She sat up and the sheet slid down to reveal her luxuriantly naked body. Aria noticed her nudity then blinked. "Ah, that's right I should put on some clothes."
Aria started to retrieve the clothing that she had worn before, but a thought occurred to her. A goofy little grin crossed her lips and she bit her lower lip a little. "Scott's closet..."
She moved to where her man-candy kept his clothes and looked through his selection. She chose a plain white button up shirt then giggled warmly. She slid it on and buttoned it up before going to the bathroom mirror to check it out.
Aria fluffed her vibrant blue hair and turned from side to side. "This is it, isn't it?"
It was a moment like in a movie where the girlfriend wears her boyfriend's shirt the morning after they make love. "Wow, if I had a cup of hot chocolate and a shameful smile this would be almost perfect!"
After a moment she giggled once more. Then danced in her eyes and she bit her lower lip a little before she exclaimed. "Well, why not!"
She practically pranced as she headed toward the kitchen. A few minutes later she sat at the kitchen table while wearing nothing but her finance's shirt and her amused smile. She sipped at her beverage then sighed warmly. "So shameless." Her smile widened three sizes after saying it.
There was only one more way to make this little morning scene perfect, but sadly it was not to be. It would require the aid of a second party and that just would not happen. Aria laughed at her silly thought, but then her eyes widened when the doorbell rang. "No way!"
In the perfect morning after scenario she would run into Scott's old fiancé right now. Did she dare go to the door wearing only Scott's shirt? It could not possibly be Sarah at the door, but the idea of it happening was so delightful that it could not be helped. "Well, it would be rude not to answer..."
Aria giggled sweetly then pranced over to the door. It was probably the mail man or one of those nice people who wanted to bring the house owner the good news about their god even though sending an e-mail would be faster.
The doorbell rang again and Aria spent a moment tousling her hair in just the right way. "Do I look appropriately scandalous?" She grinned. This would be great! "I wonder who it is?"
Aria opened the door with a bright smile on her lips and she cheerfully said, "Hello, may I help y—"
She stopped cold. On the other side of the door was the person she had least expected.
The blond woman on the other side blinked then leaned away in surprise. She took in the sight before her, the sight of a blue haired woman wearing a shirt that was obviously too big for her. It did not take much thought to realize what was happening. "Where's Scott?"
"He's not here right now." said Aria. The scenario was no longer as cute and whimsical as before. If anything it had killed the mood.
"Oh." the blond woman said. "Uh, who.... Are you?"
Aria saw no harm in telling the truth. "I'm Aria, Scott's fiancé. Who may I say asked for him?"
"Fiancé... He, a fiancé?" She asked slowly as though the words did not process properly. It had been a little over nine months since she had last seen him, but this was a shock either way.
"Yes, we are so in love it would make most people sick." said Aria in a friendly tone. She then hugged herself and laughed. "He's just wonderful."
Sarah grunted a little then started to say something, but Aria continued with a girlish giggle, her eyes wide and innocent. "And wow, when we make love I feel like the Earth shakes."
Sarah's left eyebrow twitched slightly and she made a coughing sound. "Yeah, uh... I just. He hasn't been answering my text messages and I wanted to talk to him."
"Oh? About what?" asked Aria with a pretty smile.
"That's not really... It's our business."
"We have no secrets from each other." said Aria, a little tenseness appearing in her tone. "It was one of the early issues in the relationship. Something about his old fiancé cheating on him on the night they were engaged, or something. What a pathetic whore, right?"
If Scott had heard Aria speaking in this manner he would have been quite scandalized. She never spoke this way around him. Normally she was quite sweet and endearing. At the moment she was quite salty and perhaps a little spicy.
"Did he say that last part?" asked Sarah, her face becoming a tight mask of anger.
"I don't know, she's not important now. I should thank her, though. If she wasn't such a cheating bitch, I would never have gotten a chance to be with my Scott." Aria sighed dramatically then hugged her hands to her chest. "We've been ever so happy."
Sarah looked like she could spit fire after hearing that. Her teeth began to grind a little. "How old are you anyway? You look like a teenager!"
"Well, yes. I should. I'm eighteen. Wait, or am I nineteen?" Aria acquired a thoughtful expression. "Hmm, twenty maybe?"
"You don't even know how old you are?" asked Sarah with a snort.
"I've been so busy being in love with my Scott that I've lost track of the seasons." She smiled prettily. "Either way, I'm in the prime of my life and quite capable of handling his voracious sexual appetite during our many hours of love making."
She reacquired her thoughtful expression. "My, is it voracious!"
"Damned pedophile." muttered Sarah.
"Hmm? Why would you say that? Do I look like a child to you? I own my own house and everything." said Aria sweetly.
"Then why aren't you in it?" muttered Sarah heatedly.
"Well, it's right there." Aria pointed to the house next door. Sarah glanced over to it then her eyebrow began to twitch again.
Aria blinked. "Oh wait, you wanted to tell my Scott about something?
"Look, it doesn't concern you. I want to talk to Scott." said Sarah with a little more heat creeping into her voice. Fiancé or not, this child kept referring to Scott as hers like she was bragging. It grated heavily on Sarah's nerves.
"Well, my fiancé's not here, but if you want me to take a message I can do that." said Aria.
"Can you put some clothes on first?" asked Sarah with a frown.
"That would be silly. We plan to make love all day when he returns. The scented massage oil might not wash out easily." Aria touched her index finger to her chin and acquired a vacant expression. "It could be a while before he comes back, though."
"Fuck it! Fine... just tell him that Sa—" The girl stopped for a moment then a crafty look came into her eyes. "Just tell him that he has a son, and to call me."
Aria blinked then her jaw dropped open. "A son?"
"Yeah, didn't tell you that did he?" Sarah smirked at the shirt-clad woman then walked off. She was incredibly pleased with herself. That would teach the big-knockered slut a lesson about messing with her.
Aria was momentarily distraught then glared at the woman walking away in the distance. She did not even try to hide it when she brought up a menu screen, scanned Sarah, and checked her associations. Her eyes narrowed and she looked like she wanted to rip a certain someone in half. "Lying woman. Scott's not the father at all."
Sarah got into a beat up old station wagon and pulled out of the drive way. She smiled viciously at Aria as she drove away.
"The Joker was right. Sometimes you just wanna watch the world burn." muttered Aria while she stared daggers at the fleeing woman. At the very least it would be nice if some people burned just a little.
~*~
The Field of New Beginnings was a place where time stood still. That did not mean that someone could stay there forever unless they simply wanted to hide from the world. Scott had learned first-hand that he was incapable of remaining in the tutorial area if he wanted to become stronger. His first fight in the new world had been a true disaster.
"So, you're ready to move on?" asked Mid with a warm smile, but a sad tone of voice.
"Yes. I don't really know what to do about creating more skills here. My stats are high enough, but I can't increase my skill level enough to help me focus on development of my spells." said Scott. He had only m
anaged to create three spells in his time there, none of them were combat grade abilities. He could create a stable light spell after working on his original unstable orb of brilliance for a while. He had an ability that allowed him to start a small camp fire over time. He could also wrap Earth elemental energy around his body to slightly increase his toughness. It did nothing toward stopping an attack, but he would be able to travel the wilds without taking minor scratches from bramble thorns and similar things.
Scott would love to stay in the field and learn a lot more spells over time, but every time he even tried to do so his headache would increase in ferocity. Until he could gain a few combat levels, he was unable to train properly. That was the limitation of the beginner area. Otherwise, newcomers would never leave.
"Makes sense. You have done as much as you can here. Would you like to be sent to a tutorial dungeon near the city that you chose? It might help you learn the way of the world further? It's a fairly simple place and you will be able to develop your combat ability." said Mid.
"That sounds good, but what if I die there?" asked Scott.
"It's an instanced dungeon that is part of the tutorial system. Time doesn't pass and the monsters won't respawn there until you leave, but you can't return to it if you do leave." She nodded toward him then smiled a little. "Death in that dungeon just auto-resurrects you back at the safe room. It's your last free death allowance."
"Sounds real good. Is there anything that I should know?"
Mid chuckled. "The monsters are all low-grade but they are designed to match their level to your stats, much like the rabbit that killed you earlier. Though, they won't be nearly as skillful."
"I hate that damned rabbit." muttered Scott. He had never wanted to murder a furry woodland creature so much in his life. He had even gained an achievement for being killed by the thing.
[Achievement Unlocked]
They Call Him Bruce
[—]
The achievement had the image of the Wah-Bunny tossing two copper coins on his chest in a dismissive manner.
"Find him in the world beyond. The quest is still available to you. Defeat Bruce and you'll get the reward that I promised." said Mid before granting him a saucy wink and a slight pucker of her lips.
"I don't know which sounds more dangerous, the rabbit or the reward." said Scott flatly.
Mid chuckled softly then shook her head. "Dear childe, you would love my rewards."
"No doubt, but I am happy with my current rewards package." countered Scott with a smile.
The great sage nodded lightly then smiled once more. "Good. Are you ready?"
"I should probably check the mirror one more time to be sure." said Scott.
"Ah, good point. Go ahead dear." said Mid.
Scott went to the mirror then checked his status. His attributes were all the same, and his level certainly hand not changed. He checked his skills.
[Class Skills]
Unarmed Combat: 5
Twilight Sorcery: 5
Primordial Magic: 1
Sense Life: 5
Arcane Lore: 1
Arcane Mastery: 5
Light Armor: 1
Analyze: 1
[—]
[Miscellaneous Skills]
Survival Lore: 5
Boomerang Mastery: 1
[—]
Scott rubbed his chin. There were supposed to be a lot more class skills that he could learn, but he would have to discover them on his own or locate masters who were capable of teaching them to him.
He was a little aggravated by the lack of ability to train his primordial magic skill, but he needed actual water in order to study its effects before he could hope to actually do anything with it. He could focus on elemental water energy, but he could not yet generate physical water. He felt like he was close to doing so, however. As with everything, he just needed to train more.
"Alright. Everything seems to be the same as I remember it." said Scott.
Mid rotated her staff and a glowing doorway rose up before him. "You'll be taken to a place where your health and mana will regenerate quickly. I suggest you use it frequently, but take your time when fighting your way through the dungeon."
"I will. Thank you." said Scott.
Mid fidgeted slightly then reached down and smoothed her dress a little. "Take care Scott."
He smiled at her. She had thrown him to the wolves, rather the rabbit, but that was fine. He had lived after all. "What? No goodbye hug for your new little brother?"
Mid smiled brightly at him then rushed over to give him a heartfelt hug. It was innocent and a little sweet. "Welcome to the family little brother."
Scott wiggled a little and made friendly grunting noises for emphasis. "Thanks Mid. Am I still meeting everyone soon? We were supposed to get together till things happened."
"Of course we are, but you should probably spend some time training first." said Mid. "I think Origin is supposed to be meeting our father for dinner at some point, so you'll probably be meeting him soon as well."
"Should I be worried?" asked Scott lightly.
"Yes." Mid did not hesitate and also did not lighten the mood.
Scott blinked then leaned his head back a little. He acquired a thoughtful expression then said, "I see..."
"Don't worry about it too much. Just go forth into adventure young man." she said before releasing him from their parting hug.
Scott patted her on the shoulder. "Thanks for everything Mid, even the bunny murder quest."
"All in a day's work, little brother." said Mid warmly.
He offered her a brief smile then turned toward the glowing door. It was time to move on, even if he had so much more that he wanted to learn. Even attempting to train further in this place would cause a crippling headache. It was time for real training in the world beyond.
Scott walked through the door and Mid sighed a little at his passing. "Might as well log out and let the system take over." Mid called up a logout screen then hit the little red button that would let her do exactly that. Her avatar slumped forward and started to snore. Soon it shimmered vibrantly and then changed shape into a fairly short elderly woman. Any new entrants to the world or returning reincarnates would be greeted by the system version of Mid, and not the true deity.
The twilight sorcerer walked through a corridor made of light and out into a dimly lit room with smooth stone walls. He blinked several times rapidly as his eyes adjusted to the light levels then looked around.
The floors, walls, and ceiling were all of a single uniformly grey color. The only things of note in the room were a small steel framed cot in the corner of the room, a silver mirror that hung on the wall, and a metal table with a little metal box sitting atop it. "Cozy."
He checked the mirror first to be sure of what he suspected. He smiled when he realized that it was, in fact, a salvation mirror. "Useful!"
Scott went to check out the box. He opened it up and saw several miniaturized items sitting inside and a normal sized envelope. He found that to be a bit strange. Did they use envelopes in medieval times? He knew this world was supposed to be different from the casual server, but was it really that different?
He opened the envelope and found a letter inside along with ten silver coins. The coins were stamped with an image of a goddess with her arms spread wide on one side, and the sideways head of the same goddess on the other. There was a little motto written on the bottom. "In Origin we trust, huh?" asked Scott, an amused smile rising up on his lips. The letter inside was quite interesting as well.
[Mission Briefing]
Hellraising Hellions
Thank you for coming to the aid of the Valkovian Empire at this time of need. The agreed upon monetary fee and special equipment that you required for this task have been left here as per your request.
The empire thanks you for your service, citizen.
Mission Requirements: Defeat the Hellions that have taken over the 34th Street Subterranean Transit Authority building.
Be warned, they are heavily armed.
Success: Defeat the Hellions 40/40
Failure: If you flee the area before the task is complete.
Reward(s): 20 Silver Fayth, Special Equipment, 1 Salvation Crystal
[—]
"The hell? Is this how quests are given in this world? That's pretty neat." Instead of a screen popping up, he had received a letter.
The other items in the metal box were doll-sized versions of gloves and common equipment. Scott reached in and carefully took out an item that looked like a tiny brown leather vest. He was greatly surprised when it shimmered then expanded in his hand.
"Whoa... Now that's neat!" Instead of an inventory screen they had something like this? Amazing! They were right about the place being both fantastic but focused on realism. It had game mechanics like this, but they were all integrated into the world instead of floating around in a distracting manner.
Scott stared at the reddish brown leather vest in his hand for a moment. He was attempting to use the skill [Analyze]. It was a class skill that would allow him to recognize simple items. Eventually, he would even be able to sense the abilities of his opponents.
Instead of a screen popping up in front of him he felt a strange connection to the garment, like he somehow understood it better. He still did not know what its stats were. He would need to analyze it further before he had a good idea of what it could do. The only thing he could tell for certain was that it was a light leather vest, it was of standard quality, and he could probably equip it without reducing his combat ability.
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