James stepped out of the portal and looked around. He found himself at the bottom stone pit. A shimmering blue oval about six feet in diameter behind him and a set of stone steps went up about twenty feet. At the top of the stairs was a patch of sky. Rocko appeared beside James and looked around as well. Although he didn't say anything, James was glad he was there.

"You will want to check your notifications," Rocko advised James.

James looked down at Rocko and nodded. There was a flashing notification.

CONGRATULATIONS!

You are the first Champion to complete the Undead Dungeon of Adro Thul.

Reward: ??? XP (bonus due to completing dungeon 6 levels below recommended)

Title: Dungeon First, Over Achiever

Free Advantage Points: 50 points (bonus due to completing dungeon 6 levels below recommended)

Bonus Advantage: Undead Slayer - Due to your experience fighting the undead in a solo dungeon, you have gained the bonus of +20% to hit and +40% to damage against the undead. Undead will also recognize you as a slayer, and you will become a priority target.

Intellegence +1

Luck +1 CONGRATULATIONS!

You have reached a milestone. You are now level 10.

Your status screen will be updated to show you new data that you are now eligible to review.

James selected his status screen.

* Unmodified Attributes are shown as [ ]

Name: James Gleason Race: Weretiger (Hybrid) Class: Etherian Warrior Specialization: Level: 10 XP to next level: 370/1000 Rank: 834 Armour Rating: 19 Age: 42 Health: 410 Unarmed Damage: 36 [35] Stamina: 200 Claw Damage: 39 Mana: 320 Bite Damage: 37 Attributes: Unspent Attribute Pts: 7 Strength 22 [21] Agility 19 [17] Dexterity 23 [22] Endurance 21 Willpower 22 [23] Intelligence 16 [17] Charm 4 [5] Luck 12 Skills: Unspent Skill Pts: 6 Analyze 10 Back Attack 6 Critical Strike – Unarmed 2 Detect Traps 5 Deflection 4 Dodge 9 Inspect 7 Meditation 5 Melee- Unarmed 14 Ranged – Short Bow 1 Res – Immobility 5 Res – Debuff 5 Res – Pain 3 Stealth 11 Unspent Advantage Pts 70

"Holy shit!" James exclaimed.

"Yup," Rocko muttered.

"Okay, I see. I should point into Dodge and get it up to level 10. I now have the points to buy Disarm and perhaps Trip. Wow, that was quite the haul." James rambled excitedly.

Rocko just stared at James for a few seconds.

"What is with the new information? I now have a value for experience, and I have a rank." James asked.

Your first 10 levels are particular, so the gods decided that you would see them as a percentage of progress. Now that you are level 10, you will see the amount of experience you gain from each kill." Rocko paused to let the information sink in, "The standard requirement is one hundred creatures of your level or higher to attain the next level. If the creatures are more than 5 levels above you, you will receive a bonus, but the cap is still a 100% bonus."

"So, each creature would be worth about ten experience points?" James asked.

"Yes. If it is your level or higher." Rocko agreed.

"And about Rank?" James asked.

"That is your Rank among the Champions. You are ranked 834th out of the thousand that started three months ago."

"I am surprised that we are so low," James muttered.

"You did start two days ago," Rocko corrected.

"Shit,"

Without further words, James began to climb the steps to the top. Once he crested the top of the stairs, he had a chance to look around. The first thing that James noticed was that he was in a building made of stone. The building didn't have much of a roof, and debris covered most of the interior. Leaves, branches, dirt, and other detritus lay scattered across the stone floor. A raised dais with a stone altar on top was at one end of the room, still covered by a roof. Behind the altar were an odd-shaped symbol, one that had several rings and a sheaf of wheat, and something that looked like a fishing hook.

"Any idea where we are?" James asked.

"A temple of Gia A Thandros," Rocko replied.

"Who is that?"

"One of the eight greater gods. She is the goddess of fertility, home, and family. Among other things." Rock explained.

James walked around the room. There were many spaces for windows, but there was no glass. There were two doors leading out of the room, but only one set of double doors at what looked like the back of the room. Both doors were open and lying on the ground. It looked like the building had been abandoned for decades, if not centuries. Stepping out the double doors, James was able to get a good look around the outside of the temple. The temple sat on the top of a hill. The forest had grown to the point that there were trees outside the door. Most of the exterior wall was crumbling due to the proximity of trees and roots. Moving to the back of the temple, James tried the other doors. A fallen tree destroyed the rear part of the temple, and the weather and forest had claimed that section of the building. James was able to find what looked like a few metal items like pots and pans, but they were so rusted that they could no longer hold water.

"Well, this is nice, but it doesn't help us," James stated.

"What is the next step?" Rocko asked.

"Find a town or city. Get an idea of where we are and then figure out what the next move should be in the Challenge. I am sure that the other Champions are not sitting idle."

"That is true," Rock agreed.

"Most should be trying to band together. That would make it easier to get stronger if they could trust each other enough. This whole Challenge thing would make everyone paranoid."

"Are you considering joining up with another Champion? Rocko asked.

"Maybe," James confided, "It certainly can't hurt to have some other people to watch your back."

"I would not be able to help you if your travelling companions try to kill you," Rocko said sadly.

"If only there were a way to have you able to work as a scout for me," James mused.

Rocko looked at James expectantly but didn't say anything.

'It is late in the day. We should grab some sleep and head out in the morning," James said instead.

Rocko hung his head and sighed, 'Of course."

James pulled out the sleeping roll, some food, and some water. After putting up a temporary camp and having a rations meal, James lay down and stared up at the evening sky. Although there was still light outside, James was tired. He found himself with many Free Advantage points and wanted to spend them, but he also knew that deciding when he would be so tired was foolish. Before he could convince himself to start spending the points, he fell asleep.

**

James woke to the sound of rain splattering on the leaves of the trees in the forest. It was somewhat soothing to hear such a typical sound. He was familiar with one during his various tours with the navy seals. Even with his Dark Vision, James could tell that it was still the middle of the night. He had placed the sleeping roll under the remainder of the roof. Although some rain did seep through, none seemed to land near him. Taking a moment to look around, James froze when his eyes fell upon a large black panther lying on top of the altar. The panther turned its head to regard James coldly. Neither moved as they both continued to observe the other. The panther turned away from James and viewed the forest around them. The panther was willing to share the shelter, at least for now. James decided not to cause a problem where none existed.

Moving carefully, he sat upon the bedroll and put his back against the stone wall. Although he had no intention of going back to sleep with the panther so close, he opted to stay put until the rain stopped and the panther left on his own. He thought about having some food but decided against it, not wanting to encourage the panther to attack. The rain stopped about an hour or two later. The sky was starting to lighten up, and the clouds moved on. Suddenly the panther stood up. It lowered its head and gave a mighty yawn. Turning, the panther leaped down off the altar. As it headed out of the temple, it turned its head to James before giving a soft growl, .

James blinked a few times. He didn't hear the words specifically but understood more about the growl. Before he could reply, the black panther had moved out of the ruined temple and into the forest beyond.

"Rocko?" James whispered.

A moment later, Rocko faded into view. "Yes, James."

"How come you didn't warn me?" James asked angrily.

"I can't remember. I can only give you information upon request," Rocko said with a sad, melancholy voice.

"I understood what it said," James sat up and looked around for other threats.

"Due to your being a Were Tiger, you can understand most cats, even the large cats," Rocko explained.

James turned to Rocko and stared at him, "What information should I be asking you about?"

Rocko looked up at James and smiled, "You can ask me any questions about upgrading yourself. You can ask general questions about the world around you and ask questions about previous Challenges."

James thought about that for a moment. He thought he heard Rocko emphasize the word 'yourself.' Working on a hunch, James asked, "How can I upgrade you?"

Rocko smiled, "You can upgrade how much help I can give you through the Advantage system. Doing so will help you in three ways. The first is combat, of which there are three options. The second is advice, of which there are two options, and the Third is scouting, which has three options."

"So, I can use Advantage points to get you to help me more."

Only if you buy the appropriate upgrades to your guide."

"So, there are upgrades that would allow you to scout for me?" James asked

"Yes," Rocko offered.

"How would that work?" James asked.

"If I were to scout or fight for you. But there is a trade-off. If I am scouting, I can be noticed by others. I can be hurt or destroyed if I get into a fight."

"What do you mean by destroyed? Killed?" James asked

"No, not killed. What you see is similar to your Avatar. It is just an image of me here with you. That simulation of me would be destroyed. I would still be alive, but I would be out of a job."

"You mentioned giving advice. You can't do that now, but by spending points, you would be able to offer suggestions to help me win this Challenge?"

'I would be able to help you, yes."

"Why could you not offer these options before?"

"Those options could only be unlocked once you were in the Challenge and only by asking."

"I see. How much is it an option to allow you to offer advice?

"Twenty Advantage points.

"That is not as bad as I thought it would be," James mused.

"What is the difference between the first and the second option under giving advise?" James asked.

"The first option would only allow me to give advice when specifically asked. The second option would allow me to offer advise freely."

"You would be able to advise on character builds?" James asked.

"Yes."

"Skill point allocations?"

"Yes."

"Good weapons and armour to buy when we get to town?"

"Yes."

"Any good at giving marriage advice?" James joked.

"Yes, I have been married three times and have been happily married for over two decades," Rock said.

"Happily?" James asked with a cocked smile.

"We did have a bit of a rocky start," Rocko admitted.