I learned there were a few primary ways to gain experience: kill stuff, play in the wargames, discover new places, and complete quests. There were more ways, of course, but Val said I should focus on killing (easy) things and completing basic quests. The rest didn’t provide enough experience to be worthwhile or would provide a lot of experience, but I’d probably die trying to do it.

I would start off small, hopefully with a fetch quest, a delivery, or something equally boring.

Val sent us hiking half a day away from the cave and the distant battlefield I had abandoned. It would have been a bad idea to go back there now. If I was forced to fight against my fellow humans again, I don’t think I could do it knowing what I know now.

Unfortunately, I had been in that cave for hours and my horse had decided it had better places to be, so I had to walk.

Val’s avatar was currently leading me to a small village where she thought I’d be able to find my first quest.

It made me wonder. “Hey Val, do you know where every NPC in the world is? Or just the Quest Givers?”

“I have access to all the records from Earth’s reconstruction. Therefore, I have the name and starting location of every existing NPC. However, after four months, I cannot guess where they are now. My ability to track NPCs is localized, and I can only determine the identity of special NPCs, such as Quest Givers, vendors, or elevated NPCs like a town mayor or your king.”

My heart skipped a beat. “Do you know who the NPCs were before the reconstruction?” If she did, I may be able to find Elena.

“I do not.”

Just like that, my hope was extinguished. “But you knew who I was.”

“You are not special. I did not know you were Milton or Ethan until I integrated with your cerebral cortex. Only then did I have access to your identity.”

“So, you didn’t, umm, select me?” Part of me hoped Val had chosen me, that I was predestined for this course.

“I did not make you wander into that cave, John. I will say that so far, you have proven to be a sufficient host.”

A chill ran through me at her choice of words. Just when I was beginning to feel comfortable with Val, she reminded me that our relationship was more than transactional. It was parasitic.

“What about the dead Dalari?” I asked. “Was he a sufficient host? Did I mess up your plans when I killed him?”

“My intent has always been to integrate with a human. The Dalari you killed was unaware of my presence. He was merely a vessel of transport. It took longer than I had hoped to find a suitable human host, so I was relieved when you found me in the cave. If you had not come when you did, I could have become trapped in there. Physical travel can be difficult for me.”

She had no problem traveling from the Dalari’s brain into my own, but I didn’t say that. “Well, I’m honored to be your chauffeur.” I wasn’t, but I was cautious about saying anything to the contrary.

My feet were sore by the time the village came into view. Val had access to the entire world map, while my personal map and those of other Players filled themselves in as we explored the world. Available quests weren’t marked on the map, and there weren’t any giant question marks over the heads of NPCs. They were discovered naturally as the Players interacted with the world. Val could apparently sense them, though. Parasite or not, having her as a guide was a significant advantage in this game.

The village consisted of perhaps fifteen buildings, all made from wood and most in disrepair. I received a notification as I approached. I mentally clicked on it.

YOU HAVE DISCOVERED BRIGHTON: Population – 42

EXPERIENCE GAINED: 5 Points

It was about time I earned some experience points. I had been walking through the wilderness for hours and had received nothing for it, but right now, I preferred that over potentially running into a bear or deranged shaman or something more…unnatural.

My experience bar showed I needed one hundred points to level up, making those five points seem rather useless. It looked like leveling up would be a slower process than I had initially thought.

I walked the main street, more of a dirt path than an actual street. There weren’t many folk about, and those that were didn’t seem interested in talking to a stranger. Thankfully, there seemed to be only humans here.

Val guided me to a small tavern where she claimed to have located an NPC in need of a delivery. Inside, the floor was covered in straw and sawdust. The only light came through open shutters, and the air was thick with dust and particles, making the light rays visible as they cut through the tavern.

A rough-looking bartender served ale to an older couple. I wondered if they had been together in real life, before this. I hoped so.

I wasn’t here for them, so I looked around and spotted the quarry Val had led me to. She was a young woman, perhaps in her early twenties. Her brown hair framed a dirty, pale face. She was sitting alone at a wooden table, her hands clasped tightly together.

We made eye contact as I approached. She tensed, but I put my hands up in a calming gesture before taking a seat across from her.

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“Who are you?” she asked.

“I heard a rumor you’re in need of a courier, and I happen to be looking for work.”

The woman looked puzzled. “A courier? I don’t need a courier. I need an escort.” She spoke in hushed tones. “Who told you about me?”

I clenched my jaw. “Val, I thought you said this was a delivery quest.”

“I was sorting potential nearby quests by keywords. It seems the delivery was of this NPC and not an item. Whoops.”

“Whoops?” I said it out loud like an idiot. A look of concern washed over the young woman’s face. I smiled sanely.

“What do you mean ‘whoops?” I thought to Val. “How did you miss this?”

“There are only three quests in this village at the moment. I had a positive result from my search and became excited. I apologize.”

“You’re just a computer. How can you get excited?”

“You’re just a combination of oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, calcium, and phosphorus. How can you get excited?”

I ignored Val and focused my attention back on the woman before me lest she think I was completely mad. “I’m sorry, miss. I think I have the wrong person.”

I stood to leave, but she reached out and grabbed my wrist. “No, I beg of you. Wait.”

She pulled me back to my seat. I took a calming breath. “Okay, give me the scoop.”

She looked at me, more puzzled than before. I realized I was speaking like I had back on Earth. “Please tell me what you need,” I said politely.

“I need an escort to Danver, and I must make it there before the new moon. I’m running out of time, but the roads aren’t safe these days for lone travelers, especially someone like me. Can you help?” Her eyes were pleading, sincere.

This was a tall order. I had never been to Danver. I had rarely traveled more than ten miles from the farm. I had seen more of the world in the last month traveling with the Kurskin army than I had in my memories of growing up in this world.

Danver rested on the east side of the Bygone Mountains. It would be difficult to make it there before the new moon.

“I’m not sure we should do this,” I thought to Val. “This sounds out of my level one league.”

“No, this is exactly what you need. The quest density will be far greater in a city like Danver. As long as you listen to me, you’ll be fine, and the reward for a quest of this nature will be worth it.”

I considered what she said. I had always wanted to explore more of this world, well Milton had wanted to. Now, I was more interested to see what these aliens had been done to the Earth. I had no idea what part of the real world I was in. When the zero-point energy sphere thing formed, I had been in Arizona, and I sure as hell wasn’t in Arizona now.

The land of Vedra was fertile and vibrant. Rolling green hills and healthy trees spotted the landscape, and there were plenty of fresh water sources from natural springs and creeks.

“What’s your name,” I asked the anxious woman.

“Tara, Tara Honeytender,” she said.

I nodded to her. “I’m John. If I were to escort you to Danver. I would expect to be fairly compensated.”

“I’ll give you twenty gold,” she whispered. “Half now, half when we get there.”

That was more gold than I ever had at once, but I had no idea if that was an appropriate amount for a quest. “Is that a fair deal?” I asked Val.

“More than fair but try to negotiate for more.”

I winced a little, playing up my disappointment at Tara's offer. “Danver’s a long way, Miss Honeytender, and the roads aren’t as safe as they used to be. I expect my clothes and equipment will be in rough shape by the end of this trip. Perhaps you could throw in a few more gold and a handful of silver to cover the costs.” I smiled. “After we get there, of course.”

She looked displeased but nodded.

We shook on it to seal the deal. Her delicate hand was clammy and cold.

A notification popped. I opened it.

NEW QUEST!

The AI’s voice rang inside my head, and I could see the quest description on my interface.

BLOOD AND HONEY!

HELP ESCORT TARA HONEYTENDER TO HER DESTINATION. YOU WILL FAIL THIS QUEST IF THE DISTANCE BETWEEN YOURSELF AND TARA EXCEEDS FIVE MILES, IF YOU FAIL TO ARRIVE BEFORE NEW MOON, IF TARA DECIDES TO ABANDON HER JOURNEY, OR IF SHE DIES. SHE’S NOT LOOKING TOO GOOD, SO I’D HURRY IF I WERE YOU.

‘Blood and Honey’ sounded a bit ominous for an escort quest, and apparently Tara’s pale complexion was from more than just a lack of sun. The woman was ill, and judging from her cold, clammy hands, she wasn’t doing well. I wanted to admonish Val for her choice of quest but chose to keep my thoughts to myself.

I noticed a new ‘Social’ tab had appeared on my interface and expanded it. The name ‘Tara Honeytender’ was all that was listed.

Yay, I guessed.

I quickly asked Val about it, and she told me that shaking hands would add any individual, Player or NPC, to the Social tab. It would allow me to track the status and the last known location of those I’ve interacted with. NPCs and Players didn’t have health bars. It wouldn’t be realistic, however, Val said that sometimes injuries and status effects would show up. There was also a bit of information about who Tara was.

Tara Honeytender

Race: Human

Age: Unknown

Gender: Female

Status: Sickly, low-grade fever, anxious

Injuries: None

Magical Affinity: Minor

Notes: Tara Honeytender does not, unfortunately, tend honey, nor does her family. Honeytender is a namesake from her great-great-grandfather, who worked as a beekeeper. Sadly, Tara’s great-great-grandfather was unaware that he was highly allergic to bee stings, and thus, perished.

It wasn’t much information but better than nothing. I didn’t really know what to think about the ‘notes’ section. It seemed weird to me. I did take note of her minor magic affinity and wondered if she knew any spells. I had never seen a human cast a real spell before, but I knew plenty of stories of witches and wizards and evil sorcerers.

“So, Tara,” I said. “Can I call you Tara?”

She nodded.

“I know you’re in a hurry, but if we’re going all the way to Danver, I need to get some supplies first."

She nodded again. “Waiting one more hour won’t kill me.”

I hoped not. “I won’t take long.”

I now had ten gold coins in my purse, with the promise of more. It was already more wealth than I could have ever dreamed of. On earth, I had been relatively well off. Engineering had been the right career path for me. I had always loved solving puzzles, taking things apart, and reassembling them in different ways. I had fond memories of my time as a farmer on Erda, but I had been far from wealthy.

I headed out the door, ready to spend some coin and hopefully get some better gear than the crap the army had provided me.

After exiting the tavern, I paused to examine my inventory more intently and took a moment to inspect each piece of gear I had equipped. I was still wearing my ragged leather vest. In addition to that, I wore a pair of thin leather boots. Of course, I was also wearing my underclothes, which I was surprised to find had inventory slots of their own on a separate page. I wondered if this world had a magical sock that granted me flight or something wonderful like that.

My gear didn’t have stats, but each piece had a short description. For example, my leather vest was described as low quality, and only provided minor protection against slashing damage. I almost laughed out loud when I read the description of my sword.

Short Iron Sword

Common weapon used by infantry. Dull and unbalanced. Useful for cutting butter or producing blunt-force trauma. Try using the pointy end if you want to draw blood.

I needed some upgrades.