The guide pondered her next choices for a few nanoseconds.
“Hmm. Well, that was quick. He didn’t seem very interested in that one. He said it wasn’t good. Didn’t even go to town. Just ran straight into the arms of the nearest Olthoi. Tried to say ‘Hello’ to it? Does this guy just like dying?”
The guide allocated additional moments pondering the situation.
“Perhaps the issue is he lacks teammates. Let’s provide some NPC’s to accompany him.”
* * *
I was standing on a beach dressed in rags. I was alive! I had a vague recollection of a huge white creature flying over the ship I was in. I was on a ship? Identification came. A white dragon!
More memories surfaced. I had died. Twice. Then more memory surfaced. I remembered throwing myself over the side as the dragon’s terrible breath crashed down across the decks leaving a coating of ice. The water had gone cold, and I dove deeper to avoid the ice which spread out around the ship. I heard a thunderous crash as her tail slammed into the deck. The ice had already frozen and cracked the sides of the craft and the tail strike shattered the ship into a pile of broken pieces. Dimly I could hear the screams of the men below decks crying out as freezing cold water rushed in from all sides…
I couldn’t remember making the shore.
There were pieces of wreckage scattered up and down the narrow beach. Large crates and bits of flotsam floated near the edge of the water.
Looking out, I could see a man dressed in gray leathers who seemed to be hauling a box up onto the beach.
He turned and came out of the water. He beckoned me to approach. I tensed and moved forward cautiously. As I got closer, I realized he was very small in stature. I could see weapons adorning various parts of his body.
“Hey, you’re not undead are you?” he called out in a cheerful voice.
He spread his arms wide indicating he was not hostile. However, I was not convinced. I walked down to face him ready to flee if he drew a weapon. I was almost twice his height and had almost double his weight.
A strange thought crossed my mind.
“How have I gotten so large?”
Part of me did not remember being this big before.
I set the thought aside.
I talked to the man and was led into a small camp. He identified himself as a rogue. He offered me an interesting trade - a weapon in exchange for delivering a message to someone he knew. It seemed reasonable although the blade he brandished seemed to be very old and barely serviceable, it was very rusty. I was getting better at recognizing craftsmanship, but it didn’t take much to see that this was a poor weapon. I took it and this time it did not disappear. I started up the beach with the small man.
Following him up the trail, I noticed several crates and barrels to either side of the trail. They seemed to be glowing. I shied away from them, uncertain as to what was going on.
He ran ahead a bit, and I saw a small campsite had been erected not far from where the wreckage had washed ashore.
As I approached the camp I saw a strange creature, humanoid, with a round leathery head. He stood on the pathway in front of the camp. He was as large as I was and equipped with heavy leather armor and a large wooden staff. I approached him thinking this was the person I was deliver the message to.
Instead, he turned and ran away shouting that he would escort me to the rendezvous. I chased after him but every time I got close he would sprint away again with amazing speed. He was racing up the side of what I took to be a small mountain. I hoped we didn’t need to reach the top. As I struggled to keep up I skipped over several of the glowing crates and barrels I saw to either side of the trail.
You have acquired a new skill, Exploration!
However, when I finally stopped for breath, he stopped as well. I backtracked to one of the glowing crates nearby and he simply waited for me. I tried to pry open a box, but the wood was soft and the entire crate gave way. I was surprised to find a bunch of silver coins inside. I reached to take them and they simply disappeared. Frustrated I went to another crate and kicked it. It shattered, and I saw a small red bottle. Again I went to pick it up, only to have it disappear. I looked back down the trail I had been following and saw several more glowing barrels and crates. I looked back, and the giant stood quietly waiting. Then I was interrupted by that loud voice again. Golden light rose up from the surrounding ground.
Congratulations! You have reached level 2!
Shrugging my shoulders I decided the delivery could wait. I backtracked down the trail kicking and punching crates as I went. I found several containers with additional coins, one with blue bottles and a few that were simply empty.
However, every time I went to pick up coins or bottles they would simply vanish as I touched them.
It was maddening.
I had almost backtracked all the way to the beach when I finally gave up. I realized that my stamina had improved a great deal. My hands were toughened more than I remembered. Hitting a crate with my fist seemed to do no damage. Of course the crates were a bit waterlogged and damaged from freezing and then thawing quickly but it was still surprising.
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The short man looked up when I reappeared on the beach, he was back down near the water pulling crates from the ocean. Realizing that many of them contained coins I could see why he was dragging them ashore. I wasn’t certain of their value but they had to be more than nothing.
Eventually I returned to the strange leathery creature, and he resumed his race up the mountain. I followed gamely, and he eventually reached the opening to a cavern. It was sealed with a strange door. In front of it stood a woman in blue armor with a large spiked shield and a large mace.
“Who in Kyber are you?” she said.
I explained who I was, and she offered to take me to a nearby village where I could get food and employment.
Of course there was a catch. I would have to accompany her through the caves as she cleansed them of some sort of lizard-like creatures.
Not being particularly afraid of lizards I accepted. I hoped I wouldn’t regret it. She then began to cast a spell.
“This will give you strength in the coming battle,” she said.
My eyebrows rose in surprise.
“Fighting a lizard? How big were these things?”
I said nothing as she cast a spell. I could feel my skin tingling and my health seemed to rise.
“That would be a spell worth learning,” I thought and started to ask her about it.
She brushed the question aside as she managed to roll open the strange door and simply said we needed to get started.
Both the leathery faced man and the short fellow suddenly appeared behind me and they raced into the cave. I was amazed at how fast the rogue must have climbed the trail, but I didn’t have time to think on it we were already moving. I trailed behind. The cave was lit by a set of torches and strange glowing stones that appeared to be in the mouth of a dragon-like head. I wondered how the torches could remain lit in a closed cave. However, the air seemed breathable even if a bit damp and musty.
I resolved myself to following the strange group. I thought I would hang back and watch for an opportunity to get out of this mess. I disliked caves and while it had not triggered any claustrophobia I wasn’t keen on remaining in the cavern system any longer than I had to.
We only went into caves for a short distance when we encountered our first obstacle. A set of iron gates barred the entrance to a section of the tunnel. On the other side I could see a lever that probably raised the gate but initially I could see no way to get there.
It was the woman who pointed out a ladder leading up to a shelf of rock that appeared to pass over the gate.
Feeling the walls closing in, I wanted nothing more than to get out of this place so I started climbing. In my head I thought the others were probably thinking me brave, but it was fear that was moving me forward now. Going back seemed pointless since there was no other way off the beach. And I had to admit, I did not want to seem a coward to the blond cleric - if that’s what she was.
“Who knew clerics wore armor and carried spiked shields!”
I reach a narrow shelf of rock and walked across. Below I could see part of the iron gates and a level. I looked for a way to climb down but found none. Eventually I took a chance and jumped. I landed hard but surprisingly undamaged. I rose and pulled the lever. The iron bars lifted up and my three new companions joined me.
However, instead of congratulating me they simply raced past.
“You’re welcome,” I thought.
I followed after and heard shouts and hisses.
I turned a corner and saw my three companions engaged in battle with a group of large walking lizards. The were carrying swords and shields. Part of me tried to deny such things could exist. As I watched three more slid down from rock ledges above us. I called out a warning which only drew the attention of two of the new arrivals.
The cleric had finish one foe but before she could do anything else one of the new ones launched an attack. No help there.
The two lizard men raced towards me swords swinging. I tried to raise my own sword in defense but one sharp exchange and I knew I was in trouble.
One of the two swung to my unprotected side. A blade struck me in the side and I knew I was not going to make it.
Critical hit! 11 points damage! Health at 8%
Well if I was going to die I wanted to at least hit one of them. I lunged forward at the one in front of me. He blocked with his shield. I only had a moment to see the his sword coming up at my unprotected stomach from under his shield. It struck.
Critical hit! 13 points damage! You have died!
I dropped to the ground thinking, “I don’t belong here.”