by M J Conlon
Derick tried to click through a few of the flashing gold pop-up menus that he hadn’t had time to access, but nothing was there. What is going on? Derick tried to portal, first envisioning the location just up and outside this box that he found himself in, then upon seeing that the spot was available he teleported just behind three people that were all digging diligently to get to him in his grave.
Derick mentally grabbed the daggers that filled his three belts, for a second he felt as if they would not be there, but after focusing for a second he saw that they seemed to come into focus.
Derick drew six of the blades, then began slicing them through the three would-be grave killers. This time rather than seeing a pop-up that could be avoided, Derick felt knowledge seep into him.
OhmN has killed Grant_Lionhearted81 Spell Power increased. +1 for Player kill. One unspent Spell Power Points.
Experience gained. 1,100 Experience Points Awarded.
OhmN has killed Bran_Virtualpuppet Spell Power increased. +1 for Player kill. Two unspent Spell Power Points.
Experience gained. 1,100 Experience Points Awarded.
OhmN has killed CorporateAmericaSucks7 Spell Power increased. +1 for Player kill. Three unspent Spell Power Points. 1,100 Experience Points Awarded.
Experience gained.
Derick somehow instinctively knew that he had already killed CorporateAmericaSucks7 once already. Derick realizing that he had three spell power points to spend, thought about what had happened and what might be happening. HAIL, you there?
“Greetings Master, how may I assist you?” A mechanical voice that was not HAIL’s answered.
Where is my original HAIL?
“I am unable to process your command. Please note that I am here to assist your acclimation process. After the next 71 hours and 58 minutes are over you will be on your own. Remember, while you only have a 1% chance of reaching resurrection, it is still a chance.” The Not-HAIL answered.
HAIL, tell me my powers available.
“You have. ERROR.” Not-HAIL tried to reply, before he was cut off.
How many respawns do I still have?
“You have three respawns still available. Being as you are within your first 72 hours of game play you can trade them in for additional powers.”
List my titles.
“You have ERROR.” Not-HAIL answered.
Okay, so something is clearly fucking with me. Derick mentally toggled through his available titles and was happy to see that all of his titles were still intact. Derick kept his professional title in place, as he didn’t want others to see what he was up to.
Derick thought about applying the three spell power points into his psychic-viewing but then wanted to make sure he had all of his abilities still present. He applied one point to psychic vampirism, mentally he knew that it was now at power level 22, which offered 43%. He then applied a point to both psychic assault and psychic healing respectively to make sure both of those powers were still available. He was happy to know that both were now at power level 2.
As Derick came to realize that he had somehow been sent to his respawn graveyard, he felt that he was once again able to access the respawn trading interface. This was the same interface that he originally used to trade away his first six respawns for the life saving powers that kept him alive. Exerting his will upon the game, he mentally brought up the options menu for the different abilities that he could acquire from once again trading away his extra respawns. While no text appeared, he could feel the code just under his eyes moving slightly.
Finally, Derick decided he would just think what he wanted and see if the system applied it. Derick tried to remember the different attack powers that were available at the start, then just decided to make his own power. Spend three respawns on unique tier six power retribution. Effect, player able to resist all divine level powers, sending 100% of damage to be received back at attacker. Effect permanent passive ability. Derick could feel the air around him tighten as he could feel the processing engine trying to calculate what he had just done. There was a slight grinding sound that he could feel in his ears, almost as if the processing powers of the universe were grinding away in his ears. He had tinnitus before the immersion and thought that this feeling that he now felt was very similar to the feeling that a long attack of tinnitus would leave on his ears and mind. Derick didn’t think that this Ability was too much of a stretch as it would only apply to other players who had traded away their last respawn and were fighting much like Derick was, with nothing to come back for.
Derick looked over the gear that each person had, quickly taking any money, potions, books, and knives. Everything else he stripped and left in the small hole that they had begun to dig in his grave. Derick looked down at his hands, and was happy to see that he still had flesh covering his bones. So it is not a server reset.
Derick had heard about how in older games, when anomalies occurred the only true fix was to roll back all server progress. Yet, that did not seem to be the case, as he could feel his Abilities kicking in when he willed them. He could even feel his enhanced stats that he received as a result of leveling up 10 times.
Derick looked around at the underworld that lay around him, then saw it for what it was, a way to permanently get rid of much of his competition for resurrection. Derick tried to check the resurrection board, for his number 18,956,509 but all he saw was a blank space. For the briefest of seconds he felt fear grip his mind, until he remembered his deal with the Pantheon of Triton, where he promised to train a student for each of the seven deities. Derick knew that one of his respawns came from having taught Auquarnia’s priestess, but had not gotten to the others. Where did the princesses go, if they are not here?
Derick wondered the thought to himself and was not surprised when Not-HAIL didn’t respond.
Derick thought about killing off the skeletons, the ones that would easily give him two Spell Power Points to apply per death and permanently remove a potential enemy. Yet, as much as Derick wanted to, he knew these people weren’t his real competition for resurrection, and instead decided to do something different. I will hunt the hunters. Derick grabbed a bit of hair from each of his three would be attackers, then engaged his Psychic Tracking ability. One that he had never truly used to this point. It took some time, but Derick could feel the three members all begin to reappear one by one. Derick thought about Teleporting, but then remembered his recent movement issues and decided to go on foot.
While running Derick, not for the first time, thought about how it would be great to ride around on a mount of some type. Then like always he remembered how he was offensive to animals, a flaw that gave him extra merit points, but ultimately made it so each iteration of his character would be cursed in the same way. Derick mentally chastised himself, as he realized he could have used one of his three respawns to pay off the flaw, yet he was happy to not have to deal with a possible cheap shot from someone that was as desperate as he was and sold off his future for the present.
Thank you Parker, Derick thought, remembering the man who had given him the chance to survive for as long as he had. The game seemed to be biased against the common player, as it was rare to find a starting player that hadn’t spent money on their account who had Magical abilities. Even Rokella ScarletBunny had spent money, as was apparent by her having and maintaining a spot in the Resurrection Million. Last Derick had checked, she was at 775,521.
Derick thinking about it, mentally queried her name and was shocked to see that she still had the same exact spot. Then Derick looked up the name Taftinator and saw that he was at 37. Derick made a mental note to check out Taftinator’s position in a few weeks, as he felt something was off about this whole exchange.
On a whim, Derick brought up the names for both number one million, Patrick_JustMadeItSuckers and one million one DirtyX2_OneRogueOne.
Derick realized after a point that he had been running for over ten minutes straight and was not feeling any signs of fatigue, confirmation that the m
erit portion of his original Undead status were still applicable. Derick felt his mind running and reeling from everything that he thought he was taking in.
Derick felt the pulse of a message coming through and was surprised to see that it was from Grant_Lionhearted81 “I am coming to get you, you cheap shooting bastard.”
Derick smiled to himself then laughed into his response “Funny, I am already on my way to meet you.” Derick replied, before minimizing the chat dialogue.
Derick could feel all three targets traveling in a pack way out of his psychic-viewing range, though he could feel them beginning to get closer.
Derick looked around his current location and was surprised to see that he was already near the entry way to the undead city, yet Derick from his celestial viewing Skill could tell that there were seven main entrances to the undead city.
“Getting clothes in the inner circle.” Derick said into the personal chat between him and Grant Lionhearted81.
“Haha, like you would dare do anything in this city.” Grant Lionhearted81 replied.
Derick thought about his words for a second, then realized that it wouldn’t be his first urban combat. Before he went about entering the city, he mentally looked to see where Grant Lionhearted81 was on the resurrection board and was happy to see that Grant Lionhearted81 was all the way at 891,474 within the resurrection’s million. Time to make some room at the top Derick thought, before checking out his two friends which were both at 927,631 and 954,218. With that revelation about their status, Derick ran into the city, making his way through the first three walls, until he turned right down a blind alley that offered a direct exit from the city to the seventh graveyard, the one where only people that are on their last life are respawned for their final chance at life. Derick had the pleasure of appearing there twice, though he vowed he would not find his way there again.
Derick waited until the three dots finished moving around in the part of the city that was at the central circle. Derick kicked himself for not having prepared the ambush spot better took out four of his worst blades and threw them unsheathed at the ground below. Before they would hit the ground, Derick grabbed each blade with his psychic-telekinesis then gently dropped each blade to the ground. Then Derick waited trying to find cover while resting prone on his stomach. Mentally and physically he gave a quick 360 scan of the area, making sure that no one else was up on the rooftops with him, especially not a guard.
Derick was happy to see that the nearest guard was more than 200 feet away on the street and facing the opposite direction of him. As far as he could tell this would be a flawless attack. Derick was somewhat surprised to see that not just three, but a total of seven people were now in Grant Lionhearted81’s group.
Derick waited until the group of seven all made their way to his ambush point. Derick realizing that four blades likely wouldn’t be enough to take down all seven opponents, Derick decided to come up with a second course of attack. I will use gravity. Derick thought to himself as he mentally prepared seven different portals that all opened in front of the seven would be attackers a split second before they moved forward. In a second an external portal let them out hundreds of feet up in the air.
Derick watched as the group of seven all began their descent to the ground, then canceled the first seven portals, and created a bottom portal that both grabbed the seven would be attackers, then placed them falling from the ceiling once again. Derick could feel the same pounding sensation against his portal that had sent him here, decided to watch the effect in person. As the seven made their way out of the portal, they all appeared to have a greenish glow to them. One that Derick knew instinctively was only visible thanks to his awareness skill. Skills, that is something else that I need to fix. HAIL, make a note that I need to see skill trainers.
“Affirmative, I will remind you before 68 hours and 23 minutes of my time have expired.” Not-HAIL responded.
I also need to figure out what happened to my HAIL, Derick thought to himself, trying to figure out what was happening to him.
The group of seven began falling a second, then a third time. Each time they entered the portal Derick could feel something pounding on the mental walls of his portal, as if it was trying to get in.
Finally Derick seeing that the group was at terminal velocity and not wanting to risk something actually breaking his portal mid transfer, especially with him being relatively close to both points of the portal, Derick collapsed both portals once the group began making their long descent from the ceiling. Derick mentally grabbed the four blades with his mind and cut at the falling war party. He felt two of the blades snap off in mid air, both being stuck into fleshy parts of a would be attacker. In the time that it took Derick to figure out that he was now down to two usable blades from the original four he began with, he heard seven distinct thuds hit the ground.
Derick waited to see if anyone escaped the attack, but saw that the seven bodies seemed to be decomposing into a green slime like state. Within a second, Derick was hit with seven different Player kill markers, allowing for seven different spell power points to be spent, then saw that he was awarded 7,700 experience points for the whole ordeal.
A few players traveled over to the rotting corpses to see what was happening, as they apparently had witnessed much of the encounter. Derick supposed that the sound of seven bodies falling to the ground over and over screaming would cause some attention. Derick also felt a few of the city guards getting called to the scene by the gaggle of players and traveling merchants that all began to stop and look at the pile of seven corpses. It was then that Derick saw the same green energy that had filled the seven corpses jump to one of the players that tried to loot the rotting corpses for some of their gear. Not wanting to be associated with the crimes that had just occurred, Derick began to leave the scene.
Derick was back to the road leading towards the seventh graveyard when he received a much anticipated message from Grant Lionhearted81, though this message was not what he had expected from the player killer. “What did you do? How am I still infected?” Grant Lionhearted81 demanded, almost screaming into Derick’s ear.
“What are you talking about?”
“You poisoned me with astral disease.” Grant Lionhearted81 said. “Tell me what you want to make it stop.” He pleaded in a painful tone.
“HAHA, fat chance, I get close to you, you kill me and I am dead.”
“No, I swear, fuck.”
Derick could hear the words coming through painfully, then they cut out. Derick then got messages from the other six members, each asking what I had done to them, before their cries were cut off. A few minutes later Grant Lionhearted81 sent more curing at Derick, but Derick was unable to come up with a valid response of what was happening, since Derick didn’t know. Derick went around the grand city to their resurrection point to see what the seven would-be assassins were all discussing.
Derick made his way to them on their third respawn each, while all of them seemed to have many more respawns available, which kept them in the first graveyard, there was no doubt that this would continue for quite some time. Derick made his way to the feeble bodies that respawned before him, only to crumple over to the ground in complete agony once they were fully respawned. Derick thinking quickly to himself scanned the person before him. Target Grant Lionhearted81 is infected with portal plague, this is the residual energy that clings to a portalist’s portals after their improper creation of a portal. Effect, victim suffers necropsy, internal bleeding, paralysis and eventual death.
Grant Lionhearted81 seeing Derick crawled over to Derick and grabbed him by the robe. Derick instantly saw the message disease portal plague resisted. Derick not really trying to figure out the hows or whys of his resistance said, “maybe if I teleport you to your home planet you can find help,” Derick said, supporting Grant Lionhearted81. “Tell me, which planet do you call home.”
“Argos.”
Derick smiled at the thought, then sent Grant Lionhearted81 acros
s time and space to Argos. Grant Lionhearted81 Derick knew died before his body made it’s near instantaneous connection to Argos, even then Derick had to reroute and mentally correct a number of approach angles that were off. It was then that Derick realized what had happened to his portal, he had corrected the portal midstream, but that just sent him to his original starting location. Derick hoped that this meant his three students were safely back in Jalinbad or wherever their starting location was. Do NPCs have a starting location?
“Yes, they all have a starting location that they each consider their home base of operations. If you are given a quest, often going back to the original place that you found them will let you complete a quest that was originally issued by the NPC.” Not-HAIL answered helpfully.
Thank you.
“It is my pleasure, would you like me to remind you now about seeing the skills trainers?” Not-HAIL asked?
One second, Derick thought before mentally looking at the resurrection board for all three of his original attackers. It came as no surprise, even though each had supposedly had their status reset with each death, they all maintained their places at the top of the resurrection board. Derick then waited for the other would-be assassins to appear, he quickly went over to each, slicing them with his knife before pushing each through a portal to a different city on Argos.
Derick got six new notifications that he had killed different Players, then continued to force more necrotic bodies through different portals. Each body sent seemed to send back three bodies in return.
Once a player began reappearing in front of Derick he quickly cut them, then sent them off to a different location on Argos. His goal was to kill off at least one fifth of the players that seemed to be fixed on the resurrection board. Derick would have almost felt bad, if it hadn’t been for the fact that these people all stacked the deck against the weak.
They pretended to give everyone a fair chance at resurrecting on LHS-B, but they knew it was a fixed game all along. Derick thought to himself as he continued to kill the bodies that all started to respawn with Portal Plague, somewhere in the back of Derick’s mind he knew this was supposed to have been his death sentence. He would have unleashed the unexpected portal glitch, that could of course be weaponized, much like his use of Phasing, just on a much grander scale.