The Fool's Freedom

They weren’t able to find everyone in time, so the monster had made their job easier. Alan couldn’t even look around for the supplies. He was terrified. Whatever had killed the man before them, a man he had recognized from the office, once his decapitated head came rolling towards them, was something else. Boars, lizards, and wolves were familiar. It was easy for the mind to accept the deviations of the knowledge he had about them, be it claws, size, or colors. It was still an animal, a beast. Even the imp was acceptable.

That thing was nothing like that. It was a monstrosity that put nightmares to shame and could play with them like a child played with dolls before ripping their head off. They were toys to it.

No one slept the rest of the night. They all huddled around the fire and watched the shadows play with their minds in the distance. Nothing was said, no one spoke. Quiet sobbing could be heard from time to time and Alan understood. He himself felt like crying would do him good, but as much as he tried all he managed was to stare at the fire, trying to burn away the image of the twisted human face that had stared at them from the forest.

Ashlyn had cuddled close to him and Alan knew she was awake but let her lay on his shoulder without a word. Emerson was on his other side. The big man was pale and his usually comforting if a bit annoying presence was gone leaving behind only a vulnerable human being held together by threads. Alan would give anything for the man to go on one of his rants.

Alan looked around the tight circle around the fire. They were all that was left of those figures he had seen the first night. The rest, coworkers and friends, were probably all dead.

He saw Florence sitting next to Salla. The younger woman had put her hand on the cook’s back and gently rubbed while Salla cried. Florence’s face was her usual mask of empty indifference, but it seemed to be cracking now. She winced, gritted her teeth, and exhaled sharply. They were minute movements but it made her look as if she was struggling. It would be too much if she wasn’t.

A loud sob garnered most of their attention as Rob broke down and hit the ground. “I want to go home,” he whimpered. There was a man, twenty years of age, in the beginning journey of his life. Alan wondered what fate had come upon those younger and weaker of spirit.

For Alan, the transition had been fast and easy. Maybe too easy, but he attributed it to all the anger and resentment built up over the years that he tried to bury deep down, yet still manage to make him the asshole he was, unfit for normal society.

Ashlyn was the same. He knew she struggled with her family and with mental health and that’s why she spent all her free time in exercise and work. She had readily embraced her role as the one to lead them through the unknown forest, to seek others out, and to help. What of other people though?

Walter had his family, and so did most of the others. But despite their weak moments they had also quickly adapted and even had some of the better skills. How did one not succumb to depression and helplessness when everything they had had been taken from them? Rob and Florence were the outliers, although he was very much doubting the latter. The girl was clearly doing fine, she just chose to keep it quiet, shut in her own world. That would have to change.

Alan looked at the whimpering mess in Tim’s arms.

“Do you guys think the System is affecting our minds?” he suddenly asked. Many sets of eyes turned to him and for a second, he got that sensation of ants beneath his skin, of wanting to disappear. It quickly passed as Emerson’s heavy hand landed on his shoulder, while Ashlyn squeezed his arm tighter.

“Yes,” the voice of Walter replied from the other side of the fire. “I miss my family and I want to find them. But the rest of it? It is distant, murky. I don’t care about any of it, just my family. And then there’s this desire…”

“To grow. To… level.” Ivan interjected. Alan hadn’t spoken to the man before, except probably a few times in the office. He sat next to Walter. His voice was deep and rough. “When I am practicing my skills when I achieve something… it is unlike anything I have ever experienced. It is addicting. I already want more. I want to grow and BE more.”

There were murmurs of agreement around the fire. Most of them felt it, one way or another; the power of evolution at one’s fingertips.

“The moonlight scared it away,” the words had come from Florence. The voices died down at the change of the topic and the surprise that she was joining it. They were not ready. Way to mesh with the group Flo.

“Alan had this theory…” Ashlyn suddenly jumped in, ignoring the tension, “… that the System is giving us time to adapt. The monsters we’ve run into had been progressively stronger, but not too strong. Even the lizards you guys hunted. If we had run into something like that creature the first day… after the imps… The system is protecting us. And it is pushing us.”

Alan nodded. He believed that now more than ever.

“Are you insane?” Rob suddenly stood up from where Tim had held him, pushing away the arms that had offered comfort. “Do you even hear yourself?! We will all die! Protection? We are DEAD! What time? We will die, we will die…” he fell to his knees and started crying again.

Maybe the System was not infallible in its manipulations after all.

“Speaking of death… Where are our supplies?” Alan spoke calmly, ignoring the outburst. Rob was a lost cause.

As if on cue the sun peeked behind the far forest, on the other side of the lake, and the first ray of sunlight fell exactly upon a bunch of stuff that had soundlessly and creepily appeared near them.

At the exact same time, a blue screen popped up in the back of Alan’s mind.

Please choose a suitable weapon as part of the reward for completing your quest.

There was no list to go along with the message. Alan perked up and tried visualizing a rocket launcher but nothing happened. There was also no response when he tried for an AK-47. Disappointed, he went for a generic gun. The blue screen flashed in what he assumed was annoyance. It would be fun if he could annoy the damned System.

Next was what he assumed would work – a sword. His mind was overcome by a detailed image of a simple iron sword. Alan tried manipulating the sword and it responded, changing shape, length, and even material. He tried adding details, but the reward seemed to be limited to bigger changes.

What weapon to choose? Maybe a cane sword? That could be cool. If he got a large hat with a feather and a gilded coat he would be set.

Or what about a spear? The image of a sword disappeared and another took its place. A simple spear. That was a safer option for someone as limited as he was. Even the skill that made Davis move like a man bitten by a magical spider barely helped him function as well as a regular somewhat in-shape person. But that would change, wouldn’t it? While his physical attributes were limited, he knew there would be a path for him. [Efficient Basic Movement] was an obvious proof of that. Who knew the way you walked, the way you used your body, the proper placements and order and strength and timing would all matter so much and make him feel so much better? It was obviously not everything, but no human would ever be able to manipulate their movements to such a degree without the help of a skill.

The flashing blue screen took him out of the mind spiral he had gotten himself into.

Swords were cooler than spears though. He could also go for a bow but he didn’t have a single clue on how to use one apart from placing the arrow and pulling. Maybe it wasn’t that hard.

His [Mind Jab] was kind of short-ranged, so he needed something to help him defend up close. A shield? Fuck, his knowledge of medieval weaponry needed some refreshing.

Hey, stupid System, can I have a sword AND a shield?

Obviously, there was no response, but Alan liked to imagine somewhere in the vast universe there was a voice cursing him out.

Or maybe a shield that was also a sword? There was a pause and the image of a spear was replaced by a simple round shield with two blades on the side. It looked weird but it would be damn cool if he learned to fight with it.

For a start, he settled on a spear. He didn’t adjust it much as he didn’t know what was good and what wasn’t when it came to spears. It was better than a sharpened stick.

The image disappeared and his eyes could focus on the real world again. There was a spear as tall as him in his right hand. He couldn’t remember feeling it appear. It was made of a strange dark red wood and had an elegant-looking elongated iron tip that had three serrations on each side. It looked badass.

Most importantly, it felt good, both in weight, size, and touch. He would have to practice a bit on how to stab stuff, but his track record so far was quite good.

Mind fuck them, then stab them. Can’t wait.

He looked around. Ashlyn was examining a beautiful new wooden bow and a leather quiver filled with arrows. There was a wide smile on her face. Her skill would really shine now.

Various weapons had appeared around the group. Few had chosen swords and each differed in size. Salla’s choice was attention-grabbing as she was holding a… cast iron pan. Coupled with the cleaver she already had she was ready to create delicacies.

Emerson was the only other one holding a blunt weapon unless the pan could be considered a weapon. It probably was. It was a huge flanged mace, a fittingly large weapon for the big man that would allow him to showcase his newly gained strength.

Florence was playing with a short, curved dagger in a wooden sheath. A strange choice, especially for someone who refused to fight but whatever floated her boat.

Most interesting of all though, was Ivan. He was swinging around a bladed shovel with joy. Alan became a bit jealous. That was some originality fitting for a main character in a fantasy world. His spear was boring in comparison and it was even worse that Davis came to him and patted him on the back with a smile, gesturing towards his own, longer spear.

Fuck me.

“Great minds think alike!” Davis laughed. Alan had not observed him earlier but the man was quick to go back to his energetic and weird mood. It was a good quality unless he was a deranged psychopath, in which case they were all doomed.

Next on the agenda was the small pile of… things. Some satchels held simple clothes made from something akin to cotton that was actually quite sturdy. There was also a pair of strange shoes with no laces that fit amazingly but left them feeling barefooted. The clothes were different shades of greens and browns and consisted of loose pants that were tight below the knees reminded Alan of flying carpets, genies, and funny monkeys, and a simple tunic shirt with long sleeves. It was fairly easy for everyone to find the bag with their size. There were also a few water skins, if that was what they were, two long ropes, and a bunch of thin blankets. That was about it.

Overall, a good haul for survival in an alien world filled with horrors.

-

The next four days were spent in talks that led to nowhere and training. Alan took Davis on the generous offer to teach him about movement and basic exercises. It proved harder than he had hoped. The doubled physical stats did help a ton, there was an obvious difference, and so did [Efficient Basic Movement], but Alan still struggled with the pain in his muscles.

Davis had him rise on the ball of his feet, squat, do pushups, lift and swing rocks, and do all kinds of breathing exercises. He wondered what kind of fucking IT knew that, but Davis’s only hobby was keeping himself as healthy as humanly possible. Alan guessed that it was some sort of rebellion against the stereotypes around the job. Or the man had actually been preparing for an apocalypse.

They even did spear drills which Davis claimed he had been taught by actual monks. Alan highly doubted that, but he did feel his body move a bit better, despite the discomfort. He had little success in applying the skill to most movements, but Davis reassured him that it was all to build a proper mind-muscle connection, which would help him use the skill almost as an afterthought.

Alan forced Ashlyn to join them for a while and later she said that Davis really knew what he was talking about and she herself felt impressed.

The nights were calm and no one spoke about the creature or the remains of the man. Someone, probably Tim, had dealt with the head. Most people spent their time practicing with their new weapons and hunting lizards. The gains were slow but eventually even Salla joined in. Florence still refused to partake, and so did Rob.

The intern was a broken shell of a man and nothing helped. He caught Florence frowning a few times while looking at the young man, which was the most emotion she had shown since the night of the monster. Alan wanted to speak with the weird girl again, but he had more urgent issues to deal with.

They were not leveling. Those low enough would hit level 5 soon, but the lizards were not enough. They were too low-level to give anything to people over level 5 and even reaching that was a struggle as there were no more big lizards to be found around the lake. They had probably single-handedly rid the lake of the whole population of Jewel Axolotls.

The boar meat was gone as they had to throw away most of what remained and Alan was becoming sick of eating only axolotl. It was good and two meals of lizard meat a day had even made him gain some meat of his own on his bones, but enough was enough.

It was time to level or die trying. Alan had decided to have a talk with everyone and figure out a way forward, be it hunting or moving camp. He would leave alone if he had to.

Fate had decided that this was the perfect time for the first internal accident of the group.