Otherlife Nightmares: The Selfless Hero Trilogy

by William D. Arand

  Remembering their duel back in Faren, he sharpened the tip to a fine point. Finishing the work, he also gave it an Intelligence binding. Thana’s job was to blow shit up, and it was his job to make that easier for her.

  He set the finished crown on the table and picked up the red cloth wrapping they’d bought in Crivel. Wrapping the butt of the staff tightly in the cloth, he applied a touch of the Agility-enchanted epoxy. He’d been using it for the handles of swords and daggers, but it would do just fine in holding the wrapping in place.

  Winding it in an upward spiraling pattern, he rotated the staff in his hands. Stopping two feet up the shaft, he wound a foot-long section of the material for a hand grip. He bound it tightly and touched the ends with another brushing of epoxy.

  Rolling the staff, he continued to wind the cloth for another foot before creating another wrapped section of cloth. Once more he spiraled it around towards the tip. Tucking it firmly over the tip, he touched it with yet more epoxy, then quickly joined the red crown to the tip and tightened it up.

  Thumping the butt of the staff into the ground, he inspected his work. Far from beautiful, it felt dark, sinister almost, to him. The bright red of the wrapping just made the metal all the darker.

  Frowning, he shook his head. He was no artist. He would have been far better off asking for help. Too late now though.

  He picked up the newly fashioned headpiece, fit it into the grooves of the connecting crown, and rotated it until it clicked.

  A feeling of vertigo washed over him, and he pressed a hand to his head.

  I have returned. You must be more careful. That nearly disconnected you.

  A brassy gong sounded in his head. It wasn’t a noise he’d heard in the game up to this point. The vertigo faded away slowly, and he was able to lift his head. Peering around the room, he found nothing had changed. Nadine and Hannah were still in the other room, more than likely sleeping or rooting around through the clothes.

  “Disconnected? Would it have exited me from the server?”

  Yes. I fixed the server call.

  “I see. I take it I’ve been pushing the code and server a bit too hard? Wait. Are you the reason I’ve been able to break so many rules? Why the game is going further from its original settings?”

  Yes, yes, and yes.

  “Right, then. Safe to assume the server will interpret what I did in the same way in the future?”

  Correct. It has associated the request you made to the unique artifact creation. It did not match any existing parameters. This was the closest to what you just did.

  “Ah, I see.” Runner felt a cold fist clutching his heart. He owed Srit a considerable amount then. “Thank you, Srit, I appreciate your timely return. Did I interrupt something?”

  Yes. They had many questions.

  “I see. Please consider me in your debt. I had no idea you’d been working for me this entire time. Now, let’s see what we have…”

  Runner tapped the server messages that had appeared with the gong.

  Congratulations! Server first: Unique item creation

  You’ve earned 500 fame

  Congratulations! Server first: Artifact item creation

  You’ve earned 500 fame

  You’re now Acclaimed

  He closed the server messages and checked on his newly made staff.

  Item:

  Effects-

  None:

  Functions-

  Fade: Temporarily reduce your threat level.

  Silence: Interrupt and prevent an opponent’s spell casting.

  Cleanse: Remove negative physical status effects.

  Distract: Attracts the nearby attention of anyone inside the target area.

  Cooldown: 30 seconds

  Attributes-

  Intelligence: 30

  Agility: 3

  There were no damage indicators in Otherlife Dreams. All damage was calculated through your stats and any multipliers your classes would add to it.

  Not that it matters to me, when I can put thirty points of a stat on an item.

  The number of functions alone would have put this item in the Unique or Artifact category. The massive amount of intelligence was the equivalent of thirty levels to boot. Put simply, it was OP and shouldn’t be in the game. At all.

  Yet it needed a name. A name suitable to Lady Death.

  The End? Scythe? Your End? Boomstick?

  I request answers.

  “Oh? Fair enough. I’m stuck right now anyways. Names are hard.”

  The front of your ship was destroyed. All who were there are dead. Only a fraction of the pods were in use.

  “And? I didn’t detect a question in all of that,” Runner said, covering for his momentary shock. The officers were dead. Many questions remained, but he at least knew the officers weren’t a part of this.

  Why were there so many pods unused?

  “This is an enlisted ship. Almost all of the commissioned officers were in another transport. The few we had on board were merely here to organize reentry, formation, and supply delivery. If you don’t mind me asking, were you able to determine the cause of the damage?”

  Runner set the staff aside and began pulling parts for a new shield for Katarina out. His inventory was nearly as full as when he’d first logged in. Bits and bobs of unmade items that Nadine or he had purchased.

  Strength increased the amount you could carry for every point you had. For people like Katarina, who would be lugging around heavy armor, this was a must. For casters it would feel like a waste of points.

  In fact, if it hadn’t been for the minimum carry weight every character had, he would have been terribly encumbered.

  He’d never have gotten away from Yeller, gotten up that tree, or even survived.

  Undetermined. Damage is indicative of an explosion from the inside of the hull.

  “That leaves sabotage, boarding, or system malfunction. Probably caused a chain reaction, too. Not a betting man, but my money would be on sabotage. It’s the most likely scenario. Middle of the projected route, least likely to get assistance, assumed MIA, unconfirmed space disaster.” Runner huffed as he finished. Wouldn’t have been the first time sympathizers attempted to help a planet liberate itself.

  He placed the handles, straps, frame, and interlocking plates to one side. Touching each piece, he confirmed he had everything needed for the build out of a heater shield.

  Why are there members of your crew that have no brain activity?

  Blinking rapidly, Runner laid the silver base frame of the shield in front of him. A quick Spellbinding of Stoneskin finished the piece. Runner harrumphed lightly and scratched at his cheek.

  “Complicated question. Too long; didn’t read, answer? I can only guess the crew was loaded into the game when the medical server failed. The medical server is what keeps people from going insane in stasis during a long trip. Far as I can tell”—he paused, fit one of the plates into the base, and tapped it with a fingertip—“the game server was loaded into the mainframe directly. A lot of its functions are similar to that of the medical server. The game itself was originally created as a therapeutic tool.”

  Picking up the plate, he focused on it for a moment to Spellbind it with Constitution. Upon completion he set it back into the base.

  “It hosts the minds of its users, separates out memories that are too hard to handle, and only provides it back to them according to treatment. In this case, it separated out everyone’s memories entirely, then broke them into leveling groups. No idea why—my guess would be it was just too much information for it to handle correctly.”

  Picking up another plate, he bound it with Constitution as well and then set it into the base, next to the first.

  “Why do we go brain dead when we die in game? I don’t honestly know. I can’t imagine it was intentional, unless it was the only way they could load us into the game at all. Not to mention the game didn’t even start until you got involved. I would wager they hadn’t expect
ed the game to turn on.”

  I understand. I am sorry. I did not mean to start it.

  “It’s not really something to worry over. To be fair, you could have just as easily killed everyone on accident. I’m still surprised you were able to get in.”

  The third and fourth plate also received Constitution bindings. Once all four quarters were in the base, he cocked his head to the side. Arcane Smithing let him sharpen a blade, what about welding?

  “Srit, I’m going to do something dumb. Might line up with Arcane Smithing. Maybe. Possibly?”

  Activating yet not releasing Fire, he targeted the grooves between the plates and focused on heating the channels through Arcane Smithing.

  I see. It will connect without my assistance. The path was created previously.

  Quirking a brow, he felt a grin spread across his face. Srit just presented more info than he’d ever hoped to have. It meant Srit could truly see the code as it came, where it was going, and what databases it touched.

  With a light chime, the plates sealed into place and became solid. Four dark gray plates rested in the base.

  “Fantastic. Alright, Srit. Next question?” Runner said. He picked up the two border accents and set them down in their would-be positions. They were simple metal bars with a size no wider than a pinkie finger. Silver in color and beveled, they were meant to run between the plates and around the edge of the shield entirely.

  You ejected one of your crew.

  Runner froze, his fingers resting on a border accent. He surreptitiously checked his surroundings to confirm he was still alone. Forcing himself into action, he bound the two border pieces with Challenge and Interrupt.

  “That I did,” he said, his voice tight.

  Why?

  “He would have killed Hanners.”

  With a flash of Fire, he bound the borders into the shield, then flipped it over, picked up the remaining parts, and dumped them into the hollow of the shield.

  Hannah cannot die. She is an NPC. She would be deleted. Your statement is false.

  “Rather than answer that, I’m going to ask you a question. Do you want to be deleted, Srit?” Setting the forearm rest and hand grip into place, he bound it with Stamina, then Arcane Smith welded it to the shield.

  That is not part of my programming. My host handled all questions of morality and sentience.

  “Oh? I would ask you this then—who is your host now? As far as I’m aware, you have no host. Do you want to be deleted? Until you can answer that, I cannot answer your own question.”

  Picking up the strap, he swiftly ran it through the forearm rest and tightened it. Throwing a quick binding of Constitution into it, he sealed it into place with the Agility epoxy and finished the shield.

  The low gong sounded once more in his head.

  I will attempt to meet your requirements.

  Nodding his head, Runner inspected his work.

  Item:

  Effects-

  Stoneskin: Armor increased by 15

  Functions-

  Challenge: Every opponent in range will be forced to attack the caster

  Interrupt: Interrupt an opponent’s spell casting

  Cooldown: 30 seconds

  Attributes-

  Constitution: 33

  Agility: 3

  Drained from the conversation with Srit and the abrupt reminder of Ted, he really didn’t want to talk to anyone further. While he could admit to himself he’d take Ted’s life again, it didn’t assuage the guilt for doing it.

  “That’s it for now, Srit. I’m afraid I’m a bit drained. Going to take a nap.”

  Getting up, he collected the shield and staff. With a negligent flip of his fingers, he moved them into his inventory. Entering the bedroom, he aimed for the bed.

  Hannah and Nadine were still in the gigantic wardrobe, sorting through a truly massive amount of clothes.

  “Taking a short nap. Wake me when it’s over. I like red and black for colors if they’re available. Nadine, if you get a chance to make deals, do it,” he said to them.

  And with that, Runner collapsed into the bed and immediately fell asleep.

  4:47pm Sovereign Earth time

  11/06/43

  Runner, Hannah, and Nadine stood close together in a waiting room. They’d been shepherded there nearly twenty minutes ago. The room was much in the same fashion as the rest and empty besides them. A large door stood opposite the smaller one they’d entered from, and they could hear the clamor of voices from the other side.

  It would seem the king wanted them to appear in a certain fashion, at the time of his choosing. Runner would tolerate it as long as it went along with his plans for them. Social functions weren’t his thing.

  “Stop fucking with it already,” Hannah grumped at him.

  Frowning, he pulled at the collar of the black coat he wore. Hannah and Nadine had done as he asked—they found him black and red alright, though it was a bit flashier than he’d expected. Or wanted.

  Glancing over to the mirror beside the large door, he gave himself a once-over to make sure he hadn’t actually mussed himself.

  His black hair was pulled straight back and his face was devoid of facial hair. Leaning in closer to the mirror, he adjusted the red vest to sit correctly over his shoulders. A white shirt sat underneath the vest, which happened to be the problem.

  “I never liked my dress uniform and I care for this even less,” Runner said, pulling at the shirt again.

  “Stop it. You’ll m-m-mess it up. Hold still,” said Nadine, lightly slapping his hands away from the rumpled collar. Her hands came up and deftly began to straighten everything out to its proper state.

  Self-consciously, he smiled at the merchant queen. He wasn’t even sure how he’d managed to mess up his clothes. It might be worth asking Srit about it. Maybe, even now, the server was still undergoing changes.

  “Thanks, Rabbit.”

  Glaring at him from under blonde eyebrows, she didn’t respond. Instead she patted the vest collar down smooth and stepped back from him.

  The door near the back of the room popped open and in stepped a castle servant.

  “Excuse me, sir, shortly you will be announced and the doors will open. Please step in, acknowledge the king, and then enjoy the reception as you will.”

  Much like last time, the man gave them no chance or time to ask questions and stepped back out of the room.

  “Assholes, the whole fucking lot of them. I’m not some trained poodle to do as instructed.”

  “But you’d look so good with little ringlets,” Runner said with a snicker. Gesturing to the mirror, he continued. “Right then. Give yourself a last look. Sounds like we’re the main event.”

  Hannah had dressed herself similarly to Runner, forgoing a dress for a red vest, white undershirt, and dark slacks. He wasn’t sure if it was the game designers’ intent or not, but the same clothes looked very different on Hannah than they did on him.

  Nadine was dressed in a more traditional fashion. A lightweight, cropped red jacket covered her shoulders and neckline. Beneath that, she wore a black dress that came down to her ankles.

  “Fucking die so I can be rid of you. Preferably in a way that I can laugh at,” Hannah said.

  “But you’d miss me and the adventure. Since when have you ever had so much fun before?”

  Nadine laughed at that and shook her head, her blonde hair unmoving. She had fixed it in an up-do fashion above her head.

  “Children, be good. We’re about to be an-n-n-nounced.”

  Smirking, Runner did as he was told and clasped his hands behind his back at rest. The clamor of voices died out, to be replaced by the deep voice of a herald.

  “His Majesty presents Runner Norwood, the individual who rescued his dear niece.”

  “Bullshit, not his niece at all.”

  “Shut it. Royalty consider themselves related to other royalty.”

  “What kind of stupid shit is that?”

  The doo
rs in front of them swung open, revealing the large reception hall inside.

  Every head in the room turned, staring at him, weighing him. Judging him.

  Plastering his best officer’s smile on his face, Runner stepped into the room. Struggling with the pressure of the attention, he found his mind wandering a bit. He did his best to use his high-level charm and persuade on everyone around him.

  Reaching a suitable distance inside, he promptly turned towards the king and bowed at the waist. After pausing for several seconds, he stood back up, making sure to keep his eyes on the king until he visually dismissed him.

  He was dressed resplendently but had belted a sword at his hip. In the whole of the room, he was the only person armed other than the guards.

  Memories of similar power plays amongst the commissioned officers rattled around in the back of his head. He wondered if the ship the officers had ridden made it planet side or if they had suffered sabotage, same as his ship.

  Not like it matters. Even if they made it, they’re long dead.

  Finally, the king nodded his head to Runner. Runner respectfully nodded his head in thanks, turned, and immediately dove into the largest crowd he could find. Nadine and Hannah would be fine on their own.

  Walking through the crowd as conversations returned, Runner concealed himself in the mob for the better part of a minute before exiting from the other side.

  There were no decorations, nothing to signify anything out of the ordinary, and the band that played in the background looked as if they’d done this gig a million times.