Chapter 1: Welcome to a New World
Waking Up In A New World
Part 1: Arrival
Chapter 1: Welcome to a New World
I have never been a person who was good at dealing with unexpected situations. I remember one time when I first left home, a pipe burst, and if it wasn't for my dad being there at the time, I'm sure my apartment would have been flooded. Needless to say, I found it a necessary part of my everyday life to be surrounded by capable people who can deal with the unknown for me.
"How did I get here?"
I blink as I open my eyes and see sunlight filtering through the canopy of leaves above my head while the smell of nature assaults my nose. I can't help but sense at the scent only to find my hands are unusually soft and warm.
"What the hell?!"
I could barely suppress that thought from being screamed from my lips. My hands they are covered in fur scratch that my whole arms, no wait my body is covered in brown fur. I have no idea what's happened to my body but examining myself further I even find a tail and yes I can also make it move but knowing that I have control over its movement does little to help me deal with the shock of seeing what's happening to my body.
How could this have happened to me? It's not that I'm a shut-in, but I'm pretty sure I would have turned down any offer someone gave me to come with them to the woods. I prefer the bricks of the city and its ordered labelled streets over any empty stretches of nature any day even if they happen to be famous for their beauty. The city is safer, as long as I follow the street signs, there's no way I can get lost unlike in the woods where it can take weeks for a search party to find me.
Not only am I somehow in the woods, but my body has morphed into something not human. It still is similar to my old body. I have one head, two eyes, a nose, mouth and ten fingers and toes but yet different enough to the point where I don't think I can be called a human anymore. For instance, in place of my human ears, I have a set of soft ears that reminds me of my parent's cats, my nose is also slightly pointed, I have a tale, and on top of that, I also found that I can extend and retract Sharpe claws on the tips of my fingers.
"What in the world happened to me?"
The last thing I remember doing before waking up in this forest was sitting in front of my computer searching through job sites and applying for anything I could. It has been tough ever since the last company I worked for went bankrupt, but just when things were looking up for me, this had to happen to me. I just had a job interview that seemed to go well and even if that feel through I still had several more interviews booked this week, and then that email arrived… I remember now! I just finished reading through that email that offered me a reasonable sum of money for doing some product testing for them and then there was a bright light after I clicked the link to take me to their website and everything went black.
"Did they have something to do with this?"
I can't help but feel like whoever sent me that email definitely did something to me. Somehow I know they are the ones who are responsible for putting me in this forest and altering my body into its current form. Why would they do something like that? How could they do this? I didn't think it was possible to do whatever they did to me to make my body the way it is, but they most have found a way. Thinking about it there is no other explanation I can think of to explain what has happened to me other then the person who sent that email is somehow behind it. But that begs the question as to why would they do this? What would they have to gain from altering my body and dumping me in the woods?
Bzzz… Bzzz… Bzzz…
"Is that a phone? What's this?
As I was trying to figure out what was going on a buzzing sound like a phone on vibrate suddenly feels the quiet woods and seconds later, an icon of a telephone appears right in front of me. I hesitate only a second before reaching forward and pressing a finger onto the icon. I don't think how doing so could possibly make my situation any worse.
"Ah, I finally found you," A friendly, excited voice cheers in my ear the moment I answer the call that is somehow familiar to me. The voice sounds like it belongs to a young man, but I can't think of a name or face that matches his voice, but I still feel like I know him from somewhere. "I was worried we lost you with that system spike, but it looks like you arrived safely in my world. How are you feeling? Are you hurt? Have headaches? Feel like your body is falling apart?"
"I'm fine," I tell him when I can finally get a word in. "But where am I?"
"Oh dear, it seems that system spike my have caused you to lose some of your memory," He mutters to himself sounding disappointed. "We will have to alter the equipment to account for this in the future. Tell me what is the last thing you can remember?"
"The last thing I remember is answering an email about doing some product testing," I tell him.
"Yes, you agreed to test our new game, but that was two days ago," He replies calmly, but I feel myself start to panic on the inside. "Two days!" How could I not remember two whole days? "The important thing is that you are okay and safely arrived in the world we created. Give me a seconded it seems your hud isn't active, but I can bring it online for you."
Wow… I nearly jump the moment my hub appears. In the right upper corner, I see a picture of me with an HP and Mp bar next to it and discover I… LOOK LIKE A CAT!. Brown fur covers my feline face, and my ears really are cat ears just as I suspected looking cute poking through my slightly darker short brown hair. My eyes are also brown, and my face looks like a younger version of me. I really am not human any more…
"Hey, it's okay calm down alright, and I'll explain everything," The kind man assures me, but it does little to improve my current state. "Your body if fine in my companies lab and is currently in an advanced virtual reality chamber which works similar to a cryo pod from the movies while your mind has been transferred to this game world. I can assure you that you are safe and no matter what happens to you in that world you won't die."
"Okay…" I take a breath trying to calm down and process everything that's happening. "So I am in a game you made, but something went wrong and coursed me to lose my memory, right?"
"Correct but rest assured we will not let anything like that happen again so relax and enjoy yourself here," The man tells me. "I was planning on putting you in a town at first, but their system spike caused you to end up here, so I give you a bonus quest to reach the nearby city of Embershire and even throw in some extra gold and exp for completing then you would normally receive from a quest like this."
On the top left of my vision, a minimap appears with a green flag appearing at the top indicating some destination too far away to appear on the map. The map is in colour, but all I see is a dark green, thanks to the trees, surrounding a dark blue dot in the centre of the map that I assume is me. The map doesn't give me any information like names of locations, but maybe that will change the when I get near that city the kind man mentioned.
"But be warned there are monsters in this world, and this forest is home to many kinds of beasts that won't hesitate to attack you but with the… dam, it seems you have also lost your equipment thanks to that system spike," The kind man lets out a sigh. "Give me a moment, and I will reissues them immediately."
He's right now that I have calmed down and started to look passed my cat-like body I can't help but feel embarrassed when I notice the only thing I am wearing is a short pair of white shorts and matching sports bra. I really wished he would have mention something so I could have covered myself sooner by just as I start to wrap my arms around my body clothing suddenly starts to materialise. As a jacket and covers my torso and torso my legs well, a pair of boots appear on my feet and a backpack on my back. The material feels like my fathers old leather biking jacket but harder and somehow more comfortable too. But despite the clothing, I still make a mental note to buy some new clothes when I reach Embershire. I could use some proper clothing to wear other than this, but most importantly I need some socks as already I can feel my feet start to rub against my boots. I really hope this game doesn't let its characters get blisters.
As soon as I am dressed, a sword appears on my waist. It isn't a long blade and doesn't feel as heavy as I heard people say swords really are, but I'm still scared to touch it. Do I really have to fight? I might not have any problems with violence in games, but in real life, I'm a coward, and just the sight of blood is enough to make me feel sick. But because this is a game I feel like I have no choice but to engage in combat at some point.
"Now that that is taken care of allow me to explain to you about this game," The kind mans voice returns. "In this game, there are no objectives or big bosses to fight you are free to live your life as you please in this fantasy world setting. If you want to be a trader you can, an adventure then you can join the guild, and you can even become a great hero or evil villain in this world. Whatever you want to do and whoever you want to be, you can be that person or do that thing in this game. I won't tell you who what to do just enjoy this game while we monitor the data you provide. Oh, I forgot to mention in real life only eight hours will pass, but in there, it will be eight years for you."
"Eight years?!" I could contain my surprise hearing that.
"I know it must be a shock to hear, you were just as surprised in real life too but remember currently your mind is in a dream-like state and time in your dreams always moves slower then it does in real life, and that is something my new virtual reality software takes advantage of," He explains. "I have to go now, but I wish you enjoy your time in this world, oh and before I go hit that button at the bottom of your screen it will show you information on the character you built before entering the game. Goodbye, for now, I look forward to hearing what you experience in there when you return to the real world."
"Wait I…" I'm too late as the call ends and his voice disappears. I still had plenty of questions I wanted to ask him, but it looks like those will have to wait.
I really wanted to know more about this world and the systems of this game too, but I guess I have to find out for myself. I have a feeling he would have told me to find out this way as well, so it might not have made too much of a difference in not asking him in the end. So what to do first? I guess I might as well press that button at the bottom of the screen, which instantly brings up a display that takes up my of my vision. Right, it looks like a full picture of me is in the centre with a current status screen on the right which I guess will indicate any problems like poisoning if that were to ever happen to me. Below that is an achievement screen which so far only is empty. I'm not sure if that will change given that this game is still in testing, but I am fired up with the idea of trying to earn some tough to get achievement. It always makes me feel proud to see that only three or four percent of the players have achieved what I did in a game.
On the right is the more interesting screens. On top is my Ability Scores, and it seems I made myself a rouge-like character before entering the game world. My Strength score is only ten giving me a plus zero while Dexterity is at eighteen, giving me a plus-four. This system reminds me of a tabletop game I used to play, but if the kind man that put me in this game created a fantasy world, I wouldn't be surprised if he told me he was a fan of that game too. The rest of my ability isn't much with my Wisdom and Charisma giving me only a plus one while my Constitution score gives me nothing. My only bad score is my Intelligence score at eight, which give me a minus one. I guess I must have sacrificed points there to raise other stats. I can't remember if being a catfolk… catperson or whatever my race is called gave me any extra points, but it wouldn't surprise me if that were the case like it was in that tabletop game.
Anyway, back on track, my Skills & Abilities screen is below my Ability Scores. I can't help but think they need to change one of those names as calling two things abilities my confuse some players once this game is released. Back back to my Skills & Abilities were I see I have again made a rouge-like character with Improved Stealth and Improved Sleight of Hand with gives me two extra points in those skills as well as claws. Now that is something I know is related to my characters race as I see their stats are one damage plus my strength score which is, unfortunately, zero right now so it doesn't look like my claws will be seeing much action in the foreseeable future.
Closing that screen with the press of the same button that opened I return back to the forest and decide that my next step should be to check my backpack and see what other supplies I was given to start. Taking it off I ope the lightness to the bag isn't a sign that it is empty and open it open. I don't see anything but when I reach inside to double-check a new screen appears. I wish I were told in advance about this games storge system. Anyway, inside my backpack, I find to my delight some useful starting items. A loaf of bread and waterskin which tells me this game has a hunger and thirst system in place, again that was something I would have liked to know in advance, and I also have three HP potions and three MP Potions. I guess this means I can expect some combat no matter what I choose to do in this world. The last thing I notice is that I have ten gold coins.
Closing my backpack and putting it back, I decided I might as well head for that city, my first quest is telling me to go to. It's not a bad plan, and I will probably find safety from the monsters there so even without the reward. I just hope that Embershire isn't too far away. I always hated long hikes and how tired they make me feel. Hopefully, that won't be the case in this fantasy game world. I really hope it is.
I walk for an hour, and I am grateful for that green flag on my minimap as I'm sure without it, I would have got turned around in this forest countless times by now. But I'm not grateful for all this walking as the forest still shows no signs of ending any time soon. At least the weather is nice with a warm sun and a cooling breeze. This weathers nice, but I wish I could fully enjoy it rather than continue to walk through this endless forest filled with nothing but trees. Come to think of it wasn't I told that monsters call this forest home, but I haven't seen a single one of them. I have seen large footprints of a creature I hope I don't see any time soon but an actually sighing has yet to happen. Maybe this forest has a low spawn count when it comes to monsters.
I wonder what kind are in this forest. I can see a rabbit and fox-like monster roaming between the trees as well as bird and tree types but unless they are few in number they must only appear in certain parts of the forest. But what if they are around? What if there is a pack of beast hidden behind the trees closing in on me as I speak just waiting for the right moment to… I can't think like that! I shake my head, feeling my body tremble at the thought of being ambushed by a pack of monsters. But speak of the devil, and he will appear.
I stop the moment I hear the twig snap. I don't know whether it is my natural instincts or a system in the game, but I can instantly feel the danger I am in and draw my sword out before I have a chance to realise what's happening. The blade feels light in my hand and despite my fear of the weapon it feels oddly comfortable in my hand, but I don't have time to think about it as the first monster I will encounter in this world steps out of a nearby bush. My body shakes harder than before as a giant warthog steps out in front of me and lets out a growl the moment our eyes meet.
"Am I really going to have to fight this thing?!"
My mind screams at me to flee, but my body is frozen with fear. I have to move! I have to get out of here! But no matter how hard I try, my body refuses to move. My sword visibly shakes from side to side in my hands as my eyes stay glued to the warthog. The monster meanwhile starts scraping its hoofs across the floor, kicking up dirt and making a scraping sound clearly preparing to charge. I have to move! I try to, but my body is still refusing to work with me right before the beast starts to charge towards me.
"I have to move!" I yell, which finally gets my body to respond, and I manage to dive out of the way at the last minute.
I hit the ground and roll back to my feet with ease. That must be thanks to my stats as I'm sure I wouldn't have been able to move so fluidly in real life. The warthog rams headfirst into the thick trunk of one of the trees, and I notice the health bar above it decrease slightly but not enough to warrant a celebration. This thing is tough. I'm not surprised seeing how this monster is twice the size as the warthogs I saw in the zoo, but that's to be expected from a monster. The game makers have to make them more threatening than their real-life counterparts.
Watch the warthog I watch the beast get to its feet and turn to face me again preparing another charge. Okay, it looks like this monster attacks with charge attack trying to impale its opponents on its long sharp horns. That's good to know. It doesn't make this monster less frightening, but if I know its attack patterns, I can counter its assaults. I just have to do what I usually do in these situations, learn the ai's attack patterns and find a weakness in them and I think I see one hear, but I have to wait and see if that's the case. When the warthog charges me again, I get a chance to see if I was right.
It chargers just as fast as before, but this time with better control of my body I can dodge the warthog's rush more easier this time around. Once again the monster hits a tree and a tiny bit of HP is lost, but unlike last time I don't wait for my foe to recover. I run towards the creature, and I'm guessing that Dexterity counts as speed in this world as I find myself moving faster then I anticipated nearly hitting the tree as well, but I manage to control my movement quickly and avoid that fate.
"You're mine now!" I couldn't help but yell things like that at my computer screen, and it looks like I can't stop myself know as my sword stabs into the warthog's side before it can get back to its feet.
"Ghhhh!" The warthog lets out a painfilled growl as I pull my blade out of its flesh, causing blood to leave the wound but oddly I feel nothing at the sight of the injury.
I guess my real bodies weakness doesn't affect my character at all. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to win this fight as the warthog's health bar only goes down to around thirty percent, but it steadily drops at a low rate which leads me to believe this game has a bleed out system in place. The monster staggers to its feet standing unsteady but shows no signs of admitting defeat.
"Still want some more do ya?" I ask feeling my confidence grow the longer the fight goes one. It isn't as scary now that I know its attack pattern and some more about my character.
What follows isn't some epic last stand moment made by the warthog or even some heroic comeback on its part but a pathetic display. The monster charges towards me, but it lacks the speed it once had instead stumbling its way forward. I start to feel sorry for it and feeling more like I am killing it to put the beast out of its misery rather than killing it in self-defence. Never the less this fight will only end when one of us is dead, so I raise my sword and get ready to end this.
I rush the warthog using my speed to flank it before changing direction and running my sword through the monster's side, killing the beast. There isn't a body left behind as it slowly turns into a cloud of black smoke while words appear above where the monster fell.
"Victory."
"Exp: 25."
"Items Dropped: Warthog Meat X1, Warthog Pelt X1."
I did it. I actually beat that thing. My very first victory in this word. I can't keep the smile off of my lips as I struggle to stop myself from leaping with joy. All my fear fades away as the black cloud of smoke evaporates, leaving no traces behind of the beast I just slew. I was so excited that I barely notice a blue bar appear to blow my HP and MP bars and slowly fill to twenty-five percent before vanishing once again. I guess I am level one, so that level of growth is to be expected, but I still can't help but feel proud by the growth. This game isn't a scary now that I defeated my first monster.
After my first fight, I decided to do some experiment as I continue to head towards Embershire and learn a few more things about my character not wanting to be caught out by my abilities again like I was by my speed back in that fight with the warthog. And through my discovery, I learned a few interesting things about my character.
First of all, not only has my speed enhanced in this world, but I can also jump twice as much as I could in the real world. I was able to obtain fifteen low hanging fruit called Bright Barriers and learned that at least when it comes to Bright Barries, I can only stack things in groups of ten. If I earn enough money, I will have to try it out with other stuff once I reach the city. I also need to learn about weight in this game as so far my backpack still feel like it's empty. Not that I'm complaining about not having to carry around a heavy bag wherever I go, I would prefer things if that wasn't the case and my backpack stays light regardless of whatever I stuff in there. Come to think of it I wonder if there is a limit on how much I can put in there. There probably is, but that's another thing to test when I have the chance.
The second thing I learned was that I don't feel tired from doing physical activities or even sweat. That one relief but I also learned that thirst effects are a real pain as even the minor case of dehydration I experienced left me with lowered my Strength and Dexterity by one point and left my throat feeling dry. I would really hate to go through anything worse than that and made a mental note to always bring plenty of food and water with me wherever I go.
The final thing I learned was that my senses are shaper in this world. My eyesight, for example, allows me to see things slightly further away then in real life, not by much but its still a noticeable improvement. My hearing is also better although its hard to tell by how much so ii will have to test that out furth when I get to the city. I don't know if my sense of smell has improved, but if I am a catfolk that it would surprise me if it were.
Those tests I performed not only allowed me to learn more about my character but also helped passed the time as before I knew it, I was reaching the outskirts of the forest. I could already see the trees on my minimap start to thin for a few minutes and then for grassy fields to appear, but now I can see the end of this massive forest with my own eyes. It feels so good to be getting out of here, and for the first time on this trip, I feel like I am making progress on my quest to reach the city Embershire. I really hope it isn't too far as I finally step out of the trees and onto the grassy field.
"Now that's a sight,"
As soon as I step out from the trees, the wind blows wrapping around my body and brings the scent of the field of flowers with it, but the sight of all those flowers isn't what took my breath away. In the distance, I see the walls of a city painted a pure white, so they reflect the sunlight and giant statues of nights decorating the walls. It's just what you would expect from a fantasy city, impractical but beautiful to look at. That must be the city of Embershire. A quick check of my minimap confirms it is and I set off running. I really can't wait until I get to see my first city in this world up close.