Virtual Reality: Dragon Quest

Renelle was anxious to leave, and I’d barely packed the supplies into my magical bag before we were on the road.

I cast the repel spell the moment we stepped outside the castle walls. It was heartening to note that any monsters we encountered as we walked north fled long before we reached them. If the critters were affected by the repel spell, they would probably stay away from fairy water too.

Renelle marched along as though driven, lost in her own little world. I just kept my eyes open for trouble and didn’t disturb her. Keeping my eyes on the road and the ever-thickening foliage wasn’t exactly easy, though. Renelle’s bottom swayed in the most hypnotic way when she walked, and seemed to have an almost magnetic effect on my eyes. It helped to pass the time and dull a little of the depressing nature of the scenery as we moved farther away from civilization.

I could feel my energy winding down and tell that Renelle was getting tired too, and that’s the only reason I knew it was night. With no sun, moon, stars, or even change in the light, it was the only way I knew how much time had passed. Despite her weariness, Renelle was still marching resolutely toward the first bridge. I got the impression that she’d just keep on walking until we reached Kol unless I pulled her up short.

“Renelle, neither of us is going to be very alert if we keep going. We need to make camp for the night and get some rest. We’re just going to run into stronger monsters across the bridge, trust me.”

She looked around as if only now realizing where we were. She sighed and said, “I suppose you’re right.”

“I’ll get the tent up. If you don’t mind gathering up some dried grass and any kindling you can find nearby, I’ll get a fire going. Not much point in it since it isn’t actually going to get dark or cold, but camping without a fire just feels wrong.”

I actually had to tear my eyes away from her when she smiled. She was beautiful enough anyway, but her smile made her look absolutely angelic. Her voice was just as incredible. “None talk about the way things were anymore. Everyone has given up hope.”

I shrugged and said, “I’ve known Matusen for a long time. I’ve got faith in him.”

Renelle’s smile lost a little of its light, and it worried me more than a little how sad that made me feel. Her eyes hardened with determination then, and she said, “That’s why I must reach Kol as quickly as possible.”

“Your vision?”

She nodded. “The goddess Rubiss spoke to me in my dreams. The dark one imprisoned her when he sealed away the ball of light. She has mustered her power until I was ready. I must free her. Without the power she gives to goodly magic, I fear even the blood of Erdrick may not be enough to see Matusen to victory.”

This wasn’t part of the game, I thought. Rubiss wasn’t even in the original Dragon Quest. Hearing that she was captured didn’t sit well with me. “Then we need to get you where you’re going.” I rolled out the tent and said, “But for now, we need some rest.”

Renelle nodded and her smile brightened a little once more. She turned to gather kindling for our fire.

After a quick bite, we spread out our bedrolls for the night. I didn’t sleep very well, partly because I was nervous all night about the fairy water doing its job. More than anything, it was some subtle, enticing scent that Renelle wore. I hadn’t really noticed it while we were walking, but within the confines of the tent, I couldn’t ignore it. Between her perfume and the sight of her curled up in her blankets so close to me, I had a hard time thinking about much of anything else. I did finally drop off after going outside to clear my head and sprinkle some extra fairy water around.

@===||>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Shortly after we awakened the next day and crossed the bridge, I felt the hackles on the back of my neck stand up. I’d come to trust this sixth sense even in the real world, and I’d really started to pay attention to it since I’d awakened in the DQ universe. “Renelle, keep your eyes open and stay close.”

“What’s wrong?”

“Something’s up. I have a feeling that our good luck with the fairy water is about to run out.” I drew my sword in anticipation and strapped on my shield.

We kept walking, our eyes warily scanning the scrub and tall grass for signs of danger. I barely caught the quiet chant and saw a flash of movement in time to interpose my body between the magician and Renelle.

The fireball from the magician’s hurt spell exploded against my magic armor, the potent magical gear protecting me from all but a little warm breeze of air. I actually heard the cloaked magic user mutter, Uh oh, from his place of concealment in a knot of small, thick pine trees.

“That’s not a fireball,” I said in my best Crocodile Dundee as I raised my sword. “This is a fireball,” I finished as I unleashed the sword’s power. While it wasn’t really much stronger than the magician’s hurt spell, I could unleash the blasts far more quickly than he could cast the spell.

The wizard dived away from the first fireball, and then proceeded to do his best to dance out of the way of the volley I sent toward him. Soon enough, he was rolling around on the ground trying to put out his smoldering robe.

When he managed to tear away the hem that threatened to burst into flames, I was standing right above him with my sword pointed at him. “You’re rare right now. If you don’t want to try for well done, I’d suggest you sit nice and still before I decide to throw another shrimp on the barbee.”

Remarkable to me, the magician lunged past me toward Renelle with a growl. Feeling more than a little squeamish about killing another person, I opted to rap him smartly on the back of the head with my shield instead. He collapsed like a sack of potatoes on the ground.

“Nutbag must be bleedin’ suicidal,” I muttered as I kicked him to make sure he was really out. Considering I gave him the nutcracker suite and he didn’t even budge, I felt it safe to assume he was well and truly unconscious.

Renelle approached cautiously and said, “I feared as much. The Dragonlord knows about my quest.”

Frikkin’ piddly-ass magician shouldn’t have been able to get through the repel spell, I thought as I regarded the downed magic user. I wouldn’t have expected anything short of a wyvern or a werewolf to have the guts to approach someone of my ‘level’ through the repel spell. “Then we need to get you to Kol as quickly as possible. I’ll feel better with some stout walls between us and the Dragonlord’s hordes.”

“We must spend at least one more night in the wilderness, but I believe we can reach a place of safety in time.”

I asked, “Where’s that?”

“There is a cave that once served as a waypoint for travelers across the river. There is a shrine to Rubiss there where I believe we might find both safety and comfort.”

It wasn’t anything that existed in the game, but I took her word for it. “Let’s just make sure that Wizzo the magician here doesn’t come following us.” A few chanted words later, my sleep spell compounded the bonk on his head to ensure that he wouldn’t be following us any time soon.

The next magician was a little braver than the first, so I saw him just as he started his spell. My flame sword was far quicker than his spell casting, and I used the distraction of him putting out his robes to zap him with a sleep spell. I’d no more than sent him off to the Sandman before I noticed another magician in some bushes not far away. Some movement farther up the trail told me that there were probably more. I decided that an example might just be in order.

The hurtmore spell had greater range and power than the hurt spell the magicians knew, so I had plenty of time to speak the chant and make the gestures. The resulting fireball blew the magician out of his bushes and sent him rolling down the hill toward the next one down the line.

The flight of robed figures was almost comical. Two of them actually collided head on and managed to knock themselves out. We stayed atop the rise for a little while before continuing, and we had no trouble when we reached the bottom.

“Looks like they got the point this time,” I chuckled as I stepped on a piece of smoldering robe.

Renelle asked, “How is it that you know that spell?”

I shrugged, even though I knew that I had the same spells as the hero. “I just picked it up somewhere.”

“Few are blessed with that magic that do not serve the darkness. Only the most noble and trusted of warriors and wizards is allowed to learn that powerful magic. It is carefully controlled.”

“Well, I don’t serve the Dragonlord, I can tell you that.”

Renelle smiled then, relieving my worry that she thought I was some spy for the bad guys. “There is much more to you than is obvious. You are unique.”

“More than you know, and not all of it is that great,” I chuckled.

“We should continue,” Renelle said rather hastily, as though she wanted to change the subject.

I nodded in response and set off again. Rather than walking ahead or behind me as she had for most of the journey, she fell into step with me instead. A couple more magicians showed their faces, and so did a few magidrakees. The latter fled from my repel spell, and word had apparently reached the former, because they all took to their heels the moment I aimed my sword at them.

We were both feeling the effects of our long march when we reached the bridge. I knew we would face stronger monsters on the other side, but the promise of a safe haven was enough to keep me going. Luck was with us, and we reached the cave without further incident.

The cave was well hidden by both an overhanging rock formation and a large, thick stand of trees. Once we ducked into the entrance, the cavern opened up into a wide space that had a ceiling high enough for me to stand upright, but not much more.

“Do you feel it?” Renelle asked with an angelic smile.

I had no idea what she was talking about at first, but then it hit me. “It’s that sort of warm feeling I get when I cast the repel spell, except a lot stronger.”

“This cave is protected by the magic of the goddess. The Dragonlord’s evil has not yet reached this sanctuary.”

A quick look around, aided by my radiant spell, revealed a source of clean water, plenty of wood for fires, and a fire pit with a natural chimney that worked very well. Concerned about the smoke, I went outside and looked to see that the smoke emerged quite some distance away from the actual cave in an area where swirling winds diffused it almost instantly.

“Think I’ll go without the armor tonight. Sleeping in a tin can isn’t the most restful thing in the world,” I said as I sat back from our evening meal.

“We might take this opportunity to wash,” Renelle suggested, and I had little doubt it was a subtle hint. Walking around in an iron suit tends to leave the distinctive smell of sweat and rust on you.

The pool of water actually seemed almost designed for a bath, except the thing was cave water, and thus cold enough to turn away even the most daring and desperate of souls. It was sheltered behind a rock outcropping, providing privacy, and the swift flow of the water ensured that the water would be clean seconds after anything dirtied it. There were even sconces on the wall to hold torches.

I went first because Renelle wanted to pray at the shrine. The water was just as cold as I’d anticipated, but it felt good to get the sweat and muck of the road off me. I pulled on some clean clothes from my bag and returned to the main part of the cavern to see Renelle had finished her prayers and sat waiting with a bundle of clothing and a towel.

“The torches should last long enough, but just give me a yell if you need another.” I sat down next to the fire and shivered. “That water is obscenely cold.”

“I’m not looking forward to that, but I can’t endure the grime any longer,” Renelle said as she stood up to take her turn.

“I’ll keep the fire nice and warm,” I said as she walked back to the sheltered alcove. I built the fire up a little, and then turned back toward the pool for a moment. What I saw when I did was more than a little hard to ignore.

In the dancing light of the torches, I could see Renelle’s shadow cast upon the wall. She stood in profile, smoothing water out of her hair with her back slightly arched. The pose served to perfectly accentuate her breasts and bottom in the flickering light. Mr. Happy immediately recovered from his shriveled retreat prompted by the frigid bath.

I admit that I stared at the shadow the whole time she was bathing. The image of her was unbelievably arousing, not just because of her incredible body, but because I wasn’t actually seeing her, but rather the hints of her offered by her shadow. I only turned away to stoke up the fire when I saw her dressing once more.

“That was frightfully cold,” she admitted as she stood up on her tiptoes to hang the robe she’d worn so far on our journey on a jutting rock near the fire. My eyes locked of their own accord on her nipples, poking provocatively at the material of the much thinner dress she’d chosen to wear while her robe dried. I nearly had to slap myself in the head to look away before she turned around again.

Even after a few minutes of sitting around the fire, she was still shivering. I walked over to our bedrolls and retrieved a blanket for her. I draped it over her shoulders with a combined sense of relief and disappointment. With them covered by the blanket, I didn’t have to fight to keep my eyes off her breasts, but it was hard not to want to look as well.

Once she warmed up enough to appear comfortable, I suggested that we should probably bed down for the night. The way the rock of the cave floor flowed meant that there wasn’t really a great deal of flat space to bed down on, thus we had to put our bedrolls right next to each other, even closer than we were in the tent the night before. The fire did a good job of warming the rocks — a little more than I really thought was physically possible. I wasn’t about to argue, though. For some reason, even in the spacious cave, I could still smell her perfume just as well as I had in the confines of the tent.

I soon fell asleep to dream of the dancing shadow of her bathing — and a continuation much different from what actually happened when she emerged from her bath.

@===||>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

I really didn’t want to get up when I awakened. I was warm, comfortable, and well rested. When I finally came around, I recognized a weight on my chest. I opened my eyes to find Renelle resting her head on me and smiling sweetly in her sleep. My hand was also on her taut bottom, and the feeling caused my morning erection to twitch almost painfully.

Her eyes opened only seconds later, and we both started a little, saying, “Sorry,” at the exact same time. She chuckled and blushed before sitting up to stretch. I turned away from the sight of her firm breasts jutting out toward me and moved to stoke up the fire. Only a minute or so later, I got another good look at the glorious globes when she stood up on her tiptoes to pull down her now dry robe.

I had to hide the bulge in my trousers for quite a while as we prepared to leave again.

There was something ominous in the air almost as soon as we stepped outside the cave. I had the distinct feeling that the monsters had known where we were and weren’t amused that they couldn’t reach us during the night. I pulled my sword after only a few steps, and Renelle looked equally wary. Our caution proved well founded when we rounded the mountains a few minutes later.

A dry scraping sound and the clacking of bony teeth accompanied the skeleton moving toward us from the desert in the distance. I brought my sword to the ready and moved to stand in front of Renelle, but she put a restraining hand on my shoulder.

“This is my domain,” she said with sad determination.

The look in her eyes gave me pause, so I stood beside her, ready to leap in front of her at any moment. Renelle just stood calmly as the monster broke into a run with its sword held overhead. Once the skeleton was within twenty feet or so, Renelle pulled an amulet from within her robe and whispered a prayer to Rubiss.

The skeleton disintegrated in mid stride, its bones tumbling across the grass for a foot or two from the momentum before coming to rest. Renelle kissed her amulet and said, “You are free, poor soul.”

A growl of frustration preceded the magician leaping out from behind a rock to move into range to attack us. This time, I did interpose my body between our attacker and Renelle, chanting another spell I hadn’t tried yet. It was a race between the magician and me to complete our chants, and I won.

The magician completed his spell, but gave his outstretched hand a look of surprised betrayal when no fireball leapt forth from it. My stopspell had sealed his magic. The robed magic user skidded to a halt to stare at his now trembling hand.

“This is the part where you defiantly scream you haven’t seen the last of me and run away with your tail between your legs,” I yelled at the magician before starting the chant to send a far more powerful hurtmore spell his way.

He skipped the line, but took the cue. I let the fireball go anyway and gave him a little boost in speed when it slammed into his retreating behind.

Several more skeletons attacked us as we trekked north, but Renelle dispatched each of them easily with her ability to send the undead to their rest. Just as we were about to leave the desert behind, we ran into what I’d half expected ever since we crossed the bridge — a scorpion.

The thing skittered out of the scrub close to us, and so it was up on us before I had time to start a spell chant. “Renelle, stay back,” I warned her as I brought up my shield and sword. This is frikkin’ nuts, I thought as I swallowed hard and stared down the nightmare. The creature was about half the size of a man, and the stinger looked deadly enough. While there was no poison in the game, there were a lot of things in this world that didn’t match the game. I was in no mood to discover one of them right now.

I discharged a fireball from my flame sword as soon as I was set, but the scorpion shrugged it off. It attacked with its tail first, and the blow striking my silver shield felt like a pro football player slamming into it. I barely managed to keep my footing and take an off-balance swipe at the monster.

The next lightning strike of the monster’s tail deflected off my shield almost immediately. This time the tip slammed into my breastplate as well. My armor held, but it did nothing to improve my morale. The scorpion wasn’t giving me a moment’s rest, or I would have slapped it with a sleep spell.

As the creature pulled back its tail for another strike, it lashed out with its claws. I felt like I was fighting three dangerous opponents at once, and I wasn’t liking it much. The scorpion managed to get a grip on one of my calves eventually while I was blocking another stab from its tail with my shield. My armor held, and I didn’t even feel pressure from the bite of the giant claw. The creature stubbornly held on, and that gave me the opportunity I was looking for.

With a swift slash, I cut through the scorpion’s leg, and the claw promptly let go of me. The monster immediately let out a hiss and backed away, at which point I felt a breeze stir up. The scorpion wasn’t feeling a breeze; it was caught in a whirlwind.

While the hero didn’t have the magic in this game, it existed in the world, and was used in DQ Two. Renelle’s infernos spell sent the monster spinning and flipped it over on its back. As soon as the wind died down, I jumped in from the side missing a claw and stabbed downward. The scorpion twitched for a few seconds, and then fell still.