The woman eyed him suspiciously. "And what will your name be?" she asked, her fingers hovering over a large, leather-bound ledger.
"I am Eldris Chrille," he said, enunciating clearly.
"How am I sure you are who you said you are?" she challenged, her beady eyes narrowing. "Sure my your ID card.
Eldris produced the temporary card from his pocket. "Here is my temporary card," he said, sliding it across the desk.
The woman examined it closely before her entire demeanor changed. "Okay," she said, her voice suddenly sweet. She then went to check for his name on the lodge book, her finger tracing down the page.
"Oh yeah," she cooed, "you are the Mr Eldris Chrille." She smiled obsequiously. "You are the one that chose the finest room in our fine establishment." With a flourish, she produced a key from beneath the desk. "Here is your key."
Eldris took it with a nod. "Okay, thank you," he said, "but where is my room?"
"Your room is located at the top floor," she said, suddenly overly helpful, "in the right wing side, it is the last floor. It is number 16." She gave him unnecessarily detailed directions when she could have just said the number and he would have been on his way. But well, he still show his gratitude with a polite nod.
As I was about to start climbing the stairs I heard her voice call after me, suddenly syrupy sweet. "Mr Chrille," she purred, "if you need anything," she paused meaningfully, "I mean 'anything' I would help." She said, while showing me her teeth in what she probably thought was a seductive smile but only revealed several missing molars.
I understand the underlying meaning in what she said. But instead of feeling good, instead I felt disgusted. I did not like her from how she was acting before, but it was still on a small level. But now that she is acting like a slut and sending me signs, all I feel is disgust for her and pity.
She is only sending me signs because she thinks I was rich because of my lodge. She would be very sorry and angry once she find out that I am penniless.
I just nod my head to her words and continue up the stairs, eager to be away from her overwhelming presence.
[Receptionist P.O.V]
"Hmmm," the receptionist thought to herself, watching the handsome stranger ascend the stairs, "Mr Chrille looks rich." Her beady eyes gleamed with calculation. "Once I can bag that rich guy I can finally live the rich live my friends are living."
She adjusted her low-cut blouse and licked her lips. "Now all I just have to do is to seduce him and keep giving him signs." A confident smirk spread across her face. "He is a man after all. No man could ever resist what I have in my front and my back."
Her fingers drummed against the ledger as she fantasized about her future. "By the end of your stay Mr Chrille," she thought with satisfaction, "you would be under my thumb and be doing all my biddings."
---
A man could be seen laying on the bed, his body sprawled limply across the rumpled sheets. Suddenly, the man stirred - his fingers twitched, his breathing became ragged, and his body started to shake uncontrollably. Silent tears came out from his eyes, tracing glistening paths down his temples as he remained trapped in whatever nightmare held him captive. While he was still sleeping, his lips parted and he said something in a broken whisper that carried the weight of a thousand sorrows.
"Emma nooooo!!!"
Eldris woke up with a violent start, his chest heaving as if he'd run a marathon, sweat pouring all over his body like he'd been dunked in water. The thin sheets clung to his damp skin uncomfortably. He hadn't even been enjoying his sleep, what little he'd managed to get, because of the terrible dream that had clawed its way into his subconscious.
"Are you okay?" Gia asked, her voice unusually gentle in the quiet of the predawn hours when even the city outside seemed to hold its breath.
"I am okay, I guessed, it was just a dream," Eldris said, running trembling hands through his sweat-dampened hair. His voice sounded hollow even to his own ears. Although he said it was only a dream, he was already doubting his own words, because of the way the things he saw looked like - too vivid, too real, the details etched into his memory with painful clarity.
After some minutes of sitting on the edge of the bed, taking slow, measured breaths, he was finally able to shake off the clinging remnants of the terrible dream. The morning light was just beginning to filter through the thin curtains when he dragged himself to the bathroom to take a bath, the lukewarm water doing little to wash away the lingering unease. Then, with his stomach growling, he went down the creaky stairs to look for food, his bare feet padding softly against the worn wooden steps.
Luckily for him, the lodge had a small diner for visitors tucked away in a corner of the ground floor, its worn sign swinging slightly in the morning breeze. He sat down on one of the rickety chairs scattered around mismatched tables, the wood groaning slightly under his weight. The place smelled faintly of old grease and something herbal he couldn't quite identify.
He then sat there for a moment, gathering his thoughts before looking at the stained menu card placed under a glass pane on the table. Most of the items on the menu looked new and completely different from the ones on Earth, with strange names like "Gralox Stew" and "Moonpepper Bread." At the end, after much deliberation, he chose one of the dishes that looked somehow close to Earth food - something called "Morning Mash" that resembled porridge with chunks of meat mixed in.
Surprisingly, when the steaming bowl arrived carried by a yawning server, the food was actually good, the flavors rich and hearty if a bit unfamiliar. After eating every last bite, feeling the warmth spread through his body, he went back to his room, the stairs creaking louder now that more guests were beginning to stir.
He then accessed his alliance ring which he hadn't even bothered to examine when it was given to him yesterday, a fact that showed just how tired he really had been. The silver band felt cool against his skin as he turned it over in his fingers before finally inserting it onto his finger. The moment it slid into place, he felt a sharp prick on his finger, like a needle's bite.
Immediately his thoughts flashed back to what the receptionist had said about blood yesterday, making him wonder just how much of this world's technology relied on such intimate biological connections. He then heard a new voice in his head, different from Gia's familiar tone - this one was crisper, more mechanical, devoid of personality.
(Connection to the alliance ring successful)
(You now have access to the sky-ray)
After delivering these brief statements, the voice went completely silent, leaving Eldris blinking in the quiet room.
"Is that all?" he muttered aloud, frowning at the ring. "What if I want to research something, how am I going to do it?"
As if triggered by his question, the voice spoke up again, its tone just as impersonal as before.
(Using the alliance feature is simple and easy, you can either choose to use the ai function or use the manual function.)
(If you choose the ai feature, you just have to think about what you want and I will help you to connect to the sky-ray to get the information for you. But know that once the ai function is chosen, it is an irreversible process. Meaning that you can not tune me out. The ai will do anything for you except illegal things and anything related to the dark web. And if you try to force the process the alliance ring will explode immediately after giving you a warning.)
Eldris sucked in a sharp breath at the mention of the ring exploding, his fingers instinctively moving as if to remove it before stopping himself. With more caution now, he asked about the second option.
"What about the manual features?" He asked, making sure to enunciate each word clearly.
(The manual features comes with free and easy access, it give you write to use the sky-ray any way you want to do unless you don't commit a crime. Once committing an act you shouldn't you would grab the attention of the meta groups. This group are in charge of dealing with people that do the thing they shouldn't do on the sky-ray. You have free access to the sky-ray as long as you know what you want. But know if you choose the manual features I won't be able to talk to your ear again.)
"Hmmmm, interesting," Eldris said while thinking for some minutes, weighing his options carefully. The AI sounded convenient but dangerously permanent, while the manual option offered freedom at the cost of convenience.
Finally, he made his decision. "I choose the manual features."
Immediately after he made his choice, what felt like a tidal wave of information about using the alliance ring flooded into his brain. The sudden flood of information was almost unbearable, giving him the sensation of his skull being stuffed full of data, but he gritted his teeth and survived through it, blinking rapidly as the pressure behind his eyes slowly subsided.
After recovering from the information overload, he then started to head down the stairs towards the hotel exit, his steps more confident now that he had a purpose. The wooden steps groaned under his weight as he descended into the lobby area.
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...pls read and vote for my books.