********************************************************************************************************Meliadol opened his eyes to an unfamiliar ceiling. He blinked a few times. He was alive? With a grunt he quickly sat up and looked around. Rusty metal bars surrounded him. He reached out, grabbing one of them and pulled. Nothing. It didn't even budge.
"Ah, you're awake, human. Good, good." The same goblin mage that had attacked him looked up from his position on the floor outside the cage. The creature was drawing something on the ground with a brush. "Don't bother trying to escape," The goblin continued in an amicable tone, "The cage, while old, was made by dwarves. Much like almost everything else of these tunnels. It was built to last."
Meliadol didn't know how to respond to that. Looking around, he seemed to be in some sort of arcane laboratory. Tables surrounded his cage, full of beakers and bubbling potions that held things he could only guess at. Beyond that, against the walls, stood massive shelves, full of tomes and books. All of it was out of arms reach. He was an island among the wreckage.
His captor, meanwhile, seemed too engrossed in his current project to pay him any further mind. Meliadol watched the diminutive creature continue his work. He was drawing some sort of circle on the ground, stopping occasionally to either dip his brush into a blood-red concoction on a nearby table, or to look at his creation from a new angle.
The circle itself was complicated, filled with designs and words that Meliadol couldn't even begin to fathom. But he'd seen enough fantasy movies to recognize what it was. Some sort of magical circle.
Though as to its purpose…he didn't have a clue.
"What're you going to do to me?" He asked, licking his lips.
This world was too realistic.
"You're the final piece in a life-long ambition of mine." The goblin said, stretching his back before turning to Meliadol. "I asked those idiots to capture two humans, but they barely managed one. I was afraid my work would be delayed even longer."
This goblin was pretty well-spoken for the goblin stereotype, Meliadol thought. The creature's eyes were sharp, attentive. It wasn't anything like the goblins he had seen in the den.
"And what ambition is this?"
The goblin's face lit up, and an odd hunger seemed to gleam within his grin. "You really want to know? Oh, thank the Gods. You have no idea what torture it is to be a genius among idiots! An honest conversation for once!" The goblin continued too rapidly for Meliadol to follow, but he'd occasionally "ohh" and "ahh", which the goblin seemed to appreciate. From the bits and pieces of snatched conversation, the best he was able to piece together was that the circle would open up a portal to another world.
In the meantime, Meliadol was searching for a way out. But the only thing he managed to uncover was the fact that he wasn't alone in his cage. In a darkened corner, what he thought had been a pile of rags, was in fact the huddled form of a man.
"You're not paying attention…are you?" The goblin mage finally noticed Meliadol's preoccupation.
"Well…uhh…"
"God's damn you!" The creature shrieked, stamping his sandaled feet with rage, "Playing me for a fool!? I am the mighty Gloakel! I'm no one's fool!"
"Wait…uhhh…" Meliadol didn't know what to say, but he felt as if he should say something to calm his captor, more for his own sake than anything else.
"No, your words are snakes in the grass, turning and twisting, yet ready to bite!" The goblin was quite flustered, "I'll not hear any more from you, human! I will move forward with this ritual, and the portal to Nevergarden will open for me! I will become a God and walk amongst Gods! No longer will I have to endure the stupidity of my kind, or the disdain of your kind!"
With a final shriek, the mage scurried out of room. A moment passed before the goblin's head poked back in. "I will use the latrine and then be right back. Now don't go anywhere." He sneered before disappearing again.
Meliadol let go of the breath he didn't even know he had held. This world, this game, was pretty intense. He turned to the only other person in the cage. "Are you okay?" he asked.
At first he thought maybe the guy was dead, since no answer came, but finally the figure coughed. "I've been better." he managed to croak out. Meliadol rushed to help him, but the man grabbed his arm with a surprisingly strong grip, "Forget about me. We have to escape."
"You make it sound so easy." Meliadol had been looking everywhere, yet he saw nothing that could help.
"Here, take this. I managed to palm it on my way here."
The man shoved something in Meliadol's hands. A lockpick! With this they could at least escape the cage.
There was just one problem…
"I don't know how to pick locks. You do it."
The man looked back him, as if stunned, "They drained a lot of my blood to make that potion he's drawing the circle with…I can't even stand up. Don't you know how to use skills?"
Skills? Meliadol was flabbergasted. Was this NPC actually going to explain a major function of the game while they were waiting to die?
"Do you want me to explain it to you?" The NPC asked, as if reading Meliadol's mind.
The situation was too much, and Meliadol couldn't help but to laugh. The NPC could only stare blankly at him until he calmed down, finally managing to squeeze out a "Yes, please explain!".
"Very well," The NPC continued, ignoring Meliadol's laughing fit, "Simply think "menu" to bring it up in your Heads-Up-Display (HUD), from there, access skills from the skill dropdown menu. This will allow you see available skills and to equip them. Once done to your satisfaction, just think "menu-cancel" to remove it from your HUD. To use a skill, activate it as you would your menu."
That easy, huh? Meliadol followed the NPC's advice. A menu overlapped his vision. The options, from left to right were: Character, Equipment, Items, Skills, Quest, Friendlist, Map, System. Hovering a finger over skills he tapped it, opening up another menu. Selecting skill list, opened up yet another menu.
Oh, wow, Meliadol breathed. Under the header of "Lvl 1 Adventurer" were several skills. Pick Lock, Aim, Parry, and Basic Attack. There was a check next to the last three, indicating they were already equipped. With another tap he equipped Pick Lock and exited the menu. He stuck the lockpick into the heavy cage lock, and thought about the skill…
His hands moved on their own! With deftness he knew he didn't have, they twisted and turned the tiny tool until a click was heard. I did it! He pocketed the pick before turning around to the NPC on a hunch. "Are you the son of the farmer?"
The NPC nodded, "They captured me and took me here. They've been draining my blood to do whatever evil ritual, but it wasn't enough. They needed another."
"Well, let's get you out of here."
The NPC shook his head, sadly. "I can't escape. I'm too weak. Best hope is for you to get away and get help from the town guards."
Meliadol thought for a moment before nodding in agreement. The man's reasoning made sense. He opened the door and winced. The rusted hinges squealed loudly. Fortunately no one came, and as he left, he spotted his gear in the far corner, casually thrown as if trash. It didn't take him long to don his pack and armor. With the comforting weight of his short sword in his hand, he felt much better.
"You! How did you get out!?"
In the doorway was that goblin mage, his fingers already moving! Ignoring the sinking feeling of deja vu, Meliadol sprang into action. This wasn't a narrow corridor like before. Instead of charging at the mage, he ducked behind a table right as a blast of energy exploded the beakers and flasks above him. Splattered liquid sizzled and hissed, burning his skin. His health bar once again appeared, slowly being whittled down, but he paid it no mind. He knew the real danger was if that goblin's spells actually connected.
Acting on impulse, he kicked the table up as hard as he could flipping it on its side. Another kick sent it skidding toward the mage. The goblin's eyes widened, and the creature had no choice but to dodge, interrupting the spell he had been casting. Still, the table leg clipped him, turning his dodge into an impromptu roll.
By the time the goblin recovered, Meliadol was almost on him, sword raised. With the adventurer's proximity, the mage only had one chance. He stepped into Meliadol's stride, tackling him and turning the fight into a disarray of limbs and cursing. Meliadol's sword clattered to the stone floor.
"Get off me, you damn goblin!" Meliadol seethed, yet the goblin was everywhere, kicking, punching and even biting. Somehow, in the chaos, the diminutive creature had even pulled out a knife, stabbing at Meliadol repeatedly.
He felt helpless, and his HP bar just kept dropping steadily. It was a stroke of luck when his fingers curled around the handle of his sword. With a mighty shove he managed to push the crazed goblin off him long enough to bring the weapon up and around.
Shink!
The sword slid into the goblin's body like butter, all the way out through the back. The mage went limp and with one final grunt, Meliadol pushed the tiny creature off him, gasping for breath.
So much for the mighty Gloakel…
He had barely gotten his wits about himself when the NPC shouted, "Adventurer! Look out!"
His head snapped up, but by then it was too late. His blood had mixed with the spell circle on the floor and had triggered something. He was surrounded in a phosphorescent glow and an evil wind had picked up, tearing at the room like an angry beast. Flashes of lightning crackled across his vision, leaving it white and desolate.
This world…is a bit much.
It was his last thought before he was sucked through the floor.
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