Don’s words were reassuring and gave Eli a little more respect for the strange adventurer. Knowing that Don had his own issues somehow made his own feel less burdensome. The healer had also shown him that not all adventurers were in Entarra to live out some perverted fantasy or escape to a world that they could destroy. Some were here out of necessity, to heal, or to regain some semblance of normal life. The thought of people stuck in a coma who essentially only existed in this world, made his mind reel. This was their reality now. This was the only place to see their friends and family. A cold shiver ran down his spine, as faint memories of his past shook him.
The loss he felt for his past life had started to fade, which worried him. The feelings and images were still there, showing themselves in flashes, but seemed more like jumbled memories of a children’s folktale. Parts were clear, while others had been erased completely. Even the spikes of guilt were happening less frequently. It was as if the memories and emotions of his time as an NPC were being cleansed from his system. Like his old life was a virus being expelled by his immune system.
As they came to the edge of the clearing, Eli was lost in thought. He had imagined what it would be like to be trapped in his mind, not able to interact with the world around him. His thoughts flashed back to the strange void-like plane he inhabited before character creation, causing a shiver to run down his spine.
Don had explained that some locked themselves in Entarra. Some even paid fortunes to purchase massive pods that could sustain them indefinitely, leaving their old lives behind completely. Was their life so miserable, so filled with pain, that they created a new space in the universe to escape it? Why would anyone throw away their version of reality to live inside one they knew to be fictional? The image of his wife and children flashed into his mind, and he understood. If it were possible to create a world in which they could live forever, he would. A moment later, a dull warmth enveloped him, and his thoughts of his family dimmed. Eli almost felt sorry for the adventurers. He felt like he could relate to them, almost like he belonged in their world rather than this virtual reality.
“Whoa, what the...” Don’s words broke Eli from his thoughts.
As the light shined into his eyes, he broke from his thoughts to look over the camp. Looking up, Eli noticed a faint glow emanating from behind the flickering fire. It wasn’t the light from the fire, but a dim blue haze that covered two sleeping forms. William and Kelly had already bedded down for the night under a shimmering dome of pure mana. The two in their gear in the center of the large magical bubble, which was roughly the size of a small yurt. It was as if William had blocked them off from the outside world because the two were unaware of the loudly approaching adventurers.
“Now, that’s handy,” Don said, creeping up to the force-field. “I wonder if we could.” He reached his hand out to touch the wall of the barrier.
“Don’t,” Eli shouted knowingly, right before the sounds of electricity, sizzling flesh, and an ear-shattering alarm filled the night sky.
Before Don could react, his hand skimmed the surface of the magical dome, sending a bolt of lightning through his body. The sound of a siren blared from what seemed like everywhere at once, and Dons started shaking his arm wildly, small trails of smoke streaming from his seared fingertips. Another light, this time red, glowed inside the dome as William stood to his feet, an orb of fire in his palm.
“Who-” William started.
To calm the situation, Eli shouted, “Wait.”
“S-s-s-shit,” Eli and Don all screamed, as the traveling researcher let loose a massive fireball.
The flaming projectile passed through the barrier as if it wasn’t there, before slamming directly into Don’s chest, exploding, and engulfing a ten-foot area around him. Fire lapped up against the protective shield harmlessly as William and a groggy Kelly hobbled to their feet. Eli and Don weren’t so lucky. The two adventurers, who had slowly healed over their hour-long walk through the woods, each lost a large portion of health.
William Stormcaller has attacked you with Fireball.
You take 54 damage.
Effect: Burning - You lose 3 hp per second for 10 seconds.
Screams of agony filled the air as his flesh burned. Eli’s health bar flashed as it dropped by nearly a third in an instant, then continued flashing as health ticked away slowly. His eyes flitted to his companions’ status bar to find that Don had been hit far worse. The Turta’s health was below half and was dropping rapidly as two stacks of the burning debuff ate away at his health.
The searing pain that Eli thought should have been even worse, rapidly subsided, allowing him to focus. Raising his arms to fend off another attack and waft away the scent of burning flesh, he searched for his friend. A wave of pressure emanated from the barrier, throwing Don to the floor several feet away. When he landed, he started rolling on the floor. Whether the man was having a seizure or trying to put an end to the burning debuff, Eli did not know. A moment later, a familiar red glow came from inside the barrier as a second glowing orb filled William’s palm.
“Shit!” Eli screamed in panic. “William, it’s us. It’s Don and Eli. We found your box. Don’t attack; he’ll die.”
Eli tucked and rolled to the side, away from his downed companion, to draw the wizard's fire. Then the glow slowly faded, as a thin layer of smoke cleared, revealing a disheveled looking William, waving his hand. A moment later, the barrier was down, and Kelly stepped out in front of his father as if to protect him.
“Kelly move, it’s them.” William barked, gently pushing the Gladekin aside. “I’m sorry. The alarm startled me, and I thought we were under attack again. I didn’t mean to. I didn’t expect you to be back so soon. It’s not safe to travel in the dark.” He ran to Don’s side and waved his hand over him, snuffing the burning debuff out completely.
After the two adventurers had their debuffs removed, and the camp was secure, they explained what transpired at the bandit camp. They spoke of the group of low-level players, their stash, and how they had hidden his box. William laughed at hearing that the group was new to Entarra, admitting that being surprised by the bandits was embarrassing, saying that he had not expected an ambush so close to Dawnport. While the group was talking, Don set about healing his and Eli’s wounds with a tired look on his face.
“Well, we got most of your stuff back.” The Turta said as a blue glow enveloped his hands. “We grabbed everything that looked important, but left the cart behind.”
On that note, Eli pulled the intricate box out of his inventory. The strange special qualities still surprised him, as it was much larger than should have fit in his hand-sized trouser pockets. He didn’t know if it was his pockets growing to fit the item or the item shrinking to fit his pockets. While Eli pondered the strange magics of the system, William snatched the ornate box from his hands with a supernatural quickness.
“You found it! Oh, dear, you found it.” The magical researcher yelped as his eyes lit up. “And you brought it back.”
Eli stared at the middle-aged man with an expectant look on his face. “Now it’s your turn. We don’t have long before this disease, or curse, or whatever it is, becomes active, and we turn into blighted creatures.”
At the mention of the blight, Williams deflated, like a bubble poked with a needle. “Yes, yes, of course. I’ll do whatever I can.” He waved one hand, while the other caressed the carved symbols on the box's lid. “But I haven’t been able to do much research. You two were only gone for a few hours.” He paused as the strange lettering glowed as he traced it. “Oh, I think I have an idea.”
With a quick movement of his hands and a whispered word, the box made a soft click. A moment later, it was open. What Eli expected to see was tomes, scrolls, or other magical objects. What he saw was much, much different. A swirling black void filled the center of the box. Wisps of smoke escaped from the vortex before being sucked back in, stuck in a cycle of being free and captured. The magical portal, if that’s what it was, glowe
d with an eerie black and purple aura with a black hole at its center. Without hesitation, William stuck his hand in, with a smile on his face.
The look of shock was apparent on Eli’s face as the strange wizard started laughing. “Don’t be frightened, my boy. This item functions similarly to whatever it is you Adventurers pull things from. It’s not going to hurt anyone.” He said, his mouth forming into a devilish grin, “That is unless you happen to find yourself inside of it.” After a few seconds of moving his arm around, looking for something in particular, he let out a blood-curdling scream and winced in pain. “My arm!”
Both Eli and Don jumped to their feet, afraid that the only lead to a cure might have just killed himself with some stupid magical box. In unison, they both shouted, “William!”
A moment later, Kelly and the crazy spell caster erupted into laughter as the older man pulled his arm free of the box. The hand that Eli expected to be missing held a crystal clear container filled with hideous looking mutated leaches.
“Gotcha!”
Don, still recovering, nearly vomited at the sight of the squirming creatures. Their shimmering black carapaces leaked a putrid looking fluid that pooled at the bottom of the jar, sloshing as William shook it. Each of the leeches had two suckers, one at each end of their nearly foot-long bodies. Thousands of needle-like teeth filled the oral sucker, each dripping saliva. Staring at the jar in shock, Eli noticed one of the little monsters shoot its thin proboscis into another. After pumping its prey full of anesthetic, it fed. In a flash, the vile contents of the jar squirmed and spun. Each of the creatures latched onto the injured leech, twisting and turning as they ripped it apart, sucking it dry in less than a breath. The scene reminded Eli of a tornado, only smaller and far more bloody. Don leaned forward and vomited, spewing bile onto the forest floor.
“Uh, what exactly are those?” Eli said, taking a step away from the man holding the jar. “And how are they going to help?”
“They’re leeches, dummy,” Kelly said, pointing at the jar.
“Not just any leeches, my boy. These are special. These little beauties are Arcleeches. They feed on arcane energy and blood.” William frowned, looking at the mixture of blood, pus, and eel-like creatures. “It would seem that they are also somewhat cannibalistic. If held in captivity for too long.”
“Yeah, so they not only suck your blood but drain your mana,” Eli asked, as another round of vomiting came from behind him. “Again, how exactly does that help us?”
“Well, you see.”
William sat down on the log next to him, placing the jar in his lap and explaining that the terrifying little creatures could filter their blood. The process of blood-letting would expel magical diseases, viruses, and afflictions from their hosts at the cost of health and mana. Essentially, they were magical filters for the blood. William had a hunch, from looking at the fouled wolf meat, and a spider web of inky blackness on Eli’s arm. He concluded that the blight spread through blood as it traveled throughout the body. Eventually, it would infect the entire system, which would cause a complete loss of life and control over one’s body. The process reminded Eli of a fungal parasite that infected insects, rotting them from the inside out, as it took over their minds in an effort to spread to other hosts.
“So, what you’re saying is that if this stuff in my blood reaches my brain and other systems, it’s too late?” Eli asked, looking at his timer, with unease. “What’s the plan? Stick us with a bunch of leeches until we die, then we come back good as new?”
“Not exactly.” William looked at Eli, seriousness in his eyes, and a solemn tone in his voice. “That may just speed up the conversion. Going off of what you said earlier, if you die while blighted, it’s over. You turn. So, if we let the leeches bleed you dry and you still have any hint of blight left in you, we fail. But, if we can slow down the spread of the disease by filtering your blood and rapidly healing you, it might get it done. It may take some time and will be painful, but it might work.”
“Well, shit, sign me up. Let’s get these leeches on me and start the blood-letting. Anything to not turn into a zombie mutant.” Don’s said, wiping bile from his mouth.
“It’s not that easy. I’m not a Healer. I have potions, bandages, and other magical trinkets in this box, but not enough to replenish your health as fast as we need to drain it. It’s going to take a small fortune worth of minor healing potions to keep you alive. Their effects diminish if used in rapid succession. Bandages are counterintuitive to blood-letting, and magical regeneration items only offer a boost to your natural capabilities. We need a healer, a powerful one if we are planning to cure you.”
“Don’s the most powerful healer I know outside of the temples, and I’m not exactly an honored guest in Dawnport right now.”
Don’s head slumped. “So, we’re screwed. I can get into Dawnport, but we’re broke. We wouldn’t be able to afford a priest, and they sure as hell won’t heal us for free.”
“You’re not, screwed. Not at all, actually. We can slow down the spread of the disease, for now, most likely. While it may not be a cure, it will prevent you from turning. If we get enough of it out of you, we can give you a few more days, maybe a week or two. Then you can work on getting a proper healer. But first, we need to get you back to town and into some beds. This process may be painful.”
“Then, let’s get moving,” Eli spoke, more than a hint of fear showing through his forced determination.
Chapter 16
The slow walk back to the slums was uneventful, the silence of night only broken by scurrying rodents, and the howl of a wolf in the distance. What should have been a journey of less than an hour ended up taking over two. William seemed to enjoy the early morning stroll down the possibly dangerous open road, which was clear by his constant whistling of the same jaunty traveling song. The man moved at a snail’s pace, taking in the dim rays of the cresting sun and stopping to look at several bushes. Often, he would pluck some berries, flowers, or herbs, tasting each and licking his lips.
Don, however, walked in silence. His head hung, and his shoulders slumped as he strolled lazily down the road. Not a word escaped his mouth after the wizard went over their chances of survival. Hearing how temporary the solution was, sent him into a state of unease. Eli refused to take his eyes off of the treeline and had kept watch since breaking camp. The constant vigil set him on edge, and the lack of other sentient beings was disturbing. Yet, nothing happened. At least until the tops of ragged sailcloth tents came into view.
Eli’s uneasiness became justified at the sight of several guards. The armor-clad men and women were forcing a group of Wolffen to build a makeshift barrier of wood and rope. Several large logs formed deadly caltrops, lashed together by hastily spun rope. Their sharpened tips pointed away from the city as if to prevent a cavalry charge. While this style of defense was common when preparing for a siege, or to guard an army’s flanks from enemy riders, it seemed out of place in front of an already fortified city. But that was not what worried him.
As the group of travelers grew nearer to the city, Eli’s heart raced. His palms grew sweaty, and his teeth clenched as he made out individual faces. The man in charge of the workers was none other than his old friend Derek. The former sergeant turned guard, held one hand on the pommel of his sword, while the other gripped a whip. Growing closer brought an image of cruelty to Eli’s eyes that sickened him, causing his blood to boil with contempt.
Droplets of blood fell from the barbed tip of the long vine-like weapon. Gaping wounds littered the backs of several of the Wolffen laborers, their flesh flayed with the precision of a surgeon. Others had been beaten, their faces and bodies bruised and swollen. Many looked on the brink of death; they could not have been working for more than a handful of hours. From the corner of Eli’s eye, he saw one figure that he recognized, Jarl.
The boy looked dead on his feet, coughing into his arm. He wiped away a smear of blood from his lips as he passed a length of rope down the line of
workers. Falling to a knee, he coughed blood onto cold damp dirt. Most of the people working the line seemed to have come from Alyssa’s sickbay. It would be the easiest place to round up a bunch of free labor. Maybe they offered to pay them in healing or food if any of them should survive. Unable to stand by as the guards worked people to death, Eli picked up his pace. At his third step, a slightly wrinkled hand clutched him by the shoulder, squeezing it tightly.
“There’s nothing we can do for them, son. At least, not as you are now. You’ll only make matters worse.” William whispered calmly. “Would either of you happen to know another way in? I don’t think now would be the time to stroll in unannounced, looking ill.”
“Yeah, it’s about an hour and a half southeast of here. On the way to the southern gate. Follow me.” Don said, nodding towards an unused wagon road leading through deserted farmland.
The unkempt path cut through a fallowed wheatfield turned overgrown grassland. It seemed to stretch from the western edge of Dawnport to the coast, with only broken down manors to dot its landscape. Memories of lush golden crops intermingling with apple orchards crept back to Eli’s mind as they made their way through the overgrowth, their path becoming little more than trampled blades of grass.
When he first settled in Dawnport, it was a relatively small military fort, with a rapidly growing city. The walls and small keep were still under construction, and merchants flocked to its rich harbors. Some travelers wanted to capitalize on government contracts, and others wanted to make a new life for themselves. Then the first whispers of violent wolf-like humanoids and mutated beasts came from the southern abbeys and outposts near the eastern mountains.
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