Randy woke just before dawn. His fire from the previous night was still smoldering, so he added some wood before going to the creek to drink and wash. He looked around nervously, expecting to see the wolf at any moment. It was an ideal drinking spot for the forest animals. Randy had spent several hours by the fire the night before, looking through the hunter’s bag and refining his weapons and armor. He was on a quest! He would work on his skills today and try to learn tracking.
Other than the magic fire starter kit, the hunter’s bag only contained a small notebook. Randy had flipped through it, reading the passages, and admiring the art. He had got the impression that the man had been more of an artist than a hunter. His sketches of the forest and animals had been well executed, which made Randy think the man must have spent a lot of time observing. Randy snorted and thought it was probably why he ended up dead. He should have worked on killing them.
Back at the fire, Randy skewered more of his meat for his breakfast. He used his Examine skill to look for some berries or greens. He was careful to watch for the cute but vicious bunnies lurking in the bushes. He wasn’t too worried. He had padded his armor with a layer of moss and reinforced his leg and arm armor with more vines. He had an extra layer of protection now. Randy patted his waist. He had his spear club tucked into his pants and the recoil spear in his hand. His trusty rock was tucked into his bag of holding and his whip was hanging off his belt. Randy chuckled, he felt like an action hero, ‘armed to the teeth’.
Randy saw a clump of leafy green tops growing along the creek. He confirmed that they were safe to eat with his Examine skill and pulled several out with the roots attached. Randy admired the long white roots, they looked like carrots. Probably why the rabbits are here, he thought to himself, and why the wolf would come here to hunt the rabbits, he reminded himself.
With his belly full and his fire smothered Randy decided to practice his tracking on the rabbits. He searched the ground and looked for paths leading in and out of the brush. When he found one, he would follow it until he either lost the trail or found a new burrow. Randy had to be impressed, the little buggers had a complicated set of trails crisscrossing through the forest. Randy was working on his stealth, hoping to sneak up on the rabbits. When he was fortunate to do so, he would practice with his recoil spear. Twice he had gotten close to hitting them, unfortunately, the rabbits were quicker than he was.
Randy was using the vine recoil to pull the spear back towards him, when he felt the weight of a rabbit hit his leg. He grabbed his blunt spear end and hit the bunny across the head, trying to dislodge his sharp teeth from his armor. Randy saw another two rabbits crouched in the brush ready to pounce. He glared at them as he kicked the rabbit down and bashed it. When the two rabbits attacked, Randy felt ready, he tried a spinning karate kick to hit them in mid-air. He missed. Randy put his arms up defensively and waited for the pain of the bites. One of the rabbits had missed him and flew past, the other was attached to his arm. Randy grabbed the rabbit’s head and pulled until it was dislodged. Randy threw it to the ground and, grabbing the spear end, he drove it into the rabbit’s belly pinning it to the ground. Randy had just enough time to spin and hit the other rabbit with the blunt end. Randy heard a crunch as he made contact and the rabbit fell to the ground. Randy looked around for any more threats before he looted the rabbits.
Congratulations Hero you have defeated 3 Rabbits, 24 Exp gained.
Satisfied with his attempt, Randy decided he would try to work on incorporating his martial arts with his weapons later that night. In the meantime, Randy walked further into the woods to search out new tracks. He had entered a part of the forest that was more open. It had grass growing in between the trees and soft dirt. Randy kept his head on a swivel and stopped frequently to listen to the sounds around him. He noticed several areas where the grass had been tamped down. Curious, he looked carefully at the ground and discovered hoof prints. He used his Examine skill to confirm that the tracks belonged to a Forest Deer. He began following the tracks and watching and listening for danger or signs of the animals. The tracks were leading Randy away from his camp, but he wasn’t worried. He had his map to guide him home. About an hour later, Randy crouched down in excitement. He could see the deer grazing on the grass in a ravine below him.
Congratulations Hero! You have learned the skill, Animal Tracking. Bonus 5% increase to Stealth.
Well, I’ve come this far, I may as well give it a shot, Randy thought. He made sure his weapons were ready and crept towards the deer. He moved slow, checking the area carefully. As he got closer to the deer, Randy’s heart was pounding. He knew he would have to get close to use his spear, his range wasn’t that far. If he did get close and the animal attacked, he could also use his whip or blunt spear end. Randy had enough experience with dying in the game, that he wasn’t too worried. He just wasn’t sure if he would end up back in the swamp or not.
Randy had got himself within range. He was just waiting for the deer to move so that he would have a clear shot. He had thought that even though the spear end was sharp he didn’t think he would have the strength to penetrate if it hit a bone. The neck would be the softest part of the animal to hit, hopefully he’d hit an artery. After that Randy planned to go in with his blunt weapon.
The deer turned and lifted his head. The animal’s nostrils flared as it smelled something in the air. Randy stood up and launched the recoil spear at its neck. It hit but didn’t penetrate the hide. The deer turned on Randy. It only took a couple quick leaps before the deer was on him. Shocked, Randy saw the deer stand on its rear legs and lash out with his front hooves. Randy raised his arms in defense and tried to protect himself by striking back with his spear end. It didn’t help. Randy felt several powerful blows hit his head before he hit the ground. He tried to roll out of the way, but the deer was now landing on him repeatedly with his front hooves. Pain shot through his body as he felt his bones breaking and his head bleeding.
You have died. -10 Exp
Randy groaned as he woke up back in the swamp. He sat up and decided to use the time to check his stats. He had learned some new skills and improved on others. It was time to allocate any points he had. He hoped it would give him an advantage when he made it back to the forest. Luckily, it wasn’t too far, and Randy still had his weapons. Randy was incredibly happy to see that he had made it to Level Three. Must have been all those rabbits, Randy thought happily. Randy thought about the 10 points he had to allocate. He wanted to increase his strength. He was going to need it against the wolf or any other larger animal. He also wanted to improve on his agility, he would need to react quickly with his weapons. Hoping that he would level up again soon, Randy decided to split the points between Strength and Agility and Constitution as he still didn’t have any magic to use. He could also incorporate more practice time with his weapons to get stronger and faster. Randy allocated the points and immediately felt the effects. Excited to see the results, he picked a swamp tree and threw his recoil spear. It sunk a couple inches into the trunk! Woo hoo , Randy thought. He retrieved the spear and decided that while he was back in the swamp, he should retrieve some more vines for weapons and moss for armor. Randy stopped and thought for a moment. He had been so busy dying and trying to survive during his time in the swamp, that he hadn’t examined or saved too many things. Now that he was better armed it would be smart to stock up on meat and plants. The frogs and snakes were easier to kill than the bigger animals in the forest. Smiling, Randy gathered his weapons and headed to all the spots he knew that he could find frogs, snakes and berries. He would spend the day foraging before going back to the forest.
…
Randy was tired but satisfied. He had lit a small fire with some peat that he had found in the swamp. He was roasting frog meat while taking inventory of his day’s foraging. He had gathered a lot of vines. He knew it was a very useful tool to have with him. He had also topped off his moss supply. It was very helpful for packing his armor or making a soft bed to sleep on. Once dried he could also use the moss for lighting a fire or even burning if he had no wood. The berries had been difficult to pick, due to the terrible thorns, but the juicy berries were worth all the scratches. He had also gone on a hunting spree. He killed 20 frogs and 5 snakes. He now had a nice supply of meat to eat or trade, if he ever finished his quest and made it to the village of Sweet Water. The peat fire was smoky but did burn hot, so he decided that before he left the swamp, he would gather more of it.
He was feeling good about his gains and decided to log out to talk to his mom. He hoped she would be proud of his accomplishments.
Randy found himself in the chat room waiting for his mother to join him. It was weird to be out of nature. He found the small room to be sterile and boring.
“Randy! I’m so glad to see you,” his mom said as she entered. She gave him a big hug and then sat down beside him.
“How are you feeling?” she asked nervously.
“I feel great,” Randy said happily.
“Good. Your doctor is very pleased with your progress. The swelling is going down around your brain and the game doesn’t seem to be impeding your healing.”
Randy nodded; he hadn’t had much time to think about his real-life problems. He felt guilty leaving his mother alone. She was obviously scared and worried for him.
“How is the game?” his mother asked tentatively.
Randy answered carefully, “I started in a swamp. I have learned how to make weird weapons from natural resources. I have found food and water and built shelter. I have already made it to Level 3. I’m doing good,” Randy said.
“That’s great Randy. Do you have any friends?” she asked curiously.
“No, not yet. I haven’t made my way to a settlement yet, but I have my first quest, so I think it won’t be long now,” Randy answered with a smile.
“So, you are OK? It’s not too much, the violence or the loneliness?” she asked.
Randy thought about it for a moment. There was a lot of violence and pain, but he felt he was growing from it. He wasn’t afraid of violence and bullies the way he used to be. The game was a challenge for sure, but it was a welcome one. “No. I’m liking it Mom, really. It was a good decision. Thank you. I’m sorry. This must be hard for you.”
Tears came to his mom’s eyes and she smiled and shook her head to hide it. “I’m fine. If you are healing and you are enjoying the game, I can handle anything.”
Randy nodded his agreement. “So, what else is new?”
Randy listened as his mom told him about her work, their family and friends and the current events. It was nice to sit and listen and not worry about dying all the time, but Randy found himself tuning her out every once in a while, as he thought about his quest. He was looking forward to getting back in the game.