“I need healing over here!” Lowell called, his mandibles clicking as he spoke.

Yen Tar cast Basic Heal on him, checking her MP.

MP: 20/350

“I’m almost out of Mana,” Yen Tar called to the others. “Switch to defense.”

“Got it,” Kria acknowledged, climbing a nearby tree.

Lowell activated his shield spell—a perk of being the son of a rich nobleman—and kept fighting.

Yen Tar was already in a tree, so she sat back and watched the Pekas attack Lowell’s shield. They were small white monstrosities; as cute as they were deadly.

Pekas didn’t give much Experience, but they didn’t do much damage either. They were the safest option in the lower level section of the woods. The only thing that made them dangerous was the fact that there were so many of them.

Yen Tar wasn’t ready to risk her life to grow just yet, even with the Dark Age so close.

Lowell made his way to a tree and climbed it, his shield dropping as soon as he settled on a branch. They had perfected this routine over the last few weeks; fight, shield, climb.

The Pekas hopped around the tree Lowell had climbed, chirping angrily.

This routine only worked because the little devils couldn’t climb.

“One of these days I’m going to get myself a shield like that,” Kria said wistfully, chucking a fireball at the crowd of Pekas. The monsters scattered, mostly managing to avoid the lazy attack.

“Don’t bother with this one,” Lowell said. “Go for one of the shields that aren’t visible. They last longer and don’t use as much Mana.”

“Did either of you gain a level?” Yen Tar asked. She was right on the edge of Level 10, but she hadn’t quite made it yet.

“I’m close,” Lowell said. “Just three hundred more Experience and I’ll get my first spell choice.”

“I gained two levels!” Kria said with a grin. “But I’m so far behind you two, that’s probably why.”

Kria had only joined Lowell and Yen Tar a few days ago, and they were working on catching her up. She was Level 7 now, so Yen Tar figured they should be able to get her to her first spell choice by the end of the month.

“Have you thought about what you want to pick?” she asked Lowell. Yen Tar planned on upgrading her healing spell, since her first priority was keeping herself and her party alive.

“Warrior spell choices are useless before the First Ascension,” Lowell said. “We don’t have enough Mana to use them properly. I’m going to grab whatever sounds useful for later on and keep fighting the way I have been.”

Kria laughed. “Why did you even pick Warrior? Mage seems like a better fit for you, considering how easily your father got you that shield spell.”

“I’m planning for the future,” Lowell said. “No offense, but Strength and Dexterity are going to be much more useful than Intelligence and Wisdom when… well, you know.”

That put a damper on the mood in the clearing. He was probably right. Spells and skill would be useless when the Dark Age came, but Yen Tar had chosen healer because if you wanted to grow quickly, you had to survive first.

She was putting her free points in Dexterity to try to balance it out. She didn’t think she could fight the monsters, but if she could outrun them, she might be able to at least die of old age. She held no delusions of living to the end of the Dark Age; she was born too late.

Kria stiffened, turning to look down at the Pekas. “Someone’s coming.”

They fell silent, watching tensely as a girl entered the clearing. She was younger than them by a few years at least, her coal black skin lit up by her glowing blue hair.

Yen Tar couldn’t find the girl’s name tag, meaning she was at least above the First Ascension. What was she doing in the easiest part of the woods?

The moment she entered the clearing, the Pekas turned on her, attacking all at once.

The girl squeaked and retreated several yards. Her movements were so fast that Yen Tar was only able to track them via the steady stream of expletives that flowed from her mouth.

“No! Ouch! Stop it! Give me a sec to pull out a weapon or something!” the girl snapped.

A knife appeared in her hand, and she tore into the horde, thinning their numbers at an impressive rate.

Yen Tar’s anger rose as the newcomer killed every last Peka in the clearing. She must have been at the Second Ascension at least to have killed them all that easily, or she was almost a C-10. Either way, she should have left the Pekas for people like Yen Tar, who was only a C-2 in most of her stats.

The girl looked around to make sure no one was watching her before she disposed of the evidence with some sort of acid or disintegration spell. Then she left the empty clearing, probably in search of more low hanging fruit.

Yen Tar hopped off her branch, landing on the ground with a soft thud. Lowell and Kria followed suit.

“What the hell is her problem?” Lowell snapped, his mandibles clicking. “Those monsters were obviously too easy for her.”

“And the shifty way she cleaned up those carcasses?” Kria agreed. “She knows what she’s doing is wrong and she doesn’t seem to care.”

“There’s nothing we can do about it,” Yen Tar said. “We’ll report her when we get back to the temple. For now, let’s just find another spot.”

This was the way it was on Ember, unfortunately. Players with every advantage poached every resource while the rest of the Initials were left to fend for themselves.

* * *

“Stupid bunnies. Stupid System. Stupid Game!” Rayna grumbled, stowing her dagger in her Soul Realm.

She checked her amulet, grimacing at the thousand points she lost during her run in with the rabbits from hell. She wouldn’t have used more than 20 MP if she had healed that on her own.

“There has to be a way to make this thing more efficient,” Rayna muttered, fiddling with the clasp.

No matter what she tried, she couldn’t get it open. Rayna sighed and stowed it in her Soul Realm. It was easy enough to drag out if she needed to and she didn’t want to waste all of her healing on enemies that were this weak.

“All right, let’s see what I got from that,”

You have received more than 100 messages since you last checked your notifications. Would you like a summary?

“Yeah, sure,” Rayna said.

You have killed 50 Pekas with an average level of 2.

+1,000 Exp

+1,000 Coins

Rayna sighed. Pekas gave less Experience than Robis. She pulled out her journal and jotted down this information before continuing.

You have absorbed the Essence of 50 Pekas with an average level of 2.

+2,000 Essence

You have reached your Essence Cap! To prevent Essence Poisoning, the System has siphoned off the excess Essence. You have been awarded 2,000 Essence Points as compensation for the lost Essence. Thank you for helping with the System’s energy requirements.

Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

Rayna’s back straightened. “Wait, the siphoned energy goes to the System?”

Yes. Rather than waste the extra Essence, the System collects it and awards the player Essence Points in exchange, which can be used in the Essence Store (available after the first plateau).

“Yeah, I don’t care about the points right now. Is there a way to transfer Essence to the other System?”

This could help with Lord Emery’s plan to stop the Dark Age. She couldn’t absorb enough Essence by herself, but she could bring in three times the amount of Essence that a normal player could. That had to count for something.

Your query is ambiguous, to what other System are you referring?

“The other System,” Rayna repeated, struggling to remember the phrasing that the Essence System had used. “The alternate System that I was using before I was reinitialized.”

The alternate System has a unique energy pool within the larger energy banks. It cannot be accessed without the Administrator’s permission.

“So ask him,” Rayna said. “He’ll probably say yes.”

Please explain your desire to access the other System’s energy pool. This action does not seem to have any potential benefit.

“The other System is hemorrhaging energy,” Rayna said. “The Administrator is struggling with basic upkeep. If I can directly contribute to his energy pool, I might be able to help him get control of the situation. There are millions of lives on the line.”

Probably more even. Rayna wasn’t sure what the population of Ember was.

Rayna’s System was quiet for a long moment.

I have no information regarding the state of the alternate System. Please explain the situation in more detail.

Rayna told the System everything she knew about the situation on Ember. She also spent some time explaining the situation with the Chosen and how she got there from Earth. Every now and then, the System would interrupt her with a question, which she would answer before moving on.

The conversation lasted an entire hour.

At the end of it, Rayna was almost certain that the System’s tone had shifted drastically, even though all she was getting were words on a screen.

I have verified your information. The situation is indeed concerning. I am attempting to contact the Administrator of the alternate System. This could take some time.

Rayna waited, tapping her leg impatiently.

Quite some time. I recommend you find something to do in the meantime.

Rayna stood. “Okay, I’ll go hunt something. Can you turn off pop-ups while I’m fighting?”

Understood. Please remember to absorb the Essence of the monsters you kill. The Essence gain is significant.

“Will do.”

Rayna couldn’t help but wonder why the rest of the world wasn’t using this System. It was way more convenient than the alternate version, though perhaps that was because there was only one registered player. Would this AI be as scatterbrained as Eldar if it had a few billion players to look after?

Distant shouting caught Rayna’s attention, and she crouched, pulling her dagger.

“Igh wer helivar veran!” a man shouted, an odd click to his voice.

Rayna frowned. They weren’t speaking English? What happened to her telepathic translation?

As she neared the other players, the words morphed into something she could understand.

“I’m running low on Mana, switch to defense,” a woman shouted.

My ability has a certain range. That’s good to know.

Rayna didn’t have free hands to pull out her notebook, so she would have to experiment with her range later.

She reached the edge of a small clearing and peered around a tree at another pack of Pekas.

In the middle of the pack, a man sliced away, his shiny shield keeping the little monsters at bay. He was one of the most unsettling races that Rayna had seen so far. His skin was a blackish purple and he had six extra eyes spread out on his forehead. From the sides of his mouth, mandibles curled around, clicking every time he spoke.

“We should go for something stronger than Pekas,” the man said. “I’m getting tired of waiting three days to gain a level.”

“Not all of us have a shield,” a girl said from a nearby tree. “I won’t even be able to help if we go for something stronger.”

Rayna thought she was a child at first, but upon closer inspection, she realized that the woman was just very small, like someone had zapped a woman with a miniaturization ray that shrunk her down to the size of a cat. Her name tag read ‘Kria Iklan’.

“I won’t be able to keep up either, if you start getting hurt faster than you are now,” another woman said. Her name tag read ‘Yen Tar Leena’.

The man was a few levels higher than the other two, who were close to Rayna’s level. Seeing how much they were struggling with the Pekas, however, they were probably in lower categories. Should Rayna help them? Would that be unwelcome? She didn’t know what the fighting etiquette was on Ember.

“Lowell!” Yen Tar snapped. “Your shield is about to drop, switch to defense.”

“Right!” Lowell ran toward the nearest tree, but he tripped before he was even halfway there. The rabbits covered him in a mountain of white as his shield dropped.

“Lowell!” Yen Tar screamed.

Rayna raced out of her hiding spot, shouting to get the Pekas’ attention. They took the bait, leaving the bloodied Lowell on the ground. Rayna cast Basic Heal on him a few times before turning her attention back to the rabbits trying to maul her ankles.

They didn’t take long to kill—they were just as easy as the first set—but she had to keep herding them away from the unconscious Lowell, which proved to be more of a challenge than she was expecting.

By the time she killed the last Peka, Yen Tar was already kneeling next to Lowell, holding a glowing hand over a wound on the man’s head that Rayna’s Basic Heal hadn’t quite taken care of.

“Thank you for intervening,” Yen Tar said, not looking at Rayna. “That could have been a disaster.”

Rayna nodded. “Sorry for stealing your kills.”

Yen Tar glanced around at the bloody clearing. “Can you deal with the bodies?”

Rayna frowned. “Deal with them?”

If she was alone, she would have just absorbed their Essence, but she was trying to keep that ability under wraps for now.

“We saw you earlier,” Kria said. “When you killed the other pack of Pekas and dissolved the remains. Can you do that again so we don’t attract more monsters?”

Rayna blushed. She apparently needed to work on her stealth, but at least this gave her a cover story for absorbing Essence.

When she was done dealing with the Pekas she returned to Lowell, who was now sitting up.

“What happened?” he asked.

Yen Tar slapped him on the shoulder. “You almost got yourself killed is what happened! Do you still think we should go find stronger targets?”

Lowell flinched. “I meant after that.”

“The girl from earlier saved you,” Yen Tar said with a frown. “And you’re lucky she was here at just the right time. You need to keep a better eye on your cooldowns. You’re five levels above me, I shouldn’t have to remind you!”

Lowell blinked, seeming to notice Rayna for the first time. “The poacher?”

Yen Tar slapped him again.

Rayna tamped down on her annoyance, forcing her voice into a neutral tone. “I haven’t poached anything. Well, I made a poached egg once, but that doesn’t count.”

“This area is for Initials, though,” Lowell said, either missing or ignoring Yen Tar’s death glare. “What are you even doing here?”

Rayna was about to tell him that she was an Initial—the broken name tag was starting to get annoying—when something large pinged her senses.

Rayna lifted her dagger, looking around frantically for the source.

Lowell opened his mouth to speak, but Yen Tar slapped her hand over it, nearly stabbing herself on his mandibles. She was staring at Rayna, her body tense.

Rayna ignored them as she finally pinpointed the direction of the monster.

Rayna’s blood turned to ice. Eight ruby eyes stared back at her, glowing against a great black shadow. The shadow unfurled itself, growing to the size of a small house as the spider rose to its full height.

[Arachne — Level 3]

This was what was in the clearing in the Obsidian Forest? Except that Arachne had been Level 12. How was anyone supposed to fight something this big? The spider bounced up and down, staring Rayna down.

She didn’t move a muscle. Should she run? The spider would probably go after Lowell and Yen Tar.

“What in System’s name is an Arachne doing here?!” Kria hissed. “There shouldn’t be anything above a C-3 in this area!”

“Don’t make any sudden moves,” Yen Tar said in a low voice. “I hope you have some experience with high-category monsters.”

It took Rayna a second to realize that Yen Tar was talking to her.

“I killed an Ursivul once,” she said. “On accident…”

Yen Tar frowned. “That’s not funny.”

Rayna adjusted her grip on the knife. “So, if we stay absolutely still, will it go away?”

“Not likely,” Lowell said. “Which one of us has the most Dexterity?”

“Her, probably,” Yen Tar said, subtly nodding at Rayna. “How much do you have?”

Rayna frowned. “Sixty-eight. 340 if you factor in my C-level.”

Yen Tar’s eyes widened. “How are you that low? You fight like a warrior-type Class.”

“I’m Level 9!” Rayna hissed. “My name tag’s broken!”

Yen Tar’s shoulders drooped. “We’re dead.”

“Would you people stop giving up before the fight even starts?!” Rayna snapped, raising her voice higher than she meant to.

The Arachne hissed, lunging at Rayna.

She ducked under the attack, running through the spider’s legs. It circled the clearing to reorient itself and ran after Rayna.

“You can’t outrun it for long! Find somewhere to hide! We’re going to go find help!” Yen Tar yelled.

The spider glanced at her briefly before continuing its pursuit of Rayna.

“Why is everything on this stupid rock trying to kill me?” Rayna shouted in frustration, running away from the clearing. She remembered seeing a few caves nearby. If she could find one small enough, the Arachne wouldn’t be able to follow her inside.

Leaves crunched under the monster’s feet as it chased her, its red eyed gaze never leaving its prey.

Rayna searched her Soul Realm for anything useful. What I wouldn’t give for an oversized can of bug spray right now!

Rayna spotted another Arachne in front of her, skidding to a stop so suddenly that she almost got trampled. She ran under the first Arachne’s legs as the two monsters collided.

The first monster screamed in fury, kicking the newcomer in the face. Rayna took their moment of distraction to run around them, heading for the rock face.

She was so close! She just had to make it a few more yards.

An Arachne—Rayna wasn’t sure which one—screeched and landed on the ground in front of her.

Rayna screamed, falling backwards and hitting her head against a tree branch.

Pain reminded Rayna that she wasn’t wearing her amulet.

Rayna pulled her amulet out of her Soul Realm and tried to put it on, but one of the Arachne’s legs swiped at her, scratching her face and sending the artifact flying.

“No, no, no!” Rayna shouted, rolling away from the next attack. She couldn’t lose that! It was her only safety net in fights like this! Why had she taken the damn thing off?

Unable to get past the Arachne, Rayna sprinted away from the potential safety of the caves. She was at a loss for what to do. She couldn’t climb a tree; the Arachne were too tall. She couldn’t keep running under them, they were getting more creative with their attacks. Eventually, one of them might just plop down and squish her into paste. All she had to fight with was her knife and her teeth.

Her teeth were a last resort. She was not interested in tasting Arachne right now.

The deeper she ran in the woods, the thicker the trees got. The Arachnes behind her screamed in frustration as they skittered through the narrowing gaps.

Rayna’s head throbbed in time with her feet. Her heart thudded so loudly in her chest that she couldn’t even hear the pursuing monsters.

It wasn’t until Rayna herself was having trouble squeezing through the trees that she realized it was because the spiders were no longer following her.

Rayna leaned against a tree, the sweet scent of pine needles filling her nostrils as she sank to the ground. Her eyelids drooped and she fought to stay awake. There was something she was supposed to do, wasn’t there?

She passed out before she could remember what it was.