by Cate Ryan
“It’s okay Taysia.” He tried to comfort her.
“It’s not Mack. You don’t understand. I’ll never see anyone I know ever again.”
“You’ll see me. I know you.” Mack dropped to the grass in front of her, one hoof rested on her scratched arm. She barely noticed the messages that had flashed in front of her eyes.
[-1 HP (Tree branch)]
[-2 HP (Tree branch)]
[-6 HP (Tree branch)]
Her health bar hovered somewhere around the mid-point. Regenerating at a glacial place.
“No, Mack. They don’t even remember me. My sister, my mum, even my boyfriend. It’s like I never existed. And now I’m stuck here forever.”
Mack pressed a hoof gently to her arm. “Okay, that is pretty bad. It could be worse right. Let’s just head to your Fellowship Headquarters. It will be safe there.”
No sooner had the words left Mack’s mouth than a roar came from the southern edge of the clearing.
Taysia froze. She tried to remember how it worked. She could attack, but how. She made to draw a weapon. But fumbled and it fell to the ground. Mack was on his feet already, an axe held in front of him. Made just for hoofed hands to hold.
Even Mack faltered when the creature came into the clearing.
Half eagle, half bird, Taysia yelped. It had fire on the end of its tail, one whip from that and Taysia knew she’d be regenerating far from here. At least that was a possibility. Her chest constricted. Maybe it would be better if she didn’t regenerate. Then at least she wouldn’t have to go through this bullshit.
Mack pressed forward swinging his tiny axe right at the eagle beak. Taysia watched. The hit landed, but it barely took off any of the creature’s health. Taysia remembered her bolt of energy. She conjured it in one hand, still sitting on the ground and threw it quickly at the beast. It sailed straight past and scorched a tree at the edge of the clearing.
She tried again. This time it hit.
[10 damage to Chimera (Bolt of Energy)]
The health bar barely dropped. They were in trouble. Mack continued swinging his axe at the creature, but his health had dropped dangerously low already, and it didn’t seem to be regenerating. Taysia watched nervously, if the bar was regenerating it did so at a glacial pace. Even slower than her own still hovering dangerously in the yellow.
Taysia scooted back trying to pull herself to her feet. They needed to run and hope they were quicker than the creature.
“Mack, we’ve gotta get outta here. I don’t wanna be lunch.”
Mack shook his head ‘It’s no use, it’ll chase us. We need to kill it.’
“We can’t,” Taysia shouted back, a hint of fear in her voice. Would Mack regenerate too?
From the direction of the road, Taysia heard a rustle in the trees. Another one. She could have cried. A moment later a woman, not a Chimera entered the clearing.
“Stand back.” The woman was taller than Taysia, she didn’t wield a weapon, but seemed to conjure something much as Taysia had, only her attack which seemed to be water based, actually did damage. An icy spear formed in her hand which she launched quickly at the creature stabbing right through the chest. A chunk of its health bar disappeared. The woman was already conjuring another of the icy shards.
The woman threw the shard and it lodged in the monster’s eye before disappearing leaving a sticky dark red ichor dripping from the wound. A third shard hit its front leg as it attempted to move towards her, having forgotten Taysia and Mack for the moment. Taysia watched in awe as three more icy shards slammed into the creature’s body each leaving a new seeping wound and a sizable chunk missing from the monster’s health bar. Finally, the creature dropped to the forest floor. Its health bar dropped to 0.
[Creature has been defeated. 60 XP awarded]
[40 XP until next level]
[Congratulations – You have reached Level 05
You may choose between +5% Critical Hit Chance and +5% Critical Hit Damage
40 XP until next level]
Taysia read the notification with surprise. She’d barely done anything.
The mysterious woman was already crossing to the creature, her attention on the glowing talons and feathers as she collected them into her bag. That must be what loot looks like in the game. Taysia realized she’d never even bothered to go back and check the rats that the Admin had killed for her. She couldn’t be doing that again.
“Thanks,” she called out to the woman.
“I could hear you from the path. You really should be more careful,” the woman called back. Pausing a moment to shoulder her pack before adding. “Perhaps, next time you might consider staying on the path.”
Taysia fought the urge to punch the woman. “Yes. You’re right.”
The woman nodded back to her before shifting into the large black form of a puma and disappearing into the forest.
“That was strange,” Taysia commented more to herself than Mack.
Mack, she realized was still sitting on the forest floor, his gray fur disheveled where he’d been bitten by the chimera. His health bar had regenerated slightly but was still dangerously low.
“Um, Mack, buddy. Are you okay?”
The Minotaur turned to her, trails of water matting his furry cheeks. “I failed you. They said I should always protect you. But I couldn’t.”
The Minotaur looked positively broken at the prospect that he hadn’t been able to protect his pixie companion.
“It’s okay,” she comforted him, ‘things will be different now. I’m going to make sure that we get strong like her. We need to be ready for whatever this world throws at us since we’re going to be stuck here awhile.” Taysia wasn’t ready to say forever, but it looked like they’d be stuck here for the near future, so she needed to make the best of it.
The Minotaur wiped his cheeks with his hoofs, grabbing his axe from the forest floor. “You promise?”
“Of course, Mack. We’re in this together now.”
Taysia paused, “Um, I don’t suppose you know how we get you stronger? Do you have a level as well?”
Mack shook his head. “No, we’re linked. I learn just like you do. Whenever you level up, so do I. We should do my points though. That’s probably why I was so weak out there.”
The Minotaur gestured with his hoof to the dead chimera.
Taysia could fix that problem immediately. “What should I do, do we put them all in strength?”
She pulled up the character sheet noting that there was an image of Mack next to her now, she focused on it and his own stats came into view.
[12 unspent attribute points]
Strength 8
Agility 8
Constitution 8
Intelligence 8
Wisdom 8
Charisma 8
[Take care all choices are final.]
“Perhaps not all of them,” Mack suggested, “I probably want some in constitution too.” Taysia nodded and split the points equally bringing Mack’s stats to:
[0 unspent attribute points]
Strength 14
Agility 8
Constitution 14
Intelligence 8
Wisdom 8
Charisma 8
[Take care all choices are final.]
Mack flexed. “That already feels better.”
“Good. We should keep moving then. We need to find that HQ before nightfall. I don’t want to spend the night out here if I can help it.”
She tried to remember what the training master had told her before he’d disappeared. He’d said to follow the road towards Athens but she couldn’t remember if he’d said anything else to give her a hint where the Rolling Wave regional headquarters were.
Chapter 4
“The map says Rolling Wave should be right here.” Taysia did a scan of the area. In the distance a town was visible, but it was too far away.
“I don’t know. There’s nothing here.” Mack shrugged.
“Let’s keep going just a little fu
rther then.” Taysia led the way, one eye on her map and the other on Mack.
“You’re sure you’re okay with all of this?” The Minotaur had been quiet on their walk.
“I won’t fail you again.”
“That’s not what I asked. I want to know if this arrangement is okay for you. If it’s not, I’ll call that Admin back and tell him to take you back.”
“No!” Mack yelled.
“You can’t.”
Taysia nodded. “Okay, I won’t. So, you’re okay with it?”
“Of course. I’ve trained for it my whole life. I dreamed I’d be chosen. Most don’t get chosen until they’re much older.”
“Well, as long as you’re sure.”
She changed the subject. “We’re going to have to head to Athens if we don’t find it soon. I really don’t want to spend the night out here.”
As if to punctuate the thought a distant howl echoed throughout the valley.
Mack jumped at the noise dashing into the woods a little before returning a few moments later. Taysia tried to remember, he was still very young, but it wasn’t the first time he’d darted away.
“Mack!” Taysia called out, following the gray beast into the forest.
She found him staring at a stone fence. The stone seemed to glisten in the sunset. Taysia wasn’t sure if it was blue or green in the dying light but it reminded her of photos she’d seen of Santorini before the volcano erupted.
“Let’s take a closer look.” She ushered for Mack to follow her. Surely there was a gate along the wall somewhere.
It didn’t take long to find a gate at which point a series of notifications popped up.
[New Location Discovered – Rolling Wave Headquarters (Hellas). 15 XP awarded]
[20 XP until next level]
[Quest Complete – Discover Rolling Wave Regional Headquarters (Hellas)
Reward – 10 XP and Rolling Wave Insignia (Hellas)]
[Congratulations – You have reached Level 06
You have unlocked ADDITIONAL BASIC ATTACK
70 XP until next level]
Taysia grinned. This was definitely the place. Above the gate a wave symbol carved from metal confirmed the notification was correct.
She searched for some way to open the gate, finding a long chain that dangled beside the right arch.
She pulled it.
For a moment, all was quiet. Then a gong that reverberated through Taysia‘s body. A few people popped their heads out of doors, only one approached.
A man, around her age, dark brown hair just long enough to be considered floppy. He was clothed in just a pair of pants, a staff at his side. Sweat dripped from his brow.
He stopped just inside the gate. “You’re not Racquel.”
Taysia shook her head. “Taysia.”
He nodded. “You’re the new Rolling Wave initiate. We were told to expect you tomorrow.”
Taysia shrugged. “We’re here now. This is Mack. My,” she struggled for the correct term, finally settling on, “Companion.”
“Well, do come in. Looks like you’re a spell caster, I’m sure that the casters will be pleased to get you up to speed tomorrow. I’m Isaac by the way,” he said all this as he set to opening the gates, finishing just as the gates swung inward allowing him to proffer a handshake to Taysia.
He gripped her hand tightly, the skin heated, she blushed a little but wasn’t sure why.
She noticed a health bar hovered above his head, along with his name.
She gasped dropping his hand, her eyes fixed on his health bar, next to his name, hovered an unmistakable wave symbol like the one above the door. But, she saw a second symbol too. A triangle.
His head cocked slightly as he took in her expression. Wordlessly he led her through the compound. A large square surrounded by Greek style buildings. Haphazardly linked by paths laid with more of the blue stones.
“So, Isaac, how long have you been here?” She reached for Mack as she saw him begin to wander off the path.
He sighed. “It’s been a long time now. Others spend their time adventuring, but I prefer the quiet here. I mostly train the new folks like you. What is your specialty?”
“Illusionist,” Taysia told him. Remembering hours ago, when her followers had voted on her class. It hadn’t even been 24 hours since then. But now, now it might be forever. Would she have made a different choice had she known?
“Really?” He seemed surprised. “I would not have expected that. I assumed you were going to say some kind of healer to be honest. Illusionist isn’t too popular with most folks. They’re just in it for the combat. Is that what you’re in for?”
She considered. Was fighting for her? She’d mostly crafted in the other game.
Perhaps she should give combat a shot here. It could be the only way she’d stay alive.
“I don’t know.” She really didn’t.
“Yeah. Fair enough. I’m sure it’s been a big day for you.” The glint in Isaac’s eye was enough to tell her that he had seen the little triangle symbol next to her own name.
“I won’t give you anything too much to do tonight. How about you just go and grab some food and then settle in. I’ll get you training in the morning.”
Taysia tested her sore muscles and her stomach grumbled.
“Sounds good to me,” Mack answered quickly.
“Don’t worry little dude. It’s not beef.” Isaac laughed heartily at his own joke, not catching Taysia’s rolled eyes or the glance between Taysia and a slightly concerned Mack.
“They wouldn’t, right?” the little gray companion whispered to Taysia. She shrugged. Hard to tell.
As it turned out the food tasted heavenly. As if every taste bud she had was being stimulated all at once. She wasn’t sure what she was eating except that it tasted delicious. Even the salad served along with it was a taste sensation.
She moaned out loud as the first mouthful hit her tongue, savoring the flavors as she chewed and finally swallowed.
“Oh, don’t get too excited.” Isaac smiled. “The bad food tastes way worse than in the real world.”
Taysia screwed up her face.
Her room it turned out was shared with Mack. Just two cots with mattresses that didn’t match the rest of the surrounds. They were modern memory foam type affairs. The kind with the cooling technology that made blankets almost unnecessary. She sunk on to the bed she desperately wanted to allow herself to sleep. She was utterly exhausted. Instead she forced herself to bring up her stats so she could assign her new points (and Mack’s).
She looked at Mack’s first.
[6 unspent attribute points.]
Strength 14
Agility 8
Constitution 14
Intelligence 8
Wisdom 8
Charisma 8
[Take care all choices are final.]
She dumped most of Mack’s points into strength taking him up to 18, the rest into constitution bringing him up to 16. It had worked well so far.
Hers were far more complicated.
She had so many points to spend and wanted to make good choices. She didn’t know if it was worth putting any points into things like wisdom, strength, agility or charisma. Particularly while she remained at such a low level, but she thought that it would be important to keep the character somewhat rounded.
[23 unspent attribute points.]
Strength 10
Agility 10
Constitution 12
Intelligence 12
Wisdom 10
Charisma 10
[Take care all choices are final.]
Looking at her stats she threw 10 points into Intelligence putting it at 22. Leaving her with 13 points to use. She put 8 into constitution which made the total 20. It gave her 5 left. In the end she decided to hold off on those until she had a better idea what to do with them.
Her last action before falling into a restless sleep was to check her latest level up.
[Please choose an additional bas
ic attack from the list below.]
Taysia looked over the list, it included the same attacks she’d seen at character creation. [Bolt of Energy] was grayed out. She didn’t put too much thought into the decision but oscillated between [Frost] and [Flame]. In the end, it was the memory of the woman fighting the chimera with ice attacks that pushed her towards [Flame].
Chapter 5
Taysia awoke in a cold sweat. She’d been dreaming. The feeling of being invisible stuck with her. She reached down and used the thump, thump or her heart beating beneath her fingers to center her. The rise and fall of her chest. She wiggled her toes. She was still there. But she remembered. She’d been screaming for her family and friends to see her. Standing right there but they acted like she never existed. Even worse, her sister eventually saw her, only she didn’t recognize her at all. That was what woke Taysia up. Instead she found herself in the Rolling Wave Regional Headquarters, a snoring gray Minotaur to her left. The sound gave her a small amount of comfort.
She snuck out of bed. It wasn’t light yet. The floor creaked under her weight. She didn’t bother with weapons or shoes. She snuck to the door opening it with a slight creak. Mack stirred but didn’t wake. She relished the cool morning air brushing against her face. The cool wind on her skin. It felt so real.
But it wasn’t real. None of it. Did that mean she wasn’t real?
She walked. As far from the buildings as she could. A short stone wall demarcated a tiny orchard. Olives grew in on small bushes. Grapes on vines. Everything looked so fresh. She popped a grape from the nearest vine slipping it between her lips. She crunched down with a pop the flavor exploded.
She grabbed another. And another. Eventually she got sick of eating the grapes, she didn’t feel all that hungry. Instead she slid them into her inventory. When she got sick of picking grapes, she moved onto the olives.
[Congratulations, you have learned a new skill
Foraging – Rank 1 (Novice)
This skill is useful for finding food and water when traveling in the wilderness. At higher levels you will have better chances of detecting items that will cause harm. Proceed with care.]
She dismissed the notification with a sigh.