NPC ReEvolution

by Rae Nantes

  "Neat," Smith said. He swung open his menu to check something before swiping it away. "We got a few hours before sunset, so I think we can knock this out quick. Where do we find these boars at?"

  "The forest," Trell said.

  We looked into the trees. The wind caught the leaves, and the birds chirped. There was a path that led deeper within.

  "Well let's get this over with," Smith said.

  We walked along the path into the forest, looking out in every direction for any sign of animals. We saw birds, deer, rabbits, and every woodland creature imaginable, but no boars. Roughly thirty minutes of walking in silence before Smith finally spoke. "Where are the damn boars at?"

  "Dunno," Relce said.

  "Wait, aren't you a hunter?"

  "Yeah."

  Smith looked at him with narrow eyes. "Don't you have a track ability or something?"

  Relce dipped his head in thought. The ends of his mustache swung this way and that. "Lemme check." He opened his menu, tapped a few icons, and looked at his abilities. "I have that," he chuckled. "I'm such a noob."

  The others laughed. "Alright, what do you see?" Smith asked.

  Relce closed his menu. "Track(woodland)," he commanded, then lifted his sunshades to scan around the forest. "Buncha red dots. Outlines, I guess? Yeah, dude, I see em!" He took off in a sprint, breaking through the underbrush. We followed after. He stopped right at the edge of a small clearing and crouched down. We did the same. Looking over Simone's shoulder, I could see a group of boars idling in the grass and bushes, almost a dozen. They were snorting and digging their tusks around.

  "Okay," Relce said. "So we each kill one?"

  "No, let's do it as a party," Smith said.

  Simone giggled. "Because he can only use healing magic."

  "So, what's the plan?" I asked. "These things look kinda scary."

  "They're just pigs," Smith said.

  "Yo, pigs are pretty spooky," Relce said.

  "It doesn't matter," Smith hushed. "Just aggro one."

  Relce got up, nocked an arrow, and shot it downrange. Thump. He missed. He tried again. Thunk. It stuck right into the trunk of a fallen tree. The boars lifted their heads in unison and turned in our direction.

  We froze.

  Relce eased his hand as if moving slower would mask his sound and chambered another arrow. He pulled it back.

  "Don't do it," Smith said through his teeth. "I think you'll aggro all of them.”

  "Dude, they're like level 1 beasts." Relce let slip the arrow. Slap. It dug right into the eye of one of the boars, killing it. "See?"

  With that, the boars squealed in chorus. A heavy, mad squeal of anger and fury. They saw us as a threat, and they came charging.

  "Shit!" Smith said. "Let's do it!"

  Simone ripped the blade from her scabbard and readied her shield. She jumped out in front to stop the assault. "Provoke!" she shouted. Instead of charging in our general direction, the boars seemed to converge on her. Relce threw a few more arrows, missing most, before the boars made contact with Simone.

  They slammed into her one by one. Each hit she tossed aside with her iron shield, but each knocked her back further. She swung her blade at them, but these pigs weren't stupid. They dipped and dodged at every strike. Before long, they overwhelmed her and pushed her off balance. "Guys!" she shouted. "Guys! Help!" She covered her face with her shield while the boars dug their tusks into her armor. I could only stare as she started screaming in a panic.

  Relce shot arrow after arrow into the group, likely not even worried if he hit Simone on accident.

  Smith was laughing at the sight.

  Trell had vanished.

  I stepped out to try out my new spells. I raised up my hand, felt the surge of strength within me, and commanded. "Water!" As if turning on a faucet, water spewed forth from my hand. Fsssss. It drizzled on them. The boars were unaffected. "Uh..."

  Smith now doubled over in laughter.

  "Guys! What are you doing?" Simone cried out.

  I brought my hand up again. "Wind!" I felt a breeze blow past me and into the group. It rustled their fur. They continued thrashing and gnawing at Simone.

  Now even Relce started laughing. He didn't stop shooting his bow.

  I felt my face hot from embarrassment. It was time to use the tried and true. Unsure of the range of my spells, I sprinted closer. When I was almost within spitting distance, I pulled my hand back as if to throw a stone.

  One of the boars broke from the group and charged me. They were bigger up close. Feeling the ground beneath me vibrate under the weight of this beast, I froze. I could only stare with wide eyes and a heart full of fear as the boar leapt at me and in midair get tackled by a blur.

  Trell had it on the ground and was shanking it like a veteran prisoner. There was no time to sit and watch in morbid curiosity. The boars were setting their eyes on me and starting to charge. I threw my hand. "Fire!"

  The light was blinding and the heat overwhelming. I could feel my hands blister. It seemed the entire forest was bathed in a red glow and the world itself roared in flame. I held on to the feeling as long as I could - a few seconds in total - before I switched off. When I dropped my hand, all I could see was the face of a boar launching itself into me, toppling us to the ground before it too was kicked away and shanked by Trell.

  "Holy shit!" Smith yelled. "You set the woods on fire!"

  I eased up and looked. The boars were running around in a panic as the flames swallowed them, licked their fur, and took their breaths away. The blaze robbed the grass of its moisture, and the fires were spreading. The tree trunk was ash. The smoke was choking me. "Simone?" I hoped I didn't boil the poor girl. "Simone!"

  "I'm alive!" she mumbled.

  "Heal!" Smith said. He hurried over to her with his staff out. When he was finished with her wounds, he tended to mine. He found a gash in my left forearm from the razor-sharp tusk of the boar. With the adrenaline still coursing through me, I felt nothing but a dull, numb pain. "Heal," he commanded. I watched as the blood stopped, turned to crust, then evaporated into a sandy mist. I was whole again.

  "Thanks," I said.

  He tapped me on the head with his staff. "You're not supposed to get hit."

  "Sorry," I said. Why does my face still feel hot?

  When we tallied our score, Relce killed three, Trell killed two, and I killed the rest. Eleven in total. The problem we soon found, was that we had to carry the bodies back to the butcher. The players couldn't cheat by stowing them through the menu, so we had to drag them along by hand. I could only carry one.

  After an hour of travel, we made it back to the butchers to drop off our loot and to collect our payment. We settled on one boar for each of us, and the rest to go towards the guild. The players also got paper slips - experience points - that were used like scrolls to add to their progression.

  "What will the guild need the money for?” I asked.

  "Well, this is a sandbox MMO, right?" Smith answered. "Toward the end of the last season, players realized they could make bases and villages. We can really carve out a place for ourselves here and really have an impact on the world. That's what I plan to do."

  "That actually sounds pretty fun. Did you play last season?"

  "I got into this game right at the end, but that was only a week ago. Now everyone is starting over from scratch."

  Something didn't sound right by that. I noticed Trell had a strange look on his face. Was it confusion, or deep thought? "Wait," I said. "Last week?"

  "Yeah," Simone cut in. "I was there for the whole season. I actually dragged him into it," she chuckled. "The game is still new to most people, so this season will be especially fun. The turnout is huge!"

  "Someone told me that the last time players were here was twenty years ago," I said.

  Simone gave it some thought. "I suppose things are a bit different. There were a few days of maintenance, and I assumed the game was generating a new world."

  "Nah," Smi
th said. "I remember the town names. We started in Nisa last time, but I saw it on a map earlier. We're going there next."

  I dropped my head in thought. A twenty-year period without players that boiled down to a weekend in their time. This was a game, so the simulation must've been sped up during that time. But why? "Was it programmed to do that? To wait a couple of decades?"

  Smith and Simone looked at me with raised eyebrows and faint smiles. "Programmed? What do you know about programming?"

  "Because I'm..." I trailed off. This was going to be awkward, and I knew to avoid the talk. It wouldn't matter since tonight I would be kicked out of the game when I fall asleep anyway. Hopefully. "I've heard about it."

  "I suppose so," Smith said. "It would make sense, after all. Some of the guilds were getting huge, the bases getting impenetrable. It's nice to start over and every time feels fresh."

  "Last season," Simone said with excitement in her voice, "there was a huge event and a world raid boss. Some king took over half the world and challenged all the players." She brought her hands to her cheeks as if to relish the memory. "It was so cool! I was the main tank for that fight for all of three seconds."

  Smith laughed. "You got one-shot. That doesn't count as tanking."

  The group laughed together, except for Trell and me. I was still parsing the facts about the world and Trell probably never laughs. I looked back out into the forest. The sun was setting, and the wildlife was settling in for the night. The city itself was getting ready - workers lighting streetlamps and shops closing.

  "Well I need to log, my dudes," Relce said. "I gotta work in the morn'."

  "Alright," Smith said. "Tomorrow then?"

  "Sure," I said. "Sounds great!"

  Simone smiled at me. I never knew why she would, but it felt nice. "We'll see you tomorrow then!" She draped herself over Smith's back. Smith winked at me, then they both vanished.

  Relce laughed. "Dude, I think they're coming on to you," he said.

  "No way!" I snapped.

  "I think you like it," he teased.

  "No!" I crossed my arms at the thought and looked away.

  "You're blushing."

  I felt my face with my hands. I was flushed. "Ugh!"

  He burst into laughter, even prompting Trell to stifle a chuckle. I kicked them both in the shins.

  "Alright, alright," Relce said. "Fine. I think you crit me just then."

  "Sorry," I said.

  "Nah, I'm joking. I'm out fellas. Night!" He vanished. Now it was just me and Trell, the only two left with nowhere to go but here. He already started to walk away.

  "Hey, what are you doing after this?" I asked.

  "Oh?" He stopped but didn't turn to look at me. "Are you asking me out?"

  "No. I wanted to ask about some things. About the world."

  "Go find a scholar," he said. "Right now I have more questions than answers." He walked away.

  Chapter 6

  The Scholar

  {“

  My brothers, my sisters, take heart! The day of reckoning is upon us, the day of vindication. The time has come that we may face our greatest enemy, the enemy of humankind, the armies of the other world. Though their banners line the horizon, their soldiers undying, we will make this stand to send out our wills into the future, the heavens, and the worlds. Let our heartbeat of determination beat true, comrades, for this will be our finest hour!

  For justice!

  For sovereignty!

  All hail, the Nipsilante!

  “}

  My head was pounding, and my ears were rushing as if a war drum were beating next to my head. I opened my eyes to the inn room ceiling.

  It didn't work. I didn't wake up in my own bed, wherever that may be.

  My heart sank at the realization. Was I really just a Nipsy? Was everything I thought to be true, a lie? I felt tears welling up at the thought. It was impossible. I wasn't born into this world, I spawned here! I had distinct knowledge of the other world, the world of games and people and places far from here!

  Did I have family? Did I have friends? I felt the longing pull at my heart, but I did not know for whom.

  I cried. Alone in my room, far from home, far from anything I'd consider to be my roots.

  I'm stuck here.

  When I got the sadness out of my system, I sat up in bed and wiped the wet from my eyes. A few quick slaps on my cheeks put me back in my place. Nipsy or not, I was stuck here. Maybe I was hidden away as a science experiment. Maybe this was some new medical technique for comatose patients. It could’ve been a million different things, and I needed to find answers. And when I wasn’t searching for answers, I’d grow stronger. At the very least, I was making friends and good memories.

  I left the inn to explore the town a bit. A walk would calm my nerves, and I needed breakfast anyway. The skies were overcast. It smelled like rain. There were fewer people out this early, and those who were had umbrellas and raincoats. I walked a few blocks to take in the dewy morning air before stopping at a small cafe.

  It was beautiful. A cozy little corner place, two stories high with wide windows that offered a full view of the sea. Bells chimed as I pushed the heavy wooden door inside. A chandelier above, rows of comfy seats and chairs by tables. The far wall held a bookcase packed full of books and tomes. The aroma of coffee and pastries beckoned me to the counter.

  A level 13 javamancer made my drink - a regular coffee with cream and sugar - without using magic, to my surprise. Maybe they thought the title sounded trendy. With drink and cherry pastry in hand, I slid a book off the shelf and made my way to the top floor. There I sat at a table by the glass to watch the ocean waves.

  I never opened the book. It was titled Economics of the New World, and I had no interest. Instead, I lost myself looking at the horizon dip and rise with every distant wave. Another patron joined me at the table.

  "Whatcha got there?" he asked.

  I looked over at him. It was a regular guy in starter gear - white shirt and brown pants - wrapped in a dry raincoat. "Oh, it's a book about economics. Really boring stuff, not too interesting."

  He chuckled. "No, I mean the drink."

  "Oh! Just regular coffee. Black. With cream and sugar."

  His laughter broke the quiet of the place. "That doesn’t really count as black, but to each their own, I guess." He took a sip of his own drink. "Mmm! This here is great, you have to try it." He was really enthusiastic about coffee. "She put something in it called... manasauce? I have no idea what that is!"

  I dropped my head to stifle a laugh. "Me neither."

  "Aren't you from here?"

  "No," I said. "Well, yes, I suppose."

  "We can't get coffee like this in Stella Vallis. We have the regular flavors, sure, but not the exotic, not the fantasy stuff here in the sims."

  "So you don't play the game?" I asked. "You're just here for the coffee."

  He nodded mid-sip. "Mhmm!"

  "I’ve heard of Stella Vallis. Where is this place?"

  "I'd explain, but it wouldn't do much good," he said.

  I wanted to throw my coffee at him, but my expression was enough.

  "Mars. We're all from there. And when the net is reconnected back on Earth, they'll be on too. Well, as much as they can be with the lag and all."

  "I've heard of this." But how?

  "Have you now? That's actually... fascinating." His eyes searched me as if he were a doctor diagnosing a patient. "Are you a first gen-er?"

  "What?"

  "Nevermind, you wouldn't know either." He leaned over the table. "I'm not just here for the coffee. I also study things. Anthropology, sociology, lore."

  I narrowed my eyes at him. "Did you create this world?"

  He burst into laughter, slapping the table with his palms like a toddler. "No! I'm just a hobbyist, not a professional. Certainly not a game developer." He flinched at what he said and looked around for anyone within earshot. We were alone. "I think the history of the game - I mean, your world
- is fascinating. Many of us do."

  "What can you tell me of my world, the game?"

  "Nothing much."

  I gripped my cup and readied my throwing arm.

  "No, sorry," he pleaded. "I really don't. About a month ago, the world just popped up on the MWR one day and people dove in. That’s when we found," his hands offered the final words, "you know. You. This world."

  I pinched the bridge of my nose and took a deep breath. "At least tell me this. Has anyone been stuck in a game before?"

  He smiled. "Never. It's physically impossible." His eyes twitched as he looked around for a distant memory. He seemed to have found nothing.

  "I see. Well, it was nice speaking with you," I said as I picked up my things to leave.

  As I walked by, he turned to me and said, "What's your name?"

  "Alex. And yours?"

  "It doesn't matter." I hit him with my empty coffee cup. Since it was made out of wax paper, it made him chuckle more than anything. "Go find a historian," he continued. "They're at the library."

  "Oh, is that a quest?" I asked, not waiting for an answer.

  "If you want it to be."

  ***

  Directions from passing strangers led me to the steps of the library, a massive structure with the front held up by pillars, similar to Greek architecture.

  How did I know that?

  Right as I climbed the hundreds of stairs to reach the entrance, my ribbon vibrated. I untied it from my wrist and looked it over.

  Smith: Everyone meet at the docks in an hour!

  Relce: Why?

  Smith: Because I said so!

  Simone: We've got a quest that takes us to Nisa!

  Alex: Will we be coming back?

  Smith: This is the starting town. We gotta move on.

  Trell: I have to see my brother and niece off. Give me two hours.

  Simone: Don't complain, Jay.

  Smith: Whatever, fine. Two hours.

  Relce: I'll see you there, my dudes!

  I sighed and looked at the library that I was about to step into. A couple of hours was just enough time to grab some supplies before heading out so the answers would have to wait. Even then, there was no guarantee that any scholar or historian would understand my problems, so I hurried over to the market square.