JaceVAmor

Chapter 19: Refugees

Coop’s predawn routine began as usual. Jett seemed to be finding more creative ways to sleep, this time she had all four of her legs up in the air, occasionally kicking one or the other in response to her dreams. Coop left her to wash his face and do his morning warm up at the top of the fort.

He would jog a bit and enjoy the sunrise while stretching, then he’d take a quick shower and have breakfast at the Tavern. It used to be a lot harder to wake up before dawn, though he still di...

Chapter 18: The Endless Empire

When the sun came up, Charlie and Camila ended their slumber party. They used the elevation of the office building to view the coast and chart a course through the rest of the city. From their vantage point, they could see that the waterfront condominiums looked to be in pretty good shape. The poor condition of the downtown office buildings and lowrise apartments that transitioned the suburbs into the city had been weighing on Charlie’s psyche. They hoped there would be some friendly people...

Chapter 17: Bandit Tolls

Charlie and Camila spent the night in Charlie’s childhood bedroom, sharing a bed and sleeping for the first time in 10 days with a pile of stuffed animals keeping watch. When they woke, Charlie’s father had prepared them a simple breakfast. Despite the modest offerings, it was one of the best meals either of them had ever eaten. It was also the first time in those 10 days that they had any food. They had missed both sleeping and eating far more than they had realized, Camila even teared u...

Chapter 16: The Mousy Park Ranger

Charlie was gathered with her assigned party. They were preparing to return to their true bodies on Earth after receiving 10 days of training. She had become a ‘Chosen’ for a faction called the Endless Empire. One minute she was walking to her apartment with groceries, and the next she was being offered a sponsorship in exchange for representation. She would have thought it was a joke if not for the strangely beautiful, but mean looking, purple alien woman who was doing the offering and t...

Chapter 15: The Clumsy Shark

The Tavern they just built had taken a lot of real estate, so Coop was surprised when it was also three stories tall. It was a solid wood and stone structure with thick glass windows on the second and third floor. The wooden sign that hung on a pair of chains above the heavy wooden door had the image of a shark drinking a beer with the words The Clumsy Shark etched across it in a curved font. Coop and Jones headed inside.

The scent of something delicious immediately assaulted Coop’s s...

Chapter 14: The Coral Forest

Coop had been mesmerized by the Coral Forest. He hopped from ledge to ledge, just taking it all in.

It was beautiful and surreal, unlike anything he had ever seen but also sometimes familiar. He spotted a purple brain coral the size of a house and blue-green sea fans swaying in the open air that were large enough to fit into any old growth forest. When Coop realized that all the corals were living despite not being submerged he was even more awed.

The coral polyps appeared to stil...

Chapter 13: Mistjumping

Coop woke up before dawn with Jett nestled under one arm. He was grateful she let him keep the pillow this time. Coop gently scooted her over before he jumped out of bed. He was filled with motivation this morning. There was only one more day before the leaderboards appeared and he had discovered a new ridiculous skill that he wanted to master as soon as possible.

He washed his face and moved up to the top of the fort for his morning jog and stretching session. He filled his lungs as he...

Chapter 12: Primal Kites

Coop left the fort motivated to expand his horizons. He had decided to check the next island in the Ghost Reef chain. While he hadn’t explored the mangrove forest at all yet, he was a bit scared of heading in there. The thick muck combined with the tangled mangrove roots would make any movement a real challenge, especially in a fight. He would need to adapt a new combat style before setting foot in the mangroves. Coop didn’t feel ready for such a challenge yet.

Instead he would head...

Chapter 11: Hunting

Once again, Coop woke up before dawn. Jett had taken over his pillow at some point in the night, leaving him flat on the mattress. She had her two front paws pressed against his face while she slept, a smoking gun for how she claimed the pillow. He tried to hang onto his previous night’s motivation and start forming a new, healthy routine.

He splashed some water on his face to further wake himself up. He headed through the mess hall and up the stairs past the mezzanine, all the way to...

Chapter 10: First Contact

Balor Rockshaper was bored. He had retired 500 years ago and found it didn’t live up to the hype. It wasn’t building the grand monuments that he missed, it was the simple projects that required back breaking work day after day that he longed for.

He looked at his stone hands and admired the proof of his experience. His calluses would never fade. Balor’s ancient ancestors had been simple people. Rock elementals that constructed geometric shapes within the mountains of his ancestral...

Chapter 9: Defender of the Dunes

Sunset was rapidly approaching when Coop left the safety of the fort, crossing the wooden bridge and following the sandy trail where they had claimed the civilization shard. Instead of looking like a zombie apocalypse survivor with his machete and duct tape armor, he thought he looked a lot more like a legitimate warrior. He had changed his color scheme to what he had christened ‘beach camo’ and was wielding a six foot spear with a round shield the size of his entire torso.

He plann...

Chapter 8: Haunted

Coop had two new titles that came out of nowhere. He had missed one notification for the Haunted title, as he got it when he unlocked his affinity, and he had received the Ethereal title after choosing his skills. He didn’t expect titles to be given out so freely by the system. When he first saw them, he imagined them to be exclusive rewards for major achievements like claiming the settlement. He wouldn’t complain, but it made him a little worried about what other people were accumulating...

Chapter 7: Foundation

Coop checked his class options with renewed purpose.

[Phantom Blade]

[Edgerunner]

[Revenant]

[Harbinger]

[Ritemaster]

He tried not to jump to any conclusions as he took in his choices. Of course, he would scrutinize each option, starting from the top of the list.

“Phantoms speak through the silent blade.”

Phantom Blade was described as a master of assassination, utilizing intangibility to catch enemies unaware. The skills were said ...

Chapter 6: Elite Challenge

Once again, Coop woke up with Jett on his chest, purring. She was a good kitty and he told her so. He had the feeling she already knew it and that she thought he might be a little dim for repeating it. He didn’t mind reminding her anyway.

Today, he and Jones were continuing the hunt for Ancient Defenders. They planned to push to level five in order to unlock their classes. He thought they would be well ahead of the curve and couldn’t wait to see where he would land on the leaderboar...

Chapter 5: Invaders

The next day Coop and Jones returned to the lighthouse trail. They were on a mission to defeat more Ancient Defenders, and since the only one they had ever seen was near the trail, that was where they began their search.

They cautiously walked along the path while carefully scanning the dunes. The sun was bright and only a few fluffy clouds floated across the blue sky. There weren’t many places that provided cover, so it seemed unlikely that they would be ambushed. Although when Coop ...

Chapter 4: Champion

Coop sat underneath the most normal sized palm tree in the vicinity while his leg throbbed with pain. He decided this palm tree was his new favorite. He felt some kinship with the tree that hadn’t grown with mana, like they both weren’t Chosen and were stuck being normal. Leveling up had proven normal people weren’t doomed after all. He hadn’t even realized he was worried in the first place, but the relief he felt was evident.

Jones had bandaged Coop’s wound using one of their...

Chapter 3: Unchosen

Jones and Coop resumed their conversation in the mess hall while Jett held court on the table. Jett waited patiently as if she would be participating in the discussion herself. She was an old cat, apparently in her 20s in human years, which Coop hadn’t even known was possible. She calmly listened as Coop described what he had seen during the apocalypse, allowing Jones to interject with what he had learned.

After the first interjection, Coop had to ask where the hell Jones got his info...

Chapter 2: Jett Black

When Coop’s consciousness returned, the first thing he noticed was the gentle rumbling still in his chest. It was pleasant now. Comforting, even. When Coop opened his eyes he was greeted by the night. He was also greeted by Jett.

Jett was the black cat who lived in the lighthouse. She never left the lighthouse, but now she was laying on Coop’s chest staring at his face, purring. He was glad she was okay. He rubbed her cheeks and she closed her eyes, purring louder. Jett was...

Chapter 1: Ghost Reef

Coop loved his job.

It wasn’t his dream job or anything, but it still felt like a dream morphing into a nightmare when the sky was blotted out and the ground began shaking violently.

Starting a career had snuck up on him in an uncomfortable way.  He had just finished school and was a bit lost without the structured guidance it had provided. Trauma had caused Coop to become the kind of guy that took things step by step with little deviation. He wasn’t fully conscious of th...