CHAPTER 8
RAID
There nothing but varying levels booms in the background and to my amazement it's not my fault this time. We did so well with the levels 10 to 15 that we kept going higher and higher. It started out so easy to despite our relatively low levels. Ling and Naomi would kite the monster since Ling's race bonus had a larger pool of stamina and Naomi''s shield skill and armor rating helped deflect any projectiles as they ran. Ling could slow down, get a few hits in, dodge and have enough speed and stamina to run away. If they ever stop or tried switch to ranges Naomi would be there to block. If or when the monsters stop pursuit, Naomi who would shield toss or throw an explosive phials at them. With there attention on them they'd be lured over to Adam and I.
Our Job was simple, or I geuss mine was. Heh mine. They would stammer up to our little ambush point, where I would light them up. First obstacle was multiple flat ice shields, charged with kinetic energy like mines. Once the monster got in place I'd snap my fingers and the shields would blast apart hitting monster with ½ explosive force ½ shards of near supersonic ice shards. Afterwards I bring down my lightning charged staff and I'd become the Oprah of bolts. Even yelled ‘You get a bolt, and you get a bolt, everyone gets a bolt’ a few times. It got old pretty quick.
Anything left, and as the levels rose there were; Adam would step in. Stealth and headshots of course multiplied damage. Adam was pulling off both almost simultaneously. One second there were dazed hostiles the next second arrows were poking out skulls. Anything surviving when his arrow rain stopped got sliced. Quick rushes from the shadows apparently moving up as he fired. Last thing they seemed to notice was a blur followed by slit throats and disemboweled inside becoming outsides. Seem’s I’m not the only one who had found the bleedout feature.
This lasted long enough to level up a few times. Naomi bumped her defense and started gaining skills like stamina recharge and fire charged attacks attacks for her and allies. Ling put stats mostly into strength and got skill that turns missed attacks into energy that he could use for various purposes. As well as something to reflect magic attacks. Probably thinking of Pvp. Adam sticks to his strength put his stats into speed and agility He choose an ability called blur which according to it's description gives him burst of sonic speed, a sort of teleport to anyone else. Adam seems to actually control and attack when hitting those speeds which was probably not intended. Me I went more towards cold manipulation. Firing freezing blast and ice shards stuff like that.
Eventually it got to the point where we were actually fighting instead of resorting guerrilla tactics. Until we decided to call it quits. We had been following a trail of monsters, dodging traps, blocking or deflecting magic blast from nowhere. I even solved a riddle to open a gate. My shield bracelet worked wonder here. After that we decided on one last thing, hit the dungeon off in the distance.
Started of similar enough to how we began. Level 15 and 16; maybe a 20 or two. But now we were leveled up a bit and there were four of us. Shit really started hitting the fan as we got closer. I don't think they noticed but by checking the bodies I found more and more level 20s. I could tell by their faces they realized something was up. It was taking more and more hits to bring them these guys down. We reach the temple steps but before we could decided to retreat we are flanked by a army from behind. Completely different monsters. Mutated orcs and goblins, decaying zombie werewolves, and a host of of things foul. None of them carrying medieval weaponry like Axes and bow. These guys had makeshift grenade launchers out of a magical steampunk workshop. Soon grenades begin raining down around us. Explosion cascading across the field turning my world into a lethal firework display. Horrible. Beautiful, wsih I wasn’t in the middle of it,
“THE HECK! SINCE WHEN DOES FANTASY INCLUDE GRENADE LAUNCHERS!” Naomi yells..
Her scavenged tower shield protect her from the blast but each explosion knocks her further back.
“I DON'T KNOW, MAYBE THE WORLDS MORE MAGICAL STEAMPUNK THEN WE THOUGHT!” I shout back.
I bring up a ice Dome to cover our flanks from explosions, shrapnel, and debris.
“SHIT, IS THIS SOME KIND OF EVENT!? IT LOOKS LIKE THEY ARE ATTACKING THE PLACE INSTEAD OF US! LOOK!” Adam notes pointing towards the temple like structure.
We all turn to see some other creatures or, not creature. More like spectres. They seem NPC-sih, all from varying races. They cover the top of the stairs and poke out windows. All of them either firing some kind of energy staff or lobbing magic blast. Some of the invaders get vaporised or blown away. Other just stop like they are paralyzed or crushed. Then they get vaporised or exploded.
“MAYBE THEY’RE THE GOOD GUYS?” Ling ask.
“OR MAYBE THEY ARE JUST A DIFFERENT SET OF MONSTERS!” Naomi answer.
“DOES IT MATTER?” Adam yells. “THEY AREN'T SHOOTING AT US! CAN YOU TWO GET US UP INTO THE TEMPLE?”
Naomi and I nod in agreement. The Ice dome is frozen solid into the ground so Push at it with TK till it’s floating.. The front of the barrier is fused to the sides of Naomi's shield so she provided the movemen, pulling it forawd while I keep it afloat. The walk is slow but we Nomes manages it and we finally reach the steps
“Now what?” Ling ask
He notice that the dome doesn't exactly bend to accommodate the stairs. I could probably push it up further but one direct and the strain from the push plus the explosion might be two much for it. Not to mention us being unprotected. I've also noticed it's gotten strangely quieter so I take the chance to not scream my head off.
“I could tilt it but if any blast go near us we’ll be exposed.” I state.
“Fine. Sev you break up the barrier on the count of three. Make it so that there are at least a few pieces of cover over the steps where we are about to run-" adam say.
"Wait, run?" Naomi ask.
"Can you do that Sev?" Adam ask.
"Yeah, but I've never been able to concentrate on something like that and move.” I put my finger up hoping it’ll hush a Itoldyou. “And Ling so help me if you say something about limits I will blast you out into the killing zone."
I don't even have to look at him to feel him grin.
"Don't worry about it Sev just let it do what you do. Evolve. We got you." Ling say.
His voice is nowhere near smug. If roles were reversed that would not be the case.
"Alright on three." Adam says and we all take ready positions. "One. Two! THREE!"
The dome burst and I send the pieces into the air as Adam and Naomi take off. Her new armors clangs as she runs. Adam blurs. They don't even notice the hail of grenades arcing high up like artillery towards the top of the stairs. I’ve lockdown dome piece along the path but I don’t have enough to cover everything. I try to move, maybe us my telekinetics to push me forwards but there is no way I'll make it to both of them before. Even if I wasn't busy holding the several pieces of broken dome up against explosives. Can't even reach out and move pieces over them. To busy holding against the salvo of hits where they are to move any where they are going to be. Wait why isn’t Ling moving?
Suddenly I'm moving, quick too to be me. Claws dig into my side. I look to see Ling's dareddevil grin make its way through his fox avatar’s snout, holding me holding me like a ball underarm.
“Adapt to survive!” He shouts with childish glee.
Even with Ling carrying me there is no way we all are going to make it. The shield will block some hits, but they won’t last long and the rest will still drop to our sides. Given the van sized craters they are leaving we'll be torn to shreds. I can't stop them all. But then I realize, I don't have to. I've let myself get too focused on someone else’s plan. I don't have to wait to block them. I just need to stop anything that’s going to land within a certain radius. But first, need to group us closer together.
“Ling, get ready to jump!” I shout. “NOW
Ling leaps and I add a bit of force to us that accelerates him faster than I could've done on my own. It's enough to decrease the area I have to cover. I take all the shard and kick them from static to overdrive. They might not be big enough to cover everything but a swarm of them racing around at supersonic speed can cause an explosive chain reaction that will create a barrier of explosions. They sett off anything that nears it. I’ve just turned their barrage into my defense. Is there anything explosions can’t do?
“Keep going.” I shout.
My shards are disappearing quick, rapid explosion whittling them down to nothing. It gives me enough time to try something else.
“And now for my next trick!”
I turn in Ling's arm enough to point behind us and in my inventory I hit drop on the last thing I selected. Instantly a shower of coins appears around us and I send out a kinetic burst to turn the coins into bullets. As Naomi, Ling, and I reach the door with Adam waiting I see the sky fill with explosions, I swear I feel the vibration from the distant shockwaves. My heart feels like it's going to burst from beating when I sees energy blast push through the explosions.
“BULLSHIT!” I shout in disbelief.
We slip in and Adam Kicks the large metal doors shut. The blast shakes the door and our surroundings but it holds. After about a 1 minute of tense waiting for it to blast open we fall to the floor.
“Okay...” Naomi manages to get through labored breaths “How about.. We log off now? That was.... that was just insane. I'm almost out of breath. Ingame and out.”
“We can't.” Adam say slight more composed. “We can't save here. Somethings wrong with auto-save. We'll lose the money and all the gear we got up.”
“WOOO!” Ling shouts. “We gotta keep going guys that was amazing!”
He runs down the hallway yelling ‘come on’ his tail wagging excitedly.
“Ling hold up! Dammit. Why does he wander off every time he gets excited. Wait here I'll get him.”
And then Adam is off as well.
“........ You want to explore don't you?” Naomi ask.
“I want to touch aaallll the things sooo bad.” I say bouncing repeatedly.
“Fine, go. I'll wait here and watch the door. I call you guys if anythings wrong.”
“Naomi you the bestest... well second bestest. Like tied with Ling.”
“Just go already, Guess I can try some of these minigames out.”
I rush away my tk boosting me along.
I spend about a minute rushing down the halls in awe at the place. Everything looks so real, like it was actually built by hands. I gawk until I come about a room with a chest.
“Sweet, loot.”
I open the top to find a bunch of dust, a few clothes way to large to fit me regardless of my class. There is a book though. My UI titles it “Intent'. I open it expecting something to happen as if it were a skill book. Nothing. Still, a little lore never hurt so as I continue to walk down the hall while I start reading.
by
REY THE RED
First of all, EVERYTHING THOSE ASSHATS AT THE CENTRAL ACADEMY SPEW IS WRONG! Magic is not about channeling energy sources, calling on various entities, using the right words, or tapping into extradimensional forces, et cetera, et cetera. These things are power yes, but so are you. Ask anyone using ki. Try an arbiter or a monk they’ll tell you.
No. The use of magic is ultimately tied to intent and belief. The first steps for any beginner is simply understanding that you can do it. All the training to increase sensitivity to mystical forces. All the power training to increase how much you throw around. None of it will help you with that fireball spell if you don't believe that you can bend the laws of thermodynamics over and make it your bitch.
This is not what I expected at all.
“This looks like something I would write if I had a degree in magic.” I say aloud.
“HELLO!” I hear a voice shout. It's sort of deep, but not. Sort of like The Beast if he tried to talk to belle as a teenager.
“Great more voices. I get it, brain I'm going crazy!”
“Heh, you sound like me! What are you in for? Must be pretty bad to get you dumped in this place!” The voice states.
Huh, maybe some npc?
“Where are you?” My voice echoes throughout the halls
“Uhmm... In the dark is about all I've got.”
“Thats not really helpful.”
“I've been here in the dark without any sort of interaction for years. If I could be more helpful trust me I would.” He sounds defeated, I feel weird. It's almost like I can sense his desperation and sadness.
“Well you must have been brought in here right? Did you get a look at what they did when you got put in here?”
I’m thinking maybe he's some kind of AI, pretty good to for it to be answering my questions like this.
“Um, yeah; there was kind of a weird wall. Lot a runes they started reading something. Knowing those guys it probably in some obscure language. Apparently you’re not a good wizard unless you’re doing shit no one knows about.”
“Found it!”
“Can you read it?”
“ Yeah, I think… Here lies Razl'cor, Avatar to Ruination-”
“Maybe skip that part.” he says embarrassed.
“Murderer of The Five, defiler of lands. Where he travels discord follows. So little is his compassion that even princess of Ascendtients, Purest soul of the known lands; kindest of royals. Was not spared his calamitous influence. Blah blah don't let him out Blah Blah. Ah, here we go. Don't think it translatable into English. Hmm, Ruasilth mingarse!”
The wall parts. Grinding gears turning as stone grates on stone. Beyond is pitch black until white torches slowly light the way. Eventually revealing a beast. At about six foot five, dark violet furred, gray mane. Sort of like a Lionman with horns and green eyes. At least part of horns, they appear to be broken off. His hair is shaggy, strands coated in dried blood. Cuts that still seem fresh mark him. He is held high, his arms chained to opposing pillars with glowing ruins. Behind him a large glowing circle that seems to be drawing energy from him.
“So... Why are you?” I point gesturing to all of him.
“Naked? Bit of advice kid; never piss of a proper mage and let'em live. They major in spells and minor in spite.” Razl'cor manages.
He's weak, I don't know what his race looks like normally but I can feel terrible radiating off him.
“You look like shit. But I guess thats the point of a prison huh? That what this is right?
“Prison, banishment, isolation all in a neat package… no joke intended.”
“On the account of the murders.”
“THEY!” he takes a breath. “They weren't murders! It was self defense. That’s all my life is... was. One long fight against everyone. If they didn't want to use me, they wanted put me in my place so I-” using what little strength he seems to have he managed air quotes “So I ‘wouldn't be a threat’, assholes.”
“This” I gesture towards him. Being the 'Place'.
“Believe it or not no, this is plan C when keeping me as a... pet” he growls pet more then says it. “didn't work out.”
“Hard to believe they could keep someone like yourself as a pet. You’re like what, 500 pounds.”
“I wasn't exactly this size a when I was eight.”
That kind of hits a close to home. Game or not, shit like that brings up memories of people I'd rather keep locked away.
“What about your family or your friends.” I ask desperate for at least a small glimmer of relief.
I just need something to ease the pain he's feeling… I mean, I’m feeling? Weird.
His head drop and eyes tear up. This isn't right, monster aren't supposed to cry. Destroy, wreak havoc, hell maybe throw a tantrum. But not cry.
“BULLSHIT!” His eyes go wide. “Shouldn't matter what or why, family supposed back you. That like straight biological.”
“Not when you're a disappointment housing the power Ruin. Not when everything you do wrecks everything you touch.” his voice is low, somehow he sound more defeated than he did before.
“You were EIGHT! They should have fought for you, someone should've fought you!” My head hurts, my pain; his pain somehow conjoined. “You should've fought!”
“DON'T YOU THINK I KNOW THAT! DO YOU THINK I JUST SAT BACK AND DID NOTHING! EVERYDAY WAS A HORRIBLE REMINDER OF HOW SAD PAINFUL AND ANGRY I WAS! I WANTED TO HURT THEM ALL! THE KINGS AND QUEENS, MY FATHER, MY CLAN! AND!.. And!... And..... look where it's got me.”
Silence follows. He stares at the ground. One part shame. One part loneliness. All mixed in hiding a boiling paranoid rage.
“It took everyone of the worlds best heroes to take me down... People I looked up to. Then entire time all I could think about was about before things went bad. How I wanted so badly I wanted to be where they were, side by side against one of the worst monsters in-”
“How do I get you down?” I've heard enough.
“What?” Raz says, his disbelief almost tangible.
A loud THOOM echo through the hallways. Static fills the comm link between me and my friends.
“Guys some...burst….. Doorwa.....mark’em. but..AT..ev...SEV!” Naomi voice tries to fight its way through static. Somethings distorting it. Some kind of boss. Another event. Some kind of modifer. Or maybe it another glitch.
“What was that?!” Razl ask.
I can understand his panic. Really hope this isn’t another glitch. I check my map, whatever Nomes has marked is heading for me and it's twice my level.
“With our luck combined? Nothing good.”
RECORDING RELEVANT DATA... Location West Industries Eastern building, Seer's hall.
“It's all wrong. I don't understand it, no one else should have been there.”
“Sims! Where have you been.”
“5 different seers, looking at multiple different possible paths Mr. West.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Every possible version of events had Gideon alone. He manages to get the beast under control. Sometimes it takes a bit of convincing or a fight but he always win. But now, now...”
“Now what? Sims, NOW WHAT?
“There’s... something else. It wasn't in any eventuality we saw. Like it just popped up from nowhere. There were still things foreseeable. Theo tried to, see. But it’s like fate, was just... ripped apart into a million pieces.”
“What is it, one of the Eternal Cabal? An outsider?”
“A child.”
“A child could not have that kind of power.”
“He wasn’t even meant to be.”
“What about Theo! Where is-”
“He's still stuck in the trance sir somethings more powerful is speaking through him he was-”
“Dead or Broken, that was destiny. He was not meant to live or thrive.”
“Theo, this is West speaking. I need to know who or what you channeling.
“His existence fights against what should have! A mockery to what is and what is meant to be!”
“I can banish it but I need to know what it is!”
“PROPHECY BREAKS IN HIS WAKE! NEITHER FATED OR FATELESS! IMPOSSIBLE BECOMES POSSIBILITY, POSSIBILITY IMPOSSIBLE IT NO LONGER MATTERS! AN OMEN HIMSELF! CHAOS BECOMES REALITY! SO BEGIN THE AGE OF CHANGE! THE WORLD! WILL!…rr. uguugh…….”
“Damn it… Sims! Where. Is. Gideon?”
“Heading towards it Mr. West. Heading straight towards ‘him’.”