Forged Legacy

The four sat in silence for a long moment, listening to the gentle hiss of the lantern burning. So much had happened in a few short hours, and now they had seen firsthand what the second chance at life they had been given really meant. A chance to fight an army of undead that they were hopeless to defeat unless something changed fast. They were better equipped, had a horde of monstrous beasts backing them up, and clearly understood the tapestry much better than they did. Harvey felt like he could still hear hammers beating in the distance, even though the vision proved the army was still hundreds of miles away.

“I should’ve just let that dog tear my throat out. Would’ve been a quicker death than what’s coming.” Gabe lamented.

“It’s not hopeless.” Julian snapped back, annoyance Harvey hadn’t seen from him flashing across his face. “It’s been less than a day, and I’m already level 5. My strength has tripled since I arrived, and I got a notification saying I can create my first skill at a Loom… whatever that means. Who’s to say how strong we can become by the time the army gets here?”

“Good for you, doesn’t change a thing for me. I’ve been chased around this god forsaken forest since the minute I got here, and as soon as I thought I had actually found somewhere safe, I had an arrow pointed at my face and zombies pouring out of every broken window.” Gabe began to yell before a harsh stare from Hannah reminded him of what happened the last time he lost control.

“None of that matters now. We’re alive, and we can help you get stronger.” Harvey began.

“You don’t get it!” Gabe yelled, tears welling up in his eyes. “I’m done. I don’t deserve to make it out of here, and even if I did, there’s no way I’m getting past those spiders.”

Harvey watched as Gabe tucked his head between his knees and began shaking, barely muffled sobs filling the room. He wondered if Gabe was dealing with the same stain he was. Walking around with 1 willpower made every sight and sound in the forest feel like a snake waiting to strike, but now that he had a few levels and 10 willpower under his belt, it was getting easier to approach things rationally. The workbench groaned as Harvey moved to sit beside him.

“Gabe, I’m going to share something with you that I’m embarrassed to admit. I’m here because I killed myself today.” Harvey explained, his voice dwindling to a whisper.

“So what, I don’t care,” Gabe replied, his voice breaking.

“I’m telling you this because that decision showed up as a stain on my legacy. I don’t know exactly how the stats work yet, but that stain lowered my willpower by 5 points and filled me with this overwhelming fear that I still can’t explain. I would be long dead by now if Julian hadn’t shown up to save me, but with his help, I was able to level high enough to increase my willpower. I went from a single point all the way to ten, and I can honestly say I don’t feel as scared anymore. He can help you, too. You just have to push through the fear you’re feeling right now,” Harvey encouraged.

Gabriel’s angry red eyes looked up at Harvey as he spoke, and softened when he shared the legacy screen showing his Severed Thread Stain. They sat together for a moment, a heavy silence hanging over the room until Gabe let out a sharp exhale.

“Damn it, man, I’m not scared. I’m ashamed.” Gabe finally relented.

“About what? Can you tell us what happened?” Julian pushed.

“I had only been here for a few minutes when this dog started chasing after me…” He began, choking up as he recounted the experience.

“The same thing happened to me.” Hannah shared, encouraging him to continue

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“Well, I panicked. I turned and ran faster than I’ve ever run before. I’ve been around stray dogs my whole life, but there was something different about this thing. No fur, just muscle and fangs. I was weaving through the trees, but the thing was gaining on me, and out of nowhere, I ran straight into this woman. She was a little older, probably early 40s…”

The air was thick with anticipation. Harvey could guess what happened next, but nobody wanted to say it out loud.

“I was moving pretty fast, so we both ended up on the ground. We were all tangled up, and I pushed off her to get back to my feet. I kept running until I heard her start screaming behind me.” Gabe took a long pause as he struggled to get the words out, tears once again flowing down his dirty cheeks.

“The bloodrunn got her.” Julian sighed

Instead of answering, a blue screen appeared for the group to see.