Tutorial 2.3 was authored by Faria Lyton as a part of Co-Op Mode. This chapter is reposted as part of A Bug in the Game with permission.
Tutorial 2.3
Taylor's giving me an odd look. I guess she isn't familiar with the glory of loot.
[For the uninitiated, loot is a term for items left behind by defeated enemies. This can include weapons, clothing, armor, accessories, consumables, crafting materials, skill books, currency, or other useful items.]
She looks more interested now. I hope I'm not drooling.
[Loot that has yet to be picked up will glimmer slightly to the eyes of The Gamer and party members. For the sake of demonstration, more loot than usual has been dropped by the zombies you just destroyed.]
Even with a boost, I can't expect much out of a few zombies. Still, it's easy even in midday light to spot the glittering trinkets at my feet left. Looks like the undead I killed over here left two shards of something like amethyst, a tooth, and a rib bone. I guess I know what to do now.
"You mind getting anything over there? [Observe], [Observe], [Observe]"
[Tooth of the Dead]
[Rank: Low; Type: Crafting Item]
[A dirty and filthy tooth filled with the resentment of the dead. Used for black magic, alchemy, and crafting.]
[Soul Shard]
[Rank: Low]
[A crystal shard created by fusing a number of souls. Useful for some things.]
[Rib of the Dead]
[Rank: Low-Medium; Type: Crafting Item]
[A grimy and broken rib filled with the vigor of the undead. Used for black magic, alchemy, and crafting.]
I walk over to Taylor, who using her foot to nudge at the loose pile of loot left over from the two zombies that fell on that side of the deck. It looks like two more [Soul Shards], another [Tooth of the Dead], a piece of paper, and a roll of pale, vaguely gross leather. "What've we got here? [Observe] and [Observe]"
[Skin of the Dead]
[Rank: Medium; Type: Crafting Item]
[Leather tanned from the hide of a zombie. Filled with the resilience of the undead. Used for black magic, alchemy, and crafting.]
[Blueprint: Undead Pauldrons]
[Rank: Low-Medium]
[Shoulder armor made from parts of vanquished undead. Protects against some damage and grants a bonus to VIT. Requires 1 [Skin of the Dead], 4 [Rib of the Dead], and 10 [Tooth of the Dead]]
"What is it?"
"Nasty. The teeth and this rib" I show Taylor my fistful of loot. "And the leather are all from zombies. They can be used to make things. And the gems are soul stones. In most games, they can be used to make magic items."
"And yet, you still sound excited."
I hold up the blueprint, grinning. "Magic armor. Or at least the plans to make it with a few more ribs and teeth. It'll be a little gross and dark, but magic armor is magic armor. And there should be better drops later, from stronger enemies. Also, the tutorial did mention money."
She still doesn't seem convinced. "Magic armor? Your power may be weird, but I'd be careful about calling it magic. Myrddin is the head of the Chicago Protectorate, and a very powerful cape, but a lot of people talk about him like he's a few bees short of a hive because he claims to cast spells." She shrugs. "I'm not saying the armor won't work, I just wouldn't call it magic. I did get some nice skills off that last fight… Anyway, I've got [Dodge] and [Combat Mapping] now. I can use [Combat Mapping] to keep track of enemies."
Well, until I get more materials, I can't exactly believe it yet myself. Tinkering is one thing, enchanted gear made from zombie bits is… unusual. And I'm pretty sure Dauntless, the most similar power I've heard of, can't share his gear.
Her new skills sound awesome. "This is my jealous face. Knowing where your enemies are is much better than getting warned of danger too late to avoid it. And dodging is always better than taking 3% less damage like I get from [Physical Resistance]. I also got [Power Strike]. It does more damage, but costs MP."
Taylor nods. "3% is something. Maybe it can improve with training." She pauses for a moment. "And more damage is always good." She pauses again. " ...when it happens to other people." Taylor's words surge and halt, like an overeager horse she keeps reining in.
"We'll try later. For now, I kinda want to finish this tutorial."
"James? Wait please." Taylor is staring at me intently. "I need to say something." Never good words to hear from a girl. "Your power is really useful." But…? "Even if it were just a Thinker power and quantifying what we learned, it's given me so many hints about how I can improve myself that I hardly know where to start." Says the level 12 to the level 2. "But it seems you power is more. That it can help people acquire and improve skills. That's… so useful. I want to see if I can learn all those skills, but… this is important. You need to be careful."
She takes a moment to catch her breath. "I like you."
Mike drop. Pause everything. Did she just-
"We're at least partners, and I'd say friends, even if your power hadn't said so."
Ah. Okay. Back in familiar territory.
"It would be so easy to get swept up in the numbers and skills, but I'm not going to use you for your power. Someone else might. You need to be very careful about who finds out about your powers. A lot of new capes get pressed into gangs. If Empire Eighty-Eight knew about you…"
They'd burn the Docks to the ground, or even go to war with Lung himself to get their hands on me. If what I'm starting to suspect about my powers is true, I could probably boost even a relatively minor threat like Skidmark to Triumvirate levels given time. If any gang gets me… they'd never let me go.
Taylor isn't done, "Even the Wards. If you join the Protectorate, even in a minor capacity, they'll turn you into a personal trainer. They'll keep you far from combat and keep you training others all the time."
Maybe it would be for the best. The amount of good I could do, even indirectly, might be worth it. But I have to admit it, now that I have powers, I kinda want to get out there and get my hands dirty. I don't want to spend my days tucked away in a bunker-dojo, never getting to use my skills in a practical setting. But I can't just squander this power, the ability to share it…
"I wouldn't want to be treated like that if it was my power. So… yeah, just needed to say that. Um, are we still good?" She seems hesitant, like she thinks she said something wrong.
I take a moment to process. Heck, even if it was just the brief moment of thinking a girl who's suddenly gone from acquaintance to confident actually wanted more, I'd need some time. But this stark reminder of what my power could mean, the danger I might be in… I take a deep breath. "Taylor. You've given me no reason to stop trusting you. And you've given me a lot to think about. I've been a little swept up in the whole 'omigawd-I-have-powers' thing. I didn't even consider the implications of all this," I wave my hand at, oh right, the zombies dissolved… "I still think we should join the Wards at some point, but you're clearly thinking this through more than me. Whether we join them, work with just us, or start a new independent team, you're the boss."
Taylor's just staring at me. Did I just ruin things by being too… dramatic?
[A smart decision causes your WIS to go up by 1.]
[Relationship with Taylor Hebert has increased!]
[Relationship with Taylor Hebert has advanced from 'Friends' to 'Teammates']
...reassurance from my own power seems a little hollow… Something needs to break the silence.
[This Illusion Barrier is useless now. Exit it to end to tutorial.]
That works. Well, there's nothing left to do in here, and I want to get back to my backpack. I've got lunch bagged up for both of us, and zombie smashing is hungry work. Right hand up, energy focused, intent to exit is a go.
It's almost like someone painted the sky on the inside of a cheap glass bowl, then chucked a stone through it. Just to reveal the real sky behind it. And the sounds we'd just gotten used to not hearing restart. Waves crash, birds chirp, and bugs all buzz up to Taylor like they're greeting a long lost friend.
[A skill has been created through a special action!]
[A skill to exit Illusion Barriers, [ID Escape], has been created.]
[ID Escape (Active) Lvl 1 XP 0.0%]
[Used to exit instant dungeons. Higher levels can be used to escape more powerful barriers.]
I hope that doesn't mean I could get stuck in one of my own barriers if I don't keep up with leveling this. Better safe than sorry though. I'll make sure to keep it even with ID Create, however that works.
[Tutorial Part Five of Five Complete!]
[Tutorial Complete!]
[10 XP awarded!]
[A "Beginner's Guide to The Gamer" has been added to your inventory.]
[You've gained 1 level.]
Along with all the other windows popping up, I get another 'spend your points' abbreviated form of my character screen. I dismiss it with the rest. Food first. Then I can ask Taylor if she has any ideas where I should spend my points.
[A smart decision causes your WIS to go up by 1.]
Speaking of Taylor, it looks like she's… petting a loose cloud of hornets, wasps, and ladybugs. And cooing at them. It's creepily cute. Kind of like an inverse-Madison. Should be creepy, but is cute. Somehow.
"[Inventory]" I stuff the various bits of loot into my own private extradimensional storage and watch them sort out into separate slots. You'd think after seeing it in a hundred games it wouldn't be so cool to see it in person. But for now I should focus on my more mundane storage. I fish a few things out of my backpack. "Hungry? The quest suggested packing a lunch, so I brought PB&J. And faux-ham-salad sandwiches, but carnivores seem to find that gross."
Taylor looks surprised I'm still here, but recovers quickly. "Maybe in a bit. I… want to ask your opinion on something. Can you wait a minute? Or you could set up lunch. I'll be right back." She grabs her duffle and zips behind a container the size of a boxcar.
Strange girl. But I might as well get lunch ready. There's a blanket to unfold, two tupperware containers to keep the sandwiches from squishing ('cause squished PB&J is not the same), and a couple bottles of water. It still barely takes a minute to get it all arranged.
Apparently that's enough. "Don't laugh." She steps into view.
Oh. Damn. She did mention wanting to try the quick change. Now that is a costume.
Overall, she's got a bit of a knight-in-shining-armor thing going on, plus a regal robe. But that doesn't do it justice. It's still built for agility and the detail is amazing. The whole thing works together flawlessly. So many starting capes have mismatched pieces forming their first 'costume'. If this was an online RPG, Taylor would have a matching set compared to their mismatched starter gear.
The first thing I notice is a big red cloak she's pushing behind her shoulders, probably so I can actually see the rest of the costume. The cloak has a black inner lining, and I think I saw black circles on the back before it moved out of sight.
From there I work my way down. She's wearing a fairly simple white helmet with a gold crown fused to it. The helmet is kinda medieval, but lacks a visor or faceplate. Instead, she has a white mask shaped like a stern, regal woman's face, except for some really intimidating yellow lenses in place of eyes. Her dark curly hair hangs out the back, highlighting her femininity.
There's a golden breastplate done in a vaguely organic style next. The… ah… chest… is a little bigger than I think Taylor is naturally, but still done in a sensible single-breasted, high-coverage style. None of that pseudo-bodice lift-and-separate, guide-swords-to-the-center nonsense you see in fantasy games. Or on most armor-wearing female capes. The entire piece also extends down to her belt, instead of leaving room to show off abs and ask to be gutted.
Her gold-colored belt has a bright red clasp in the shape of a ladybug. The entire thing seems to be a row of pockets, each bulging slightly. There's something with a red cap that doesn't quite fit in one of the pockets. Looks like my sister's pepper spray. Come to think of it, that's probably what it is.
Considering how practical the rest of the outfit seems, I'm not really sure what's up with the skirt. It looks more like someone decided to tie a dozen scarves in white, gold, and black to her belt. They're artistically draped, looping around to form a modest cover with a partial split in the middle. Well, it does look good, and isn't too long, so it shouldn't get in the way.
Gloves and boots are both what I expect. Gold-colored. Mid-forearm and mid-calf. Functional but elegant. The boots have heavy, but not excessive tread. And the gloves look like there's a little extra padding or something across the knuckles, like she's planned for occasional punching.
It's all tied together by a tight white bodysuit of some kind under everything. It starts all the way under her helmet, and goes all the way down under her boots. No skin anywhere, which is smart for anyone without a Brute rating. Hell, most Brutes should do it anyway. Easier to hide your identity if you keep your skin tone concealed.
All in all it's very regal and heroic, with just a little bug theme from the buckle. Oh, that's probably what's up with the spots on the cloak… It's also a great theme for a Master's costume. If I were to nitpick, I'd say it's a bit New Wave, with all the white, but…
"It's fantastic."
I think she's smiling behind the mask. "Meet Lady Bug."