City of the Dead

by Vasily Mahanenko

  Ka-Li.

  You used Wave of Fire-I 10 times.

  Charges remaining: 35 of 50.

  The portal kicked in, and the counter began climbing as the lixes were burned alive. One. Five. Ten. Twenty. Twenty-five. Thirty-five… Tailyn liked what was happening. With his parameters, the fire held out for eighteen seconds, doing 1,810 damage per second. Not many creatures out there were capable of withstanding that kind of inferno. But then, something went wrong. The next black bolt of lightning to pop out of the portal dashed off to the side rather than torching itself in the boy’s fire. The hair stood up on the back of Tailyn’s neck. After just a second, the black streak broke out of the fire, having sacrificed almost all of its shield. But it was alive. Right behind it came a second. And then, a third. All fifteen of the monsters remaining from the second wave survived by jumping out of the fire, heading in all different directions, no less. They were all drinking potions to restore their shields, too, and came dashing after the boy as soon as they figured out where he was.

  What happened next was nothing short of panic. Seeing the beasts hurtling toward him with jaws gaping and fangs bared, the boy sent two waves of ten charges each toward both sides. That expanded the damage zone and finally gave him the result he was looking for:

  You used Wave of Fire-I 20 times.

  Charges remaining: 15 of 50.

  You destroyed 50 creatures at least 10 levels above you…

  Mysticism +1 (3).

  Armor +1 (3).

  Wisdom +1 (4).

  ***

  The third wave of black lixes will arrive in 1 minute.

  Opponents: 100. Levels: 25+.

  His attributes were climbing, but that meant nothing to Tailyn in the moment. While the second wave was gone, the combat status was still keeping him from charging his card. And that was a problem—fifteen waves weren’t going to be enough to take out 100 opponents.

  “Tailyn, we’re all up. Get over here!” Valanil yelled, and the boy dashed off toward the palace. The nearest dead lix was right there, but loot was the last thing on Tailyn’s mind. He needed to rejoin the group so—

  “Watch out!”

  Tailyn stopped so suddenly he just about slammed face-first into the ground. There was a lix blocking the entrance to the palace, the very one that had survived the first wave. Only it wasn’t another of the lixes as dark as the night. No, Tailyn knew the one in front of him had bright green skin regardless of the armor covering him.

  Ka-Do-Gir was back.

  “Tailyn Vlashich, I’m sorry our paths had to cross so soon. Halas counted me worthy and invited me to join his army, which saved my tribe. Nobody will touch anyone close to a warrior fighting for the great Halas. I’ll mourn you as a worthy adversary.”

  “Partner, don’t do this. It’s me, Tailyn!” the boy stammered, though he still pulled his cards up and found the right one just in case. He couldn’t believe he was going to have to fight someone he’d just spent several days with.

  But the lix couldn’t have cared less. He was following his own principles, the partnership was over, and he was facing down an enemy that was incredibly dangerous if small. Before the boy could use his card, the lix flashed over. Ka-Do-Gir knew how to take out shamans, so he assumed mages would be the same. The level seven creature’s steel claws flashed by with blinding speed, keeping the mage from lifting his hands to his mouth. Even the lix’s teeth joined his front two pairs of limbs—he knew the boy’s shield was incredibly strong, so he couldn’t give him so much as a second to breath. And while the powerful blows were swallowed up by Tailyn’s shield, the impact still rocked him. Bruises began to appear on his unprotected face. His nose started bleeding. Not expecting that kind of an unrelenting onslaught, the mage was unable to put up a fight, turning into a training dummy. And that suited Ka-Do-Gir just fine. The whole thing would be over faster.

  Tailyn was in shock. The lix’s strikes were painful, but far worse was the hurt tearing him in two from the inside. He still couldn’t believe Ka-Do-Gir was attacking him. Even with his shield down to almost nothing, the boy was powerless—his opponent wasn’t letting him use his cards. Quick strikes to the mage’s head and arms kept them away from each other.

  Yet another blow sent Tailyn flying. The boy landed hard on his back, even hearing something crack, and his shields weren’t enough to cushion the impact. But the stars that danced in front of him helped him come to terms with the undeniable fact that Ka-Do-Gir had gone from partner to enemy. And a dangerous, deadly enemy he was, too. Dropping to the ground, Tailyn turned his back to the lix. The latter landed another hit, but the boy had time to pull a trick out of his bag. It didn’t matter that he couldn’t see his assailant.

  Ka-Li.

  You used Last Chance.

  Charges remaining: 3 of 5.

  You protected yourself from physical damage inflicted by level 7 lix Ka-Do-Gir.

  This card will be available again in 48 hours.

  Tailyn sighed in relief as he finally found himself no longer being battered and tossed around like a little kitten. His wisdom had bumped up to level four just in time. Turning back to face the lix, the boy just about jumped—the steel claws were still raining down. His opponent couldn’t figure out what was going on, so he kept up the assault, only that time even the impact wasn’t hurting Tailyn. There, in his semitransparent protective field, one not unlike the dome the lix had grabbed, he had nothing to fear from Ka-Do-Gir.

  The boy’s attention was grabbed by the timer—the next wave of lixes was going to appear just thirty seconds later. And after realizing that he had no more time to lose, he went to work. There hadn’t been any warning about using cards inside the dome, so he pulled out the next one in his list, looked up at the snarling lix, who was turning more savage by the moment, and uttered his two syllables.

  Ka-Li.

  You used Electric Strike-I.

  You did 181 damage to level 7 green lix Ka-Do-Gir and stunned him for 30 seconds due to his weakness against electricity.

  Charges remaining: 49 of 50.

  The twitching body hit the ground, and Tailyn stood up, breaking his protection. He didn’t need it anymore. And because the lix had to have pushed through his waves of fire when he showed up, the boy knew his shield was just about gone. It was time for his next card.

  You used Fireball-II.

  You did 271 damage to level 7 green lix Ka-Do-Gir.

  Charges remaining: 149 of 150.

  With neither a bang nor an explosion, the lix’s shield just evaporated, leaving the remains of the ball of fire to slam into his body. It left an enormous burn on his side and filled the air with an acrid smell. The portal flashed. The next wave of opponents was about to break through.

  “Tailyn, finish him! You’re out of time!” Valanil yelled. The boy turned to see the herbalist’s head peering down from the second story. She’d been watching the battle, having done nothing to help the boy, though it was possible there was nothing she could have done to help him.

  With a heavy heart, Tailyn used his card again. Even stunned, the lix snarled in pain as his back legs were turned into charred stumps.

  “I trusted you!” Tailyn yelled. He didn’t know if the lix could hear him or not, but that didn’t matter. He needed to let out everything that had been building up inside. “I thought you were my friend, and you betrayed me. I hate you, hear me? I hate you!”

  “Tailyn, hurry!” Valanil screamed, panic making her voice shrill. The portal stopped blinking as the first black lixes started jumping out. They were powerful, well-equipped, terrifying. Halas’ personal guard was in the city to finish off the enemies entrenched there.

  One more strike, and Ka-Do-Gir’s life would have been over. But Tailyn, regardless of what he said, couldn’t bring himself to finish the lix. After spending his last second realizing that, he dashed off toward the palace as fast as he could. Valanil was already pulling up the rope, so he had to leap and catch it in mid-air, the numericals’ ten
acious arms helping him up a few leaps later. And he was just in time. The first wave of high-level lixes was pouring into the palace.

  Everyone knew they were going to have little problem jumping up to the second story. Tailyn turned, bent over the hole, and whispered to his cards.

  Ka-Li.

  You used Wave of Fire-I 15 times.

  Charges remaining: 0 of 50.

  You destroyed 24 creatures at least 10 levels above you…

  Enhancement +1 (9).

  There was a wild shriek, and the group of humans was safe for twenty seconds.

  “Can you charge your card?” Valanil asked, though Tailyn could only sigh heavily. The combat status was still going strong. All he had left was his electric strike and fireballs, neither of which was going to be enough to break through the armor creatures at level twenty-five and higher had.

  “You let the lix live. Why? He was there to kill you, and you were weak,” Valanil said suddenly to the boy.

  “I couldn’t,” he replied honestly, unable to pull his gaze away from the inferno below. Or possibly, he was looking down there to avoid meeting the herbalist’s disapproving look. The boy himself didn’t know why he’d done what he’d done. He just couldn’t kill an…enemy? No. A former friend.

  “That’s weakness, Tailyn,” Valanil said. “Show it again, and the lix will get you. Do you think you’ll always be lucky the way you were that time?”

  There was nothing the boy could say. The herbalist was right—his former partner had shown up to kill him, and he hadn’t been able to answer in kind.

  “This is a palace,” Valia said. “There has to be some kind of good security system. Ah… If we hadn’t taken out all the terminals, I could have figured it out…”

  “There is another terminal, and I’m not the only one with access. You can use it, too!” Tailyn cried. Hope kindled once more. Remembering the layout of the palace’s second floor, he leaped to his feet, fully confident in their victory. “But we’re going to have to break down a door and do some climbing.”

  “Lead on!” Valia replied excitedly.

  “This city belonged to the ancients,” Valanil said, though she still ran after the kids while gesturing for the rest to follow. She didn’t see a way out, so there wasn’t any reason not to see what the odd pair came up with. “How do you know about their technology?”

  “My father taught me how to work their settings,” Valia called back as she ran. “He wanted me to be ready for when I take over.”

  “Your father has his own terminal?” Despite the situation, Valanil was surprised. What kind of girl had her own terminal? Even Isor didn’t have one.

  “Is that really so important right now?” Tailyn yelled as he turned down another hallway and stopped in front of metal-reinforced doors. “This is us!”

  “Get out of the way!” Dort wheezed as he gulped down air. The little bastard wasn’t used to running. Pulling out a long pin, Dort stuck it into the opening and threw his weight against it. “What are you just standing there for, you idiots? You think I’m supposed to do everything myself?”

  The numericals dashed over to Dort—his word was law for them. Tailyn was even surprised the elder’s son was able to get the door open so easily. Something snapped, the door bent, there was a click, and it suddenly swung to the side.

  “Get inside!” Tailyn shouted, leading the way. He’d been right—it was the same room he’d already been in. The hallway filled with happy yelps and the sound of snapping jaws as the fiery whirlpool died away, the lixes jumping through to chase down their quarry.

  “The terminal!” Valia cried happily, but Tailyn was in time to stop her.

  “Don’t touch it—that’s a dummy! You can’t use it!”

  “Why not?” the girl asked, frowning with fingers just centimeters from the buttons.

  “I don’t know… Just don’t touch anything here. We need to keep going…”

  There was a thud as Valanil slammed the door shut, though it immediately bent under a blow. The lixes had found the fugitives. There was another blow. Then, another. But the door held up. Tailyn knew they were just about out of time, their opponents too smart not to quickly figure out how to get through the barrier. The group had to get away.

  “You, come here,” Dort called suddenly, gesturing one of the girls over to the terminal. “Tap that button and turn the security system on!”

  “But I—” the numerical started, but the boy jumped in immediately.

  “Now!”

  That was enough for her to head over. Tailyn was about to jump in front of her, but Valanil’s heavy hand on his shoulder stopped him.

  “Don’t do it, kid. We have to see if you’re right.”

  The numerical turned around nervously looking for support, but Dort just gestured harshly toward the buttons. Closing her eyes, the girl brought a finger down on the button as she muttered something under her breath.

  And with that, the Partners group was down a member. There was no cry, no groan, no flash of lighting. The girl just disintegrated into a pile of black ash. Even the blows raining down on the door stopped for a second—everything fell quiet.

  “No, we can’t use that terminal,” Dort said with terrifying ease, almost as though nothing had happened. But after looking out the window, he cursed. “Wow, look at all of them. Tailyn, why aren’t you burning them up? I’m going to tell father, and it’s your fault the numerical died. Shouldn’t have been down here playing around with that lix—your partner brought an entire army here with him…”

  “Shut up,” Valia said sharply. “Dort, believe me, if we get out of here, nobody’s going to be happy to see you.”

  “You shut up,” the kid replied, though he took a step away from the girl. “I’m telling my father, and he’ll send you off to spend the rest of your life in the mines.”

  “What?! I’m going to—”

  “Quiet!” Valanil had had enough. “Tailyn, you said we were going to have to do some climbing. Where? Tailyn, are you listening to me? Tailyn!”

  The boy said nothing. With eyes glazed over, he stared out the window the architect had just happened to point in the direction of the portal. There were lots of lixes. A terrifying number of them. But it wasn’t the quantity that had turned Tailyn into a statue—no, that was the single lix who had appeared riding a beast flashing golden sparks.

  Or rather, it was the message the god had sent the boy:

  You met your personal enemy.

  Chapter 20

  “I KNOW HIM,” Valia hissed when she saw where Tailyn was looking. “That golden beast killed our whole group. Magic does nothing to it!”

  “Tailyn, the door isn’t going to hold for long!” Valanil practically yelled, and the flimsy barrier shook once more as if in confirmation. The herbalist was sweating as she pushed her entire body against it. Happily, Dort knew his stuff, as he’d opened the door for them while leaving the latch intact. But the problem was that the door itself was a decoy. The steel plates were dummies made out of some kind of soft wood, and it was going to be a matter of minutes before the lixes burst through. They were running out of time. And the little bastard was just standing there.

  “Over there, into the opening, climb up the cable! There’s a little door higher up—just kick it if it isn’t open,” Tailyn called back when he shook himself out of his stupor. Valia disappeared into the hole. And while Dort was about to crawl after her, Valanil hissed at him to help her hold the door. The lixes were picking up their intensity, and scraps of wood were beginning to fly everywhere. The door even cracked to let a clawed paw reach through in an attempt to grab the hated humans.

  Ka-Li.

  The beast on the other side of the barrier howled in pain, a blessed calm falling for a couple moments as the other lixes dragged their convulsing comrade away.

  “Keep it up!” Valanil said, gesturing toward the hole. Just then, however, something blue flashed through and buried itself in one of the numerical girls’ head. W
ith no shield, her dead body dropped heavily to the ground, leaving Partners down another member.

  “Shaman!” Valanil howled hysterically, doing her best to press herself up against the door in such a way that nobody could get to her through the hole. Since Tailyn couldn’t see anyone, he couldn’t use his electric strike, so he took a couple uncertain steps backward. That just earned him an enormous icicle.

  250 damage received.

  Shield level reduced. Remaining: 18.

  The impact was so strong that Tailyn was thrown all the way over against the opposite wall. Stunned and deafened, he slid down it and crumpled in a heap, his eyes turning glassy. Even Ka-Do-Gir hadn’t hit him that hard.