Absalom’s Trials

by J. D. L. Rosell

  The path in the Roots was, in a word, enchanting. A small dirt path led through a jungle cast in an ethereal glow. Vines and moss grew over every surface, and glowing butterflies and wisps of light floated through the air. I stared around in mute wonder for a moment, only stirring at Sheika's gasp as she entered.

  “Wow,” was all she said.

  For some reason, I grabbed her hand, then let go as quickly. This place was muddling my brain. “Er, not sure why I did that. Sorry.”

  Sheika grinned at me, her sharp teeth making the smile slightly predatory. “How about you just go ahead and lead the way?”

  I scrambled to do as she said, for a moment forgetting the beauty around us in my awkwardness. It settled back into me as we walked though. When I looked up, the sky wasn't blue or any normal color, but a yellow-green like a newly sprouted plant. Once or twice, I thought I glimpsed animals moving among the thick foliage. Only then did it really hit me that this was a new realm, another of the parallel ones like Farelle supposed Earth was, and like Urandal was supposed to reside on. How many more planes were like this one? There was still so much to explore and learn about the Everlands.

  First things first, though. I had to survive the Absalom’s Trials if I was going to get to any of that.

  It wasn't much further until we reached the other portal, which was signaled by another tree-formed archway.

  “This is it.” I jogged forward, and Sheika kept pace behind me. Without hesitation, I broke through the barrier and back to a place I thought I’d left forever.

  I was greeted with raucous cheers. The archway had been formed on the hill near Isvalla's temple, which meant all the new devotees were already more or less gathered. I guess it spoke to the Fralishk's commitment that even in a week, their faith had grown to zealousness, and I was apparently included in that.

  I raised my hands, grinning. I didn't mind an enthusiastic audience. “Thank you, thank you!” I said like I was a rockstar at a sold-out stadium.

  Sheika, coming up behind me, whispered in my ear, “Well, look who's the big man now?”

  That deflated my ego a bit. This wasn't about me, but a war. Sighting Sulfel scowling from next to the Roots arch further set my feet back on solid ground.

  I cleared my throat. “I see you're all getting along well!” I said to the crowd.

  They cheered again and began to chant, “Boss! Boss! Boss!”

  “I bring good news! As a toast to our former way of life, I have arranged a gift for you all. The fight of a lifetime with worthy opponents! But not too worthy, if you know what I mean.” I winked, and apparently the subtext was picked up by the creatures, for they cackled with me. Maybe it was my changed status, or some feature of being a newly devout people, but they were forming to my plans like putty.

  “Come! Let us go meet this weak-but-worthy enemy together!”

  “Hold up here! What do you think you're doing, Boss Marrow?”

  Emerging from the group of Fralishk was a familiar old woman: Helge the Master Weaver. Not good. No doubt she'd be opposed to this plan. After all, what financial incentive could there be for her in it?

  “Mistress Helge!” I called to her, opening my arms wide. “How nice to see you again! Are enjoying our new faith?”

  “Fine, fine,” she said impatiently. “Now about this fighting business—”

  “Oh, never fear,” I interrupted her loudly. “This is very much sanctioned by Isvalla.”

  To my satisfaction, Helge looked surprised and confused. “I never said anything about it not being so,” she snapped. “Though it does run quite contrary to her teachings I've heard.”

  “Oh? But you are young in the faith. Perhaps it's best to hear these explanations from the arbiter of Isvalla's will herself.” I glanced back at Sheika. “Could you retrieve our priestess from the other side?”

  My roguish companion was less compliant than Farelle, scowling as she turned to go back. She was saved the trouble of the trip, though, for at that moment, Sarai stepped through the portal.

  “Ah! Perfect timing!” I grinned at her. “Valla’Sarai, I was just telling our fellow worshippers that you would explain how this fight is Isvalla's will.”

  I regretted that grin a moment later when she glared daggers at me, but it was too late to take it back. There was one more apology for later.

  “Yes, of course,” Sarai picked up the thread. She spoke eloquent nonsense for several long minutes, so convincing and laden with religious language that I totally spaced out. The Fralishk, on the other hand, were dialed in. I didn't get it. Was she casting a spell on them or something to make them pay attention?

  Either way, at the end of her speech, even Helge didn't have a response. The master weaver, knowing she was beaten for now, slunk back down the hill, probably to plot her path to complete power.

  I nodded at Sarai, hoping it would convey my gratefulness, but the priestess barely looked at me. Sheika touched my arm, bringing me back to our purpose. “Right,” I said. “Now if you're itching for a good brawl, let's go through the doorway!”

  I turned into the portal and, with a wave onward, stepped through.

  Hundreds of Fralishk streamed through the Roots to Kalthinia and the waiting war. The first of them to arrive I set digging tunnels, a task at which I knew them to be extremely proficient, as well as setting up traps, mostly as stake-lined pits. They took to it with surprising gusto. I almost thought digging should join those prime three activities of theirs, for they seemed as enthusiastic as I'd seen them at fighting, drinking, or weaving.

  Leaving them to it, I had Sarai turn me back into a Human, then Farelle, Sheika, and I set to the second part of the plan. For our diggers to do any good, they had to have an army to ambush, and we three were going to bring it to them. I was a bit fuzzy on the details, but I had to hope my developing strategic mind would figure it out soon.

  The army wasn’t far away. That was intentional, of course — once it came time, we figured the enemy wouldn’t want to stray too far from the battlefield. At first, the sounds of war were faint, but as we jogged closer, they came into horrifying clarity. The battle was going strong, and with the sides as they were currently stacked, I didn’t doubt the Cerulean Empire was winning.

  We came over the crest of a hill to suddenly find the battle under us. Rank upon rank of trident-wielding infantry marched on the city, only a few archers and siege weapons mounted atop the walls impeding their advance. The reason for such a paltry defense was soon apparent. Strange, vine-like ropes draped from the walls, and Cerulean soldiers quickly scrambled up them to fight any Burghman who dared to challenge them. Stalburgh’s outer defenses had already been breached. It couldn’t have been more than an hour or two into the battle, and it already seemed we’d lost.

  But I knew we weren’t quite out of it. The Ignobles, fighting on the other side of the Naiads, had already reached some of the companies of archers and siege weapons and were taking them down. They looked a much smaller group than I remembered, and I wondered at what losses they’d suffered. No point in wondering — we’d all get more than enough death before this was through.

  I turned to my companions. “Alright, remember. We’ve got to attract enough attention to bring a few companies of their army after us. Any ideas on where to start?”

  Farelle crossed her arms. “You should have taken the heads of their generals and dragged them behind one of their strange horses. That would probably provoke them into following us.”

  I stared at her. “You’re terrifying. Any other ideas that I’d actually go for?”

  Sheika pointed. “There’s a particularly large siege weapon there pulled by their tortoises. Maybe we could try and steal it.”

  I considered it. “It’d be the slowest car chase in history. But I like the general idea. Could we just steal a banner and call it good?”

  “Maybe we steal multiple banners,” Farelle added. “And a few heads too.”

  “You and war do not mix well. Good, we�
�ll aim for the banners then. That should be easy enough to spot.”

  The game seemed to agree that this was a good plan, for an overlay popped up for me:

  New quest: Capture the Flags! (Lvl 20) [Noble Ignobles] [Ebretin] — Seize at least three banners from the Cerulean Empire’s army, then lead them into the Fralishk trap. If you get tagged before reaching the traps, though, you’ll likely be killed. Ready to play?

  Reward: 25,000 XP (+1250 XP) (+1250 XP), three Cerulean Empire banners, increased alignment with Noble Ignobles, increased alignment with Ebretin.

  Heartened, I scanned the battlefield. “I see three near us. That enough for you two?”

  “Hopefully,” Sheika said. “Won’t know until we try.” Without another moment’s hesitation, she sprinted down the hill toward the enemy.

  Before the Wilder could follow, I grabbed hold of her arm. “If you’re in danger, run. I don’t want you dying out there for me.”

  She shook her arm free, almost looking offended. “I’ll take care of myself and make my own decisions. This isn’t just for you, Marrow. Stalburgh was my home for good while. I don’t exactly want to see her sacked.”

  She had a point, but it didn’t make me any less worried. But seeing as the Satyr sprinted down the hill after Sheika a moment later, it didn’t look like we were going to talk about it anymore.

  Fine. I had a battle to win anyway. Repressing my doubts, I chased after them.

  19

  Best Laid Plans

  The first company barely noticed us until we had started cutting through their ranks. A major reason for that was because I’d cast Mass Deception once again, and we’d crept up on them in the guise of a fellow regiment. By the time they realized what was happening, Sheika and I had cut down three each, and Farelle had shot two through the throats. The Naiads’ black eyes bulged in surprise as they turned aside from the city and engaged us, shouting and trying to tease us out from the illusions.

  Drinking my third-to-last mana pot, I waded into the enemy, hacking and killing as I went. As soon as my illusory soldiers thinned and the Naiads could see me, I employed my usual channel, Basilisk’s Gaze, to great effect. One by one, soldiers met my eyes and stiffened, and one by one, I cut them down. When I grew bored with that game, I used Spinning Blades and spread a gory torrent through the middle of them.

  Sheika reached the banner first and came sprinting out from the enemy ranks with it held aloft and a grin on her face. “One down!” she said gleefully. “Two more to go!”

  Farelle and I weren’t far behind her, fleeing only to charge the next regiment over. But we couldn’t engage when the last group of soldiers was still after us, so I cast another Mass Deception to hold them off. As soldiers identical to themselves began jamming up the field like a Walmart on Black Friday, our trio managed to slip away.

  As we continued to run, my second-to-last mana potion was gone a moment after. Only two more times of casting Mass Deception… good thing we only had two more banners to retrieve.

  It wasn’t far to the next company. Sheika led us in close by benefit of the Cerulean Empire’s banner, which apparently made them think we were allies. A fatal mistake — Sheika turned out to be nearly as deadly with the banner as with her knives, knocking soldiers off their feet left and right. Farelle was firing two arrows at a time now, a skill I didn’t know she had. As for me, I held off on using magic for now, but put Basilisk’s Gaze to good use. I’d have to squeeze in a Siphon Essence or two soon though — I was already a third of the way through my spirit meter, with the rest quickly dissipating.

  It was only midway through massacring the second rank of Naiads that I remembered the useful Spectral word that Ava had taught me. How could I have forgotten! Leaping back from the three soldiers I’d been fighting at once, I focused on one of the fallen Naiads and cried, “Faq’ohl!”

  The Ghost Ring burned cold on my finger, then mist rose from the corpse and formed into a spitting image of the fallen soldier. The Naiads that had been attacking me hesitated at seeing their companion rise from the dead. At a thought, my Spectral soldier struck out with his misty trident, taking one of them in the chest with a very real wound. I grinned, then turned to the next corpse.

  It wasn’t long after that Sheika retrieved the second banner and came out of the enemy with both poles swinging. It was a testament to her character’s stringy strength that she was able to swing both of the banners single-handedly, for each of the pools the banners were mounted on were at least ten feet in length. This time as we fled, our escape was covered by my Spectral soldiers. I’d raised over two dozen, but less than half of those were still standing by the time we left, the Naiads finally recovering their courage and striking their undead companions down.

  “One more,” Farelle panted next to me. All I could do was nod. My stamina had already bottomed out once, and I’d had to hide behind my soldiers while it recovered. Now, it fluttered around the 10% mark and was only lowering as we ran. To make matters worse, I’d been so busy raising soldiers I still hadn’t recovered any spirit, so that meter was flatlining, too. And though it was easy for the most part to cut down soldiers almost half my level, my wounds were starting to stack up. How I was going to outrun these soldiers back to the Fralishk, I had not the slightest clue.

  But we’d crossed the field to the next line of soldiers, and Sheika knocked them down with a mighty swing of her banner poles. Farelle, however, was looking behind us with eyes wide. “They’re following!”

  I turned and saw that we’d accomplished what we’d set out to do too early. Not thirty feet behind us, both regiments of soldiers whose banners we’d stolen were quickly catching up.

  “Run!” I gasped to Farelle, and turned to face the soldiers by myself. Hundreds of Naiads versus one exhausted me. Despite the odds, I grinned. Time to see what I was made of.

  I cast Mass Deception, and as the illusory soldiers rose up around me and charged forward, I quaffed my last mana potion and joined them with sword and dagger in hand. To my annoyance, an arrow shot from behind, catching of the Naiads in the neck. Farelle wasn’t as good at taking orders as I’d hoped.

  But then the battle was upon me in full force, and I had no more room to worry about her. The enemy soldiers streamed toward me between my illusory minions, but I made sure they didn’t come further. The first I handicapped at the knee, then stabbed through the throat. He quickly rose again as a Specter and joined in the fight, this time on my side. The next Naiad I didn’t quite kill, but crippled with Hamstring, then sucked him dry of spirit with Siphon Essence. Basilisk’s Gaze blazed in my eyes moments after, and as the Naiads stiffened in paralysis, I stole spirit from each of them until my spirit meter was back to full.

  One problem solved, but my stamina was still flagging, and the soldiers pressed in closer. I kept back as the last of my illusory soldiers were cut through. I needed more time to recover, so I cast my last Mass Deception. I held the line here, or fell and lost the battle. I gritted my teeth and hoped it would be enough.

  While I let my stamina creep back up, I paralyzed every Naiad I could with Basilisk’s Gaze. Few of them were dying since the illusion couldn’t do damage and my first Spectral soldier had dissipated, but Farelle still fired arrows from behind me, taking a surprising number in their throats. Enough of them fell that I kept continually busy animating Specters and managed to raise five before Mass Deception once again dissipated. They wouldn’t hold long though; the Naiads had overcome their fear and struck with abandon at the ghostly soldiers.

  Fortunately, my stamina was back up to 75%, and I was ready to rumble. Leaping between the last of my fading soldiers, I cut left and right, crippling two Naiads, then parried a trident thrust between them. I put Pirouette & Riposte to good use, spinning aside from attacks while dealing back a bit of damage in return. But despite fighting like a madman, the wave of Naiads was too large, and they began to quickly encircle me. “Run, Farelle!” I yelled, desperately hoping she’d take heed. Another a
rrow told me she hadn’t, or hadn’t heard in the din.

  Suddenly, a voice boomed overhead. “Do you want your banners back, little frog-men? Come and get them!”

  I grinned at Sheika’s taunt. She was once again her giant illusion self, towering over the Naiad army and swinging the three Cerulean banners in one horse-sized hand. So this was how she planned to lure them over. I hoped it was working.

  As for myself, I had more immediate problems. The Naiads around me decided killing me was a better idea than galavanting across the forest to retrieve their banners from the cackling giant Ja’qual. At least Farelle had to be fleeing now; even she wasn’t so foolish as to try and stand against this many soldiers. That left a dozen soldiers poking their tridents in on me in an ever-tightening circle. With my spirit and mana gone, all I had to rely on were my combat skills and wit.

  But I was used to saving myself now. I grinned and set into motion, parrying three uncoordinated blows and diving in close to the attackers, too close for them to effectively use their tridents. A few other blows pricked at me from the other side, but my armor blocked the worst of it. Two of the Naiads I charged into staggered, and it was simple to slip my knife between the ribs of one and whip around my sword to slice the throat of the other. The third, though, had the perfect vantage point for a thrust, and he took it. I cried out as the trident took me in the left shoulder where my hauberk didn’t protect me. My health took a big hit, falling to 35%.

  “Faq’ohl!” I cried out, concentrating through my pain on the Naiad whose throat I’d slashed. But before he was able to fully form, the other soldiers stabbed into the mist, and the Specter dissipated with a faint cry.

  But I had one last trick. Awkwardly grasping at the chain around my neck, I drew out my Glass Pendant of Dazzle and activated its power. A white light blazed from the cut glass, painfully bright even for me. I knew it would blind my opponents for 30 seconds, more than long enough to finish them off.