by Jason Cheek
“Get the rest of your men ready. We’ll head out as soon as we get the report that our men are in position.” Giving me a silent nod, the swordsman clenched a fist to his chest and went to turn away, when I stopped him with a hand on his bicep.
“Assault Leader Dell, what do you think the Princess will do about the sailors on those biremes?” Conflicting emotions flickered across the other man’s face as he considered his words carefully before coming to a decision.
“The Royal Knights will use them as fodder for the attack,” Dell grated out between clenched teeth as his eyes followed the proud blonde princess. “Their weapons and armor are less than that of what a swordsman would wear.” Seeing my questioning look, he explained further. “If you fall off the side of a bireme during the battle, your weapons and armor cannot be recovered if lost to the sea and is, for all intent and purposes, a greater loss than the soldier who lost his life.”
“You can’t let that uppity bitch throw those men’s lives away,” Thomas spat unhappily as we watched the sailors being pulled off the ships. “I thought she was your vassal. Can’t you do something to stop her?” I scowled, looking at my friends’ faces as my mind began working over the issue. As the beginnings of a plan took shape in my mind, I turned to my new Assault Leader.
“As the men leave the ships, collect any corpses that Chuckles,” I nodded towards the rogue that was now being held in place by a group of Royal Army soldiers, while Helgath and Neysa watched the player’s every twitch, “slaughtered to keep them in line. I’ll raise them back up, but they’ll need to give their oath of service to me.” I held Dell’s eyes as I spoke in a low voice. “Do you think that will be a problem?”
“Not once they talk to the rest of your men,” the ex-Royal Army Commander said without batting an eye as he stood at attention.
“Thank you,” I replied seriously, as I looked into his green eyes. “What can we do for the rest of them?” I asked, nodding towards the sailors that were being formed up as foot soldiers.
“Their oaths to the crown will have been fulfilled once they’re dead,” Assault Leader Dell said in an even tone. “Raise them back to life and they will gladly swear to you. Especially once they see what you’re building here.”
“Thank you Morgan,” I said using the man’s first name as I gripped his shoulder. Ducking his head in embarrassment at the familiarity, the man’s voice cracked with emotion as he spoke.
“It’s the simple truth, milord.” We both gave each other a silent nod of comradery before I cleared my throat and stood up straight.
“Then let’s get moving. Make sure you assign a squad of twenty men to collect the dead that are found that can still be raised. “Maybe there’ll be more people we can yet save.”
“By your command,” Assault Leader Dell said as he clapped a clenched fist against his chest and moved out smartly. Within moments, he was yelling out orders to organize the hundred and forty-four troops of ex-Royal Army soldiers that were heading into the city with us.
“How are we looking?” I asked Thomas, as I saw the faraway look in his eyes that meant he was communicating with his people.
“Zhou and Darkhorse are reporting groups of players guarding the walls. They’re looking for runners trying to escape the city,” Thomas said grimly. It was obvious he was struggling to hold back the building anger in his chest as he learned more of the horrible things that were occurring inside the city. His rage-filled eyes focused on mine. “It’s going to be difficult enough as it is to take those groups out without having any of them report to their people in guild chat. Having to worry about being discovered by the wall guards on top of everything else is going to make this nearly impossible to pull off.”
For a long moment, we just stared at each other, both deep in thought, as we considered alternate plans. Part of the problem was that we didn’t have enough Devil Dogs with the abilities that we needed for a multipronged attack. While I wasn’t an ex-soldier trained in combat techniques like they were, I had learned some alternate tactics over the years.
I remembered once watching a speedball paintball contest between a group of Special Forces and a group of Pro League paintball players. The paintball players annihilated the Special Forces unit time and again during the competition. It wasn’t because they were the better team in actual warfare. It was the simple fact that the paintball players were mentally set to lose a few of their people to attain the kill, aka the win, which was what had given them the advantage.
The Special Forces unit didn’t have that same mindset. Their training focused on planning and moving to conserve the life of their teammates, not rush into certain death. In that non-life and death contest, the Special Forces’ in real life training worked against them. Maybe, I could use a similar strategy here. Typically, MMORPG style players weren’t familiar with the types of old school tactics used in the previous generation of First Person Shooters. The use of some Quake and Unreal combat strategies could possibly hit them from out of left field for a lot of these PKers.
I couldn’t help the grin that came to my lips as I studied the walls around the city. In my mind, I pictured a swarm of fast hitting fighters overwhelming the lax players before they even knew what hit them. That was the key to those First Person and even Paintball strategies. Hit them hard and fast where they least expected it, before they could figure out how to counter the overwhelming force hitting them. Like a virtual blitzkrieg of pain.
“I might have a plan for that,” I said, giving Thomas a look. Quickly, I began calling for the Sub-Leaders I was holding back, as a reserve, to keep the Wind Dancer safe. At the same time, I asked both of the ship’s captains to join me along with the Royal Knight’s representative.
Unsurprisingly, I didn’t hear anything from the Royal Princess’s group. On the other hand, the four Sub-Leaders who came hurrying across the dock were familiar faces for different reasons. Brargroud Caskstone, the Dwarven Artillery Captain, who had brought thirty of his Dwarven engineer warriors with him. Nivirth Dherler, the Dark Elf Shadow Scout Captain, had all fifty-six of his high-trained Shadow Scouts. Cyran Herneiros, the blonde headed Light Elf who’d been a Screaming Eagle Strike Commander, had fifty-three of his surviving troopers accompanying him, all of which had been Sea Orc slaves that had never broke.
Lastly, Milo Hawkin, the Iron Falcon Mercenary Captain, who had all seventy-seven of his swordsmen with him. I didn’t trust the man as far as I could throw his slimy ass, which I’m sure would be surprisingly far with my current strength in-game. The two captains were Captain Lornila Windcoat, the dark haired swordswoman who excelled at two-handed blades, and Captain Grahorn Lightouch, who was more of a defensive tank. Both of which, I was beginning to unquestioningly trust. As everyone came to a stop giving me a salute, I began talking.
“This meeting is a quick heads up as to the chain of command and what your primary objectives are while we’re working to subdue the newfar guild that has taken over this city. Just so there is no confusion, Captain Lornila Windcoat will be in command of the reserve troops and the overall defense of the Wind Dancer. You will coordinate with her on all deployment and she will have the final say on if you move out or not,” I said making sure everyone was listening.
“Captain Grahorn Lightouch, on the other hand, will be in charge of making sure the Wind Dancer remains intact. While that sounds like the same orders, it’s not. If Captain Lightouch thinks the only way to keep the Wind Dancer safe is to head out into the harbor or even into the strait, then it is his decision to make no matter who is still left on shore.” Seeing everyone’s surprised looks, I continued. “That doesn’t mean Captain Lightouch won’t be waiting for orders off the coast. It just means the ship can’t fall into enemy hands or be destroyed. Everyone else should be able to be resurrected in most situations but if we lose our mobility, then everyone is screwed. Is that understood?” Seeing everyone nod that they understood my orders, I continued without pause.
“The second objective
will be keeping the graveyards in our possession. If one of the Sub-Leaders holding those positions finds themselves in an intangible situation, then you’re to send support as long as that doesn’t put the Wind Dancer in immediate danger. Unless directly ordered to from me, none of your troops will be used in fortifying our push into the city.”
“Captain Windcoat, I want the Beastkin and the Gnomelings to remain on the ships at all times. Also, I’ll be taking Nivirth Dherler and his Shadow Scouts with me, so you’ll be down to three reserve units if the shit hits the fan.”
“If the shit hits the … fan?” Captain Windcoat asked in confusion as Sarka and Thomas chuckled behind me.
“He means when everything goes ass over tits,” Thomas said unhelpfully, as Sarka smacked him in the shoulder.
“Don’t be crude, it’s when things go pear shaped,” Sarka said, making a “duh” tone.
“No … no, it’s when the bottom drops out,” Matt chipped in as well.
“When things go sideways,” Sara added succinctly, as I swore in annoyance.
“How about a cup full of shut the hell up instead?” I groused, glaring at the wannabe comedians for a long moment, before turning back to my vassals. Ignoring the sniggering behind my back, I tried again to reiterate my words to fit The World.
“If everything goes wrong,” I said, trying to not roll my eyes. “I’d keep everyone stationed at the end of the docks. That should give you time to set sail if needed.”
Captain Windcoat gave me a very precise nod along with the other reserve unit leaders, except for Milo Hawkin whose frown seemed to grow with my every word. Most of this had already been ironed out ahead of time. It was mainly a show for the mercenary captain to give him enough rope to hang himself. Nivirth Dherler was just asking about my plan for him and his scouts, when Thomas began swearing up a storm behind me. Seeing the concerned look on my face, he shook his head and frowned saying.
“The stealth ops are blown.”
***
Unalia followed her husband through the empty streets in a half crouch with her bow held at the ready. Five free arrows were clutched in her fist along with her bow as she scanned the buildings ahead for the enemy. Star’s earlier warnings of what they were dealing with had set her on edge as she scanned every shadow and doorway for the telltale signs of another stealther lurking nearby.
She was a huge fan of playing Ranger classes in MMOs and immediately took to the bow when she’d started her character. Being a huge fan of Lars Andersen’s quick-shot technique, an in real life archer on Youtube, she’d quickly learned to combine her high agility and the Hunter ability of Multi-shot into a new type of feat. With her upgraded ability to turn one arrow into three, she’d taught herself how to rain down the pain on a ranged target by letting loose fifteen arrows in less than three seconds, something that would have made even her all time hero, Legolas, green with envy.
Kenzie’s leather clad form ghostly shimmered up ahead as she gave a hand signal, warning that there were enemies sighted up head. With another gesture, she directed the three of them to follow her onto the main street that went up to the top of the hill, before flitting around the corner in a blur of movement. A few heartbeats later and she was following Tinyr around the corner as she nocked an arrow and crouched ready to fire.
No cries of alarm came as Kenzie and Neristhana made their way across the barren avenue. Both women moved like shadows from cover to cover. While that made sense for the combat vet to be so good at being a rogue, she didn’t understand how or why a Gnomeling trader would have such a skill set. The random thought was lost a second later when she saw the bodies of soldiers, men, women, and even children that littered the avenue ahead. They’d all been ruthlessly cut down. Unalia’s eyes briefly flickered across the corpses. Most had been burned to death with some sort of Fire magic, while a handful had simply been slaughtered with a bladed weapon of some sort where they’d obviously knelt in surrender.
Although, the soldiers’ deaths she could at least understand to a point, the brutal slaughter of the unarmed townspeople made no sense to her whatsoever. It was almost as if someone had killed them simply for the fun of it. Almost as if the person that had been doing the butchering was testing out a spell or how effective their new blade was. It was a level of senseless violence that took her breath away.
Unalia felt her stomach do a flip-flop as she choked back the bile that rose in the back of her throat. Unlike the games she’d played in the past, she knew this wasn’t just visual props that had been added into the game’s level to create a feeling of horror by a game designer. These were actual in-game people who had been brutally cut down without regard by players just for the fun of it. The mental beep of a text message disrupted her thoughts as she tore her eyes away from the virtual horror around her to read the text message from her husband.
“Try not to worry about the dead my love. If we can take these PKers out, Startum should be able to resurrect most of them.” Wiping a tear from the corner of her eye, she gave Tinyr a silent nod of thanks. He was always looking out for her. That small bit of warmth helped her keep her mind focused on the task at hand. Averting her eyes from the death around her, she promised herself that she would make sure these rotten bastards paid for their atrocities one way or another.
She was able to keep herself together, until a hundred yards later when they were approaching the group of people they’d first seen at the end of the street. The air caught in her lungs as she finally realized what she was looking at. Obviously, the dead strewn about the street was just the beginning of the horrors that awaited them in this city. Nearly panting from anger, her eyes took in the line of chattel-like slaves that were in the middle of the street. There had to be almost fifty women and children huddled together trying not to cry as three bored looking Dread Pack members stood guard over them.
For a moment, Unalia was confused as to why there weren’t any men with the group. That was until her eyes swept further up the street to take in the freshly hacked corpses outside of the various bashed-in doors up and down the street. Taking a deep breath, she tried to clear the rage that was threatening to explode inside her breast from the senseless cruelty of it all as she listened to the players bitch. As three shimmering blurs crept past the group, she forced herself to focus on the mission at hand. Ignoring the players’ crude byplay, she began making her way past the group in stealth.
“Ugh! Why does Apoxsee even care about all this crap anyway?” PokeU Pettman, a level 32 Rogue, complained holding up a pair of solid copper candlesticks.
“Probably because your name sucks ass,” Shuuk D’Poke, a level 32 Warrior, snapped back irritably. “Besides, Dave, you freaking know I always go by D’Poke in games.”
“Get off my ass, Adam. You know I’ve never played an MMO before,” PokeU shouted as he threw his hands up in the air in frustration, nearly clobbering them both with the candlesticks. “How many times do I have to tell you, it was the only thing that came to mind when I was doing my character creation? Besides, you think you’d be over it by now,” the Rogue griped unhappily, before throwing the loot back into his inventory. “God, this totally sucks!”
“Both of you shut your fucking mouths and be quiet,” Kit Kat urgently hissed. “Do you want your asses thrown in the dungeon with the NPCs?” he asked, glaring at both men.
“You know how Apoxsee deals with complainers.” Both Adam and Dave shifted uncomfortably at the reminder as Kit Kat spat angrily. “Just be happy you’re even a part of this alliance. Without me sticking up for you, they’d have just spawn camped you to death until you rage quit the game.” Seeing that both men were properly chastised, he nodded at the two level 32 Rogues that were coming out of the apartment.
“Now grab those NPCs from Cadwell and Khul and be quick about it.” Glaring at the crying women and children, Kit Kat went off. “If you’d just followed our orders to bring all of your wealth to the arena, you’re men would still be alive, but no,” he shouted, d
ragging out the ‘o’ sound mockingly. “You had to make us waste our time coming to collect this crap and fish you out of your homes instead!” the man raged at the sobbing, chained townspeople.
“This is all your fault!” He pointed at them accusingly. Turning around, Kit Kat swore as he nearly tripped over a sobbing woman who’d been kneeling on the ground at his feet. “Dammit, stop with this insufferable racket!” the rogue shrieked as he kicked the woman away with a booted foot. The poor woman was sent sprawling across the cobblestones in her dirty linen dress. Flailing with her arms and legs, she came to a sudden stop against Unalia’s shins as the Ranger suddenly popped out of stealth.
There was a split second of shock as Kit Kat’s mouth dropped open while he took in the Ranger’s bow pointed directly at his face. No one else in the team noticed her appearance as PokeU took the babbling townsman from Cadwell while Shuuk took the crying girl from Khul. Unconcerned, both rogues headed back into the apartment for the rest of the loot as Unalia unloaded fifteen arrows into Kit Kat’s face at point blank range.
“Please don’t kill me!” the peasant cried out as PokeU threw the man to the ground. “I’m my daughter’s only living family!”
“Then you should’ve thought about that sooner,” PokeU said with an unconcerned shrug. “Now you’re just virtual fertilizer,” he said with a chuckle drawing his short sword. D’Poke didn’t even have the common decency to turn the child’s eyes away as he watched the unfolding drama with bored eyes. Before his friend could run the sobbing man through, they both whipped around in shock at the sudden wailing cry of pain coming from behind them.
Incredulously, they saw their buddy Kit Kat doing a good impression of a pincushion as he rolled on the ground in agony. Both their eyes widened in surprise at the sight of Unalia slapping another five arrows into her bow hand. As she turned to target them, PokeU tried to lunge forward with his short sword, but instead, he fell flat on his face as the peasant man he was just brutalizing tackled him around the legs. D’Poke was just shoving the girl away and drawing his own blades when Unalia’s arrow-burst slammed into his chest and face as he howled in pain.
