It still hurt, though. It didn’t help that he was facing down a seven-foot-tall bull man who could swing the sword with blinding speed.
However, he got better as the morning wore on.
“It takes energy to block,” Simik yelled from the sidelines. “If all you do is block, you waste energy. A powerful opponent will eventually wear you down if all you do is block. If you can dodge, do it. You save your energy while he expends his.
“When your enemy strikes, he has to commit at full speed – which means he can’t change his direction. You CAN, and you can do it in a fraction of the time it takes him. It comes down to timing. Speed is good – but timing is better.”
“When am I going to learn to hit?” Daniel complained after he was finally able to dodge about 90% of the strikes.
“Fine. You want to learn to hit, let’s learn to hit.”
Suddenly, a new text box appeared onscreen.
Congratulations! You have survived 24 hours of Game Time in the Shattered Lands, and are accustomed to full sensory immersion. You are now able to change your race and physical aspects if you wish. Would you like to make changes?
Yes / No
“Can we take a break real quick?” Daniel asked.
“First he wants to hit, now he wants to take a break,” the dwarf muttered loudly. He wasn’t talking to himself so much as insulting Daniel in the third person.
“Just a minute, that’s all.”
“Fine. Gorth, chamk.”
The Taurian flopped down on the grass, and Daniel hit ‘Yes’ on the text box.
Immediately the entire world around him faded away. He was back in the ‘White Room’ where he had selected his clothes before entering the game for the first time.
“Welcome back, Daniel,” the female computer voice said. “You have survived 24 hours of Game Time in the Shattered Lands. Would you like to change your character’s race? You can choose from 15 distinct species. Any changes you make will not be noticed by Non-Player Characters – they will treat you as though nothing has changed. Only other regular players you have already interacted with will notice. If your appearance is different enough, you might have to reintroduce yourself to other players.”
A grid of pictures appeared in front of him mid-air, with the names of the races beneath. There were elves, dark elves, dwarves, goblins, gnomes, Taurians, wolf-creatures, bear-creatures, aquatic creatures, and a whole host of others.
He considered showing back up as a Taurian for a moment just to be evenly matched with Gorth, but then decided against it.
“No, I’m fine with being human,” he said.
The grid of pictures disappeared.
“Excellent choice. Would you like to change your physical characteristics?”
Another grid of choices came up with options like height, weight, body fat index, hair color, hair length, skin color, and eye color. There were color grids and sliders to change appearance, and a picture of Daniel on the side along with his stats like Strength, Endurance, and Dexterity.
“I think I’d like to be taller…” he mused, and reached out to touch the corresponding slider.
He increased his height by over a foot, and suddenly the digital picture of himself grew taller but also super-skinny.
“That’s not good,” he muttered, and added another 50 pounds.
Suddenly his Dexterity stats fell dramatically.
“What?” he exclaimed.
“Any change in physical characteristics has the possibility of changing core statistics,” the computer voice intoned. “For instance, a character that weighs more will move slower until they build their Strength and Dexterity stats up again.”
“Great,” Daniel muttered, and spent the next few minutes experimenting with changes.
One of the funniest combinations was one he did just to see what he would look like. He made himself 6’6”, a hundred pounds heavier, and changed his body fat index to 5%.
He looked all Hulked-out and ripped as hell, with what looked like 12-pack abs – but his Dexterity was cut in half, and his Strength only improved marginally.
“Don’t want to be a tank,” he muttered.
Also, a message appeared below the ‘Body Fat’ scale that warned him, ‘Very low percentages of body fat will diminish Endurance, both in energy stores and in colder environments.’
“Don’t want to freeze to death in the mountains,” he murmured, raising his body fat percentage back to around 12% – enough for six-pack abs.
Eventually he settled on a few inches taller and about 30 pounds more in muscle along with the drop in body fat. That only caused a few points drop in Dexterity, but gained him a couple in Strength and Endurance. And he lengthened his hair a bit, too.
He laughed a little bit when he realized that the game didn’t have the option to lengthen something else.
“Done,” he said.
“Are you sure? All changes are final.”
“Yes.”
The grid of options disappeared.
“Thank you, Daniel. We now return you to the game in progress.”
The white void faded into the Court of Mercenaries, and suddenly sound and movement came back like pushing ‘Play’ on an online movie.
Daniel looked down at his new body in wonder. He swung his wooden sword and noticed how his biceps rippled. He couldn’t tell a difference in speed, and every movement felt the same as before, so that was good.
He even lifted up his shirt and admired his new abs.
“Alright, pretty boy, time to stop admiring yourself and get back to work,” Simik snapped. “Gorth!”
Daniel watched the Taurian stride on over, but this time he wasn’t concerned.
“Take two,” he grinned as he waded into battle.
30
Eric
Eric experimented with the grid of options in the white room. He’d already decided to stay human. He added a bit of extra height and weight, but the muscle and physical power did nothing to help his mana, which is all he really cared about, so he kept the changes minimal.
Then he saved and came back to the game.
Cythera was in the middle of explaining something about the Demonomicon.
“You should have more pages available to you now,” she said. “Having successfully summoned the simplest of the demons, the book should reveal more of its secrets to you.”
Eric flipped through the book. She was right – words in the next chapter were visible to him, along with new drawings, although over 95% of the pages were still blank.
This was going to take forever with only 100 mana points.
Oh, no, wait – he’d gained 5 for getting to Level 2.
Whoopee.
“How do I get more mana?” he asked.
“Practice. As you summon demons of a higher order, your own power will grow, as well as your control over the mana you have.”
“Is there a shortcut?” he asked impatiently. “A way to get more mana faster?”
She paused and looked at him, as though deciding whether to tell him something. Then she finally spoke.
“There are ways…”
31
Daniel
As the sun dipped down behind the castle wall and the end of the day drew closer, Daniel realized that the dwarf had told him the truth: he was consistently able to beat his sparring partner.
He had learned to dodge the bull-man’s blows the majority of the time so that the Taurian was rarely able to hit him anymore. When he couldn’t dodge, he would block or parry – and when he parried, he would thrust with his sword and often jab Gorth in the gut. His slashing attacks had improved immensely, also.
The majority of rounds, Daniel walked away the victor.
Speed and timing – but mostly timing.
It was almost time to quit when Mira showed up with a bizarre entourage in tow.
First off was a gigantic bodybuilder type dressed in a loincloth and shaggy boots, with two massive teeth jutting upwards from his bot
tom lip.
Then there was a goblin, short as Simik but green-skinned under a woolen hood.
Lastly was one of the aquatic creatures Daniel had seen on the character grid in the White Room – a lanky, scaly, fish-faced creature. It looked almost comical with its gaping mouth and round, staring eyes on either side of its head.
Daniel noticed them coming from a mile away. It was hard not to.
“Hey – can we take a break?” Daniel asked Simik. “This is my crew for questing… I think.”
Simik looked at the group with disdain. “A ‘crew’? Looks more like a joke. ‘A goblin, a droth, and a Hurokian barbarian walked into a bar…’”
Daniel figured a droth was the fish-faced creature.
“Yeah, yeah,” he said, and walked over to meet Mira. “So… these the guys?”
“Yeah,” she said with something less than enthusiasm. “Allow me to introduce Drogar the barbarian.”
“Vhat is up, doot,” said the barbarian in an Eastern European accent.
What is up, dude.
Daniel raised his eyebrows.
“He’s Romanian,” Mira explained, then whispered, “I think he learned to speak English from B movies.”
“Okay…”
“And this is Vlisil the Goblin.”
“Careful, human, or I will shred the meat from your limbs and pick my teeth with your bones,” the green creature hissed in an overly dramatic voice.
“Uh-huh,” Daniel said, not impressed, and looked at the fish creature. “And this is?”
“Lotan the Droth,” Mira finished.
“I want to go somewhere with water,” the fish-creature said in an incredibly whiny voice.
“…uh, okay…”
“That’s what I want. A water-based environment.”
“Yeah, I heard you – ”
“I totally optimized my performance for water-based quests – ”
“GOT IT,” Daniel said abruptly, then turned back to Mira.
“Sorry,” she whispered. “It’s sort of slim pickings out there.”
“Really?” he said, and looked around at the crowed fields of the Court of Mercenaries. “But there’s so many people…”
“Most of them are complete noobs with no skills, and the rest don’t have any money. I figured you didn’t want a bunch of total freeloaders. These guys at least have fairly good weapons.”
That much was true. The barbarian had a giant battle ax slung on his back, the goblin had a nasty-looking sickle, and the fish-guy had a wavy-bladed sword.
Mira’s voice shifted to a tone of disgust. “Plus, there’s a downside to looking like this,” she said, gesturing to her body, “that I didn’t anticipate. You get a bunch of assholes who say they want to go questing with you but are really just looking to cop a feel.”
“Oh… yeah, that could be a problem,” Daniel admitted. “But maybe – ”
“Instant disqualifier,” she said in a tone of voice that implied it wasn’t up for discussion.
Daniel sighed. “Okay. So… I guess this is our crew, then.”
“Eric’s going, too, right?” she asked excitedly.
“Yeah – he’s the one who told me to set it up.”
“Cool!” Mira chirped, then leaned to the side and peered around Daniel. “Are those guys in, too?”
Daniel looked around at Simik and Gorth. “No, I – ”
Suddenly he got an idea.
“Hold on a second,” he said to Mira, then headed for the dwarf.
He wasn’t interested in the Gorth the Taurian. The group already had a ‘tank’ – the barbarian. Daniel didn’t really want another strongman, especially when he couldn’t understand anything the bull-man said.
Plus his experience in past RPG quests had taught him that if you put two huge guys together in a group, ultimately they started fighting – not arguing, actual fighting – over who was more badass. Never failed.
So that was a big fat ‘no’ on Gorth.
But a seasoned combat veteran who could teach him sword fighting every day…?
That would be worth it.
He wasn’t sure if an NPC would go on a quest in this game, but he figured there wasn’t any harm in asking.
Suddenly, a text box appeared:
New Quest: Convince Simik to join you on your adventure.
Challenge Level: Difficult
Reward: extended sword training and a decidedly easier trip
Punishment for Failure: a FAR more difficult trip
Aha. So he was on the right track.
“Hey Simik,” Daniel said.
“Are you finished wasting time with your friends?” the dwarf snapped. “The sun goes down in less than an hour, and I’m not staying out here a minute more.”
“That’s sort of what I wanted to ask about. We’re all going on a quest – ”
“Hope you don’t die,” the dwarf interrupted.
“Uh… thanks. Anyway – ”
“You won’t die first, anyway. I’d place odds on the droth.”
Again, Daniel decided to just cut to the chase. “How would you feel about going with us?”
“I’d sooner shit spiked maces. Now go get your sword – ”
“I’m serious,” Daniel said.
“So am I.”
“Come on. You’ll get one seventh of any treasure we find – plus I’ll pay you a gold coin every day to keep teaching me.”
“Six members in the group, and only one seventh of the haul? How generous,” the dwarf sneered.
“I have a friend who’s going with us, too. A mage.” Daniel paused. “Well, he’s going to be a mage. I mean, he wants to be one… hopefully he’s a mage by now…”
Simik looked at him in contempt and shook his head. “Wonderful. A non-mage mage. More fools to babysit – and for a whole seventh of a cut of the haul.”
Daniel thought about it for a second, then decided he didn’t really need any treasure they found. He wanted experience and training more. “Okay, two sevenths – you can have my cut. That’s more than anybody else in the group. And I’ll pay all your expenses, too.”
The dwarf was silent for a moment, which Daniel took as a good sign.
Although that turned out to be a bit premature.
“Why the hell would I want to come with you?” the dwarf asked gruffly.
“We could use a guide with your experience. And I’d like to continue my training.”
“That’s why you would want ME to come with you. But why the hell would I want to go?”
“Adventure!”
“I’ve had enough of that to last a lifetime. And I’m talking about a dwarf’s lifetime, not one of your short human lives.”
“Treasure, then.”
“I’ve lost more treasure than you’ll ever find, boy. I’m content just sitting here reading my books, thank you very much.”
Daniel frowned, racking his brain…
And then he had the answer.
“To get away from your wife,” he said. “You can read on horseback, right?”
“Mrm,” the dwarf grunted.
Daniel grinned. He had him, he knew it – but rather than give Simik a chance to say ‘no,’ Daniel just assumed it was a ‘yes’ and pressed on. “Can you get us seven horses if I give you the money?”
The dwarf didn’t answer immediately. For a second, Daniel was afraid he’d lost him again.
Then Simik grumbled, “Depending on how far you want to go, we’ll need pack horses, too.”
Success! You have convinced Simik to join your quest – ensuring a dramatically easier trip, more sword training, and a higher probability of returning alive.
Persuasion: +2
Insight: +1
Inwardly Daniel was shouting YES!
But outwardly he was just as calm as before. “How many for, say, a five-day journey?”
“Three at least.”
“Alright, get ten horses, then.”
“That’s an awful lot of money,”
the dwarf said pessimistically. “Fifty gold pieces at least.”
Daniel did a mental inventory of the bag he’d hidden on the rooftop. “Will diamonds and emeralds work, too?”
The dwarf frowned. “…yes.”
“Then it won’t be a problem.”
The dwarf suddenly grabbed Daniel’s arm and steered him away from the group.
“How does it come that a complete newcomer such as yourself has a small fortune, hm?” the dwarf asked in a low voice.
Daniel thought of the old man in the mansion, the way he’d looked as he died – and shuddered.
“I just… came into some money,” he said quietly. “By luck.”
The dwarf shook his head grimly. “If you got this money from ill gains – ”
“I told you, I’m trying not to be that person,” Daniel insisted. “I… I want to start over.”
The dwarf looked him in the eyes for the longest time… then harrumphed. “Fine. I can have it all ready for the morning. But I’m not fronting any money. I’ll just arrange everything, and then you pay.”
“Fine, we’ll do it in the morning.”
Suddenly a text box appeared:
Note: you have spent four and a half hours of Real World Time in the Shattered Lands. This is your thirty-minute warning. You must log out soon for at least 30 minutes of Real World Time. Failure to log out will result in a mandatory lock-out of one hour of Real World Time.
“Crap,” Daniel muttered. No wonder I feel so tired – it’s been almost 18 game hours since we started playing!
Wait… 18 hours…
Daniel did a quick calculation in his head, then turned to Mira. “Hey – what time is it back in the real world?”
Mira swiped her wrist and stared blankly into the distance. Daniel knew she was checking her own text readout.
“It’s after 10PM,” she said.
“Damn it,” Daniel swore.
“What, are you insane?” the dwarf asked, incensed. “It’s not after ten – it’s barely sundown!”
Shattered Lands: A LitRPG Series Page 15