Charles woke with a groan already able to feel his head pounding in anger at him having stayed up as late as he had. It wasn’t his fault that the episode of his favorite TV show had been particularly good, nor did it matter that he had watched the entire series at least five times already.

His eyes felt like they were glued shut as he forced the palms of his hands to scrub at them with another groan.

“Oh, quit your whining you pathetic weakling!” An uncompromisingly hard voice said to him.

With a hitch of his throat, Charlie shot off his bed and to his feet his eyes pulling themselves open with a wrench. His sandy and dry feeling eyes revealed a blurred and hazy looking room with a red-haired woman standing in his room. As he blinked furiously, she slowly came into focus, revealing her long curly red hair that cascaded down the middle of her back. Her large green eyes were hard, and her sharp nose upturned haughtily as she looked at him. A sword was strapped to the thigh of her dark red leather pants. A soft green blouse tried to hide her womanly form only barely succeeding. She was an exceedingly beautiful woman, but none of that so much as hinted to the reason that she was standing in the bedroom of his apartment.

Then he felt his mind stutter and grind to a halt as he saw the long-tapered ears that peaked through her hair.

“Who… who are you?” He stuttered weakly as he tried to cover his overly skinny chest. His dark blue boxers highlighting his pale legs.

A hazy black see-through box flickered into being in the corner of his vision.

You have been cursed by the gods! Your refusal to acknowledge their announcement has earned their ire!

The curse ‘Sleepless’ has been placed upon you by the gods, as such only the gods may remove this curse.

As Zeus is one of the gods involved in this curse, it was decided that you will need to complete twelve challenges to have this curse removed. Details of the challenges you will need to complete will be revealed in time.

For now, enjoy not being able to sleep.

Charles felt his legs grow weak at what he was seeing. The soft edges of the box stayed in his vision no matter how much he blinked.

“You have to click the top right corner of the box for it to close, you dimwitted fool!”

Charles extended his hand and tried pressing the corner as she had said. A harsh laugh filled the air at his actions.

“You have to click it with your mind, not your hand. Just think about pushing the button.” At her words, he pushed with his mind and the box closed leaving nothing behind.

“What is going on?” Charles asked weakly as he sank back onto his bed.

“If you had woken like everyone else in the world you would already know the answer to that question. The world has changed. My fellow gods and I decided that we had grown bored looking over the world. You all had forgotten us, leaving us with nothing to occupy our time. Can you really blame us for growing bored and needing to find other things to occupy our time with? We decided that we no longer wanted humanity to continue down the path they had been treading. So, we combined all our powers and changed the very fabric of reality and the world. The world is now modeled after the fashion of your table-top role-playing games. People can now gain levels by completing tasks or killing monsters. And yes, there are monsters in the world. We have brought back the monsters of legend and awakened them from their slumber. You will be happy to note that when we made these changes, we decided to include a helpful guide to the way the new system works. All you have to do is think ‘Help’ and the guide will pop into being in the center of your vision.” She continued speaking but Charles felt his attention drift at the fantastical change that she was talking about. Nothing was the same. The entire world had been changed overnight.

“What happened to the power?” He asked numbly as he noticed that his alarm clock was no longer working.

“About that,” She answered with an audible smirk. “You see something interesting happened when we changed the world. It created something akin to an Electro-Magnetic Pulse, consequently, the entire world no longer has power. All the technology humanity has created over the years is now worthless.”

“What about pacemakers and life-support machines?” He asked trying to wrap his head around everything.

“What about them? They’re all dead!” Was the cold reply. “Do you even know how many people have died in the hours since our announcement? The shock alone killed a full tenth of humanity, since then roving monsters and accidents of all kind have taken another thirty percent. Of the nearly eight billion people that were alive yesterday just under five billion remains.”

“Who are you?” Charles finally managed to ask as the shock of what she was saying broke him from his stupor.

“My name is Brigit of the Tuatha Dé Danann and I am a goddess you mortal worm.” As she spoke her voice grew deeper and she seemed to grow in height.

“My family,” Charles asked choosing to ignore what she had just announced a second before. The Fae weren’t real, then again neither were the other gods. He would have to ask her about them all later if he had the chance.

“Hmm?” Brigit asked seeming unable to follow what he was asking.

“What about my family? Are they alive or dead?” He clarified for her. Last night both of his parents and his older sister had all been alive.

“Your parents are dead, they were in their car when it happened. As for your sister, it seems that she is still alive and has formed a party of survivors on her school campus.” She paused for second before refocusing her large eyes on him. “Enough about other people, I must leave soon, and we have a lot to cover. Pray that we have time to finish the list.”

Charles forced himself to push aside the feelings he felt concerning the death of his parents and the situation his sister was in. For now, at least he had other things to worry about, and by the sound of it, his sister was doing better than he was. Besides she was on the opposite side of the country at MIT. There was nothing he could for her from Denver. He would make his way to her though, he would make sure of it.

“Pull up your ‘Status’ page by thinking about it, this page will be very helpful to your future don’t forget that it exists. It will be where you manage your various abilities.” She told him, once more down to business.

Charles thought ‘Status’ and saw a page with three simple lines in it and nothing more.

Name: Charles ‘Chuck’ Byrne

Level 1 - Exp to next level: 40

Cursed by the gods with ‘Sleepless’

“Umm, isn’t there usually more than three lines of information on a status page?” He dared to ask the goddess who was suddenly looking at him strangely.

“Yes, there are supposed to be lines for Strength, Dexterity, Agility, Intelligence and more. For some reason, you don’t have any of those listed.” She crept closer to him until he could see that her eyes were unfocused and slightly glazed.

He watched as her mouth began to move softly whispering to herself in a language he didn’t understand. The more she whispered the brighter her green eyes became until they were glowing brightly. Finally, the glow in her eyes began to fade as she finished whatever it was she had been doing, no longer whispering.

“It is because of our curse on you!” She said at length. “To level-up properly you need to fall asleep for the various changes to take effect. Since you cannot sleep, those changes are unable to be applied. It is good we discovered this now before we curse anyone else.”

“If I can’t level-up and grow stronger then how am I supposed to survive?” Charles asked weakly as he pulled his still warm blanket over his bare legs.

“Yes, that may prove to be difficult for you. Oh well.” She said nonchalantly as her eyes fully refocused on him.

“Oh well?” Charles sputtered. “I’m going to die because of what you people did and all you can do is say oh well?” The sunlight in the room dimmed as clouds passed over it.

Brigit’s hair took on an otherworldly glow blazing red at his question. “You dare to question the gods?” The anger was palpable in her voice as it lowered to a deep bass that he felt in his bones.

“Yes, yes I do.” He said indignantly, glad that he was already sitting. He didn’t think his legs would have held him otherwise. Just sitting in front, she was almost too much for him. His mouth and throat were dry, and his heart was beating faster than it had before causing everything to take on a reddish tinge.

“Do you understand that I could kill you without a thought, and not feel anything more regarding the act than I would for stepping on an ant?” Her eyes had begun to glow again, flashing dangerously.

“What is your point?” He returned, acting far braver than he actually felt. “From what you have told me, it sounds like I am going to die anyway. So why exactly should I fear the wrath of the gods?”

The goddess’s eyes flashed one last time and then the light illuminating them began to fade taking the blazing red of her hair with it. She stood there in front of him looking down at him a gleam replacing the anger in her eyes.

“Hmm, you surprise me, human. You drew our attention by your lack of action during our announcement, now you have drawn my personal attention by your actions.” She stepped back and leaned her hip against his desk in the corner of the room her eyes fixed on him thoughtfully.

A small grin slowly crept across her face as she continued to look at him. “I think that I am going to enjoy this new world that we have created!” She said softly to herself unaware that Charles still heard her words. Her eyes slid out of focus as her attention drifted from him to somewhere else.

Charles struggled to keep his face even as he sat in his bed. The goddess put out a palpable and near stifling aura of pressure, even while she was just standing there calmly.

“Very well,” She said finally drawing his attention back to her and away from his inner musings. “I have discussed it with the other ruling gods and we have decided that there may be something we can do for you. The gods have decided to gift you with a weapon and an item that will help you survive if used correctly.” The air in front of her blurred as she held out her hand with her palm open and pointed upwards.

“How will a weapon be useful to me?” Charles managed to force out, his tongue feeling increasingly thick and unresponsive the longer she was in front of him. “I’ve never even been in a fight before, I don’t know how to use any weapons!”

Brigit’s face tightened at his interruption. “If you would remain quiet I will explain!” She enunciated each word carefully through clenched teeth. “As I was saying. Both items will possess’ certain enchantments that you should find useful in remaining alive.” The air above her hand solidified into a small black flask with an attached strap to allow it to hang from a belt. “This flask contains a health potion that will heal you back to full health as long as you remain alive to use it. It will not bring you back from the dead in other words.”

Great a single use item! That will only be useful one time, Charles thought carefully keeping his inner thoughts from showing on his face.

“This flask is more than what it appears, however,” She continued with a smirk on her face clearing having guessed what he was thinking. “There are a number of enchantments on it. The first, binds it to your person so that it cannot be sold, stolen, or given away. The second, refills it over time, every twelve hours it can be used one time. Bear in mind that it doesn’t matter how much you drink, it will still count as using it a single time. Also, the potion inside cannot be stored inside any other container, so don’t even try. Finally, the flask can only be used on yourself or a member of your party.” She passed the flask over to him watching as he looked at it closely.

Those limitations on it, he knew would ensure it remained useable over time while keeping it out of other people’s hands. It was definitely a good item as long as he could find a way to remain alive, with any luck the weapon she had mentioned would have equally useful enchantments on them.

The air above her hand once more blurred as a long black sword that seemed to absorb light settled into her open hand. It was what was known as a hand and a half sword allowing it to be used with one hand or two depending on the situation. The blade was thin and appeared to be suitable more for piercing than slashing. Above her hand, a simple unadorned leather scabbard and belt appeared and then settled limply in her hand hanging over the edge of her hand.

“This sword also possesses a number of enchantments that you will find useful in helping you to remain alive. The first is the same as what is on your flask. The sword is bound to your person, it cannot be sold, stolen or given away, it also cannot be lost as it will reappear on your person should such an event take place. The second enchantment allows it to increase your strength and speed during battle, it will also scale with your levels. This will help to lower the gap between you and everyone else but will not eliminate it entirely. There are two more enchantments on it, as you have no doubt already guessed by its appearance normally this sword would have to be used along the lines of a rapier where it is used for piercing attacks instead of slashing. That is not the case with this particular weapon, it is unbreakable so feel free to use it as you would any other sword. The final enchantment is one that I think you will find particularly useful. It will allow the sword to sword to help guide your movements when you use it for practice. In other words, it will teach you how to use it properly in a fight, so make sure that you spend some time each night practicing with it.” Carefully she placed her free hand on the flat of the blade and extended the hilt and scabbard to him.

Charles took the scabbard first and set it to the side on his bed next to the flask. Reaching for the hilt of the sword he braced his arm expecting it to be heavy, instead, it was surprisingly light. He brought the sword closer as his eyes ran over the black blade, hard to see runes ran over the surface of the blade blending in with whatever the sword was made of.

Without thinking he lightly tested the edge of the blade with the pad of his thumb finding it razor sharp as it cut his skin effortlessly. Bringing his thumb to his mouth he sucked the blood from it as he eyed the blade wearily. If it could truly teach him how to use it properly then this sword was truly going to save his life. He just needed to make sure that he put in the time to practice with it.

“Thank you for these!” He began as he kept his eyes on the blade. “I know it won’t be easy, but with these, I think I can at least have a fighting chance.”

Brigit looked at him her lips curling into a smile as she started laughing. “Do you have any idea how stupid you sound? You are going to die right away!” Her eyes drifted off of him as she scanned everything in his room, stopping when she saw the box set in front of his TV. “How about this, I can’t put a computer in your head, but I can make it so you can learn abilities or skills easier.”

Charles felt his face go blank at her reaction and answer. “Uh, why would you do that for me?” He finally managed to ask her.

She cocked her head to the side as she answered. “Because you surprised me. It doesn’t happen as often as you might think. I want you to remain alive long enough to entertain me some more, this will help that to happen!” She stepped right up to his bed as she finished speaking and put her hand on his head covering his eyes.

A bright flash lit the room as the pressure from her hand left his head and he opened his eyes on reflex.

Charles began to gasp for breath as the pressure in the room seemed to explosively lighten. Brigit had disappeared and with her the pressure her very presence caused. Three notifications popped into his vision as he struggled for breath. He closed two of them right away as they were about the items he had been given. The third one, however, pertained to the ability he had just been given.

The goddess Brigit has generously gifted you with the ability ‘Quick Learning’. This ability allows you to quickly learn abilities and skills that otherwise would take a large time commitment.

Charles closed the last window thoughtfully, his mind still struggling to process everything that had happened since he woke. The goddess, his parents, the world, there was so much that he needed to wrap his head around but that would take time. Something that he did not think he had very much of, as the sound of the world outside his apartment began to trickle in and reach his ears.

Really it was the lack of noise, there were no sirens in the distance or the sound of angry drivers honking constantly. There was none of the normal noise that he had come to expect no matter the hour of the day. Denver was like any other city, it never slept. Or at least it never had until now.

Tilting his head in apprehension he flung the blankets from his legs and hopped off the bed. His sword went over the side of the bed as it tangled with his blanket and was ripped from his grasp. Crossing the room in a rush, he stopped next to the window in shock. Everything looked like it was on fire.

All the buildings surrounding him and, in the distance, had flames either climbing the sides or shooting from windows. Movement in the streets below drew his wide eyes from the burning buildings and onto the endless line of wreckage that filled the streets. Vehicle after vehicle filled the street clogging it completely, leaving little room on the sidewalk for walking. A number of the cars and trucks were nothing but still smoking husks of burned out metal. Others were still on fire, making it clear where at least some of the fires around the city had originated from.

Movement below and to the right allowed his eyes to narrow in on what had drawn his attention initially. A roving pack of dogs was dragging something from a car that had yet to catch fire. He smashed his head against the glass of his window as he struggled to focus his eyes on what they were dragging from the car.

His apartment was on the sixth floor of his building, making everything happening on the street appear small and indistinct. Something shifted in his eyes and suddenly everything zoomed in and came into focus. To the side of his vision, a notification popped into being.

Due to intense focus, you have learned the ability ‘Far-Seeing’. This ability allows you to see things far in the distance with intense clarity.

With a thought, he closed the transparent window and refocused his eyes on the street below. The dogs zoomed in close enough for him to see the drool that dripped from their mouths and the blood that had matted their fur in various places. Two dogs at the front of the pack gave a great heave and he was finally able to see what they had dragged from the car. A single leg torn at the knee with a red strappy high-heel filled their snarling mouths.

Charles looked away, his eyes moving over the wrecked silver sedan and stopping on a large green monster with a club in its hands that was jumping from car to car. From the corner of his eye, he saw the dogs grab the leg and drag it into an alley away from view. Each jump of its huge legs and feet brought the monster crashing down on another car, crumpling part of it each time.

The monsters tusked mouth bent towards the sky, its large snout-like nose flaring as it smelled something. Its head swiveled towards the alley the dogs had disappeared down and a malicious tooth filled grin crept over its face. With a single great bound it leaped from the car crumpling it in the middle and landed in front of the entrance to the alley.

It vanished from view as a series of howls and animalistic screams softly reached Charles' ears. Stepping away from the window he felt a wave of terror wash over him that had been long in coming. He wasn’t angry for some fictional injustice that had been committed against him or the world. He knew enough about the world and the way life worked to understand that it was always the strong that ruled. The gods who had done this were simply the strongest beings around, there was no point in getting mad over something he could do nothing over. Maybe someday if he ever got strong enough, he could do something to the gods if that was even possible.

In the meantime, he had more important things to occupy his time with, he needed to go east to his sister. She was the only family that he had left now, and there was no way he was going to let her die. With the gifts from the gods and some luck, he might be able to at least help her stay alive. She was smart, far smarter than him. Physical exercise had been sacrificed at times for studying, he was worried about her.

Taking another step back away from the window his feet tangled in his blanket causing him to lose his balance and fall heavily to the floor. He remained on the ground as he struggled to push aside his emotions for the time being. He knew his sister was safe for now, and there was nothing he could do for her from his current location. She was on the east coast and he was in Colorado, it would take him some time to make his way to her.

The news that his parents were dead was something else entirely. He had spoken to them the night before, they had been healthy and doing well at their home in California. It would take some time for him to work through his emotions properly, and he knew that. For now, though he had to ensure that he survived long enough to make that happen.

A violent rumble filled the air as the floor beneath him shook and the building groaned. Pulling his feet free he climbed to his feet with one hand on his bed to steady himself against the moving floor. He looked around his room as what he needed to do next became obvious.

He needed to quickly get dressed and grab some supplies, and then leave. The city was on fire and something was wrong with the building, he couldn’t stay where he was for much longer. He began to rush around the room as he grabbed some suitable clothes. A pair of thick tan cargo pants and a heavy dark blue waffle knit long sleeve shirt went on his body as he dug out a pair of black boots that were in good condition and his leather bomber jacket. He would need the heavy clothes for warmth and protection. It was really too bad that he had never gotten into camping, he could use the sleeping bag. If he was lucky, he might be able to find one in a store somewhere along the way. Looting in these circumstances was natural.

He threaded the belt for his sword through the loops on his pants cinching it tight. Carefully he slipped the sword into the scabbard on his hip and secured the health flask to the belt on the opposite hip. A large backpack sat beside his desk, currently full of items from work, such as his laptop which was now useless.

He pulled everything from the bag and tossed it on his bed, it would only be dead weight now. There was no reason to keep any of it with him, it no longer worked and served no purpose. He needed the room for other things, like another heavy shirt, and food. He pulled a clean shirt that matched the one he was currently wearing from his dresser and stuffed it into the bottom of the bag.

Moving from his room he entered his kitchen and began rifling through all the cupboards in his kitchen. An unopened box of pop tarts and package of beef jerky went into the bag alongside a box of matches that he had found. A couple of apples and all the bottles of water that he could carry took up the rest of the space.

The building groaned again as he finished putting everything into the backpack. His eyes roved over his small apartment one last time as he hurried to finish. The full import of what he was about to try and do hit him as he stood in front of the door with his hand stretched towards the doorknob.

His life would never be the same again, from here on out everything would be a struggle to survive. He would be constantly fighting for his life using weapons and tools that humanity mostly stopped using years ago.

It could take months to make his way back east, he would have to walk at least some of the way. If he got lucky, he might find a bicycle or a horse to ride some of the way.

In all likelihood, this would be the last time he ever laid eyes on his small apartment and the contents therein. With those thoughts firmly in mind and dragging his mood even further down, he opened the door and entered the darkened hallway. A window at the far end of the hall allowed a small amount of smoky light to dimly illuminate the area.

In the darkest corner of the hall a set of closed metal doors led to the powerless elevator, Charles glanced briefly in that direction before heading the opposite direction. To the side of the sole window lay the door leading to the stairwell and his way down to the ground floor.

He crept down the hall keeping his feet light as he walked, the apartments were quiet and deathly still as he passed them. The entire building was silent in fact, outside he could scream and the flicker of flames in the distance. Inside however, there was nothing, no voices from people panicking or looters looting.

With every step Charles felt himself growing more on edge and leery of what he was going to find as he made his way down. His heart beat faster and his palms grew slick with sweat as his nerves began to get the better of him. He paused to wipe them on his tan pants staining them with moisture before opening the door for the stairwell.

His skin began to prickle as the door swung inwards revealing a well-lit stairwell, windows appeared over every landing letting natural light fill the area. The prickling on his skin grew worse as he took a single step through the door.

Your apprehension has gotten the best of you and allowed a new ability to spawn. The ability ‘Detect Bloodthirst’ has been learned. This ability allows you to know when a monster or enemy is near.

Charles felt his senses heighten and then focus as the certainty that there was a malicious presence somewhere below him coalesced inside his mind. A shaking hand filled his vision as his focus narrowed to the hand he clasped over his heart. His knees grew weak at what was to come, he wasn’t ready yet. He hadn’t practiced with the sword at all. He didn’t know how to use it! Could he even kill a monster? How strong was it? If it was already inside the building, then it had probably already killed people. Could monsters level up? What was he going to do when he saw a body for the first time?

All of these thoughts flashed through his mind as he fought for control of his own body, desperately trying to ignore the fear that threatened to overwhelm him. The beat of his heart pulsed violently inside his chest thumping against his hand as he sank to his knees. His head bent forward, the weight of his backpack seeming to grow heavier with every second.

He was a programmer, a desk jockey, a nerd! He had no business holding a sword and trying to fight monsters. He had no experience with something like this, he had no idea what he needed to do. Did he just rush down the stairs with the sword outstretched and hope for the best? Should he try and sneak up on it? Was it possible to bypass it? Would it be better to just go back inside his apartment and wait for the end?

No, he needed to fight! He needed to survive! His sister was fighting to live on and she didn’t even have the luxury of knowing the fate of the rest of her family. How could he expect her to do more than he was willing to do himself?

The simple answer was that he couldn’t!

His resolve sharpened as his thoughts and the options laid before him became clear. The harsh rapid in and out of his breathing gradually slowed and evened into deeper more filling lungfuls of air. The shaking of his hands eased as he focused on what he could do.

The world had changed, and with-it certain morals had to be forgotten. Killing was now a way of life, protecting those close to you was the purpose of living. People would change, many of them for the worse. The evils of society and humanity would doubtlessly become more prevalent in the days to come.

The world had gone back to being a lawless anything goes place. Might would rule the day, he could only hope that he had the strength to be among those that would rule.

The death-grip his hand had on his shirt over his heart weakened and released. The eyes he hadn’t realized he’d closed opened as he pulled himself back to his feet. His legs trembling lightly beneath him. He had made up his mind, but that didn’t make what he was about to do any easier. He hadn’t even run into any people yet, what he could be thinking might not even be accurate.

If that was the case then he could live with that. Unfortunately, he had never had much faith in humanity as a whole. They were emotional beings that tended to be ruled by their baser desires. The loss of laws and people that could punish them would only serve to accelerate the process of people becoming the worst version of themselves.

His booted feet carried him to the edge of the stairs and he looked over the side, four floors below he saw the monster. A red swath of blood covered the landing where the monster sat. Long flabby arms connected to its large grey hands cradled a red meaty blob as it brought it to its face. Large pointy yellow teeth flashed into view as it opened its lipless mouth.

Two slits occupied the middle of its face just above its teeth where its nose should have been. Bony ridges jutted out above its small beady black eyes covering them in shadow. Flecks of blood mixed with sweat created a frothy shine atop its bald head.

Charles backed away from the edge and put a sweat slickened hand on the pommel of his sheathed sword. This was something that he needed to do, he couldn’t get to the first floor without passing the monster. More than that if he wanted to survive in this new world then he had to fight. He may not know how to use the sword properly but if he snuck up behind it then it wouldn’t matter. A backstab through the neck would hopefully be enough to finish it off regardless.

The world had just barely changed after all, how high of a level could any of them be already?

With that thought firmly in his mind and giving him a small amount of courage, he dropped his backpack on the ground and began to slink down the stairs. Moving from one step to the next he tried to keep as quiet as possible as he moved into position and drew his sword.

He stopped on the landing above the grey ugly monster, the impossibly sharp sword firmly in hand.

The sound of pieces of flesh and drool hitting the ground occupied the still air as its sharp pointed teeth tore through the lump of flesh in its hands.

Charles felt his gorge rise as the nauseating sound of a person being eaten reached his ears. His feet shifted unsteadily as he fought to regain control of his stomach. His eyes were wide and wild as each beat of his heart caused a pulse of pressure in them.

In front of him the words ‘Troll Lv. 3’ appeared floating gently above its grey head. It shifted in place tilting its full bloody mouth on its short neck to look back at him. A grin stretched across its face as it saw him standing there on the landing above. The chunk of bloody meat fell from its grasp as it climbed to its feet with a grunt.

It stooped over and picked up a large white scarred thigh bone as a makeshift club.

Charles couldn’t move as the large troll stood before him and raised the bone club high above its head. He stumbled backward as the club came down, with him falling to the ground just out of the trolls reach.

The sword fell from his hands as he scuttled backward until his back hit the wall. All thought had fled his mind, replaced with an all-consuming terror at what was happening.

A low growling laugh came from the troll at his actions bubbling up from its no-lipped mouth.

The sound of it laughing at him shook him from his daze as a wave of anger rushed through his body and filled his muscles with a strength that refused to be put down. He would not let this monster, this thing, decide how he died! More than that he would not die like a coward without putting up a fight when it came time for him to die he would do it fighting!

Pushing away from the wall he slid forward and picked up his fallen sword holding it out in front of him as calmly as possible.

Before he could think twice and begin to doubt what he was about to do he rushed forward and pushed off with his leading foot. He leaped through the air landing with both feet flat on the ground with his knees bent, just to the side and behind the massive troll. Spinning on his right foot he held the sword in both hands and plunged it into the monsters back, burying a couple of inches of the blade into it.

With an ear-shattering roar, the troll whirled around and buried the thigh-bone club into Charles side with a rib smashing crash. Charles was flung away from the troll and through the air, his body impacting the far wall at high speed abruptly stopping his body. A rush of blood ejecting from his mouth as his head cracked against the wall.

Charles slowly slid from the wall and to the ground, a dent in the wall holding his body upright for a moment before releasing him a wet sounding plop. His legs were unresponsive, and each breath was painful and wet sounding to his ringing ears. He fell to the side and over the edge onto the stairs leading down.

His back impacted the edge of the stairs forcing what little air he had in his lungs painfully from his body as he began sliding down them. Each step he slid down sent a fresh wave of pain through his body as above him the troll let out another earth-shaking roar. With huge ponderous steps, the troll ran down the stairs and picked up Charles’ body from the bottom of the stairs as it passed him. Charles was swung around by one arm flopping in front of the troll as his other arm was grabbed.

Charles was slammed against the wall as the troll began pulling his arms from their sockets. His arms stretched to the side as his body was held in the air by the pressure on them. Gasping for air he pushed his feet against the wall and pushed, wrenching his arms from their sockets as he did so.

His vision went red at the pain as the troll stumbled backward and fell onto its back. The sword that he had stuck into its back was thrust fully through its body as it fell backward releasing Charles as it died. Charles fell on his stomach with a bone-breaking crunch, his arms flopping uselessly at his side.

Troll lv. 3 has died.

You have gained 1 level and have gained 5 status points for distribution.

The ability Pain Resistance has been learned, this ability allows you to ignore a small amount of pain.

Appeared in his red-tinged vision as he struggled for breath everything growing hazy as spots began to dance over his vision.