Hell's Glitch (LitRPG): Into a Dark Adventure (4 page)

Vagabond

A fleet footed traveler that is
well versed in multiple weapon disciplines.  Very high DEX and STR.  High SPD.

Starting Gear: Traveler’s Cowl,
Traveler’s Long Coat, Traveler’s Pants, Dark B. Boots, Dark Bracers, Shortsword
x2, Throwing Knife x5

Soul Intensity: 4

VIT 6 DEF 9 RES 8 STR 13 INT 5
DEX 13 SPD 12 SPT 6 BLF 2 PCP 2

Another specialty class, this one
geared towards high offense and mobility.  The Vagabond lacked all sorts of
defenses.  Hell, it didn’t even come with a shield.  The Vagabond’s high level
of dexterity meant that weapons in its offhand did more damage, so it was a
beast at two handed fighting.  It was a class that could easily wield both
strength and dexterity class weapons.  Another class for Sam to consider. 
Sarem looked pretty awesome in the badass navy and black long coat with the
dual Shortswords.

Priest

A sturdy holy warrior.  Uses belief
and blessings to overcome the odds.  Extremely high BLF, High STR and DEF

Starting Gear: Hood of the Holy,
Robes of Reverence, Pants of the Pious, Saint Shoes, Gloves of Grace, Halberd,
Lion Symbol Shield, Prayer Charm

Soul Intensity: 3

VIT 10 DEF 12 RES 6 STR 12 INT
4 DEX 4 SPD 6 SPT 4 BLF 15 PCP 2

The Priest was a really good
starting class to the point of being imbalanced thanks to the powerful gear it
started with.  It was similar to the Fighter and Knight in many respects, but
it was far better geared than the other two for becoming a paladin type
character with a mixture of divine Blessings—the Priest’s brand of Spellcraftes—and
physical attack power.  In The Death Planes, the Priests had some good Blessings
that could restore their health or transport them to safety without the need
for items.  And many enemies were vulnerable to belief-based attacks.  Sam
added another class to his list of potentials before he got to the final class. 
The black, red, and white robes didn’t look all that bad on Sarem either.

“What’s this?  A new class?”

Alchemist

Uses intelligence and nature in tandem to produce wonders
beyond comprehension.  Extremely high RES.  High INT and SPT.

Starting Gear: Alchemist's Cowl, Alchemist's Cloak,
Alchemist's Tailored Pants, Alchemist's Jackboots, Alchemist's Gloves, Tattered
Alchemy Book, Blighted Dagger

Soul Intensity: 4

VIT 8 DEF 4 RES 15 STR 6 INT 12 DEX 6 SPD 8 SPT 12 BLF 2
PCP 3

The alchemist’s cloak and cowl
looked pretty cool and the rest of the uniform had a military vibe to it,
especially the long boots.  Strange, that the class used a Dagger and book to
fight and had no shield to speak of.  It was an interesting class to consider,
but Sam didn’t think it would fit his playstyle.  It was a hunch.  There was
another new one too.

Nun/Pilgrim

A pious believer of the divine
that serves the church no matter what.  Extremely high BLF.  High DEX.

Starting Gear: Pilgrim’s Hat,
Pilgrim’s Robe, Pilgrim’s Trousers, Pilgrim’s Shoes, Pilgrim’s Gloves, Epee,
Maiden Shield, Rosario

Soul Intensity: 3

VIT 8 DEF 8 RES 6 STR 4 INT 6
DEX 12 SPD 8 SPT 6 BLF 15 PCP 2

This new Nun/Pilgrim class was
pretty interesting.  He guessed that the class name would change depending on
if you used a male or female character, probably the gear too.  What the Priest
normally had in pure strength and durability, this new class had in quickness
and dexterity.  The Pilgrim even had enough points in spirituality to
immediately use some Blessings right away.  The black and white Pilgrim’s gear
looked sort of silly on Sarem though.  He didn’t want a character that just
looked like they stepped off of the Mayflower.  Though he was a fan of the
small white shield and Epee.

“Oh god!  What is this?”

He was shocked as he looked on at
the way the next class’ gear looked on his character.  His awesomely tall and
chiseled fighter looked like a raving lunatic—no!  He looked like a nearly
naked serial killer barbarian.  That’s the only way to describe it.  There was
blood and dirt covering Sarem from head to toe.  Sam read the class’
description and had a nice chuckle at the equipment that came with it.

Deranged

Good for nothing?  Is
this a joke?

Starting Gear: Sack,
Bloodied Smock, Loin Cloth, Broken Shackles (ankles), Broken Shackles (wrists),
Bloody Femur, Rocks x5, Bomb x1

Soul Intensity: 1

VIT 1 DEF 1 RES 20 STR
1 INT 1 DEX 1 SPD 20 SPT 10 BLF 1 PCP 5

“Wow, just wow.  Well, at
least this is something else new.”

So Milner did have the
talent to create something original, but this?  This was definitely a good for
nothing joke.  This class was useless in just about every way except for
trolling.  It had no defense or HP at all, not even a shield.  One hit from a
normal enemy is probably all it would take to do the “Deranged” in.  It had a
lot of speed and with its gear that weighed virtually nothing, it could move
like no other class could, but that didn’t matter since it couldn’t do any
damage.  Its weapon was literally a giant bone.  And it only had one bomb.  True,
that was one more bomb than the other classes had, but it was only enough to
drastically hurt one enemy and probably not even kill it.  What was this class
supposed to do against the first boss or any bosses after?

“You’re a troll, Milner. 
I kind of like that.”

Sam would have loved to
start the game trolling, but he didn’t know enough about this new VR system to
risk it, and so he thought hard about the class he would choose to start the
game.  All of the classes he liked were specialty classes, but which specialty
did he prefer?  How did he want to play the game?  All out fighting?  Ranged
warfare?  Blessings?  Sam was thinking so hard that he was sure he would soon
get a headache, if that were possible in a VR sim.

“Fuck it!  I can’t stand
here forever.”

He threw caution to the
wind and selected the Cutthroat class like he initially wanted.  The shadowy
hood and all black gear looked so awesome on the character that he couldn’t
help it.  This class suited his playstyle the most too.  He’d just have to get
accustomed to the dodging really quickly.  Hopefully this game had a robust parrying
feature as well.  Sam had counted on it after seeing the all black Deflector
shield that the Cutthroat came with, same as in The Death Planes.  He found it
curious that the game didn’t let him choose a starting item, but he didn’t
linger on the thought.  He sighed out loud, finalized his choices, and waited
for the game to start.

“All right, here we go!”

The creation menu
disappeared and Sam was whisked away to the game’s opening cutscene.

3 Opening Cutscene

A voice echoed into Sam's ear, an English narrator
with a Master’s degree in Epic.  With an ancient and smoky voice, she told the
tale of the beautifully rendered cutscenes.  Sam kept quiet and watched on in
awe at the game's beautiful and mysterious backstory.

“For time immemorial, the world had been covered
in cold, stillness, and dark, suitable for only those ancient, eternal, and
powerful: the dwellers of the deep.  But then a chance occurrence happened—a
small spark lit up the world—and it became the catalyst for an age of change.”

Sam couldn’t see anything at first, but heard the sounds of
some sort of massive collision.  After that, the dark world was suddenly
brightened with a tiny flickering flame.

“The spark burned bright but only briefly, long
enough for a courageous Dweller to seize it and take it into himself.”

A shadowy human like creature stepped out of the
dark and grabbed the tiny flame, cradling the flame gently.

“This Dweller became Supreme and awakened the
spark to bring the light of his new soul to the world.  The other Dwellers
scornfully referred to him as the Lightbringer and feared his brilliance.  They
banded together and challenged him, led by Straga of the deepest depths.”

In the fiery light, the Dwellers could be seen. 
They were all mostly amorphous or misshapen and long like the very shadows. 
Straga was one of the few that seemed to have a solid form and it was massive. 
The rotund giant was covered in spikes and had no eyes to speak of.  His skin
also seemed to shift as if covered in living mud.

“In defense against their great numbers, Supreme
split his inner spark into two and created a son with the second half of the
ceaseless soul flame.  He named him Morningstar and together they fended off
the assaults of the Eternal Dwellers.”

An army of the shadowy Dwellers seemed to be
gathering in the dark depths.  Way above them, Supreme could hardly be seen
with all the light emanating from his body.  Sam only saw his vague human
shaped outline inside of a sun-like sphere of light.  His son Morningstar was
also glowing, but he wasn’t so bright that his features couldn’t be seen.  He
wore an ornate purple set of robes, along with golden rings on his wrists and
ankles.  He also had a pair of golden wings on his back.

“The brilliance of Supreme the Lightbringer and
Morningstar the Son of Light brought form to the formless.  In order to fathom
this new world many Dwellers acquired the sight, but some refused to adapt and
remained blind to this light and numb to this warmth.

“With their world and sensations affronted and
with fear gathering in their midst, Straga and his Eternal Dwellers waged war
on the two Lightbringers once and for all.  In the battle, Supreme was struck down
and consumed by his former brethren which spread his light and formed the first
of the Great Beings from the now burned and destroyed bodies of the Dwellers.”

Supreme appeared to be much larger than Sam had
initially thought.  He was pierced by a score of massive spiked pillars.  His
body fell to the earth and was divided and eaten by several of the amorphous
Dwellers, but soon after, each of the creature’s exploded in wild flames and
where they had died, gigantic infants thrashed about in the carnage, crying.

“In his rage, Morningstar hurled a powerful bolt,
formed of his own soul at Straga, slaying the ancient Dweller.”

The bolt was a massive golden spear of light and
it pierced the shadowy giant like nothing, obliterating him and the Dwellers
around him in an instant with an exploding wall of fire.  Lava erupted from
magma pools deep underground and bathed much of the stony land in molten rock.

“From the destruction came the advent of
earthbound fire and mankind.  The battlefield was cleared and the remaining
Dwellers retreated or surrendered to the Son of Light.”

Morningstar sat on a rocky throne as many Dwellers
waited in line to pay him homage.  Some others slinked right back into the
darkness, avoiding the light.

“Morningstar contained the deadly fire and used it
to form a winged creature like himself, a beautiful ruby bird.  The bird
introduced itself as Phoenix and became Morningstar’s favorite pet.”

Phoenix was giant sized, just like Supreme and Morningstar. 
The inside of its colossal wings were solid gold, while the outside was a
shimmering red.  It bathed in the flames, seemingly thriving in them.

“Morningstar sought to gain favor and continued
peace with his defeated foes, so he arranged to couple with an Eternal Dweller,
and presented her with a gift.  He chose Hystera, who was now the queen of the
depths, and built her a castle.  There, he presented her with Phoenix.  Hystera
sobbed at the sight of Phoenix and considered its mere presence an insult to
the loss of her people, so she released it.”

Hystera was taller than Morningstar, thin, and had
skin that was the deepest shade of black.  She was one of the few Dwellers who
actually had eyes.  Hers were as dark as her skin with grey pupils.  She had no
hair to speak of, and inside of Morningstar’s castle she wore an ornate jade
and gold headdress and matching gown.  In her room, she opened the cage of the
ruby bird and watched it fly out of the window, silver tears running down her
face all the while.

“Phoenix was drawn to the presence of the newly
formed humans who shared its kindred soul.  It brought more fire to their souls
and strengthened their wills.  From here, man grew in number and capability. 
They marked the land with wooden and stone towns and worshipped the bird as
their lord, Lord Phoenix.”

The progression of mankind was shown, from caves to towns. 
Phoenix then flew high over the comparatively small men and women, who were on
the ground tilling the land.  The humans then cut stones and erected monuments
to the bird.  The symbol for the bird was apparently a plus sign with the horizontal
line elongated.

“Hystera gave birth to Abominations that plagued
the world.”

It showed the Dweller queen giving birth to
terrifying creatures that were curiously diverse from her, Morningstar, and one
another.  Some had claws, some had scales, or horns, or fur; some even had all
of the above.  All had eyes that glowed red, orange, or yellow with some kind
of intense primal fire.  The backdrop of the scene wasn’t the castle this time,
but instead some place surrounded by black earth and magma.  Sam wondered if
she had maybe returned to her home deep underground.

“These children of Morningstar betrayed their
father and sealed him away while using his power to conquer and spread their
influence throughout the world.”

The Abominations had surrounded Morningstar by
standing in a circle side-by-side.  They each used some kind of sorcery,
composed of gold and crimson light that converged over him and locked him in
place.  Morningstar screamed in agony as the strange light pierced his body and
held him in place.  His own brilliant light came out of his body in several
streams and was absorbed by every one of his terrifying brood.

“The Great Beings, possessors of souls of light,
challenged the Abominations and were deadlocked with them until mankind joined
the fight.”

The babies from before were now full-on giants
clad in thickly armored plate mail with closed helmets.  Four of the giant
warriors were fighting a horde of smaller Abominations.  Two of the warriors
were slender and quick.  They drove off their opponents with piercing lance
thrusts and wide sweeps.  Another of the warriors was bulkier and fought with a
humongous greatsword and chopped down his opponents as if they were mere weeds
in need of whacking.  The final giant warrior bore two massive axes and swung
them around as if they were daggers, cleaving all sorts of heads, arms, legs,
and wings as he went.  But it seemed like the more the warriors killed, the
more Abominations would show and challenge them.

“With fire and steel, the men helped push the
Abominations back and together with the Great Beings sealed them away in their
subterranean dwellings.”

A vast human army gathered at the edge of the
flaming battlefield and converged on the horde of Abominations.  They looked
like little mice compared to the other giant combatants, but they were a
tenacious group.  Many of the men climbed atop the Abominations and hacked away
at their heads while others hacked away at other limbs.  Some of the men used
spellcraftes, pyromancies, bows, and javelins to fight from long range.  A
massive ballista was brought in and fired at a giant Abomination that had a
goat’s head, hooves, claws, and wings.  It breathed fire unto a group of human
soldiers below it, until the giant wood and metal missile pierced its chest. 
Once the giant Abomination fell dead, the human soldiers and giant warriors
drove the rest of the Abominations underground.  The giants used boulders to
block off the tunnels that led deep underground and a small group of robed
humans chanted as a white mist enveloped the entrance to the tunnels to form a
barrier.

“But when the time came to unseal Morningstar, the
men instead chose to deceive the Great Beings and placed further seals to
further lock away Morningstar so that he could not influence their world.”

The chanting humans, in their robes, created two
mist barriers this time.  The one closest to the sealed Morningstar was
golden.  The humans who created that barrier turned to dust as soon as it was
done and were scattered to the winds.  The second barrier was the same white as
the one from the tunnels.  Those sorcerers looked severely drained, but remained
alive afterwards.

“Without their Lord, the Great Beings faded into
obscurity, seeking respite from this new era.  Only a few continued to
interfere in the affairs of man.”

The battlefield from before was shown, only now it
was quiet and empty.  Wind blew the clothes of the piled human corpses.

“Now that man has come to power, the darkness is
beginning to pervade and the strength of the fire is beginning to fade. 
Phoenix, who has given men the strength of ceaseless fire, has gone silent and
disappeared.  Mankind has long since forgotten why many of them rise again
after they die.  Was it a curse?”

Another big battle was shown, this time between
two warring kingdoms of humans.  Day and night passed rapidly, dwindling the
combatants to just a few.  Time slowed back down to real time, the battle
winding down at night.  Two small groups of knights remained, but as they
clashed, fallen ally and enemy alike slowly rose up and rejoined the battle. 
Many of those who were resurrected attacked mindlessly and lumbered around like
zombies, though some had just as much vigor as before.

“From the depths, the final remaining Abomination
invaded.  Once shunned by the rest, the final Abomination sought out true dark
and bided its time to gather the power necessary to defeat the most powerful
Great Beings.  With their defeat, many of the Great Beings pledged fealty.  Now
together they guard over the power of the ceaseless fire and rule over the holy
lands of Heimfall, where the cursed are sent to rot.  These rulers are known as
the Fire Bearers.”

A giant flaming pyre the size of a city was shown
from the air.  The camera zoomed down into the center of the fire and down to
the bottom, where there had to have been thousands of piles of bones piled up. 
Tortured screams and ghastly wailing could be heard all around along with what
Sam thought was a screech.

“Unable to escape this perpetual conflict through
death, men finally see the true nature of their undying state and they seek to
end it.  To do that, champions set out to conquer the undead and snuff out the
Fire Bearers.  But is that what mankind truly wants?”

The screen faded to black.