Freeze!

Max, hearing Sophie scream froze.

"What's the matter?" he asked, whispering.

Dont say anything. The voice replied. I can hear your thoughts if you think them at me.

Ok Max thought. What's the matter?

You have a choice you can make. Sophie explained You can chose between a quick power growth or a slower more painful growth but with greater potential down the line.

Is it even a question? Definitely the latter. What's the catch?

Pain. Lots and lots of pain.

That's it! You made it sound all ominous . What's a little bit pain between friend? What did I need to do.

Bend down and pick up the flower in front of you came the reply

Max complied and saw a small red flower standing all by its lonesome. It had no leaves or anything just a thin green stalk and a bright red flower on top like the worlds skinniest bobblehead. Max plucked it and asked Now what?

Stand up and walk straight until I tell you to stop. Then turn right

Max walked forward for about 15 feet before Sophie told him to stop after wich he turned right.

Now walk straight for another 15 feet and pick every plant I tell you too.

Max walked and every few feet the voice would tell him to pick that flower or this mushroom or some other grass. 15 feet later he was told to turn right again and walk 30 feet forward again picking plants left and right. 30 feet later he turned right again and walked another 30 feet. He turned right and walked 15 feet back to where he started. This time Sophie made him sidestep about a foot and walk another circuit just inside his previous one picking plants all the while. He did so in an ever shrinking square until he got back the point where he had woken up where ever he was. At some point his pockets had gotten full to the point he had to carry every thing in his shirt front.

Now sit down Sophie told him and he sat down, carefully holding his shirt up so that none of the plants spilled. Immediately after he sat down a large stone bowl appeared right where the first flower had been.

Put everything in the bowl. Max slowly poured his spoils in, watching as the greens liquefied the moment they entered the bowl, gradually changing color as more and more plants fell in and liquefied. When he had depleted his shirt front he put what he had in his pockets in. The bowl grew more and more full and then he placed the last plant, the flower he had first picked, in. The second it entered the mixture, the fluid began to swirl, and changed to a deep crimson. A few moments later the liquid settled and Sophie spoke up startling Max.

Let me warn you The voice intoned. Drinking that will give you a greate advantage but will cause you alot of agony. Are you sure that you want to go through with this?

Heck no. But I'm still gonna go with it. Max grabbed the bowl and drank it down. As he felt it settle in his stomach a pulse of agony swept through his body. He screamed feeling as if his body was burning in lava, at the same time being dunked in liquid nitrogen, while a building collapsed on him during a tornado as he was being thrown about. He felt himself age a thousand years as space around him pressed in and he was thrown into a black hole. The pain went on for an indeterminate period of time as he got dissolved in acid and his body rot.

Finally the agony came to an end and a notification dinged in his mind

You have acquired Universal Resistance

Max slowly pushed himself off the floor and sat up. "Well that was worse than I expected" he said, hoarsely.

I did warn you Sophie told him

Yeah but all you said was agony. That wasn't agony that was torture personified. What did I get out of that?

Look at your status window you'll see.

Status Max thought.

"So I got Universal as my resistance. What does that mean?"

Each Player can have one resistance, Sophie explained. Whichever resistance you pick up first, you're stuck with. However when a player first joins they have a chance slash choice to get Universal Resistance wich is what it says, a resistance to everything.

How many Players have it?

Almost none. You can only get it right when you start playing and haven't move at all before you pick up your universe.

That little read flower? Max inquired

Yup. And after you pick it you cant move more than 15 feet from where you start. And you need to pick a whole bunch of weird plants. Never mind the agony you go through. Most people would through all the hassle but they miss their chance and wander off before their companion stops them.

Lucky me I listened.

Yes but now you need 100 more Exp than everyone else to level up.

100! Max exclaimed, startled. That's it?

Not 100 more, Sophie clarified, 100 times more.

Max nearly keeled over in shock.

That much?! How is it worth it? What the hell did you make me do?! he fumed.

Of course it's worth it or I wouldn't have told you to do it, Sophie said trying to calm him down. Which resistance you have also decided what magic you can use not only what magic you are most vulnerable to.

How does your resistance determine what magic you can use?

If you had ice resistance, could you imagine trying to channel fire magic through your body?

Ouch was all Max could think

So, the voice continued, anyone with Universal resistance can use all magic equally well and has no magic they are weak towards. And equally well means using fire magic as well as a mage with fire resistance.

Ok. That's pretty neat. But is it worth needing100 times the experience?

It will be. Trust me, it will be.

Weirdly enough I do trust you. I just met you and I trust you with my life. Why the hell is that?

It's part of The Game. Every Player trusts their guide and every guide cannot betray their Player.

Why can't I not trust you? I'm trying to not trust you. Maybe you're lying to me. Maybe this is just a trap but I can't. What the hell. What the hell. I'm trying and i just can't.

For what its worth the voice said, sadly I'm sorry. I really am. I don't understand what you're going through but I'm sorry for causing you distress.

Thanks. It hel... aaahhhrrrggg. Again. I'm trying to not believe you but something is forcing me to.

Max stood and started banging his head against the nearest tree. "Why. Can't. I. Not. Trust. You."

I'm sorr...

Its fine. I'll hit over it. Also sorry. It's not that I mind trusting you or that I wouldn't have trusted you, it's just that I cant stand something forcing me to trust someone. Here to hoping I wont get betrayed by someone I'm forced to trust Max thought wryly.

I won't Sophie promised, solemnly. No matter what I swear I wont betray you.

"Whatever" Max said. I'll figure it out. Now what? He stretched, arms and wings feeling a bit stiff. Max's mind stuttered to a halt. Wings? He looked over his shoulder and saw two pitch black bat wings sticking out of his shoulder blades. How the hell did I not notice them until now.

Well you were a bit preoccupied until now Sophie pointed out

True. He stretched them out and flapped them, as best he could in the middle of the woods, feeling out the new but familiar experience. Magic again I guess.

Max took a look atound for the first time. He was in a forest with a relatively thin canopy, the sun shining through with its mid morning or mid afternoon light. Alright, where are we and where to now?

We're about three miles south of the nearest town. It's a good place to stay for a bit. Mostly low Teir people around here.

Great. Let's go. Which way?

Uh...

"Great" Is it morning or afternoon?

Huh? Afternoon. Why does it

"That-a-way" He proclaimed, pointing in what he inferred was north and began walking

What makes you so sure?

The sun Max answered. Rises in the east sets in the west. Afternoon it's closer to west, opposite it is east so turn 90 degrees with west to your left and that's north.

Makes sense I guess. Sophie said, slightly dubious. Better than nothing.

While I'm walking Max asked, can you explain to me what are Teirs, Ranks, Emt and Ent are?

Ranks are levels of existence. I can't think of a better term. A Rank zero trying to fight a Rank one is like a small puppy trying to fight a person. And it gets worse the higher the Rank. A Rank one against a Rank two is like a mouse trying to fight person. The higher ones rank the more you can do the more powers you have etc. Then comes Teirs. The higher ones Teir the more evolved they are and the more powers of their rank they can use. That's the next most difficult difference to overcome. The only thing that can balance that is the level of your sponsor. A Teir 5 with a Rank 2 sponsor is not as powerful as a Teir 4 with a Rank 6 sponsor. After that is level. It means very little. All it tells you is how close to your next evolution you are and how much hp or mp you have.

Emp and Ent?

Emp, the voice continued, is Emotional Points. How many units of emotional energy were directed at you. It can be either positive emotions or negative. What form the emotions have can determine what direction your evolution takes. If it's mostly negative, then you will evolve into a more evil form and have more base impulses. If its mostly positive emotions than you will have a more angelic evolution and have more altruistic feelings.

Evolving can affect my emotions?

Yes, Sophie explained. Not much you can do about that. You can choose which way you want them to change but not much you can do to stop the change from affecting you.

What if they are equal?

Huh?

What if there is equal amounts of positive and negative emotions?

I dont know. I dont think any one has tried that before.

Why not?

My assumption is that it's impossible.

Whatever it's not important right now. Ent?

That is the Entertainment that you've provided a god. Anything they find funny or sad or anything entertaining, you'll get points. Depending on how much you entertained that deity that's how many points you will receive. The more you rank up the more points you'll need for the next rank up.

And if the god doesnt want to give the points?

That has never happened. The system is completely honest. Also, it gets more lonely the higher your rank gets so rankers are always waiting for more people to get up to them so they can fight. You rarely find a ranker suppressing someone lower ranked than them. It gets more true the higher up the ladder you go.

There's no fights for land or artifacts? Max asked, surprised

Not really. An artifact that a Rank two can use is mostly useless to a Rank three and vice versa. A Rank two isnt powerful enough to use a Rank three item. In regards to land, when a Player hits Rank five, The Board expands and creates a new plot of land for the Player to rule as they wish. The land disappears upon their death, making war mostly pointless. The lower ranked Players on the destroyed land do sometimes go on to try and conquer other lower ranked Players but generally only the land of their equals is worth the bother. So there really aren't many reasons for a higher ranked Player to attack a lower ranked one.

Well that's a relief Max thought, sighing. Thanks for that explanation. Where are we headed?

A small town, Sophie answered. The ruler is a Rank two so try not to annoy him.

I thought you said they don't mess with lower rankers.

They do if you annoy them enough so try not to.

Got it. Don't bother a man who can squish me like a bug. Thanks.

They walked for another hour in companionable silence before they left the forest. A half hour later they crested a hill and before them was the town.