"Talking"
Thoughts
*Sound Effects*
*bratatatatatatata* ~rapid gun fire~
*chk-chik* ~reloading~
*pow* ~single shot-
*ka-pow* ~powerful single shot~
Arthropod Online: Chapter 1 ~I'm not calling this a prologue because people don't read the prologue... yeah, I'm talking about you.~
A standard group of five players gaped as they watched an unusual player. For some reason after killing insects he was carving them up... the normal thing to do in this VRMMORPG is collect the corpse and sell it as is. Giving in to curiosity one of the players walked up to the man and asked, "Why are you doing that?"
Without even looking up at him the unusual player answered, "I wonder how it tastes..."
All five players gasped. "What!?"
After finishing his task the man looked up at them. "Maybe chicken?" He muttered while walking past them back towards the beginner station.
The group of players looked back and forth to each other. "He's gonna eat them?"
A girl laughed while the guy who'd approached the player retched at the thought of eating bug meat. "Why would you do that?"
A calmer looking girl pulled out her massive gatling gun, "Who cares we're wasting time here, bugs don't hunt themselves."
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Aaron Kosminski was spending another dull day preparing the same dishes over and over again in the back of a Michelin starred restaurant. After a rather artful display of plating he shouted out from his kitchen station, "Smoked pork jowl with pickles, order up!"
Someone approached the dish as Aaron began to work on the next order, scallop sashimi with meyer lemon confit. "Aaron!" he shouted
Kosminski turned around and saw his tall, cleanly shaved boss staring down at him. "How many times have I told you that these slices aren't thin enough!"
Aaron frowned and replied timidly, "The dish won't taste right if they're any thinner chef..."
*CRASH!* The plate of smoked pork jowl crashed into the wall behind Aaron.
"That's it! Get out! You're fired!" the chef shouted at the top of his lungs.
Aaron calmly tossed his hat and apron in the trash as he walked to the locker room. "Thank you for your guidance." he bowed before exiting the kitchen
The head chef watched Aaron walk away and sighed regretfully. Reeling in his temper the chef quietly lamented, "Why did I just fire my best chef?"
A woman with an Irish accent spoke up while patting him on the shoulder. "He's wanted to leave for a long time now, staying here was hurting him. You did the right thing dad, you let him go. We both know he owes you too much to leave without you kicking him out the door."
"I suppose it's too much to hope he comes crawling back?"
The woman stared at him flatly. "He's the only person in this world that's as stubborn as you."
The head chef sighed, "Get me the pork, I'll work his shift."
"Yes chef!"
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Three weeks later Aaron stared absently at the ceiling of his living room. Working since graduation for the past five years had payed well. Aaron owned a nice, secluded home that was just the right size for himself and any guests he might entertain. "What should I do?" he pondered while cycling through a random music playlist
*ding-dong*
"Door's open sis!"
A small 4'9 woman opened the steel door and waltzed in while almost dragging a grocery bag. "Your convenience store clerk just hit on me."
"Can you blame him?"
Lirum Kosminski proudly struck and embarrassing pose. "No, I really can't."
"Why are you here Lums?" Aaron was a bit worried that she was about to start lecturing him like their father had.
She lifted up the bag, "I brought sweets! Hungry?"
Aaron smiled gently as his sister grinned ear to ear. After pulling out all sorts of goodies and chowing down voraciously Aaron spoke up. "I guess I can always count on you to cheer me up, what would I do without you Lums?"
"Give dad a heart attack." Lirum pointed at the pile of empty wine bottles. "What's the plan bro?"
Aaron took a moment to gather his thoughts, "I haven't the slightest clue sis, I feel empty. I've lost my passion for food... No I still love food but I'm tired of the business and with Rea leaving me as soon as I lost my job... hah, that really stung."
Lirum started, "Heartless bi..."
"Hey! That's my ex-wife Lums, watch it."
Lirum laughed a bit and looked at her brother as he hid a pained smile. "You need a break, you need to have some fun bro."
Aaron's mood brightened up a bit. "We could go to the range, I haven't shot a gun since last winter."
Lirum grinned again, "I've got something better." His sister pulled a booklet out from her bag and handed it to him.
"What's this?"
"I've been playing that VRMMORPG Arthropod Online for the past few months, I want you to give it a try."
Aaron looked a little intrigued, "Can you cook in there?"
Lirum's jaw dropped. "...you can't mean?"
"I wonder what giant bug tastes like." he answered honestly
Lirum sighed as she got up, "I'm not about to try it for you, the pod will be here in a few days. Consider it an early birthday present."
"I love you Lums."
"Of course you do, I bring presents." she spoke dryly while walking out the door.
Thanks sis, he thought while looking down at the booklet.
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Connect to Arthropod Online?YesNo
"Yes."
-New player detected. Do you wish to create an account?
“Yes"
-Select the name of your Avatar
Oh a name... right... uuuuuhhhhhhh...
"Jack"
-Select your gender, male or female.
Gender selection, oh great...
"Male"
-Arthropod Online allows players to select a unique race. Please choose one of the five races or their sub-species.
Five huh? "Interesting"
A line of humanoid races appeared before him. Each model had the general appearance of what he would look like as that race with small description of the race’s features.
"Show me the Initial status of a human."
Human Initial Status WindowArmor100 / 100Stamina100 / 100Strength10Vitality10Dexterity10Agility10Intelligence10Luck10Attack2Defense0Damage ResistanceSlash0%Blunt0%Pierce0%Shot0%Fire0%Acid0%Humans receive a 10% bonus to skill experience and acquisition speed. Humans are the most well rounded species of Arthropod Online. They are neither good or bad at any one particular thing.
Boring...
"What does each attribute do?"
StrengthIncreases your avatar's physical prowess.Effects:
Increases carrying capacity.
Increases attack.
Slightly increases maximum armor.
VitalityIncreases your avatar's survivability.Effects:
Increases defense.
Increases maximum armor.
Increases damage resistance.
Slightly increases maximum stamina.
Slightly increases carrying capacity.
DexterityIncreases your avatar's precision.Effects:
Slightly increases attack.
Accuracy with ranged weapons.
Accuracy with thrown weapons.
Critical strike rate with ranged weapons.
Critical strike rate with melee weapons.
AgilityIncreases your avatar's overall speed.Effects:
Increases melee and ranged attack speed.
Slight increase to movement speed.
Increases speed of all mundane actions.
IntelligenceIncreases your avatar's ability to use skills more effectively.Effects:
Increased stamina.
Reduced stamina cost of certain skills.
Makes learning new skills less difficult.
LuckGood things are more likely to happen as Luck rises.Effects:
Increased critical strike rate.
Slightly increased damage resistance.
Increased drop rates.
-Note, effects such as movement speed and damage resistance suffer from diminishing returns as attribute points rise.
-Note, accuracy is also effected by player skill. Accuracy is solely dependent on player's skill when accuracy with a weapon reaches 100%.
-Note, attack speed will not exceed the maximum attack speed of a weapon.
Hmmm... "Show me a race with high intelligence."
-The highest intelligence species is a Human sub-species, Clone.
Clone Initial Status WindowArmor70 / 70Stamina130 / 130Strength8Vitality8Dexterity10Agility10Intelligence14Luck10Attack1Defense0Damage ResistanceSlash0%Blunt0%Pierce0%Shot0%Fire0%Acid0%Clones receive a 20% bonus to skill experience and acquisition speed. Due to damaged their weakened physical constitution Clones gain damage resistance at 1/4 the speed of other races. Clones are a well rounded species of Arthropod Online. They have inherited superior learning abilities from their human predecessors. The cloning process has left them slightly weakened.
I wonder how much that lost damage resistance would affect me... skills seem really important though. I'm just trying to take my mind off things and have a little fun... I guess high intelligence should make it easier to cook...
"I want to be a Clone."
-Due to their vanity humans put a great deal of effort into the physical appearance of their clones.
Now standing before Aaron was his own 5"1 slender frame, short blonde hair, semi-light naturally tanned skin, with jaded bluish eyes. You've gotta be kidding me... Because of the human's vanity Aaron had been beautified.
"Can you change my appearance to be... less shiny?"
The model changed to default human form with incredibly good complexion. Much better "Change hair color to black..." looks good
"Alright"
-Is this how you would like to appear while playing Arthropod Online?
"Yes"
-A new account has been created.
-Your profession and attributes shall be determined while you are playing Arthropod Online.
-Select an outpost where you want to start.
"Is there anywhere with a good marketplace, not for weapons or equipment but general trade goods?"
This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author's work.
The list Aaron was inspecting cycled to a trading outpost.
"Trading outpost Luther 7 in the Rook Sector."
-Are you sure?
"Yes"
-Would you like to participate in the training section?
-Note, you will obtain free beginners equipment in this training mission.
"Sure"
The world around him bloomed into existence. Aaron had become Jack and now gazed at the star filled sky ignoring his surroundings for a bit too long.
*KA-BOOM!* *bratatatatatataat* *bratatatatataata*
Jack nearly jumped out of his skin while turning to face the explosions and gunfire.
"Recruit!" A burly sergeant like man called out. "Pick your armor and grab a weapon, MOVE, MOVE, MOVE!"
Jack cringed at the hostile environment he'd been thrown into. "I said move recruit!" Jack quickly stepped up to the pile of gear.
-Armor in Arthropod online is classified by 5 basic types, lithe, light, medium, heavy, and massive. Choose and equip your armor.
Jack picked up the lightest looking teal armor set. It was the lithe armor set and each piece granted a point in agility plus one defense, two defense for the chest armor. After a brief explanation on equipping items he put it on with relative ease. Feels a bit off... Jack decided to remove the arms and helmet of his lithe gear leaving only the boots, leg and chest armor on. Much better he sighed with relief.
*ding*
-You have chosen to wear armor in a way that does not restrict movement, a wise and daring decision.
Intelligence has been permanently increased by 1
Dexterity has been permanently increased by 1
Nice!
*bratatatatatatatata* *chk-chik* *bratatatatatata*
"What are you waiting for! Pick a weapon recruit, the bugs are closing in!"
Jack realized that the free stuff from this training mission was obviously coming at a price. Picking up the pace he quickly moved to the table that had all manner of weapons spread across it. Before grabbing a gun he picked up a rather large knife.
-You have received a Used Knife!
Used KnifeTypeBladeQualityGoodDurability50 / 50CreatorN/AAttack SpeedFastAttack12-15Awarded to those who join the basic training mission.
This widely-used knife is better than basic weapons that are available to new players.RestrictionStrength: 8Effect(s):
Agility +5
He regretfully ignored all of the assault rifles that required 10-12 strength and the 14 strength mini-gun. After a few more moments Jack picked up a smaller gun.
-You have received a Used Compact Gun!
Used Compact GunTypeSubmachine gunQualityGoodDurability100 / 100CreatorN/ARate of Fire18.0/secAttack4-7Magazine Capacity32Ammo Capacity480Effective Range8MAccuracy RatingB+Awarded to those who join the basic training mission.
This widely-used submachine gun is better than basic weapons that are available to new players.RestrictionDexterity: 10 Strength: 8Effect(s):
Dexterity +5
Agility +5
*Ahhhhhh!* *Grgaaahhhh*
Jack looked up in horror as a six foot bug with massive jaws tore one of the men apart. The massive insect turned towards him... *Ka-POW!* It was blown to pieces by the sergeant. "Get to the line recruit, open fire!"
"Yes sir!" Jack ran and swiftly crouched down where the dead soldier had been. Sweeping across a barren field were hundreds of similar bugs. Amid the sound of constant gunfire and explosions Jack finally opened fire.
*ding*
A new Skill has been generated: Submachine Gun Mastery
Skill NameSkill RankSkill LevelSkill ExperienceSubmachine Gun MasteryInitiate11%Increases attack power with a submachine gun by 10%
Increases attack speed with a submachine gun by 3%
Increases accuracy with a submachine gun by 1%
*bratatatatatatatatata* *click-click*
After emptying the first clip it took him a while to figure out how reloading an smg works... he could've done without a few choice words from the sergeant.
*chk-chik* After he reloaded there was some slight laughter of to his left. "You got here at a bad time." A woman spoke mockingly. The woman was wearing some heavy armor and firing off an assault rifle in the direction of the bugs.
"What do you mean?" Jack asked a bit confused
"The battle restarts every half hour and you got here in the last 5 minutes, all the other players had their time to pick weapons and figure them out."
"Players!?"
"Yup, hunker down and hold the fort. This'll be over soon, where did you start at?" she asked
"Luther 7, why?"
"That's a shame, I thought we might work together some after the respawn."
*gulp* "Respawn?"
The woman grinned, "You didn't know about the training mission?"
"I hadn't read about it..."
"This ends in failure."
Son of a penguin! Jack looked back at the approaching horde of bugs. To the woman's surprise he stood up and pulled out the combat knife. "What's your name?"
"Mille, you?"
He smiled, "Jack"
"What are you doing?" she asked confusedly while he began to stretch
"If I'm dead anyway... may as well have some fun." With those words Mille gaped as Jack took off full speed towards the horde of monstrous insects. There were a few moments of silence as all the players stopped and stared at Jack. Before he reached the first bug gunfire resumed.
It's not real, it's not real, it's not real... he chanted while gazing into the beady eyes of his soon to be killers
As he reached the first bug Jack unloaded his clip and managed to kill three of them before running out of ammo. Attaching the gun to his rear holster Jack dashed forward over the corpses and brandished his combat knife. With the agile movements and skilled precision of a chef he dug the blade into a bug's eye. Tough! Jack felt something approaching him from behind so he began to drive the blade in and out of the bug's exposed skin.
*Crkkk* *Fwoosh*
Jack had barely managed to kill a fourth bug before he was flung off by another. Rolling to a stop Jack looked up and let out a slight cry. "Oh dear..."
*Crkk* *Splash* *RIIIP* Jack was violently torn to pieces by a mob of the six foot insects.
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"What was that guy's deal?" one of the players called out
"I dunno but... that looked better than just sitting here..."
The sergeant yelled out, "Hold the line! Do not charge off recklessly! Hold the line!!!"
Players began to look back and forth then one after another people were charging onto the battlefield. Mille had a jovial bout of laughter as she led the charge. I have to find that crazy son of a penguin!
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-The death penalty is now enabled. Dying from this point on will result in a loss of experience. This penalty will slowly increase with level.
Jack opened his eyes as the pain from death faded and the world once again materialized before him. That wasn't so bad... He had ignored a few dings and decided to see what the messages were about. "Show system messages"
The title "Crazy Penguin" is now available.
Crazy PenguinYou have no qualms acting completely out of your mind for a little bit of fun.
Renown + 20
Luck + 5
Haha
Agility has been permanently increased by 1
A new Skill has been generated: Blade Mastery
Skill NameSkill RankSkill LevelSkill ExperienceBlade MasteryInitiate127%Increases attack power with any bladed weapon by 10%
Increases attack speed with any bladed weapon by 3%
Increases critical strike rate with any bladed weapon by 2%
Strength has been permanently increased by 1
Level up!
Vitality has been permanently increased by 1
-You have been slain by a Type-alpha Insectoid Warrior
Off to a good start I guess After distributing the stat points Jack looked up at his surroundings and realized that Luther 7 was a bit larger than he'd anticipated. All around him players and npcs mingled, trading goods and forming squads. Jack ignored his immediate surroundings and looked towards the actual outpost. Large dome like structures surrounded by a wall with mounted weapons. Steel and steam everywhere he could see. Out of the gates a lush world filled with unknown life and unknown dangers.
Jack smiled broadly, "I bet there's all sorts of new things to eat..." he looked down and opened his inventory Ooooh rations *Om-nom nom nom nom nom*
Jack began to literally cry and spit out the ration. "Nasty!"
*pffft-ahahahaaaa!* Jack turned to face the laughter and spotted an npc sitting in his kiosk. "Not very good is it?"
"Disgusting" Jack answered dryly as the man flipped some roasting vegetables.
"Would you like to trade the rest of your rations for some cooking gear?"
"Yes! Thank you, thank you, thank you soooo much mister."
"Don't worry about it lad."
After receiving various cooking utensils and a couple of bonus spices Jack looked towards the gate. Bug meat!
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N / ANEXT CHAPTERDISCUSSIONSTATUS
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