I startle awake to silence.

It takes me a full second to understand why that woke me.

Silence in a forest, even before the system, isn’t normal.

I feel the bar under my legs. I open my eyes and look around without moving my head. Silver’s gone from where he’d curled up a few meters away.

The forest is silent.

I imagine eyes peering at me from the darkness, and look to the upper right. No paranoia debuff, so this is ordinary fear I’m feeling. Sucks just as much.

Something snuffles, and I’m in a crouch, hand on my bar.

That sounded big.

My father’s voice doesn’t ring in, but I don’t need it to. I was an idiot for sleeping here. This is the price I pay for wanting to be alone more than being safe.

Something glints in the moonlight to the left. Then it’s moving at me. Big, but low to the ground. Fast.

I’m off-balance from the impact even as I try to get out of the way.

Damn, it’s fast.

My health drops close to a tenth from that gash in my side. The impression I’m left with, as I turn to track its sound, is that of a pig with tusks. A boar. One fucking large boar. [would a high pain threshold be a skill or an ability?]

I slowly spin my bar, leaving green trails of light. It’s my first time fighting in the dark with it, so I have no idea if it’s normal or something to do with the moon. The description mentioned something about Lunarium reacting to the phases of the moon.

When it comes at me again, I swing.

I only graze the outline of its form. The impact flashes and leaves a glowing gash on the side of its face, illuminating the mangy fur surrounding it. It squeals in pain and runs into the forest; the sounds diminishing until they vanish.

Good to know some monsters aren’t so stupid as to keep fighting until they die. Does that make it just an animal then? I thought boars were one of those animals that didn’t know when to quit, like badgers.

I’m not going to bitch about an easy win.

I wince as I feel around the wound. That’s going to take a while to heal, but at least, I know it will. No infection debuff, or poison. Not even a bleeding one. At least the system makes it clear when we need to worry, or not.

I carefully lower myself to the ground when the silence registers again.

Come on, I chased it away, give me a—

The snuffling is deeper, accompanied by scoffing of the ground. When I look in that direction, I don’t see the moonlight glinting off eyes. This time, I see sickly yellow eyes glowing in the darkness nearly a meter off the ground.

What are the odds that’s some creature standing on tiptoes and not—

I jump to the side, bar in hand, before it rushes me. I’m not falling for the same trick twice. The light leaks from the eyes like in a bad movie, but it lets me see that it’s twice as big as the boar I chased off. A gash from that would have hurt.

It turns and paws at the ground. I face it, spinning my bar. It snuffles and charges. I’m out of its way, slamming the bar on its side. There’s another flash of light, and where I hit continues to glow, but it doesn’t scream or run off.

Tougher hide, more hit points, some other kind of resistance? Just plain stupid? I have no way of knowing. But I get the sense that I can’t just—

I jump out of the way, roll, get to my feet and—fuck, that hurts—am sent flying by the hit. That cost me a fifth of my health, the impact that breaks the tree something like a third plus a stunned debuff with a ten second timer.

It’s great I can think clearly, because I can hear that thing running toward me, but my body’s sluggish in obeying. At least I’m holding on to my bar as I roll on my side and avoid getting trampled.

I put the bar under me and push as the debuff disappears. I’m on my feet and out of the way in time not to get hit this time. A tree comes crashing down behind me and I scan the darkness. With that noise, I have no idea where it is.

I ignore the bleeding debuff. It’s slow enough I don’t notice the drop, so it’s the lesser problem.

Come on, perception skill, help me out here.

Perception check successful

The fucking pop-up nearly cost me the dodge as I barely notice the outline coming at me through it. I thought I’d deactivated all those things!

I’m on my feet, turning and swinging my bar wide before I realize what I’m doing. The impact flashes bright on its muzzle, making the two large tusks visible as well as the wildness in those eyes.

I am not chasing this thing away.

At least the impact sends it to the side.

I follow it; the eyes are the quickest way to end this. The bar through one of them and the brain’s mush. No idea how I know that. Then it’s the throat. A proper hit will crush its windpipe.

Those are my options to end the fight in my bar.

Unless I throw my bar at it, either means I have to let it get way too close to me for my health—what’s left of it.

It runs, and I wait.

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

I don’t have to wait long. Possibly not long enough, even. I step aside, trying to stab its eye in the process, and I end up gashed as it turns its head, I hit it dead center into the forehead, there’s a flash of light, and my bar goes flying out of my hand in one direction, while I’m sent in the other.

I’m down under a fourth of my health. There’s another bleeding debuff, and this one is bright red. That can’t be good. And while I can see the glow of my bar among the trees, getting it means getting to my feet and the pain debuff’s not letting that happen.

Nothing biting to say, Dad?

How about you try not to die first?

Any ideas?

Move!

I push through the pain at the cost of willpower and I’m on my feet, using the tree for support in time to see the mad boar running at me.

I am so not getting out of the way in time.

A flash of white between us and the boar screams in pain, turning to follow Silver as he lands and bounds to the side. The fox jumps around and over it, leaving glowing white gashes in its hide. He might succeed where I—

Silver goes flying, hits a tree and drops.

The boar runs at it.

Oh, this fucking better work.

Tag, buddy, you’re it.

Strength surges through me as I wind back at the charging boar, my health and stamina bars elongate. The boar impacts me as my fist goes through its head.

You idiot. For that thing? You’re going to die for that thing?

I nearly miss the timer for my buff among all the other debuffs. I don’t have long if I want a chance at surviving this.

Guardian Tier 3 Ability selected: Healing

The Healing branch of Magic is now open to you. Each level in this ability makes increasing the spell levels easier.

Aether Guardian variation. For 500 Mana, you can cast any of the healing spells whether you know them or not. That casting does not count as learning it.

Spell Acquired: Aid, Level 1

Aid is a spell to render aid to the injured. Each application will heal 1 hit point and remove any bleeding debuffs. Each application cost 10 mana.

Nowhere near what I was hoping, but it’s what I have to work with. I shove the thing off me, end up with something in my hand, and hit myself with the spell until I’m out of mana. Other than the Bleeding debuffs vanishing, I can’t tell it did anything.

Silver approaches and cants his head at me.

“You okay, Buddy?” I groan. The spell did nothing for the pain debuff. That one’s nice and vivid red. “Sorry about the unexpected switch, didn’t have much time to think about what I was doing.”

Like that was going to help.

“Looks like it healed you. I’m glad about that. I didn’t know if that part would work for you.”

He hesitates, then takes another step toward me, and another. Each one is cautious, but then he’s next to me. He gives me a look I swear demands I make something of it, then he curls against me, not caring about the blood.

I fight the urge to put my hand on him like he’s a dog. I don’t think we’re there yet.

I close my eyes. Hopefully, there isn’t going to be another creature attacking me, because it’s going to be awhile until I can defend myself.

* * * * *

I startle awake to the sound of something crashing through the trees.

You have got to be fucking kidding me. Can’t I get a break? Silver vanishes into the darkness. My mana’s full, so I dump that into the spell. Again, I can’t see the effect, but I did regain a chunk while I slept. The pain debuff also diminished. It’s orange now, and it no longer feels like I’m ripping parts of myself off as I use the broken tree to get to my feet. I have to reach my bar before whatever’s coming reaches me. By the sounds, it’s either big or there are a lot of them.

My hand closes over my bar when I make out a voice.

“This way!”

No idea who that is. But if it’s a person, then there are others with her, a lot of them.

“Chuck!” Terry yells, and I nearly drop to my knees in relief. I was not looking forward to another fight.

I send my bar in my inventory and rest against the tree.

“Found something!” the woman yells, and I open my eyes. Light dart among the trees.

“Over here,” I say.

John is the one to reach me first. “Are you okay?” he asks, and I can’t stop the chuckle. The pain stops it quickly, though.

Then I groan in pain as Terry hugs me. He quickly backs away. “Sorry. I was so scared.”

“What are you doing here?”

Terry looks at John, Elizabeth Albert and Deloy join them.

“Did you think our argument meant I’d leave you out here to die?” John asks.

“I just asked what you’re doing here, John. I mean, how did you know to come looking?”

“You nearly died,” John said.

“How do you know?”

“The team window,” Terry says, looking at me. “Your name flashed when your health basically vanished. What were you doing out here?”

“I needed to be alone.”

“And how did that work out for you?” Albert asks.

“Good for a while, until that thing attacked me.”

“Excuse me,” a man says. “I think you’re the guy I’m supposed to be seeing to?”

The man has a lean face and glasses, the left lens is cracked.

“This is Larry,” John says. “He’s the town healer.”

“Looks like you put up a good fight,” the man says.

“Didn’t have a choice,” I reply.

“I’ve been told you don’t like being touched.”

I stare at John, suspiciousness flaring, and I fight it down. “That’s right.”

“Unfortunately, all my healing spells require that I touch my subject. Will that be okay?”

I will the paranoia away before the debuff even manifests. The ways someone could claim to help, and then use magic to hurt me, are too numerous to count. They outnumber the reasons anyone would have to help me. Especially someone I’ve never met before.

My willpower ticks down.

Why would he bother trekking through the forest? What can he know about me that would justify him doing that to hurt me? The same applies to him helping me. What is he getting out of this? What did John promise me? What am I going to end up owing this town because of him?

People can be good for the sake of being good. I know that. I’ve probably experienced it too.

It doesn’t help.

John keeps Terry from approaching. “Can we help?”

The question grounds me. John’s been with me for a while now. He’s had more than one opportunity to screw me over. Yes, he can be playing a long game, but fuck anyone can, and I’m going to go insane if I allow that to slip in. Terry’s just a kid but, and I don’t get why, he likes me. I doubt he’s the only one, but him, I can convince myself he’s too young to have ulterior motives.

Fuck, I hate being me.

“I could do with some distance.”

How the fuck am I so out of sorts with the debuff not appearing? Or is the constant drop in willpower because I’m actively fighting it? What are the fucking rules?

My breathing slows with them stepping back.

My willpower leveled out just below two-thirds.

Okay. I think I can handle this now.

“I’m ready.”

The man, Larry, steps forward and I watch him warily. When he smiles, I narrow my eyes. Did I play into his game?

“I’m not going to hurt you,” he says. Maybe the tone’s supposed to be comforting.

“I’ve heard that one often,” I reply. “Just before the pain started.”

“Sometimes, pain is part—”

“I’d rather you just got on with it.”

He nods. “You remind me of the animals I used to treat.” He places a hand on my injured side.

“You’re not a doctor?”

“Not of people, no.” He smiles at me. “Fortunately, magic doesn’t distinguish between the kind of living I’m healing. None of the town’s people-doctors survived the transition.” He whispers a few words and warmth fills where he touches. My health bar fills slowly and the pain debuff reduces some more.

“So I’m some animal to you?”

“Well, technically, we all are.” Another whispered word and his fingers move to my stomach. My jacket is ruined. “But I meant more with that look in your eyes. The wariness, the skittishness. You’re like a wild animal caught in a trap. No choice but to let someone help you, but the moment you get an opening, you’ll be gone.”

“Maybe I have reasons to be wary.”

Larry nods. “I think all wild creatures do.” More whispered words and his fingers are on another injury. My health continues to climb and I fight the urge to tell him I’m fine. That he’s done enough. The more he heals me, the more I’m going to be in his debt.

He steps away. “I think that’ll be enough. Are there any debuffs left?”

I shake my head. The pain debuff’s almost green and barely visible.

He smiles. “And if you’re worried about my bill, think of this as me paying you back for the part you played in defending my town.”

“Are you coming back with us?” John asks.

“Yeah. I think I’ve had my fill of the wild for now.”