On Earth, the sun rose in the East and set in the West but in Nightmare it worked a little differently. At dawn the sun rose in the East all the same, but it was a reluctant slow crawl of a thing. Come night-time it didn’t so much ‘set’ as it did fall—as though it had been struck down from the sky by the gods. The next day its recovery would be a little slower and with evening its death a little sooner, and the next, and next after that was just more of the same. The cycle would repeat. Days would get cut shorter, nights would grow longer, and before long there would be no light at the end of the tunnel, only the terrors of the dark and a nightmare that would never end.
Suffice it to say, Alex was having an awful morning.
His auburn brown hair matted his face like a mop, his odor had grown sour, his button up shirt was dirty, chaffed with dirt and mud and blood and dust, and where last night it had stuck to his skin with sweat it had now hardened like crust. A repeat visit to Jun had seen the wound on his wrist cleaned again at the very least, but the dull pain was still noticeable. And still nothing compared to the exhaustion the rest of him felt.
When was the last time I slept?
The thought flitted past and it occurred to him he quite literally had no way of knowing. Fifteen years ago at least, and back then his superiors had been breathing down his neck like a pack of hyenas. He could’ve been awake a day, two days, or perhaps even more. He’d been well on his way to a working man’s death even before Nightmare, and last night he’d pushed this body harder than it could go. It’d taken its toll. And it’d taken his optimism and sanity with it.
And now there was this slow, slow crawl of light climbing the horizon. The sun was taking its sweet time this morning.
What’s taking them so long? Last time they came before sunrise.
He glanced again at the notification.
[Please await your Guide at the designated meeting point. We will be with you shortly]
It had come two hours ago.
Alex was currently sitting atop the sloped hill with Jun and Gloomy. They had all mutually and wordlessly agreed that they were visible enough sitting where they were. Better to wait all bunched up here than where the designated beacon speared a woman’s head in the clearing’s center. And so there they all were; a studious doctor, a brash teenager, and a veteran-turned-Adventurer-turned-call center wage-slave. He was hard pressed to imagine a scenario where they’d have much to talk about even on a normal day. Instead they’d just passed the time in silence.
That was fine by him.
Gloomy sat to the left of him. She’d spent most of the night in the pitch darkness of the forest and Alex noticed that a few of her fingernails had ruptured. She’d hissed at the sun when it had first come up, eyes red and puffy and dilating. Now, she had her drawstring hoodie sewn tight around her like a student trying to fit a whole night’s sleep into a scant few minutes.
Jun was to his right, just staring into the distance. He’d been the only one to get any sleep and even he’d been up before the sun. He’d refined some of his Essence as well if Alex’s senses were still working straight.
As for him, he’d just sat under a tree all night, staying as still as humanly possible in order to recover some stamina. He’d managed a measly 9%. And now he was waiting. Patiently, waiting.
Suddenly, there was a distortion in space above the beacon and dark gate warbled open. It expanded and a man dressed in an inconspicuous tattered cloak stepped out. Alex was almost grateful his wait had ended.
Almost. If not for the fact that he recognized the man. He had messy unkempt hair at odds with his prince-like jawline, and when he took his first step out his boot squelched between a woman’s rib cage. He looked down distastefully and swatted at the flies and blood wasps that swarmed in a haze around him. He soon spotted them and his expression didn’t change much as he sauntered over.
“Velrick,” he gave, “I’ve been assigned as your Guide. And you three are?”
Jun seemed as if he were about to answer then hesitated. Gloomy simply scowled. Alex almost missed the question entirely, but he knew he could access that information if he actually wanted it.
“Lively bunch, aren’t you? Not often that there’s… three,” He frowned for a second, eyes searching for something before returning to them, “you could… like… make friends, you know?”
They all shared an awkward glance, then pretended they didn’t.
“Uh, excuse me” Jun said, “What exactly does ‘Guide’ entail?”
“Won’t mean much for a while, really. Right now it just means I’m here to take you to the nearest town,”
“Town?”
“A type of urban settlement.”
Jun blinked as if he weren’t expecting that answer. The man sighed, “Let's go then. I’m… already behind schedule. If you slow me down I won’t hesitate to leave you.”
Velrick didn’t wait for an answer as he turned and walked away. Just as he hadn’t the last time. Visions of the past overlayed on the man's back and Alex decided to heed his warning this time. Before long, they had already reached the barrier to the mists and the voices of lost souls began to whisper in their ears, visceral and emotional. Then there were the wraiths—deeper voices, filled with longing for flesh.
Jun clutched his ears, “What—what are those?”
“Scared?” The guide asked, sardonically.
No one answered.
“Ah, those? Don’t worry… they’ll wait until I’m gone to eat you.”
There was a bored humor behind his eyes. That was the last time Jun tried asking questions.
***
The sun had long settled into the morning, but it still struggled to penetrate the forest’s light fog. Mist wove through the valley’s trees like water around jagged river stones and the shifting currents concealed terrors that Alex had been hiding from just the night before.
Just the night before?
For some reason the phrase didn’t register. The night before this, he’d been down in the caverns, trying to get some shut eye while his dangersense raised alarm at Camilla’s presence. Immortals didn’t need to sleep and Alex couldn’t while she was awake.
Sleep…
His eyelids were heavy with double vision and for a second he saw himself walking from an outsider's perspective. It was a different him, but all signs lead to the path being the same. It should be a good thing. He knew what was coming. He should feel good about that. But then again, nothing good would be coming his way.
His hand instinctively went to his eye, tracing grooves of the scar it would find there. It found nothing. He sighed.
The guide yawned and Alex had to stifle one of his own as they all ducked under a crooked tree while something passed overhead. But for the ghoulish whisperings and the crinkle of leaves, it was dreadfully silent.
They continued on until ahead of them the trees suddenly stopped, lined unnaturally as if there was some barrier between the forest and the plains where they didn’t grow.
“Well,” Velrick said, “looks like we’ve arrived.”
The guide led them out of the forest and onto a dirt road. With each step further from the unnatural line of trees the fog lessened until it was almost gone entirely.
“And my job’s done”
Alex looked back at the man. Truthfully, he wasn’t certain whether he was actually a man or just appearing as a human for professionality’s sake. You could never tell with the system’s guides. In any case, he caught that glossy, distant look people had in their eyes when doing mental commands right before he vanished. He’d left their lives just as unceremoniously as he’d entered them.
Jun looked bewildered when he’d realized the man had suddenly disappeared on them, and Gloomy, who hadn’t spoken a word the entire time, simply frowned before continuing onwards.
Now, the three of them were left looking up at a vast array of wooden pikes. They were little more than thrice their height and there must’ve been a platform on the other side, as a group of guardsmen were up there as lookouts.
A chill went down Alex’s spine as they were spotted.
So it’ll be the same this time, afterall.
He grew stern as he looked at his two companions in deliberation. They were far from perfect company, Alex knew, but he’d grown more used to them since last night. There was an odd bond to be shared between people who were perfectly content to ignore each other and pretend one another never existed.
“If I were you guys,” Alex said, “I would not trust anyone or anything behind those gates.”
“No shit,” Gloomy spat.
“Ironic coming from you,” Jun added.
Of course… Why even bother.
But then again, why not bother. It would cost him close to nothing after all. Either they would get it or they wouldn’t.
Alex had been mid-sigh when the gates shifted.
An old man stepped out and his breath caught in his chest. Alex was stuck there for a second, reliving the past. The man simply stepped forward, a poised elegance in his gait. His hair was short and gray, his eyes were lined by creases, and he wore a smile that seemed permanently plastered, covered beneath his stash. His voice rasped kindly, serenading in the way only the wise and elderly sounded.
“Hello,” he said. He walked forward and took a bow at his waist, “Mr. Jun, Mr. Alex, Ms–”
Gloomy gave a deep growl and he seemed taken aback for a second. Then he gave a hearty laugh, “Well, suffice to say, we have been expecting you all. My name is Samwise,” he bowed again, “The mayor of this town. I know things must have been harsh and unforgiving thus far, but believe me, it doesn’t have to be that way.”
He began approaching now, subtly, until he was right next to them. He rested a hand on Alex’s shoulder and it took Alex all he had to quell his raging heartbeat.
“I understand that you all must have so many questions. I was like you once, but all will be answered in time. So what do you say we get a hearty meal first?”
Gloomy didn’t hesitate. She had a strangely resigned expression, one that Alex hadn’t seen on her before, as she took the Mayor’s cue to step forward. Jun on the other hand did seem to have a moment’s hesitation, but he was following shortly behind her.
Alex stayed, his heart hammering.
“Is something wrong?” The Mayor asked. He was standing right next to him now. His eyes were narrowed into wrinkled slits as permanent as his smile, though as Alex met them he thought he saw them open just slightly.
“No,” he said. He walked past, scratching nonchalantly at his right eye. He glanced at the subtle lump of the man’s hem where the tip of a knife peeked barely under.
Just wondering how I’ll kill you, that’s all.
They looked back as the gates closed behind them, the Mayor still smiling, “Oh, and one more thing,” he said. He took lead of them and they turned, taking in the sight. Stone and wooden medieval-style houses, walkways lined by aged cobblestone, people milling about with life, a woman selling flowers by the bundle… “Welcome,” the mayor said, “To the Starter Town.”
***
The Mayor had led them as far as the tavern entrance before leaving to attend to other business.
“My humble apologies,” he’d said, bowing. “But I assure you this is the finest hospitality we have to offer. They’re an unruly bunch, but they’re all very gentle at heart. Just head to the front desk, the attendant will get you situated.”
Their heads panned up at the signboard. It read: Adventurer’s Guild Hall.
“What in the…” Jun’s voice was drowned out as Alex pushed the swinging doors open.
Let's get this over with, he thought.
The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.
As the doors closed behind them it felt as if they’d just walked into another world.
Celtish music blared from a stage corner. There were cheers and woots, deep chuckles and high-pitched howls. Shouts of all kinds sounded from a vast array of wooden tables and they were accented only by the clinking of coins, the wooden clatter of spilled pints, and calls to the barmaid for more asides. He was bombarded with the smell of hops and a strong musk of armored men and women as they wandered to and fro. It was like so many places he’d frequented over the years; a pleasure seeking splurge-pit for those who knew they wouldn’t live long.
Or in this case…
A bare chested man with a mohawk swung the door open behind them, bumping into Jun.
“Oh, excuse me lads,” he said as he pushed through. A burlap sack draped heavily over his shoulder guards, soaking at the bottom where a purple-ish liquid dripped steadily onto the floor. Alex followed close behind him to the far wall with the reception counter where he dropped the sack down onto an information desk with steady thud.
Music and laughter stopped for a second as a ghoulish head lolled partly out of the sack. Jun and Gloomy, who seemed to have stuck to Alex like ducklings, went pale. Then a few of the tables cheered with laughter and the music continued again like nothing had happened.
“Oh my,” the attendant said, “Back early today, aren’t you? That’s quite a haul.”
“Why don’t you come back to my place, I’ll show how much I’m truly packing.”
The man’s smile didn’t fade but Alex picked up just a hint of animosity in his voice. The woman just laughed past it and they exchanged a few more pleasantries before the man pointed to a poster on the billboard behind her and she tore it down, handing him a sack of coins.
Alex paid special attention to the posters on that billboard, making sure to memorize each and every one.
“Um, Alex,” Jun wore a concerned look on his face as he leaned in, “Just what the hell am I witnessing–”
The man turned around, “Oh! The three from the entrance, isn’t it? Fresh blood?” He wore an intense look on his face as he leaned in closer.
“Yeah, something like that,” Alex responded.
The man’s grin widened to something almost friendly as he turned to leave, “Welcome to the gates of hell!”
“Uh, Alex–”
“Oh! You three must be new initiates! Just one second!” The freckled woman was wiping purple blood off the counter surface with her cloth when she suddenly scrambled off, returning with a strange steampunk-esque mechanism with a floating orb projected in the center.
“This here,” she explained, “Will test your magical output and tell you what your starting adventurer rank will be. Naturally, the guild won’t be privy to any sensitive information, and this won’t count towards your actual registration–”
“Uh wait, hold on–hold on,” Jun hurried, “Adventurer? as in–”
It was Gloomy this time who interrupted him this time, stepping forward to put her hand on the orb. The contraption whirred and the orb shone as it pulsed with mana. Then she took her hand off it and it settled down. She still wore that permanent scowl but Alex had noticed the night before, when she returned from the forest how much dirt was buried under her fingernails.
“Now what?” she said.
The woman smiled, “Now, we’ll have you all meet our Guild Master. Though… we’re still waiting for other initiates to show up, so how about we have you… oh, that table has space. Hey Storth!” the attendant hollered across the room, “Got another!”
An old man with a cheeky grin beckoned Gloomy over.
“Psst Alex!”
He looked over. He could tell Jun was really starting to panic now but Alex shot him a harsh look and the man shut his mouth as understanding came. Thankfully, he resisted the urge to look around in paranoia as he followed Gloomy’s example wordlessly.
Facts were, at no point, from when they entered those gates to if they exited, would they be left unattended. Even now he could feel the gazes resting on his back.
Still, it needled at him so much, playing along with all this… convoluted nonsense. He knew what would happen when he touched that orb, he’d got some random letter that was supposed to be his rank and a random name tag that told him he was one of them. And maybe the dejavu was getting to him, or maybe he was just too tired, but he didn’t want to play along this time.
He’d followed that same path as old for far too long, this was where those paths had to split.
“Uh… sir?” The woman looked at him expectantly.
“Sorry, I’m not feeling well. Do I need to?”
“I… I do apologize, but we need everyone to be registered–”
“Then, how about I do it later?”
She looked as if she might refuse, then something intangible flickered through her expression for a second, and she harrumphed. “Fine, but you better do it when Guild Master arrives, okay? Please, take a seat. We’ll have some food out for you in a second.”
***
“Eric…. Agh, I…” The slightly chubby woman slammed her pint down, red in the face as she forked another bite of steak, “I just don’t know what to do on my own…” She sobbed as she grabbed another pint from a passing barmaid.
From the context provided, Alex gathered that this ‘Eric’ had sacrificed himself to save her in the last scenario. And that he was apparently very suave.
“Ohh Jolyn,” An older man drawled in deep southern, “Just forget about that man! Look around, there’s plenty’ a well built men around ‘ere. If I learned anything the past day it’s that stickin’ to the past won’t do ya any good here!”
He had his arm draped around another woman. One of the guild’s mages, it appeared. She had a large bust with open cleavage and was leaning in close to him while he showed her his gun. Alex almost wanted to roll his eyes. The man was falling for the oldest trick in the book and he didn’t even know it.
He looked around the wooden circle table they’d been seated at. The southern man and the woman named Jolyn were the only other… ‘initiates’ as they’d been called, but there were three other adventurers filling in seats between them all.
Storth, the man who’d called from across the room, was currently engaged in a one sided conversation with Gloomy, who was… well, not so gloomy anymore as she was wolfing down the dish in front of her like a speed eater. And the third adventurer currently had an arm hooked around Jun, her other hand running up and down his chest in flirtation. And strangely enough… he was reciprocating. Either he’d wisened up since their last talk or he’d suddenly turned very dumb. Frankly, Alex was too tired to care which.
He’d done some calculations on their walk there, as slowly as his addled brain could handle them, and Jun’s skill could be invaluable to help him defeat this scenario, if he could actually count on him. He was beginning to think it was a big if.
There are other options, he reminded himself. None so talented perhaps, but he was certain some of these other people could prove useful. Possibly. And if not he would just handle it on his own. He had his methods even if it wouldn’t be ideal.
After a nap maybe.
Alex’s vision started failing as looked down at his plate in disgust. The rations in his inventory weren’t so plentiful that he could waste them before a free meal. It wasn’t the first time he’d had to eat something he didn’t want to, and it would likely not be the last.
He tried to recall when he had last had a full meal as well, but that was also a hard one. His memories were still confused by the time jump and Alex was mostly just acting on autopilot. Years upon years of honed instincts kept him sane, but that’s all they kept him. Sane. Not quick, nor sharp. And if he truly wanted to beat Nightmare, then he needed to be both.
The adventurer man seemed to have given up on Gloomy and started talking to him. Alex didn’t care to figure out what he was saying, he was too preoccupied.
What had done it?
In his past life, everyone had been knocked cold. But how exactly? He’d already run an identify on both the food and the mead and—though he was the only one there who knew the flaws with that method—he doubted this backend place would be using anything too high level. Moreso, he’d had plenty of both in his past life and he’d been just fine. So what–
The music stopped playing. Alex was snapped from his reverie and he felt like he’d been drawn out of a haze.
The old man, Storth, started slamming his pint up and down on the table, drink spilling out of it, messily over the table. The two adventurer women joined him, then the southern man as well, clearly having no idea what he was doing. All around them, at all the tables in the hall pints were thudding on tables, creating a cacophony of noise as an inhumanely tall and broad man stepped onto the info-desk counter.
The first thing Alex noticed about him was his equipment. Where every other adventurer’s weapons were rusted and poorly made, his sword had that shine of quality steel. Alex felt like an idiot, all these details coming to him now that he’d never noticed way back then.
“Alright you rascals, quiet it down! You don’t wanna scare our new initiates do ya?!” The man shouted. If anything, it just made the room cheer louder, but the man had a booming voice and presence that cut through the crowd with ease.
“Now, for all my fresh-faced Initiates here,” every face turned to their sector of the tavern, “My name’s Lionheart, your Guild Master. I’m gonna keep my speech here short and peachy so yall can get back to drinkin’, but listen up! I want you to do one simple thing for me. Look to your left, look to your right, look at all these beautiful men and women—yes Lugrin, I’m talkin’ about you–”
From the direction of laughter and look on his face, ‘Lugrin’ appeared to have been the large mohawked man from earlier.
“—Point is! I want you to look at the person next to ya, and just know, they’ve got your back! You’re one of us now! You all–” he paused for dramatic effect “—are ADVENTURERS!”
At once the room went absolutely ballistic, with the man receiving the rough hewn adventurers version of a standing ovation. It involved a lot more sloshing mead and a handful more concussions. Alex knew first hand how infectious that energy could be. He saw Jun let loose an uncharacteristic cheer, and he really couldn’t tell if he was playing it up or not.
But either way, Alex wouldn’t be sticking around to be sure. He’d decided he hated this place. Hated how it seemed so familiar, yet not. It wasn’t the tavern’s comfort he’d grown nostalgic for on backwater worlds, it was a fabrication. A distorted tapestry woven within the fever-dream that was this tutorial. A false sense of comfort to lull you into the trap.
Or I suppose, the Nightmare.
The thought made him grim.
And as each and every one of his fellow ‘initiates’—24 of them, cause of course he’d fucking counted—sat back down with a pint in their hand and a flirt by their side, they would open up their stat sheet and have the same exact thought: Wow, this is just like a game.
The system being designed to mimic a game wasn’t at all unintentional, and it only went further for the tutorial. It was the reason he couldn’t bring himself to register as an ‘adventurer’. Not in a place where that title held so little real meaning.
But… there was something else to it, wasn’t there?
Alex quickly eyed one of the so-called adventurers and he saw it now, in the way their essence moved, sloppily—yet strangely captivating. Since the essence used to affix skills was bound to your very soul, they left a sort of imprint on it after a while—a sort of signifier of the System. It was a subtle difference, something he never would’ve caught had he not seen the wider solar system. But having spent fifteen years with the System, he knew it like his own hand. And that man, there, did not have one.
But… why? Why create a tutorial on a systemless world? And why Nightmare?
The observation snapped him out of his tiredness. Momentarily. The thought was still there, but hard to focus on. He took a sip, grimacing as he felt a mild numbing sensation go through him.
He hated this place. Hated the manipulation, hated the false-comfort, and above all hated the fact that it worked. A crude facsimile though it may be, that was all anybody needed after surviving the hell of the first night. In his first life he’d let his fatigue win and simply gave in to the convenience of it all, he’d never thought to question any of this. It made his blood boil over just thinking of it, to the point that when everyone settled down he hardly even noticed the glass of water the barmaid had brought him.
He identified it. ‘Poisoned water’ it said.
Examine.
Status effects - Sedation
Of course. Get a few drinks in their system and their blood pumping and they’ll hardly even question the glass of water.
How many of them even know that they can use Identify on objects? Not many, he figured. And if anyone did notice, they’d be wise not to make it obvious.
Alex on the other hand had no reason to be inconspicuous. Any attention he wrought from these goons was something he could deal with himself, and he’d already been marked for watch by refusing registration. So as he went to stand up he found himself clumsily tripping over himself, his glass sloshing in his right hand.
Truthfully, he only had to act out the first second. After that the clumsiness was real. He stumbled a few steps and then tripped, spilling his water all over the open-necked outfit of the mage who had been clinging to Jun. She gasped, stepping back from the table.
Whoops… really, he could be so clumsy sometimes. He restrained a crazed laugh as he straightened.
“Shoot! I’m– I’m so so sorry, let me clean that up.”
The woman scooted aside as he bent over the table, using his sleeve to mob up the water. And while he was doing it, something slipped out of his sleeve and onto Jun’s lap. A note, hastily and stealthily scribbled with some paper and pen from his apartment. With his trait, he been able to write it hidden from view during the few moments he could be certain nobody was looking at him. He’d had to move it in and out of his inventory 12 times just to scribble one word. Water.
Alex quickly used his flustered act as an excuse for some fresh air, not waiting to see if anyone else had noticed—or if even Jun himself had. If it’d all worked then the man might be a useful asset, if not a trusted one. And if it didn’t, well, talent was not so often an indicator of survival as much as simple luck, and when it came down to it...
I’ll just play the hand I’m dealt.
He gave the others all one last look. He didn’t owe them anything. Gloomy, Jun, all of them, he knew that with time they would quickly become nameless faces. There’d been thousands of them, over the years. Children, elderly, men, women, all sorts of people he’d abandoned for the sake of survival. This was no different.
But maybe that was just the thing. No matter what he sold himself he was still just surviving.
He forced the thought down, pushing his way out of the Guild Hall. And sure enough, two more presences trailed behind at a distance, watching.
He took a corner, walking past some shops the… mayor had taken them by earlier. The townsfolk had all been very friendly when they’d first come through. They were noticeably more wary of him now. The woman who’d been selling flowers by the bundle earlier now glared daggers at him. There were no smiles or forced greetings, he wasn’t where he was supposed to be, but he knew nothing would come of it. Not yet.
Subtly, he chanced a glance and found that very same mayor and a couple Adventurers slinking into the alleys behind him. He let them follow, knowing nothing would come of that either. Nothing he wasn’t looking forward to at least.
He pulled up a bucket of water from the well and cut the rope with his dagger. The one he’d gotten from his bonus set, not the one he’d looted. The weapon was already collapsing, cracking in places. Then he walked up to one of the houses and stole a large basin from their front porch. People watched as he went by, blank stares on their faces. But while Awakened were at a disadvantage in Nightmare, the Tutorial had some limitations of its own and Alex fully intended to make use of that.
Soon, he found the place he was looking for. A beat up shed he’d spotted on the outskirts of the town. It was nondescript to the untrained eye, but he could tell immediately from the type of chimney what was inside.
Just like he could tell from the cloud of dust that barraged him as he entered that this smithy hadn’t been used in a long, long time.
Alright, enough mulling. Time to get to work.