69. Building the Pyramid – Part 2

Flora had spent the night in a cabin. Before the sun rose, drums awakened her.

After a short but rich breakfast of fruits and porridge, the next round of hauling blocks started. Today, they were a bit smaller, but they had to carry two at once. Thankfully, two more workers joined the crew.

Quest: Building the Pyramid – Session 2

Description: Comply with the demands of the overseers. Last 6 hours.

Possible Rewards: Continue Scenario

Possible Penalties:

Whip lashes

Change of occupation

End of scenario

Difficulty: A

The first round of the day started in darkness and bitter cold. Flora took the pole position on the ropes again. It was generally disliked because the guys behind you could see when you slacked off.

This time, she started the breathing-meditation right from the start. When she had fallen in a comfortable rhythm, she let the events of the past few days drift through her mind.

The pyramid was now ten stories high, and the ramp longer. To ward of negative thoughts, Flora concentrated on the fact that the sled ride would be longer and more fun. And it was!

While she waited for the rest of the crew, Aidan informed her that she had used up 370 stamina, even though she minded her breathing. Immediately, Flora sat down and meditated. When the others arrived, her stamina bar was full again.

The sun rose during the second round.

Flora thought about her stamina usage. If nothing extraordinary happened, she could sustain this session with her current tactic of breathing exercises plus meditation while waiting on the crew. But it was only possible because she used on the way up less stamina (370) than the amount of her stamina bar (530).

If she used more, she would fall to the second stamina bar, and nothing but sleeping could get her back to the first. And of course, she would black-out and lose her job. Because 370 times 2 is more than one stamina bar, so she would immediately drop to the last bar and then fail the next round.

Her other bars were full. Although her health bar sank a bit occasionally, her regeneration filled it immediately up. In the harsh light of the desert, it looked like the top of the bar was vibrating.

Flora needed one more strategy to save or regenerate stamina for the next session. "Maybe drinking? But I have no container nor free hands. The last aspect is the bigger problem with all that papyrus around. I wish I could use the potion guzzler or any guzzler." Flora got an idea. "Let's invent the antique guzzler!"

The rest of the way, she struggled not to get too excited to mess up her breathing. Her imagination created one antique guzzler after the other: one Chinese inspired conical with the water reservoir between her head and the tip or one African inspired with a rim on which you put a flat bowl.

When she reached the water stall again, she was nearly disappointed that they were willing to give her a flask. It nicely fitted under her tunic between her boobs, and she only needed a stalk of reed to drink from it without using her hands.

Flora shrugged, sometimes the most straightforward solutions were the best.

Between the flask and her normal intake of fluids, she estimated that she drank around 5 liters of beer during the next hours. The beer was watered down, but in the fourth round she got a debuff:

Tipsy: + 2 OV powers, - 1 OV controls. Time remaining: 10 min.

She lost 20 of her max stamina, but her stamina usage decreased by 200 points per round!

"I'm glad that I don't have to use the loo in the game. It could get messy with all the beer." Flora thought and drunkenly added to the System. "I want a bonus to the beer buff because I'm German!"

The System sent her a message that the game didn't include bonuses for the player's home country.

For the fifth round, Flora wetted her headdress because the sun was burning again.

Meanwhile, they had resumed the reading of "Passion of the Elements". The water and fire guy became friends, but the wood girl held a grudge. She abducted the fire-guy, and the water-guy went off to save him.

The finishing notice of session 2 came just when the story started to get exciting again. This time, they had only completed five rounds.

After a big meal of stew which even included meat, Flora and her co-workers lay down to let the midday heat pass.

When Flora woke up, the pyramid had risen another 30 meters. It was now as tall as 20 story house. During the six hours she had worked, they hadn't completed even one row. The system cheated.

Quest: Building the Pyramid – Session 3

Description: Comply with the demands of the overseers. Last 6 hours.

Possible Rewards: Continue Scenario

Possible Penalties:

Whip lashes

Change of occupation

End of scenario

Difficulty: B

The size of the blocks decreased again, but the amount stayed the same. Flora guessed this was the reason why the difficulty of the session went down.

After wetting their headdresses, they started pulling again. Even though all of Flora's pools were filled to the brim, her mind still remembered the abrasions and calluses and sunburns from the last session.

"Let's see if Walter can save his schmusibussi(1), Aidan!" Flora needed the distraction.

She had remembered that they stopped reading at a dramatic scene, but the author used all the time they needed to drag the sled up the pyramid, just to describe the route Walter took to the wood girls lair. Flora would bet that she could find it without a map, only using the book.

Now, the sled ride down was an adventure. She collected enough momentum to luge further down.

While she stood in line for a snack, she asked Aidan about her stamina consumption. Her bar was suspiciously full.

"The breathing exercise counts as meditation, and your skill rose tremendously in the last session. It is now level 24."

"Not bad." Flora took it easy on the beer. She wanted to get some work done before she got too drunk. Her mind felt clearer than before. She speculated she had gotten used to the time dilation.

This round, she watched the fight between Mia and Ressa. First, she only saw lights and explosions. Then she started to distinguish the players. With every re-watch, she recognized a bit more of what was happening in the video. Aidan's explanations helped.

Even though her understanding of the different skills and actions lagged, she could see that Mia controlled her batticle with grace. The heavy machine fluttered like a butterfly around Ressa. The tiger-lady moved only to evade. Sure, her movements were smooth but contrasted with Mia, she appeared to be a fat house cat who hadn't hunted in a while.

Immediately, Flora chastised herself for her arrogance. Who knew if she could move at all while casting spells. Flora ordered Aidan to put it on her preparation-list for the duel. Then, she added building a battle-toaster and do training duels on the list.

The next round, Flora spend planning the toaster. Because she had bragged about her toasting ability, she felt obliged to take a toaster into the duel. Just kidding, she would have brought a toaster anyway.

The rest of the session, she researched the runes and schemes she would need.

Quest: Building the Pyramid – Session 4

Description: Comply with the demands of the overseers. Last 6 hours.

Possible Rewards: Continue Scenario

Possible Penalties:

Whip lashes

Change of occupation

End of scenario

Difficulty: A

Flora stared at the sled. Now, three blocks rested on it. The crew wasn't able to get it moving without the help of the dock workers.

"Oh, dear. Aidan, remind me why we are doing this." Flora leaned hard into the ropes.

"Plus 1 OV strength is a guaranteed reward. Some people reported that they even got one OV vitality, Milady. I recommend you concentrate on pulling and breathing. Nobody in the comment section of the scenario dared to claim that they hauled sleds in the fifth session."

Flora focused on her job, but when boredom took over, she ordered Aidan to read again. The story didn't divert her from meditation, though Walter reached the lair of the wood lady and fought bravely against her underlings.

On the last stretch of the ramp, Flora's stamina-bar had only a sliver of points left. She tried to remain tranquil, paused the reading, and counted her breathes. The thought of pulling just a little bit less hard flitted through her mind, but she discarded it.

If she couldn't do the job, she shouldn't do the job. Flora would never stay at a workplace where the success of the project depended on her co-workers compensating her incompetence.

Her righteous thoughts disregarded that she had slept through the majority of the sheep scenario with her assistants toiling.

Finally, they reached the masons who took over the blocks. Only now, Flora dared to look at her stamina-bar again. She had dropped to the second bar.

Dejected, Flora slid down the pyramid. But the ride brought a smile back to her face. Who could stay grumpy while coasting?

"We will try as long as we can. Let's get drunk. Alcohol is sometimes the solution."

Flora downed at least two liters of beer. Swaying, she found some shade to top up her second stamina-bar.

"Wow, virtual beer hits fast. Any more ideas, anyone?" Then, a very unladylike belch escaped her mouth. She covered it with her hand and giggled.

"You regenerate only half the value of your meditation ability with the breathing exercise while pulling, Milady. Maybe another form of meditation would regenerate more?"

"I was at a health retreat, and we chanted things while looking at mandalas. I found it rather silly, but we try it. Maybe a better picture and chant will do the trick."

Flora chose the blueprint of her most successful toaster "Fractal Bread" instead of a mandala. She had won an international design prize for it. Winning the first place with a toaster was like coming first as a daisy in a flower competition against roses and orchids. This competition was especially notorious for preferring coffee machines above everything else. Rumor had it because it was the only home appliance people who get appointments to juries were using.

The round started, and Flora chanted: "The toaster toasts terrific; terrific, toasts the toaster."

The crew dragged the sled, and Flora's stamina bar started to plummet.

"The toaster toasts terrific; terrific toasts the toaster."

She was loosing 40 stamina per minute, even though Aidan assured her it would be worse with the breathing exercise.

Switching frantically between harrying her brain for a solution and concentrating on chanting, Flora soldiered on and ignored the bar.

When at least one hour had passed, Flora sneaked a glance. She was still on the second stamina at thirty percent. It wasn't sinking but vibrating like her health bar.

"What happened, Aidan? I thought I had to use the third bar for sure."

"Your physical regeneration reached level 100, Milady. Congratulation. This milestone increases the regeneration when a physical pool is under 30 percent. For the stamina-bar, the improvement is by two-times on the second and three-times on the third bar; an additional 30% more totaled when any bar is below 30 percent."

"Holy toaster! Now, I can rely on just the breathing exercise again, right? I love toasters, but that chanting was getting on my nerves."

Flora spent the rest of the round on runes-schemes about regeneration.

Runecraft was an ability and not restricted. Therefore, Flora used a bit of coal and scribbled a scheme on the back of her tunic. She tried to charge it, but the mana refused to leave her hands. To make matters worse, the overseer scolded her because she only wore her panties and a bandage around her breasts while working on the tunic.

Disappointed, Flora got dressed again.

"Oh, well, it was worth a try."

"Check the badge, Milady. You successfully modified the tunic."

Name: Egyptian Pyramid Worker Tunic - Modified

Type: Clothing

Description: A light, but robust outfit. Adorned by smudgy runes.

Effect: + 1 OV physical regeneration

Tier: 0

Rating: C

Flora finished the session immersed in even more runecraft. If even decorative runes affected the product, she had a whole new field of improvements for gadgets.

(1) German for Snuggle-Kiss. Ironic term for a partner in a relationship when snuggling and kissing are the height of emotions. Pronunciation: Shmoosyboozy