A party member has died.

The screen flickered, then disappeared. He stared in disbelief.

"What the..." He looked in the direction his brother had gone off in. "What the hell did he go up against?"

Whatever it was, this wasn't a good place to stay in anymore. Luckily, Gav's bag had disappeared upon his death, meaning he only had to carry his own. He reached for it, using it as a crutch to get off the ground. He groaned inwardly.

Why am I so slow? Feels like I ate too much or something.

Grabbing the bag, he stuffed the new materials in it and slung it over his shoulder, running towards the town.

Thump

Daru sat the bag down, leaning next to a tree for support. Town was busier than usual, and so loud that he couldn't even hear himself think, so he had come back to his spawn.

Ugh. So Gav's dead. Now what?

Thanks to the penalty, he wouldn't be logging in until tomorrow. If it wasn't his first death. But after he checked his friends list, Gav's name was greyed out, so he assumed it wasn't.

The game time was more or less the same as actual time, so he guessed there was still 1 or 2 hours left before he had to logout.

"Well, I still need to figure out what the hell this is," he said, looking at his new tattoo. "Guess I'll just practice some more," he muttered, picking up his bag and moving on to the training grounds.

"Stealth," he whispered.

His body shimmered, then grew slightly transparent. If you weren't looking too closely, you probably would've just seen a vague outline. In other words, it did basically nothing, but it was good for leveling.

With some difficulty, he squeezed through the crowd and made it to the training grounds. Just as usual, it was deserted.

He tossed his bag aside and pulled up his status and skill list.

Status

Name: Daru

Lvl 4

Class: Mage

EXP: 5/400

Titles: Monster Hunter I, Dark Horse I, Tamer I

HP: 30/48

MP: 0/74

ATK: 12 (+1)

INT: 18 (+2)

DEX: 16 (+3)

END: 12

DEF: 15 (+9)

VIT: 12

AGI: 16 (+4)

WIS: 19

LUCK: 10

SP: 0

Skills

Common

Potion-Making Lvl 5, Examine Lvl 4, Comprehension Lvl 4, Stealth Lvl 4, Gathering Lvl 3, Staff Mastery Lvl 3, Cooking Lvl 2, Close Combat Mastery Lvl 2, Cleaning Lvl 2, Poison Resistance Lvl 1, Sneak Attack Lvl 1, Strangle Lvl 1, Dodge Lvl 1, Blind Resistance Lvl 1, Training Lvl 1, Taming Lvl 1, Summon Familiar Lvl 1

Semi-Rare

Mana Manipulation Lvl 1

"Fuck, need another potion..." He drank another.

But what the hell is this? Tamer I? And Summon Familiar?

"Examine."

Tamer I(C): Form a contract with a monster. +2 VIT, +2 WIS, +2 END.

What the fuck? What happened when I was out? He examined the other two skills.

Taming(C) Lvl 1: Increases chances of taming monsters with level.

Summon Familiar(C) Lvl 1: Allows you to summon monsters that you have tamed. Number of monsters you can summon increases with level. Current number of familiars possible: 1. Mana consumption varies with familiar.

Familiars:

Unnamed (Grey Wolf) Lvl 1

Okay, well I guess that explains the tattoo? But how the hell did I even do this?

Actually, what would happen if I summoned it right now?

"How does this work...uh, summon familiar!" he shouted.

Nothing happened.

"...grey wolf?"

Requires 100 MP.

He sighed. Guess I won't be seeing this wolf anytime soon. Well, anyway, that's enough on that. Back to- oh wait, I'm out of mana.

He gulped some mana potions down, frowning at the amount.

Only enough for half full... I can make more later. I need to make more potions anyway.

Now then... Manip's still at Lvl 1? Dammit, am I doing something wrong?

A bluish wisp came out of his finger.

Time to take this a step further. How long can I make this?

The wisp grew slowly, until it was about a foot wide. He moved his finger up and down, waving it around like a piece of string.

So weird, why is it acting like this? Looks kinda like... wait what if I tried...

He took his other hand and grew another string of mana. Then he put his fingers together, attempting to twist the strings together.

C'mon, stick together... fuck.

The two strings combined and formed a blob of mana.

Okay, that didn't work. Guess I'll try again...

Suddenly, the mana dissipated, his eyes losing track of it as it scattered into the air.

Goddammit, am I out of mana already? He sighed. Moving on.

He performed a few basic stretches; putting his arms over his head, twisting his arms, before setting up a scarecrow.

Let's see if I can get a few more skills... He jumped up and down, bouncing on the balls of his feet, with his arms contracted and his fists close to his face in a boxing stance. He punched to the side, jabbing its head with his right while blocking imaginary punches with his left. Then he shifted his stance, going with a kick to the bottom of the pole and grabbing the front of the scarecrow, squeezing it like a beanbag. The pole clattered as he threw it to the ground.

Learned Throw(C)

"... that's it?"

Learned Sweeping Kick(C) Close Combat Mastery(C) has absorbed Sweeping Kick Training(C) has become Lvl 2

He clenched his fist. There we go.

What else can I try...

He set the scarecrow up again and stared at it, concentrating.

Hmmm... It'd be hilarious if there was a slapping skill, to be honest. Or a poking skill. Well, there probably is, but like with weapons...

He took his staff from his bag and leveled it at the scarecrow. There's no way this is gonna work, right?

He stabbed forward, aiming for the face. The pole rattled, but otherwise it didn't do anything.

Thought as-

Learned Stab(C)

"What the... how?" He stared at the window, then at his... poor excuse for a stabbing tool.

...Never mind. Whatever, it's not like I'm ever gonna use that anyway.

He sat down, resting. He yawned, puffing his chest out. Damn, that feels good.

Learned Conditioning(C)

"...what the fuck is this? Examine."

Conditioning(C) Lvl 1: Increases effectiveness of other skills with level.

"That's... vague. So like a damage boost?" He muttered. "I really hope this doesn't cost mana later."

Okay, screw all that crap, back to this. What else can I learn?

"Skill List."

Skills

Common

Potion-Making Lvl 5, Examine Lvl 4, Comprehension Lvl 4, Stealth Lvl 4, Gathering Lvl 3, Staff Mastery Lvl 3, Cooking Lvl 2, Close Combat Mastery Lvl 2, Cleaning Lvl 2, Training Lvl 2, Poison Resistance Lvl 1, Sneak Attack Lvl 1, Strangle Lvl 1, Dodge Lvl 1, Blind Resistance Lvl 1, Taming Lvl 1, Summon Familiar Lvl 1, Throw Lvl 1, Stab Lvl 1, Conditioning Lvl 1

Semi-Rare

Mana Manipulation Lvl 1

Oh my god, there's so many lvl 1s. And Mana Manip still hasn't leveled up yet? What do I need to do? He bit his lip.

"Ah, screw it. I don't think I can really level those right now anyway," he said, since they were more "battle-reliant."

His eyes shifted to Close Combat Mastery. This thing ate so many of my skills, and it's only Lvl 2?

"Examine Close Combat Mastery."

Close Combat Mastery(C) Lvl 2: Damage dealt with the user's body is increased accordingly with skill level as well as absorbed skills. (+atk)

Skills absorbed: Punch, Kick, Knee Strike, Elbow Strike, Roundhouse Kick, Jab, Hook, Sweeping Kick

Hmmm... is there anything else I can get? Maybe some karate shit or something. I'll look up some martial arts crap later.

Okay, whatever, let's just try getting some karate chop skill or- wait. No. What's the point? I already have all this crap, do I really need some more?

"..." He stood in thought, thinking about his plans.

I wonder if there's a limit on how many skills you can have. There's no way they could enforce that though, right? I'll need to do some research. I can get that crap later.

He began cleaning up, putting the scarecrow away. As he took it off the pole, he felt a small hole in the fabric.

Oh, there's a hole-

The scarecrow trickled a stream of pellets onto the ground. He tilted the body, then set it on the ground gently.

He let go, looking at it from a different angle. "...It's fine, you can barely see it anyway-"

The hole widened, growing to the size of a quarter. More grain spilled out.

"...Shit." He opened up his backpack. How do I fix this?

Let's see... Not this, not this... maybe this? He held up a few leaves from some random plant and set it aside.

No. Okay, this isn't working. I need like tape or some shit. Something sticky at least.

He rummaged through his bag again. Never mind, none of these things are sticky at all.

Wait. I got it.

He took a leaf, ripping it in half. Then he slipped one half through the hole, holding on to the middle of the half, and pulled it back through the hole. Then he threaded the other half through that gap, creating a cross shape. He tried tying off the ends but it was too short.

I need something longer...

He took some more leaves and tied some to each end, before knotting the whole thing. Surprisingly, it stayed together.

Yes! He clenched his fist. Now to put this back gently...

Learned Repair(C)

"What the hell? That counts?" Altogether, it was a pretty shoddy job, since he did it without tape or glue, but it worked.

Repair(C) Lvl 1: Increases chances of repairing an item.

"No shit, sherlock. Jeez, I really hope these descriptions get better."

Whatever, more skills!

Stealth(C) has become Lvl 5!

He waved the screen away. And now, time to...log off, I guess.

He raced back to the plains and hit the log out button. The world around him faded away, pixel by pixel, until it was completely black.

Darius sniffed the air. Smells like meat. And not burnt meat.

"Is mom home or something?" He looked out the window, but there wasn't anything in the driveway.

"I hope you followed a recipe," he said, walking into the kitchen. Gavin stood at the counter, scooping food from a hot pan onto plates.

"... What's this? I thought I smelled meat."

"It's grilled cheese. I might suck at cooking, but I can do at least-"

"Yeah, yeah, anyway, what happened? I thought you said you were gonna carry me, but you died."

"Umm..." He set the pan down, turning off the stove. "I don't actually know."

"What do you mean? Did you get struck by lightning or something?"

"Actually, yes. How'd you know?"

Darius stared at him blankly. "Wait, what? Were you seriously that unlucky?"

"No, the thing is... I'm pretty sure it was a monster that killed me."

"...It one-shot you?"

"Yep."

"...What the fuck. Is this on hardcore mode or some shit? Some invisible monster that shoots lightning bolts. How the hell are we supposed to beat that?"

"Okay, no no no, so um..." Gavin sat down. "I was looking around for like things to hunt, and then I saw this party coming towards me just like- sprinting the fuck away- and then I was like "what the hell," and then I die."

"Where was this?" Darius asked.

"Hold on, let me get some paper..." He took a pen and drew a circle with 3 rings. "This outer circle is where we were-" he made a dot, "and where the dungeon is," he said, drawing an X a small distance away. He pointed at the middle ring. "I think I went in too far and ended up here," drawing a little x on the edge of the ring.

"What about the middle?"

"That's where the bosses are apparently, and I think that's where that party was coming from."

"Wait, so one of the bosses could one-shot you?" Darius asked, with evident confusion on his face.

"It's at least... D, or C rank maybe. E rank mobs need at least 5 direct hits to kill you, and even then, you can recover quickly to tank more hits."

They sat in silence for a few moments, letting it sink in.

"So, dungeon tomorrow?" Gavin asked. Darius was unresponsive, his head in one hand.

Screw it. I'll need all the skills I can get. I need to look up some more martial arts, maybe some potion stuff... also look on the forums for crap I'll need...

Gavin grabbed his grilled cheese and cut it in half, handing one piece to his brother. Darius looked up, took the sandwich warily, and took a bite. He grimaced.

"What did you put in this?" he asked.

"Cheese, meat, peanut butter, and pickles."

"What the- Why?!." He stuck his tongue out. "That's absolutely disgusting."

Gavin shrugged. "Hey, I think it tastes fine, and if you don't like it, you don't have to eat it."

"Did you finish all your homework?"

The two brothers stood at the base of a hill. A small distance away, they saw a large crowd of people. Shouts for warriors and fighters and others for specific players could be heard. Several NPC guards stood nearby, keeping order and guarding a short, rectangular building.

Daru nodded. "Yeah, I just gotta print something out later." He paused. "Honestly, I should be asking you that question."

"Oh, we won't be having homework until the whole thing blows over. At the very least, though, I should still have a month before I need to go back."

"Shit, was it actually that bad over there?" He tilted his head in shock.

"Um, well, I wasn't actually that involved, but like- so the dorm I was in, it didn't really have the best rumors about it from the start. Like some people said that's where all the crazy people are, and a few people from that dorm got arrested a few years after they graduated. And then one of my friends-"

Daru held up a hand. "This is going to be a long story, isn't it."

Gav grinned. "Well..."

"Screw that, just tell me later. Anyway, anything I need to know about this place?"

"Hmm... How many potions do you have?"

"I made some earlier, plus the ones I had left over, so 10 of each, and then I have some other things just in case," he replied, holding up his bag.

"Ooh, what else is there, show me."

"I have some..." he rummaged through the front pockets. "I have 3 poisons; they're not that good though. And I have a few of these," he said, holding up an Azel Health Potion.

"Examine... wait, what the fuck? 25%? Oh, so that could be made into potions?"

"Yeah, you didn't know? I thought there'd be something on the forums about this by now."

"D, I'm pretty sure you might be the only one who uses a forest for gathering and not hunting. Like, who just makes potions out of random crap they find? Half the stuff you pick up around here can kill you."

"Urgh... we're getting off topic here. Is there anything else I need to know?"

"Okay, so you said you had 10 of each, right? We'll probably last about... a little over an hour in there if we're lucky."

"What do you mean? Is there like a time limit or something?" Daru asked.

"No, so one feature of the dungeon is that it saps your mana. You lose about 1 MP per minute and if you run out of MP, you lose HP instead. This doesn't apply to monsters attacking you though, if you take damage you still lose HP."

"...Should I make more?"

"It shouldn't matter, since I've got some too, and because we're going to be partying up."

"We have a party though. You and me," Daru said, pointing at each other.

"D, it's literally a dungeon. 2 people isn't going to cut it," Gav replied, exasperated. "Plus, even with 6 people, it is literal hell. Step away from the crowd and you die."

Daru looked like he had more questions but Gav waved him off. "It's not something I can really explain, you just got to experience it. Come on, let's go," he said, heading towards the crowd.

Daru scratched his head. Why was everything so hard? At least he had a solid plan for today. And...

Oh shit, he's actually kind of fast.

He slung his bag over his shoulder hurriedly and raced towards his brother.

Meanwhile, the wind blew, and the sky darkened behind him, closer to the center of the plains.