Quest into Hidden Realms (Hidden Realms LitRPG Series Book 1)

by Tom Gallier

  Cain. Human brigand (Lvl 23). -7 Dark. PK: 37.

  Jack. Human brigand (Lvl 21). -6 Dark. PK: 34.

  Gizelle. Elven warrior (Lvl 22). -12 Dark. PK: 35.

  Killum presented his Wolfsheart Spear. "Brigands and cutthroats! Defend yourselves!"

  Fergus and Tiana began peppering the charging brigands with arrows. They stood to either side of Killum and Rand, who prepared for a much more personal kind of combat. Rand looked eager to fight, while Killum could only think of the horror of death. It might only be ten to fifteen seconds, but it was a really hellish ten to fifteen seconds.

  The archers took out six of the twenty brigands. All five of the Immortals survived, though one had an arrow through his thigh. He continued to limp towards the fight.

  "Hai!" Killum cried, thrusting his spear through the heart of the first mob to reach him. The Immortals hung back, letting their NPC comrades take the blunt of the damage. "Drop the bows and fight!"

  The fight was too close for bows. Fergus and Tiana tossed their bows aside and pulled swords. They joined Killum and Rand and helped hold the brigands at bay. Wolfsheart Spear proved its worth by finding the hearts of five mob brigands in as many thrusts. Soon half of the brigands were dead or dying on the ground, but Killum's arms were getting tired. The other three weren't as fast and effective.

  Superior numbers were about to win the day.

  Desperation consumed Killum. Dying again was unacceptable, and he despised the idea of his friends suffering that fate as well. Then the elven warrior Gizelle tried to decapitate him. Killum ducked, and both heard and felt her blade strike the Staff of Calling strapped to his back.

  "Hold them just a few more seconds!" he shouted, dropping back.

  The battle-mage dropped the spear and shed the make-shift harness they'd fashioned to carry the magical Dark staff. He saw that his friends were about to be overwhelmed and butchered, so didn't have time to free the staff from its bindings. Killum took the Staff of Calling in both hands, lifting it harness and all, and the unholy staff became icy cold in his hands. Magic flowed into his hands, making them stiff and numb.

  The correct words just rolled off his tongue, "Arise my minions of undeath! Kill the living! Kill my enemies!"

  The dead brigands stirred. The brigands stopped fighting, stepping back and looking down and around at the moving dead. The dead brigands left their weapons on the ground, but began clawing, biting, climbing up their former friends. Brigands screamed in horror.

  "Kill them all!" Killum cried, shaking the staff above him. "Fergus, Tiana, Rand, fall back behind me."

  The Immortal brigand Jack was the first to die. He screamed in horror, eyes wild as zombies dog-piled him. But the others were more successful against the unarmed undead. Zombies began falling. Soon there were just two zombies attacking four players.

  "Time to jump back in," Rand said.

  "No," Killum said, stepping forward. He pointed up the road. "There are more coming."

  The dead travelers were shambling up the hill. The brigands hadn't noticed them.

  As the last two undead brigands fell beneath Gizelle's and Cain's swords, Cain glared at Killum. "Now it's four against four."

  "Well, not exactly," Killum said, wagging his brows. "Turn around and meet the rest of my undead friends."

  The second group of zombies plowed into the last brigands standing. Rand barked a laugh, and then attacked. Tiana and Fergus followed, plowing into the brigands' backs as they battled zombies. Rand killed Cain and another. Tiana faced off with Gizelle, and stabbed the elf warrior through the throat, while Fergus beheaded the last of the evil Immortals.

  The zombies turned towards his friends, and started moving towards them.

  The proper words came to Killum. "Your service is over. Return to the grave! Begone!"

  The zombies fell bonelessly to the ground and remained still.

  "That was fun," Rand said. He grinned at Killum. "You might want to hang onto that damned object. It comes in handy."

  "Yeah. No," Killum said, finally able to release it. The Staff of Calling and its harness dropped to the ground. His hands and arms were still cold and began tingling, like when the blood has been cut off. He could barely move his fingers. "I'm not Dark enough to use that thing. And I don't intend to get that Dark, either."

  Congratulations! You've earned enough experience points to move up one level. You are now a Level 14 battle-mage!

  Congratulations! You've assisted in 5 Player Kills and successfully used a Dark Object of Power, thus giving you 3 Points to Dark!

  Killum quickly checked his stats, relieved to see no more PKs were listed, but he was up to Level 14 as a battle-mage, but his alignment had changed to -4 Dark. And his mana was down to 34. His Health, Strength, and Endurance were barely affected.

  "Oh man, I went one point towards Dark because of player kills," Tiana muttered.

  Tiana. Human thief (Lvl 15). -1 Dark. PK: 6.

  "It's not all bad," Rand said. "These brigands all have purses, as do the travelers. Plus I see two pack mules we can use to haul all of these weapons to Knaresburg. This is going to be our biggest payday yet."

  All Killum could think about was that Staff of Calling, and how evil it felt in his hands. He might've turned the tide of battle with it, but they were all unclean kills.

  "Fine. Collect all of the valuables and load up the mules," he said. Staring off toward the north. "Let's get our asses to Knaresburg. I need a beer, or twelve."

  Chapter 21

  Asha froze, listening intently. She cocked her head left, then right. The elfmaid quickly zeroed in on the direction of the sounds. A woman's squeal of delight, followed by her laughter allowed the sorceress to relax. Happy people weren't generally dangerous.

  Moving quickly towards the laughter, she soon heard two deeper male voices. One was very deep and hard to understand from a distance. She finally discovered two males and two women walking along a trail and heading toward Oxenbluff. One male and one female were human, with another male turning out to be an ork. The last female was an elf.

  "Elfmaid," the ork said, pointing at Asha.

  They all stopped and three of them put hand to hilt. The elfmaid travelling with them was not armed. Asha paused to study them a second.

  Coop. Human Dark Paladin (Lvl 20). -31 Dark. PK: 48.

  Coop was tall and slim, but still looked muscular and strong under his black armor. He was handsome, but in a fierce, scary way. The paladin's hair was long and tied back. He looked familiar, and it took a moment to realize she knew him from the previous realm.

  Joss. Human witch (Lvl 19). -22 Dark. PK: 12.

  Asha nodded. Joss, Coop, and Krakus were a team. Joss was their spellcaster, their witch. All were proudly Dark, though not really evil. She had the impression they were what the Americans called "rednecks" and "good ole boys." As she recalled, they tended to spend more time drinking and partying in the pubs than out grinding away.

  The next one in line surprised her.

  Deidra. Elven Ranger (Lvl 25). +35 Light. PK: 1.

  If she remembered correctly, Deidra was the player that Daphne said discovered the Deadman's Swamp dungeon, and had vanished. Asha found her. The elven ranger was beautiful in the previous realm, and then became drop-dead gorgeous in the Hidden Realms. Asha felt a ping of jealousy. Deidra's hair was long and blonde, eyes like a mountain lake, and the elfmaid's soft leather outfit fit her like a glove.

  What is someone so deep in the Light doing with three people so deep in the Dark?

  The last one was a seven foot tall ork in mismatched armor and a black wolf's pelt loincloth, with numerous knives and daggers strapped all over his body. He had a sword on both hips, and another pair crossed across his back. The end of his left tusk was broken off, and he had battle scars, ritual scars, and tattoos on all exposed skin, including his face.

  "Hi, Krakus," Asha said when he looked her over appreciatively.

  Krakus. Ork warrior (Lvl 19). -14 Dark. PK:
23.

  He was even bigger and scarier looking in the new realm. She figured he doubled his mass, becoming taller and thicker. And it was all muscle, too.

  "Long time no see, Asha," Joss said. She was looking the sorceress over, too, but not looking pleased. "This forest is overrun with elves lately."

  "I know. This is supposed to be goblin country," Krakus said. "But elves are prettier."

  "We're heading into town," Coop said. Asha remembered he was their official leader, but Joss generally got her way. "You're welcome to join us if you want."

  "Oxenbluff?"

  "No, New York City," Joss said. She was still looking Asha over, more intently. "You've been in a fight. That's goblin blood."

  Asha shrugged. "A goblin village invited me to dinner, as the main course. I objected." She smiled brightly at them. "After some…um…persuasion, they let me continue on my way."

  Krakus laughed. "Yes! You were always known for your love of persuasion."

  Coop was looking past her at that time. "Where's the rest of your motley crew of meat shields?"

  She stiffened. Some haters back in the old realm spread the rumor that Asha used her friends and allies to take all of the hits while she hung back and used her magic.

  "Oxenbluff," she lied. "I got killed and had to start over again."

  "Ouch. Been there. Done that," Joss said. "Don't want to go there again."

  "Of course not," Coop laughed. "You've got five deaths. That next one is going to be a doozy."

  Krakus and Coop laughed, but Joss didn't. Neither did Deidra. In fact, Deidra hadn't spoken or even paid attention to Asha. The elven ranger just stood there staring off into space.

  "What do you mean? Does the number of deaths matter in this realm?"

  "Hell yes," Joss said. "You know that fifteen seconds of hell you went through before respawning?" Asha nodded, unable to forget that ordeal. "Well, that is a mere hint of this realm's Purgatory."

  Krakus stepped up to Asha, taking a lock of her long black hair between two fingers. Then he leaned down close to her face, making her eyes go wide. Her fight or flight instinct kicked in on full alert.

  "If you die five times within a ninety day period, then your time in Purgatory starts to escalate," Krakus' deep base growled at her. "I hear it is even worse than what we feel after death. The demons in Purgatory have more time to do unspeakable things to you. It's. Pure. Hell."

  "Stop sugar-coating it, Krakus," Coop said. "How many times have you died, girl?"

  "Just once," she lied, and didn't know why. Asha got a bad vibe from them. "This is only my second day here."

  "Wow. You're already a Level 14, with six player kills," Joss said. "How are you still +2 to Light?"

  Asha gasped, quickly checking her stats to discover Joss was correct. She knew Dukk as an Immortal, and she killed him. Apparently she killed more players among the goblins. She lost one point towards Light, as well.

  "Well, we were ambushed by a lot of bad guys," she said. "I didn't realize I'd actually killed players, but one of them got lucky." She shrugged, trying to act all unconcerned. "And there may have been some players among the goblins."

  They regarded her with mercenary eyes. A chill ran up Asha's spine. Except for Deidra, they were all very Dark characters.

  "Come on," Krakus said, placing his massive hand at the small of her back and ushering Asha into their midst. "We're burning daylight. I want to reach Oxenbluff today so I can get drunk."

  They slotted Asha in between Coop and Joss, with Deidra and Krakus coming next. The sorceress would rather walk with the other elfmaid, but Joss wouldn't let her drop back.

  What's their game? Asha wondered. It can't be good.

  "Hi, Deidra," she called.

  "Hi."

  Nothing else. Her expression didn't change. It was like the ranger was in a daze.

  "Poor thing's not feeling well," Joss said, and then suppressed a giggle. "We captured her yesterday and are taking her back to Oxenbluff to collect the bounty."

  "Bounty? Deidra's a criminal?"

  "Yep," Krakus said. "And we're bounty hunters." He tousled Deidra's hair like she was a small child. "This pretty little thing's going to bring us five silver shekels."

  Asha slanted a sharp look back at the ork warrior. That was the price the goblins said she'd bring as a slave in Oxenbluff. The reward for Deidra's capture was the same amount she'd bring if sold to a slaver? And the bounty hunters were all very Dark?

  "What did she do? What is her crime?"

  Joss shrugged, but Krakus answered. "Who cares? If you got a bounty on your head, we'll hunt you down and take you back to face justice."

  "What if she's innocent?"

  "That's not for us to determine," Coop said.

  Joss pressed up behind Asha, snaking an arm around the sorceress' waist. Asha's breath caught at the feel of Joss' rough hand sliding across her bare belly. The witch's hot breath tickled her ear. The icy cold of Dark magic flowed out of the witch's hand and made Asha's belly clench.

  The elven sorceress pushed that hand away.

  "What's the matter, sweetie?" Joss asked. "Is there a bounty on your head in Oxenbluff, too? Like from that fight where you killed so many men?"

  Her blood froze. Asha couldn't breathe for a long moment as her mind spun. If they turned her over to the authorities, then Rudolf would get his vengeance. How would they punish her? Death? Branding was common in the middle-ages. Since slavery was legal, she might be either sold as a slave or given to Rudolf.

  "It was self-defense," Asha said, but her voice came out tight and strained.

  Getting away from them became paramount. Asha never felt comfortable around them, in this realm or the previous. She should've listened to her instincts and declined to join their troupe. Leaving them now would appear she feared a bounty on her head in town, which would make them capture her outright.

  Asha glanced back at Deidra and noticed something she hadn't before. A silvery collar, about the diameter of her pinky finger, encircled Deidra's neck. Runes were worked into the silver, declaring it a magical object.

  They've captured and entranced her with the collar. Asha slowly sucked in a deep, steadying breath. The ranger appeared to be a much more powerful player than her, so it was possible for the bounty hunters to capture her, too. I'm having the worst luck in this realm.

  Their progress was painfully slow. Apparently the collar's magic forced Deidra to walk slowly, and they were only as fast as their slowest member. The others were surprisingly unconcerned, though it aggravated Asha.

  The paladin stopped at a creek crossing. There was a fallen tree to sit on, and some berry bushes.

  "Let's take a short break here," Coop said. He took Asha's hand and guided her to the downed tree, insisting she sit. He leaned in and whispered. "Joss is off to get some berries, so we can talk."

  Krakus was drinking from the creek, while Deidra just stood where she stopped. Asha doubted the ranger was tired. Actually, considering their pace, she doubted any of them were tired.

  "Is there anything wrong?"

  Coop nodded, looking past her at Joss' back. "Joss doesn't like you. At all. She's being all nice now, but that'll only last until you say or do something to piss her off."

  "I'll play nice," Asha said. He motioned her in closer. She leaned into him until their heads almost touched. "What?"

  "There's something else you really need to know, and you aren't going to like it," he whispered almost too low to hear.

  Asha leaned in a little closer when he paused, looking a little worried. Her heart started pounding and it became harder to breathe. What did he have to warn her about that frightened him so much?

  "It's Joss," he said, taking both of her hands into his. "She's right behind you with a slave collar."

  "Huh?"

  It was too late. Coop's grip on her hands tightened, holding her firmly. Joss laughed as she swept Asha's hair aside, and slipped an open metal collar around her neck. As soon as it
snapped shut the sorceress felt the magic flowing into her.

  "No, no, no!"

  She tried to break free, but Joss wrapped her arms around the elfmaid to help hold her still. Asha struggled, but the magic was numbing her mind, making it harder and harder to think. The fight slowly melted away, and Asha felt a calmness flow over her.

  Once she ceased all struggles, the paladin and witch released her. Joss lifted Asha's chin, forcing the sorceress to look up at her. The witch giggled.

  "Damn, she fought the collar harder than Deidra," Coop said. "That thing is too weak, Joss. We need to spend some money on better quality Subjugation Collars."

  The witch ignored him. She only had eyes for Asha. Joss looked the beautiful elven sorceress over with relish, eyes bright and eager.

  "I've wanted to do something bad to you since the moment I met your stuck up ass," Joss said. She leaned down and kissed Asha on the corner of the mouth. "You are my slave, Asha. I own you, and that collar will force you to obey my every whim."

  "Yes. I am yours to command. What is your wish, mistress?"

  Chapter 22

  They made good time and reached Knaresburg a good two hours before noon. The surrounding farmlands were easily five times that of Oxenbluff. Killum even saw another village and an expansive area cleared for agriculture on the other side of the river. He counted three villages on his side of the river, each atop a small hill. All of the villages had wooden palisades protecting them. There was no shantytown to speak of outside the city walls.

  Knaresburg sat on high ground above the river. It looked four times as big as Oxenbluff, with the local lord's castle rising up in the middle. The tall, thick walls surrounding the town were a pale yellow color, while Knares Castle was whitewashed to almost shining in the midday sun.