by Grey Arney
Just to show off a little bit, Arcturus ordered the golem to plow all of the extra sand into a pile. He’d find a use for it later.
***
Three days passed, and there was no sign of renewed goblin activity. Arcturus had taken to the skies each day to check for himself. He also noticed that the outpost in the forest had sprung back like a fungus, with more goblins running around there than ever before.
During that time, he’d figured out a quick way to tally up his summoning limits. When he examined each of his elementals, he could see their exact weight. A deeper screen in his own Character Display told him that his weight was 160 pounds.
Each summoned creature type had a summoning limit based on a different formula.
Golems could be summoned up to a mass of one half of his Earth Magic level (Level 50 x one half = 25) times his weight (160), for 4,000 pounds total. The golem he created was already 3,532 pounds, so he wouldn’t be able to make another one, unless he used much lighter materials.
Sprites could be summoned up to a mass of one quarter of his Earth Magic level (Level 50 x one quarter = 12.5) times his weight (160) for a total of 2,000 pounds of sprites. These minions were lighter in weight, averaging 90 pounds each. He now had twenty-one of them stationed outside of his settlement, watching the trees with cold, green eyes and awkward little smirks on their faces.
The first time he was figuring all of the math out for himself, he noticed he was able to see the results of his calculations in his Character Display. So he could easily monitor the total weight of his summoned elementals, as well as the maximum allowed weight.
Golem (Earth Elemental) x1 — 3,532 lb out of 4,000 lb
Sprite (Earth Elemental) x21 — 1,917.3 lb out of 2,000 lb
Elementals summoned: 22/30
In addition to a weight-based cap for each category of minions, there was limit to the total number he could summon as well. He still hadn’t figured out whether it was possible to increase that number.
This took the guesswork out of summoning and reduced the risk of exceeding the limit.
He had studied his creations and noted that they all were Level 19 as he was. The sprites had 205 hit points each, but the golem’s hit points were denoted with the infinity symbol. That was surprising, but surely it had some vulnerabilities—not least of which was the sudden death of its summoner.
He had also used the time to dig the tunnel further. With the help of the golem, he had cleared out the tunnel all the way to the rock outcropping, and made the exit hole, which he hid underneath a thick patch of vegetation. When his Earth Magic reached Level 50, he had earned the ability to manipulate dirt and minerals, which he used to line the entire tunnel with stone, thus reinforcing it. He formed ladders at the entrances and exits. Despite building a beautiful tunnel lined in stone, his Earth Magic leveled up to 51 and no more. It seemed that the rumors were true, and progress slowed down alot after level 50.
You have improved Earth Magic (Level 51)
Your spells of this school are stronger, have broader effect, and use less mana.
Arcturus had also created a stockpile of magic acorns, offering the bearer the one-time chance to turn into a Dire Bear or a Golden Hawk. He distributed these among his followers. He asked them to carry one of each at all times. Because they only lasted 24 hours, he had to make more every day. The process went quickly at this point, but it hadn’t leveled up his Earth Magic or Shapeshifting at all.
Over this time, food was stockpiled. There had been a trip back to Aurora to trade for more supplies, especially armaments for all members of his party. Several trips were made back to the Blackfang cave to mine other ordinary minerals and salt. Later trips had also yielded a sizeable emerald, which the dwarf probably would have pocketed if Fish hadn’t been with him. When Arcturus had taken the emerald from Fish, a notification had popped up.
You have found: Emerald (Uncut)
This gleaming gem is of great value, and can be sold or used to craft powerful items.
Glen had finished tanning the Dire Bear fur, and had given it to Gardenia, who promised to make something spectacular from it.
On the third day, Arcturus decided to take his fighting forces on a training exercise—one that would purge the goblins from his forest once and for all, and send a warning to Badger: the woods where the Druid made his home were now off limits. He used his Golden Eagle form to scout out the forest outpost where Lyle had once been held prisoner.
As he flew overhead, he saw that the place had rapidly grown its population. There were as many as a hundred goblins down there now. This seemed to confirm the rumors about the accelerated goblin life cycle. Because his aerial spies had not reported any goblins moving overland, he estimated that the outpost was generating at least a dozen new adult goblins per day. Acting decisively would be the only way to stop a swarm from growing in his own back yard.
While he had been focused on the activity in the main camp, he had neglected to realize that the outpost near his backyard had already grown out of hand. While he lacked the strength to attack the war camp to the south, he wasn’t about to tolerate the hostile goblins living in his forest.
The matter was complicated by the fact that Arcturus intended to leave his elementals out of this battle. He felt it was unwise to show all of his cards at once. His chances against them would only be made worse if they knew all that he was capable of.
That night, he gathered his troops around and went over the assault. If they could catch goblins by surprise, the scenario would play out like a massacre. Arcturus smiled grimly as he described goblins hopping one-legged out of tents, and being cut down while trying to get their pants on.
Everyone agreed that the odds were in their favor.
That’s when Amber raised an objection.
“What about the golem? How will he enter into the picture?” she asked.
“We will leave the golem here. It’s very important that I keep some of my abilities a secret for now. I’m badly outnumbered, and I don’t want to reveal the golem because that would give the enemy time to think of a strategy to use against it. Remember that the goblins at the Mudluck camp are in higher number than us, and we may have to deal with all of them before this is over.”
Amber had some experience with battle, and she could appreciate the importance of strategy, but she did not like the idea of facing such difficult odds. Especially when deploying the full fighting force would put a clear victory on the table.
There were other objections, but all were free to leave any time and none chose to do so. They placed their faith in Arcturus.
With little left to prepare, Arcturus instructed everyone to get to sleep early. They would wake up in the late hours of the night, and strike at the goblin outpost before dawn.
Once his own preparations were complete, Arcturus settled down for the night. The others all chose to sleep inside, underneath the roof of the command center. But Arcturus and Lyle had grown used to sleeping under the tree.
“Are you ready, boy?” he asked. “Tomorrow, you’re going to taste black blood again.” Lyle seemed to approve.
Arcturus awoke a little past one o’clock in the morning. Fish was shaking him vigorously. His deputy was really living up to the responsibility.
“We’ve got to set out now, Boss.”
Everybody was already gathered in the command center, prepared for the attack. Arcturus spoke a few token words of encouragement, and then they set out towards the outpost. The raiding party consisted of himself, three goblins, six elves, ten humans, a dwarf, Lyle, and thirteen wolves. They spoke little and moved quietly but efficiently through the woods until the enemy outpost was in sight.
The elves left the group first, positioning themselves in the trees around the camp, preparing to strike with their Archery. The humans and the dwarf were transitioned into mouse form one-by-one. It cost Arcturus 25 mana each time, for a total of 275, so it took several minutes of waiting and eating Purple Toadstools. The thre
e goblins stayed in their original form, putting the mice carefully into cloth sacks.
Once they were ready, Fish took the lead, grabbing his sack of mice and motioning for Kitty and Croc to follow behind him.
As they disappeared, Arcturus spoke to Lyle.
“Let’s take it easy today,” he said to Lyle. “You’re my best friend, and if I had to wake up without you, I don’t know what I would do.” The dog looked at his master thoughtfully.
As Fish made his way towards the gate, he was barely acknowledged by the two guards standing there. Kitty and Croc followed him with a confidence that can only be borne of total ignorance.
Once inside, they wasted no time. He led Kitty and Croc to the middle of the encampment, where a goblin cook once threatened to boil Lyle alive, and instructed them to eat their acorns. And that’s how the action got started.
As they swallowed the acorns, both Kitty and Croc fell to their knees, and started expanding, growing thick, brown fur. There were screams of the usual nyack, nyack, and a goblin commander even had the wherewithal to draw his blade and advance towards them.
Almost out of time, Fish set the sack down on the ground and white and brown mice streamed from it in all directions. Some of them didn’t have the discipline to clear the area before making their transformation, creating a hectic scene of humans nearly stepping on their mice friends.
Thankfully, Kitty and Croc were quick to enter Dire Bear form. And they were happy to take revenge on the clan that had forsaken them. Fish turned to see Kitty jump onto the commander, knocking his clumsy blade aside, and ripping his throat out with her fangs. He noted to himself that Arcturus was right, after all. She was quite a babe.
Now goblins were coming out of tents, just as Arcturus had predicted. Naked or nearly so, many without weapons, sticking their heads out to see what the fuss was. Those on guard duty reacted in a more measured fashion, rushing to the disturbance and making a formation around the circus act that was unfolding among them.
The elves in the woods had started firing arrows. They had spread about in pairs in order to assault from different angles. They fired into the crowd of approaching goblins with uncanny synchronization. Kitty and Croc were doing an excellent job of drawing their ire, and in just a few moments, more Dire Bears had taken shape in the center of the camp.
When the entire ambush team, including Fish, had completed the transition to Dire Bear form, they pressed the attack outwards in all directions. Goblins were running into the woods, only to be dropped by elven arrows, one of whom spun like an ice skater as his life was extinguished while he bounded through the air.
Arcturus looked on with cool satisfaction at his work, and was preparing to lead the wolves into the fray when a scream came from the largest tent.
“Enough!”
A tall, red-skinned goblin emerged from a tent. Arcturus recognized Badger’s voice, but it didn’t match the body. As he carefully analyzed it, he saw that it was labeled, “Badger’s Astral Projection.”
But it didn’t seem likely that this new trick was going to change the outcome. Dozens of goblins had fallen. They were out of their league.
But then the red-skinned goblin raised his arms up, and when he lowered them, all ten of the Dire Bears in the camp had frozen still, as if they were made of glass. Even their eyes were powerless to blink.
The elves were outside of the spell’s radius, and they all set their mark on the red-skinned goblin at the same time. A volley of six arrows flew towards him in perfect synchronization, like swans migrating in mating season. But in an uncanny act of flawless premonition, the goblin reacted, using his puppet magic to force a Dire Bear to step before him and absorb the projectiles. All six arrows drove deep into the bear’s hide, and she felt the maximum pain possible in Lydia, but was unable to scream.
Realizing he was now outmatched, Arcturus sent a message to Lily, in the vain hope that she might be near enough to help.
>>Arcturus: Lily, if you’re nearby, please help. I’m west of my camp. Goblin outpost.
“Flush out the woods! Kill them all!” said the red-skinned goblin. The mob poured into the woods, in the direction of the elven arrows, with murder written on their faces.
The assault that looked like it would lead to a clear victory had backfired. Just one unexpected threat, and their strategy was null. Arcturus wanted to shout into the woods for the elves to run, but he had to trust in their ability to handle themselves. He was now receiving a flood of notifications for every member of the party. He wasn’t able to concentrate, so he willed them all away. He hesitated just until the last of the goblins had headed off in pursuit of the elves, then he charged in with his pack, desperate to destroy the red-skinned goblin and return life to his companions.
He worked up to maximum running speed, with his entire pack behind him. A few goblins that had stayed near the big red one sent a volley of arrows towards them, and Arcturus, now in wolf-form, tackled Lyle, shoving him out of the way of the arrows, and narrowly saving him from being turned into a pincushion. They continued the charge, and when he was in range, Arcturus dove through the air, launching himself at the red-skinned goblin. The goblin had already spotted him, and with a casual wave of his hand, he locked his muscles in place, frozen like a block of ice.
You have been paralyzed by Badger!
The goblin stepped aside and let him fall on the ground, where he rolled around several times before stopping. The other wolves also became frozen statues, except for the spirit wolves, which gave up a vicious fight despite their lower levels but were quickly put down by the other goblins, and sent for respawn.
“Let’s see who we have here,” said Badger. Manipulating invisible puppet strings in the air, he kicked Arcturus out of his wolf form.
Your Shapeshifting magic has been canceled by Badger!
Laying prone and helpless on the ground, now in human form, Badger stood over him and continued. “You again? You didn’t think that Shapeshifting gimmick was going to work a second time, did you? I’ve had plenty of time to work out your tricks, thanks to all of those acorns you left laying around.”
Arcturus couldn’t move at all, and couldn’t speak.
“You’ve been a real pain in the ass,” Badger continued, “and I’m tired of it. It’s time to cut you down to size.”
Using his puppet magic, Badger forced Arcturus to turn his head to face his pack.
“First of all, I don’t think you need all of these,” he said. “Let’s thin them out a bit.”
With the casual indifference of a child kicking sandcastles, Badger grabbed the nearest wolf and, using his evil magic, crushed the wolf’s throat. It cried out in pain, and collapsed, dead on the ground. Arcturus strained and bucked against his invisible bonds, watching helplessly as Badger repeated this on a second, and a third.
And then the unthinkable happened.
“Well, what’s this?” asked Badger. “It looks different than the others. And it has a name! Lyle? What kind of dumbass name is that? Is this one your favorite?” he taunted as a high school bully might.
>>Arcturus: Lily, where are you? This is really bad!
>>Lily: I’m on my way, hold on!
Even with his entire body paralyzed, Arcturus could feel himself screaming on the inside. It was a new sensation, like blinking with the eyelids taped open. An automatic impulse that could not be stopped and yet had nowhere to go.
Completely indifferent to this, Badger crushed Lyle’s throat. When he saw his dog’s eyes squint shut, making the peaceful face that the canine had once made when sleeping with him under the tree, he felt tears pooling around his eyelids, and he couldn’t so much as twitch to blink them away.
Although he had at first seemed indifferent to his own cruelty, when Badger noticed the reaction he was getting, he appeared pleased with himself.
“Look, none of this would have happened if you had left me the fuck alone,” said the red one, “let’s just finish this up and—”
&nbs
p; Badger stopped speaking mid-sentence, dropping to the ground and rolling off to the side, losing his cool for the first time during the encounter. An ebony meteor materialized where he had been standing. It was Lily, with protruding fangs and six inch claws. Boy did she look ugly. Arcturus would later find himself unable to forget this scene whenever he shared his bed with the woman.
Regaining his posture, Badger lifted his hands and used his puppet magic on Lily. She locked up, as if she was completely under his control. But when Badger attempted to drop her onto the ground, she just started laughing.
“I’m just messing with you. Flesh Magic only works on living flesh. You ought to know that."
Aside from widening his eyes, he didn’t have time to respond. Lily shredded him into tiny pieces. The goblin body he had been using only had a few hit points, and it exploded into a pile of bloody gore.
As soon as Badger’s puppet was dead, the rest of the scene unfolded as if time itself had been stopped and had now begun again.
The Dire Bears regained motion. One of them was riddled with arrows, and now shifted into human form. It was Sarah, and she laid there with glassy eyes in a pool of her own blood.
The rest of the bears rallied, easily tearing up the remaining goblins and charging into the woods to drive off the rest.
It was a massacre.
Arcturus could move again, and wasn’t injured. Without so much as a thank you for Lily, he ran straight to Lyle, who was motionless. Checking Lyle’s Character Display revealed nothing. He was dead.
Arcturus buried his head into the wolf’s fur. His mind went numb, his only defense against the grief that overtook him. Lily waited by his side. The other wolves gathered around.
He stroked Lyle’s head, running his hand over the wolf’s lifeless eyes, and noticed that a new notification sparked each time he did. He had been ignoring his notifications until now.
Lyle is dead. He will respawn in 57 minutes.
Arcturus had been unable to feel anything when he saw Lyle’s dead body. Even if he had wanted to, he could feel absolutely nothing. And yet now that he knew Lyle was coming back, the restriction on his perception of pain was lifted, and he cried like a little girl—and nobody who has ever had a dog could fault him for that.
