Endurance: 10Charisma: -3 Luck: 1
Spells
None
Abilities
Death’s Stare (1/7)
Brands
Mark of Sytar
Achievements
None
He dismissed his character screen and looked at the sky. It was almost noon; he needed to hurry and get back to Bartram in time to collect the fruit before dark.
He stumbled back to the inn, wanting nothing more than to sleep for a week. He greeted the irritated innkeeper, who took one look at him, told him he was scaring away all the customers and refused to let him help until he’d taken a bath.
After his bath, Bartram directed him to the back door. Fruit picking didn’t seem like that bad of a task, until the innkeeper handed James a pair of boots with a long metal blade sticking out of the toe, a harness with a bucket attached, and two clawed gloves.
Strengthened Steel Climbing Boots:
Rank: Common
Used by climbers to get a better gri
p with their feet on vertical surfaces like trees. Enchanted with a low-grade Earth-core to bear up to 500 lbs.
Steel Climbing Gloves:
Rank: Common
These gloves are fitted with steel claws to aid in tree climbing.
If James weren’t so worried about how high he’d have to climb, he might have been excited for his first enchanted item. He opened the rear door of the inn slowly, a knot of foreboding in his stomach. One look in the “garden” confirmed his fears. He wasn’t just screwed.
He was royally fucked.
A little about James. He hated heights. Absolutely hated them. He stood speechless while Bartram showed him how to climb the enormous trees and harvest the fruit.
After Bartram left, James sighed and got to work. He pulled on the equipment, then approached the first tree. Swallowing his terror, he grabbed it with his clawed gloves, then stabbed a bladed foot into the wood.
You have gained the skill: Climbing
Climbing (Skill Rank 1):
+1% Strength while climbing.
+1% Endurance while climbing.
Don’t look down.
Taking care not to look down, James used the bladed gear to climb the tree like a ladder until he reached the first set of branches, where he spotted an apple-like fruit hanging from a branch. He inched his way across the branch but ended up in a position where looking down was his only option. His stomach dropped, and he froze, hugging the branch with his eyes squeezed shut.
He steeled himself and pushed forward.
I have to do this. I need every advantage I can get in this world if I want to get home.
***
The next few weeks went the same way. Sword training with Lamia in the morning, fruit picking for Bartram in the afternoon.
After almost three weeks of this routine, James filled all the barrels, increasing his climbing to Skill Rank 9. He summoned the innkeeper to show off the spoils of his labor.
Bartram whistled appreciatively, then told him to get ready for the fun part. He donned an apron and handed one to James, then pulled a large mashing utensil out of a nearby shed.
They spent the rest of the day mashing the fruit in barrels and transferring the mashed fruit to bottles, where they would ferment. While they worked, Bartram talked to James about how he’d moved out to Riverside from Fallmire a few years ago to focus on his brewing and open up an inn. He explained that the proximity to the Fertile Expanse was beneficial to plant growth, so he could get the best ingredients here for next to nothing. It was also why he had built his inn next to a section of the forest overgrown with bleufruit.
Once they’d sealed the last bottle, Bartram approached James, handing him three bottles filled with an indigo pulp. “The final step of the brewing process takes place in these bottles.” he said, giving James a wink. “Just leave them for a few months and they’ll be perfect.”
Unfermented Bleufruit Cider (x3):
Rank: Epic
- Permanently increases a random attribute
Rich in Mana and flavor, aged Bleufruit cider is one of the rarest and most sought-after beverages. The longer the cider is allowed to ferment, the stronger its bonuses.
James thanked Bartram profusely and slipped the bottles into his pouch before glancing at the quest completion notification.
You have completed the quest: Friendship Fruit
+ 1 experience
+ 3 bottles Unfermented Bleufruit Cider.
James smiled as he headed to bed that night. It had been a productive month. Training with Lamia had raised his swordsmanship to Skill Rank 13, and she’d even let him spar with her soldiers. Not that he’d won any fights yet. Hopefully, tomorrow would be his day.
Chapter 9
James stared at Lew, the level 15 recruit that had stopped him at the gate. James ignored the cheering crowd, his focus intent on the scowling 16-year-old noble’s face.
Once she’d deemed him competent, Lamia let James practice with the rest of the recruits.
He’d gotten to know Lew.
He didn’t like him.
James knew the kid was embarrassed at getting reprimanded at the gate when James had entered the city. Since then, he was certain Lew had made it his mission to get James to quit. Every interaction that he had with James was unpleasant. When they sparred, Lew would purposefully aim for James’ face, throat, and groin. Even though they practiced with wooden swords, James usually ended up staggering home in pain.
But today was different. Lew had been trying to get the upper hand the entire fight, but James was holding his own. The other matches had long since ended, and the recruits cheered them on. If James hadn’t been so hyper-focused on Lew, he would have seen the coins changing hands as the others placed bets on who would win.
James took a quick peek at his Stamina bar. It was hovering in the low teens and flashing in warning. He had maybe a few seconds of movement left before it bottomed out. Game over.
Lew’s arms trembled as he struggled to hold up his sword. Sweat dripped down his face and into his eyes and he raised a hand to wipe it away.
There!
James took advantage of the opening and swung for Lew’s unprotected left side. Lew failed to notice the obvious feint and wearily raised his sword to block, but James redirected. Quick as a whip, James spun, putting everything he had into one last blow. His sword connected with the side of Lew’s head with a dull thwack and the recruit fell to the ground, unconscious.
James barely had time to read the notification before he, too, fell to the ground and sunk into blissful darkness.
You have gained 2 Skill Ranks in Swordsmanship.
You are now Skill Rank 15.
Look at you, swinging your stick around! Enjoy your nap.
James bolted upright to a splash of icy water across the face. Lamia stood above him, grinning. She reached down and grasped his hand, helping him to his feet. “Excellent swordsmanship,” she praised him, brushing a spot of loose dirt off his back. “I’ve taught you everything I can. You’re ready for some real-world experience.”
James nodded seriously. “Thank you,” he said, holding out his hand for her to shake.
Lamia pressed a silver coin into his palm. “No, thank you. I had a feeling you might win today.” She winked at him. “Now, I have a quest for you if you’re interested.”
“Sure!” James had been too busy to get bored, but after about three weeks of training without a break, he was ready for something different.
“Every week, the guard sends someone to clean Nana Rasner’s herb garden. Would you be willing to do it for us this week?”
“Sure.” James nodded. He’d barely had time to talk to her over the past three weeks due to his constant training, and he still had so many questions for her.
You have completed the quest: Help the Helpless II
+ 3 experience
You have been given a quest: Help the Helpless III
Help the Helpless III: Clean Nana Rasner’s Herb Garden. (0/3 Star Moles) (0/1 Moonshadow Moth).
Suggested level: 3 - 5
Reward: Unknown.
Penalty for failure or refusal: Unknown.
James felt like he was forgetting something, but he couldn’t concentrate over the hammering from the smithy.
The smithy! James still had to talk to Kyrwin, the smith, before heading to Nana’s place.
The smith was a burly man. He stood at the forge, hands on his hips, staring distractedly at a naked blade laying on the anvil in front of him.
Kyrwin didn’t look up when James walked into his shop, so James coughed politely. When the smith still didn’t respond, James coughed louder.
Name: Kyrwin Price
Race: Human
Level: 37
Class: Smith
The smith blinked twice, then looked up. “Oh, hey there.” He held out a hand, thick with callouses. “Name’s Kyrwin.”
“Nice to meet you,” James said, accepting the handshake. “I’m James.”
“Well met, James. How can I help you?”
“Actually, I was hoping I could help you out.” James smiled. “Nana sent me to check in with you.”
The smith nodded in appreciation. “I’m glad she remembered.” He gestured at the blade laying in front of him. “I’m making a blade for my daughter’s promotion. Youngest to become a Legion Captain in over a hundred years.” He wiped a tear of pride from his eye. “She’s only 20 years old and already choosing her Advanced class. But anyway, I’m rambling.” He stopped to scratch his head. “What was I talking about? Right. The sword. I’m making a sword for my daughter’s promotion, but the ceremony is in a week and I need to wrap the handle in ironweed. Now, normally I’d get it myself, but I don’t have time to finish this sword and get the handle wrap.
