[Quests Updated!]
[New Feature Added: Dither]
New updates.
Nathan was about to check them out when he stopped and looked back at his new arm. He lifted it up and down. In the background, the desert wind swept across his cheeks, carrying away a droplet of sweat that had appeared on his brow.
He reached his (non-plant) hand up and tapped it against his new arm. He could feel the tapping, but it was distant, muffled, like the sensation was being felt through a layer of glass.
He turned his head back toward another cactus and tossed his arm out. In a split-second, vines with thorny tips burst forth and stabbed into the cactus, and it burst apart into dozens of shattered plant material.
Nathan’s jaw dropped. A moment later, the vines receded back into his plant arm.
He took a closer look at where his arm stub had been. There didn’t seem to be a point at which his flesh turned to plant. The transition was so smooth and seamless that he might not have noticed it at all.
“What is this thing?” he muttered.
A split-second later, he felt a tingle roll up his bones. Something sprouted from his arm. A rose head unfolded itself before Nathan, its pattern a familiar half-black, half-white.
“It’s you,” Nathan said.
The flower tilted toward him ever so slightly.
I guess Gius and Papim weren’t kidding about unexpected side effects.
Out of nowhere, another vine burst forth from his arm and stabbed through another cactus—this time, without his will.
Oh, that’s concerning.
If that happened to some random individual as he was passing by, he’d be charged with murder.
“Um, flower-thing?” Nathan said. “Can you not murder people? You know, because that’ll get me in trouble?”
The flower didn’t respond.
Nathan sighed. “And now I’ve been reduced to talking to a plant. Awesome.”
What I wouldn’t do to have my friends with me…
Nathan looked back at his notifications.
I should probably check this out, huh?
Nathan started with the quest bar.
The first thing he noticed was that the Global Quest bar had been greyed out and blurred. He tapped on the menu. Nothing. He tapped again, still nothing.
He frowned and drew his finger away.
Why would I be unable to access this? Isn’t it important to getting out of here?
Well, then again, supposedly anyone can accomplish the Global Quests, right? I’m sure someone else will take care of things.
All at once, a wave of relief slammed into Nathan. There would be no death-defying quests, there would be no desperate battles—not if he didn’t want it. He was free to do whatever he wanted.
He hadn’t realized how stress-inducing it was during the first Circle. He’d dug it deep down, but the whole thing had been incredibly nerve-wracking. He had a duty, a job, to get the Pandora for the sake of his fellow man, open the portal, and stop the Harrowed Hand.
And now he didn’t.
All of a sudden, he felt a shiver go down his spine.
Hopefully I didn’t just jinx myself…
He opened his menu and clicked on personal skills. Instantly, five quests appeared in rapid succession.
[Upgrade Riptide Grasp to Silver Rank]
[Upgrade Ocean’s Embrace to Silver Rank]
[Upgrade Tidal Shield to Silver Rank]
The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.
[Upgrade Throw Harpoon to Silver Rank]
[Obtain ability: Summon Fish]
[Upgrade Class to Silver Rank]
All of those seemed interesting, but he clicked on the final one.
[Upgrade Class to Silver Rank]
You have done well.
At every turn, you have continued to surpass my expectations. At every turn, the System has been dealt a blow. At every turn, your strength has only grown.
I chose correctly.
Continue to develop, Nathan Lee. Upgrade each of your skills, obtain the Heart of the Desert. And most importantly, find me where the ocean meets the land.
Before Nathan could react to this, the message disappeared before his eyes.
[Upgrade Class to Silver Rank]
-Upgrade all Ocean Warden skills
-Learn Summon Fish
-Obtain and use the Heart of the Desert
Okay, what the heck just happened?
That was a message, right? A message straight from the Sea. And then it just… vanished. It was like it’d never even been there. Had he just hallucinated the whole thing?
No, I can’t doubt my senses; that’s just going to drive me crazy.
For now, Nathan was just going to do what the quests said: continue to develop. He added a small mental note: and stay out of trouble, too.
The faint smell of salt filled his nose before vanishing as quickly as it came. If he didn’t know any better, he could’ve sworn that he heard the cry of a gull and a faint laugh on the breeze.
He moved to the next quest menu.
Side Quests.
???
???
???
???
???
???
???
Nathan blinked.
He had side quests now!
…
He just had no idea what they were.
I really hope that there’s a way to figure out what these are. Otherwise, this is going to be really inconvenient really fast.
One final notification he had to look at:
[New Feature Added: Dither]
He clicked the notification.
A new window popped up. The bottom was divided up into four bars: Home Feed, Communities, Videos, Messages, and Profile. Home feed was currently selected, revealing post after post after post.
[Water4Days]: Wait, what is this? Why am I getting notifications in my HUD? Is this another trap???
└ [RockThrower69]: Tell me about it, this is so bizarre.
[ShieldBae]: Who thought it was a good idea to add a social feed in the middle of the apocalypse? I don’t need likes, I need a way to destroy the Dustend so we can finish the main quest!
└ [StillAlive27]: Preach. Can I trade my follower count for a bandage?
└ [SystemOfficial]: No.
[DefinitelyNotDying]: Great, now I can live tweet my death.
└ [YouWillBeMissed]: Please don’t.
└ [BearSurvivor90] Just got mauled. One star. Would not recommend.
└ [TruthSeeker123]: That wasn’t a bear. It was a bioweapon. The bears died out years ago. Open your eyes.
[ThirstyForVictory]: What’s the point of followers if we’re all going to die? Asking for a friend
└ [TheRealHero]: Friends are temporary. Clout is eternal.
[TruthSeeker]: SYSTEM SOCIAL MEDIA IS A HONEYPOT. Don’t post. They’re tracking our every move. If you read this, it’s already too late.
After scrolling for a minute, Nathan came across a post by the System.
[SystemOfficial]: Social Media Activated: Use this feature to connect with other survivors! Likes and reposts now contribute to your social score. Social score has no current use. Have fun!
└ [SurvivorInDenial] Why are you like this?
Nathan clicked over to the communities tab to check that out.
Second Circle Survivors
Description: For those who’ve just made it to the Second Circle and have no idea what’s going on. Share tips and vent your frustrations.
Nathan clicked on the community.
[Water4Days]: Does anyone know if we’re supposed to be building alliances or just hoarding stuff? #Help #SecondCircle
└ [ShieldBae]: Alliances are a scam. Hoard everything.
Yeah, that’s exactly the attitude we need to reach the bottom.
Nathan clicked on Videos next. No one had posted anything except for a video titled “Test.” Nathan ignored it and shifted over to messages. Once again, nothing.
Nathan clicked on the final one, profile.
Nathan Lee (Rank: 1)
There was a box to change his biography and add a profile picture. Nathan ignored it and went back to the home feed. He typed out a quick message and submitted it.
[Nathan Lee]: Hi everyone. I was looking for my friends, Chad Mann, Emi, Bjorn, and Mara. Has anyone seen them on this platform? Thanks.
Nathan then exited out of the menu.
His thoughts drifted back to his friends. He hoped he’d be able to find them on the social media platform, and he hoped that there’d be a way for them to meet up.
Nathan stared off into the distance. His clothes brushed against his body as he shifted his neck. In the distance, Nathan spotted the massive storm that had stretched from horizon to horizon. If he didn’t know any better, he’d say that it was getting closer. Fast.
The winds howled even from the long distance. Lightning crackled from within, lighting up the storm with flashes of violet. The dunes below were destroyed and leveled into random valleys and hills.
The breeze kicked up, flapping Nathan’s clothes.
He looked down.
It’s kind of amazing that this suit has held up as long as it has. Shouldn’t it have fallen apart by now?
He’d had it since the start of this whole mess. It’s survived monster attacks, people attacks, attack-attacks. It was ripped to pieces and barely held together by a handful of strings.
Nathan bent his back to get a better look and heard a long ripping noise.
A half-second later, his suit flopped to the ground, leaving him in nothing but underwear.
Nathan blinked slowly.
“That’s not good.”
The sound of wind caught his attention. He turned back toward the storm.
It had definitely gotten closer since he had last checked.
“That’s definitely not good.”
Nathan looked back. There was nowhere to run. There was nowhere to hide.
He clenched his jaw.
Alright then, this won’t be too bad. Probably.
Lightning cracked.
The wind howled.
And the world turned to a cacophony of dust and noise.