Campaign (Blades VR Book 2)

by Terry Schott

  “That’s right. Again and again. There’s no tougher dungeon to crawl through in Blades PC than Veeshahn’s Peak.”

  “Well,” Sebastian put his hands behind his head and closed his eyes. “In this world, there’s a place that makes Veeshahn’s Peak look like a stroll through the park.”

  “Oh, no.” Fen scowled.

  “It’s called Dryad’s Heart.”

  “Seb. Don’t you dare say what I think you’re about to say.”

  “And we are inside of it.”

  34

  One issue that we are trying to eliminate inside Blades VR is power levelling. Power levelling is when a significantly higher-level player assists a low-level player in gaining experience abnormally quickly. While fun to do, in our opinion this activity reduces the realism of the virtual reality experience. While some players will be upset about this at first, it is our feeling that most will appreciate the realism and fair-playing field that is created as a result.

  Statement from Sebastian Darndhal regarding differences between Blades PC and Blades VR

  Kara dialled the phone and placed it to her ear as she walked down the hallway.

  There was a click, followed by Isaac’s voice. “Give me some good news.”

  “Maybe next call.” She stopped in front of the elevator and pressed a button on the wall. “It’s confirmed. Xander, his group, and most likely our Sebastian, are inside Dryad’s Heart.”

  There was a long pause. “Damn it.”

  “Is there any way we can use the viewing program to tag them and at least watch what’s happening in there? We could see it all through Xander’s perspective.”

  “No.” She heard him sigh. “We can’t figure out a way to slip through the privacy codes of the instances. Not and be confident that the whole thing doesn’t collapse.”

  “Hmm. Maybe that’s a good idea.”

  “Collapse the instance?”

  “Yeah.”

  “No... I see what you’re thinking, but it wouldn’t necessarily kick them back into the common area of the reality.”

  “It might not, but there is a chance it would, right?”

  “I don’t know. That sounds too risky.”

  “They’re gonna die in there, Isaac. I don’t see what you have to lose by trying something else. Even a crazy idea at this point is an opportunity to pull this out of the crapper. Do something, and we might succeed. Do nothing, and they are dead. No big deal for them; they will come back out.”

  “Not if Sebastian is our Seb.”

  “There’s that.”

  “Both choices suck.”

  “I know.”

  “Okay. I’ll have them look into collapsing the instance.”

  “Hurry, Isaac. They won’t survive long inside.”

  “I know.” There was a click as he ended the call.

  ***

  “I don’t see why you’re so worried.” Shale jutted her chin toward Mercy. “We’ve got a ringer here. Okay, we might not get any experience if she jumps in and kills mobs for us, but at this point we don’t care about that. I say we light up the powerful Death Stryker and follow her from a safe distance while she kills everything with her pinky finger. She can lead us out and likely never break a sweat.”

  Sebastian laughed and shook his head. “That won’t work.”

  “Why not?” Fen asked.

  “Because of the anti-PL protocols that are in place.”

  “PL?” Ezref frowned.

  “Power levelling,” Aleron said. “It’s when someone much higher than the rest of the group helps those lower to get experience. Like the Paladin did for his group at the Chessboard.”

  “It won’t work because of how this particular instance is designed.” Sebastian looked at the players in the group. “We will begin with monsters being close to our level. With each encounter, the mob levels will increase.”

  “That doesn’t sound impossible for us to handle,” Aleron said.

  “But it will be. If we do everything right, we might make it to the halfway point, but then it gets exponentially more difficult and impossible after only a couple more encounters from that point.” He looked at the high-level Death Stryker. “But if Mercy tags even one monster, then everything we encounter after that will scale with her level instead of ours.”

  “Ouch,” Fen winced.

  “Bosses will be even more over-powered,” Sebastian said.

  “How is anyone supposed to have a chance at cracking this place, then?” Shale asked.

  “It’s a raid dungeon. Forty to sixty adventurers are meant to tackle it.”

  “If it’s a raid dungeon,” Ezref spoke, “then we shouldn’t have been able to enter.”

  “Must be bugged,” Mercy said.

  All heads turned to gape at her.

  “Did you say, bugged?” Aleron asked.

  “Aye. A glitch in the magic.”

  “Huh.” Aleron met Sebastian’s gaze. “Never thought we’d hear a local use the words bugged or glitched.”

  Sebastian smiled. “Pretty cool, huh?”

  “It is.”

  “Okay.” Fen stood. “I think we’ve talked long enough. There’s only one way out, right?”

  “Yep. The exit.”

  “Then we make our way toward it.”

  “And die on the way,” Shale muttered.

  “That’s enough of that.” Fen shook his head. “Every puzzle has a solution. If we believe that failure is inevitable, then it will be. A glitch let us in here; perhaps the mobs will be glitched, too. Maybe the instance doesn’t even have any monsters and we can walk to the exit with no troubles.”

  “He’s right,” Sebastian admitted. “That could happen.”

  Fen nodded. “Then let’s approach this as we would any normal dungeon crawl. I take the lead because I have the most health and best armour class. Shale, you move to the back, where you can shoot best. Be careful with your shots, though. Only take the sure thing. No one is going to complain if you hold back versus bad ricochets causing damage we don’t want to take.”

  “Roger.” Shale nodded.

  “This will be slow going. We have enough food and drink, so time is not an issue. Don’t touch anything. And I mean, don’t even lean against walls until we’ve given them a good search for traps. Stay as quiet as we can at all times, even in battle. No war cries or crazy sounds. Let’s minimize the odds of being ambushed. Any questions or other points to raise now?”

  When no one spoke, he nodded and drew his shield and sword. He muttered a word of magic and the centre part of his shield emitted a light blue glow. Fen smiled. “Stay at least ten feet behind me. When I get aggro I will pull the mobs back. If I get slowed or rooted in place, then get as close as you need to help me, but no closer.” He took a step forward. “Let’s get this party started.”

  35

  “Sebastian and his group are definitely trapped inside the Dryad’s Heart.” Hadrin leaned back in his chair and placed both hands behind his head. “I thought you’d be more upset to hear this news.”

  Kieran scratched his neck. “Why?”

  The Dominus laughed. “Up till now you’ve been pretty protective of the old guy.” His voice rose an octave. “Don’t let Sebastian’s group wander too far from camp. Let’s hold off on giving tougher assignments to Sebastian and his people for now.” He raised his eyebrows. “Now I tell you the guy is as good as dead, and you’re cool as a cucumber.”

  “Hadrin, next time you wonder why you haven’t advanced higher in the organization, think back on this moment for a clue.”

  “You don’t have to be an ass about it, man. I was just asking.”

  “That’s my point. You’re ‘just asking’ a question that you should know the answer to without having to be told.” Hadrin frowned and Kieran sighed. “He’s contained now.”

  “That’s right. Locked away in an instance.”

  “So if he dies, how much damage can spill over to affect the rest of this world?”

&n
bsp; The junior Scout smiled. “Ah, I see what you’re getting at.”

  “Do you?”

  “Yes. If he had died out here, then it could have affected things.”

  “How?”

  Hadrin’s smile faded as suddenly as it had appeared. “Um.”

  “Doesn’t matter. The point is that I’m right. We are fine if he dies inside the instance. This is actually the best possible outcome, now that it’s occurred.” Kieran watched Hadrin try to work things out in his mind, and laughed. It was obvious the other man did not understand why but was afraid to ask. “That all you got for me, Hadrin?”

  “Uh. Yeah.”

  “Off ya go, then.”

  Hadrin pushed his chair backward and stood. He opened his mouth, paused, and then closed it before turning on his heel and walking away.

  Kieran shook his head as he watched the man go.

  ***

  Fen walked slowly back to the group. Sweat covered his face.

  “Well?” Shale whispered. “See anything yet?”

  “Give me a second, kiddo.” Fen knelt down and wiped his face with one hand. “I’ve spent what felt like eternity in a half-crouch, moving forward like an inch at a time to avoid making much sound.”

  Aleron smiled. “Must have done a good job at it. We’re still alive and you didn’t bring a pile of mobs running back towards us.”

  “Thanks.” He looked at Sebastian. “About twenty feet ahead are two darkmantles. When I conned them, they were yellow.”

  “What do you mean by, ‘conned’?” Ezref asked.

  Fen opened his mouth to explain, but Shale beat him to it. “He considered the mob to get a rough idea of its level. If you squint and concentrate on an enemy, a coloured outline will appear. If the mob outline is tinged in grey, it is very easy to kill and yields no experience. It then goes green, yellow, red, and then black in difficulty. Something that “cons red” will be almost impossible to hit and damage, and you’re likely gonna die. A black con means that you’re guaranteed to wipe.”

  “Ahh.” Ezref nodded. “I understand what you are referring to. Your pronunciation of the word was awkward, which confused me. We pronounce it ‘Khaan’.”

  “Khaan.” Fen shook his head. “Sorry, but I’ve been pronouncing it the other way a long time. I doubt I’ll remember to say it your way.”

  Ezref waved a hand. “That’s fine. It sounds very close, now that I know what you are referring to. My apologies for not picking up on it right away.”

  “No problem. Like I was saying, if it conned yellow to me, and I am a couple levels lower than everyone else, then my guess is it’ll be green to you.”

  “Oh, wow.” The happy tone of Aleron’s exclamation made the others turn to face him.

  “What?” Shale asked.

  Aleron smiled. “Is it possible that Fen being a lower level than the rest of us and doing the pulling of monsters could help?”

  “How do you mean?” Xander asked.

  Aleron turned to Sebastian. “Does the first interaction determine the level of the rest of the monsters in the dungeon?”

  Sebastian chuckled. “I like your way of thinking.”

  Aleron bowed.

  “You think that if he pulls the first monsters, they will be his level—level three or a bit more—instead of six or seven?”

  Aleron’s eyes widened as Shale and Xander smiled at the thought. “Tell me I’m right.”

  Sebastian shook his head slowly from side to side. “Sorry my boy, but it’s not going to be that easy. Once one of us touches the mob with weapon or spell, the remaining monsters in the dungeon will be appropriate to our levels.”

  “Damn,” Fen muttered.

  “How do you know so much about this instance?” Mercy asked.

  Sebastian smiled. “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”

  “Your knowledge is an advantage.” She nodded slowly. “You can help us avoid the worst of monsters and areas. Take us the easiest way out, based on your knowledge of the place.”

  “That won’t work, either. I know the basics, and how the levels will ramp up. I don’t know exact locations and types of monsters throughout the entire dungeon.”

  “Shouldn’t you?”

  “No. I assigned that to junior designers—” His eyebrows furrowed as they flicked to Mercy and then away. “It’s going to be random.”

  “You created this dungeon?” Mercy tilted her head to one side, her expression saying that she did not believe the words but had to ask.

  “No.”

  “Then why—”

  “Oh for—” Sebastian ran a hand through his hair. “I’ll tell you how I know things after we exit the place.” He turned to Fen. “Can you pull the darkmantles back here?”

  “No need.” Ezref reached into a pouch and withdrew a pinch of white sand. “I can neutralize them very easily where they are perched.”

  “Ahh.” Shale smiled and nodded. “Of course.”

  Aleron nudged her in the ribs with his elbow. “Geek. I suppose you know what spells he has in his arsenal and also how it can take care of the darkmantles?”

  Her grin widened. “Not my fault I take interest in all classes and abilities.”

  “Okay, let’s move up and deal with this first challenge.” Sebastian stood. “Lead on, Fen.”

  36

  The group advanced, moving slowly and stopping each time Fen signalled to do so. He came back and whispered. “Ezref and I will move forward from here. If there is trouble we will run as fast as we can to bring them back to this spot.”

  Sebastian nodded. “You can subdue them easily, Ezref?”

  “I think so. They use sound waves to attack, dropping onto the head of their prey and smothering them. If I can silence the area around them, then sound will not work.” He grinned. “If all goes well, they will drop to the ground and flop around uselessly.”

  “And we’ll stomp ’em,” Fen said.

  Xander returned his blades to their scabbards. “If your silence spell fails to get them both at once, do your best to dodge their drop. We will beat them off of you with blunt weapons instead of blades.”

  “Thanks, I’m sure I will appreciate being bludgeoned instead of sliced to pieces,” Ezref winked.

  “Okay, get going,” Sebastian said. “Good luck.”

  Fen reached out to stop the caster. The warrior pointed upward. Ezref looked into the shadows above and then back to Fen, giving him the thumbs-up. Then the crafter reached into a pocket at his belt and removed a handful of white sand.

  Speaking softly, he summoned the magic, letting the sand drift between his fingers as his hand and lips moved in unison.

  “Something’s wrong,” Xander said.

  “Hush,” Shale hissed at him, without taking her eyes from the two ahead.

  “Stop!” Xander shouted as he drew both swords and ran towards Fen.

  Sebastian scowled but stayed put, his eyes on Ezref. As the last grains of sand fell from the crafter’s fingers, he flicked his arm away from him and upwards towards the ceiling.

  “Adds.” Xander called out as he closed the gap.

  Sebastian’s brows furrowed as his attention snapped to Xander. The Death’s Kiss was glowing with a frosty white light.

  Everything happened so fast.

  The wave of energy from Ezref’s silence spell flew upward. Seconds later, two brownish-black leathery shrouds dropped to the ground with a thunk. Tentacles squirmed as the squid-like darkmantles struggled to use their castrated ability to get airborne. Ezref and Fen both lunged forward, raising their boots high and smashing them into the creatures. Blood and gore spewed outward from the helpless bodies. The men stomped a couple more times each, and Fen looked back toward the party with a smile that quickly became a frown as he noticed Xander only a couple of feet away.

  “Get down,” Xander yelled as he approached them, right sword held in front of him, the left pulled back. Fen and Ezref threw their bodies away from each other and dropped
to the ground to avoid the Death Stryker’s swords and keep themselves from landing on the mushy remains of the darkmantles. As their bodies dropped below Xander’s waist level, he lunged forward. At the edge of the light cast by Fen’s shield, a creature appeared. It was four feet tall, with mottled, dark grey skin. Black, jagged fingernails attached to sinewy gnarled hands reached for Xander, the monster’s mouth open wide, its milky-white eyes focused on him. A few inches beneath each outstretched arm, a long tentacle waved wildly, the top portion rearing back like a blind cobra.

  “Bonesipper,” Mercy hissed.

  Xander danced, blades jabbing and swinging in combinations that were now familiar to those who had watched him practise forms each night after dinner.

  “Wow,” Aleron breathed.

  “Boy’s got some skills,” Shale laughed.

  The bonesipper was fast, but Xander was quicker. His first attack cut one tentacle from its body, but the creature jumped back, hissing as it paused to launch another strike.

  Fen and Ezref had regained their footing and were close behind Xander. “What can we do?” Fen asked.

  “Leave it,” Mercy called. They looked at her, and she beckoned for them to rejoin the group. The two did as they were told, but Fen did not look pleased. “We should help.”

  “He’s fine.” Mercy did not take her eyes from the fight.

  The monster moved forward, sidestepping the darkmantle remains as it stalked closer to Xander again.

  “If that tentacle gets past him, it will start to dissolve his bones,” Shale warned.

  Mercy scowled. “If he lets that happen, then he deserves a bit of pain for his carelessness.”

  Aleron nudged Shale. “If he takes any damage, we will get to him before any permanent wounds are inflicted.”

  Xander pointed both swords to the ground and took three quick steps to close the distance between himself and the bonesipper. The tentacle struck out with the speed of a lightning flash. The young Death Stryker half turned and swung both blades upwards. The first blade severed the tentacle while the second buried itself deep into the bonesipper’s skull. It dropped to the ground and Xander pulled his blade free. Black blood dripped from his blade. He took a step backward and held both swords in a ready position, his head turning left and right to scan for further danger.