Chapter Ten
Alex logged back into the same location of the Warped Forest. A darting movement from the side had her spinning around hands raised until she saw it was a furry rodent with fat cheeks and a long nose, no bigger than a grapefruit, running across a log. As she faced it, the creature stopped and stared back.
Shrew, Critter, Level 0
"Oh, hey little one," said Alex. "I don't think you're supposed to be here. Probably not that safe around here."
She reached down and captured a cricket in her fist, shaking it up to disorient the insect before tossing it to the shrew, which was perched on the log. Before the cricket could get away, the shrew pounced, biting into the insect with a crunch before scurrying off into the undergrowth.
Alex resumed her journey, walking right into a pack of large iguanas with bright red and purple skin that were marching the other way down the path. Each one was about two feet long with a spiny ridge that went the length of its tail.
The creatures were as surprised by her appearance as she was of them, but the truce only lasted until the first iguana spit a jet of fire that roasted her leg.
You have taken 1 fire damage! You are on fire!
She pulled out her Vicious Thorny Whip, retreating over a fallen log, and hit the first creature to come around it.
You deal the igneous iguana 9 damage!
The igneous iguana is affected by Bleed!
The strike and subsequent bleed trigger sent that critter into the woods. Alex had little time to cheer before two more of the flaming lizards tromped after her.
You are on fire! You take 1 fire damage!
The hem of her Cloth Breeches were smoldering, but Alex didn't have time to put herself out as the two nearest critters sent jets of flame after her.
You have taken 2 fire damage!
She hadn't even killed one of the igneous iguanas and nearly a sixth of her health was gone. Alex leapt to the left, using the lead iguana as a shield from the rest, and slashed it with her whip.
You deal the igneous iguana 6 damage!
You have gained a skill point: +1 One-handed Whip
Thank you, may I have another.
As the igneous iguanas ambled around the fallen log to surround her, Alex leapt over the obstacle, taking another couple of points of damage. The bowlegged lizards had a slow turning radius, which gave her a free moment to put out the fire on her breeches.
She weighed running or not, but didn't want to lose out on the chance for experience. If a bunch of iguanas could take her down, then she had no business being in the game.
You deal the igneous iguana 7 damage!
You deal the igneous iguana 8 damage! You have slain the igneous iguana!
The fallen log provided a barrier that she could use to keep the group of iguanas from surrounding her. Each time she had to leap it, she took another couple damage until she was down to two hit points with four iguanas left and her fatigue was dangerously high.
Fatigue: 87%
The other issue was that her thorny whip had burnt edges from the fire spit. She didn't want to lose another weapon so quickly, but she assumed that its durability was near the breaking point.
The fallen log gave her a moment's respite, so rather than prepare another attack, she cast the five elements spell for water, focusing it on the area the iguanas were about to invade.
You have gained a skill point: +1 Water Spells
A sputtering spray came out of her hands, but the iguanas moved slow enough that she was able to try again. This time, a bubble of water flew through the air and captured the first iguana like a drop of dew surrounding an insect.
You have learned a new spell: Dewdrop Orb
The blob of water formed a new barrier for the iguanas, which sent them into a frenzy as they tried to avoid the liquid. Alex hopped onto the log and killed another iguana before they could react.
With her fatigue maxed and almost no hit points, Alex stood her ground against the final two.
An igneous iguana misses you!
An igneous iguana misses you!
You deal the igneous iguana 14 damage! You have slain the igneous iguana!
Critical hit! You deal the igneous iguana 27 damage! You have slain the igneous iguana!
Trembling with exhaustion, Alex examined the Dewdrop Orb the moment she received a final notification.
You have slain the igneous iguana!
The iguana in the orb had suffocated, releasing the spell, spilling the creature and water onto the forest floor.
With the fight concluded, Alex surveyed the battleground. She'd killed nine igneous iguanas, including the one that had run off and died from the bleed wound. The only reason she knew it'd died was because she'd gotten a random XP notification during the fight.
XP: 90/20,000
She might have felt good about winning had it not been for the damage her equipment had taken.
Item: Cloth Breeches
AC: 0 ? 1/5 Durability
Better than being naked, right?
Item: Vicious Thorny Whip
Dmg: 5-15 ? 4/20 Durability
Special Attribute: Bleed (10% chance of 1 dmg/sec dot)
Three non-orange whips
During the fight she'd gained a point in One-handed Whip, Water Spells, and learned a spell, which she took the time to examine.
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
Spell: Dewdrop Orb – Tier 1
Faez: 10 ? Duration: 15-60 seconds
Effect: Capture a small creature in a globe of water, removing them from the fight and suffocating them if they can't hold their breath.
The strange part about the spell listing was that it had a link, which was unique for online games. But given that this was a particularly unique online game, run by the world's only magical university, she clicked it.
Immediately, the pop-up disappeared to be replaced by a pair of ghostly hands. The hands made a series of gestures, and a blob of water flew from them.
"A how-to," said Alex.
She didn't remember making the extra gestures shown in the demonstration, but it made sense. The first time, the effect had been generated by her attempting a new skill. But once she'd discovered it, the game had to show her how to cast it again since she'd used the generic water spell from the Five Elements gestures.
With her small faez base, she could only cast the spell once, but it was nice knowing she had another tool in the toolbox. Next she examined the bodies, finding six pieces of Spicy Iguana Meat.
Unlike the raticore, the igneous iguana bodies didn't disappear after she looted the six pieces of iguana meat. Alex wondered if that meant that there was hidden loot that she hadn't met the requirement to discover.
Since she needed to rest, to recover hit points and fatigue, Alex decided to set up camp. It seemed like early morning in the Warped Forest, due to the dim light. Using the skills her father had taught her, she built a small fire, igniting it with her fire magic.
Quest Completed: Establish a camp
You have gained experience: 1,000 XP
When she pulled out her cooking pot, a message appeared.
Quest Offered: Discover a new recipe. (+1,000 XP) [Y/N]
No baking show to help you here
"Oh, more quests," said Alex as she accepted it.
Alex threw a piece of iguana meat into the pot. After a few seconds, the interior of the pot flashed with light.
You have received: Cooked Iguana Meat
She'd hoped for a recipe, but clearly just cooking the meat didn't count. It only made it acceptable to eat.
In most games, recipes required two or more items. Alex searched around the area, foraging a hunk of lollygrass and a sugarroot.
Alex threw the lollygrass into the pot with a piece of iguana meat, and after a few seconds, there was a flash, and a hunk of char was in their place. She dumped the failed meal, then threw the sugarroot into the pot with an iguana meat. The pot flashed again except this time it had a rainbow hue.
You have received: Spicy Iguana Steak
You have learned a new recipe: Spicy Iguana Steak
After tossing the new item into her Handysack, Alex decided to experiment with the corpses that hadn't disappeared after looting. She threw more wood on the fire, getting it crackling before dumping an igneous iguana corpse into it. She watched the pot for a few minutes, expecting a change, but the edge of the dead creature only smoldered.
"Duh, it's fireproof," said Alex.
Rather than use up her few remaining water rations, Alex cast Dewdrop Orb into the pot. It took six tries before she completed the spell successfully, but it filled the pot with a nice, clean, magical water.
Almost as soon as the water came to a boil, the igneous iguana corpse dissolved. Something small and shiny clinked onto the bottom of the pot, but since it was boiling, she threw another corpse in.
You have gained a skill point: +1 Cooking
When she was finished, she threw out the boiling water, revealing nine pebbles at the bottom of the pot. She dumped them into her hand.
You have received: Chimeric Stone x2
You have received: Worthless Bauble x7
The chimeric stones had multicolor swirls across their surface while the worthless baubles looked like gray, chalky stone. She threw the baubles into the grass.
"Chimeric stones," said Alex. "I wonder if this is what's causing these creatures to be all mixed up. Rhinoboar, raticore, igneous iguanas. What a mess."
Almost as soon as she finished speaking, a quest pop-up appeared.
Quest Offered: Figure out what the chimeric stones are for. (+5,000 XP) [Y/N]
It's not like you have anything better to do.
She accepted the quest. It would be her main priority, since there was no reasonable way she was going to grind her way to level twenty without numerous quests.
Alex cleaned up her campsite as the fire burned low. Her stomach rumbled from the meats she'd eaten. Her body wasn't quite adjusting to these new foods.
"The days must be shorter here than in the real world," said Alex, noticing the lengthening shadows.
Sitting on a log while leaning back against a tree, Alex lifted her leg to let out a particularly rambunctious fart that went on for a good five seconds. She nearly fell off the log when something furry darted out from beneath it until she realized it was the shrew she'd met earlier.
The shrew was wrinkling its nose, rubbing at it as if it were trying to remove something stuck to it.
"Sorry, little shrew. I didn't know you were under there. My mom and I would get into horrible farting contests after chili dinners," said Alex.
To her shock and amusement, the shrew stood on its hind legs before falling backwards into the leaves, feigning a small and furry death.
"Oh, very funny," said Alex. "It wasn't that bad."
To prove it, she took a sniff, only to find the stench made her nose wrinkle.
"Sorry about that. I guess this in-game food does a number on my guts," she said.
The shrew rolled back into its feet and scurried into the undergrowth, leaving her once more alone.
She'd logged in during the morning hours, but it was almost evening time. She wasn't excited about the prospect of spending the night in the Warped Forest, since she didn't know what kind of dangers lurked. Usually game zones were more dangerous during the night.
A dreadful screech sounded from nearby, startling Alex into producing her whip. When the forest resumed its soft dirge of insect noises, she looked to her weapon, remembering that its durability had been trashed by the iguanas.
Before she lost too much light, Alex gathered a bundle of grass and rewrapped the Vicious Thorny Whip, which returned half of its durability. Towards the end, she was working by firelight alone, which left her twitchy at every pop of the fire or chirp of an insect.
Darkvision was usually a priority for her since not all dungeons were lighted, but she had no vendor to learn the spell from, assuming this world even offered such benefits. Which meant she was going to have to brave the night without sight, since the forest canopy hid the burgeoning starlight.
Without a bedroll, Alex made a cubby in the undergrowth, using a bush as a protective covering from night creatures. She let the fire dim to coals, not wanting to announce her presence too widely.
Alex curled onto her side beneath the bushes, trying to ignore the growing cacophony of night song. Sleep evaded her as each time she nearly succumbed to slumber, a tree branch snapped, or a nearby creature made an awful noise. The worst was a grinding caw that occasionally echoed through the trees.
When the stars shone faintly through the canopy above her, Alex woke with a start. On the other side of the ashy campfire, something was picking at the ground. She couldn't tell how large the creature was, only that it was less than ten feet from her location.
Tired of hiding beneath the bush, Alex decided to surprise the creature picking around her camp. Crouched on her knees, she cast flame spit, but only succeeded in sending a spray of sparks across the camp.
For a brief moment, Alex saw a dark figure expand its arms with a dreadful flutter.
"Nice sparkler, asshole, but I'm trying to clean up over here," said the creature.
Alex froze for a moment, stunned by the insult. The voice reminded Alex of her Great Aunt Beatrice, who had lived in Brooklyn before her death a few years ago.
"Hello?"
"Yeah, hello right back at ya," came the reply.
"Can I relight my fire so I can see you?" asked Alex.
"Sure thing, but just don't catch my tail feathers. I've waxed them to a particular sheen that glows just right in the starlight."
Crouched beside the fire, knowing that something potentially dangerous was lurking a few feet away in the darkness was rather odd, but Alex managed to put more wood on the fire, expanding the ring of light.
A massive black bird, easily three feet tall, was picking around in the grass. The avian snatched up a worthless bauble that Alex had discarded, threw it into the air with its beak, and caught it with a pouch on its hip beneath the wing.
"Hello, bird," said Alex, adding a little wave to show she wasn't dangerous.
"The name is Ethel Stormfeathers the Third," said the bird, giving a surprisingly agile bow before resuming to pick at the baubles like a common crow.
"Uhm, it's nice to meet you, Ethel," said Alex as she used the firelight to analyze her campfire companion.
Ethel Stormfeathers III, Great Raven, ??
Didn't anyone tell you not to talk to strangers?
You have gained a skill point: +1 Analyze
"This is the proper moment when you introduce yourself," said Ethel.
"I'm Alex, short for Alexandria," she said.
"Like the library?" asked Ethel.
"Sort of. Like the man who the library was named for," said Alex, then wrinkled her nose. "How do you know about that?"
"A raven hears things," said Ethel as she shifted from foot to foot.
"I take it you're not from the Warped Forest," said Alex.
"A Great Raven would never lower themselves to such chimeric delights. We've already achieved the pinnacle of creaturehood," said Ethel, lifting her beak majestically while spreading her wings.
Alex grabbed a handful of sticks, snapped them in her hands, and threw them into the fire, which was already crackling. While game designers had improved the NPCs considerably over the years, witty conversationalists they were not. Alex was intrigued by Ethel's verboseness—doubly so if she was a quest giver.
"Sooo...is there anything you need help with?" asked Alex hopefully.
"Fishing for quests? And here I thought you were a stand-up broad who'd come right out and ask," said Ethel.
"Sorry, I'm still trying to figure out how this world works," said Alex.
The Great Raven hopped around the fire, coming face-to-face with Alex, who was seated in the grass with her legs crossed. If the bird wanted to pluck an eye out there'd be nothing she could do about it.
"There is this one thing, a very important thing, that I could use some help with," said Ethel, leaning close as if she were imparting a great secret.
"What's that?" asked Alex, keeping her voice low, and when Ethel didn't say anything at first, she continued talking. "Is there a hunter bothering you? Or a great magical item you need retrieved?"
The Great Raven tilted her head, staring back at Alex with her pebble-black eyes.
"Hunter? Magical item? What do you think I am? Princess in disguise here? I'm a raven. I like shiny shit. You promise me all your worthless baubles and I might be convinced to come around from time to time," said Ethel, in a way that had Alex imagining a cigarette hanging from her lips.
Quest Offered: Find 50 Worthless Baubles for Ethel (+500 XP / +100 reputation with Great Ravens) [Y/N]
When she hit accept, another text box appeared:
You have an indifferent reputation with Great Ravens
When Alex brought up her quest tracker, she found the new item.
Worthless Baubles given to Ethel: 0/50
"Hey, how come I didn't get credit for the seven you picked out of the grass?" asked Alex.
"Those were not given, but scavenged, thank you very much," said Ethel, adding a laugh-like caw. "Well, you have fun here in Camp Alexandria."
Ethel took to flight, leaving Alex alone once more. She'd hoped the Great Raven might stay, give her some companionship, but it looked like she had more baubles to collect first. When she looked around, she found the bird had left a Shiny Black Feather, which Alex stored in the Handysack.
Awake and alert, she practiced her water spells for an hour, poking around in the campfire while waiting for faez to regen. She managed another skill increase before getting sleepy enough to crawl back beneath the bushes.
When she closed her eyes again, the realization that she wasn't home anymore hit her squarely in the gut. For the first eighteen years of her life, she'd lived in a little trailer in Kentucky, and while there had been struggles, especially after her dad died, she'd never felt alone. Between the online games and the nights sitting around the kitchen table playing board games with her parents, she'd always had someone to talk to.
Now she was alone in a dark forest, hiding under a bush while trying to figure out how she was going to make progress in this impossible game. Suddenly, her bones ached with the desire to rush into her mom's room and curl up on the bed next to her while her mom played with her hair until she fell asleep. Even when things got bad between her and her mom, it was still home, a place you didn't have to figure out.
It just was.
