Craig was stuck in traffic, he had been sitting in the same spot for what felt like hours. There was some accident on the highway up ahead and it had caused the worst gridlock in decades. Sighing, he check his phone for the umpteenth time. Still no updates.
As he took in the surrounding area, a blue haze began to form over his eyes. Blinking, the haze stayed put, if anything it seemed to grow more solid.
“Shit, I’m going blind… A weird blue blind… Wait, hang on.” As Craig muttered to himself, letters began appearing in the blue, slowly forming into words.
You Are Chosen
Aleo, The God Of Trees, has selected you to act has his Champion in the Arena.
If you lose, you die. If you win, you will be released into The World with a powerful gift from Aleo.
You will be transported in 5 minutes.
The good news was, he wasn't going blind. The bad news was, he was going crazy. That was the only explanation. All the games and books he had played and read had slowly driven him over the edge and now he was destined for the loony bin.
As the minutes ticked down a sense of unease crept over Craig. What if he wasn’t insane and a god really did want him to fight? He was in his mid twenties but was sure as hell not all that fit. Would he be killed as soon at he appeared in this arena? Why would a god choose him?
You will be transported in 5 seconds.
…
4 seconds.
…
3 seconds.
…
2 seconds.
…
1 second.
The world went black.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Craig felt like he was falling, although the pure blackness around him made it seem as though he was standing still. The combination of stimuli made him want to hurl. He fell for minutes, days, hours or decades, with the lack of any external change and the internal hell he was feeling, it could have been any amount of time.
As suddenly as it had disappeared, light and colour returned to his senses. Craig found himself laying on a small square of sand surrounded by tall walls made of a dark stone, the roof hidden by a roiling grey cloud, much lower than it should’ve been.
“Ah, I see our Champion has arrived. Welcome to the Arena.” The creature that spoke was humanoid figure with a dull grey, fish-like face, wearing a black robe with gold inlay. He spoke in a culture but airy voice, like a cross between a professor and a fortuneteller. “We haven’t much time before your first bout. I shall give you a quick explanation of what your position requires from you and then you will face your first foe.”
Craig tried to speak but the figure before him continued to talk over him.
“I am sure you have questions, but will answer them if you survive. Now, you will fight up to eight different challengers, depending how far you survive through the tournament.” Craig didn’t like how he had used the word “survive” twice in as many sentences. “After each bout, you will receive a reward. If you win, then you will receive a boon from your God.”
A loud horn sounded, interrupting the creature. Without any other warning the creature turned and left through a door that opened in the wall. As soon as the door closed, the adjoining wall sunk into the ground. On the other side was mirror image of the square he was in, the only difference being its occupant. A small creature that only reach up to his knee stood before Craig, it had large pointed ears and rodent like face. It wore a chain mail shirt made of what looked like vines and carried a sword. Looking at himself, Craig realise he was still wearing the same clothes he had on Earth. Craig decided that whatever was going on, it was probably for the best if he just did what he was told and try to survive until he could ask Fishface what-the-ever-loving-hell was happening.
“Owww.” A pain shot up his left leg. As he had been deciding on what to do, the rat beast had run up to him and slashed at his shin. After its attack, it had backed out of his reach. ‘This fucker knows how to fight.’
Craig tried to run after the creature but his leg gave out under his weight. Crying out in pain, he glanced up to see the rodent coming at him again. He tried to swat at it but the beast swung its sword, nicking his arm. Craig hissed through clenched teeth, will the creature backed up again. Arm and leg bleeding, Craig grit his teeth, he was not going to die to a glorified mouse. As the small beast raced towards him again, he waited.
When it got within range, he made a grab at it. It swung it’s sword at his arms again, but ignored the pain. Grabbing the creatures head, he twisted, the relatively weak bones snapping. The creature died.
Another horn sounded and the fishman returned through the door he had exited through.
“Congratulations. You have made it through the first round and to the victor go the spoils. You may take whatever you can from the defeated participant. You have five minutes.”
Craig quickly grabbed the sword and chain mail. The small rodent like creature didn't have anything else on it’s body. After he had looted the corpse, he turned to the figure standing next to him.
“What the fuck is going on and who the fuck are you?” Craig was more than a little angry. He had been kidnapped to fight and he didn't even know why.
“I am Scarth, your point of contact for this event. But first,” Scarth snapped his fingers and Craig's injuries healed. Another snapped and a blue box appeared before him. “You will be healed after each bout, as we cannot have you dying, how could the games go on? You should also now have access to your Character Sheet, this is your first reward.”
Name: Craig Simon Lee
Race: Human
Level: Locked
Class: Locked
Health
90
Health Regeneration
4/Min
Stamina
90
Stamina Regeneration
5/Min
Mana
110
Mana Regeneration
4/Min
Attributes
Strength
9
Vitality
8
Endurance
9
Constitution
10
Wisdom
11
Intelligence
8
Free Points
0
Skills: Locked
Perks: Locked
This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
Trees: Locked
“The average stats for the a Level 1 adult of a species is 10, as you grow and level you will earn more attribute points. Also, as you learn new skills, these will level up independently of your overall level, as these level you will receive tree points. Next you have perks, these are rewards for accomplishments, these can be earned from either Gods or The World itself. Finally, there are trees, these are development branches that you must place tree points into to grow them. Any questions?”
Craig’s head was spinning, Scarth’s explanation just left more questions than answers. He decided to ignore the sheet until he had time to explore it himself. It looked similar to most games he had played over the years so he was sure he could figure it out himself. He did have one burning question though.
“Why me?”
“Oh my dear Champion, you were not chosen, the draw is completely random. The God of Chaos, pulls in sapients from all different realms to represent the different Gods selected to participate in this most holy of events. This tournament only occurs once every hundred years and it allows the winning God to gift their Champion with a powerful perk. In return, the winning Champion goes out and spreads knowledge of their God’s power, to convert more to their God.”
“Fucking hell, that is the stupidest fucking shit I’ve ever heard.” The anger flared up after hearing the pathetic reason behind his abduction. He may have had a shitty life, but it was his shitty life.
“Be that as it may, it is the way of things. Now I suggest you put on that armour before your next round starts.” At Scarth’s words, the small chain mail shirt grew until it would fit Craig. Just as he managed to pull it on over his head, the horn sounded again. Without another word, Scarth left.
This time when the wall came down, revealed a man the same size as himself. The man’s body was human except for the fact it was a deep blue, and instead of a human head he had what looked like a squid. The squidman wore a skin tight bodysuit and carried a small round shield. He didn't appear to have any weapons on him. As for Craig, while the chest piece had grow, the sword he carried hadn’t, leaving him with what was essentially a dagger. The miniature weapon had been a one handed short sword, somewhat reminiscent of the roman gladius. Unfortunately, this meant that the handle was slightly too small for him to hold comfortably.
Having learnt from his first fight, Craig didn't take his eyes off his opponent. As he started to inch forward, the squidman fell to his knees. A dark, ink like liquid started to pour from his eye.
“I killed him. I’m a murderer. Oh God.” The blue humanoid curled into the fetal position. Craig was frozen in shock, not knowing what to do. After a few minutes of the man before him continuing to have a mental breakdown and Craig's indecision about how to respond a voice boomed over the arena.
“IF YOU DO NOT BATTLE, YOU BOTH FORFEIT YOUR LIVES! CHOOSE NOW!”
Craig sighed and walked toward his designated foe. He didn't want to kill this poor man, they were both victims of the whims of the gods. He reached the man and sank down to his knees.
“I didn't want to. He was attacking me. I defended myself. Oh god. Maya, what have I done?”
Craig wrapped a comforting arm around the broken man before him. The squidman continued to cry, mumbling to himself. Craig didn't want to kill him, he empathised with what the man was going through. As he held the man, he slid the knife across his opponent’s throat. He didn't want to kill, but he wanted to live more. The squidman choked on his own blood, drowning and bleeding out at the same time.
The horn sounded.
Scarth entered the arena again, reminding Craig to loot the corpse within the allotted five minutes. He collected the bodysuit and the small shield, stripping off and putting the suit under his regular clothes and mail shirt. He then pulled the shield up onto his forearm.
“The reward for beating your opponent is a choice, you can unlock either your Level or your Skills.”
It was a tough decision, unlocking his Level would allow Craig to get stronger while unlocking his Skills would allow him to develop a proper attack with his dagger. The more he thought about it, a Level, by game logic, would require experience gained by killing, while skills would level despite his Level. God, this overuse of level and Level was confusing. Still, is he could develop a dagger skill, and ramp up its level, then he would be better off than if he chose to Level and focused on strength. With this in mind he chose.
“I choose to unlock Skills.”
With that his character sheet changed.
Name: Craig Simon Lee
Race: Human
Level: Locked
Class: Locked
Health
90
Health Regeneration
4/Min
Stamina
90
Stamina Regeneration
5/Min
Mana
150
Mana Regeneration
4/Min
Attributes
Strength
9
Vitality
8
Endurance
9
Constitution
10
Wisdom
15
Intelligence
8
Free Points
0
Skills
Perks: Locked
Trees: Locked
Again the horn sounded. Closing his interface, Craig readied himself for battle. This time, his arena expanded to include a giant insect.
The creature looked like a giant praying mantis. The monster leapt forward as soon as the wall sunk down, jumping to the left, he narrowly avoided the attack. The beast slid along the sandy floor before leaping at him again. This time, Craig dove forward, swinging his knife to the side, cutting deep into the creature’s foreleg. The mantis screeched as the dagger dug in but it refused to go down.
Climbing to his feet, Craig prepared to dodge. The beast skittered quickly from side to side, waiting for the perfect opportunity. As the beast made it’s move, Craig jumped forward, sliding under the mantis’s thorax, stabbing up with the small sword. The blade sunk into the body, ripping the weapon from his hand, at the same time, the insect’s hind leg slammed into Craig’s arm. With an audible crunch, the bone broke. Craig screamed.
Blinking away the stars before his eyes, Aleo’s Champion pulled his arm against his chest and ran. Zigzagging at random, he managed to avoid the creature’s frenzied attacks. It seemed having a knife stuck in it’s stomach threw it into a blind rage.
And several leaps and dodges, Craig stumbled and fell, the pain in his arm overwhelming him. Seeing it’s chance, the mantis made a final jump at the downed man. As the shadow over him grew, Craig used his last ounce of strength to roll to the right. The insect landed, sending up a cloud of sand.
When the cloud cleared, the mantis lay still, the sword having been pushed straight through it by the force of its landing. Craig had only managed to roll a small distance, the beast crushing his legs, but he had survived. The horn sounded.
Scarth appeared once again and snapped his fingers. The corpse rolled off of Craig’s legs as if push by an invisible giant. Another snap and he was healed, the exhaustion from the battle disappearing along with it.
“Good show, good show. Collect your spoils and receive your reward.” Scarth seemed far too happy in Craig’s opinion. Still, he climbed to his still somewhat shaky legs and collected the dagger. The mantis didn't appear to have anything else on its body for him to grab so he turned his attention towards Scarth, as he did though, he noticed a blinking exclamation mark at the edge of his vision. Focusing on the mark, it grew to into another box, just like his character sheet.
You Have Learned A Skill
Skill: Dodge
Level: 1
Description: While some may endure through pain, you find it best to not get hit in the first place.
Effect: +0.5 chance to dodge an attack per level.
Dismissing the notification like he did his character sheet, it was instantly replace with another box.
You Have Grown In A Skill
Skill: Dodge
Level: 5
Description: While some may endure through pain, you find it best to not get hit in the first place.
Effect: +0.5 chance to dodge an attack per level.
Cool, five levels in a Skill in just one fight. Dismissing the box, another one appeared.
You Have Learned A Skill
Skill: Small Blades
Level: 1
Description: While the pen is mightier than the sword, a pen sized sword is mightier still.
Effect: +0.5 chance to hit an opponent per level, when using small blades.
+5% to damage per level, when using small blades.
He didn't receive a level for small blades but instead another skill.
You Have Learned A Skill
Skill: Jump
Level: 1
Description: Why walk when you can run, why run when you can jump.
Effect: Jump higher per level.
Which reached level 2, and finally.
You Have Learned A Skill
Skill: Pain Resistance
Level: 1
Description: When others choose to avoid pain at all costs, you welcome it with broken arms.
Effect: -0.5 effect of pain per level.
“I see from your glazed eyes that you have earned a skill, congratulations. Many choose to unlock their levels first believing that the attribute points are the secret to success. I, however, feel that the true path of power is the skills you can develop. Your next reward is a skill called Identify, while it may not be the most powerful skill, it can be one of the most useful. For your next round, I recommend that you keep the match exciting. You next reward depends on it. Also-”
At that moment, the horn sounded.
“-remember to use your shield.” Craig had completely forgotten to use his round shield against the mantis’s attack. Shaking his head at his stupidity, he prepared for his next bout. He quickly checked out his new skill.
You Have Learned A Skill
Skill: Identify
Level: 1
Description: When ignorance is the norm, knowledge is power.
Effect: Gain information about a creature or object.
Provides more information at higher levels.
Figuring that the skill would help understand his opponent at least, he glanced across the sands and gasped.
Standing there was a beautiful woman. She was like a goddess brought into reality, her hair was a rich chestnut red, and her angular eyes a vivid green. She also wore no clothes, revealing the toned body of a professional swimmer. She stood confident in her skin, smiling a sultry smile towards him.
“Hello big guy, whats your name?” Here voice sounded like angels singing and Craig couldn’t help but answer this impossibly beautiful creature.
“I’m Craig, who are you?”
“I am Selena, could you please do me a favour Craig?” This embodiment of Aphrodite wanted something from him, he would give her anything.
“Of course, Selena. Anything you want.”
“Slide that blade in your hand across your throat. That would make me-” Selena bit her bottom lip, “- most pleased.”
Craig didn't think twice, the avatar of beauty before him wanted him to do something so simple, and it would bring her happiness, why wouldn’t he? He drew his dagger up to his throat and hesitated. A voice at the back of his mind called out, saying something was wrong. The blade dropped slightly from his neck.
“Yes, Craig. One swift slice of that knife, and I will show you how appreciative I can be.” Selena’s melodious voice washed away the doubts of a second ago. This beautiful woman wanted him to do this, so he would.
Craig move the blade up once more, pressing it with enough pressure to draw blood. The sudden pain brought back the voice, only this time it was shouting at him ‘WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?’
He dropped the dagger and looked up at Selena, triggering identify.
Name: Selena Carthogic
Race: Siren
Level: 2
At high school Craig had read all about Greek mythology, although he had never suspected it could actually help him. Blocking his ears with his fingers muted the Siren, but that would only a temporary solution though. He pulled out one finger and searched his pockets for anything that could help him defeat the woman before him.
While he pattered himself down, Selena redoubled her efforts to convince him that killing himself was a great idea. As he began to lose himself once again, Craig found a pen in his inside jacket pocket. Before it was too late, he did the only thing he could to stop the voice. He stabbed the pen into his ear.
As his eardrum ruptured pain overwhelmed him, worse then even the broken arm he had suffered against the praying mantis. It crippled him, causing him to writhe in pure agony on the ground. But even through the pain, the Siren’s voice continued to call to him. Pulling out the pen, he repeated his maiming with his other ear. Again, Craig crumpled to the ground, losing himself in unadulterated pain. The torture he put himself through was a high price, but what he had bought was a golden silence.
Throughout this show of self mutilation, Selena smile, believing that Craig has fought himself but succumb to her wishes. As he eventually climbed to his feet again, she saw the streams of blood pouring from the sides of his head. She realised he resisted her and started to sing, in a final effort to control the human. In a voice that could make even the mountain bow before her, the Siren sang of death and destruction, of maim and mutilation. Craig didn't notice.
He picked up the blade once more, stumbling toward the effervescent creature. He fell into her with the knife, with woman as weak in body as her song was strong. The knife went in and out, in and out, until the horn blew once more.