Astraeus - Merchant’s District
Chloe headed down the nearest street until the burning slums were far in the distance. A group of drunk folk stumbled down the streets towards her, they laughed and joked like the world hadn't just gone insane.
Chloe didn't want to face them. So she slipped into an alleyway between two tall buildings. The alley was dark and quiet and with each step she took her pain faded, her hunger increased and the amulet became warmer.
The bite mark had gone from searing agony, to kinda sore and was now just really itchy.
She kept walking, but a new sense of dread had fallen over her. She felt something inside her that was beyond comprehension. It was in the smell of the people that passed her by. They smelt so good, like a Sunday roast or wood oven pizza. The thought sickened her.
Shit, I have gone mad.
There was a brief rustle of paper or leaves behind her, and the smell of fresh blood reached her nostrils. The smell drew her attention and she turned to see a thin figure crouched on the ground. The figure slowly rose up into sight. A beam of moonlight bathed the figure, and for a moment Chloe saw that the figure was a woman dressed in scarlet robes.
The scent of blood was not coming from her, but from something hidden in the shadows. The woman said nothing and made no move towards her.
Chloe staggered away from the scene and kept moving as the fear grew inside of her. She started running, and her footsteps echoed down the empty alleyway.
The alley twisted and turned and at times she heard gasps of surprise and smelt piss and stale beer, but she ignored it and kept running.
I need to find a quiet place where I can make sense of what's going on.
Her mind was racing trying to work things out, but every thought she had come back to the same answer. She had been transported to another world.
But that wasn't the worst of her problems. Her sister was missing, and she was changing into something. Something not human.
A message clouded her view.
[Hunger 4%]
“You don't need to tell me I'm hungry,” she yelled. “I can feel my stomach trying to eat its way out of my asshole.”
These messages were a real pain in the ass. They reminded her of the pop-up adverts she’d gotten whilst browsing illegal streaming sites.
She’d need to figure out who was sending the messages, but for now she shelved the thought, there were more important questions that needed to be answered.
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Chloe slowed down her feverish march as the sound of laughter and mugs clinking together caught her attention. She headed towards the sounds and as she drew nearer she saw orange light spilling out of the windows of a large building. It was a tavern, perhaps she could find a meal to satisfy her incredible hunger and quiet room there for the night. There was no point searching for Hope in the dark. She needed help, someone who knew the area well and would know about any strangers that had arrived in town.
The tavern was called the Rusty Flagon. It was an old wooden building with a red roof and white trim. A sign above the door read, 'No Weapons. No Magic'. Chloe pushed open the heavy oak doors and stepped inside.
The room was dark and cold. The air was thick with smoke and the smell of ale and sweat. The floor was hardwood planks and the tables were made from rough cut logs. All in all, it looked like a typical fantasy tavern. Something she had seen in hundreds of video games.
There were about twenty people sitting around the large round tables drinking and talking. None of them looked at her.
She hesitantly stepped towards the bar and as she did a bearded man standing behind the counter put down a mug he was polishing and flashed her a smile.
The man had short brown hair the same color as her own and a lean, muscular body.
"Hello," he said with a well practiced smile. "You look like you need a drink.”
Chloe nodded nervously and glanced around the room again, hoping to see her sister
“Josia’s the name," said the man and he extended his hand.
As Chloe shook his hand the man’s smile faded as he saw the unhealed cuts on her arm.
“What happened to you?” he asked, his soft features turning hard.
Chloe looked down at her injured arms. She hadn't thought about how people would react to seeing deep wounds that did not bleed.
She hid her arms behind her back, self-consciously. "I’m fine,” she stammered. “I'm just looking for my sister. She looks kinda like me, but she’s blonde, and she’s wearing a black witch's outfit.”
The man eyed her torn and singed clothes and shook his head, “Sorry, you are the first outsider I’ve seen today. I can offer you a bed for the night and a warm meal."
She nodded quickly and glanced around the room once again, this time she noticed that people were watching her.
Josia forced a smile, but she could tell that he was bothered by her appearance. He gestured for her to follow him. She hesitated for a moment. She wasn't sure she should be following a stranger.
“The bedroom is this way,” he said.
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Chloe nodded and bit her lip and then not knowing what else to do she followed him through a small hallway to a back room.
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The back room was lit by a single candle and had one bed sitting beside a battered dresser. Chloe looked around nervously. She could feel the anxiety building inside of her, but she gritted her teeth and did her best to push down the emotions. She needed to be brave, not just for her, but for Hope as well.
"Unfortunately this is the only room we have available tonight,” Josia said turning back to face her. “Theres a party of adventurers passing through town and they’ve booked most of the rooms.”
“Adventurers?” Chloe stammered.
“Aye, most of them come here to rest for the night after exploring the nearby ruins.” He cocked his head and looked her over once again. “You're welcome to use the room tonight, but it's five silver a night, that includes a warm meal and a bath."
“Five silver,” she breathed.
She fumbled in her pockets, but her purse was gone. Her hand found the amulet, though. She clutched it and shook her head. "I'm sorry, but I've got no money."
Josia sighed and even the forced smile faded. "This is not a charity. Why waste my time if you don't have any money.”
Chloe shifted her weight from one foot to the other and stared at her shoes.
The man said something under his breath that she didn't understand, “Lucky for you, I am in a generous mood tonight. You can have a plate of leftovers. But no money, no bed."
Chloe hesitated as she considered her options. She wanted to be out there searching for her sister, but she was so hungry it was making her sick. She’d eat something, and then she’d make a plan and find her sister.
There was a strange thudding sound coming from somewhere, and it took Chloe a moment to realize she could hear Josia's heartbeat. He seemed nervous. She caught his scent, it was musty with a hint of spiciness. It made her mouth water.
She noticed a trickle of sweat running down his neck. He saw where she was looking and wiped the sweat away with his sleeve.
[Hunger 3%]
"Food," she growled. The sound was primal and desperate, and it scared her.
Josia stared at her a moment longer, and then he shook his head and left, muttering, "Damn junkies." Under his breath.
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The food arrived a few minutes later. Josia wasn't lying when he said it was leftovers. There was a dry crust of bread on a plate surrounded by lashings of off cuts and half-eaten chunks of potato and corn.
Chloe was starving, but the sight of the food sickened her. But she needed to eat before the hunger consumed her. She picked at the food and chewed on the bread and nibbled at the meat, but the bites she took turned her stomach.
In the end, she managed to force down the whole plate of food. Her stomach groaned, and it felt like she was going to throw up.
[Congratulations: Evolution: 100%]
[New Status : Lesser Zombie]
The message surprised her so much that she fell back off of her chair and hit the ground hard.
“Hell no,” she moaned as she sat up and swiped away the message. “I can't be a zombie. What the hell is going on?”
The whole situation was overwhelming and confusing. But no matter how she looked at it, this had to be real. The room felt suffocating, and everybody was staring at her and muttering under their breath. She heard words like tainted and junkie.
She lurched to her feet and a wave of nausea washed over her. She stumbled against the table, knocking over a clay mug that crashed to the ground.
Josia approached and grabbed her arm.
"What's wrong?" he asked, sounding angry.
Chloe tried to speak, but nothing came out. There had to be something in the food, she thought. Why was the room spinning?
Shit, he’s drugged me.
She tried to pull her arm back, but instead she flung the man across the room, and he landed heavily on a table.
The room went deathly silent.
Chloe’s body shook, and she was having trouble breathing. She staggered outside and leaned against the wall.
“You don't look good?” said a beggar that was sleeping under a nearby bench.
His words made her feel even sicker. Chloe turned her back to the man and threw up on the sidewalk. She heard shouts from inside the tavern, and she knew she’d have hell to pay if they caught her. She wiped her face clean with her shirt and sprinted towards the city gates.
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The guards stationed at the city gates heard the commotion and raised their spears as she ran towards them.
She didn't slow down. A primal survival instinct had taken over her. As she got with in arms reach, she ducked under a spear and tossed one guard aside. She leapt into the air and soared higher than ever before. She slammed into the side of the towering stone wall.
She tried to grip onto the slippery side, but she was falling. She screamed in panic and as she did her nails grew. She stabbed them into the mortar between the stones, and hung there for a moment. The guards below her were shouting at her to get down. She looked down at them and then looked up and began to pull herself up the wall to the top.
How the hell did I do that?
She looked back at the terrified faces of the crowd below. She was actually scaring them. It was ridiculous. She turned her back on them and glanced at the forest in the distance. It looked just as terrifying as the city, but at least nobody was chasing her there. She took a deep breath and jumped off the other side.
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She hit the ground and kept running. The trees blurred past her as her feet pounded on the ground. It felt like hours had passed, and soon a thick haze of fog rolled through the trees and billowed over her.
She heard something moving in the bushes behind her, and she stopped and raised her hands, ready to fight. A black rabbit lopped out of a bush and stared at her.
“What do you want?” she shouted, and her voice echoed and came back to her, sounding frightened and slightly mad.
She shivered and forced down the sense of dread that was growing inside of her.
She looked around and when she looked back the rabbit was gone.
Had she imagined it? She peered into the distance, but it was hard to see through the mist. She kept moving and eventually she could make out the faint shape of a white building set upon a hill.
The fog was getting thicker and deeper. But through the haze, she saw a lamp spilling orange light through the building's windows.
[Hunger 2%]
[Warning Survival Mode Activating]
“What the hell does that even mean?” she whispered.
The fresh scent of blood on the wind drew her like a magnet. Her feet began moving on their own accord, scrambling towards the smell.
She stumbled over a stone and cut open her leg, but she ignored it. In her desperate attempt to reach the blood, she tripped over another stone and fell flat on her face.
She pressed a hand to the cut on her cheek, but there was no blood or pain. She stared up at the carved stone and shuddered when she realized that she was in a graveyard.
The mist swirled around her feet as she picked her way through the graveyard and kept moving to the house.
A sense of urgency came over her. She’d never been hungry before, and the sensation was terrifying. She knew if she didn't reach the house soon, her hunger would take over, and she would lose her mind.
She thought she heard voices, but she ignored them. She reached the door and burst inside. The floor was covered in mud and blood, and the furniture was old and broken. She slammed the door shut behind her.
[Hunger 0%]
[Survival Mode Activated]
The color drained out of the room and darkness came crashing in on Chloe’s vision. The smell of blood filled her nostrils and she let out a low, guttural moan.
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