“Hey, there’s ours, number fifteen!” Masha said, pointing at one of the corncobs.
I stopped and, pointing my head up, looked at my future workplace. The height was intimidating. We’d have to go up those stairs day in and day out. Good thing I wasn’t afraid of heights, otherwise I had no idea if I’d make it.
Other than the big easily visible number fifteen on a concrete post at the entrance, there were player numbers from 1401 to 1500 inside. I also noticed people rushing into every tower except that one. In a rush to their pods, they were pouring into their corncobs. I looked at number fifteen again. Strange. There were no guards at the entrance. What could stop us...?
I wanted to tell my new acquaintances but discovered that they were already quite a ways down the white sand path. I was all on my own. What if...?
I trusted my intuition. It had practically never led me astray. So now, as with the spontaneous character change in the final round of the online PvP tournament, I could feel in my bones that I needed to learn this new game and not waste any time.
Carefully, expecting someone to shout at me at any second, I headed to tower number fifteen. No one stopped me, and no one even seemed to notice. Now more confident, I started climbing higher and higher up the spiral staircase. Ugh, it was unbearable. Could they really not build an elevator?! By the time I'd reached the eighth story of the tower, my legs started to shiver in strain. My pod was on the fourteenth floor, though, and when I’d made it up there, I was practically crawling on all fours, with my tongue hanging out in exhaustion. Ugh!
I saw my number 1470 on the wall, and a short corridor leading to a small glassed-in room with a metallic ovular bed in the middle topped by a transparent lid. My virtual reality pod! I stood there, looking at the high-tech device and admiring its smooth flawless curves. The lid easily slid aside as soon as I touched it. The bed, covered with a soft porous material was alluring and called me to lie down as quickly as possible.
Should I take off my shoes? Did I have to get undressed? There were no coatracks in the room, but that didn’t mean anything. I looked at the neighboring towers through the transparent glass. In corncob number eleven, right at my level, an unfamiliar lady walked into her little room and, quickly closing the lid, lied down in her pod right in her clothes and shoes. Alright, no need to undress. I carefully stepped onto the springy cover. Alright, it held my weight. I lied down and wanted to stretch my arms for the lid, but it had already started moving on its own. At that, the lid material, which had seemed like glass, became opaque and everything looked totally black. Not like coal, or the color of a raven’s wing, but some absolute darkness that didn’t reflect any light whatsoever.
“An ideal black!” I thought as the world around me changed.
* * *
I found myself in a tiny round room with totally white walls, ceiling and floor. There was just over a step of space on all sides. The source of the dim light was not visible, and it seemed to be streaming in from all directions. The only object other than me and the cold smooth walls, was a large body-length mirror.
Neither glass nor metal, it was some kind of image projected on the wall. Everything I did was reflected in it, but I could turn the image with my mind and see myself from all sides. And I did that, taking a critical look and cringing in dismay.
My hair was far too long. I should have gone to a barber long ago... A moment later, I saw myself in the mirror with a close short cut. Wow! And what if I left it a bit longer, with slanted bangs? Obeying my will, the image changed obediently. And if I change my hair color? No, I don’t like that. Let’s go back.
I finished playing with my hairstyle and left it a sumptuous shade of black, then moved on to eye color. I wanted emerald green eyes. They were generally considered the rarest! It looked pretty good but didn't go with my hair at all. What about an icy blue? And hey, why not make my eyes glow like a wizard’s? It looked fearsome, but I left it that way.
Now for toned muscles. I wanted to be tall, have broad shoulders and all that... I tried to give myself the flawless body of the athlete, so any girl would want me, but I was just a weenie and couldn’t change my body composition. In some parts, I could only change the skin tone and remove or add birth marks and scars. Too bad. But alright, what next?
Name: Kirill Viktorovich Ignatiev
The words appeared over my image in the mirror, and I shook my head in dismay. No, that won't do. Anyhow, did I want every random person I met to know my real name? What if I made someone mad? This would make me too easy to find in the real world.
So... I managed to shorten it to Gnat, but I couldn't remove it all the way. Gnat? That was my nickname in school, so it felt natural. Alright, let it be Gnat. What next?
Available classes: Geologist or Prospector
What the crap?! This was a violation of my rights! Why only two? What if I wanted to be a tank driver, sniper or even starship pilot? I tried to widen the miserly choice in all kinds of ways or go back to a previous menu, but I couldn’t do any of it. Only Geologist or Prospector. Dang... So, how were they different?
Geologist. Specializes in discovering and mining valuable minerals, sedimentary deposits and ore veins. As level and skills grow, mineral discovery chance and extraction volume increase.
Primary skills: Minerology, Forager, Explosives.
Class limitations: May not equip heavy or power armor. May not use sniper weapons or rocket systems.
All the information I needed was shown on the mirror above my character. Alright, I see. So then, what made the Prospector different? Instantly, obeying my mental request, the mirror displayed a different text:
Prospector. Specializes in discovering secret locations, anomalies and minerals with electronic scanning devices. As level and skills grow, discovery chance and value are increased.
Primary skills: Electronics, Scanning, Cartography.
Class limitations: May not equip heavy or power armor. May not use sniper rifles or automatic weapons. May not pilot starships or any kind of flying vehicle.
Ugh, dang... the Prospector class had so many limitations! And although I was intrigued by searching for hidden locations and anomalies, being unable to use automatic weapons seemed like a serious handicap. I’d be helpless at sniping range, too. But the Geologist class had similar problems. At medium or close range... I didn’t know. I had no idea what kinds of weapons were available in the game. Perhaps there would be something non-automatic, but still totally fine. But maybe not...
I pulled up the information about the Geologist again. Seemingly a more balanced class, and such a path felt right, considering my education and training. I was ready to make my choice, but then my eye caught on the words “mining” and “extraction.”
What did that mean? After discovering useful minerals or ore veins, I would be forced to mine them all on my own? My character had a bonus to extraction, so who better? That unhappy perspective threw me. I didn’t want to spend the next two years of my life breaking rocks with a pick. I might go mad from boredom...
But the words “secret locations,” and “anomalies,” on the other hand, were tempting to any gambling man. The Prospector path also seemed to promise other interesting aspects. So, I made up my mind.
The mirror went dim, then I saw a table:
Gnat. Human. H3 Faction.
Level-1 Prospector
Statistics:
Strength
12
Agility
15
Intelligence
17
Perception
19
Constitution
10
Luck modifier
+2
Parameters:
Hit points
176
Endurance points
114
Magic points
0
Carrying capacity
53 lbs.
Fame
0
Skills:
Electronics
/>
1
Scanning
1
Cartography
1
I read it carefully. It was hard to say if it was good or bad, although the low Constitution did upset me. Just ten points. And also, having zero magic seemed less than ideal. It wasn’t that I was expecting spell-casting abilities from a Prospector, more like the opposite. But seeing that part of the table meant magic did exist! And if that was the case, my level-1 Prospector had lower magic than someone else.
Anyway, I could read short hints on all the statistics. For example, Strength influenced the amount of weight a character could carry, how far they could throw objects, and damage done by melee weapons. The number of health points, meanwhile, depended on Constitution, level and a class multiplier. About magic, it said that the amount of “mana” depended on Intelligence, level and game-class coefficient. Clearly, the Prospector simply had a zero there.
Overall, I didn't discover anything new. All my character’s statistics were as usual, more or less like I’d seen in other games. All I didn’t understand was “fame.” How was it calculated, and what were its effects? Either it was some kind of “karma,” a positive or negative number depending on previous actions, or a modifier that influenced the reaction of other characters in the game world. After all, it's one thing when you're asked a favor by a totally unknown person and, you could care less if they are offended by your refusal. But it is quite different, if the very same thing is asked by a famous figure, respected by all.
I quickly realized I couldn’t edit any parameters in the table, and I would have to accept what the game system gave me. The only prompt asked whether I was familiar with the introductory information and ready to enter the game world or would prefer to wait and think.
The right thing to do would be to leave the virtual reality pod, wait until tomorrow, listen to the two-hour introduction, then study the Labyrinth, and pick up from here. But it’s so hard to tear yourself from a new toy!
I understood that as soon as I gave my confirmation, I would be dropped into some labyrinth made to test my abilities. I had a perfect idea of how mad the leadership would be if I failed the test and lost the chance to strengthen myself. On the other hand, I wasn’t a child. This wasn’t my first time in a videogame. I already understood how to move and orient myself. I was a fairly experienced gamer and had seen the darkest depths of many game worlds. I mean, come on, this labyrinth was made for newbies. With all by abilities and experience, how could I fail?!
So, concentrating and wishing myself luck, I confirmed that I was ready for the test.
Chapter Six. Testing by Labyrinth
THE PICTURE CHANGED instantly. The mirror disappeared, and a semi-circular gap in the wall replaced it. It was filled with a glowing blue force field that periodically glistened with sparkles and electricity. And then, one after the next, I saw little bars of different colors. One for life, one for endurance and another for hunger. When each bar appeared, a popup hint came before my eyes with a notification, so I had no misunderstandings or questions about the new features.
I turned my head, but the semi-transparent bars remained in the upper left part of my field of vision as if glued there. They didn’t obstruct my view or annoy me, though. All the scales were at maximum, and I nodded in approval, speaking aloud for an unknown moderator:
“I understand, no questions. Except one. What am I supposed to do, go through that force field? Is the electricity gonna shock me?!”
Predictably, I didn’t receive an answer, but a small icon appeared at the bottom of the screen showing several concentric circles, like ripples left by a stone in a calm pond.
Scanning. Class ability. With skill growth, scanning radius and discovery chance will increase, type of results will expand, and reload time will decrease.
Well, well! What is this? I use echolocation like a bat? But what about the electronic scanning devices mentioned by the class description? I was somewhat confused, especially because I was unable to test my new ability. The little icon remained inactive.
Meanwhile, my introduction to the game abilities continued. A progress bar appeared on the bottom of the screen.
Using skills and performing other actions fills the progress bar. When the bar is completely full, character level will increase. Dying zeroes out the progress bar.
ATTENTION!!! If the progress bar is at zero, dying will cause your character to lose one level, some skills and all unused skill points. Dying again with progress bar still at zero will cause your character to lose two levels and even more skills.
Now that was very important information. First, dying in the game was entirely possible, and it was not final. Beyond that, if the progress bar was even a bit filled, death wouldn’t cause any serious or irreversible consequences. However, death with an empty progress bar came with a hefty penalty.
By the way... I looked at the empty bar and my level-one character. What did that mean? If I were to die right now... was there a level zero? Or would I just die once and for all? I started feeling a bit beside myself. I suddenly didn’t want to go through the force field and test this out.
Meanwhile, Gnat’s inventory opened. A jean jacket and jeans, a turtleneck, a pair of tennis shoes, and underwear. The items of clothing were in their equipment slots and had almost no properties, just +1 armor from my jean jacket, but it was half worn down. Most of the boxes were still empty. No headwear, my belt slot was inactive, no weapon, either main or secondary, no gloves, glasses, bracelets or rings. In my so-called “backpack” there were just six slots, one of which was occupied by a pack of condoms...
Great equipment for a test. No compass, no coil of rope, no set of colored chalk to mark dead ends or turns I'd already been down. Not even a basic flashlight if it got dark or the most primitive knife. I sharply came to my senses and was astonished by my recklessness. What had come over me? Why sneak unprepared into a place I knew nothing about?!
A wave of fear swept over me, replacing my rash self-confidence. I had already nearly made up my mind to try and open the virtual reality pod, but the glowing force-field flickered, went dim and turned off. Just then, a countdown timer appeared in the lower part of the screen. I was given thirty minutes to get out of the labyrinth...
* * *
Naturally, I was no longer thinking of exiting the game. Onward! I had nearly walked through the doorway when the scanning icon changed color from gray to violet. I could use my skill! I immediately turned around to see how the gap looked from the other side. But the wall behind my back was totally smooth and stable, without the slightest sign of gaps or holes. A one-way portal! Dang! There was no way back. Now I could only look for the way out.
Anyhow, there was plenty of diffuse light coming from the walls, so I wouldn’t need a flashlight. But where to go? I could only see smooth white walls everywhere. About ten feet above me, there was a solid ceiling. Perfect time to try out scanning.
I didn’t know if it was the scan, but a map of the corridors suddenly appeared on the bottom of my screen, showing a ring labyrinth. And what was more it wasn’t only the parts I could see with my own eyes. It also showed behind the walls. Nice! So that’s what scanning could do!
But the reload time was a whole ten minutes, and the draw distance on the map was not very large, just fifteen steps or so. I could only see a couple rings of wall, gaps and forks. However, it was valuable to know that the labyrinth was circular, and that I was in its very center.
Just thirty second later, basing myself on the map, I ran down the only corridor leading outward, leaving the revealed part, then stopped at a fork. Right or left? I turned left at random and ran along the wall, as is usually advised for those trying to escape small mazes. Following one wall was a reliable, though fairly slow way of finding an exit. But I guessed that this labyrinth was not large, as it was designed to test the abilities of new players. So sooner or later, this method would lead me out. It was also important to walk quickly so I would exit
the labyrinth in the time allotted. What was more, I immediately noticed that, as I moved through the labyrinth, the map grew larger. This was child’s play! I couldn’t even get lost!
Wait... four minutes after starting, I reached a small round room with a ramp down and a ramp up alongside three other doors. My confidence blew away like the wind. The main difference between multi-story labyrinths and one-level ones, other than their greater complexity, was that following one wall no longer guaranteed exit. What was more, this meant there must have been much more ground to cover than my extremely slow method could handle. I needed to change tactics.
I expanded the map to the whole screen to get my bearings. No hint had told me how to open the map, but it happened automatically, and that surprised me. So, had I gone far from the center of the labyrinth?
Just one look at the interactive map and I began to howl in impotent rage — all the sections I had already been through were gradually disappearing! The center was already entirely erased, and the other corridors were also going away. So, I had an approximation of how long the map would last: three minutes. Just what I needed! How could I get my bearings in this multi-level labyrinth?!
Leave marks or objects at the forks so I wouldn’t duck into a dead end multiple times? Sure, that was an option. I took out the pack of condoms from my inventory, ripped a small piece of colored cardboard from it and threw it down the hallway behind me. It was meant to mark places I didn’t need to go again. I didn’t delve into the upper and lower floor yet and continued running through the maze.
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