When I woke, the bunny was watching me from the shrubs. I blinked a couple times, thinking it was just a dream, but when I realized the rabbit wasn’t going away I rolled over and watched its nose twitch absently in the morning sunlight.
“Morning,” I said, “Back for more berries?” I spent the morning gathering some berries and greens and fishing for myself.
Fish slain!
10XP
That was getting old. So was starting a damn campfire for every meal.
“I’m running out of sticks, you know?” I complained while the bunny munched on greenery and watched me sweat over the campfire. “It’s not like these things grow on trees.”
By the end of breakfast my mood had improved. As the dying fire crackled and licked at the air, I picked at the fish in my teeth.
“Some salt would be nice. I’d kill for a salt shaker,” I told the rabbit who had come out of hiding and now sat with the fire between us. It was in a half daze with the warmth on its back. I liked to think it was listening to me.
“Maybe that’s what my next wish will be. Some salt. Wouldn’t that be nice? Ah, you’re not evening listening to me.” The bunny opened an eye and eyed me, my raised voice startling it. Its eye drooped again when the danger was evaluated and deemed unnoteworthy.
I stretched my back in pain.
“Ugh. I think it’s time I go get that bedding. Watch the camp will ya?” I told the bunny as I stood up. Spooked, it dashed off into the weeds. “Ah, forget it you freeloader.”
My afternoon crept by as I collected greens I didn’t think would rot too easily. I was looking for a wide variety. Sometimes, I’d stop and make a small version of the bed-to-be to see if the materials were right. Grass seemed to be the best.
“If I piled it up then the grass would spread all over the place as I kick and turn in the night. Digging a small hole to place the bedding in would keep the pile together. And leaves would act as a nice base to keep ground moisture out. Alright, easy peasy.” I spent an hour collecting all the necessary ingredients, tying the bushels together with ivy vines.
“I hope I don’t itch after this,” I said, carrying the bushels back to camp.
When I got back to camp my jaw dropped. It had been completely decimated. The campfire had been dashed to pieces, soot and ash kicked around the clearing. My hunting sticks had all been smashed and worst of all my damn shield and spear were missing. I walked into the middle of the clearing looking all around without a clue.
“What the heck happened?” The bunny, sure it was me, hopped out of the long grass.
“I told you to watch camp,” I scolded. I put my hands on my hips thinking. “Who could’ve done this? You think someone else is in these woods?” I asked the bunny.
Stare. Its pink nose twitched.
“Yeah, you’re right. Goblins. I don’t know if they’re getting back at me or just plain rude, but you don’t take a man’s damn shield!” I shouted angrily. “Stay here, lil buddy.”
“I want to change my class from Hunter to Warrior,” I told the thing in my head.
[Change class? Are you sure? You have no free class changes available.]
“Yes. I’m sure.”
Class changed from Hunter to Warrior
Strength filled my body. I’d been right. The feeling was incredible.
The bunny was staring again, nose twitching. l started off into the woods back to where the goblin camp had been, but stopping suddenly, I turned back to look at the rabbit as if it had just asked me a question. With resolve, I answered.
“I’m going to get my shield back.”
The goblin camp had been cleaned up since the last time I was there and the dead one had been removed. Now, a new campfire blazed and three dirty goblins danced around it… one holding my makeshift spear above its head like a trophy.
“And there’s my shield,” I whispered. It was leaned up against the giant rock with the door. “How do I go about this?”
I wasn’t a hunter anymore so my stealth was measly but I did have two in strength. The effects were in full effect. I’d seen it first hand when I ripped off a tree branch to make a club. The limb cracked from its mother tree with little effort. I felt powerful. I didn’t need stealth. Besides, I had twenty four hours before I could switch classes anyways.
“I’ll just go in and club these suckers over the head and take my stuff back.” Sounded simple enough. I hesitated, looking down at the club. It was a sickening thought.
I didn’t feel necessarily bad about killing that other goblin but that didn’t mean I wanted to do it again. Killing felt unnecessary and cruel. However, with that new spear in their hands, the logical side of me argued against pacifism.
“Much safer just to wack em and pack em,” I reassured myself but before I could step out from the bushes into combat my conscience forced me to drop the stick.
“Fine,” I groaned and threw the club into the brush.
As the goblins danced unwittingly, I gathered up my courage, bolstered by my newfound strength, and jumped out of the shrubs. All at once the goblins stopped in their tracks, eyeing me in tense silence. I looked at the one with the spear in its hands. It wore the skull of an animal as a helm.
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
“That’s mine,” I muttered. At my words the goblins suddenly freaked out, howling, snarling and angry.
A goblin with a nasty gash across its ugly maw grabbed one of my stolen hunting sticks from amongst the cluttered junk. Meanwhile, another, the closest to me, jumped at me like a wild animal, clawing and gripping at me with nasty fingernails.
“Ugh. Get off me, you little creep,” I said as I held it back, its rancid breath assaulting my nostrils. With my two strength, it was easy to throw the beast into the dirt. The creature landed belly up in a cloud of dust. Just behind that one, though, came the goblin with the scar, hunting stick raised above its head like a club.
The creature flung the weapon around wildly, striking with reckless abandon, even cracking the other goblin on the head as it sat up from the dirt. Then… Thwack! It smacked my forearm when I blocked the swing.
“Ow!” I hollered, “You little turd.” It raised its arm again for another strike but I grabbed its wrists and yanked hard, breaking the creature’s stance. Then, I spun around with the goblin in hand, spinning faster and faster until the creature’s feet came off the ground. First, there was a look of absolute hatred in the goblin’s eyes, then it turned to fear, and then sickness as we circled endlessly. Letting go finally, the goblin flew out from my grip off into the woods, crashing into the underbrush.
But then I felt it, a stinging pain in my side.
“Ah!” I cried as the tip of my own sword dug into my flesh. It was the most intense pain I’d ever felt in my life. The blade left my body and I turned to see the lead goblin with my spear in hand, blood gleaming on the tip of my own blade.
“You green bastard,” I spat through clenched teeth, touching the wound. It wasn’t anything fatal but it was deep. Blood seeped into my shirt.
The goblin, satisfied with his attack, pointed the gleaming blade at me once again, smugly grinning, as if saying “Yeah? You want more?” When it finally did draw up again, the attack was a wide downward swing with all of its force put into play. The beast was planning to split me from skull to groin.
I caught the swing with one hand, easily, firmly holding the makeshift spear in place with my overwhelming strength…
The goblin’s expression fell from smug satisfaction into immediate horror. I was pissed. Holding the spear in one hand, I cocked back my other and let it fly. The impact cracked the goblin’s skull helmet in half, pushed its head back, and threw it to the dirt, the spear loosening from its grip.
The punch had been solid. That must’ve been my warrior skills coming into play. I stood over him with a serious look on my face.
The creature sat up, rubbed its head for a minute until the pain dissipated, and then took one look at me. Fear fell over its face like a shadowy veil. It howled in anguish, scrambling away on all fours.
The other goblin, still on the ground rubbing its head, looked over and seeing its comrades completely defeated, sprung fearfully into action. It leapt past the lead goblin, straight over its head, towards the door in the rock, yanking it open and sprinting down into the shadowy depths. Its brother in arms followed, yelping down into the darkness behind it. Their horrid voices echoed around the cave tunnel as they skittered away in fear.
“And stay gone!” I shouted after them. I scanned the camp for the third goblin, but it was still in the shrubs, dazed and on its back. “Huh, serves you right.”
!Achievement
Outnumbered
Join a combat scenario outnumbered and survive!
50 XP
!Achievement
Complete your first brawl
50XP
“Now we’re talking,” I said to myself as I collected my things. It seemed combat was a good way to level up.
For good measure, I tore up the little camp again before I left, kicking over pottery and ruining well organized junk… if only to send a message.
“220XP” I read off the menu as I walked back to camp. “Next level up at 300. I’m already almost there. This leveling up thing is pretty easy,” I smirked confidently. “Level ninety nine doesn’t seem so bad now. Might even learn a thing or two before I go back home.” The rabbit was waiting for me when I got back to camp.
“Hey there, lil guy. You missed the excitement.”
Stare. Nose twitch. I pointed at the shield slung over my shoulder.
“I got my shield back.”
Stare.
“Well,” I looked around at my little camp one last time, “I guess this is the last time we’ll be hanging out. I gotta find somewhere new where the gobs won’t find me. Probably far away from here. This is goodbye, I guess.”
Nose twitch.
There wasn’t much left to take with me except the bushels of grass and leaves I’d collected earlier in the day, so I hiked them up and started my trek into the wilderness. As I went on, I noticed my load didn’t burden me as much as before, however I did feel the clumsiness in my step returning.
“Oh, to have it all. Wouldn’t that be nice?” I said absently as I wandered in a new direction, far away from the gob camp. Suddenly, there was rustling behind me. I snapped in the direction only to catch the rabbit following in my footsteps. It stopped when I turned.
“Oh? You coming along? Alright, then. You mind carrying some of this?”
Nose twitch.
“Yeah, I didn’t think so. Come on, freeloader.” We traveled together off into the unknown.
“You know,” I said as we went along, “We’re gonna have to introduce ourselves at some point.”
I sat by a new fire crackling under the trees as above stars looked down and pondered through the gaps in the leaves the nature of living things. My shirt was off and I dabbed at my wound with a ripped piece of the cloth. I’d gone to a stream to find water, getting there and realizing I should’ve stolen a bowl or something from the goblin camp. I kicked myself. Instead, I soaked my shirt and held it over the fire to heat the water up.
It probably wasn’t going to sanitize anything but the warmth felt good as I wiped away dried blood.
The bunny sat across from me in the warm glow of the fire, chewing on some leaves I placed there for it.
“Ow. That goblin got me pretty good. I’ve never been stabbed before.” I glanced at the rabbit to see if it was listening.
“Kind of proud that I reacted the way I did. I guess that was my Endurance of one working out, huh? Who would’ve thought?” I picked up some dirt I’d been sizzling on a rock nearby. Using my fingers, I pushed some dirt into the wound.
“My grandfather always told me that dirt is good for you. Whenever I got hurt, he’d just say ‘rub some dirt on it.’ I don’t know if I was supposed to take that literally so if I get sick and die…” I glanced at the rabbit. Still chomping on grass like the world didn’t exist, “Remember me fondly.”
I left my shirt by the fire to dry out. On a stick another fish sizzled.
(fish slain)
(10XP)
I picked it up and started picking at it.
“Boy am I sick of fish and berries. You know what I’d like right now? A nice juicy hamburger. Mm.” I could smell the sizzling beef almost.
Twitch. Chew. The rabbit sneezed randomly before chewing more grass.
I eyed it smiling, nodding my head.
“You,” I pointed, “I like you. You’re a good listener.”
Nose twitch.
“What’s your name? Huh? … I bet it’s something like… spot, isn’t it? Or pinkie?” I laughed. “It is, isn’t it?” I chewed on a tough piece of fish. “Spot. I like that name. My name’s… well, now it’s Not Assigned.” I rolled my eyes. Spot would understand.
“You got any friends around here, Spot?” No response. “Yeah…” I laid back to watch the stars with the last good bite of fish in my mouth, “Me neither. They’re all back home, probably in a safe warm bed. Watching t.v. or eating something nice and salty from the cupboard.” I sighed. “Must be nice,” I whined.
Turning to the rabbit, I watched it eat the last little bit of greens I left laying around. I’d learned what it would eat and not eat pretty quickly.
“Not like us huh, buddy? Nah, we’re people of the wilderness now. I guess you were always from the wilderness. I bet you thought you’d never be friends with a human, though, right?” I rolled my eyes again. “Of course, I never thought I’d be friends with a rabbit. But life is strange… very strange. You think you know it, you think you see all the avenues it can take you down, then boom” I clapped my hands together softly to accentuate my point, “then… well then it takes… a different turn.” I eyed the bunny suddenly aware I was talking to an animal.
“Yeah,” I said to myself, “Well, goodnight I guess.” I turned on my back again and watched the twinkling stars. Was my world up there somewhere? Was that how it worked? The answers only brought up more questions. Instead, I just watched the stars thoughtlessly as sleep found me.
