“So you’re telling us you took on a gargoyle single-handedly and lived to tell the tale,” Krumer said. “You expect us to believe your story?”
“I don’t care what you believe, buddy,” Matias said, giving him a hard glare. “The point is, I’m here to tell the tale, ain’t I? Though, clearly somebody wasn’t expecting that.”
“Opon always was a craven-hearted mongrel,” Sour Root stated.
“But why lure Matias there and not steal anything?” Krumer said. “It makes no sense.”
Makes no sense unless you put him up to it, Matias thought, but he kept his silence. He could trust no-one in this room or anyone in this whole village. Part of him now wished that he hadn’t come back to Ironthorne at all.
“It doesn’t matter how he survived,” Jaggen cut in. “All that matters is the scroll.”
“What is so special about that?” Matias said, pointing to it. The spidery writing still shimmered strangely beneath the glow of the ceiling lamp, and his stomach churned like curdled milk. “Ugh, just looking at it makes me ill.”
“The writing is worked through with a charm enchantment,” Sour Root explained. “It is meant to persuade the reader to agree to the request that has been made.”
“Request? What request? I don’t even understand the language.”
“It is written in Archaic Seelie,” the Sasquatch said. “It is from the Hateling to Zxra’kkv.”
Matias’ eyes widened in surprise. “The Hateling? No wonder it’s got you guys so excited. What does it say?”
“Read it to him,” Jaggen said to Sour Root.
Sour Root leant forward and read aloud from the scroll. “Dearest Zxra’kkv, mighty warrior and once proud champion of Veshna the Harpy Empress, I beseech you in the name of the Ancient Alliance of Non Humans to come to my aid. We are both united by our hatred of the human plague which infests this once pure and beautiful land and together we can make true progress in bringing the world back to a time of glory and power. Already I have gathered a great army with which to wage this righteous crusade, but we need more than bravery and strength to be truly victorious. We need weapons. Truly powerful weapons. Already I have sent an expedition to the ancient gnome colony of Kragg to seek the lost mechanisms of those ingenious inventors. It is well known to me that you have explored this perilous and trap-infested demesne in your own search to reveal its secrets. Though you never succeeded in reaching the heart of the colony, your knowledge of this place is still invaluable. I implore you therefore, to join my cause and head to Kragg to meet with my forces already there under the wise and capable leadership of the great Minotaur champion General Oxgar, you will, of course, recognise the name of your old comrade who also served in the Empress’s army. The importance of this mission cannot be underestimated. If we can possess these ancient gnomish weapons that were left behind in the colony, no army in Sumarros can withstand us. We will be unstoppable and you will once again enjoy the glory and power you are entitled to.
I look forward to you joining General Oxgar and his forces. Together we will fulfil our great destiny.
Your Eternal Friend, Glittervine the Hateling.”
Sour Root finished reading. “There you have it. The Hateling seeks the weapons of the gnomes.”
“That’s a bad thing then,” Matias replied.
“More than you can imagine,” Sour Root said. “This is a grave threat to Ironthorne and the whole kingdom. If the Hateling gets hold of the weapons from the nearby gnome colony, we are all lost.”
“They’re that dangerous?” Matias asked.
“The gnomes made infernal devices of devastating power,” Krumer said. “Of course they are dangerous. Do you know nothing, druid?”
“Their inventions are truly fantastic,” Sour Root elaborated. “The gnomes are geniuses in combining magic and machinery. Their creations were the stuff of legend and, at one time, their great airship academies were the wonder of the Alchemy Worlds.”
“Not any more, though?” ventured Matias. “They moved out of this colony and left all their stuff behind? Why was that?”
“The gnomes are a secretive people and few in number here on Arieon,” Sour Root said. “They hail from a dimension within the Astral Firmament that contains the other Alchemy Worlds. The gnomes came to Sumarros many centuries ago and established isolated settlements, trading their inventions and devices with the natives in return for precious metals and knowledge. Their largest community was at Kragg. They remained there for a few hundred years but abandoned it and their other settlements when they decided to withdraw from the world.”
“Why did they do that?” Matias asked.
“The gnomes were always regarded with suspicion and hatred, despite how highly valued their devices were. They came here during a time of turmoil in Sumarros, before House Caeruleon subjugated the rival Houses and established peace, and suffered brutal persecution and pogroms at various times from many warring factions. In the end, they could bear it no longer. Many returned to their own dimension or retreated into impenetrable clockwork cities in the Eldritch Desert. They did not have time to take all of their weapons and secrets with them, so they buried them away leaving traps and dangers for those foolhardy or greedy enough to go looking for them.”
“So this Kragg place contains a lot of these gnomish weapons and secrets,” Matias concluded, “and it would be bad news if the Hateling got hold of them.”
“That is an understatement,” Krumer sneered. “If half of what we know about the gnomes is true, then what they created will be equally devastating. The Hateling will be unstoppable. If he takes control of Kragg, all is lost.”
“Wait a minute, isn’t this Kragg place where Jhondey found Shunz? If that dopey kid can go playing around down there, then it can’t be that dangerous, right?” Matias pointed out.
Grad smirked. “Jhondey’s a dope all right, but he has only been in Kragg’s Upper Hall. The colony stretches down deep beneath the earth, and a huge gate seals the Upper Hall from the rest of the settlement. It is made of iron and there is no visible means of opening it. Pa, Sour Root and I spent many weeks trying to find a way in, with no luck.”
“So you’re just as foolhardy and greedy as the Hateling is,” Matias said, “and here’s me thinking you were the good guys.”
“We’re on our own side,” Jaggen said. “It would have been useful to obtain more devices like Shunz but, as my son says, there is no way down to the lower levels.”
“Zxra’kkv knew a way down,” Sour Root said, thoughtfully. “No wonder the Hateling was eager to sway him to his cause.”
“But if he’s dead, then there is no problem,” Grad said. “The Hateling’s servants don’t know how to get down there any more than we do.”
“We can’t take that risk,” Jaggen said. “The Hateling must not possess the secrets of the gnomes or Ironthorne will be destroyed.”
Grad shrugged his shoulders. “So what? Let it be destroyed. Even without these precious weapons, we would fall under an attack of the Hateling’s combined might. We should follow Opon’s lead and move on.”
“I built this village and I will not abandon it,” Jaggen said. “If you want to leave, Grad, then go right ahead, but you’ll take no supplies from here and you’re no longer my son when you step outside of the gate. Don’t even think of coming back because I’ll have you hanged. We’ll see just how long you survive in the outside world with no-one around to cater to your pampered ways.”
Jaggen delivered this threat in a flat voice, his empty eyes fixed on his son. A tense silence spread through the room and Grad bowed his head meekly. Matias, however, noted the tightening of the younger Thorngrate’s jaw and the flash of hate in his eyes, but it quickly vanished replaced by the usual expression of disinterest. “As you wish it, pa,” he said, trying to remain nonchalant. “I was only trying to be the voice of reason.”
“If we’re not going to flee, what are we going to do?” Sour Root
cut in, trying to diffuse the situation. “Stay put, and just hope that the Hateling is unable to find a way into the lower levels of the colony?”
“That is unacceptable as well,” Jaggen retorted. “The Hateling overreaches himself. I’m tired of turning a blind eye to his depredations. This is human land now and that upstart Seelie needs to understand that.”
“What is your plan, Jaggen?” Krumer asked, his scars looking hideous in the low lamplight.
“We will send a message to the Hateling,” Jaggen said in a measured tone. “One that he will hear loud and clear. I will lead a force to Kragg and wipe out his expedition, and then Sour Root will devise some kind of combustible that will open the doorway to the lower part of the colony. After that, we will locate these weapons ourselves.”
For a moment, nobody spoke. Krumer scratched at his scarred cheek. “It will not be easy to defeat the expedition, there is a Minotaur leading them.”
“All the more reason to strike,” Jaggen said. “Oxgar would bully the weaker creatures serving the Hateling, and keep them in line. Losing him will be a huge blow to the Hateling’s plans.”
“We could always seal them in the Upper Hall instead,” Sour Root said. “Remember, we never tried to use a combustible on the door to the lower colony before because I could not gauge how powerful the blast would be, and there was the risk of bringing the whole Upper Hall down on our heads. Instead, I could maybe concoct some explosive that causes a rockslide to block the entrance and trap them inside. Exploring the colony ourselves is folly.”
“Not good enough,” Jaggen said bluntly. “There is bound to be more than one way out of the colony. The expedition could still find their way down to the weapons and use them to get out again. We must possess the gnome technology for ourselves, even if it does mean bringing the whole Upper Hall crashing down. I will take that risk. It is the only way Ironthorne will ever be truly safe. Controlling Kragg and all its secrets will give us the advantage, one which I will use to wipe out the Hateling’s army and destroy the foul abomination completely. After that, no-one will dare challenge us again. Ironthorne will no longer live in fear of outsiders of any kind. Even the King would fear us!”
There was a feverish light in Jaggen’s eyes as he finished his speech, and the others exchanged troubled looks. Matias heard his stomach rumble and decided he had heard enough.
“Well, I’ll leave you boys to your plans for world domination,” he said with a yawn, and he got to his feet. “I need something to eat and to get some sleep. I’m wiped out.”
“I’d sit back down if I were you,” replied Jaggen. “You will need to hear our plans.”
“What the hell for? I don’t care what you do!”
Jaggen gave him a grim smile. “You should care. Because you’ll be coming with me and the troops.”
Matias stared at him in abject shock. “What? Why? No way am I coming. It sounds like suicide. I don’t relish squaring up to a Minotaur.”
“You handled yourself perfectly well against the gargoyle,” Jaggen countered. “Not an easy feat, even against one as old and decrepit as Zxra’kkv.”
“Most of that was down to dumb luck,” Matias admitted. “The gargoyle would have ripped me to pieces if I hadn’t found a good hiding place. It also helped that I chanced upon some cool gear to use. That was gnome stuff, by the way.”
“Indeed,” Sour Root said. “What did you find?”
“There were some drill arrows that bore through flesh, and a pair of goggles that let me see in the dark. I tried to shoot the creep with the arrows but I missed the kill shot and the gargoyle managed to grab a hold of me. Luckily, I had one drill arrow in my hand and I rammed it through his eye and into his brain. That’s what finished him off.”
“Drill arrows,” Jaggen repeated, almost salivating over the word. “This is exactly the kind of equipment we need. They are rarer than will o’ wisps.”
“It proves that Zxra’kkv must have been inside the colony at some point,” added Krumer. “I haven’t seen a working drill arrow in over twenty years, and there hasn’t been any non-gnome weapon maker alive able to replicate them.”
“A lucky find,” Sour Root agreed, “or maybe the Lady Alder was watching out for you after all.”
“Oh yeah, then why do I look like this?” Matias retorted, pointing at his own face.
“The price of power is heavy,” Sour Root said philosophically. “Perhaps it will teach you to be a better Alder Druid.”
“You have shown resourcefulness against a stronger opponent,” Jaggen said. “It proves you are useful to me. You’re coming to Kragg, unless you want me to exile you from Ironthorne here and now? I will keep all of your new pretty equipment, of course.”
“That’s not fair!” snapped Matias. He felt his lungs begin to burn and the onset of another coughing fit.
“That is life,” Jaggen said. “I offer you the same choice as Grad. Decide now. I have more important matters to attend to.”
Matias glowered at the man and an in-game message materialised in front of him:
New Quest Received: The Secrets of Kragg
Join Jaggen and his men to wipe out the Hateling’s expedition, and explore the gnome colony. Or leave Ironthorne.
Matias knew the choice he had to make. Despite his result against the gargoyle, he didn’t stand a chance beyond Ironthorne’s boundaries. The message faded as he sat back down again. “Okay, you got me. Much good it will do you. We’re all gonna die anyway.”
“Excellent,” Jaggen said. “I like a man with optimism.”
Despite themselves, the men burst out laughing.
Chapter XIV: Stage Two
Without question, Doctor Ursa Calladyce stood out among the group on the black and white photograph. She was a tall, handsome looking woman with a strong jaw and Patrician features, with her hair tied into a severe bun.
Looking the part in her white lab coat, she posed alongside her five-strong team of computer scientists in front of the bulky, electromechanical behemoth that was FirstThought, BeyondMind’s early ancestor.
Standing to her left, and almost dwarfed by the statuesque woman, was a younger version of Calladyce junior. He already had the same Cherub-like appearance and warm smile, and he stared at her with those gentle eyes of his. Unlike her son, Ursa’s cold gaze seemed to bore deep into Amy’s soul.
Disconcerted by the woman’s eyes, Amy put the photograph back on Calladyce’s desk. It had been taken in the mid-seventies at the dawn of the quantum computing revolution. Ursa Calladyce had been one of the leading figures in the development of quantum physics and the first person to make tentative steps into the creation of fully realised virtual reality simulations.
She had made a profound impression on a young Amy who, by the time she was fourteen years old, had read Doctor Ursa’s most seminal work, The Reality Joke, over a dozen times. It had been the main inspiration that had taken her into computer programming and virtual reality research in the first place.
She heard the doors of the elevator open and she moved away from the desk as Doctor Calladyce junior lumbered into the office. “Good morning, Amy, I trust you slept well?” the older man said cheerfully, making his way to his desk.
Amy blushed a little at the question. She had spent the night with Shane, the computer programmer she’d gotten close to over the last four months. And sleeping had pretty much been low down on the evening’s agenda. “Yes I did, thank you, slept all the way through,” she replied, trying not to look guilty. For some reason, she felt like she was lying to her granddad when she said that to Calladyce.
“Splendid, splendid,” he said, settling into his chair. “We have a busy day ahead of us.”
Amy went over to the small kitchen area in the right hand corner of the office and started to fix them both a coffee. Calladyce liked his strong and black with six sugars. He had just powered up his laptop as she came over and set down the coffee cup on the coaster.
Amy went over to her desk and called up the three holo-files of the convicts in question. “They passed all physio and neural processing procedures without a hitch,” she informed him. “I’m just finishing off the computer diagnostic on their survival rates and we’ll be ready to go.”
Calladyce nodded his approval. “Splendid. If there are no major problems, we will go ahead with immersion at midnight tonight. They will be company for our Mr. Temno.”
At the mention of Matias’ name, Amy grimaced. “Will they manifest at his location?”
The doctor shrugged. “I was merely being flippant. There is no way of knowing where they will arrive in the Alchemy Worlds. BeyondMind will choose a random spawning point for each of them.”
Amy thought back to Matias’ immersion. Even now, it still sent a chill down her spine. BeyondMind had been more than a machine that day. She had never seen it before, but the computer was like a living organism, with true sentient intelligence. It possessed something else as well, something truly terrifying: hate.
She had felt the emotion blazing like a beacon as the computer absorbed Matias’ mind and imprisoned him in the virtual universe she had help create. Despite telling herself that she had no choice and all of this was for the greater good, she still felt guilty about it.
“I wonder how he’s doing,” she said, trying to sound casual. “It’s been over a month now.”
“All his life signs are normal and his neural readings show extreme stimulation,” Doctor Calladyce replied, as he tapped away at his keyboard. Unlike the rest of the facility, he preferred not to use the holo-tech designed by the Foundation, and performed all his work on his trusted laptop. At over ten years old, it was virtually an antique. “I’d say he was having quite a jolly good time.”
The Alchemy Worlds: Enter T(he)rap(y): A LitRPG Adventure Page 12
