CHAPTER 9

CHAPTER NINE - The Path to Elswood

Acute stress and exposure to an intensely alien environment had the habit of producing fatigue. Add to that a healthy fear of deadly monsters in the dark, and it seemed only natural that the party wanted to rest the night away at the Fat Pup rather than charge toward Elswood.

Still, Cody couldn't help but feel as though they were wasting time.

He paced up and down the corridor outside of their two rooms, frowning to express his general discontentment about the entire situation. Sure, the lot of them were as useful as a broken leg when it came to combat, and sure, the darkness would make that fact incredibly dangerous, but still — they needed to get a guild going before folks got antsy.

The only consolation was the boost in quest rewards which would hasten their leveling. He flicked open his quest log to read the good news once more, hoping it would still his racing brain.

[Quest: [Woodling Slayer - LVL 1]

Goal:

- Bring x20 [Lesser Woodling Head] to the soldier.

Reward:

- 1,000 EXP

- x250 talons

- x10 [Heroic Deed]

He'd accepted the quest before his first excursion out of Odes, what felt like centuries ago. The Writer really was playing fair, changing even existing quest rewards to fit the new circumstances. It was commendable, but it begged a highly unsettling question:

If the NPCs could attain intelligence, could the higher AI do so as well?

It seemed likely for the Writer in particular. His two kin, the Painter and the Architect, interacted far less with players and had responsibilities not half as demanding, but they also seemed like better candidates for intelligence than the regular NPCs. With the powers they wielded, intelligence could potentially turn them into living gods.

He banished the thought from his mind. After all, what good would it do to stew over hypotheticals? Plans he could actualize — that was what he should be thinking upon.

[Level 5 - 1,430 / 2,000 EXP]

After killing three wolves — one, rather, and merely assisting on the other two — and over a hundred woodlings, he had nearly leveled up. When he turned in the woodling heads and completed the Vigil's quest, he'd hop on over to level six and be given some new points to spend. Add to that the level up that the trip to Elswood would net him, and he'd have enough points in vigor to snatch up the easter egg he'd been itching to get his paws on.

Things weren't so bad. Really, they weren't, his brain tried to convince him.

Pants — that was on the agenda as well. And why wait to buy them in the morning? That was a time sink he could check off while the rest of the gang was sleeping. In fact, he could get some other quests going as well in the next six or so hours before sunrise. There were plenty of nocturnal shopkeepers and quest-givers in Odes.

"Sir Cody," came Gwen's voice, interrupting his train of thought. She and Muggs stood in the corridor, watching him as he paced.

"Cody, Gwen — just Cody. Remember?"

"Cody," she began anew, "I have another question on the matter of this world."

Cody resisted the urge to sigh. For the past thirty minutes, the two NPCs had been hammering him with questions on topics ranging anywhere from metaphysics to geography. He took their silence these past few seconds as a sign that they'd run their interrogative reserves dry, but clearly that wasn't the case.

"Hit me." He held up a hand to stop her retort. "That means ask me the question, not assault me."

Gwen nodded. "If you created this world, how is it that you've been trapped within it?"

"It is a question that I, myself, have wondered," Muggs said.

Cody almost laughed. The idea that there wasn't a question that Muggs had wondered would have been more unlikely. Sax had left the room looking as worn as an old coat earlier, confessing to Cody that the NPC's questions had been so mentally demanding that he nearly had a crisis of identity.

As for keeping a lid on Muggs' origins — that had been a fantasy. Sax had said as much himself, detailing how the questions he'd been asked all but demanded that bit of news be shared. He took it well, though; he and Gwen both did. Perhaps it was an easy thing for a new and unbiased conscious, accepting the idea of their creator hanging around to shake hands. Humans would've struggled a little more with such a thing.

"I wish I knew. I'm guessing it was thanks to some jack-off who made our headsets — I mean, the gadgets that let us enter this world." Cody shrugged. "Not sure, though. Now I'm going for a little walk around Odes, you two. I'll be back before sunrise."

"Might we accompany you?" Gwen asked.

Muggs nodded. "A stroll does sound delightful."

Cody's immediate answer might have been a firm no, but Sax's earlier admonishments echoed loudly in his head. There was bound to be some guilt if he left his two kids in the house with a bunch of strangers.

"Yeah, sure, why not?"

He was certain he'd regret his decision later.

They departed from the Fat Pup and headed down the road. Things were busy in Odes, even at night. NPCs were scarcer, but far from rare: ruffians, young curfew breakers, bands of Vigils with their lanterns, and some carriages and horsemen could be seen about — the city was still quite alive. Muggs and Gwen stared at all of them as they passed, looking quite distressed.

"Sir — " Gwen stopped herself. "Apologies. Cody, did you create this city?"

"In a way. The same way I created you, actually. I created the AI — the being — that created it. He's called the Architect, and he built every city, town, hamlet, and shack in this entire universe. It was a big job, and I didn't feel like doing it myself."

"And what of the people?" Muggs asked. "What of us?"

"The same thing, but the two beings in charge of NPCs are called the Painter and the Writer." Cody took them down the road to the gates. "The painter sculpts your voices and appearances, and the Writer handles your quests and hobbies and stuff like that. You two are different from these guys, though."

"Because we're intelligent."

"Yes, because you're intelligent. I'm not sure how you managed that, but good job. Now you get to be miserable with the rest of us."

It wasn't long before they arrived at the gates. The opening was lit by hundreds of lampposts, each filled with dazzlingly orange fireflies — such was the signature light source of all the cities in the first world. No players were hanging about the area, but that wasn't surprising. They had nothing to keep them there.

Cody pardoned himself for not turning in the quest earlier when he and Muggs had passed through the gates — escorting the sentient NPC had, understandably, muddled his thinking.

"I think I shall remain here," Muggs said, stopping in the opening.

"Why?" Cody asked. "Is something wrong?"

"It is . . . uncomfortable seeing my fellow First Vigils as they are."

Cody picked up his meaning. When they had come into Odes, the Vigils were unresponsive, reduced to statues by their programming. It had been alarming for Muggs see his fellow guards in such a state when he, himself, was sentient. The Vigils that Muggs had made mention of — the similarly sentient ones who he had spoken with before leaving — were nowhere to be found. They were the reason for the tiny gap in the line.

"I understand." Cody patted his shoulder. "Gwen, stay here with Muggs. I'll be right back."

Cody found the Vigil who gave him the quest. Thankfully, he wasn't one of the ones who had wandered off. After handing over a fraction of the heads he had gathered, a few notifications hit his screen. For the first time since he logged in, he actually had time to read them.

[You have completed the quest [Woodling Slayer - LVL 1]

+ 1,000 EXP

+ 10 [Heroic Deed]

+ 250 talons]

[You have reached Level 6

+ 5 Attribute Points

+ 1 Class Point]

He shoved his five new points into vigor, bringing it up to a handsome fifteen, then stuck another class point into his war cry ability.

[War Cry (3/5) - Release a loud cry, drawing nearby enemies to you.

LEVEL 1: costs 25 SP / gives 10 points of aggro to all enemies within a 15 ft. radius

LEVEL 2: costs 40 SP / gives 20 points of aggro to all enemies within a 25 ft. radius

LEVEL 3: costs 55 SP / gives 30 points of aggro to all enemies within a 35 ft. radius]

Sure, it cost a few more stamina points, but what did that matter? When his party got more capable at dealing damage, he wouldn't need to be throwing wind slashes everywhere like he did against the woodlings. He could focus on his primary responsibility: being a meat shield.

[Level 6 - 430 / 3,000 EXP]

[750 / 750 HP]

He appreciated the new values for a moment, then walked back to his NPC companions and set off anew. It was an hour of walking — Cody didn't feel up to making them run — before they reached the marketplace. The legion of stands and shops cut a handsome sight at night, kept lit by decorative lanterns and glowing ornaments, and not half as claustrophobic as it was during the day. Players could be seen roaming about, their usernames making them stand out amongst the sea of NPCs.

"Glad I put my cowl back on," Cody mumbled. The last thing he needed was to get assaulted with questions by a bunch of players. No, he already had two NPCs who were doing a good job at that.

"Stay close, you two. If we somehow get separated, just come back here and wait for me, okay?"

He led them into the frenzy, reining them in when a shiny trinket or neat bauble caught their attention. They ended up being worse than his party members, but that wasn't shocking given the fact that they were toddlers. Everything was new to them, even the concept of food.

"I want this," Gwen said, holding up a shiny necklace, "but I do not have any talons."

"Well, I don't think you could buy it even if you did, honestly. Not sure how the game would react to that. You probably wouldn't be able to equip it, either."

"How do I obtain it, then?"

"You don't. Come on, we need to find an armor merchant." He made to move, but she stayed rooted in place, looking terribly confused.

"I sincerely desire this necklace."

She was a little kid, Cody had to remind himself. Even with the concepts of money and trade in her head, she had to learn the hardest lesson every consciousness had to learn: one doesn't always get what they want. As to how he was meant to teach her, he had no idea.

"Tell you what — if you're good for the rest of the trip, I'll get you the necklace. Deal?"

Gwen gave him a pretty smile. "Okay."

"Sir Cody, might the same promise be made to me?" Muggs presented him with a shoddy looking spyglass. It was a little strange, Cody confessed, having a stocky, armored warrior ask him for a new toy.

"Yeah, alright. Come on, though, I really want to buy some pants."

They came upon an armor merchant just a few minutes later, and the guy was selling some leather-interior mail pants that Cody was sure would go well with his shirt. Not that was he was concerned with fashion, of course — not a chance. The remarks his compatriots made some hours ago did leave a bruise on his ego, however.

He sold his two wolf furs and one very nasty wolf tooth, bringing his net worth up to three hundred and forty talons. After buying the pants, that number performed a suicide dive down to a depressing forty. Thankfully, it was still enough to buy his children their toys.

[The following item has been added to your inventory:

+ 1 [Mail Leggings] - common leg armor, LVL 5]

"I think you should buy this cape, Cody," Gwen suggested, holding up a tattered yellow cape to him. She had snatched it from a stand dealing in cheap vanity items.

Cody tugged at his new, highly uncomfortable pants, lamenting their noisy jingle. "I don't have enough money, Gwen. We still need to buy you and Muggs your toys. Plus, I'm not a superhero — a cape would make me look like a tool."

"I'd rather you get the cape than the necklace. I think you'd look handsome wearing it." She beamed at him as she said it, and he knew it was as perfectly an innocent comment as ever there was one. For a moment, he actually felt like a dad.

It wasn't a bad feeling.

"Oh. Thank you, Gwen, that's very sweet of you."

"I, too, think you would look dashing in a cape, Sir Cody," Muggs added. "Even at the expense of my spyglass."

Cody smiled at the two. "Well, if you insist."