Ash looked up from his place on the ground, trees swaying in the breeze, birds singing high above weaving in and out of the canopy. A shadow loomed over him all of a sudden and held out a hand.

  ‘Here’ said Alastair reaching for Ashes wrist. He pulled him off the ground with ease and they looked around themselves, the trees seemed to be in every direction and the ruin lay a distance away, now peaceful no sign of the evil within.

  ‘We go this way’ Alastair pointed in a direction that Ash trusted was not random. Alastair had set off at a march and Ash quickly stepped into line with him.

  ‘So, you speak English?’ said Ash

  ‘No, You speak Andovan though, even if its like a child’ Replied Alastair ‘Where are you from?’

  ‘I’m not quite sure how to even begin to answer that question yet’ said Ash said.

  ‘You are very strange, Ash’ he said ‘You aren’t a demon or something are you?’

  ‘Ha of course not’ Ash laughed ‘What you have demons here?’

  They carried on trudging through the forest, where there was a gap in the canopy wild flower grew below in abundance.

  After a few hours Ash wheezed out ’I need a break’.

  ‘Ok, I go look, if you need me yell out’ Alastair nodded and disappeared into a thicket.

  Ash sat on a log and heaved a big sigh, holding his head in his hands.

  with his eyes closed he once again became aware of a flashing just out of his eyeline and when he tried to look the screens made a reappearance.

  Quest completed – In the darkest of places

  Objective - Escape your captors

  Objective - Met

  Bonus reward available

  Requirement

  Free other prisoners

  Bonus reward requirement – Met

  Rewards

  Shadow core – Item rarity – Uncommon

  Wanderers bracers – Item rarity - common

  20 Copper coins

  Bonus rewards

  light stone – Item rarity – Common

  Hunters knife – Item rarity - Common

  5 Silver coins

  ‘Sweet, loot’ Ash said, he started looking around but saw none of the promised items. ‘Oh god, this thing really is busted’

  ‘Where is everything?’

  A new screen flashed up,

  INVENTORY - Satchel

  Below was a grid with various objects, books, stones of various shades and other items. He looked at the display and his eyes fell upon the bracers; he became aware of a sudden weight in the satchel at his side and reached in retrieving what looked like a pair of leather gauntlets. Looking at them a description came into view.

  Item – Wanderers gauntlets – item rarity – Common

  Gauntlets made of leather, protect the wrists and forearms from piercing or slashing damage. No magical effects.

  Equip?

  Yes/No

  He chose yes and all of a sudden, they were on his wrists, tied tightly. ‘Could’ve done with these earlier with that bloody furball’ he said swinging his forearm back and forth.

  His eyes then ran over the stones, he pulled one from the bag and saw it was similar the one he used in the Goblin dungeon. He put it away and pulled out on of the books.

  Item – Book – The adventures of Oddfellow Goodspeed

  Would you like to use book to improve skill, Linguistics?

  Yes/No

  He chose yes and the letters streamed off the pages, out of the book and up his arms fading into his skin.

  The skill Linguistics has increased by 2 levels and is now level 5.

  ‘Oh great, I used my bonus points earlier when I could’ve waited for a book’ he cried out in dismay.

  He had had experience in the ways of role playing games, he liked the single player ones over the massive multiplayer online ones, to many people either buying their way to the top or having to cope with griefers or trolls. ‘I wonder if this place has trolls?’ he wondered out loud.

  ‘Trolls?’ Alastair appeared at his side.

  ‘No sorry, just thinking out loud’ He apologised

  ‘Thank the gods, we aren’t equipped for trolls’ he said

  Ash now noticed again that Alastair seemed to be speaking clearer and with more eloquence.

  With a thought he opened up the Skills menu,

  Skill Increases as follows,

  Edged Weapons – Lvl 1

  Stealth – Lvl 3

  Linguistics – Lvl 5

  Mana Manipulation – Lvl 4

  Night Vision – Lvl 3

  Identify – Lvl 3

  ??? – Lvl ?

  Congratulations,

  You have gained a total of 5 skill levels please pick a skill to increase by an additional level.

  ‘Well I’m not wasting this one’ Ash said as he dropped the point into Edged weapons ‘Something more practical I think’

  ‘You know for a man who wants to rest you talk a lot, even more for a man out alone in the woods’ Alastair chuckled as he walked into the clearing.

  ‘Sorry about that, I talk out loud when I’m trying to make sense of things’ said Ash

  ‘Well it sounds like you are coming around, at least you aren’t spouting gibberish or talking like a child, did you hit your head or something?’ Asked Alastair.

  ‘No, well yes, there was a tree and a rabbit and then a couple of times in that dungeon’ said Ash reproachfully.

  Thinking of it he had hit his head an awful lot in one day, this was probably not the way to continue in this new world.

  ‘Well, you are speaking better but still not making much sense, we should have you checked over by a healer in one of the local towns’ He said.

  ‘Is that Andover?’ Questioned Ash

  ‘Haha no friend, just a border village, we’ll pass through a few on our way back to Andover. If you are going that way?’

  ‘Honestly, I have no idea where I’m going, where I am or what I’m even doing’ said Ash clasping his fingers behind his head and spreading out his elbows.

  ‘You are a strange one friend but I owe you my life, so if it suits you can come with me for a while, I’ll even teach you to use a sword instead of just holding the pointy end at imps’ He smiled

  ‘That would be a great help, I have so, so many questions for you’ Ash said.

  ‘Questions are well and good but we should save them for when we are in a more secure area, I’ve already been taken by surprise once’ Alastair looked down ashamedly ‘I have to report in about my team’

  At the look of sorrow on Alastair’s face, Ash tried to console him ‘Hey, it’s because of you we made it out of that place, I literally had no idea what I was doing and would have ended up it that awful pot’

  ‘Well, you can certainly think on your toes, who would even think to pump that much mana into a light stone?’ Alastair chuckled

  ‘Ok we may have to do the question thing while we walk’ said Ash

  As they walked on Alastair was somewhat confused by Ash’s glaring lack of understanding about basic information that everyone knew, Ash had simply replied that he in fact knew very little about the world and had come from far, far away..

  It was explained that this world indeed had magic, it flowed through the world like we understand air. Living beings also absorb and store magic within themselves and this is referred to as mana. In areas where magic is condensed or in high enough abundance magic cores are formed, these come in differing rarities and differing alignments.

  Alastair explained that a high magic area near a river may produce a water core, a fish core or even a tranquil core. It is never a given as to what will materialise although the rarity can be predicted with a varying degree of accuracy given the strength of the ambient magic.

  Cores were used by either absorbing the core using a ritual performed at a ritual chamber by a priest or ritualist or alternatively channelling your mana into them, the effects of which were highly unpredictable.

  ‘I’ve heard tell that the powers granted are dependent on the person, for example an Archer would very rarely get a sword skill, unless they use a sword as well that is.’ Alastair looked thoughtfully ‘I’m not confident in the theory myself, I know what happens when I channel mana into a stone light core, it lights up, nice and simple’

  This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

  ‘How do you know what using a stone will do?’ Asked Ash

  ‘Ha, you don’t, there are certain areas set up for testing out your affinity with an alignment, one time there were a family of six brothers, all had an affinity with earth and when they used an earth core they were coated in stone armour.’

  ‘Wow amazing, that sounds like a great power to have’ Ash said looking down at his bracers.

  ‘Well the sixth son when he came of age, surrounded by his family channelled his mana into the earth core and well, he erm, didn’t get armour everyone was expecting’ He looked down solemnly

  ‘What kind of armour did her get?’ Ash asked

  ‘None’ Alastair replied curtly ‘He summoned an area of quicksand that pulled his whole family under’

  He raised two fingers to his lips, to his forehead and to the sky. ’May they know peace in the ever after’

  ‘Wow, that’s awful’ Said Ash

  ‘Yes magic is not a thing to wield lightly, it is capable of awful things, awful but amazing all the same’

  The journey continued, the questions continued about magic, the local area and eventually what led Alastair to be in the area also.

  ‘I and a few men were tasked with tracking down a roaming horde of goblins, it was my first mission for the lord of these lands, I have been placed under his command under the instruction of my father’

  he said

  ‘So you are a soldier and your father sent you over to help?’

  ‘Not quite, my father didn’t have a choice in the matter, it was part of the conditions set when my father brokered with Lord Renwick’ Alastair looked down ‘Our people were starving and we looked to our neighbours for help, we tried all directions before going to that man’

  ‘Not a nice guy I’m guessing?’

  ‘Exactly, the very reason we were denied help by all others in fact, of course there’s no proof to that’ Alastair said

  ‘There never is’ Said Ash

  ‘I am in service to the lord by lieu of payment, and should anything happen to me payment is due in full, if my father cannot pay then his lands and holdings may be seized’

  ‘That doesn’t seem fair’ said Ash

  ‘I never said we got a fair deal, we took the deal that meant our people do not starve also I have no intention of dying easily ‘he said

  ‘You say that like you weren’t just hanging upside down with no weapon in a goblin hordes dungeon’ Ash said concerned

  ‘Well yes but fate sent you to me in that chamber’

  ‘Blind luck more like’ said Ash ‘So how did you end up in there?’

  ‘My company made camp near by the dungeon only we were hunting a party of goblins, not a horde. I woke in the night to find half the company gone and the other half beset by the vile little creatures’

  Ash felt bad for choosing to withhold the truth of his sudden arrival in the world, best to get the lay of the land instead of rushing off to the unknown and certain death.

  In a clearing Alastair came to a sudden stop and declared ‘This will do nicely’ dropped his pack and turned around to face Ash ‘ Before we get anywhere we need to make sure you can defend yourself, draw your sword’.

  Ash obliged and held his sword aloft, whilst holding it he had the feeling that this was in fact a one handed sword, he switched to his dominant right hand and it felt so much better. He placed his right foot a pace back and slightly bent his knees.

  ‘Well you’ve had some training at least’ Alastair marvelled ‘You need to bring your stance a little looser otherwise you’ll be easily knocked to your feet’

  Alastair held up a stick ‘Ready?’ he nodded

  ‘I’ve got a sword and you’ve got a stick?’ Ash said concerned

  ‘Yes, if I get carried away you will get a nasty thump with a stick, if you get carried away you will get an even nastier thump with a stick’ Alastair smiled

  ‘Ok then, here goes nothing’

  The next few hours progressed with Alastair showing Ash how to stand, the importance of footwork and most importantly the lesson of balance and the fall that comes when you fail to concentrate on all three. Ash started getting used to the awkward way of standing, the awkward way of moving and even started to feel an instinctual way of moving. Alastair however the diligent trainer proceeded to weed out the openings and punish them with a rap of his stick or a sweeping leg that left Ash on the floor wheezing. The lessons continued the pair engaged in a duel, the flurry of movements now more practiced and honed, Ash had finally tipped the melee in his favour managing to put Alastair on the back foot, a clumsy overhead swing was easily danced away by a spinning Alastair who began to bring the stick down towards Ash's back.

  ‘Sorry bud, this ones mine’ Ash said without looking up.

  Alastair looked down and indeed the overhead strike was a feint, Ash had followed the swing down bringing the blade underneath, now the tip of the blade barely touching his jerkin.

  ‘Very good, you are a quick learner’ Alastair said

  ‘Helps when you have a good teacher’ said Ash ‘Even one who is a sadist with a stick’

  ‘Pain is always a lesson well remembered’ Alastair said ‘That was a quote from my families master at arms’

  ‘Did he teach you to fight?’ Asked Ash

  ‘He taught me, my brothers and my sister, much to my mothers disapproval’ he smiled

  ‘They not big on female knights?’ he said

  ‘Oh nothing like that, my father was all for it, but my mother thought sword fighting was un-lady like’ Alastair twiddled with the stick in his reminiscence ‘My mother would have preferred she weave fabrics and not between blades however she soon came to accept it when she was besting most of the guards. They weren’t holding back either, I remember the master at arms offering the man to best her that she would tend their horse for a week’

  ‘And she beat them all?’ Ash asked

  ‘Oh gods no, my sister was fast, the fastest with a blade but in a prolonged engagement you are bound to get tired. It was my eldest brother Cedric that put her to her backside in the end, she scowled at him the whole week after that’ he laughed out loud

  ‘one more round and we’d better be away I want to get to the village before nightfall’ said Alastair

  Whilst sitting on the ground Ash opened his skills screen to see

  Skill Increases as follows,

  Edged Weapons – Lvl 4

  Damage resistance – Lvl 3

  You have gained a total of 5 skill levels please pick a skill to increase by 1 additional level.

  He dropped the point into edged weapons and closed his eyes taking a deep breath.

  ‘You giving up already?, things were just getting interesting’ Alastair laughed holding out his hand.

  Ash took the offered arm by the forearm and was pulled to his feet. They stood a few feet apart and Alastair said ‘Begin’.

  Instead of lunging forward Ash instinctively simply kept his stance, Alastair smiled and charged forward bringing down his instrument of brain trauma, Ash stepped suddenly forward and to the left pirouetting around Alastair's strike, he brought his sword round in a quick decisive swing. Alastair was not one to be undone by a simple move and brought his stick up just in time to parry, the sword lodged into the stick and for the briefest of moments their eyes met and Ash smiled, Alastair's leg swung out catching the back of Ash’s calf bringing him down to one knee.

  As Alastair began to laugh Ash pivoted in his prostrate form grabbing a hold of Alastair’s forearm and pulling with all his strength, he flew over Ash’s head landing with a dull thus on the grass. The wind knocked out of him he was gasping for air as Ash stood over him looking down with an impish grin.

  ‘You still stand too loosely’ coughed Alastair and brought the stick around across the back of Ash’s legs taking them from under him.

  as the breath returned to them both they started to laugh staring up into the sky. ‘This is the second time we’ve ended up, battered bruised, breathless and laughing into the air’ chortled Ash ‘Can we please not make a habit of it’