Life Reset- EvP

by Shemer Kuznits

  “So that’s why they sleep during the day,” someone below exclaimed. “I thought that was weird.”

  “That’s right.” I looked for the speaker, but couldn’t pick him out of the crowd. “The entire valley is now under the effect of eternal darkness. It is now a natural ground for creatures of the dark and is inhospitable to outsiders.”

  One of the mastiffs howled. The others picked up on it and bayed in a haunting chorus. I felt the tone of their howling, challenging, claiming dominance over everyone present. But I also felt their controls wide open for my influence and commanded them to stay put.

  “What is the meaning of this?” Nero demanded, putting his hands on the hilts of his swords. “We were told this place would be a safe starting zone. Now you’re telling us it has become hostile territory?”

  A chorus of disgruntled whispering followed. I raised my hands to draw their attention back to me. “No. What I’m trying to tell you is that there is a place for each of you in my clan. Join us and you too will become Shadow-Touched, and this darkness,” I gestured around me, “will be your ally as well.” Seeing the unconvinced faces, I added, “As members of the clan, you’ll have access to the crafting workshops, our craftsmen, the combat trainers, and you’ll be entitled to a discount when buying from merchants.”

  “Hell yeah, now you’re talking,” someone cheered from below. “Where do I sign?”

  I shook my head. “You have to earn the privilege. You need to prove you are our allies like those two did.” I pointed to the hulking figure of Malkyr, standing a good head and a half over everyone else, save the Ogres. “Malkyr and Hoshisu,” I said in a formal tone. “Will you please come up here?”

  The two exchanged puzzled looks, then moved forward, climbing the ladder to stand next to me.

  “Both of you have repeatedly proven yourself as friends of the GreenPiece Clan,” I continued with the same formal tone. “You have helped us build the clan and shed your blood protecting it. For your dedication, I now offer you membership with the clan. What say you?”

  “I say it’s about damn time,” Malkyr grunted. “I already built myself a home in the valley.”

  Hoshisu searched my face for signs of deceit.

  “No tricks.” I held up my hands. “You two deserve the recognition.” I raised my voice, addressing the assembled crowd as well as the siblings. “Swear to be loyal members of the clan, help build and protect our people, swear it on the name of our dark deity, Nihilator.”

  The siblings exchanged a long look. Then Hoshisu broke eye contact and shrugged. “Why not? Let’s make it official. I swear.”

  “Hell yeah! I swear too,” Malkyr declared.

  I held out my hands toward them. “I hereby accept you into the clan. Welcome, brother and sister.”

  Shadows streamed from my palms and encircled the twins, cocooning them in utter blackness. There were gasps from the crowd below. The darkness persisted for a few seconds before it receded, gradually revealing the two. Their skin had darkened noticeably, and, like the rest of my clan, they too had black stripes covering their bodies.

  Malkyr’s eyes became distant, obviously reading the messages informing him of the bonuses he’d just received. “Cool, I have Darkvision now. It’s way better than the goblinoids’ low-light vision.”

  “And there’s a bonus to sneak …” Hoshisu murmured appreciatively.

  Several other adventurers shouted from below.

  “Hey, I want to join too!”

  “Yeah, count me in!”

  “You first have to prove your worth and willingness to help our clan,” I started to explain “Help and protect –”

  “Oh, for Pete’s sake,” Hoshisu interrupted, turning to face the crowd. “Just complete a few social quests until you get to friendly reputation with the clan, then you’re in.”

  I looked at her grumpily. She had just interrupted a grand speech.

  Hoshisu wasn’t impressed by my offended glare. “I just saved everyone some time so they can actually do something useful. Now give me a few minutes of peace, I’m still reading.”

  Despite her impatient tone, she didn’t sound as angry anymore.

  “So we’re good now?” I raised an eyebrow.

  “I’m still pissed at you for pulling one over on me, but I got what I wanted out of it,” she answered distractedly, her eyes darting from side to side.

  “Oh? What was that?”

  “I’m fairly certain now that you are not an NPC,” she said offhand, not bothering to meet my shocked expression.

  “What? You … what?” At a loss for words, I could only stare at her.

  She had finally finished reading, and as her eyes met mine, she smiled crookedly. “I was pissed, thinking someone was taking advantage of me and my brother. I suspected the whole ‘beta test as monsters’ thing was a ruse. I thought the company had developed a new AI and was testing its interactions with live people.”

  “I’m, uh … I’m ugh … what?”

  “Yes, I get it, you’re stunned. That’s one of your many charming traits. There’s always this either stupid look of bewilderment or cockiness on your face. During the fight, you preferred to show off instead of claiming a win and when I won, your dirty trick loophole was actually a strong indication of your humanity.”

  “So …” I was still having a hard time digesting everything she’d just told me. “You don’t think I’m an AI anymore?”

  “Nope. I took some cyber-psychology classes during my Master’s studies. You exhibit all the signs of an addict gamer. So I’m fairly certain you’re human, just like the rest of us.”

  “That’s reassuring. I guess.”

  She patted my cheek, giving me a mischievous grin. “That aside, if you ever feel like a rematch, just let me know. Next time, I won’t just win on a technicality.”

  The crowd below us began to disperse. Many of the players were talking excitedly, some even demanding quests from my clan members. That gave me an idea.

  “Before you go, I’m offering everyone a repeatable quest.” That drew many eyes back to me. “I will grant 5 reputation points for every tree log you bring to the lumber yard.”

  Grant an area quest [Logs for The Lumber Yard]? Yes/No

  An area quest, that’s new. I adjusted the quest rewards and clicked on ‘Yes.’ The players below murmured their approval.

  It felt good exploiting a loophole, manipulating the game to my own advantage. It made me feel like my old self again. A player in a game. The forced goblin’s instincts faded away like a dream no longer remembered.

  And I owed it all to Hoshisu. For some reason, the shock of hearing the reason for her animosity toward me was like getting dunked in a bucket of ice-cold water, snapping me back to my senses. I was Oren, the player, and I was in control of my goblin Totem avatar.

  The woman had taught me both a lesson in humility and humanity. I chuckled. I should bring her something nice as thanks.

  Most of the crowd had dispersed. I turned around and looked at the new building. The Dark Temple was built very close to the edge of the stone ledge, leaving about a meter-wide strip of ground between it and the ladder leading up.

  The walls were five meters high with tall, darkened glass windows. A wooden double door stood at the front, large enough to easily accommodate an Ogre.

  I approached the doors, and they opened on their own. The area inside was about 50 square meters of mostly open space, though there were three goblin-sized alcoves at the far end. Sharp bone shards protruded from the walls and adorned the windowsills. The shrine was located near the back, doubling as a podium. The whole place had a sort of ‘evil pagan goth’ feel to it. I rather liked it.

  But there was more to the temple than its menacing appearance. The building thrummed with dark power, even more than the altar back at the Ogre fort. I could feel the pulses of dark energy running through it, projecting an aura that strengthened my clan and sustained the Eternal Night.

  I knew the blessin
g would be a major one but hadn’t realized how profound it would be. The bonuses it granted to my clan were staggering. I mentally glimpsed at my own stats, noting that my max health had risen by 60 points and my mana by over a hundred. Along with the bonuses for mana regen and combat damage, my troops were much stronger than before. The added five percent bonus to non-combat skills was also invaluable as it translated to a direct five percent increase in the clan’s production and development. Considering that our daily upkeep had been halved meant, among other things, that our available daily food had increased to such a degree that I was now able to summon two new hob soldiers or one Ogre every day.

  I went to the shrine and placed my hands on it. A surge of energy pulsed through me, and for a moment my mind and muscles were suffused with an overwhelming power. This place intensified my powers even beyond the effects of Eternal Night. If ever needed, the temple would be the place of our last stand.

  I closed my eyes and concentrated. I found the origin that projected the darkness over the valley and tapped into it.

  Eternal Night Blessing. Rank: 1

  Enemies: -10% max HP. Cost: 500 FP.

  Enemies: -10% max MP. Cost: 500 FP.

  Enemies: -10% damage. Cost: 800 FP.

  Enemies: -10% armor and resistances. Cost: 1,000 FP.

  Allies: No food upkeep required: 1,000 FP.

  Eternal Night Rank 2: 2,000 FP

  Only a month ago, such an interface would have befuddled me. But now, information threads rushed into me with every line I read, feeding me the fine, unwritten details.

  For example, each of the debuffs could be purchased multiple times and the effects would stack together. Purchasing rank 2 of the blessing would increase all the basic effects and unlock even more advanced upgrade options.

  After activating the blessing, I only had 641 FP remaining, so most of those upgrades were out of my reach, at least for now.

  Still, the Dark Temple was an incredible defensive tool. It was a ray of darkness and hope in our struggle to prepare for war. With time and enough Faith Points, it could make the settlement invincible. And once I completed Nihilator’s three-shrines quest, those effects would only increase.

  I studied the dark walls closely. Too bad I can’t carry it out with me, I thought humorously.

  “Now, this is a place befitting the master,” an unmistakable voice came from behind me.

  I sighed, not bothering to look back. “Hello, Kuzai.”

  The dwarf came inside. The two remaining goblin adepts I had recently summoned followed, and behind them, eyes darting everywhere, came Bek.

  “The other acolytes and I will lodge here and maintain the temple,” Kuzai declared.

  I rolled my eyes. Like I hadn’t planned on it anyway. “Sure, go ahead.”

  The goblins spread out, checking the windows and touching the shrine reverently.

  Bek came over to me. “Dread Totem,” he squeaked. “Bek go out now. No room for all goblins. Bek used to sleep outside.”

  I gave him a steady look. He was wearing my old gear; the kilt, the headdress, and the feathered skull-staff.

  “Bek,” I said slowly, “after Kuzai, you’re the strongest one here. You can leave if you want, but as a priest of the master, it’s your right and duty to claim your status. You need to do it on your own, I cannot assist you.”

  He looked at me helplessly.

  I placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. “You can do it, Bek. I believe in you.” I turned and left the goblins to decide on their sleeping arrangements.

  It was still dark outside. Eternally dark. My clan could now work freely during the entire day if I wanted them to.

  I teleported down to the valley and went looking for Zuban. I found him and his builders at the construction yard hauling in the last day’s resource yield.

  “Dread Totem,” he greeted me. “Constructing the Dark Temple with magic in mere seconds was a spectacular display. It makes me and my workers seem irrelevant.”

  I shook my head. “That little display took a lot of energy. If I did that with every building, we’d soon run out. Better to save it for special occasions.”

  “I understand. Now that the temple is completed, what should we build next?”

  I’d already decided on the answer to that question. “The weapon workshop.” My troops needed good weapons so they could start training. Armor would come second. “Build it between the barracks and the smithy. I plan on building all the future workshops there; we have plenty of space and that way the workshops will have easy access to metal and be able to trade resources between themselves.”

  “Very astute observation. We shall begin immediately, Dread Totem.”

  I left the construction yard and made my way back to my house. Now’s a good time to Runecraft some –

  My musing was cut short as I nearly ran headlong into someone.

  “Whoa there, Chief,” Malkyr exclaimed good-naturedly. “I was just looking for you.”

  I looked up at the giant, noting that his Greataxe was strapped across his back. “What’s up?”

  “I know you wanted me to use the Viridium to craft weapons you can enchant, but I’ve been slaving on it all day and all I was able to produce are these.” He showed me three balls of Viridium, each about the size of a goblin head. “Sorry, but the system keeps slapping me with ‘skill too low’ messages when I try to craft anything else. I assume I’ll need to reach Master rank before I can make something better out of this stuff.”

  That was a bit of a letdown. But at least he gave it a try. “I appreciate the effort, my friend.”

  I took the Viridium balls from him and checked them closely. They were perfect spheres and heavier than they looked.

  Viridium Sphere

  Type: Ammunition, component

  Runecraft viability: 8

  Rank: Magical

  Durability: 200/200

  I looked at the pieces and had to resist the urge to rub my hands together. Even in this very basic shape, the Runecraft viability was the highest I had ever seen. The possibilities were endless. I was itching to try some new ideas. “Thanks, Malkyr.”

  “No problem, Chief, just doing my part.”

  “I’ll see you around.” I put the spheres in my inventory and went home.

  Back at my house, I placed everything I wanted to work with on the table: the Viridium spheres, my new staff, the giant Stalker Pins, and as an afterthought, the Chalice of Infernal Energies that was still blazing with green flames. It was a powerful magical item, sure, but it also livened up the place.

  With everything laid out in front of me, I sat down, selected my staff, and opened the Runecraft Design Mode.

  The holographic representation of the staff appeared. It hovered before me, a straight horn with a wide bottom and a sharpened tip with three bloodstones embedded in its upper half. The staff could only hold four runes which was a bit disappointing; it didn’t leave much room to get creative. Still, the staff was powerful enough on its own, so even a slight improvement would be significant.

  I stared at the staff and pondered the possibilities. What should I add to it? The strengthening rune would obviously have to factor in, to enhance the existing magical enchantment. That would mandate the use of the connector rune, which would leave me only two open slots to play with. Let’s see what we’re dealing with here first, I mused and added the ‘Ko’ rune of strength. I watched the rune’s glowing sigils spreading over the staff, then I added the ‘Te’ connecter rune to it. The translucent representation of the staff flickered, and instead of the expected view of the durability points, I saw something very different.

  A veritable galaxy of dots appeared within the staff. Hundreds, thousands of dots in various colors. My heart sank in my chest. I had enough trouble in the past trying to connect a dozen dots. There was no way I could ever connect so many as this.

  I scowled. Something here felt off. These are not durability points!

  I concentrated, reaching for
the information, letting my mind absorb the data. Ah, the points represent the staff’s existing enchantments, I realized. The colors differentiate which dots belong to which enchantment.

  The ability to store magical charges had the most dots by far. The enchantment that improved mana regeneration had about 20 dots and the demon-summoning bonus had a few hundred. There were also the standard durability dots, ten of them.

  Okay, let’s get the priorities in order. I organized my thoughts. I can’t directly enhance the spell-storing ability, so what can I do? I thought for a moment then smiled. Of course, instead of affecting the enchantment itself, I can manipulate the spells that are fed to it, or more precisely, the mana that empowered them. That called for a socket, so I’d have to use the ‘Ma’ containment rune. I tried to think of what else to add. It had to be something simple, as I only had one open slot left. The only thing that came to mind was to augment the staff as a melee weapon by using the binding rune on its tip. The strengthening rune should then improve its base damage. It wasn’t ideal. I wasn’t planning on using it much as a melee weapon, but I guessed it was better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it.

 

  I grimaced. More like a gun.

 

  “Okay then.” I cracked my knuckles, ignoring Vic’s humor. “Let’s go.”

  I put on the containment rune first, drawing it just below the first bloodstone. Then I added the strengthening rune followed by the connector rune. I took a deep breath and started the long and arduous process of connecting the dots.

  It was maddening. I spent an hour at first, just trying to locate the dots I needed. After some trial and error, I discovered I could ‘tune out’ the colors I didn’t want. The galaxy of points vanished and a much more achievable goal of 30 dots remained. It was still more than double what I had ever tried to connect before. I spent several hours trying to link them all, having to restart a few times when I ran out of room.