I just sat for a minute. Looked at Stalker and said “It wants us to go after that green monster” Stalker looked nervously at the cave entrance and emoted concern “I know… I agree, my friend” I took a deep breath… 1… 2… 3… and exhaled 1… 2… 3… I took some meat off the fire and gave some to Stalker.
“I... I wanted this, I wanted to be stronger, to be able to protect you, to protect us!” I wiped some of the meat grease from my mouth and whispered “I just don’t know if I can continue doing this… I can kill to eat, survive and to protect.” I looked down at my arms; bulging with muscle where only a week ago they were withered and thin.
“This killing to level up, just to gain skills to gain power?” I shook my head. Thinking about the hounds we had killed today “Is this really the only way?” Stalker licked his wound and whined softly emoting uncertainty.
I couldn’t let go of today’s hunt. The kill quest, just like 1000’s of quests from games I had played in my prior life. Those quests more a nuisance or shallow story shell covering mindless grinding.
Now? Deadly serious! I had tried my knife after I got my melee weapon skill. It was the difference between swinging a knife and wielding a knife. The power gained was real. It would make protecting us easier.
But was it worth the cost? Who would I be when these quests and the killing became like the quests from games?
After dinner I lay down at the fire. Stalker at my side. It is early, but we are both exhausted, and I fall asleep looking at the sleeping fox…
I open my eyes and look around. I am in a room at the hospital. In the room are 2 doctors and a nurse. I know this place! I know this moment! This is the moment I was told that the cancer had spread and that there was nothing they could do. I was calm. In shock maybe?
I look down and see the knife in my hand… this is new? I see myself grabbing the doctor. The doctor continues talking “So we estimate you have anywhere from some months to a few years…” I push the knife along his nose, into the eye then the brain… The other doctor picks up the talk “left to live. Now there are things we can try to…” I grab the doctor. Raise my knife inserting it in his eye… The screen flashes blue. The nurse turns to me and says:
This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
You have slain an Oncologist (lvl 3)!
You have gained experience!
I try to flee the room! As I open the door, I see a never ending line of doctors. They have scaled hound heads. I look at my knife...
I wake up with a gasp, covered in cold sweat. Stalker whimpering and nudging me with his snout. Emoting concern and safety. I grab him. Hugging him for the first time… Not letting go.
Eventually I fall asleep again and this time no dreams haunt me.
Opening my eyes. I take a moment to just listen to the sounds outside the cave. Some bird is trilling like it is a Disney movie. Life is going on out there! I can see Stalker down at the pond. I smile and try to let go of the nightmare…
I joined my friend and emoted gratitude to him. Stalker tilted his head, looking at me, emoting relief. It looked like his body had healed during the night. Mine too. All healed up. The system making sure we are ready for another day in the grinder…
No… No, that wasn’t fair. The system might be geared to a certain kind of behavior. Encourage and reward it even, but we made our own choices! At least I had to believe that or go even more crazy than I already was.
Stalker looked at me and emoted danger and hunt?
“Good question Stalker” I said. “It’s time we decide what we are going to do!” Stalker’s tail swished back and forth, as he waited for me to decide.
“Do we go after the panther and kill our way to more power?” I continued in a whisper “No matter what it may cost us or how it changes us?” Stalker whined and emoted uncertainty.
“Or do we reject the premise of killing for power and seek another way to gain it?” I looked at Stalker almost doing a dance, radiating anxious uncertainty. “And risk not having the power we need to protect us self?”
I looked to the sky, as if the answer would manifest itself on the clouds...
Which path will Mike try to follow in his future adventures in Limbo
