Heart pounding, Reidar pressed his eye to the tiny crack in the door, holding his breath. Just beyond, the station’s main area shuddered under the failing lights.
Through the small gap, he saw movement—uncertain, unnatural, clinging to the shadows. <Something is out there.>
Reidar dared not move, afraid even a sigh might give him away.
As the noise was getting louder and closer, Reidar gave a last look that gave him the chance to see the source clearly.
Something was entering through the shattered front windows. Above each one, some text was floating.
–Ember Rift-Sprite - Level 1–
–Stone Rift-Sprite - Level 1–
–Aqua Rift-Sprite - Level 1–
The creatures stood roughly two feet tall with hunched, top-heavy postures. They had long, spindly arms that resulted in obsidian-like claws. Their legs were short and stumpy, giving them an awkward, waddling gait as they moved through the debris.
Their faces disturbed him the most. Large, solid-colored eyes glowed with inner light. The Ember Sprite’s eyes burned orange like coals.
The Stone Sprite’s were a dull gray. The Aqua Sprite’s glowed deep blue like ocean depths. None had visible noses, only narrow slits above wide, lipless mouths that opened to reveal rows of needle-like teeth.
But their skin made Reidar’s stomach shift. It wasn’t flesh at all but a brittle, shell-like material that resembled cracked porcelain.
Through the cracks, something stirred.
<Rift Sprites? They look more like imps than sprites.>
The creatures moved through the store, chittering to each other in high-pitched sounds. They seemed to be searching for something.
Reidar remembered he wasn’t alone at the gas station. The clerk and the two customers he had seen five hours earlier should have been there too.Updates are released by novel✦fire.net
<They should have woken up by now, just as I had.>
They should have been investigating the Guardian system and its interfaces, or at least should have been awakened by the monsters’ arrival. But there was no stirring, no sound. Nothing.
He pressed his face closer to the gap and scanned the visible areas of the store. Nothing moved except the three sprites.
The Ember Sprite stopped near the checkout counter and released a bunch of eager chirps. The other two went on its spot.
Reidar shifted his position to get a better view and saw what had caught their attention. A large section of the ceiling had collapsed inside the station, with concrete slabs and twisted metal beams scattered across the floor behind the counter.
Dark stains spread across the white linoleum floor. At first, Reidar thought it could be water from broken pipes, but the color was wrong. Too dark. Too thick. Too red.
He saw a hand protruding from below one of the concrete slabs. The skin was pale and motionless. A few meters away, a woman’s purse lay open. One of the customers.
The clerk’s body was partially visible near the register, pinned beneath a fallen beam. Blood had pooled around his head and torso, dried now into dark, sticky patches.
Reidar’s breath caught in his throat. They were dead. The ceiling collapse had killed them while they all slept. Only his spot in the back storage room had saved him from the same fate.
Reidar’s breath hitched, his chest tightening as he stared at the blood-streaked linoleum. The clerk’s body, limp and twisted beneath the beam, made his thoughts spin. That could’ve been anyone. That could’ve been him.
Or worse—them.
His mind flashed to their faces. Martha’s smile, Marcus’ wild hair, and that toothy grin he wore like armor. Were they safe? Or trapped like him? Were they hiding while creatures like these—the Rift-Sprites—picked through the world?
Had Marcus seen bodies? Heard the screams?
Had he seen dead people the way Reidar just had?
The thought shattered something inside him. He clenched his jaw, forcing back the wave of dread he was feeling.
<I need to stay calm.> He needed to maintain his composure. If not for himself, then for them.
<Please,> he thought. <Let them be alive.>
The sprites approached the bodies with clear desire. The Stone Sprite climbed onto the concrete slab and began examining the trapped hand with its claws. The Ember Sprite circled the clerk’s body.
The Aqua Sprite went near what appeared to be the second customer, a middle-aged man whose leg stuck out from beneath twisted metal shelving.
Reidar watched in horror as the creatures began to eat. The system’s warnings echoed in his mind.
The sprites’ chittering grew more satisfied.
Reidar backed away from the door. He was trapped in a storage room with three creatures outside that fed on the dead. And according to the system, passive survival wasn’t an option.
A new notification appeared in his vision, different from the previous system messages. This one had a distinct border and different formatting.
—[«QUEST: The three Rift-Sprites»]—
Goal: Eliminate the three hostile Rift-Sprites feeding in your vicinity.
Progress: 0/3 Rift-Sprites Eliminated
Time Limit: 15 minutes
Reward: 200 C.L.A.S.P. Points, 50 Survival Points
Special Conditions: Failure to complete this quest within the time limit will result in the creatures detecting your presence, compromising all escape routes.
Description: The Guardian System has detected your first encounter with hostile entities. Combat engagement is necessary for survival and progression. Eliminate all threats to complete this tutorial.
Impact: Successful completion will neutralize the immediate threat, secure your current location, and serve as an introduction to the System’s mechanics.
—[«END»]—
Reidar stared at the floating text.
<Kill them?>
He had killed nothing larger than a spider in his life. The thought of intentionally ending another living thing’s life made his hands shake.
<But these aren’t really things I can afford to spare, are they?>
They were feeding on flesh, and he was made of flesh too. And the system itself was telling him they were hostile beings.
He forced himself to think practically. If he wanted to survive, if he wanted to see Martha and Marcus again, he had to fight.
<These creatures are just the beginning, most likely.>
Then he reread the quest. What C.L.A.S.P. points were needed for became important.
He focused on the help function again, willing the interface to appear. The blank writing space materialized.
"What are C.L.A.S.P. Points?"
The text vanished and was replaced with new information.
—[«C.L.A.S.P. SYSTEM EXPLANATION»]—
C.L.A.S.P. (Combat Logic and Adaptive Strategy Planning) Points serve as the primary progression metric within the Guardian System. These points represent your accumulated experience in adapting to and surviving within the new environment.
C.L.A.S.P. Points are earned through:
Defeating hostile entities
Completing quests and other goals
Discovering new locations
Learning new skills
Surviving dangerous encounters
Others
C.L.A.S.P. Points are needed to level up. Current Requirement: 1000 C.L.A.S.P. Points needed to reach Level 1.
—[«END»]—
Reidar read through the explanation twice. So, these points were essentially experience points that would make him able to understand how powerful he became.
The 150 points from killing three sprites would put him fifteen percent of the way to his first level, and he assumed he would get more by defeating the monsters themselves.
Reidar turned away from the door and examined the storage room. Cardboard boxes lined the walls, filled with snacks, drinks, and various gas station supplies. Nothing that screamed "weapon" at first glance.
He opened the nearest box. Potato chips and candy bars.
<Useless.>
The next box contained motor oil and windshield washer fluid.
<Still not helpful for fighting.>
Behind a stack of boxes, he found cleaning supplies. Bleach, ammonia, glass cleaner. He considered making some kind of chemical weapon, but the sprites were outside, and he was trapped in here. Plus, he had no idea if chemicals would even affect them.
In the corner, leaning against the wall, he spotted a metal mop handle. Someone had removed the mop head, leaving just the long pole. It wasn’t much, but it was something he could swing.
Next to it, a box cutter sat on a small shelf. The blade was sharp enough to open packages but tiny compared to what he imagined he needed.
Reidar picked up the mop handle and tested its weight. It was light but sturdy. He could probably thrust with it or use it like a club. The reach would keep him away from those claws.
He pocketed the box cutter as backup. Although they weren’t the best weapons, they were still more effective than his bare hands.
The chittering outside continued. The sprites were still occupied with their feeding, which meant he might have the element of surprise.
Reidar moved back to the door and peered through the gap. The three creatures were still focused on the corpses.
He clutched the mop handle harder. His hands were sweaty, and his heart was pounding against his ribs. Every instinct urged him to keep himself hidden and wait for them to leave.
But the system had been clear. Passive survival wouldn’t work. These things would only get stronger and more numerous over time.