The chill that shot through Amy Davies’ arms and neck was unlike anything she had ever felt before. Normally such a sensation would cause her to get up and either close the window or retrieve another comforter to wrap around herself. But this time, it wasn’t cold air from outdoors or a shortage of blankets.

The No-Name Games Guild treasurer was fond of playing games like Kings and Conquests late into the night. Although she was currently registered at a Southern California resort, her habits were no different now than they would have been if she were sitting at her battlestation at home. She had an enormous cup of hot chocolate and a purloined cache of macadamia cookies. All the lights were out except for the serene flames in the room’s built-in fireplace. She was bundled up with blankets, slippers and sleepwear that did a wonderful job of keeping her cozy without interfering with her all-important hand and arm movements. Everything was just so.

Everything except the unusual jewel in Arianne’s inventory. Amy’s newly minted level six Kings and Conquests character had a few unique skills and one or two secrets. Among them was the ability to appraise unusual objects and discern their value. Very occasionally, this skill would allow her to identify magic items and discern their function or purpose. At higher levels, one of the advanced skills on her progression tree was loreseeking, which would include an object’s history as a result of continued study. Amy was more than a little determined to obtain that skill at her earliest opportunity.

She was also in the process of experiencing the emergence of Arianne’s character class. Amy had to admit she should have seen it coming. Everywhere she went more and more critters, creatures and crawling things were following her around. Some of the larger beasts like deer and wild dogs waited in their home habitats for her to return. Others pursued her like lost kittens, hoping she would produce more treats. Arianne had managed to collect a wide variety of animal favorites in her travels, and the rag-tag army of wild varmints that had formed around her was starting to become noticeable. She wasn’t yet a fairy tale princess, but all she needed was a bunny, a pretty dress and a songbird and she’d be able to pass herself off as one.

Her keets were the reason she had discovered the jewel in the first place. The zippy little birds ranged into the forest on swift wings and brought back whatever they could find. Most often, they returned with twigs, bunches of berries, discarded trinkets, flowers and other colorful objects. They were certainly fun, but of limited use in questing or character progression. They did manage to find her a patch of sugarblossoms, which allowed her to collect a supply of the flowers’ enormous seeds. They had the scent of bubblegum, grew like deranged weeds and were a favorite of birds and small creatures. Amy suspected they were part of the reason her flock of keets had grown so substantially in such a short time.

Arianne’s birds were gradually getting better at their ad hoc treasure hunting. By now there were five of them. Each was vibrantly colored in combinations of up to four different hues. One had warm pink feathers across its breast with a steel blue head, white wingtips and a splash of yellow across its back. Another was bright yellow with a black head, blue wings and white frosting around its legs. Amy already suspected they would ultimately form the core of her scavenger post plans. She hadn’t forgotten the original KNC promotional materials she and her friends had collected at Supercon. By now those original brochures and booklets had been so thoroughly studied they were nearly worn out. Inside one of them was a description for a type of merchant building called a “scavenger post,” where exotic treasures from across the game world could be gathered and traded. By now, scavenger posts were one of the favored gold-making strategies in the game.

It wasn’t until one of her flock arrived with a leather pouch that Amy realized the potential of her hunting and gathering air force. Inside was what the game referred to as an “unusual jewel.” Arianne trained her discernment skills on it and discovered it was likely worth more than 10 gold monarchs, making it the richest treasure she had yet seen. It was also the first treasure Amy had looted that started a quest.

She carefully studied the quest text. Inspiring music played in the background as the game displayed stirring views of the Gorian Ruins overlooking the nearby Mephisto River. A voiceover began.

“Whispered tales of the tarnished jeweled amulets borne by the Gorian spirits that haunt the Blighted Forest might have receded into legend were it not for the hatred between two tiny villages and the innocent lives it extinguished.”

“None can say what emerged from the graves surrounding the Jagged Rift in the lands poisoned by the corrupted waters of the Mephisto River, but the silenced voices outraged by the black-hearted treachery of the Beathen zealots may yet shine the light of discovery on their enemy’s maleficent acts.”

“He who crafted weapons meant to protect the good people of Lantro from that which awakened deep inside Shifting Irons Keep vanished only days after his finest creation fell into the covetous hands of Lord Achlain.”

“Perhaps someone in the village of Lantro can tell you more about this jewel.”

Arianne accepted the quest at once and summoned her chestnut colt, Nickel. She replaced her hat, stowed the jewel in her satchel and kicked her horse into a run. Lantro was situated on the opposite edge of the Blighted Forest, and although the wilderness was home to more than a few hostile creatures likely to give even a level six animal trainer more than a fair challenge, few were likely capable of running down a spirited steed like Nickel.

The two lambs and the stubby legged pig who had been waiting patiently for more to eat gave chase, but were swiftly left behind. Amy wasn’t worried. She knew they would find her again like they always did. If her continued presence in the forest wasn’t enough, her wide ranging keet flock would guide them back to wherever she was questing.

One thing that particularly gratified Amy and likely many thousands of other Kings and Conquests players was the environments the developers had managed to craft for places like the Gorian Ruins, the twin villages and the surrounding forest. All the most well-known fairy tales and fantasy stories made use of the ubiquitous image of the gloomy forest under a clouded moon. The rapid hoofbeats of the lone rider, a leaf-shivering breeze and the distant glow of oil lanterns signaling safety from whatever lurked in the shadows spoke to Amy in a deep and abiding way. Surely she had at least some cultural appreciation for ghost stories and the allure of the textured page. What lay beyond the covers of those books had a powerful primal draw on the imaginations of some. She had to know. Shrouded in unexplored places were the answers to profound mysteries. This jewel promised to unlock at least one of them.

Amy skillfully guided her character along the poorly marked road. Even at speed, she managed to avoid veering too far off the path. Off to each side, the occasional targeting icon of a creature appeared, then vanished as it fell out of range. Most were typical nocturnal beasts like clawmice, starved rabbits and the occasional nightbat. Only the clawmice were dangerous, as they were bipedal and armed with throwing spears. Amy wasn’t particularly worried about herself, but she was worried about her horse. If Nickel were wounded badly enough, it would place Arianne squarely in an untenable dilemma. She supposed the nightbats might pose a risk if they were angry enough to pursue her far. It would probably take a lot to provoke a nightbat that much, she thought.

Finally the gentle downward slope that marked the eastern edge of the Blighted Forest came into view. Nickel came storming down out of the trees as if Arianne were bringing news of an impending invasion. The two level eight guards at the wooden gate protecting Lantro from the wilderness waved as Arianne passed. Having already completed a dozen quests for various village elders, Amy’s character was on good terms with the villagers. The Beathen Zealots, on the other hand, weren’t her biggest fans.

Nickel trotted along as Amy scanned the various NPCs and their titles. She was looking for the official or at least a semi-official lorekeeper, librarian, or village council secretary. Even a teacher or scribe would do. Amy well remembered the time she managed to meet up with the highest-level NPC she had ever seen. She was on one of her famous late-night questing sessions when she went back to Lantro to re-provision. Next door to the general post was the council house and village hall.

Amy couldn’t resist, so she wandered in to the brightly lit wooden building. There were numerous low-level villagers milling around. But it was the robed and cowled woman examining the bookshelves at the back of the hall that drew attention, mainly because of the twin iron chains she wore around her waist. Amy guided Arianne back and hovered over the woman with her mouse icon. She wasn’t prepared for what she found. The NPC had no visible name, nor did she appear armed, but the pop-up window had a rather unique and unusually terse in-game identification.

Witchkin Scribe Arcanist Level ??

The letters were displayed in yellow, which meant the NPC wasn’t hostile, but wasn’t necessarily friendly either. When Amy clicked, the woman’s voice audio response felt and sounded like black silk.

“Yes, yes. What is it?”

There were no visible options to respond. Amy even tried looking at her own character window to see if there were any clues as to how to proceed. Her eyebrows raised involuntarily when she saw her Might and Will values had been halved. She scoured the game interface before settling on an obscure icon at the top of the screen indicating she was suffering from a curse called “Bone-Chilling Cold.” She pulled the camera POV back and noticed her character’s skin color was darker and tinged with blue.

Amy elected to have Arianne quietly and quickly excuse herself. She hadn’t been inside the Lantro Village Hall since. No sense in potentially clicking the wrong thing and ending her level six career as a small pile of dust to be broomed up and discarded. Still, she couldn’t help but wonder what a Witchkin might know about her unusual jewel. Or a Scribe Arcanist for that matter.

Nickel rounded the corner and Amy spied the glow around NPC at the end of the street. She hurriedly guided her mount to a spot nearby and switched to on-foot travel. She clicked on the character, a level five human male identified as “Grizzly” with the class description of “Wise Villager.”

“Hail, traveler.”

Amy clicked to complete her quest. The celebratory herald sounded. She saw this NPC offered options for three more quests, which she guessed were part of the series related to the Untitled Book and the associated meta-quest to reassemble the weapon stolen from Lantro’s smith. Messages appeared midscreen and Arianne’s experience bar shifted to the right.

"14,000 experience points awarded.”

“Reputation with the Lantro Elders increased by 10"

The first quest in the ensuing chain was titled “Peace for the Restless.” Amy selected it.

“No Lantro villager, be he brave or coward, has yet dared seek the chain that matches this jewel, for it must be in the possession of the angry dead. Travel west, adventurer, and set free the souls of those who died to protect our village and our children. Among them you may yet find the broken amulet and take the first step to unlock the secrets inside this haunted stone.”

The option to accept the quest glowed serenely. Beneath it were three gear reward options for completion. They certainly looked enticing enough. She could choose one upon turning in the finished quest:

Blighted Boots Gorian Heraldry Valuable Leather Armor - Feet Requires Level 5 Armor Value: 25 Shock Defense: 20 Solid: 20 +2 Will +2 Quickness No unusual materials No enchantments No engravings No decoration Value: 12 silver ven

Osprey’s Snake Chaser Gorian Heraldry Rare Magic Item - Ring Treasure Station Item Requires Level 6 Solid: 150 +4 Charm +4 Brilliance Base Material - Silver Alloy Permanent Arcane Enchantment - Inspired Mind Engraved with Gorian Sigils Coiled Garnet Setting Value: 5 silver monarchs

Ghostfighter Gloves Gorian Heraldry Valuable Leather Armor - Hands Requires Level 5 Armor Value: 35 Shock Defense: 40 Solid: 30 +3 Might +2 Quickness No unusual materials No enchantments No engravings No decoration Value: 7 silver ven

Oh how she wanted that rare ring! It would be her first item of rare gear. But those ghosts are level ten! Amy thought. She would have to come up with the combat strategy of a lifetime to overcome them. If she aggroed more than one, she would have no chance to survive. Even one would be an unusually difficult challenge, since she was still more than 40,000 experience points from level seven.

Still, would KNC award her a quest that would inevitably destroy her character? She pondered the situation for a moment and then she smiled. Since when do level six characters have to put this much thought into accepting a quest or not? In any other game she would be out collecting bear teeth. It really was going to be a challenge to beat a level ten ghost, but she had to take the quest, right? She knew all about the rumors of the Shattered Sword quest line.

A group of enterprising and unusually studious Kings and Conquests players were convinced they had uncovered a hidden quest line in the Natsein wilderness. There were tales of a missing weaponsmith which Arianne had just confirmed. An unusual land feature was involved. The Jagged Rift itself may have been the location where the sword either destroyed itself or was annihilated by some kind of incalculable power.

The accept quest button glowed patiently.

If Amy actually had a chance to start that quest line, that’s actually where this particular quest might lead. Nobody had actually seen the sword itself, of course. This quest was one that was rumored to lead to the recovery of a weapon that rivaled the legendary crossbow Jordan had been given at Supercon. She chose Osprey’s Snake Chaser as her reward. Arianne already had pretty good gloves and boots. Even if she hadn’t, the chance to be first to get a rare quest reward was way too good an opportunity to pass up.

Arianne accepted the quest. Now it was official. She was charged with the defeat of possibly several level ten ghosts in order to recover the missing chain and setting for the unusual jewel. Only then would she be able to start solving the mystery of what happened to the missing weaponsmith and possibly find the trail that led to the whereabouts of the Shattered Sword.

As Nickel trotted back through the gate, Amy was deep in thought. She knew a couple of things about the Gorian Ghosts. First of all, their special attack was one of the most devastating in the entire game for low-level players. If they were able to use it in combat, and the player’s resistance to Necromantic magic failed, and it hit critically, it could cost the player’s character a full level of experience. That meant a level six character could end up level five in one hit. Their other ability was equally frightening. Ghosts were undead, which meant they were both immune to normal weapons and able to use a Nemesis spell called “Soulchill,” which reduced both movement speed and attack power. Once a player got in to melee range with ghost, they might never escape.

Simply put, level ten Gorian Ghosts were not to be trifled with. They could very easily ruin the day for a mere level six aspiring animal trainer.

By now, however, Amy knew there was more to her combat calculus than what was before her on the screen. After all, a level eight Cloak shouldn’t have been able to defeat a character twice his level, but he did. There had to be a way, and Amy suspected it would have something to do with her many pets.

But what kind of animal could match a ghost? Where would she even start looking for that kind of knowledge? A determined web search turned up nothing except various encyclopedic pages about mythical beasts and their relationships with the spirits of the underworld. None of the information was directly related to Kings and Conquests. One thing that was clear was that ghosts could not be harmed by non-magical weapons. It stood to reason they wouldn’t likely be harmed by non-magical beasts either.

How would she even see the ghosts? Every spirit legend had it ghosts could render themselves invisible. Would their amulets keep them from concealing themselves? Amy was starting to feel a little frustrated. There had to be a source of answers for questions like this. Arianne reined Nickel around and guided him back to the Lantro Village Hall. Operating against her better judgment, Amy guided Arianne inside. It wasn’t crowded like before, which was understandable since server time was long past 11PM. The hall was still well lit however. Amy breathed a sigh of relief when she noticed the Witchkin woman wasn’t present any more, but she did stop and take a closer look at the bookcase where she had first encountered the Arcanist. One of the books was pulled out from the shelf and it was glowing!

The icon shifted to a quest icon when Amy moused over the book. Arianne took it off the shelf and began reading. Another page of text appeared under the title “Peace for the Restless.” Could it be the rest of the information from the same quest? It must be! Amy thought.

“Heed these, the words of Academ Mortis and High Protector of the King’s Province of Kulnas. The Circle knows what few understand. The Littlekin who make the Blighted Forest their home are all that stand between the spirits of the past and the good people of Lantro. Seek their counsel if you wish to defeat the angry dead.”

Amy silently pumped both fists in the air. She had found the solution, and all it took was a little bravery! The Littlekin were not only magical, but they were more ancient than any of the kingdoms on the continents of Bairre or Aventar. Their language was so shrouded in mystery the only way to understand it was through magical means. Naturally, they could communicate in the common tongue if they wished, but the trick was to find them when they weren’t more interested in making life difficult for big, dumb humans. Littlekin were mischievous and prone to sabotage and practical jokes. They could take many forms. They much preferred to play in the woods. Anyone too serious to join the frivolity became a target.

Arianne would have to find a way to enlist their aid, or there would be no chance of defeating the Gorian Ghosts.