The Excisionists: Book 1 Read online

  Although the Interdimensional Dwellers, or Lutrians, could generate Calabi-Yau manifolds and travel through wormholes, their attack force was extremely low. Despite this I was interested in their ability to retrieve items from other dimensions, and that they were listed as key masters. However, their overall appearance and large fangs made this race a definite no.

  The Scouts/Thieves named Stroyans seemed too ordinary for my liking. On the bright side, they were stealthy, had climbing skills, and started with basic armor that would allow them to blend in anywhere. They could also pack dozens of items, were fast runners, and had excellent hearing. Because the Stroyans were mostly active at night, had low attack resistance, and reminded me of a scorpion I decided not to pick this group.

  The Light Dwellers were named the Rehbein People. They could float but not fly. They also could channel lightning, use crystals to generate energy, activate crystalline towers warp points, and move rapidly. Their disadvantages were the inability to enter water, low attack resistance, and they required crystals around them at all times or their health would steadily decline. Although they were necessary for activating some of the crystalline tower warp points, I didn’t want to be the one everyone was trying to attack to prevent other parties from moving to the next level.

  The Tumans were Humanoid and did have the ability to fly ships but were small in comparison to the other avatars. They were stronger than many of the characters despite their size, started with some weapons mods and armor, but only had average strength, attack resistance, and health. Because they had a miniscule body build, I could see this as being a hindrance to traveling and wasn’t sure how this race would accommodate for this shortcoming.

  Forest Dwellers were referred to as Nomads from one of four tribes. These tribes were Zoolos, Floros, Geolos, and Dropos. Each group had additional abilities based on their tribe, but all had low attack resistance and strength because they healed easily from the potions they could make. They could hide easily, had excellent hearing, and could communicate with plants, animals and so on. Although I could see the benefits of being able to make healing potions, it was likely that I could trade crystals for them and not have to be saddled with the weaknesses associated with this race.

  I further explored the traits of the Lizard People, Necromancers, Shape Shifters, and Water Aliens. The Lizard People were named the Wa’adas. They were rugged, fierce, excessively strong, heat tolerant, and had the ability to camouflage easily in nearly any environment. One big negative was having only knives, spears, and talons as their primary weapons. In addition to this, they had no cold tolerance, and couldn’t breathe under water for more than five minutes without an oxygen pack. Despite their attack force just being average, their initial health was relatively high.

  Necromancers, called Gorkans, intrigued me because they were cold resistant and had the highest resistance against an attack. Necromancers were weakest during the day and disliked strong light, but at night their attack was heightened. Their race could conjure the dead to serve themselves and protect others, but their ability to conjure was based on taking health from other players. In order to become “undead” and be able to conjure and army of unliving souls, they had to take five percent health from ten other players. If more than four of the ten players lost their lives at the same time, the undead status would disappear until the players were back in the game and upgraded their health by one level. The other players were unable to be killed by the Necromancer they bonded with and had a higher resistance against other Necromancers’ attacks. This arrangement seemed tenuous and would require quite a bit of attention to prevent loss of undead status.

  Water Aliens were next on my list to explore and they were called Vibrians. Their form was humanoid on land and alien in fluids. They could stay under water indefinitely, swim at a high rate of speed, could freeze and attack with water, and track enemies through ripples or vibrations in the water. They could also communicate through fluids. The drawbacks to the Vibrians were possessing only a moderate attack and having only moderate healing after an attack. Their race had a moderate heat intolerance, and a dislike of high wind areas.

  The last race that had caught my eye was the Shape Shifters also known as the Evas. They were spies, could mimic any other character along with species found in any environment, and had slightly higher than average attack resistance. Their attack force was lower than the Wa’adas, but higher than the Tumans. The biggest drawback I could see was that they only could take on half of the attack power, health, and abilities of those they mimicked meaning they were more vulnerable when they shifted rather than staying in their original skin.

  I was torn between four potential avatars but could only try out three of them. Since the Vibrians seemed to have the fewest positives, I decided to cut the Vibrians from my list and try out the others. “Cygnet I’ll try out the Wa’adas, Gorkans, and the Evas. Select one at random for me to complete the course.”

  Immediately I was transformed into a Wa’ada. My skin shifted from pale flesh to a shiny scaly covering. I was tall with a deep green hue and umber patches. I looked similar to a flat-tailed horned lizard, but with an elongated jaw, a narrow waist, and I was standing on two legs. Short spines formed and protruded from below my jaw and along my tail. Six larger spines ringed my head in even intervals. Large unblinking solid black irises reflected everything around me. My arms and legs increased in size, were muscular but still somewhat humanlike, and had charcoal talons that were sharp and curved. My smooth scaly skin became stunningly etched by decorative scars resembling a star map. Strange pictograms and symbols spiraled down my tail. Intricately carved wooden pieces formed a necklace and covered my upper torso. A thin brown loincloth hung about my waist, and a small belt held a fierce looking knife that had a curved blade with a hand-carved wooden handle.

  “This is awesome!”

  Before I could continue to admire the avatar further, a bouncy gelatinous gray alien popped up from the floor that had transformed into a steely structure littered with bomb holes. The music in the background became increasingly intense and pounded in my ears. I gripped the knife and hissed as I jumped toward the target. I sliced it in half with one swipe leaving behind two fluid covered gray halves writhing on the floor. My blade glimmered in the harsh white light as did my rows of sharp teeth. Dozens of bouncing featureless blobs shot up through the holes in the floor and sailed through the air toward me. I slashed with my talons and curved blade until all were left wriggling on the floor.

  In an instant, the flat floor lifted sharply forming stairs, pegs, and valleys as the obstacle course took shape. I bounded upwards to the top of the stairs and used my muscular arms to swing from peg to peg above cavernous valleys boasting sharpened spears pointing upward like ravenous wolves waiting for prey to drop into their gaping jaws. Suddenly, laser blasts obliterated the platform ahead and grazed my right arm leaving searing pain in its pathway.

  “Aaah!” I gritted my teeth and searched for an alternate route while simultaneously trying to locate the source of the blasts. Off to my left was a shifting platform that could serve as a temporary reprieve from the blasts to my side. I flipped through the air tucking my tail close as I rotated and stuck the landing. I crouched and pulled my knife to target the blasts coming from a rolling spherical drone. I dodged two more bright white laser blasts before tossing my knife end over end into the blinking metal gears and watched as the drone dropped from the sky and crashed into the sharpened stakes below. The platform lurched forward and dumped me onto the narrow precipice below the platform I was trying to reach. My claws gripped the blast holes and I scaled the wall as quickly as I could.

  When I pulled myself upwards onto the steely ledge, more blasts came from behind. I dashed to the towers of metal and ducked behind one of them to see a maze open before me. Blades buzzed down the main alleys of the intricate web and drones flew by dropping bombs at regular intervals. I calculated the risks and watched for breaks in the action. Every three seco
nds, another bomb was dropped and every six seconds the blades rolled through the pathway. I could see a pathway through the bombs but would have to move fast to avoid being hit. I jogged through the first lane and looked left then right to figure out the next turn. The right turn had drops of liquid and the left had more drones dropping bombs. I chose the right lane and trotted toward the first puddle. The liquid was pale pink and had crackles of lightning throughout it. Above was the source of the fluid. A thick eggplant colored shrub with curled leaves and a spike of flowers exuded the electrified liquid.

  There was a pathway through the liquid, but that would require that I hop over the first puddle, jump upward and grasp a hanging vine, and then swing across a second puddle. I would then have to jump and grasp the wall to make my way across the third puddle. All of this would have to be done without touching any of the liquid or the three large plants that dropped liquid. I took a deep breath and hopped across the first puddle, but I lost my balance and dropped into the fluid that immediately shocked me and I lost consciousness. Moments later I was back at the starting point with Cygnet’s jade jewels staring blankly at me.

  Her excessively pleasant voice was out of place. “That concludes trial one. Would you like to choose your avatar, or should I pick another from the remaining two?”

  “I need another trial. Surprise me with the race.”

  My skin rippled into a misty gray interspersed with long black streaks, and my long hair vanished. The veins in my body puffed and darkened as tiny lines of blackness began to stretch from the back of my head toward my graying lips. I blinked and opened my eyes to reveal solid blackness with a glowing indigo center. A gauzy white cloak hooded my face and shrouded my entire body that had elongated and faded becoming something akin to fog. I held a textured white staff ending in a pointed four fingered claw. It contained an indigo orb at the top of the staff inside four projections that resembled fingers. At the center of the orb was a swirling streaking sparkling indigo light. My hand that gripped the long staff was mottled with shades of gray and white with thick sinews stretched tightly between the bones. I had no visible nails, but my palms and fingers were covered with retractable barbs that would likely allow me to climb ice.

  I felt a deep cold creep into my core until it permeated my entire being and became my natural state. A long slim sword extended from my other bony hand. I slipped the staff into a thong around my shoulders to keep it close to my back while I traversed the obstacle course. My feet no longer touched the floor and I was ready to enter the game. I floated forward toward the blobs of gray flesh hurtling toward me. Instead of slicing them as I had before as a Wa’ada, I focused on the visible beating core and breathed in its life force. The alien blobs crumpled inward and dropped to the ground when their souls transferred to my being. Never had I felt so alive.

  The next obstacle required that I float up the staircase and grasp the rungs to get near the target platform. I anticipated the laser blasts and floated downward toward the shifting platform before the shots could reach my location. This time I didn’t want to lose my weapon, so I slid back and forth across the platform to dodge the fire from the spherical drone until it passed by. Once it left, I could see it coming around again in the same direction. It must have been on a circular orbit and I hadn’t seen it before. I waited for it to reach the platform and sliced it in two with my sword. The platform behaved as it did before and neared the wall. I slipped my sword into its sheath on my back and scaled the wall. I streamed through the air to get to the maze and waited for the pattern to emerge again. Because my consistency was nearly as thin as air, I floated above the blades and past the dropping bombs as I moved toward the righthand turn. The electricity didn’t harm me as I slid past the dripping plants. At the end of this alley was another choice. I could either turn right and go under water or turn left and enter an ice-covered doorway.

  I moved toward the block of ice and opened the door. The chill most avatars would experience from the blast of icy wind didn’t phase me and I moved toward an unseen enemy. The room was large, and icicles hung from every wall. The floor of the room was covered with drifts of sparkling snow. As I moved toward the opening of the cave at the back of the room, the snow shifted, and circling blades popped up from zigzagging drones. Dozens of pale winged birds attacked with sharp claws and beaks. I sucked the life from the birds and dodged the blades as I returned the attack with my slim sword. I winced as one of the drones sliced into my thigh, casting drops of sable blood in all directions. I plunged the blade deep into the mechatronic being and felt a deep sense of satisfaction as I crushed the rotating gears. It shorted out and dropped onto its side. When all the enemies were finally gone, I entered the jagged cave opening.

  Inside was a swirling green portal that whisked me to a lava filled island with spurts of magma shooting from beneath the surface. They spewed out in random locations, and creeping scorpions with glowing embers for tails and claws patrolled the island. Mirrored drones that reflected and concentrated the heat from the volcano began to shoot the beams of heat in my direction. The fierce beam sliced through my chest pulling nearly half of my health reserve. What remained was in serious jeopardy due to the massive onslaught of foes. I spun and swiped with my sword as I pulled the life force from the closest scorpion. It dropped to the ground and the red coals flickered to black as a plume of smoke evaporated from its back. I reflected back the heat with the blade of my sword to a shiny black obsidian rock in the distance forcing the beam of heat to hit the underside of the drones and rupture their optics. They spun off course and slammed into walls of rock or were swallowed by jets of lava. I fought hard until one of the scorpions caught me off guard and plunged its tail deep into my back. I vaporized into blackness and reemerged directly in front of Cygnet.

  I gasped for air as the last traces of pain melted away. After taking a moment to refocus, I requested my final trial. “Suit me up with the last one.”

  “Your request we be completed. Please note this is your final attempt. Good luck.”

  I squeezed my eyes shut briefly and then opened them to see my body morphing into an Eva. I shifted into a being composed of wisps of a dark metallic substance and organic material tangled together surrounding semi-human facial features. My face elongated and revealed high cheek bones, solid silver eyes shaped like upside down teardrops, and gray-blue skin. My lips were shiny green and thin lines of the same shade marked my forehead. An almost imperceptible forcefield enrobed the entirety of my being to keep me in the required environment for this species. Immediately I realized that I had no weapons. I saw the bouncing gray blobs coming my way and shifted back into a Gorkan. I pulled out my staff and piercing some of them with the sharp end. On others I used the indigo orb to bludgeon them to death. The other obstacles were passed as easily as they had been the first time, but when I reached the portal, I shifted to a Wa’ada to prepare for the island of lava.

  Instead of exploring my surroundings, I sliced through all of the scorpions with my talons and teeth, ripping bits from their necks after jumping on their backs and tearing off their tails. This time I saw a row of stones that were shaped like spears. I ran toward them and broke one off to use as a weapon against the drones. I was able to avoid the blasts of reflected heat and then shattered the drones with the sharp edge of the stone. When all of the enemies had been destroyed, the ground began to shake, and the music changed. The rocky surface split in two as a massive snake of glowing rock slithered to the surface. The eyes were intensely yellow and appeared to be balls of flame. It slid open its huge jaws and spit forked flames toward me. I jumped out of the way just in time to avoid them. I knew that neither the Wa’ada nor the Gorkan would be ideal for fighting this boss, but the Eva had no weapons meaning I couldn’t safely shift back to this race. I quickly shifted into a scorpion from this location and lashed out at the beast.

  Without warning, Cygnet spoke in my ears. “This is the Scintillating Scoria. Avoid the flames and attack when its back i
s turned. The weakest spot is the top of the head.”

  “Whoa! Wasn’t expecting that!”

  I crawled to the closest rock formation and smashed it with my claws causing a cascade of rocks to roll in front of me. The Scoria spit more flames and slithered closer to me. I lifted a rock with my claw and tossed it toward the Scoria’s head. It dodged my blow and its eyes followed the hurtling black boulder exposing the back of its head. I took another shot with a smaller slab of rock that hit it square in the back of its head. The beast screamed as sparks flew in all directions as it spun back toward me. I could see how rapidly the Scoria was approaching so I searched for another rock to hop to. I looked down and could see several outcroppings of rock that hadn’t been dissolved in the lava flowing around the island.

  I ran and jumped onto the nearest boulders and whipped back around to see where the Scoria was. It had reached the end of the island and was sliding down into the lava head first. I could see ripples in the lava as it swam toward me. Now I had to find another strategy. I hopped to the next closest rocky upheaval just as the Scoria lifted its head from the lava flow. I shifted to a Wa’ada and threw my knife into the top of its head. It screeched again with a deafening tone and dropped back under the river of lava. I shifted into a Gorkan and lifted my staff from its thong. The swirling indigo orb reflected the light around me and I waited until the Scoria was nearing my location. I was poised ready to strike when unexpectedly, it emerged near the main island shooting rapidly spinning balls of flame at me. I cried out in surprise as I floated onto another rock. The two other rocks I’d been on suddenly dropped below the surface of the lava as it rippled and surged upward. I had no choice other than to return to the main island.