Tony’s stomach didn’t just growl at him, it roared with fury at being so empty. “Shut it!” He scowlded it as he looked out at the feild and the forest surrounding it thinking. He needed to fight something and gain some levels.

He started walking along the river away from the cliff face. As he walked he dug through his pack and pulled out some of the jerky taking a large bite and chewing. It was tough and flavorless, but he’d had worse.

Soon he had entered the forest and taking a swig to wash down the dry tough meat he started scanning his surroundings. Tony had no woodland survival skills. None. He hated the woods. Mosquitoes swarming, oppressive heat or abusive cold, critters crawling around. He frowned at what he saw. Trees, brush, and a swiftly flowing river. He couldn’t bring himself to hate it as much as he wanted. It was a beautiful scene.

He took a moment shoved his suit jacket into the backpack he’d gotten. Pulled out a second piece of tough meat to chew on. Pulling out his dagger he slipped the pack back over his shoulders and started walking deeper into the woods. Careful to stay next to the river as he moved.

He walked for hours. The sun gradually moving further down and the shadows of the trees getting longer and longer. He was about to turn back when a noise from the river caught his attention. He turned carefully towards it lifting the dagger in front of him and spreading his leg slightly apart in a well trained stance.

The water run smoothly. No noises. No movement.

Tony wasn’t fooled. He’d been jumped enough times to know that something was hunting him. Eyes narrowing he tried to pierce the veil that the moving water made and see through it.

The water burst upwards and three shapes moved at him, each creature standing only slightly taller than his waist. Light blue skin, and strange compressed facial shape. Humanoids with long clawed hands and short stubby tails. Sort of like a cross between a goblin and a fish.

Tony jumped backwards as a crude wooden spear was thrust at his stomach. Each had one of the spears and moved in more like a mob than a group. He smiled slowly as the other two came into range with the spears and thrust at him nearly at the same time. Now being pressed by three spear wielding monsters he jumped hard to the side causing them to turn and putting the more in a line as the thrusts were easily avoided. Then he rushed in knife at the ready.

He grabbed the shaft of the first creature’s spear and pulled in towards him hard causing the creature to stumble forward as it attempted to keep it’s grip. The knife flew in a practiced motion and as the off balanced monster got in close the knife pierced its eye easily and penetrated deeply into the head behind. He pushed through with the blow and knocked the what he now assumed to be a corpse to the side and faced the next surprised victim.

“Boo!” He said in a calm and rather soft voice as it back peddled and he flowed in past the attempt of a guard and this time went in low crouching very low and plunged the dagger deep into the guy of his target. A loud shriek escaped it’s lips and before it could really attempt to move or counter he withdrew and stabbed several more times making sure that the internals of the monster were thoroughly shredded. Using his free left hand he grabbed the head of the creature and shoved it to the side with the first to roll on the ground in pain and revealed the final creature.

This one was ready, it had jumped back and as he moved past the second one a wooden shaft and a crudely sharpened point. He juked and the thrust pierced his white dress shirt and slid along side his ribs leaving scratches but no real damage. Then he was on the last one and stepping in close he moved as if to uppercut the monster with his knife and the tip pierced the bottom of it’s jaw and slammed home up into the brain. Wet warm blood slid down the knife and the hand and dyed the cuffs of his right sleeve red, matching the many red spots that covered his clothing now.

He relaxed and stepped back. The final creature fell and he let out a long sigh as he turned towards the one creature still rolling around on the ground howling in pain. He stepped down firmly on the chest and slit the throat to allow it to bleed out quickly.

“Come on text.” He called out as the last one stopped moving finally. On command the text appeared again.

Congratulations! You’ve defeated 3 'Water Goblins' and are awarded XP!

Base: 50XP Each total 150XP

Outnumbered: x1.3

Total: 1.3 multiplier= 195XP awarded

You are now at 305 of 320XP for next level

He frowned at the screen before him. “Damn.” He’d been hoping to get at least one more level from that. He rubbed his left side where he had some scratches from the rough spear rubbing against his side in that last missed thrust. If he kept up like this he doubted he’d be able to survive this. He flopped down by the river and sat facing it setting his pack next to him and pulling out another piece of meat. He chewed on it carefully while thinking.

He had three full magazines. Surely they would speed up his gain but then he wouldn’t have his best weapon in case of an emergency. If he didn’t use them though he may die the death of a thousand cuts. He slowly closed his eyes and let out a long calming breath. If he kept on this line of thought he’d either go crazy or kill himself. He had no time to be weak.

Then another thought hit him as he let the stress wash away to the sounds of the flowing river in front of him. He had a stat called magic didn’t he. Opening his eyes he called up his status screen.

STAT

Base

Bonus

Strength

6 of 10

0.50%

Constitution

5 of 10

0.50%

Dexterity

6 of 10

0.50%

Coordination

5 of 10

0.50%

Intelligence

8 of 10

0.50%

Magic

4 of 10

0.50%

No More Stats Known About

He did. Closing his eyes again he started to try and search himself. Similar to what he did when he had woken up this morning. Taking a mental note of the damage done to it. Scratches on his side. Bruised ribs, a sore back and a cut on the top of his head from that bear. His weariness from the long day. No. He thought. He realized that he needed to go deeper and accepting the risk he allowed himself to ignore the outside world as he delved as deep into his center as he could. His heart caught his attention. The beating. The continuous power that it moves with. Ever moving. Ever pulsing. He focused on it. Then he felt it. In his heart. A heat that he had never noticed before. Something new, but subtle.

He just focused on it for a long time and tried to figure out what to do next. He sent his mind into the heat and tried to pull on it, the energy moved easily. Pulling on it lightly he drew a strand from it and moved it slowly and carefully. Drawing it to his side and pushing the magic into the scratches he still felt. Focusing and giving a mental command. “Heal!” He ordered and felt the tendrile latch on. Then it pulled. He felt his heart lurch as the wounds in his side sucked at the energy in his core and forced more into the wounds. He felt them grow warm and swiftly close. He smiled as the pain disappeared.

The energy drain didn’t stop though. Even healed the energy draw continued and grew stronger. He grunted out loud as it felt like something was being sucked from his very soul. “No no no no no” he mumbled and put his force back into the wound and grasped the strand and held it firm mentally screaming for it to stop as he fought the pull from his own body. With an effort of will he tore the strand in half, disconnecting it from his side and watched with relief as the strand remaining sucked back into the center of his pulsing heart. He gulped down air as if he’d run a marathon and looked at his core. It was not as warm as it had been. He could barely see it now and if he hadn’t already used it, he probably wouldn’t have been able to find it now.

Congratulations. You’ve discovered magic without a skill book. Because of your actions you were rewarded a 5% increase to your magic ability. In addition your Patron has deemed the action worthy of 2GP and a message. “Continue along the path of power.”. You currently have 4GP.

Tony glared at the screen before him. It’s not that he didn’t love the 5% increase in magic power, or the 2GP. It was the message. It made him want to throw himself off a cliff in spite of the being that thought it could bestow gifts to him and give him orders.

“Fuck you.” He said softly calling up his sheet again to see the change.

STAT

Base

Bonus

Strength

6 of 10

0.50%

Constitution

5 of 10

0.50%

Dexterity

6 of 10

0.50%

Coordination

5 of 10

0.50%

Intelligence

8 of 10

0.50%

Magic

4 of 10

5.50%

Mana

6 of 42.2

N/A

No More Stats Known About

So that’s why he felt so weak. He had used up most of his mana. He really didn’t want to find out what happened when he reached 0. Or worse, if it could somehow start drawing from something else with in him. It also seemed that he got 10 Mana for each magic he had multiplied by the bonus. That was good to know. So as he leveled he’d get more mana. Maybe he could even train his magic up like he assumed he could for his other stats.

Tony slowly looked around him and took in the view. He still sat alone on the river side and even though he was sure not much time had passed it was starting to dim out. He frowned and stood up. Pausing after he had. He carefully lifted his shirt that was now untucked, bloodied and had a hole in it, and looked down at is side. Nothing. Clean healthy skin. Not even any scares. Not ‘no scares from the recent fight’ but a stab wound in the area that he had from a fight nearly 10 years ago was gone. The skin looked healthier than the rest of his skin around it as well. Refreshed like it had been purged of defects, he guessed to a point it had. Soft and smooth like the skin of a kid. That was interesting. If he could do that to the rest of him would he be a young man again? Maybe immortality wasn’t a dream in this new world.

He shook his head and started a light jog off in the direction of the field. New energy flowing through him as he moved.

It took him about half the time to get back as it did to get all the way out that way in the first place but by that time the sun was already set and the forest had felt dark and dangerous all of a sudden. He carefully searched around the field, hoping to find some sort of indent since it wasn’t the most smooth ground he’d ever walked on. He did find it and pulling out all of the clothing he had, he made a rough bed out of the two pairs of rough clothing and laid down in the divit and covered himself with his jacket. He could already feel a chill and knew that it was going to be a long cold night. Maybe he should have kept that bear’s skin. Oh well, you live you learn. Or you die.