by Adam Myhr
You chopped a giant rat! 8 Damage
You killed a giant rat! +5 Exp
Immediately after the move, I felt a searing pain in my right leg. The brown rat bit down hard, as if trying to take my leg off below the knee.
A giant rat bit you! -5 HP
The pain was immense. I was pretty sure nobody in the real world ever experienced this much pain. Without thinking I jerked my leg back, reclaiming it from the rat’s filthy mouth. Fortune smiled on me this time as the rat didn’t attack with its next turn, instead positioning itself for another lunge at my bleeding leg.
Remembering how a side-swipe was able to knock one of my former opponents off balance, I decided my best bet was to swing into its side, pushing away from my injured leg. If I worked the momentum right and stepped with the swing, I might even open enough distance to survive and make another attack. Planning was easy, especially with the world waiting for me. Execution? Well, I lined up the ax and took my swing.
You chopped a giant rat! Critical hit! (x2) 14 Damage
You killed a giant rat! +3 Exp
My ax went through the rat’s jaw, severing the top of its head from its body. I staggered to the side, the power of my swing hard to control in my weakened state. The rat fell to the ground with a wet thud. I allowed myself to collapse for a couple of turns, recovering from the battle before I set about healing myself.
With only 15 turns left before I’d need to eat extra food, I set about making a small fire. I planned to cook the turtle and recover my hit points. The sign I’d chopped was just enough wood; I wouldn’t be able to save any for another fire. With the flint & steel, I was able to get a blaze going in a single turn.
Taking the turtle out of my inventory, I saw it was still in great shape. I set it down so it would stick its head out. As soon as the turtle’s head appeared, I chopped it off. I realized I had no idea the best way to cook and clean a turtle, but figured carefully cutting it apart and tossing anything that wasn’t meat would be a good start. Once I had it down to just the meat, I used the shell as a pan and cooked it in the fire.
The smell of cooked meat quickly filled the clearing. I wasn’t hungry but knew I needed the food to bring my HP back up. It was a strange feeling, stuffing my face while I felt full. In the real world, I would’ve been gagging, trying hard not to puke as I pushed the food down. When my health was registering full, I looked around the clearing one last time, finding nothing worth sticking around for. I gathered my things and headed out the other side of the clearing.
Frank: Average Human
Str:6
Dex:6
Con:6
Int:6
Wis:5
Luck:5
HP:16 (16)
SP:0 (0)
Food:100% (60/60)
Turn:884
Exp:63
Lvl:1
Weapon:
Dull Old Rusty Ax
Slow, 5-8
Armor:
Dirty Farmer’s Overalls
0
Equipment:
1 carrot, 2 cucumbers, 1 head of lettuce, 2 ears of corn, flint & steel, 3 torches, kindling, old iron dagger
Silver: 7
Skills: (1)
Ax Wielding (1)
Dodge (1)
Firestarter (1)
Medicine (1)
Magic:
Seven
The path widened as I left the clearing behind. Before long I came to a riverbank. The path turned upstream, paralleling the swift river before curving back into the forest. There was also a small boat attached to a rope. The rope plunged into the river. I looked across the river and saw the rope come up the other side, tied off to a large tree trunk. Looking up the river, I could see some light rapids before it curved out of sight. Across the river the trees were lighter, possibly indicating the forest gave way to some other terrain.
I went down and looked more closely at the boat. There were no oars, and the rope wasn’t tied off to this side. The boat had been pulled up onto shore and wedged against a tree branch. This was obviously a one-way trip. I looked back down the path, contemplating the choice before me. It didn’t take long; I pushed on the boat to dislodge it from the branch.
Advance to a new area, are you sure?
The world froze around me. A large yes/no prompt filled my view. Scared, I selected no. The boat didn’t move. I pushed again and was greeted by the same prompt. I Selected no once more and backed away from the boat, instead of going back towards the path. Starting to walk up along the river I was given no such prompt, but I didn’t go far. I turned back to the boat, torn between crossing over and curving back into the forest.
I was sure crossing the river was the right move until that prompt appeared and made me question my resolve. Now I was going back into the forest, running from the world. Running just as I ran from the other kids in school. Running just as I ran from my family to college. Running the same way I’d run from everything in my life so far.
“No!” I looked around, shouting. “No, I’m not running, not again!” I ran back to the boat and pushed, selecting yes the moment the prompt appeared, not giving myself a chance to reconsider. The boat slid off the branch smoothly. I found myself hopping in without trying, pulling the rope steadily until the boat softly thunked on the opposite bank.
You have entered a new area. +5 Exp
You discovered a new location! +2 Exp
The world felt different on this side of the river. It was hard to identify how, but I felt like the stakes had changed. When I checked the HUD and character sheet, nothing was any different. I looked ahead, stepping away from the river. This forest was different. The trees weren’t as dense, the sounds were strange, and the plants were exotic.
I started down the path and almost immediately stopped. The path branched three directions with no indication of what lay ahead. I examined each one, hoping for some level of detail to reveal itself. Unfortunately, nothing became clear. I stepped to the left and was assaulted by insects. I’d heard of places where the mosquitoes were so thick one swat on your arm would take out a dozen, but this was much worse. I swung my arms around, trying to shoo them away, swatting as I could.
A swarm of insects bit you all over! -1 HP
You discovered a new location! +2 Exp
I took a few steps and became aware of a stench of rotting trees. The trees thinned out around me as I climbed a small hill, the ground getting spongy as I went. The sounds around me changed, becoming creepier as the insect swarm seemed to grow more ravenous with each step.
A swarm of insects bit you all over! -1 HP
I couldn’t do anything about the bugs. For each handful I swatted, two more filled in. I couldn’t count the number I’d killed, and I was further from thinning the swarm than when I started. It was difficult to see very far through the cloud, and I feared I would get lost if I went forward. I slowly backtracked while I could still see the tree line. After a few turns, I was back at the junction, the swarm of insects left behind.
I ate my last head of lettuce before setting off down the path away from the river, hoping I wouldn’t take damage from walking down this road. The trees thinned out going down this path as well. The path started to wind, going up and down as I walked. Before long the trees were gone, and I was walking on a hilly plain.
You discovered a new location! +2 Exp
I crested a hill saw a creek with a small shack next to it. The path went straight, the creek and clearing were to the left. I remembered the last hill I tried to leave the path on. The game wouldn’t let me, dropping me on my ass instead. It kept me stuck on the path in the woods too, the underbrush too thick to penetrate, even a foot from a clearing. I examined the creek and shack. Seeing a turtle along the creek’s bank sealed the deal for me. Getting another turtle to cook was worth risking the personal embarrassment of falling.
I placed my foot off the path gingerly, rubbing it on the ground to get a feel for whether there was tracti
on or not before committing. The ground seemed like a solid place to step, so I braced myself and took the step.
Nothing happened.
Yes! I could leave the path now. It must be the new area, part of the reason I had to choose to exit the old area specifically. I strolled down the hill, arriving at the shack in no time.
You discovered a new location! +2 Exp
The shack’s door was split-style. As I approached, the bottom half opened. What I can only describe as a large garden gnome stepped out and looked at me.
“Greetings adventurer! Would you like to rent a fishing pole?”
I smiled at it, surprised at how excited I was to have someone, or something, else to talk to. “Hi there, how are you?”
“Greetings adventurer! Would you like to rent a fishing pole?”
Shit. “Um. Hi?”
“Greetings adventurer! Would you like to rent a fishing pole?”
Whenever I looked towards the gnome, it repeated the same line at me, like one of those ancient CD’s repeating the same part of a song over and over. I stormed past the shack to look at the creek, feeling the gnome’s eyes on me the entire time. The crystal-clear water meandered through the hills.
The turtle was nowhere in sight, but fish were plentiful. They made intricate patterns as they swam around in the water. Occasionally there was a splash as one jumped out of the water. I kneeled and touched the water, fish scattering at the motion. The freezing water caused me to gasp and yank my hand back. I slowly reached down and touched it again, this time ready for the chill. I let a couple of turns pass, seeing if the fish would come back. The water was so cold I couldn’t hold my hand in past the second turn.
I dried my hand off on my overalls and stood up. I knew some fish would go a long way to helping me stay healthy in this world. I glanced back over at the gnome.
“Greetings adventurer! Would you like to rent a fishing pole?”
“Yes.”
“I have a few for you to choose from. Here, take a look.”
The world went into a slow-motion version of its loop as my HUD was replaced by a storefront. I could rent a pole and get the fish I caught dried or buy dried fish.
All Rentals Limited to 10 Uses:
Stick, String, and Worms: 5 Silver
Rod, Reel, and Bait: 10 Silver
Rod, Reel, and Lure: 10 Silver
Enchanted Net: 20 Silver
Hook, Line, and Sinker: 20,000 Silver
Dried Fish: 2 Silver
Fish Drying Service: 5 Fish per Silver
My options were to chance getting fewer than three fish with the stick, or just buy the fish and call it a day. “Wait!” I closed the shop screen and went to my character sheet. A skill point, just waiting for the right time to be spent. This seemed to be the time. I selected the skill point and attempted to spend it on “Fishing.”
You have bought the skill Fishing.
The stuff goes on the hook, the hook goes in the water, the fish get pulled out. Sometimes. +5 Exp
To that point in my life, I’d never been fishing. I’d never held a fishing pole, and I certainly hadn’t stabbed a worm onto a hook. Somehow, I knew how to use it all though. It was more than realizing the worm goes on a hook. I knew the right way to put the hook on the string, the worm on the hook, and how to tell if a fish was playing with or biting the hook. I knew why I might want to choose the bait over the lure, or the lure over the bait.
I looked at the gnome again.
“Greetings adventurer! Would you like to rent a fishing pole?”
Damn, that’s annoying. I grabbed the stick and worms and strode over to the creek. Looking up and down the bank I couldn’t see any advantage to another spot, so I took out the rental equipment. I dropped the string in the creek and watched the fish scatter, but come right back.
I’m not sure what I expected. Fire starting just worked for me. I guess I assumed a skill point in fishing would be the same. It wasn’t. Three turns in I got a bite and pulled a fish out. At that rate, I was break-even with buying the fish in the first place. Two more turns and I got a bite, but the fish got away. On the seventh turn using the stick, I caught fish number two. After three more turns of no bites the stick, string, and bucket of wormy dirt vanished from my inventory. I looked back at the shack.
“Greetings adventurer! Would you like to rent a fishing pole?”
Two steps, another silver, and a cucumber later I was ready to leave the shack behind. Looking at the gnome and getting the exact same line yet again I felt more isolated than before I’d come across the thing.
“Get me the hell out of here,” I whispered it, almost a prayer instead of a statement. Nothing happened, of course. I looked back up the hill, then up the creek. The creek seemed to be the easier walk, so I skipped out on the path.
The creek gurgled over rocks, fish splashing occasionally. The sun was high in the sky, in the same spot as it had been when I first entered the world. Now and then a cloud drifted by, suggesting the same small breeze up high as there was down here. After rounding a few hills, I froze.
I hadn’t noticed it right away. On the other side of the creek, a bear fished for dinner. It was across this valley, near where the creek came out from between the next two hills. I looked around and saw a cave entrance to my right. Looking up at the bear again, I was pretty sure it hadn’t noticed me yet. I started to creep sideways to the cave, always facing the bear. It took at least twice as long as it should have to get to the cave. I finally reached the entrance and hugged myself into the lip, hiding from the bear’s sight should it look up.
You discovered a new location! +2 Exp
Frank: Average Human
Str:6
Dex:6
Con:6
Int:6
Wis:5
Luck:5
HP:14 (16)
SP:0 (0)
Food:100% (39/60)
Turn:969
Exp:81
Lvl:1
Weapon:
Dull Old Rusty Ax
Slow, 5-8
Armor:
Dirty Farmer’s Overalls
0
Equipment:
1 carrot, 1 cucumber, 2 ears of corn, 2 dried fish, flint & steel, 3 torches, kindling, old iron dagger
Silver: 1
Skills: (1)
Ax Wielding (1)
Dodge (1)
Firestarter (1)
Fishing (1)
Medicine (1)
Magic:
Eight
I couldn’t see very far into the cave from the dimly lit entrance. With a bear outside, I didn’t have much choice on where to go. I lit a torch and started making my way in. My hope was by the time I made my way out, the bear would have moved on. That or I’d find a bear killing gun in here.
This cave had a more natural feel than the one I’d been in previously. The walls were rough, the floor uneven, and the ceiling varied in height. It went sharply down into the earth, a cool breeze wafting up and bringing smells of moisture and mustiness with it. As I traveled down the narrow trail, I started to hear water dripping. Sometimes it would be into other water, sometimes onto rock. As I walked, the walls opened to either side of me, the passage becoming a large cavern.
My torch couldn’t light the whole cavern. I started along the wall to one side, trying to get a feel for how big the space was. Another opening wasn’t far down, and another shortly after that. I backtracked to the original entrance and tried again on the other side.
There was a pool not far along on this side. Skirting the edge of the pool my footing became less secure. There were bones scattered along the floor! I stumbled back in surprise, finding no walls in sight. I tried taking a few steps forward, not seeing the bones again but finding the cavern wall curving up. I picked a direction and followed it, hoping to find my way to something familiar.
The wall next to me suddenly stopped. I looked down to see myself standing at the edge of a cliff. The inky blackness b
eyond the rim of the floor seemed to go on forever, reminding me of how I came to be in this simulation. Strange noises drifted up from below. Animal noises. I shuffled along the top of the cliff, hitting my head on a rock formation hanging down I was so focused on my feet. I took that moment to have an ear of corn before continuing along the cliff, thankful when I arrived at the other side.
I leaned against the cave wall for a moment, glad to be away from the cliff. I was hearing new noises now. There was a rustling from ahead of me, and some grunting along with it. I cautiously moved closer to the sound, readying my ax as I went. The wall took on a carved appearance as if someone had shaped it in this area. The noise was clearer now, the noise of someone moving heavy stuff around a room. I came to a corner and peered around it. I saw light ahead, escaping around the edges of what must have been a door. Bringing my torch around my suspicion was confirmed. I was facing a wooden door. The noises were definitely coming from behind it.
You discovered a new location! +2 Exp
I made my way down the hall and stopped at the door. The grunting and scraping of wood on stone came from whoever, or whatever, was on the other side of the door. It wasn’t much of a door, more a hunk of wood set to block pests from coming up the tunnel. I tried to peer in through the cracks and saw nothing but an occasional shadow. I did smell something though. It reminded me of walking by homeless row back home, only ten times worse. There was a good chance something dead was with whatever lay behind the door making noise. Going towards something had to be better than searching through the dark cave for a way out I may never discover, I stepped back from the door. I took a couple of minutes to psyche myself up, not knowing what was on the other side, but imagining it wouldn’t be happy when someone kicked in its door.