World Gate: Hysterium - Outside the Canyon of Despair

So this is Hysterium.

Rowan walked up the road toward a small town, kicking an armored boot in the rust-colored dirt. Foliage here was sparse and dry, low to the ground. Bushes and grasses more than anything else.

Osiris was beside him, still complaining about being dragged here.

Let’s not forget your potion is the reason I have this assignment.

A little party image appeared with his other essentials—inventory, leveling scroll, energy capsule, and character sheet. They’d made sure to activate their Party Stones before stepping through the Gate.

The System had identified his Quest Stone and spawned them at the edge of the labyrithine canyon outside a small town where his assignment indicated he was to be stationed.

Upon arrival, a notification had popped up about his ‘Welcome’ Achievement, as he knew it would. He’d wait until they made it to a Respawn Hub to open the box, though. Or at least until they became acquainted with the surroundings.

It’d been interesting exploring the different aspects of the interface for the first time, but nothing shocking. Both he and Osiris had been trained on what to expect and how to navigate the various intricacies.

They made their way toward the center of the town—L’Minos, according to the sign by the canyon’s edge.

A dozen or so buildings circled around a gigantic leafless tree. They were all constructed of a pale wood with thatch roofs, which matched the long grass-like plants around the outskirts of the town. Most of the structures were small, but two multi-story ones stood out.

As he got closer to the tree, he realized it wasn’t leafless at all—Well, no. That’s not accurate. It’s definitely leafless. It’s just not empty. What had appeared to be draping boughs like a willow were actually not a natural part of the tree.

They were long strands of… something. He couldn’t quite place it.

The inhabitants of the town were even more strange.

He’d been expecting it—from his research prior to walking through the World Gate. But seeing them in person, rather than drawn on paper, was a completely different experience.

They’re classified as Humanoids, he told himself. Not Monsters. Treat them with respect and you’ll get the same in return.

They were called byzen, a resident species of Hysterium—some sort of bipedal minotaur hybrid with a bison-like head and hairy, humanoid body. It was said that the horns on their skulls were unique to each byzen, like fingerprints to a human. He would have expected their bodies to be broad and muscular like a true minotaur, but instead, they looked almost emaciated.

Under the dead tree, a pair of the creatures—not creatures, Humanoids—were busy grooming one another. A female stroked a long-toothed comb through another’s back. Hairy strands came off in clumps and were added to a pile on the ground. The byzen who’d shed the hair continuously picked up groups of strands and tied them together in a long rope with little bows. When finished, both byzen took an end of the completed hair conglomeration and threw it up into the tree branches.

Rowan blanched. So, that’s what’s hanging from the tree… Mildly disturbing. He decided to avoid getting too close to it.

"I’m gonna go see if they have ale in this Creator-forsaken place," Osiris said. He left and headed toward one of the larger buildings that seemed to have the most byzen going in and out.

The waypoints for the assignment gave them fairly free-reign of the town and the outlying land. It even descended a short walk into the canyon.

Several white dots moved around his map, representing the byzen as they went about their business. One began walking toward him from a small building to the left.

"Greetings, traveller!" the byzen said. He had tan hair, greying at the ends, with leathery wrinkles under his eyes. Braids from his head were threaded through various colored beads. One of his black horns was broken and cracked.

"Well met," Rowan said, straightening his posture. "I am Prince Rowan Regicast. Uhh…from…" Do I say the city or the world? How much knowledge do the byzen have of other world geography? Now I’ve hesitated too long. Wonderful. "From… Pentory."

There hadn’t been a class on how to interact with residents. That felt like a mildly important oversight now that he was actually here.

Or maybe that class is later in the year.

Or maybe… a normal person shouldn’t have any issue, regardless of whether or not they had a class on the topic.

The elderly byzen chuckled. "First timer, eh?"

Rowan sighed, giving up his facade of professionalism. There was no one here to judge him, anyway. No expectations in a backwater world like this.

"That obvious?"

"I can always tell, though we don’t get too many noobs here usually." The minotaur being looked him up and down. "And a prince too, eh?"

"Something like that." He wished he’d left that qualifier out now. And what in the Creator’s name is a noobs?

"Well, don’t expect any royal treatment here, eh." He said it matter-of-factly, not disdainfully. "We byzen don’t really have any sort of hierarchal structures. Villages too spread out across the canyons. The closest you’ll find here is me. And that’s only because I have the most hair on the zentaurus tree."

Rowan tried to keep a straight face, as if that was a completely normal way to determine leadership.

The byzen winked, clearly not fooled. "Means I’m the oldest, eh."

"Ah."

"Name’s L’Rok-tal."

"Pleasure to meet you."

L’Rok-tal showed Rowan around the town, which contained a meeting hall, a healer, a granary, several small houses—which appeared to be communal and not owned by anyone in particular—and, of course, the tavern with attached brewery.

Osiris had guessed correctly that it was the building with the most traffic. It was also the largest in the town.

"L’Minos is known for its ale in Hysterium, thanks to our secret ingredient. It’s the only reason Heroes stay here more than a day. Natural resting point between Despair and Futility, but not much else besides that, eh."

Those were names of canyons, Rowan remembered from the map he’d examined of the area.

"How many Heroes do you typically see pass through? I’m on assignment with a Quest."

"A Quest? Here?" L’Rok-tal raised a bushy eyebrow.

"Um… Yes?"

L’Rok-tal turned to the pair of byzen females under the tree. "Hey, L’Lucy-ral, this guy’s a Quest giver."

"Well, what’s he doin’ here, eh?" she yelled back in a high-pitched raspy voice.

L’Rok-tal faced Rowan. "What are you doing here?"

Rowan groaned. "Collecting flowers…"

The bench outside the tavern wasn’t the most comfortable, but it was better than standing around waiting for hours. He didn’t have to stay somewhere so visible—Heroes wold be able to see his location as a Quest giver on their minimap if he remained anywhere within a reasonable range.

Not that it mattered.

Rowan hadn’t seen a single Hero yet.

Instead, he resorted to watching the byzen prance around in their flowerless gardens and toss bundles of hair up into their dead sacred tree.

As it turned out, flowers didn’t grow at this higher elevation, which meant any Hero wanting to complete his Quest for the endymion flowers would have to venture into the canyons. It shouldn’t be that challenging for anyone who can make it this far. They’ll have had to traverse the canyon to get here anyway.

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

Assuming any ever show up…

Cheers went up from a group of byzen by the zentaurus tree. A thick bundle of blonde hair slid free of one of the upper branches and glided to the ground. Several byzen picked up the hair and began parading it around the tree in a circle.

"L’Rok-tal! L’Rok-tal! L’Rok-tal!" they sang.

The elder byzen exited the tavern, chugged whatever was left in his mug, then tossed it back through the door.

There was no clang of metal on the floor, so someone must have caught it.

"What’s going on?" Rowan asked.

"Care to take a walk in the canyon?"

"Uh… Sure."

L’Rok-tal waved to the byzen dancing around the tree and they stopped chanting his name to cheer again.

Rowan followed him down the path toward the Canyon of Despair.

"Your friend is quite the interesting character, eh?" L’Rok-tal said.

"Osiris? That’s one way to put it."

"He currently has three girls sitting on his lap."

"No he doesn’t." Rowan placed a hand on his forehead.

"He does. I’m not even sure how. I think the third is actually sitting on top of the other two, eh."

"Three byzen girls?"

L’Rok-tal nodded. "I don’t think he realized how strong endymion ale is."

Rowan stopped walking.

"Did you say endymion ale?"

"Of course."

"Is that your secret ingredient?"

"Oh, no. Why would the secret be in the name? That’s a basic ingredient that gives it the sweet flavor and a jolt of energy, eh. We have a couple barrels full picked and ready for the next batch. The secret ingredient is what we’re about to go acquire."

Barrels full? Rowan shook his head. There are literal barrels full of the flowers for my Quest just sitting in their brewery right now? And they’re useless to me.

He could only take Hysterium world items back to Pentory if they were given to him by a Hero as part of a Quest.

I could tell a Hero to search the brewery… But that’d be stealing, right? It didn’t feel right to cheat on his first assignment ever.

The slow way it is, then.

"Keep alert, eh," L’Rok-tal said as they descended the sloped road into the canyon. "We’ve seen the scorpions and snakes coming closer to the edges lately. We’ll likely see a few."

Rowan moved his hand to the sword hilt. "Any idea why?"

"Change in migration patterns, maybe. Sometimes predators move in and disrupt habitats."

It didn’t take long for L’Rok-tal’s prediction to reveal truth.

Ahead, a scorpion the size of a small bear skittered into view. It appeared as a red dot on Rowan’s minimap. Claws like vices snipped the air and a dagger-like stinger on the tail dripped a pink liquid.

"What in the Creator’s name is a predator of that?" Rowan asked, sliding out his sword and shield.

L’Rok-tal smiled. "You appear well-equipped to be one, eh. Have at it."

Rowan rolled his eyes and stepped forward. "I didn’t know you brought me along to be your body guard."

"Oh, I can handle myself in the canyons. But I’m curious to see if you can."

He focused on the creature.

[Giant Scorpion - Level 5.]

It wasn’t actually Level 5. As a resident species, it didn’t truly have a Level, just like he didn’t have a Level back in Pentory. This was just the System’s way of designating overall strength relative to Rowan’s own.

In this case, that was very low compared to his Level 17.

He also recalled from the lecture by Professor Xavus that resident species didn’t respawn. Death was true death. It’d be the same for creatures of the world and Humanoids, like the byzen. If L’Rok-tal were killed by this scorpion he wouldn’t respawn.

Rowan eased forward, a newfound responsibility for the old minotaur hybrid weighing on his shoulders. He readied his shield. Even that much stronger than the scorpion, he had no interest in learning first hand about that pink poison in that stinger.

"Oh," L’Rok-tal said. "Did I mention they hunt in packs?"

Rowan heard the clicking on the wall of the canyon too late.

Another scorpion clambered along the vertical rock above his head. It jumped before he could move his shield into position.

The creature’s legs and claws came down on his shoulder, knocking him to the ground. Pincers snapped at his face, but he pulled back, just barely avoiding losing an ear. He shoved his shield between his body and the snapping claws. Carapace scratched on metal.

Then a spiked tail swung down over the defense.

It struck Rowan’s exposed armpit under his shield arm. The pain was excruciating, just as he remembered from the test in the Sarc.

Pink acid dripped from the spike and sizzled on his armor.

His vision went hazy for a moment, then corrected itself.

[Poison negated by Basic Immunity.]

Despite the pain and the poison, his health bar had barely budged.

Alright. Time to end this.

The sound of clattering legs behind him drew his attention. Two more scorpions had joined the others from Creator only knew where. That made three on one side, one on the other.

Surrounded.

L’Rok-tal leaned against the canyon wall casually observing.

They’re only Level 5. This should be no problem. But just like in the Sarc, even a greater force of weaker opponents could overwhelm.

He took on the single scorpion first. Another strike of the tail slid across his shield, and he brought his sword down straight into what he assumed was the creature’s brain.

It squealed and seized, then collapsed.

A single hit, then. Rowan grinned. He was supposedly three-times as strong, after all.

No longer surrounded, he backed against the wall to keep the remaining scorpions in front.

Now that they’d lost the element of surprise, the beasts were more hesitant.

He swung horizontal and they backed away. One tried to grab his sword in a pincer, but it was a weak attempt. He pulled back and cut the claw clean off.

Pink liquid spewed from the severed limb into Rowan’s face. It boiled on his skin. His vision became hazy again, but his passive immunity skill only worked once per battle.

He swung down, finishing the injured scorpion.

The world spun and wavered around him. It felt like he’d downed an entire keg of ale in a second. He fought to stay upright and readied his shield.

There were four scorpions now.

No six. Now two? His vision was playing tricks on him. Damn poison. It was far more potent than he’d anticipated.

He steeled himself and focused on the most solid-appearing of the scorpion hallucinations dancing in front of him. His sword struck true and the opponent squealed, but didn’t fall.

Instead, it turned and fled, the remaining scorpion joining in the escape.

Rowan fell to a knee.

L’Rok-tal stepped up beside him and held out a vial. Or seven? Rowan couldn’t tell.

"It’s alright," he croaked. "I’ve got this."

He activated his Purify skill.

[Poison negated by Purify.]

He would’ve used it sooner, but he didn’t want to give the scorpions a second to strike him while distracted. He had a feeling this poison was compounding.

I’m going to need to learn how to use my skills while I’m in battle or they’ll be pretty darn useless.

"Not bad for your first tango, eh," L’Rok-tal said, helping Rowan up with a hand.

He had to admit, it felt good to fight for real rather than against training partners, static dummies, or artificial opponents that shattered on first contact.

"You could’ve warned me about the one on the wall."

"I did." L’Rok-tal knelt beside the dead scorpion and placed the severed tail in a sack.

"Yeah, about five seconds too late."

"Even the youngest byzen know to keep their eyes on the walls, eh."

"Do I look like a byzen to you?"

L’Rok-tal chuckled. "Most certainly not."

"Then why didn’t y—"

"My apologies, but there’s not much in the way of entertainment around here, my good prince."

Rowan felt his jaw hanging open like a fish mouth.

"I assure you, true danger was never a threat and never will be as long as you are under the protection of L’Minos, eh."

Rowan relaxed, but didn’t put away his shield or sword. "If you say so." It was true, there was no real danger in Hysterium—as much as people liked to drag its name through the mud and wax poetic about the horrors of being trapped in the canyons. If he died, he’d respawn back here. No harm.

They continued on, L’Rok-tal occasionally galloping ahead and examining small cracks in the canyon walls. He didn’t seem to have any fear of being attacked by scorpion or snakes.

I hope I get to see him fight. Sure, the byzen were goofy Humanoids, but if he traveled the canyon so carefree, he either had to be strong or knew some trick that worked against the canyon dwellers.

Some sort of commotion echoed through the crevices of the canyon.

There was a yelp and the sound of battle.

Someone’s under attack!

Rowan’s byzen companion continued picking at an inconspicuous spot in the rock, oblivious—whether by ignorance or intention, he wasn’t sure.

If someone was in trouble, he didn’t have time to waste waiting for L’Rok-tal to finish whatever he was doing.

Rowan charged ahead, around the next bend in the canyon, weapons ready.

The three scorpions who’d escaped had cornered a young man against a nook in the wall and were joined by a third.

Rowan paused, not quite sure what to make of the man.

He was naked, aside from a black leather cloth around his loins. The sole weapon he carried appeared to be some sort of cleaver you might see at a meat market. Poor range against those stinging tails, as he’d already learned based on the two bleeding lacerations on his arm and leg.

The pink poison boiled at the wounds.

The man downed a potion of some sort. Then another, and another.

On the map, he was a yellow dot, surrounded by three red.

A Hero!

Rowan ignored the oddities of the man and rushed to his aid.

This was his duty, this was why he was an adventurer.

He removed the tails of all three scorpions with a single sweep of his blade from behind. His shield caught the bulk of the pink spray this time.

The creatures hissed in agony and turned on him, but it was too late. He cut one clean in half, squished another with his shield, and stabbed the third through the mouth.

He had the element of surprise this time.

They all fell dead.

He immediate cast Purify and Minor Heal on the almost naked man—the poor soul must have been through so much to be in such a state… Hopefully he’ll still be willing to take my Quest after all this.

The Hero slowly recovered from the effects of the poison and stood straighter, staring at Rowan, then down at the slain creatures at his feet.

Rowan examined the Hero closer. A name, Level, and health bar popped up.

[DeezBallz69 - Level 7.]

A very mature name.

Rowan shook his head wondering what kind of parent would name their child as such. But who was he to judge Heroes?

"Yo, thanks, guy! You killed them all in like one swing. Give me your sword, it looks cool."

Rowan frowned, taken aback. "I will do no such thing."

"Lame ass. Can’t blame a guy for trying, amiright? Oh, you got a quest for me?" DeezBallz69 spoke about a hundred words per second.

Rowan was already exhausted from the minimal interaction. He almost hoped the Hero would decide against taking the Quest now, but he didn’t exactly have a line of takers.

And he still had all 300 flowers to acquire at 15 a Quest. That meant twenty Heroes.

If the rate of Heroes stayed like this, it would take days…

That stock of endymion in the brewery is starting to look awfully appealing.

DeezBallz69’s name showed up green, indicating he was an appropriate Level for the Quest, which was apparently quite a low bar.

Why do I get the feeling Shaman Ravine is currently sitting in the infirmary laughing…? She knew exactly what she was sending me into.

DeezBallz69 accepted the Quest, downed another potion despite his nearly full health, and vanished back around a bend in the canyon.

With him finally gone, Rowan turned to L’Rok-tal who was now leaning against the canyon wall watching, puffing a suspicious pink smoke out of a pipe. The tails of the dead scorpions were gone, and the byzen’s sack much fuller.

"Are all Heroes like that?"

Please say no. Please say no.

The byzen chuckled. "No, young prince. They are not."

Thank the Creator.

"A lot of the low Level ones are. Many just bounce around different worlds, not truly accomplishing much, sewing chaos, eh. We residents call them Trolls. Obnoxious bunch." He paused. "Say, you’re not friends with any actual trolls from Pentory are you, eh?"

"I know a couple." He couldn’t help but laugh, not entirely sure who the insult targeted more—the annoying Heroes or the real trolls.

He pictured Ravine’s smug face at his misfortunes of being stuck here.

Definitely the Heroes.