And here it is, like a performer entering the stage. It's a sad creature from what I can see, some kind of abomination that must have escaped from the pits of the Evil Domains.
"A blood fiend," Ambrosia says and takes the vanguard.
At least I now know its name. The Threat Level 24 Blood Fiend is an enormous creature, reddish in color, and has a maw with several lines of razor-like fangs. It walks on all fours and its razor-sharp claws extend from each of its limbs.
"Anything specific I should be aware of?" I ask Ambrosia.
"These deadly creatures are known for their ferocity and tenacity. They even prey on other fiends. We should watch out for its Terror Gaze. Its effects are similar to the lich's Frightening Gaze that you experienced earlier, although it can only affect one target. If it affects you, then you will be an easy feast," she tells me, now back at her casual snobbish and carefree look.
"Fuck, there's something wrong with the difficu
I'm Athanasios, a virtual citizen of Elysium. I was born into this boring game world that everyone praises to be amazing and emulates paradise. How do they know it's a paradise? We've never been to the real world or any other world besides this one. Yeah, we've heard a few stories. The real world is a dangerous place filled with monsters, mayhem, and chaos. Others have said someone like me wouldn't last a day in the real world. I'd prove them wrong given the chance. Elysium feels like the same thing all the time, sure there are a few tweaks here and there, but nothing extraordinary."Oh man, I'm bored!" I snarl at Smeme, my best friend and colleague. He looks up at me from his task at hand and shrugs."Nothing on your mind?" I laugh, mocking him with another quick shrug."You're always bored," Smeme smiles.My job is basically that of working in a glorified arcade. Should be heavenly, right? Every day involves playing boring arcade games, but somehow this
This sucks. I look around. I'm laying in the middle of a stone bed in some kind of dark cavern. As I sit up I feel cold suddenly, colder than before. It's as if the temperature dropped immediately once I was transferred into this massive underground chamber. A violent chill goes down my spine, something I've never experienced with another avatar. I must admit to the developers of this game, this sensation and feeling are the best I've encountered so far. So, this game experience might have something to offer in the end.I take a minute to compose myself. I feel like I'm wearing rags. Nothing like a sorcerer of my caliber should wear, but the game stated I was level 1. This must be some kind of tutorial. Gotta give them credit if they were going for something spooky. They nailed it. The air is humid and smells like bat guano. Not the best thing in the world. There is another scent in the air. Earthy, soil perhaps? I can't be sure. I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fa
The effects of the paralysis begin to fade. I perform a Hitpoint check immediately. My HP is 9 out of 22. Better being half-dead than entirely dead. I wonder what happens when you die in this world. Do you respawn as an undead zombie? That was the case in one former game experience I played. It was lame to be honest. The brain cravings kept me up for days, not to mention that nothing can prepare you for the psychological effects of smelling like a rotting corpse all day."Wake up," a sweet, friendly voice urges me. It's hard to resist.Slowly, I open my eyes, but my vision is still blurry. Fuck, I'm still inside the cavern, tied up now. I wonder what happened to my vampire friend, Nestor. Obviously, we didn't win."Don't worry," Ambrosia reassures me with her warm, buttery voice. "Your master is in expert hands," she points with her index finger at the ceiling where I see Nestor hanging with his head down, ti
You submit or you die and I am more than happy to submit.Clapping sounds interrupt the unexpected euphoria my vampire lover just provided me. Since I obtained Vampiric Bloodline a few minutes ago, my senses heightened to a new level and now I'm able to hear the slightest noise."Humans!" Ambrosia yells disgusted at her ghouls. "Be prepared, Nestor's Vampire Hunting Squad must be here."I look at my vampire friend and notice a slight smirk on his pained face. Hard to imagine that a Vampire Lord created his own Vampire Hunting Squad, a double-edged weapon if you think about it, but makes sense in the end if you want to get rid of your vampire adversaries.The hunters reach our chamber quickly. Knights in shining armor advance as one and circle us. Dressed head to toe with their heavy gear and silver weapons, they point their spears with a sonorous clamor. Their legs move in unison, synchronized in a way that makes the soil tremble.I feel the adrena
I atemy meal and said farewell to Markos. He told me more about the village and a few strange rituals that had been taking place. It made for interesting entertainment while I ate, especially when he would act out certain parts of battles. Still, I can't shake that feeling of being unwelcome here. I thought about exploring the rest of the town and seeing if I could pick up multiple optional quests, but everything looked closed and deserted. I couldn't tell if people were just ignoring me like I was some kind of comic-book villain or they simply didn't exist. Maybe more would pop in, once I completed a few quests or leveled up. Still, some armor, potions, weapons would have been nice. I was lucky I had chosen sorcerer as my class. Anything else and I would use my fists. I could easily picture myself punching one of those ghouls and breaking my hand. Not the kind of pain I was looking for.It's noon when I find out where the Vampire Castle is. It is said that it was once
There is no easy mode. That is the first thing I notice when I go through my NCI once more. Either it’s casual or hardcore it honestly doesn't feel like there is any difference between the two as far as I'm concerned. Maybe in the alpha, beta stage, the game doesn't know the difference. Sure, the AI seemed pretty advanced so far. I had encountered nothing like it at my job in the arcade. Even compared to the more advanced Dungeon games Leda and I played. Since my first encounter, I would have sworn Nestor, Ambrosia, even Melissa were all other players. If that was the case though, they were taking their role-playing a little too seriously.Most of the boxes I had desperately clicked out of earlier at the start of the game have disappeared now. There are only a handful of tutorials left I can open. Mostly more of the same. Health potions are red, stamina is blue. Drink nothing purple or hazy. Another that warns of staying away from making deals with Fae. A few broken pie
Ambrosia jumps and attacks Melissa from above. She tries to grab her by the neck, but Melissa avoids her by a hair and gets some distance. It seems that the whip isn't the ideal weapon for close combat, so she pulls her dagger and tries to attack. Ambrosia quickly knocks it from her hand, giving a sly laugh as she does. I'm at a loss and don't know if I should help any of them or escape."You're weak, there's no way you can defeat me. Surrender now fool!" Ambrosia says with a sinister smile.Melissa tries to catch her breath. "I think that you are the fool here. You think my master, Nestor, wouldn't have thought you or your pathetic Forgemaster wouldn't try to ambush us?" Melissa's pale expression and shock turn to a grin.I can still hear the humming coming off Melissa’s body like a soft song carried by the wind. Ambrosia doesn't let up. Slashing at her opponent again, her wrist gets wrapped in Melissa's whip. I watch as Melissa holds her own, pushing Amb
As we leave, I look back and watch as Melissa removes the knife from her neck. She falls back to her knees sobbing. I feel bad, but I just saved all of our lives. Whether I'll actually come to regret that decision, I'll soon find out.Ambrosia had a small wooden wagon waiting just outside the ruins. It is her personal transportation and looks like it has seen better days. The horse, the first I have actually seen, is a black stallion with armor made of bone. It pulls the wagon using chains. Inside, it isn't much nicer. There is some soil, a collection of books, unlit black candles, a few animal skulls I don't recognize, a collection of daggers, a short sword that looks like it has a face with teeth, and several dozen blankets and pillows. Two ghouls are following us out as we climb aboard."Yours?" I ask."Not mine, feral. It took me a long time to build my forces against Nestor. Taming ghouls is no simple task. There are rituals, blood sacrifices that need to b