Battle Spire

by Michael R. Miller

  Once again, the camera moved, zooming backwards to capture the impressive image of the player high up upon the balcony. I caught a glimpse of something behind him, inside the vaulted room at the top of the Spire. A crystal orb, much like the one I’d used in the character creation process, but there was something beneath it. A panel of blinking lights, I thought, but a moment later, the panning of the camera obscured the orb from view.

  “I now speak to the whole world.” His voice rose, as though he intended it to carry across the entire game. “I estimate there are three million players currently logged into Hundred Kingdoms. Each one is now my hostage. If the governments of the world want to prevent a massacre the likes of which you’ve never seen before, then I suggest that you listen. For now, do nothing. Any sign of interference will be futile and met with the deaths of low-level players here in Argatha. I shall state my demands when it suits me. My name, you must wait for as well.”

  The feed clicked off, turning to black before the window closed.

  I could feel myself trembling. How was this possible?

  Another terrible thought descended on me like a crushing wave. The Angel, for that was all I could think of calling him, had said the Imperial Spire was on lockdown. Those goons of his that I’d heard had mentioned securing the drawbridge and walls. As crazy as it sounded, nobody would be getting in or out without this guy’s say so. I’d managed to survive so maybe other players were also in hiding but the NPCs were all mincemeat by the sound of it.

  I might be the only innocent player left within the Spire.

  And one wrong move and I’d be dead.

  Dead, for real.

  11

  As the full impact of my predicament sunk in my first reaction was to retch. And oh boy, did Hundred Kingdoms let you do that. My body in the real world would be lying still as a board, stomach unperturbed, but it sure felt like I was vomiting inside the game.

  I sprayed the back wall of the cell in bile. They’d even managed to get those chunky bits rendered in. The smell was real too so this cramped cell was starting to feel like a true prison. If only Frostbyte spent as much time on their goddamned system security.

  “Shit, oh shit, oh shit, oh—”

  I carried on like that for a while. My mind was spinning, a cocktail of every emotion imaginable. Well, not every emotion; just the bad ones. This wasn’t happening, this couldn’t be happening; and what in the name of God was I supposed to do about it? Stay in this cell till it all blew over? One sniff at the air told me that it might not be an option.

  This really was just my luck. Why hadn’t I just logged off after I’d handed in the quest? Hell, why hadn’t I just logged off in the Orb & Scepter and come to hand in the quest later?

  I was spiraling and resorted to pacing again, trying to figure out how bad things were exactly. In short, I wasn’t allowed to die. If I stayed hidden in here that shouldn’t be a problem. Unless they found me. But I tried not to think about that and, besides, I was a valuable hostage now, right? Bad guys don’t start killing hostages right away in the movies.

  That comes later.

  I shook my head, continuing to pace. My greater concern was my actual body in the real world. I’d been playing for over six hours and really ought to eat something or at the very least drink water. It had been boiling in that room, and I was probably drenched in my own sweat lying on that springy bed. And what if I needed to go to the bathroom?

  That truly didn’t bear thinking about.

  I guess I wasn’t in any immediate danger in the real world. My door was securely locked, yet nobody that gave a rat’s ass about me knew where I was. There wasn’t even a record of me entering the hotel as I’d paid in cash. If that broadcast had gone out across the internet then the whole world would be scrambling to make sure their friends, parents, kids, or adventurous cats for all I knew, would be taken care off until the crisis had abated. But not me.

  “Cause you’re a real clever bastard, aren’t you, Jack,” I chided myself. “Thought you could have your cake and eat it too.”

  I was starting to believe in karma and felt that I’d fallen on the wrong side of it.

  I had half a mind to vomit again, but the smell was already becoming overpowering. Clearly, I couldn’t stay in here indefinitely or I might just die of asphyxiation. I’m only half kidding. This guy, this Angel fellow, he’d just thrown out all the rules.

  My one hope, my one desperate hope, was that there were other players besides myself in the Spire who had survived the attack. It was a sliver of hope. For want of a better word, these terrorists were clearly well prepared, organized and disciplined. I doubted they’d been careless in their sweep of the Spire. Unless other players knew of secret tunnels or chambers like this, then I would be on my own. And even if they had, they’d likely be at lower levels; probably much higher than my measly level 4, but they wouldn’t be close to max. Those zones were all far away from the safe capital city, so there wouldn’t be much we could do even in a group.

  But I still had to hope. It was all that I had left.

  I grasped the lever, gripping it so tight my knuckles turned white. I stood there for a moment or two, unable to pull it down. I closed my eyes, listened to my pounding heartbeat and tried to calm my breathing. I kept it up until I momentarily forgot my troubles. All was serene. My universe became the breath in and the breath out.

  Then I pulled the lever.

  The wall hissed again and pulled apart. Tentatively, I peered around the edge, looking towards the throne room. Nothing there, and nothing in the war room either. Nothing alive anyway. I saw the body of Marshal Highcross lying nearby. He’d been a level 45 elite and yet had still been cut down like a wheat in a field.

  Standing in the doorway of my cell, I noticed that the wall wasn’t closing. Perhaps it worked like an elevator and wouldn’t shut over and crush someone to death. I had no idea which bricks Highcross had pressed to open the room, nor in which order, but I’d like to keep the room as an escape option. And I had an idea.

  Crouching down, I tried to reach out for Highcross’ body. My fingers flailed but his corpse was just out of reach, so I lay down on my belly, keeping my legs within the doorway. This time my fingers grasped his own outstretched hand. I heaved as best I could, pulling him slowly inch by inch towards me until I could stand and properly haul him back. Once he was securely within the doorway, I steeled my nerves then left the cell altogether.

  I kept low, heading for the cover of the great war table. With bated breath, I waited in a state of grim horror to ensure that the door to my safe room didn’t close. To my relief, it remained open.

  I couldn’t help but let out a sigh. My whole body seemed to sag from it. One bit of good news, at least. Hopefully, Highcross’ corpse wouldn’t despawn for a good while. I don’t think the terrorist players had time to loot anyone so it was likely he’d hang around for longer because of that. I certainly wasn’t going to Scavenge him, just in case.

  However – and this was a very special ‘however’ – there would be loads of corpses strewn through this level of the Spire, especially in the throne room, of a much higher level than I could ever kill. Many might be elite as well, which meant double exp. I glanced at my health bar and nearly laughed. I still had the ‘well-rested’ buff too.

  I began to work up a plan of sorts. Scavenge everything that I could, maybe even get a few levels from it despite the token exp I was supposed to get from the ability. It wouldn’t exactly change my situation, but it might lower my chance of death from ninety-nine percent to ninety-seven.

  I poked my head over the war table, rather like a meerkat, to check if the coast was clear. There was still no one to be found. So, keeping low to the ground, I scurried out from my hiding place to the closest corpse of a guard and used Scavenge.

  Scavenged Spire Guard level 45 – 27 EXP

  Silver coins x 3

  Dream Silk x 2

  One down, I thought. The timer on the ‘well-rested’ b
uff started. For the next twenty minutes I’d get double experience, so I would have to make the most of it. I bounded from corpse to corpse up the hallway and found that virtually every one of them was a generic guard so far. They must have come running at the sound of the attack. I was only halfway back to the throne room when I must have looted my sixteenth guard, and then it happened.

  Level Up! You have reached level 5

  +3 attribute points

  +25 health

  +25 mana

  Unlocked!

  Scavenge – Rank 2

  You search a corpse for additional items that others were too proud to take. Awards 15% of the experience that killing a creature of equal level and power would grant. Some corpses may require tools to fully search.

  Now that was well timed. A rank up on Scavenge, granting me extra experience per body would have been welcomed at the best of times. Right now, it was nothing short of a godsend.

  I looted another guard to check out the difference. Now a regular level 45 guard gave me 81 experience with the rested buff. I continued looting bodies until I drew level with the throne room and when I saw what awaited me there, I almost let out a cry of delight.

  It was a battlefield graveyard. Bodies upon bodies; guards, other NPCs and players alike. Those players must have been killed before the logout function had been disabled so they were probably fine. If anything, they were the lucky ones. Highcross should have done me a favor and used me as a meat shield. But I had to make do. And I’d just hit the motherload of scavenging. There must have been well over one hundred bodies here. I was a vulture about to feast.

  I went. To. Town.

  My experience filled up so fast I could barely keep track of it. Before long, this happened.

  Level Up! You have reached level 6

  +3 attribute points

  +30 health

  +30 mana

  And I just kept on going. The other players I came across were of various levels but mostly a lot higher than me, averaging in the twenties. Not that I could tell exactly, but none of them gave me the impression that they were terrorist players hell-bent on endangering the lives of millions. It seemed the attackers had so far taken over the Spire without taking a single casualty. When I was over halfway through the hall, it happened again.

  Level Up! You have reached level 7

  +3 attribute points

  +35 health

  +35 mana

  Unlocked!

  Desperate Strike/Shot – Rank 2

  You lash out wildly to drive off an attacker. Weapon base damage is increased by +55 but accuracy is lowered by a third.

  Mana Cost: 60

  Cooldown: 10 seconds

  A boost to my one and only combat ability was nice to see but I was extremely doubtful I’d be getting into any fights; like at all. Was I hell going to risk my life. The very thought brought me close to vomiting again. To take my mind off it, I continued scavenging.

  Amongst the bodies, I started to find the odd elite, part of the Emperor’s personal bodyguard.

  Scavenged Imperial Guard level 45 Elite – 162 EXP

  In my head, I was cheering. This had to be the greatest scavenging run in the short history of the game. There was at least a dozen of these elite guards in close proximity to each other, and I could see my exp bar knocking up in great chunks, until—

  Level Up! You have reached level 8

  +3 attribute points

  +40 health

  +40 mana

  Unlocked!

  Breakdown – Rank 2

  So long as you have the right tools, your scavenger instincts will take you further. Breaking down an item will award materials from one tier below the level of the item being broken down. You now also receive additional core components from the item.

  Cost: 5% of mana

  Unlocked!

  Crafting – Rank 2

  With the right materials and tools to hand, you can produce almost any item. And scavengers can’t be choosy. Successfully crafting an item will award experience equal to 15% of the experience that would be gained from killing a mob of the same level. Experience linked to the item’s profession tree remains the same.

  Cost: 10% of mana

  This was insane. Despite the situation, I found myself brimming with excitement and joy. And then I realized something wonderful. If the imperial guard were scattered around me, that had to mean the Emperor himself would be close at hand. Sure enough, I found him, under a smaller pile of guardsmen who had perhaps fallen onto him while trying to defend his body.

  Emperor Aurelius looked exactly like he had in the cinematic I’d seen when first logging in. Balding as a young man, plump, and in terrifically purple robes that, now I could touch them, felt like they could have been made out of cloud. His crown lay bent and dented, the gemstones cracked. The introductory cinematic had said that the Emperor was not a warrior. In keeping with that lore, it was unlikely he’d been a difficult fight for the Angel and his demons. Would I even be allowed to scavenge such an important NPC? His body hadn’t despawned so I presumed I could.

  Scavenged Emperor Aurelius – Level 50 Boss – 267 EXP

  This time, when the loot table appeared, I stopped to pay attention.

  Gold coins x 2

  Manafused Satin x 3

  Aurelius’ Key

  This item is Soul Bound to you

  King’s Purse

  Aurelius’ need to always have a good read on him led to the commission of a pouch that could be worn on his belt, but contains far more than meets the eye. Few others can afford the cost of this space increasing enchantment.

  +50 slot bag

  This item is Soul Bound to you

  I mouthed out the words ‘holy crap’ as I looted this priceless artefact. I couldn’t believe there wasn’t even a level requirement on it. Probably no dev had dreamed that someone not of a suitable level and power would ever loot him as I had. My total capacity until now had been thirty-six and I’d just added fifty in one fell swoop.

  Up until now, I’d been gathering the coins from mobs but largely leaving other items, not having the space for them. I ran back around and was fortunate that the loot window was still operable on those who had trinkets left for me to take. There was a lot of cloth, of course, but also pairs of gloves, belts, high-level daggers; generally, a lot of small items that seemed to be appropriate for a scavenger to loot. I wasn’t given any plate armor, for instance, or larger weapons. I presumed that was the realm of the ‘proper’ loot. There was one item I became quite excited about; a pistol.

  Sheriff’s Shot

  One-handed firearm

  Quality: uncommon

  Item level 25

  Requires level 22 to equip

  Damage: 55-61 piercing

  Might +2

  Reflexes +2

  Durability: 70/70

  It would be a long while before I could use it, but I stuffed it into my inventory anyway. I may as well try and pretend to be optimistic.

  My pillaging of the throne room had brought me almost full circle. I was close to the place where I’d begun, near the mouth of the corridor leading to the military wing. Sadly, my well-rested buff had faded by this point so I was back to the regular amount of experience gain. Heck of a run though and there were a few bodies still left.

  Kneeling beside a steel-clad guard, I clicked ‘loot all’. Rinse and repeat. I’d entered something of a trance. But then something unexpected happened.

  Sneak Increased!

  Level 3

  Mastered the art of wearing all black at night and moving quietly? Good for you but there’s a long way to go yet.

  I did a double-take, not quite registering the meaning of this. Then a gear clicked into place and I dove for cover behind the nearest column. If my sneak skill had increased that meant I had actively been avoiding enemies like those kobolds back in the woods.

  Gingerly, I lay flat on the ground to look more like a corpse, then peered out from around the
column. Sure enough, at the distant end of the hall, by the main entrance, a pair of players were sauntering inside.

  “I reckon we should just go back,” one of them said, his voice echoing throughout the cavernous and now silent throne room.

  “What and miss our chance at the loot? No way.”

  “If someone reports on us, the Boss will kill us himself.”

  They descended into an argument. As they did so, I fought to overcome a fresh wave of panic. If I could get back to my safe room, then all would be fine.

  Biting my lip, I quietly shuffled back, still prone on the floor. I got to my feet, nice and steady; and then in a moment of nervous haste, I wheeled around, slamming my foot against the chest plate of a guard.

  “What’s that?”

  “Someone there? Shout out your name and number.”

  About three heartbeats went by in which I couldn’t decide what to do. I was entirely frozen with fear. I heard them start to head my way.

  Fight or flight, I asked myself. My feet answered for me and I was running before I could even think about breaking cover.

  I heard them chasing me, though I hoped my head start across the throne room would to allow me to make it, unless they had speed boosting powers, in which case, I was royally screwed.

  I was down the corridor in a flash and into the war room.

  “Hey, you,” a coarse voice called from behind me.

  My safe room was in sight—

  A loud crackle and pop rang in my ears and then I heard another voice.