Life is a Side Quest

  Part 1: Alexander the Wizard

  The Master of Earth was exhausted from all of the tragedy he had tried—and all too often failed—to prevent. There wasn’t much he could do now that his ability to interfere with events had been severely restricted. He hadn’t meant to throw the world into chaos. Unintended chaos had chained him—had he foreseen it, he’d have steered a safer course.

  If not for a small handful of odd ducks, Earth would have been completely overrun by the denizens of other worlds. As he thought of the group of misfits he waved his hands before him, opening a shimmering window in space. Peering through it, he was able to observe them from across the globe. Alexander the Wizard stood at the bow of his ship which soared thousands of feet in the air. On the bow of the airship was a tightly packed group of refugees from the last incursion to take place. A dormant volcano had erupted boulders of ice and never ending snow. The boulders, on impact, transforming into ice golems spewing icy winds from their maws cutting off many escape routes.

  The people—now safely bundled up in blankets—looked at Alexander in awe. He had rescued them from all manner of giants and monsters. As they saw Alexander the Wizard in the flesh, they whispered the tales spun about the man.

  “Well, I heard he single-handedly defeated an orc army of over two hundred strong.” A woman interjected.

  “He hands out magic rings to any pretty woman he meets!” Said a hopeful young lady.

  “He won his Wizard’s tower from a demon in a chess game.”

  “I heard he fought and subdued a dragon within the first week he got his powers.” A gruff man muttered looking at the sky with concern.

  “Someone told me he makes magic coffee!” A young boy said excitedly.

  Everyone in the group turned and looked at the young man incredulously. They promptly told him that was a ridiculous use of a powerful Wizard's abilities.

  The Master of Earth laughed for the first time in a while, even needing to wipe a tear from his eye. Many of the tales surrounding Alexander had been wildly construed from far stranger true events, except for the coffee. That coffee was a world saving brew.

  Having a little room to breathe for the time being—and needing a fresh look on how earth got into this state—he opened a log and looked back on the ignorant, young fool he had been just a few years prior.

  Chapter 1

  Harvey the Game Master

  Harvey’s room was a mess. Yellow note pads, discarded snack wrappers, a small hill of mismatched socks, piles of books stacked, spines cracked, and pages bent.

  Some were fiction—mostly older fantasy books he picked up at yard sales or dollar bins—but the majority were source materials for the weekly tabletop role playing game he hosted.

  This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  Among his group of friends, he’d been the choice game master for over ten years now. In about 2 months they would be finishing up a year-long campaign. Naturally, Harvey felt the need to get a head start planning the next campaign. Nothing energized him more than building out a new world, figuring out the ins and outs of factions and races.

  His fingers rhythmically tapped his keyboard and he scrolled through the internet, gathering inspiration for his world map. Occasionally, he would jot something down on one of his yellow notepads.

  He wrote. He scribbled it out. He wrote again. He tore off the paper, crumpled it up and threw it over his shoulder.

  Feeling discontent with how things were going, he decided to take a break to find some new world-building software to help him stay organized. The next hour was spent on his computer, scrolling and clicking on different links. Sometimes he got distracted, finding himself shopping for collectables and 3D printable objects.

  A ding sounded with a private message disrupting his search. He didn't recognize the window so he attempted to close it but to no avail. Giving up he decided to read the message.

  I see that you are looking for a world-management system. I have been using an amazing one for a long time and I’m no longer qualified to use it. It works great if you would like to have it.

  The way the message was written didn’t seem like the usual scams you'd find online. Going against his better judgment Harvey typed out a response.

  Why can’t I just get my own copy? Is there a download link?

  This system can only support one user at a time. If you grow weary of it, you can likewise hand it off to someone deserving. Interested? If not I shall leave you be.

  Since when did scam artists ever offer to leave you alone once you responded? Harvey stopped to consider for a bit. It really only took a second to make the decision. His computer was too far gone for him to care if it got another virus. He could always see where it goes and stop if this weirdo asks for money, or something else.

  With a sigh, Harvey proceeded to type.

  Sure, I’ll give it a try.

  Maybe he was too exhausted from staying up all night. Maybe the leftover kung pow chicken he'd eaten for dinner had gone bad, or maybe God had gazed down upon his incredible GM skills and appointed him the Chosen One. A panel of light fell from above and resolved into a blue, glowing, rectangle before his eyes—a screen set before him, hovering in the air.

  ^

  You have unlocked a new title!

  Game Master of Earth

  You have unlocked a new ability: World Modification

  Harvey tried to remember if the kung pow chicken had a funny taste to it or not.

  “What is World Modification?”

  A new window popped up. In its center, hovered a 3D replica of planet earth. As a kid, his favorite games were simulators: Sim City, Civilization, and Roller Coaster Tycoon to name a few. As the panel list resolved, a similar layout hovered before him. Pinching his fingers, the world zoomed out and revealed all the major cities, rainforest, islands, deserts… It was breathtaking.

  After a half hour of exploring he mused over his options on how he ought to begin. His eyes followed the menu down. Reaching out, he clicked ‘add classes.’ Sitting at the top of that list sat the class that Harvey himself would have wanted most.

  Wizards 0/5

  He clicked on Wizards and a search bar came up with recommended parameters for what would make someone be suited to the Wizard class. High intelligence was of course one of them followed by loner, knowledgeable, and few other traits that were downright trope level in nature.

  “I guess we get to make some legends come true.” Harvey cackled to himself as he rubbed his hands together, then entered the search bar.

  A dozen people popped up after he narrowed his search, and as he clicked on the first entry a window into someone's life was opened to him. It was truly god-like power—or a hallucination—but most of all it was simply depressing to look at this persons life. If anyone needed some excitement it was this guy.

  So with the flick of his wrist he made him a Wizard.

  “If we were ever to meet I’m certain he would be eternally grateful.” Harvey said pleased with himself.