Crystal Shards Online Omnibus 1

by Rick Scott

  “So, the mystery Miner with the Scroll of Shadow Copy has a spot on my team, if he can do the do. But what do you guys think? Can this noob with the pretty blue eyes become a Dodge Tank in one month? Will he join me to kill Vulnar? Leave me a comment and let me know. Ciao!”

  She blows a kiss to the camera and the video ends.

  Frankly, I don’t know how to feel. Angry, violated, humiliated? But also kind of flattered that Aiko thinks I have pretty eyes. God, I’m such a retard. The sensible side of my brain kicks in, then, reminding me that I already pledged my allegiance to Val Helena.

  And I’m late to meet her by another 5 minutes now!

  I bookmark Aiko’s page, because I see a ton of videos on there of her Dodge Tanking, which I know will probably come in handy later. I’m about to leave, but I can’t resist having a peek at just one.

  I pick one of her soloing some giant yeti in a snowy region I don’t recognize. Her melodic voice narrates what she’s doing. Half of it, I don’t even understand; it’s all timings for activating skills and abilities I don’t know. She has her inputs mapped to an overlay on her screen so that viewers can see what skills she’s using and how often.

  The thing is going off like a pinball machine!

  How is she doing so many things at once so fast?

  I swallow and feel nausea rise in my stomach as the learning curve becomes real.

  A voice chat request comes in from Gilly, pulling me out of the video.

  Crap! I’m already late. I don’t have time to talk to her right now.

  I hit the deny button on the call and jump into Nasgar.

  I’ve got a date with an eight-foot-tall goddess to keep.

  Chapter 13: Level 1 Warrior

  I switch my class to Warrior and log in.

  A system screen pops up that I’ve never seen before.

  [New synapse node detected]

  [New synapse node detected]

  [Recalibrating……………………….. complete!]

  As I materialize on the Steppe of Andor, I immediately feel different. If the world was in 3D before, it’s in High Definition now!

  I can feel the light kiss of the wind on my face as it rolls across the steppe. I can even smell the grass. Every move I make feels different. Even just walking. Before, it felt like I was controlling myself from somewhere external almost. But now, it’s like I’m really here. Like I’m a real person. Wow! Is this how everyone else experiences the game? I had no idea just how much of the world I was not experiencing before.

  I sprint as a test, running across the rocky terrain. I can feel every bump. I could always see my Stamina bar drain, but I feel it now too, growing tired as it depletes to zero. This is unreal. I hope getting hit doesn’t hurt now, too! I check my stats.

  Reece

  Class: Warrior

  Level: 1

  Strength: 6

  Dexterity: 3

  Agility: 4

  Intelligence: 4

  Mind: 6

  Vitality: 8

  HP: 29/29

  Stamina: 24/24

  TP: 13/13

  A grin spreads across my face. 4 Agility! I almost can’t believe it. No more -10. I’ve done it. I can level up now! I bring up the world map to fast-travel to my home city of Timberdale. It’s a fair distance from the Level 40 area I’m in now, so it’ll cost almost 30 credits. I check my balance.

  You have 27,247 Cr

  Wow, even more than I expected. I guess a couple of my ore stacks must have sold overnight. The auction board is external to Crystal Shards and accessible even outside the game. I remind myself to check it for Warrior gear when I get a chance. Just the thought of being able to do that fills me with excitement. I have so much to do, so much to learn! Right now, I’ve got next to nothing on my character. Just my practice sword, my starting tunic, and my pants.

  I equip the sword and take a swing, cutting through the air.

  It feels natural, but I need to test it out against a monster to be sure.

  I spy some mountain goats nearby, but they’re Level 30. No way can I test against them! I need to get back to the starting area. I tingle with anticipation as I focus on Timberdale and my senses go black as I dematerialize.

  I respawn a few seconds later in a large cobblestone square. Immediately, the sights and sounds of the city hit me like a wall of sensory overload. Murmurs of conversations from hundreds of players mix with the creak of wagon wheels and the shouts from merchants. Low-level characters in gear as crappy as mine dash back and forth, doing quests while the mid- and high-level characters stand around in groups, chatting and decked out in their awesome gear and advanced classes. Between them are the NPCs. They look like normal citizens, with plain dull clothes and forgettable faces. They, too, mill about; some sell items, while others do menial repairs or ferry goods to and fro.

  I can’t remember the last time I was here. But I still remember the layout. From the square, several streets lead outward, between stone-walled buildings, toward the edge of the city and the great forests that surround it. The square is the hub where the merchants are located, but there is a Warrior’s guild to the west, a Mage’s guild to the north, and an Archer’s guild to the south. To the east are the sawmills, where all the various crafting guilds can be found. Carpenters, smiths, and leatherworkers, plus the guilds for logging and mining.

  In the center of the square is a large fountain where most of the high-level players seem to congregate. It doesn’t take me long to spot Val Helena among them, thanks to her enormous height. I check the time and see that I’m 20 minutes late!

  I rush toward her and hope she isn’t pissed.

  She’s got her arms folded in her full plate armor, and isn’t really speaking to anyone, but I see a couple of elf girl groupies who seem to be live streaming and taking pics of themselves with Val Helena in the background.

  She sees me first and thankfully smiles, though it’s sort of a wry one. “I was beginning to get worried I’d lost 600k.”

  I chuckle. “Sorry. My treatment took a little while.”

  “But you’re all good now?”

  I nod. “I haven’t tried fighting anything yet, but I think so. No more -10 Agility.”

  “Good. Let’s see you in action, then.”

  We head out of the square, through one of the side streets, and west past the Warrior’s guild. Lots of people glance up at Val Helena as we travel through the city, which is probably normal for a female half-giant. Half-giants are not a very popular race amongst players in Nasgar, and among females even less so. But then I notice that people are staring at me, as well.

  Some random guy claps me on the back as he walks by. “Yo! Awesome find, man! Good luck!”

  Val Helena gives me an eye. “What was that about?”

  I shrug and look up at her sheepishly. “Aiko put me on her live stream. Now, half the Shard knows that I have this scroll.”

  She smirks. “That’s just like her. Try not to let any of it distract you.”

  I nod and almost ask her about how she knows Aiko again, but I remember she didn’t seem to want to discuss it. Maybe it’s a question I can save for later, when I get to know her a little better. We reach the edge of the city. The forest starts just beyond a small stone bridge that spans the creek which serves as a pseudo-moat. As we cross the bridge, I notice huge fish swimming in the slow-flowing water below and downstream, a couple of players who’re trying to catch them.

  The words “Westwood Forest” appear in my vision as we exit the limits of the city.

  “Try that,” Val Helena says, and points to a large gray rabbit.

  Forest Hare

  Level: 1

  You wouldn’t kill this cute little bunny, would you?

  Affinity: Earth

  I laugh at the description. You bet I would!

  I run over to the rabbit and swing. My virtual muscles react as intended and I smack the hare easily with my practice sword.

  -3 HP

  Woo
hoo! It worked! I hit it!

  The hare responds by jumping in the air to kick me with both feet. Oof!

  -2 HP

  I hit it again, but miss a third swing as it scoots out of the way. My arm feels a bit sluggish as I recover from my attack, like I’m pushing through water, and I wonder if that’s normal. A small part of me fears that maybe the treatment didn’t work all the way.

  The hare jump-kicks again. I try to move to the side, but I’m not fast enough. I take another couple points of damage. I get my revenge with another swing that hits.

  -3 HP

  Your Sword skill has increased by 0.3.

  One last hit lands.

  -2 HP

  You defeated the Forest Hare!

  You gain 25 experience points!

  You find a Slice of Hare Meat.

  You find a Rabbit Pelt.

  “I did it!” I cry triumphantly. I grin and look back to Val Helena. “I guess I’m fixed.”

  “Guess so. How did it feel?”

  “Like a dream.” I swing my sword again. “You won’t believe how frustrating it was not to be able to do that before.”

  “I can imagine.”

  “Although, I did feel a bit sluggish. Is that normal?”

  “What’s your Agility?”

  “Four,” I say.

  “Yes, that’s normal. You won’t be able to hit at a decent speed till about 10 Agility. Then it just gets better from there.”

  “Sweet.”

  I check my XP bar. 25/100 till the next level. I need to kill more stuff. “Hey, you want to hit a dungeon or something so I can level up faster?”

  Val Helena looks back at me oddly. “What?”

  “Aren’t we leveling together?”

  “Me? Level with you?” She lets out a goddess laugh. “You’re Level 1. You wouldn’t get any XP if I was to party with you. Sorry, no power leveling here.”

  “Oh.” I feel kind of stupid now.

  “Look, go do what noobs do. Get experience. The real kind, not just points. Besides, I got my own stuff to do to prepare for the world boss.”

  “Like what?”

  “Like getting the rest of my guild up to scratch so we can clear one of the three Beast Kings before Vulnar spawns. It’s a prerequisite for entering the world boss lair. Which means, you need to be ready for that fight, as well. Most of my guys are aiming to hit 75 by next week to clear it. So you got a lot of catching up to do.”

  “But those guys are Level 40 already!”

  “What part of ‘a lot’ do you not understand?”

  I laugh, but she doesn’t. Dang! How in the world am I going to hit Level 75 by next week?

  Gilly: Hey! Are you there?

  “Speaking of which . . .” Val Helena holds her hand out toward me and a message appears.

  Val Helena has invited you to join a guild: Ragnarok

  Do you accept? (Y/N)

  I hit yes.

  You have now joined Ragnarok!

  You can now communicate through Ragnarok chat.

  (RNG)Val Helena: Everyone, say hi to Reece, our new Dodge Tank in training. He has a lot to catch up on, so help him where you can.

  I’m then hit with a wall of chat spam as people welcome me. A few of them I even recognize.

  (RNG)Zeke: Hey, welcome, Miner-dude. ; )

  (RNG)Silvi: Hi, Welcome! ^_^

  (RNG) Thanus: Yo. Just remember not to screw up! lol

  Gilly: Are you mad at me or something? :’(

  I’m distracted by the rest of the guild welcoming me, but what did Gilly’s message say? Was I mad at her? What is she talking about? Perhaps it’s that message I left. I respond back.

  Me: Just a sec. Right in the middle of something at the moment!!!

  I’ve got to talk to her, let her know what’s going on, but I need to say hi to everyone in the guild first.

  (RNG)Me: Hi, guys! Thanks for having me. I’ll need a lot of help. I’m a complete noob, as you know. ;D

  That gets a bunch of lols. I can’t remember all the names I see pop up, but there are about a dozen people in Val Helena’s guild. I’ve never been in a guild where the people actually communicated before. The experience is both new and exciting. So many people to meet and get to know. I can’t wait.

  “Okay one last thing,” Val Helena says, and then, in a sudden burst of light, her character transforms before my eyes.

  Gone is her bulky white plate-mail, replaced by a tight, red leather breastplate that looks more like an oversized sports bra. About her waist is a short skirt made of red leather strips and dangling chains. On her feet is a pair of thick leather boots topped with black fur, which match her gloves. The rest of her body is bare, showing off her muscular thighs and biceps, as well as her huge shoulders and chiseled abs. She’s more buff than I am! Atop her head is a black iron circlet that fits her neck-length platinum hair like a crown.

  I do a double-take.

  Name: Val Helena

  Sex: Female

  Race: Half-giant

  Class: Warrior

  Level: 85

  Guild: Ragnarok

  A Warrior? “You’ve got a Warrior max leveled, too?”

  “It’s actually my main,” she says, and flexes a massive double-headed battle ax before affixing it to her back, where it stays put as if by magic. “I only started leveling the Paladin recently.”

  “Holy crap. I can’t believe Paladin is not your main.”

  “Well . . . it was going to be. I was leveling it to tank Vulnar. But then I met you.” She gives me a grin. “So now, you get to be the tank.”

  She laughs, and I feel even more nervous. “Don’t worry. I’ll be your backup tank. But hey, if you get good enough, who knows? Maybe I could cut loose as a damage dealer again. Too bad you can’t change jobs when you’re in combat.”

  “No kidding!” I think I’m even more mesmerized by this new version of Val Helena than before.

  “I made this for you,” she says as a message appears in my inbox. “It’s a sort of road map for where you’ll need to go and how to get there.”

  “Cool, thanks.”

  “Also some advice. Level up Warrior and Elemental Mage before Thief, and dump all your points into Agility and some Dex. They won’t help much with either of those classes, and you’ll feel underpowered, but trust me, you’ll appreciate it once you start leveling Thief and eventually Ninja. Until you unlock Ninja, level up using mainly dungeons. It’s quicker, but you’ll need to party up for them.”

  “Got it.”

  “Once you hit Ninja, though, kill more monsters for XP. It’s slower, but it’s what you need to build up your Weapon skill. You can only do that by hitting stuff.”

  “Yeah. I think I got a 0.3 skill up just now on Sword.”

  “Exactly. It takes a while. You’ll need to hit skill cap for Accuracy for the world boss at 85. I think that’s around 400 or so skill.”

  Holy crap! “That a lot!”

  “Another thing: while some of us have lower level classes, most of the guild is going to be busy leveling their mains to 75 for the Beast King battle. So no one from the guild will be able to level with you. That means you’ll have to meet new people to run dungeons with and make your way through Ninja. That will present a different kind of challenge for you.”

  “What kind of different?”

  She lets out a sigh. “Most people play this game for fun, or the escapism. But you’re playing it for a much different reason. With a much more difficult goal than most. You’re going to get to know a lot of people, but take care who you actually make friends with. Some people look for endless help. Others are just hopeless in general. Those kinds of people will only slow you down. And that’s not something you can afford to do.”

  I swallow a little as she says this. “Sounds a bit mercenary.”

  “Call it what you will, but trust me. It’s the attitude you’re going to need if you want to make this happen. My advice is don’t make friends with anyone. If you need
advice on stuff, ask in the guild chat. And if you need someone to talk to, I’m always here.”

  I smile at that. “Thanks, Val Helena. For everything.”

  She smiles back, and I have a huge urge to hug her. Aw, what the hell. She’s done so much for me. I step toward her, wrap my arms around her tree trunk of a torso, and squeeze tight. “I really mean it. Thank you so much!”

  I feel her warm body reverberate against mine as she chuckles and lightly pats me on the back. “Okay, okay . . . I get it. You’re welcome.”

  I pull away, feeling slightly embarrassed. “Sorry.”

  “Don’t worry about it. Oh, one last thing,” she says, and then removes a ring from her left index finger to offer it to me. “This is for you. But if I ever get to go Warrior again, I’ll want it back. So don’t lose it!”

  I laugh. “Okay!”

  Val Helena wishes to trade with you:

  Val Helena offers you a Black Onyx Ring

  Black Onyx Ring

  +2% TP regeneration every second.

  Do you accept the trade? (Y/N)

  Wow! Pretty decent-looking ring. I hit yes and receive it from her.

  “Nice . . .” someone says. “Are you going to put it on his finger, too?”

  We both turn to see Gilly standing at the foot of the stone bridge, her arms crossed as she watches us. How long she’s been standing there, I have no idea. But by the look on her face, she seems really pissed off. “Gilly . . . ?”

  “You know that I was worried sick about you all last night, right?”