Chapter 007
Out of the frying pan right into the fire
Shapes and colors transmuting and transcending in one another swirling and dancing all around me and straight through me at the same time above and below me reversing time after time changing the volume from screaming to whispers back to screaming again over and over and under and around through the ground to the sky back and forth whiteness of everything interchanging with the dark and black and gray and sweet and sour hour by hour day by day from big to small but not smoothly anymore and more step by step jumping from one to another and the other by other¡
I suddenly open my eyes. Holy f¡ what just happened? I think I just had the most crazy¡ something¡ of my both lives. I raise my upper body and visually check my surroundings. Nothing strange in sight. I clearly remember¡ talking with Shadow, at least if that pointless banter can be described as ¡®talking¡¯. Fortunately now I know how to open my interface¡ oh and that there are some rules I¡¯m not supposed to know, which suggests the existence of some kind of enemies, or at least opposition, on the power level equal to that black madman, because with whom would he agree on them otherwise? Of course there¡¯s also the most important information - that Iverie killed me with some Super-Awesome-Poison-Of-Doom. I really can¡¯t wait to have my revenge.
I asked Shadow to leave effects of poison in my body. Now I just have to make someone discover them as soon as possible. But how can I do that? I guess I¡¯ll have to use some acting to persuade Gavlan that I felt weird yesterday evening after the feast¡ It¡¯s about time to leave my bed.
I try to do it¡ but my attempt is interrupted by a sudden headache. And it¡¯s not just a regular one - IT REALLY FUCKING HURTS! Instantly I¡®m bent in half and violently vomiting, and because of that sudden movement I fall from the bed.
I can feel my consciousness drifting away and the last thing I see is Gavlan entering the room, and a sudden panic written on his face, after that only darkness¡
* * *
I feel pain, much duller this time and not as strong. It¡¯s actually a step forward from not feeling anything¡ I guess. I can even think straight, but moving any part of my body is impossible. I¡¯m in a state similar to sleep paralysis I once experienced.
I hear people talking, but I have problems understanding them. Though my hearing is perfectly fine, it¡¯s just¡ too damn hard to concentrate on their voices. It takes me some time to adjust.
¡°So?¡± I think it¡¯s my grandfather speaking.
¡°He was very lucky by the look of it.¡± Unknown voice. Female and adultlike, that¡¯s all I can say. ¡°Really, really lucky. He will survive.¡±
¡°Really? Are you sure he¡¯ll be fine?!¡± Oh, that¡¯s definitely father. His voice is¡ emotional. I can¡¯t blame him, he lost one son, and now nearly the second one, within just a few days. It¡¯s hard to say if he¡¯s more relieved or still shocked about all of it.
¡°Yes. And it definitely was poison. Pretty special one at that. It¡¯s called Dream Resin. After ingestion it kills when the victim sleeps and mimics a naturally caused death. The only source of it are Corrupted Lands, and it requires considerable wealth to acquire any quantity of it.¡± There is a second of silence while everyone¡¯s digesting these informations and then the woman - a doctor or alchemist I guess - continues. ¡°However, judging from the current state of his bathroom he must have expelled most of it in the evening and the amount that already got into his blood wasn¡¯t enough to kill him. He¡¯s young, so there shouldn¡¯t be any long-term effects, but getting back to his healthy state may take a year or so. He is going to feel as if he is partially paralyzed, and suffer from headaches and weak hallucinations. Temporary amnesia is also a possibility. But there¡¯s also¡ another matter to deal with.¡±
¡°Yes?¡± Grandfather I think.
¡°All Res alchemists and herbalists, hospitallians like me included, are obliged to report all cases in which the usage of this poison was discovered directly to the Temple. There is said to be an underground organisation in the city that is suspected of using Dream Resin for assassinations. You should expect a visit of a few Templars later today.¡±
¡°Ah, I think I heard about this organisation recently. But why would they try to kill Varth?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know, and frankly speaking I don¡¯t care. It¡¯s not my problem. You should speak about it with the Templars. Now, about the rehabilitation¡¡±
I can¡¯t keep my focus anymore. And¡ once again I fall into darkness. After all those times I¡¯m getting used to it...
* * *
I wake up. It¡¯s a middle of the night. I feel my body, but can¡¯t really move any part of it except my head. Yet when I try to look around I get a funny feeling in my neck, so I decide to avoid overdoing it. But even without moving it, I can see that I¡¯m in my brother¡¯s room.
Well, I guess it¡¯s logical in a way. This must be the next night, so my room might still need some ventilating after me vomiting. And this room is very close to mine¡ and empty. I don¡¯t feel like I¡¯m able to call anyone, so I decide to spend some time on thinking.
There¡¯s only one explanation for what happened to me. Shadow overdid it. Heavily overdid it. Or simply his understanding of ¡®detectable traces¡¯ is different than mine¡ I mean, they are REALLY detectable. By anyone with his eyes intact. So theoretically I shouldn¡¯t even be angry¡ but I am. Shadow, you FUCKING idiot¡
Well, I guess when you¡¯re doing business with an Evil God you really need to specify what you want. So in a way I¡¯m just as responsible for this mess.
I just really hope that my Health Points won¡¯t speed up my recovery too much. Well, it¡¯s not like I believe I¡¯ll get my actual health back before my fifth birthday¡ only three days left until then, though it¡¯s not really that bad. All my birthdays until now were barely even noticed by people around me, only one nanny gave me additional sweets, really nice of her by the way.
There¡¯s nothing else for me to do, I guess. I would open the interface window and take a look into the options, but in my current state it¡¯s simply impossible as it requires reaching with my hand for it - and I¡¯m practically paralyzed. Besides, I¡¯m still unsure whether or not others can see it, and getting discovered by nannies or Gavlan with a strange thing floating above me would be¡ inconvenient.
I decide to just go back to sleep.
* * *
Once again I wake up. It¡¯s bright outside, so it¡¯s some time during the day. I still can¡¯t move any of my limbs¡ and the weird thing is that I¡¯m actually wearing different set of clothes than last time. Gavlan stands by the door, he sees that I¡¯m awake and comes closer to my bed.
Damn, if I were fifteen years older this whole situation would seem like an intro to a bad gay porno. And now I hate myself for having this idea¡
¡°You¡¯re awake. And you woke up rather early. The hospitallian your family brought to help you, said that you¡¯ll be asleep for at least a week.¡± It must be the effect of my Health Points. It would be great to have more of them¡ and regenerate them faster.
¡°That¡¯s good.¡± Is what I try to say. What leaves my mouth is unfortunately utterly incomprehensible gibberish. Damn. My vocal cords aren¡¯t working as they should. I repeat what I tried to say but this time I speak really slowly, and carefully pronounce every letter. It¡¯s slightly tiring but at least he can understand me.
¡°Now that you¡¯re awake I must inform everyone about this. You have no more than few minutes to prepare yourself.¡° He smiles wryly. Really? Did Shadow possess him when I wasn¡¯t looking? I¡¯ve never saw him smiling before. If he was born as a catman, without any doubt I¡¯d start calling him The Grumpy Cat. And now - this. Ok¡ my enhanced intuition screams to me that there¡¯s something bad going on. What is it this time?! I could certainly use a little rest¡ FOR A CHANGE!
Gavlan leaves the room and soon after I can hear him talking with someone. He said that I don¡¯t have much time to prepare myself, but for what? He was smiling so it couldn¡¯t be about those, so called, Templars. I mean, people don¡¯t smile when they are supposed to be interrogated¡ I also doubt that Iverie would come here, fall onto her knees and beg for forgiveness while expressing her eagerness to abandon all worldly matters and become a priestess in the Temple.
Damn, I¡¯m in no shape to do such thinking. I¡¯m really hungry! At least I¡¯m clean¡ but it means that someone must have washed me after my vomiting. Now that I mention it, I¡¯m in different clothes, hmph. Nannies must have done that. Wait¡ didn¡¯t I already thought about this? My head really is in a bad shape¡ I don¡¯t even know just for how long I slept. Wait¡ is it possible that today is¡
My inner monologue is interrupted, when Gavlan enters the room again and with him is one of my nannies, carrying what looks like a trail with a small meal, and that¡¯s good news all in itself. Gavlan is standing near the door, while nanny feeds me one spoonful at a time as I¡¯m in no condition to eat by myself, it¡¯s actually pretty humiliating but my throat is slightly numb and swallowing is a challenge. At least it gives me time to think about questions I want to ask him.
I¡¯m nearly sure that today must be my birthday. And while I think that me waking up from almost-a-coma should be great news, everyone is acting weird. I¡¯m sure Gavlan reported everything to that herbalist and/or my father, but now his behavior strongly suggest preparing me for something¡ and I really have bad a feeling about this whole situation.
When the meal ends, nanny leaves the room. I turn to Gavlan wanting to ask him some questions, but before I muster enough strength he tells me to wait for a bit¡ and leaves too. Oh for fuck¡¯s sake, what sort of slave are you! ¡ be more useful, please.
Few minutes later I can hear Gavlan welcoming someone. I think I heard that new voice somewhere¡ ah, it must be the herbalist from earlier.
The woman that enters the room soon after that is a human. No more than thirty-five years old, short brown hair. And no collar. She¡¯s wearing a watery blue robe with a noticeable red cross on on the fabric. Wait, red cross?! Now that I think about it, her whole attire makes her look a bit like a nun¡ only without a coif. It only makes me sad though. Does it mean that local religions have some outright Christian elements? That¡¯s the first time since I¡¯m here that I see anything like it¡ I just hope it¡¯s not the case of Having Every Religion Looking At Least Partially Like Christianity (Unless They Are Like Muslims) Especially If They Have Healers, that I was frequently running into in various fantasy novels, books, games etc.
On her face there is a look that can be translated into ¡®Oh, why are you even bothering me with this¡¯. Gavlan enters beside her, most likely making sure she won¡¯t stab me or something. Constructive paranoia, I guess, if you consider what happened to me. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
She begins examination with a pretty irritated attitude, but it disappears rather quickly. She must have expected a false alarm or something - after all I woke up much faster that I should - but now she understand that it¡¯s not the matter. The examination (mostly checking my responses) quickly reaches it end.
¡°Well, he must have ingested much smaller amount of poison than I previously thought.¡± She says to Gavlan. ¡°It¡¯s safe to move him, but don¡¯t overdo it. He is still very weak.¡±
¡°I¡¯ll try to not¡ break him.¡±
* * *
Only few minutes ago I was still enveloped in blissful ignorance regarding my current situation. But now¡ Now I finally understand what made Gavlan so annoyingly smug. Something truly terrifying. Something straight out of a horror story¡ or slice of life comedy¡ And the worst part is that I can¡¯t do shit to stop it. I¡¯m currently sitting on a wheelchair, or to be more precise, because of my current condition, I¡¯m tied to it. And while I understand that it was necessary or else I wouldn¡¯t be able to sit straight, I still think of it as demeaning as fuck¡
Gavlan pushed me into a room¡ full of people. All of them have typical Veles traits, but I¡¯ve never seen them in the mansion before. They¡¯re looking at me. Why did no one told me we were going to have guests?! It¡¯s not like I could do anything about Iverie poisoning me, but at the very least I would be mentally prepared for what was going to happen next!
There are four people in the room, excluding me and Gavlan. Initially my sight catches an ender woman sitting in a big, stuffer armchair. She¡¯s more or less similar age as grandpa. Long, curly, hair in a deep shade of dark blue are partially gray. Unfortunately she may not be aware of her actual age¡ because that cleavage is way too deep for an older woman like her. She emanates an aura of an eccentric old lady who knows how to distil all the fun from life and not be bothered by what¡¯s left. I guess it¡¯s Shadow¡¯s blessing speaking¡
On the right side of the armchair is a similar looking sofa. Two more people are sitting on it. A girl my age dressed in a white lace dress, waving her legs in the air. Next to her is a middle aged man with no distinguishing traits, her father if I were to guess. Lastly, further in the room, next to the window opposite to the door, on a simple chair, sits another girl. She¡¯s holding a book but she¡¯s looking at me. She looks slightly older than me and wears a similar dress as the first girl. Only hers is black and without lace. I think she¡¯s surprised¡ or annoyed. This staring contest with everyone¡¯s attention focused on me lasts for about a second before the door to the adjusted room goes open and woman with black hair enters and speaks.
¡°Oh, he¡¯s here already. I thought it would take longer and just put Damit to sleep for his midday slumber.¡± Wait¡ what did she say? ¡®Damit¡¯? Is this a name? She used it like a name¡ HOW CAN YOU NAME A KID LIKE THAT?! That¡¯s brutal. And funny, hahaha! Oh dammit¡ Damit.
Oh, now that I think about it, they don¡¯t speak English. So for them it¡¯s not ridiculous. But for me¡ Eh, I need to get myself together and not burst out with inner laughter every time I¡¯ll hear his name in the future.
¡°Maybe it¡¯s better for him that way, dearie. He¡¯s only two and our nephew here is in no condition to entertain him.¡± Said the Crazy Old Lady. Hey, I am still in the room, you know? I can hear you! ¡°Speaking of which¡¡± She turns back to me. ¡°Little Varth.¡± LITTLE?! ¡°You look so much more grown up than when I last saw you. It¡¯s been four years since then. We all heard what happened to you. Can you talk?¡± Oh¡ fuck them all! Wrrr.
I try to speak, but once again it¡¯s not easy. It takes me two attempts to say ¡®Yes, I can.¡¯ clearly enough for them to understand.
¡°Mother, maybe we should postpone this whole meeting?¡± So¡ Crazy Old Lady is this man¡¯s mother. And, if I was correct earlier, grandmother of the girls and¡ Damit¡ That name¡ I don¡¯t care if they don¡¯t know English. IT¡¯S STILL RIDICULOUS!
¡°Nonsense Paforth. It¡¯s his fifth birthday and you have only one fifth birthday your whole life! It¡¯s not like we¡¯ll torture him. The healer said that he can accompany us, and who should we trust about health if not a hospitallian? Besides we really should at least meet him. After all, he¡¯s going to spend plenty of time with some of the people in this room.¡± She laughs a little, while I wonder what the hell is she talking about. ¡°He doesn¡¯t even have to talk much. It¡¯s mostly for him to get to know us.¡± Paforth looks like he wants to add something, but he¡¯s too late. ¡°Now that we are talking about fifth birthday, do you remember your own? You were so adorable back then, that day you found my undergarments¡¡±
¡°Mother.¡± He doesn¡¯t look all that shocked so I guess he must be used to this. I feel sorry for him.
¡°Oh puss. Of course, how rude of me. Introductions go first.¡± I just noticed it but¡ on the small table right beside her armchair is a half empty bottle with a transparent liquid - I¡¯m damn well sure it¡¯s not water - and a glass¡ ¡°I¡¯m your aunt, Varthia Veles. Your grandfather, Naharius, is my dear older brother. This embarrassed little boy is my second son, Paforth. Yes dearie, I can see you chuckle. Adorable isn¡¯t she?¡± She actually feels a bit familiar - I think that one of my Earth aunts was a bit similar. A bit - she didn¡¯t drink alcohol, at least not in such quantities¡
¡°Mother.¡±
¡°Yes, yes. She¡¯s my daughter-in-law, Ferke. Paforth¡¯s adorable wife. And what are you blushing for dearie, it¡¯s true. Don¡¯t give me that look son, he¡¯s not one of those with sticks up their butts. Not yet at the very least.¡±
¡°Mother, please. Not in front of children.¡±
¡°Children, yes. My grandchildren actually. Damit¡¯s asleep but his sister is here. Come on Meritri, stand up and introduce yourself to your cousin.¡±
At that the girl in white lace dress slides of the sofa. Despite her previous curiosity she looks slightly nervous. She takes both sides of her dress between her fingers, lifts it slightly and, with newfound determination on her face, performs a¡ curtsy. She¡¯s blushing now, why the hell is she blushing?!
¡°M-my name is¡ M-meritri Veles¡± ...am I THAT scary? I¡¯m tied to the wheelchair, how can that be scary?!
¡°Calm down Meritri, he¡¯s not going to eat you. That was great curtsey for a first time. You can sit back now, and calm down.¡± I can hear amusement in my great aunt¡¯s voice. ¡°I believe it¡¯s your turn now?¡± She says to the girl reading a book next to the window.
The girl sighs and puts the book down on the table next to her. My sixth sense tells me that it won¡¯t end well. The girl stand up and similarly to Meritri performs a curtsey¡
¡°My name is Ni¡¯ren Veles. It¡¯s a great opportunity to finally meet my problematic cousin. And now, if I¡¯m allowed, I¡¯ll go back to reading.¡± Veles truly are a bunch of lovely people¡ Ok, maybe she isn¡¯t exactly¡ nice, but at least she¡¯s not giving me the same kind of bad feelings as Iverie.
¡°Ni¡¯ren! I know that your parents aren¡¯t here, but you should behave yourself.¡±
¡°Yes grandma, I¡¯m sorry. Can I go back to my book now?¡± Not waiting for an answer she sits back and with another sigh opens her book and resume reading. She has a problem with her manners and is a bookworm¡ I think it¡¯s a bit familiar. We will find a common ground¡ probably¡ sometime in the future¡ in different universe¡ or something. Well it¡¯s not like I intend to beg her to be nice to me!
¡°You¡¯ll have plenty of time to read and learn starting tomorrow.¡± Varthia seemingly decided to ignore Ni¡¯ren¡ or maybe forgot about her, as she¡¯s already drunk. ¡°Oh, right. Varth, you probably don¡¯t know but your cousins are here to stay in our family mansion for a few years to get tutored together and - my brother¡¯s words - ¡®get to know each other¡¯.¡± I think I heard this somewhere already¡ d¨¦j¨¤ vu, eh. However, this time it can actually be beneficial for a change! I mean, spending several years in books - while being completely alone - would bore to death even someone like me. ¡±I personally think it¡¯s a great idea, but I might be biased since it also means that I¡¯m going to spend some time in the city instead of that boring countryside. Even if our family here is struggling against that deadly plague of a¡¡° Suddenly I can hear the door opening behind me. On aunt¡¯s face I see disgust, on Paforth¡¯s - open hostility. All the while I feel Shadow¡¯s blessing kicking in and screaming that there¡¯s someone really bad behind me. I know only one person who gives me that feeling... ¡°Speak of the demon¡¡±
¡°It¡¯s great to see you too aunt Varthia.¡± Urgh. Having Iverie stand behind me isn¡¯t nice, especially when I can¡¯t even move. On the other hand, it might actually be a good thing¡ because even though I¡¯m only just five years old I would probably try to stab her with something sharp. Grrr. ¡°Uncle Naharius wishes to see you. He made it sound urgent. So wrap up your fun little conversation and go to him, hurry.¡± And with that, she leaves the room. Phew¡
¡°Stupid bitch thinking she¡¯s so important.¡±
¡°Mother¡¡±
¡°What? You know I¡¯m right.¡± My great aunt seems to be quite direct person. I¡¯d think highly of her if she didn¡¯t just drink a solid gulp of particular transparent liquid straight from the bottle. Well, at least it looks like she and her branch of the family are possible allies against Iverie¡ it¡¯s something, right? ¡°Gods damn stuck up b¡ puss! She wouldn''t recognize fun even if it went straight up her arse¡¡± Well, I can¡¯t argue with that¡ suggestive statement. Now I¡¯m only curious what the hell does that ¡®puss¡¯ mean? ¡°Gavlan was your name? Take little Varth back to his room, we will continue some other time.¡±
Now I just need to survive long enough to get back to health and finally start learning useful things¡ Oh joy¡
* * *
It was a long¡ and painful¡ and tiring day, but I am finally alone in my room. Freed from the wheelchair and lying in my bed. I still can¡¯t really move my body. I can barely speak, I can move my eyes, and move my hand¡ a bit. It¡¯s tiring, but I can do it if I give my hand some rest after using it, so¡ damn, now that I think about it, it sounds¡ NEVERMIND. I have some of time for myself, so I decide to look through the options menu. I wonder what else I can find there. I mean, choosing the way I can open interface is a pretty important in itself, but maybe there are hidden some other equally important things?
I open the interface.
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||=====Update!!!=====||
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The Game has finally begun.
At least we call it a game¡ even tho this particular word doesn¡¯t fit a competition in which every participant - players and audience alike - want to kill each other. Unless of course we¡¯re talking about that one aztec game after which the losing team was always killed - that would fit quite nicely (Ingenious idea by the way, I might even use it here). Our ¡®game¡¯ is absolutely, deadly serious¡ and it¡¯ll be better for you to never forget about it.
Generally speaking there were supposed to be two teams. The key phrase for now is ¡®supposed to¡¯¡ One mine and the other my dear twin sister¡¯s (I¡¯ll never cease to regret that I didn¡¯t manage to strangle her with her own umbilical cord during our birth, our parents intervened¡). She also, just like me, dragged into it someone from your old world, someone you even know, or rather knew. Let¡¯s call her ¡®Chosen One¡¯ or ¡®Hero¡¯, it¡¯ll be painfully accurate. She only ¡®starts¡¯ just now, five years after you, because of the arrangements me and my sister made during our negotiations when we were designing the game.
The Hero didn¡¯t get your wonderful - magical even - intuition¡ In turn she won¡¯t need it, because she¡¯s just been born in a much better place than you and her path to greatness is practically an escalator. So¡ If you¡¯ll ever feel like thanking me for giving you a second life you can just rip her still beating heart out of her chest and sacrifice it on an altar devoted to myself. Just saying¡
Unfortunately, as I already mentioned, reality diviated for our plans and there are five teams instead of just two. Which means that we have three more participants - and backing them collectives of Gods - with their own goals and ideas how to achieve them. As you can guess it complicates things a little.
The silver lining is that, at least for now, you can safely ignore one of them as we know exactly what¡¯s his goal is and to achieve it he¡¯s going to have to make an alliance with you or the Hero. Of course I don¡¯t need to clarify which eventuality would be more preferable.
Unfortunately that¡¯s the end of the ¡®good¡¯ news and it¡¯s time to put some pressure on you.
The so called ¡®locals¡¯¡ or to be more precise two main religions of this world (both of them you, however briefly, already know) decided to let themselves into our game. The Old Gods forged our spell and also obtained someone from your old world, however their Archenemy decided to just choose a child of one of his worshipers and simply connect it to RLGS. The Old Gods¡¯ champion is most definitely our enemy, while the other one¡ frankly speaking I¡¯ve NO FUCKING IDEA! Right now it¡¯s your problem to find out.
What all of this mean for you? Well¡ it would be in your best interest if Res doesn¡¯t find out that you¡¯re anything but an ordinary citizen. Word of God for your next few years - act in a way suggesting lack of faith in her, but don¡¯t ever go as far as to open apostasy or you¡¯ll end really badly. As every inferior deity she knows only as much as her worshipers and even then only if she actually takes interest in someone. If she won¡¯t be able to get into your head she¡¯ll know that you¡¯re not devoted to her - or any of her colleagues. But you¡¯ll hardly be the only one in the city so it won¡¯t make her angry. Just keep a low profile for now.
For the time being it seems like the next ten to fifteen years are yours to do whatever you want. You have plenty of time to educate yourself, maybe even take over your family? I have a FEELING it¡¯ll be an interesting time in your life. Your nearest competitor in the game is one thousand kilometers away so you don¡¯t have to worry about any premature confrontation.
Acquire riches! Educate yourself! Become someone important! But primarily build a monstergirls harem! And - of course - survive!
See you next time ; )
Shadow, The World #1 Murderous Jester
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Real Life Game System by Shadow666 <3¡
Current number of users¡ 5
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Oh, fuck you Shadow.
NOT A CHAPTER - Summary of the first arc
Mirrond: Thusly, the first and really long awaited
first arc reached its conclusion. And finally that stage of our long work is finished. From now on, what lies ahead of us is once again writing completely from scratch, since we decided to scrap everything after the eighth chapter of old Re:v.
Now we need to create something which will erase all the remaining memories of¡ our previous attempt to bridge Varth¡¯s childhood and teenage years. But don¡¯t worry, this time we have a much better idea how to accomplish it.
Resus: After the last chapter it¡¯s not a surprise that there¡¯s going to be more important characters than just Varth and eventually their expansive growth in numbers may look like Varth isn¡¯t in the center of the universe anymore.
Mirrond: The horror!
Resus: Anyway¡ we have two announcements to make before the part of this summary when we show all the tables again - usually they won¡¯t be all displayed in chapters so lose to the end of an arc, so this will be our way of showing changes in stats (in chapters most of the changes will just be mentioned, not showed).
Mirrond: I personally bid you the best of luck trying to read them all later on. Even I sometimes get lost in all the planned content .
Resus: Again, anyway¡ First thing to be said is that we plan to make - in addition to regular arcs - single chapter side stories. They will be very much a part of the main story¡ Just digressing from the main flow of it. First one will be published in just a few days to make the waiting easier (or not). And I myself am quite excited for the next arc the title of which is our second announcement: Abyssum abyssum invocat.
Mirrond: No doubt, it¡¯s due to your character getting all the attention for a while. Admit it - you couldn¡¯t wait for it for a long time xD
Resus: Not at all. I¡¯m mostly excited for all the combat and dungeoneering. Varth isn¡¯t exactly in position to provide any action at the moment.
Mirrond: Well, he has other activities xD though it¡¯s going to change over time. I can¡¯t say anything without spoilers except for that: it will be glorious. But for now, there are ways for you to help us in our work. My co-author is a machine fueled by attention, so comments are always welcome.
Resus: Not as much fueled by attention as by appreciation xD However, our point is that we want to know what you guys think so far about our work. Every opinion - and especially the critical ones - will be a great opportunity for us to improve on the details we missed. It¡¯s important that you tell us what you did and didn¡¯t like as the story is still in the making and we don¡¯t want to make any more mistakes akin to the second half of Re:v.
And lastly - if some of you want to rate our story it¡¯ll be great if you add a short statement explaining why you chose a certain rating. A negative evaluation without any explanation does nothing to improve the quality of our writing.
Mirrond: Additionally, we also decided that we are going to publish updates about our progress with writing the second arc. The current progress will be shown in the author¡¯s notes in the beginning of this not-a-chapter. It¡¯s, once again, to ease the wait for you and also give us more reasons to make the progress as fast as we can - keeping the best possible quality.
Varth Veles:
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||=====Varth Veles=====||
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Race:
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Human
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Subrace:
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SouthernRepublican
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Nationality:
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Free City of Res
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Occupation:
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Child
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Attributes:
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Health Points:
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10 / 10
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Mana Points:
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0 / 0
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Physical attributes:
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Vitality:
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1
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Resistance:
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1
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Strength:
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1
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Endurance:
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1
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Dexterity:
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2
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Agility:
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2
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Intelligence:
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5
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Wisdom:
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6
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Social attributes:
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Charisma:
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0
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Attractiveness:
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1
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Intimidation:
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0
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Fear:
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2
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Faith:
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1
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Fame:
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1
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Menus:
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Skills
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Spells (LOCKED)
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Quests
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Active Effects
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Possessions (LOCKED)
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Companions (LOCKED)
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Options
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Real Life Game System by Shadow666 <3¡
Current number of users¡ 5
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||=====Skills=====||
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Combat System:
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Active:
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NONE
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Passive:
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NONE
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Magic:
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Proficiencies:
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NONE
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Affinities:
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Magically Talentless:
When it goes to magic your talent is literally nonexistent. You are absolutely, totally magicless. And it doesn¡¯t even give you any antimagic bonuses. Too bad for you ;_;
Better hurry towards gaining magic¡ oh no, I forgot - you can¡¯t. You can¡¯t do shit about it till your 16th birthday ;_; It¡¯s a real tragedy.
Master
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Miscellaneous:
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Lingual:
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Itavian (Southern Republican variant):
You possess moderate skills in using the Southern variant of Itavian language. This allows you to communicate freely with people who are capable of using it, but you are yet to learn how to write or read.
Intermediate
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Social:
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NONE
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Utilities:
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NONE
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Real Life Game System by Shadow666 <3¡
Current number of users¡ 5
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||======================||
||=====Spells LOCKED=====||
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This function is currently LOCKED.
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Real Life Game System by Shadow666 <3¡
Current number of users¡ 5
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||=====Quests=====||
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Unchangeable Main Quest:
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Ragnar?k Delayed
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You are now playing a game you don¡¯t understand. You don¡¯t know the rules, you don¡¯t know who plays with you¡But you must win. And to achieve that you need to learn the rules¡ And find a way to break them. Or write them anew.
Stolen story; please report.
For now follow Shadow''s orders. He wants you to be a hammer that will shatter this world¡¯s political and economical order. While doing that, look for clues about fate of the Old Empire, and the truth about Lost Deities.
Avoid the Old Gods¡¯ attention at all cost.
Success conditions:
World Stability <10%
Old Empire Capital discovered
Fate of Old Empire discovered
Truth about Lost Deities discovered
Progress:
World Stability 100%
Rewards:
???
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Secondary Main Ouest:
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End of Veles Family?
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You were born as a part of ancient bloodline of Veles. This family has long since fallen from grace. The corruption within grows and its members are too busy fighting each other to cleanse it. The power of family slowly fades.
Will you become family¡¯s head, and reform it to become more powerful than ever? Or maybe you find it¡¯s sins not redeemable¡ and you will decide to destroy it?
Only time will tell.
Success conditions:
(one of the following is true)
Varth Veles is the Head of the family
Slave trade controlled by Veles is destroyed
Varth Veles is a sole survivor of the family
Veles successfully framed for plotting a revolt against the city of Res
Progress:
Naharius Veles Senior is the Head of the family
Veles slave trade on its peak
45 family members alive
Veles reputation remains untarnished
Rewards:
(depends on which conditions were met)
Gaining control of Veles family
???
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Secondary Main Ouest:
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Followers, Servants and Allies (FSA)
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There is no way for you to finish your mission alone. You will need help from other people. It¡¯s not easy to find people you can trust. Most of your supporters will never knew the truth about you.
Search for people that can be of use and recruit them to your cause.
Success conditions:
Recruit a follower whom you trust enough to tell the entire truth¡ and link him to Real Life Game System
Recruit at least seven companions without knowledge of who you really are
Rewards:
???
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Side Quest:
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Dish Best Served Cold
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When Iverie murdered your brother you were too young and too weak stop her. You could only be a powerless witness.
But¡ things change.
Success conditions:
(one of the following is true)
Kill Iverie
Be a part of a scheme that leads to her death
Rewards:
(depends on which conditions were met)
???
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Side Quest:
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Dark Lord
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Your received a blessing from a Lost Deity. There are still many of them out there who can be... persuaded to assist you by clearing various requirements.
You will need every possible blessing to finish your mission¡ but unfortunately you don¡¯t know what those requirements are. Continue to do evil deeds to unlock more blessings.
Success conditions:
All blessings received
(other conditions will be unlocked after gaining access to magic)
Rewards:
???
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Side Quest:
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FSA: Lena
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Your half-sister Lena is younger than you¡ and alone. As a single person from her family who treats her as a human being you can influence the way she will grow and thus gain a truly helpful and trustworthy companion.
Success conditions:
Lena Veles possess knowledge about Lost Deities existence
Lena Veles is a follower of Varth Veles
Rewards:
???
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Side Quest:
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FSA: Gavlan
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Your bodyguard ¨C Gavlan - is a capable warrior. While his ardent faith in Old Gods makes him incapable of accepting the knowledge about who you really are his hatred towards slavery and current state of the world can be of use as a way to recruit him.
Success conditions:
Gavlan is freed from slavery
Gavlan decides to remain in Res and serve you
Optional conditions:
Find a way to weaken his faith, to make him capable of accepting the full truth
Rewards:
???
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Side Quest:
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Coup de grace
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While your¡ intrigue managed to severely cripple your uncle¡¯s influence within your family, if given enough time he will recuperate by persuading others that he was framed by your father.
You should find a way to eliminate him¡ decisively.
Success conditions:
Lenniel is dead or banished
Iar¡¯e is dead or banished
Rewards:
???
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Side Quest
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Academic Knowledge
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You are new to this world. To ruin it, you must firstly understand it. Gaining common knowledge is a necessity but it¡¯s not going to be enough. You will also need insight into politics, trade, sociology, geography, history¡ and many other subjects.
Not to mention learning languages as there are plenty of them out there.
Success conditions:
A tutor
Access to a library
Fluency in at least four languages
Rewards:
???
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Side Quest:
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Every Dark Lord¡¯s Necessity
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What kind of Dark Lord can exist¡ without his faithful harem!
Begin gathering some nice girls : D
Or boys. Or trees. Or horses. Or whatever!
I¡¯m too busy not giving shit about stupid details to be intolerant.
Success conditions:
Harem! Harem! Harem!
Progress:
Well, no progress so far¡ which is understandable as you have only five years¡ but you still suck D : Not literally as that would be some kind of a progress in that quest D :
Rewards:
Oh, I guess they will reward you in MANY different ways, hihihihi : D
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Real Life Game System by Shadow666 <3¡
Current number of users¡ 5
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||=====================||
||=====Active Effects=====||
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Perpetual Revolution
Blessing of Shadow
[Lesser]
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You have received a lesser blessing of Shadow, Lost Deity of anarchy, revolution, shadow, night and moon.
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Learning skills +10%
Lesser resistance to mental debuffs.
Your flashes of intuition will be accurate much more often.
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Paralyzed
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Because of a severe damage to your nervous system, you are currently paralyzed. Not completely, but moving and speaking is still extremely hard. You also can''t stand without help.
This effect will disappear after approximately half of a year.
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Movement -99.9%
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Real Life Game System by Shadow666 <3¡
Current number of users¡ 5
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||============================||
||=====Possessions LOCKED=====||
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This function is currently LOCKED.
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Real Life Game System by Shadow666 <3¡
Current number of users¡ 5
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||============================||
||=====Companions LOCKED=====||
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This function is currently LOCKED.
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Real Life Game System by Shadow666 <3¡
Current number of users¡ 5
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Side Story 1.1 - The Game begins
Side Story 1.1
The Game begins
[The Old Gods¡¯ Archenemy¡¯s champion¡¯s shepherd]
The light fades and I¡¯m greeted by a peaceful sight of a sunny day in a countryside. On a small hill, not far from where I landed, stands an old and slightly neglected monastery surrounded by a crumbling stone wall. However, my destination is a wooden building not enclosed inside it and instead leaning on it for support. The orphanage is in similar shape to the monastery but I¡¯m certain that it¡¯s the one I was looking for.
I see children joyfully playing outside their home. Kicking some kind of ball, all the while making loud and happy noises, typical for kids their age. I can feel the warmth of their happiness inside me like my own. I smile as I get closer to the building.
Suddenly they halt their game as one of them kicks the ball too strong and it lands on the roof of the orphanage. It seems that it¡¯s stuck there and when the kids realise this, their happiness vanishes. I sigh and expend small amount of my power, responding to which the ball moves a little and falls down. It¡¯s immediately grabbed by the kids who, once again happy, resume their game.
I enter the building. The interior is poor and simple but - unlike the outside - seems tidy and admirably cared for. One kid by the table is eagerly finishing his meal, seemingly wanting to join his friends outside. An old nun sitting in a wicker armchair is busy sewing up holes in children¡¯s clothing. I move past them, unnoticed.
Next room houses several beds and a makeshift cradle, probably made just to accomodate the newest and unexpected inhabitant of the orphanage. Within it, soundly sleeping is an elven infant, letting the staff rest for a while.
My target.
The one He chose. I am to accompany him for the years to come. To introduce him to his great work. To let him become a person who will change this world. This is going to be a long mission. But one that must be accomplished.
* * * * *
[The Hero]
I don¡¯t like being interrupted while I read. I really tried not to pay any attention to the sound of that fucking trumpet. But even in complete silence it would be impossible to read a book with words jumping all over its pages and randomly switching places and meanings. It feels like trying to read in a dream, when text just doesn¡¯t want to be read.
Then again, what¡¯s the deal with that hellish trumpet? It¡¯s a university for crying out loud. Someone should¡¯ve already made the one playing it stop. Or¡ going back to the very uncooperative book¡ maybe it really is just a dream and the trumpet is supposed to be my alarm going off in an attempt to wake me up? However, if that was the case I should¡¯ve already wake up by now - especially after realising that it¡¯s a dream.
I pinch my arm¡ and it hurts! So it can¡¯t be a dream no matter what. But if it¡¯s real then what¡¯s going on with my book? How come I¡¯m physically unable to read it?
Any further thoughts on that matter are however brutally cut off by a far wall of the assembly hall I¡¯m sitting in suddenly crumbling to pieces revealing a flood of blinding white light. After my eyes adjust enough for me to see again, I notice humanoid silhouettes emerging from the illuminative hole. They¡¯re all wearing white robes and¡ white wings. Are they trying to put on a play or something? With those cheap angel costumes? They don¡¯t even have halos¡
But each and every one of them has a long trumpet. Which they all now put up to their mouths and TRY TO BLOW OUT THEIR LUNGS THROUGH THEM!
And before I thought that just one trumpet was annoying. On the second thought - it was. This isn¡¯t annoying. This is insufferable. I need to leave, now, or I might become deaf.
I try to stand up and quickly take all my things scattered on the small desk but that''s exactly when a whole choir of high pitched voices starts screaming somewhere in the hole.
I can¡¯t stand. I barely even see anymore. But as if by some miracle I still hear everything as loud and clear as at the beginning, if not more so.
After maybe five minutes of pure sonic torment everything comes to a halt. It takes me a while to even comprehend that my suffering is now just an echo of the torture that¡¯s already in the past. I open my eyes and look at the cursed hole. The supposed angels already swarmed the whole room. Most of them still holds their trumpets ready to repeat their performance, but some have light, wicker baskets instead and they¡¯re busy throwing white petals everywhere.
The light shifts. All the while shining from the hole it slowly moves towards me. A roughly human shape appears in the center of it, but instead of being a dark silhouette blocking the light behind it, it looks like the light is originating from it. It wraps around it, flowing in and out as if the enigmatic figure was breathing it.
It takes a few steps and now I see that it doesn''t stand on the ground. It actually walks in the air. Another few steps take it over the numerous rows of seats and very close to me.
¡°Rejoice, human. For you have been chosen, by the goddess of light, sun and order. In my name you will venture forth to achieve great deeds, vanquish the evil, slay the unjust and purify the corrupted. And for all that you accomplish you shall be lavishly rewarded with riches, fame and glory. Which most definitely is a remarkably gracious offer for a recently deceased non-believer such as yourself¡¡±
What?
No, seriously¡ what?
That¡¯s¡ insane. Am I on drugs? I never took any, but maybe this is the first time? Or maybe I was drugged by someone else? Because What The Hell is even happening!? I¡¯m legit panicking! Wait¡ I¡¯m not. I feel like I should though.
Something''s not right, even aside the overwhelming insanity of everything that happened so far. I mean - thinking back, I don¡¯t even remember how I got here in the first place, which would, again, point to it all being a dream. If only it wouldn¡¯t hurt.
But what other kind of delirium could it be? Am I in a coma in some hospital and this is a semi realistic way my brain deals with still receiving inputs from my senses? I don¡¯t want to be in a coma¡ That¡¯s about the worst thing that could happen to me! And judging from the behavior of the book I was trying to read earlier - I won¡¯t be able to read anymore!
How could this happen to me?! I didn¡¯t do anything dangerous! I always wore my seatbelt¡ and ate healthy¡ I even worked out¡ sometimes. I don¡¯t deserve a fate like this! I can¡¯t be in a coma!
Or maybe I really am on drugs? Now I hope that¡¯s the case. Anything would be better than coma. But who drugged me? And how close this hallucination is to reality? Am I really in my university? Am I acting insane during a lecture right now? Just a moment ago I acted like I was having a stroke during that trumpet-choir torture.
And who would drug me? I wouldn¡¯t do it myself, would I? Just because I don¡¯t remember anything like that¡ AM I BEING RAPED RIGHT NOW?!
¡°Mortals and their little dramas. Every time is different, and yet every time it¡¯s the same silliness.¡± Did that¡ thing¡ made of light¡ just say something? Oh, It did earlier, right? Should I listen to it? Only now I actually take a good look at it¡ and somehow - I really don¡¯t know how that¡¯s even possible - it looks like a person. Like a tall woman. With an ugly grimace on her gorgeous face.
¡°Ehm¡ yes, in that case let me reiterate, since you are quite obviously lost. You are, in fact, dead. And you can very much stay dead.¡± What? ¡±However! If you agree to become my champion in a¡ game of sorts, you may very well earn yourself a second chance at living.¡± I can¡¯t be dead. ¡±You seem to be frightened by a perspective of not having access to books anymore. But I can assure you - If you agree to become my champion, you¡¯ll have enough new, otherworldly even, reading material for a whole lifetime.¡±
She just announced all that as if it was that greatest news in a whole universe. I mean¡ it does sound nice but¡
¡°Moreover!¡± She interrupts my thought. ¡°You¡¯ll have a unique chance to become an inspiration! A protagonist for numerous or even countless stories and legends to come. You¡¯ll have a chance to quite literally, create history for yourself and a whole other world.¡± And just how the hell am I supposed to react to that?
I get that it was a really strong hallucinogen I must¡¯ve digested. It seems like a power fantasy. Or a ¡®dreams coming true¡¯ scenario¡ I don¡¯t buy it though.
I need to find a way to get myself out of that nightmare, or at least somewhere away from that woman. Her presence is too overwhelming for me to think about anything constructive. Since it¡¯s all fake, let¡¯s just politely agree on whatever she wants and then quickly evacuate.
¡°So¡ what will be your answer? Will you take my proposal or will risk finding out what afterlife your deeds have earned you during your life?¡±
¡°Yeah, sure, whatever you want¡ wait, what was that last¡¡± But before I can finish my question the woman coyly smiles all the while I can see triumph in her eyes and I can¡¯t utter any more words. She reaches to me¡ and suddenly everything is replaced by darkness.
I feel as if my body is separated from me if that makes any sense. I can¡¯t feel anything, as if my consciousness was left to exist on its own¡ Is¡ Is this death? Am I really dead? I know I didn¡¯t really consider this option before, but now it seems somehow possible, however unlikely.
I feel numb¡ I don¡¯t know how, since I still can¡¯t feel my body¡ but¡ my thoughts are¡
Ok. Nothing wrong with them. What the hell just happened to me?!
It hurts! It hurts so much!
I open my eyes¡ It¡¯s weird to feel them again. I¡¯m lying on a soft carpet and I¡¯m surrounded by wooden pillars. The perspective seems distorted because it looks like the room I¡¯m in is huge, and the pillars don¡¯t even reach the ceiling.
Suddenly a giant man appears above me. He¡¯s looking at me from above the pillars¡ he¡¯s quite young, why is he so huge?
¡°Welcome, Shimmer¡¯s Chosen One, to your new life.¡± Judging solely by his size, his words should sound much louder, and lower¡ What¡¯s going on? No, wait - what did he just say? Chosen one? Chosen for what?
¡°¡¡± I try to speak but nothing comprehensible leaves my mouth.
¡°You do not have to speak. I can hear your thoughts. My name is Basiliscus and I am one of myriads of servants of Shimmer, the Goddess who decided to choose you, to represent Her in the upcoming conflict. I¡¯m aware of your confusion, however it is time for you to understand that this is no dream, but reality. Your new reality.¡± Ok, step by step. I assume that by ¡®shimmer¡¯ he means that woman made of light, however cheesy that might sound. And I think I remember her saying something about her champion¡ And that¡¯s supposed to be me?! And most importantly - what new reality?!
¡°Your new name in this world is Natalia Ostrowska.¡± This world? ¡°You were born today as the youngest of fourteen children of Kazimierz Ostrowski, duke of Nameria and of kings of Visenia¡¯s faithful vassal.¡± Born? Today?! ¡°I was entrusted by the Goddess to provide assistance for you.¡± Assistance? ¡°For now I will be helping you act like a proper child to ensure that no one ever finds out that you are not from this world. I will control your body whenever someone will be around, as I did until now. In the future, however, my presence will also grant you certain benefits.¡± What do you mean - benefits? ¡° For example learning magic. You are a winged one and from a noble house at that, so you should have plenty of natural talent for magic, but with my help this talent will develop faster and stronger.¡°
I¡ think I¡¯m starting to understand what¡¯s going on. I¡¯m definitely on drugs.
¡°Well¡ in that case¡ let me try again¡ from the very beginning¡ and this time step by step¡¡±A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
* * * * *
[Messenger of the Old Gods]
It took them a whole year to make a decision. Theoretically it wasn¡¯t a problem since even after the decision was made they still had to wait four more years for an occasion, but still! To spend a year arguing about some bullshit like that¡
Then again, they eventually decided to go with the most retarded option available. WHICH IS INFURIATING, BECAUSE I WAS AGAINST IT ALL ALONG! But who would care what I have to say, huh?! And these bastards even made me the messenger, simply because I was ¡®arguing too much¡¯.
They made me do it¡ and they¡¯re going to regret it! There¡¯s no way this madness is going to work. The only thing I can do now is my best and then hope that when the shit hits the fan it won¡¯t spray all over me.
At least detecting the summoning was easy, since after the first time we made sure to receive a warning if it ever happened again. We still have no idea who knows magic so strong to make a safe passage to a whole different world, but after years of research of the first spell they used we managed to make our own version of it. We still couldn¡¯t reach another world with it¡ unless there was already a hole, made by someone else. So when we detected that they were summoning someone again, we found their hole and I went through.
Which means that now I¡¯m in an unknown universe with a mission to find a suitable candidate.
I rummage through this world¡¯s collective consciousness and it seems that, for an unknown reason, most of the population is outside my reach, but out of the few I can get to, I quickly find a perfect match.
A young man, properly versed with all the knowledge I was instructed to search for. But it seems that this world¡¯s common sense deems it as¡ fantasy. Ha, fantasy! Ridiculous.
He¡¯s going to fit the task quite nicely having that wide range of concepts to relate to and, what might be most important, a wild imagination. It¡¯s going to benefit him immensely when he¡¯ll start learning magic. Perfect, just perfect!
The only requirement he doesn¡¯t fulfill¡ is the availability of his soul, annoyingly still connected to his body. Which in turn means that I¡¯ll have to sever this link by any means necessary. Let¡¯s see¡
What? No¡ it can¡¯t be true¡ It seems that my ability to influence physical world is severely limited. Which actually is to be expected since this place is really far, FAR away from my domain. I spend some time testing limits of my power and it turns out that it¡¯s at best really marginal. Maybe, if I try very hard, I can make a few leaves move a little. This is seriously insulting¡ I may be a minor one, but I am still a deity.
Damn it. How can one kill a person using so limited, so miniscule actions?
The answer is - using the environment. Though it would be MUCH easier if I actually knew anything about the place I¡¯m forced to work in. Almost all of the¡ things around him are something I¡ I¡ have no idea what they all are or how they work. It feels like another insult. But at least I can sense that most of them to use electricity¡ as a source of power? It¡¯s insane how non-magical this world seems to be. One could achieve the same results using just basic magic.
BUT! The electricity can very easily be deadly. And there¡¯s a lot of it flowing through those small¡ pipes? I look into the mind of my Chosen-To-Be and learn the right word - cable. But¡ it might not be strong enough to kill him without a necessary¡ conductor. Water should do nicely.
It actually takes me around a week in local time to make all the preparations. Thankfully the connection to my world seems unaffected by the delay. I¡¯m slowly pushing one thing, then slowly cutting another. And finally¡ everything is ready. It¡¯s even the exact time when he usually comes to bathe. The old metal tub is perfect, and now that it¡¯s full of water it¡¯ll work even better. I just need to make the last tiny adjustment¡ and the deed is done.
His heart gives in almost immediately and I can feel his soul slowly severing its connection to the body. Time to shine! Entering his dying brain is a child¡¯s play but I also temporarily keep his soul linked with the body - I need this to talk to him properly. Thankfully by now even this world¡¯s finest medics couldn¡¯t reanimate him.
From his brain I take memories of a pleasant and familiar environment - it looks like it¡¯s his bedroom - as it might be better than making a conversation right next to the bathtub in which he just died. After that I invade his consciousness and begin the final part of my mission.
In hindsight I should¡¯ve probably make him forget his death, since right now he is only confused. He remembers a rather painful experience of electrocution. And he didn¡¯t even notice me - he¡¯s too busy trying to understand what happened. I make my presence obvious with a loud grunt.
¡°Well¡ I¡¯m sorry to interrupt you, but¡ you¡¯re dead.¡± I guess there¡¯s no delicate way to put it. Though let¡¯s omit the fact that I killed him. ¡°Although I can¡ let¡¯s say, fix this unfortunate state of affairs.¡° I¡¯ll give him a moment to swallow the news.
¡°Dead? Like for real? No, no, no... I¡¯m here I can''t be dead. I¡¯m just sleeping or something. I must¡¯ve fell asleep in bathroom. This is not what death should be like.¡°
Oh come on, this whole mortal drama is¡ well, quite typical for mortals dealing with such situations. I guess I can¡¯t really blame them, huh?
¡°Yes. For real. By electrocution. Metal bath. Water. You inside. The effect - your heart no longer beating. And it¡¯s gonna be at least an hour before anyone finds you.¡± Additionally, when his soul weakened I could finally modify his body directly and I made sure his heart Is NOT going to work ever again, even if some, mind reading help me, paramedics miraculously reach him. ¡°I¡¯m afraid that you¡¯re dead and you have to get used to that. Of course¡ if you choose to answer ¡®no¡¯ to my¡ generous offer.¡±
¡°What offer? Wait¡ didn¡¯t you just say that I¡¯m dead?! Don¡¯t change a subject like that! Help me or something!¡± Oh for fuck sake¡ what a moron¡
Is it really that hard to comprehend?! Ok, as someone who literally cannot die I might not be the most qualified on this subject. Even still, his way of doing it isn¡¯t helping at all! Uh, working with my believers is so much easier¡ all you have to do is tell them to do something and they oblige. Unlike this one.
¡°Yes. You¡¯re dead. Done for. Kaput. Things happen, you know? Get over it. You can feel sorry for yourself as much as you want, AFTER saying ¡®yes¡¯ to my question. I¡¯m offering you a second life. And pretty good that that. Have you ever fantasised how awesome it would be to visit a fantasy world? I¡¯m pretty sure you have. With all your current knowledge, and on top of that magic granted to you by a god who decided to help you a bit? That¡¯s me in this deal by the way. So, what do you say?¡±
¡°What?¡± I feel like killing him again¡
¡°Ok, one more time from the top¡¡±
¡°No, no. I hear you. I get what you¡¯re saying, it¡¯s just that¡¡± And the drama continues. Such a pain. ¡°This isn¡¯t, this can¡¯t be happening. It must be a dream, right? A really bad one.¡° They should totally send someone else for that. Someone who is better with people. Right now I am seriously considering just letting him go even if that means spending even more time plotting death of another promising individual.
¡°No. It¡¯s not a dream. You¡¯re dead. And I¡¯m giving you one last chance of living yet another life in a completely different world. Swords, magic, elves, dragons, and so on¡ Is it really that hard to comprehend?! You say ¡®no¡¯ you¡¯re still dead, for good, and your soul goes wherever souls in that world go. You say ¡®yes¡¯, you get to live another life. Just. Answer. Now. PLEASE.¡±
¡°Um, ok just¡¡± That¡¯s good enough for me! One slightly slow but surely good enough chosen one ready for shipping. Time to do something less stupid and time consuming back home.
* * * * *
[the one who can be safely ignored]
¡°Hello fiery lady. Am I dead?¡± I thought for a second that my current state might be a dream, but it doesn¡¯t feel like one. And that - combined with a woman composed of nothing but flames lead me to conclusion that I might be dead.
¡°Precisely. Though, you reconciled with it surprisingly fast. Shouldn¡¯t you, mortals, be more afraid of death?¡± Said the woman. Interestingly, her voice sounds like a bonfire trying to speak, but I have no problems understanding her.
¡°I must admit that it was just a possibility and I didn¡¯t really take it seriously¡ But now that I think about it nothing can be done to change it, so there¡¯s no point in reacting to it any other way.¡± Also, how did I die? I don¡¯t remember anything out of ordinary. I had a perfectly regular day¡
¡°And there was a fire in your flat.¡± She cuts me off mid thought.
¡°Mind reading isn¡¯t a polite thing to do. I would most likely ask you about it in a second.¡±
¡°I know.¡± Oh. Not only telepathy but precognition too¡
¡°In that case let¡¯s at least try to keep pretending that I have any privacy left and continue this conversation purely verbally. What do you say?¡±
¡°My name is Conflagration. The primordial Goddess of fire and one of four prime elemental divines of the Pantheon of Elements. All Mother of¡¡± Yeah, that¡¯s enough.
¡°And what do you want from me?¡± Is that a smile?
¡°Few hours ago you suffocated and died. Your body burned and turned to ashes. However, you lived your life as an atheist and because of that your soul would be left unclaimed and eventually scatter in the void.¡± Not much of an optimistic vision. ¡°But, there is yet a chance for you. If you agree to my proposition you shall live again.¡±
¡°Sure.¡±
¡°You would become a pawn of the Pantheon of Elements in a game¡¡± Seriously?
¡°As I said - sure. I agree. New world, new life, working for you, anything I should know about the assignment?¡± Again with that smile¡
¡°You will be assigned a guide who will fill you in with most important details. And for now your new body is going to be locked away in a safe place far away from any civilization.¡± Am I going to be a secret bio weapon that has to be kept hidden from the world? ¡°You will spend the next few years in seclusion, training your mind and body alike.¡± Yup. Bio weapon. ¡°And to ensure that you will be at your peak performance we will allow you to choose from a selection of physical traits designed to fit your self image.¡± Interesting.
¡°It¡¯s all really nice of you, but I imagine giving me this much from the start means that my task is going to be a difficult one?¡± Can I hope to hear ¡®yes¡¯?
¡°There will be obstacles, naturally. The game is very appealing and we are obviously not the only contestants. You will face the champions of our competition backed by other pantheons of Gods. Yet your mission will be different than theirs.¡± Interesting. Do I smell PVP?
¡°And their preparation will be similar to mine? Years of training and a battle royale?¡± Not that I have anything against that¡ No, wait. I suck at battle royale.
¡°Not exactly. The starting conditions, or should I say, the amount of effort we can expend on creating them is inversely proportional to our standing as a divine faction.¡± So¡ you¡¯re the dark horse. ¡°Yes, and you are going to fix it.¡±
¡°How? I understand the¡ conditions. But what exactly will be my mission? To win the whole game just because I¡¯ll have a stronger start?¡± I wonder how much stronger?
¡°It is a nice perspective, but no. We weren¡¯t originally invited to participate in the power struggle, so even if you were to best all the others our win would violate the precepts of the game.¡± Are you telling me that you¡¯re a bunch of hackers? Am I going to a pirated version of a universe?
¡°If not to win then what¡¯s my goal?¡± Please - straight to the point this time.
¡°You are to make an alliance with one of the other champions. You will aid them in their mission, just slightly altering their metodes. Our pantheons are unknown for the current civilizations. Our worshipers disappeared alongside their Empire. Your mission will come down to reinstituting the Pantheon of Elements as the patrons of all that takes its form from the elements.¡± Excuse me?
¡°Could you expand on that last sentence? What do you mean by that?¡±
¡°The world in question is inhabited by numerous beings representing the nature and elements. Nymphs, pixies and elementals no longer governed by us. No longer serving us. This current state is¡ insulting.¡± Which gives me a strong impression that it¡¯s not just ¡®insulting¡¯.
¡°And you want me to round them up and make them bend their knees?¡± It wouldn¡¯t be half bad. Make them submit to my will, that is¡
¡°Not quite. Their sheer numbers would make such venture unbearably lengthy and the game won¡¯t last that long. And sending millions of champions like you is not exactly a possible option.¡± Should I feel special?
¡°Then what is?¡±
¡°Just because presently they are not our subordinates does not mean they are free. Conquer their overlords, best their masters and they will have no choice but to acknowledge you - or rather us - as their sovereigns.¡± Good thinking, whoever came up with that idea.
¡°Ok, but why do I need to find an ally? So far my understanding is that I¡¯m going to have the best starting position, can¡¯t I just accomplish that on my own?¡±
¡°You could. But you are not going to act in the void. Other champions will try to slay them on their own and if they succeed it will do no good for us.¡± Oh, right. I can¡¯t believe I overlooked the multiplayer aspect¡
¡°Is that what you meant by ¡®altering their metodes¡¯? I have to persuade them to¡ what exactly? Let me kill steal everything?¡±
¡°Yes.¡± Again with that smile. What¡¯s so funny about it?
¡°That¡ might actually be hard¡¡± ¡est part as I¡¯m not the best at making friends¡ or even interacting with people¡
¡°We are well aware of those traits of yours. Regardless, your mission is not to create a nation nor command an army, you are to become an unstoppable assassin of mightiest beings dwelling among mortals.¡± I know that it¡¯s just a short summary of everything already said¡ but I can¡¯t help but get hyped after hearing it. ¡°The time for your departure is upon us. My daughter is waiting for you.¡± Daughter?
But I¡¯m not getting an answer. I can¡¯t even properly ask that question as in that moment everything is engulfed in darkness and I¡¯m falling¡ thinking about the smile on the goddess¡¯s face. Or should I say¡ a sassy smirk.
I don¡¯t know how long it took, but the fall is eventually over and I¡¯m lying on a cold surface. I feel dizzy and my body is stiff. It takes me some time to stand up and the fact that there¡¯s still no light around me doesn¡¯t help in my efforts. It¡¯s hard to keep my balance, I have no other option than to believe that I really have a new body as it doesn¡¯t respond to my intentions the same way my old one did.
Finally, after carefully adjusting my posture and consciously holding myself in an upright position instead of relying on my old reflexes I call out in the darkness¡
HELLO! IS ANYONE THERE?!¡± I hope no monstrous abomination is going to hear my shout¡
¡°Yeah, I¡¯m here. And you don¡¯t have to yell, I can hear you well enough.¡± A high pitched female voice somehow resounds in my head without making its way through ears. Con¡ fla¡ something¡ the goddess from earlier mentioned a daughter, is that her?
¡°Are you my guide?¡± Let¡¯s give it a shot.
¡°Yeah, didn¡¯t mom tell you everything already?¡± I wouldn¡¯t say everything¡
¡°More or less¡ Though she left a few things for you to help me with.¡±
¡°Like what?¡± Let¡¯s see what I can get away with.
¡°Like helping me turn on the lights here. Or torches? I don¡¯t know exactly what you use here for illumination¡¡± Light is probably the most important of my current priorities.
¡°Sure, just walk straight forward till you find a wall and then follow it to the right, the light switch will be there right before the door.¡± Seems simple enough.
I take a few steps in the darkness¡ and fall. Painfully. I¡¯ve been standing on a platform and didn¡¯t see the step down to the floor. After getting myself back up and making a few more steps - much more carefully this time - I find a wall made of something resembling stone to the touch and after following the rest of the instructions my hand touches a metal button.
Let there be light!