Genres: Fantasy, Adventure
Tags: Female Lead, GameLit, High & Low Fantasy, LitRPG, Magic, Progression, Strong Lead
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Cass shot up, panting heavily, each breath of hers sucking in as much of the room as possible. “I’m alive,” she gasped, “I’m actually alive.” She started laughing, a soft giggle, which quickly turned into a sob as she raised her knees to her chest, and wrapped herself in her blanket. She continued like this for a while, tears forming from her eyes as she wept, and her body shook, her mind trying and failing to grasp the terrors she’d faced just moments ago.
“Wait,” she rasped, her words scraping by her dry throat, “blanket?” She looked up, raising her fists to rub any remaining tears from her swollen eyes, and stared in wonder at her surroundings. “This… this is my room!”—she looked down—“This is my bed!”
Cass lay bundled beneath a winter duvet of blue, yellow, and white geometric shapes. A soft mattress of foam comforted her from below, her body partially sunken into its surface. Around her was the bedroom she’d just moved into a few days ago, complete with a wardrobe, a dresser, and a cardboard box acting as her bedside table. Atop the bedside box was the source of her bedroom’s light, a table lamp which brightened the room with its soft, golden glow. On the wall, off-white, drawn curtains blocked her view of the outside, but the lack of natural light at the edges suggested it was nighttime. Opposite her, a few more boxes had been piled up against the wall, while the bedroom door next to them was ajar.
Thinking quick, Cass began patting up and down her body, the most noticeable change being her very healthy left arm. “Was it really just a nightmare?” she asked, half expecting a blue screen to pop up and pester her. But nothing happened. “But it all felt so real— no, it still feels real. The pain, the blood… the cold; the memories are so fresh. Did I really just dream it up?”
Slowly, she lifted herself off of the bed and stood up. She was dressed in the same clothes she’d worn to the hair salon, which she found odd, Actually, how did I get home? She asked herself, shrugging when she couldn’t think of an answer. Head full of questions, Cass equipped herself with a frown, and made her way toward the bedroom door, her steps growing more and more cautious as she crept ever closer. Her mind warned her of the possible danger beyond, and she couldn’t help but imagine the corpse of a very dead goblin barging through. With all the courage she could muster, Cass shook her head, and reached out to yank the door open, jumping behind it even as she pulled.
She waited a few moments before letting out the breath she’d started holding, “Nothing there,” she giggled, her taut nerves relaxing with each laugh. After calming down, she took a few seconds to listen for any noise in the hallway, tiptoeing to the open doorway when she confirmed there was nothing. Cass poked her head out the doorway, looking from right to left to spot anything suspicious, but not seeing anything, she began looking for the light switch. Finding it on the other side of the hall, Cass started toward it, her tiptoeing easing into a slow walk as her confidence grew.
After some time, she flicked the switch on, revealing a bright and empty hallway. The walls were painted white, decorated only with several holes the previous owner had been so kind to leave behind, while the floor was laminated with light-oak wooden planks. Still a little jittery, she remained careful, prodding the next door open and reaching for the cord inside. On, the light went, revealing a less-than-modern bathroom fit with a shoddy toilet, a too-small sink, and a shower-bath combo; the beige tiles reaffirming Cass’ need to renovate.
Above the sink, a small cabinet with a mirror on the front was secured to the wall. In her frightened state, she’d ignored the mirror in her own bedroom, only now getting a chance to see herself. As she turned to face the mirror, her jaw dropped while she raised her hands, touching and poking at her pink hair, not quite believing what her brain was telling her, “So the haircut was real,” she murmured, “but what about after? Did I enter the fog or not?” She couldn’t remember—Cass shuddered—no, she could, it’s just that her memories were… wrong.
Stepping out of the bathroom, Cass moved into her living space. It was an open-plan kitchen and living room, not something she was overly fond of, but it suited her now she was living alone. The walls and floor were similar to the hallway outside, only differing in the kitchen where half the wall was replaced with black, brick-shaped tiles. The room was empty of any furnishings, just several boxes against a wall, and a TV sitting on the floor, accompanied by a comfy-looking cushion and woollen blanket.
Cass sighed, “Maybe it was all in my head.” She was relieved, of course, and reassured that her sanity wasn’t in question, but it didn’t stop shivers running up her spine when she recalled the harrowing experiencing from her dreams. “Still doesn’t explain how I got home, though,” she muttered.
She walked to her kitchen sink and turned on the cold water tap, reaching for her kettle in the same breath. Once it was about a quarter-full, she placed it on the base and flicked the switch, nodding her head when the ‘on’ light lit up. Finally, she grabbed a mug from the overhead cabinet and dropped in a teabag. “Oh, please tell me I have milk,” she mumbled, opening the fridge to see an almost-empty bottle of semi-skimmed in the tray, “well, it’ll do.”
Leaving the milk on the counter, she stared for a second at the kettle, willing it to heat faster, before shrugging and moving toward the closest window. “Did I close all the curtains when I got home?” she wondered, It’s like I’ve got amnesia or some— Cass stopped. “Do I have amnesia?” She stood for a while, considering the implications, until the rumble of boiling water woke her from her musings, “Maybe I just wanted to block out the fog. Right, the fog! Whatever way I look at things, there was something off about it. It’s… it’s not still there, is it?.”
Completing her journey to the window, Cass heard the click of the kettle telling her it was finished, but chose to ignore it in favour of looking outside. She reached for the curtain, drawing it open with a quick pull, and froze, “Wha— Wher— N-nothing?” She back peddled, “How?!” and tripped, bringing the curtain and its rail with her as she fell on her backside.
Outside the now curtainless window, a thousand stars shone their brightest to illuminate nothing. “Nothing. There’s nothing.” Cass stared, wide-eyed, out the window as she muttered to herself in incomprehension, “How can there be nothing.” Suddenly, she threw the felled curtain aside and shot toward the window, her hands slamming against it in desperation, “Where the fuck am I?” she shouted, “Where’s my street? And the rest of the houses? Where the hell did they go?!”
She stared at the stars, a deep feeling of dread settling within her. “They’re wrong,” she whispered, “they’re all wrong,” but even shaking her head didn’t rid her of the strange deja vu that now held her thoughts hostage. Cass turned and sprinted for the door. She had to see. Had to see the stars. She fumbled with the locks, hands not quite keeping up with her mind as her digits thrashed at the simple mechanism. Once she got it, she all but tore down the door, shoving it back with all her strength as she barged through the opening. Finally outside, Cass was forced to end her reckless charge early when she found herself standing not in the hallway she expected, but atop a barren and cracked earthen island. An island floating in the void, beneath a starry sky she didn’t know.
But… she did know it.
Cass fell to her knees, one hand clutching her chest as her heart threatened to break free, while the other restrained her mouth, fearing what her scream might attract. She did know these stars; they weren’t the ones she was used to, and even though every reasonable part of her brain was screaming she shouldn’t, she knew why. She looked at the starry sky above, the pale earth below, and the endless void around her; and for a brief moment before the panic set in, she wondered how she could still breathe.
“It was real,” she managed between rapid breaths, “The fog,”—breathe—“the lights,”—in—“the gob”—out—“oh god, the goblin!” she cried. Memory after memory from her nightmare came rushing back, and along with them came the pain. Even though her body was fully healed, she wrapped her arms around herself, no longer caring about the noises she made, as the phantom pains ravaged every part of her being. Every injury she sustained returned with a vengeance, furious at her for forgetting; from the top of her head, to the toes of her feet, agony she didn’t understand descended upon her just as she herself descended face-first to the ground. But as quick as the pain came, it disappeared just as abruptly when her face smacked the hardened earth, and the small campfire in front of her lit up as if by magic.
⠀⠀⠀⠀ERROR: ARGUMENT_NULL_EXCEPTION (Player.Stats.Endurance):
⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Value cannot be null.
Welcome, Player_6852, to the HELL ZONE resting area.
As this is your first time entering the Resting Area,
Please take note of the following information:
1. While inside the Rest Area, dying will result in your automatic revival within your home.
2. While inside the Rest Area, your natural healing is increased by 10,000%.
3. While inside the Rest Area, you cannot attack or be harmed by other players.
4. You may not enter another’s Player Home without their express permission. Likewise, another Player may not enter your Home without your permission.
5. You may leave the rest area at any time by entering a Player Home, or by entering the Tower.
As this Rest Area is located within the HELL ZONE,
Please take note of the following restrictions:
1. While inside the Rest Area, dying will not result in your automatic revival within your home.
2. While inside the Rest Area, your natural healing is increased by 0%.
3. While inside the Rest Area, you can attack and be harmed by other players.
4. Player Homes are not protected from unwanted intruders.
5. Entering the Tower will be restricted to certain times. Please wait for the Tower Portal to enter.
SOLUTION: EVALUATE APTITUDE AND INITIATE ABILITY ASSIGNMENT
Congratulations, Player_6852!
For being the first of your species to challenge the Tutorial,
You have been awarded 1 (ONE) Achievement Point!
Current Achievement Points: 3
As this is your first time challenging the Tutorial,
You have been awarded the title, Challenger.
As this is your first time playing the Tutorial,
Your Skills and Stats have been calculated and assigned by the System.
Please see the Player Log screen for an in-depth review of your gains.
⠀ ⠀ERROR: ARGUMENT_EXCEPTION (Skill.PainResilience):
⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀An item with the same key has already exists.
SOLUTION: REMOVE [PAIN RESILIENCE] FROM PLAYER_6852
⠀⠀⠀ ERROR: SECURITY_EXCEPTION (Player.Skills.RemoveSkill):
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀This command requires elevated privileges.
SOLUTION: EVOLVE [PAIN RESILIENCE] INTO [PAIN RESISTANCE]
Congratulations, Player_6852!
For being the first of your species to evolve a Skill,
You have been awarded 1 (ONE) Achievement Point!
Current Achievement Points: 4
A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
Overwhelmed by the number of blue screens that suddenly bombarded her vision, Cass shut her eyes as hard as she could, too confused to deal with whatever any of this was. The pain was no more; there one moment, and gone the next. It was the strangest sort of feeling, Cass thought, like going from freezing cold to burning hot in seconds, but even weirder because another second later there was nothing at all, not even a memory of it, no residual feelings or anything, it was as if it never happened. She still remembered the pain from the goblin encounter itself, but it was much fainter, as if the memory had aged decades or longer. It was a good thing, she supposed, since it meant the spectre of suffering that had terrorized her just moments before had also disappeared.
One good thing to come of the pain was that her breathing had returned to normal. Having a panic attack alone, on a floating island, in the middle of space was probably a bad idea, she reckoned. Knowing what was to come, she gently smacked her forehead a few times on the ground to prepare herself, then opened her eyes to the ghostly blue windows that haunted her dreams, and now her reality. Before focusing on them, Cass sat up and took a deep breath, “Okay, ready,” she said, ignoring the quiver in her voice, “big one first, I guess”.
Cass spent the next few minutes digesting the contents of the blue windows, sometimes biting her lip in frustration, or cursing softly, dreading the implications of what she read. “This is crazy,” she stated, “reading this makes it sound like some sort of video game; the tutorial, player homes, portals, bloody revival. It’s all so absurd I almost can’t believe it.” Rubbing her tired eyes, Cass continued to think about the windows and what they said, “But… but I have to. It’s much too real to be a dream, and whether it’s some sort of virtual reality or not doesn’t really matter— it’s my reality now, regardless. But the revival stuff is concerning. If I die, do I get booted from the game or do I actually die? Thinking about it, when I”—Cass shivered—“killed the goblin, it said I was the first to survive. Were there others that got attacked? Was I just the first to survive after everyone else died? That’s right, it keeps calling me player six thousand eight— Oh.” At her own revelation, Cass began dry-heaving, “Oh. My god. Six thousand. Dead. Oh my god.”
A few more minutes of throwing up nothing, Cass managed to calm herself before returning to the blue screen, “The biggest problem for me are these Hell Zone restrictions. Permadeath and no increased healing are worrisome, but more concerning is what they imply. Am I going to have to fight more monsters like the goblin? It also mentions other players, will I have to fight other people too? There’s no way, right?” She frowned as she thought of the atrocities humanity was committing across the globe even in her day, and even of local crimes where citizens of her own country were being murdered, or raped, or worse; almost on a daily basis, if she went by the news. She clenched her fists, “Somehow, it's people I have to worry about more than monsters. Sure, there are plenty of good people around, but one bad egg is all it would take to kill me. Or worse. The lack of player home protection is possibly the worst restriction on that list, even the rest area can’t be rested in.”
“Hold on, I didn’t even choose Hell, I chose Easy! Why am I receiving all these restrictions if I chose Easy?” she demanded, but then it hit her, “The errors! Before I blacked out, there were a bunch of errors, just like the one here, what’s it say, skill assignment? Skills? Uhh, oh, here’s the solution, reinitiate? Is there another window, maybe?” She flitted through the blue windows, quickly skimming their contents before she found the one she was looking for, “Player Log?”
Player_6852
[Profile] - [Inventory] - [Stats] - [Skills] - [Titles] - [Achievements] - [Log]
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# START OF LOG
# Player_6852 gains 1 Achievement Point
# Player_6852 gains Title Pioneer
# Player_6852 gains 1 Achievement Point
# Player_6852 gains Passive [Pain Resilience - Slight]
# Player_6852 gains 1 Achievement Point
# Player_6852 gains Title Challenger
# ABILITY EVALUATION BEGINNING…
# ABILITY EVALUATION COMPLETE
# ABILITY ASSIGNMENT BEGINNING…
# Player_6852 gains 7 Vitality
# Player_6852 gains 7 Perception
# Player_6852 gains 2 Intuition
# Player_6852 gains 4 Strength
# Player_6852 gains 4 Endurance
# Player_6852 gains 6 Agility
# Player_6852 gains 6 Willpower
# Player_6852 gains 7 Focus
# Player_6852 gains 7 Creativity
# Player_6852 gains Language [English - High]
# Player_6852 gains Language [French - Moderate]
# Player_6852 gains Language [Latin - Moderate]
# Player_6852 gains Language [Ancient Greek - Low]
# Player_6852 gains Language [German - Low]
# Player_6852 gains Language [Italian - Low]
# Player_6852 gains Language [Spanish - Low]
# Player_6852 gains Language [Hindi - Slight]
# Player_6852 gains Language [Mandarin Chinese - Slight]
# Player_6852 gains Language [Portuguese - Slight]
# Player_6852 gains Language [Russian - Slight]
# Player_6852 gains Mastery [Arithmetic - Moderate]
# Player_6852 gains Mastery [Communication - Moderate]
# Player_6852 gains Mastery [Reading - Moderate]
# Player_6852 gains Mastery [Typing - Moderate]
# Player_6852 gains Mastery [Speaking - Low]
# Player_6852 gains Mastery [Writing - Low]
# Player_6852 gains Mastery [Cleaning - Low]
# Player_6852 gains Mastery [Cooking - Low]
# Player_6852 gains Mastery [Drawing - Low]
# Player_6852 gains Mastery [Singing - Low]
# Player_6852 gains Mastery [Dancing - Slight]
# Player_6852 gains Mastery [Breathing - Low]
# Player_6852 gains Mastery [Digging - Low]
# Player_6852 gains Mastery [Falling - Low]
# Player_6852 gains Mastery [Running - Low]
# Player_6852 gains Mastery [Climbing - Slight]
# Player_6852 gains Mastery [Diving - Slight]
# Player_6852 gains Mastery [Jumping - Slight]
# Player_6852 gains Mastery [Rolling - Slight]
# Player_6852 gains Mastery [Swimming - Slight]
# Player_6852 gains Mastery [Throwing - Slight]
# Player_6852 gains Mastery [Yoga - Low]
# Player_6852 gains Mastery [Spear - Slight]
# Player_6852 gains Passive [Blood Regeneration - Slight]
# Player_6852 gains Passive [Flesh Regeneration - Slight]
# Player_6852 gains Passive [Alcohol Resilience - Slight]
# Player_6852 gains Passive [Anaesthetic Resilience - Slight]
# Player_6852 gains Passive [Bacterial Resilience - Slight]
# Player_6852 gains Passive [Caffeine Resilience - Slight]
# Player_6852 gains Passive [Fatigue Resilience - Slight]
# Player_6852 gains Passive [Fungal Resilience - Slight]
# Player_6852 gains Passive [Pain Resilience - Slight]
# [Pain Resilience - Slight] evolves into [Pain Resistance - Slight]
# Player_6852 gains Passive [Viral Resilience - Slight]
# Player_6852 merges skills into [Poison Resilience - Slight]
[Alcohol Resilience]
[Anaesthetic Resilience]
[Caffeine Resilience]
# Player_6852 merges skills into [Disease Resilience - Slight]
[Bacterial Resilience]
[Fungal Resilience]
[Viral Resilience]
# Player_6852 gains Active Skill [Analyse] Lvl 1
# [Analyse] reaches ...
# [Analyse] reaches Lvl 7
# Player_6852 gains Active Skill [Slow Time] Lvl 1
# ABILITY ASSIGNMENT COMPLETE
# Player_6852 gains 1 Achievement Point
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“Oh,” Cass exclaimed, “that’s a lot. Where to even begin? Achievement points, titles, strength, endurance, agility— this really is a game, huh? The rest of it just looks like a record of my skills, even my languages are there.”
Cass took a second to close her eyes and breathe, forcing herself to accept the reality in front of her. “Just what I needed,” she muttered, “a judgemental list of my life’s accomplishments. Except the list is shorter than I’d have liked, and the ratings are clearly wrong… I mean, my dancing isn’t that bad, right?” Glad there was nobody around to answer that one, Cass decided to move on, “I guess the resilience stuff is good, blood and flesh is a little disturbing, but I’d be a fool to disregard them”—I’m not stupid, I know what’s coming—“especially with the restrictions on the rest area, I’ll need as much healing as I can get. Then again, this is just a record of my own aptitude, slight regeneration might just heal scratches. I wonder how I can upgrade it.”
Tapping her lips, Cass put aside her musings and moved on, “Active skills? I wonder how that works”—she looked at the campfire at the centre of the island, just metres from where she’d fallen—“Analyse!” she shouted.
Nothing happened.
Frowning, she glared at the small campfire with all her might, Analyse!
[ANALYSIS RESULTS]
Tower Beacon
The Tower Beacon marks the centre of the Tutorial Resting Area,
And is where the Tower Portal will appear.
It will light up when anyone approaches.
Time until Tower Portal appears:
00:34:53
“Nice!” she shouted, “Where was this skill on all my digs?” Analyse!
[ANALYSIS RESULTS]
Dry Earth, the Ground
Cass sighed, “Never mind.”
“Slowing time seems ridiculous, probably just my perception of time, like a rush of adrenaline, maybe. Or does it actually slow time? How would I even get a skill like that? And how do I test it? Best leave that one for later,” she mumbled, “Next are a bunch more of these errors; I can only assume this system is utterly broken. How many does this make? Ten? Twenty? So far, the errors have worked out well for me, I think, I mean, pain resistance has got to be a plus, but how long until they don’t? Sure, some bugs can be fun, but most are destructive. God knows how many essays I’ve rewritten because the software crashed. Something to keep an eye on.”
Finally, she finished reading through the log, and looked up to stare at the stars. She felt a heat well up in her eyes as her shoulders began to quiver, but pinched herself in the thigh before she could feel any more sorry for herself. She had to get out, and crying wouldn’t help. But it wasn’t pain that drove away the depression threatening her mind, but rather, it was the lack of it. She felt the pinch. She was completely aware of her nerves begging her to stop, but their screaming simply didn’t affect her any more. “Well, shit,” she mumbled, still in shock, “is this pain resistance?” She let go of her thigh and once again stared wistfully at the stars, “One eye on the system errors, but the other needs to remain on my mental health. Too many weird things all at once, and I’m bound to go weird. Case in point, I don’t think I’ve ever talked to myself for so long in my life.”
Cass closed her eyes and took one last deep breath before returning her gaze to the blue window, “Okay then, enough moping, what’s next?”