He didn’t mention Eredani, who had easily completed all twenty-five obstacles. My partner was waiting for me by the entrance to the course. He’d seen my inglorious attempt, but kept quiet about it, instead distracting me by pointing out a twinkling bulletin board. “We have tasks available. Shall we take a peek?”
There was a crowd around the board. While we were still listed as “minnows,” the system painstakingly safeguarded us from unnecessary looks. Players leaving the training camp gates entered a new phase where they couldn’t be seen, and now we’d reached that point ourselves, we in turn stopped being able to see the minnows. Only for the daily parade did the system consolidate all the spaces, showing there were more than enough players in the training camp.
The notice board was a new object for me; I’d never seen it before.
“Tieflings, come with us to farm demons!” As soon as we approached the throng, we were urged to join various groups.
“Don’t listen to them!” another player shouted. “They’re noobs. They want a mass free ride when there’s no control at all. Join us. There are five of us. We’ll make it ten and go hunt out N’Got. He resurrected yesterday. We’ll level up to five and then go find L’Kri.”
The phrase “We’ll level up to five” made us look more seriously at the players. Most of those crowding round the board were level three. A few level two, but no one matching us. With level five we were welcome guests in any group.
“Let’s go alone,” said Eredani. “There’s no point getting involved with minnows, we won’t gain experience. It’ll be easier to call Diabettis and hire him. Take the task to purge L’Kri’s lands. It’s on our way.”
“Minnow yourself!” the players shouted resentfully, and one added with barefaced scorn, “Donators!”
Task received: purge the lands of L’Kri
Description: A regular task. Destroy 20 demons in L’Kri’s location.
Reward:
Experience: +5
Reputation with Light of Barliona faction: +1
No bonuses, no restrictions. An ideal task for training-course graduates. L’Kri’s demons were level four or five, so they should be no problem for us.
Half an hour’s journey across red sands, and we were standing by a deep crater, like a mining quarry. A serpentine road led down its sides to a leaning tower at the very bottom. The place was a hive of activity — octopus-like demons were working the quarry, trying to dig out the tower, and some on the side cuts were obstructing the road with blocks. Not far from us a group of players was steadily butchering demons, and on the far side of the quarry a second group was doing the same. They worked in a coordinated fashion, assuming key positions, but not particularly advancing on the bottom of the crater. I picked out a demon roughly halfway up the quarry — level six — and everything fell into place: at the top were level four-five demons, a bit lower — level six, and at the very bottom — level seven-eight. There was nothing for level fours to do down there.
“Let’s go to the Barrows first. Both the slopes are busy,” I said.
“We can pick some herbs on the way,” Eredani agreed, after checking with the map. Bear left and we can get some clover. It’s this way.”
We skirted round the L’Kri pit. There was a demon clover patch a hundred meters from the quarry, at the edge of a tapering gray wood. I had already bent down over it, when the system suddenly threw a fit.
Damage sustained
Health level decreased by 162: 162 (Bolt from the Abyss) - 0 (magic protection). Life remaining: 3,638 out of 3,800
Health level decreased by 162: 162 (Bolt from the Abyss) - 0 (magic protection). Life remaining: 3,476 out of 3,800
Two dark bolts of lightning impaled me and knocked me away from the flower, and Eredani began to wheeze alongside me — he’d been hit too. Jumping to my feet, I summoned Aniram and scanned around for our assailant. If some beastie thought it would be easy to deal with us, it was sadly misled.
Another two bolts in my direction. Taking them in the chest and being thrown aside again, I nonetheless saw where the fire was coming from — our adversary was hidden among the trees. Barely had I landed when I leaped up and charged toward the wood.
“Now we’ll see who’s going to get who!” came Braksed’s voice. “Payback time is nigh!”
Debuff received
Deceleration: Your speed is decreased by 50%. Duration: 30 seconds
On top of the deceleration, four more bolts pierced my body, leaving me just a third of Health. Those little bloodsuckers learned all too quickly, and this time they were well prepared.
Chapter 6
WE LAY FLAT on the ground and tried to blend in with the background. The system appreciated our effort and offered a Camouflage characteristic, but remembering Eredani’s lecture yesterday about the harm of accidental characteristics, I had to decline. My partner, swearing quietly, rubbed his lightning wounds. It hadn’t cost him much Health, but the strike was painful enough.
“Tieflings, where are you?” shouted Kurtune with familiar schadenfreude. “Coming, ready or not!”
Eredani gingerly raised his head and was immediately hurled a couple of meters away from me, four lightning bolts in his forehead. His HP almost halved, and he landed unconscious. I counted five seconds between the shots, which wasn’t much, but it was breathing space. Raising my own head directly after the shots, I beheld the enemy — demons, Elder magi of R’tan, level nine. They were similar to N’got’s snakelike cronies, but if the latter provoked laughter and the desire to coo over them, R’tan’s magi were only terrifying. Brawny bodies supported by tails bound in brilliant scales towered high above the ground and threatened to flatten small beer like me. It was the first time I’d seen demons in armor, and I now understood where graduates got their bloody chestplates and shoulder protection from. Sixteen red eyes on four demons worked no less efficiently than laser sights, but worse was the dark energy simmering in their cupped clawed paws.
Hiding behind the magi’s backs hovered the delighted Vartalinskys.
After five seconds, more dark lightning was dispatched in my direction. I hugged the ground and felt a light tingle a millimeter from where the missiles whizzed past. It was time to counterstrike. Aniram appeared instantly, compliant and ready to aggress, and, singling out the nearest beastie, I activated demon strike.
Damage inflicted
You have inflicted 162 damage: (212 magic attack) - 50 (protection from R’Tan’s magi). Total Health remaining: 738 out of 900
Not enough against six.
“Hi, boys!” sang Aniram sweetly in the language of the demons, thrusting forth her virtues. In unison, the demons turned their heads in her direction and extinguished the fire in their hands. I had never seen such harmonious gallantry in my life. “So, R’Tan has also gained a foothold here?”
“Move aside, Elder.” The demon closest to us spoke in a drawn-out hiss, rippling its muscles. Superb timing! Although on the other hand, for the sake of all the myrmidons of the Abyss, anything was preferable to more lightning. “We must kill your master.”
“Have R’Tan’s servants drawn up a contract with non-demons? It’s unthinkable.” Aniram voiced her conclusions and added schemingly, “Does your master know?”
“They offered suitable payment,” replied the magus without going into specifics. “What do you choose, Elder?”
“Hey, what are you chatting about over there?” called Kurtune. “Attack the Tieflings!”
I made use of the hold-up to ask, “Aniram, can you devour them?”
The demoness uttered a sigh and scratched between her horns with her tail. “I cannot. They do not belong to you.” There was chagrin in her voice. “I cannot devour anyone if they are bound by a contract. Defeat them or repurchase them, and I will gladly take them.”
“Why are you so useless?” I asked.
“I’m useless?” she said indignantly.
I employed another demon strike and, seeing the same disappointing
result of 162 damage points, looked at her pointedly. She huffed and retreated from the line of attack. Bitch! The next volley of lightning convinced me to take decisive action — run! The deceleration debuff was already deactivated, and to realize my superintelligent plan I simply had to distract the enemy and grab Eredani. My conscience wouldn’t allow me to leave him to be torn to pieces by those misfits. Besides, I had big plans for him.
“Can you at least distract them?” I asked, crawling away toward my partner.
“Why of course,” the Demoness said and unfastened the top clasp of her leather corset. A synchronous male exhalation resounded. Forcing myself not to be distracted, I reached Eredani, slung his lifeless body over my shoulder, and ran.
“Where are you off to?” The cries of the Vartalinskys mingled with the magi’s shots. Eredani took three bolts, and I the fourth, but it merely spurred me to accelerate.
“After him!” yelled Braksed. “Don’t just stand there, he’s getting away!”
“Deceleration!” added Kurtune.
“It’s still recovering. After him! He’s getting away!”
“We don’t run. We are only used for ambushes.” The demon’s voice was so loud I heard it clearly above the sound of my own ragged breathing. The demon magus could communicate passably in the common language of Barliona.
“Agreement!” said Braksed.
I dismissed the demoness and accelerated until my ears buzzed. The longer they argued, the greater my chances of escape.
“Bear right. The Barrows are over there.” Eredani’s voice came so unexpectedly I nearly stumbled.
“How are you?”
“Not good. They’re running. Three hundred meters. Speed up.”
“What about the demons?”
“And the demons.”
I suppressed my desire to look back, and began to pick my route more carefully. There were too many rocks and sharp anti-cacti around. Eventually the Barrows loomed in the distance — three small mounds of red sand, nothing out of the ordinary. If you didn’t know it was a hidden location, you could easily pass it by. I was sprinting, but Eredani kept prodding me, saying, “Two hundred metres. Crank it up. Right! Right!”
The dance training was paying off, and I dashed off to the right. I didn’t know how rhythmical it looked, but I was happy with my speed and reactions. Lightning grazed some rocks away to the side. Only one thought pounded in my head: not far now. I ran and ran, almost on empty, driving myself to keep going, to fight to the last. This was more than just a silly game now. Then without warning I was gasping for breath, and my viewer was occluded by a system message. Bad timing!
“You’re losing speed,” Eredani wheezed. “They’re gaining on us!”
I would gladly have swiped the warning to the side, but bitter experience told me to read it.
Warning
You have been running flat-out for 2 minutes 30 seconds. The safe time for flat-out running with Agility 40 and character level 5 is 4 Minutes 30 seconds. If you continue to move at the prescribed pace, your Health value will decrease by 5% every 10 seconds. Time until value reset: 30 minutes’ rest.
“Can you run? I’m going to drop soon. Warning.”
“I can’t. Weakening. Left!” Another black cluster flew past. “They’re splitting up. A hundred meters. Right!”
The third lightning strike was wide of the mark too.
“Summon the fish!” My breathing was very labored. “I have two minutes!”
“It’s too far. A kilometer. Step on it!”
A kilometer in two minutes. Even my frugal knowledge of sporting records was enough to know that a time like that would challenge for an Olympic medal. They hadn’t removed liveliness completely, they’d just hidden it, which was perfectly understandable — who would let players run about for free? Let them pay for transport or portals, but not just run. Within the confines of the world of Barliona it was bad for your health.
A minute later my breathlessness was joined by uncontrollable tears, and it was now harder to jump from side to side and keep track of rocks. Dodging lightning for the umpteenth time, I tripped over a stone and fell, scraping my face on the rough sand. Eredani flew arse over tit from my back and rolled away. I had no strength even to raise my head, but my partner grabbed me by the scruff of the neck and dragged me on, groaning. The barrows loomed close, but I didn’t care anymore. The system had twice taken five percent, leaving my HP in the red zone. One hit from the demons and I would be sent to my first rebirth. I wondered if it would be painful.
Access to the Barrows of the Fallen confirmed
The guardian has confirmed your access to the Barrows of the Fallen. The entry point to the Barrows is marked on your map.
A golden veil along the entire border of the barrows separated us from our pursuers. Eredani turned me onto my back and helped me sit up. Breathless, we watched the magi approach, gliding smoothly over the sandy hillocks. With about ten meters to go, they abruptly stopped, as though they’d stumbled into a barrier, and shortly afterwards the Vartalinskys joined them.
“Why have you stopped? What the hell is this?” said Braksed, approaching the veil, kicking it angrily and howling. The guardian would not forgive such harsh treatment of his property.
“We can’t get through. We’re leaving,” announced the demons.
“What do you mean leaving?” Kurtune was beside himself with rage. “We paid you, and you haven’t fulfilled the contract.”
“We are not omnipotent. We don’t want to end up in the Abyss. We are cancelling the contract.” The demon magi about-faced and zipped away.
Eredani: Look at the properties of those thugs.
The Vartalinskys’ clothes had changed since we’d last met. They’d given themselves a none-too-shabby tweak, involving reinforcements, patches, knives twinkling as a green mist on their belts, flasks for restoring health and energy, and ninja stars. The outfits were now more suited to levelled-up raiders than nursery inhabitants. But the most interesting thing was in the pair’s properties.
Player Kurtune Vartalinsky. Dark demon hunter. Level 11.
When did they manage to turn dark?
“Made it to safety, did you, you animals?” Kurtune asked us. Pissed yourselves in the fight?”
“Kurt, shut up.” Braksed knocked him down a peg. “Return the ring, and we walk away.”
“What, without any money?” His brother’s offer came as a surprise to Kurtune.
Braksed spat on the ground and added, “A hundred thousand should do the trick. We’ll consider it compensation for the emotional distress, and payment for rental of the object.”
His manner was surprisingly laidback, which only served to irritate. “Are you sure that’s enough? I asked, unable to resist. “If you need the ring, suggest a price.”
“Just keep wisecracking, you goat-horned asshole!” Kurtune’s control of his emotions was a weak spot. “The ring and a hundred thousand. Otherwise we bury you here. And you never leave the fucking camp. If you don’t return the ring, we’ll find you in the wide world.”
Kvalen: Hermit owes us an object. There was an ambush by the clover. Luckyrain must have told them about the herb.
Eredani: Forget that. Those two changed their class and parleyed twice with demons. First the ambush, then the chase. There’s just one thing I don’t get — why are they so hung up on the ring?
Kvalen: I wondered that too. With their financial situation the ring shouldn’t be such a big loss.
Eredani: Unless it has sentimental value to them.
Kvalen: Engagement? That would explain a lot.
“What, are you deaf?” The Vartalinskys weren’t best pleased with our silence. “Where’s the ring?”
Eredani: We’ve digressed. How did they change class and parley with the demons?
Kvalen: We have to try and milk them. I’ll start, and you join in when you think it’s right.
Eredani: I like the way you think! My school!
Kvalen: I’
m self-taught.
“The ring is ours,” I said. I rose to my feet and approached the sparkling veil, stopping right by the Vartalinskys. You’d think they could reach out an arm and drag a cocksure tiefling off to the light of Eluna, but it wasn’t that simple. “There’s no need to try and scare us. You can see we’re not faint of heart. Let’s come to an arrangement. If we can agree on a price, you get your ring back.”
“Have you gone freaking mad?!” Kurtune lost it and threw a punch at my chin. The result was superb — he recoiled, howling and shaking his fist in pain.
A Second Chance Page 26
