At 2:30 her boss, Nigel Franks, would barge into her personal space and chew her out. Have no doubt it would happen. She kept track of these sort of things.
"Quirk! Where the hell is my client chart records? I wanted them in my hands 2 hours ago!"
Goodness, does this man ever get off his man-period? Did he even bother to check his desk?
"Mr. Franks you were out at lunch 2 hours ago. I left the charts in your file sorter"
Watching as his face colored a telltale sign of embarrassment, Quirk sighed as Franks turned and stalked off to hide in his office. Won't be seeing him again today. She wondered if everyone in the world else had such a predictable boss.
Hm, 3 more hours til her shift was over. Then back home where she'd spend the next 5 hours doing great things, like Franks paperwork. At 10pm the paperwork would be done and then she'd finally be able to play her game. Only 8 hours to go. She could do this, 8 hours! Pshh! Tonight was the night and she knew it. Quirk was soo going to destroy that bastardly light god. Instant death strike her ass, it didn't matter that he had the title of 'Un-killable' He was going down. No one insulted the clan Icarus and lived to tell the tale
"Excuse me, I have no clue where I'm supposed to be, the supervisor didn't say. I don't wanna be a bother but do you mind showing me 'round?"
Friend Request Approval: Accept/Reject?
...What is that? Quirk rubbed her eyes slowly. Still there, hasn't moved. No but like yeah. What the hell is that! A friend request?! As in MMO friend request? Talk about too much caffeine. Was this what coffee overdosage had led to? Hallucinating ways to make real friends? She was Anti-Social with a capital 'Go fuck yourself". Online though she was much more outgoing, the type of dork that took her fellow dorklings under wing and let them flourish. Maybe her subconscious was trying to tell her something. A greater sign that there is an all knowing god that grants wishes to hard working busy bodies...Probably not but thinking too hard about the workings of life gave her headaches. Better to just go with it. Accept.
Friend Request Accepted. 'Clark Kent' Added to friends list. Open Friends List: Yes/No?
Yeah. Why not? Just how many 'friends' did she have anyways?
Friends List:
Clark Kent: Acquaintance
Nigel Franks: Employer
She flinched. Ouch. The only other person on the list besides steroids here was Franks. Urghnf. At least they weren't actually listed under 'friend', she'd suck crystal meth before she ever became 'friends' with Franks. It was odd though, she may not be a social butterfly but she knew more people than her boss and this noob. That must mean whatever this was, it started recently. Like, try 2pm recently.
New Quest! [Objective: Escort newbie 'Clark Kent' to 'Nigel Franks'. Reward: 150XP] Accept/Reject?
1st quest she got, of course it would be an escort service. How exciting. Accept.
Quest Accepted.
"Great! I was worried for a second there you'd say no. I'm Clark by the way, Clark Kent. I just moved here-"
Holy cow nipples this guy could talk. Must be all those muscle enhancers. How were normal people so interactive before 10pm? Even pumped full of coffee, Quirk had trouble not giving Franks her more colorful conversation. Maybe she needed whatever it was this guy was on.
New Quest! [Objective: Befriend 1 co-worker. Reward: Lvl 1 Charisma Skill, + 10 Charm, 1000XP] Accept/Reject?
So she had a skill set huh? Accept. That rules out this being a socializing MMO. Which meant, if the universal rules of gaming were still in play, she'd be confronted by some nooby monster. Starting a new game was always so dull. Hopefully this Clark character wasn't as geeky as he dressed. Listening to him talk she came to the conclusion that sadly, he was a geek. In fact she could name him king of Geeks, if she wanted. Quirk inwardly sighed. By listening she could increase their relationship status but that meant she was actually learning things about Clark Kent. Boring, normal things like boring normal people. God where was that monster?
Quest Accepted.
"Here we are. Just tell Mr.Franks that you need the introductory guide. I'm sure he won't chew you out for getting help...too much"
Clark Kent Now Has 'Friendly' Status. 1 More Rank Before 'Friend' Status. Continue socializing: Yes/No?
She got an amused snort out of him before he turned to leave. Huh. So he had a good sense of humor after all. Maybe he isn't that dull..Even if he does suck at being interesting. He's getting there. Maybe with a little push..
"Quirk, my names Quirk"
He stopped and turned. Confusion clearly written across his face. What a dope. Did she have to spell everything out for him?
"You never asked my name once in your whole triade. It's Quirk, you rude bastard and don't you forget it."
Nodding with a pinching brow, Clark entered Franks man cave. She saluted him. What a brave soul that Clark is, entering when ol' Franks is in such a bitchy mood. Of course he didn't know that, so he loses brave points.
Clark Kent Now Has 'Friend' Status. 1 More Rank Before 'Good Friend' Status. Continue Socializing: N/A.
Quest(s) Completed. Reward: 1150 XP, Lvl 1 Charisma skill, + 10 Charm.
Lvl Up!
Lvl Up!
Lvl Up!
Lvl Up!
Lvl Up!
Yes! Frigid ass cheeks, yes! Take that slow leveling game systems. 1st quest and she's already 5 levels ahead.
[Profile]
[Name:] Quirk Le Calvet [Age:] 23 [Sex:] Female
[Race:] Human [Title:] Newbie [Clan:] N/A [Affinity:] Neutral
Oh kill her now! She was a noob! The noobiest of noobs. A newbie! Who the hell makes the title 'Newbie' anyways! This is an outrage! An utter clusterfu- ooh what's that?
Pick Specialization(Lvl 5+)
Hacker: +40 INT, +10 LUK, +20 AWA, +20% VIL.
Free Runner: +20 DEX, +20 VIT, +5 STR +30% Appeal.
Thief: +40 DEX, +10 STR, +40% VIL, +60% Appeal.
Fighter: +20 ACC, +20 STR, +20 VIT.
Hero:Skill Randomization. + Hero Skill
Villain:Skill Randomization. Status Randomization. +Villain Skill
To be or not to be. Or in other words, Hero or Villain. There was no way she was picking anything else. Not when the opportunity to get such an over powered specialization presents itself. Some call it cheating. Quirk preferred to call it 'technical advancement'...oh who was she kidding. This was soo cheating the game verse code of noobiness. She'll take being the hero any day over the villain. Villains were so blegh. Hero.
[Profile Overview]
[Name:] Quirk Le Calvet [Age:] 23 [Sex:] Female
[Race:] Human [Title:] Hero [Clan:] N/A [Affinity:] Good
Lvl:5 EXP: 150/700 HP:620 MP:900
STR:5/100
VIT:20/100
DEX:40/100
ACC:10/100
INT:100/100
LUK:60/100
AWA:50/100
CHA:10/100
[SKILLS]
SPEECH SKILL: Charisma Lvl 1 Passive
HERO SKILL: Indestructible Skin Lvl 5 Passive
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?
?
She would have victory danced but was too busy pinching the skin on her arms. Indestructible? As in un-shankable? Or just untouchable? There was a seriously fatal difference between the two. Like life or death in a gunfight. This discovery called for immediate testing! Hunched over in her rather awesome rolly chair, Quirk picked up the stapler and readied her aim. Suck it up Quirk 'ol girl. Take one for the art of gaming! Hell yeah! She could do this! Haha...this was so going to hurt.
Quirk watched as the blunt object came flying towards her face, only to flap in shock a moment later. The stapler, which was a good 5lbs, just imbedded itself in the wall behind her. Okay. Yep. Completely overpowered hero power. The speed that she threw the stapler doubled before retracting and redirecting after touching her skin. Then slamming at an enhanced rate into the nearest object to achieve inertia. Almost like rubber. She didn't feel a smack of pain too except maybe a little sweaty in her shoes. Now to master the skill, but how?
New Quest! [Objective: Lvl Up 'Indestructible Skin' until End of Shift. Reward: 200XP, +5 DEX] Accept/Reject?
Quest Accepted.
Suspiciously convenient. But on to more pressing matters, There was no doubt a hole in the wall. Albeit a small one but still a hole. Unless she was planning to quit her job, Quirk couldn't risk another one. Just what would she use to lvl up the skill? Her cubicle was completely bare of sharp and pointy objects, Compliments of her unusual habit of putting whatever was on hand in her mouth. Glaring at the wall, she intensified her thinking process by holding her breath. Think! Thunk. Think! Thunk. Think!
Skill Lvl Up: [Indestructible Skin Lvl 6]
Staring at the message, Quirk came to the conclusion she was an idiot. Along with whoever invented the structure of this..whatever this is. Mustering enough speed, quickly she slammed her forehead into desk. THUNK! Not enough huh? Well take this! THUMP! SLAM! WHAM! THUNK! CRASH!
She then proceeded to ignore the stunned gapes from nameless co-workers. Nothing could stop her. She wasn't going to be conquered by some noob quest! SLAM! SLAM! SLAM! SLAM!
Skill Lvl Up:[Indestructible Skin Lvl 7]
Skill Lvl Up:[Indestructible Skin Lvl 8]
Skill Lvl Up:[Indestructible Skin Lvl 9]
SKILL Lvl Up: N/A
REQUIREMENT: Player Lvl 10
Quest Completed. Reward: 'Indestructible Skin' Lvl 9, 200XP, +5 DEX
Would you look at that. She spent the entire time levelling up. More work was done today than in the entire 2 years she's been here. Snagging a hot cup of coffee, Quirk leisurely began to leave the building. No use in rushing around like a geek. That paperwork of Franks wasn't going anywhere and she still had to fight her first monster. Speaking of Franks, She wondered how that muscle head Clark managed to do. Most usually quit after the first day of listening to Franks rant.
"Hey, wait up! Quirk! It's me Clark! Which way you headed?"
Speak of the devil. He survived the man-tit after all. Did she have to keep socializing after completing the quest? Probably. She was pretty sure that this guy was quest galore.
"Dage Way apartments. It's at least half a mile uh this way? I think."
Honestly she had no idea where it was located. Quirks sense of this city was pretty limited. Working a 7-10 usually left little time for exploring and her game always took prestige over the outdoors. She wondered..Hm.
[INVENTORY OPEN:] EMPTY
Dang, she really did need to go collecting things like in games. At least in games quests gave equipment, here it was at her own expense. Getting a hold of a map seemed like a good place to start. But where to go to get one?
"You don't know where your apartment is? Are you new here too?"
Shut it steroids. She was trying to remember the closest convenience store. Waving nonchalantly at his question, she went over the locations gathered.
" Nope. I usually take a taxi but the tax those guys dish out are killer on the funds."
There was one she remembered when she was first recruited 2 years ago. Only a block away if she wasn't punking herself. Maybe they sold something she could use as a weapon as well.
"Hey noob-uh hm Clark do you mind walking me to the nearest convenience store? I need a map and such. Its just a block from here"
He nodded like the good samaritan he was. Kind intentions polluting the air and everything. Quirk would have flinched at the 'boy next door' air he gave off if it wasn't in her benefit. Sacrifices could be made for the greater good, besides they were 'friends'. Thats what they did for one another, right? She wouldn't know, people weren't interesting enough for her short attention span.
[INVENTORY OPEN:]
Metropolis Map: Item: Currently Assigned
Stalker Be Gone Taser: Weapon Lvl 8
Hubba Bubba Bubble Gum: Snack, ?
" I understand the map and gum but why the taser? Is your neighborhood that dangerous at night?"
It's official, muscle head was officially her hero sidekick. What a brilliant idea! She hadn't even thought of going out and fighting thugs! When she saw the taser she couldn't help but drool at the electrical current applier. Thugs would be a great way to increase her pathetic excuse of a 'strength' skill. Those must be her noob level monsters.
"I live in the seedier part of town. A lot of gang business down there. Good thing too. It's dang cheap. No one wants to live in a war zone."
New Quest! [Objective: Defeat 30 thugs. Reward: 2000XP, +5 STR, Random Skill] Accept/Reject?
Quest Accepted.
"Do you need me to walk you there? It sounds like a bad place to be at night."
Quirk was all for turning him down but something stopped her. Hell why not? The quest never said she had to fight the thugs alone. Big and glorious here would be a great buffer should shit hit the fan.
New Quest! [Objective: Create Clan. Recruit 'Clark Kent' into Clan. Reward: 1000XP, Lvl 4 Charisma Skill, Clan, 'Good Friend' Status with Clark Kent]
Quest Accepted.
She just knew this guy was useful. Look at all these high reward quests. Now to figure out clan creation. Since the newest additions seemed to appear when she inquired, hypothetically, Quirk should be able to 'will' it into existence with limitations. Common Clan creation should stem from a players menu.
[Menu]
Profile
Skills
Equipment
Inventory
Map
Clan
Friends List
Equipment seemed pointless, seeing as to how she'd have to change clothes everyday. Skills couldn't be preset, so that meant actual practise. Friends list wouldn't be updated unless a quest required it. Bare minimum. Alright create clan.
[Clan]
0/2
Create Clan
Name:
Affinity:
Members:
The clan she came from was named Icarus but doing that here felt cheap. Icarus wasn't hers to take. How about Badasses United? No, been done. Ugly truths? Pretty sure thats a movie. What do heros stand for, justice? Justice league? Nah, that sounds like a gay strip club. Stand Equal. Good. Invite Clark Kent.
Clan 'Stand Equal' Created.
'Clark Kent' Has been added to 'Stand Equal'.
Quest Completed. Reward: 1000XP, Lvl 4 Charisma Skill, 'Good Friend' Status with 'Clark Kent'
Lvl Up!
[Profile Overview]
[Name:] Quirk Le Calvet [Age:] 23 [Sex:] Female
[Race:] Human [Title:] Hero [Clan:] Stand Equal [Affinity:] Good
[Lvl:] 6 [Exp:] 650/1000 [HP:] 750 [MP:] 1000
STR:6/100
VIT:21/100
DEX:46/100
ACC:11/100
INT:101/100
LUK:61/100
AWA:51/100
CHA:11/100
[SKILLS]
SPEECH SKILL: Charisma Lvl 4 Passive
HERO SKILL: Indestructible Skin Lvl 9 Passive
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?
?
"So this is where you live. It doesn't seem that bad"
Neither did hannibal lecter but that didn't mean his cheese burgers weren't made from human ass cheek. Well it was quiet today, must be poker tuesday. Was she supposed to invite him in? Really rather not. Besides her PC and bed, Quirks apartment was bare. OCD freakish bare. Oh god, hes making awkward eye contact. There was no doubt she wasn't thug hunting tonight. Might as well get this over with.
"If you want yo-"
"Help! Please Help!"
Oh mer gawd thank you! Ducking, not running, away from godsmacked Clark. Quirk happily readied her taser and created a battle plan. Obviously she needed to get the screaming civilian away or knocked out preferably. Judging from the fact that she could actually hear her screaming, there must only be one or two offenders. One, she could take her time with, maybe increase her Indestructible Skin skill too. Two or more, she'd have to go in hard and distract the others with flare.
There they are, in a completely cliche dark corner. It's like some chicks are asking to be molested. The lower air vent on the building behind them wasn't too high. A good 5-5 ½ ft. She'd have to be quiet if she focused her weight to the balls of her feet and moved precisely it wouldn't be problem.
New Skill! [Lvl 1 Stealthy Stalk]
New Quest! [Objective: 'Stealthy Stalk' 30 Thugs. Reward: 2000XP, +5 AWA, $250] Accept/Reject?
Quest Accepted.
"Yeah. I bet you like that. Huh you filthy whore? Outta said 'yes'. Turning me down like some lowly bitch. Now who's the bitch."
If she shifted the velocity of her body weight to a 70 degree angle, the impact her body made combined with the rate of her fall should be enough to stun the man..forcibly fornicating with the woman. Quirk had zilch skills at comforting emotionally traumatized women. At least he gave her material for her entrance line.
"Still you. You know, you really ought to shut her up. Half the neighborhood can hear her screaming. Not very smart by the way. Here let me help you!"
As planned the fornicator went down with a girly shriek, knocking his victim's head into the wall. Phew, for a second there she thought this might have been hard. Oh wait theres another one. Is that a gun? Is he serious? Really? He was going to shoot her? No way, he can't be that stupid. Quirk watched in disbelief as he hysterically pulled the trigger. What a friggin chump! He shut shot her! Of course it didn't hit her.. but that wasn't the point. He actually shot her!
"The hell was that! Are you retarded?! That could've hit me you know! Like dead, dead hit me. Now just look at my clothes! This was my favorite jacket jerk-off, now you're gonna get it!"
Temporary Boosts: Rage: Speed +70%, +20 Strength,-40% Accuracy, -50 Awarness.
Maniacally roaring, Quirk brought out the big guns. Her taser. Electric current zapped to life, lighting up the malicious twist of her face. Come to daddy you tit-sucking pimple! Charging forward in a burst of increased speed, Quirk jammed the crackling taser into his ribs. She didn't bother watching him suffer. They all had to pay for this! Those damn thugs, with their midnight parties and half-cocked gun fights.
Bonus Quest! [Objective: Take out neighborhood gang. Reward: 2000XP, + 500 Rep, $ 1000, + Random Equipment] Accept/Reject?
Quest Accepted.
She suppose.. she did go a-bit overboard. But it really wasn't her fault! Honest! Those thugs just kept egging her on'. Of course it didn't really warrant the ass-whoppin she delivered, Quest or not. One minute they were rushing her, the next they were all scattered on the ground twitching. And that one greasy bastard, their 'leader' was disgusting. The semi-automatic he had on hand did a number on her clothes. So it was only fair that she raided his cash stash and bullet proof vest. There was no way she was walking around naked.
Temporary Boost: Rage: Disperses.
Quest Completed. Reward:4000XP, +500 Rep, $1000,+5 STR, Bullet Proof Vest, + Random Boss Skill.
Quest Failed. 'Stealthy Stalk' 29 Thugs.
Lvl Up!
Lvl Up!
Lvl Up!
Lvl Up!
Lvl Up!
Skill Lvl Up! [ Indestructible Skin: Lvl 10]
New Skill! [Reverse: Lvl 0] Active
[Profile Overview]
[Name:] Quirk Le Calvet [Age:] 23 [Sex:] Female
[Race:] Human [Title:] Hero [Clan:] Stand Equal [Affinity:] Good
[Lvl:] 11 [Exp:] 650/4000 [HP:] 1250 [MP:] 1500
STR:16/100
VIT:26/100
DEX:52/100
ACC:16/100
INT:106/100
LUK:66/100
AWA:56/100
CHA:16/100
[SKILLS]
SPEECH SKILL: Charisma Lvl 4 Passive
HERO SKILL: Indestructible Skin Lvl 9 Passive
BOSS SKILL: Reverse Lvl 0 Active
STEALTH SKILL: Stealthy Stalk Lvl 2 Active
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?
?
Lvl 10: Change Race: Yes/No?
Now what was this? God she was so tired, she just wanted to fall into her bed or choke to death in a cup of coffee or twelve. But just look at it.. so cool. her precious. Alright, might as well get this out of the way, she still had paperwork to do. Yes.
[Race Change:] Optional at Lvl 10
- Mutant: Varies
-Human Experiment: Varies
-Alien: ?
-DemiGod: Varies
Well isn't that offley specific. Mutants defined the term of double edged sword. Cool powers but next to useless power served with discrimination. Human experiment sounded like a boost with a side of crazy. Insanity didn't sound too promising. Alien was way too vague, she could become an 8 eyed walking octopus. Yeah, no thanks. Demigod really shouldn't be an option at such a noob level, its obviously the most overpowered race. Something really wanted her to succeed at this game. She really should look into that..eventually. Time for more of her "technical advancement". Demigod.
[Race Change:] DemiGod: +500 HP, +500 MP, + 70 STR, + 40 DEX.
New Skill! [Teleport Lvl 1] Active
New Skill! [Distill Lvl 1] Active
Huh. She was right; completely and utterly overpowered. After tipping off the useless police force, Quirk stalked home and blurp flopped onto her warm covers. Ah bed ,so nice. But she couldn't sleep yet. Too much to do. She was getting somewhere with development. 11 levels in one day, not bad. At the rate she was going level 15 Now she just had to figure out how these skills worked and leveled up.
First she should go over the active skills she already had. Stealthy stalk, involved lightly travelling in a way that wouldn't alert her target. Since she had yet to actually use an active skill how did she activate it? Thinking commands worked in general game interaction but would be useless in combat. Bouncing off the mattress springs, her feet lightly palmed the floor, crouching low she staked to her bathroom toilet. Would you look at that hairball? It looked like she was already growing mutations of her own. Time for yearly cleaning.
Skill Lvl Up! [Stealthy Stalk Lvl 3]
The longer she used the skill, the more experience gained. Her teenage wet dream of ninjaness comes true at last. Only to be overshadowed by being a demigod badass. Oh the irony. Alright! Focus. Onto distill, Activate skill Distill.
That was how Quirk spent her tuesday night. 'Stalking' her kitchen and freezing everything in midair. Once both skills maxed at 19 she tried Reverse. Which turned out out be the most shit worthy scare she'd ever gotten, and she's seen some scary shit. It was part of gamer initiation. Reverse, was literally what its name implied, a reversal of everything. Like time itself and that wasn't even the best part. She got to keep all her progress.
Wednesday morning Quirk was walked to work by her new 'mother' Clark kent. Sneaky bastard apparently connected her disappearance to the imprisonment of the gang littering her neighborhood. Even if he knew; he had no proof, so ha! Take that noob! Course that didn't stop him from 'subtly' asking. Every five minutes. Most annoying side-kick EVER by the way. Handing in Franks bastardly papers, she noticed a progress bar hanging by his head. Mostly full, hmm. That sounded like a promotion in the distance. Whatever this was, game or not. Quirk was a lovestruck fool, a fool all for stalking her lover.
A/N: Chapter 1: The Noob. 12 pages. 4/3/15
May be edited or revised.
Chapter 2: The Hero. ? pages. 4/?/2015
Coming soon!