Wait, I blinked. Resurrection. A small smile curled onto my lips.
“You had the goblins capture me, didn’t you?” I asked.
“Fat lot of good that did,” he muttered.
Good, he bought it, I thought.
He went on, “The stupid goblin colony split up because a part of them didn’t want to keep a human alive. Good thing I showed up when I did. The Goblin King was getting ready to hunt you down right before I killed him.”
So that’s what happened, I thought. Images of the Goblin King’s severed head filled my mind, but I pushed them away. “What do you want from me?” I asked. “If this is all part of some elaborate plot to kill me, then I have to say, you look quite stupid wasting your time right now.”
Asterion frowned. “Really?”
“It seems to me that if one wanted to kill me, they’d have done it as soon as they could. You, though, seem hesitant.” I raised my eyebrows. “Are you afraid of killing me?”
He blinked. “What are you even talking about?”
“For a man who asserts his strength, you seem to be refraining from killing me.”
Asterion paused and then started laughing. His dark eyes turned away from sanity. “How stupid do you think I am, Eternal?”
I froze.
“Did you really think I’d just kill you and let your Resurrection ability send you somewhere else?” he asked. “I am not a fool. It was already hard enough to track your Resurrection point this time. Calculating all those parameters and looking for Mana bursts took way longer than I’d expected, even for someone like me.”
I registered nothing of what he said, the jargon too complex for me to understand. Moreover, my thoughts still lingered on his previous statement. “You know that I’m an Eternal,” I whispered.
“Of course I do,” he said. “Why else would I have you captured? It’d be boring to bring in a normal human being, now wouldn’t it?”
“How do you know I’m an Eternal?”
“Because we are very interested in you, Zoran,” he said.
There are more? I took a step back. “Who’s we?”
He smiled. “The Dark Alliance.”
I forgot to breathe for a second. “What?”
“Everything that has happened so far, from the men I sent after you, to the—”
“That was you!” I exclaimed. “You’re the buyer those assassins mentioned. You’re the one who sent them to the Kurc Woods to come after me.”
He laughed. “Those poor idiots didn’t know what they were getting into. They thought they had to capture you, while all I intended for them to do was find out how strong you were.”
I gritted my teeth. “You disgust me.”
“It’s the way I do things, Eternal. You’ll get used to it.”
“We’ll see about that.” I clenched my fists.
“Rage will not serve you well,” he chuckled. “If you haven’t noticed already, there is no way out of this situation for you. However, I’ll provide you with a simple solution. Join the Dark Alliance, and I’ll let you go.”
I stared at him. “You can’t be serious.”
“Oh, but I most certainly am, young man.” He grinned. “All I need from you is a pledge to serve the Dark Alliance. One small thing and you can be free.”
“And why would I do that?”
“Because this is an order that comes from the very top of the Alliance,” he said. “I’m looking out for you, Zoran. Deny my request and you’ll have the Emperor of Dargonia breathing down your neck.” He grinned. “Surely you wouldn’t want that.”
“You’re looking out for me?” I muttered. “Don’t make me laugh.”
Suddenly, a disk of bright white shone beneath me. A leather-gloved hand shot out from within and grabbed my arm.
“Stop!” Asterion lunged at me, but the hand pulled me in.
The world around me shifted into colors once again, the existing shades swirling into increasingly complex ones with every moment. One second I was in a rainbow of light, and the next I found myself in the darkness once more, completely disoriented.
What just happened? I looked around. The surface below me was hard and dry. The flat ground extended all the way to the horizon, with a dark haze floating around much further away from me. A desert? I wondered. Footsteps crunched over the soil and I jerked around.
A man dressed in familiar gray stood there, with a longsword strapped to his back.
I squinted. “Frey?”
The figure nodded.
I stepped back and held my fists up in front of me. “Why are you here?” I asked.
He’d just saved me from Asterion’s tower, but I couldn’t help doubting a man from the Lumina Knights. Did they send him after me? I gritted my teeth. I was starting to understand my position a little better now, and trusting someone blindly was definitely going to be a hazard.
DING!
You have received a conversation request from: Frey. Would you like to accept it?
I blinked. You can do that? I glanced at the man, then tapped the Accept button on my screen. A new screen popped up, with a single phrase on it.
I trust you.
My heart thumped harder. I looked up. “You trust me?” I raised an eyebrow. “Why would you trust me? I’m the guy that wreaked havoc on your Lumina Knights Head Council. Who in their right mind would trust someone like that?”
That wasn’t you.
I blinked. “What do you mean it wasn’t me?”
I know it was the voices.
My eyes widened. “You know about them,” I whispered. And then I frowned. “Wait, how do you know about them?”
I felt an odd presence within you right before that attack happened back at the Head Council’s chambers.
I stayed silent. Is that reason enough? I wondered. Frey had hit the situation right on the head, though, and that seemed to be enough of a reason for me to trust him, for now.
“Do Viola and Raffyr trust me?” I asked.
They are confused. Viola still trusts you, and Raffyr does for the most part. However, they are forced to act against you at the moment.
I frowned. “What do you mean?”
The Lumina Knights Head Council has put a bounty on your head. They’re meeting the current leader of the Alliance of Light—King Markus Goodfield of Aingard—to alert him to your existence. They plan to tell him you’re an Eternal that has joined the Dark Alliance and lied to them about it. That whole shadow thing that happened back there has convinced them you’re from the Dark Alliance. The entire Lumina Knights faction has also mobilized in an effort to find you. That is why Viola and Raffyr are forced to act against you—since they cannot disobey the orders of the Lumina Knights.
Damn, I thought. Things were getting complicated. I looked up at the hooded man. “But how are you here, then?”
I am not part of the Lumina Knights.
Eh? I blinked. More questions arose within me, but I subdued my curiosity for now. I’d gotten answers to the questions that mattered, and I was satisfied with that for the moment.
I looked at Frey. “Thank you for coming for me,” I said. “I honestly don’t know how I was going to get out of that tower otherwise.”
Frey nodded.
DING!
The man with the scar. What did he want?
“His name is Asterion,” I said. “He wanted me to join the Dark Alliance.”
Typical. I knew the Dark Alliance would come after you, but I did not think it would happen this soon.
“I’m worried, though,” I said. “I respawned in a goblin tunnel, and that man was able to figure out exactly where I was.”
He hasn’t come after you thus far. It’s likely he can only trace your position right after you Resurrect. Does he know you’re an Eternal?
I nodded.
Intriguing.
Frey touched my wrist with his leather gloves and pointed toward a lone grove of trees ahead of us, their branches and leaves swaying in the wind. He walke
d forward and gestured to me to follow.
“How come you’ve never used the Ga’em messaging service to talk to people before?” I asked as I followed him. “Viola made it seem like you never communicated.”
DING!
It costs a lot of Sol to send messages through here. And I never found the necessity to do so with Captain Viola. This situation, however, is different. So I am fine with spending my Sol to communicate with you.
“Thank you for that,” I said. “Oh, also, how did you find me?”
I have my ways.
I raised an eyebrow. However, we reached the grove right then, and I did not press him further for an answer.
Frey walked a few steps into the line of trees and opened his Ga’em menu. He pressed a few options at a lightning-fast pace, and a circle of glowing light formed on the ground between us.
A portal? I stepped back. However, the light pulsated for a moment and then condensed into a piece of armor and a weapon.
I stared at it, and then at the hooded man. “Is this for me?” I asked.
Frey nodded.
“Sweet!” I picked up the first object—a sword. Its blade was shaded a common silver, nothing fancy, and its hilt was a matte copper-red. I looked closer at the weapon and its stat screen popped up.
DING!
Equipment Title
Steel Sword of Haste
Damage
80 – 93 ATK
Special Effects
+5% Agility
Grade
One Star
Durability
30/30
Rarity
Uncommon
Value
15000 Sol
“Nice!” I squeaked, giddy that I finally had a solid weapon, one with an Agility boost at that. I gripped the handle, lifting the blade, and gave it a swing. It whooshed as I sliced through the air in a nice, satisfying arc.
I’ll make sure I don’t lose you from some stupid Resurrection penalty. I grinned.
DING!
You have obtained new equipment.
The Steel Sword of Haste!
A sword well known for its speed in combat, this weapon has been used by knight and assassin alike. For the price it demands, its speed and dexterity are unmatched. Would you like to transfer the equipment to your ‘Equipment Inventory?’
Yes
No
I hit Yes. The sword melted away into stardust and floated over to the side of my waist. It condensed and re-formed once again, only now it was a full sword set with a scabbard that was already secured around my hip.
I picked up the next object—a piece of chest armor shaded a deep, rustic gray. I looked at it and its Stats screen opened.
Equipment Title
Chest Plate of the Adventurer
Defense
+21 DEF
Special Effects
+5 Max Health
Grade
One Star
Durability
50/50
Rarity
Uncommon
Value
20,000 Sol
“A +21 increase in defense.” I nodded. “Nice!”
DING!
You have obtained new equipment.
The Chest Plate of the Adventurer!
A simple chest plate with no special qualities. Sometimes being normal is the best option. Would you like to transfer the equipment to your ‘Equipment Inventory?’
Yes
No
I hit Yes once more and the plate dispersed into a stream of light, condensing around my torso and forming the armor over my Forest Tunic.
Frey tapped on my shoulder and pointed between the trees. I nodded and followed him out.
“Where are we going, exactly?” I asked.
DING!
To see a friend who can help. I want to know what that presence around you is about.
“Okay.” I nodded. Does this mean I might finally get some answers about what’s going on? I wondered. Probably not. Things hadn’t really worked out that way up till now.
I looked at the trees. Where are we, anyway? I opened my Ga’em menu again and selected the Map option. I tapped on Field Map and an image popped up in front of the menu.
The first thing I noticed was that I was no longer in the Kingdom of Aingard. The words Dargonian Empire were written on the map instead, in black, faded letters. Figures. I sighed.
I looked at the pulsating blue dot on the map. We were almost at the border of what was called the Viridian Forest. I looked around, trying to see where it was in relation to the places I had already been to. The Kurc Woods and Langsdale City were far north of the forest, about a hundred miles or more. I put my finger on the image and scrolled south. The phrase Earth Goblin Tunnels showed up at the bottom, and I could tell it was more than two hundred miles away from us. I exhaled. Asterion wasn’t anywhere close to me, then.
As long he doesn’t teleport here, I thought.
I closed my Map screen and looked up, hoping for stars but seeing dark clouds instead. The black forms swirled around, and a gentle breeze flew through me a second later.
The Viridian Forest was closer than I had expected, and fifteen minutes in, we entered its first row of tall trees. The sounds of rustling and insects immediately filled the air, unnerving me. My hand hovered over my sword, not out of concern, but more for comfort. We walked for a few minutes more when a light blue glow appeared before us.
My eyes gleamed as we walked closer, and a glowing spring emerged.
DING!
Congratulations! You have found:
Spring of Healing!
The water from a Spring of Healing is said to hold mystical powers that can enhance an individual’s physical and/or mental prowess.
“A Spring of Healing,” I chuckled. It looks pretty similar to the one I found before, too.
Frey took off his longsword and laid it down on the ground.
“Wait, are we settling down here for the night?” I asked.
He nodded.
“Fine,” I said. I stood still for a second and let the warmth of the spring’s steam pass through me. “I’m going to go see if I can find any scraps of wood to start a fire.”
DING!
See if you can find some berries too. And don’t go too far.
“Gotcha,” I said and walked away, gripping my sword hilt tight.
Frey was an odd character, but I felt quite certain he was on my side now. I could trust him. I honestly didn’t know what I’d have done if he hadn’t rescued me from Asterion.
“Asterion,” I mumbled. That was another problem to deal with. There was no doubt in my mind that man was going to come after me. Especially since he said the Emperor of Dargonia himself was interested in my capture. The only questions that remained now were how he was going to come after me, and how I was going to stop him.
I walked around the trees for a while and found a good spot with a lot of broken branches on the ground. I took a minute and piled them into my arms until I could hold no more. I turned back to the spring, with thoughts of Asterion still occupying my mind.
I was nonchalantly walking back when I heard a feminine voice echo in the air, singing words that were archaic and melodious. A woman stood at the edge of the spring, underneath the stark night. I quickly pulled myself behind the closest tree and held my branches tight.
What the hell is going on? I thought. Where’s Frey? Who is that woman? I peeked out, trying to sneak a glance.
The woman had a certain gracefulness about her very presence. She arched her neck and looked up at the night sky. Her fair skin glowed in the ethereal light, and her big moonsilver eyes were radiant in the blue hue of the water. Obsidian-black hair flowed down her back, with a streak of starry silver glittering majestically within it.
I was mesmerized. I stared at her, unable to pull away. Her presence was bewitching, as if it were too surreal to be true.
Snap out of it. I shook my head. One of my branches slipped out of
my arms and fell to the ground. It snapped against a rock, and a crack echoed into the air.
Dammit. I jerked my body back behind the tree and crouched down to make myself as small as I could. Did she see me? I wondered.
A whoosh sounded, and the tree trunk behind me snapped, falling to the ground in an instant. The woman stood behind the remaining stump, her hair flowing gracefully in the wind. I looked at the longsword in her hand, my heart beating crazy fast.
A longsword? My eyes widened. Oh gods.
I looked at the woman, disbelief on my face. “Frey?”
***
CHAPTER ELEVEN
I stared at the woman in front of me, gazing into those mystical eyes of silver.
“Dammit,” she muttered.
I stood still. Frey’s a woman, I realized.
Meanwhile, “Frey” had put her longsword back in its sheath and had walked back to the spring. She sat down at the edge, letting her feet casually dip into the water, as though nothing had happened. I stayed where I was for a moment longer and then headed over as well. I dazedly sat myself a few feet from her side and dipped my feet in the water too.
The Eternal: A Boxed Set (World of Ga'em Book 6) Page 10
