Mixing It Up (The World Book 2)

by Jason Cheek

  Yun and I followed Kyarina and Lorelai to the temple to get our upgraded healing spells while the rest of the team waited outside. As soon as we passed through the stone archway of the temple, the priests underneath the living boughs froze in shock as the murmurs of their agitated voiced immediately filled the air. As one, my companions turned to look at me with raised eyebrows.

  “What did you do to these people?” Kyarina accusingly asked as her eyes bore into me.

  “It’s not my fault,” I exclaimed, defensively holding my hands up to stop her ire. “Delonshire currently hates the house that came with my Nightmare start.”

  “What the hell man, they didn’t do this last time we were here?” Yun asked, obviously disturbed as he looked out at the sea of angry faces glaring at us. “Any idea how we should handle this?”

  “Since this is all on you guys, we’ll leave you to this then,” Kyarina said with an unconcerned shrug as she began dragging Lorelai away.

  “We’ll meet back up at the White Unicorn as we planned,” Lorelai called out apologetically as she waved goodbye.

  “Nice. How do you like them apples?” Yun snorted as he watched the girls go with a shake of his head. Looking back at me, he gave a slight bow. “After you my friend.”

  “Thanks,” I said dragging out the word sarcastically. Taking one last look at the sea of angry faces, I shrugged and headed down the steps into the temple. No one said a word as I passed through the ranks of the priests and acolytes. Nor did they block my way. Players who were there to receive training swore angrily as their NPC trainers simply ignored them as they watched the two of us pass through their ranks to the back of the temple. Seeing the familiar milky-white eyes of the old priestess watching us approach, I found myself nodding a greeting even though I knew the old woman couldn’t see me.

  “Priestess Eruaistaniel, it is a pleasure to see your lovely face again,” I said in the friendliest tone I could muster. “Yun and I hoped to get some additional training for our newest levels if you should have the time.”

  “Young Half-Elf scoundrel, you should know that such honey-filled words are wasted on the likes of an old woman such as me.” The priestess chuckled in mock severity as she held out her wrinkled hands.

  “How many times must I ask that you simply call me, Ines?” The priestess’s words brought a wry grin to my lips as I automatically took her hands in mine. “As the light wills, I would be more than happy to further your knowledge for a small donation to the temple.”

  “Priestess Eruaistaniel!” The sudden gasp from behind made me jump as a young priestess strode up to the old woman in righteous indignation. “How dare you sully the light’s brightness by sharing it with the likes of a Half-Elf from House of Kayden!”

  “The High Priest’s mandate forbade us teaching any that are touched with Dark magic,” Ines said with an indifferent sniff. “With your own senses you can see that the Dark has not touched this young one. Hence he is allowed to be taught the ways of the light.”

  “Can you not sense the darkness of his chosen armor?” The young priestess nearly shrieked in outrage.

  “What of it, fool girl?” Ines snapped irritably at the intrusion. All pretense of indifference gone from her wrinkled face. “The Mayor of Delonshire requested that these newfar assist in driving the humanoid beasts of the north from our lands but furnished them no weapons or armor in advance to assist them in this task. What other options have they, except to equip themselves from the dead to complete the task that they’ve been given and now you judge them for having the wisdom to use what tools they’ve found?”

  “Yes, I judge this House of Kayden trash for fouling our temple with his Death Knight stench!” The young priestess shrieked back in her zealotry. The disgust and outrage were clearly written on her face.

  “Look around the temple at the newfar present.” Ines’s sightless eyes seemed to take in the players watching the unfolding drama with interest as they waited for their priest trainers to become available once again. “Slaver Master armor, Marauder armor, Savage Hunter wraps, they all carry the stench from those that they have slain to spare our city. What makes this child any different from the rest of them?” Not waiting for an answer, the old priestess continued undaunted.

  “Nothing is different but his House’s affiliation, silly girl.” Ines’ lips curled in disgust as her sightless eyes bore into the young priestess. “Until the High Priest directly forbids teaching the wisdom of the light to those from House of Kayden, I will follow the path of the light how I see fit.”

  For a long moment, the two priestesses stared at each other in a battle of wills. “This is not over!” The young priestess spat as she turned away in a huff. With a flutter of robes, she disappeared into the mass of bodies of the temple’s main atrium. Slowly the rest of the temple seemed to return to normal as the taboo scene ended almost as soon as it had begun.

  “Fool child.” The soft curse brought my eyes back around to the blind priestess. With a deep sigh, she addressed me once again. “Now that THAT is over let’s see what I can offer you for training, young Half-Elf.” As soon as the words left her lips, the single spell available to me appeared before my eyes in a system window. Immediately I accepted the offered selection.

  Congratulations! You have learned a new spell: Holy Shield.

  Cast Time: 3 second cast.

  Mana Expenditure: 80

  Absorbs 350 points of damage. Requires healing magic skill level 20. Range 60 yards. Can only be cast on one target at a time. 10 second cooldown. Expires automatically after a half an hour.

  “I’m afraid for now that is all that I can offer you.” Ines’ voice lowered as she spoke sadly. “I do not know if next time I will be empowered to offer you additional training so use these gifts well.”

  “Thank you, my lady,” I replied humbly. “I apologize for any distress my presence might have caused your house of worship.”

  “It is through no fault of your own that caused this sad state of affairs, young Half-Elf.” The old priestess stated with a sad shake of her head. “It is an issue that has been building for the last five decades.” Ines' voice lowered so that only Yun and I could hear her next words. “I fear that greed plays more of a role in this than with any conflict in our teachings of the light.”

  “Please let me know if there is any way I can help …” I said, my voice slowly dying away. I was unsure of exactly what help I could offer in the way of assistance but hoped that with a little prodding I could access the start of some rare quest chain.

  New Quest! Discover the reason the High Priest of Light in Amyalneas has forbidden training Light magic to anyone who has Dark magic!

  The High Priest has forbidden any of trainer in Light magic to teach anyone that has learned Dark magic. Evidence in Delonshire has pointed out that this edict was made as an attack against House of Kayden and is not in line with the precepts of the Light. Priestess Ines Eruaistaniel believes this edict has to do more with greed then following the teachings of her order and has requested that you discover the reason for the High Priest’s edict.

  Objective: Discover why the High Priest is not following the precept of the Light.

  Difficulty: Hard.

  Reward: Unknown.

  Accept: Yes / No

  I blink for a second at the quest message that appeared before my eyes as I mentally did a fist pump. Woot, rare quest for the win. Without a second thought, I accepted the quest. The wording caught my eye, making me wonder what the bigger picture was and how that could help me in getting the High Priest’s edict against my people rescinded. Even more annoying was that there was no in-game map to point me in the direction I should start heading in to figure out the quest. Hell, except for the city of Amyalneas, I had nothing else to go on. How was I even supposed to get into the Light Elf capital if everywhere I went the NPCs hated me because of my House association? Even though it was frustrating in one sense, it was a major relief too.

  I was sick and t
ired of how most modern MMORPGs just handed out everything to make their games quick and easy for players. It seemed like the challenges that were the main bread and butter of the MMORPG genre had died out long ago. Even with the introduction of PIVRMMORG, the same complaints had remained. The MMORPG community criticized that the games were being built too easy and had no immersion left, while casual players denounced any game that they couldn’t jump into for a half an hour to play because the game was too complex. Unfortunately, that was the problem. Game companies tried their best to make their games viable for both types of player, but only managed to distance both types of gamers. No matter how many new MMORPGs came out, not one of them could keep any kind of community for any length of time. That was because both player types were extremely different. One wanted a community to be a part of while the other wanted a brief distraction.

  The backlash slowly gave rise to the belief that MMORPGs were dead as a genre. It became a constant theme of web pundits and bloggers across the internet. It wasn’t until the release of The World that the dynamics of MMORPG genre went back to its roots. Add in the FIVR MMORPG technology, and The World had resurrected the entire genre and rocked the gaming world. While there were lots of complaints that the game was too immersive and time-consuming by the general public and casual gamers, it was that very thing that truly made the game so popular to play the plethora of true gamers. So much so that even now the supply of pods couldn’t keep up with the demand.

  With all that said. I still wished there was some sort of general mapping option available to players. Maybe I was just missing something simple. Another point on my list of things to search out in town or later on the forums once I logged off for the night.

  “Hmpt.” Priestess Eruaistaniel’s loud, throat-clearing sound brought my thoughts back into focus. Automatically I met the old woman’s milky-white orbs as she cracked a grin. “No matter how sweet you might be on me, I can’t sit here all evening holding your hands. Now, can I?” I jerked my hands away as if holding a hot potato as the old priestess just smiled, cocking an eyebrow at Yun.

  ‘Oh no you di'int!’ The unspoken thought flashed through my mind as I stared at the old priestess for a long second unbelievably, at least until Yun brushed past to take the priestess’s wrinkled hands. Shaking my head, I pulled up my character sheet to check out my new spell still musing. ‘That old biddy was a trip.’

  Startum Ironwolf – Level 26

  Basic Class (Nightmare)

  Half-Elf (House of Kayden)

  Titles:

  First Settler

  First Village

  Hero of Delonshire Mine

  +56 Unassigned Attribute Points.

  Statistics:

  Hit Points: 1,512

  Mana: 1,320

  Endurance: 1,360

  Attributes:

  Strength: 93 (+28)

  Intelligence: 121 (+11)

  Spirit: 84 (+5)

  Agility: 103 (+5)

  Stamina: 136 (+8)

  Charisma: 78

  Racial Ability:

  Military Conditioning (Passive) – All defenses increased by 5% and total hit points are increased by 10%.

  Darkvision (Passive) - Grants ability to see in day-light conditions up to 100 feet in reduced lighting and the ability to see in dim light conditions up to 60 feet in natural darkness.

  Ambitious (Passive) - Receive 5% experience bonus when gaining experience.

  Racial Modifiers - +2 to two stats of choice per level.

  Abilities:

  Frost Magic – Level 24

  Light Magic – Level 21

  fire Magic – Level 1

  Unarmed Combat – Level 14

  One-hand edge – Level 24

  Two-hand edge – Level 5

  Shield Block - Level 24

  Shield Bash – Level 21

  Riposte – Level 21

  Lunge – Level 23

  Parry – Level 24

  Dodge – Level 24

  Archery – Level 9

  War Leader:

  Level II – Strategist:

  -Plus 2% Increase to melee damage for team or raid.

  -Plus 1% Increase to melee defense for team or raid.

  Spells:

  Frost:

  Frost Blast (30 Mana) – 2 sec cast – Launches Blast of frost at the enemy. Damage is 200% of Spell Power. Slows target by 50% for 15 seconds. Range 60 yards.

  Frost Nova (50 Mana) – Instant cast - Blasts enemies within 10 yards of the caster for 100% Frost damage and freezes them in place for up to 8 sec. Damage caused may interrupt the effect. 30 second cooldown. Requires frost magic skill level 5.

  Ice Lance (40 Mana) – Instant cast - Deals 400% Frost damage to an enemy target. Ice Lance damage is doubled against frozen targets. Slows target by 50% for 15 seconds. Requires frost magic skill level 10. Range 40 yards.

  Flurry (60 Mana) – Instant cast – Hurls a flurry of ice shards at target that strikes enemy three times for a total of ((400% of spell power) * 3). Each shard slows target by 50% for 5 sec. Requires frost magic skill level 15. Range 40 yards.

  Ice Barrier (30 Mana) – Instant cast – Shields caster for 1 minute, absorbing 1400% ranged spell damage. Melee attacks against caster reduces the attacker’s movement speed by 50% for 5 seconds. Armor Class is not increased. Requires frost magic skill level 20. 10 second cooldown. Expires automatically after a half an hour.

  Light:

  Heal (50 Mana) – 10 sec cast – Ray of golden light that heals the target for 500% Spell Power. Range 60 yards.

  Quick Heal (30 Mana) – 5 sec cast – A pulse of golden light that quickly heals the target for 300% Spell Power. Requires healing magic skill level 5. Range 60 yards.

  Restore (40 Mana) – 3 sec cast – A flash of golden light that instantly heals the target for (50% of Spell power) and then (300% of Spell power) over 15 sec. Requires healing magic skill level 10. Range 40 yards.

  Minor Healing (60 Mana) – 5 sec cast – A ray of golden light that instantly heals the target for 800% Spell Power. Requires healing magic skill level 15. Range 60 yards.

  Minor Mend Bones (80 Mana) – 10 sec cast – A healing energy that heals target of minor debilitating debuffs 200% Spell Power. Requires healing magic skill level 15. Range 60 yards.

  Minor Dispell (60 Mana) – 5 sec cast – Removes one beneficial magical effect on the enemy target, or removes one negative magical effect on the friendly target. Requires healing magic skill level 15. Range 60 yards.

  Holy Shield (80 Mana) – 3 sec cast – Absorbs 350 points of damage. Requires healing magic skill level 20. Can only be cast on one target at a time. 10 second cooldown. Expires automatically after a half an hour. Range 60 yards.

  Resurrection (1000 Mana) – 20 sec cast - Brings a dead player back to life with 25% health and mana. Cannot be cast when in combat. Range 40 yards.

  fire:

  Flame Blast (40 Mana) – 2 sec cast – Launches Blast of fire at the enemy. Fire damage is 200% of Spell Power. Burns target for an additional 20 seconds for 5 points of damage every 5 seconds. Range 60 yards.

  Skills:

  Stealth I

  Sneak Attack I

  Backstab I

  Concentration I

  Quick Shot I

  Overpower I

  Kick Back I

  Knockdown I

  Gouge I

  Dual Wield I

  Power Attack I

  Execute I

  Crafting:

  Skinning Level 14

  Jury-Rigging Level 2

  Lumberjack Level 13

  Wood Working Level 7

  Construction Level 13

  Architecture Level 4

  Mining Level 16 (+2 when Pickaxe of Earth is equipped)

  Herbalism Level 5

  Enchanting Level 1

  Smithing Level 54

  Alchemy Level 47

  Beast Companion:

  Silver Dire Wolf, Neysa, level 10

  Reputation
:

  1350

  Special Awards:

  -Permanent 3% increased damage to all attacks for all members of any team or raid you are a member.

  -Permanent 3% increased defense for all members of any team or raid you are a member.

  Additional Special Attacks and Abilities:

  -Blood Plague (Type: Disease) Target suffers 10 points of Dark Magic damage every second for 30 seconds. Area of Effect: 10 Yard radius from the caster. Cooldown - 3 minutes

  *when Greatsword of Corruption is equipped.

  -Removes all root effects on the wielder and all summoned creatures.

  -Increases the chance of dropping Soul Stones by 12%.

  -Summoned creature has 3% chance of receiving one of the killed creature's special attacks or skills.

  -Summoned creature has a 30% chance of keeping one of its special skills.

  +200 Attack Power to Summoned Creatures

  +5 to the maximum number of Summoned Creatures.

  +3 level increase to all Summoned Creatures

  -Ignores target’s armor.

  -5% of maximum health leeched per second on a successful strike until dagger is removed.

  *When Leeching Dagger of Piercing is equipped.

  Looking over my new shield spell, I couldn’t help but smile. ‘Watch out world, here I come!’ Basically, I now had a constant 800 points of damage shield that could be deployed as needed. Well, at least against magic range attacks. My melee attack defense was only 350 points of protection, but combined with everything else, I was a force to be reckoned with. It was like having a twinked out character the first time around. Whatever, as long as it was allowed within the rules of the game, no one could accuse me of cheating. The only thing I had to watch out for was getting behind in my skills towards mid to end game. Battling the Death Knight had already shown me that my stat boost from the P&M exam wasn’t going to give me the edge in every battle. If every dungeon had elite mobs and bosses, I’d have to make a decision on which direction I was going to focus on. Otherwise, I’d end up being a jack of all trades that wasn’t strong enough in anyone one thing and end up getting my ass kicked in the future. Not that I could make any decisions right now. First, I had to get my hands on a specialist profession and then I could make a decision on how to spend my saved stat points.