Chapter 3: Chapter 3 – Battle Test

 

Chapter 3 

 

“Good morning!” The dragon announced as he strolled into the room.

It was dark now and I couldn’t see anything. I hadn’t bothered moving the bed back and had slept against the wall. I didn’t want a repeat of being thrown around inside the house so I reluctantly came out. The lanterns came to life with a flick of a switch, much like modern lights where I came from.

In the dull light, I could see that he was carrying a pink piece of fabric and a strap of some sort. Collar, I thought immediately. I tried to run, but he caught me and snapped it around my neck, and forced the pink fabric over my head. It was a poorly fitting dress.

“Cute!” The dragon exclaimed, staring at me. “I knew you’d look good in pink!”

I hate pink. I was a purple-and-black kind of girl. He dropped me back in the glass cage and I slumped against the floor. Ugh, starving! I stared at the granola and my mouth watered. No, gross. I’d rather starve to death.

The dragon wandered back over after a moment and looked at both bowls, then back at me. “Tsk tsk tsk,” he snapped his tongue at me. “This just won't do. Can't you die on me that easily!”

He left again. There was no way he was going to get me to eat that garbage! The dress was lame. The voice in my head told me so.

You have equipped Pink Dress! This equipment offers no benefits!

You have equipped Locator Collar! Never be lost again with the new and improved design!

Was that last part an ad or something? I tried to unhook the collar but it was locked. The material was too strong for me to rip or break, too. That time I got reincarnated as somebody’s fucking pet is a bullshit title but would be accurate. 

The door opened again and the dragon was carrying a clear cylinder of some white liquid. He came over to me and set down a cap with a nipple on the top. A bottle? Why would he need… He unscrewed the cap and replaced it and grabbed me before I could finish my thought. Then he shoved it in my mouth.

“Nnnnggg!” I gagged against the rubbery tip. I refused to suck on it. I tried to turn my head away but to no avail. 

He squeezed it. My mouth filled with lukewarm milk. He squeezed until I felt like my mouth was going to pop. The nipple was stretching my mouth too wide for it to escape. 

I swallowed when I felt it stream out my nose. Gulp. Gulp. Gulp. I was on the verge of a coughing fit when he pulled it out. I gagged and spit out what was in my mouth, wiping my mouth and nose with my hand. I coughed and coughed, clearing my throat and wiping away tears. 

“Open wide!” He said, shoving the bottle toward me. I blocked with my hands and he grumbled. “Never had this much trouble with a monster before. You humans are worth the effort from what I’ve read. I just need to raise our bond level, that’s all. But for now…”

He easily pulled my arms away and pinned them to my sides, holding me like he was holding a sword handle. My legs could barely kick at all. “Fuck you!” I shouted.

He shoved it back into my mouth. He squeezed me until I gasped and was forced to suck in a large gulp. Then it never stopped. I couldn’t stop gulping it down. When I tried, it threatened to go up my nose and send me into another coughing fit. 

Reluctantly I gulped down a quarter of the bottle before he pulled out. I was covered in milk and feeling sticky when he dropped me back into the glass box. I washed off in the watering bowl while watching him prepare some sort of… carrier? As much as I could understand their spoken tongue, reading their language was a whole different ball game.

“Alright, time to go!” The dragon announced, moving from box to box and scooping up different creatures. The Horned Woofacle was one of them. I grumbled to myself and looked down at my swollen stomach. 2 days…

Then he grabbed me. “Ahhh!” I shouted in surprise before being tossed in yet another box. This one was more comfortable, at least. He closed the lid and everything went dark. It felt like I was being carried but I couldn’t see anything at all. 

 

-

 

The rush of air and the beating of wings was all I could hear for the better part of an hour. When the box was opened I was blinded by a silvery light. My eyes adjusted quickly and I stared in awe. The sun, or what I believed was the sun, was a glowing silver orb in the sky. The heat felt the same, but everything was coated in a silver glow. We were in a grassy meadow with trees in the distance. 

 “About time, nerd,” one of the dragons from the previous day said. “You brought the human, yes? Can I breed it? Please? Please? I’ll pay you!”

“I haven’t even had it for a day!” Draconis snapped back, “Maybe someday, sure.”

Fuck that. I’ll be gone by then, I thought. 

Draconis pulled me out of the box first and tossed me to the ground. Everything seemed two to three times larger than it was for me before coming to this world. Flowers easily came up to my waist with petals as big as a banana leaf and thorns like daggers. I picked one off.

You have obtained Thorn! To see equipment information in more detail, view your character screen!

OK, how do I do that magical voice in my head? I sarcastically replied to the voice.

To access the character screen, focus on the small dot in the right corner of your vision.

The dot in the… I hadn’t seen it before. But there it was. And now that I had seen it, I couldn’t unsee it. It just floated there like an annoying speck in my vision. I stopped fretting over it and focused on it as I had when I used splash.

My character screen popped up, looking identical as it had last night. I skipped to the next page and looked at the equipment section. 

 

Valerie Height: 5’1” Weight: 114lbs Eyes: Blue Hair: Black Egg Type: Any Status: Pregnant (33:27) Equipment Pink Dress Locator Collar Thorn Owner: Draconis

 

As if on cue, as soon as I thought about how to view the details the voice was back.

 

To view an item in greater detail, focus on the item in the equipment section of your character screen.

Thorn, melee weapon, nature       The thorn of a Draken Rose! Deals 7 - 10 piercing damage!

 

I plucked another while the dragons rambled on about using me after Draconis was done with me. It made my blood boil. Three of the other monsters were wandering around. The Woofacle came sniffing around me and I bopped him away. I wasn’t in the mood for his nonsense.

“You ready?” The female dragon asked. At her feet in front of her was a monster, a bipedal mouse with a fire-tipped tail. It came up to my thighs and was incredibly fluffy. It would have been cute if it didn’t look like it wanted to murder me.

“I select you, Valerie!”

I felt a slight compulsion to walk that way. What is this feeling? I reluctantly made my way toward the mouse. The grass was replaced by an indent in the ground I hadn’t seen past the knee-high grass. I tripped down the side and beefed it hard. The dragons laughed. I stood up and faced the mouse. I really don’t want this. But part of me did? Weird conflicting feelings I was having. 

“Begin!” The third dragon announced.

The fire mouse immediately charged and headbutted me in the stomach. I gasped and fell backward to the ground, instantly pulled from my thoughts. 

You have taken 6 bludgeoning damage from Flamouse! You have been knocked down!

“Use your Flame skill!” The female dragon called out.

I rolled away from the fire. The ground where I was lying had become an instant hellscape of burning hot gravel. UH, no fucking thanks. I charged the mouse. He spit fire at me again but I threw up my hand and used Splash! Nothing happened.

 

You take 8 points of fire damage from Flamouse’s Flame!

 

So this is how I die, huh? The mouse charged me again but I got to my feet and jumped over him. I spun and gave chase, stabbing again when he turned around to face me. 

You deal 7 piercing damage to Flamouse with your Thorn!

 

I tried to ignore the burns but it was hard. The shoulder of my dress had been burned through and my shoulder was blackened. Pain lanced down my side as I ran to avoid another gout of flames. I lunged. He lunged.

He may have been a better fighter, but I had the height advantage! I drove my spike straight through the top of his head with the thorn!  The limp body dropped to the ground with the spike sticking out the top. 

 

You deal 12 CRITICAL piercing damage to Flamouse with your Thorn!

You have felled Flamouse (Level 3)! You receive 480 experience!

You have gained 2 levels! You are now level 3!

Vitality +13 Body +1 Mind +1 Magic +3 Spirit +4

 

“Wow, brutal.” The female dragon said. “You gave her weapons?”

“No, she must have picked them up. Oh, level 3! Nice!”

“You know I’m not made of revival herbs,” the female dragon sprayed the dead mouse with a gold-tinted spray bottle. His wounds recovered and stood back up.

That’s… I don’t know. He’d definitely been dead. I can’t even die then, I sighed in frustration. I was also misted with a bottle that brought my health back up to max 33. Getting stronger is my only option. 

Draconis retrieved something from the box and brought it to me. “Here, use this.” He dropped it at my feet and waited for me to drop the second thorn. I picked up the new weapon, a simple bat-like weapon.

 

You have equipped Club. 

 

I went into my status to look at the weapon in greater detail. 

Club, melee weapon, nature       A simple wooden club that deals 8 - 15 bludgeoning damage.

 

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The second match started but I knew what I could do. He charged me first and I stepped and swung the club like I was playing golf for the first time. 

 

You deal 13 damage to Flamouse with your Club!

 

The mouse reeled from the blow and sucked in air. I took a chance. I ran through the fire, eyes closed. It was hot. I had the club lifted in front of my face to shield myself. My forearms blazed and I cracked the overgrown hamster right on top of the head.

You take 11 points of fire damage from Flamouse’s Flame!

You deal 9 points of bludgeoning damage to Flamouse with your Club!

Flamouse has been knocked out! You receive 480 experience points!

You have gained a level! You are now level 4!

Vitality +7 Body +1 Magic +4 Spirit +6 You have gained the Resilience trait!

 

I opened my menu to look at the trait, focusing on it as I had been on everything else.

Resilience, trait       The first time you would be reduced to zero health per day, you are instead set to 1

 

The female dragon healed the little flaming mouse and Draconis healed me. He won't let me die and I’m harder to kill. I can do whatever I want. That gave me confidence.

We fought again. And again. Each result was the same. I won. I was getting better each time, stronger. I didn’t get any new skills though. I was level 8 when I could one-shot him consistently and the experience gains had lowered.

“I can’t believe she doesn’t have a new skill yet,” the female dragon complained. “Are you sure you’re not lying? This is the only low-level monster I brought to fight with and it’s getting boring. Also, these healing items cost money.”

“OK, OK, fine. We’ll have some real battles. Level 50’s standard rules.” Draconis pointed. “I Draconis, challenge you, Sofizia, to a monster duel!”

“I accept.” 

The sky darkened for the briefest moment and from the sky fell a huge black obelisk. Before hitting the ground it fired rocket boosters and landed safely. It was a towering black spire, one and a half times taller than the dragons. A red light appeared and it spoke.

“Judge system activated! Draconis, ID number 02234 versus Sofizia ID number 02477! Standard battle! Each challenger may now select three monsters to battle in the arena!”

A red laser from the red light outlined the circle of gravel where I’d been battling just a moment ago. Now I was fully healed and shunted to the sidelines to watch.

“Round One, Zed the Horned Woofacle versus Chet the Chimera Beast! Begin!”

The Chimera beast was exactly like I expected it to be from my experience with video games. Head of a lion, tail of a snake, and all that jazz. Their attacks sundered the ground and sent gravel exploding like TNT. Will I be that strong? The Chimera may have been three times the size of the Woofacle, but he was getting dominated.

The battle ended with a beam of pure black energy that ripped through the Chimera’s wings and chest. It crumpled to the ground bleeding heavily. I don’t want to die like that, she thought, even if I can be revived. The next creature entered the arena and they didn’t even move the body away. 

“Basil the Rock Golem has entered the battle as Sofizia’s second pick!”

It didn’t stand a chance. The beam cut through the stone like nothing and the golem fell. 

“A critical hit!” The obelisk announced, “And for her last pick Sofizia has selected Sapphira the Gemstar!”

The thing the announcer called a Gemstar looked like a huge floating crystal flower with three tentacle-like appendages coming out the front. I shuddered.

The floating gem and the Woofacle Zed shot beam after beam, colliding and missing for a straight minute. On one particular clash, Zed dashed through the explosion of a colliding beam and struck at close range. The enemy had no time to react, taking the brunt of a surprise beam at almost point-blank. 

“No fair,” Sofizia said. “That thing’s Dark Beam is just too strong!”

“Draconis ID number 02234 has emerged victorious! The Obelisk Battle System will remain operational for 30 minutes!”

I watched the female dragon Sofizia restore her creatures to life. They acted as if nothing had happened and wandered around in the gravel arena. I tried to get a better vantage in the meadow but couldn’t find anything to climb on. Grass and flowers as far as the eye could see, bathed in the light of the silver sun. 

Useless, I thought to myself. I wandered a little further from the next commencing battle. This time Draconis was battling the third dragon but I didn’t care to watch now. I needed more information. I didn’t know how often I would get to be outside. 

Sssssssss.

Something moved under me, beneath the blanket of grass. I ran back towards the others but something grabbed my leg. From between two blades, I saw a forked tongue. It lunged for me and I instantly fell back, barely avoiding the strike. I hit the snake’s body with my club and it uncoiled from my leg. 

You deal 17 bludgeoning damage to Warp Snek with your Club!

It was coiling into a tight circle and hissing at me, eyes looking for an opening. It seemed wary of the club. With my level ups, my club now did 10 - 19 points of damage per hit. This snek was definitely stronger than the mouse. 

Snap!

I couldn’t even react. The thing teleported and was instantly on me. A fang ripped straight through my right thigh. 

You take 21 piercing damage from Warp Snek’s Bite! You have been poisoned!

Fuck! I smacked him straight on the side of the head. He hit the ground and took another 12 points of damage. My health flashed and I lost ten percent of my current health from the poison damage. That was a total of 26 damage total, leaving me with 46. I couldn’t take much more of that!

The snek lunged again, warping at me! He missed. I rolled across the grass and he rushed me. I fucking hate this! I screamed internally. This was a legit fear she’d always had of snakes.

You deal 32 CRITICAL bludgeoning damage to Warp Snek with your Club!

I barely held on to the club when I hit. I wanted to run, but in the same breath, it was exhilarating. I watched the snek closely. There had to be a way to – he warped at me. There it was! I ducked and rolled back to my feet. Just before he warped, he tensed up to strike. 

Focus. I gripped my club tighter, with both hands. He did the thing. I moved just enough away and,

Smack!

 

You have dodged Warp Snek’s Bite!

You have learned the skill, Dodge! You’re getting good at moving out of the way of danger!

You deal 14 bludgeoning damage to Warp Snek with your Club!

You have dodged Warp Snek’s Bite!

I saw it coming. Time literally slowed as I watched his muscles ripple and tense. Mouth open, fangs aimed straight for me. When he lunged, he teleported and I was already to the side. I grabbed his tail and swung him hard over my head and into the ground behind me with a powerful slam!

 

You deal 10 damage to Warp Snek! You have successfully grappled Warp Snek!

 

Oh yeah, I did, didn’t I? The snek tried to wiggle free but the voice told me he failed. I slammed him again, then again. 

 

You deal 10 damage to Warp Snek!

You deal 11 damage to Warp Snek!

WHY WON'T YOU DIE?! I pulled him forward and smacked him with my club at the same time. That was enough. 

 

Warp Snek has been knocked out! You receive 3630 experience points!

You have gained 2 levels! You are now level 10!

Vitality +15 Body +1 Magic +4 Spirit +6 Luck +1 You have gained the Poison Element trait! You take half damage from poison! You have learned the Antitoxin skill!

 

I immediately opened my menu to see how to activate the skill. 

To activate the Antitoxin skill, focus on the heart and push that focus outward. 

Thanks, meditation classes! I took a breath and expelled the poison from my body. My health stopped ticking down every second and I limped back to the box. I was sore and there was a hole through my leg. Nothing a little spritz won't fix, she sighed. 

“Alright, I’m all out of tonics, good game!” 

“Same,” Draconis was just finishing up healing his second monster he’d used, an oddly normal duck-looking creature. Nothing weird about it I could see. It was half my height but still bigger. Fluffier. 

No tonics? The pain in my leg was intense, but I thought I would only have to deal with it for a couple of minutes. But now? Fuck.

“Oh no, little one!” Draconic seized me and I cried out in pain. “What bad timing!”

“Oh, see that Warp Snek over there? I bet that’s what did it.” Sofizia was looking over Draconis’ shoulder. 

“Stay,” he said as he tossed me into the dark carrier once again. The pain was intense. I thought I might pass out but again, no luck. It was just a throbbing mess. 

I saw him toss the knocked-out snek into the compartment beside me and give me a thumbs up. “Wow, dude, like finding monsters out in the wild like that is rare. Companies sell us stupid ass eggs for high prices and keep the monster populations low and regulated.”

“What can I say? The human is lucky.”

“Yeah, yeah. Rub it in,” Sofizia sighed. “Morag and I are going for lunch. You joining?”

“Not this time, I have to secure the Warp Snek and take care of Valerie.”

The other two took off while Draconis loaded up his stuff. The obelisk lit up after a period of nonuse and began to float into the air above us.

“Initiating global return. Until next time!”

The obelisk blasted off like a rocket with another burst of flame from the bottom. It soared up through the sky until all I could see was a haze of silvery blue. 

Then he closed the lid.

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