Chapter 2

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  Fuck. I frowned and pocketed the three items. The last thing I need is a quest. Brigitte lay wounded outside the inn which was occupied by several orcs. I was extremely under-leveled with no gear whatsoever except for a few common weapons and threadbare clothes. Even considering the quest was suicide. The innkeeper was probably dead or tied up and beat somewhere. The rewards seemed excellent though. While it wasn’t access to the Winds it seemed it would provide the means to produce a good weapon that I could use. But just the thought of trying to embark on a journey for some cavern that I didn’t even know where to start looking made me shudder. Quests like this would pop up all of the time and I would usually just abandon them to clear up space in my quest log. Right now said log was empty though so I let the quest stay for the moment. Looking around the basement I quietly moved over to the shelves to quickly go through their contents. A multitude of earthenware jugs sat on the bottom shelf covered in dust with wax seals covering the tops of them. On the other shelves were several pairs of tongs and a long set of waxed strings. Also there were two glass bottles with a liquid that glowed. Health and mana potions. One of each.

  Health Remedy (Common)

  -Restores 25 Health Points

  Mana Surge (Common)

  - Restores 25 Mana Points

  A small trickle of relief entered my body as I stared at the shelf. While the potions were a good find that would help me if something happened. The real treasure for me right then were the jugs and string. Without knowing how many of the Orcs there were up above me I wasn’t going to be able to enter the building unnoticed. I didn’t really want to fight in there either, but if I could perhaps lure them outside I could surprise them. I picked up all of the shelfs contents, even the tongs. Moving over to the fireplace I noticed an oil lantern sitting on the mantle. It was almost full of viscous oil that I could make use of. So I put that in my inventory as well before giving the room one last once over.

  I made my way back out from the basement and back to the bushes to check on Brigitte and make sure she was hidden from the entrance. I took a moment then, crouched in the bushes and pulled up my system menu, “Character.”. At the bottom of my stats page I saw I had six statistics and immediately put them into Vitality and Endurance. A warm rush filled my body for a moment before dying away. Next I pulled out the jugs and began stuffing them with the string to create a wick in case I needed to light and toss them. I put them away again and crept my way towards the entrance of the building placing a jug every few feet. I poured one of the last jugs out soaking the ground directly in front of the door. The strong smell of liquor engulfed the air around me and I had to raise a hand to my mouth to help stifle a cough. My eyes were watering as well.

  I pulled a jug from my inventory, I had two left, and the lantern as well. I stood in front of the door now holding both. I toggled the lantern switch on and a warm glow started to emit from it. Behind the door the music had not stopped a beat. The musician clearly enjoying the instrument as notes hung longer than typical in the air. I filled my lungs with the night air and shouted “Hey! Help, there’s an orc out here! He’s right behind me.”

  I beat on the door several times before I knocked it wide open and took two steps into the room. I was immediately overwhelmed by the stench that lay within. Sweat, alcohol, what I assumed was burnt hair, and blood. The air was thick with it all. Several surprised grunts greeted me as five ugly heads swiveled my way. One of them was gripping a viola in their arms looking completely out of place in the burly creature's arms. He had pulled the bow away and looked at me in surprise. The other four did not take as long to react and before I could retreat back outside they had lurched towards me. All of their eyes were glazed from the liquor on the table they were sitting at.

  The interior of the tavern was tight, not even three hundred square feet, or the size of my one car garage back home. A bar separated a portion of the room, the shelves behind it filled with shattered and leaking bottles. On top of the rough wooden planked flooring just four tables sat scattered with spindly stools by each of them. Beyond all of this was a thick door that I assumed was the owners room. But what stood out at the moment were of course the four orcs bulling towards me. I shouted and retreated out of the room. The orcs were right on my heels now and drunk or not drunk the creatures still were ready to gut me with the long blades they had pulled from their hips. One of them spoke aloud in orcish, glancing back at the musician who quickly put the viola down and joined the rush to get at me.

  Outside I quickly stepped back and slammed the jug down onto the ground and threw the lantern down directly in front of me. I quickened my pace and made it to the next jug and turning back I saw the liquor go up with a thick whoosh as it latched onto the flames. It spread far quicker than I assumed as it roared to life, cutting off several of the orcs from each other. I launched the jug in my hands at the orc closest to me and it’s eyes widened in surprise as the crockery smashed against it’s head sending it stumbling backwards, a few errant flames had licked to closely to him and he gave a yelp as several of the tongues of flame leapt from it’s initial feast to the fuel that now soaked the orc. With another whoosh the flames latched on and spread over the whole creature body who’s cries soon drowned out the sound of the flames. I rushed even further back now just trying to stay away from the heat of the flames and watched the inferno. The orcs within the initial encirclement of flame had retreated back into the tavern away from the heat I assumed. I was now at my third jug of liquor and I picked it up and carefully aimed for the opening to the interior before tossing it underhanded through the archway.

  Not stopping, I went to another jug and did the same. I picked up the last two and retreated from the flames some more further down the path where I lowered down on a knee keeping a careful eye on the entrance. It wasn’t long before the cries of the aflame orc died out and I watched his charred body stumble down onto his knees and fall over. Shouts were rising though from within the building as it slowly caught fire. My eyes caught the caged wyvern looked more alive now with the flames dancing around it’s menacing stance, mouth twisted in a silent roar. It seemed for a moment as if the carnage around the entrance was all of the wyverns' design.

  Soon I could hear the heavy sound of someone bludgeoning and splintering wood. With surprise I moved towards the cellar door, keeping on the inside of the wooden gate. I reached the cellar doors immediately pulling them open before tossing a jug down the stairs onto the floor with enough force to make it crack and spill out into the basement. Then I pulled my last jug and retraced my steps pouring a generous line of liquor onto the stairs and watched it drip down onto the floor before making my way back towards the flames leaking the stuff the whole way. I tossed it close enough to the flames to guarantee my trail would catch alight just as I heard a crash from within the place. The flames roared at me and hungrily marched along the line of fluid towards the cellar doors. I raced back making my way to the entrance just as the flames cascaded down the steps towards the bottom of the basement. Several howls echoed from the basement and I heard several footsteps stomping up the stairs. I pulled out my hammer and stood just to the side of the flame enshrouded staircase and waited, one hand covering my face as I coughed from all of the smoke beginning to fill the air.

  You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

  I didn’t have to wait long before a stumbling, burning figure came up into the open, beating itself with open hands. The smell of burnt flesh and hair overcame me as I unhesitatingly slammed the hammer into the orcs skull. It dropped to the ground right at the cellar door and the next figure coming up the steps tripped over the corpse and fell to the ground howling. It’s body was completely covered with flames as it rolled around in agony. I stepped forwards braving the flames as they caressed my arms and face with searing pain as I brought the hammer down on the orcs head. Before I could connect though another orc crested the steps and even awash in even more flames that the one rolling on the ground, he reached out and snatched me backwards towards him, and the flaming entrance of the basement.

  I crashed into him and we both rolled down into the cellar. Immediately I was covered in flames myself as I felt the burning liquid stick to me. My body screamed at me and I in turn screamed into the space around me. Opening my mouth to scream only made it worse though as the flames tried to dance into my throat. The pain is what truly shocked me. My health began to steadily plummet downward. Almost unconsciously I opened my system menu and clicked Abort Adventure. Never had I felt this level of agony. I had endured many acts of brutality within the world but the feeling of the fire running over my whole body ignited a primal fear within me. An error message popped up in my vision Abort Adventure Blocked. Enter Safe Zone to Abort. What the fuck? I pressed the prompt again and got the same response before my body couldn’t take it anymore and I got up and staggered as fast as I could up and out of the roaring flames. I didn’t know what had happened to the orc that had pulled me back and at that moment I didn’t care. I made it out of the basement and immediately used the Health Remedy to combat the flames that taxed my body.

  As I exited I immediately dropped down and began rolling on the ground, just like the orc I had just tried to brain beside me. His body now lay dead beside the other, overcome by the flames and smoke. The warm glow within me kept my health right at the cusp of death. My vision was covered with a heavy film of red veining indicating I was seconds away from dying. I cried out in agony. The pain was an iron maiden closing around me. My rolling was luckily effective though as after a few moments I had smothered the clinging flames and my health slowly ticced up from two to six then eight where it stabilized. I lay on the ground wheezing, my entire body smoking. My clothes were just smoldering rags that lay draped over my chest and I could feel my scalp and eyebrow were burned completely. I groaned as the pain ebbed out of me. My flesh was still red and burnt in some places but I was alive at least. “Horrible plan Bert.”

  I painfully got to my feet and backed away from the fire. I moved so far away that my foot hit the corpse of the first orc I had killed and I stumbled a bit. I reached down to loot the creature again and donned it’s stinking tunic to cover a bit of my body. The fence only came up to my waist behind me which allowed me to gingerly clamber over it. I made my way back to Brigitte and not feeling safe so close to the flames that were now hungrily taking over the entire building I hoisted her once more over my shoulder and walked backwards up the path until I was to the original signpost at the entrance of the inn. Here the flames weren’t as intense but as I looked on I could tell there was no easy way to put them out. I had destroyed our potential safe zone. I sat down in exhaustion with a groan and clasped my head in my hands. I was so tired at this point. The game never tracked exhaustion as an actual stat but in the background it handed out buffs and debuffs depending on how rested I was. I hadn’t slept since the sun had set last night and I had been through two separate very lopsided battles where I could only play dirty or run away.

  I didn’t hear anymore crashing within the inn and feeling safe for a moment I pulled up my menu to check the notifications I had ignored in my attack on the orcs.

  Slain Orc Scout Level 5

  Slain Orc Scout Level 4

  Slain Orc Scout Level 4

  Slain Orc Scout Level 3

  Slain Orc Scout Leader Level 6

  Level UP!!!

  Please Allocate Stat Points

  Title Earned!

  Baptised in Flames

  I grunted in surprise. A Title? While I had plenty in my past adventures never had I received one for such as this, I pulled up my titles screen to quickly examine it.

  Baptized in Flames

  -You have been brought the edge of death by experiencing a veritable baptism of fire. You emerge stronger and with a tempered will. 5% Vitality and +8 Endurance. May the flames of enlightenment bathe you in their light.

  A percentage bonus? That was as nice a boost as they came. While at such a low level it wouldn’t show it’s true merit it had the potential to make my base Vitality soar higher than I had ever had it. Most of the time I would put all of my attribute points into intelligence, dexterity, and wisdom but with the way this particular archetype had started I knew I would have to sink my points into the more sturdy of my statistics.

  I then began to allocate my points not hesitating for a moment as I placed two into vitality and one into strength. Without a safe zone I wouldn’t be able to properly rest and now stranded in the middle of the forest I had no choice but to take the path back to the stream and upwards deeper into the Rhine. For a moment I sat there at a loss. The inn was destroyed for at least a week, and at most a month. Most places like this as it was out of the way and in one of the higher level regions I leaned more towards it being longer before the place was rebuilt.

  Checking on Brigitte I saw she was just an hour away from being conscious again, but we simply couldn’t stay here. My eyes moved to the smoke billowing out into the open clearing and into the sky. I hadn’t noticed yet because of the flames and the chaos of the last several minutes but we had missed the sunrise. Even now past the thick black smoke I could see the rays of the morning cutting their way across the slowly brightening sky.

  “System map”

  The same vellum scroll opened before me as I sat down next to my companion. Slightly deeper now into the forested edge of the region I could in turn see more of the area. Directly around us was nothing but the stream running it’s course through the forest which packed itself densely all around us. I could now see the trail we had taken as well marked with the same pink dot that had drawn me to the Caged Wyvern.