by Rick Scott
I inadvertently glace at Gilly who has a look of confusion on her face. “What did she just say?”
Oh crap!
“Easy, Gilly.” Aiko smiles at her with a wink. “Just a joke.”
I then get a PM.
Aiko: Our private little joke ;) <3
Eesh.
My heart is thundering in my chest as I make the trade and I pray that Gilly doesn’t notice my discomfort. I laugh it off as best I can as Aiko enjoys another cackle laugh, tickled pink by my reaction.
Just when I think Aiko is okay, she goes and does something completely off the wall again. I’m beginning to wonder if maybe she has bi-polar or something.
“Thanks Aiko,” I say as I equip the weapons. “I really appreciate this.”
I spend my last points on Vitality and take a look at my brand new level 85 character sheet.
Name: Reece
Class: Ninja
Level: 85
Strength: 6+25
Dexterity: 80+85
Agility: 80+85
Intelligence: 4
Mind: 6
Vitality: 31 +20
HP: 1282/1282
Stamina: 357/357 (+50)
TP: 231/231 (+50)
Holy cow! I just doubled my Dex and Agility stats with these weapons! Level 85 legendary gear is no joke.
“Trust me. You’ll appreciate it even more when you’re tanking the Shadow King,” she says. “You’re going to need every stat you got.”
I have no doubt she’s correct, but seeing my new stat totals, I can’t help but feel a little invincible. If I was a Dodge Tank before I must be like a Super Dodge Tank now!
“Speaking of the Shadow King,” I say. “Now that I’m 85 and Gilly is 80. You think that’s good enough to head to the vale?”
Aiko considers it a moment. “Maybe.” She then looks to Gilly. “You have Great Heal IV and Life Syphon, right?”
Gilly nods.
“That’s pretty much all we need from her to heal this fight,” Aiko says. “So it’s possible.”
“What’s Life Syphon?” I ask.
“My level 80 ability,” Gilly says. “I can use it to convert my HP into TP when I run out. And I’ve been putting most of my points into TP and Mind too so I have over 1000 TP now.”
“That’s really good, Gilly,” Val Helena says stretching out on the log. “What’s your Celestial Magic skill at now?”
“312,” Gilly says and then she grins. “I got tons of skill ups on those catfish.”
I chuckle at that.
Maxis folds his arms and shrugs. “Well a few more levels probably wouldn’t hurt, but the XP grind doubles after 80. She won’t be able to gain levels as quickly as before.”
“True,” Rembrandt says. “It’ll probably take Gilly a good three days or more to hit 85 killing those fish.”
Gilly frowns. “Yeah, that’s a long time.”
“You know what?” Aiko says. “With two Dodge Tanks, plus Maxis and Rembrandt, I say we’re better equipped now than when we fought the Shadow King the first time. We could be ready. What do you think, Val?”
We all look to Val Helena who sits up on the tree trunk and lets out a sigh. “Well I guess since I’m the one responsible for this whole mess, it falls to me to make the call.” She then looks to Maxis and Rembrandt. “I especially want to thank you two for helping us with this. I know this is a sidetrack for you, but it means the world to us.”
“Hey,” Maxis says with a smile. “Your priority is my priority.”
“Aye, no worries,” Rembrandt says. “Besides, all this suspense about this Becky is killing me. I’m dying to meet the girl now.”
Everyone chuckles but then we go quiet as Val Helena mulls it over. I know she’d rather leave as soon as possible and I do as well, but she probably doesn’t want us to fail either. It’s a tough call to make, and given the history, perhaps one she can’t.
Not again.
Not when so much is riding on it this time.
“I say we’re ready,” I state boldly.
All eyes turn to me and my heart beats with adrenaline. “Since I’m the main tank, I think it should be up to me too. And I say we should go.”
Val Helena looks up at me. “Reece, are you sure?”
“We can’t forget that Becky’s suffering in there,” I say. “Time may move slower, but we have no idea for sure. Every second still counts.” I look around at my teammates, people I’ve come to trust with my life. And with them by my side I feel stronger than ever. “I think we’re in good shape, like Aiko says. I’m ready to do it. And besides. The sooner we save Becky the sooner we can get back on track with saving Citadel.”
And saving my mom…
I give Val Helena a final nod. “The Shadow King needs to go down. Now.”
Val Helena smiles. “Well if you’re confident, then that’s all I need to hear. We go on your say so, Reece. Thank you.”
“Agreed,” Gilly says. “And I promise I won’t be a gimp you guys!”
We all laugh.
“Okay, then it’s decided,” Maxis says. “We head for the Vale. But now comes the hard part.”
I look at my brother with a squint. “What’s that?”
“Getting through the Wild.”
Chapter 36: Into the Wild
The noon day sun darkens as we near the edge of the safe zone. It’s as if a cloud has passed overhead, but looking up there are no clouds; only a strange dark haze that exudes from across the invisible barrier where the safe zone stops and the Wild begins. The ground too, denotes the demarcation, the grass transitioning to gray sand abruptly as if it were a rug cut with a carpet knife.
A feeling a dread bubbles up within me as I look beyond the grass to the rolling dunes and darkness within. I glance at my comrades who appear equally struck by trepidation as they peer into the Wild.
All save my brother, that is.
He looks pumped up and ready to go, like a boxer before a prize fight.
“So who knows where we’re actually going?” Gilly asks.
It’s a good question. I recall the map Blacktop showed us, but I have no clue of how to follow it within a place that has few if any landmarks. Rembrandt steps forward and glances up at the sky before looking onto the darkened dunes ahead.
“I can navigate,” he says. “I’ll take point.” He then looks to me and Aiko. “You two can keep us invisible, yea?”
“Just invisible,” I pipe up, remembering my initial blunder when we first arrived. “We won’t have sneak for those dogs.”
“Let’s just hope that’s all we encounter,” Maxis says, tapping his fist into his palm. “Okay, listen up. I’m not sure of everyone’s experience in the Wild, but for me, it’s where I spend most of my time when I come here.”
Everyone, save Rembrandt, looks at him cross-eyed.
Gilly however goes a step further and blurs out, “Er…Why?”
“Because the things in there drop the most shards,” he says. “As much as a boss in the safe zones. Anyway, that’s wasn’t the main point of me mentioning that. I’m saying this because most people, even those who have been on the surface for years, only ever experience the Wild when they first arrive. And even then it’s usually only for a few minutes as then run to a safe zone.”
I expect Aiko to maybe say something smart-alecky about that, but even she seems to curb her normally flippant attitude to pay attention to what my brother is saying. I have to admit I do as well. It gives me a whole new respect for him. Knowing as much as I do now, if he goes adventuring and looting in the Wild on a regular basis, then to him, the safe zones must be just another version of the Shards.
“Being able to survive for longer than a few minutes takes a bit of know-how,” Maxis continues. “So I’m going to tell you what to do to stay alive, in case we get separated or if anything goes wrong.”
I shudder inwardly at the thought of that.
“First thing, direction,” Maxis says. He stoops down and grabs
a handful of sand and then releases it in a cloud that gets carried off in the wind. “If you noticed, the wind is blowing toward the Wild. For some reason the wind always blows from Safe zones and into the Wild zone. So if you get lost, always head in the direction of the wind. It’ll lead you to a safe zone eventually.”
“Good to know,” Val Helena says. “What else?”
“The dogs,” Maxis says. “They’re normally easy to avoid when they’re in a pack because they make a bunch of noise, but there are lone wolf scouts that can really get the drop on you. If you encounter one, it’s best to try and take it out right away. And when you do, go for the throat first. It won’t be able to call the rest of the pack then.”
I think back to our arrival and dealing with those terrible dogs. The fear and horror I felt, especially when I saw Val Helena get bit and experience pain for the first time, rears back up in my gut. It was a shock to my system in more ways than one. But I’m stronger now, a lot stronger. So maybe they won’t seem so bad to me.
I hope.
“This one’s for the two youngsters,” Maxis says, looking to me and Gilly. “Abilities work differently in there and the feedback does too. You’ll have to adjust.”
“Yeah, I remember,” I say. “Like no special effects from casting spells and stuff, right?”
“It’s more than that,” Maxis says. “Think of the safe zones like having powered steering, or training wheels. The AI is always fine tuning actions to keep outputs within certain specs and limits. In the wild, it’s all free style.”
“What do you mean?” Gilly asks.
“It means that when you do something like a Charge Attack, you won’t automatically track and hit your target like in the Shards or in a safe zone. You can miss or hit something else. Same thing if you cast a healing spell. Stuff like that.”
I nod. “I’ll be careful.”
“Hopefully we won’t need to fight at all, but if we run into Guardians we may have to.”
“What’s a guardian?” I ask, almost afraid of the answer.
“It’s like a suit of armor with guns,” Rembrandt says. “Nasty things. Usually only see stuff like that in the Shards I’m from.”
“Are they like Omegas?” Gilly asks.
Maxis lets out a guffaw. “No. If we find an Omega we just run. Period.” He then looks to Rembrandt. “How long you figure we got in there?”
Rembrandt’s eyes light up with his HUD as he checks what looks like Blacktop’s map. “If we stay at a sprint, I give us three hours till we can make it to the vale.”
“That doesn’t sound too bad,” Gilly says.
“Aye,” Rembrandt says. “Let’s hope it won’t be, Gills.”
* * *
As I pass through the invisible barrier separating the safe zone from the wild, I immediately begin to feel different. I’m not sure if it’s an over-exaggerated reaction due to what my brother said just now, but I feel heavier and off balanced. My clothes tug at my skin and even the blades hanging on my hips pull me to one side more than the other as I step into the soft sand.
A new emotion then seizes me.
Fear.
It rises up in my chest like ice and makes my legs tremble. It’s something I haven’t felt this strongly since the last time I stepped on these sands, or perhaps when I saw those giant monsters down in the mines and on Planet Hell. But it’s the same feeling: a gripping anxiety that causes my heart to race in my throat. It’s a subtle thought in the back of my mind, that the game is no longer playing fair and that anything can happen.
Just like in the real world.
A message pops onto my HUD
[Host domain lost…]
[Reconnecting…fail!]
[Your domain is no longer accessible. Certain functions and questlines may be unavailable.]
I don’t recall seeing a message like that before when we were in the Wild. Perhaps when we had first arrived we had no domain so it didn’t matter. But entering the safe zone must have initialized something. Something it now can’t detect.
“Sentry towers,” Aiko says pointing ahead of her. “Dogs too.”
I look to where Aiko’s keen eyes have spotted the packs of dogs roaming around the towers. The towers remind me of lifeguard stations for some reason; even though I’ve only ever seen them in old prewar movies. Maybe they just look that way to me because of all the sand.
“We’ll have to time this carefully,” Maxis says. “The invis will keep the towers from activating, but we’ll need to keep our distance from those dogs.”
“Who built those things anyway?” I ask. “Doesn’t seem like anything from a game world.”
Maxis just shrugs. “Someone with a sick sense of humor I guess.”
“Hey, I got an idea,” Gilly says. “Reece, do you still have some of these?”
She materializes a small vial in her hand and I focus on it to see what it is.
Sneaking Potion
Makes the user undetectable by aggressive enemies. Wears off when an action is performed.
Duration: 5 minutes
It is rumored the mages of the Ivory Keep created this potion to sneak into the lairs of dragons . . .
“No way!” I say in disbelief. “You still got those?”
She laughs. “Yeah, don’t you have a few left?”
I check through my inventory and do see I have three sneaking potions left. As I materialize them I get an odd sense of nostalgia. Making the decision to buy these potions and heading to the Silvertooth mines was what started this whole adventure. It’s where I found the scroll of Shadow Copy and eventually met Val Helena.
I think back to when I nearly junked the scroll to make inventory space. Man, how my life would be different right now if I’d done that. I’d still be laid up at home a cripple, not going out with Gilly and still trying to find a way to save my mom.
Although, I suppose I’m still trying to do that last part; save my mom that is, along with saving the rest of Citadel.
I guess everything has its downside.
But in retrospect, buying these potions was the best decision of my life.
“Here you go guys,” I say as I make trade requests to hand them out.
“Nice one, mate,” Rembrandt says completing the trade. “Initial entry will be smooth as silk with these.”
“Let’s get to it then,” Aiko says and then chugs down her potion.
We all follow suit, disappearing from existence before heading forward as a group toward the towers. It’s a good hundred feet or so till we get past them and my heart rate goes up as we pass a roaming pack of dogs. Seeing them up close, they look bigger than I remember. More like lions than dogs, with strange plated tech armor over their heads and bodies.
I focus on one to check its stats.
Lupine Sentry
Level: 100
No data available
Affinity: N/A
Right… now I remember. Level 100, but little more info than that. It’s just another reminder that we’re not exactly in the game world anymore. We get past the dogs and towers with relative ease thanks to the potions and I almost wish we had more to make just a smooth a transition for the rest of the way. But the potions only last 5 minutes and we have hours a running to do yet.
As the potions wear off Rembrandt takes his position in the lead and begins scanning the dunes with his mirror shades.
“Clear path this way,” he says. “Cloak us up and we can start running.”
“Make sure you watch each other’s footprints,” Maxis says. “Say something in party chat if you see someone going off course.”
I’m reminded of that additional complication. In the Shards and safe zones, the game uses a faint outline to make it easier to see both yourself and your teammates while invisible, but here we’ll be just as invisible to ourselves as to our enemies.
“You cloak first,” Aiko says to me with a nod. “We’ll alternate our timers to keep Shadow Wall up permanently.”
“Got i
t,” I say and cast the spell.
Just like when I first arrived, there are no cool swirly kanji, just a buff that appears on my HUD as our bodies turn to glass.
* * *
We run at sprints for the next few hours, reminding me of the journey I just made with Aiko. It’s a grueling ordeal. Running in the sand feels like I’m constantly going uphill and my legs burn with exertion. I stay close to Gilly to make sure she’s keeping up as we move at our breakneck pace, stopping only for a minute or so every half hour to let Rembrandt take his bearings again. Overhead the sky darkens the deeper we go, with thunder clouds so thick it looks like night. Every so often the sky illuminates with a crackle of lightning that stabs through the air, adding to the anxiety already coursing through me.
We skirt past packs of roaming sentries dogs, Rembrandt spotting them and making course corrections the entire time. We take wide arcs to avoid detection and short cuts where we can. About two hours in, we stop for a real break and I all but collapse onto the sand to rest my aching legs. Gilly does the same next to me.
“Geez!” she says with a pant. “How much further, Rem? I think I’m gonna die.”
“Not too much longer to go,” Rembrandt says in the party chat as he scans the horizon. “We should be past the mountains by now.”
“We’re making good time,” Maxis says. “Ten minutes and we’ll head out again.”
Not much time to recover. But considering where we are right now, I actually don’t mind the rush. I share some water with Gilly as we finally catch our breaths.
I then get a PM.
Val Helena: Hey, you got a sec?
I look up to see Val Helena standing over me, her goddess like face matted with sweat and sand. She plops down next to me and I half wonder why she’s contacting me through a PM instead of just talking. I figure it must be something private she wants to talk about so I do the same; even though we’re now sitting right next to each other with Gilly on the other side.
Me: Sure, Val, what’s up?
