The gem

Mason snuck through the densest section of the gnoll infested trees, bow strung but hanging around his neck, Ranger's Claw and goblin dagger in his hands. He was still covered in mud and gnoll blood from head to toes, as it seemed to help mask his presence. He'd been searching for anything unusual, eventually tracking a trio of gnolls who seemed almost uninterested in the battle at the clearing. Now they'd finally stopped, growling in low tones and muttering what sounded very much like words.

Mason flattened against a tree, and waited. Finally two of the creatures lowered their heads, almost in some kind of deference or submission to the third.

There, Mason thought, heart beating fast, that's my target.

Still he waited until the three creatures moved apart, then followed the 'leader'. It walked even further and further away from the clearing and the battle with the goblins. After several minutes Mason saw nothing of interest and worried he was being led on a fool's errand, or that sooner or later he'd be caught and have to fight multiple of the creatures at once. Then the gnoll at last arrived at a giant tree that seemed to dwarf the others around it.

The trunk reached far above the canopy, stretching so wide around at the base that Mason couldn't see either end. The gnoll extended a clawed hand, which glowed a soft green light, and some kind of doorway appeared on the tree. It stepped forward, touched the bark, and vanished before Mason's eyes.

His breathing sped up as he stepped out from his cover, racing to the still-glowing tree. Whatever the creature did Mason realized it might not last long. With a deep breath, he palmed the same spot the gnoll had touched, hoping somehow the path or magic was still open.

[Discovery! Four Claw Gnoll Lair. Hidden tutorial dungeon. Recommended players: 2-4. Would you like to proceed?]

Hidden dungeon? What, like a jail? That made very little sense to Mason, unless he was about to find some kind of gnoll sex party. What did a dungeon have to do with a tree?

[Tutorial query: dungeon. A specially designed area of New Earth, typically made for groups of players. Protected from outside interference. They contain increased risks and rewards.]

Interesting, Mason thought. Very interesting. And also vaguely terrifying. Especially because it might have nothing to do with his actual objective at all. But then it might be exactly what he needed to do. And Mason was here. And completely out of any bloody better ideas.

He focused on the word 'proceed', and before he had time to regret the decision, a feeling of light headedness overwhelmed him. The world swirled and faded to black, and he vanished into the tree.

* * *

[Four Claw Gnoll Lair Entrance. Remaining time to completion - 24 hours. Objective: defeat the gnoll champions.]

Great, Mason thought, a time limit.

He didn't really want to find out what failing that objective would mean. He drew his blades and crept down the corridor, which glowed slightly with a soft, phosphorescent light, and looked as if it had been carved through a giant tree. He supposed it had. Fortunately the roof was high enough he didn't have to stoop, but the walls were relatively narrow. There was no sign of the creature that had entered before him.

He found a side passage but it seemed to lead to a kind of cellar filled with roots and maybe salted meat. The smell turned him away, and he continued but stopped dead at the end of the corridor as he realized two gnolls guarded a further passage, both dabbed with some kind of war paint. Their claws and hands were blackened as if dipped with tar, their frames healthy compared to the creatures outside.

Mason wasn't one for wasting time. He jogged out from the gloom in silence, watching both half-sleeping guards spasm in surprise. He activated Predator's Strike immediately on the gnoll to his right, magic sword piercing its chest in one vicious thrust. He pulled back and parried the other's hasty swipe before Crippling Striking its quad. Then he backed down the corridor, stabbing the creature for every slow, incautious step with his now considerably improved reach. Soon it was full of holes, and collapsed to the floor with the other.

[Four Claw gnoll guards slain x2. Experience awarded.]

Breathing hard, but untouched, Mason grinned. Not bad, he told himself, but don't get cocky.

He dragged the two corpses into the cellar, then continued down the newly unguarded passage. It opened up into another room that seemed basically empty. This one was overgrown with what looked like tree roots, the thick, scraggly vines covering the walls and floor with nothing inside but some strange skeleton in one corner, and a few pieces of debris. Mason stepped inside, and the moment he did, the 'tree roots' moved as if alive, everything close to him grasping for his legs.

He pulled away, but not in time. The roots reached him and seemed ready and able to wrap around his limbs, but suddenly stopped, and retracted, moving back to the positions they'd held before. Mason calmed his heart as he stared in confusion. "What the hell are those? And why didn't they attack me?"

[Tutorial query: Grasping Vines. Extremely aggressive to any creature without nature affinity. General note: flora, fauna, traps, magic, etc, can be identified in the future with the appropriate power or skill.]

Mason frowned, and then thanked any God who was listening he'd picked a class with nature affinity. He might have been able to cut his way free of those vines, but he sure as hell wouldn't have bet his life on it. Since he was immune, it was likely worth a look around. He started with the corpse, which turned out to be a small humanoid and almost certainly a goblin. He had an old, rusty dagger much like the one in Mason's hand, but nothing else of value. He was about to throw the dagger aside when he noticed a small, blue glint from the pommel. "What's this?" he wiped away a smear of dust, and the system's voice filled his mind.

[Tutorial query: A minor power gem. When placed in the appropriate weapon or armor, this gem will reproduce a specific power for a limited time per day. Removable.]

"Huh." Mason investigated the dagger and then both his weapons more closely, finding a very subtle indent in the pommel of each. In fact, it looked like Ranger's Claw had two—one on each side. He plucked the blue gem from the old dagger, then stuck it to the slot on his sword, and just like that, it went in with a click. "Alright, now how the hell do I use this thing." Just as he felt the system tutorial preparing another sermon, he crossed his arms on something of a whim, and felt a new power lighting up in his mind like some password he'd been forced to memorize. He thought of it, and a nearly translucent, blue-tinged shield appeared in front of his face, about as tall and wide as SWAT shield. Mason grinned, and nudged the dead goblin with his toe.

"Thanks buddy. Appreciate it."

[Shield Charge: 75%]

"Oh." Mason uncrossed his arms and the shield dissipated. Apparently his new toy didn't have much in the way of battery life, so he'd have to use it sparingly.

Finding nothing else of value amongst the dirt and dangerous vines, Mason steeled himself for whatever lay beyond the room, and stepped through the next open doorway.

* * *

A gnoll attacked him instantly. This one stood a head taller than the others, his body covered in the same warpaint, his claws similarly blackened to look like cast iron. In his panic, Mason didn't even remember his new shield. He raised his sword to block, but the gnoll batted it away, his other claw raking Mason's shoulder with an almost lazy swipe. Mason rammed the goblin dagger into the gnoll's exposed gut as he tried to scramble away. The creature didn't even flinch.

Instead it came on, growling as it followed with swipe after swipe and Mason backpedaled then fell back into the vines. He hoped desperately for a moment the things would grab the gnoll, but it too stepped past them without so much as a tickle. Mason scrambled to his feet and finally remembered to Shield. The blue barrier appeared just as the gnoll raked both claws in a vicious downward hack, the air sizzling where they met the shield. Mason breathed, and forced himself to think. The creature was still a gnoll. It was bigger and scarier but so far it behaved in nearly the same way. He just had to be fast, and clever.

[Shield charge 50%]

He waited one more double swipe, then dropped his shield and hacked low with a Crippling Strike. He fell away, the beast growling in rage as it hobbled forward, blood running freely down its leg. Mason hopped out of its reach, waited until the thing extended both arms, then leapt forward with a Predator's Strike. It sunk deep into flesh, but still the gnoll came on. Mason just barely avoided a brutal blow, the creature's claws nicking his neck as he hurled himself away. He was more cautious now, slashing at the creature's arms, then its face, whenever it tried to pursue. He protected himself first, attacking second, and with only a few steps left to the entrance of the dungeon, the creature finally fell.

[Elite gnoll warrior killed. Experience awarded. You have earned enough to level to six! You have earned a title for killing an elite creature on your own!]

[Title earned: Soloist. +1 to a key class statistic.]

"Bloody hell." Mason slumped against the wooden wall, inspecting the patchwork of cuts on his arms and chest. He didn't think any had damaged internal organs, but he could see bits and pieces of his own bone and muscle, and the blood loss was substantial. His vision swam and his head was heavy on his shoulders. More than anything he wanted a drink of water. He could only hope his regeneration could still fix him.

To take his mind off the pain he scrolled through the available powers. This time the array of options was no joke. He saw some kind of speed enhancement, which greatly appealed but maybe wasn't the right choice at this exact moment. 'Nature Mastery', which was some kind of power enhance that boosted other powers. Again, probably great, but not what he needed now. Finally he saw a power called Endless Quiver, and practically bore a hole through it with his eyes. Arrows were a problem. A big problem. And if somehow he could boost his ability to get more, even in a relatively limited way…he opened the description.

[Endless Quiver: create arrows in any natural source without limit. Costs mana when out of nature.]

Mason blinked, reading it again to make sure it was right. Without limit? As in, a never-ending supply? After a few more reads he took the power without hesitation. The non-natural limitation was a problem for another day, especially since he didn't have mana as far as he could tell. Maybe at later levels he'd get some.

After waiting against that wall for what felt like hours, Mason's wounds had begun to close enough he felt strong enough to test his power. He emptied his quiver of the last few arrows, then stood with his bow and prepared to mentally summon some more. The ability clicked in his mind like an old memory, and a prompt formed in the corner of his eye. [Choose arrowhead: broad, or bullet] Fortunately he knew enough about archery to know this meant: more damage, or more piercing? He chose the broad head and prepared to somehow fill his quiver, but nothing happened.

"Uh. Go go arrows?" Nothing happened, and Mason rolled his eyes. "How do I use Endless Quiver?"

[Tutorial query: activate the power, and then draw an applicable weapon.]

Wait, draw the weapon? Mason did so, and as soon as the string reached an appropriate distance, a broadhead arrow formed from nothing except slightly discolored green air and a sizzle until it rested on its nook.

"Holy hell."

Mason shot and watched the arrow shallowly pierce the wooden wall. He re-drew, and again an arrow appeared like magic. Er, well, with magic.

Not only did the damn power give him an endless supply of arrows, it actually appeared as he drew. This meant he didn't have to waste precious time and coordination taking an arrow from his quiver and loading it himself. In fact it meant he didn't need a quiver at all. It would increase his shot speed by an incredible amount. All he had to do was draw and aim.

"The ranger," he told the gnoll corpse, "is no damn joke."

He suddenly regretted not focusing more on range, and also the fact that he had a rather piece of shit bow. But he didn't regret having the ability to fight up close, and no doubt he'd have more chances to focus on killing at range. Better to be flexible, he decided. Which he now was. And he almost smiled as he thought of his next fight, and what a difference it would make.

Time to see what was behind door number three…