The rolling doors shambled apart as I wandered into the Amby’s. A door chime played overhead as I entered, the grating high-pitch tones calling - as if to summon some poor and fatigued clerk’s attention from across the store. I could see some pimply boy manning the checkout vacantly stare at me for a second, before turning his attention back to what he was doing.
The Amby’s was brightly lit, with rows upon rows of everything - from health potions to toilet paper - stacked neatly onto flimsy grey standing shelves. People shuffled through the aisles like zombies here, perusing the shelves: desperately searching for that impossible bargain which might leave them with enough money left over to pay their bills this month. They probably wouldn't find it here.
As I wandered down the aisle towards the refrigerator, I could see one of my old classmates near the back of the supermarket awkwardly looking around as he hovered over the shelves. I leaned in next to his ear as I passed, and whispered.
“What are you doing there, mate?” I asked him in a deep voice.
He jumped as he turned around, suspiciously knocking some of the biscuits he was looking at onto the floor. For a moment, I could see both the fear and the shame creeping across his face. Both dissipated in an instant at the sight of my face.
“Geez, Oscar,” he replied. “Don’t sneak up on me like that... You almost gave me a heart attack.”
Wayne Carruthers, my old classmate, had been a star student when I’d been at university. He was a brilliant essayist, with aspirations of someday becoming a lecturer, yet his absolute lack of confidence completely betrayed his own aspirations. He wasn’t a particularly wise kid either. Wearing a grey suit jacket and black-sheened shoes, he seemed a little overdressed for the part of “petty thief”.
“Relax,” I said. “You weren’t going to walk out without paying anyway. I know what you're like. You're too much of a goody-two-shoes, at the end of the day.”
“Probably,” Wayne sighed. “Anyway, are you still hungover from last night?”
I scratched my head. I didn’t remember Wayne being there last night, but then again, I didn’t really remember much of last night either.
“How’d you know about that?” I asked.
“We live in the same apartment block, and with the noise you guys were making, it’d be hard not to figure out what was going on,” Wayne replied. “Kind of sad you didn’t invite me though.”
“I thought you hated parties?” I said.
“Yeah, but I like invitations,” Wayne replied.
As we stood awkwardly over the boxes of biscuits, I knelt down and picked one up before handing it back to Wayne.
“You've really got to work on your confidence, mate,” I said. “Good luck though.”
“Thanks, I guess,” Wayne replied.
I wandered off toward the refrigerated section as Wayne continued to stare at the packet of biscuits to the shelf. Wayne was a good guy, awkward but honest, and I guess you could say we used to be good friends while we were at university. He was certainly a more upstanding person than I was, but I guess necessity makes thieves of us all - even if he could never quite bring himself to do it.
As I wandered out of the aisle, I stuck my hand out and looked around for a brief moment, before placing my hand against a six pack of noodles and muttering a command under my breath. It disappeared with a puff of smoke.
Item Pilfered
Yields: 6 Noodle Packets
It was all a matter of confidence.
As I approached the refrigerator, I looked down at the milk cartons in the fridge. Rows and rows of identical milk cartons sat next to each other, the only distinguishable difference between each one being the labels on the bottles. I looked down at the price tag on one of the bottles of milk.
5 Gold. The prices keep going up, while my income keeps going down.
As I gripped the carton of milk, I wandered towards the front register - down the aisles. An old man sauntered by me, politely saying "excuse me" in a soft and scratchy timbre as he passed. His pace with the walking frame was slow. It probably wasn't best for him to be out and about; he was as good as dead if he ever saw a daemon.
I approached the register, placing the milk on the arcane conveyor. As it levitated toward the cashier, she lethargically looked for a barcode, before scanning it.
"That's 5 Gold and 5 Silver," she said.
"5 Gold and 5 Silver?" I said. "But it said 5 Gold on the price tag?"
"Would you like me to go back and check the label for you?" She asked. "It might take me a few minutes."
I sighed. I'd rather just give her the silver and avoid the bullshit.
"No, that's fine," I said - putting the silver and the gold on the register and grabbing the milk. As I did so, a little notification appeared across my field of vision.
Main Objectives for Quest "Got Milk" Complete
Purchase a Milk Carton from the Supermarket (1/1)
"Have a nice day," she said indifferently.
"I won't," I muttered under my breath.
As I wandered through the roller doors, I stepped out into the humid and dank air outside. It smelled putrid, like the scent of decay, something completely opposed to the sterilised freshness of the supermarket - in fact, something entirely unlike what the crisp morning air had felt like when I entered. An unseen wind battered my face with warm moisture, dank droplets pelting my jacket. I couldn't see anything through the blackness.
I pulled out my flashlight, and switched it on.
I wished I never did.
***
A horrid ape-like creature towered over me, its massive arms holding it aloft. It was about the size of two cars, with jet-black fur and menacing crimson eyes which seemed fixated upon me. As it gnashed its yellowed teeth together, it let out a billowing, voracious roar.
I dropped my flashlight to the ground out of fear.
As it went to sweep me aside with its arm, I jumped back and out of the way of the creature's strike, before running back into the store and vaulting over one of the counters. The creature smashed through the entrance. Glass shot in all directions as the roller doors fell to the floor and the windows collapsed. The hanging lights swung overhead as the creature ambled by them. The people inside began to scatter in all directions as I slowly retreated into the store, and at the service counter, one of the store clerks picked up a landline phone and dialled 669 into the keypad.
"Daemon Dispatch!" He screamed into the handset. "Now!"
As the young store clerk continued to yell into the phone, the creature's attention remained firmly upon me. The cold night air drifted through the broken roller doors. It stared down at me, with a grimace upon its face. I could see its nameplate resting above its head. "Konglet, Lvl. 7", it read. It almost seemed to smile as it licked its lips.
You'll make a nice snack, its expression seemed to say.
It vaulted forward, slashing with its clawed fingers at my chest. I went to run, but this time I was too slow - as the creature clipped my left hip with its claw. I fell to the ground as the pain overwhelmed me.
"Shit!" I screamed.
As I fell to the ground, I looked up at my health gauge. 76/107. A few more strikes like that and the thing would probably kill me. I weathered the pain, pulling myself off the ground.
Quest: Terribly Afraid of Dying
A Konglet has invaded the local Amby's, and it has its sights set on you. The store clerk has phoned the local authorities, and they will likely be coming to assist soon. You should try to live long enough to survive this ordeal.
Quest Objectives: Survive until the Daemon Dispatch Arrives (0/1)
Bonus Objectives: Slay the Konglet (0/1)
Rewards: 100 Gold, 100 EXP
"100 bucks for surviving?" I said to myself. "They obviously don't rate my odds too highly..."
As I bolted to the back of the store, the lumbering beast chased after me. Running down the aisles, the Konglet batted the shelves aside as it careered after me, using its massive arms as crutches to move through the shelves. However, it was much slower than me - at least. As I reached the end of the aisle, I saw Wayne hiding in the opposite corner of the supermarket with a group of other patrons.
"Wayne, get anyone you can find out of the supermarket, now!" I screamed.
He nodded silently as he quivered in fear. I didn't blame him. Hell, I was probably three-quarters of the way to a panic attack myself: the adrenaline was perhaps the only thing stopping me from getting there. As I looked back at the beast, I reached into my inventory.
Items Retrieved
1 Metal Bat, 1 Empty Beer Can
I tore the metal bat and one of the empty beer cans from my inventory as I spun around, and as the beast lumbered toward me, I threw the can into the air, before smacking it as hard as I could with the baseball bat. As it sailed through the air, it careered into the beast's shoulder, before plonking softly against its fur. It did practically nothing. I looked up at the monster's health bar over its head; 133/134.
"You've got to be kidding me!" I yelled.
As the Konglet reached the end of the supermarket aisle, knocking the contents of the shelves to the floor, it went to make another swipe at me. I ducked under its arm, before slamming the bat into the side of its ribcage. It loudly roared as the bat collided with it, and a little damage indicator with the number 13 fizzled from the place I'd struck in its fur. I went to run from the beast once again, but behind me, I saw Wayne hurriedly escorting the elderly man I'd seen earlier from the supermarket.
"Are you guys alright over there?" I said.
"For now," Wayne called back. "Could you keep that thing distracted though?"
"Fucking hell... alright!" I screamed. "I tell you what though, Wayne, you'll owe me one after this!"
I readied my bat as it went to attack. The glint of the downlights reflected against the metal as I held it aloft. I knew I wouldn't be able to hold it back, not with my strength. That thing could probably murder me if it tried. Actually, scratch that: it probably would murder me if it tried.
As the beast vaulted toward me, I held my bat forward, my wrists quivering as the fiendish daemon leapt through the air toward me. Time seemed to slow to a near-halt as the beast vaulted toward me - its arms outstretched, its maw gaping, and its horrid eyes fixated upon me. I stared up at the beast, careering toward me.
As I did, I heard a voice in my head.
Do you wish to save them? It said.
