There were some days where you woke up and you just didn’t feel like doing anything. Your body felt dead, your head pounded like you’d just been pistol-whipped by a .38 caliber revolver, and your legs refused to budge.
This was one of those days for Stacy. She didn’t want to move. Her mind was foggy. There were a lot of things she was feeling, having been stranded in another world with no reprieve for what literally felt like forever. And yet, Stacy had to move. Because—
Scratch, scratch, scratch.
Something had been making that noise for the past five minutes. It wasn’t just an idle sound, still, unmoving. If it was, Stacy would have assumed it was a bug of some sort. Instead, it crept her way, slowly, steadily, making a soft approach which terrified the girl more than anything.
She forced herself up to her feet. Whatever was coming didn’t rely on sound to see. It knew she was there, somehow, someway. Stacy had to fight back.
Grabbing a rock, she stood on shaky legs, readying herself to fend off whatever creature, critter, or monster that was trying to prey on her now. You’ve got this. You killed that fetidbug without a problem. You can take on anything that comes in here! Or… not. You literally can’t take on a giant worm, of course. But you can run from it. You’ve got [Evade], don’t you? As long as it isn’t Blue Rank! Which is probably most things bigger than me…
Stacy did a bad job at hyping herself up for combat. God, she was so going to die here.
The scratching stopped.
She waited with bated breath for anything to happen; there was no way the monster decided to leave without a sound. However, nothing came. Curiosity got the better of her, and she poked her head out of her alcove.
“Hello?...”
Stacy saw nothing. The cavern was large as ever, an expansive chamber which stretched further than her eyes could see. Horrid creatures hid in the darkness, the curving walls forming a dome that ate its way overhead. She saw flickers, shapes that molded themselves deep into the rock, they lay in wait for any unsuspecting victim. Predators which would pounce on Stacy if she ventured too far out.
But around her? There were no signs of life. Only the glowing moss entrenched deep in the stone lived near Stacy.
She breathed a sigh of relief. Then took in an odd odor.
Her eyes grew wide. “Magic.” She tossed herself to the side, her body a ragdoll that flailed on the dirt. The ground burst open. A ghastly monster burrowed its way up into the alcove, snapping its mandibles, almost feasting on an unaware Stacy.
Stacy scrambled to her feet. An undulating figure, segmented bodies, a thousand legs. It was a centipede straight from her worst nightmares. Still half-buried, the monster stood at twice her height. It exuded a putrid scent, one that literally made her want to barf right there.
She held it in, instead making a break for it.
Whether it be by muscle-memory or something else, Stacy ran straight back to the lake. The centipede monster gave chase, of course. It didn’t skitter on land. It buried itself back into the earth, pursuing Stacy like a shark.
It quickly caught up to her twice, each time exploding up, barely missing her with its deadly teeth. If Stacy found even a part of her body caught in between those pincer-like mandibles, she’d have definitely died there. Thankfully, she was only cut by its stone-cutting legs.
Blood seeped out of the wounds on her arms. She reached the lake just in time to realize that she didn’t know what she wanted to do next. That moment of hesitation was costly.
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The centipede monster crawled out from right beneath her feet. She stumbled back, eyes growing wide in horror. Green saliva splattered out of its mouth as it let out a hiss. Then it was time for dinner. It came for Stacy, biting for her throat. She swung her only weapon, a rock about the size of her head, catching it in between the creature’s mandibles. It crushed the rock with a single snap.
“Oh god.” Stacy could only watch as the centipede monster reeled back once more, this time with nothing left to protect her. And a ball of fire struck it from behind.
It nearly flopped forward, landing on Stacy’s open arms. She didn’t hug it. She quickly pushed it off as it spun around, turning its attention to the fire fish splashing out of the lake. Another ball of fire was sent flying, and the centipede monster let out a screech.
It burrowed straight to the lake, showing an uncanny swimming ability that caught Stacy off-guard. She wasn’t lost in a daze, just staring at the centipede monster massacre the fire fishes. She definitely contemplated running. But she didn’t.
Because she’d just be caught and killed by it if she did. There was only one thing she could do, and that was kill the centipede monster right now. Taking a deep breath, Stacy immersed herself in the various aromas drifting around her. Specifically, she picked out the scent of the fire fish. Each time they sent out a ball of fire, there was a pungent smell that came with it.
It was like Stacy was back in the science lab of her high school. Someone had opened a bottle of ammonia solution, and the teacher was demanding for the one who did it. Without anyone coming forward, Ms Fritz ended up sending the whole class to detention. Just like how the centipede monster was killing every fire fish for the actions of one.
Okay, that’s very rude. Sorry Ms Fritz! Love your chemistry lessons!
A feeling rose within Stacy. She drew it from the smell, the very discernible smell of ammonia. She pulled it from inside of her stomach, sparks flickering into existence on her fingertips.
Was it that simple? She thought magic would be harder than that to conjure up. But the magic attribute gave her actual control over magic. And Stacy sauntered forward.
The centipede monster was tearing apart the last of the fire fish. Once it was done, Stacy would be next. She was shaping the sparks, turning it into a flame of her own, but she caught herself.
If the fire fish can’t kill it… The saying often went, ‘kill it with fire’. But this thing couldn’t be killed with fire. She had to try something else. Stacy glanced between the water and her sparks. A lightbulb lit up.
All she had to do was find the right smell to draw from the well within her. Except, the well was rapidly drying up, and everything she tried would only worsen the drought. However, something clued her in to what she was searching for. Stacy hoped to find lightning or electricity. But she hadn’t seen either since she first awoke in this damp cave.
So, she reached for a smell she didn’t know. Something that was pungent like fire, and maybe sweet like the glow moss. Sighing, Stacy found the scent that lay between the two, and a crackling buzz can be heard from her finger.
Alright, here goes. She stuck the tip of her hand into the water, sending a wave of electricity into the lake. The fire fishes, the centipede monster, and everything within froze up. Their bodies spazzed as thin strings of smoke rose up from their body. Stacy didn’t raise her hand even when the loud bell-like sound went off in her head. Only when the magic within her nearly ran out, did she flop back onto the ground with a groan.
“Is that it?”
You have defeated a [Fire Fish (White Rank)].
You have defeated a [Fire Fish (White Rank)].
…
You have defeated a [Millecritter (Orange Rank)].
*DING!* Rank: White has leveled up to level 3! Free Attribute Point +1
*DING!* Rank: White has leveled up to level 4! Free Attribute Point +1
*DING!* Rank: White has leveled up to level 5! Free Attribute Point +1
*DING!* You have gained the skill [Mana Control]!
*DING!* You have gained the skill [Firebolt]!
*DING!* You have gained the skill [Electric Shock]!
You have met the requirements for Yellow Rank. Would you like to advance now?
Status:
Name: Stacy
Rank: White – Lvl. 5
Health: 68%
Mana: 19%
Stamina: 47%
Attributes:
Power: 6
Magic: 2
Dexterity: 11
Resiliency: 5
Intuition: 4
Worldliness: 0
Free Points: 3
Skills:
White Rank Skills:
[Evade], [Lesser Stamina], [Quick Thinking], [Mana Control], [Firebolt], [Electric Shock]
“Uh, that’s, like, literally a million things to process at once. Could you repeat it again?”