Awaken Online (Book 3.5): Apathy

by Bagwell, Travis

  But it was too late.

  The mist exploded outward in every direction, billowing and rolling across the muddy ground of the shore. The fog left only a small pocket of clear air in the center of the maelstrom of moisture – just enough that Eliza wouldn’t be affected by her own poison. As she finished casting, she immediately dropped to the ground, hearing the sound of missiles whistling through the air above her as the archers released. The shouts of the player’s echoed through the fog – yet it was so dense that they couldn’t make each other out through the vapor.

  Then the coughing began. Eliza remained prone, waiting patiently until she heard twelve thumps – signaling that the players had dropped to the ground. She ordered her mist to move away from the bodies but to maintain a close circle around the disabled group of players. She couldn’t be certain that there weren’t more archers in the woods, and the mist would help obscure her from sight.

  The leader’s body became visible only moments later, his eyes wide and staring straight ahead as he lay prone on the ground. Eliza pushed herself to her feet and approached at a leisurely pace. She had improved on her Paralytic Poison, and it now lasted nearly sixty seconds depending on the dosage. Her mist also sat at the ready and could be recalled in order to administer a second dose if needed. The second application reduced the effect of the poison – with a steeply diminishing return – but she didn’t expect that she would need much more time.

  The man’s breathing was ragged and uneven and grew more rapid as Eliza stepped toward him. Her eyes were a cold, glowing sapphire as she channeled her mana and she could feel the energy settling throughout her body. As she neared the man, she stooped – looking him straight in the eye.

  Eliza’s thoughts drifted back to the videos of Jason’s attack on Lux and the creation of the Twilight Throne. His performances were ruthless but effective, and there was a reason that the other players feared him. She would need to accomplish something similar here. Eliza needed to send a message that the players wouldn’t forget. Especially since they had seen her face.

  “I-I know… who… you…,” the player gasped, managing only a few words before the paralytic took hold completely and only a faint gurgle escaped his lips.

  She smiled at the man’s feeble twitches. “Do you? Do you really? Did you know who I was when you had your men cut my throat?”

  Her voice was cold as she continued, “You deserve much worse than what I’m going to do to you. Let me be clear, I now have a screenshot of your faces,” she said, raising her voice as she tapped at her system UI. “If I see any of you in this forest again or any mention of me online, I will hunt you down. Forget about spawn camping. What you need to be afraid of is pain, because this– this is only just the tip of the iceberg.”

  As she finished speaking, Eliza began casting an Ice Bolt – the crystalline shard forming in the air and centering on the man’s face. The icy spear inched forward, slowly closing in on one of his eyes. The muscles in the man’s face twitched, and a desperate gurgle escaped his lips – as though he was trying to beg for his life.

  As she watched the man squirm, Eliza felt a pang of guilt. She hesitated. This was different than the troll or the bear. This was a person staring up at her – not a computer program or a monster. This was a real, human person. Could she really do this?

  Then the image of the man’s leering face flashed through her mind’s eye – his expression remorseless and amused as he ordered one of his group to slit her throat. She remembered the way he had seemed to revel in her fear only moments before. He would have done the same to her and maybe even worse. More than that, she needed to protect herself and Alma. She couldn’t afford to have this blowback on her or the people she cared about.

  As her mind spun chaotically and she grappled with what she was about to do, an odd sense of balance suddenly settled over Eliza’s mind, quieting the warring voices that bounced through her mind. It was a strange feeling – intangible and difficult to pinpoint. In the sudden calm, Alma’s words returned to her as she stood over the prone player. This was just the way of this world. This man wouldn’t have hesitated to kill Eliza. She thought about the pain he had caused her and the pleasure he had taken in administering that pain. How many others had he harmed? With her body and mind awash in mana, she accepted this truth without hesitation.

  He deserved this.

  With that thought, she released her spell. The ice shard rocketed forward, closing the small space between Eliza and the player almost instantly before embedding itself deeply in the man’s eye. Blood bubbled around the wound, and his body spasmed, his nervous system still responding to the muted pain despite the paralytic coursing through his veins. Another bolt in his other eye – still staring at her in horror – ended his life.

  Then Eliza turned back to the remaining members of the group, their prone forms lying around her, encircled by the glowing, malignant golden mist. Their wide, unblinking eyes were filled with a desperate terror, and their limbs twitched as they tried vainly to order their reluctant bodies to flee.

  As Eliza watched them with glowing sapphire eyes, she began to automatically summon another barrage of icy projectiles, the shards forming around her in a maelstrom of frigid vapor. The same strange sensation washed over her once more – one she had trouble putting a name to. It felt like she hovered upon a mental precipice between light and dark. Her actions were neither right nor wrong. They just were. She reveled in the sense of peace that the feeling afforded her.

  In the real world, she might be too weak to confront her parents, and her classmates might dismiss her. She might be uncertain about her future and afraid to reach out to her peers. But here, in this place, she was the Ice Witch. She was a force of nature. And her judgment was absolute and final.

  Chapter 21 - Picky

  It took Eliza a few hours to make her way back to Alma’s cottage. She had stopped to check on her traps and gather some additional ingredients. As the familiar compound came into sight, she felt a small wave of sadness sweep over her. She had spent so much time in the forest over the last few days that she had become accustomed to the background hum of the insects and the dappled sunlight sneaking through the twining patchwork of branches that loomed overhead. With her quest now complete, she didn’t exactly have a good reason to return.

  However, if she were being honest with herself, she knew that it was more than that.

  On the long trek back to Alma’s cottage, her thoughts had kept returning to how she had killed the players and the eerie calm that had overcome her as she ended each of their lives. It had almost felt like another person had killed those players. Once she had let go of her mana, the same sense of guilt and trepidation had come rushing back. She knew she had done what was necessary, but she had still been unable to meet the vacant gaze of the players she had killed and had quickly fled the lake after retrieving the pelt.

  Logically, she knew that she had been killing people for days. But there was something distinctly different between laying a few traps in the woods and killing other players in cold blood. She kept telling herself it was just a game, but that explanation rang hollow as she recalled the look in their eyes – and the very real fear she had seen there.

  Even worse, a part of her secretly yearned for that sense of balance that had come with channeling her mana. And the power and triumph she had felt by besting the players. There was something strangely appealing about becoming the Ice Witch – something freeing. These sensations were foreign to Eliza, but they had been tantalizing. She was reluctant to give that up, despite her misgivings about what she had done.

  As a result, it was with mixed feelings that Eliza arrived back at Alma’s compound. A brief inspection of the grounds revealed that the older woman was absent, possibly working in her hidden laboratory. Eliza took the opportunity to walk through the garden, inspecting the plants carefully to see if they needed tending as she tried to clear her head.

  “It’s always nice to stop and smell the rose
s on occasion,” the Hippie said, appearing directly beside Eliza. She jumped, squeaking in surprise, which earned her a wry grin from the god. “Or massacre a whole slew of players,” he commented with a raised eyebrow. “Who knew our little water mage was such an accomplished killer!”

  Eliza choked back at the lump in her throat at the god’s callous comment before frowning at the irritating young man – her guilt morphing into anger. “I didn’t have much choice. You neglected to point out that half of Falcon’s Hook was also hunting the Silver Stag.”

  The Hippie just shrugged and grinned at her. “Speaking of which, did you manage to slay our dear deer… huh, now that’s an odd expression!” the Hippie said, coming up short and murmuring the words to himself over and over using different inflections.

  “Anyway,” Eliza interjected before the god could completely lose focus, “to answer your question, I did retrieve the pelt– although I didn’t technically kill the deer myself.” As she finished speaking, she pulled the leather bundle from her bag and handed it to the god.

  “Close enough!” he said, snatching the leather and examining it closely, running his fingers across the silky silver fur and holding it close to his eyes to get a better look – as though he didn’t quite believe it was the genuine article. As he finished inspecting the leather, his brow furrowed, and a frown tugged at his lips.

  “Well, this looks like the right pelt,” he began slowly before rounding on Eliza. “But is this vegan, free-range, cruelty-free leather? Fluffy can be kind of a stickler for that sort of thing, you know.”

  Eliza just stared at the Hippie. “What? What does that even mean? How can leather be vegan…? I mean, I helped kill the stag… You sent me after that creature specifically!”

  The Hippie waved a hand in her direction. “Oh, don’t worry. We can just tell Fluffy that no animals were harmed in the making of his new collar. It’s amazing what they can do with pho-fur these days…,” the god murmured to himself, ignoring the fact that Eliza’s face was now flush with confused anger.

  Fluffy took this opportunity to make his appearance, circling out from behind a nearby bush and giving the Hippie a long-suffering look. Apparently, even the sheep had his limits when it came to the god’s inane jabbering. He stepped toward the Hippie and butted his arm with his head gently as though to say, “Get on with it already.”

  The god glanced at his pet in surprise. “Ahh, and here is the sheep of the hour! I’m ready to make your collar, Fluffy!” he exclaimed excitedly. With that statement, the god snapped his fingers.

  The leather responded immediately, floating into the air as a ribbon of the material was neatly severed by an invisible knife. The leather band warped and changed before Eliza’s eyes – undergoing an incredibly fast curing process before binding itself into a rather normal-looking collar, replete with metal clasp. Eliza couldn’t help but wonder where the stitching and metal had come from, but she didn’t really have the heart to ask. She was certain the god wouldn’t give her a straight answer anyway.

  With the new collar now in hand, the Hippie stepped over to Fluffy and placed it around his neck, clasping it tightly. “It fits like a glove! Or… err… a collar, I suppose,” the Hippie said. “What do you think, Fluffy?”

  The sheep hopped slightly to the side as he tried to look at the collar that was now bound around his neck. The leather band made his wool poof up around his head and shoulders, giving him a slightly comical appearance.

  “What do you think, Eliza?” the Hippie asked, nudging her with his elbow and giving her a meaningful look.

  “Oh… I-it looks amazing Fluffy,” she said, trying to muster some enthusiasm. What she got in return was a suspicious look from the sheep – who hadn’t quite given up on trying to inspect his own collar.

  “I think you look majestic! Truly a marvel to behold really,” the Hippie added, nodding a little too quickly. “There’s just the matter of your fur kind of bunching…”

  The god stopped mid-sentence as Fluffy went suddenly still, glaring at the young man with a deadly expression. “Wait,” the god said, putting up his hands quickly. “I was mistaken. It really doesn’t look bad at all. A little grooming will fix that situation right up. You know, a snip here and there.”

  Fluffy took an ominous step forward toward the Hippie. “It really doesn’t look bad,” Eliza interjected quickly. “Your fur is just a little bushy right now. Maybe you just need a haircut?” This earned her a glare from the sheep, and then he just seemed to deflate, stepping away from the pair and trudging back behind his bush.

  “I told you he can be kind of sensitive,” the Hippie whispered to Eliza, cupping his mouth with his hand conspiratorially.

  He sighed before looking at the water mage with a more serious expression. “Fluffy’s little tantrum aside, I suppose you still accomplished my quest.” He waved his hand, and a notification appeared in front of Eliza.

  Quest Completed: Fantastic Fashion

  You finally managed to slay the Silver Stag – well, sort of. But it totally counts, so don’t worry! Fluffy wasn’t really enamored with his new collar, but that also isn’t technically your fault. Although, you did mention that he needed a haircut… You probably should have known better than to question the Great Black Sheep’s appearance.

  Difficulty: A

  Success: Slay the Silver Stag and return its pelt to the Hippie.

  Failure: Fail to kill the stag or return its pelt. Continue to question the Hippie’s unwavering integrity.

  Reward: Unknown

  x3 Level Up!

  You have (15) undistributed stat points.

  x1 Skill Rank Up: Cold Grasp

  Skill Level: Intermediate Level 2

  Effect 1: Increases radius by 12%

  Effect 2: Increases damage by 2%

  x1 Skill Rank Up: Herbalism

  Skill Level: Intermediate Level 2

  Effect 1: Allows the player to harvest more difficult or dangerous plants. 6% chance for double ingredients.

  Effect 2: Low-level ingredients appear on the map and are highlighted.

  x1 Skill Rank Up: Alchemy

  Skill Level: Intermediate Level 4

  Effect 1: Increases success chance of crafting potions and potion potency by 14%.

  Effect 2: Reduces ingredient consumption by 4%.

  “So, about that reward…” Eliza said, swiping away her notification and glancing at the water god.

  “What reward?” he asked in confusion.

  “The reward for completing the quest,” she said slowly, clenching her fists and trying her best not to smack the Hippie upside the head. After all the time and effort she had put into this, was he really going to leave her hanging?

  “Oh, well isn’t the journey the reward itself?” the god replied glibly, waving a dismissive hand. “You’ve grown so much and become quite popular around town. If anything, you should probably be thanking me.”

  He hesitated as he realized that Eliza was now the one glaring at him. “Uh, okay. Your reward… right. I must have left it around here somewhere,” he murmured glancing frantically around the garden.

  His eyes eventually rested on the remaining leather that sat in a haphazard pile on the ground – the Hippie having only used a sliver of the material to create Fluffy’s new collar. “What about some fine leather? I also heard there’s a bounty out for the Stag – some guy in Falcon’s Hook really wants it. Have you heard anything about that?”

  It took most of Eliza’s considerable patience not to hit the god. She should have known better. He never seemed to plan more than one step ahead – and, even then, he waited until the last minute and acted only on impulse.

  “Fine. Just fine,” she muttered, grabbing at the leather and stuffing it into her pack. She wasn’t sure what she would do with the gold, but she supposed it didn’t really matter.

  She turned to ask the god another question, only to discover that he had disappeared once again. Eliza couldn’t help but grumble to herself. Wha
t was even the point of these silly quests? Were they really all about spending time creating accessories for the god’s pet sheep? Shouldn’t he be doing something more meaningful – like, you know, god things…?

  Although, as she thought about it, would she really want the Hippie answering her prayers or dealing with serious issues like plagues or other disasters? He was really more likely to cause a flood than stop one. Perhaps it was best that he was focused on frivolous things. That was probably safer for everyone – except maybe for her and Fluffy.

  “You look like you’ve sucked on something sour,” Alma said from behind Eliza, her cane making a rhythmic thump as she approached. “Something the matter?”

  “Just idiot gods and their stupid quests,” Eliza muttered. She held up the edge of the pelt for Alma to see as she continued to stuff the fabric into her pack. “But I did manage to kill the stag and recover the pelt, which I guess I can turn in for the bounty. So, that’s a victory I suppose.”

  “I had no doubt you would come out victorious,” the older woman said with a kindly smile. Then she glanced up at the sun, noting that it was still early afternoon. “If you have nothing planned, we could make the trek into town together. Lord Baen asked for a batch of potions a few days ago, so I’m heading in the same direction.”

  Eliza nodded, letting out a soft sigh. She didn’t have anything better to do, so why not? She spared a glance at the older alchemist out of the corner of her eye as the pair headed for the boundary of her compound, the familiar trail looming before them. At least Alma would be better company than the Hippie.