When Lira first logged into the game she arrived in Karyost, a port city in western Ghandahar. She arrived in an open patio, one that looked out over the bustling main road. The harbor town had a tangible sensation of energy due to the never ending activity.

For Lira it was a great difference from the norm, as she was accustomed to an unchosen solitude. She eyed the crowds nervously and tried to gather her thoughts. The ease with which everyone seemed to walk around one another impressed her, and also showed how simple of a task it was for them.

Lira sniffed and turned away from the crowds, instead her eyes moving downward. The only reason she’d agreed in the first place was there, or rather she hoped it was. With a significant amount of hesitation she tried to move her right leg and take a step.

There was a bit of awkwardness as her mind struggled with using her leg. That was when the system automatically activated, similar to when a player used wings, and helped guide her body.

A single step was taken.

Lira felt something inside her, a surge of emotion that she couldn’t even recognize. Tears welled up and started to slide down her cheeks, the warmth tickle of the droplets a familiar sensation.

She whispered to herself, “She wasn’t lying.”

Those few players who were near the patio paused to look at the crying girl, but in the end none approached her. She wiped at her face with the back of one hand, and cleared her throat. If what she’d been told wasn’t a lie, perhaps everything was true.

The woman had mentioned how there would be monsters to fight, adventures to go on, and people to meet. Lira had little interest in the latter, but the others seemed promising.

With a thought she opened the menu and activated the inventory, which revealed that she had some basic food and water as well as a knife. A second later it appeared in the grip of her right hand, the wood handle cool to the touch.

Lira returned it to the inventory, satisfied that it was working as intended. She had better things to do than play around with a knife, as according to the woman there were monsters to slay. With that in mind, she looked around the patio and the nearby street.

The patio was open to allow for easy accessibility to new players. There were a few chairs off to the sides, perhaps for if a player arrived and didn’t feel well, but aside from that it was clear of any other items.

Outside of the patio the street stretched west to east, and it was made of a type of packed cobblestone. Lira walked out onto it and tried her best to not trip, nor to bump into anyone else going about their business.

To the left, she could barely see something that sparkled in the sunlight, while to the east the road led to a large wooden gateway. Outside of the gate were trees, something that Lira hadn’t seen in person for over a decade.

So Lira headed to the east, drawn by the sight and promise of the forest. Her pace was exceedingly slow at first, hesitant steps that were more experiment than anything else. As she moved her confidence grew, and by the time she reached the gate she’d started to walk properly.

The eastern fringe of Karyost had a wall to mark the demarcation between the town and forest. It was made of wood and stood twenty feet tall, but even with that height the treetops were still easily in sight. Through the gate a path could be seen that went directly into the forest, the way clear of any shrubbery due to heavy usage.

There was a consistent flow of people going in and out of the town, and for a moment Lira paused to watch it. She saw many people, some who were clearly warriors and others who lugged packs on their backs. Sometimes a wagon or two would even pass by, loaded down with crates.

Rather than group up with anyone, Lira opted to walk out of the town on her own. She squeezed through the crowd, pushing when needed, and worked her way into the forest of Karyost. The road was filled with people, so she opted to walk off into the grass and trees. Before long she found herself completely alone.

A flicker of movement was all the warning she had before a furry creature emerged. The two foot long animal had a large and fluffy tail, and had small paws that had no visible claws. It sat on its haunches, preening itself, and showed no interest in Lira.

Was this a monster? Lira wasn’t sure, but as it was the only thing she’d seen besides people it’d make sense. With a thought the knife reappeared in her hand, and braced herself mentally.

She took a few slow steps at first, but when she came almost within arms reach of the monster paused. The creature looked up at her and chittered, as though asking what she was up to.

Lira lifted the knife and stepped in closer, her hand slashing out as quickly as she could. The swing was clumsy and failed to connect, which gave the critter a chance to back away. It chittered angrily at her but made no move to attack.

Lira tried to chase after it, her knife being swung over and over again, but the animal proved too evasive. With every forward step she took it bounded back a little. With how quick the creature was a counter would’ve been easy, yet instead it never opted to attack.

After a few minutes Lira paused in her chase and bent over. She breathed heavily and rested one hand against a knee. There was an ache in her digital muscles that she hadn’t expected. After she’d recovered a little she looked up, and gasped in surprise.

There were two of the animals, and she wasn’t certain which one was new. They both studied her with puffed up tails, and then one turned to chitter at the bushes. A rustle in the weeds came in response before a third emerged to join the first two.

Lira had a sensation of dread and took a slow step away from them. That small movement was enough to draw the animals attention, as in unison the trio turned and glared at her. The soft fur of their bodies puffed up as they chittered angrily.

That was more than enough to dissuade her on fighting any more, so she turned and started to run away. Yet she only made it a few steps before more of the animals emerged from the bushes and blocked her path. She lifted up the knife with a shaking hand, but knew that it was a futile gesture.

You Have Died

Killed by Bait Squirrel

Outskirts of Karyost

The bait squirrel will sit outside of their nesting area, acting innocent and weak. Any predators who attempt to eat it will try to chase it down, eventually ending up in an ambush. If you can not catch the bait squirrel before it gets far it is recommended to not pursue further.

When Lira reappeared at the patio in Karyost she shuddered. She rubbed her arms in an attempt to comfort herself, but the feeling from moments ago remained. The sensation of the furry bodies as they climbed over her lingered, as well as the feel of their teeth against her skin.

For her the pain that the squirrels had caused was minor, more of a pinprick than anything else. Yet it wasn’t the pain that bothered her, but rather the death. Why anyone would willing face that was beyond her.

Once she’d calmed down from her digital death she clicked her tongue. She looked off to the east and glared at the distant forest, her mind in turmoil as to what she should do next. There was no way she would hunt monsters in the near future.

With that choice made she left the patio and headed to her left. She walked down the well kept road, as her eyes moved back and forth as she tried to find something else. As she walked the repetitive nature of the buildings started to wear at her, the wood structures all looking the same.

The alleyways helped to break up the monotony, although the dark paths looked as uninviting as the deep forest. It was due to that she kept on moving along the road, and soon came across a large open area.

It was a wide location filled with tables, each of which had cloth canopies set up above them. Various objects had been put out on the tables, and large crowds even gathered around a few specific ones.

As Lira moved amongst the crowd she looked at what was on the tables. A few held various types of weapons, some had armor, but all types of food made up the vast majority.

It was a pile of what looked to be apples that caught her eye. The fruit were a dark red, and the sunlight glistened off of their slightly moistened skin. As she watched one of the NPCs stepped up, picking up a couple of the apples, and then threw something to the man on the other side of the table.

As the NPC walked away he bit into the fruit, the crunch making it sound all the more delectable. Before she realized it Lira was licking her own lips, and she walked over to the pile of fruit.

Without a thought she snatched one up and started to eat it. The apple had a hint of sourness to it, but with a mellowness that made her smile. There was so much juice in the fruit that some dribbled out from the corner of her mouth, but she paid it no mind.

“Hey! What you doing!” shouted the man on the other side of the table.

Lira jumped at the shout, and then instinctively started to back away. Her reaction only caused more shouting as the man came around the table, his words quickly degenerating to insults and threats.

Lira’s response was to take off running. She had no interest in being beaten by a stranger, nor did she expect anyone would step in to help her. After all, she wouldn’t potentially get hurt trying to help someone she didn’t know either.

“Stop! Thief!” came the shout from behind, but she ignored it.

Instead Lira ran to the west, heading through the center of the town. She bumped off of other players, she stumbled as she ran, but she tried her best to get away from the man chasing her.

The shouting haunted her unsteady steps, and before long she began to realize there was no escape. As she looked for a way out she noticed a path, one that ran south between two houses.

Between the crowd around her, which was thick and hard to move through, or an open and straight path there was no choice. Lira ran for the alley, not even looking behind to see if the man had noticed her plan.

The alleyway was narrow, barely wide enough for her to fit into, but clear of any obstacles. The sun was unable to reach into the path, but given the situation the lack of light couldn’t dissuade her. There were far worse things in life than the shadows.

When she emerged from the alley her feet tangled up and she tumbled to the ground. Her hands went out in front in an attempt to catch herself, but all she gained from that was sharp pain.

As Lira tried to stand up, the pain in her hands and wrists only worsened. Yet she still shoved against the ground anyways, clenching her jaw as she stood up. When she managed to stand up her gaze lifted, and for a brief moment her breath stopped.

A dark blue line spread from left to right, with a lighter blue above that. The sky was barely dotted with clouds, the unobstructed sunlight sparkling on the waves of the ocean. To the left a pale shoreline ran southward.

A few ships were in view, their large forms lazily sloshing amongst the waves. The white sails, embroidered with symbols, remained for the most part slack due to the lack of a strong wind.

Her fatigue was forgotten as she stared at the ocean, a sense of awe welling up within. Nothing about it was unimpressive, even the gulls that flew over the boats impressed her. In her life she had not once ever had the chance to personally see an ocean, and the meager videos she’d seen had not prepared her for the moment.

A cry of victory came from behind her, one that made her turn, and she saw the man from before as he stepped out of the shadows. “I got you!” he exclaimed.

For that brief moment she’d been happy, but the imposing man who’d chased her only brought her back to reality. Lira wondered if she should keep on running, but her body ached to the point she knew it was futile. The sharp pain in her wrists and hands only worsened the situation.

The man reached out one hand as he stomped toward Lira. That was when a loud whistle sounded off to her right, a sharp noise that made the two of them turn and look.

What Lira saw was a woman she didn’t know, one who wore excessively baggy shirts and pants. The woman wore a hood, which caused shadows to cover half of her face. Long red bangs came down to half-obscure her yellow eyes.

There was a bit of ugliness to the face, as though it wasn’t quite right for some reason. Lira squinted as she tried to figure out why, but all she could see was an unpleasant woman.

The voice caused her to start to wonder if she wasn’t quite right, as the lady spoke with a much deeper voice than she’d expected. “What’s the matta, chickadee, this guy being mean to ya?”

Lira stared at her in confusion. The man who’d chased her had also gone still, his own surprise worn on his sleeve. “That one stole from me and ran off, she’s a thief!” the man proclaimed as he pointed at Lira.

“Tut-tut.” The woman slowly sauntered over to them. “She’s just a little one, can’t ya let her go?”

“A thief is a thief, and if she won’t give me what’s due I’ll beat it out of her.”

Lira started to inch away from the man, trying to make use of the distraction provided by the woman. Her movement caused the man to turn, his eyes narrowing while his cheeks reddened.

“You aren’t getting away again!” he bellowed, his right hand lifting up as he readied to punch her.

There was a flicker of movement at the corner of Lira’s sight and then the woman appeared between the pair. She flung a hand up at the angered man and a cloud of something dark exploded.

The man hollered as he staggered away from them, tears streaming down his face. Lira, confused as to what had happened, found her hand being grabbed by the woman. She was yanked forcefully away from the angry and blinded man.

A bit of pain spread from her hand as it was tightly squeezed, but Lira clenched her jaw and focused instead on not tripping again. The woman dragged her far down the street, and then north into another alley.

Lira was led about ten feet into the alleyway before the woman stopped, and then put one hand against the wall to their right. A word was muttered and part of the wall vanished. A dark alcove was revealed that contained a small wood box.

At long last Lira’s hand was released as the woman stepped into the alcove. “Come in, ya don’t want that guy to catch ya.”

Lira hesitated, but the thought of being caught and beat was enough to push her into the alcove. She flinched when the wall reappeared behind her, but a tentative push against it revealed there was no substance.

“Ya don’t have to worry,” the woman said, her hands moving in the dark to light a candle, “it allows one-way passage. Ya can’t get imprisoned in this game, if ya a playa.”

Lira rubbed her hands in an attempt to massage the pain away. “Thanks.”

“No problem, us troublemakers need to stick togetha,” the woman told her with a smile, “but if ya going to steal try not to get caught.”

“A mistake,” Lira said by way of explanation, not wanting to admit she didn’t even know she’d stolen at first.

The woman put one hand to her face, her fingernails digging into her own flesh. “Mistakes teach ya, chickadee, and once ya learn ya get betta,” she said, as her fingers started to pull her own flesh away from her face, “and ya learn a few tricks along the way too.”

Lira stared in horror as she watched the woman remove her own face, but the revulsion she’d started to feel died down when she realized the truth. There was another face beneath the first.

The man was handsome, that was obvious even to a recluse like Lira, with a strong jawline untouched by facial hair. A tattoo ran down his left cheek, a cluster of five-tipped stars

Lira couldn’t help but stare at the man in shock. “How?”

“It’s a game, chickadee,” the man commented, his voice having gained a bit of masculinity to it, “there are things called skills. I ratha like disguise, but I still can’t get a good looking face.”

“Can I learn that?”

The man wagged a finger at Lira. “Ya can do anything ya want, but ya should learn stuff that fits ya best of all. Don’t ya know the reason behind the game?”

Lira shook her head in response.

“Course not,” the man muttered with a shake of the head, “look now chickadee, ya playing a game and all ya do here is what ya want. Take what ya want, punch who ya want, there’s no limit.”

Lira thought on his suggestion. She’d tried fighting a monster, and that hadn’t been fun at all. Killing things was a hard, possibly messy, trial which she’d rather go without. To that end she also didn’t care much for his idea of punching people, it most likely would make her hand hurt even worse.

Yet the idea of taking what she wanted, when she wanted it. That thought stuck in her mind, and the longer she dwelled on it the more she realized she liked it. If anything, to her, the world owed her and she might as well collect on that debt.

Lira smiled at the man. “Thanks,” she said again, and then put one hand gently to her chest, “I’m Lira.”

“No worries, chick,” the man said with a chuckle, “and ya can call me Klein.”