- Clair.
“A census of the entire department has shown that productivity has decreased by a full eleven percent since the discovery of an Earth virus called ‘kitten memes’. Immediate action is heavily suggested.
– Executive report on Tiipenet Earth department.
“This is a terrible idea.” Clair remarked, gazing cooly at the minotaur that seemed to be puzzling over the remnants of the room. “It’s risky, stupid, and might get us killed. In fact, I think I like it.”
“See, I knew you’d come around. This is awesome! I mean, this is literally the first time anyone’s heard of a monster, let alone a Boss Monster being friendly. We could be looking at a world first here!” Tommy enthused, unable to keep his eyes away from the minotaur.
“..friendly?”
“Maybe not the right word right now. I was thinking ‘non-bloodthirsty’ or not being all kill-you-on-sight, but those are too wordy. Let’s stick with friendly.”
Clair shrugged, her flashlight beam weaving.
“Okay.”
After a moment of silence, she spoke again.
“Now what? Maybe try talking to it?”
“You want to?”
“Naw, you go first. Big honour to be a world first and all that.”
Tommy brightened at the thought.
“I’ll livestream it! Oh s***, the views on this!”
Clair slapped him behind the head. With the hand not holding the shotgun. Lucky for him.
“No, you won’t. Or have you forgotten the f****** bounty? We’re not letting anyone know we’re near anything with a million Kroll pricetag on its head until we’re damn well prepared and ready. Get it together, numbnuts.”
“Oh. It just occurred to me it won’t work anyway. It tried talking to me earlier. Couldn’t understand a word it was saying.”
Try as she might, Clair couldn’t find any way to overcome the language barrier. Drawing on chalkboards, which the creature had used to show then it meant no harm, only went so far, and wasn’t useful for anything more than the most basic of communications. It would also be bitch to move around. In short, she needed a fix.
Glancing over at the lumbering mass of fur and armor, she decided she needed a solution, fast. She knew one place where she could find one.
The Wiki.
“Keep it occupied while I ask around. This could take a bit of time. “
Without waiting for an answer, she opened her screen and dove in. While fully functional, the Sysnet was stripped down to the basics, being built as people paid to have sites, search engines and other features added. Slowly but surely, it was taking shape, looking more and more like the actual internet.
For now, it was bare. The Wiki was one of the more advanced sites. That word was used lightly, however. She wasn’t interested in all the little features it had. Instead she logged into the most active chatroom she could find. It would have to do.
—Chatroom #002—
[Topic: Powers and Monsters set by DanteVivi.
User: DynaClair has joined.
GregClustering: And that’s why I say that the War Walker is the strongest Boss Monster currently known. An entire paramilitary force failed to so much as delay it. Yes, while the Shadow Dragon has all but it decimated an entire city, it can be hurt, as its clash with The Behemoth proved. However, the War Walker has, insofar, proved invulnerable.
Sol99: But the Hill Giant has better feats, man. They’re actual verifiable. Did you watch the video?
Daizy: Ugh, not this again.
Sol99: There’s actual proof to back up its feats, people. An entire video, livestream in glorious 720p. Available right here on the Wiki. It CLEARLY shows the monster tanking Machine-guns, tank shells and rockets. It shows it FLATTENING a tank with it’s fists. Turning those jihadi f**** into meat paste.
PROOF. Is there proof to back up your claims? No.
Daizy: Please, can you stop spamming every chat with this and f*** off already? Just because you found the f****** video doesn’t mean you have to force it into every discussion.
GregClustering: I’d say Brussels being a smoking, shadowed ruin is enough proof. You might take a look and notice that the entire city is either flattened, floating at random angles or, say, plunged into total blackness. You might go look at the fact that an entire heavily-armed, well-trained and with a formerly impeccably recorded PMC dissapeared overnight. Those should be proof enough.
Sol99: <‘Formerly impecabbly recorded’. Is that even a phrase? Poor grammar there, boi.
TheBlueMan: Stop trying to deflect, Sol. You brought this up, so suck it up.
Sol99: Stop being an asshole.
TheBlueMan: Stop trolling.
Daizy: ^
Rainbowlazer!! Hey, I need help. I’m trying to buy a cool title from the Custom Store, can someone help me?
TheBlueMan: Wrong chatroom. Try #003. They have dedicated users there for that. Should be able to help. Good Luck.
User: Rainbowlazer!! left chatroom.
Sol99: You s**** are just jealous that I found it and not you.
DynaClair: Little help here, guys. It there a way to learn a language or to gift that Skill to someone really fast?
Daizy: We don’t care.
Daizy: About the video, not you, DC.
GregClustering: I think I saw something yesterday that could help. The Tii store sells bundled languages. Cost half a fortune, but the lets your learn a language near instantly.
DynaClair: And gifting it?
Daizy: You can gift stuff by default in the purchase menu. Either have the person you want to gift to in your Party, have the destination or person in mind and make sure they have :Gifts allowed, or have them in your line of sight. Please don’t use that info to kill someone, okay. Someone blew up my mom’s office yesterday, nearly killed her.
DynaClair: Oh. Sorry to hear that. I won’t. Promise.
Sol99: How about I gift you all STD’s?
User: ShadowKilla has joined.
ShadowKilla: Hah! I am here.
GregClustering: Hullo. Please read the rules, new user.
ShadowKilla: Rules are made to be broken. Anyone who says otherwise is a p****. Are you a p****? I bet you’re a p****.
Daizy:….Wow, talk about being an asshole. @Tyranius.
Mod Tyranius has removed User: ShadowKilla and warned User: Sol99.
Jpot364: Can you guys get back the monster convo? It was getting really good.
GregClustering:..No, I don’t think so.
User: DynaClair left chatroom.
-#
It did cost a whole lot of fricking Krolls. Nearly a tenth of what she had. For a moment, Clair balked at the price tag, almost reconsidering. That was a lot of moola. And she could buy a whole lot of s*** with that. Now, she was no miser or penny-grubber, to keep all that money to herself. Hell, hadn’t she chewed out Tommy just for that?
Still, this was a gamble. There was no guarantee they’d get anything useful out of this at all. Clair didn’t gamble. She took calculated guesses. The only time she really gambled was when her gut told her otherwise. Usually. And right now, her gut had gone silent on her. That left her with facts.
That was a Boss monster in front of her.
It had a bounty of a million Krolls on itss head. A clean five million dollars, non-tax deductible. In short, it was a walking target.
Being near it would put her in the crosshairs of anybody looking to claim that bounty. And there would be people trying to do that. That, and the custom Skill.
On the other hand, it was arguably friendly. It hadn’t tried to kill them, despite Clair firing at it. That counted for something.
It was a Boss Monster. Meaning it was high-leveled and tough as s***. With the entire world gone to f*** and monsters everywhere, having something like that on their side could save their hides.
Despite Tommy saying it was a brute, it looked smart. That armor and weapons spoke of intelligence, and didn’t look roughly made. It was smarter than first looks implied. That meant it would be smart enough to come to it’s own conclusions when she gave it the facts.
After serious considerations, she decided to gamble on this. She winced inside as she signed away a small fortune, then gifted the package [Language: English] To the minotaur. Getting him to accept it took a bit of time, and Tommy thought it was hilarious that he could bat around Status screens, but she made it happen.
Finally, it spoke.
—–
Garok
—–
“I am Garok.”
What a delightfully original thing to say.
He was in a new world, one alien to him in almost every conceivable way.
He had one chance to make a true impression, one to convince others of his intelligence, to set the course of how others would treat him.
He had used that to announce his own name.
Garok wanted to slap himself, right then. It had been, he bitterly reflected, exactly the thing one would expect from a semi-intelligent monster. Garok did not wish to appear as that.
“Clair.” The dark skinned woman stated.
“And I’m Tommy!” The pale youth exclaimed. Usually, human expressions were hard for Garok, but this one was practically brimming with excitement. He had been rather hysterical when Garok had followed him here, albeit deaf to him opening the broken door and stomping down the corridor. Not that Garok had tried to stomp loudly. The opposite, actually.
The dark-skinned one, Clair, cut right to the chase.
“Are you a friend or an enemy?”
That didn’t surprise him. It was natural to fear minotaurs, although he did not smell any such scent on her. Instead the light she was holding was aimed directly at him, unwavering. He did not fail to notice it was just underneath the wand she had attacked him with earlier.
“Friend, currently. I would like it to remain that way.”
“Why?”
Rather blunt, this one.
“I am but one minotaur alone in a world of humans and whatever else you have here. To be an enemy would be..well, suicide. That, and I generally like other people. Does that sound fair?”
Her shoulders rose and fell in a human movement called ‘shrugging’.
“It does.”
With that, she lowered the wand in her hand.
“Look, it’s dark and cramped in here, so why don’t we take this outside?”
They all agreed on that, and moments later, Garok found himself back under the hazy sky. The three stood in the entry hall, looking at each other. Finally, the one called Clair broke the silence.
“So, what are you?”
“A minotaur, I would assume.” He spoke, just as the other human cut in, saying the same thing. The pale youth shrugged and motioned for him to continue.
“I know that already. I meant your Class. What do you do? Why are you here? How did you find us?”
Garok filled them in as best as he could, describing himself and his situation. It took some time, with the shadows growing longer as he talked, but none of them so much moved, other than some slight shifting. Finally, he stopped, having run out of topics. His throat was parched.
“You can heal almost anything with belief alone? I’d call BS, but I’ve seen stranger. Can you prove it?”
“I can.” He confirmed.
Absently rubbing her shoulder, the woman thought it over.
“Alright, let’s see you put your words where your mouth is. Heal me. If this shoulder isn’t feeling like a bitch tomorrow, and the scorch marks on my hands disappear, I’ll believe you.”
She held up one hand, showing fresh burns on her palm. Garok nodded his consent to the request. It was more than fair. Focusing inwards, he pulled just a little Mana out of his center, focused his intent on Heal and channeled it towards her.
There was no grand show, no glorious beams descending from above to announce the Three’s power. Instead, a swift swirl of golden light surrounded her, then faded.
She looked..relieved, almost, pressing her hand to her shoulder and squeezing.
“So it does work. Huh. And this come from your Class?”
“Yes.” Garok rumbled in reply. “As a Cleric, my faith let’s me draw upon the power of the Three to heal others.”
“Is it a skill?”
“Yes.”
“That’s troubling.”
Garok was taken aback for a second. Why would anyone think that? He stated as much, and her face grew grim.
“Because of this.”
She brought up a piece of wizard’s paper and showed him.
[Attention, humans, monsters and various other life-forms currently residing on Earth. Today, we at Tiipenet are proud to announce the first Update. Boss Monsters!
These powerful creatures will be released onto Earth -ten thousand, for anyone wondering at the number- to be challenges for you. They are strong, unique, of varying levels and species. Some may respawn. Seek them out and slay them. Why? For the glorious rewards below, of course.
Slaying a Boss Monster for the first time will let you receive:
– 1 of the monster’s Skills, at your choice.
– 300,000 Krolls for bosses Level 50 and above.
– 30,00 Krolls for below Level 50.
– Permanent (one-time) Exp booster.
Subsequent slayings of respawning monsters will decrease rewards.
Toodles, the Tiipenet team.]
Garok blinked.
“It does provide strong incentive for people to hunt down very dangerous beasts.” He mused. “The only problem is-“
“You’re one of them.” Clair finished. “Honestly, I’m probably about as fair as your going to get from people. Others won’t be as quick to balk at killing you. If they can. There’s another pop-up, but to cut it short, the reward on you is one million Krolls, three Skills, and a thirty percent permanent boost. I don’t know why, but something wants you dead.”
She sighed and ran a hand through her messy hair.
“Look, that healing Skill alone would make people want to kill you for. If what you say is true, that could be one of the most valuable things in the world right now. The Cleric class is unheard of, the weakest of healing spells are expensive enough to beggar most of the elite, and killing you, a Boss Monster, is something very few would balk at.”
Garok’s shoulder drooped. Already in a new world, and people would be trying to kill him once more.
“I just wanted to go home.” He admitted tiredly.
“That’s why you came to the town?” Calir said, her voice soft.
“Yes. I thought that your people were great mages, and that one of you could send me back to my world.”
Her expression softened somewhat at that.
“Look, I’m sorry, Garok, but that probably isn’t going to happen. There are no listing on the Store for world to world transport, and teleportation skills, even short ones, are expensive enough to give governments pause. You’re stuck with us, big guy.”
“In a foreign world. Where everyone will try to kill me for my Skills. Pardon me if I am not overly enthused.”
She shrugged again, leaning against the wall now. The pale man hadn’t intervened in the conversation so far, instead sitting and watching them in silence.
“You could always hide them.”
Garok shook his head at that.
“No. I am a cleric of the Three. I am sworn to help the weak, and to heal the suffering of others. It would be against my very nature to hide my powers. If people will try to kill me for them, so be it. But I will not meekly hide away the gifts given to me.”
Clair grinned ruefully.
“God. I respect that. I really do. Refusing to hide who you are takes balls the size of cadillacs. I like you already. We’ll take you with us to the City. Might be dangerous there, but I have a few ideas.”
With that, they decided to stay in this ‘schoolhouse’ for the night. Dusk was fast approaching, and they had nowhere else to go. Some time later found them in one of the empty rooms. The woman, Clair, had brought what she called bedrolls from the piece of wizard’s paper before her. They did not fit him, but he could lay atop if he wanted. Currently, they had pulled in furniture from the other rooms and we’re piling it against the door. Just in case.
The pale man, Tommy, had insisted on doing something. Instead of Clair buying a bigger light for all of them, he had instead climbed atop a desk and proclaimed he would show off his newly-gained Skill.
Pale light flared from his hand, an orb flowing outwards from his skin and settling in place, hovering above them. It cast the entire room in harsh light, forcing them to squint. Harsh or not, it was still light, so it was welcome. As he clambered back down, Garok sat down with his back to the wall, facing the door. The boy was a mage of some sort, that much he knew. The woman, however, remained a mystery. So far, she had asked much and said little.
As he watched, she pulled a tube of something from the wizard’s paper and tossed it towards him. Then seemed to pause and added another. He asked, and learned it was food of some sort. There was a bit of a struggle, trying to get it open the small thing in his hands, which she guided him through. Eating it revealed it to be without taste or smell, but it was filling.
They lapsed into silence after that, all three of them sitting in the empty room. Finally, he couldn’t take it anymore, curiosity eating away at him. He had a thousand questions, and nowhere to start.
“What are these pieces of wizard’s paper? The ones that appear when you say Status?” Brushing his own aside as it leaped towards him from thin air, he inquired that, addressing the room at large.
“They’re new, actually. Been here for about a week. As far as I can tell, they keep track of your Levels and Skills, let you access a Store of sorts, or connect to the Sysnet.”
He paused a little, thinking that over.
“If they are new, how did you access your powers before that?”
“We didn’t.”
Garok was taken aback at that, ever so slightly.
“If you could not access your powers, how did you perform magic?”
“We didn’t.” She replied once more.
Now he was truly confused.
“But, if you did not use magic,” He gestured around helplessly. “How did you build all of this?”
She grinned at that, just a little.
“All done without magic, big guy. Our world has never had magic at all.”
As he struggled trying to imagine a world where what she had just said was real, ridiculous though it sounded, the pale youth cut in, launching into a rather complicated explanation of ‘technological advancement’. Honestly, he could not understand half of what was being said.
And so it went. He would ask for an explanation, clarification, only to force the pale youth, Tommy, to dumb things down for him. Finally, with each subject becoming more confusing than the last, he gave up entirely. The young man grinned, rolled over where he had been lying propped up, and promptly fell asleep. What a useful skill.
That left him and Clair, sitting there, occasionally staring at each other in silence.
After a while, with time dragging along, she spoke up once more.
“Look, Garok. You seem like a nice person, so I’ll be honest. Whatever is coming next is going to suck for you. Badly. You have a stupidly large pricetag on your head, and a lot of people aren’t going to hesitate to attack you. Not because of the fact that that you’re a monster, but because you look different than them. You look like a monster, and that’s good enough for a lot of them.”
She sighed a little and continued.
“Really, traveling with you is going to be a risk, but you’re our best bet. You’re high-leveled, seem to know your way around a weapon, and know more about monsters, levels and whatnot then the rest of us put together. We’re taking a risk traveling with you, but the benefits outweigh the price. And, I think we can help each other. What do you say?”
He thought it through. He really did. His loneliness did not factor into his decision in the slightest. The long, lonely nights in the wilderness of the Exiled Kingdoms did not bite into the back of his mind, or so he told himself.
“Very well.” He rumbled. “How can you help me, if at all?”
“I have a few ideas. Right now, it basically comes down to this. Levels matter. More than people want to admit. Yes, guns are an awesome equalizer early on, but they become useless when up against higher leveled monsters. That’s been proven quite a few times. Whatever level you’re at, you need to get higher. One of the few reasons people won’t try to kill you is if you become too strong for them.”
“You’re smart, so use that. Think of what people might use to exploit any weaknesses you have and cover that up. Or, try to make yourself too useful to harm. Again, more than a few ideas here, but we need to make it to the City for any of them to go into effect. So stick with us, and we’ll stick with you.”
“Thank you.”
She looked at him, slightly confused.
“For what? Being a decent person and giving you a chance? Just don’t screw us over and it’ll be fine.”
From there, the conversation moved to less serious topics, although still important ones. Clair introduced him to the rest of his Status screen, showing him how to effectively make use of it. The Sysnet in particular amazed him. A way to share information with other leagues away, at any time.
The uses he could find for such a thing were endless. Sharing actual knowledge about monsters with the rest of the world, informing other Clerics of undead infestations or villages with sickness or plagues. There was no end to the good that he could do with such a tool. Clair did not know the story of its creation, but he was sure it’s inventor had been a man or woman of highest honour and knowledge, to create such a thing.
So immersed in it was he, however, that he failed to notice the ghost in the room until it had fully formed and turned on them.
