Sweet Meadow

Kit's eyes were momentarily blinded by a burst of bright light, causing him to shield them. As he opened his eyes, he found himself standing in the centre of a stone arch etched with unfamiliar symbols. They reminded him of ancient hieroglyphics, but he couldn't decipher their meaning. He reached out and touched the rough surface of the stone, feeling its texture.

Glancing around, Kit realised that he was on the outskirts of a charming village, surrounded by a small cemetery nestled behind the arch. The buildings resembled those from medieval times, with their timber frames and mud-and-twig walls. The thatched roofs and narrow dirt streets added to the authenticity.

Behind him stretched vast meadows, where the tall grass swayed in the gentle breeze. The wind brushed against his skin, carrying with it the scent of fresh air. It all felt so realistic to Kit - as if he had been transported to an actual medieval village. The attention to detail was impressive; even the roads were compacted from repeated use.

The streets were bustling with people going about their daily tasks. Kit stood still, waiting for guidance from CAL on what he should do next. After several minutes passed without any information given, he began to worry that he had made a mistake.

Should he head into town and try to find someone who could help him understand the game? He started walking towards the nearest street, passing by a stable emitting unpleasant smells and sounds of horses.

As he walked further into the town, he passed by animated NPCs and players who were indistinguishable from each other. He marvelled at how realistic they seemed, with their colourful clothing and normal conversations.

Kit couldn't help but chuckle at an older couple bickering about buying bread. He remembered that CAL wasn't just a game for young people anymore; even adults played it to gain extra time for various tasks.

Up ahead, Kit could see what appeared to be the town square with a large fountain and a statue of a sparkling fish. To one side stood a handsome but eye-catching man dressed in a bright red shirt with feathers all over his collar and a tricorn hat.

Kit couldn't stop himself from laughing at the ridiculous outfit, the guy looked like a rooster wanting to be a pirate. Thinking that no player in their right mind would wear something like that. he approached the man hoping to activate a quest or mission in the game.

"Excuse me I've just arrived in town, do you know of anyone needing assistance." Kit was taken aback by the giant rooster's reaction.

The man chuckled, then burst into a fit of laughter that lasted for what seemed like an eternity. "Oh, that's a good one, you thought I was an NPC!" Kit couldn't help but feel a little uncomfortable and awkward as he waited for the rooster to calm down.

Once the handsome man he apologised "Sorry, this was my first time being mistaken for an NPC. Did you just get here?"

"Yes, I came from the arch outside of town not long ago. I'm a little unsure of what I need to do. Can you give me any advice?" Kit couldn't help become excited, this person was a player after all and should be able to help him.

"No problem, I'm Mars by the way. See that short fat man over there, he is the town mayor, he will offer you a quest. You can also get one from the grocer on the other side of the fountain." Mars pointed Kit in two different directions.

"Thank you, Mars, I'm Kit. Nice to meet you, and thanks!" Kit gave what he thought was a friendly smile. It must have been ok because Mars returned the gesture.

"Good luck with the quest, if you need help just ask me." Mars grinned.

"Thank you, I should be right with a starter quest though." Kit said his goodbyes and headed over to the mayor.

The mayor was a large, sweaty man who called out to Kit as he approached. "You there, come quick, I have a job for you."

"Can I help you?" Kit asked eagerly.

"I need you to get me a rabbit, my wife wants rabbit stew. I have no time to go hunting though, I have village business, and a mayor is always busy. If you bring me rabbit meat, I will give you 50 bronze crowns!"

"Ok, I will help." Replied Kit.

"Good Lad, if you head out the north gate of the village you will enter a meadow where the rabbits forage. Make sure you bring one to me before dinner time. Here, take this knife to help with the rabbits, just ask around for Mayor Meadow when you return."

Ding!

[CAL]

Quest accepted.

Mayor meadows request, common.

Bring the mayor rabbit meat before dinner time.

Acquired: rusty knife.

With directions from the mayor, Kit set off towards the north exit of the village. Kit was filled with excitement as he embarked on his first quest. He hoped the rabbits would be easy to find.

Examining the knife the mayor gave him, Kit noticed its worn appearance and dull blade with chips and cracks in the handle. As he inspected it further, he realised he hadn't even checked his player menu yet.

However, when he tried to focus on it, there was no icon in his vision. Then he remembered CAL's instructions to say "Open menu" during the login process. As soon as he spoke the words, a transparent menu appeared, eventually solidifying, and blocking out his surroundings with its beautiful black handwriting.

The menu had two tabs: attributes and inventory. Kit first looked at his own attributes:

Name: Kit

Level: 0

Class: Swordsman

Subclass:

Money: 0

Free points: 0

Health: 100/100

Stamina: 10/10

Magic: 20/20

Experience: 0/100

Attack +3

Speed +2

Intelligence +4

Agility +3

Defence +1

Weapon: Rusty Knife

He then checked his inventory, which had 10 slots but currently only two were filled with items:

5x [Bread] 10 days until expires.

5x [Water]

The bread and water were listed on the menu as restoratives. Kit hoped they would come in handy, though he wished the bread had a longer shelf life. He assumed the 10-day limit meant it wouldn't last long.

After examining the menu, Kit walked to the edge of the village and saw a meadow filled with waist-high green grass and various colourful plants scattered throughout. The unpleasant smell of the town was replaced by a fresh scent of grass, tickling his nose.

Deciding to search for signs of rabbits and materials to build a trap, Kit noticed that the ground was uneven and made sure to be careful with his steps to avoid any accidents. He didn't want to embarrass himself by falling over, especially since Kat would never let him forget about it.

As he walked through the long grass, he heard rustling to his left and turned just in time to be hit by a heavy force, causing him to stumble back and lose footing. Confused and in pain, Kit was hit again and fell to the ground with an even stronger impact.

A rabbit with teeth embedded in his leg was responsible for this pain, tearing through his skin and causing intense agony. What the piping hot potatoes was that! Kit's eyes rounded as he finally registered what the rabbit looked like. It was almost as large as he was!

Pain brought Kit back to the present and he struggled not to pass out. Then he wondered who would add pain to a game - whoever it was must have been crazy!

As the rabbit continued its attack, Kit received multiple wounds:

12 damage 10 damage 15 damage.

Blood continued to gushed out and mixed with a metallic smell in the air. Two bars appeared on Kit's display, one for himself and one for the rabbit. His health level was at 47 out of 100, and if he didn't take action soon, he would die.

In a burst of adrenaline, Kit managed to kick the massive rabbit off his leg, feeling a ripping pain as it dislodged. He couldn't believe this herbivore had just taken a chunk out of his leg - it must be on steroids!

Kit looked at the damage he dealt the rabbit and cringed, even with all his strength, the kick only caused 10 damage!

Kit finally remembered he had a knife, brandished the rusty knife in his hand he attempted to slash at the rabbit, hoping to deal more damage. However, his wild slashes only caused minimal damage and left him feeling dizzy from the blood loss.

Ding.

[Skill learnt: fearful slash]

Player slashes wildly fearing for his life, no talent needed.

Adds 2 attack to every attack with a blade.

The rabbit finally backed off and eyed Kit warily, he immediately put pressure on his injured leg. Pain exploded from the pressure. Kit sucked in a breath, if he didn't kill this rabbit soon, it would be his own death waiting.

Kit sucked in a breath and lunged towards the rabbit but missed, ending up flat on his face, luckily the rabbit fled. "Haha, this game is way to life like! I didn't think the starting creatures would be this hard to kill!"

While lying on his back recovering, choking down some bread from his pouch, Kit noticed that his health was improving at a rapid rate. Soon he was back to full strength. Kit looked at the small chunk of bread left in his hand.

The bread was soft and fluffy, all it needed was some butter and it would be a tasty snack. Kit realised that not only could he use food for healing but also for creating delicious dishes to attract customers to his restaurant in this virtual world! 

Now that he had regained all his health, Kit took note of his surroundings and noticed a flower bush nearby that was missing half its flowers - probably where the rabbit had been eating before attacking him.

He got up from the ground and went closer to inspect the flowers. As he approached, a name appeared on his screen.

[Yellow bulbine]

Ding!

[Skill learnt: Identify Novice]

Player can identify common objects. This is a skill even five-year old's have.

Intelligence + 2

It was true, even a five-year-old could identify that flower. Strange to have as a description though. Unfortunately, it didn't give Kit much useful information about the flower itself.

The star-shaped yellow flower grew in a cluster on thin green stems. Kit plucked off a petal and felt its soft, silky texture. He brought it to his nose and inhaled the sweet fragrance.

If he wanted to find another rabbit, he would need to look for these particular plants. Scanning the area, Kit spotted another yellow flower not too far away.

He headed towards the plant, as he walked, he noticed a constant tapping against his leg. Looking down, he saw a giant hole in his pants from where the rabbit had bitten him. Kit sighed, knowing he would have to buy new pants soon or at least find a needle and thread to mend them. But for now, he focused on reaching the yellow flower.

Once there, Kit devised a plan. He didn't want to wander aimlessly and risk encountering another surprise attack. Instead, he decided to follow the rabbit's lead and set up an ambush for his next target. Hiding among tall grass, Kit waited patiently.

To pass the time, he opened his menu. Two new tabs appeared: skills and ingredients. Kit decided to check out his skills first since he didn't get a chance to read the message when they were unlocked during his last battle.

He was pleased to see that the tabs appeared only when he unlocked new things, instead of bombarding him with overwhelming information from the start.

[Skill learnt: fearful slash]

Player slashes wildly fearing for his life. No talent needed.

+ 2 Attack to every attack with a blade.

[Skill learnt: Identify Novice]

Player can identify common objects. This is a skill even five-year old's have.

Intelligence + 2

Kit's mind buzzed with excitement as he read about the new skills available in the game. He always assumed that skills could only be acquired from skill trainers or dropped by defeated monsters, but it seemed there was a way to learn them within the game itself.

This discovery could prove to make the game either easier or more challenging, depending on the requirements for obtaining a skill.

Eager to explore this new aspect of the game, Kit clicked over to the next tab: ingredients.

[Yellow bulbine]

Without any further information on the Yellow bulbine, Kit closed the menu and continued to wait.

As time dragged on, he felt a cramp forming in his leg. Just as he was about to stand up and stretch, he heard a thudding sound getting closer. A few seconds later, a rabbit appeared, completely unaware of Kit's presence as it happily munched on the flowers.

Anticipating its movements, Kit snuck up on the muscular rabbit from behind, using the tall grass as cover. With one swift motion, he pounced on its back and knocked it over. He began slashing frantically at the rabbit with his weapon, determined to defeat it before it could escape.

After several hits, he finally succeeded in draining all 50 health points from the rabbit's bar.

"Ha! Take that! No human popsicle for you this time," Kit exclaimed triumphantly, revelling in his victory.

Ding!

[Burly Rabbit Killed]

50 experience.

2x Burly rabbit meat.

Kit let out a triumphant "WOOP", feeling amazing. Not only did he gain experience from the kill, but he would also earn some for completing the quest. Grinning maniacally, Kit continued to cackle like a villain in a movie.

Once he had collected the rabbit meat, Kit realised that the sun was still high and decided to continue exploring. He noticed some vibrant yellow flowers and decided to harvest them, thinking he could sell them in town.

Kneeling, Kit used his rusty knife to carefully slice through a stem of the Yellow bulbine plant.

Ding

[Skill learn: abysmal harvester]

Player has no skill with harvesting. Player can now say he has learnt how to do something, at least.

+ 2 Intelligence

+ 1 Agility

As he continued reading the descriptions, a realisation dawned on him. Was CAL poking fun at the players for their lack of skill? He couldn't help but laugh at the thought. CAL definitely had a great sense of humour.

Kit wondered what other humorous skill descriptions awaited him. After harvesting more plants in the meadow, Kit's stomach began to growl with hunger. He made the decision to return to the village and turn in his quest before searching for something to eat.