It turned out there was a character sheet. Josh just had to close his eyes and concentrate, and he could feel a slight response deep inside, as if he was asking a question. When he opened his eyes, the sheet was floating in front of him, a minimalist transparent window that seemed totally out of place. Even though it was transparent, it completely blocked his view, blurring out anything behind it, so he was glad he’d found safe-ish place to check it out.
He was currently huddled in a shepherd’s hut, having choked down one of the rounds of dried bread as a meagre supper. He was still hungry. Also, night was falling, and the air was getting cool, but even if Josh had known how to light a fire, he wouldn’t have dared. He’d seen no sign of human activity. Everywhere had been abandoned—the fields choked with weeds, the farmhouses falling into disrepair, the wells dried up. He’d found a small stream winding its way through the woods, and just hoped that either it was clean, or that e. coli wasn’t a thing here.
He’d finally worked out where he was after coming across a road with a broken waystone. One side had pointed in the direction of Celespire, and the other to a town called Brackstone, which he remembered as being in the north.
All the distances were different. In the game version of the world you could teleport between certain points, but even if you rode from one side of the map to the other, it would only still only take a couple of hours. However, Josh had been walking for at least half a day, and he was still in the farmland around Celespire. There were a lot more farmhouses and hamlets than he remembered, which made sense. If you were making a real place out of a fantasy game, the world would have to be a lot bigger, and have a lot more people in it too.
Josh had no idea where the people were, but on the plus side he hadn’t seen any monsters either.
With no better destination in mind, he had decided to head for Brackstone, although at this rate it would likely take him several days to walk there. There was also a druid’s grove not far off, and he was keen to check that out too, since it would only involve a short detour.
Josh focused on the character sheet. The good news was that it was similar to the one in Spiralia Online. It was divided into headings: Basic Information, Physical Attributes, Magical Attributes, Senses, Knowledge, Skills, and Magic, followed by Achievements, Messages and Quests. He focused on Basic Information first.
[BASIC INFORMATION
Name:
Profession: Apprentice Plumassier
Level: 1
Total experience points: 0
(Experience available! Check your achievements to apply experience!)
Experience required for level 2: 100
Player rank: #865
Kills: 0 / Deaths: 0
Gladiator rank: #496
Outworld status: Visible
Hide outworld status to other outworlders: Yes / No (Only available below level 10)]
There were several interesting things there, and a couple of things which were of outright concern. Josh mulled over the implications, his mind racing, but eventually set it aside to consider in more depth later.
The first thing he did was turn Hide Status on, so that Outworld Status showed as ‘Hidden.’
The second thing he did was update his name to his real one, Josh Armstrong, which was simply a matter of focusing on
[PHYSICAL ATTRIBUTES
Constitution 29 | Strength 42 | Agility 24 | Speed 27 | Endurance 7 | Resilience 12 | Manual Dexterity 63 | Vocalisation 35
MAGICAL ATTRIBUTES
Power 1 | Chi 11
SENSES
Vision: 10 (Colour 11, Distance 8, Night 1) | Smell: 3 | Hearing: 4 | Taste: 7 | Touch: 8]
There were more physical attributes than in Spiralia Online, which Josh guessed was so that whatever system was in place could model the human body more accurately than in a computer game. However, there were no starting points he could apply to make himself immediately healthier or faster. That was massively disappointing. On the other hand, he was relieved to see the mental attributes were missing. While greater intelligence or wisdom would have been useful, the idea of some alien entity messing about with his brain was terrifying. That they’d added extra magical senses was unsettling enough, but at least he still felt like himself.
The levels of the physical attributes weren’t surprising. In Spiralia the base attributes of a new character—representing a healthy young person of average fitness—would be 25 across the board. The ones on Josh's character sheet were typical of an average twenty-one-year-old male who spent most of his time sitting around on his backside playing games, and occasionally went to the gym to lift weights, because that was the thing you did to attract girls.
How did you level the attributes? In Spiralia, you got a certain number of points per level which you could allocate wherever you liked, but you also got a finite number of extra points from using skills and spells. For example, if you used movement skills a lot, the game saw that as ‘training’ and increased your Endurance and Speed. If you cast spells a lot, you would get boosts to Power or Chi, depending on the type of spell. This inevitably resulted in players setting up macros that trained their attributes while they were away from their computer. The cities were often full of unattended characters running and jumping in little loops, or casting spells, or stabbing at training dummies over and over again.
Maybe it would work the same way here, except without the macros. Josh couldn’t help feeling secretly excited at the idea of being able to make himself stronger or faster with just a click. But maybe it wouldn’t be that easy.
Next Josh looked at KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS and MAGIC.
[KNOWLEDGE
Feather Folklore I: You understand the structure of common feathers.
SKILLS
Feather Fingers I: You know the basics of how to manipulate feathers into decorative objects.
MAGIC
Infuse I (feathers): You can imbue feathers with your magical essence.
Feather Feel I: You can sense nearby feathers which have been imbued with magic.]
None of it was a surprise, as he had already used or experienced the effects of each one listed. He would need to do a lot of testing, but he could already think of several things he could do with it. Limited things, granted, but they were possibilities all the same.
There were three more parts to check: ACHIEVEMENTS, MESSAGES and QUESTS. It was with a sense of anticipation that Josh expanded these menus.
[ACHIEVEMENTS
A Paltry Plume I: Well done! You have crafted your first item, basic as it was. Reward: 10xp. (apply)
The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
Royal Patronage I: You’re moving up in the world! You have crafted your first item for royalty. Reward: 250xp. (apply)
Fey Favour I: That was a lucky escape – the Queen of the Fey spared your life! Reward: you get to live. For now.
MESSAGES
Congratulations! You have arrived in the land of the Six Spires. These are dire times, when bands of unruly brigands roam the land, and Celespire has been taken by the armies of the Storm King. As a humble apprentice, the world may seem a frightening place to you right now, but have no fear, all is not lost! Seek out friends in the humble village of Leybeck.
First steps! You have enough experience points to reach level 2. Once applied, this will take effect during your next long rest.
Keep it up! You have enough experience points to reach level 3. Once applied, this will take effect during your next long rest.
QUESTS
Seeking Sanctuary: Find the village of Leybeck. Reward: 50xp.]
So the Storm King was the thing that had happened to Celespire. Presumably he was an end game boss, and therefore of no concern whatsoever to Josh. The Paltry Plume achievement looked like the same kind of reward for crafting you got in Spiralia, and Josh could guess future level ups would go, so no mystery there.
The large bonus from Royal Patronage indicated that the encounter with the Fey Queen was just happenstance, and not something the game had planned as a story hook for a new player. This theory was supported by the fact that there was no Fey Queen quest. Josh still couldn’t decide whether meeting her had been lucky or unlucky.
The single quest he did have was useless. If he was tracking his location correctly, Leybeck was now a day’s walk to the south-west. The quest system could go and die in a fire as far as he was concerned.
Finally, he focused on the experience rewards, mentally commanded them to apply, and was startled when he heard a pleasant chiming sound. He supposed he shouldn't have been surprised. That was the attraction of games after all, the auditory level up sounds were simply another way for the user interface to reward your hard work, resulting in that addictive little dopamine rush that kept you logging in time and time again. However, when the sounds were happening in his head it was suddenly considerably more ominous, not to mention blatantly manipulative. The uneasy feeling lingered, even when he checked the basic information panel:
[BASIC INFORMATION
Name: Josh Armstrong
Profession: Apprentice Plumassier
Level: 1 > 3 (pending)
Total experience points: 260
Experience required for level 4: 225
Player rank: #865]
Next, he looked at the handful of feathers in his lap. He’d collected any he came across, and now he had five—three tiny little speckled sparrow feathers, a fourth from a pheasant, and a fifth in the form of a beautifully snowy white owl feather. The only reason he knew which birds they came from was because of his Feather Folklore skill. He could barely see them in the gloom, but whenever he touched one he could tell the properties of its physical structure simply from the way it felt.
He made one of the sparrow feathers into a small ring, the pheasant into a quill pen, and the owl feather into a luxuriously curled plume for his stupid medieval hood. The second sparrow feather he pulled apart into six pieces and infused each part separately, which worked fine. He then infused the third sparrow feather, and pulled it apart afterwards. Interestingly, the imbued feather resisted, and shortly after the pieces separated, the magic faded.
The last thing Josh did was move around the shepherd’s hut, seeing how far his senses extended. It looked like he could dimly sense his enchanted feathers from about six feet away, which was less than he’d hoped, but more than he’d anticipated.
He didn’t get any experience or upgrades, but he hadn’t expected any with so few materials. Towards the end, he started to feel slightly light-headed. It wasn’t surprising that magic drained his energy, but it was disappointing that it happened so quickly.
All the while, he thought about what he could do with his skill that would actually be useful, and he’d had a couple of ideas, but he would have to wait until he reached the Druid’s Grove. The shepherd’s hut, meanwhile, seemed like the best place for him to sleep.
He kept waking up in the night. There was no bed, but some shepherd had left a pile of fleeces in the corner of the hut, which were scratchy and absolutely reeked of lanolin, but were warmer and softer than lying on a dirt floor. Despite the fleeces, he couldn’t quite get warm enough or comfortable enough, and he woke with a gasp at every little sound—a bit of loose wood rattling in the wind, an owl calling, wolves howling in the distance.
When morning finally dawned, he felt cold, tired, hungry and depressed. His muscles ached slightly, partly from walking, but also as if he’d slept in the wrong position. It almost felt like the twinges you got from growing pains.
He missed Ben and Timothy and Aunt Jools. He worried about what Ben would be thinking now—distraught, probably, not knowing whether Josh was alive or dead. Ben would have to call Josh’s parents to tell them he was missing. They were currently enjoying a cruise, one they’d saved for years to go on. They would have to interrupt their holiday of a lifetime, and would probably be flying home around now, distressed, afraid and uncertain.
There was nothing Josh could do about any of that. He squashed the feelings down as hard as he could and focused on the only thing he had to look forward to, namely his character sheet. This was probably going to be the highlight of his day so he might as well enjoy it. The moment he opened the sheet, he heard another chime in his head, this one as pleasant as the you've-got-experience chime, but with a more triumphal fanfare to it, and he couldn't help feeling a sense of achievement. He read through it while he ate his dry, tasteless breakfast.
[BASIC INFORMATION
Name: Josh Armstrong
Profession: Apprentice Plumassier
Level: 3
Total experience points: 260
Experience to next level: 225
Player rank: #865]
The rank hadn’t changed. This implied that the two other new players—the assassin and the demon—had levelled up at least as far as level 3. Maybe they had gone to Leybeck like they were supposed to. If Josh hadn't run into the Fey Queen he would probably still be level 1.
His attributes had also been updated. Maybe that explained the odd aches he’d woken up with.
[PHYSICAL ATTRIBUTES
Constitution 29 | Strength 43 | Agility 24 | Speed 27 | Endurance 9 | Resilience 12 | Manual Dexterity 63 | Vocalisation 34
MAGICAL ATTRIBUTES
Power 1 | Chi 12
MESSAGES
Start how you mean to go on! As a result of your labours, you have gained 1 point of Strength, 2 points of Endurance, and 1 point of Chi.
You have reached level 2! You now have 1 free attribute point to spend.
You have reached level 3! You now have 2 free attribute points to spend.]
Josh had been planning to put his free points in Endurance, but the increase in Chi must have come from imbuing feathers with magic. Magic was important, and he would need it for what he planned to do, so he compromised between magic and physical, putting one of his free points in Endurance, and one in Chi. The points didn’t apply immediately.
PHYSICAL ATTRIBUTES
Constitution 29 | Strength 43 | Agility 24 | Speed 27 | Endurance 9 > 10 (pending) | Resilience 12 | Manual Dexterity 63 | Vocalisation 34
MAGICAL ATTRIBUTES
Power 1 | Chi 12 > 13 (pending)
He presumed the changes wouldn’t happen until he rested again. Did he have to sleep, or would it still work if he just lay down with his eyes closed? Would meditating have the same effect? All things for him to try in the future.
He stepped out of the shepherd’s hut. The day was overcast, with a slight morning chill that still lingered. On the negative side he had no food left, no guarantee that he would find what he sought at the Druid Grove, and no reason other than general optimism that he would find helpful, friendly people in the town of Brackstone. On the plus side, he’d walked far enough the previous day that the storm clouds centred on Celespire had thinned out, and the day was noticeably lighter.
He face north, towards a distant line of spiny hills he thought must be the Lionback mountains, and started walking.