"It's beautiful here AV," Eli stood at the top of a hill looking down on a lake. "I wish you could see it."

The sun shimmered on the surface of the water as cerulean dragonflies darted over it. Occasionally a fish would vault up to catch one but more often to miss entirely. The water was clear, the bottom of the lake covered in small round stones. Tufts of aquatic grasses created pockets of life where fish darted in and out.

Eli walked down to the edge of the lake and using his hands brought the water up to sample. It was cool, clear, and delicious in only the way water can be to a thirsty person. He drank until he felt full. A turtle carelessly swam unhurried. When he squinted his eyes in concentration focusing on it, a window appeared.

Young Turtle

Level 3

Non-hostile

Good, the levels are going down.

His minimap showed the turtle as a yellow indicator along with several others Eli couldn't see. Fish?

"Right about now is when I'd be asking for help AV."

Eli looked in his inventory, something he learned he had when he reviewed the in-game guide. There were 8 empty boxes. When he first opened it he wondered why he didn't have any starting gear like a sword, or knife, or bow, or anything. He concluded it was because he deferred path selection. Had I selected warrior or some martial path I would have started with some basic gear for that path.

With no knife and no bow, hunting and fishing were beyond him for now. I could probably swim out and catch the turtle, but then what? He found a dry spot to sit and pulled his leather satchel in front of him. The satchel wasn't part of his initial starting gear; he didn't find it slung over his shoulder until he enabled realistic item management in the user interface options. He reached in and pulled out his map, unrolling it in his lap. His finger traced his journey from the wolves to the lake, then beyond to the nearest village. That's where all the starting quests will be. He stood and started towards it.

***

By the time Eli reached the village, he'd heard two more hollow knocks indicating new skills: knowledge: geography and crafting. The first from just using his map to find his way around, the second from making a make-shift walking stick out of a tree branch. It had been gnarled and definitely not as straight when he started breaking the branches off it, but by the time he was done, it had gotten straighter and stronger. It was a proper walking stick now. It mystified him until he reviewed the event log.

You learned the skill: Crafting.

Crafting has increased by 1.

You created a basic staff.

Your basic staff benefits from: Natural Crafter (+1).

You have created improved basic staff.

Having an improved basic staff let him relax his shoulders. Feeling unarmed in a new world, one you already died from a vicious animal attack, he didn't realize how much stress it caused until he felt the security of the make-shift weapon in his hands. He'd briefly considered making more, but he couldn't find any longer branches and didn't want to get sidetracked.

A crafting profession would be great.

Buildings crafted of hewn stone, plastered walls, rustic beams, and blue clay tile roofs comprised the primary style of the town of Westshire. From the bush where he was observing the town, he read the placard then looked around the busy hamlet. There was central cobblestone street, well-worn by wagons, and several smaller streets that crossed and ran parallel. He saw children playing, townspeople scurrying about in a hurry, several wagons loaded with goods, a few knights on horses, the latter with slim-fit silver mail that spoke of wealth. Eli stepped from the bush and brushed himself off before heading towards the main road.

A peddler's wagon, drawn by a grey gelding, was ambling by. The peddler pulled up on the reigns as Eli stepped on the road.

"Ho there," the man smiled, his white mustache curled up and pointed towards his lively blue eyes. "You look like you could use some new shoes."

Eli looked down at the basic leather shoes he was wearing. He'd worn them less than a day, but they looked ragged and worn. He opened his character panel and reviewed his shoes.

Old Leather Shoes

1 Armor

His fingers combed through his mop of hair as he said, "Looks like you 're right." That's why I should have caught a turtle. I could have traded it for something. He looked at his inventory screen again. At the bottom of his inventory interface was a currency indicator that marked the copper, silver, and gold he had. He had nothing; not a single copper.

"I have little to trade." he thumbed open his bag, pretending to search through it. He might be penniless, but he didn't want to seem penniless. His hand felt his map. Huh.

He pulled out his map. "I've got a map, it's magical. It shows everywhere you've been."

"Oh?" The peddler's eyes gleamed as he looked at the map in Eli's hand. "Anything magical is of value. Can I see what's on it?"

"Sure, but I only recently acquired it, so there isn't much." Eli unrolled the map. The whole of the continent was sketched in, but where he'd traveled details were inked in and fully colored. The flat span of grasses he started in was called the west plains, the hills he trekked over on the way to the park were labeled The Ghenells, and the range of mountainous forest where he met his untimely end, was called Westreaches. Eli smiled when he saw the town of Westshire filled in and labeled.

"With such a map no one would ever get lost," the peddler marveled. He hopped down and straightaway pulled a bench and a selection of shoes for Eli to try. Eli tried a few before selecting a pair of mid-height leather boots.

This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Dark Leather Boots

Mind +5

+3% Movement Speed

He walked a few steps, then back, getting the feel of them. "How much are these?"

"Full price would be 22 coppers, but first-time customers always get a discount. 18 coppers for you." The peddler baited the hook and now let the price sit there.

"Oh, and for my magic map? What would you say that's worth?" Eli asked.

The peddler's face scrunched up at that, his mind working as he packed the other shoes away. Once he was done he pulled out a cloth from his vest pocket and wiped his forehead.

"I'll tell you true, were I to sell such a map I'd ask for no less than twelve silver. But since I'm not selling, but buying, I can offer you eight." The man's face looked almost pained when he replied.

Eli considered the man and his response. He could be trying to rip me off, but I am selling him my game map. For all I know he won't even be able to hold it.

"Since you're being honest with me, I'll be honest with you. I don't even know if it will let me give it to you."

"Hah, magic is funny that way sometimes," the peddler laughed but didn't seem discouraged.

Eli held the map out, and the peddler took it. While the peddler was busy inspecting the map, Eli opened his interface options and unchecked the realistic item management option, causing his leather bag to disappear. Then he opened the in-game map, which promptly displayed on his screen. He peeked over at the peddler, who was still busy holding the map up to the sun and turning it this way and that. Well, that worked. With my luck, I expected to not be able to access the map anymore. Now for the real test.

Eli rechecked the realistic item management option, causing his leather satchel to re-appear. He reached inside the bag and searched for his... there, his hand closed over the map. Holding it in hand, inside the bag, he looked back at the merchant, who was rolling the first map up. That's got to be a bug.

"Let's trade." Eli smiled. He would not scam the man out of his coin, but taking advantage of poorly written software? It was his duty as a conscientious consumer to fully investigate the extent of this issue before reporting it. Eventually.

A few minutes later Eli stood, waiving to the peddler as the man drove his wagon into town. He was humming to himself, the pleased owner of the magical self-drawing map. Eli reached into his satchel and pulled out the handful of coins that were his change; eight silver, thirteen copper. And as many magical maps as I can sell before they stop buying them. He reviewed his notifications.

You learned the skill: Haggling

Haggling has increased by 1.

You have learned the skill: Appraise

Appraise has increased by 1.

He looked up and smiled. With his new dark leather boots, he stepped towards Westshire.

***

Eli had every intention of selling a dozen maps or more, buying the best gear he could for his level, and picking up every quest as he went. But at the first scent of proper food, every other thought fled, and he started tracking the savory smells to their source. The place wasn't hard to find; The Eyrie, the largest inn in Westshire. Salivating, he entered and sat down at the bar.

The bar was solid wood, some dark-grained variety that, though chipped and scarred, still felt smooth to the touch. Behind that, on the wall, a shelf of bottles, some clear, some green, reflected the light flickering from the stone fireplace. Below the shelf of bottles was a row of tapped oak kegs, between which small wooden cubbies held mugs, each unique. There were two dozen, some dainty, some large, each distinctive. Eli looked them over. No two were alike.

Parts of the inn, and the bar where he sat, reminded Eli of the Nest. Other parts, like the collection of mugs, felt very different. He sat, his feet barely touching the footrest of the bar stool. From his stool, he looked over a plate of sausages and mashed potatoes with white gravy. Steam wafted from the hot plate smelling of smoke and spice. He picked up the knife and fork and started slicing into the sausage. The juice from the link sluiced out over the potatoes.

He glanced to the side. Two patrons, rough men, were looked at him. He watched as they returned their attention, one to a plate of food, the other to his half-empty tankard. Eli swallowed and glanced away.

He brought a forkful of potatoes to his mouth. An explosion of garlic, chives, cream, and some other green ingredient he didn't know, covered the smooth and buttery mash. Amazing!

Your health is fully restored. (+1)

You have received a temporary bonus to experience (+10%) from: O'Shea's Colcannon.

Behind the bar, the innkeeper stood. Of all the women he saw as he walked through town, the innkeeper was the only woman wearing jewelry of any kind. Her black and silver locks were pulled back into a tight bun. She wore a cranberry dress and over that a green apron. A decorative chain hung around her neck and supported a leaf pendant that rested on her exposed skin. She was older, slender, and definitely not frail. Her eyes twinkled with the life of someone much younger, and her expressions measured and precise, as though every gesture calculated to some effect.

"This is so good, thank you for this... Maam." Weird. This body, being stared at by these older people; I feel like a boy again.

"That's sweet, but call me O'Shea. I'm glad ya like it, was my husband's favorite before he passed, may the winds ferry him ever onward." O'Shea pressed her first two fingers to her forehead, then over her heart, then her lips, in a practiced ritual.

Eli stuffed another forkful into his mouth. He nodded as he ate. Being able to taste my food. These flavors are amazing! He hadn't realized how bland and flavorless his food had become. He struggled to remember the last actual food he liked. Ice cream. When I was a kid, I would take Legend to the park and get ice cream. That was over ten years ago.

Eli frowned as the realization hit him. Why put flavor in food? Only people that couldn't connect would need flavor. Everyone else could taste whatever they wanted, whenever they wanted. There were not enough people like him to warrant the expense of adding flavor to anything.

"So what do we call you?" O'Shea asked.

"I'm..." Eli swallowed his bite, then considered the question. I never named my avatar, not in the Nest, not here when I logged in. Did it automatically use my name? Eli opened his character screen and tried to find his name. Above the character screen were the words: Unnamed.

"I'm Eli..." he completed. Knock. He looked down at the event log.

Character name Eli is not available.

"I mean I'm Eligh?" He asked, purposely mispronouncing his name.

Knock. Character name Eligh is not available.

Looking around nervously he managed, "I guess I don't know who I am yet?"

"You don't remember your name? Why? What's wrong with ya?" The man with the tankard barked out in a loud voice. Silence hushed over the common room as conversations stopped and people looked over towards him. O'Shea snatched up the man's tankard before refilling it, sending a glare at him.

Feeling the scrutiny of the inn was almost enough to distract Eli from another mouthful of sausage and potatoes. Almost. He savored the bite, chewing slowly, and considered the question. He never intended to play Widesky, he was only using it to move around unhindered. To bury Legend, that was his real quest. Everything he did here, everything he would do, it was just so he could get back and fulfill the promise he made to his friend.

"Legend." he finally responded, his voice low.

"Legend?" O'Shea asked. "That's a bit of an odd name for a boy?" There were laughs around the inn, but the noise resumed, the crowd losing interest.

Knock.

Character name Legend selected.

You are now Legend.