Eric collapsed onto the dusty ground, completely exhausted after his fifth full day of strenuous apprenticeship training. Flynn’s training regimen had taken a toll on him. He was covered in sweat and was struggling to catch his breath for what felt like the hundredth time in the last few days. The only consolation from all the hard work was his steady increase in proficiency in his newly gained grand bow proficiency. With his latest bout, he had finally broken through to level five and received another bonus percentage point to his grand bow damage. He looked up and saw Flynn approaching him with his usual nonchalant demeanor.

“You almost lasted a full minute that time. I must be doing something right,” Flynn said jokingly as he looked down at Eric without an ounce of sympathy for the physical pain he had to endure.

Eric found Flynn to be generally emotionless during their close to cruel training sessions. He typically wore an impassive face with no signs of positive or negative reinforcement, but he had a way of encouraging Eric to continue with the right words of encouragement exactly when they were required.

“Yeah. Something like that,” Eric grumbled in response.

“Get up kid. I think you are ready for the next stage of your training. I’m actually quite looking forward to it since it doesn’t require me kicking your ass around the training grounds day in and day out. You wouldn’t believe the pile up of work in my office after only a few days off,” Flynn said.

Eric immediately perked up at Flynn’s words and scrambled to his feet. He was thrilled to get any break from the brutal training schedule he had adopted over the last week.

“I like the sound of it already,” Eric replied through heavy breaths as he regained his stamina.

“Good, because you have no choice,” Flynn grunted before continuing his explanation of the new request. “I recently got word of a recent monster infestation in a village called Arstal a few miles south of the city. A frightened villager or two, nothing serious from the sounds of it. I need you to make your way there and eliminate whatever is making the villagers nervous. Come back once you take care of the problem and not a moment before,” he explained calmly.

Eric eyed him suspiciously for a moment. His experience with Flynn over the last week had him immediately on edge. A small monster infestation to Flynn could mean instant death for a newbie like Eric and he was already thinking through the potential outcomes.

“Do you have any more information about what I might run into?” Eric asked.

Flynn chuckled at Eric’s apparent nervousness. “Relax kid. Monster spawns take months to get strong enough to be a real problem. It’s probably a few mutated rats or something of the like. Nothing you can’t handle after the training I’ve given you the last few days. Go find the village leader, Wellman; and he will know where to direct your search,” Flynn said as he slapped Eric on the back.

Eric released an abated breath at Flynn’s lack of concern. He knew he still had to be cautious, but he was excited to get out in the field and test out his new abilities. He decided Flynn wouldn’t send him on a suicide mission which comforted him and improved his attitude toward the new task.

Ting!

Quest Alert: Arstal Aid

You have been given information about a monster infestation impacting the village of Arstal. Seek out the village leader to offer your aid and eliminate the threat.

Reward: +500 Experience

Eric nodded at the new prompt and said, “Very well. I’ll make my way there to investigate as soon as possible.”

Flynn shrugged at Eric’s response and walked off toward his office, impatient to tackle the tasks awaiting him. Eric followed Flynn with his eyes as he disappeared into the barracks. He had been slowly learning more about Flynn and his history. Between the bouts of rigorous training sessions, Eric had the opportunity to share several meals with Flynn and began to build a deeper relationship. He was confident given enough time he would be a valuable asset and Flynn would provide him with a fast lane to high tier quests and rewards others would drool over. The future windfall kept Eric focused and helped get him through the beatings laid out by Flynn. The quest assignment was a good sign of things to come in Eric’s mind.

Eric carefully sat back down on the ground before opening his navigation menu. He quickly found Arstal south of Drail just as Flynn described. The small label of the village was almost lost in the sprawl of small farming communities that ballooned outward from the imposing depiction of the capital detailed on the map. Eric swiftly accessed the auto-navigation feature listed on the side of the map and tapped in his destination. A transparent compass appeared in his vision with a blue tipped arrow pointing toward the selected target. It was by no means turn by turn directions but would keep Eric from getting totally lost, so he was thankful for the navigation feature.

Eric took a couple minutes to look over the wider map area visible to him. The majority of the map was covered in a thick black fog representing unexplored areas of the continent. These areas of the kingdom would slowly be discovered and claimed, but until players made it deeper into the wilderness only trade routes and established cities and towns were visible. Eric lazily closed the menu and looked up toward the horizon. It was early afternoon and based on his simple calculations if he made his way south at a modest pace it would take him around three hours to reach Arstal.

Eric decided he had time to move out immediately and began carefully pulling out a set of worn leather armor from his inventory. The set was gifted by Flynn after a particularly harsh ass kicking the day before. The set of armor was nothing special and didn’t hold any enchantments like Shadowspark, but it was well crafted and brought a slight smile to Eric’s face. He knew it would offer considerably better protection than the simple cloth clothes he had been wearing since he entered Teurilia. He examined the properties of each item as he strapped them in place one at a time and was pleased with the moderate armor bonuses between three and four each piece offered.

Eric took a few minutes to stretch his muscles out in his new armor. He felt a new wave of confidence as he practiced his fighting stances and techniques in the layer of protection the armor offered. Feeling well protected and excited to test his combat prowess, Eric proceeded to the exit of the training grounds. The compass only provided a general direction of his destination, so he carefully navigated through the busy streets until he reached the outer gate at the south wall.

As Eric approached the city gates, he paused to soak in the activity around him. A large contingent of guards were carefully watching over the scene from their fortified gatehouse and the thick walkway lining the top of the walls. The volume of people moving in and out of the city was an impressive sight. There were columns leaving and entering the city in an orderly fashion and a mix of carts and wagons brought loads of goods into the city. The bustling economy of the city was in full display.

Eric moved forward toward the gate and shuffled out behind a couple of adventurers on horseback. He made it through the gate and outside the imposing walls following the well-armed riders and directed his route southward toward the navigational arrow directing him to his destination. There were well traveled roads circling the city and southward branching in many directions so it was easy for Eric to find an easily navigable path toward his destination. He expected as he moved farther out from the capital city the roads would become less hospitable, but Arstal was only a half dozen miles away so he didn’t expect to have too much trouble.

The road he traveled down was made of thick stones patched together in a seamless surface. There were a variety of shops and housing lining the main road into the city and as Eric looked out beyond he saw extensive acres of farms and ranches. It was a typical medieval society in which the farms and livestock primarily resided outside of the city’s walls where the land was less valuable and provided plenty of area for grazing and fields.

Eric was amused as he passed a group of adventurers covered in a thick brown slime. They were cursing and stomping their feet as they argued about how they should have never gone into a dungeon known to spit out slime covered mutants. They trudged past Eric determined to find a mage to removed whatever curse caused the slime to stick tightly to their bodies and inhibit their movements.

Eric was thrilled to be out of the city’s walls and discover what the more untraveled areas of the kingdom had to offer. The monster dungeons that appeared were the most obvious benefit of striking out of the city’s walls, but the unknown quests and potential mysteries waiting to be solved in the continent’s storied history were what made Eric particularly eager.

After passing onto a packed dirt road that steered away from the main trade road, Eric picked up his speed to a steady jog. He kept Shadowspark shouldered tightly in case he needed to quickly defend himself. For all the exciting things to find outside of the protection of the city it wasn’t lost on Eric the potential risks. There would always be chaotic players looking for easy prey and he was not looking to become an easy victim. The odds were slim being so close to the city, but he learned from Flynn’s first lesson to always be on alert.

Eric made good time and passed through the first farming community that separated the city from Arstal after about an hour of steady jogging. He had to take a break to replenish his stamina as he passed the small collection of homes that made up the bulk the town, but after a brief respite his Stamina steadily climbed and he was back on the move. The rest of his journey was uneventful as he passed through several more small communities of farmers and simple craftsman that carved out a living working the land.

As he approached the borders of Arstal, Eric was immediately on alert. The community was in stark contrast to the others he had passed through. There were no friendly villagers tending their fields or going about their chores. Instead, boarded up windows and a heavy silence greeted Eric as he stepped into the village’s center. The dusty streets were empty of activity and Eric found himself alone in what should have been a bustling village preparing for a quaint evening.

Eric scanned the ghost town for any signs of activity. The silence was suffocating and Eric was left unsure of his next move. As he stood dumbfounded, a small disturbance caught his eye in the upper window a large structure at the end of the village square. A flicker of light stood out against the darkening horizon. Eric nocked an arrow and stealthily approached the building hoping to make contact with a local to figure out the situation.

The building featured a large wooden door and appeared well kept. As Eric reached earshot, he began to hear the rumblings of conversation. The conversation seemed tense, but non-violent reassuring Eric he may have found a potential contact. Eric carefully approached the front door and knocked firmly to alert the assumed villagers of his presence. He wanted to avoid being seen as a threat or enemy in what appeared to be a serious situation for the village.

The thud from Eric’s thick knuckles echoed across the square and the conversation immediately paused. A few moments of silence and then the sound of drawing swords reached Eric’s ears from the other side of the thick door. Although confident the villagers wouldn’t attack him without provocation, he still took a cautious step back from the doorway in the event he misread the situation.

The door slowly opened revealing a broad-shouldered man holding a rusty longsword. Eric quickly identified him as Wellman, the villager leader. The man called out gruffly, “What business do you have here stranger?”

Eric loosened his stance hoping to appear non-threatening and replied, “I was sent by my master; Flynn Skyfire, to offer aid. He received reports of a monster infestation causing trouble for the village. I am Eric Shadowspark.”

At Eric’s words the man visibly relaxed. He gave a curt nod and quickly ushered Eric inside before closing the door and placing a wide beam across the frame. He turned with a grave expression and said, “Adventurer, thank you for your assistance. I am the village leader, you can call me Wellman. I’m afraid the problem has escalated quickly since our original call for aid. The monsters have spread and evolved more quickly than any I’ve ever seen. I pray you have experience dealing with the undead.”

Eric’s face betrayed him as he digested the news. It was clear the problem was more than a simple rat infestation. He realized the man was staring at him and his expression was sure to be misinterpreted. He returned the man’s stare and with renewed vigor said, “I have been trained by Flynn to be a capable warrior against any opponent.”

After a few minutes of discussing the situation, Eric felt much more prepared to face the threat causing trouble for Astral. Wellman explained the first signs of the monsters was less than a week ago, he described it starting with livestock disappearing during the night and escalated to undead creatures stalking through the village during the night. The villagers took to their homes and hunkered down to hide from the creatures. Fortunately, the monsters were unable to break into the villager’s homes, but they were growing stronger by the day and it was causing a sense of terror throughout the community.

Wellman had taken his two strongest villagers to scout out the source of the monsters and discovered a cave south of the village that served as their spawning location. Eric digested all the information and began contemplating his next move. It was clear he would need to take out the source of the infestation and clear out the cave. He decided waiting for the monsters to exit the cave to potentially cause more harm wasn’t an option and if he moved quickly he could reach entrance before the sun completely disappeared.