Name: John
Title: Summoned Hero*
Class: None
General Skills:
Language of men - Lvl 10 - Passive
Identify Lvl 5 - Active
Special Skills:
Hide Presence Lvl 2 - Active
Void Walker Lvl 1 - Passive
Status:
Vitality: 16
Endurance: 21
Strength: 18
Dexterity: 21
Intelligence: 45
Wisdom: 47
Health: 46/50
Stamina: 13/20
Mana: 100/100
Even with my efforts of tying my bag to a rope, and hauling it up ahead of me: the upwards journey took some time. Time, and several rough falls, before I eventually found a decent way to scale up a mostly branch-less trunk. Still, I did find a method, and climbing higher, I was finally able to head up into the canopy, and above the tree line.
Somewhat.
It seemed that the forest I'd landed in was mostly flat.
Vantage-point-wise, it provided little but more trees, but as luck would have it, I'd chosen a taller specimin. The Gnarled Barkrot Tree I'd climbed seemed to reach out above most of the rest, and provided a decent line of sight once I'd climbed far enough.
Of course, that really meant very little, when all I could see was a haze... and more trees.
It reminded me of a game I'd played, when I was much younger: An entire land covered in a fog, making sight almost impossible beyond five hundred feet or more.
Adding to that, was the fact that night seemed to be setting.
Unwilling to climb back down, I resolved myself to sleeping tied to a tree trunk. And, by sleeping, I mean barely sleeping.
At least the air felt cleaner.
Maybe it was just my imagination getting the better of me, but I had to imagine that the farther away I was from all the poisonous plants, the better off I'd be.
....
I awoke with the dawn, and with it: wind.
Not strong, not aggressive, but steady in its push. The air flowed along at a steady gait in the morning sun, and the haze which seemed to be permanently settled above the forest, moved with it. Tired eyes blinking, I stared in wonder as the visibility increased from a few hundred feet, to a few thousand, to (briefly) miles.
The forest was vast.
I'd suspected as much. Miles of trees in all directions, with almost no break from the lush of green leaves.
Almost.
What may have been a mile off, there was something rising above the trees. Stone, or brick? From the distance I sat, it was hard to say with certainty, but I could recognize the dimensions and shape as a structure of unnatural means. What appeared to be a perfect dome, turned into a rising spear, capped with a brilliant gleam of gold.
I stared at it for a long time, before I made my decision. In truth, as lovely as slow starvation and dehydration seemed, from my uncomfortable post atop the tree, finding people and true shelter won out.
I was a "hero" now, wasn't I?Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
Wasn't this what heroes did? Adventure awaited, at long last. Though I'd had a traumatic start, I felt a sense of obligation.
I couldn't just give up and die. Not here, and certainly not after everything I'd already been through.
This was it.
As I judged the direction, and steeled my mind for the careful descent back to the forest floor, the only interruption I had was a distant rumble.
Something, which I soon found, was thunder.
….
If there was ever something worse than fighting one's way through a thick underbrush made of literal death, it's doing so in a storm.
The fear, rational or otherwise, was almost as bad as the rain itself. Heavy and cold, wind threw branches down around me, crashing in the brushes. Loud explosions of lightning scattered what was close to daylight through the canopy. All while I tripped and stumbled, spear kept low for hope of avoiding a lighting-rod's scenario.
While I had little doubt much of the plant life might kill me, I assumed that a bolt of electricity would be just as (if not more) effective.
This was not easy going, to say the least.
Navigating around bushes and undergrowth of the forest floor grew more difficult as time went on. What's more, is the sudden appearance of statues.
Though living things were absent, for exception of plant life, the statues were seemingly ever-present, glaring down at me. The appearance of stone carvings, scattered about, covered in vines or moss, came with frustration. As they often blocked my progress, forcing me around additional trees and turns. Their barricades were made known more and more often, growing more concentrated, until they were almost shoulder to shoulder.
How long they had been there, in the forest, I wasn’t sure. They seemed ancient, in the few flashes of lightning by which I could make out their finer details. With bodies of men and faces of animals. Snakes, and bears, and things best not mentioned or remembered.
All seemed to watch my slow progress, in ways most unsettling.
By the time I'd managed to break my way out of the forest itself, into the clearing I'd been hoping to find, I'd spent hours trekking, approaching the edge of true collapse. Still, my soaked boots found purchase on more than mud and detritus, setting down onto stone. Blocks of stone.
Laid before me, even in the dim light of thick storm clouds and a raging forest of leaves: I recognized my destination.
It seemed a plaza of no small size. Ancient stone, cracked and weathered as it was by roots or rain, or wind: at its center stood what I'd witnessed from afar. Ruined, but undeniably majestic. One mighty dome of bricks, layered high to a pillar of stone and gold: What can only be called a temple, rose before me.
I entered with little thought for my safety.
Having spent so much time in a military camp, working day after day, I knew my limits well. More than enough to be keenly aware that I might be capable of no more than a few more moments of movement, before I would completely collapse. My stamina, whatever buffer to keep from slipping unconscious, was at an all time low
Stamina: 1/20
Exhausted...
That's what I was, in theory. But, I feel that description might be lacking.
Like a puppet with its strings cut, I let myself fall, just within the threshold of the temple. Settled down beside a stone archway, laid in among the bricks, where darkness lurked not but ten feet further. What might well have been, for all I knew, a warren of tunnels filled with monsters and terrifying creatures: possessing the bodies of men and the appetite of predators.
Thankfully, nothing came to claim the feast which might have waited for them, as I hung my head and slept for what might have been moments, hours, or days. For all I can remember of the fever dreams felt, then, all I can safely say is the storm had still not subsided when I awoke.
...
Name: John
Title: Summoned Hero*
Class: None
General Skills:
Language of men - Lvl 10 - Passive
Identify Lvl 5 - Active
Special Skills:
Hide Presence Lvl 2 - Active
Void Walker Lvl 1 - Passive
Status:
[??? - Lesser Status Ailment - Inflicted]
Vitality: 16
Endurance: 21
Strength: 18
Dexterity: 21
Intelligence: 45
Wisdom: 47
Health: 46/50
Stamina: 13/20
Mana: 100/100
"??? - Lesser Status Ailment - Inflicted"
It was a worrisome message, if there ever was one. Perhaps, some form of sickness? Or, some form of poisoning? Confirming my health was stable, seemed to put my mind mostly at ease. Although my Stamina was still reduced, I felt well enough to move. In fact, overall, I felt fine. Tired, soaked, but not physically incapacitated. Staring out at the storm, the winds were picking up. Inch by inch, the spray was creeping towards where I sat, threatening to interrupt my meal of whatever rations happened to have avoided the wet within my pack. Cautiously I turned to the darkness of the temple's hall.
It was warm and dry, there.
Very much so, in fact. Almost inviting, in some strange way.
Despite the storm, the strange plant growth which covered the outside: the ruin seemed remarkably well preserved. Considering the gold I'd spotted, safely atop the tower for any and all to see, I felt it safe to assume no one had come across this place in quite a long while.
Surely, someone else would have stolen that, had they found it here...
I wasn't entirely sure what gold was worth in economic terms, though I could easily imagine a treasure like that would be worth quite a lot of camp rations. The thought of which, made me break down my pack, and scarf a quick meal.
Even after dried bread and some tough salted meat, I was still hungry, but I knew it would be best to make what I had last. Thus, course decided, once more, I activated [Hide Presence] as best I could, and slowly made my way further inside.
Just until the storm passed, I told myself. I could afford to explore, just a little.