Darian stood there, surrounded by a thick, swirling golden mist that obscured everything, whipping around him like he was standing at the center of a gold dust tornado. Pretty as it looked, he still was apprehensive about what had just happened, and where he was going to end up. He tried to push one hand into the swirling motes about him, but found he couldn’t move a muscle. He seemed to be frozen in place, and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t even blink.

Realizing there was nothing he could do, he stopped all attempts to struggle against the force holding him and just watched the golden motes as they travelled past him, his frozen stare unable to track their path across his vision. He became so mesmerized by their movement that he was caught unawares when they suddenly dispersed, leaving him standing in a hot, dry darkness, and sweat immediately broke out on his forehead and under his armpits. It was only after he had reached up to wipe a trickle of the salty sweat from one eye, making it sting, that he realized movement had been restored to him. He also noticed was still clutching the bag that had been thrown at him, so he eased his grip on it, then slung it across one shoulder.

With his movement restored he stretched to remove some stiffness that he felt, taking the opportunity at the same time to look about himself. Even in the darkness he recognized where he had reappeared, it was the ruins where he had died just a number of hours earlier. Darian quickly dropped into a crouch, rapidly scanning the whole area around himself, a spike of cold fear running up his spine, concerned that the skeleton would still be here, somewhere near. He remained vigilant while he waited for a minute, his attention moving from one area to another, scanning everything, then he slowly relaxed. He hadn’t detected any movement, nor any noises that would indicate that the damn skeleton was still somewhere nearby.

Wary, but also a little curious, Darian looked around to see if he could locate the place where he had been slain by the skeleton. It didn’t take long before he saw the same pile of stones over which the skeleton had climbed to get at him, and he wondered whether there would be any of his remains still there, or at least some indication to show he had been killed there, maybe a few bloodstains.

Walking carefully, keeping an eye on everything around him, Darian made his way slowly over to the ruins that were home to his previous demise, then carefully peeked over the rubble. Nothing, there was absolutely nothing to indicate he had been there before, the stones looked like they hadn’t been disturbed in decades. I suppose that makes sense, I’m here, so why should there be a body of me here as well. Deciding that the best thing for him to do right now was to search the ruins to find a place that looked relatively safe, and also to see if he could find that food and water that he had been told was somewhere.

It didn’t take him long to walk around what was left of the village, even with Darian taking the time to explore those buildings that looked promising. By the time he had returned to his starting point, only one of the partially standing structures, a rickety two story building, looked like a viable place to rest for what remained of the night. He had also not managed to find anything at all that could be of use to him, and , licking his lips, he realized he was starting to feel a little thirsty.

Darian cursed himself for a fool when he remembered he hadn’t even taken the time to look through the bag slung across his shoulder. Placing it on the ground in front of him, he opened the top and reached inside. What happened next surprised Darian so much he tumbled back onto the dirty ground.

When his hand entered the mouth of the bag his vision was filled with an overlay of a grid consisting of eleven squares. He quickly pulled his hand out, muttering an obscenity. “What the fuck… “. As soon as his hand left the bag the overlay disappeared. Darian frowned, wondering what the hell had just happened. Slowly he placed his back into the bag, and the screen filled his vision once again.

Looking over the grid, he noticed four of the squares were filled with images. As he let his gaze settle on the first image a small pop up appeared, giving him a description of the item.

Name: Malantines Wooden Mace

A one handed mace made of wood and blessed by the god Malantine. This mace is indestructible and will cause one to nine points of crushing damage on any opponent. This weapon will impart one point of extra crushing damage for every ten points of natural strength belonging to the possessor. This item can not be lost or stolen.

Item Class: Unique

Requirements/Restrictions: No level or attribute requirements. Restricted for use to only those who carry Titan blood.

Bonuses: The blessed nature of this weapon will cause double damage on undead beings.

Darian raised an eyebrow in interest. A wooden weapon ? He made a movement to grasp the mace and was surprised when his hand curled around something hard. Withdrawing his arm, he was astounded to see his hand leave the bag, the mace gripped firmly in it, the thing he found even more astonishing was the mace was substantially larger than the bag it had come out of.

Hefting it in his hand, he gave it an experimental swing, feeling the weight of it. Happy with how it felt, he lifted it up and swung it down onto one of the tumbled stones nearby. The stone cracked into fragments, sending small stone chips flying in all directions. He felt the jar from the weapon striking the brick vibrate up his arm, then he lifted it up and inspected the maces head. It was totally unharmed, and the only change he could see was that it now had a fine layer of powdered stone coating one side. He nodded to himself in appreciation as he wiped it clean.

Darian now turned his attention to the miraculous bag. Like last time, as soon as he concentrated on it, a descriptive pop up appeared

Name: Meneas’s Small Bag

This small cloth bag contains eleven slots. Each slot is capable of holding up to one hundred small items of one type, ten medium items one type, or one large item. This item can not be lost or stolen.

Item Class: Unique

Requirements/Restrictions: No level or attribute requirements. No race restrictions.

Bonus : This item is indestructible and will reduce weight of items within it by fifty percent. Due to the blessed nature of this item the number of slats within it is increased by one.

Upon reading this, Darian laughed, not really understanding the description fully, but thought he grasped the general idea behind it. It sounded just like Dr. Who’s tardis, bigger inside than it was on the outside. To test this theory, he opened the bag and dropped the mace into it, head first. As he suspected, the mace disappeared effortlessly within, the bag marginally increasing in weight.

Peering into the bag Darian couldn’t see anything, No grid, no items, only blackness. Puzzled, he reached inside to feel about, but the moment his hand disappeared within it, the grid appeared in front of him, the mace once again in its place. So, he thought, to gain access to the items in the bag, I have to put a hand inside first.

Now he had worked out the bag, Darian pulled the remaining three items out, one at a time, inspecting each before placing them back into the bag.

Item: Firestone of Vallinas

This stone, when placed in any combustible material, will on command, cause the material to ignite. Good for starting campfires in wet weather. This item can not be lost or stolen and will automatically reappear in the owners inventory when used.

Number of charges: Unlimited

Activation command: Ignite.

Item Class: Unique

Bonuses: The blessed nature of this stone allows it to be placed into any container of liquid and heat it to boiling when command is given. Will also purify tainted or polluted liquids. Maximum size of container one foot square.

Item: Flask of Cyana

This flask can be drunk from only once per day. Drinking the contents will fully restore the drinker to full health, removing the effects of all poisons, fatigue, disease, thirst and injury. This item can not be lost or stolen.

Item Class: Unique

Requirements/Restrictions: This flask will not remove the effects of curses and debuffs

Bonuses: Due to the blessed nature of this item, it will never break or become unusable.

Item: Amulet of Tisus

This amulet, when worn, will provide the wearer with medium night vision, reducing night blindness by fifty percent. This item can not be lost or stolen

Item Class: Unique

Bonus: Due to the blessed nature of this item, the wearer will have a plus twenty percent chance of detecting hidden features and items.

“Don’t know what all this means, but it sounds like they have supplied me with a good start here.” he muttered to himself while securing the bag over his shoulder again. He had noticed, as well, that each item had a name attached, five of them in total. He assumed from the fact that two of them were god names he already knew the other three were also the names of the other gods.

Slapping himself on the forehead with one palm, he put his hand into his bag again and withdrew the amulet and hung it around his neck. “Might as well get the benefits of these things right away.” The instant it was hanging around his neck the darkness around him immediately lightened until it resembled dusk, allowing his sight to detect more of the ruined buildings about him.

Darian knew he was still vulnerable out here in the open, and thought about what he should do now. He knew that stumbling about in the dark, or twilight as it appeared to him now, wouldn’t be productive. Even with the amulet, it still didn’t provide enough light for him to feel like he could spot any potential dangers, or detect an approaching opponent in time. He may have felt safe as an old man in a wheelchair, but now with this new life, he no longer had protection from possible threats, or accidents.

Quickly he retraced his steps back to the ruined two story residence he had found earlier, realizing that its elevation offered him a greater chance of detecting anything that approached. Once inside its ground level, he realized that there wasn’t any easy way to get onto what remained of the second floor. He could see the remains of a staircase against one of the walls, but it was obvious that it wasn’t repairable, so he turned away from that.

The pale moonlight that had already been present suddenly brightened, making it much easier to see the interior. Through a hole that used to be a wall Darian could now see the moon peeking out from behind the clouds that had hidden it just a few moments before. This improvement in illumination allowed him to see features that he had not been able to see earlier, like a section of collapsed flooring leaning up against the shadowed back wall, positioned in such a way it could be possible to use it as a ramp to climb up to the next floor.

A sudden noise behind him broke the silence he had grown used to, making his heart miss a beat and all of his muscles jumped in surprise. Darian whirled about, seeking the source of the noise. Straight away he could see the source and he almost laughed at his own bad luck, for there jerkily walking its way between the buildings was the very same skeleton that he had met before. He knew it was the same one because it had that same stupid bowl like helmet on, still bouncing about on its skull like a bobble head figurine . It was the noise of the helmet meeting bone that had attracted his attention.

Darian knew the undead creature had not seen him yet, for the direction it was walking was parallel to where he stood, rather than charging right at him again. As he watched it, a description of the skeleton appeared in his view.

Name: Skeleton Walker

The skeleton walker is one of the weakest forms of undead, commonly found in the location of abandoned or cursed graveyards and caves. This form of skeleton is most commonly encountered singularly, or in groups of up to three. Clutters of skeletons (A collective group of up to twenty skeletons) usually can be found at the site of old battles, or inside a skeleton lair. Clutters are usually led by an undead creature or being of greater power or strength. Undead creatures are susceptible to attacks and spells of a holy nature.

Health: 20/20

Armour: 5

Damage: 1 to 6 (rusty shortsword), 1 to 2 + disease (Bite)

On reading this Darian shivered, a touch of fear growing inside him. He suddenly lost interest in trying to get revenge on the being, it had easily killed him once, and there was no reason why it couldn’t easily repeat this feat. Almost as if to punish him another notice filled his vision.

Task Alert – Kill Thine Enemy

You are facing an evil creature who has already slain you once. If you meet this creature in combat and defeat you will regain your honor and receive a reward. If you accept, you will have one hour to complete this task. Failure will not incur a penalty.

Reward: Double Experience plus one Character Point

Do you wish to accept this task ? Yes / No

Blinking, Darian couldn’t make this message go away and realized it wouldn’t until he had made a choice. He guessed this experience mentioned would make him more… well, experienced, to state the obvious, but exactly why escaped his understanding, and he had no idea what a character points either. If it had offered these to him, then it probably was something he should do, if not now, probably later. He selected the ‘YES’ option.

You have accepted the task – Kill Thine Enemy. You have fifty nine minutes and fifty seconds to complete this task to gain the reward.

Slipping one hand into his bag Darian opened up its contents page and withdrew the mace, leaving the other items alone. None of them had anything that would be helpful to him in this situation. Taking a firm grip on the handle of the mace Darian took a step forward, only to put his foot down on a loose stone that turned beneath his weight and rolled away, clunking against other stones in its path.

This slight noise alerted the skeleton to his presence, and lifting its rusty shortsword, the skeleton charged at him. Sighing at his bad luck, Darian advanced carefully to meet its charge, stepping carefully this time so as not to sprain an ankle on the many other stones scattered about.

As the skeleton leaped into the building Darian took a mighty swing at it with the mace, missing it completely as he misjudged its speed. He had put so much force into the swing that it forced him to twist slightly around, presenting an undefended side to the skeleton. It landed only feet away from him, its knee joints popping from the dried ligaments that remained attached, and took the opportunity presented by his twist to stab at him with its sword.

The sword scored a line across Darians chest, the blade deflected from piercing inwards as it struck his rib bones. It felt like a red hot poker had been drawn across his flesh, and blood spurted out, coating his clothes and the skeletons blade. Before his eyes red numbers flashed, but the pain was intense, distracting him from comprehending their meaning. He pressed his free arm against the wound, grimacing as he did so. Slightly hunched, he reversed the direction of the mace and brought it back in another forceful swing.

This time he was luckier, managing to strike the skeleton on its chest, breaking a few ribs and causing it to stagger back a few steps. More words and numbers appeared, this time above the skeleton.

Crushing blow to skeleton.

Damage given : 7 ((6 x 2)-5)

Health remaining: 13

In what Daniel considered was fair compensation, the stones beneath the skeletons feet shifted, throwing it off balance. As it swayed trying to keep upright Daniel brought the mace down in an overhead swing that connected with the skeletons helmet, smashing the skull beneath, eliciting more text to appear in his vision

Crushing blow to skeleton.

Damage given : 13 ((9 x 2) - 5)

Health remaining: 0

You have defeated the Skeleton Walker

You have completed the Task - Kill Thine Enemy

You receive 50 experience

You Receive 1 Character Point (Total Points: 1)

The skeleton, the remains of its shattered skull tumbling earthward, tottered for a brief moment before collapsing, falling apart as whatever force had kept it ’alive’ left it. Darian watched them bemusedly as they clattered into a disorganized pile at his feet. Lifting a hand to wipe away the sweat that ran down his face, but stopped at a twinge of pain in his side as the arms stickily pulled away from the wound. “Damn, that hurts.” he complained, and pressed a hand against the cut to staunch the bleeding.

Wincing, Darian looked down at the remains of his defeated foe, and saw something glowing among the bones. Lowering himself into a squat, grunting at the pain this brought, he reached down and pushed the bones away from the glowing object. Having no idea what it was he reached out to pick the glowing ball up.

The moment his fingers touched the ball his sight was taken up with a screen he hadn’t seen before. Across the top of it was the heading ‘Loot’, and beneath this was a number of item icons. It was fairly easy to work out what they were from their images. One was of the rusty shortsword, one was of the bowl like helmet, and the last was of a skull. He ignored the sword, because he already had a better weapon and touched the helmet and it appeared in his hand. Without looking at it he placed it straight away into his bag. The skull, though, was a mystery to him. Was it supposed to be a memento ? A trophy of this fight ? Shrugging, he reached for it.

Congratulations, you have recovered the bones of a lost soul of Capalia. You can find these remains in your inventory. Collect another ninety nine to receive a hidden Quest.

You receive 10 Experience.

Current Experience 60 (40 until next level)

This is all so damn confusing, thought Darian with frustration, So many things happening and I don’t understand a damn thing about them. I seriously need to find someone who can explain all this to me.

Groaning, he pushed himself back up and inspected his wound. He was alarmed to see blood was still leaking out of it, not as fast as before, but still enough to worry him. The fight that he had just had, along with his building thirst and the heat was making him dizzy and tired. He needed to sit down for a few minutes, just long enough for his to feel a little better.

Spotting a suitably sized stone near the other side of the building, Darian walked towards it, only to find the ground suddenly collapsing beneath his feet, dropping him downwards. He made one last desperate grasp at the edge of the floor as it passed his face, only to find his fingers slipping off the dusty edge.

Down he fell, into a deeper gloom, arms flailing about as they tried to find anything to arrest his fall.