VampQuest

by Adison Runberg

  “That would be so sick. Oh my gosh. Is it cool being a vampire?”

  “I don’t have much to compare it to, but I like it so far. I got a lot of free stat increases when I changed races from human to vampire, and I can regenerate all of my health just by drinking a little blood. Also, I can’t be kicked from the game unless someone uses certain, very particular ways of killing me. Those are some definite pros. According to Veruka, if you stream your gameplay in VampQuest you can earn a lot of money since it’s one of the newest games. One downside is we only get to play at night. Sunlight is deadly.” She nodded thoughtfully.

  “I’ve always wanted to stream, but never thought I could set myself apart from all of the other streamers who already had huge audiences. Maybe this would do the trick. That would be great. Let me try to convince the guys.” She walked over to her two friends and started talking to them.

  I smiled to myself, enjoying the atmosphere of the nightclub and the pumping beat of the music. I connected with it and started moving to the rhythm. I worked my way onto the dance floor and started dancing like I had never danced before. I had no sense of self; I was one with the music.

  Slowly the dance floor started to clear. Each time a song ended, a few more people would leave. The night was coming to an end. I opened my eyes and noticed my three new friends slumped in a booth on the edge of the dance floor. I walked over.

  “Hey, I’ve got to head home soon, but do you all want to come with me to join my guild?”

  “We should crash at our own places, but we could swing by tomorrow if that works? How do we get there?” Kat asked.

  “Is there a way to share the location with you?” I asked as I pulled up the abandoned church on my map.

  “Click the location by pointing at it with your finger, then a share option will appear,” Kat explained.

  I pointed at the abandoned church, then a screen popped up asking if I wanted to share the location with nearby players. I pointed at the ”yes” option, then selected the trio of humans I was hanging out with by pointing at them. Simple enough.

  “Okay, night everyone,” I said, and took off out the door. I needed to make sure I made it back to my coffin before sunup. I tore down the streets, thinking about how the night had gone. I felt accomplished and happy. I was making new friends and making progress toward my goal. A pang of sadness occurred when I thought of Maria. Her death wouldn’t be in vain.

  Eventually, I’ll be able to protect the humans. I arrived in the church's main room where our coffins lay, just as sunlight started to peek above the horizon. I saw the ray of light pierce through the world like a laser beam and it was right above my head. Even though it wasn’t shining directly on me, I could feel its heat. I wondered how dangerous the sunlight really was. I stuck my hand up in the air to feel the warm sun.

  Pain immediately seared through my palm. Instantly I saw my health fall 10%, then 20%, and I regretted my decision to test the sun’s strength. I pulled back my hand, now charred through, and it felt like it was on fire. I stumbled to my coffin and closed the lid, then I passed out in agony. I awoke the following night and looked at my hand. Thankfully, it had healed completely. I checked my health and I was at 96%. I popped the coffin lid open and jumped out. Veruka was pacing around and rummaging through her belongings that were strewn about the church.

  “How did the recruitment go, love?” she asked as she plunged her head and arms deep in a large backpack.

  “Pretty well, actually. I got three new members that should be coming by tonight.”

  “Excellent. Once they get here, you can start a new mission. We need some silver bullets so we can kill the members of the Starboys. There is only one person who sells these that I know of. It’s a non-player character, but not a butler either. You’ll have to do a quest for him first though, in order to unlock the ability to buy and sell at his shop. Here is his location.”

  My map popped open as Veruka shared his whereabouts. He was located straight north from the church, but nearly 150 miles away. It appeared he lived on an island in the middle of Pelican Lake. A thought occurred to me.

  “What should I do if I can’t make it back tonight?”

  “Ah, you’ll have to get more acquainted with the earth,” Veruka said and shuddered. “Nothing gives me the creeps more than sleeping in the ground though. Little bugs and worms all about; it’s dreadful, just dreadful.”

  “Thanks for that,” I said, not looking forward to this trip. I walked outside and sat against the brick wall of the church. The night sky was dark and covered with clouds. Not a single star shone through the haze. Although it was extremely dark out, I could somehow make out minute details of the surrounding bleak cityscape.

  I went into a meditative state. I focused on myself and let my problems pass through my head. At first I focused on my breathing, then I stopped breathing altogether, and for a moment I felt nothing and thought nothing. I was at peace. Eventually, I heard footsteps approaching. I looked up to see the three players from last night happily bobbing toward me. I stood up and met them.

  “Welcome, welcome,” I said, happy they were true to their word. “Come in and meet Veruka, our guild leader. She’ll be very happy you’re here.”

  “Cool place you’ve got here. Very mysterious,” the tall blond man said, looking around at the decrepit church.

  “It’s your place now, hot stuff,” Veruka said as she appeared in the doorway. In a flash she was behind the trio, then reappeared just in front of them. She inspected every inch of them as she showed off her inhuman speed. “Nice work, Aker.”

  “So I wanted to talk to you about these three. Since I recruited them, I believe I should determine what they do, how they’re treated and such,” I ventured. “We will not use them as expendables on missions, and they’ll be free to do whatever they like as long as they provide us with blood when we need it.”

  Veruka stared at me. Her face was impassive, and I started to worry I’d made a major misstep. She paced slowly around the four of us, then placed a finger on the tip of my nose. “I wouldn’t have it any other way,” she said and tapped my nose with each word. “Follow me in, you three, and we’ll get you properly added to the guild. I’ll need your contact information so we can coordinate with you when we need your blood. Aker, you can take off, since I know you want to get your mission done as soon as possible.” She flipped her long red hair over one shoulder and started pacing sassily into the church.

  “One more thing. If they’re dutiful members of the guild for a month, then we vow to make them vampires like us,” I said, trying to sound confident in my demand. Veruka was a blur and then she was staring straight into my eyes, only an inch away from me.

  “Three months,” Veruka said flatly, then began moving her rose-colored eyebrows up and down suggestively as she added, “three months is how long it will take, as I can only change one of them per month.”

  I looked at my three recruits to gauge their reactions. They looked at one another and shrugged.

  “Sounds fine to me,” Kat said cheerily.

  “Deal,” I said, happy I had gotten my recruits fair conditions for joining our guild.

  Veruka paced back into the church while the three new members of the VampGods followed attentively.

  “See you all soon,” I called and waved at them. I smiled, then started sprinting due north. It felt good to run. My legs moved faster than seemed natural, but it felt amazing. The streets weren’t crowded once I got ten miles down the road. I flew around many cars that were trying to obey the traffic laws. I wondered if there were cops patrolling the streets.

  I got a new message that read: “Mission complete, three more missions until Level 5.” Veruka must have finished signing the three up to the guild, nice.

  I fell into a comfortable rhythm. My mind drifted into a meditative state as my legs worked their magic, propelling me like a rocket down the road.

  “Your speed is now level 8, next speed increase in 40 miles,”
a message informed me. I’ll be so fast by the time I get back. I noticed my legs begin to move even quicker than before. I probably don’t need to put any points into speed, since I can gain them just by running everywhere. Or I could only put points into speed to specialize. Hmm, I should keep thinking about my leveling strategy. I wonder how I can pad my other stats.

  Before I knew it, I had completely left the city behind. The large buildings and rows of townhomes were replaced by open fields and an occasional clump of pine trees. I noticed a shirtless man chopping a tree on the side of the road.

  “Hello,” I said as I approached the man cautiously. He grunted at me, hardly taking a moment to acknowledge me. Sweat poured from him as he swung his ax against the tree again and again. “Why are you chopping down these trees?”

  “Getting stronger, mane. I’m farming strength, boi. I’m trying to zone out, get out of my zone.”

  I frowned and took off, but made a mental note I could chop trees to gain strength. Seemed simple enough. I needed a break after running for another thirty minutes. The monotony was killing me. I strode off to the forest. I’ll give chopping trees a try. It would be good to gain more strength. I approached a tree that was about six inches thick. This shouldn’t be too hard. Wait, I have no weapons, no ax. Darn. I looked around for anything I could use as a makeshift ax.

  I saw a rock that was pointed on one end. I’ll have to make do with this. I started smashing the sharp end of the rock into the trunk of the tree. Each swing chipped away a small amount of bark and wood. I crouched there, whipping my arm back and forth for what seemed like an hour. In reality, it was just fifteen minutes. My arm was burning. My mind was telling me I wasn’t making any progress.

  There must be a better way to gain strength. I kept at it despite my own wishes for respite. I am not going to be bested by a tree. Finally, I heard a satisfying crunch. I kicked the trunk of the tree for good measure and yelled, “Timber!” The tree came crashing down in front of me. An overwhelming sense of accomplishment flooded my body.

  “You just gained +1 strength. Next strength increase when you cut down 5 more trees. Get chopping,” a message proclaimed. This brought my strength to 7. I looked down at the rock in my hand, then the fallen tree and considered my options. It probably isn’t worth grinding to get more strength until I buy an ax. I took off down the road again with a new sense of vigor. A little farther down the road, my speed leveled up to 9.

  “Congratulations, you have reached Level 5. Add a point to any stat you like and choose your first special vampire move. This will unlock a tree of new skills.”

  I closed my eyes and navigated the level-up screens. I put another point into regeneration, bringing it to 3. Then I navigated to the special vampire moves. Five branches were now available. Transformation, Tough Skin, Blood Lust, Time Warp, Dark Magic, and Cult Leader.

  Veruka already must have at least a point in Transformation and Cult Leader both. I decided I should try to diversify. I further inspected Tough Skin.

  “Physical attacks deal 25% less damage from all opponents.”

  Not bad, let's check out Blood Lust. “After consuming blood from a human, receive a 25% bonus to all stats for ten minutes.”

  Okay, what about Time Warp? “Slow down time by 25% for ten minutes, can be used once a day.”

  And what does Dark Magic look like? “Unlock this skill to gain the ability to learn dark spells. One dark spell can be learned every five levels. You must have a dark magic teacher to teach you each spell.”

  I don’t really enjoy drinking blood. Tough Skin is absolutely useful, but not that cool. And I don’t know any dark magic teachers at the moment. I’m going with Time Warp. Bending time is definitely the coolest. I unlocked the skill tree. Next special vampire move point will be available at Level 10. I’ve got to keep grinding.

  I arrived at the edge of Pelican Lake after another hour and a half of running. This trek brought my speed to 10. Five more missions to go until Level 6.

  I approached the lake, leaving the narrow asphalt road behind. Cool liquid lapped the sandy shores. I waded in, and as water engulfed my boots, each step further became more of a challenge. Is it even possible to swim with a cape? I guess I’m about to find out. I started doggy-paddling forward. I couldn’t see any sign of the island, so I was relying solely on the direction of my map. I started to get nervous. What if there was something in the water? I picked up my pace, and hoped to expend some of my nervous energy. Too bad there’s no swimming stat in the game.

  I flipped over onto my back and kicked with my legs. I stared up at the night sky, glancing at the map every now and then to make sure I was still swimming a relatively straight course. Suddenly I saw lightning flashing between the clouds. Not a good sign.

  The waves grew larger and larger. My body rose on the water, then fell quickly. I was submerged for a moment. I looked around underwater. The lake bottom was nowhere to be seen, even though the water was remarkably clear. I surfaced and switched to a front crawl. My cape streamed off the sides of my body, slowing me considerably. I thought for a moment about cutting it loose but I actually was starting to like it, plus it gave me extra inventory space. I struggled on. I had to be getting close by now.

  My destination came into view. A big island was lined with trees and downed brush surrounded by twenty feet of sand that sloped from the trees to the lake. Suddenly I could touch the sandy lake bottom. I started wading toward the shore. My clothes were completely soaked and I was freezing cold. A startled goat scampered into the forest as I walked inland. The map guided me toward the center of the island. I started running in the hopes some of the water would fall off of me. I closed the distance on this small island quickly. Soon, I came to a small wooden door nestled among a pile of rocks. The map indicated this was my destination. I glanced around, then shrugged and gave the door a knock.

  “Anyone home?” I called. Thunder boomed nearby; I jumped a foot into the air. I knocked again on the door, frantically this time.

  “I’m coming, I’m coming, hold your darn horses, won’t you,” a hoarse old voice called out. The door opened, revealing a hunched bald man with a long white beard, clad in brown robes. “Hey there, sonny, what can I do for you?”

  “Hello, sir. I need to obtain silver bullets. I was told you could help.”

  “Ah, a dangerous ware, for a dangerous man?” He raised a gray eyebrow at me. “I might have silver bullets for you, but first I need you to do something for me. Think you’ve got what it takes?”

  “I guess. What do you have in mind?” I really didn’t mind doing a fetch quest or two if that’s what it took to obtain the silver bullets. Especially since it would help me grind some more.

  “There are tunnels in a nearby town, used to smuggle alcohol during the great prohibition. They have been out of use for nearly one hundred years. Now, someone has started using them again. They are smuggling ReelC. I need you to intercept the recent shipment going through and bring it to me.”

  “You want it for yourself?” I asked, giving the old man a funny look.

  “Heavens no! I just want to get it back in the hands of the creators. Selling ReelC to players is one of the main ways they pay for the game’s servers. It is also how they can afford to keep adding features and making the game better.”

  “I guess that makes sense. Is it bad for players to be doing drugs in-game? How does that even work?”

  “It doesn’t harm them at all, except of course their loss of capital. I have no clue how it works, though. I’m just an old cook.” I nodded.

  “Okay, can you share the coordinates of the tunnels with me?”

  “There you go. Good luck, buster, you’re going to need it.”

  I took a look at my map. About five miles away, near Pelican Lake, was an entrance to the tunnels. I swam quickly to the end of Shoreview Lane and emerged on the sandy shore. The road stretched into the large lake, located on a peninsula. Water lapped soothingly on either side of the narrow asp
halt path. I walked the street for a few minutes and a message started blinking on my map, indicating, “You have arrived.”

  I looked around at first, not seeing what I was looking for. Then I noticed a large rectangular metal grate close to the road. That must be it. I walked over to it, grabbed its small handle, and flung the grate to the side. A ladder led downward, but even with my enhanced night vision I couldn’t see the bottom.

  I started my descent . The metal clanged and echoed with each step, despite my best efforts to keep quiet. If I listened carefully, I could hear water trickling from the murky depths below. This is taking forever. I put my hands and feet on the outside edges of the ladder and started sliding down a few rungs at a time. A few moments later, I reached the bottom with a splash. An inch of water coated the narrow tunnel floor. I started walking cautiously and eventually came to an intersection. The tunnel stretched left and right as far as I could see. Pausing, I listened for a moment. I heard muffled voices coming from the left and decided to head that way to investigate. I took one step at a time, easing my foot into the water carefully, trying not to make a sound.

  As I got closer to the voices, I could see light flickering as it reflected off the wet floor. It was coming from a room up ahead. The voices that before were muffled, now were clear and discernible.

  “Think they would notice if we had a couple hits?” a gruff man’s voice asked.

  “Not worth the risk, especially since the payday will buy us as much as we want,” a stern woman’s voice replied.

  I got down on the ground and army-crawled ever closer until they came into view. The man and woman were sitting on a large wooden crate, apparently waiting for something. Each were wearing grey tank tops, camouflage pants, and had machine guns strapped to their backs. They look tough, but don’t look like vampires at least. I wonder if they have silver bullets? Even if they don’t, a shot or two and I would be helpless and passed out with 1% health remaining. What can I do?