The afternoon sun and the muggy air had me sweating after an hour of walking. I wasn’t taking a direct course toward Chris. Instead I was wandering around, enjoying the scenery, and picking up random plants I thought might be useful for witchcraft. The environment was quite different than what I’d seen before. It was still lightly wooded wilderness, but this reminded more of the American South-East than than the area around Valor’s Crossing, which had screamed generic fantasy forest.

Instead of oaks and elms there were maples and birch trees, with the occasional hickory or magnolia. There were also patches of some large cane-type plant with giant purple fronds. My feet often found the ground swampy and wet, and clouds of buzzing insects could be seen flying around. I took off my shirt and used it to wipe my sweating brow. I really hated the heat. I could deal with cold, but large men who drink too much caffeine have sweating issues on normal days. This was like hell.

I took a look down at myself and laughed. I’d been skinny for most of high-school. My junior and senior year my shoulders had broadened and I’d been in good shape, but never THIS good. Now I looked like a linebacker for a college football team. My muscles actually rippled. What ever algorithm they used to shape your avatar had beefed me up to a ridiculous degree. I was honestly a little scared of what I’d look like at level 40. Shame I couldn’t drag this body back to the real world. I could at least get a few dates with it.

My musing on my lack of dating life were interrupted by a loud squeal and feet pounding the forest floor. I spun drawing my hammer and saw Three massive boars were charging me from some dense undergrowth. They were colored a dark red and two had some rather unfortunately large tusks. My eyes widened and I tightened the grip on my hammer before calling to my mana. It took longer than I wanted. Apparently my time off had dulled my reflexes a bit because the magic only came at a trickle.

Too Slow……

I gave up on the magic planted my feet, and swung my new hammer in an overhead arc.The strike came down and intercepted the first boar a few feet from me. It struck with more force than I expected and smashed the boar into the ground like someone had dropped an anvil on it. It twitched once and stilled. I wasn’t expecting the violence of the swing and it threw me off balance. I stumbled forward and over the boar’s corpse, which left me unprepared as the other two boars smashed into me. Tusks bit into my side and the beasts bore me down.

One sat about goring me with it’s tusks while the other happily stomped me with it’s sharp hooves.I felt like one of those rodeo clowns when the bull gets them, as they tossed my body around like a rag-doll. Luckily I had a silly amount of HP for my level. Even with the wounds I didn’t feel too weakened and didn’t think I’d broken anything yet. I rolled to me feet after a particularly violent shove, and tried to center myself again. With a second to spare I activated my class skill.

Stoneskin!

The earth shuttered for a moment and suddenly my pain dulled. My skin felt odd, like a bad sunburn but not painful. Just the odd leathery feeling it gets before it peels. I could feel it stretch and move in a way I’d never felt before before. I swung my hammer defensively as they closed in again. The attack hit one of the boars but only seemed to wound the beast as it plowed over-top of me again. I could feel my spell protecting me for some of the damage, but knew that was only prolonging the inevitable. I could generate some truly awesome power with my hammer, but it required space, or at least some leverage. Unlike a bladed weapon I had to actually swing the thing for it to be useful. I got my hammer between us and pushed the beast away while rolling to the side. I couldn’t match its power from my back so I struggled to my feet then stumbled into a lurching run as I searched frantically for ideas.

Time to try something stupid then.....

If I was going to be a geomancer then I needed some earth spells. I hadn’t really fiddled with my magic much, and experimentation while under running for my life wasn’t the greatest idea, but I was desperate. I wasn’t hurt too badly yet, but unless I could change the battle it wouldn’t matter. They just wear me down while I continued to be run-over and brutalized. Making my decision I put on a burst of speed then spun. I dropped my hammer and poured mana into the ground in front me forcing my will against the stubborn earth. This time it came more quickly. I stomped down with a foot and braced my arms in front of me like I was was trying to lift some monstrous weight.

This is where it got tricky. I had no idea what I was doing but this was a pretty common use for earth magic. At least I thought so. I Imagined chaining my arms to the Earth and poured on more mana to form the mental chains. I had more mana to work with than ever and I used it liberally. There was a moment dizziness and then I could feel the strain in my shoulders and arms as I tried to raise them. I poured on more magic emptying my reserves and staining with both mind and body. The boars were closing at a charge, but I forced away my panic and strained harder. I screamed with rage and the ground before me bucked for a moment before my arms shot into the sky. The earth fountained upward with the motion forming a wall of dirt and stone a meter thick in front of me just as the boars plowed into it at a full sprint.

I collapsed to my knees gasping for breath. I could feel blood running from my nose, and the world spun crazily. Dumping that much mana at once was never a good idea. If the boars weren’t dead I was definitely going to be as I fell on to my back panting.

“Holy Crap! Are you ok?” A reedy voice exclaimed behind me. I turned my head, and a scrawny kid walked up to me. He was wearing a familiar pair of rough canvas shorts and was naked from the waist up minus a pair of glasses that were hanging off pointed ears. His hair was black and short. He looked like any teenager, gangly, curious, and not very confidant. The only real difference was he he was about four feet tall.

“I’ll be fine in a bit.” I panted. Still trying to catch my breath. “And who picks a gnome anyway?” I asked while the world continued it’s spin. The wall of earth before me suddenly shrank back down into the ground, and I could see the two boars in a similar state to myself. All three of us trying to stand and none of us doing a very good job of it.. “Dammit, be careful. those things could one-shot you.” I grabbed my hammer again and used it to prop myself up. I stumbled over to the boars, where I made some wild off-balance swings to finish them before they could restart the festivities. It wasn’t very sporting but it was effective.

Bliiiiiip

Blip

A green flash of light surrounded me while I collapsed to the ground again. Green was a new color.

You have created a New Spell. Would you like to Name It?

Two-Hand Weapons Have Advanced to Beginner RankNew Active Skill Unlocked

Nice….

Name Spell…. Earth Wall

I thought while I laid there gasping like a fish. I’d have to check out the skill once my head stopped throbbing so badly. The gnome rushed over jabbering excitedly the whole time. “That was awesome! I just finished loading up my character, then suddenly poof and I’m standing in the middle of this weird forest, wearing these itchy shorts, and looking around at how awesome everything looks. Then I hear these squeals and a yell. So I come running over here to see you getting smashed by those boars before you went all earth-bender on them.”

I held out a hand for him to help me up. He grabbed it and pulled grunting with the effort, his strength was pretty terrible but he managed to help enough I could rise. I quickly dug through my pack and took out the skinning knife I’d never bothered using and attempted to skin the boars. Lucky, I didn’t actually have to clean and gut them. I’d done it to fish before in real life and I imagined a boar would be even more messy and disgusting. I made a few quick cuts and the game took over. The boar dissolved, leaving behind a rather nice looking boar steak. I repeated the process on the others, ending up with two pieces of meat and a poor quality hide.

Blip

“You hungry?” I asked the gnome as he sat down beside me. Apparently he’d decided to hang around.

“Sure I guess. I noticed the game actually makes you eat and drink. But seriously, that was cool what class are you?” He said looking curious.

“Geomancer. It’s a hybrid fighter. And if you wanna eat, then help me with the fire. Run around and help me pick up sticks. It takes forever by myself.” The boy shrugged and we walked around picking up sticks. I used the tinderbox the smith gave me to start it, he’d given it to me along with my new hammer.I would have tried my fire magic but I was tapped out. I opened my inventory screen as the fire started to catch, and ogled my new baby as I started cooking the boar.

Grey-Paw’s Bane

(Uncommon)

A hammer crafted for the slayer Of Grey-Paw. It’s imbued with the bears spirit and grants it’s user a portion of his strength.

Damage: 20-45

Family: 2h Hammer

Damage: Crushing

Speed: Very Slow

Durability: 148/150

Bonus: +4 UbStr, +2 Con

The hammer was bronze, unlike my old one, but the old one had been a tool and hadn’t even had an item class. This one actually looked like a warhammer. It had a large flat head on one side with a paw design dimpling the striking surface. The back was spiked and the whole thing weighed at least 20 pounds. I spit the steaks over the fire and settled down to rest.

I looked over at the gnome as he watched me cook and stuck out my hand. “Noob Slayer at your service” I said as the world finally started to settle. I was pretty happy with my first fight, not pretty exactly but fun. “You went wizard I’m guessing? I’m not sure why else you would have picked a gnome.” Gnome got a huge int bonus and some weird passive if I remembered right. Which was odd since resonance was how your mana pool was calculated. Although his wizard class probably changed the calculations. I’d have to hunt the wiki when I logged out.

The boy nodded, and shook my hand. “Yeah, it’s a classic, and I wanted to do some sweet magic. Although that trick with the earth wall is making me a little jealous. I can’t even figure out how to cast a spell.” He said glumly then added. “MoMagicMoProblems by the way.”

I raised an eyebrow at the name but said nothing. The kid seemed a bit young to be a Biggy fan. “Can’t cast a spell? Doesn’t your class have an active ability? I thought they all did.” I asked puzzled. Honestly I had no idea if all classes had an active ability, but it seemed a safe guess.

“Oh I’ve got one.” He rolled his eyes. “‘Runic infusion, combines the chosen runes to form a spell’. It doesn’t mention how to use the runes. I got a spell book with some runes in it when I picked wizard, but it doesn’t actually explain anything.” The teen shrugged.

I was usually against sharing game secrets with people, but I was taking a liking to this kid. Besides it was always in your best interest to help a noob. Much like real life networking was key. “Fortunately for you I’m here. Have you unlocked meditation yet?” I asked flipping the steaks. They were started to smell amazing.

“What’s mediation?”. He asked. I smiled then prepared myself to play teacher for a while.

“First thing you need to know about this game is that have to stop thinking of it as a game. If you want to do magic think about HOW you would do it. The game's mechanics will guide you a bit, but you have to be the spark. Follow?” He nodded and I continued.

“So meditate. Sit down, clear your mind, and try to clear your head of all thoughts and emotions. It seems silly but trust me. Personally I try to concentrate on my breathing, but there are different steps for everyone.” I’d taken Asian philosophy last semester hoping to meet some hot Asian girls. My plan failed but I had learned to meditate fairly well. Turns out Asian girls don't take Asian philosophy. It should have been fairly obvious but there's 20 year old guy logic for you. The meditation was a poor consolation but I actually did meditate occasionally.

The boy shifted and sat in lotus position. His back straight and his eyes closed. I tended the steaks, and his eyes popped open a few seconds later. “10 extra mana and a way to boost regen That’s awesome! How do you know so much about this game? I thought I was one of the first people who actually logged in.”

I shrugged and handed the boy a stick with a steak skewered on the end. It hadn’t cooked very well but it would do. I wasn’t planning on learning cooking anyway. “I was in the beta, but honestly there’s still a ton of crap I’m still trying to figure out. I only got to test the first few levels, and this is the first char I managed to advance at all.” I took a bite of the steak feeling the juices run down my chin. There really is nothing in the world like cooked pork fat. I closed my eyes in bliss before continuing. “Alright, next step. What runes do you know?”

The boy brought out a rough looking leather book he’d be holding. He flipped forward a few pages. “Na, Et, Saa, Fu, and Ki. Although It just lists the runes with no info. I’ve tried a couple, but every time I do, I get dizzy and I haven’t managed to make anything interesting happen yet.”

“You are level one, I wouldn’t expect to be flinging around doom-bolts yet, and magic in this game is hardcore. If you burn through your mana all at once, you’ll black out, get bloody noses, awful migraines, and likely some worse things if you really went crazy. So start small. I’ve only seen a few wizard spells cast, but I’m pretty sure Saa is Fire. The wizardess I knew used Wa Et Saa to throw firebolts. Although, she had a wand not sure what that was for. Do the runes have symbols or are they just words?”

Sitting around teaching a noob to use magic would be boring for most people, but the magic system in this game fascinated me. Not to mention I didn’t have much else to do besides walk 300 kilometers or so. That spell had nearly made me pass out, and it would be quite a while before I wanted to get going again. MoProblems interrupted my thoughts.

“They have symbols, although I’m not sure why that’s important.” I rolled my eyes. This kid definitely wasn’t getting it.

“I told you already, stop thinking of this as a game. It’s a world, with it’s own rules. Magic does exist here and you don’t make it work by clicking an action bar. You will it to be so. ” I gestured around me to encompass everything in a ‘Look around man’ motion.

“Lets try this. Imagine this for a moment” I said changing tacks. “ You're a young strapping gnome who fancies himself a wizard. You know about runic magic. You know it exists, you even happen to know some runes. However you have no idea how to actually do magic. Most interestingly of all, you know how to combine runes, the result of that combination will mostly likely be a spell. How would you do it? Don’t treat like you're attempting to fill requirements for a game. Treat it like you're a real wizard trying to cast real magic. How would you do it.”

He frowned then looked thoughtful. “Well guess I’d picture a couple runes in my head. Then try and combine them?” He said questioningly.

“Now you're catching on.” I said. “I’d start with Et and Saa.” I rolled my hand in a ‘get on with it’ motion. “Oh and shout out the rune names. That always helps in anime.“

He gave me a boyish grin then shrugged and pointed to a tree nearby. “Et Saa!” The air seemed to waver for a moment but much less so than other spells I’d seen, then a small puff of flame exploded against the tree. I slapped the gnome on the back.

“Now you're cooking with gas!” I congratulated him. “So where you headed anyway?” I asked making conversation. I propped my back against a tree and relaxed, I still had a couple hours to burn before my wounds would heal..

“Nowhere really. Like I said I just spawned in. What about you?”

“North apparently. My roommate started playing with me, but we spawned really far apart. I’m gonna start working my way toward him, see if I can find anything interesting to do on the way.” I said shrugging.

“Lemme come with you. I can tell you could teach me a lot, and you're a melee hybrid class right? You could used some ranged support.” He pleaded, giving me puppy dog eyes.

I sighed. “Alright, fine.” He was right I could use some range in the party. Besides, walking 200 miles alone would be really freaking boring.

Blip

You Have Taken On User MoMagicMoProblems as an Apprentice

MoProblems look at me puzzled. “What’s an apprentice?”

“Excellent first question apprentice!....Details” I said smiling.

Master/Apprentice System

You have taken user MoMagicMoProblems as your apprentice. You will teach him the basics of life in Otherworld and give him an opportunity to thrive. You will be rewarded for your efforts when user MoMagicMoProblems reaches level 10. At which point the apprenticeship will end. Your rewards will be based on your participation, and MoMagicMoProblems’s progress.

Bonus: MoMagicMoProblems XP gain increased by 25%

Bonus: Your Skill gain increased by 25%

“Well, there ya have it. It’s apparently a sort of quest for higher-level players to help noobies get started by teaching them the ropes. That’s your first lesson by the way. You can use the details command on any menu to get a more detailed description. Or the expand command which will give you all the hidden numerical values.” I explained in my best professor voice.

“So I just follow you around and you teach me stuff till I level up?” He asked, puzzled.

“Apparently.” I said.

********************************************************************************************

Note: Sorry for the long delay! I'll try to get some more consistent releases.

Also Thanks for the vote in the poll, and the feedback. I'll work on a few Chris POV's since someone requested it. Advertisement Support "Kill 10 Rats" PayPal Patreon Previous

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