The forest that lay outside of Gram’s walls teamed with life. The leaves of the trees were translucent in the sunlight, like shards of stained glass. Any light that manages to leak through the canopy above was refracted and filtered through the leaves, casting speckled patterns of gem-like light across the forest trails. It was easy to see why this place had earned the name of The Emerald Forest, and Gabe couldn’t help but be mesmerized by the sight of it as he walked through its depths. He expected the place to be teaming with Players eager to grind out some request from the Adventurer’s Guild or by whatever small quests they managed to pick up from NPCs, but the forest was relatively quiet. He’d seen a few groups here and there, but not to the crowded extent of other MMO games he’d played in the past. Then again, most of those were played from a desktop computer, so the experience was far more artificial than anything else Aelios presented. Within the virtual world, everything felt much more organic. While it would be normal in some desktop MMO to see hundreds of players scouring the more popular maps, in Aelios such sights were much rarer to see. Since there wasn’t a server selection screen, he assumed that all players played in the same server, or were at least playing with people within the same country, which, given Aelios’s large player count, meant that he should be running into players all the time. Yet, he didn’t, and he had to assume that this was because the world of Aelios was huge.

Forests weren’t hour long affairs to walk through. On foot, it’d take him at least a few days to make it past the Emerald Forest, and that was if he was just walking and doing nothing else. With that much space, it was no wonder that he wasn’t running into people constantly, and that most of his travel went by silently as he explored the forest alone. To be honest, he prefered it that way. Not necessarily the alone part, but the large size of the world before him. It was that much more for him to take in, and he was more than happy to just enjoy the sights along the way to his destination. That didn’t stop the occasional crack of gunfire from reaching his ears, but it was distant enough for him to phase out as background noise.

He was crouched down close to the ground, eyes scanning the forest ground for his target. It proved to be much more elusive than he thought it would, which was odd considering its nature, but in the dense shrubbery of the forest, it was easy to overlook. His rifle hung off of his back, sword sheathed and kept at the back of his waist. He wielded a pair of garden shears in one hand as he skulked through the forest. It took a while, but he finally located his target, a small patch of grass that glimmered white in the small bits of sunlight that poked through the canopy above.

“Finally,” he said, kneeling over the patch of grass and grabbing a tuft of it. He clipped it with the shears and held it over his Smart Box. As the device scan and digitized it into his inventory, a text box appeared.

+++

NEW ITEM REGISTERED IN COMPENDIUM

-

Pearl Grass

Rarity: Common

Every Alchemist has to start somewhere.

-

Serves as a basic catalyst for alchemic reactions. Versatile, but weak.

+++

He closed the window, only for it to be replaced by another one.

+++

This item is related to one of your current quests, would you like to sync your HUD to better located this item?

Yes/No

+++

Out of curiosity, he selected “Yes”. The window closed, and he saw the health bar on his HUD shifted to the side to make room for a circle with a leaf symbol at its center. The moment that the symbol appeared, a line of green light pulsed from him. There was no physical feedback from the environment as passed through the forest, but he noticed few more symbols like the one next to his health bar pop up at certain spots. He made way over to one, and found another patch of Pearl Grass waiting for him.

“Well, that’s neat,” he said.

He scanned the newly harvest Pearl Grass into his Smart Box, and opened the Quest tab of his Compendium menu, checking on the progress of his current quest.

+++

Quest: Alchemic Beginnings

Any Alchemist worth their salt gathers their own ingredients. Gather 10 tufts of Pearl Grass and return them to Nina at The Black Cauldron.

-

Quest Progress:

2/10

+++

Many common ingredients were either cultivated within Grams walls or sold on the open market for easy access, but it was apparently a right of passage among the Trainers in Gram that a craftsman be able to gather their own ingredients, among the NPCs Trainers at least. He wasn’t a fan of fetch quests, but it did give him an excuse to wander outside the city for a bit. On a whim, he decided to check a new skill that he was given prior to his adventures outside.

+++

Artisan Skill: Resource Gathering

What good is a craftsman that can’t get his own materials?

-

Resource Gathering will aid you in faster harvesting of materials required for all Artisan skills. Higher quality materials require a higher level of skill.

-

Level 1 Proficiency:

Ability to harvest Common ingredients without chance of failure

5% increase in yield of Common ingredients.

-

Progress to next level:

2/100

+++

He had mixed feelings at the number at the bottom of the window. A one for one progression felt grindy, but given the fact that he was able to sync with and locate specific ingredients with the help of his Smart Box, it probably wasn’t going to be too bad. Still, he hoped that harvesting some rarer ingredients would speed up the process a bit, but he was thinking a too far ahead for that kind of thing. He backed out of the skill, bringing him to a menu that held all the skills he had picked up in Gram before he left.

+++

Combat Skill Proficiencies:

Hand-to-Hand: Level 1

Swordsmanship: Level 1

Assault Rifle Proficiency: Level 1

-

Crafting Skill Proficiencies:

Resource Gathering: Level 1

Blacksmithing: Level 1

Alchemy: Level 1

Engineering: Level 1

Cooking: Level 1

+++

The Craftsmen’s district was a bit more structured than the market district was, which made finding the workshops that taught the skills he needed a relatively simple affair. Since a Freelancer was rare in the game, there wasn’t much of a wait, if any, to meet with the Trainers and acquire his skills. He’d be able to progress the skills on his own, but seeing as he didn’t have a workshop of his own, that wasn’t much of an option right now. Regardless, training with a Trainer would increase his skill progression anyways, for the first few levels at least, so there wasn’t much reason for him to go off on his own.

He stretched, giving a groan as his “muscles” extended. The added immersion made gathering different, at the very least. He shifted some of his gear around, the having not quite acclimated to his new armor. He was no stranger to bulky tactical gear, but armor plates were different enough that he need to shift them around occasionally to figure out a good fit for them, even if they were strapped over a set of fatigues. Said plates also felt a size too big, but he should have expected that. Cera let him keep the weapons from the Barracks, which was convenient, but he couldn’t help but wonder if he would have been better off just buying a set of armor instead of borrowing one from her as well. He did spend his meager starting Credits on a new visor, which at a glance only amounted to a small earpiece. When he tapped it, a holographic visor appeared over his eyes, which served as his HUD. The visor linked to his Smart Box, which is why he was able to use it to scan for items that were in his Compendium. The visor had the added function of a small map at the corner of his vision, with the options to display terrain or general radar. When he looked at it, he noticed a few new blips that were scattered about. Apparently the search function wasn’t only limited to his sight.

He set about to gathering the rest of the Pearl Grass he needed, a task he would have found mundane in any other game, but with the added aspect of doing it with his own “hands”, it felt almost meditative in a way. That mood was not to last, however, as when he scanned the last handful of Pearl Grass into his Smart Box, he heard a shuffling in the distance.

It was quick, almost unnoticeable, but he’d been attuned to such movements for quite a while, and with that attunement came a sense of caution. He pulled the rifle from his back, readying it in his hands

The shuffling grew louder, followed by a low growl. He brought his gun up in response, finger ready at the trigger. There was a lot of shrubbery in his area of the forest, but the low growl gave away the position of whatever stalked him. The moment he lined up his weapon to where the growling was coming from, it leapt from the bushes. Gabe fired as it did, a short burst that struck the ambusher at its shoulder. He rolled to the side when that didn’t stop his attacker’s momentum, barely dodging the snap of jaws as it passed him. He caught himself on his feet and swiveled around, barely catching a glance of his opponent before it disappeared again into the bushes. He moved away from the forest brush, keeping his gun pointed at the area that the beast disappeared into. He followed the shuffling once it started up again, kneeling to keep his aim steady. The beast emerged again, but he was far enough now that it couldn’t reach him in a single leap. He got a clear view of it now, and his HUD displayed the name Scalehound over the creature.

True to its name, it was a wolf, but it had pale green scales in the place of any furs. The scales themselves glinted whenever the sunlight struck them. There were some red spots on its shoulder, from where he shot the beast from before. He didn’t have much time catch much else, because it charged right at him as soon as it hit the ground. He fired another burst of gunfire at the beast, but it changed direction as soon as he pulled the trigger. Only one bullet managed to strike its side, but the Scalehound kept moving, trying to flank Gabe. He stood up, keeping his sights on the creature. It’s health was reduced by half, indicated by its health bar, but was too close for him to reliably use his rifle. When the it leapt at him again, he dropped his gun, hand falling to the sword at his waist. He didn’t have the time to draw the weapon, but managed to avoid another bite from the beast as passed him. Instead of running to the bushes again, it twisted its body as it hit the ground, bouncing off of it as it tried to strike at him again. His sword was drawn this time, and he caught the beast with a blow to its center. It wasn’t a particularly practiced blow, more like a baseball swing than something a competent swordsman would have done, but it did the job. The blade didn’t make it past its scales, but it knocked the beast to the ground with a whimper. Before it could get back on its feet he switched back to his rifle and fired, aiming at center mass.

The bullets struck it at its belly, piercing the scales as indicated by the red markers. As the last of its health bar drained, the Scalehound started to fade away, like dust. According to the lore, the only creatures that did this were mobs, or monsters, and that was due to them being a manifestation of Eulora, the darkside of Gaia, and her power. When a monster was slain, to Eulora they would return, only to manifest some time later. It was of course only an explanation to the games respawning system, but it fit with the word as far as Gabe could tell.

That didn’t mean that all of the mob would fade away. Two items remained where the Scalehound fell, revealed as the last of its dust faded in the wind. There was a pile of scales like that of the beast’s, and a slab of what looked to be raw meat. He scanned the items into his Smart Box, the side of meat with some hesitation

+++

NEW ITEM REGISTERED IN COMPENDIUM

-

Scalehound Chitin

Rarity: Common

You are what you eat.

-

Composed of minerals that make up a large amount of a Scalehound’s diet. Serves as basic blacksmithing materials.

+++

+++

NEW ITEM REGISTERED IN COMPENDIUM

-

Scalehound Meat

Rarity: Common

Well…you can eat it, at least

-

Basic cooking ingredient. Tough, sinewy, but serviceable.

+++

“Well, I can use this at least,” he said as he closed the text boxes.

As he did, another Scalehound leapt at him from the trees, its arrival precluded by a near silent shuffle in the leaves.

He didn’t have time to draw his weapon this time, and the beast was about to wrap its jaws around his neck before he heard the crack of a gunshot. The beast, like it was tugged by an invisible force, was thrown to the side, its body crumbling to dust as it crashed against a screen. Only a pile of scales fell to the ground this time, but that wasn’t was grabbed Gabe’s attention.

A figure emerged, or rather, phased, from the trees. It was a man, clad gear that did not appear to be all that armored aside from the chestplate he wore. He wore a helmet, visor up, that was bulky in design due to the amount of scopes and other attachments to it. The man held a distinct tactical look, which Gabe respected. It wasn’t what he’d wear, but he wasn’t usually the stealthy type.

“Thanks,” Gabe said, though he kept himself ready to move. The man was clearly using far better gear, still smoking rifle in his hands proof of that. The ability to one shot a Scalehound, and knock it aside with such force, indicated that it was a higher tier item at the very least. The steady pulse of light and vibrations from his Smart Box told him that the man was a player, though why such an experienced player was in such a low threat zone, he had no idea, but it certainly didn’t seem normal.

“You gotta keep an eye out,” the man said. He took at look at Gabe’s gear, “You new?”

“That easy to tell, huh?” Gabe said.

“You’re not gonna see any player with some experience walking around with some basic weapons and armor that doesn’t fit them.”

“Gotta save money somehow,” Gabe said with a shrug.

“True, you don’t get much starting out,” the man said with his own shrug, he walked further into the clearing, “still, you got some moves. Most newbies panic during their first fight. Not used to how real it is.”

“You included?” Gabriel asked.

“Maybe,” the man smirked, “what your name?”

He considered not telling the man the truth, but there wasn’t really much beyond his overgeared appearance that evoked that much suspicion.

“Gabriel, you can just call me Gabe.”

“Well Gabe, names Irwin, nice to meet ya,” he held a hand out.

Gabe shook it, “So Irwin, mind telling me what you’re doing out here? You look a bit over prepared for a place like this. ”

“Helping out a friend,” he said, “Newbie like you, way more panicky.”

“And you left him alone?”

“Guy’s not gonna get anywhere with me babying him all the time. Decided to leave him alone for a bit, get the raw experience.”

As if on cue, a series of gunshots popped in the distance, followed by a shrill scream.

“AW SHIT, IRWIN, HELP!”

“That him?” Gabe asked.

“Yeah,” Irwin sighed and rubbed his brow, “mind helping me out?”

“You need my help?” Gabe raised an eyebrow.

“Well, not really, but I figured the sight of another player not panicking in the face of danger will help sort him out.”

Another crack of gunfire sounded, “HELP!”

Gabe could see his logic.

“Alright, let’s get to it then.”

“Awesome,” Irwin slipped his visor down, covering his face, “Follow me.”

He didn’t demonstrate the cloaking that he had before, but Irwin managed to slip through the trees with enough deftness that Gabriel had some trouble keeping up. He never lost sight of the man, but he did feel a bit winded by the time they got to their destination.

They arrived at a larger clearing than the one Gabe was in. At its center was a man on the ground, short sword pointed at one of the four Scalehounds that circled him. His gear wasn’t as armored as Gabe’s, but definitely fit the man better than the plates that hung off of Gabe. It was pretty much a tactical vest over some cargo pants and a long sleeved shirt. A pistol lay off to the edge to the clearing, out of reach from the man panicking in the center.

Irwin tapped Gabe on the shoulder, motioning over to the two Scalehounds to the right of the man. Gabe nodded, readying his rifle and moving towards his targets. Irwin branched off, this time phasing into nothingness as he was cloaked in transparency. There was no agreement on when to attack, so Gabe opted to wait for Irwin to make the first move.

“Irwin? Somebody?” the man said, a slight whimper to his voice.

One of the Scalehounds snarled and snapped at him, leading to the man to throw his sword at the beast, which triggered the rest of them to close in on him.

A loud crack shot through the air, followed by one of the Scalehounds to whimpering as a bullet stuck it in the shoulder with enough force to spin it in the air. It turned to dust before it even hit the ground. Gabe followed suit, lifting his rifle and firing at his targets with controlled bursts. The first caught one of the beasts in the back, drawing its attention away from the man and to him. He quickly fired the second burst, this one catching the Scalehound at its temple. The beast crumpled to the ground before turning to dust.

Irwin continued his attack with another shot, this one catching a Scalehound at it’s leg, severing it and knocking the beast to the ground. He decloaked as he walked into the clearing, finishing the beast with a shot through the head. The final Scalehound didn’t lose focus of the panicking man, and leapt at him, prompting a yelp from him as he covered his head with his hands. Somehow, the movement made him dodge the beast, but similar to Gabe’s first encounter with a Scalehound, it caught itself and leapt back at the man, who was not aware it was coming straight for his back. Gabriel intercepted it, striking it at the back of the neck with his sword. Again the blade didn’t bite though the scales, but the red line it left indicated that it did damage the beast. He threw his weight behind the blow, the attack again looking more brutish than practiced, but it carried enough force to slam the beast into the ground. He reversed his grip on his weapon and stabbed down into the creature’s neck, twisting it as he felt it sink into the beast’s flesh. The Scalehound went limp, and faded away into dust.

“Nice,” Irwin remarked, “any reason why you didn’t just shoot it?”

“Wanted to try this thing out,” Gabe said, holding up his sword, “You could have done the same, by the way.”

“Wanted to see what you’d do,” Irwin lifted his visor, showing a smirk. He turned to the man on the ground, “Hey there Ted!”

The man took his hands from his face, revealing a fearful expression. It soon turned to anger as he caught sight of Irwin.

“Don’t ‘Hey there Ted!’ me asshole,” he stood up and brushed off his gear, “Where the hell were you?”

Ted, upon closer look, held a slighter figure in comparison to both Irwin and Gabe, one that looked meant for speed rather than strength. He was frowning, a pair of glasses resting on the bridge of his nose. His hair was disheveled, but he could tell it was long enough to cover his forehead, but was cut short in the back.

“Making some friends. Gabe, Ted. Ted, Gabe.” Irwin said, motioning between the two.

“Yo,” Gabe said, holding a hand up in a wave.

“Pleasure,” Ted muttered. He brushed past Gabe and picked up his gun, “We done here?”

“You tell me, you’re the one with the quest,” Irwin said.

Ted sighed and took out his Smart Box, tapping a few buttons on it and bringing up a small holographic display, too far away for Gabe to read.

Another frown spread across Ted’s face, and he put his Smart Box away, “No… there’s a new Link.”

“Oh so its a Chain huh? That’s exciting,” Irwin said.

Ted gave him a look that was the exact opposite of excited, “Can’t we just go back to town?”

“Not if you want a shit reward,” Irwin said, “Come on it can’t be that bad.”

“We’re hunting down an Alpha now, apparently,” Ted said, “Which can only mean boss mob, you expect us to take that down?”

“Well I mean, I’m pretty sure I could, but that’d be boring,” Irwin said. He looked at Gabe, “You want in on this?”

“Me?” Gabe considered the prospect of spending the rest of his day gathering materials. He had no doubt that he wouldn’t mind that, but the option to hop in on a quest offered a more exciting change of pace. “I mean, sure, if he doesn’t mind,” he said, nodding over to Ted.

“I want to go back to the city, but Irwin here wouldn’t let me live that down,” he sighed again, “Fine, three’s better than two I guess.”

“The more the merrier,’ Irwin chimed in with a grin.

“Right, right,” Ted picked up his shortsword and sheathed it with far too much force, “let's get this shit over with.”