by Jason Cheek
“Look,” I said, the annoyance plain in my voice. “Undead pets are an excellent way to increase the size of our forces. Depending on your intelligence stat, we could double or even triple our offensive capacity.” My eyes focused on Julissa and Monica who both looked away not willing to meet my gaze.
“If you want payback against those PKers who wronged you and your friends, then look at the zombies as an effective weapon and the means to an end.” I explained in a more reasonable voice. “Although they’re not pretty or cuddly, a true warrior uses all of the tools they have at their disposal to achieve victory.”
“Ugh, I guess,” Angie grudgingly agreed, as she eased up next to me while we ran. “So, how does this work? Do we need to stop or can you do this while we’re running?” I didn’t bother to answer. Selecting the three spells of Dark magic, Soul Stone, and Raise Zombie, I mentally selected her and thought train.
“Oh … okay,” Angie stuttered, nearly tripping in surprise as the three system messages momentarily blocked out her vision. As soon as she cleared the messages away, I tossed her an Orc Scout soul stone, which she caught readily enough. “Just raise it with your Raise Zombie spell at our next stop.”
“Thank you, Star,” Angie replied, giving me a firm nod as she tucked the soul stone away into her pouch.
Monica and Julissa were next. Although the training took only a moment, I had no desire to train the whole group of Uten Syn players on my own. After tossing both women a soul stone, I opened my character menu to find the tab for the House of Kayden. A quick search through the various ranks showed that I could assign trainers within my House. Without hesitation, I selected all of my companions currently with me and hit okay.
“Milord Ironwolf?” Neristhana called out questioningly, as she read the message of the change. The surprised look on her face made it apparent that she’d thought her relationship with me had been affected by the fight. Glancing at the faces around her, she realized that she wasn’t the only companion with a status change. Immediately, her face took on a serious look as she gave me a clenched fisted salute. “What do you require of me?”
“At ease, Neristhana,” I said, returning her salute as I took in my companions’ worried faces. “I was hoping the five of you could train the Uten Syn newfar in Dark magic?” A simple “Yes, milord Ironwolf” came from their lips as I explained which spells they’d need and handed them over a number of Orc Scout soul stones. “If you need more, just let me know. Also, please keep an eye out for aggro’ing mobs.”
I could tell that they wanted to say more in regards to our fight earlier, but instead of speaking out, they saluted and moved out with a purpose. Looking over at my friends running beside me, I gave them an excited grin. “Feel like earning some XP?”
“What’s going on?” Sarka asked, confused at the sudden change along with the rest of my friends.
“Neysa and Helgath don’t think they can weave a path through so many mobs without aggro’ing some of the groups. If we’re not careful, the whole area could be aggro’d. So, I told them to just let me know what groups are questionable so we can take them out ahead of time.”
“Sounds good,” Tinyr said, after a quick check with Unalia.
“As long as we’re not passing through the zone like murderhobos, it sounds like a plan,” Yun agreed easily enough.
“Sounds good,” Sarka agreed, as her face screwed up in annoyance. “Because, this constant running is getting old quick.”
“Sorry about that, guys,” I said, somewhat embarrassed. “The only thing more annoying than running across the map to help a friend are escort quests.” Everyone groaned remembering back to the Delonshire Mine quest where we’d escorted Miya and her people back to Delonshire.
That comment started a whole discussion of how we all first met up as we began reminiscing about our first dungeon dive together. The first thing out of Sarka’s mouth was how she was annoyed that she didn’t get any recognition or reward for helping to rescue the Silver Dire Wolf pup. A fact that I hadn’t realized was bothering her all this time, but one she’d come to grips with. As a gamer, we sometimes got so into the loot we picked up, that we forgot to think about how others in the party felt when they didn’t get something comparable. When I went to apologize to my friend, she just waved me away with the warning that she’d better get the next combat pet that drops. A quick glance at Yun, said she was serious as a heart attack as I promised she could have the next drop as far as I was concerned.
Thankfully, Tinyr changed the topic by remembering back to how we’d helped them to get their gear back, when we took out the first group of Worg Riders like it was nothing. He chortled happily as he described blow by blow how we’d then wasted The Syndicate players that were bullying all of the lowbie players trying to run to safety. As Yun started talking about The Syndicate players that had jumped them after joining their team, I noticed the incredulous looks from Krishna, Angie, and the other nearest Uten Syn players as they listened to our adventures. Once Yun finished, Monica started telling her own story of starting the game.
As we listened to her story, I kept switching my vision back and forth between Darkvision and normal trying to get a feel for the mobs in the zone around us, while following the directions that Helgath gave as Neysa carefully steered us clear of the largest concentrations of predators. The herds of level 26 Feral Goats and solo level 28 Wildclaws had given way to level 30 to 35 herds of aggressive Elite Large Stone Deer being hunted by packs of level 35 to 38 Elite Large Rock Wolves and Elite Fanged Tarpan Striders.
What made passing them by so difficult was that at any time a chase could ensue that would move the various packs and herds around to new locations at the drop of a hat. Then it would take a moment for the herds of Elite Large Stone Deer to settle down and begin to graze once again as the predators tore apart their kills. It reminded me of many an MMO where you were forced to run through aggressive zones to reach a specific dungeon or city. It wasn’t that the monsters couldn’t be fought. It just wasn’t why you were there and usually you didn’t want to get stuck fighting against the large groups of mobs with quick respawn timers, because you were meeting up with some friends or needed to log out in a city for the evening.
For us, it was a slightly different story. A small portion of our group was in the mid-thirties, while the majority were in the mid to high twenties. That was a difference of four to eleven levels, which was huge in an MMO style game. Meaning, if we got too close to any one group, we could easily aggro a herd or two of Large Stone Deer and a few packs of the predators hunting them.
With the level differences, I didn’t see how there wouldn’t be any deaths, which would mean we’d have to make our way to the nearest graveyard to pick-up our friends. An additional trek like that meant more fighting and more time to get aggro’d, which I didn’t have time for if I wanted to get everything done tonight and still log out at a decent time.
The most dangerous times for our raid was when we were approaching the top of the ridge-like hills that scarred the landscape. They were more like mini-mountains than hills with their steep slopes. More than once, Neysa was forced to leap away from a pack of predators that were sitting in wait on the far side of the slope. Although, after the tenth time of doing this, she was getting the hang of it. While that was going on and making me a nervous Nellie, Angie was telling her story of entering The World and learning what being able to see meant for the very first time, when Helgath’s shout of fear and pain shot through my mind like a hot poker.
Whipping around to face the ridge, I saw that Neysa and Helgath were nowhere in sight as my heart clenched in consternation. What could have taken them out with just one hit? Swearing up a storm, I took off at a sprint, while sending my zombies racing ahead. As everyone’s heads looked around in surprise, my strained voice cut through the heavy night’s air.
“Neysa and Helgath are under attack! Sarka, Yun, Unalia, and Tinyr, I need you to make a perimeter up on the lower side of the
ridge. Assist as you can!” I shouted to my friends, before addressing the entire raid. “Uten Syn guild, I need you to close up ranks and prepare for battle! We will make a stand on the far side of the ridge! This is going to get ugly, but no matter what, stay in formation!”
Chapter One.Twenty-One
(Wednesday, May 7th / Day 17 of The World.)
My legs pumped as I slid the Black Coral Iron-reinforced Defender from my back and drew the Dark Blade of Lord Kayden from my waist. At the same time, I called my twelve zombie pets to me. With every step my heart pounded in my chest as I listened to the ongoing sounds of battle. Only Helgath’s wordless shrieks came to my ears as I closed the distance to the ridge. Not once did I hear Neysa’s howls or growls to signal she was active in the fight, even though my HUD showed that she was only down a third of her total health while Helgath was down a quarter.
A third of her health might not sound like much, but up until this morning, that was more than her total health. Whatever had attacked her would have one-shotted the old Neysa. There were also two status affects under her picture. One was Stun, which I was well acquainted with. The other, was a green drop that I’d never seen before. Although, after years of playing MMOs, I had a hunch that it had to be some type of poison. Concentrating on the debuff icon for a split-second showed me that I’d guessed correctly and also gave me the poison’s name: Paralysis.
Instead of making me feel better, the additional information just freaked me out that much more. Helgath was obviously fighting something incredibly nasty. If the creature attacking them could take a Silver Dire Wolf out in one hit, what would it do to my soulmate? On top of that, no one was communicating to me over our mental link. I could understand not getting any reply from Helgath who was fighting for her life, but why wasn’t Neysa communicating with me. I think that, more than anything, was what was freaking me out the most.
With a thought I triggered every buff that I could while I ran: Bone Shield, Bone Fangs, Enhanced Mage Armor, Regeneration, and Ice Barrier. The glowing auras of each spell creating an almost rainbow affect around me as I ran. Although the last two spells would only last around ten seconds, I didn’t know what I was running into and wanted to be as prepared as possible, since Holy Shield would have to wait to be cast until I came to a stop. It was times like this I wish I had a Warrior’s Charge or a Rogue’s Super Sprint. Not like there was anything I could do about it now as I reached the top of the ridge.
The sound of my beating heart filled my ears as I took in the entire situation in an instant. Behind me, the raid was just starting to move with a purpose. Sarka, Yun, Tinyr, and Unalia were only seven steps behind me. Twenty feet down the slope was Neysa’s bloody, unmoving body that had been slammed into a pile of small boulders. A few feet in front of her was Helgath hanging ten-feet off the ground with her twin daggers buried into the neck of a rearing serpent thirty-five feet long and twice the thickness of my torso, while black gunk streamed from its mouth and eyes. Further down the slope, I saw a herd of Elite Large Stone Deer forty strong charging my soulmates along with two packs of twenty Elite Large Rock Wolves and one pack of eighteen Elite Fanged Tarpan Striders in pursuit.
While that was bad news, it was nothing in comparison to the remaining herds and packs that dotted the rest of the slope and shallow valley. That wasn’t even mentioning the monsters on the slope across the way or the ones coming up on us from behind. This was about the worst case scenario that I could’ve possibly imagined. It wasn’t that the levels were particularly bad, since my friends and companions were all in the mid-thirties range. No, it was the unbelievable numbers that we faced.
In the time it took me to take all of that in, I’d closed to within ten feet of the mob and had already sheathed the Dark Blade of Lord Kayden and shouldered my shield as an idea came to me in the flash of an eye. A few Enhanced Shadow bolts might have been enough to pull the aggro off my ladies, but I didn’t see that doing much to help the current tactical situation. There was no time for us to take the elite monster out like a team would in a normal fight. Not with us being seconds away from being overwhelmed by a horde of monsters. Especially, not when the creature was in the middle of my planned formation. With those thoughts in mind, I cast Magnify Damage on the head of the serpent as its name suddenly appeared above its head, Elite Stone Assassin, level 38.
Fuck my ever fucking life! I silently raged, as I began to get mad. It might sound odd, but in my heart of hearts, I knew that letting my rage flow was going to be the only chance I had at getting through this without dying. Knowing this, I let the outrage at seeing my girls hurt seep into my bones and set my blood aflame as the adrenaline shot through my veins. My vision took on a red tinge as the emotions inside my chest took on a life of their own as a familiar berserk fury came over me.
Throughout my life, I’d always used my cold calculating rage to do whatever it was that needed to be done. The adrenaline had always given me the extra boost I needed to win against my enemies. It didn’t matter about the odds stacked against me. I would do whatever it took to win. Though, a part of me worried that this was happening to me more and more as I played and fought inside The World, I pushed those thoughts to the side as I focused on the path forward. I didn’t know if this was a part of the game’s design meshing with my natural tendency to lean on my anger or something else entirely. Not that any of that mattered. Right now, all that was important was that the fury gave me the purpose and power to do what needed to be done.
With a wordless cry, I leaped into the air and arched my back to allow my hands to easily lock around the long hilt of the Vampiric Bastard Sword of Slaughter sticking above my back. As my body soared down the slope, I ripped the massive blade out of its sheath and twisted the weapon around so it was aimed point first at my target. At the same time, I mentally ordered my pets into position as I reached my goal.
The point of the two-handed blade punched through the rock-like scales of the Elite Stone Assassin’s head like a hot knife through butter. My aim wasn’t to bear the diamond shaped head to the ground or to cling to it like you’d see in an action movie. Nope, as the serpent shuddered from the critical strike, I flexed my muscles to swing my plunging body under the oversized snout like a gymnast with my hands still locked around the hilt of the two-handed sword. The resulting explosion of blood and viscera that spewed from the terrible wound was better than I could have possibly hoped for.
Like a Sushi Chief severing a blowfish’s head with a yanagi-ba sushi knife, the Vampiric Bastard Sword of Slaughter continued slicing through the rock-like scales with a metallic ring, following the path of my arching body. I couldn’t help the savage grin that came to my lips as the heavy blade shredded everything in its path. In my mind’s eye, all that I could picture was that old ‘frog in a blender’ game as the serpent gave a hissing shriek. That was my last thought as my blade came free and I was sent flying into the air.
The idea I had in the moments before I leaped down the ridge had been one of those rare moments of brilliance for me. In a mind that was cluttered with useless information, I’d somehow come up with the idea of combining the concept of the Law of the Lever and that of the Law of Conservation of Energy, or, to be more precise, the formula for calculating the force of impact of two bodies in motion. The one that’s used by insurance companies and police departments around the world, aka: kinetic energy times mass times velocity combined with the sharpness and size of my weapon.
I know what you’re thinking. The size and sharpness of my weapon isn’t part of that basic formula. True, but it is when you combine it with the Law of the Lever. To paraphrase Archimedes, give me a place to stand and a lever strong enough and I can move the world. It was the same concept here. Though, the strike I’d envisioned would have never worked if it hadn’t been for the incredible amount of momentum I’d built up from my leap, my points in strength, and the mass of my armored body. The results of which, I learned quickly enough, spoke for themselves.
Flying through the air, I drew my knees up to my chest, while doing my best to hold the heavy two-handed blade away from my body as I face-planted into the ground a second later with a thud. It was a disappointing landing, since I’d spent a good portion of my life slapping out of falls in martial arts classes throughout the years. Surprisingly enough, none of my lessons had ever taught me how to do that with a sharp, two-handed blade held in both hands. Luckily, having my knees tucked tight against my chest had stopped the breath from being knocked from my lungs, while a tick of my Regeneration spell was all it took to heal my bloody face and ringing head.
Rising to my feet, I saw that my undead pets had already formed up to create a defensive line with their bodies as they faced off against the charging monsters coming up the slope. There was only a half a minute or so before the horde would arrive as I turned around to finish off the serpent. I had high hopes for ending the fight quickly due to the critical strike I’d managed to land that had taken a good third of the monster’s total hit points in the blink of an eye, but that was still more than I could handle before our company arrived.
Immediately, I saw that Helgath had jumped away from the flailing serpent’s body, when it had collapsed in a heap from my attack. Not letting up for an instant, she continued using her magic to keep tearing the massive snake up on the inside as it struggled to lift its upper coils from the ground. With an inhuman heave, the serpent managed to rear up before us, which was when we all saw the results of my savage attack.
