Ilos Part 5 <old>

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I’m quickly reaching the end of what I have written so far (much faster than I thought I would really) and while I will attempt to continue posting every week, I’m not sure I will be able to with all the work I need to do for classes. Anyway, I already have part 6 done, so not to worry about that, but from there on? We’ll see haha.

Edit: I've added a picture to give you a rough idea of what Aria looks like, hopefully it helps.

As usual, comments are highly appreciated!

NOTE THAT THIS IS THE OLD VERSION, WHICH I AM KEEPING ON HERE TO SAVE THE COMMENTS (and I don't know how to delete it -.-).

THE EDITED VERSION IS POSTED AND THIS OLD VERSION CONTAINS NOTHING NEW TO THE STORY.

-Tas

 

 

 

Part 5

 

 

Ilos, Day 1

 

I caught up to the boy just as he was entering Riskmarl and stomped up to him, grabbing his sleeve and pulling him around to face me. “You’re deliberately trying ditch me aren’t you! I beat you to the North Gate; you’re supposed to take me along with you!” I glared up at him, brushing my black hair out of my face again and poking him with a finger for emphasis.

He stared down at me as if he was looking at an annoying little bug. "I have hardly the patience to drag along some inexperienced little girl. If you wish to follow you will have to keep up on your own. Sad that looks and youth aren’t always enough to keep yourself alive, isn't it?"

“I- You- I know exactly what I’m doing you jerk! And- and looks and youth?! I took on that wolf just as well as you did!” I poked him again for emphasis, hard. “And I’m NOT A LITTLE GIRL!”

My shouting had drawn the attention of a couple of villagers that were near the outskirts of Riskmarl, and I felt my face flush red when I saw them staring. I closed my eyes for a moment and took a deep calming breath. “Look, I’m Aria. You help me do ‘The Lazy Shepherd’ and get my quarterstaff, and I’ll be able to kill things just as fast as or faster than you can. Then I’ll be able to help you do all of the quests here a lot faster than if you did them on your-“

“I’m not interested in a partner.” He cut in, then turned and walked off.

“Rrggg.” I stomped the ground, glaring at his back hard enough to put holes in it. There was no way I could do ‘The Lazy Shepherd’ on my own just yet without a quarterstaff, and I didn’t have the money to purchase one. “Stupid jerk.”

I stomped the ground again for good measure, then stalked off after him, “Can you at least tell me your name?”

"Names are a valued commodity in this world where everyone has tossed aside their former selves. I would tell you mine as soon as I'd part with all the coin my coffers could ever stash, and if that is unacceptable to you feel free name me as you wish. My name, my true name, is nothing you shall ever know."

I frowned; surprised that he would refuse to even give his name as well as from his oddly formal speech patterns. "Well I can't just keep calling you 'boy' and it'd be rude to name you 'jerkface'..." I trailed off. “Why am I questing with this guy again?” I muttered under my breath.

We headed to the inn, and I purchased the cheapest food and drink they had using most of the rest of my money: some bread and water. You still got hungry and thirsty in Ilos just like you did in the real world, though you didn’t have to go to the bathroom and you couldn’t ever die from dehydration or hunger. Despite it being unnecessary, trying to fight while you felt like you were starving was immensely difficult, so everyone ate and drank at regular intervals.

We ate in silence, him also just having bread and water, and then I followed him out to do some of the quests around town.

‘Quests’ are usually just things that NPCs need done that they either can’t, won’t, or don’t feel like doing themselves, so they hire out players, or ‘champions’ as they’re known in Ilos, to do these tasks for them. Each village has plenty of NPCs that need things done for them, and in return for completing these tasks, champions are rewarded with some combination of items, equipment, and coin, as well as the most important thing right now: experience.

As expected, all the quests we did were easy for a pair of experienced players, though I felt a bit useless without my quarterstaff. I simply didn’t have the skill needed to use the sword I had effectively, and it grated that it took so much longer for me to kill things. The feeling of uselessness was mitigated slightly by how much faster I could do ‘gathering’ quests with my increased agility, but still...

I still didn’t get why we couldn’t just do ‘The Lazy Shepherd’ first so I could contribute in quests where we weren’t just gathering items, and since there was no answer forthcoming from the silent guy I was following, I ended up just muttering implications under my breath.

Of course I ran out of things to say to myself after about an hour, so I settled into a dignified silence (I was not pouting), broken by occasionally asking my partner for his name. He seemed to be tolerating my presence, but only because he couldn't find a way to be immediately rid of me.

Finally we came to the NPC that gave out 'The Lazy Shepherd', the owner of a clearing in which he kept livestock. The quest involved protecting said livestock from waves of monsters because the shepherd boy who the owner had hired had fallen asleep and didn't put out the special scent bags that kept the predators away.

My companion turned to look at me as before we approached. "Did you know that the musical aria is performed by a soloist? Your name suits you as much as those monsters suit the sheep. You'll have your quarterstaff, girl, but Masso1 is a more fitting name for someone so stubborn."

I scowled. "Hey! I can take care of myself perfectly fine! Just... Not yet..." I felt my face flush, and I lowered my head, unable to meet his eyes. I'm probably slowing him down, but I can't do this on my own in this body! At least not yet. "I can't believe he called me a rock..." I muttered. Hurray for Italian classes so I can understand when someone insults me.

Suddenly I was angry rather than embarrassed. I had gotten higher in the beta than he had! I had more knowledge, more practice, and more experience than he did! I didn't have to take this! I looked back up, glaring into his purple eyes. "I'll take that stubborn crack as a complement. I poked him in the chest with my finger, and not lightly. "And if you're so knowledgeable about names, how about you pick one for yourself so I don't have to start calling you something like... Stulte2."

Not even deigning to respond, he simply turned and began walking towards the owner of the clearing to talk to him about taking on the monsters. I growled to myself, but followed, putting on a good face for the NPC and trying to be polite.

The quest wasn't really that hard, it just required the player to protect both the shepherd boy who was trying to place the scent bags to keep the monsters away and also keep the livestock from getting killed, a task not easily done solo. Waves of monsters came to attack, but this early on the Ilos mainland, they only had one, sometimes two kinds of attacks, and were easy to deal with. I still felt like I was slowing my companion down and not contributing my share because I simply didn't have the skill with a sword necessary to quickly kill our enemies the way he could.

After we successfully protected the shepherd boy, we went to talk to the owner of the clearing again, and he gave us each a few coins and a well-used quarterstaff. It was of decent quality but old, polished smooth by hands and long use. It had a faint shine, was the same moderately dark wood of the trees surrounding the village, slightly taller than I was, and thin enough that even my small hands could use it.

A feeling of relief came over me and I hugged the thing to my chest. Having a quarterstaff just made me feel so much safer and more confident with the knowledge that I could easily protect myself with it. Of course, that feeling only lasted a moment until I realized that my companion was walking away and I hurried to follow.

Now that I had my weapon of choice I didn't need to rely on the boy, but questing was faster and more efficient with two and I wanted to repay him for allowing me to tag along. I knew I had been slowing him down, essentially stealing money and experience from him in order to advance myself more quickly.

After thinking about it for a few more quests, I finally took my starter sword out of my inventory and stopped him with a hand on his arm. "Hey, do you… want this?" I asked, my face heating and turning down in embarrassment as he turned to look at me. "I mean, there's no sword upgrades worth it in this area, and this one is better than your second sword..."

"I have no need for your sword Masso. Our relationship is nothing but temporary and I will see it end soon." He replied, shaking his head slightly.

My head snapped up and my eyes widened a bit. "You... Don't want it?" I asked as I lowered the proffered weapon. He doesn't want a free equipment upgrade? "You have to be the weirdest gamer I've ever met."

He turned and started walking away before I recovered. "And my name is Aria, not Masso!"

-----

As the sun began to set the first few other players began to trickle into the village. Most had a confident look about them, as if they were repeating actions they had done before, but none had the presence of the companion I was already traveling with. I could simply tell that they were much less skilled by the way they walked and handled their weapons and movements.

He still wouldn't tell me his name, which was somewhat annoying, but he had stopped excluding that overly patient air like he was dealing with a complete annoyance and was more or less just ignoring me at this point. Though to be honest, I actually preferred the silence to the reactions I knew I would, and was starting to, get from the other players. I mean, I looked like a kid! And a cute female one to boot! I knew if they saw me they would probably think I was a burden, an object of pity, or worse, attractive to them.

Unfortunately, I had caught more than a few looks at myself in the reflections in the glass around the village, and could easily see the image in my mind’s eye. I now had the appearance of a cutely pretty girl with long black hair and golden eyes with a rather slight build. If I stood higher than 4’10” or weighed more than 105 lb I’d be surprised. Even though I was actually 21, I looked in my older teens, possibly even as young as 16 if you looked at my face from the right angle (which, unfortunately, was from above). My long midnight-black hair reached down to my lower back, and kept getting in my face until I got the trick of tucking it behind my ears just right. The darkness of that hair set off the yellow-gold eyes I had now, making them seem even brighter and more striking.

pre-necklace normal.jpg

To avoid the other players, I needed to stay with the guy I was currently following despite the fact that we didn’t exactly get along. Despite calling me ‘girl’ all the time, he didn’t actually treat me all that much like the diminutive girl I looked like. He ignored me for the most part, but he also didn’t look at me in that weird way the other male players and even the villagers did. I got the feeling that he probably wouldn’t have treated me much different had I been Cariss instead of Aria.

I reached out and put a hand on his arm, giving it enough pressure to get his attention and then quickly removing it. “We should do the night quests together; these guys aren’t exactly up for it I don’t think.” He didn’t reply though he seemed to be thinking, so I tried to come up with something that would make him agree. “I have some potions I haven’t used and I can do some basic healing magic to deal with the area of effect attacks of some of the monsters around here.”

He finally nodded, "We will do what quests we can tonight but I plan to be in the next village by morning. If the lack of sleep is a problem you are free to stay behind."

I shook my head, my black hair flowing disconcertingly with my movements. "Not a chance, you're stuck with me for a while yet. Just by looking at the others I can tell you're the most skilled player here, and a little tiredness isn't going to stop me from staying with someone so good. Besides, you helped me get my quarterstaff; I at least owe it to you to get an equipment upgrade of your own."

 

There was a little bit of time before the sun fully set, so we stopped by the inn again to get some more bread and water. Unfortunately there were more than a few players here now, and it seemed like all of them turned to look at me as I walked in the door. Of course, looking at a newcomer was natural and I was used to it, having dealt with it for all my life in school classrooms. What I wasn’t used to was the way their gazes lingered as I went to go purchase my food, and seemed continuously drawn back to me as I ate with my companion at a table. I hated the attention, even if I knew exactly why I was receiving it.

Female players were relatively rare in Ilos because most people kept true to their real world gender and there were simply more guys that played video games than girls. In most games there would be a significant number of female avatars, regardless of the player’s true gender, but very few could handle the massive changes of a gender switch in Ilos and stuck to their own. All the attention I got was because I looked like a girl, and a young and pretty one to boot.

I wondered briefly if there was anyone else who had got their appearance switched around. It would be nice to know I wasn’t alone in all of this mess, but I really wouldn’t wish this on anyone. Everything was wrong with this. I shouldn’t be being stared at, I shouldn’t be short, and I certainly shouldn’t be looked down on like everyone was doing.

Twice it happened that a player started to approach me, concern written on his face, and I had to glare with those yellow-gold eyes of mine until he backed down. I didn’t want their concern, I didn’t want their help, and I didn’t want their pity.

Suffice it to say it was an… uncomfortable… meal, and I was glad to leave.

As we went to go accept the night quests from the various NPCs, I forced my face to form a pleasant smile and was as polite as possible, just like I had been doing all day when dealing with people that weren’t players. It paid to be polite, and I wasn’t going to take it out on the Ilosians just because I didn’t like my lot.

I finally felt like I was a significant benefit when we started with the quests involving gathering materials as I seemed to have much better night vision than my companion did. It was easy to spot the small stacks of wood the forester had left out that day, and the herbs the village Wisdom needed to cure a fever weren’t difficult to see either. I was also able to pull my weight a lot better now that I had my quarterstaff and lagged only slightly behind when killing monsters, unable to deal the damage my partner’s edged weapons could.

We completed the quests we had picked up in very good time and headed back to the village to find more. After going to the forest and back three or four times, the village Elder, introducing himself as Catre, approached us and asked for our help with a matter the village as a whole was having trouble with.

It seemed a large bear - the Grizzled Grizzly - had been killing livestock, destroying equipment and property, and generally causing a major drain on the people. He explained that the hunters had been attempting to find and kill the beast, but because it only came out at night they had been unable to as they couldn't venture far from the village for fear of being attacked by the dangerous monsters that inhabited the forest. As we accepted the quest, he also told us that there was another way to kill the Grizzly without having to fight it directly. If we could find and kill a Sickly Boar we could use its blood to poison the bear's den and Catre would count the quest as complete.

We turned in the other quests we completed and then headed back into the forest. My companion had not spoken another word since we started the night quests and while he seemed to be fairly knowledgeable about the quests around here, I wanted to make sure he knew everything with this one.

"I'm not sure how much you know about this quest, but you get different rewards depending on how you kill the Grizzly. If you use the poison the elder gives you a Tiny Quick Gem, otherwise we will get a pair of Comfortable Traveling Boots each. The poison would be easier, but having the Boots would significantly reduce our travel time. Besides, while Quick Gems are always useful to have, I could really go for some boots that fit better than these things do.” I kicked the heel of one shoe with the toe of the other.

Being able to access a small item from a gem without going through the inventory screen would be handy, but if we end up doing the amount of traveling I think we are going to, the run speed boost the Comfortable Traveling Boots give us is going to be a huge boon.

He considered for a moment longer, then replied. “We clear the mobs around the Grizzly quick as we can before aggroing the beast. Keeping ahead of the crowd is more important for now.”

We avoided the aggressive monsters in the areas much as we could, searching the forest for the Grizzled Grizzly, but we couldn’t get hide from all of them. After a few fights, I reflected that this was probably a good thing. I was significantly out of practice with my quarterstaff, and with the new body I had I needed to adjust some of the forms to make them usable again. Most of which involved creating extra room so I wouldn’t brush the protrusions on my chest or my comparatively larger hips. It took a bit, but with each adjustment I relaxed a little bit more, and my strikes began to flow again rather than jerk.

It really was nice to fight with a quarterstaff again. I slipped into the Stillness each encounter now, dancing as much as fighting, the feeling of unease with my new form unfelt just like every other emotion. I would have said I even felt happy, but even that emotion was muted to the point where it was unnoticeable while in the Stillness.

The only trouble with this forest at night was that there were slimes3 that would explode when killed, damaging everything nearby. The pair of us were quick enough that we could get away from most of the effect, but not all of it. I began to use Kasi to keep the damage down, periodically healing us, but we had to use a few potions while we searched as well.

After around an hour of looking, we finally found our quarry. It was a huge thing, as tall as I was when it was down on four paws, and had numerous scars and places where the fur no longer grew in evenly. Avoiding it for now, we quickly began clearing the area around it of any monsters we could find. Unfortunately, there were a lot of them, and as we started killing the last, the first ones we killed began respawning. We simply didn’t have enough damage, due to lack of exp, to kill all of the monsters in the area off quickly enough to only have to fight the bear.

I glanced at my partner, meeting his eyes, and in silent agreement we finished off the enemies we were currently fighting and moved to attack the Grizzly. I slipped into the Stillness, my mind able to process what information I had without the stress of battle playing in. The bear had four different attacks, double that of any other monster in the area. When it was on four paws, it would bite, which needed to be dodged, or slash with one of its paws, which could be either dodged or deflected. After taking some damage it would stand on its hind legs and roar, aggroing all nearby monsters and giving off an imposing presence that most players would react to with fear, but it would also expose the most vulnerable areas of its body: the belly and neck. After roaring, it would slash down with both paws, which due to the power would cause significant damage even if parried and therefore must be dodged.

As expected, the Grizzly slashed at us as soon as we entered its range, its paw only a blur as it drew a path where our midsections should have been. I was already above the attack, and my partner had slid under it, cutting with his blades as I brought down my quarterstaff with the weight of my fall on its head.

Our counter-strikes together were enough to create a Stun4 effect, and we began attacking as fast as we could. I was slightly to the right of the monster’s head, and began striking at its eyes and ears, both sensitive points, while my black haired companion attacked its left side.

As the Stun effect expired, the beast lunged at me, attempting to close its jaws on me, but I had already moved, and it caught only air. My role was to attract the Grizzly’s attention, keeping its focus on me while my partner dealt the real damage to its flank. By striking at the eyes and ears, the monster identified me as the most damaging target and continued to attack me. Because of my smaller stature and greater agility, I could easily avoid any damage it tried to do to me.

After a short time, the Grizzly reared up on its back paws and drew in a breath to roar. In unison, both of us attacked at its exposed weak points, him at the belly and I at the neck as the windpipe was more vulnerable to blunt damage than the guts were. Despite the attacks to its throat, the bear still let out a loud roar and began to slash down on us, making us roll out of the way.

The ground seemed to shake with the force, and the bear’s paws made deep imprints in the ground where they hit. Rustles sounded all around us as the monsters of the forest responded to the Grizzly’s roar, rushing towards us. There were two, six, nine of them that appeared, and I swore under my breath. There must have been more respawns.

We broke from our engagement with the bear and attacked the adds5, performing the same roles as before.

Ci!” I shouted, closing my eyes and throwing up a hand with my palm open, creating a bright ball of light. My eyelids turned red to my vision, almost as if I were facing the sun itself. The orb only lasted a few seconds, but it was enough to draw the attention of all the monsters in the area as well as severely damaging the night vision of any who looked at it directly.

As the person with the lesser damage output, it was my job to keep the attention of the enemies so my companion could focus on taking them down one by one without worrying about being attacked from behind. As fast and agile as I was now, I was still inhabiting a body I hadn’t even had for a full day yet, and the small mistakes in movement I was making started to add up with the number of attacks coming my way.

Despite the Stillness, I could still feel the fear of a heated and dangerous battle. With the large disadvantage in exp I was working with, it was sure that if I took a single solid hit I would be thrown off balance enough that I would be almost instantly killed. So I danced around the clearing like a madman (or madwoman I suppose), dodging what I could, parrying the heavy attacks I knew I couldn’t, and taking what damage I had to from the glancing attacks. I used everything I could to keep out of reach: I kicked off of trees, jumped over heavy foliage, slid through leaves to kick them up in the air, and used the monster’s bodies to block their allies. I felt like I was in the air more than I was on the ground.

Even glancing attacks caused a significant amount of damage over enough time, and by the time there were only two monsters other than the Grizzly left, my vision was starting to grow hazy, a sure sign that if I took many more hits I would start to lose consciousness. I was bleeding from numerous cuts and hadn’t had time to grab a potion from my belt, my health deteriorating without having to be directly hit now.

However, all of that was distant in the Stillness, just knowledge, what mattered was that I continue to hold the monsters attention until my partner could take them out. If it were any of the other players I had seen back at the village that were with me I would have been killed already, but the skill and sheer damage output of my partner was keeping us alive.

He killed off the last two adds, and we could finally turned our attention back to the Grizzly. I hid behind a tree to gain enough time to drink one of the health potions I had in my belt, then began attacking again. If I was hit, even slightly, the potion’s healing effects would cancel, but I knew the bear’s attack patterns well enough that I wasn’t worried. A crawling sensation moved across my skin as the cuts I had accumulated began to knit together and disappear. I still struck at the monster’s face as often as possible, continuing to hold its attention.

I had little attention to spare, but what I did have I used to watch my partner. He was a dervish, his two blades blurring with speed as he cut deeper and deeper into the Grizzly’s flank. The bear did one last hind leg stand, drawing in breath to roar again, but between my quarterstaff hitting its neck and my partner’s blades cutting into its belly, the monster only gave out a small groaning sound before falling to the ground with a massive thud.

Strength coursed through my body as the experience we gained from the fight was applied to us. That feeling was the only way to judge what kind of experience was gained, and by the rush I was feeling, it was quite a bit.

I twirled my quarterstaff before holstering it on my back, then stretched with my arms over my head. “Good job! That was a tough fight.” I smiled at my partner as he was wiping his blades off on the Grizzly’s corpse.

As I was starting to realize was normal for my mysterious companion, he said nothing, only glancing at me without expression before turning back to looting the Grizzly and the other monsters we killed.

We headed directly back to the village using the compass to guide us. The compass was a holographic-type screen just like the inventory, appearing when a player put their index fingers and thumbs of both hands together to form a rough circle. A normal compass would then appear in the empty space and could be modified by simple mental focus to show the direction of any place you had already been to.

I cast Kasi again as soon as I had enough mana, and drank another health potion to heal the rest of my injuries from the battle. Traveling back to the village was uneventful as we were successful in moving quietly by any monsters we encountered along the way. We could have just run through the forest, but unlike most games, enemies didn’t stop following you unless you killed them or they lost sight of you for a significant time. Most monsters were also faster than players were, and would also destroy buildings and kill NPCs if led to them, breaking quests and possibly permanently removing an entire village from Ilos.

When we arrived back at the village of Riskmarl, we were greeted by Catre, the village Elder who had given us the quest.

I bowed my head in greeting and smiled at him, still buoyant from the recent victory. “We’ve killed the beast Elder Catre, your village will no longer be bothered by it.”

He smiled, “Thank you champions. Please, take these for your troubles. I know they’re not much, but we have little else to offer.”

In each hand he held out a pair of Comfortable Traveling Boots, which I gratefully accepted, swapping out my rather badly fitting starting shoes immediately and placing them in my inventory to sell later. I sighed happily, wiggling my toes in the soft interior of the boots that reached up almost to my knees, fitting snugly, then bowed to Catre. “Thank you very much Elder, these will help us greatly.”

I glanced up at my companion, who had already swapped his boots as well, meeting his eyes, and in silent agreement we turned to go.

“Aria, a moment more of your time.”

I stopped in my tracks, turning back to Catre. He called me by name?

He walked the few steps separating us, then bowing, he spoke. “Aria, you’ve been so kind to us. Please, take this with you as well; we have no use for it here.”

I looked to see what he was giving me and couldn’t stop a gasp. Proffered in his outstretched hand was a small sky-blue gem, something I recognized immediately, but had never expected to see on the Ilos mainland. The Tiny Spell Gem glinted softly in the torchlight illuminating us, a rare treasure indeed.

Like a Quick Gem but for magic, a Spell Gem could be used to store a certain amount of mana in the form of a spell. In a world where magic was by and large the strongest force to be reckoned with, a Spell Gem was among the most sought after treasures.

I reached out and gently took it from his open palm, clutching it in my hand as I bowed deeply in the most respectful Ilosian way: one leg crossed in front of the other, bent at the waist with both arms held out straight to the sides. “Thank you for this amazing gift Elder Catre, I’m honored you would give me such a thing.”

He shook his head, smiling down at me. “The honor is all mine, thank you for helping us and being so kind, too many champions simply ignore us, or treat us as if we are merely objects. Now it is late, and weariness weighs heavily on these old bones. A good night to you Aria, and your companion as well.”

I watched as he walked off, a smile on my face, then turned to join my partner as we walked out into the forest, the few villagers still awake waving at us as we went. I held off casting Kasi on the Spell Gem, wanting to use the maximum mana I could hold for the spell charge, and placed it in my inventory for the time being.

We broke into a run when the lights from the village were no longer visible, and as expected, the boots we had just received significantly boosted our traveling speed. At this rate of speed I could probably win the Olympic games in any running event over a mile long. The wind was exhilarating as it blew through my hair.

I thought about the villagers in Riskmarl for a good while after we left and how they had been so grateful for what we had done for them. That was one of the two main draws for me in Ilos. More than the fighting, more than the feeling of accomplishing something difficult, more than acquiring new equipment; I loved knowing I had made a difference, that I personally had greatly affected the lives of a group of people for the better. That was something that was almost impossible to do on Earth.

Just thinking about the good we had done kept a smile on my face and a bounce in my step for the first hour or two of travel. I wish I could stay in Ilos forever, to live here rather than Earth for the rest of my days.

I caught sight of my hands as they swung with my steps, my small, soft, smooth hands. I brought them up in front of me and looked at them, turning them back and forth. They were so much smaller, the fingers longer when compared to the palm, the nails more rounded, and the skin hairless and smooth. The palms were missing the calluses I’d had for all my life and were almost uniform in color rather than splotchy. Not my hands, yet I had already begun to grow used to them like I had with the rest of me.

My good mood faded as I stared at them and thought over the day. I would never have cursed like I did at nameless guy had I been Cariss, but I just felt so angry. It’s like I’m feeling more than I used to. I’m already changing, adapting to conform to this new body. Am I even me any longer? Would Jess and Nick believe me if I told them who I was looking and acting like this?

If this was the price I had to pay in order to forsake Earth and live in Ilos, would I accept it?

I didn’t know. I certainly didn’t want to be a girl, but the inability to log out and the possibility that I would be a permanent resident of Ilos filled me with hope. I wanted to stay here, I wanted it more than anything I had ever desired, but would this price be worth it?

There was a part of me that screamed no, a part that couldn’t deal with changing genders and appearance and having that strip away all that I had ever held dear, including my friends and family. Yet I felt like I belonged here in Ilos in a way I never had on Earth, like there was this gaping hole in me that was filled by being here.

Why me though? I wondered. Was I turned into a girl because I was so close to Jess when it all happened? Did this Xynus guy just decide he wanted to screw with a couple people in addition to trapping them here? Or is it some other reason or just a fluke?

I sighed, feeling my eyes begin to grow heavy now that I wasn’t in combat or even real happy. I’m too tired to think about all this right now. How long have I been awake? Time started over from morning when the silver Key players were singled out, and I spent most of the day with Jess and Nick beforehand, so… 38 hours? 42? Whatever, none of this matters right now, I just need to keep going, keep gaining experience and strength until the rest of the players reappear.

I looked over at the as yet nameless boy I was traveling with. I’m just glad I’m not alone right now, even if he is cold and kind of a jerk, he doesn’t look down on me for looking like I do like everyone else seems to.

 

 

Ilos, Day 2

 

As the beginnings of dawn began to light the sky we entered the outskirts of the village of Neatar, slowing to a stop as we stood at the edge. I stretched my arms above my head and yawned, then blinked blearily and looked up at my companion. “So what now?”

He looked down at me. “We'll rest for a time but I won’t let my lead be wasted. If you are not awake when I depart you have only yourself to blame. We are in separate rooms.”

I nodded tiredly. “I don’t want anyone catching us either. I think I’ll be good after three or four hours, just don’t leave me okay? I really don’t want to be alone.”

He sighed. “I will not wake you as I prefer to play alone, but I will accept that you have yet to slow me down. I will wake in four hours, Masso, and begin with ‘An Errand for the Cobbler’. I will complete some of the more valuable quests in this village before moving on. As persistent as you are, even if you oversleep I have no doubt you will find me before I depart.”

Relief washed over me, much more than I expected, and I smiled slightly. “Thanks.”

Without further comment, he turned walked off towards the inn, quickly and silently vanishing from sight. I took out the long squareish light blue Spell Gem from a pouch and fingered it absently, wondering if he would actually do what he said and not try to ditch me. Well, he needed to sleep sometime, and I had a few things to do before I could do so as well.

I stopped one of the villagers, a young man, and asked where the shops were, attempting to ignore how much I had to look up and the way his eyes flickered between my golden eyes and my chest. My attempt failed, and my voice snapped much more than I wanted it to when I thanked him, sending him scurrying away with wide eyes when I stalked off.

Thankfully the shopkeeper was a woman, and I was able to be much more polite while haggling with her. At least she only stared at my eyes. After selling all my extra equipment, I came away with a simple silver necklace and an attachment I could mount my Spell Gem to as well as twenty copper marks and six copper pars. I honestly thought I’d never work her up to that much, but from her smile as I walked off, she never expected to pay so little for what she got.

That was the best way to do things, with both sides thinking they’d got the better deal. I took it to the jeweler in the village, or at least the guy who did all the small fine work for everyone. He was much less experienced in bartering, and I managed to get him down to accepting four copper pars to attach my Spell Gem to the necklace. Normally I wouldn’t drive someone so hard when dickering, but he was staring at my chest the entire time. I don’t even think he noticed I had a weird eye color. It was quick work, and about twenty minutes after entering the village of Neatar, I was heading towards the inn with an emptied inventory and an easy way to carry my Spell Gem.

I bought some bread and water for a copper mark and rented one of the four rooms for another two, paying the innkeeper five copper pars to send someone to wake me after three and a half hours. Taking the food up to my room, I set my quarterstaff within reach of the bed then sat down in the single creaky wooden chair to eat my food. With a bed within a few feet of me, I barely managed to finish my meal before I fell onto the thin mattress, still fully clothed, and was out as soon as my head hit what passed for a pillow.


[1] Italian for Boulder.

[2] Latin for Fool, or Stupid.

[3] Rounded gelatinous creatures, mostly transparent but tinted different colors, the size of a large dog.

[4] A short period in which the affected monster cannot react.

[5] Weaker monsters that appear in a Boss fight, generally making the battle much harder until killed.

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Finding feet

Podracer's picture

His.. hers.. whatever - a little, so Aria should be a bit happier. Still not much give from Mister Coldshoulder though :\
Thanks for the continuation Tas.

"Reach for the sun."

Yay :D

Absolutely loving this series. I wouldn't mind being stuck in Illos either as long as I could come with my honey. If he couldn't come too, that would be too big of a price to pay.

I know who I am, I am me, and I like me ^^
Transgender, Gamer, Little, Princess, Therian and proud :D

she's getting more comfortable

maybe it helps that her friends aren't near to constantly remind her of how much she's changed ...

DogSig.png

Interesting...

Aria seemed to have the impression before that here in "real Ilos", the NPCs had been replaced by actual residents, which I'd have thought would have changed the quests and rewards into a less predictable pattern. But in this chapter we're back to NPCs and established rewards, the spell gem notwithstanding.

One thing I'm not quite clear on: presumably the advantage to getting to Riskmarl quickly (and leaving quickly as well) is that they get first choice of the quests there and can choose the most lucrative. But won't other players, finding the cupboard bare, so to speak, move on to other towns before Aria and her companion can get there? (Granted, our heroes do have the boots to speed their trip.)

Eric

Comments

Tas's picture

This is why I like comments. Now I know I need to edit the next part and make it clear how exactly quests (and their rewards) work and how the 'NPCs' interact with the players. The same applies to the reason the other players can't (or won't) immediately follow.

Thanks again for commenting every time like you do Eric, it helps me a lot! :)

-Tas

Great chapter

Another great chapter, thanks.

Awesome

I just finished watching the latest episode of SAO so when I saw this and hadn't read it...

Anyway, awesome stuff! Really enjoying it.
Aria mentioned going with the assist system instinctively now, and using it not just in combat like most. I can't help but wonder she is sub-conciously going with it as to acting more how a girl is expected, even thinking differently perhaps.

Thanks for this.
Also, I really like the idea that only the 10000 are stuck in Ilos but there is so many more who are tied to the world with the black keys. A RL friend becomes a VR friend but you know they're a real person. Really blurs the lines between VR and reality, in a good way.