by Arthur Stone
Your Monster Hunter stat is now level 2. Your chances of being detected by high-level monsters are reduced by 15%. +500 Stealth progress points. Congratulations!
Your Cartography stat has reached level 9. +250 Perception progress points. Congratulations!
Note: This is your first border crossing. Congratulations! Bonus +500 distributable base stat progress points. +10 distributable meter points.
Note: The players Kitty and Janitor are too far from the party. They will not receive credit for this discovery.
Note: A new cluster has been discovered. Party discovery. This is the ninth cluster you have discovered. Bonus +350 distributable auxiliary stat points; +5 distributable meter points. Note: You have leveled up the hidden Cartography stat! It is now level 10. Congratulations! Explore territories unknown to other players. The more you discover, the more your Cartography will grow. As it levels up, you will unlock more opportunities.
Note: A new cluster has been discovered. Party discovery. This is the tenth cluster you have discovered. Bonus +15 distributable meter points. Note: You have leveled up the hidden Cartography stat! Level 11. Congratulations! Explore territories unknown to other players. The more you discover, the more your Cartography will grow. As it levels up, you will unlock more opportunities.
Note: Your Cartography has reached level 10! Bonuses: +25% to the range of your cartographic observations. +500 Perception progress points.
Note: The players Kitty and Janitor are too far from the party. They will not receive credit for this discovery.
Cheater did not read the extended message, of course. It wasn’t the best time. But he did realize that the System counted this jump as a border crossing. Now, even if the car shattered into a million pieces of metal and meat, the party had at least accomplished half of its mission.
That meant that the crossing was a success. When they signed up, everyone had only been counting on one crossing. March had not initially disclosed that they would cross two borders.
The car hit the surface of the bridge. That moment, all thoughts stopped. The seat belt cruelly dug into his body, and the airbag punched into his face like Janitor’s fist wearing a boxing glove. Something heavy slammed into the back of his neck, seemingly unimpeded by his headrest. His senses were filled with screams, screeching tires, the crunch of deforming metal, pain, and the taste of blood.
But the world did not go black. They were alive, for now.
* * *
Cheater found himself lying on the pavement, not shredded by the parts of a disintegrated car. How he came to lie on the road, he had no idea. He clenched his fists to make sure his arms were not broken, spat out a mouthful of blood, and stood up slowly, careful not to lose his balance
The car was behind him, in bad shape. Its front end was smashed to bits, its windshield was gone, and the back door was open wide. Much too wide. Some of the passengers had climbed out and were wandering in a daze. Others were still inside, partially obscured by the white of the airbags. None of them looked good, but none of them looked dead. Even Janitor, who had flown into the abyss as the bots looked on, was alive.
Roach finally emerged from the car, blood pouring from his face.
“My ribs are broken. But why are we standing around? Let’s get going!”
“Wait a moment. I’m making a splint for Button,” Fatso grumbled. “She broke her leg clean through.”
Roach looked back, scanning for bots. “March, which way is the second boundary?”
The boss was helping Fatso with the priestess and pointed in a direction that was nearly straight down the abyss. “That way.”
“How far?”
“One mile, eighty-eight yards.”
“Thank you, brother.” Roach nodded and moved in the direction March had shown. “Bye everyone. It’s been fun!”
“Where are you going, you bastard?” Fatso said, forgetting Button for a moment and drawing his machine gun.
“Calm down,” March said. “Let our naive little stinker stretch his legs. Perhaps, one of these days, he will venture to stretch his mind, too. We’ll have to carry Button. A splint won’t be enough.”
Fatso turned towards Cheater. “Hey, pick a rifle to donate to the cause. You’ve got two of them.”
“Why?”
“For Button! There’s a way she can walk, but we need a good, solid stick. None of those in this wilderness. A rifle will do as a stand in.”
“Take the old one. I’m almost out of ammo for it.”
March rose and pointed directly away from the abyss. “The other border is that way. About two miles.”
“What!” Fatso squinted. “You told Roach it was that way. And you gave him an accuracy down to the yard!”
“I like to joke around, and Roach is the most gullible player on the Continent.”
“So you can’t tell the exact distance?” Tat said, seemingly surprised.
“How about we make plans rather than small talk, kids? Grab your stuff, and let’s get going. The bots will appear on that side any moment. If we’re lucky, they’ll take aim at Roach first. He’s stupid and gullible and is running across open terrain. We need to reach those rocks and cacti over there. If they fail to notice us, we have a chance at clearing those two miles and being done with this whole mission. Fatso, Clown, and Cheater, you cover us. Tat and I will walk with Button. We’re counting on you three.”
Cheater was almost back to normal now. He hastily pulled the bot rifle from the roof and collected his backpack from under the seat, packed full of ammunition and other useful items. Tossing it on his back, he added his bow and arrows around his shoulder.
Then, he followed Tat and March as they carried Button between them. Clown was tinkering with the car.
“The hell? You trying to fix it?”
“Fix this? I’m a mechanic, not a miracle worker. No, I’m trying to set it on fire.”
“Why?”
“These things burn great. Thick, black smoke. A column of smoke is highly visible from a distance. The infecteds will come running. And not just the infecteds.”
Cheater shifted on his feet. “Why would we want that?”
“Any movement in the picture besides our own is a plus. The bots can deal with the undead for us.”
“Oh, so the infecteds won’t bother to attack us,” Cheater mocked.
Clown shook his head sagely. “I would always rather deal with infecteds than with bots. Against that many bots, we don’t have a chance. By the way, well done.”
“What?”
“Your ability. As soon as we jumped, a crosswind hit us. Not some shitty breeze. A strong wind. As soon as we landed, it died down. It gave us a bit of a boost, and we needed it. And—what the hell is that?”
Cheater turned to follow Clown’s gaze. A black dot was visible against the clear sky. It grew rapidly, as did the clear chop of its engine.
“So that’s why the bots were in no hurry,” Fatso worried. “They were planning to take us out from the sky.”
Cheater blinked. “I thought you couldn’t fly near the border.”
“I guess you can in this area,” Clown shrugged. “Guys, I suggest throwing yourselves into the abyss. That won’t hurt as much. This is all open terrain. We don’t have a chance.”
Fatso glanced at Cheater. “You’re special, we’ve known that for a long time. Can you do anything against that?”
Cheater watched the approaching helicopter and shook his head. “It would be tough. That’s a combat helicopter, with thick armor. Only a few points are vulnerable to a rifle like mine. Very difficult to hit.”
“Come on. Everyone saw you take that other chopper out. You’re our only hope, Cheat. It’s about to let loose. Cannon, rockets, machine guns, the works. Like Clown says, we have no other chance.”
Cheater walked around the car, deployed the rifle’s bipod and rested it on the roof, and placed the butt against his shoulder. He realized a few adjustments were necessary, but he would need to deal with the dis
comfort this time around. He put the helicopter in his sights.
Suddenly, the bird turned. Fire belched from its belly as tracers headed for the ground.
“They’re shooting at Roach,” Fatso said knowingly.
Cheater didn’t hear. He was busy. He hurried to aim at the side of the bird. It was much easier to hit the pilots from this angle.
Once the right moment came.
He pulled the trigger. The rifle slammed into his shoulder. After an elusively short moment to aim again, Cheater fired a second time.
The helicopter nosed down and rushed for the ground. A growing trickle of smoke wound up from its rotors.
“Kill it!” Fatso exclaimed. “Come on Cheater. Finish it off!”
Cheater waited. The damaged bird was no longer shelling Roach. It was turning. Clearly it wanted to return to base for repairs. But by doing so, it would turn its tail towards Cheater, which was exactly what he wanted.
He had no idea where all of his knowledge about the weak spots of helicopters had come from. He just knew. Down to the vulnerabilities of this exact model.
The helicopter fled from the marksman.
Another shot.
Bingo.
The chopper leaned to the side, then began to spin downwards. Both motions, the twist and the fall, accelerated rapidly. Less than ten seconds later, it crashed into the ground like a spinning top. Fire and smoke erupted into the air.
Clown made a short, thoughtful hum. “Huh. I guess we don’t need to set the car on fire now. Thanks to Cheater. What a beautiful sight.”
“And he said it was difficult!” Fatso said in mock anger. “And complained about the rifle. Three shots, that’s all it took. ‘Cheater’ sure is right. Listen, kid, could you take down a chopper like that with your bow? Now that would be something!”
Chapter 24
Life Nine. Beautiful Way to Go
A volley sounded out from behind them. All of the players recognized it as heavy machine gun fire. Cheater stepped to one side, then the other. He saw the scene from between two cacti.
The bots. This time, it was their vehicles. Clown was right: eleven of them. They were the same ones that the party had brazenly charged past, firing as it went. Sadly Janitor had failed to disable any of them.
Two heavy armored personnel carriers stopped on the hill above the gorge. Both were shooting in the direction of the column of smoke that signaled the gravesite of the helicopter. Was Roach alive? Had they spotted him? Probably. His icon had not gone black.
What were the other nine vehicles doing, then? They were cruising towards the abyss, at speed. Why?
Clown shook his head. “I guess the interesting part of the day isn’t over yet. I’ve seen this before, six months ago.”
“What happened?” Fatso asked.
“The bots turned their carries into shitty mobile coffins by trying to jump an abyss. It wasn’t really an abyss, actually—just a highway bridge that was out. Not as high up, but still bad for a vehicle. They have no fear in their minds, only our deaths. When they see a target, they will take any risk to reach it. However, they have a chance of getting across, since their vehicles can accelerate in the sand.”
Clown was right about their intentions. The nimble SUVs came up at high speed onto the bridge, one after another, and jumped. Straight into the depths of the abyss. Cheater was not surprised to hear a round of crunching metal as new columns of smoke rose into the air. It wasn’t as satisfying as the helicopter had been, but it was still pretty satisfying.
But then he realized they hadn’t fallen. The first car drove up from the bridge, on their side of the abyss.
That was a bad surprise.
“Shit!” Clown exclaimed. “Goddamn stuntmen! Either they have someone with high Luck like you, or those are some serious vehicles.”
“Looks like a bot elite to me,” Fatso suggested. “Damn! Another one made it. And a third! And a fourth!”
All in all, five of the nine vehicles made the jump. The APCs did not make any attempt. Their crews may have been fearless as well, but they knew that such a circus act was not in the cards for their machines. They just kept shooting in the direction of the downed helicopter. However, if new targets appeared, Cheater had no doubt they would adjust their aim accordingly. They had an excellent view from the hill on flat terrain below, and no obstacles could defend against their artillery, small caliber though it was.
And their position was, of course, easily defended. Five vehicles meant about three dozen armed bots, plus heavy weapons held in open or partially-covered weapon mounts. Heavy machine guns and automatic grenade launchers, for the most part. All against a few players with major ammo problems and some serious health issues.
Easy prey.
Fatso shook his head. “We won’t last a minute against that. No decent stones around here, and cacti are no cover against cannons. We need to try to split up and run to the next border, or we’ll die as a group right here.”
Cheater was watching. “They’ve gone after Roach. We have a little time.”
“Roach is no help. They’ll take him out in seconds and come back for us. And look—they left an SUV behind to scout this area. I’ve got decent Dexterity and Speed, yes. But even I would have little chance of making it. Two miles across this rocky terrain? That’s a bit much in our shape. And running is often not possible when things get rough. At least not without breaking your legs. Plus, what do we do with Button, then? The only option would be to leave her here.”
“They might have sensors with them,” Clown reminded them all. “Cheater, can you take a car out like you took out that helicopter.”
Cheater shook his head again. “A car doesn’t fall to its death like a chopper.”
“Ah, well thank you, we didn’t know that. We don’t need it to fall. We need it to stop. Permanently. It’ll be easier to get away if they’re chasing us on foot. We don’t need much time. Just enough to cross the border. Then, we’re all OK with dying.”
Cheater turned. Between the cacti, he couldn’t make out March, Tat, and Button as they moved away, but he knew they were still very close. Before the bots had shown up, he had climbed the largest stone in the area—which was so badly angled it offered no cover—and managed to look at the terrain they had ahead of them. It was perilous. Even the cacti disappeared, too. It was a desert of stone, whose rocks were only a foot or two in diameter at most. Not enough to hide behind, but more than enough to slow you down. It would be a serious challenge to defend any position there against an army of kids with slingshots, never mind bots with cannons and grenades.
They would take out Roach soon. Then, they would come over the shallow hill. From their new perch, they would have clean shots at all of those fleeing the scene.
And they would take them, within seconds.
This was the only place they could possibly make a stand. Maybe they would die, but at least March, Tat, and Button would reach the second border.
That was better than no one, right?
Yet as soon as Cheater was reaching this resigned conclusion, Clown gasped at something in the distance.
“There’s something strange going on. That way. I just saw an infected climb into one of the APCs. Not claw its way in—it took the driver’s seat.”
Cheater marveled that Clown could see well enough to discern that fact from this distance. It was at least a half mile to the cars on the hill. But they Fatso told them to check the chat.
There were two messages. The first was from Roach. It was short, angry, and filled almost exclusively with words that had been banned from the theaters not many decades ago. There were bits accusing them of fraud, convictions of the sexual perversions and profligacies they enjoyed, and threats of terrible revenge at being placed in a situation where his death was imminent.
The second was from Janitor. It was only four words. Missing your dad, noobs?
Cheater almost told the rest that Janitor had just seized a bot vehicle, but then held his tong
ue. Of course everyone else knew already.
Then, Janitor signed his message with a beautiful intervention in their situation.
The APC he had selected stopped shooting and stood motionless for several seconds.
Its tower turned and fired a long volley from its autocannon at the neighboring vehicle. At point-blank range. Even from their distant vantage point, they saw the smoke pouring out of every crack and hole in the carrier. All shooting at Roach’s position stopped for a moment.
But soon it began again, from Janitor’s commandeered carrier.
He shot at the four vehicles that had gone after Roach. Two new pillars of smoke rose into the air.
Clown clapped Cheater on the shoulder. “Come on, sniper. Help Janitor out!”
Cheater nodded. “I’ll try to take out the remaining car.”
“Hell no! You cover Janitor. They’ll try to take him out.”
Cheater shifted to the left and placed his rifle on a convenient stone. He frowned when he saw his view obstructed by cacti. The gaps in the plants were narrow, and he would have to keep repositioning the gun to avoid skimming the cacti. Powder flash would already make their position more noticeable. He didn’t need bits of green flying into the air, too.
But he had no choice.
He aimed at the APC, which was still firing at the vehicles on this side of the abyss. At first, he did not understand what threats Clown had meant, but soon he noticed a couple of bots creeping behind the rocks. They had machine guns, of course, but he guessed they were carrying grenades, too. All they planned to do was get to the carrier from some direction Janitor could not see and toss a bunch of grenades inside.
Cheater waited until the bots were lined up, then he fired to take them both out in one shot. It didn’t go as he hoped. The closest one fell down dead, but the other, after falling, waved his hands and opened his mouth wide. Probably yelling something. He didn’t have much time, though. He had taken a hit to his leg and would bleed out in seconds.
