Lair by Carl Stubblefield (recommended reading TXT) 📕

In his life before the island, Gus was never what you would call a coordinated guy. He had taken a date to a dance instruction class and found out to his embarrassment that he had trouble combining the steps at the right time, in the right order. Now though, he executed the correct movements of the training tutorial much more easily. He could sense more intuitively than ever before what he should be doing. Muscle memory seemed to be established with only a handful of successful run-throughs. The thought made him long to increase agility even more. He hated being a klutz. He felt a twinge of angst at his need for improvement in so many areas. Only the thought of how far he had come in such a short time quenched his frustration. His self-evaluation had always been very unforgiving at the slightest failings.

It’s all a part of the process. Shake it off and focus. He exhaled deeply, letting go of the emotions, and got back to work.

Increasing his speed, he got to the point where he almost looked forward to testing the technique against another Mantid. A familiar chime let him know he had reached sufficient skill to unlock the ability.

Through consistent, successful completion of the skill Parry, it will be upgraded to the skill Counter-attack! You are now able to activate this skill after a successful parry attempt. Use this skill to level it!

Counter-attack (Level 1): After completion of a successful parry of an enemy attack, 5% chance of following through with an attack that deals double the damage! Success rates increase with higher levels.

100 XP awarded

200 FP awarded

Gus now saw the panel slide back, and a pillowbot appeared, sheathed in the orange Mantid holographic skin. A red bar appeared with 135/135 above the Mantid. Chop Chop shouted from the sidelines, “Defend!”

The Mantid attacked, leaving Gus no time to prepare. He reflexively parried but missed the counter-attack due to his poor footing. The jolt from the parry caused him to stumble backward. Those suckers don’t pull any punches!

Shaking his head and getting centered, Gus turned and faced off against the pillow-Mantid. It feinted, and Gus flinched in response, but quickly reset for another attack. When the Mantid tried again, Gus swept the Mantid to the side and skewered it as it passed. He was rewarded by a ‘-40 HP’ appearing above the Mantid as his attack connected.

The Mantid spun and relentlessly attacked again. Gus managed the parry but did not complete the counter. The intensity and pressure of attack added a new layer of difficulty and challenged his ability to focus. On the next pass, Gus was able to activate Sweep the Leg, downing the creature. The stunned state of the Mantid allowed him to score four more hits that dispatched the virtual zombie while it lay there incapacitated. The orange skin evaporated, revealing the pillowbot form underneath, lying prone.

“Good jorb!” Gus complimented himself in his best Coach Z voice.

After a reset period, the pillowbot stood again and was re-skinned with the Mantid form. Gus noticed that even though he had pierced it with the spear, the material he had thought was some sort of cloth was entirely intact. Before he could ruminate further, the panel slid open, and another pillow-Mantid joined the fray.

“Dang it, Chop Chop, you’re a jerk!” Gus yelled as he saw the corners of Chop Chop’s pug-lip smirk slightly.

Gus had to monitor his surroundings carefully because the Mantids began to circle. One tried to sneak behind Gus, and he had to spin and then get back into a stance where he could parry. One jumped, and Gus was able to execute his Counter-attack ability. He sprang away, and the other Mantid just missed attacking while he was out of Gus’ sight with the twist that Counter-attack applied. He jabbed quickly and scored a hit. A chime sounded.

You have unlocked a bonus skill: Chained Attack (Level 1). Hit a second target when a successful Counter-attack triggers without receiving any damage by either attacker. 50% chance of activating a chained attack with direct attack if no damage is taken.

100 XP awarded

200 FP awarded

500 XP awarded for discovering a skill without the aid of an instructor or utilizing a skill crystal.

“Bazinga! Thought you had me, ugly?” Gus taunted, his voice quivery with adrenaline. The Mantids reverted to their circling pattern, and Gus was ready for the opportunistic attack from the support Mantid. He was able to score a critical hit in the head, and that Mantid was out of the fight. Fighting a single enemy was simple in comparison, and he dispatched the second Mantid after a couple attacks and Counter-attack cycles. A ding and chime simultaneously sounded.

Quest Complete: 1000 XP

You have leveled up the skill: Counter-attack to Level 2!

+500 Facility Points awarded.

+500 XP bonus for unlocking hidden skill during combat

+300 FP bonus for unlocking hidden skill during combat

1275 XP to level 7

Gus still had about an hour before the deadline for the quest, but the dimming lights of the arena gave him the tacit notification that he had completed as much training as he could for the day. Gus wasn’t sure if it was an effect of the Nth or just excitement over leveling up his skills, but he always felt amped after finishing a quest. Maybe it was related to the level up euphoria, just with adrenaline or something. He was more than ready to make some manor upgrades, and was excited to see what would be available.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Back in Time

Day 6 9:15 AM

9:03:11 remaining

Methiochos, yes that was it, so long ago. With the name came back some of the context of his situation. He opened his eyes to find himself in a dark cave. Shadows danced on the ridged basalt columns that lined the walls of the chamber. Stale acrid air, mixed with an unpleasant sulfurous undertone, assaulted his awakening senses. Turning, he noticed the changes his body had undergone since the transformation.

While his torso remained the same, his