A Record of Ash & Ruin: The Grieving Lands

Chapter 5: Testing Theories

Although humans were short-lived in comparison to the elder race, they were as numerous as the trees in the forest and were almost as ferocious as the barbaric orcs of the Long Hills. The League and the Old Empire ceased their endemic wars, united with the promise of gifts of powerful elven artifacts and mithril bullion.

- On the Cataclysm by an unknown Quassian Scholar circa 103 AC

Looking at the night sky I saw a veritable ocean of stars shimmering down like a bright tapestry, with a single large moon as an ephemeral counterpoint to their shining light. For all of its beauty, however, something was wrong. Though no student of astrology, I could not see a single familiar constellation or guiding star. This emphasized an unexpected feeling of homesickness and loneliness that only compounded my misery.

The plan was to stay awake for the rest of the night to keep watch on the pond below. However this intent shattered when faced with the cruel reality of my tired body. Exhausted, my eyes felt like lead as the exertions of the battle rush left me cold and shivering. Slowly and inexorably, like the turning of seasons, I closed my eyes and faded into a troubled sleep.

I slowly awoke as morning sunlight played across my eyes between the boughs of the tree. Rushing then to panicked wakefulness, I looked around with wild eyes searching for threats. There was nothing but an endless sea of grass as far as the eye could see under a cloudless sky. Sometime in the night my robe had dried out, and I was at least no longer shivering. The warm sun shone down on me as I attempted to gather myself toward some semblance of calm.

The rough lesson I had learned so far was that this was a world that taught in pain and suffering. Those that did not stand up to muster would die. Checking my notifications it seemed that I had gained another point of Constitution. I hypothesized I had gained this single point due to my current harsh conditions and that this was the reason both my maximum Health and my Stamina had increased. Perhaps there was a threshold where increasing my basic attributes improved my Health, Stamina, and Mana?

Muttering to myself, I swore to increase my Constitution as often as I could. I simply did not want to feel the awful pain anymore. Checking the rest of my stats I noted I had gained a new skill 'Rest,' which was at level one. It appeared I could gain skills from the most innocuous of things. I registered that my Health was just under the maximum and my Mana was now full. I needed to know more about the world I was in. I needed more data. It was time to experiment.

STATUS

SKILLS & PROFICIENCIES

Power Strike (lvl.1)

Endure (lvl.1)

Stealth (lvl.1)

Rest (lvl.1)

Spells & Magic

Rust (lvl.1)

Identify (lvl.1)

GIFTS

I analyzed my current status. If this was a game, apart from the horrible start, I was in a satisfactory position. I had likely completed one of the early stages of a grueling ‘tutorial.’

My cautious nature willed me to cast Heal to top off my Health, but the curious gamer inside of me wanted to experiment with my new spell Identify.

With a slight spring to my step, I made my way around the tree to look down to where the mudskippers were. Finding a medium-sized specimen with my eyes on the far side of the pond, I uttered "Identify,” willing its secrets to become mine. Undergoing the now-familiar sensation of shifting and pulling as my Mana was channeled from within my body, coursing through it. But this time it abruptly funneled outwards towards my chosen creature.

Bibsis (lvl.1) Health 8/8

"Bibsis," I muttered to myself. I fought the frustration of being unable to see all of its relevant stats, such as Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution. Drawing a deep breath I attempted to calm myself. It was probably physically weaker than I was, but I had no idea if it had spells or any other special abilities. However at least I now knew the name, Health, and relative level of the creatures I faced. This further reinforced my working hypothesis that this area was some sort of 'tutorial' zone.

My Mana had dropped a single point with the spell, and I decided to cast it four more times for confirmation. As I continued to apply the spell to different targets, I felt a growing pressure in my head. On the fourth cast, I was swamped with a dazed feeling, not unlike the second time I had used Heal. Blessedly this time it did not feature the knife stabbing-like pain. Nor did I succumb to weary exhaustion as when my Mana had bottomed out to zero. In my estimation, and to my great relief, all of the creatures that I was casting my spell upon were only level one Bibsis. If I had been stuck in a high-level area, my future would be well and truly bleak.

I decided to take a small break from my experimentation. Leaving my scavenged weapons by the shrine, I relieved myself a little way down the hill on the opposite side of the pond. As I walked back up to the tree and altar, I determined that the next skill to test would be 'Power Strike.’

Arriving, I drew a few deep breaths preparing myself. Once again picking up the half-spear in a loose grip, I practiced jabbing at the air in front of me. Finally, I shouted “Power Strike!” while stabbing forward with all of my limited might. Nothing. Nonplussed, I continued to attack the air while shouting "Power Strike!" After a few minutes of wasted effort, with my stamina bar drained to around half, I threw down my half-spear. In half frustration, I landed a punch at the tree, screaming “Power Strike!!” to the wind. My left fist flew at a great speed, drawing a portion of my body along with it. Chips of bark flew outwards at the point of impact as something in my poorly angled wrist snapped. Screaming once again as I cradled my wrist to my chest with my good hand, I curled up into a fetal ball on the ground. Blood was running down my knuckles, a vivid crimson contrast against my skin. The pain was a visceral reminder of the harsh reality of this world. I bled in this world, just like in the other.

After what seemed like another eternity, I summoned the will to lean against the tree. I drew shallow breaths through gritted teeth as I half-screamed against the pain. Closing my eyes I recited the births and deaths of long-dead leaders, battles that changed my home country, the coming and going of ages, rebellions, and revolutions; a mnemonic tool to help stave off the agony. Although the world was game-like in nature, certain things most definitely were not. Here instead of controlling a character with a mouse and keyboard, I was well and truly in the ‘game.’ I could now feel my character’s pain through my every stupid mistake. Though this world presented itself like a game, the real ramifications of my choices meant that I could not throw all reason out of the window.

I laughed wryly between the waves of pain. Closing my eyes I decided to take what rest I could to raise my Mana, whimpering forlornly all the while.

I spent the rest of the morning and the better part of the afternoon casting Heal when I could, determined to bring myself back to full Health. My maximum Mana had risen by one point, I theorized likely due to the recent increase in my Intelligence. When my Health was around eleven or twelve I felt my wrist snap back into place with a painful crunch, then to be soothed by the remaining aura of my healing spell. Finally, sometime in the late afternoon, I was back to full Health.

A self-inflicted injury that would have taken at least a month and half to heal in my other life was fully rectified here in about half a day.

"Magic...I wield magic..."

Preposterous, I thought to myself, half denying my situation. The pain, if anything, reminded me that this was all too horribly real. Yet for all this, I could not help but wonder at the miracles I had performed. “Magic...” I whispered in a hushed reverent tone. In a different life, I had once read that “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” Were nano-bots or some other super technology responsible for the ‘Magic’ and this game-like world? Were my struggles entertainment for some interstellar audience? Perturbed by these questions, I brushed them quickly from my mind. Survival was my only imminent concern. I refused to die.

The first pangs of hunger hit me as the sun dipped ever lower in the sky. I waited for my Mana to reach full again before picking up the two halves of the broken primitive spear. Absently I considered casting Identify on my weapons, but thought better of it as it was painfully obvious what I held in my hands. My ominous Rust spell was also perhaps worth experimenting with at a later time; I could not see anything in my local environs that would precipitate its use.

I needed all my resources to do what I planned to do next. I needed to grow, and growing in this world meant killing.