06
Exploring
Day 2 Default 1
What the…?
The first thing she did after defaulting, finding herself in an apparently different, yet completely identical house, was check her stats.
HP 10
Stamina 15
Mana 32
Strength: 5
Agility: 11
Dexterity: 14
Endurance: 7
Solidity: 3
Wisdom: 12
Intelligence: 16
Constitution: 18
Charisma: 8
Luck: 10
Skills: 0
Yes, Default was the name of the game…
But the skills she had learned were still in color, just reset to zero.
Well, it looks like she wasn’t so lucky with trying to sleep.
Secondly, there’s a new and very firm rule, never use Nap Time again!
She took a sad breath and walked out of her new room. The room was the same, the house was the same, but the location was different, a bit closer to the Omnicorp inc. tower and farther away from the shops.
There was a slight hesitation to check if there was anyone else home and she decided to go and fight some rats once more.
She opened the basement and found rats scampering around… kill?
She glared at one and tried Drain. It instantly burst into a coin and her XP counter bumped up a few points. Well, here we go.
She glared at a few more, but knowing this would be a very slow and repetitive game if she didn’t have another weapon… Drain might work well, but it’s too slow. I need some excitement.
Maybe there’s a better way, she thought.
She started to stomp all around and jump on rats, hardly any luck, and after a few too many tries she had finally killed one.
She used Drain a couple more times and gave up, XP was still a bit too low to have any real fun down here.
She walked out and started to search the house again.
Checking the fridge, there was only the usual bachelor stock, a bottle of milk and a half eaten burger with pizza boxes piled in… and no pizza.
She checked under the couch and cushions, lucky enough to find a few coins and a minor health potion (+10 HP).
She checked other rooms and closets, a bathroom, and finally the garage…
This is where the good shit was!
But it was hardly anything. There were a few basic guns and knives, screwdrivers and hammers and all the usual garage type of things. But the biggest thing in there was a car! It was amazing, a tiny little Toyota that had bumps and scratches and needed a good repair. If there was something she learned from her father IRL, was how to change a tire.
She found one and replaced it.
You have learned the skill Car Maintenance (tier 1)!
Fixing and repairing cars is something not everyone knows how to do. Using this knowledge and getting one out of a tight spot is very rewarding.
Costs:
None
Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.
Gives:
+1 SP
+1 Dexterity
You have reached level 2!
You have 1 skill point for your use.
Achievement unlocked!
Repair a car.“This woman will save your life one day.”
She laughed and saw that her other achievement was still there. At least those can haunt you for the rest of your life…
She found the keys hanging next to the door and jumped in to start it. There was a perfect sound of an engine starting and she checked the fuel gage. Basically empty.
Well, get smart. She grabbed a canister of fuel and found it half empty. Perfect, fuel ‘er up and get to town.
She got notified Car Maintenance had gotten to rank 2.
She threw the empty five gallon canister in the back and took the car outside.
She had 5 gold and figured she could probably buy a gallon of gas, not to mention getting coins for road kill on the way.
She went to the shops, making sure to analyze anyone walking by, and kill any squirrels that happen to be out too late at night. There were only opossums and raccoons. Too bad for them, they gave 2 coins each.
She made it to the shops with 13 gold and still level 2.
First thing on the agenda was fuel, and then… actually there wasn’t anything coming to mind. She couldn’t afford any good potions. She didn’t really need any food yet and she already had a good sized knife and a gun, better than 13 gold could buy.
She settled with getting some gas and managed to fill up the tank with 3 gold to spare. That would be plenty for where she was going, if she did know where she was going.
She pulled out of the gas station and assessed her map.
Forest, beach, arctic, mountain, desert, suburban, city, arenas… it was quite a list.
Considering that she only has a car, a gun and a knife, best be off to the forest.
The roads were simple, she traveled through a few miles of suburbs and made it to the junction to turn off to the forests.
There was road kill galore! And after another 30 gold and up to level 3 she was hit with a sign. Not physically, but close enough, everything stopped and she got a pop up telling her that she is entering a combat zone, rules and restrictions do not apply.
She acknowledged the pop up, dismissing the box about wanting to show this again. It might be good to know just in case she heads off somewhere else.
She drove for another minute and decided to stop, she didn’t want to go too far in and get ambushed by some experienced players, nor did she want to waste time walking through a dead zone of no animals. Either way, it was a gamble.
She pulled over and abandoned the car, searching for any signs of deer.
There was a deer print, and another. She followed them into the forest. Of course, she’s played games before and know the precautions, that Nap Time experience was a good warning. Watch for traps and don’t be stupid enough to walk into them.
You have learned the skill Tracking!
Tracking is vital when trying to find animals and plants you need, or track down that wolf that has been eating your chickens.
Track animals, monsters or people to find out where they went, or what they did. Increases awareness of environment.
Requirements:
5 Intelligence
Gives:
1 XP per minute
+1 HP per rank
+1 Intelligence: Knowledge: Tracking per rank
+1 Luck: Opportunities per rank
+1 Intelligence: Awareness: Environment per rank
It was only a few minutes before she spotted a deer. It was causally eating leaves and… looking like a deer.
Did did a quick check of her surroundings and crept closer, using Analyze on the deer. It was level 5, easy kill.
She took out her gun used Focus and shot.
You have learned the skill Pistols!
This is a tool and a weapon. Be careful! This skill is vital for many scenarios in fighting, ambushing and attacking.
This common skill is a very sought after skill. For those who don’t like magic, simply fire a bullet and let the lead do the talking.
Costs:
None
Gives:
+1 HP per rank
+1 Dexterity: Projectiles: Aim
She had to shoot again, but now the deer was moving! She lined up again, used Focus and missed. Line it up again, leading with the gun, shoot!
Great! 10 gold and better XP than rats.
She kept scouting, shooting and farming those deer, all the way up to level 4.
And finally, just what we’ve been waiting for. A boss fight with a giant herd of elk, or… herd of giant elk.
KillPrinsX checked her stats and put her long waiting skill points into a few skills. She really only had 3 points to use, but she could use them wisely today.
Focus 1 point, Drain 2 points. That should be good, the other skills that she had been using have already jumped up a couple ranks, Pistols at level 2, and Tracking rank 8! Hopefully that was enough for this fight.
Actually this herd of giant elk was really one giant Elk and a few normal Elk. The giant one was a level 10 Elk Brute, the others were hard to count due to the amount of trees everywhere, were all level 8 and facing her, looking furious about the fact that she had just killed all their females.
Game on!
She took cover and shot at one of the smaller elk. Double tapping took it down, but not dead. Another double tap to the other, one shot hit as it was bounding about through the low bushes. She aimed carefully and shot a few more times. One more hit!
The other two had been gaining on her quickly, very quickly. She used Focus and whipped out the knife, cutting one on the neck. She used Drain and shot again.
The elk brute was slower, but bigger. It’s horns were low and it thrashed bushes as it ran past.
She jumped back and shot it a few times. The Elk took some damage but not nearly as much as it should have. She used Drain for as long as she could.
As long as she could was only up to the point that the another Elk came barreling through the bushes and shoved her aside.
Ouch! 50 HP gone. Being at level 4 her max HP was 57. And she really felt it.
She stumbled up and took cover, in able to get up for a few seconds… Quick! Think!
She was barely 50 XP away from reaching level 5 and unlocking skill tier 2. This was becoming a problem, especially with 10 HP left!
She took a few more shots at the elk surrounding her. They stampeded all over the place, but whenever one got near she shot it and it darted off to another direction.
After a few seconds she could finally stand up. She kept going, crouch, shoot, look back, shoot, keep your eyes everywhere! Instincts taking over. HP was slowly climbing.
She had been in worse places, but she knew should would last if she got hit again.
The Brute Elk came through. She shot, but he didn’t stop, he just kept charging! KillPrinsX dived and rolled, taking no damage but being careful of any other Elk. Just a second later one charged for her, she shot, this one stumbled and she shot it again, she got the XP!
Congratulations!
You have reached level 5!
You have 1 Skill point for your use.
You can now access Psychic skill tier 2
That was exactly what she needed. That and one more thing to keep her busy with while shooting, ducking, dodging and diving, not to mention not dying.