As William attached the third leech, Eli’s finger broke as he squeezed the cloth harder. Frantically, he started searching through his character settings, his eyes darting from page to page. Don and Aida had both mentioned pain settings. His mind skipped, and his vision blurred as he passed through menus as fast as possible. To his left, he noticed Don’s body relax, his pain easing visibly. He must have the same idea, Eli thought, staring at the man in jealousy. Seeing the effects that the lower pain settings had on Don, Eli filled with hope. It also gave him an idea.
Giving up on his manual search, he sent a mental command to his guide, Aida, lower the pain settings to the lowest setting possible! Now! He screamed into his mind.
“I’m sorry. I’m unable to do that.” She responded, her mental voice filled with confusion. “Your realism settings menu is not available, including pain management. The settings are locked, just like your ability to access the web browser, log out menu, and speak to an admin. I will try to find a workaround, but, as I’ve said before, I don’t have access to your code.”
Just do whatever you can. I don’t know how much more of this I can take, Eli ordered, his vision going dim as William attached yet another leech.
Nearly two hours had passed, as the Wizard removed and attached up to seven leeches at a time. Each round of treatment brought new levels of suffering that Eli had never thought possible. He had passed out from the pain several times, only to wake seconds later to the sensation of his life fleeing his body. At one point, William had used a small funnel to pour red and blue liquids down his throat to keep him alive. The potions were also the only things given to him to manage pain.
Alyssa had walked in on the treatment only once, pausing at the sight of the gruesome scene. The blood and tar-like fluids pouring into glass jars on the dirt floor made her face turn pale. Without speaking, she set a batch of potions down and returned to her duties in the medical tent. Kelly had provided some assistance in the procedure, handing the new potions to his father and wiping the players’ wounds clean.
“Prepare yourselves, gentlemen. We are nearing the end of your treatment,” William said, preparing a final round of ten leeches each. “This will be much more painful.”
In a flash, he began applying the vile creatures to the adventurer's chests, directly over their hearts. Each of the bloodsucking danger worms feeding in unison. Don’s body shook, and Eli’s health and mana bars vanished. Several new notifications flashed into view before closing immediately. For a moment, he felt numb. Then he shook, losing all control over his body as his vision turned grey. Looking at his status bar, he saw that the disease debuff was flashing. Then his health, stamina, and mana bars drained in an instant, and his world faded to black.
What seemed like hours went by as Eli floated in the void like purgatory that he knew came before character creation. Am I dead?? Is this what it was like to be blighted? Maybe this is for the best, at least I don’t feel pain, Eli thought, as questions flooded into his mind. To him, there was one amazing side effect of being dead. There was nothing more to fear. If this was his final death, or what his existence within the hive mind would be like, it was not that bad. He would gladly accept an eternity of nothingness if it meant he did not have to witness himself tear women, children, and his friends to pieces as some undead monstrosity.
Before he had completely accepted his fate, an image appeared in the distance. It was him before being turned into an adventurer. He flew towards it, longing to be back in his old form, with Kata and the twins. As he approached the far off vision, he noticed that it was not a memory but an entirely new experience. Eli watched on as his old body spoke to a Mist Elf wrapped in black cloth and a face mask that covered most of their features. Whether it was a man or woman, he could not tell. They were not arguing or fighting. They were talking. The stranger was asking questions, to which this version of himself had no answers.
Children’s voices echoed in the distance, followed by his wife’s voice and the bleating of a goat. He was home, and his family was alive. Every part of him yearned for this to be real. He attempted to speak to tell Kata that he loved her one last time. As he did, his formless body, his very essence, attempted to attach itself to his new body. It was as if he were a soul trying to possess the living. Only it refused to take hold. Something was already inside, giving this being life and awareness.
He knew that none of this was real. He was dead. This was his personal hell, yet he tried again. Again he was repelled. This time more violently. He tried again, screaming as his mind broke into pieces, every suppressed emotion returning in a tidal wave of grief and loss. He could not lose them a second time. He screamed, trying to enter the body before him, trying to find a way back to his old life. Then Kata turned to face him and spoke.
“Eli, wake up,” she whispered as he watched as the image of his wife looked him in the eye. “Eli, wake up.” Yet, the voice was not the light, sweet voice of his Elven bride. “Get up now!” A fierce, commanding voice screamed at him, giving him pause.
A moment later, he felt himself drift away. Suddenly, there was a tug at his psyche. Then an invisible force ripped him out of his dreamscape as if he were a fish on a hook. Eli reeled, his awareness warping from one reality to the next as it was torn from the vision. His spirit vainly attempted to latch onto anything it could, in an effort to stay with his family. The world cracked, and light began pouring in through gaps in reality, like a broken stained glass window.
As the world continued to fall apart around him, his wife’s face barely visible, he screamed her name, “Kata!” But she did not respond.
He screamed, the sounds leaving his mouth inaudible as the agony of losing her washed over him for a second time. He screamed until his voice went out, and her form vanished into a pit of emptiness. Then he screamed into the void, at anything and everything, just to release his pain. As the weight of his loss crushed him, a blinding light shattered his windowpane of reality entirely.
The light became so bright that his world became a wall of white. Again, he asked himself if he was dead or still in a dream. It was impossible for him to tell, yet he did not care. As he stared blankly, new shapes appeared in his vision. At first, small shadows took shape in the distance, growing closer with each passing second. Then they were upon him, and color filled in, his surroundings becoming more clear. A new, somewhat familiar voice rang out, this time not in his mind.
“Come on, man. You can’t die.” It was a man’s voice, somewhat deep, and filled with emotion. “I can’t lose another friend. Not like this.”
The first thing Eli saw was a bald, dark-green face staring at him, wide-eyed. Don was looking down at him, his face wet with tears. As Eli opened his eyes completely, he could feel the moisture on his face. His vision was blurry, and his throat felt as if he had swallowed sand. Was I actually screaming, he thought, blinking. His vision returned to normal a second later, and he let out a long sigh. He did not know if his vision was a dream or his mind playing tricks on him.
Slowly, he remembered what was happening before he blacked out, and all thoughts of what happened after vanished. Eli knew that he was not dead and that there were questions he needed answered. Before he could voice them, he felt strong hands grab him by the shoulder. A moment later, Dons’ smiling face came into view as the Turta hugged him forcefully. The unease he felt about his family faded away, with one simple gesture.
“Fuck, man. Don’t do that to me. I can’t take shit like that.” His friend whispered. “You’re the only friend I have left.”
The words struck Eli like a javelin in the chest as he attempted to return the show of affection. Eli did not know if he considered Don a friend until this moment. The thought of allowing himself to care for another person in any capacity frightened him. He had already lost one family and did not know if he could stand to lose another. Knowing that they Kata and the Twins were little more than code in a system did not make them any less real. Those emotions, love, and loss st
ill existed. Having a friend filled him with equal measures of joy and terror, but at least he would have someone with him. Someone by his side in his new life.
From the corner of his eye, Eli saw Kelly. The little man was kneeling, with his hands clasped together as if praying. Alyssa was at his feet, wrapping his legs in what felt like a wet cloth. William stood beside the two, a knowing grin on his face. They were all worried about him. Even after such a short time together, each one felt some obligation to help and care for him. It was then that Eli knew that if he wanted it or not, he had started over, and he had new people to look after.
“He will be just fine,” William said. “We got the spell off in time.” The man’s right hand held what looked to be a blank scroll; in the left, he held a potion bottle filled with strange neon-green liquid. “And I don’t make mistakes. Especially with spell-work.”
Eli shuddered, his body was cold and overwhelmed with a dull aching sensation. With a final look around the room, he noticed his surroundings. After catching his breath, he attempted to sit up, but could not fully control his body.
“What happened?” He asked, after allowing himself to fall back to his bedroll.
William took a step forward, placing the jar on a small box next to Alyssa, before speaking up, “You died, my boy. You died,” he said, staring into the walls of the shack. He looked as if they were some distant land. “Then, we brought you back.”
Eli’s mind spiraled into confusion, and questions fell from his mouth, “What, how? How is that possible?”
His body felt as if a thousand tiny hammers had rained down, smashing him into pieces. In pain, he moved his hand to his chest to inspect his wounds. Feeling something thick and wet, he raised his hand to reveal a strange pink slime. Attempting to sit up again, he shifted his weight, this time propping his elbow behind himself to keep his torso at an angle. He had to know what was going on.
“Tell me exactly what happened.” His voice came out ragged and course as if they had left him in a desert.
“You went into shock,” William said, before looking at Eli, “The pain must have been unbearable.” Running his hand through his salt and pepper beard, as if in contemplation, he continued, “Ten leeches must have been a little too much. We removed them in time, but you continued to bleed.” Looking at Alyssa, who worked to bandage Eli’s body, then to Don, who sat quietly beside him, he whispered, “If it weren’t for these two, you wouldn’t be here. I don’t know how he did it, but Don here was able to stabilize you long enough for me to complete a revive spell. The idiot nearly killed himself in the process.” Eli felt the wizard grab his hand, squeezing it. “Alyssa’s bandages and healing salves did the rest. You would have bled out immediately after coming back, if not for her quick thinking.” William let Eli’s hand fall to the floor and patted Don on the shoulder. “You owe these two your lives.” After a short pause, a quick scratch of his beard, he continued, “And, you owe me one hundred gold for the scroll, another fifty for the potions, and who knows how much for the leeches.”
The room sat in silence for a long moment as each of them contemplated the man’s words. Then Kelly burst into laughter.
“Oh, you’re in for it now. Father never forgets a debt.” The little man said, clutching at his ribs before standing and leaving the storeroom. His words trailed off from the other side of the door. “You’re screwed.”
A moment later, the shack shook from the sound of laughter. Both Don and Alyssa burst into laughter, clutched at their stomachs, unable to handle the gladekin’s response. The tension of the situation was broken, but the words of the Gladekin stuck in Eli’s mind. William sat, staring at Eli knowingly. The Wolffen, stricken with fear, sat up straight as the wizard's smirk continued to grow. Then, Eli’s status bars flashed into view, breaking his focus and causing him to look away.
As William chuckled with the others, Eli stared at his display as it came back to life. All three of his status bars sat flashing at him as if screaming for his attention. Each one had dropped to only one point. A moment later, his natural regeneration began slowly, refilling them. He had no idea how long it would take to recover, but that was not important. He was alive, for now.
As the laughter died down, Eli lifted his head and looked over his wounds. It was as if they had dipped him in salmon-colored cooking oil. A mixture of healing salves and blood had formed a pinkish film that covered his arms, neck, and torso. Alyssa still worked on covering him in bandages, soaked in the luminescent green potion. She wrapped several around the areas where the infection had started and others over the wounds from the leeches.
Continuing the scan of his surroundings showed that Don had similarly covered, his bandages nearly blending in with his emerald skin. The scene before him was telling, as was the lack of light creeping in between the gaps in the storeroom walls. He had nearly died, and he had been unconscious for quite some time.
“How long was I out,” he asked, his voice coarse and quiet.
“Oh, only a few hours.” Don said, as his hand smoothed over non-existent hair, “Maybe six or seven.”
“Six hours, forty-seven minutes, and thirty-eight seconds.” Aida said, “Also, welcome back. Oh, and we need to talk. When you’re able.”
Eli panicked. The Blight. Immediately, his attention went to his status bars. At first glance, he saw nothing, and his fear faded, only to be reignited by a faint, slowly flickering symbol. The disease had not removed from his system entirely; that much was obvious. What worried him was the timer associated with it. It was rapidly fluctuating, refusing to land on any specific number.
One second, his debuff changed from a twenty-four-hour timeline to a week. It would then count down, only to refresh in an instant. The schizophrenic and nearly imperceptible shift brought a sense of dread and unease. How could he plan for the future when he had no timeline to work with? As questions began stacking up, like boxes of fragile cargo in the warehouse of his mind, his quest icon blinked in the corner of his vision. His first instincts told him to leave it as it was. The idea of a new quest made him furious.
Before he could decide for himself, William spoke, “I’m not entirely sure how much time you two have left before the disease spreads again. For now, all I can do is guess.” He said, setting the jar of black ooze in the pocket dimension of his ornate box, “The best estimate I can give is somewhere between three days and two weeks. At that point, we can repeat the process, or you die. But, we should realistically look for a more permanent solution.”
“With most of the disease being expelled from their system, shouldn’t they be able to fight off the disease naturally?” Alyssa interjected, “Shouldn’t they develop antibodies naturally?”
“With most viruses and diseases, yes. I would assume that would be the case.” William said, “But this is a mostly unknown magical disease. Whoever created it, designed it to resist most forms of treatment. The only way to get rid of it is by removing the disease entirely. How you do that, I’m unsure, but I can think of a few ways that might work.”
“Well, then let’s do that. We have those vile leeches.” Alyssa said, disgust apparent in her voice.
“As I’ve explained to them,” William began, waving his hand in Eli’s direction. “If we do that, it will most likely kill them. The disease isn’t only in their blood, at least not anymore. It seems to have spread into their muscle tissue, and even their essence itself. The Blight will continue to multiply until we eradicate it, or they die. If even one cell remains infected, if even one is attached to their souls, it will spread. If they die and come back, the disease may transfer to their new body. We can slow down the process, but unless we purge this evil, that’s all we can do.”
After hearing the two discuss treatment options for several minutes, with Don offering a few novel suggestions. A few moments later, Eli gave in to his curiosity and opened his quest logs. What he found filled him with confusion, fear, and a small bit of hope. Nearly every active quest had changed. As he skim
med through them, his anxiety grew with each new line of text.
Quest Complete: Down with the Sickness.
Rewards: 450 Experience. + 50 Reputation with Alyssa. +50 Reputation with William. +75 Reputation with Kelly Spidersmash. Blighted debuff timer extension. Roll of bandages x4 (Magical - Cure Disease). Ring of Minor Health.
Quest Update: Down with the Sickness II.
Description: William, Kelly, and Alyssa have helped you avoid certain death and mutation. While the process of using Arcleeches to filter your blood has worked, momentarily, it will not work forever. The Blight not only attacks your body but your very soul. Each session after the first is 50% less effective. The time between treatments is reduced by half with each successive procedure. You have one week to find a cure powerful enough to replace or eradicate the disease entirely or undergo another round of leeching. Find magic powerful enough to cleanse your essence or suffer through another round of Arcleech transfusions. Temples and other places of power are said to have potent regenerative magic.
Quest Conditions:
Find a permanent cure, magical or mundane.
Cleanse your soul at a place of power and rid your essence of impurities.
Or
Undergo another round of Arcleech treatments. (Maximum of 4 treatments)
Difficulty: Medium-Hard | Time Limit: 7 days | Reward/s: Experience*, Reputation*, Removal of Blight*, Unknown Items*, Permanent Status Change* (*Variable reward based on outcome)
Failure: Reputation with all factions other than The Blight locked at Hatred (Kill on Sight). Level reset to 1. Subrace changed to Blighted. Restriction of class options to those available to the Blighted subrace. Control over character restricted.
Do you accept: N/A (Automatic)
Ascension Page 23