Freelance Saga 2: Quantum Interference Read online

  “What is wrong with monzzterzz today? Don’t they know Dekoni izz trying to make zzpawn with Dekoni’zz huzzband?” She stood there for a brief moment basking in her righteous indignation then turned to check on her potential mate. Her precious little buggy heart sank when she saw that he was gone.

  “Huzzband! Where did you go?” Dekoni ran to the edge of the hill and saw that her would-be baby daddy was at the bottom. Even now he was trying to stagger away from her with all the speed that he could muster.

  She called out, “Huzzband come back! Make zzpawn with your zzweet Dekoni!”

  Another tongue lashed out and wrapped around her waist. More frogs had arrived and she was forced to face them. “Zztupid Mud Frogzz! Dekoni needzz to get laid! Zzummer vacation endzz zzoon!”

  “Keep running huzzband! Your Dekoni will find you after beating up thezze zztupid frogzz!” The girl shed a single set of tears at the loss of her chance to spend time with her beloved husband, but set about the task of teaching the cock-blocking frogs a lesson. Hell hath no fury like a horny insect woman denied the sweet touch of new husband penis.

  Scott sneezed twice, hard, but staggered on. He was now naked. He was sick. Now he was battered again due to the rough slide down the rock-strewn hill. Still, for the moment he was safe. The insect chick hadn’t been eaten by that frog but she was still not following. It was probably the best way to end things. Dekoni had been strangely beautiful with her jewel-like eyes and amazing body, but she was obviously bat-shit crazy. For the first time in his life, he was happy that he’d avoided having sex with a hot girl. While it would have been nice to talk to someone and get some answers, something told him that answering his questions was not something that she would be willing to add to her current agenda.

  *********

  A wooden shaft whipped through the air with incredible speed embedding itself into a nearby tree. Scott rolled to the side once more as another projectile split the air. He was being herded, that much was obvious. Each of the wooden projectiles had barely missed him. Given his current body condition and lack of martial prowess there was no way that he was narrowly avoiding the death missiles using only his own power.

  A phantom blur mocked him at the edge of his peripheral vision. His attacker stayed outside his field of view, but allowed him to catch a fleeting glimpse of her form. Whatever she was, she was fast.

  Arrows pierced the forest air and chased him through the wooden lanes. Whenever he tried to veer away from her designated travel plan, an arrow would scream out and just barely avoid piercing his flesh as a warning.

  Soon the sound of flapping wings and the piercing cry of a hunting hawk split the air. It was joined by more of its kind. Scott was forced out of the woods and into an open clearing.

  He staggered to a stop and stared up at the sky. Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of birds of prey circled overhead. Interspersed among the birds were a number of humanoid forms.

  A multitude of screams bore down on him from the legion of predatory avian monsters. He fell to his knees and clutched his ears reflexively as the dire cacophony overwhelmed his senses.

  He shrieked in agony as a wooden shaft violated his left shoulder blade. He looked down and saw the extent of his injury. A shaft of wood roughly the thickness of a pencil had punctured the meat of his shoulder completely. It not stuck through the left side of his chest and poked out several inches from the front of his body.

  His breathing became labored and tears began to blur his vision. The hateful screams of the predatory birds combined with the overpowering agony of the arrow protruding from his chest were too much for him to withstand. He could feel his life starting to slip away.

  It was then that something truly bizarre happened. The light of day died away and he was left in near-perfect darkness. Only a singly light was left to shine down from above. It provided light that allowed him to view a small circular space surrounding him, but provided no further illumination. The world and all its terrors grew silent. Only the sound of his beating heart could be heard as it echoed in the stillness. Ba-bump... Ba-bump...

  Scott’s ragged breathing eased a bit and he could draw in breath without pain. Then the sound of his breathing joined the rhythm of his beating heart. After that, his breathing and heartbeat were the only sounds that he could discern for a while.

  The silence was broken by a soft, feminine, whisper. “Is this truly all you have?”

  Scott did not answer her, he could not. The voice continued to speak. “You who crossed the threshold... You who dared to trespass on my beautiful wilderness... You who have chosen the hardest path... Is this the extent of your power?”

  His heartbeat became erratic. His breathing began to worsen and become more difficult. Strength rapidly left his body. Scott could barely keep his eyes open, now.

  “What a fragile creature. Did you truly think that you would survive with such pathetic power?”

  Finally, Scott found the will to reply to the voice’s taunts. “I’m not dead, yet.” His labored breathing made it hard to speak, but even if those were the last words he would ever voice in this life, they were good words.

  Harsh laughter erupted from all directions at once. The scorn of her mocking laughter echoed in the darkness for several seconds before she asked, “You are surrounded on all sides by a legion of bird monsters. You have an arrow sticking out of your chest. You can’t even stand up. How are you not dead?”

  “I’m not dead until I am dead.” He did not know where those words came from, but he felt them to be true. He did not want to die in this alien world. He didn’t want to give in and be eaten.

  The laughter came again, but this time it was a soothing lyrical sound. “It’s too bad that your body is weaker than your spirit.”

  Scott fell forward and began to pant. He could feel the life draining out of his body. It would not be long now.

  “She dreams about you, you know.”

  The gentle tone of the voice drew Scott’s attention away from his approaching death. “Who dreams about me?”

  “You forgot about her already?” The voice seemed angry at the idea that he had forgotten the one that she was talking about.

  “The only person I know here is Scarlet and she doesn’t answer when I call.”

  “She doesn’t? That’s strange.”

  Scott’s vision began to fade once more. Even the miniscule light shining down on him in this abyssal darkness was no longer enough to allow him to see. “None-none of it works. I can’t even use my skills.”

  The voice did not answer immediately. The silence took on a tomb-like quality that made Scott wonder if he had truly died.

  When the voice finally came again it did not seem happy. If anything it seemed angry. “Poor child, what has become of you? Your soul is twisted and corrupt, yet the corruption is not born out of any fault of your own.”

  Scott had no idea what she was talking about and did not have the strength to answer even if he did. His body grew heavy and he fell to the ground. His eyes began to glaze over as death swiftly approached.

  The voice spoke once more, this time in a soothing motherly tone. “Rest dear one, this is not the end. You are stronger than I thought. You will receive my blessing. Rest, rest for a time and do not fear the fangs and claws of my children.”

  Then even the sound of his breathing and of his heartbeat came to an end. The light shining down on him in the darkness faded away. In the wake of its passing nothing remained.

  Chapter 3: Carry on My Wayward Son

  The steady drip of water hitting stone greeted his sense long before he fully regained consciousness. Drip. Drip... Drip. Drip...

  Scott opened his eyes slowly and found that he was once again embraced by darkness. It was not the eternal blackness of empty space, like before when the voice had spoken to him. This darkness seemed natural and somehow, safe.

  He sat up and looked around. Faint rays of light streamed through an opening nearby illuminating the interior of what lo
oked to be a shallow cave.

  “Where am I?” The last thing he remembered was being laughed at by an unseen woman. How had he gotten into a cave?

  Scott was greatly surprised when a message screen popped up. He stared at the new arrival while his mouth hung open like a stereotypical slack-jawed yokel.

  “A message screen? They’re working again?” He read the screen quickly to see what it had to say.

  ~*~

  Greetings, Scott Hunter. Due to quantum interference during your last login attempt your data file has been corrupted. We were made aware of this by the lunar goddess Seductia.

  The timely intervention of the goddess has allowed us to locate your quantum signature once more. We have completed the restoration of your original file based on your last saved state. Unfortunately, certain functions cannot be enabled at this time due to the prior event. These functions will be reinstated as soon as possible. Please take note of the estimated repair time next to each function and plan your time on Alterra accordingly.

  Currently unavailable functions:

  Enhanced Experience Gain - 47 Hours

  Quantum Transfer Protocol - 567 Hours

  Reincarnation Protocol - 623 Hours

  Skill Usage - 42 Hours

  Telepathic Whispers - 38 Hours

  Please note that it is inadvisable for you to die before the transfer and reincarnation protocols are reinstated.

  ~*~

  He finished reading the message screen then closed his mouth. Those bastards had screwed up his data file somehow, and now they advise him not to die until repairs are complete? He had been right! If he had died it would have been permanent!

  Scott started to check his menu screen since that had not been listed on the unavailable functions message. However, another screen popped into view.

  ~*~

  You have been granted the Lesser Blessing of the Mother Dragon.

  All stats increase by 10 points.

  Hit points and mana increase by 25 points.

  You gain the skill: Serenity

  Serenity grants you the power to avoid conflict with monsters for four hours, once per day.

  ~*~

  Scott stared at the new message screen then curled his hands into fists. He raised his arms then lowered them. His body felt much lighter after the increase to his stats. It was like he had been wearing weighted clothes and had finally taken them off.

  He tried to check on the serenity skill. Unfortunately, a message screen popped up to remind him that he could not use skills at the moment.

  “Now that’s just bullshit!” He had the power to be free of monsters for four hours per day, and he couldn’t even use it!

  Suddenly, the high-pitched shriek of a hunting bird echoed through the air. Scott stopped cold and turned toward the opening to the cave. Were the damned birds out there?

  He crept over to the opening and attempted to take a look. The entire time that he was in motion he prayed that the birds would not see or hear him.

  The massive creatures circled overhead, but from what he could see they did not seem to know where he was. Quickly, he moved back into the darker part of the cave. He could not help but feel like a rat cornered in a hole.

  A female voice called out to him. “Huuu-man, come out to plaaay-yaaay.”

  Scott did not know which was worse, the unrelenting attempt to get at his sweat meats or the horrible reference she had unwittingly made. He drew further back into the cavern and sighed.

  There was no way out of this situation. They would easily catch him if he left the safety of his hole. Even if he had been at one hundred percent he would have been too slow to escape.

  Despite his recent stat increase, lingering injuries and stiffness would make it nearly impossible to get away. The arrow and its accompanying wound had mysteriously disappeared, but he still looked and felt like an ill-used punching bag.

  Several tense minutes passed before something strange and terrifying occurred. The bird woman from before cried out, “Found you!”

  He looked around frantically but there was no sign that his haven had been compromised. A panicked shriek from outside caught his attention and he moved forward to risk taking a look. Scott shuddered involuntarily. One of the flying women had captured a man, and now held him up by his ankle.

  “You thought that you’d get away from Momo? Silly boy.” She twirled around happily. The motion caused her captive to start screaming again while he went on a terrifying ride. The strength of the monster had to be enormous. She was hovering in mid-air while holding a grown man by the ankle!

  “Let me go dammit!” The man attempted to kick her with his free leg but she easily avoided the awkward attack.

  “So feisty, and you’re sort of pretty for a human! We’ll have cute babies, I think.”

  “No! No!” He began to blubber and cry, like a terrified child.

  The harpies and hunting hawks laughed. Yes, the hawks laughed as well. It was creepy and sinister in a way that only a laughing bird could be.

  Momo the Harpy Queen, as Scott started to think of her, simply giggled at her prey then said, “Its ok. You’ll like being one of my husbands. At least I won’t eat you for a while.”

  The wail the man unleashed was heart wrenching. There was nothing that he could do for the hapless man. That could have been him up there begging and crying to be released.

  The harpy queen and her retinue flew off with their prize. The man’s screams echoed in the distance for only a short time but they were burned into Scott’s memory.

  He had just witnessed something terrible. He had been powerless to prevent that poor man’s abduction. This fantasy world had proven to be a terrible place for humanity in general. How this could be seen as a game was beyond his understanding.

  Scott waited a short time then slid out of the safety of the tree root cave. He had to keep moving. If he really was in the game world, and all signs did point to that fact, there would be human civilization somewhere. He would not be able to survive in the wilds as he was now.

  While he was tempted to simply stay in the cave and try to wait things out, he knew he would need food and water. He would have to come out anyway. Besides, there was no guarantee of safety in that cave. It had served him once, but who knew if it would continue to be safe?

  The last few days had been horrible for Scott. He had survived by drinking rain water from oversized leaves and eating whatever roots or insects he could find. He had grown sick after being caught in a heavy downpour. He had even been molested by a bug woman and chased by birds of prey!

  He walked through the forest. Every sound or sudden movement caught his attention. It was slow going, but he persevered. After a few hours of wandering he managed to reach the edge of the woodland and saw a river in a relatively open area.

  There were more trees on the other side, but this was a good sign! A water source like this would be vital to civilization. There had to be a human town or village along the course of this waterway.

  “Finally, a break.”

  Scott decided to observe the area for a moment. He wished that he could use the skills that he had acquired during his tutorial. The identify and observe skills would have saved him a great deal of heart ache and intestinal trauma.

  Just when he had thought that it might be safe to head toward the water he noticed movement from the opposite embankment. In the distance he could see a creature that looked like a cross between a giant rat and a lizard amble out of the woods. It had a spiked fin running along its back. That much he could tell. It was a little too far away to see every detail, but he believed that there were scales running down its overly long legs.

  Silently, he considered the creature. It would probably be able to run quickly. He had not seen a monster like it on this side of the forest, so it was either rare in the area or its kind chose not to cross the water for some reason.

  The creature looked around suspiciously. Scott wondered if it had caught his scent but it seemed m
ore interested in the river bank than the woods on his side.

  Slowly, the bear sized monster padded toward the water’s edge. The closer it came, the more cautious it seemed to become. It drew its head down and looked around tensely.

  It sniffed at the ground then looked around again. When it reached the water it stood there for a moment gazing into it. The monster seemed like it was searching for something.

  The monster leaned forward and began to drink from the river. Scott wondered at its caution. It was a big creature, even for this bizarre planet. It would probably have had few to no natural predators on Earth.

  Scott’s attention was drawn away from the monster. Something in the water, he had seen something move in the water. That something was a dark shadow that seemed to sway and move with the current of the river. The shadow began to slowly drift toward the monster drinking on the opposite bank.

  From his vantage point he could see it, but the rat-lizard would probably not have had that luxury. Suddenly, the monster lifted its head. It sniffed the air then looked left and right. Carefully it took a step back.

  However, its caution would not save it. Dozens of tentacles ripped outward from the deceitfully still water and thoroughly ensnared the beast. Scott watched as the writhing mass wrapped the creature tight, squeezed the air from its lungs so completely that even its panicked scream had been rudely cut-off, then dragged it swiftly down into the depths.

  The water was barely disturbed after the initial assault ended. Just as suddenly as the brutal event had occurred, the area went back to a scene of perfect tranquility.

  Scott looked down then turned away from the peaceful scenery. It would not prove to be his savior after all. Even the monsters only went there out of desperate need. The rat-thing had known that going to drink could lead to its death. It still went. Nothing but severe thirst would have driven it to do such a thing.