My trek through the woods was arduous. Seven sleepless nights passed before I finally found a suitable place to make a temporary home out of.
The river broke off into streams at multiple junctions, spreading water throughout the entire forest. Following one of these trails took me to a pond with a cave at its back. Water trickled down rockbed, keeping the pool refreshed and full. Even with what little daylight there was, the cave was shallow enough that I could see the back wall with ease.
Avoiding said daylight had been the worst of my troubles. I’d stepped too far into a beam of light once and nearly lost an arm because of it. Some generous blood donations from the local goblins had patched me right up though, so it wasn’t too bad.
Thankfully, the cave was empty. I made my way to the back, as deep in as I could go, and lay between a jumbling of rocks. It wasn’t comfortable by any means, but having the slightest semblance of home made up for the rugged bed tenfold.
Before I knew it, I had drifted into a deep sleep.
The following day after waking, and the next two after that, were spent scouting the areas close to my campsite, finding a multitude of goblin camps and fending off countless wolf attacks. To keep track of where my lodging was, I smeared blood on the front entrance and other spots of the cave. My sense of smell was strong enough that I could track my blood from miles away. I could even trace my way back to where I first fought those wolves if I wanted.
But that would be a waste of time. I had better things to do.
It had been ten days since the tutorial began, leaving me with twenty to go. And within that time I vowed to map the entire forest, or at least as much of it as I could. Not only did having a mental map of the forest seem valuable, but there was also a chance of there being more within the haven than the forest alone. Whether finding that out would help me survive or make it harder, only time would tell.
Power Level Increased: 76-77
The notification popped up as I drained the blood from the last of the goblins. They ambushed me from the trees, raining down arrows like pelting rain. I never made the first move. Ever. I swore to myself that I wouldn’t be the aggressor.
“Only a single power increase, huh?” I mumbled. It had been a while since my last power-up. I’d probably drained over a dozen goblins and just as many wolves, only to increase by a single point. A far cry from the three points I was gaining every two or three drains. Either way, my intent at the moment wasn’t to grow as strong as possible. All that mattered was if I could fend off attackers.
A bush to my left rustled, causing me to jump back, baring my fangs. But there was nothing. I couldn’t smell any potential threat either.
Just the wind, then?
“Can’t see? No good,” I heard a deep voice say. It came from above. I scanned the trees, looking from branch to branch and finding nothing.
“Eyes bad? Too bad,” they said again. It sounded like they spoke within a cave with how their words echoed.
I went to speak but was robbed of the chance. A hooded figure appeared before me, crackly, cobalt blue skin hiding beneath a brown cloak.
“Do you see it?” they asked. I couldn’t see their eyes.
“What? What do you mean by that?” I asked, wary. I watched them well and went to use identify. The skill started up but sputtered away, failing.
“Not me. You try others. Not me.”
Did it just stop me from identifying it? I didn’t know what that meant. This thing was either so much stronger than me that I couldn’t even identify it, or it had some type of magic protecting it from being identified. Both seemed dangerous. I decided to play along.
“What is it I’m looking for? Is it literal? Metaphorical?”
“Hmm. You know not. Fine. Fine enough. Come. I show.”
“Wait! Just tell me what you…”
The figure began walking away, turning its back to me and entering the shrubbery.
Follow you? That was the last thing I planned on doing in this situation. I turned away, thinking of where to go before heading back to the cave. In case this thing followed me, I didn’t want to lead it to where I slept. None of that mattered, however, as it was directly in front of me again the second I turned around.
“Not good. Follow. Must follow. Bad if you don’t,” they said, walking past me and into the same bushes as before. I didn’t even want to turn around and check if it would be there again. If I got aggressive with it, there was a chance this genial demeanor of theirs wouldn’t last. If they wanted to hurt me I would’ve already been hurt. Or so I wanted to believe…
I followed the blue creature into the deep of the forest. They took me through many trails, zipping past trees and leaping over gaps. They moved faster than I did, at times stopping so I could catch up. We approached a steep wall that rose into the great mountain above, slipping through a crevice and traversing cavern tunnels. When we reappeared outside, we stood on a path up the mountainside. I could see the entire forest from here and only got a greater view of it the higher we climbed. It was massive. Even with my heightened eyesight, I couldn’t see where the trees ended. There was another set of mountains in the distance but they were so hazy on the horizon I wasn’t sure if they were real or if I imagined them.
A cave lay in wait at the end of the path, dim light leaking out from the small entrance. The green light came from small orbs that clung to the cave walls. I touched them as we passed by, feeling a soft thrum of energy within. Magic. Magical light.
The green light lit up the cave, illuminating the red ink that was smeared all over, depicting humans fighting humanoid creatures with animalistic heads. All of the drawings showed the humans' defeat. A glowing pond sat in the middle of the cave, white iridescent orbs floating around it, bouncing off the surface and giggling in the air.
“Memories. Long ago they were more,” the creature said.
“You want me to see the past?” I asked. I ignored the confusion inside me that questioned how this world could even have a past. It was made by Yujiro for the purpose of creating a new earth. What past? What memories?
The creature stared at the pond and shook its head. “See,” it said. I approached the pond and stared into it. There was no reflection looking back, but it wasn’t just mine that was missing. The orbs floating above the pond weren’t reflected in it either. Nor were the stalactites on the ceiling or the cave paintings.
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
“I don’t see anything. What am I supposed to look for?” I said. But as I turned to look behind, the creature was gone. I spun around, my eyes darting quicker than ever. It wasn’t here. The light from outside had faded, too. I ran to the edge of the room where we had entered. There was no entrance.
“Shit!” I shouted, slamming my fist against the wall. “What type of magic is this?”
“I told you to see, Vampire.”
The words came from behind me. They were spoken in such clear English that I almost didn’t realize whose voice it was.
The creature stood on the other side of the pond with its hood pulled back. A sigil was engraved on its forehead: interlocking triangles linked in a circle. Its eyes were golden, pupils black slits. Ebony teeth peeked from its uncanny smirk.
“So you can speak now? Isn’t that convenient. My escape gets cut off and you finally reveal yourself to me.”
The creature shook its head. “How desperate am I that my only hope is a man that can’t tell the difference between realms.”
“What?”
The creature paced around the pond. I walked opposite him, keeping him at a distance.
“This is my realm, not the same place as the cave you were just in. It’s on the Other Side,” he said.
“The other side of what?”
“Reality? You don’t need to understand. Not yet. I’ve brought you here to ask a favor of you. Or demand one, if I’m being honest. A darkness grows in this forest; it's been growing for decades, dormant, but insolence threatens to wake it from its slumber. There are intruders in these woods, and their actions will be the death of them and all life in the forest. I ask of you…please, stop them.”
Decades? The servers just went live a little over a week ago. The world dive only recently happened. Was this some lore or quest Yujiro had programmed into the database?
“I have no stakes in this. What makes you think I’d do this favor for you? If it’s so serious that you’re forced to ask for help, I don’t think I want to be a part of it,” I said.
“No stakes? Do you think you can go about your time in this forest undisturbed? You’re trapped here, with us. Our Creator has protected the outside world from this calamity, but it will not last forever. The barrier encasing these woods will break in less than a month. Even if you fled you would not be able to leave. And if you do nothing you will only be sitting idly waiting for your death. Would you still say you carry no stakes?”
“Barrier?” I muttered. Was he referring to the barrier of the safe haven? “By creator, do you mean Yujiro Akira?”
The creature squinted his eyes. “I do not know this ‘Yujiro’ person you speak of. The Creator is The One. They are a great existence too incomprehensible for the mind of a mortal. They are everything and nothing.”
This world was Yujiro’s creation, so who else could be the Creator but him? It was all so bizarre. If this were an actual game, this creature would be nothing but an npc. So why did he act so differently than the npcs in other games? This behavior and attitude almost seemed autonomous.
“If you refuse to understand the gravity of this situation, then I will show you. Come see what awaits this world,” the creature said.
He spread out his arms and stared down at the glowing pond with closed eyes. The water churned, jumping and twisting as if it were the sea in a storm. All the water in the pond spun upwards and took the shape of a mirror. The white light grew brighter, blindly so, but I had no trouble staring into it.
“Do forgive me,” the creature said again. And before I could react, the mirror of water flew towards me and crashed into my body. “See what will become of this forest!” he shouted. The water gathered around me in a sphere, rotating and spinning me within it. Images flashed through my mind. I saw the forest from a birds-eye view. A great mass of red and black energy rose from the trees like smoke from factories. The energy exploded, sending shockwaves through the forest, uprooting trees and tearing the river apart. A demonic roar filled the air. Something hid behind the rampaging energy. A beast. A calamity that I could not see.
“See what will become of you!”
My eyes zoomed onto a body laid out on the shattered trunk of a tree. It was split in two, both halves a dozen feet apart from each other. It was me. My eyes were empty and my face paler than it already was.
“The world!”
More death. Destruction. Calamity.
“Your family!”
A vision of the four flashed through my mind. They were in some city, staring at the approaching explosion of energy. They would be wiped out. Reduced to ashes.
“Do you see now!” he shouted. I tried to speak but the water cut me off. The sphere around me burst. Water sprayed everywhere, coating the walls of the cave before crawling its way back into the pond.
I heaved, trying to catch my breath and coughing. “Why me?” I asked, struggling to catch my breath. “I’m not a hero. Why couldn’t you ask someone else?.”
The creature snickered. “Hero? Please, vampire. That is the last title I would ever bestow upon you. You are simply a shot in the dark. A lucky happenstance. There are not many sentient beings in this forest, and the ones that hold intelligence refuse to heed my words. They have gods of their own that they worship. Monster gods. Foolish creatures…”
“Then what about you? You have the power to bring me here, to interact with me. Why can’t you stop this calamity yourself?”
“I am merely a voice. I do not exist in the world of the living. Even interacting with you in the forest was a difficult task to accomplish. Mortals call me a Vision. But I’m sure that word has little meaning to you,” he said.
I came to my feet and stared the Vision down. I didn’t want to trust it. I wanted to think all those visions it showed me were false. But if they weren’t?
“Shit,” I muttered. “How do you expect me to stop the intruders? I don’t even know where to start.”
“I will guide you, do not worry about that. All you must do is seal the temple off from the outside world. When you wake you will find a sigil on your hand. It is the Sigil of Vision. It will guide you to the temple where the beast lays dormant. There are three keys to the temple known as the Hearts of the Forest. You must find them before you make your way to the temple. You will not be able to seal it off without them.”
“And where am I supposed to find them?”
“The three civilized races of this forest each hold one. They believe they are gifts from their gods. They will not be inclined to give them up. Befriend them or antagonize them. The choice is yours. Finding them will be your task. I cannot help you with that.”
A symbol formed on the back of my left hand. It was the same interlocking triangles the Vision had on its forehead but there was an hourglass on the inside. “When the last grain of sand falls the beast will wake from its slumber.” He paused. “And your life will end. Forgive me. It is the price for earning the blessing.”
What? I looked down at my hand and saw the first grain fall to the bottom.
“What the fuck did you just say?”
The creature didn't answer and instead stuck out its arm. “You have approximately ten days. For your sake, I suggest you don’t waste them.”
I went to lunge at him but a wave of energy thrust me back against the wall. The cave crumbled around me.
“When you wake from this illusion, you will be in the place we first met,” he said.
“What? That shouldn’t be possible, I’m immune to illusions…” I struggled to get the words out under the pressure of his magic.
The creature chuckled.
“Don’t take so much pride in your abilities, vampire. You're far too green to resist my illusionary skills.”
The cave fell into the nothingness below, taking me with it. As I was swallowed by the darkness, all I could hear was the creature's mocking laugh.