Webbed Feet Gene (Rare)
Even before the Rain of Fire, some humans were born with traces of the webbed feet gene. Now, the radiation saturating the world has reawakened it in you.
Effects: Active: +25% swimming speed and -25% lightning resistance. Activate again to toggle off.
The penalty to lightning resistance was a trade-off, sure—but the benefits more than made up for it.
And with over 500 water affinity cards under his belt, he’d unlocked an upgraded version of the skill.
Webbed Feet Gene II (Rare)
Even before the Rain of Fire, some humans were born with traces of the webbed feet gene. Now, the radiation saturating the world has reawakened it in you.
Effects:
Active: +25→50% swimming speed and -25% lightning resistance;
NEW: You can now breathe underwater;
Activate again to toggle off.
He rubbed his eyes, checking to make sure the text wasn’t glitching.
Breathe underwater?
No more tracking the oxygen bar. No more waiting for the dented oxygen bottle to recharge. He’d unlocked titles that boosted lung capacity before, and he’d used that clunky bottle often—but it was always a slow, annoying process.
He’d lost count of how many hours he’d spent just waiting for it to recharge while collecting cards from the Underwater Junkyard set back on Beginner Island.
But now that he could breathe underwater, all of that was water under the bridge.
There were plenty of items sold in the Auction House and city shops to help players stay submerged longer—otherwise, most of the Water Caves content would be unreachable. But he wouldn’t need to spend any money on those.
This skill put him almost on par with Oceanlings, like the ones who ran this inn. With their gill-lined necks, they could breathe underwater naturally. And now, thanks to this skill, so could he.
It was almost like getting a lite version of becoming an Oceanling. And this was just the reward for reaching 500 water affinity cards. What would the next milestone bring? Would the skill evolve again? Would he become just as strong underwater as a true Oceanling?
As the implications sank in, a new thought struck him.
"Wait a minute... Does this mean I can get lite versions of all meta-human races?!"
He could collect cards from every affinity. Didn’t that mean, in theory, he could unlock lite versions of all the meta-races?
A lite version of a Fireling’s heat immunity? Or the ability to glide like a Skyling?
That would be incredible. He could swap between forms as needed, adapting to whatever challenge lay ahead without having to commit to one race.
With this, I have time to upgrade my gear before going to the Sea Current Dungeon.
Deckard rubbed his hands together, grinning.
He’d considered becoming an Oceanling to take advantage of the nearby water zones. But now that he had this skill, he didn’t have to. He could reallocate his time and grow stronger by following a different path.
Despite all the upgrades he’d earned here, he still needed more strength. The level 20 dungeon wasn’t going to pull any punches.
He slipped the binder back into his pack and left the room. As he climbed down the stairs, he opened the notes he’d taken and headed to the first set of coordinates.
*
Deckard had done his homework.
He’d read the guides, watched the videos, and compiled his own cheat sheet on how to raise alignment. According to his research, since he already had a head start—with the +30 righteousness from saving Ratu—the rest wouldn’t be too bad. All he had to do was complete a couple of the “benevolence triggers” scattered around the city.
His first stop was the bank.
He stepped up to the clerk, opened an account, operated his inventory, and deposited all of it—every last gold and silver—leaving himself with exactly five coppers.
Then he ran. Down the main road, past the upper districts, weaving through carts and crowds until the buildings grew older, more weathered. The paving stones gave way to muddy paths, and the air turned smelly—thick with soot and something sour.
He was back at the Slums, but this time, he wasn’t visiting the Gaming Parlor.
It didn’t take long for him to find the NPC described in the guides.
There.
A wrinkled woman sat cross-legged by a crooked wall, her clothing more patchwork than cloth. A tiny monkey clung to her shoulder. It held out a chipped cup, shaking it at the people who passed.
This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
Deckard slowed, catching his breath, and pulled out his notes. He scrolled through them quickly.
Charitable Act #1: Donation in the Slums.
-
Kneel beside the NPC.
-
Express sympathy.
-
Offer a donation of at least five coppers.
-
Deposit the remaining money first. You gain double the righteousness points if you give the beggar all the money in your inventory.
He nodded to himself. It seemed simple enough.
He approached slowly, then knelt down beside her so that he could be at eye level. The ground was damp and cold. His cheeks flushed as two passersby looked at him. Still, he stuck to the script.
“You poor soul,” he said, voice low. “Life has really been unkind to you, hasn’t it?”
The old woman looked up with a hollow gaze. Even the monkey gave him wide, glassy eyes that shimmered like it was about to cry.
A catch formed in his throat as he locked eyes with the beggar.
He didn’t mean to think about it, but his imagination ran wild. The day of Andy’s death. What if that truck had hit him instead of Andy? What if his mother had to grow old and sick alone? Would she end up begging on the streets? What if she—no.
He clenched his jaw.
Get it together, Deckard. This is just a game.
This was all scripted, pixels and prompts—but the lump in his throat didn’t care.
He forced a cough and then spoke. His voice came out even softer this time. “Here. It’s not much. But it’s… everything I have.”
He placed the five copper coins in the cup.
The woman looked at him for a long second. Then her head bowed again, her voice just a raspy whisper.
“Thank you.”
Even the monkey bowed its little head.
You’ve given everything you had to help a stranger.
+20 righteousness
Deckard stood slowly, brushing his knees off.
One down.
He took off, giving one last glance at the lady sitting on the ground, while the monkey shook the cup, now louder thanks to the five coppers in it. From what he’d read, stealing the money from the cup earned players just as many evil points. Some other player would come sooner or later and do the opposite of what he’d done.
He didn’t have the stomach to stick around and see it happen.
He shook off the feeling and glanced down at his list at “charitable act number two.” It was time to keep moving.
*
After picking up litter from the streets and helping an old gentleman carry his shopping bags, Deckard was only 20 righteousness points away from his goal. All that remained was completing a quest called: [The Lost Child].
No matter the guide or video, every source on climbing positive alignment in Aquascape agreed on one thing: [The Lost Child] was unmissable.
Deckard was in one of the quieter residential zones of the city. Aquariums with algae and snails hung from windows, and rows of modest homes carved from the cave’s rock lined the street.
One of the homes had two players waiting at the door.
There it is.
He stepped into line behind them. Inside, he could hear a woman crying, and a male voice murmuring something reassuring.
The player in front of him turned slightly and shrugged. “Also doing the quest, huh?”
“Yeah,” Deckard replied, offering a polite, awkward nod.
As the door opened, Deckard heard a man say, “I’ll find your daughter, ma’am. You have my word.”
The player gave him and the others in line a quick nod of acknowledgment and jogged off down the street.
“My turn now!” the next player said as she stepped inside. A few minutes later, she left as well. After one more player, it was Deckard’s turn.
He stepped through the doorway into a small, cluttered living room. A worn couch sagged by the window. A chipped tea set sat abandoned on a tray. A painting of a school of fish hung crookedly on the wall.
In the middle of the room stood an Oceanling woman with trembling hands and a wild look in her eyes. Her gills flared with every rapid breath, and her voice trembled as she spoke.
“Oh, Dora... Why do you keep doing this to your poor mother?” she said, between sobs.
Deckard cleared his throat. “Hi there.”
The woman turned, red-eyed. “Hello?”
“I heard you cry and couldn’t help but ask if I could help you with anything,” Deckard said, softening his tone.
“My little girl,” the woman said, voice breaking. “She loves her father so much. But no matter how much I tell her not to, she keeps sneaking off to visit him at the garrison. And now she’s gone again.”
She began to pace, wringing her hands. “What if she got lost? Or was run over by a carriage? Or—oh whales above—what if she wandered into the slums and someone’s taken her? What if she’s been taken by pirates?! What if she’s in the stomach of a shark?!”
Deckard gently raised both hands, trying to calm her spiraling thoughts. “Ma’am. Don’t worry. I’ll do my best to find her.”
“Oh, thank you, thank you,” she said, hurrying to a drawer. “Here.” She pulled out a small, faded photo and handed it over. “So that you know what she looks like.”
The girl looked no older than seven. Her hair was done in two stubby braids, and she wore a sailor’s coat with oversized buttons. She held a lopsided plush gull to her chest, and her face was full of mischief.
You’ve unlocked a new quest: [The Lost Child]
The Lost Child (Common)
A worried mother has asked for your help finding her daughter, Dora. She believes the girl has once again run off to visit her father at the garrison.
Objectives:
Find Dora.
“Please find her. I beg you.”
Like the three players who’d come before him, he heard himself repeating their line: “I’ll find your daughter, ma’am. You have my word.”
Deckard left the house, already pulling up the coordinates from the guide. According to every post and thread, there was no real mystery to this one—he didn’t have to search every alley or crowd. The girl was easy to find.
*
Deckard paused just past the tunnel that brought him to Aquascape’s citadel.
The cave was massive. Unlike everywhere else in the city, the stalactites and stalagmites weren’t removed here—maybe to make the military grounds look more menacing. If that was the purpose, the designers had nailed it. The cavern resembled the open jaws of some ancient sea monster.
Pools dotted part of the cavern floor—some shallow and blue, others deep enough to vanish into black darkness.
In the shallower waters, dolphins, sea lions, and other creatures Deckard didn’t recognize were trained by soldiers. A sleek sea lion barked as it followed hand signals, while a dolphin chirped playfully at its handler.
Soldiers dove in and out of the darker pools, which were guarded on all sides—likely aquatic tunnels that led to the open ocean.
Nearby, soldiers ran drills. Some practiced formations with tridents and nets; others sparred.
And it wasn’t just NPCs. Players thundered through the drill field in heavy plate, dragging oversized axes or massive swords behind them.
“So this is where players can choose the warrior class,” Deckard murmured, watching two players at level 10 sparring, trying to finish the quest to unlock the class. He lingered for a moment, taking in the scene.
Then he moved on.
He headed to the far end of the cavern, to a quieter corner near a long pool. There, a man knelt beside his daughter, both laughing as a beluga surfaced in front of them.
“There she is,” Deckard said.
The little Oceanling girl—Dora—held a glistening fish in her tiny hands, arms stretched out as the whale leaned forward and gently plucked it from her fingers.
“She’s so wet!” Dora squealed, giggling as water sprayed up.
“She is, isn’t she?” the man replied, swiping droplets from her face with the sleeve of his uniform.
Dora clearly took after her father more than her mother—they had the same bright grin and the same sparkle of mischief in their eyes.
The little girl hadn’t gotten lost on her way here. She’d been playing with her father all along.
Deckard stepped forward. All that was left was to talk to the father and finish the quest.