Eliza watched. Eliza watched and could do nothing. She had just finished up her last nest when she noticed a strange green glow had enveloped Alex's name on the party display. She pursed her lips and wondered what the change could possibly mean when his health bar started to tick down slowly.
A status effect. Her eyes widened in surprise, how did Alex get himself poisoned? As far as she knew none of the monsters had any abilities or powers that could inflict poison.
She was too far away for the party tracker function to be active, but she had a relative location for where Alex should be. Flicking the green blood from her swords and sheathing them on her back, the elven woman started dashing in the direction that she had seen Alex walk in.
Seconds turned into minutes, and she still wasn't close enough. His health bar was getting dangerously low, how could he not have noticed by now?
Death was by no means the worst thing to happen in WotR:O, better known as War of the Realms: Online, but it was still something nobody enjoyed. The sensations were real enough thanks to the full dive technology, so while they weren't actually dying, the full force of the pain was realistic.
That fact had driven away some people, but most players didn't mind the pain because this world was the perfect escape from their shitty reality. There were even select groups of No-Death players who played the game more seriously than anyone else, and would delete their characters upon dying in game.
The other reason nobody enjoyed the death mechanic was due to the penalties. A whole twenty-four hours of real time had to pass before they could respawn, and all of their stats took a serious hit. Any exp gained towards the next level was reset to zero, and worst of all, some gear was dropped on death.
It was the most punishing mechanic in the game by far, and only a few hundred players remained deathless so far out of the millions who played.
There! Eliza was finally close to enough to track Alex's location, he was at his final nest. She activated her Dash skill and became a blur as her speed increased.
It wasn't enough. The effect of the dash wore off, and she was still a few minutes from where Alex was. His bar was less than five percent, death all but guaranteed. She stopped in her tracks, knowing that it was futile to try and make it in time. Someone would still have to finish clearing out the nest, but at least Alex would respawn in Fareon tomorrow.
She couldn't help but watch as Alex's HP ticked lower and lower until it finally disappeared, but the strangest thing happened. Instead of just graying out and putting the cooldown till he respawned next to his name, it vanished entirely from the parties list. Something was wrong, that wasn't ho-
[Party dissolved, the Hero has perished forever and another shall take his place. Thank you for your service to the Hero. One quest was completed, calculating rewards… Rewards distributed.]
The woman blinked at the notification before her, the truth of the words hitting her like a slap in the face. Alex was… dead? Just like that. As simple as someone snapping their fingers, the journey was over before it even began.
A strange sort of sadness settled over her. She hadn't been close to Alex, and if anything, she was using him to further her own goals, but she had felt a sense of belonging with the party. For once in her lonely life she had actually felt a connection with someone, and now it was gone. A single tear slid down her perfect features as she drew her swords. She had some croks to kill.
Vorcast, Fareon City
Charles paused in place, stiffening up. No. It couldn't be. Xavier looked up at the older man with a raised brow, "Something the matter, old man?" Charles just bowed his head and closed his eyes, thanking the goddess for making him aware.
"It would seem as though our newest Hero has already perished, it will be some time before the gods can send us another." Xavier's eyes widened at the man's announcement, they had been so sure that Alex was the one.
"I will make the Cabal aware of the situation. I'm afraid we are on our own once more, old friend." Charles smiled grimly, offering up a prayer to the gods and wishing that Alex was granted a place in the Hall of Heroes.
Vorcast, Tendrassil Village
Agnor was slurping down the rest of his beef stew when Alex's name vanished, and the same announcement that Eliza had seen was given to him. His heavy shoulders slumped as the cold truth set in. Death didn't care whether you were rich or poor, powerful or weak. It came for everyone, such was life.
He set down the bowl gingerly, taking a moment of silence to mourn Alex before he shut out his emotions. Emotions made him weak. Feelings made him vulnerable. He would find another who could help him.
Much like Eliza, he could feel in his soul that somehow Alex had actually died. It didn't make sense how someone could die in a game and in real life, but both of them just knew. They would never see Alex again.
Fate's Palace, Unknown
Fate held Alex's life in her hands, quite literally. His string was glowing dimmer and dimmer with each passing second, all she had to do was cut it and his journey would be over.
The Primordial goddess couldn't bring herself to do it. Alex was too promising. Even as the literal goddess that determined everyone's path, his was shrouded in mystery, and she could only see the potential that the human had.
One last chance. She wasn't willing to give up on him just yet. "Don't disappoint me mortal, the future of all realms is riding on you." She ran her hand along the string of fate that represented Alex's life, imbuing golden energy back into it and breathing life into the fading soul.
Vorcast, Unknown
"He's barely stable, and you want me to throw him out?"
"Of course I do Yvesse. He's a stranger!"
"It doesn't matter Harrald, I have a duty to heal him."
"Arghh, fine. Do what you want, but the minute he is healed, I want him gone. You know the rules"
The voices faded, followed by the shuffling of feet, and a warm sensation flooded Alex's senses. He couldn't open his eyes, but the soothing feeling helped to ease the pain his body was in.
It felt like a warm harmless fire was roving over his body, and soothing the pain within. In all reality, a healing spell was being cast on him, and the spell was actively working to reverse the effect of the poison and remove it from Alex.
"Foolish human, taking on a nest of wild Hydro-croks alone. What could have possessed you to do such a thing?" A woman's voice accompanied the warm feeling, but the question wasn't spoken directly to Alex.
Even if it was, it wasn't like he was in a position to give an answer. He was too weak to do anything outside of just continuing to resist the call of death.
Why had he thought he could handle such a task alone? The risk of death surrounded him and he thought he was invincible; only a fool thought taking on everything alone meant they were strong.
He had acted the same way on Earth when it was just him and his mom struggling to survive. Alex had pushed everyone who wanted to help away, and it had left him more alone than he realized.
True strength came from realizing you can't carry everything on your shoulders all the time, a lesson Alex had to painfully learn.
His mind drifted and his thoughts scattered once more as sleep consumed him, his sister the only thing his mind could hold onto as an anchor.
***
The next time Alex woke up, he managed to crack open his eyes. He appeared to be in a small hut-like tent, laying on a bed of straw. There was no sign of anyone else in the room with him. A small bedside table with what appeared to be a soup of some kind on top of it was to his left.
He realized he was shirtless, a wrap of bandages tightly wound around where his wound had been. The smell of burning incense filled the room, helping to soothe Alex and keep him from freaking out.
The last thing he remembered was killing croks in their nest and then… Nothing. Everything was a bit fuzzy, but he was somehow alive. He opened up his character menu and was shocked to see quite a few notifications waiting for him.
[Know this! You have survived a fatal blow, and come back from the brink of death within a 24 hour period. 'Death Dancer' Title has been acquired.]
[Congratulations! You have reached level 5. 8 skill points awarded.]
[Unlocking Your Potential quest progressed, rewards granted. Reach level 15 to continue progressing the quest.]
[Congratulations! You have completed your quest Hunting the Hydro-croks. Return to the nearest Adventurers Hall to obtain the rewards.]
[You were knocked unconscious and considered dead. As a result, your party has been dissolved.]
[Class system unlocked, proceed to the nearest Adventurers Hall to choose a class.]
[Error! Class selection locked until level 15. Overriding the class system… Path of the Defier unlocked.]
[Hero of Vorcast quest has changed, the outcome of which remains to be seen.]
[The skills Water-breathing and Mending have been obtained.]
[Warning. Your faux death has caused ripples throughout the universe and all its realms.]
The flood of notifications finally ended and Alex was greeted with his character menu at long last.
Name: Alexander Khelton/Alex Khelton
Age: 20
Level: 5
Class: (LOCKED)
Race: [F] Human
Alignment: [Earth] Forces of Light
Titles: Lesser than Trash, Death Dancer
Death Dancer: You have flirted with death on more than one occasion and come out on the other side, albeit scarred and changed. Your tenacity has been rewarded. +5 to Endurance and Vitality.
Available skill points: 20
Strength: 15
Dexterity: 18
Charisma: 15
Endurance: 20
Vitality: 20
Intelligence: 16
Wisdom: 14
Luck: 18
Health Point Total: 210
Mana: 160
Armour Rating: 14
[Skills Obtained!]
[Water-breathing: (F-Rank) (Passive) You may now breath underwater for a total of 120 seconds. After that, you will need to resurface to gain air and reset the timer.]
[Mending: (F-Rank) (Active) (Costs 15 mana) This skill will mend and heal minor wounds, restoring a total of 15 Health Points when used. Target must be willing to receive the healing. If the target is unconscious, the skill will activate until they are awake.]
[Dynamic Quests, 2]
[Hero of Vorcast has been updated to reflect current events. 1/5: Your second 'death' has caused many to lose hope. Until the mantle of Hero is reclaimed your foes will grow in strength and power. Darkness is closing in, and only you are capable of stopping it.]
[Unlocking Your Potential 2/???: You have grown stronger, but more power is needed to ensure you can save the realm. Reach Level 10. [Rewards: 15 skill points, Increased party size, abilities and skills to reflect your strength, Realm Shop.]
[Path of the Defier: Defying Death is no small feat, doing so two times has earned you a special path that very few before you have walked. Fate could have ended your destiny, but has granted you one last chance… Do not waste it. Error! Uncover the truth Alexander. Only you are capable of breaking the chains.]
Alex was too stunned to even think properly. There was still more he had to read through, most importantly the rewards from advancing one of his quests. However, the barrage of notifications, immediately followed by further information made his brain short circuit.
At first, he was ecstatic. He had twenty skill points to invest, as well as two new skills. They might not be powerful, but they would prove useful in certain circumstances. The one thing he was slightly pissed about was his class being locked until level fifteen. Ever since Eliza mentioned unlocking the class options at level five he had been fired up, imagining what options would be available to him.
Now he had to wait a whole ten more levels? Life was unfair. The only thing that offset his annoyance with the class debacle was this whole path of the Defier thing. It's not like he intentionally didn't die when he was supposed to, or had simply told Death 'no'.
If anything, it was sheer luck that he hadn't shoved off his mortal coil yet. Those last few words seemed to stick with him though. What truth needed to be uncovered? And what chains needed to be broken?
He shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts. Almost dying again should have scared him, but if anything, he was more determined than ever, and fired up to get stronger. Maybe he was somehow indifferent to death now that he had escaped its clutches more than once? Or maybe dying had caused him to lose a piece of himself that he could never get back?
His inner musings were disturbed by the rustling of the hut's leather flap, and a woman walked in. Alex's eyes widened as he took in the woman, and he instinctively prepared for a fight.
Curved horns adorned with various bits of jewelry sat amidst midnight black hair that had been pinned up into a braided bun, which only helped show off the horns. A dark-red colored face looked back at him, pitch black eyes filled with worry that evaporated once she saw him awake.
Much like her face, the woman's skin was dark-red. She was wearing a plain white dress that stood in stark contrast to the color of her skin. It clung tightly to her, and showed off her well toned figure, as well as an ample amount of cleavage. Now, if Alex was dreaming, he'd be excited as hell. But considering this was more or less real, this woman looked like she was a-
"Yes, I am a succubus." Her voice was soft, but deep, spoken in such a way that indicated she had said this same exact thing before to others… Probably right before she sucked their sou- "No." She sighed, "I'm not going to steal your soul. God's, why does everyone think that lately?" She shook her head, rolling her eyes with exasperation.
"And no, I can't read your mind, it's just written all over your face. You're just like everyone else I've saved, always assuming the worst about me before I've even spoken."
Alex realized he was indeed gawking at the woman. Whether she was a succubus like you'd expect from a generic fantasy game or not, she was stunning to look at. Every inch of her was perfect and flawless, designed to seduce and draw in partners to her embrace. Full lips, high cheekbones and eyes that you could get lost in. She was a succubus through and through, minus the soul sucking part apparently. "So. You're not going to kill me?"
A rich laugh was the response he got, the woman tilting her head back at his ridiculous question. "No. No. Of course not. Why would I go through the trouble of saving you if I was just going to kill you?" Her question perplexed Alex. She saved him?
He was pretty sure he'd remember if someone like her rescued him. "Though it is a good thing you've woken up now. I was about to resort to lesser methods of healing, and they are not pleasant." She quickly turned around, opened the flap of the hut, and poured out the contents of a vial she had prepared.
Before Alex could question anything else, she rushed to the side of the bed and knelt over him, pressing her fingers to his forehead.
He expected her skin to be hot to the touch, but it was cool and refreshing. Just as quickly, she pulled her hand away and gave him a nod. "Well. You're all good to go, no more poison in your system. Though it may take some time before your strength comes back to you."
The moment the woman said poison, everything came back to Alex. He remembered fighting the croks, getting paralyzed from the wound and drowning. He remembered the darkness as it closed in and slowly choked the life from his lungs. If she had truly saved him, then he owed her an unpayable debt. "Thank you."
"Oh please, it is nothing. It has always been my calling to heal rather than to kill." She offered him a hand, and he took it, using her strength to help him sit up properly. "My name is Yvesse, what's yours?" She looked straight at him, and once more her beauty encapsulated him, leaving him unable to respond.
She gave him a teasing grin before chuckling, "Sorry, sorry. Can't help myself sometimes." She deactivated her Charm skill, and while Alex was still enamored by her beauty, it was no longer captivating him.
"I'm Alex." He smiled at her, trying to still not freak out about the whole situation. He didn't even know where he was, much less how long he- oh shit. "Sorry to be abrupt, but um, how long have I been out?"
The question burned a hole in his mind. He hadn't even bothered checking to see if his Realm Walking skill cooldown reset, and now it was too late to check his skills page.
Yvesse pursed her lips, putting a hand up to her chin as she thought, "I believe it's been about three days. Why do you ask?"