Histaff Read online

  HISTAFF

  Book One of the SKELETON IN SPACE Series

  Written by Andries Louws

  © 2019 Mountaindale Press. All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission from the publisher, except as permitted by US copyright law.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Table of Contents

  Acknowledgments

  Chapter One – A Skull with No Past

  Chapter Two – Picking Up His Pieces

  Chapter Three – Taking Inventory

  Chapter Four – The Journey and the Destination

  Chapter Five – Taking Steps

  Chapter Six – Window Shopping

  Chapter Seven – Raising Hell

  Chapter Eight – How to Make Friends

  Chapter Nine – And Influence People

  Chapter Ten – Overcoming Obstacles

  Chapter Eleven – Fleeting Beauty

  Chapter Twelve – The Best Laid Schemes

  Chapter Thirteen – That's All She Typed

  Chapter Fourteen – The Overwhelming Desire to Learn

  Chapter Fifteen – Invasive Measures

  Chapter Sixteen – Determination and Trepidation

  Chapter Seventeen – Changes in Momentum

  Chapter Eighteen – Following Orders

  Chapter Nineteen – Authoritative Ascendant Anger

  Chapter Twenty – Of Endings, Epilogues, and Re-entries

  Afterword

  About Andries Louws

  About Mountaindale Press

  Mountaindale Press Titles

  GameLit and LitRPG

  Fantasy

  Appendix

  Acknowledgments

  I want to thank my friends and family for their support and love. Also many thanks to Mountaindale Press for their efforts in making this novel the best it could be.

  Thanks as well to my amazing Patreons: 28th00, Adam Andersson, Adarsh BV, Aidan Green, Alex, Alexander Smith, Alexei Azimov, Alge, Amine Tahiri Alaoui, Andres Madroñal Benitez, Angel Diaz, Antoine Cavaliero, Argetsword, Artherium, Athena Delacroix, Athos Kieran, Azarek, Bob, bob Johnson, Bryan wiggins, BukVyrm, Chris, Chris Vogt II, Chrome, Cole Terlesky, Corneel Louws, Cory Cinquini, Damayne Hyatt, Daniel Mackie, Daniel Rhodes, Daniel Stahel Christiansen, Dave The Technician, David n smith, David Opseth, Demian Buckle, Derek Finnigan, DesertWight, Dicky wongsonegoro, DokkaN, Dom Ritter and T. Lewis, earlj, Edward Scott, Elaborate, Elrath, ElricFlairgold, Enni Avoranta, Eric Blanz, Filippo sagra, Florian Deutsch, Francisco J Guzman, Gabriel Boudreau, Gardor, Ghostingstar, Gillium, Graeme Kent, Hugh Legge, Jakob, James Cohen, Jared Spitzer, Jerad Stephens, Jerome, Jesse Palmer, Johannes karlsson, Johnathan, Jose Miguel Diaz, Joseph, Joshua Henne, Joshua John Wallace, joshua strider, Jule Hutzler, Kalvin Dunn, Ken Johnson, Kenneth Stiles, Kharon Styx, kirasakuya, Konno Yumi, Kosie van der Merwe, Kyle f, LAzza, Leonard Marchant, Louis Bordessoules, Luke Baseley, MaddoScientisto, Magdragon, Man of u, Marco A. Enquel Ponce, Marcus, Marcus Seigman, mars kiyu, Matthew King, Matthew M, Matthew Walker, Meredith Leu, Michael Ruhland, Michael Thaller, mr sparks, mt2222, NA Young, Nathan Fish, Nick Dubitsky, Nigel Franklin, NineYetis, Orims, Ozzy, Paichun, Patrick Sylvester-Jose, Peregos, Pietr Alexander Dragonov, Priddles, Programan, Rhiannon Demeter, Robert Beine, Rodrick Dusio, Rodrigo Noronha, Roland Hansson, RR, rwn, RYAN, saganatsu, Sanderson Dersham, Seadrake, Sean Rumler, Seijax, SideraX, Siobhan Nightshade, Something witty and offencive, Sparkey, Spooky Bones, Stranger, t0tom, Tate Anderson, tehlu, TheLunaticCo, Thubanshee, Toc Anastar, Tomislav Fistrić, Viktor Thornqvist, Visi, Vorquel, Wiljami Anttila, William Hoyt, William mccarthy, Wolfram Von Peterhausen, xydra22, Zeiryu, Zivlanir

  Chapter One – A Skull with No Past

  Douglas saw only stars. A band of brightness snaked its way across the sky, its muted shine surrounded by thousands of small lights that formed the rest of the firmament.

  “Rise up, rise up!”

  Douglas rose. He stood, clods of dirt falling from his body as he righted himself in a jerky manner. He spotted other silhouettes in the grey darkness but paid them no heed. The only person in the entire universe that mattered to him was directly ahead, nothing and no one else was important. An old face with crumbling skin stretched across deep sockets and protruding cheekbones, little more than a skull, stared into Douglas’ eyes for a mere moment. This man needed to be obeyed. That’s all Douglas knew. That was all that mattered.

  “Follow.”

  Another brief command. A small trickle of contentedness rose up in Douglas’ heart. Walking. He knew what walking was. Faint images of a sunlit road bordered by dense hedges tried to take front and centre of his focus. Douglas refused the thoughts absentmindedly. He was too absorbed in the simple joy of setting one foot in front of the other to bother with something not in the here and now.

  His eyes still trained upon the hunched human giving out the commands, Douglas managed to see his surroundings from the corners of his eyes. He saw grasslands filled with flowers and a distant tree line painted in greys, illuminated by the faint light of the stars. Up ahead was a cart with a skeletal horse in front. Black wood, with rough nails keeping the rickety construction together.

  “In.”

  Douglas wanted to smile as he obeyed. He followed the other fellows around him with stumbling steps. Trotting onto the elevated wooden planks with a stiff gait, he moved into the corner while surrounded by hollow clacking sounds. All the others followed him, their faces sported smiles similar to his own grin. Looking forward, he could see the old man sitting down on the cart’s bench and snapping the rotten leather reigns. Off they went, the cart creaking ominously. Douglas managed to keep standing as the bleached horse started pulling the cart with surprising speed.

  One fellow wasn’t as lucky; he didn’t manage to keep upright. The old guy heard the clattering, stood up, and turned around. His face twisting in fury, green fire illuminated the trees on both sides of the road. The ball of mesmerizing energy flew from his hand, and Douglas twisted his creaky neck in time to see the fallen comrade burn into cinders.

  “Keep standing.”

  Douglas immediately grabbed hold of the low wooden sides next to him, determined to succeed. It was quite the challenge, as he knew he had to keep hold of his armour and sword as well, but he did so nonetheless. The old guy stared into his eyes. Douglas tried smiling again. Belatedly, Douglas realized that none of the fellows around him had turned to look. He smiled until the old guy stopped glaring at him and sat back down.

  The following cart ride was bumpy but otherwise uneventful. The moon moved up over the horizon, illuminating the grey road and forest. The relatively bright light let Douglas see the barest hints of brown and green. The road seemed little used, patches of fresh growth intruding here and there on the otherwise bare mud.

  Another memory bothered Douglas. Something about the cart ride felt too smooth, and the entire thing went way too fast. Douglas didn’t bother with the odd thoughts; they had nothing to do with his mission to keep standing.

  One side of the sky started showing traces of blue and orange by the time the old guy stopped the cart. Douglas followed him with his eyes, watching as the man stepped off the bench and stretched his back, making a loud series of popping sounds.

  “The things … Alright, in you go!”

  The old guy pointed to a small stone building made of decaying moss-covered stones. Like his comrades, Douglas started moving towards it but found himself blocked. He couldn’t see a way to go inside the building! The path between him and the dark opening
was hindered by a mass of bodies. He started pushing his way through while shoving his fellows out of the way, but fell face-first into the dirt when he failed to step over the cart’s side panel. Surrounded by a cacophony of metal clanking, he picked himself up from the mud and made his way inside.

  “Down the stairs. Go stand in the back.”

  Once again pretty happy at doing as he was told, Douglas walked down the stairs. He didn’t trip a single time as he found a large dark room at the end of the long stairwell. Ambling ahead, he saw more unmoving and silent comrades standing there. He stopped walking when he collided with the dense pack of bodies, standing still as his way was blocked. Douglas heard his fellow newcomers shuffle inside, barely visible in the grey darkness. Then the last light vanished with a loud slamming noise, reducing everyone around him to barely visible silhouettes.

  So Douglas stood there, content to be following orders. Occasionally, he had this nagging feeling that something was wrong, but it had nothing to do with his mission. He had to stand in the back, and even though he was not totally in the back, he was as far back as possible. Now he just had to stand, so he stood there with all his might.

  However, the faint pangs of panicked confusion never really went away. Douglas was not sure what to think about that. Occasionally, his euphoria at following orders was interrupted by the weirdest thoughts. The darkness around him felt good, though; the very air felt fresh and invigorating to his confused soul.

  Sometime later, the darkness around him turned from nearly black to merely dark grey when Douglas heard muffled talking. Then he heard metal clanking and feet walking on stone. He wanted to turn around and look, but lacking any orders to do so, he didn’t. Pretty soon, the sounds stopped, and it was near dark again. This repeated a few times as Douglas stood there, happily whiling away the time. Once in a while, the long periods of dark still were interrupted by brief periods of brightness and noise.

  “Out in orderly lines, all of you.”

  Douglas was pretty happy to hear that voice again. He would be happier if he could get out in orderly lines, though. Douglas decided that he needed to turn around to see how to get out, so like most of the figures he shared this dark space with, he turned around. The area from his spot to the door was entirely filled with new colleagues. They started moving up the stairs with rhythmic steps, and Douglas followed the moment he could do so.

  He saw many more figures standing around when he emerged from the dark door. The old guy was there, his arms crossed and an angry sneer on his wrinkled face. Douglas wasn’t really sure why, but he felt like he should go stand at a certain spot. Standing still, he noticed others stopping around him. Douglas now found himself at the back of a neat square formation. Sometime later, he saw the last of his brethren emerge from the stone building.

  The old man started walking, and Douglas followed, marching along with the fellows around him in step. They walked for a rather long time, cutting through fields and forests while occasionally following the road. The stars had moved across half the sky when Douglas felt he needed to stop. A small village was in front of them. Douglas felt he should run, so he did. Some shapes emerged from the buildings ahead, and a lot of noise and screaming followed. Douglas found himself in the front most square, walking across some squishy forms.

  Some of the fellows ahead of him fell down, and Douglas found himself on the front. A large thing with white and black markings on its side was suddenly in front of him. He moved his hand forward, stabbing the thing with the sword he’d had all this time.

  [ Cow lvl 1 slain; 1 xp earned (2 syphoned) ]

  Another shape stumbled in front of Douglas, and he stabbed again.

  [ Farmer lvl 16 slain; 1 xp earned (24 syphoned) ]

  And then Douglas stopped. The silence that followed was only broken by the shuffling of leather-shod feet. The old man walked by, his hands glowing with green power. The shape in front of Douglas jerked when the green glow flowed into the form, eyes which were previously shut opening and shining with a sickly, green radiance. The new colleagues were used to make up for the fellows that had fallen; then they went running again.

  More running later, they stopped once more. A small tower was in front of him, surrounded by a grass clearing. They only waited long enough for the rest to form a circle around the tower before running again. Loud and bright flashes of lightning struck from the tower, followed by fireballs and shards of ice. Some blue flashes turned patches of manicured grass into slippery traps, but Douglas knew what he had to do and wasn’t about to get distracted.

  Being one of the few remaining to reach the tower, he started bashing against the thing. Douglas diligently raised his sword and brought it down upon the stone building. Magical traps and spells turned his environment into a storm of death, but Douglas kept chopping at the stone wall. A little while later, his sword snapped, leaving him with only a rusted hilt. Douglas proceeded to smash the remaining scraps of his armour against the barely damaged stone, the pommel of his decayed weapon barely chipping the unyielding rock.

  The rusted gauntlet on his left hand broke. Douglas felt he should go towards the entrance before he managed to break his sole remaining shoulder plate. Walking across the charred remains of his brethren, he made his way to the entrance. Seeing the wooden door half splintered as his colleagues threw themselves against the barrier, Douglas went and waited for his turn at the back of the disorderly line. Runes flashed across the wood before exploding in a blinding explosion, disintegrated nearly all the colleagues blocking his way.

  Some of the new figures that joined their group entered first, only for them to be destroyed one by one as Douglas followed them up the stairs. Entering the room at the top of the tower, Douglas saw another old man. This one was wearing a bright robe and a white staff instead of the dark stick and dirty rags the first old man wore.

  Douglas looked at the panting man with passive eyes, not having received any new order yet. Stumbling footsteps behind him told of the arrival of the first old man. Lightning flashed once more, only for it to be stopped by green fire.

  “You will be hunted down, you wretched scu–”

  “I will have my revenge!”

  Douglas watched as the two old men rushed each other, their magic forgotten in their blind hatred. The two fought a bit in a rather inept manner before the one with the long, white beard pulled a shining rock from his robes.

  “No! Get that stone!”

  Douglas started moving, the broken hilt of his rusted sword still clutched tightly.

  “Activate emergency tele–”

  The first old man tackled the new one just as Douglass reached the pair. The old men were once again rolling on the floor, Douglas and his colleagues jumping on both of them. Douglas managed to fumble the stone free but not before the second old man said one last syllable.

  “–port!”

  And everything went white.

  ⁂

  [ Name: Douglas ]

  [ Race: Lesser skeleton ]

  [ Level: 1 (2/100) ]

  [ Class: None ]

  [ HP: 19/23 ][ HP/h: 0.05 ]

  [ MP: 20/20 ][ MP/h: 3 ]

  [ STR: 11 ]

  [ AGI: 7 ]

  [ CON: 3 ]

  [ VIT: 1 ]

  [ INT: 2 ]

  [ WIS: 3 ]

  [ Skeletal Constitution (Human) ]

  [ Darkvision ]

  [ Universal Language ]

  [ Frozen -10 Con, -10 Vit ]

  [ Controlled -8 Int, -8 Wis (16h) ]

  [ Congratulations, UNKNOWN discovered; calculating rewards… ]

  ⁂

  Douglas sees only stars.

  A band of brightness snakes its way across the sky, its muted shine surrounded by thousands of small lights that form the firmament. A gem-studded hand floats in front of his bony visage, globules of blood slowly freezing and trailing behind it. Pieces of bone, wood, and stone tumble in front of Douglas’ empty sockets, scattering papers and miscellaneous boiling liqui
ds floating off to the side. The two small flames residing inside the hollow spaces are the only indication that the unmoving skeleton is something more than merely bone.

  Douglas feels pretty good, to be honest. He’d got that stone as well as he could. The last command he has been given is fulfilled the moment Douglas pulled the shining gem free, and no new commands seemed to be coming. So Douglas doesn’t do anything.

  His white bones turn slowly, showing the glowing sparks in his skull more stars. And then some more stars. Then he sees a particularly bright star before this also tumbles out of view.

  Douglas doesn't know much, but he knows that there were a lot less stars just moments before. Content with watching the sparkling weave tumble by, the newborn undead floats through space. He doesn’t know or care how long he floats there, silently content with the fact that he needn’t do anything.

  Then things happen very fast.

  [ Controlled; ended ]

  The fog lifts, his mind clearing like he is emerging from deep waters and waking up at the same time. Only seconds before, he was in the blissful ignorance that comes right after sleep. Then all the problems and issues of life come crashing back down. Like taking a deep breath, his screaming lungs finally get the air they need, clearing his oxygen-deprived head.

  A storm of metal and spaceship fragments flies by. A small piece of metal smashes through his outstretched left hand, reducing the small bones to powder.

  Confused at the sudden change in mental state, Douglas is unable to react as a large section of spaceship swallows him up. The remaining few bones of his left arm are separated by a floating fire extinguisher, his lower arm bones, radius, and ulna spinning away and splintering into fragments against a metal wall.

  His pelvis is smashed by a fastened bench milliseconds later, his leg bones splintering into smithereens against a collection of secured tool benches. His sight flips as he makes half a somersault. He careens into a small medical kit meant for setting bones, which turns three of his neck vertebrae into white sand. This causes his ribcage and remaining one-and-a-half arms to float downward while his skull shoots upwards. Douglas manages to catch a glimpse of his ribcage turning into splinters as he bounces off a metal sheet, leaving a grinning imprint. He then crashes through a thin metal grate, shining shards tearing deep grooves in his tumbling cranium.