System Break

The Forest – Unknown Qi World

The ferals were in disarray. Some were chasing after Gisael, others were shouting and pointing, while the rest were staring at the corpses of their comrades.

There was one particularly large feral who shouted louder, waved its hands more than the others and quite a few followed his directions.

I chuckled as I noticed others ignoring him which made him extremely angry. He started hitting a smaller feral that did not please him.

I was up a tree, thirty feet above the little green bastards. A few scanned the trees, but there was no real urgency from the ferals to search for more enemies. The large feral finally got his way and the remainder started to filter off to the east. It was not what Gisael wanted, she wanted them out of the forest altogether. And to do that they would have to head south.

I decided not to shadow the main group because they would be easy enough to track. Especially for Gisael, they broke branches and trampled bushes all over the place. I knew she wanted me to be patient and follow her lead. But this was a perfect opportunity to hit and run at the fringes of the main mob.

Up until now they had only faced a bow and I was imagining breaking their morale with close range savagery.

It was not easy for me to discern male from female or old from young. For all I knew one which looked like an old female feral could be in her prime. They all had sharp features and a haggard appearance. The patchwork of hides that functioned as clothing was not helpful in determining their sex, age or rank either.

These thoughts passed through my mind in moments as I chomped at the bit to get into some action. It wasn't an op in the real world, this was a game and I needed to improve my shit skills.

I had been told there was a chance I could die if I accepted the invitation to participate in this research simulation. But the how was short in details. They certainly didn't instruct me that if I died in the game I would die in real life.

There must have been some risk otherwise they wouldn't have worried about the disclaimer. I decided it had more to do with the thousands of wires embedded into my nervous system. It was probably a medical risk, not a virtual one. Not some sort of mind thing where my mind couldn't accept my death and therefore made it real.

I dropped down as silently as I could, but I weighed a ton in comparison to the ferals and a loud thump emanated from where my feet hit the turf. I didn't have time to launch a surprise attack because a few turned at the sound and their beady eyes widened upon the magnificent sight that was me.

I cursed and charged. I let a guttural roar rip as I closed the distance quickly, bounding toward the little green foe. I activated my abilities; qi body enhancement and qi strike. I still hadn't learnt how to use qi strike, I figured I would learn on the job.

The first feral watched me, stupefied, and with little remorse I skewered it through the centre. Outside of my immediate area I wasn't aware of my surroundings, but I was able to dodge the first blow from the twitching corpses' companion. The second blow however caught me on my lower back, and it hurt like hell. I had to place my foot on the corpse in order to pull my spear free. I had stabbed it too deeply and the flanged wooden head was great for wholesale damage, but it got stuck within its body.

I whirled with my spear and held it in front of me forcing the ferals to jump back or be knocked over. I clubbed two on the side of the head and shoulder using this unsightly technique. I had imagined I would dance, stab and flow with martial perfection. I was more akin to an angry drunk with lucky aim.

My lump was tall, at least six feet, and it towered over the enemy. While effectively naked, I would still have weighed more than four of them. The sole of my foot was almost as large as the chest of the feral I kicked before it flew satisfactorily through the air, landing with a crack against the tree ten feet away.

Fortunately, the ferals were a disorganised mess. A few turned at the commotion and bleated to their friends, but they were ignored by most who seemed determined to move east and out of danger.

This did not prevent me from being surrounded by a dozen. I did not hesitate, I began to stab and move aggressively against the nearest. The cunning ferals did not charge into melee with me. They began to throw spears, rocks, anything they could get their hands on.

There was no way I could dodge them all. Killing two put a small dent in their number and now I was being pelted with missiles from all directions. I thanked my stars that they had no bows. I winced and grunted in pain, as a spear lodged in my upper back, just under my shoulder blade.

I grunted in pain and pulled my spear from the third victim and began to scale the closest tree. I managed to climb fast, even while injured, thanks to the tree-run ability.

Gravity is a bitch - even here - and it didn't take me long to climb out of their reach.

I leaned my head against the trunk and attended to the spear in my back. My mouth betrayed me as I cried out in pain as I pulled it free. The wound was in the worst possible location, I couldn't reach it very well, let alone see it.

The ferals below me rejoiced and gained courage. Their numbers were growing so I decided to move.

It did not take me long to reach my first lookout perch. I sat and the pain in my back flared making my temper flare as well. I punched the large branch beneath me; my attack was impotent, I only killed three and the fourth was injured at best. I closed my eyes and felt sorry for myself – I could do nothing about my wound I had to wait for Gisael to return.

I felt light headed, it must have been from the blood loss. I opened my eyes and the world appeared with a blue hue again. My feet were dangling beneath me and I could see the concentration layered on my soles. I was looking through my feet, as if I they were translucent.

It occurred to me that perhaps I was hallucinating but I saw no reason for it. I focused on my legs and feet and I could see vein like streams of blue.

"Idiot," the condemnation from Gisael broke my vision.

"I know," I said in surrender. "Just fix it will you."

She scoffed. "I should let you suffer for disobeying orders."

"One, I don't take orders from you, and two; I'm no use to you if I'm dead. So, stitch me up already."

Her only response was a non-committal adorable grunt and without a word she left.

"Oh great," I said and looked around for something to compress the wound. With little success I grabbed some leaves and packed them over the wound. The fact they stuck to the blood helped but I was sure it was a mess back there.

I stood and immediately had to brace myself against the trunk, my head was spinning, and I felt like I was about to fall. If Gisael had abandoned me, then I had to get back to the glade. I was about to jump to the next tree when I heard her.

"Idiot!" she called.

I must have been hallucinating because I heard concern in her voice. She put her hands on me and pushed me into a sitting position on the large branch. The trees in the forest were tall and strong and their branches were like highways to the Svartalfar Guardian. This branch was broad, and she was able to push me down into a lying position.

"This will not hurt much," she said and applied an unknown substance to my wound.

A scream escaped my lips before I could get a hold of myself.

"Be stronger," she said as if it were a simple slider on my HUD.

"Fuck you," was l could say as the pain burned through me. It was worse than the initial injury.

She touched my head, I was still bald, and I felt her cool hand resting on the top of my head and then my forehead.

"Eat this," she said after a pause.

It occurred to me how real this simulation was. It must have had something to do with the connection to my nervous system, because I felt everything, and it felt real. From her soft touch, to the adrenaline during battle to every nuance of pain that ran through my body.

I felt groggy, but before I was in danger of falling my head was in her lap. "Rest," she said softly. "You will not fall while I have you."

The last thing I said before I slid into oblivion was, "I didn't know you cared." And I did not hear her response.

I came to, but I was not in my lump. I was somewhere dark. I checked my back for wires and there were none. I heard water lap and it dawned on me that I was in a pool. I focused on my arm, it looked like my real arm, but without my tattoos. And it was smooth, strong and unblemished. I kicked my legs and I realised I was in the pool, but it was warm. It was strange because I should have realised that I was in water immediately.

The room was dimly lit, when I called out the only sound was the echo and lapping of water. The reverberations were close together and I imagined a small cave.

I searched for the light source and I realised it was coming from the water itself. The now familiar blue hue. It was brightest at the bottom of the pool, so I swum down to inspect. As soon as I touched the bright blue orb at the bottom of the pool I was sucked from the dark pool.

I gasped as if I held my breath for a long time. I heard Gisael chirp in surprise. "You are back," she observed.

"I left?"

"You were still - in body and soul. Were you dream walking?" she asked, her curiosity piqued.

"What?"

She sighed and whispered, "No matter." She looked to the east and added, "We must do our duty as Guardians. The ferals still roam in our forest."

"My wound?"

She inspected it and chirped in surprise. "You heal fast."

"Is this not normal?" I asked and I felt good. I twisted my shoulders and felt no pain.

"It is remarkable for our kind," she replied, and her tone indicated I was not included in 'our'.

I opened my mouth to ask about other kinds and she placed a finger to my lips. "We have work to do and your questions are endless."

I grumbled because I was not the only one asking questions.

She lectured quietly. "Follow my lead this time. When you fight again you would be wise to have me assist."

I grinned. "You can be my wing girl."

"What is this?"

"Cover me with your bow. You shoot ones out of range of my spear or attacks I do not see coming."

"I see. We will hunt like a pack. This is normal except you will be on the ground fighting like an angry bear."

"Like a lethal panther," I said.

She shook her head, "No, bear is better."

I bared my teeth at her, as she had done to me the previous day. "Okay, dangerous, agile, bear of death."

She nodded and grinned at me. "Angry, idiot bear." Then she leapt.

I followed her lithe form as best I could. We headed east and my mind kept imagining new ways to dispatch ferals.

The anticipation got the better of me and I yelled ferociously. The volume surprised not only Gisael, but me as well. The guttural sound left no doubt that we were coming for them. Coming for blood.