Glitch Book Two Read online

  Glitch Book Two

  by Victor Deckard

  Table of contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

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  Chapter one

  Once regained consciousness, I found out it was already broad daylight. Got out of the tumbledown building and gingerly looked around. There were no players around at the moment.

  Clouds had gotten scattered to reveal the morning sun shining brightly. Rays of light had my almost naked body warmed. With the pleasant sunshine, the ruined city didn’t seem to be so bleak and depressing as it had before.

  Before setting off, I looked at my UI. I’d maintained level 2. Still, the experience bar was nearly empty. My level had dropped to 1 were I to perish once more. I resolved not to die anymore. And with these encouraging and cheerful thoughts in mind, I started off.

  Less than one hundred yards into my travel, I came across a pile of assorted items. A player seemed to have died here. Yet there was nobody nearby, which meant the player had been whacked a long time prior. And it’d most likely been mobs that offed him or her rather than PKs, since the latter would’ve picked up the loot. Even a cursory examination of the loot revealed lots of useful items. No way PKs would’ve neglected it.

  So yeah, it stood to reason that the gamer had been murdered by the same monsters that’d ripped me to pieces in the night, as told in the message I’d caught a glimpse of just before dying.

  Looked around. It was still quiet and deserted. Still, the owner of the items could turn up to retrieve his or her belongings any minute now. With that in mind, I didn’t waste time examining the items’ stats. All clothes, fabric T-shirt, pants, and shoes, were lit up in white color. Just Common stuff. Still, it was better than nothing. I slipped them on.

  Then took a bag off the ground and delved inside. It held a few morsels of cooked roach, mosquito, and rat meat. Slinging the bag across my shoulders, I gave the street one more careful look.

  Nobody was around. Still, it didn’t necessarily mean that I wasn’t being watched through the scope of a sniper rifle by some nasty PK.

  It occurred to me that I’d better move it. I’d just picked all the necessary stuff so it was time to move on lest I put myself in the same awkward position as last time. Then another thought crossed my mind.

  The sharpshooter with the ardor for killing newbies would already have opened fire on me had he been still here. Why wait? I stood near the loot for a couple of minutes now, almost not moving at all. It was a perfect moment to shoot at me. So I guessed the sniper wasn’t around now, otherwise he or she would certainly have taken advantage of this situation already.

  More to the point, it was unknown if the sniper themselves had made it through last night. He or she might’ve been killed by mobs as well. They might be scavenging around the city for any useful items now, the way I did.

  In spite of my having come to a conclusion that I wasn’t being watched, I utilized the Shield just to be on the safe side. Sure enough, it did no good against the sniper’s bullet last time, but I nevertheless felt somewhat more confident and relaxed when under cover of the translucent, bluish power dome.

  Bending over at the waist, I picked up all the resources. There were stones, wood, chitin, and metal. That left only a heavy and clumsy machine gun and body armor lying on the ground now. The perished person apparently played the Soldier class. With my playing the Warlock, I could weigh myself down by carrying over heavy weapons, for example, so as to sell them; yet, I couldn’t use them. If I were to try and discharge the machine gun, the trigger wouldn’t budge, for all my efforts to pull it.

  But what about the body armor? It was most likely of no use to me as well but just to make sure of it I decided to try and don it.

  Crouching down, looked the body armor over. It consisted of two parts, of which the first was designed to protect the chest of a player and the second one the back. The body armor could be put on by pulling it over the head. Still, I had to undo two locks first off. But I didn’t seem to be able to pull it off. The locks just wouldn’t work. A “Use” line wouldn’t appear as well, for all my intent gazing at them. Well, it figures.

  I put the body armor back down on the ground and straightened up. Then just stood there regarding the heavy machine gun and body armor. Should I take the items so as to sell them later on? I could do with some money. Still, my character was too weak to carry both of these items. But I could take one of them. For instance, the machine gun. Since it had a sling, I could hang it on my shoulder so the weapon wouldn’t hinder me from walking and my hands wouldn’t be occupied.

  The issue was that I still didn’t know where a vending machine was. I found none thus far. It was unclear how long I would have to bear that awkward machine gun before finally discovering a vending machine. Besides, I didn’t have the faintest idea as to how much money I would be able to make out of it. The machine gun was common, “white”, so it sure didn’t cost much.

  In the end, I concluded it’d be better to leave the machine gun and body armor behind. Turning around, I set off. But didn’t get too far. Having turned around a corner, I happened to find another pile of items. A few items lighting up in blue color instantly caught my eye.

  > Name: Biker leather jacket

  > Armor type: Light

  > Rarity: Rare (blue)

  > The player’s required level: 7

  > State: 240/300

  > Physical resistance: 50

  > Fire resistance: 30

  > Frost resistance: 75

  > Corrosive resistance: 25

  > Electrocute resistance: 25

  > Special quality: Increasing firearm damage by 10 percent.

  A pair of pants lay beside the jacket.

  > Name: Biker leather pants

  > Armor type: Light

  > Rarity: Rare (blue)

  > The player’s required level: 7

  > State: 190/250

  > Physical resistance: 45

  > Fire resistance: 25

  > Frost resistance: 70

  > Corrosive resistance: 20

  > Electrocute resistance: 20

  > Special quality: Increasing all sorts of resistance by 5 percent.

  I then shifted my gaze toward another article of clothing.

  > Name: Biker leather boots

  > Armor type: Light

  > Rarity: Rare (blue)

  > The player’s required level: 7

  > State: 150/250

  > Physical resistance: 30

  > Fire resistance: 15

  > Frost resistance: 50

  > Corrosive resistance: 15

  > Electrocute resistance: 15

  > Special quality: Increasing the player’s movement speed by 10 percent.

  The last item lying on the ground was a black-colored matte paint helmet with a tinted mirrored visor face shield.

  > Name: Biker leather helmet

  > Armor type: Light

  > Rarity: Rare (blue)

  > The player’s required level: 7

  > State: 180/300

  > Physical resistance: 45

  > Fire resistance: 35

  > Frost resistance: 35

  > Corrosive resistance: 20

  > Electrocute resistance: 20

  > Special quality: Reducing all critical damage (headshots) received by 25 percent.

  Moreover, each of these items had the second s
pecial quality.

  > Full armor set bonus: All motorbikes have their movement speed and armor increased while fuel consumption reduced by 50 percent.

  I got excited. Sure I had no motorbike at the moment. Nor for that matter had I any other means of transport. Still, even if the leather biker armor hadn’t had the motorbike bonus, it would still have been exceptionally good. Such high stats and special qualities to boot! I’d gotten real lucky to get my hands on such terrific armor set!

  Yet there was a small snag. The level requirement was 7 while my character’s level was only 2. So the question was if I could put the armor on. At any rate, it wouldn’t do me any harm to try it out.

  I gave the street yet another once-over to make sure I was still alone. Then lifted the biker jacket off the ground. The zipper was undone. It raised my hopes. The metal body armor had had locks preventing me from donning the armor. But the biker armor was another matter altogether. It was unzipped so it seemingly wasn’t going to pose any difficulties.

  My joy didn’t last long. When I tried to slip my left arm into a sleeve, something checked the motion. It seemed as though there was an invisible wall. I tried to put the jacket on a few more times, but all my attempts were to no avail.

  A thought crossed my mind. I had the T-shirt on. Should I take it off before donning the jacket? For many video games I’d played forbade the player to wear one piece of armor over another. Though I had a feeling that the fabric T-shirt wasn’t deemed to be armor, I decided to check this out anyway.

  Peeling off the T-shirt, I took the biker jacket once again and tried to slip my arm into one sleeve. It wouldn’t go. I had no trouble just holding the jacket in my hands, yet once I tried to put it on, some invisible force prevented me from doing so.

  I got dressed in the T-shirt again and gave the matter some thought. Leaving the biker armor set behind was out of the question. Rare items lived up to their name. One could seldom find them. When I would find another rare item was anybody’s guess. Still, carrying the biker armor set in my hands wouldn’t be all that shrewd of me either. Unfortunately, my bag was too small to accommodate it as well.

  Sure I might be able to find more spacious bag later on, but it was impossible to tell how long it would take for me to level up to 7. Whatever trouble might happen. For instance, I might get slain by PKs one again who then would surely filch the biker armor set off me.

  I couldn’t put the armor on for the time being, nor could I carry it along with me all the time for fear of losing it. What else could I do? I honestly didn’t have much choice. So I decided to deposit the biker in a Resurrection Pod and keep it in there until I got level 7. Then I’d just have to head for the nearest Resurrection Pod to retrieve the armor. Maybe I’d even be able to obtain a motorbike by that time.

  I got excited once again. Now I just had to carry the armor over to the required place. I hadn’t gotten far away from the Resurrection Pod I’d been revived in, no farther than three hundred or so yards. It’d take me a minute or so to retrace my steps. Yet even in such a short span might happen just about anything. So I best to hurry before some player showed up.

  I was about to take off when my gaze fell on the pile of the loot. There were still lots of useful items. Some of them were even lit up in green color. Should I linger on a tad longer to pick up these things? But the thought instantly reminded me of the outcome of my actions that had resulted in me getting whacked at the hand of the sniper. My greed had cost me my life last time. Although I was certain no sniper had me in their scope at the moment, I’d better not to take any chances in case some trigger-happy player with a grenade launcher turned up.

  So I picked up just a pistol lit up in green color and without examining its stats, whirled around and headed to where the Resurrection Pod was, tucking the pistol into my waistband on the run. Soon I reached the building, got inside, and dashed toward the pod. It took me mere seconds to deposit the biker armor set in it. This done, I even let out a sigh of relief. Nailed it!

  Having remembered that I’d picked up the pistol, I withdrew it and looked at its stats appeared in my HUD.

  > Name: Screamer

  > Weapon type: Pistol

  > Rarity: Uncommon (green)

  > The player’s required level: 5

  > Damage: 60

  > Accuracy: 55

  > Fire rate: 450

  > Magazine size: 15

  > Elemental damage: None

  Just to make sure I couldn’t discharge the pistol, I tried to squeeze the trigger. Nothing happened. No gunshot followed. So what do I do with the pistol? It was small enough to be put in the bag. On the other hand, this pretty good weapon would be lost if I got killed again. So I chose to deposit it in the pod as well. I would arm myself with it when reached the level 5.

  Exited the building. The street was still devoid of any sounds. I headed toward the spot where I’d found the biker armor set. Once I made it to the place, I got aware that nothing had changed here while I’d been absent. All the loot still lay where it’d been at. I noticed an uncommon, “green”, level 8 shotgun and its scabbard. I paid them no heed and shifted my attention toward other things. There were a few ingredients, drop leg holster, and ammo. I strapped the holster around my right thigh, gathered all the handgun cartridges as well as ingredients, and then set out.

  I delved into all trash cans I came across on my way. In one of them, I found a weapon matching my current level.

  > Name: Conqueror

  > Weapon type: Pistol

  > Rarity: Common (white)

  > The player’s required level: 2

  > Damage: 25

  > Accuracy: 40

  > Fire rate: 500

  > Magazine size: 10

  > Elemental damage: None

  The corners of my mouth turned up in a slight smirk. The common, “white”, level 2 pistol was too lousy to be labeled Conqueror.

  Holstering the handgun, I moved on. After some wandering around, I happened to get to a familiar place, the huge shopping mall. Yet I wasn’t eager to enter it. Coming to a stop, I musingly stared at the mall. Should I get in there? I’d already gotten myself murdered twice in that building, first by the player named Kilgour with a bunch of battle robots and then by the twosome wearing skull balaclavas.

  After pondering on the matter awhile, I decided to take this chance. If I got lucky, cruel PKs wouldn’t be in the mall right now.

  It was quiet inside. Doing my best to produce as less noise as possible, I warily picked my way forward through various debris. Glass shards crunching under my soles seemed to be as loud as gunshots in the otherwise total silence. After some time, I found a dead player. Or more specifically, the body itself was long since gone, only pool of blood and a pile of loot left. There were metal body armor, an assault rifle, and a “white”, common, pistol, yet I left all of those untouched. But I gathered up pistol cartridges, all right.

  I looked inside all of the boutiques. Faint gleams of light caught my attention every now and then. Those were ingredients or items of the common rarity. Inside the sporting goods store was a big duffel bag. I put all my stuff into it. As for my small bag, I ditched it.

  As I scoured the mall, I found more and more items dropped off players having been slain during the night. Guessed it was just by a sheer fluke that I managed to find all the loot before anyone else did. After a short while, I found another nice article of clothing.

  > Name: Fabric gloves

  > Armor type: Outerwear

  > Rarity: Uncommon (green)

  > The player’s required level: 2

  > State: 150/150

  > Physical resistance: 10

  > Fire resistance: 10

  > Frost resistance: 10

  > Corrosive resistance: 5

  > Electrocute resistance: 5

  In spite of its name, the gloves looked more like elastic boxing hand wraps than anything else. They wrapped my forearms from the wrist
s up to the elbows. I remembered that I’d already found such gloves the day before.

  Then I found light armor.

  > Name: Ballistic vest

  > Armor type: Light

  > Rarity: Uncommon (green)

  > The player’s required level: 2

  > State: 220/250

  > Physical resistance: 25

  > Fire resistance: 15

  > Frost resistance: 20

  > Corrosive resistance: 5

  > Electrocute resistance: 15

  After putting it on, I continued with my combing the shopping mall. There were tons of loot. “White” items no longer caught my attention. Now I was looking only for “green”, uncommon, stuff. Yet armor suitable for a level 2 warlock was pretty scarce. More often than not, I found items for the other classes or items with the too high level requirement. So far, I secured only two articles of clothing appropriate for my character, the Fabric gloves and Ballistic vest. All the other items I stuffed into the duffel bag were for higher-leveled players.

  I wasn’t sure whether I should bother to pick up and carry over all the stuff I couldn’t put on at the moment. I’d already found the awesome biker leather armor set waiting for me to level up to 7. So was there any point in gathering other armor? In the end, I figured that due to the game being quite harsh and violent, it wouldn’t do me harm to collect spare armor. On the contrary, I might benefit from it.

  Soon afterward, my duffel bag got overstuffed and awfully heavy. My pace was reduced to a crawl. A message popped up in the log: