Chapter 2: A Crash Course in Sidekicking
"Alright, let's go!" Della said, cheerfully. Once again, she set off on her march — this time with Eli in tow.
'This can't be happening. I'm a SIDEKICK?! What the hell kind of game is this?!' Eli thought as he stomped along with Della.
As Eli and Della went, Eli decided to look around again. This time, at Della's side, he noticed something that only added to his irritation.
"WHY AM I ONLY LIKE, THREE FEET TALL?!" He howled, which made Della laugh.
"Actually, you're 2'10." She chuckled.
"THAT'S WORSE!!" Eli whined.
"What did you expect? Draconians are known to be small and nimble when they're not in Powerhouse Mode. Shouldn't you know that? Since, you know... you're a Draconian?" Della questioned.
"...Actually, I just got here. I have no idea where I am, or what I am, or why... all I know is, this doesn't feel like a video-game anymore. It feels... real."
As he spoke, Eli continued to look around and feel his body. He could feel the weight of his tail, he could move his wings. He ran his hands over his horns repeatedly. 'This is so bizarre' was all he could think.
"Huh. That certainly is odd." Della replied. "I've been in Gran Marina for so long, I almost forgot what that transition felt like." She spoke so casually, which puzzled Eli. How could she not remember? How long has she been here...?
"Oh, no time to chat right now!" Della exclaimed as she drew her dagger. Four men appeared, blocking their path. "You have betrayed your kingdom, pay with your life!" From the sound of it, they were some kind of knights, or guards to a kingdom.
Eli had so many questions.
"What do I do?" Eli asked, turning to Della.
"Fight, obviously!" She replied. Della leapt into the air, striking one of the soldiers with her dagger on the way down. He cried out and swung his sword at her, but she parried and struck him again.
Eli gawked at the action in front of him. He'd seen so many video game scuffles like this; probably millions of times. But not once did it feel like he was actually there, living the moment. 'I must be going crazy. Is this a dream?'
Because he was lost in his head, Eli was scooped up by a soldier and held as a captive. By that time, Della had already taken out a second soldier and was in the middle of destroying the third.
"Aaahh! Help!" Eli cried in panic.
"Just bite him!" Della yelled as she stabbed through her prey's abdomen.
Eli wasn't sure how biting would help since he still had a human face, but Della seemed to know what she was doing, so he followed command. As he drew his head back and opened his jaw, he felt his mouth change. Clamping down on the assailant's arm, Eli bit it clean off.
Della slit the man's throat and in the blink of an eye, all four soldiers were dead. She began pickpocketing, but Eli just started to panic again.
"WAAAGH, how did I do that?! What just happened?" He grabbed at his face to discover that his teeth were now razor sharp and his jaw strength had increased tenfold.
"Are you gonna do this every time?" Della said bluntly as she continued her pickpocketing. This made Eli feel a little sheepish. He's played countless characters like this in the past, what makes this one so special?
He tried to deny the obvious answer.
"Sorry. Like I said, still new to this." Eli responded quietly.
With a sigh, Della finished her looting and turned to her companion.
"Here, I'll give you a rundown. You're a Draconian, which you know. You're a medium-level mage, which means you can cast spells for a decent attack score, and you can also cast healing spells to boost your party. You have the ability to morph your physical form to a certain degree, which explains your pointy teeth. If you'd rather, you could just turn into a full dragon."
Della began walking again as she spoke. Eli promptly followed so he wouldn't be dragged along like before.
"You're not super powerful yet, but with training and experience, you can be. Just like everything else in this world." Della paused and tapped her wrist three times. A glowing, translucent screen appeared in front of her.
POWER LEVEL: 7
EXP NEEDED: 650/8000
HEALTH: 450/450
WEAPONS: Bow, Basic Dagger
ABILITIES: Quick Draw, Armor Piercer, Stun
INVENTORY: 300 coins, 5 snacks, Basic Battle Axe
"This is my data card. Here we see my current power level, the quantity of experience I need to reach the next power level, my current set of weapons and abilities, my health, and my inventory." She tapped her wrist once more, taking the screen away.
"Oh, I see." Eli muttered in agreement. He tapped his own wrist three times, and out popped his data card.
POWER LEVEL: 1
EXP NEEDED: 25/50
HEALTH: 100/120
WEAPONS: none
ABILITIES: Bite, Fire, Basic Healing Spell, Morph
INVENTORY: none
Eli gave a small sigh as he tapped his wrist again. "Thanks for the crash course." He said as the duo continued onward.
The sun was beginning to set.
"It's no big deal." Della replied. "We should be coming up on a town, we can rest there for the night."
"What is the town called?"
"Fort Henley" Della answered.
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When the duo arrived in town, Eli let out a large yawn. In the midst of his new adventure, he had not noticed how fatigued he'd become.
As they walked, an elderly man waved to Della.
"Hello, there! You look like you could use a rest. I am the innkeeper, Jinn. Welcome!" He gestured to a large, warm-looking building.
"Thank you, sir." Della smiled. The pair followed Jinn inside and checked in for the night.
The room was quaint; a single bed, a plain table desk, a small sofa with a large cushion on it. Eli jumped on the sofa and stretched out, settling in. Della placed her bow and knapsack on the desk before taking off her shoes.
"So, um... what's your story?" Eli asked, curiously. He curled up facing Della, who flopped onto the bed with a sigh.
"Are you asking about my backstory, or who I was before I got here?"
"Both, I suppose." Eli answered.
"Alright. I'll start from the top." Della turned onto her side to face Eli.
"My real name is Delaney Quinn. I'm 18 years old... I think. It's been a while. I was invited to Peri-Helix Entertainment to participate in something called the GEAR program." As she spoke, Della's voice felt sad to Eli.
"Hey, me too! My real name is Elliot Rowan. I'm also 18, I just got here. But you knew that part already." He chuckled, attempting to make Della smile.
Della giggled softly. "Yeah, no kidding."
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone