by E K Baxter
“Of course you are!” his mom cried, sliding into a seat opposite him. “Now blow your candles out and make a wish.”
The candles suddenly burst into life, little flames bobbing on the wicks like fireflies.
“I...um...I...” Max stuttered.
His mom leaned forward, clasping her hands on the table. “Don’t you like it?” she asked, an edge of hurt in her voice. “You don’t want to disappoint me, do you?”
“No, Mom,” Max said. “Of course not.”
“Good boy. Then blow out your candles and make a wish.”
“But I don’t know what to wish for.”
“Yes, you do. You will wish that things stay like this forever. Just you and me.” Something flashed in his mom’s eyes and for a second, just for a second, she looked like a predator.
The fog in Max’s head lifted a little. “Wait a minute,” he said. “Shouldn’t we wait for dad?”
Annoyance flashed across his mom’s face. “Your dad said to go on ahead without him.”
A surge of alarm went through Max, penetrating his stupor. That wasn’t right. Max had never known his dad. He’d died when he was a baby. Something was wrong. Very, very wrong.
With an effort of will, Max tried to push the fog in his thoughts aside. He concentrated hard, trying to piece together how he’d gotten here. He’d been walking, looking for something, and there had been people with him. His friends. Sam, Terra, Arlena. Where were they? He had to find them!
In a flash he cast Stealth, activating its secondary Find function. The room shimmered and changed. It was no longer his mom’s kitchen but a dank room with stone walls dripping with stains and rusted manacles attached to them. His mom’s face melted into that of a white-skinned creature with long hair, black eyes and ruby-red lips.
Name: Honith
Level: 25
Alignment: Dark
Race: Succubus. This lady will take you to the heights of pleasure and then suck you dry!
“You’re not my mom!” Max screeched, surging to his feet.
He was brought up short by chains attached to his wrists. They cut into his flesh as he charged at the creature, howling his fury and frustration. Looking over his shoulder, he saw that he was chained to the wall and a pile of dirty straw sat at its base. Somehow, as they’d been walking through the graveyard, this creature had lured them into her den with her illusions and imprisoned them.
The creature hissed in annoyance. She stalked closer, her ruby lips parting to reveal sharp teeth.
Max backed away. He smacked into the wall and she strode right up to him until her face was only an inch from his own. This close she smelled of blood and roses.
“You are a most vexing pet,” she crooned, her voice soft and silky. “I can see why Lord Mespar is so annoyed with you. No wonder he gave you to me for a snack. Why won’t you just accept the gift I’m trying to give you? Your friends have.”
She stepped aside and Max saw Sam, Terra and Arlena similarly chained up around the room. Their expressions were slack and they were muttering to themselves as though having a conversation with someone who wasn’t there.
“Wake up!” Max bellowed, rattling his chains to try and get their attention. “None of this is real!”
The succubus, Honith, laughed. “They won’t hear you. Right now they’re wrapped in illusion, living out their heart’s desire. Aren’t I a kind mistress to give such a gift to her pets?”
“What do you want with us?” Max demanded.
“Isn’t that obvious?” Honith replied. “I want your life. That’s all. Such a small price to pay for my gift, don’t you think?”
“Let them go!” Max said. “Now!”
She raised a perfectly manicured eyebrow. “Or what? You can’t escape me, Maxwell. I’ve seen your deepest desires, remember. Nobody can escape that. Nobody ever wants to. Look at your friends, do they look like they want me to let them go?”
“It’s all lies,” Max replied. “None of it is real.”
“Is it not? What makes this room any more real than what they are seeing? Who are you to make that distinction?”
“Let us go,” Max repeated. “Or I’ll kill you.”
Her laugh was full of derision. “My, my, you’re a feisty one, aren’t you? Are all True Worlders like you? I’ll delight in feasting on your life force. When Lord Mespar leads us to your world I will enjoy feasting on all your kind.” She cocked her head. “I think I’ll leave you until last. Your defiance vexes me. It will teach you a lesson to watch me feast on your friends first. Oh, and don’t think you can use your paltry magic on me. It won’t work.”
She glided across the room, seeming to float above the surface, and approached Arlena. The rebel commander’s face was rapt, a smile creasing the corners of her mouth. Honith gently caressed Arlena’s cheek with one sharp fingernail, then bent and sank her teeth into Arlena’s neck.
Max cried out in horror and thrashed in his chains, trying to reach Arlena, but the chains held him fast.
“Wake up!” he bellowed. “Arlena! Fight her!”
But Arlena’s expression was one of rapture, her eyes wide in wonder, her lips curled in a beatific smile. Light began to pulse within Arlena’s body, little ripples of gold showing under her skin. Those ripples moved, travelling upwards to Arlena’s neck, to the place where Honith’s teeth pierced her flesh, and began flowing from Arlena into Honith.
A sigh of contentment escaped Honith’s lips and her eyes slid closed, the lids fluttering as she fed.
Max watched in revulsion. Honith was consuming Arlena’s life force. Her HP began to drain, leaching away like water from a burst skin.
Max looked around, desperately trying to find something to help them. He had to save his friends. He had to.
Think, think, he told himself savagely.
First he needed to get out of these manacles. The chains were long enough that he could move his arms freely as long as he didn’t go beyond the range of the chains. He equipped his brooch-pin and desperately began picking the lock. Honith didn’t notice, her eyes still closed, as she drained Arlena. She made little gasps and mewls of pleasure that turned Max’s stomach.
Max’s fingers felt like clumsy sausages as he worked and he kept fumbling the pick in his haste.
Come on. Come on! he yelled at himself.
Finally he managed to slot the pick into the lock on his left hand. He maneuvered it around, forcing himself to work carefully, methodically, even though his brain was screaming at him to hurry.
At last the lock snapped open and he shook off the manacles. In the space of a heartbeat he’d equipped his bow, nocked and imbued an arrow and sent it speeding at Honith. With a crack of metal hitting flesh, it took her right in the back. Her eyes flew open and she ripped her teeth out of Arlena and straightened, turning to face him
With a disbelieving expression on her face she looked over her shoulder at the arrow poking from her back. Then, with derision, she yanked it out and dropped it to the floor.
Without waiting to see what she did next, Max sprang across the dungeon to his friends. Equipping his ax he sliced through the chains holding Terra and Sam. The two of them slumped to the floor.
“Come on!” Max shouted, grabbing Sam by his shirt and shaking him. “Wake up!”
But Sam lay insensate, a small smile on his face. Max moved over to Terra but she was equally out of it.
“They can’t hear you,” Honith purred from behind him. “They’re completely under my spell.”
Max grabbed his ax and straightened, turned to face Honith. She was stalking towards him, a smile on her pale face but a throbbing vein in her temple betrayed her annoyance.
“You interrupted my feeding. You will die for that.”
She flew at him.
Max got his ax up just in time to block the teeth flying at his throat. He held the handle up in front of him, using it to keep her at bay. She snapped and snarled at him, trying to get to his jugular and it took all of Max’s strength to ho
ld her off. For the first time he was glad of the points he had in Strength.
Max bunched his muscles and, with an almighty heave, thrust out his arms and hurled her away. Honith went skidding across the dirty floor but was back on her feet in an instant. Max rolled out of the way just as she crashed into the space he’d just occupied. Honith screamed in rage and spun after him, fingers clawing. She grabbed hold of his leg and her sharp claws tore through his pants and raked a deep gash down his thigh.
Max grunted in pain and tried to scrabble away but Honith had a hold of his leg and was slowly pulling him back towards her. A quick glance at her face showed she was smiling again. She seemed to be enjoying this.
“That’s right,” she crooned. “Fight me. It makes your essence that bit tastier.”
Max glanced desperately at his friends but they were still comatose. There was no help coming from that quarter. In desperation he reached for Stealth but the moment before he cast it he remembered what Honith had said about it not working on her. He cast it anyway, not on himself but out into the room, not really knowing what he was doing, but not being able to think of anything else.
He equipped his knife and slashed at Honith’s hands where they gripped his leg. He was rewarded by a hiss of pain and then Honith’s grip on his leg lessened. He ripped away from her, staggered to his feet and turned to run but he hadn’t gone two steps before she crashed into his back, taking them both slamming into the floor. Max felt Honith’s cold hands closing around his neck and twisted, managing to flip himself onto his back. He rammed upwards with all his might and the knife slammed into her belly.
Honith’s eyes widened and she gasped in pain but it made little difference to the strength of her grip. She began to squeeze.
“Looks like I’ll have to kill you the old fashioned way,” she hissed. “Life force always tastes a bit sour if you take it from a dead body—like rotting fruit—but it will have to do. At least killing you will give me a modicum of pleasure.”
Max was starting to choke. In the corner of his UI he could see his HP starting to fall. He punched upwards again and again, driving his knife into Honith’s body. Her own HP took a hit but if anything, her grip around his throat tightened.
What does it take to kill this woman? he thought.
His HP was down to 15%, red blurring the edges of his vision and his lungs screaming for air, when he suddenly heard footsteps coming closer.
A slurred voice cried, “Take your hands off him, you bitch!”
Then a massive two-handed broadsword cleaved its way into Honith’s neck. She screamed, blood spurting, and let go of Max. He scrambled out of her reach and saw Arlena standing splay-legged over Honith. Her HP was down to 5% and she was wavering, barely able to hold her massive sword.
Arlena’s first blow had done Honith serious damage but hadn’t killed her. Even as Max watched, she dragged herself to her feet. She swiped at Arlena, claws raking the commander’s chest, biting deep, even as Arlena swung her sword a second time.
The blade sliced through Honith’s neck and her head went flying across the room to land with a wet thud by Sam’s feet.
Arlena let out a long sigh and then collapsed to her knees, her HP gone. Max darted forward and caught her before she could hit the ground then lowered her the rest of the way. Blood-bubbles formed on her lips as she struggled to speak.
“True Worlder,” she gasped. “Listen to me.” She beckoned him closer and he leaned over so his ear was by her mouth. “Look after Terra,” she gasped. “She will need your guidance and strength.”
“You can look after her yourself,” Max replied. “Because you’re going to survive this.”
He opened his inventory and took out a health potion but she grabbed his wrist to stop him.
“No. You will need it if you’re to stop Mespar.”
“We’ll need you more,” Max said. “Take it. It will restore you.”
“Not enough,” Arlena replied. Her voice was weak and blood bubbled from her lips. “That last hit was a critical one. It would take all the potions you have for me to regain enough strength to even stand. I won’t do it. I won’t leave you defenseless before Mespar. It’s my time.” She smiled sadly. “You’re the True Worlder. Remember who you are at the end. Remember why you fight. Only then can you close the Devil’s Gate and save Myrlind.”
Then, with a last long exhalation, Arlena’s eyes slid closed and she died.
Chapter 13
Max bowed his head, bidding a silent farewell to the commander. He placed her sword atop her breast then stood, looked down at her still form.
A moment later a scream of anguish rang tore through the room. Frantic footsteps pounded and suddenly Terra was on her knees beside Max, tears gushing from her eyes.
“No!” she cried, shaking Arlena. “No! You can’t go! Wake up! Wake up!”
Max laid a hand on Terra’s shoulder. It shook with sobs. He said nothing, just allowed Terra to pour out her grief. She laid her head on Arlena’s still chest and sobbed until her throat must have been raw. Max and Sam shared a sorrowful glance but remained silent.
“What will we do without her?” Terra asked. “It’s hopeless. The heart of the resistance will be broken. We can’t go on. It’s all lost!”
Max pressed his lips together in a hard, flat line. “No, it isn’t!” he said forcefully. “Look at me. Look at me!” Reluctantly Terra’s eyes found his. “We haven’t come this far only to give up now,” Max continued. “We’re in this together and we’ll see it through to the end—just like Arlena would have done. Okay?”
Terra gazed at him, tears staining her cheeks. After a moment she nodded, some of her old fire returning. “You’re right. I’m sorry. It’s just that after what that succubus did...” she glanced at Honith’s headless body then back to Max. “Then seeing Arlena like this. I lost my courage.” She visibly gathered herself, straightened her shoulders, lifted her chin. “It won’t happen again.”
“Good,” Max nodded. “Because I need you. We need each other if we’re going to see this through.”
Sam and Terra nodded.
You have developed skills: loyalty and leadership. Arlena sacrificed herself for you. You inspired her loyalty. 500 XP into Charisma. This is now level 6.
x4 Level Up! Level: 23
You have earned four stat points to be distributed as you choose.
You may allocate your stat points at any time. Any unallocated stat points will be lost in the event of death.
Keep on leveling!
After allocating a stat point into Wisdom [level 17] and the rest into Ingenuity [level 6] and seeing his mana pool increase to 450, Max permitted himself a small smile of triumph. Arlena’s sacrifice wouldn’t be in vain, he would make sure of that.
They quickly checked for any loot that Honith might have dropped. By her severed head Max found two things: a spell book and a dark, many-faceted jewel. Excitement quickened within him as he picked up the spell book and opened the pages. They crackled as he read the words inside.
Winter’s Breath. Effect: This will freeze your enemies in place. Cost: 150 mana. Cooldown: 20 seconds
Acid Rain. Effect: This will rain down acid on your enemies, burning them to a crisp! Cost: 200 mana Cooldown: 30 seconds
Excellent! A useful set of spells at last. They were nothing compared to what he normally had at his disposal of course, but then he usually played a level 100 assassin mage whereas he was...well, a rookie level 23 rogue-mage-journeyman type thing.
Next he examined the jewel.
Item: Stone of seeing. This stone will reveal the properties of magical artifacts.
Max’s eyes widened. Reveal the properties of magical artifacts? That meant he might finally be able to figure out how to use the rusty old gauntlet he’d bought off Nazgar the dwarf back in town. Sam had teased him about buying rubbish and he had to admit that at the time he wasn’t sure why he’d bought it—impressed by its fancy name most likely—but now he felt a quickening
of excitement. Would the Stone of Seeing finally allow him to access the Elemental Gauntlet?
“Only one way to find out,” he muttered.
He searched through his inventory until he found the gauntlet. It was grayed out, indicating that it couldn’t currently be used. Its stats still said: Item: Elemental Gauntlet: Alignment: Unknown. Ability: Unknown. Max equipped it and then pressed the Stone of Seeing into the slot on the front. The jewel began to pulse a deep red like a drop of blood. Sam and Terra leaned in, inspecting it.
“Okay, I admit it,” Sam said. “That does look pretty cool.”
“But what does it do?” Max asked.
He concentrated and the gauntlet’s stats suddenly flashed up again. This time, though, he could read them.
Item: Elemental Gauntlet: Alignment: Dark. Ability: Control of the four elements: Fire, Air, Earth and Water. This gauntlet will give any Dark mage the ability to control the very environment around them. The earth itself will do your bidding.
“Wow,” Max muttered. Controlling the elements sounded pretty awesome. Imagine what he could do with such power! But his excitement was short-lived. The gauntlet had a Dark alignment and Max had never chosen that path.
“Great,” he said. “I’ve gone and bought an artifact only a dark mage can use. What am I going to do?”
Sam scratched his head, face screwed up in concentration, then grinned and slapped Max on the shoulder. “You’ll think of something.”
“Thanks. That’s really helpful.”
Sam and Terra busied themselves searching for loot. Terra found a brace of throwing knives which she strapped around her waist as well as a garrote which looked lethal when she snapped it tight between her hands. She grinned, a feral, dangerous grin, as she tucked the weapons away. Sam found himself a shiny new mace that he swung around a few times—nearly taking Max’s head off in the process—as well as a much stronger shield. Finally, they took some potions to restore health.
“Let’s have a look around Honith’s lair,” Max said. “She had to be guarding something.”
They left the torture chamber by its only door and found themselves in a wide corridor. Other rooms led off the corridor, identical to the one they’d just left. Chains hung from the walls with the dried-out husks of prisoners still dangling from them. Max shuddered and marched on.
