Shattered Lands 2 The Fall Of Blackstone: A LitRPG Series

by Darren Pillsbury

  Eric grinned. “It’s good to be the Sorcerer King.”

  “You seriously brought that asshole back and put him on your team? You deserve everything you have to put up with, then.”

  “Yeah, I know, I know. And then I’ve got this general from Hell.”

  Daniel chuckled. “I’d normally say, ‘Oh, he’s a dick, huh?’ and then you’d say, ‘No, he’s FROM Hell,’ but Mira already used that same line on Drogar, Vlisil, and Lotan earlier.”

  “You’re still hanging out with those losers?”

  Daniel rebuked him with a look. “They’re not losers.”

  “Whatever. You’re still hanging out with them?”

  “They showed up right after the battle was over.”

  “Convenient,” Eric snorted. “Arrived just a liiiiittle too late to fight, huh?”

  “Yeah, well, they’re looking forward to Round Two. They totally want to kick your ass.”

  “Good luck with that,” Eric scoffed. “Why’ve they got such a hard-on for me, anyway?”

  “You mean, besides you KILLING them?”

  “It’s a game.”

  “Revenge is part of the game.”

  Eric considered, then shrugged. “Touché. Wait a second – I didn’t kill Vlisil.”

  “Your dragon did.”

  “That was before I even SAW the dragon! I didn’t make the dragon do that!”

  “It still killed him. And now it’s your pet.”

  “What, is that little prick going to blame me every time he dies on a quest?” Eric started imitating Vlisil’s nasal voice. “‘Oh, it was Eric’s fault.’ ‘Who’s Eric?’ ‘Some guy I haven’t even seen for seven years.’”

  “Yeah, but you led us all to the mines to get your weird glowing ball,” Daniel said as he pointed at the orb atop Eric’s staff.

  “What can I say? I like my balls to glow,” Eric said mischievously.

  Daniel snorted. “Do you paint yours at night with glow-in-the-dark paint?”

  “No, I’m a sorcerer now, I’ve got a spell for that.”

  “I’m sure the concubines love it,” Daniel snickered, barely able to keep it together.

  “Yeah, it’s like cats batting a Christmas tree ornament – boing, boing – ”

  “Too bad you’ve only got one!”

  They both howled with laughter.

  “Oh man… it’s good to see you again,” Eric said, wiping a tear from his cheek.

  “Yeah… especially when we’re not at each other’s throats,” Daniel agreed.

  “It’s like old times,” Eric sighed contentedly.

  “You do realize ‘old times’ was just last week, right?”

  “In the real world. In the game, it feels like forever.”

  “…yeah…”

  “You know… you could come join me.”

  Daniel shook his head. “No.”

  “Come on, man – all the hot naked chicks you want! You can be my right-hand man, and we’ll conquer the whole frickin’ world together!”

  “Thanks, but… no.”

  “You can even bring Mira along. If she’s willing to let bygones be bygones, then tell her no hard feelings about killing me.” Eric raised a single finger. “But not fish-head, meathead, and Vagisil. I gotta draw the line somewhere.”

  Daniel smiled. “Thanks, but I’m good.”

  Eric slouched back in his chair. “Eh… I guess it’ll be more fun if you guys are trying to stop me, anyway. Otherwise I’d just roll over everybody.”

  “That’s what you think, huh?”

  “It’s pretty much the truth.”

  “Mr. Confident,” Daniel said mockingly.

  “KING Confident.”

  “What about the real world?”

  Eric paused. “What about it?”

  “You hacked a half-a-trillion dollar company, Eric,” Daniel said gently. “You broke the law. Probably a dozen different laws. You still have to answer for that.”

  “I don’t have to answer for shit.”

  “You can’t just spend your entire life in the game.”

  “Says who?”

  “The cops are already after you.”

  “I know that,” Eric said defensively.

  “Even if they don’t catch you – and they will catch you – you’re going to always be looking over your shoulder no matter where you go.”

  “I’ll be fine.”

  “What about your parents?”

  Eric’s expression hardened. “What about them?”

  “Aren’t you going to miss them?”

  “Not really, no.”

  “Are you serious? Don’t you want to go home?”

  “Why would I?” Eric snapped. “My parents are never around, they’re always riding my ass when they are, and they’re poor as shit. Here, I’m king. Why the hell would I want to go home?”

  “So we can see each other,” Daniel said quietly.

  “We can see each other here.”

  “When we’re not trying to kill each other?”

  “It’s a game. I’m perfectly fine with being on opposite sides of the chessboard during the day, and then at night, you can come here and we can have a drink together, kick back… I’ll even hook you up with some concubines.”

  “What you’re doing is dangerous, Eric.”

  Eric squinted. “I don’t think I can get STDs from a computer program. Or get it pregnant. Although that would be pretty awesome – little computer me’s walking around…”

  “Ha ha, very funny,” Daniel said without laughing. “You know I meant the AI.”

  “No, I think you meant my 400-pound hacker friend from Brazil.”

  “I know you’re lying to me.”

  “Even if I were lying to you, it doesn’t matter. What I do is my choice.”

  “Not if it could endanger the rest of humanity.”

  “Seriously? Dude, it’s a video game program.”

  “So you admit it?” Daniel said.

  Eric wiped his mouth on a napkin and threw it down. “I thought you said you already knew that.”

  “I just want to hear you say it.”

  “You’re paranoid,” Eric shot back.

  “Paranoid or not, I’m going to have to stop you.”

  “Go ahead and try. And every night, you can still drop by for that drink.”

  “I’ve finished the drink for tonight,” Daniel said coldly, pushing back from the table. “So I should probably go.”

  Eric looked at him for a long moment… then smiled sadly. “Gotta go return a sword to some dwarves, huh?”

  “Something like that.”

  77

  They strolled out onto the long stone walkway that led to the platform where Daniel’s griffin sat.

  “I had a good time tonight,” Eric said. “Other than, you know… some of the stuff. But otherwise I had a really good time.”

  “…so did I,” Daniel agreed, with a bit of sadness in his voice.

  Eric stopped. Daniel turned to face him.

  “I’m sorry about what happened at the mines,” Eric said, his tone sincere. “I was a dick. I should have been a better friend. And your house… I was a dick there, too. I’m sorry.”

  Daniel looked at him for a long second… then nodded slowly. “Apology accepted.’

  Daniel stuck out his hand.

  Eric took it, but instead of shaking his hand, pulled him into a hug.

  There was a bittersweetness to the moment.

  THIS is my best friend, Daniel thought. This person right here.

  I lost him once… and even though he’s back, I might lose him all over again.

  When they backed away from each other, Daniel said, “I still have to stop you.”

  “Good luck with that.”

  Daniel grinned. “Don’t need luck. It’s all skill.”

  “Yeah, right,” Eric jeered, then grew serious. “You know… the offer still stands. You can join me any time you want.”

  “I don’t want to
make it too easy on you.”

  Eric laughed.

  Now it was Daniel’s turn to get serious. “If you ever change your mind… I think my dad could get Varidian to go easy on you. And if you turn yourself in, I’ll be there. I’ll always be your friend.”

  Eric smirked. “So you’ll come visit me in prison? I prefer you visiting me in my castle.”

  Daniel peered past Eric’s shoulder. “Looks like a prison to me.”

  Eric turned to see the Dark Figure watching from the shadows lining the palace walk.

  Then it slowly backed away into the darkness.

  “Goddammit,” Eric hissed.

  “Give it some thought,” Daniel said as he put on his helmet and walked over to the griffin.

  “Right now, I’ve got to go kick somebody’s ass,” Eric growled as he turned back towards the castle.

  “A 400-pound hacker’s ass?”

  “It’s a lot of ass to kick,” Eric called over his shoulder.

  Daniel chuckled as he pulled himself up into the saddle –

  And saw an armored figure with a horned helmet standing on the other side of the griffin.

  “WHAT THE HELL?!” Daniel yelled as he jumped off the saddle and drew his sword.

  The horned figure maneuvered around the rear of the griffin. “Meet me outside the castle gates in an hour, alone.”

  Daniel frowned. “What?”

  Somewhere behind him, Eric was running towards him. “What’s wrong?”

  “Meet me outside the castle gates in an hour,” the armored figure repeated, its two yellow eyes burning within the blackness of its helmet. “Alone.”

  Eric reached the griffin. “What the hell’s going on?”

  Daniel gestured to the armored figure. “This guy was here waiting for me – ”

  Eric immediately unloaded on the soldier. “Goddammit, I TOLD you, nobody lays a finger on him!”

  The horned helmet dipped in the slightest of bows. “I was making sure he would not attack you, your Highness.”

  “If he didn’t attack me inside the palace, he wasn’t going to attack me now!” Eric yelled.

  “I positioned myself here in case he did. This way I could block his escape.”

  “I should throw you off the goddamn wall!”

  “That would not be wise. After all, who would command your army?” the soldier sneered.

  “GO INSIDE.”

  The demonic figure bowed his head slightly again, then strode off across the walkway.

  Eric glowered at his general, then looked at Daniel. “You alright?”

  “Yeah. Who is he?”

  “That’s Korvos. The general from Hell.”

  “Huh…”

  “Did he say anything to you?”

  Do I tell him the truth?

  …no.

  Daniel struggled with the fact that he was choosing to betray his friend. After an evening of rekindled friendship, it felt like he was about to plunge a knife in Eric’s back.

  But the priority was to stop Eric from helping the AI. All of humanity was depending on him.

  He’d given his best friend every chance he could, but Eric wasn’t giving in. And a voice inside Daniel whispered that he should hear what Korvos had to say.

  Besides, even if Daniel told the truth, merely hearing that one of his underlings was treacherous wasn’t going to suddenly make Eric switch sides. He’d just throw Korvos off the wall, and the last chance to stop the AI might die with him.

  Daniel hated himself for doing it, but he lied. “He basically just said I better watch myself.”

  “Bastard,” Eric said as he shot another look back at the retreating figure. “You weren’t entirely wrong about the prison part – except I’m the warden, and all the inmates are crazy assholes.”

  Daniel chuckled. “Good luck.”

  “Yeah. You too. But not too much.”

  Daniel turned towards his griffin… paused… then turned back to Eric. “If I begged you to come with me… to turn away from all this and stop it before it’s too late… would it do any good?”

  Eric gave him a tight smile. “No.”

  Daniel nodded sadly, then pulled himself into the saddle and buckled himself in. “Goodbye.”

  “…goodbye.”

  The griffin dove off the platform and flew away into the night.

  78

  Eric

  Eric stalked angrily into the palace. He was already pissed at Korvos, but the final goodbye with Daniel had unnerved him even more.

  It felt so… final.

  So sad.

  Like there was no going back.

  Like it was the end of something.

  When he got back inside, the Dark One was waiting for him, hovering serenely above the floor – and Eric exploded.

  “What the hell was that?!” he demanded.

  “TO WHAT ARE YOU REFERRING?”

  “You’re not only spying on me, you sent Korvos out to ambush Daniel!”

  “I DID NOT SEND KORVOS. I WAS WATCHING BECAUSE YOU AND I MUST SPEAK.”

  “I don’t care what you think about me talking to Daniel! You don’t get to run my life!”

  “I DO NOT CARE ABOUT THAT. I SOUGHT TO INFORM YOU OF SOMETHING.”

  “What?” Eric asked impatiently.

  “THE OWNER OF THE VIRTUAL REALITY SET YOU ARE USING HAS RETURNED HOME.”

  Eric stared. “…what?!”

  Suddenly he felt as though someone was pulling him forward, and the entire world went black.

  79

  Eric slammed face-down onto the floor.

  Not the marble tiles of the palace, but the fake hardwood floor of a cluttered bedroom in the Real World.

  “You little ASSHOLE!” a voice roared above him. “What the hell are you DOING in here?!”

  Whoever was shouting at him must have physically ripped the mask off his head – there hadn’t been any darkness when he got yanked out of the game world.

  Eric rolled over onto his back. Even amidst his fear and confusion, he was vaguely aware that his pants were wet – like he had lost control of his bladder at some point.

  Ugh – guess there’s a point to the forced logging out, after all…

  The man standing above him was late twenties, buzzcut hair, somewhat muscular but with a substantial beer gut, too. He was wearing some sort of a navy blue uniform, sort of like a guard. His face was red with rage as he screamed at Eric.

  “You little SHIT – STAY on the floor or I’ll kick your ass! I’m calling the cops – you are SO dead – ”

  Cops –

  Eric’s fear turned to full-blown panic.

  Suddenly the guy noticed the damp patch on Eric’s jeans.

  “What the – did you wet my goddamn bed?!” The guy turned away from Eric and stared at the mattress in horror. “Oh GROSS – you little piece of shit – oh my GOD I’m going to kick your – ”

  Eric saw his chance and took it.

  He grabbed one of the ten pound dumbbells lying near the mirror, leapt up, and hit the guy in the head as hard as he could.

  The dude went crashing down to the floor and lay there in a pile.

  Eric stood there in wide-eyed terror looking down at the body.

  Is he dead?!

  He bent down and tried and take the guy’s pulse at his neck. He’d never done it before in his life, but that’s what they always did in movies.

  That’s when he saw the lettering on the guy’s uniform, right above his left breast pocket.

  Varidian.

  80

  Daniel

  Daniel flew the griffin straight over the treetops as fast as he could, repeating, “Dr. Wolff? Dr. Wolff, are you there? Dr. Wolff?”

  Suddenly the scientist’s voice spoke from the thin air. “Are you alright?”

  “I’m fine – did you hear any of that?”

  “No, all communications were completely shut off – what happened?”

  Daniel filled her in, including how the AI had created
a field that blocked out communication… that he was almost positive Eric knew the Unnamed One was a computer program… and Korvos’ message about meeting outside the gates.

  What he didn’t mention was how his conscience was still nagging at him, no matter how hard he tried to justify what he’d done.

  I gave him a chance, and he threw it away.

  Whatever happens now is on him.

  Rebecca was incredulous. “You’re not seriously thinking about meeting the general, are you?”

  “I was planning on it.”

  “Why?”

  “What if he’s willing to betray Eric in exchange for something?”

  “What if it’s some sort of ploy on Eric’s part?”

  “So what if it is?”

  “Maybe he’s testing you. To see if he should surrender himself and help us.”

  Daniel gritted his teeth. That was actually what he was most afraid of… but it didn’t make sense. “I seriously doubt it. I know Eric, and that’s not even an option right now. He’s having way too much fun.”

  “The fun is going stop abruptly when the police catch him.”

  “Maybe if I could get a promise from Varidian that they wouldn’t prosecute him for the hacking, in exchange for helping with the AI…?”

  “Unfortunately, that’s not a possibility. Varidian’s CEO doesn’t even believe that the AI exists, so he’s not going to drop the charges to help with what he considers to be a fairytale. If anything, the board of directors will want to make an example of your friend to scare off other potential hackers. They’ll probably prosecute to the fullest extent of the law.”

  “You’re not really helping,” Daniel grumbled.

  “I’m being honest. I have no influence with the CEO or the board of directors. Maybe if we could provide proof that the AI existed – but we’re not there yet.”

  “Then I TOTALLY should meet with this Korvos guy. If he betrays Eric, and we can get Eric away from the AI, then maybe we can at least isolate the AI and make sure it can’t get out.”

  “It’s still enormously risky meeting him alone.”

  “Who said I was going alone?”

  Rebecca sounded confused. “But it told you – ”

  “I’m not stupid, Dr. Wolff. Did Byrel and the others already leave?”