Hill problems

Adam gave it his all to reach the hill as fast as possible. He was sure every second he spent on the grass multiplied the chances of a random mob attacking. The issue was that he still was not wearing any equipment.

He noticed that he could feel his legs burning from the effort. It raised flags for him. The game system should prompt a decrease in the endurance of the avatar, not anything physical. The VR tech was able to simulate some slight pain and some other feelings, but it was as much suggestion as anything else.

Setting that aside, he focused on the current task. He did not think the programmers would make it as easy as running, so he was ready to dodge surprise attacks at any moment.

Nothing came.

He reached the hill and started climbing quickly to avoid painting a target on his exposed back. As he moved, he noticed a change in the ground. The grass on the hill was shorter and of a different color than in the plains. It also felt somewhat softer, like it had more clay in its composition.

As he reached the top of it, he turned back and looked at where he just came. A large swath of red covered from the foot of the hill to the horizon, interrupted by small black dots, like the one just a couple of miles in front. That was where he came awake.

"Damn" he said.

That there were other dots in the grass meant that he was not the first player spawned in this area. There had been others before him. He was not treading virgin soil as he hoped.

Adam took some time to try to see anything else he could use. Any sign of where he needed to go. He felt that if this was a test of a new storyline, he should receive access to the player hub a soon as he entered the beginner's village.

It is also a known trope of most RPG games. The starting characters enter a low-level town, where all the quests and equipment match their needs and resources.

Adam tried to see if all the dots formed any form or pattern. These kinds of things usually could be used as hints for future quests. He did notice some other hills far away, surrounding the zone with the dots. Not all the hills were the same color as the one he was standing on. He even saw one in black and orange stripes.

As he was squinting his eyes, he felt all the hairs on his neck stand on point. Here it comes. Adam had always had a sixth sense when his avatars in-game were under peril. He just knew that someone or something had set its sights on him.

What he felt now was a thousand times stronger. He had never felt it with this intensity. Instead of fueling his reaction time, as it usually did, the intense feeling froze him. He slowly turned around to find himself eye-to-face with the hugest feline face he had ever seen.