Change (The Stork Tower Book 3)

by Tony Corden

  “You plan to be both a smith and an enchanter?”

  “Well, if I can do both then I won’t need to pay for additional services all the time.”

  They agreed to meet later that morning for the first lesson and Leah headed back to her suite only to find the egg beginning to rock slightly, back and forth. She moved closer and touched the egg. It was lying on its side and came to just above her knees. It was two paces in length. The surface was smooth with a swirling pattern of red and green. Leah had found no references to dragon hatchings in any forum or guide. She had found material on the hatching of other species. In each case they player was expected to help hatch the creature to bond with it.

  Leah took out a small dagger and carefully tapped the handle against the side of the egg. It stopped moving, and she could hear a faint scratch from inside the egg. She banged harder, and the egg began to rock. Unfortunately, her knife didn’t even make a mark on the egg. She equipped Merdiven and after checking that it was fully charged, 500,000 MP and 500,000 KP, she spoke to it and said, “I would appreciate your help once again. This egg is too hard for me to crack but it is ready to hatch. I’m behind in learning the draconic spells but need to help the little fire and life dragon to hatch. If you could help, I’d appreciate it.”

  Leah waited for a moment and then placed the Morningstar end of Merdiven on the egg. She raised it just a few centimetres and allowed it to drop onto the egg. A stream of mana poured like water from Merdiven. It flowed over the egg and began to pulse with light, green and red, life and fire. It swirled around the egg until it matched the pattern of the egg and then began pulsing faster and faster until in a flash it disappeared. Leah first checked Merdiven and noted that it had used over three-quarters of its mana charge. She placed Merdiven on the bed and checked the egg. Small cracks had developed in the egg at the junction of the red and green sections. The egg began to rock again, and Leah used her hand to bang on the egg. This time a small section of the shell came loose and Leah was able to peer inside. Pushing up against the shell was a section of smooth scales, all the deep red of a Fire Dragon. She began to pull more of the shell aside until finally the dragon inside was able to get a leg free and pushed and wriggled the rest of the way out of the shell.

  It flopped around for a moment until Leah carefully reached out and helped it to untangle itself. Uncurled, its body was just over a metre in length, but when the head and tail were added it was well over three metres. A set of wings lay folded against its back and sides. It was covered in fine scales, except for the wings, and was predominantly green with the extremities of each leg, the tail and wings a deep red. Also red were the small facial horns, and the spines along its neck. Its face turned toward Leah, and a message appeared:

  Atherleah, an intelligent creature of Dunyanin has become attached to you.

  Dragons are highly intelligent magical creatures of Dunyanin. While dragons, like birds, often imprint on the first living thing that they see, they are aware of their heritage, magic and language from birth. This newly hatched Dragon has imprinted on you.

  Dragons, as intelligent creatures are properly considered companions. They may give permission to their player companion to be their rider and leader. Dragons are also considered pets due to the necessity for them to be absent on certain quests. Dragons are fiercely possessive, loyal and will fight for those who they consider a part of their treasure.

  You will be required to feed it (mainly meat and at times Mana or other resources). As a pet you can bring it with you into other worlds, it can also be transformed for a time into a statue so that you can keep it hidden in your bag. Players are permitted a total of three pets within Dunyanin. These pets are a part of Dunyanin but will resurrect if killed after 48 hours should their owner so wish it.

  Also, companions in Dunyanin travel with the player and can be relied upon to help defend the player they have bonded with. The bond can be annulled at any time by either the player or the companion.

  The companion is automatically in a group with the player and receives a proportional share of all experience based on level. If the companion does not participate in an action, then they receive nothing. The same is true if the player does not participate.

  Players are permitted a total of three companions within Dunyanin. The companions are a part of Dunyanin but will resurrect if killed, after 48 hours. They will resurrect at your resurrection point and are responsible for finding you if you have moved on. You must verbally accept the offer for it to become official. Will you accept this dragon into your care as a companion? If so, then give her a name and touch her. If not, then verbally reject the offer and release her into the wild.

  Leah said, “I name you 生命之火 Shēngmìng Zhī Huǒ’. It means the ‘the flames of life’ or ‘the fire of life’. For short, I’ll probably call you Mìng, which can mean ‘life’.” She knelt down and hugged the newborn dragon.

  She heard a small voice in her head speaking in Dragon Tongue say, ‘Hungry.’”

  Leah spoke carefully in the same language, “Well, let’s go and get something for you to eat.”

  As she released the dragon, several messages appeared.

  Atherleah, you have acquired a new companion, pet and mount - Her name is Shēngmìng Zhī Huǒ.

  You have two pets - Mĕi and Shēngmìng Zhī Huǒ

  You have two companions - Rana and Shēngmìng Zhī Huǒ

  World Achievement: First 1 (5, Painite)

  Dragon Rider

  Atherleah (Level 264) you are the first Player to be chosen as a Dragon Rider. This is your fifth World Achievement: 'First 1 (Painite)’.

  Reward 1: 10000 x 263 = 7364000 (180%) Experience Points (1800000/1800000) …(1097230/2000000)

  Reward 2: + 10% to all future Experience

  Reward 3: 5 x 10 Diamond = 50 Diamond

  Fame: 15000 Fame Points (168760)

  A Commemorative Plaque has been placed in your bag.

  Note: Due to the unique nature of this achievement it will be published on the Dunyanin achievement forum.

  Leah headed poked her head out the door and called out. Soon a dwarf came to see what the noise was. Leah asked if they could please get Guard Korumak. When he arrived, Leah asked if he would be able to either find some meat or escort her outside to hunt. When asked how urgent it was, Leah opened the door to show him the hungry dragon who was pacing around the room. As soon as Mìng saw him, she began to bare her fangs. Leah quietly scolded her and speaking in Dragon Tongue said, “This is Korumak, he is a friend. He wants to help us get some food, some meat.”

  Mìng moved toward Korumak and looked at him, then sniffed and said in Leah’s mind, “Hungry.”

  Korumak swallowed and said he would bring some meat from the kitchens and then they could go hunt if they needed more. He was as good as his word and soon brought several buckets of meat scraps which Mìng quickly scoffed and then curled up on the bed to sleep. Korumak said he would have the hunters have some meat ready in case the little dragon needed any more. Leah asked if there was someone who might keep an eye on Mìng while she had her first lesson at the forge. In the end Korumak was persuaded to watch Mìng while Leah had her lesson in the forge. When she arrived, she was introduced to several Master Smiths and directed to a bellows. For the next five hours, she had to pump the bellows for various Masters. They explained that she needed to learn how to tell the right temperature by looking at the colour of the various metals.

  When she returned to her room, her arms, shoulders and back were tight, and if it wasn’t for instant healing, she might have given up sooner. Korumak explained that Mìng had woken once and fussed until given another two buckets of meat, at which time she had again fallen asleep.

  After thanking Korumak for his help, Leah said she would return the following morning, and after turning Mìng to a statue, Leah logged out and appeared in the Tower. She took out Mìng, who was still sleeping and then spent some time looking at the Merkize disc. She had Gèng make a rec
ording of each section and of any complete puzzles they could begin to work on. She paid particular to several sections near the first step. Finally, she reduced the sleeping Mìng once more to a statue and logged out for a large lunch before having two hours of NREM3 sleep. After another lunch she logged in to the tower, prepared for her date with Thad.

  Thad arrived at the Tower exactly at four. Leah met him at the podium where he greeted her with a warm hug followed by a warmer kiss.

  “Today I want to take you to Adventure World. It’s a world dedicated to enjoying the outdoors and having the adrenaline rush. We can go mountain climbing, white water rafting, skydiving, base jumping, swimming with sharks, scuba diving, and so many other things. I’ve paid the entrance fee, but you need to have a physical. Part of the entrance procedure is a new map of your strength, agility, stamina and physique. I haven’t been for six months, so I have to have the check-up as well as it’s required every three months. Now I know you are a private person so be aware that the tests are not shared with anyone. Also, the results are globally accredited and they update your virtual parameters.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “If your checkup shows an increase in real-life strength then your virtual avatar has its strength parameters updated. This flows over into most games. So for example, I expect that the last few weeks in Dunyanin had increased my real strength by about say five percent. When it is updated, then my character in Dunyanin has his base strength increased by five percent.”

  Leah sub-vocalised to Gèng, “Can you review this and talk with Dr Roberts about the process and if my augmented muscles and skeleton will be revealed?”

  To Thad, she said, “Well, it sounds like fun though I’m not comfortable with you paying for it, how much?”

  “I’ve only paid for the test and the one day. If you want to use the world for exercise or for more regular fun days, then you pay. Please let me do this.”

  Gèng said privately to Leah, “The cost for a single check-up is fifty gold and for a day is another fifty. Annual membership is a Diamond.”

  “This once! Next time, if there is a next time, then I’ll pay my own way.”

  “Deal! Now I’ve just sent you the prepaid code and login for Gèng. I’ll meet you just outside reception in the main hall.” Thad disappeared.

  “Dr Roberts says the test is accurate and will record any superhuman responses. She suggests you keep your reaction times, speed and strength within the realm of possibility. She said the results are recognised throughout the virtual multiverse and are considered ultra-secure; no one will have access to the actual results except you and the personal trainer AI in Adventure World. If you wish, I will overlay a visual display to set appropriate boundaries for response-time, speed, and strength.”

  “Yes, please! It might be good to get access to bonus speed and strength in the other worlds.”

  “I have created a new portal called Adventure World. When you enter, you’ll arrive in an area created for your physical. When you leave, the area will be deleted and scrubbed to prevent anyone accessing your test or the results.”

  Leah arrived at the entrance to a large room filled with exercise equipment. A very fit looking lady wearing fitness-wear walked toward her carrying a clipboard. She said, “Hello! Atherleah I presume. My name is Denise, and I’m here to give you a fitness overview. If you decide you want some training later then I am available as a personal trainer.”

  “Hi Denise, is there anything in particular I should be wearing?”

  “There is a change of clothing for you in the small change room over there. If you wish to wear them, you can. If you have your own gear, then we recommend something which gives good support and allows complete freedom of movement. With your permission, the fitness overview accesses your pod data and gets an updated scan of your body and can update your size, strength, flexibility, reaction times and stamina. All results are confidential and are used to update your virtual profile. We require the most up to date information so we can best calculate a challenging adventure for you. Your pod will transfer almost one hundred percent of the workout to your body, and we don’t want to overtax a body that might have changed and become less flexible. We also want you to push yourself, and this enables us to stretch your limits.”

  Leah headed to the room and came out wearing a sports bra and running shorts. Denise said, “Let’s start with a warm-up run for five minutes, and then I’ll increase the speed slowly and when I say go, you run flat out for as long as you can or until I say stop. I will be measuring your speed, heart rate, and respiration.”

  Leah began the run and saw the scale Gèng had overlaid at the top of her view. When Denice said go, she quickly moved to the edge of the green zone. She knew she could go faster but kept it just within the normal bounds. After several minutes Denise stopped her and said, “Your respiration and heart rate suggests you could have gone faster, but that run was just shy of the world record for that distance. It was amazing. Next up are some strength tests.”

  Leah was taken to a bar and asked to do chin ups until told to stop or she could do no more. She was stopped after doing one hundred. This was followed by some stretch tests for flexibility and then several reaction time tests. Leah went through a sequence of different weight machines and finished with a cycle of exercises where she was asked to maintain a heart rate of 160 beats per minute. She quickly reached a speed that Gèng had marked as the maximum for an extremely fit human but her heart rate plateaued at 121. Finally, Denise called a stop and said, “Well that completes the testing. I would like your permission to ask for advice from our resident medical supervisor, Dr Sweets. She will keep the results and discussion private, but I do require her authorisation to make such a significant change in a person’s global parameters.”

  “I give permission.”

  Within moments an older woman entered the room and said, “Hello Atherleah, Denise contacted me to check some readings. Please bear with me a moment while I review the results.”

  After a few minutes, the woman looked up and said, “I must say Atherleah, these results are almost off the charts. If I didn’t know better, I’d almost suggest you had some way to spoof the system. I took the liberty of having our system tested by virtual security, and they assure me that there is no evidence of tampering whatsoever. I’ll authorise the global changes to your avatar and would appreciate being present should you wish to visit us here in Adventure World again. Denise will now update your Avatar.”

  Denise said, “Leah, please stand in front of this mirror and you can see the changes to your body scan.”

  Leah saw her slender avatar and then watched as over a period of seconds her muscles became more defined and increased a little in size. Her shoulder’s broadened a little and she could see what others described as a six pack develop on her exposed stomach. Her head was now covered in three weeks’ hair growth. She said to Denise, “Can you remove the hair?”

  “Certainly! In fact, that is the only change I am allowed to make.”

  Once that was finished Denise said, “If you want any personal training, and I cannot see why you would need any, then please come back to Adventure World and we will try and help you achieve your goals.”

  “Thanks Denise.”

  Leah dressed in her original clothing and then headed out into the main hall of Adventure World. Thad was waiting and said, “Wow, you’ve obviously been working out since you had your initial scans.”

  Leah checked Thad out and could also see some changes. She said, “You too I see, bit more definition here and there.”

  “Yes. The way I’ve been playing has certainly meant the games are more physical. Also I’ve been pushing myself. Now what would you like to do?”

  After discussing it for a while they eventually went skydiving and then white water rafting followed by skiing. Leah had never done any of these before and had an amazing time. When it came time to leave she said, “That was wonderful Thad, I really enjoyed it.
Thanks for asking me.” She reached up and dragged him down for a long kiss and then faded from view as she logged out.

  Arriving back in the Tower she said, “Gèng, if you want any ideas of what to add to the Tower I’d love a mountain somewhere that I can ski on. Maybe surround the valley with some high snowy peaks and we can go skiing.”

  “I’ve already begun researching the possibilities after I saw how much you enjoyed that. Dr Roberts and I looked at the new parameters you were given and your base level has increased by over thirty percent. You will probably find that you’re at least that much faster and stronger in Dunyanin now.”

  Leah arrived in the suite of rooms at the Forge and started the day by getting a few buckets of meat scraps and sent word for Korumak. While she waited, she used the Doubling Box to create another vial of growth hormone which she poured over the meat. When she and Korumak were outside, she released the dragon and let her feed. While Mìng was eating, Leah released Mĕi and after playing for a moment let her loose to go hunt. After Mìng had finished eating, Leah got to her knees and began to play gently with the Dragon. She said in Dragon Tongue, “Mìng, have you eaten enough?”

  “Yes. Itch.”

  “Where is it itchy?”

  “Skin.”

  Leah began to gently scratch Mìng across her back and heard, “Harder.”

  Turning to Korumak, she said, “Could you find a hard brush for me? I don’t think my hands are quite hard enough.”

  While he went to get a brush, she began scratching hard along the spine. Mìng said, “Scratch more.”

  When Korumak returned she began to groom the little dragon, who leant into the wire brush. Several small scales came loose, but when Leah checked the area, she could see new growth underneath. She quickly moved Mìng inside so they could sweep up the scales. Finally finished, she was surprised when Korumak handed her a small bottle of oil. He said, “I think this might help prevent the wings from drying out and it might help with the itching.”