by N H Paxton
“The children, will they be okay?” I was suddenly concerned about them, despite never having children in my own life.
“Children will be children, Vlad. Let them go, let them run. It has been a long day. They will know where they need to be when it is time.”
And with that, the conversation was over. She turned her back and headed into the torchlight of Cressfal along with the villagers.
I hung my head low and took stock of the situation. On Earth, children would never have been allowed to roam on their own. They would have been kidnapped, or worse. I am truly living in another world. I was shaken out of my thoughts by a very close wolf howl. I decided it was time to get into the safety of the village torches myself.
I followed Ina and several of the townsfolk to the inn, where some villagers were eating bowls of soup with hunks of bread. It wasn’t a large inn, sitting just off the main walkway, but it was big enough. It had several rooms in the back half with crude doors. Ina and I were given a shared room, and the elders of Val’Fore and a few of the older population among them were given rooms as well. The rest slept on the wooden floor of the inn common room, where the hunters of the town had been directed to move the tables and chairs to the sides.
“Does not feel right,” I said as I stepped into the room Ina and I were given to share.
“What’s that? Have you never shared a room with a woman?” Ina laughed at me as my face turned red.
“Er, no, is not that. I simply have not spent time with a woman that was not Ina.” I rolled my eyes as I heard how stupid I sounded. “Also, is only one bed for sleep, is not strange?”
“That’s not so strange. Not many places have more than one bed per room, and those that do, well, the rumor is that they’re quite expensive.” What did she mean by the rumor? Had she never seen a larger inn? Not like I knew what to expect, as this was my first foray into the gaming world.
“I suppose it’s just as well, though, being that I’m Ina. I assume that negates the issue, correct?” Her words were soft, encouraging, meant to put me at ease. I took the chance to accept their comfort.
“Yes, I suppose is true.” I shrugged as I sat on the bed. It was comfortable, despite looking like a basic straw mattress on wooden slats. I looked about the room and felt at peace. There were no hard metal edges and no nicotine stains on the plaster—nothing that reminded me of home, and maybe that was what I needed. There were no longer any severe deadlines or a super-giant company holding a paycheck out for me to jump toward. There was no longer the looming threat of an extinction-level asteroid wiping out the population of the Earth. There was just the inn room, myself, and Ina. I noticed that there was a flashing marker in my vision, so I focused on it.
<<<>>>
Quest Alert: Relocation
You have successfully found a place for the villagers of Val’Fore to stay, despite the misgivings of the hunters early on. In exchange for your help, you receive 1,000 XP, a free stay at an inn room with board, a small collection of Health regen potions (3), and an increased reputation with the villagers of Val’Fore. Your rank with them has increased from Friendly to Respected.
<<<>>>
x2 Level Up!
You have (10) undistributed stat points
You have (2) unassigned proficiency points
<<<>>>
Ah, I had leveled up after finishing the quest! I immediately put half of my points into Intelligence and the other half into Spirit, then I decided to put 1 of my proficiency points into Light Armor, choosing Improved Fit, since I knew I would be using that most often. I put one point into Bladed Weapons, since I was carrying a short blade now, buying Piercing Blow.
<<<>>>
Skill: Improved Fit
Effect: Every piece of clothing in Eldgard fits every person, but what if you wanted it to fit better? Improved Fit enhances the way Light Armor fits a character, enhancing its effectiveness in combat by 5% per skill level (Current: 5%).
<<<>>>
Skill: Piercing Blow
Effect: Punch through armor, flesh, and bone with a fierce strike of a bladed weapon, dealing an additional 25% weapon damage per skill level (Current: 25%).
<<<>>>
Satisfied with my accomplishment, I closed my skills and lay down on the bed.
“You’re sleeping clothed?” Ina’s voice was almost chiding.
I turned my head to remark on the matter, but immediately turned my head back.
“You are not wearing, eh, things.” I sputtered as I felt the heat of embarrassment burn across my face. My eyes were wide as I stared at the ceiling.
“My clothing is appropriate for sleeping, Vlad. Your hides and whatever are not.” She stole across the room quickly and blew out the candle on the small dresser that lay in front of the room’s small window. “Now you don’t have to worry about it.” I could hear the smile in her voice as the bed shifted next to me when she sat.
“I suppose that is better.” I sat up and stood, unequipping my gear as well. I was down to my smallclothes before I even realized it. The cool air of outside pushed against my skin, despite the wooden walls of the inn. It was wonderful, reminding me of spring in Russia.
“Are you going to lie down, or are you going to stand there all night like a fool? We’ve a long way to go tomorrow, you know?” Ina’s voice was tired, but it sounded so much like my Ina’s that I forgot where I was for a moment.
“Yes, dear.” My reply caught in my throat as I finished the statement.
She just chuckled as she rolled over in the bed.
I sat down and shifted a time or two, then laid my head on the pillow. It was like a cushion of air. Truly developmental magic in action, to make a hay pillow feel like the most expensive pillow I’d ever owned. I closed my eyes just for a moment, and I was pulled into a dream. I was on vacation in the United States with Ina, and we were under false identities since we worked for large corporations. We were visiting a few of the old castles in the Carolinas, and we had rented a room at a bed and breakfast. The room was small, but cozy and enjoyable. She lay across my chest as we watched the wind blow the early fall leaves off the trees outside the room, and for that moment everything was perfect.
Within Will of Change...
Timeline: 2 Days until Astraea - 06:50
“WHAT IN PUTIN’S ASHTRAY is noise!?” I was startled awake by a blaring bell in my head, louder than anything I had ever experienced. And pain, so much pain. Like a migraine I had once, back in university when I didn’t sleep for three days because I was studying for my doctoral finals. One moment, I was enjoying a nice rest with my beloved in the Carolinas, and the next I was assailed by an invisible attacker. Oh, the developers were going to get an earful.
“Vlad, what are you talking about? There’s no noise, aside from the common room downstairs. But thanks for the wakeup, I guess.” Ina rolled her eyes as she rolled out of the bed, both movements swift and practiced.
I opened my eyes and saw the image of an alarm clock covering most of my vision. It was translucent, but still present. I also had a message. Years of toil with electronics and computers made it easy to recognize the icon at a glance. I waved my hands frantically in the air, shouting for the alarm to stop, and the noise finally went away. I collapsed back on the bed with a huff as I thought about the messaging system.
—Special Notice from Osmark Technologies!—
There was a video attachment, which was strange. I focused on it, and it began to play. Osmark Technologies’ annoying jingle fed into my ear as the small window changed from black to a person sitting at a desk.
“Good morning, you’ve successfully spent your first full twenty-four hours in V.G.O.! Your logout option is now inactivated, as your body has begun to shut down.” Gods, was he chipper for being such a downer. “You’re one-third of the way through our patented transition process, and you probably have one hell of a headache.” He continued to be pleasant, even though I wanted to smash his puny skull. His voice bordered between ir
ritating nerd and upbeat overly protective mother. “Make sure you get yourself a nice breakfast nearby soon. It will help to soothe that pain and make the day better. Thanks for choosing Osmark Technologies! Have a great second day!” And with that, the image went back to the flat-black square. I rolled my head to try to work the muscles in my neck, and I waved my hand in the air, dismissing the video.
“Such annoyance.” I was speaking slowly, as it hurt to think.
“I’m sorry, I thought I was rather good in bed.” Ina’s voice came through the pain as a gentle wave, there was some kind of soothing sensation to it, like cool water on my burning mind.
“That is joke, yes?” I looked at her as she pulled her armor on. Her face was split with a huge smile.
“Yes, Vlad, that was a joke. What were you muttering about?” She sat back down on the bed and pulled her boots on.
“I had video message, first full day of being here in Eldgard.” I painstakingly sat up and put my legs over the side of the bed. I collected my clothes from where I had laid them and went to work putting them on.
“What’s a video?” Ina was still so full of innocence. It was my turn to chuckle, and I did, though I regretted the decision. Laughing made the inside of my skull feel like it was going to rupture.
“Is a repeat of something that you see. Is, ah, complicated to explain. You see something, and can see it again, same thing.” I had a really hard time explaining something entirely foreign.
“That’s really vague, but I kind of get it.” She literally popped off the bed, her feet physically leaving the ground. She was just as much of a morning person as Earth Ina was, and it irritated me just the same. “Well, let’s go get some food, eh? The day won’t wait for itself.” She stopped and looked at the ceiling for a moment, one finger on her chin. “Or maybe it will? Time is a fickle thing.” Before I could even protest, she had her hand on the door and was opening it.
“Fine, yes, food, let’s go.”
We left the room together and headed into the common area, where there was a line for breakfast. People were waiting patiently for the queue to move. There were a pair of the village hunters watching to make sure nobody got out of control, which was probably a smart plan. Hungry people do silly things sometimes. We got in line to get our share, waiting only a few minutes to be provided our breakfast, before finding an open spot to sit on the floor.
“Nothing quite beats a good breakfast gruel.” Ina was already half-finished with her bowl of slop fused with old eggs and runny cereal. Mine was sitting in front of me. I just stared at it with a raised eyebrow. “You’re not going to eat?” Ina leaned toward me and started whispering, loudly, “I know it looks like rubbish, but it’s really quite good. Go on, give it a go.” She poked her wooden spoon at me like a sword. It was surprisingly intimidating.
“Fine, fine. Looks like horse fat with milk, blech.” I took a spoonful of it and hesitantly brought it to my lips. I took a deep breath and shoved it into my mouth. Shockingly, it was delicious. I ended up draining the bowl in minutes, and the Osmark nerd was right—I felt much better. The pain had started to subside, my thoughts were clearing, and I noticed one of the red markers that was annoyingly flashing in the corner of my vision had faded. I focused on the other one, which brought up a notification.
<<<>>>
Current Debuff
Unwashed (Level 2): Goods and services cost 10% more; Merchant-craft skills reduced by (2) levels.
<<<>>>
I raised my arm and gave myself a sniff. Phew, I would not be doing that again. My face wrinkled of its own accord, which brought a ringing laugh out of Ina, who had a mouthful of food. That food was now all over the front of me, which made her laugh even more. I looked down and frowned hard. Ina’s laughter stopped and her smile started to fade. I realized I was ruining the fun. This world was meant to be a good time, and I was taking it too seriously. My face broke into a huge grin, and I let out an absurd laugh. Ina did the same.
We washed up in the village bathhouse, which was really just a room with a few buckets of water and a couple holes dug into the ground, then headed down to the main road.
My attention was diverted by a loud argument, held by a small number of people standing about. One of them was the village elder who had welcomed us last night.
“We should see what’s going on. Maybe we can help.” Ina was already in motion as I was opening my mouth to say something. Another check box on the Ina list: she was always trying to help everyone.
“It is their fault! They brought the villagers here, and now the bandits are after a blood price!” The young hunter from the night before, the grandson of the elder, was shouting.
“Grandson, these bandits will not come to our village.” The elder was calm, collected. Everything you would expect from a man used to directing people.
“They’re already on their way. Beldes was beaten pretty badly by a scout, who told him that they would be coming by noon. He said they would have killed him, but they wanted a messenger.”
A man, who I assumed was Beldes, sat on the ground not far away. His hunting leathers were torn, there were several places where blood was fresh on his clothes, and his bow and axe were nowhere to be seen. His face was mostly a swollen bruise, one of his eyes forced shut by the swelling.
“That could be a problem, but we will persevere! We have survived bandit raids befo—ah, look now, here are the two who led those wonderful people here. Have you anything to say for yourself?” He turned to us just as we added ourselves to the circle of people. I raised a finger as I was about to speak, but Ina beat me to it.
“We will do whatever is necessary to prevent the bandits from destroying your homes. It is our fault, and we will right it.” Her words had the force of a thousand-kiloton bomb, and it stopped the argument in its track.
“See, Grandson? They will handle it.” The elder waved a hand as though to say everything is fine now.
“How will you handle it? With you two, alone, against an entire battalion of armed renegades? They have bows, they have axes, they have armor and spells, and what do you have? Luck? Is there an invisible army somewhere that I can’t see?” He was obviously terrified, but he was spouting off as though he were angry. Fear has a way of making even a powerful man whimper like a sodden puppy.
“We will make trap.” I spoke before Ina could respond.
“We will?” She faltered for a moment and gave me her best You’re dead stare.
“Yes, but will need many supplies. How many fighters you have?” I hated this broken English. It made me sound like a buffoon.
“We have twent—well, nineteen. Beldes is really not up for combat.” The elder looked down at the poor man who was terribly injured.
“Will need metal, wood, springs if you have. Will take time, but can win.”
“Are you sure we can do this?” Ina asked in a low voice, her face a mask of solidity, hiding the fear inside.
<<<>>>
Quest Alert: In the Nick of Time
The elder of Cressfal village has requested that you handle the oncoming bandit attack and the requisite defense of Cressfal, as the attack is clearly your fault. Ina has offered to help you.
Quest Class: Rare, Unique
Quest Difficulty: Deadly
Success: The bandit war party retreats and the village of Cressfal is saved
Failure: More than 50% of the village hunters are killed before the bandits are destroyed and/or Cressfal village is overrun
Reward: 3,500 XP; potential to unlock a unique opportunity; considerable increase in reputation with both Cressfal and Val’Fore villagers
Accept: Yes/No?
<<<>>>
I nodded my assent into the air as I selected yes, mentally and verbally.
“Will not be easy. You work with hunters, I will set up traps, barricades, other things. We make ambushes at proper places, create choke point, yes? Then we crush.” I made several motions with my hands, ending with smacking my fist into
my palm. “Crush is good.”
Ina and I got to work. She made the hunters ready for the confrontation, and I headed off to gather supplies. The village elder directed me to the woodcutter’s home, where I found wooden planks, hundreds of crude nails, and a small stash of finer objects. Somehow, the woodcutter had amassed a wealth of engineering components.
“Was trying to build sawmill?” I wondered about his plans for the future, but he wasn’t around to ask.
I set to work, preparing the bulwarks that would hopefully keep our own archers out of immediate arrow fire. I created choke points out of large wooden barricades, at the northern head of the village, and then again at the middle-point. Within those choke points, I constructed several spring-loaded spike panels. The spikes were wooden dowels sharpened to a wicked point, as I didn’t have any steel available, and no smelter to work the metal into something useful.
“You’re really quite something,” a voice from behind me said as I was tensing the spring on one of the last traps I had placed. It was Ina, still glistening with sweat from the sparring match with the hunters.
“Is what I do, make traps, build weapons.” I shrugged as I forced the panel into place, then secured the tripwire made from fishing twine. I finished the trap by covering the line with some leaves—just enough to hide the wiring, but not enough to trigger it accidentally.
“Go over it with me so I know where to be and where not to be.” Ina was kneeling down on the ground, looking at the tripwire. It would definitely provide a nasty surprise for the bandits.
“We have choke point in northern entrance to village.” I grabbed a large stick I had been using to torque springs and drew in the dirt of the walkway a few feet away. “You and hunters will draw enemy bandits here and hopefully lead to trap.” I was hopeful, because nothing ever went exactly according to plan. I was concerned, because these were people we were dealing with, and people are chaos incarnate.