New Eden: Live to Play, Play to Live

Inside New Eden, in the thick foliage of the Danabor Forest, a man was violently fighting for his survival. After forcing his quarry through all the traps he had set, and going through many rounds of combat with the beast, it still wasn't falling.

He could tell just by looking at it that the Phaser Leopard was gravely wounded. Scanning it would have been a waste of time.

But the beast had it after him, this puny human, who dared challenge it in its domain. Once the first bullet had hit it, there was no way it was letting the human escape its grasp.

But over the next two days, a vicious game of hide and seek, with sporadic physical engagement, just wasn't ending. The human had proven to be much more resourceful than the beast was used to, regardless of his low power level, and there was just no catching it.

Now, with all the damage the Phaser Leopard had taken, it had already become a blood debt that needed to be paid. A life had to end, whether it was its own, or the human's, one life would end at the end of this hunt.

On his side, it had never filled Falchion with as much thrill as now. His two days of nonstop hunting were only possible because of his butler, who was keeping his gaming pod fed on IV bags while he was locked in this fierce hunt.

But even on the inside, exhaustion was creeping up on him. Days without sleep, with barely any time to eat a decent meal, his stress levels peaking every time he heard a noise nearby, or even the constant alertness he had to maintain. It was not for the weak-minded.

Falchion knew he was nearing his limit. Already, his thoughts were becoming sluggish at times, and his actions were not following his thoughts as fast as before.

But he would never give up. This damned cat would fall to him, he promised himself.

As he thought this, a branch cracked to his left.

Not even looking, he immediately lunged to the right, rolling and pulling out his shield and spear. As he did, a large black blur appeared where he had been, blood dripping slowly off its slick fur, as it growled at Falchion.

"You won't escape me forever, human," the Leopard's voice echoed in Falchion's head.

This wasn't the first time the Leopard infiltrated his thoughts. But Falchion was no longer impressed or intimidated by it.

He only grinned in response.

Then he lunged, with a savage war cry, shield raised and spear extended.

***

Far to the northwest, amongst a massive chain of mountains, sat a large city, which extended across many of the mountain peaks. Bridges on many levels, built with stone, bricks, or even rope bridges, connected the many mountains.

This city, with every peak adorned by a massive statue or church of every different religion on the continent, was Kormir.

Staring at the city part, at the foot of the mountains, Silent Light was musing on his next course of action. The view from the temple of Solaris was breathtaking, and it also offered him some much-needed clarity.

Although the main temple of Solaris was in Themisca, where the religion had birthed, the temple in Kormir was much bigger, and this is where the priests and believers would come on pilgrimage. The path to the temple on the top of the mountain was an arduous one, with many risky paths.

But it was no trouble for some like Silent. Once he had reached the temple and stopped inside to commune with Solaris, it was like his emotional burden had just vanished.

He felt the warm embrace of the god cover him, like a heated blanket in winter, staving off the cold air of the temple, and it just washed away all his worries. In the real world, Silent Light wasn't much of a believer.

But there was something about the proximity of the gods in New Eden that made it hard to deny their existence. He believed Solaris had absolved him of his worries and troubling thoughts.

Now, looking down on the city, he wondered what he should do going forth. Paragon was his home, but he wondered if he should spend all his time around Bastion City, or if he should do something else.

A low whisper echoed in his ear.

"The world needs your light. Solaris' light."

The low tenor voice felt almost like a vibration, more than a voice, and it brought shivers across Silent's body. He recognized that voice.

He had heard it once before when he upgraded his class to Bishop. This was Solaris' voice.

His resolve suddenly firmed up. He knew what he had to do.

***

Down at the southernmost part of the continent of light, in the arid lands of the dwarves, filled with rocky plains and jagged mountains, Gulnur travelled between two cities. His current mission to bring more Dwarven players to Paragons was going only so-so.

Many guilds were already spreading their influence in the Dwarven and Gnomish cities, and getting free-lance players was not a simple task. He knew people tended to stick to similar-looking groups to themselves, and inviting the Dwarves and Gnomes to Paragons was proving difficult.

But Gulnur was no quitter.

He had battled a deadly illness all his life. He would be damned before a simple setback was all it took to bring him down.

As the train he was on travelled the arid plain, between the mountain city of Voggrum, and the pit city of Thistlehold, Gulnur tried thinking of a better way to attract players to Paragons.

He knew that simply inviting people to the now largest guild wasn't working. He had to find a way to make his offer more compelling.

'How do I convince stubborn players to change ships?' he wondered.

As his thoughts carried him away to many plans, each more convoluted or silly than the last, he didn't see time pass, and the train start descending into a large spiral. The loud whistle of the train, which weirdly echoed around him, was what brought him back to his senses.

That was when he saw they had reached the pit city. The train was currently pulling into the station, about two hundred meters down from the ground level, and already, light was getting rarer.

But the sight from down below was simply unbeatable.

'I love the Dwarven and Gnomish cities… There is just no beating their ingenuity…'