She didn’t sound sure of that, but I didn’t have the chance to clarify things as Crysta poked us both in the shoulder. “Hey, lovebirds, we’ve got to turn in the quest now!”
I blinked over at her, eye-to-eye here in Elementalis instead of how I normally had to look up at her from my wheelchair. Crysta was smiling and it struck me how nice it was to see that resilience. I mean, she had every reason to be depressed, crying, and slothful, what with the love of her life in a coma with no definite prognosis of waking up anytime soon, but at the end of the day, she kept trying. So far, it looked like our taboo-breaking out-of-game friendship was only working out for the best.
I smiled back and nodded. “Sorry about that.”
Burndall was smirking at us and Wazif had that vaguely uncomfortable look I usually sported in those rare situations I was in his shoes (rare only in that I almost never socialized for obvious reasons). Kayla laughed it off as I cleared my throat, passing through the rest of the group towards Copperholt’s desk. Checking out that Promised perk would have to wait a little longer, along with everything else.
Now that I was paying attention to the outside world, that buzz among the other players that I felt in the city square came back with strong. It wasn’t that it was any louder or busier or more frenetic, but the hushed whispers and conversations were filled with a forcefulness that I didn’t expect. There was nothing about Granholm that would suggest a reason for it and the aging Craggar knight behind the desk certainly didn’t look any different than usual. Likewise, Princess Kallisandre was there as had become the norm, examining an ancient scroll by the table.
Kayla stated in group chat what we were all thinking.
Kayla: I don’t think we’re the only ones who have run into undead bosses like Lucar.
Crysta: Maybe but you’d think there would be more folks turning in stuff here.
Shale: It’s possible that this is only a bonus quest, nothing that’s really forwarding the story or causing a big buzz. Let’s find out.
Without further ado, I stepped forward and opened the interaction UI with the Nix Princess. The rest of the world drew out of focus save for our group and Kallisandre as she looked up at us, putting the scroll down and brushing a lock of her green, kelp-like hair from her eyes. “Ah, my friends, it is good to see you again,” she said with exacting, measured tones. “Do you have new news from your adventures or perhaps you have something you wish to ask of me?”
As normal, various suggested dialogue options popped up in windows around the princess as command of the dialogue shifted over to me as group leader. At the top of the list was the obvious choices that mentioned Lucar, the undead, and the black opal while underneath, there were prompts to ask about the ongoing research into the Light we had collected from the Iron Needle and the status of the bandit refugees we had asked the princess to move to the Ocean Mother’s care. While I was curious about the side queries, I focused on the prominent issue for the moment.
“Princess,” I began with a short bow, “we have come with grave news. When exploring Tamiroth, we encountered the Tide Warlock, Lucar, but he was even more corrupted than we thought him to be. He was like the walking dead we faced in the shadow of Crystalfire Keep and when we defeated him, all that was left of him was this stone.”
With that, I held out the Eerie Black Opal. Its light consuming properties weren’t lessened by our journey back, but all the same, it felt more … natural now. Maybe it was the fact that it hadn’t started corrupting my inventory or burrowing into my stony flesh. Considering what I knew what Elementalis could throw at us now after the Vale, I wouldn’t have put it past K-Pat and the dev teams to do something like that.
Kallisandre’s eyes widened at both the news and the stone. “This is grave news, champions. We know this new plague on our land originated from Crystalfire Keep, yes, but the knowledge that it has extended beyond those walls without our knowledge is frightening. Perhaps we were simply being naïve to believe that as long as the gates were closed, the corruption was contained.”
She gingerly took the stone and held it up to the sunlight streaming in through the narrow windows. “What strikes me as unusual about this stone is that it is, as near as my senses can discern, benign by nature. While attuned to the Primal Darkness, it does not carry the corruption of the Elements of Conflict that we have seen.”
Sir Copperholt, stroking his clear crystal mustache, interjected himself at this point. “The nature of that Gem is unimportant to me or, I assure you, the Mountain King.” He grumbled slightly and bowed his head to Kallisandre. “No offense intended, Your Highness.” Turning back to our band, he continued. “The knowledge that our attempts to keep the Keep and its monstrosities contained and quarantined have failed is of vital importance, however. I think that we all must agree that we can no longer wait. The final preparations to assault Crystalfire Keep must be made and the gates breached.”
Kallisandre’s focus was still on the opal as focus shifted to Kayla. I could see the excitement in her large blue eyes, the same thing I could tell we were all feeling. This certainly felt like we had found a clue, a hint, a nod to the fact that Patch 2.1, the opening of the Keep was right around the corner.
For me, that excitement was mixed with intense anxiety. It was days now, maybe hours, before the real race began, the contest that could make or break the future for myself and my family … and maybe that for everyone in our group. While I didn’t know Wazif’s situation, I knew Burnie had money to burn but was that because he was spending cash he didn’t have on a game? As for the rest, I knew for certain that Crysta could use the money to improve the care for Vanni and Kayla, well, if … when we finally met, it would be a lot easier to make a life together if we both had a sizable nest egg.
So little time and so much left to prepare. No matter how much things had stabilized in my life since the confrontation Wynona and I had with Dr. Fontaine, it wouldn’t be enough. We had to succeed here.
I almost missed Kayla’s question, snapping out of my worries to hear her say, “We have the keystones to do that, Sir Copperholt, but what about the Light we secured? Do we know how to use it yet? It’d be crazy to dive into the Keep without the weapon we need to fight back with.”
It was the princess that answered, looking away from the opal and sighing faintly. “Unfortunately, the full power of the Elohjin artifact eludes us. While we have found that it can be used much like any other Gem filled with the Primal Light, our wisest sages can sense a far greater power within it. However, despite all the spells and rituals we know, nothing seems to unlock that greater power.”
The aging knight picked up where she left off. “If only we had more time. While I respect your strategic suggestion, Sorceress, and even agree with, we face a crisis where we must act. We can only assume that the Flames of Wrath has already begun to corrupt the Warding Gem of the Keep; it is the only explanation as to how they have managed to unleash their corruption in such a large radius undetected. The longer we wait, the more these undead creatures will populate the land and who knows what will happen if this corruption is spread to the Life Crystals.”
Wazif let out a gasp at that idea while Kayla, Crysta, and I shared a grim but knowing glance. We had all been through the trials to become Promised and we all knew what would happen if the Life Crystals were corrupted. If they were gone, if there was no pure Crystal to respawn at, your character was gone. You wouldn’t come back again.
While we all knew this was a game, I personally began to wonder just how much was on the line. Would the dev team let their game be forced to reset because everyone’s characters would be corrupted?
Right then, as much as I wanted to say no, I couldn’t, not with any certainty.
With that sobering statement, the focus shunted over to Burndall. The kid was surprisingly stony-faced as he immediately asked, “How long do we have to prepare then?”
Kallisandre and Copperholt glanced at each other thoughtfully before the knight pressed hi
s lips into a tight, thin line. “Three days. We will reinforce the border guards watching over the Keep with a proper holding force and build a base camp for your forays outside of the Shadowyard, the only place we know for certain you have cleansed. I need to continue to coordinate the activities of champions throughout the Kingdom from here but, Kallisandre,” – he looked at the princess again – “I feel you will want to go there to continue to advise our heroes?”
She nodded, her eyes focused more on the black stone than on us. “Of course, Sir Copperholt. We will take the weapon with us and set up shop in the main camp. If we decipher its power, it will be close at hand for you to use.” Looking up from the stone, she looked over us. “And this stone, I’ll take it to the sages as well. If we can understand the power of the enemy, it may provide needed answers as well.”
Quest ‘A Piece of Darkness’ concluded!
Quest successful!
5% Experience awarded!
Grade S Darkness Element Gem awarded!
Before all that could sink in, the enormity of the task ahead with only three days to prepare, and the million unanswered questions in my head, a royal fanfare burst out from nowhere as a server-wide announcement burst into sight before me. Now, announcements such as this, usually prompted by the hundreds of groups that completed the quest to unlock Crystalfire Keep since our trailblazing victory, were commonplace enough that I usually ignored them, but this one wasn’t one I could ignore.
THE WAR AGAINST THE FLAMES OF WRATH BEGINS, THANKS TO THE EFFORTS OF SHALE, KAYLA, BURNDALL, CRYSTA, AND WAZIF! IN 72 HOURS, CRYSTALFIRE KEEP OPENS AND THE WAR CAMP IN THE SHADOWYARD WILL BE FINISHED! CONSULT SIR COPPERHOLT IN CRAGHOLM FOR ADDITIONAL DETAILS!
Burndall’s serious expression melted as he started to hop in place and pump a fist while Crysta looked genuinely surprised. Meanwhile, Wazif was definitely in shock, as if he couldn’t really believe this could have ever happened to him. Considering what had happened to us before, I greatly sympathized with him.
Even as a cavalcade of cheers and applause surged like floodwaters through Champion’s Hall and out into the city center, I couldn’t shake the feeling that something wasn’t right. I shouldn’t have been surprised when, as Kayla pulled back from our kiss, her brow furrowed, her expression caught between ecstatic glee and questioning confusion. Her voice came only a moment later over our private channel.
Kayla: Max, not only was that about your worst kiss ever, I can see the ‘Max is worried about something no one else is’ face. What’s wrong?
Shale: Do I really have a face like that?
Kayla: Yes. Yes, you do, dear. So, are you going to get off your chest before someone else notices?
As I sure as heck didn’t want to spoil the moment of victory for everyone else, especially not Wazif, I did exactly as the doctor ordered.
Shale: This just seems too coincidental. There’s no way we could be so lucky as to stumble right into the right quests twice in a row for Crystalfire Keep.
Kayla: What else could it be, though? Look, I understand why you feel that way. I’ve seen, felt enough of how things are for you up there to know why you’re finding this hard to accept but the world’s funny like that. Sometimes everything goes wrong and sometimes everything goes right, with no rhyme or reason behind it.
She was right, of course. Like anyone would have any reason at all to set things up that we, of all people out of the millions playing this game, would get the chances to be Firsters. No, I told myself as I nodded and smiled at the woman I loved and the rest of my friends, this was just luck or maybe some karmic redemption for all the pain and suffering I had gone through these past ten years.
“So,” I shouted above the growing din as we were crowded by well-wishers, a growing contingent of FFC-WUSA guild members, and more than a few extremely well-geared looking avatars, “congratulations, everyone! Now, if anyone has a raid guild lying around, we could really use that right now.”
I should have probably said that over group chat because, to my surprise, it wasn’t one of my groupmates that answered. It wasn’t even one single person that answered.
No, two near-simultaneous voices, one male and one female, said with clarity and authority, “I do.”
5
Though the rest of the celebration seemed to continue, the hall around us went quiet the moment people’s eyes caught sight of who was talking. As with all avatars, a split-second of focusing on them was enough to reveal their names and, just as importantly in this case, their guild associations, if they had any. With that made plain, the sources of the two voices deserved the hush they caused.
The first one I knew by reputation alone, but what a reputation it was. He was a tall, slender figure, storm-grey skin contrasting his shining white-and-gold hooded robes. Though the large hood obscured much of his facial features, the Aurum’s eyes constantly crackled with elemental power, providing glimpses of his perfectly proportioned face and strong chin. I didn’t need to check the wiki to know he was wearing a full set of Tier 5 healer’s raid gear, completed by the staff in his right hand, a pole of polished amber set with gold bands and silver serpents winding around it, a literal Elementalis caduceus with wings outstretched from the top. He was Thadivus, the most famous healer on the server and the guildmaster of Elementalis Reclaimed (El Rec for short), usually considered the top raiding guild around.
This was a player who got interviews in mainstream gaming media, for Pete’s sake. In comparison to the momentary burst of fandom we had generated with our unlikely success, his fans were an enduring forest fire. I would fear for anyone crazy enough to counteract his claims about the game or criticize the strategies he and his lieutenants came up with, for the scorn of half the server would come crashing down upon them.
The second I recognized immediately as well but for entirely different reasons. After all, in a sense, I felt like we had met already. As tall as Crysta but with broader shoulders and the build of a fitness aficionado, the Craggar woman had to be Amethyst, the guildmistress of the Sisters of Artemis. Unlike Thadivus, Amethyst didn’t wear one complete armor set. Instead, in a striking similarity to Kayla, the core of her gear was top-tier Arena gear, plate armor that bore a striking resemblance to that of a Roman gladiator, from the sculpted breastplate and armored skirts to the spiked metal sleeve over one arm, all dyed or lacquered to be red and silver in color. There were choice pieces, however, that were PvE gear from various raid instances. In particular, an intricate circlet graced her brow, leaving the hard lines of her marble-skinned face clear, another difference between her and her counterpart. Amethyst’s hair matched her name, short, spiky growths of purple crystals, while her faceted, gem-like eyes shone green. A massive, cleaver-like two-handed sword rested across her back.
While not having the mainstream fame of Thadivus, Amethyst wasn’t an unknown quantity either. The Sisters were considered to be high up in the raid guild rankings as well in spite of (or perhaps because of) her notoriously picky recruitment process. It wasn’t simply about being a woman, though that was critical. Every recruit was personally approved by Amethyst on a slate of credentials that no one knew save for her. Combine that with the Sisters’ dual focus on PvP and PvE content and there was a certain elite status that Amethyst and the guild as a whole carried in relation to the much more massive ranks of Elementalis Reclaimed.
Before my initial shock wore off, Amethyst broke the silence herself, glancing over at Thadivus with a slight smirk. “I shouldn’t be surprised to find you here, but I would point out that two of my Sisters are already here. In other words, I have dibs.”
Her voice was unmistakable, matching almost perfectly with what I had heard in the Vale.
Thadivus chuckled faintly as he replied. “Come now, Amethyst, we don’t have to be so petty. There’s no harm with both of us making our offers. It is a free country, after all.” His shrouded face inclined forward a hair and I swore there was a smirk on his face as well. “Or perhaps you’re afraid your ‘S
isters’ will be all too eager to jump ship to El Rec?”
I could see that Kayla was either too shocked or maybe even too guilty to cut in to counter that insinuation but Crysta was about to say something, and though her expression didn’t change, Amethyst’s eyes flashed dangerously. Before things devolved into an argument I didn’t want to get involved in or frankly have happen, I finally got the wherewithal to nip this all in the bud as quickly as possible.
I raised a hand instinctively as I butted in. “I don’t want to take a side here, but I want to say that however this discussion goes, we should really do it in some more private fashion, maybe even in a private place.”
It was a little surprising when Wazif was the one to immediately back me up. I guess one benefit of having fans was their unthinking support. “Indeed. While you honor us with your presence, we should do this the right way. If we’re talking business, let’s act professional about it.”
Not even a split-second later, our group chat flooded, and Amethyst said something, filling my mind with five lines of communication at once. I focused on the Sisters guildmistress, though. I could parse the group chat in a second.
“I can see why you’re the leader of your little circle, Shale,” she acknowledged with a smile. I noticed she didn’t give Wazif a single glance. “I would be happy to offer the Sisters’ guildhouse for our little meeting. I maintain a private interview chamber there; none of my Sisters will disturb us as we speak.”
“That’s a cute offer, Ammy,” Thadivus scoffed, sounding more like your typical gamer than the mysterious figure of legend he was supposed to be. “That isn’t precisely neutral ground, is it? I doubt you’d be eager to join us in El Rec’s house, would you?”
“You must have forgotten that I’ve been there before, Thad,” Amethyst snorted. “There’s nothing private in that chaotic frat house you call a headquarters.”
I closed my eyes and massaged the bridge of my nose. This was like herding cats and I just didn’t have the patience to want to deal with any of this. I had to, though. I was the leader here and so I had to step up. Thadivus and Amethyst fell into some smarmy comments and snipes so I looked to the group chat to hopefully gain the insight I needed to navigate this quagmire.
Crystalfire Keep Page 5
