Aralynn abruptly awoke to cold wind fluttering through the curtains. Memories of the previous days flashed back at the front of her consciousness and she almost choked, clutching at her chest.
Eventually, she calmed down, her breathing still shaky. Aralynn looked around, patting herself down. She was dressed as usual, and her revolver lay next to her, tangled in bedsheets. Where am I?
Her place looked like a modest room in the typical tavern- the window was open, clattering in the breeze, and her room was dimly lit by a small candle on a wooden table, and a mirror hung on the wall. Next to the table, her short cloak lay draped over a chair. Her rapier leaned against the table in its sheath. Aralynn herself laid on a worn bed.
Aralynn stretched as she ruffled her wings, her bright-white plumage rippling, with no mark at all of yesterday's injuries. She blinked and stood.
Ah, right. I deserted. After flying away from the battlefield as fast as she could she'd arrived at this town and had chosen the nearest tavern for the night. She could've easily chosen to sleep on the streets or in a tree as per usual of her time in the army, but she worried that she'd be seen as a threat and attacked by guards.
Speaking of guards… somehow they didn't notice her flying over the city's wall. She was lucky as well that no one saw her arrive. Glancing outside, the sky was beginning to dim- that meant Aralynn had slept through an entire day.
"Damn." What now? Aralynn's grumbling stomach decided for her. Food it is, then. I should probably also figure out what those green messages were, too… Dexterity? Resurgence? Observant? Aralynn thought back, recalling the strange green messages that had popped up.
Aralynn strapped on her boots and moved in front of the mirror, grabbing her cloak. Swishing the cloak around her shoulders, she took herself in and checked herself over once more.
She had a rather shapely face and her hair was as black as raven feathers. A cute cluster of bangs hung just above her eyebrows and two longer clusters of hair fell on either side of her face. The rest of her hair was cut shorter for practicality.
Something that betrayed her bestial nature was her bright orange eyes, their pupils much larger than an average human.
That's because Aralynn wasn't human. She was a birdfolk. Birdfolk had evolved alongside humans like the various races of the world- elves, dwarves, devilkin, gnomes, dragonkin, and many more.
The birdfolk had a humanlike appearance. Their bodies were human, but what set them apart were their additional bird-like features. They had pairs of wings, a feathered tail, and eyes with piercing pupils. They also had smaller wings in place of where their ears would normally be, and their feet were powerful talons.
Her cloak was short and hung loosely like an oversized t-shirt. Her cloak was a dark cyan- bordering black- with brighter cyan accents, and was cropped short above her breast with holes for her wings. On her chest she wore a two-segment chestplate with a separation and straps for mobility. Below, she wore a black turtleneck sweater.
The turtleneck tapered down to a skirt, and underneath Aralynn wore a pair of black leggings. Her revolver was wrapped tight on its holster on her thigh, hidden beneath her skirt. Her rapier she strapped to her waist.
Aralynn did the best she could to brush off the dried dirt and blood on her clothes before extinguishing her lantern and heading downstairs for a meal.
Opening her room door, she locked it behind her with the rusty key she'd been given, heading downstairs.
As it was nighttime, the tavern was especially boisterous, and the large drinking hall was filled with a ruckus of noise. A bard was standing on top of a table, strumming a lute, belting out some ballad that Aralynn didn't recognize. All around, wooden mugs of beer were clacked in cheers, and lively conversation lit the hall. It was lit by large, floating orbs of light which, as far as Aralynn could tell, had no source and simply hovered in space.
What are they? Aralynn squinted. Her hawk's eyes gave her a much better look.
[Observant Lv. 4 has been activated!]
Aralynn started as the message popped up in her vision again.
[Summary: These orbs of light appear to be a variant of the spell Liechter Ball. The ceiling above is enchanted to cast these spells at particular intervals at later hours at night. The source for the spell seems to be a regenerating catalyst, which recharges via sunlight during the day.]
Interesting, Aralynn thought. I'll have to figure out what these messages are later, but they sure are useful. These lights are different from the Liechter Balls used by our mages… guess civilians will always have it differently.
Putting it off for now, Aralynn stepped off the last couple steps of stairs and glanced about. By the tavern bar and counter about 20 feet away, her eyes allowed her to read the prices for a meal- a copper coin each for soup, bread, and mead.
Aralynn patted herself down and checked her coin purse. I don't have enough for a meal… it was everything I had carried with me to pay for the night. There were more coins in her battlepack but she'd left that in her tent.
She sighed before finding a secluded table to sit down, speaking aloud to herself. "Now, these words that started popping up… what is this?"
As if responding to her words, a strange green window popped up in front of her.
[Login… please wait.]
Then:
[Thank you for your patience! Your registration as a player has been successfully approved. Aralynn Faewind, welcome to the game!]
"What the hell…"
[Simple commands: To view your status window, simply imagine this green window. For more information regarding aspects of the system, skills, abilities, and more, press the (I) icon next to them for more information.]
The window faded away as soon as Aralynn had finished reading. Quickly catching on, she imagined the green window, and, true to its word, it popped up, this time with much, much, much more information.
"Damn. What is this?"
The window looked something like this:
[Status Window (I)]
- Overview -
Player name: Aralynn Faewind
Class: Warrior, Level 3
Occupation: Soldier
Race: Birdfolk
Controler: ???
- Stats (I) -
Strength - 8
Dexterity - 18
Stamina - 15
Intelligence - 14
Wisdom - 15
Charm - 14
- Skills (I) -
Agility - Lv. 7
Comprehension - Lv. 4
Might - Lv. 1
Observant - Lv. 4
- Armour Points (I) -
15
- Hit points (I) -
28/28
- Abilities (I) -
[Heroic] Firearm God's Blessing Lv. 1
Limit Shatterer Lv. 1
Ranged Weapon Proficiency Lv. 2
Resurgence Lv. 1