Quest Accepted, page 16
“No promises. Do you think I can actually learn that? I’m not exactly the quickest learner...”
“Oh, shut up and give me your hand.” Cami reached out and grabbed his right hand and turned it over. “Now, clear your mind and focus your thoughts.”
Evan tried to do as she asked, but his mind kept jumping to different thoughts such as, “I wonder what I could set on fire with that skill?” or “How long will it take to set myself on fire?”
She grabbed him by the beard. “You’re not focusing!” she yelled at him, releasing his beard with a small shove.
Evan sat up straighter, trying again to clear his mind. He looked down at his large hand in Cami’s small one.
“Focus!” she scolded. Finally, the world began to fade, leaving only his hand and hers, and eventually, only his.
He concentrated on the middle of his hand, and a small flame danced up, quickly disappearing. He jolted backwards in surprise, landing on his back.
Cami laughed at him. “Now you’re getting it.”
Evan sat upright and attempted again. He focused on his hand and, after much straining, brought back the flame. This time it danced in his palm.
“This is insane,” he said, watching the flame dance slowly around his hand. The flame quickly disappeared. After a few more attempts, he realized that his MP bar was drained.
He let his MP recharge and tried again. He pushed the hand with the flame onto a pile of tinder which caught fire and burned dimly.
Congratulations, you have unlocked Fire Essence.
Current level: 1%
You are now able to use low-level Fire Essence Spells.
You have earned: 200 XP!
You have learned a new spell:
Small Flame
Level 1
Damage 2-5 HP
Cost: 10 MP
Cool Down: 5 Seconds
You have earned: 400 XP!
“Thank you, Cami, this is really awesome!” Evan said with a grin. He was proud that he was able to pick it up so quickly.
“Eh, I figured you aren’t exactly the spell-casting type, but that one could come in handy. Especially if you keep collecting those ingredients like you’ve been doing.”
“You need fire for elixirs?”
“Yeah, certain elixirs require it, some of the good ones at least!”
Evan held out his hand again and worked on the flame size. Each time he was able to create a slightly larger flame.
He laughed and waved his hand around, writing his name in the night air. Becoming a little overzealous, he caught his beard on fire.
“Oh, snap!” Evan said, quickly extinguishing the flames.
Cami looked over at him and shook her head with a smile.
“Hey! Don’t pretend like you haven’t done that yourself!”
“No, I can honestly say that I haven’t!” she laughed. “But I’m absolutely not surprised that you managed to do it.” The smile remained on her face as she said good night to Ember.
Ember found a spot not too far from the fire and laid down. Cami propped her back against the lion, facing the fire. Reaching into her bag, she pulled out two apples, and threw one to Evan.
Evan caught the apple, taking a large bite as he sat on a nearby stump.
“So, what do you know about Ruelle?” Evan asked, chewing the bite of apple.
“Not too much, but I do know this, she is very powerful. For years she has attempted to spread her darkness across Serein. She only recently started to gain in strength. Most throughout Serein have been able to fend off her and the darkness. Unfortunately, she is getting stronger, braver, and has found some new pets.”
“What are we going to do if we run across her without help?”
“Run.”
“Well, at least we have a plan.” He couldn’t keep the sarcasm out of his tone and blushed.
Cami laughed. “Get some sleep, Evan. You are going to need your energy tomorrow. Ember will keep an eye out and alert us to anything we may need to worry about.”
“Ok, sounds good. G’nite Cami.”
“G’nite Evan.”
Cami curled up next to Ember with her hand on one of her daggers and closed her eyes. Evan propped himself up against the stump he sat on earlier. He was exhausted.
He started to wonder what his real body was going through. As he sat in the darkness, he couldn’t stop his mind from reeling. He decided to try out his new spell a couple more times for a distraction. After a few tries, and a singed eyebrow, he decided it was best to hold off on any more experimenting for the night.
Drifting off, he thought he saw an outline of a woman in the trees behind Cami, but decided it was only his imagination and drifted to sleep.
Evan awoke with a start. He didn’t know how long he’d been asleep, but he must’ve been sleeping hard because he was now tied tightly to the same stump that he’d been resting against. He looked around for Cami but didn’t see her.
He couldn’t tell if he should be relieved or worried, but hoped she got away. He struggled against his bindings and couldn’t get them to budge.
“Who are you?” came a woman’s voice from somewhere behind him.
“Who are you? Why are you here? I am working my way south, I didn't mean to intrude. Where’s my friend?”
“South, why are you headed south?” the woman continued, ignoring his question.
Evan remained quiet. He wasn’t sure if his next answer would result in another death, and he had not set his home stone away from Windchill yet. It would be a long hike back.
“What are you...doing with the hammer?” the woman asked, voice hitching with emotion.
Who would be emotional about him having the hammer? he thought, and quickly made a guess. “Elrala?”
He heard the woman behind him gasp with surprise. The silence stretched.
Evan looked around, trying to catch a glimpse of the woman behind him. Hushed whispers began to build throughout the surrounding forest.
Finally, a woman appeared in front of him. She had fiery blue eyes that sparked when they caught the torch light.
She was nearly as tall as Evan, but much more slender, with a long, thick, blonde braid draped over her shoulder, and Vitality held in her hand. She appeared to be trained in weaponry as she readied the hammer and approached Evan. A quick inspection confirmed his suspicion:
Elrala
Race: Forest Dwarf
Class: Warrior
Level 5
“How do you know my name?” the dwarf asked. “Where is my husband? Where is Umeric!?”
“I ran across your husband a while back. He had been attacked by a bear and... He didn’t make it,” Evan replied, sympathetically. “He asked me to tell you that his last thoughts were of you.”
“Liar!” she responded and lunged forward with the hammer stopping just short of his eye.
“Stop! He gave me something to give to you!”
Elrala stopped and pulled back the hammer.
Evan continued, wearily eyeing the hammer hovering in front of his face. “In the hammer. There’s a green gem; he wanted me to bring it to you.”
She inspected the hammer, found the cover, and pried it off. “Oh Umeric,” she said with an exhaled breath, sinking to the ground.
She looked up after a moment, tears glistening on her cheeks. Regaining her composure, she wiped her eyes with the back of her hand, adjusted her ponytail, and stood straight. “Thank you for bringing this…. Holcash, Ganrol, cut him free.”
A notification appeared:
Quest Complete: Honor Umeric’s Last Request
You have earned: 2000 XP!
Reward: Talk to Elrala to receive
A new notification appeared with a familiar chime:
Congratulations! You have reached level 4!
You have 4 attribute points to spend.
“Woohoo!” Evan exclaimed excitedly, immediately regretting his outburst as Elrala looked at him with tear-filled eyes.
Evan cleared his throat and quickly placed three points in Strength, bringing him up to 16 with an extra +3 Strength increase from Vitality, which was now level four as well.
He placed the remaining point into Stamina, bringing his total to 12. He could’ve sworn he felt the capacity of his lungs increase, although he thought it may have also been indigestion from all the ingredients he had tried over the last day.
Evan craned his neck and spotted a figure, shorter than his dwarven form, slink closer. He wore a long forest green cloak with his yellow eyes gleaming under his hood. He carried two curved knives that he flipped up in the air and caught nonchalantly.
As he moved into the light, Evan could see the figure had scaly skin all over his body and his face protruded slightly, giving him a very gecko-like appearance.
Before he could inspect him, a second, much larger figure came crashing through the forest toward Evan, stumbling into the firelight and knocking over a small tree in the process.
He looked like a very large dwarf, or a very small giant, Evan wasn’t quite sure which. Easily as tall as Ember, he had a scar across his stern face and a short grey Mohawk that extended to the back of his head.
“Ganrol, really? It’s called walking,” the lizard man said, shaking his head. Evan took the moment to inspect the lizard:
Holcash
Level 4 Reptilian
Shadow Knife Wielder
“What?” Ganrol lifted his hands in the air and shrugged. Evan shifted his focus over to the hulking figure.
Ganrol
Level 4 Half-Giant
Demolisher
The lanky reptilian walked forward and stopped in front of Evan, still twirling his knives.
“I’m Holcash, and this is my brother, Ganrol. Try anything funny and we will hurt you.” He snarled as he glanced over to Ganrol with a small wink. Ganrol nodded and moved closer. With a quick swipe, the bindings around Evan were sliced off and fell to the ground.
“Thanks. You’re brothers?”
“Listen, we’ll answer your questions later maybe, but first you come with us.”
Evan stood and dusted himself off, relieved to be off the stump. He looked around and noticed a few other individuals were working their way to the clearing, many of them dwarves.
A young female walked over to Elrala, who was still visibly shaken by her husband’s death. She stood a couple inches taller than Evan. Her intricate robe of scarlet and maroon draped gracefully over her thin but toned frame as she placed an arm around Elrala. Her soft golden hair cascaded down to her delicate shoulders, adorned with a tiara of white and purple flowers.
Her face was softer than the others and she had a slight aura about her. He took a moment to inspect her:
Nico
Race: Fae-Touched Human
Level 4
Class: Cleric
From what Evan remembered from playing them in past MMOs, clerics were healers. What is fae-touched? he wondered as he dismissed the screen.
As he closed the inspection window, he was staring directly into Nico’s friendly aquamarine eyes. He could feel the fire in his cheeks rise up, imagining his whole head was a deep red. Her eyes were unwavering.
Evan caught a quick glimpse of something in his beard, relieved to discover Creswell was still there. Other than when it tickled, at times, it was comforting to have Creswell with him.
What have I gotten myself into now? Evan thought.
The group pressed on for about an hour before the first hints of daybreak cut through the trees. Evan heard sounds of rushing water that grew louder as they progressed.
The trees began to thin and opened up into a large clearing blanketed with small golden flowers that overlooked a small village. There were huge piles of lumber stacked throughout the clearing. Beyond the small village, a giant river wound its way between two mountain peaks in the distance. Patches of forest were scattered across each side of the river, random clearings marking where the trees had been harvested.
“Where are we?” Evan inquired. No one responded. They walked a little further and he received a notification:
You have discovered Firestone Mill.
500 XP gained.
They led Evan to a small house and opened the door. Inside, perched on one side of a cooking pot, sat an old dwarf with a long grey beard and a bald head.
He appeared to have been in the middle of telling an animated story when they entered. He lowered his hands, looking at Evan.
Evan looked across from the old dwarf, and sitting there with a smile on her face was Cami.
“Hey E, about time you showed up.”
17
THE COMPANION AND TOAD
Standing in front of the Heart Tree, Audyn wasn’t sure why Aerin, Ali, Wyn, and the elderly woman were pointing at her. She hoped she didn’t cross some sacred line when she stabbed the tree with her infused dagger. It hadn’t even occurred to her in the moment, but now the thought made her stomach flip.
She stood nervously and waited for the others to finish talking to the elder. Audyn took the moment to inspect the wizened woman.
Caelyn
Level 9 Elf
Leader of The Vale
100/100 HP 200/200 MP
Audyn distracted herself by surveying her surroundings. Cracked windows were being replaced, smashed garden beds tilled. At the rate they were going, the damage would be repaired by the time the sun set the next day, tops. She glanced down at the dead vallin, now covered in death mites. Audyn stood, trying not to vomit as she watched the mites.
The others finished their conversation and approached Audyn.
“Thank you for your help, Audyn,” Ali said. “You really saved us back there.”
“The Vale is our home and means everything to us,” Wyn added. “Ali and I lost our parents when we were very young. Caelyn found us wandering along the shoreline and immediately took us in. The people of The Vale have treated us as one of their own since the day we arrived. Aerin here has a similar story, but he doesn’t like us to talk about it.”
“Why did they attack The Vale? It seems like such a peaceful place.”
Aerin explained, “The darkness thrives on death, destruction, chaos; none of which was here before they came. We are seen as an energy source, a way for it to spread. Ruelle is the driving force behind the destruction.
“So, why didn’t she stick around and fight?”
Aerin continued, “Word is that she has been moving throughout Serein creating chaos and destruction. It appears once she is satisfied with the damage, she moves on to the next place, letting her darkness set in, eliminating each area’s essence. Serein’s essence is what protects everything around us. If that essence is eliminated, the world goes with it, and all is consumed by the darkness and ceases to exist.”
“So, what do we do?”
“What do you think?” a familiar, frogy voice yelled out from behind her. “Are you with us?”
You have been offered a quest: Defeat the Darkness
You have been asked to help the elves of the Crimson Vale and Bert the imp to seek out and defeat the darkness.
Do you accept the quest?
Reward: Unknown
Difficulty: Unknown
Experience: Unknown
Audyn quickly accepted the quest and turned to face Bert, who was glowing. Literally. The imp had found a new set of armor, an elaborate bright red sequined tunic. It glimmered in the morning sun, making her look like a disco ball.
“Uh, nice new clothes there, Bert,” Audyn said, trying to stifle a laugh. “When did you have time to go shopping?”
“Oh sure, laugh at Bert. You won’t be laughing when Bert saves your sorry ass, again. Bert made this, and now you do not get to learn how. Your loss.”
“Oh, come on, Bert. You look stunning. Is that what you want to hear?” Audyn said with a slight chuckle.
Bert stared into Audyn’s eyes, stuck out her tongue, and slapped her across the face, knocking her back a few steps. For such a small imp, she sure could pack some force. Aerin and Ali tried to stifle their laughter.
Wyn stepped forward with a smile on her face.
“Ok, I think you made your point, Bert,” Wyn said, dusting off the imp’s sequined shoulder pads. Bert calmed down slightly and began walking in a small circle. Every time she would open her mouth to speak, she would shake her head, and nothing came out. Her ears twitched wildly as she stopped moving. Her shoulders drooped. “Bert wants to help, but Bert’s powers fade if she ventures too far outside of The Vale. Old master bound Bert to the woods on the outskirts of The Vale. He was an amazing adventurer. We traveled all over Serein. He left, promising to return one day. He did, only to drop his summon stone at the bottom of Bert’s tree. Bert has waited many years to taste adventure again. To be free...”
“Wait a minute? This stone?” Audyn asked, still slightly annoyed after the slap to the face.
“Yes, but it has only the power to summon Bert throughout The Vale. Once outside, it’s useless. Unless...” the imp trailed off.
“Unless what? How can it give you power to leave The Vale?”
“Well, uh, someone has to agree to be Bert’s companion.”
“Maybe you should’ve thought about that before you started going around slapping people.” Audyn couldn’t keep the snark out of her tone.
“Sorry, Bert has anger issues.” The imp looked up at Audyn with big goofy eyes. “What do you say?”
Congratulations, you have been offered a companion!
Bert
Race: Forest Imp
Level: 4
Class: Essence Handler
A unique companion can be summoned with a summon stone.
If you accept, the companion will be bound to you until you release them.
Your companion will earn XP based off quests and encounters along the way.
Only one companion can be held at a time, you must release one in order to gain a new one.
