It took them nearly half an hour - and two potions of health - to finally get to the bottom level of the chasm. Red’s HP nearly bottomed out during the short but intense fight and Ben had to physically shove a health potion down the throat of the warrior while they were still dangling together on the rope. Only after that was Red able to swing them hard enough to reach a section of the spiraling path. There, Shiraz and Milenna grabbed hold of the scout and pulled him to safety.

After Ben was standing on his own two feet they turned their attention to Red - only to find out he had passed out and was once again swinging limply on the rope. Apparently, the mercenary was still suffering from the severe debuffs caused by the multiple attacks of the vampiric stirges. His health, despite the potion, kept dropping, and the massive blood loss was making him so weak and dizzy that the effort of shoving Ben toward the path rendered him unconscious. Still, as there was no imminent danger of another attack, the warrior’s three companions could take the time to nurse him back to health. Milenna cast her strongest healing spell, Shiraz conjured some shadows to pull him closer, and Ben managed to grab the rope and halt its mad swings. When Red had regained consciousness, he was hail enough to pull himself back to the path and finally untie himself from the rope.

They made their way carefully down the remaining few yards of the spiraling stone path - which led to a clear section of floor, beyond the high spikes. As Ben put both his feet on the floor, he was greeted with an amazing prompt:

Success! You have completed the second part of a hidden chain-quest: The Path Of Courage (The Maten Ghoren). Long and hard have the Duergar of Jolk Uhm worked to ensure that only the worthy would be able to reveal their hidden treasures. As you are now standing on the second level of the Dungeon of Dwarven Despair, you have proven you are the right leader for the task. Keep exploring to discover the next part of the chain, and you shall reap your rewards. Shared XP reward (note: this XP reward includes the kills of the previous battle): 7,800 (base 4,800 + 3,000 for great leadership and quick thinking) Personal XP reward: 1,950. Current XP: 6,250. Points to next level: 3,750 Skill Increases: Winged Riding +1 Riding +1 Acrobatics +1 Daggers +1 Perseverance +1 Leadership +2 Tactics +1

There were several other prompts following that grand pronouncement, including a golden level-up prompt. Ben was itching to read everything - he was skilled now in Winged Riding? What? - but first, he took a look around him - and was met with the spectacle of his three companions staring into space. Shiraz caught his glance and winked at him. “Prompts time,” she said cheerfully, before resuming her examination of the messages only she could see.

Ben grinned. Prompts time indeed. He refocused his attention on the boxes of text hovering in the corner of his eye.

Good job! You have discovered a new sub-skill: Winged Riding. Why settle on a horse when you can ride anything that has wings? From the lowly large bats to the mighty dragons, men have always tried to achieve dominance over winged beasts to compensate for their weak two-legged body. With this skill, you have gained the basic ability to mount such a creature and steer it wherever you desire. Gain mastery of this skill in order to truly rule the sky over the back of the most powerful winged creatures that exist. Associated ability: dexterity. Winged Riding: level 1 You can ride a peaceful winged creature without immediately falling. For every occurrence of instability (for example, a maddened vampiric stirge that tries to throw you off its back), the chance to remain mounted equals your skill level times 10, minus the difficulty level. For a further explanation check the ERB. As this is a sub-skill of Riding, you also gain 1 level in the basic skill Riding. Good job! You have discovered a new skill: Acrobatics. Jump on unsteady boulders, roll on uneven surfaces, walk a tightrope or balance yourself on a jagged cliff. All of the above and much more - things that scare most people - are now in your grasp. Advance this skill to be a true acrobat and the applause won’t be far behind. Associated ability: dexterity. Current skill level: 4 (8% less chance to fall) Level Up! You have gained enough experience points to reach level 4. Way to go, adventurer! Level up bonus: health, stamina and mana points are fully restored. You receive 4 points to allocate - either to your skills or your ability points. Choose wisely.

That last prompt Ben was reading while already floating in his light-blue interface. He felt immediately better, as all of his stats were restored due to the very needed level-up. Remembering what happened the last time he was there, Ben quickly looked around, but Raxlon wasn’t anywhere to be seen. Ben waited for a couple more moments and even called out Raxlon’s name, but there was no answer. The DM apparently had said everything he wanted to, and Ben was on his own.

Shrugging, Ben stretched and took a deep breath. He didn’t know how much time he had this time before he had to go back, but some deep intuition told him that no one was in a hurry to return. The battle was fierce and they all needed a good break. Maybe Raxlon would be considerate enough to let them languish a little bit.

Thinking about the fight, Ben felt a warm feeling of accomplishment washing over him. He replayed it in his mind and realized he was close to dying several times - only he didn’t. He survived and he had done so in a spectacular manner. As Ben thought about what was needed in order to achieve victory, he began to understand that Raxlon was, indeed, a mastermind and had justly gained his reputation. They had needed to use nearly all of their skills and powers and even that was barely enough. But they’d done it.

The scout grinned and sat down on the nothingness that was the interface’s floor. Then he went even further and lay back, enjoying this moment of rest. He discovered he could access his character sheet even while lying down, so that’s exactly what he did.

There were many changes to his sheet - it was amazing how much one could achieve in such a short time - and Ben was truly impressed with himself. Whereas before he was only a run-of-the-mill scout, now he was also skilled in death magic and a scholar besides. He also gained several new skills, two spells, and an awesome weapon that had saved his life twice already - a weapon that was now lost, but should be easily found. The only thing that dampened his mood was his Curse Of The Deep mark, which was still chipping away a good portion of his defense. That, together with his low strength, made him way too vulnerable - as had been evident several times during the fight.

So, the first point of his level-up went to Strength. As before, Ben could feel energy flowing through his body and he could swear that this time he saw and felt his muscles growing. He now had 10 points of strength, which meant he wasn’t any weaker than the average player. For a moment he was tempted to invest another point to that characteristic - how amazing would it be to be stronger than most? - but he knew that it would be a foolish move. Strength was important, but there were other aspects of his character that were much more so.

And that’s why he had a serious dilemma when he thought about where to allocate his next points. Up until now, he put at least 1 point to Constitution in every level up, as he knew that each point in that characteristic added 2 points to his HP and he was sorely in need of more health. But should he continue to do so? His health wasn’t very high, but it was decent enough now that he had his new ring of vigor. Also, Ben had to admit that he wasn’t really playing to his strengths during those last battles. As a scout, he should try to stay out of close combat, yet up until now he almost always found himself in a pitched battle with their enemies and barely managed to survive. Maybe he should try to stay further away from the melee and use his ranged offense more...

Sighing, Ben decided to forego constitution this time. Instead, he invested in an attribute he mostly neglected up to this point - Dexterity. He decided to invest there not one but two precious points, bringing it up to a respectable 17. His hope was that it would help him with both his ranged attacks and his new array of skills, and he also liked the fact that it boosted both his Initiative and his Defense score. Together with the +2 to Wisdom he received from his scout level-up, his Initiative score was now a whopping 27 - and woe to the enemies that would try to surprise him. His Defense was still low at 14, but he guessed that after he’d upgrade his ruined armor and get rid of this damnable curse, that would change as well.

The last allocation point Ben put to Leadership. He had been tempted to do so in the last level-up but it was too low for him to get any special bonuses. Now, however, the skill was already at the tenth level, so he couldn’t pass the chance to cross its first threshold and receive another power. Hoping that he was making the right decision, Ben raised the skill to 11 and held his breath.

Well done! You have crossed the first threshold for the skill Leadership. You have proven to be a capable leader (most of the times), and receive the following boons: Bonus XP for crossing the first threshold of this skill: 50. Current XP: 6,300. Points to next level: 3,700. Leadership Power 1: Psychic Battle Communication. When the battle gets rough and no one can hear you above the din of the fight, what good are your orders? With this power, you will be able to silently transfer your commands and messages to one of your party members who is currently following you. Note: this power cannot be used outside of battle. Note: you can communicate telepathically with only one member of your party that has been chosen during the fight. Switching party members is not allowed. Range: 5 feet for every Leadership level (current range: 55 feet). Cost: none.

Ben’s eyes widened. He was expecting something awesome, but this went far beyond his expectations. He would be able to speak telepathically with his companions! It was a bit of a downer that it was limited to battle only, but it was amazing nonetheless. He couldn’t wait to try it already.

Satisfied with his choices, Ben took a look at his new level 4 character sheet:

Name: Ben Level: 4 Race: human Class: Scout Path: not chosen Titles: The Naked Noob, The Scout Of Sonadin, Scholar Achievements: My First Kill First Level Up Once Upon A Time My First Spell Active Statuses: Honorless (hidden) Party Leader Curse of the Deep 1 (marked) Fame: 0 Hit Points: 24 (rgn 0) Stamina: 24 (rgn 1.4 per sec) Mana: 32 (rgn 3 per sec) Defense: 14 (-5 from Curse of the Deep) Initiative: 28 Ability Points: Strength: 10 Dexterity: 17 Constitution: 16 Intelligence: 20 Wisdom: 24 Charisma: 16 Powers: Perception 1: Passive Focus Perception 2: Dark-vision Scout 1: Hawk Eye

Tactics 1: Pause The Game!

Leadership 1: Battle Psychic Communication

Skills: Perception: 23 Identify: 6 Bluff: 12 Daggers: 2 Backstabbing: 1 Dagger Throwing: 1 Tracking: 9 Perseverance: 8 Crossbows: 4 Tactics: 12 Stealth: 8 Politics: 6 Leadership: 11

Winged Riding: 1

Riding: 1

Acrobatics: 4

Death Magic: 1

Known Traits: Trustworthy: 9 Honorable: 8 Weapons: Crude Dagger (equipped, ruined) Armor: Common Leather Armor (equipped, ruined) Inventory: Sonadin uniforms (equipped) Sonadin Prison’s keychain

1 small health potion

1 small enhanced stamina potion

Map fragment

Ring of vigor

Treasure: Gold: 44 Silver: 86 Copper: 7 Resistances: Mind 21% Spells:

Death Aura (level 1)

Blood Siphon (level 21)

Ben wondered if that kind of rapid progression was usual in VD games. Back when he was playing classic D&D, he would get to level 4 only after three or four sessions - and that was a good case scenario. Here, however, he had achieved it after only 6 or 7 hours of game time. Ben mulled about it for some time, but finally decided it made sense. You just couldn’t compare sitting around a table and imagining what’s happening with really experiencing it, and here there was no need to take breaks or get distracted by mundane interruptions. Ben could well remember how frustrated he was when all of the group had to wait as Noah did his business - usually twice in one session! He never understood how such a lanky fellow could shit so much - or when they started talking about real-life stuff and got carried away. The only kind of interruption he was willing to endure was when the pizza arrived.

Thinking about pizza, Ben suddenly felt a pang of hunger - which immediately made him frown. He knew for a fact that hunger shouldn’t be an issue while being connected to VD. All the manuals that were available on the net agreed on that point - the system did more than just “hijack” one’s brain. It also made sure none of the physical limitations and needs would be regarded. Hunger, thirst, bodily functions and even minor physical harm were all ignored so that the player would be able to be fully immersed in the game. The only exception was a physical pain that went beyond a certain level - so if you fell out of your bed and broke your hand, the system would initiate a forced log-out. Ben remembered reading how in the early days even that exception didn’t exist, but after several players were seriously injured and one even died after his room was engulfed in fire, new regulations came to pass.

Yet he was feeling hungry now. How could that be? Ben felt a pang of fear as he recalled his secret conversation with Raxlon. The DM’s stern words were still fresh in his mind: “Continuing playing in my world might… change you.” That ominous pronouncement was followed by another: “If you do choose to carry on, this will be the first and last warning I will give you: you must find out why and how you are linked to the system. There is something beyond you and me here and if you don’t figure it out in time, I fear the consequences, for all of us…”

The scout felt a shudder passing along his spine. If Raxlon was to be believed, then Ben was somehow linked to the system, more so than the average player. He could only guess that this special link was what was causing him to feel hungry while connected, or to feel pain on a greater level than any of the others. Then again, the link was also the reason he was getting the visions from Nolxar’s history - which, in turn, had boosted his skills and powers.

Ben took a deep breath. None of that changed anything. He wasn’t going to quit. He just had to keep going and finish this quest. If he managed that… well, a plan was already starting to form in his tactical and analytic mind. There were ways to find out what was going on with him. But all in good time. Now it was time to return to the dungeon.

As if his thoughts summoned it, a new icon appeared in his vision, shaped like a twisting road with looming cliffs on both sides. Ben grinned. Back to adventure, indeed. He mentally clicked on it, and the next moment he was standing back in the second level of the Dungeon of Dwarven Despair.

This time, he was the first to arrive. Ben smiled at that - another sign he was getting the grasp of the game - and looked around him. He was momentarily confused as he was seeing everything in grayish-green colors, but then he understood. With Milenna and her magical light gone, and with Red and his torches gone, he was standing in complete darkness. The only reason he was seeing anything was because of his Darkvision power. Ben nodded - silently congratulating himself on his choice of power - and scanned his surroundings.

The spikes, ranging from 1 to 6 feet in height, obscured most of his vision. He could see the dead stirge that was still impaled on the tallest spike, as well as a few other dead bodies of the monsters lying around. Beyond the spikes the cavern floor seemed to stretch endlessly, but his Darkvision was good for only 72 feet with his current wisdom level, so he wouldn’t know what else lay beyond until he did some scouting. He did, however, notice several interesting objects scattered between the spikes as he looked around. His Passive Focus triggered once, twice and eventually five times and Ben felt his smile widen.

The scout entered the field of spikes without hesitation, carefully twisting his body around the sharp sticks. The first thing he retrieved was his precious wand, which he found lying on the floor next to a short spike. Then he took his badass crossbow - he had to carefully remove it from a long spike and cursed when he saw how it was scratched and battered from the fall. It didn’t seem to sustain any real damage to its durability, but he hated seeing the long scratch along the bronze mechanism and the wooden body. He secured both weapons to his body and went to examine the next item that lay between the spikes, along with a couple of bones:

Uncommon Studded Leather Armor Of Health: Level 3 This was once a common leather armor, but has gone through both extra smithing work and a small amount of enchantment, to become a reasonable layer of defense. Defense: +8 HP: +5

A new armor was exactly what Ben needed - in fact, so much so that he suddenly wondered if Raxlon was twisting the rules in his favor, just a bit. That thought led to another inner question: if Raxlon was, indeed, helping him, did Ben give a damn? It wasn’t different than cheating, but then again, it meant it would be easier for him to become more powerful. Besides, Raxlon did owe him one for throwing him into the game without any guidance or preparations. From Ben’s perspective, that was definitely considered evening the odds.

Putting any nagging moral thoughts out of his mind, Ben continued to the next item he found in the field of spikes. This, too, seemed to once belong to an adventurer that fell to his death, but this time he decided to keep it as a gift to a certain someone who had saved his life:

Uncommon Heavy Helmet Of The Deep: Level 4 This is a part of the formal armor of the Guardians of the Ironhead Duergar. Forged in the magical furnaces of Jolk Uhm, it gives the wearer both exceptional protection and a weak bonus to magic resistance. Wear the full set to gain additional bonuses. Defense: +11 Magic resistance: +5% Dexterity: -1

The last item Ben found was on the floor next to the edge of the spikes field. It was a beautiful silver necklace, with shiny little blue gems that were embedded on a delicate net. Ben let out a soft whistle when he saw its properties:

Rare Necklace Of Ambient Magic This beautiful piece was once an expensive jewel that belonged to an unknown noble house. It has been enchanted and now grants the wearer a significant mana boost. Mana: +25 Charisma: +1

25 points to mana, and 1 point to charisma besides! This was the most powerful object he had found, and now he was faced with a new dilemma: should he keep it or give to either Shiraz or Millena? The first option he quickly dismissed, after he imagined himself wearing such a necklace. It just didn’t go well with the badass attitude he was trying to achieve. Then he imagined the necklace around the neck of one of his two lady companions… and realized that he was about to face a conflict that was perhaps more dangerous than facing the vampiric stirges. Ben gritted his teeth and put the necklace in his pocket, deciding to decide later.

The next couple of minutes the scout busied himself with changing his gear. He discarded the ruined Sonadin armor and instead put on his new set of studded leather armor. Or tried to. The buckles and straps of the uncommon armor were even more complex than the previous one, and so when Shiraz popped back next to him she found him sitting with his back against a wide spike, half wearing the chest armor, with one hand desperately reaching behind his back, trying to unbuckle one of the clasps.

“You poor creature,” said the shadow mage. “I don’t understand how on earth you have managed to lead us thus far.”

Ben cocked his head to look at her, dismayed by her words, but relaxed when he saw her crooked smile. He also realized that she could see him perfectly despite the complete darkness, and remembered that the very essence of her class suggested that she’d be comfortable in darkness.

The scout stuck out his lower lip, doing his best to look miserable - which was not far from how he felt. “Please help?” He asked in a small voice.

Shiraz’s smile widened. She started to say something but then seemed to change her mind, probably taking pity on the entangled scout. “I can try,” she finally said. “Though I admit I never was fond of complex armor sets. Here, let me turn you around…”

Ben was level 4 now, with a vast array of skills and powers and a deep connection to the very core of this dungeon. He had siphoned blood from the dead and had dealt death to monsters. But he still couldn’t control either his breathing or his heart rate when a woman - especially someone as beautiful as Shiraz - was standing so close to him. He didn’t know if Shiraz was doing it intentionally, but as she helped him wear his new armor she touched his bare skin more than once. Ben gulped, not trusting himself to speak as the lithe redhead finished with her task. She turned him toward her and pulled the last strap on his chest piece. “There,” she said quietly, looking into his eyes. “You’re all set.” Her hand remained on the clasp.

It was the perfect moment. Alone in a dark cavern, with no one except a silent DM and a few corpses of stirges lying about. Her face was so close. This is the Path of Courage, Ben thought to himself. I can do it. Before he lost his nerve, he put his hand on hers. She, in turn, pulled the strap toward her, bringing them ever closer. He closed his eyes and parted his lips-

Instead of feeling her lips on his, though, he heard her whispering in his ear. “Thanks for the gift.” As she pulled away, Ben opened his eyes in alarm. Shiraz was looking at him with a look that was both coy and shrewd. In her hand she held the Necklace of Ambient Magic. “I couldn’t help seeing that… trinket… in your pocket,” she said, somewhat coldly. “I’m guessing you’ve found it together with the armor?” When he didn’t answer she shrugged. “As you don’t wear it, and didn’t give it to me, you probably planned on giving it to Milenna. Good thing that I found it first then, isn’t it?” She drew away - but not very far. She was expecting an answer.

Ben looked at her for a long moment. Of his three companions, Shiraz appealed to him the most. He almost felt as if he could put his trust in her. Almost. Now, looking at her closely, he saw suspicion in her eyes, and it hurt him. Pressing his lips, Ben took his hand away but kept his gaze on hers. “I didn’t plan anything yet,” he said simply. “I definitely didn’t plan to get pickpocketed by one of my party members. Still, it is yours now.”

Shiraz’s expression softened somewhat and she even looked a bit ashamed. “I guess I had it coming.” Her regretful expression vanished as soon as it came, though, and a smile appeared anew. She turned and presented her neck to him. “Now’s your turn to help me put something on,” she said cheerfully, as if nothing awkward just happened between them.

By the time Red and Milenna reappeared, Shiraz was already wearing the beautiful necklace. Ben didn’t know if it was due to the added charisma the jewel supplied, but the shadow mage looked absolutely stunning in his opinion. He wanted to say as much to her, but was interrupted by the Red Mercenary’s mighty roar. “Level 4 is awww-some!” Exclaimed the warrior. He looked as big as life and Ben would put money that he invested even more points to strength and constitution, as his muscles were bulging like never before. “Why is it so damn dark here?” Red continued.

“Maybe because it’s a dungeon,” said Milenna sweetly. The sorceress didn’t wait before conjuring her light ball again, and Ben had to blink several times as his darkvision was ruined. After his eyes adjusted to the light, the scout picked up the heavy helm and handed it to Red. “I thought you’d like it,” he said.

Red’s eyes widened in surprise and pleasure. “Skin! I’m touched!” He took the silver helm and examined it. “It looks amazing. What does it do?” The last question came out muffled as Red was already putting the helmet on. It covered most of his face, giving him a fierce visage.

Ben told him, and added: “Also, thanks for saving my life, man. Falling on these spikes seemed like a bad way to go.”

Red snorted in dismissal. “You would have done the same for me.” A grin could be seen through the cracks of his helm. “Besides, we kicked some serious ass up there! Didn’t we, gals?” He turned to Milenna. “I read the combat logs. Your rain spell was the only thing that kept those giant fucking mosquitoes from finishing me off. Thanks for that.”

Milenna inclined her head, acknowledging the compliment. Her own gaze went to Shiraz. “Couldn’t have cast it without the protection of our shadow mage,” she said. Then she looked at Ben. “And I wouldn’t even think about casting it without the sage advice of our scout. Rain was the last spell I thought I would need so deep inside a dungeon. I guess you always learn something new.”

Complimenting each other felt so good that they kept at it for several more minutes, reliving the battle and even speaking about the latest level-up. Ben decided to be a little more forthcoming and told them about his new psychic power, and in turn, the others opened up as well. Milenna had several new spells at her disposal, Shiraz could shadow jump to greater distances, and Red received a power called “Captain America,” of all things. It allowed him to throw his shield and have it bounce back to him after dealing massive damage.

Finally, they decided it was time to move on. Ben asked Milenna to dim the light of her ball and then he used his own power, Hawk Eye, realizing that the cavern was a perfect place to experiment with his magic drone. He sent the invisible eye up to the air, above the spikes and deeper into uncharted territory. At the same time, he watched as the dungeon’s new floor level was updated in his Scout’s Friendly Map, which he opened so it would appear in his vision.

The magical eye nearly reached its range limit, but Ben saw nothing but empty floor. How big was this cave? Then something else appeared in the far end of his radius of sight - just before the eye popped out of existence and Ben’s eyesight returned to normal. He looked at the others, smiling. “Who wants to get to a second waystone?”

“Depends,” said Shiraz. “Will there be rewards like last time?”

Ben was already starting to move. “Why don’t we find out?” He called over his shoulder.

The four companions, still in high spirits, left the spiraling path and the field of spikes and went toward the speck of light that Ben had seen. Ben knew it was a waystone, because his Identify skill triggered the moment he laid eyes on the soft aura that penetrated the darkness:

~Waystone ~ Dungeon of Dwarven Despair ~ Level 2

What Ben didn’t expect was that the waystone was not deserted. As they drew closer they saw the waystone was similar to the one in the upper level: a marble pillar that emanated a white aura around it, with the familiar humming sound that originated from its center.

Sitting with his back against the glowing pillar was a dwarf. It wasn’t a dark-skinned Duergar like the ones Ben knew from his visions. No, this dwarf had tanned skin and a bushy beard and Ben quickly identified him as a mountain dwarf. He wore heavy armor, but it was dented in many places and smeared with gore and blood. He held a heavy mace, but seemed to lack the strength to lift it - the weapon’s massive spiked head, smeared in blood as well, was resting against the floor. In fact, the dwarf looked a complete mess: blood covered half his face as well as his beard and his neck, and his breathing came out in a wheeze. His eyes were wide open, though, and when he heard the companions approaching he turned his head to look at them.

Ben froze. This was the first time he saw this dwarf, yet the injured fighter looked somehow very familiar. His eyes, his expression, even the way he now smiled, with his bloodied teeth biting his lower lip... there was only one person Ben knew who smiled like that.

The dwarf’s smile grew as he saw the scout’s stunned look. “Hey there, fuckface,” he said weakly. His voice was gruff yet familiar. “Took you some time.”

Ben’s jaw dropped in complete shock. “Mike?”