Survival Quest (The Way of the Shaman: Book #1) Read online

  The Energy level showed 43 units, Hit Points fell to 35, so I decided to get some water to restore them. I would also find out how things work at the local watering hole.

  The water supply was right at the centre of the mine and consisted of a twenty-meter square site, similar to those in which the prisoners worked, with one difference: there were no piles of rocks on its borders. It contained six small wells, about half a meter wide and deep. They had no lids: just a simple hole in the ground with stones set around it. At the same time there was only one cup for drawing water. It was carelessly lying on the ground. How unsanitary! It's just as well that microbes don't exist in a virtual world. That's harsh. One little bowl for six small wells - for two hundred prisoners. It seemed inhuman. There were no prisoners at the watering hole, so I took the cup and leant over a well, dipping it in the water. What smart ass came up with the idea of putting only one watering hole in such a large mine? And so inconveniently placed too. Having drank the water, which didn't taste anything like the one that Rine offered me, I restored the lost Energy and Hit Points and saw a strange debuff text in front of me:

  Water used. Duration expires in: 6 hours.

  I had no access to the properties and description of the debuff, so I decided to forget about it and return to my section.

  In the next hour I single-mindedly worked on destroying the vein. Only 40% of durability remained now, and soon it was 20%. A little more, just a bit! I bit my lip and inflicted a frenzy of blows with my pike. I wondered whether I would have been able to work at such a pace in the real world or would have already dropped from tiredness. Now only 10% left... Suddenly the pick dropped from my hands and I fell to the ground.

  You are tired. Current level of Energy: 10 of 100.

  Your Hit Points have been reduced by 30. Total: 10 of 40.

  Well bang my copper! How could I forget about Energy? I went to the settings and set up a message that would flash as a warning if my Energy fell below 30. Now, the main thing was to crawl to the water and not kick the bucket on the way! The strange debuff did not disappear, but the timer in it changed:

  Water used. Duration expires in: 4.5 hours.

  As soon as I got to the water, I took the cup and drank a couple gulps. Feeling the tiredness recede from me, I stared blankly at the text that appeared before my eyes:

  You used water for the second time in 6 hours.

  Penalty incurred: the number of skill points reduced by 10%. The next degree of reduction: 20%. Attention: You have not yet earned any skill points, total penalty: 0

  You restored your Hit Points. Total: 40 of 40.

  You restored your Energy. Total: 100 of 100.

  Despite regaining my Energy, I was too dispirited to curse or express my emotions in any way. I got up and, downcast, headed off in the direction of my site: the daily quota had to be met one way or another and I had to wait another 4.5 hours before I could drink again. Now it finally began to dawn on me that the place where I ended up really was a prison and not a recreational work and leisure resort.

  The vein only had 5% of Durability left. I automatically took the pick and methodically started to make blow after blow, completely switching off to everything around me.

  A few minutes later the Durability bar of the vein flickered one last time and the pile of rocks disappeared, leaving six pieces of ore on the ground behind it. I quickly glanced at the message that appeared before me and waved it away, gathering the ore into the bag and starting on the second vein.

  Experience gained: +1 Experience, points remaining until next level: 99

  Skill increase:

  + 50% to Mining. Total: 50%

  + 10% to Strength. Total: 10%

  + 5% to Stamina. Total: 5%

  They give just 1 experience point for a vein... Blow.... I need to break 99 more veins to gain a level.... Blow.... 3-4 veins a day... Blow... At least a month until I can gain a level... Blow... I'll die here... Blow... What's left of my spirit will, for sure...

  In the hour that I spent on the second vein, its Durability went down to 65% and my Energy level to 30. The water debuff showed me that I could not drink for two more hours, so I lay down in the shade cast by the vein to get out of the burning sun. I closed my eyes and imagined myself swimming in cool water, it running down my face, slowly drinking the sweet, cool, invigorating moisture...

  A quiet squeak sounded next to me like a thunderclap on a clear day, drowning out the piercing ringing of the picks, making me jump up and glance around wildly.

  A huge Rat, coming up to my knee in height, stood on one of the veins of my section and looked at me. I stared at the Rat, stupefied, and for a while we engaged in this 'staring contest'. What was a Rat doing here? There were only rocks in this place. What's there to eat for them here, after all? Were the prisoners themselves on the menu? These questions remained unanswered, but one thing was clear: the Rat was there and it was looking at me. Appearing to come to some kind of a decision, the Rat snorted and, jumping off the Copper Vein, disappeared from sight.

  For some minutes I stared at the space that was just occupied by the Rat.

  A Rat in a stony mine! This is impossible! This is... This is free Experience! A source of Experience that did not depend on ore gathering! And if I gained a second level, I will put all my points into... Right, I must definitely go on a rat safari inside my section. After taking the decision to hunt down the Rat, I remembered Kart's words that dealing damage to someone leads to Energy falling to zero and then I bite the dust. Blast! Does this rule also apply to Rats? I must find this out so I don't end up in a pickle.

  To my surprise in the time that I rested and daydreamed of a rat safari, my Energy rose to 80, my Hit Points were completely restored and the water debuff indicated less than an hour until expiry. I grabbed the pick and decided to bring my Energy down to 30, then wait until the debuff wore off and go to the watering hole, where I would ask (from the overseers if it came to it) what the punishment was for killing Rats.

  Either the inspiration from the coming hunt increased my physical strength or I got the hang of the work process, but by the time I was down to 30 Energy, the Durability of the vein was only 15%. The water debuff had completely expired and, aching all over, I ran for the water.

  The watering hole was quite crowded — it seems that the debuff had expired for many people. Having refreshed myself, I started to look for Kart, but to my disappointment he was nowhere to be seen and the same went for Alt; so, having weighed up all the 'pros' and 'cons' I went to an overseer.

  'I wonder,' I thought as I came up to the guard, 'where did the developers find the template for such a despising stare? After all, it's not something that can be contrived - you'd have to be born with a stare like that. You feel as though the guard is looking at you like a piece of something small and indecent. Well I'll be... this really is quite unsettling...'

  "What is it?" barked the overseer and it seemed to echo around the whole mine.

  "Is there a penalty for killing Rats?" I quickly asked my question, thinking that politeness would be wasted on a guard.

  "Rats? Ha-ha! So, you've decided to become a Rat hunter, have you?" laughed the guard. "Aside from the fact that it will make a nice snack of you, there are no penalties. In any case, you'll never catch it with those stubby legs! It can only be hit from afar, but what will you hit it with? A stone? So quit drooling over Rats and get your ass back to work!"

  Right. Aside from the stare they also gave this law enforcer an angelic temperament. But at least I got all I needed out of him — a Rat can be hunted without fear of punishment. And if there's no punishment, I should make use of this opportunity.

  "Halt!" The guard shouted after me as I began to head off. "If you do somehow manage to kill a Rat, you could claim a reward for it from Rine. They get on his nerves even more than you get on mine. Don't forget to bring a Rat tail as proof."

  Message for the player!

  If you kill a Rat, bring the Rat tail to Rine an
d claim your reward: 10 Copper coins and

  +2 Reputation with the Pryke Mine Guards for each Rat tail.

  After I returned to my site, I decided to finish off the second vein quickly, make a start on the third and then, once Energy had again fallen to 30%, go on a hunt for the Rat. After all, this gave me an additional opportunity to earn money and raise my reputation! I must make use of it. In my mind I was already at the hunt, so I did not notice the moment when the Durability bar flickered and the vein vanished.

  Experience gained: +1 Experience, points remaining until next level: 98

  Skill increase:

  +50% to Mining. Total: 100%. Mining increased by 1. Total: 2

  +10% to Strength. Total: 20%

  +5% to Stamina. Total: 10%

  I quickly glanced at the message that appeared and waved it away so I could gather up the ore and start on the third vein, and then...

  A light, virtually weightless, pleasure, like a glass of cool fresh beer that you drink after a hot sauna, engulfed me from head to toe. This was so unexpected and at the same time so pleasant that I wanted to jump, sing and hug someone. Where are you, Rat? I love you!

  The euphoria did not last long, but left a deep mark in my soul. Yes, this makes slaving away for 12 hours a day well worth it. I could not even imagine what I'd be feeling when I levelled up one of my stats or my main profession. So there are some advantages to having the sense perception in the capsule turned on. And Alt was right, it is an unforgettable feeling.

  I had another 6 pieces of Cooper ore from the second vein, which allowed me to forget about the daily quota and opened my road to money-earning. So, what did we have: Energy: 95, vein Durability: 100%, Mining: 2. There are about 5 hours left until the end of the day. Here goes!

  The message that I added to the settings for monitoring Energy popped up after about an hour of work. I sat on the ground and was pleased to note that with the second level in Mining working became more enjoyable and after approximately the same hour of work, only 45% of the vein Durability remained. And I wasn't even trying that hard!

  Now I just have to decide what to do about the hunt. I can't run after the Rat, since I don't have enough Energy and Stamina. Agility would be of little use: with a score of 1 in this stat I will only hit my own legs instead of the Rat. Should I perhaps put down some traps? Looks like I have my work cut out for me...

  The Rat population in my lot turned out to be quite healthy — I counted around five of them. Like all animals in starting locations, the Rats were not aggressive and had 30 Hit Points. These nimble beasts constantly darted to and fro between the stones and only rarely entered open space for a few seconds, which made all my grand plans crumble before my eyes. Having selected one of the Rats, I examined its properties.

  Pryke Mine Rat. Description: this darting animal appeared at the Pryke Mine right from the time it opened and has been a troublemaking headache for its administration ever since. There is a reward allocated for killing Rats. Hit Points: 30. Attack: 10. Armor: 2. Magic resistance: 2.

  As no clear solution was forthcoming, I automatically began to go through my stats and skills, continuing my intense search for possibilities.

  Race: Human. The first race in Barliona. The Capital: Anhurs... Looking further... Mining - character profession, enables the gathering of ore. As the level of the profession increases the rate of Energy loss slows down... Next... Class: Shaman. A spiritual mentor, who is able to communicate with Spirits and call them to his aid. The summoned Spirits help the Shaman to defend himself or to heal wounded comrades, and strong shamans can... Next.... Stop! Backtracking!

  Shamans can work with Spirits! Why am I so slow? Didn't I make a special note to myself this morning to get to grips with the Shaman class?

  It took me a bit of time to understand how to open the spell book, which I then selected and began to study. I only had two spells in the book, but these spells were really something!

  Summoning of the Lesser Healing Spirit: You appeal to the world of Spirits, summoning the Lesser Healing Spirit, which gives part of its essence (life force) to the injured person. The strength of the summoned Spirit and the amount of the essence given is determined by Intellect. Kamlanie (casting) time: 2 seconds. Cost of summoning (before initiation as a Shaman): (Character level) of the summoner's Hit Points, Cost of healing: (Character level)*4 mana. Restores (Intellect*3) Hit Points.

  Lesser Lightning Spirit Strike: You appeal to the world of Spirits, summoning the Lesser Lightning Spirit on your opponent to take away part of his Spirit (life force). The strength of the summoned Spirit and the amount of life force taken from the opponent is determined by Intellect. Kamlanie (casting) time: 5 seconds. Cost of summoning (before initiation as a Shaman): (Character level) Hit Points of the summoner. Cost of attack: (Character level)*4 mana. Damage: (Intellect*3) Points. Range: 20 meters.

  Phew! I had to read this text several times to make something of it. They didn't exactly make it simple. And they were clever about it too. It is possible to summon Spirits before becoming an initiated Shaman, but you pay for it with your own Hit Points. At the same time the higher your level, the greater the cost. A bit cruel, really. But I still have to figure out how to use all this, especially as the very word 'kamlanie' remained a mystery to me, as I heard it for the first time. What is it and why did I have to spend 2 seconds doing it? All right, let's test it out. I looked at the area of my plot where the Rats were darting around and saw one of the rodents sitting on a pile of rocks and looking at me. Did I remind it of cheese or something? Well, you just keep sitting there and I'll...

  "Spirit Strike!" I shouted and aimed my hands at the Rat.

  My shout made the Rat's whiskers twitch, it turned its nose this way and that, but continued to sit as if nothing happened. What a flop!

  "I call upon the Lesser Lightning Spirit to smite this Rat! Attack!" I pointed my hands in the direction of the Rat.

  "Spirit! Summon! Drop dead!" I kept trying, but it began to dawn on me: something wasn't right here. Usually things like the use of spells, and especially summoning of Spirits, were explained during the initial training, which prisoners did not have! And the only magic that a Hunter, which I played before, could use were the spell scrolls. Blast, if only I could read the Game manual, but who'd give me access to that now?!

  Maybe the problem was with the spell book itself? I carefully touched the pictogram drawing of the Lesser Healing Spirit, thinking that nothing bad would happen if the spell actually worked. Suddenly my hands contained a glowing projection of a cross. It was small, weightless and seemed to be stuck to my hand: when I opened up my fingers, the cross remained in my palm. I even shook it a little and the spell did not detach. Well, that's something. But how do I activate it now? I clenched my fist and tried to crush the cross and immediately saw a message:

  Do you want to add the spell of Lesser Healing Spirit Summoning to the active section?

  Yes, I do, now what?

  The spell of Lesser Healing Spirit Summoning has been added to the active spells section. To activate the spell pick a target for healing, activate the Summoning with your thought and perform the shamanistic ritual (kamlanie) in the course of two seconds. Until you are initiated as a Shaman, you can use any object instead of a tambourine for the ritual. Attention! Due to the limitations imposed on this location, summoning Spirits to heal yourself is FORBIDDEN.

  Available slots in the active spell section: 7 of 8.

  Kamlanie has to be done with a tambourine? Does this mean that in order to heal or inflict damage I have to make a dance with a tambourine or even some 'tambourine stand-in' until I become a real Shaman? Now I get why this class is so unpopular: few people want to look like some dancing, muttering idiot. When I played as a Hunter, I saw mages, quietly standing there, stretching their hands towards the enemy, and firing lightning, fireballs and ice darts. No tambourine-accompanied dances in sight. That was real magic. And here... I was crestfallen. I remembered the Shamans I've se
en before: it was true, dancing and muttering idiots was exactly what they looked like. And I can't even heal myself, they even stitched me up in this. Hit Points were lost as Energy fell, so a nice bonus like self-healing would have been very welcome. Dreams, dreams... Oh well, I still had the Spirit of Lightning!

  Touching the icon of the Lesser Lightning Spirit Strike, I was ready to see its projection in my hand, but a message suddenly popped up:

  Due to the imposed restrictions, using the Lesser Lightning Spirit Strike spell on the territory of the Pryke Copper Mine is only possible if your reputation with the Pryke Mine Guards is Friendly or higher. Current reputation: Neutral.

  I slumped to the ground, entirely disheartened. How could this be — the bonus is there, but using it is 'out of bounds'? Why did they even leave it in then? 'Well, Mr. Rat, now you can celebrate! Your life will be long and peaceful,' I thought bitterly. Goodbye reputation and goodbye money. And happiness had seemed so close...

  With a deep sigh I got up, put my pick over the shoulder and went to the shade to have a rest and restore my Energy. From disappointment and dashed hopes, as well as the annoying gaze of the Rat, which continued to stare at me, I mentally selected the Rat and grabbed my pick, pressed the icon of the Lesser Healing Spirit in my mind and imagined dancing around myself, banging on the pick like a tambourine and muttering the first song that came into my mind:

  - The Shaman has three hands, o-o-o....

  Take that, you grey-furred beast, drop dead and quit laughing at me.

  The Rat gave a strange squeak and ran off making some weird sounds, but I took little notice of all that. My attention was held by the message appearing before my eyes: