The Path to Peace

by Daniel Schinhofen

  “Yeah, but that would cut down on how long we can get easy criticals,” Karen replied. “I think we can wait until TJ Bashes, at least, before we go for the grab and move.”

  “Sounds like a plan,” Gerald agreed.

  “I want to point one thing out,” Alburet interjected. “Our dungeon runs rarely go smoothly. Stacia, you and Kitten need to be our eyes. If one of the huts open, we need to be told immediately, and I want you both next to the gong. You’ll be our last line of defense on it.”

  “As ya wish, master,” Stacia replied, giving her Copy a one-armed hug. “We be ready to assist.”

  “Anyone else have anything to add?” Gerald asked.

  When no one else spoke up, he looked at the blur that was Karen. “You’re up. I’ll lead the rest towards the huts, and try to minimize the sight lines into the middle of the camp.”

  “On it,” Karen said, stealing a quick kiss from Fluff before heading into the camp.

  Following Gerald, the others tried to keep towards the side of the path while being mindful of brambles. Karen’s shimmer could be seen moving from hut to hut as she advanced quietly on the single Troll.

  Reaching the first hut, they all hid behind it and waited. Bob jumped onto the roof and crept over to get a line of sight on the gong. After a few tense seconds he called down to them, “She just Sapped him.”

  Everyone hustled around to where the Troll stood, wobbling in place. Stacia and Kitten stood between the Troll and the gong while the others surrounded him, except Marysue, who stood next to the mallet.

  “Ready?” Gerald asked. Getting nods from the others, he pulled back his shield. He Shield Bashed the Troll, stunning it. The group piled onto the Troll, killing it in short order before it could do more than take a single step, thanks to the extra stuns from Tiny and TJ.

  “Okay, so hut to hut?” Karen asked as she slipped back into stealth.

  “That’s the plan,” Gerald nodded. “TJ, stay back by the gong and make sure nothing gets to it. You can Bash them if they try, and give us a few seconds to react to it. Stacia, stay back with him as well, for the same reason. If need be, Ally the Troll and send it over to help us.”

  “Understood,” TJ rumbled.

  Stacia gave Alburet a quick kiss on the cheek. “I’ll guard ya back.”

  “Tiny, you take front and center,” Gerald said. “You’re the battering ram, so pick our target and get the door open for us.”

  “With pleasure,” Tiny rumbled and stepped to the closest hut. “Ready?”

  The fighting in the village was anti-climatic. Each hut held five trolls, and every one of them tried to get to the gong. Kitten and Stacia each Dazed and Allied a pair of Trolls, leaving just one at a time for the rest of the group to deal with. They had to pause between each hut, but they were happy enough for that tradeoff.

  When the last Troll in the village died, they got the notification that their quest had been completed. “That went more easily than I thought it would,” Gerald said. “This time, we weren’t penalized for having the minions with us. If anything, having you with us was a big plus, thanks to Stacia and Kitten locking down four of them every time.”

  “Glad I could help,” Stacia grinned.

  “Portal back, turn in, then go to lunch with Ioaniss?” Karen asked.

  “That’s a good idea,” Alburet said. “We should also sell off the stuff we’ve been picking up over the last few days. The drop items are stacking up, and my bag is getting close to full. We also need some money, since we’ve started taking extra experience instead of coin.”

  “Good point,” Gerald nodded. “Okay, so meet up at the Portal Guild for the trip back to this zone.”

  Chapter Twenty-eight

  Meeting back up after turning in the quest, the group walked to Giardino’s to have lunch with Ioaniss. “It’s nice to know that if we forego the coin and items, we can get a level per zone,” Marysue said. “We can get you the levels you need, Al.”

  “That’ll be good, but I worry that this note is going to push Vladimir to go early,” Alburet told her. “That’s my main worry right now. If we get another three levels, I’ll still only be level seventy-five when I speak with him.”

  “That won’t be too bad; the Dead Lands start at eighty,” Karen said. “We can probably push through with that level gap.”

  “I hope we don’t have to find out,” Alburet grimaced.

  “First, we talk to Ioaniss,” Gerald reminded him. “Maybe he’ll have an idea of what the hell is going on.”

  “That is the hope,” Fluff murmured.

  “I be thinkin—” Stacia began, before cutting off abruptly and stopping in place.

  “We’re bein—” Alburet began, before he was also Sapped.

  Twin Fire Bursts went off on top of the party, as there were no innocent bystanders close by to be hit by the flames. The two spells revealed eight Assassins who had been sneaking up to Sap people. “There they are,” Bob said, beginning to cast Burning Cleanse, only to slump in place, as did BJ on the other side of the street.

  “Two groups for us,” Gerald said as he pulled his sword.

  “You don’t have to get involved,” one of the Assassins said. “We only want him and his bitches.”

  Gerald smirked as he watched two of the Assassins in the back suddenly slump. “You think it’s going to be that easy?”

  Two of the attackers Vanished and the speaker laughed, “Yeah, but if you want to join in, feel free.” The four visible Assassins who hadn’t been Sapped rushed at Alburet. Tiny and TJ, who had been prepared to meet them, suddenly slumped in place as the stealthed Assassins Sapped them.

  Kitten focused on the speaker and smirked as her song came to an end. Her eyes went wide when she saw him laugh as a brooch on his armor crumbled into dust.

  “We knew he had a Succubus, so we came prepared. The Guild has countermeasures for your kind,” he taunted her.

  “Not for my kind though,” Fluff roared as she landed on him. Her feet drove the speaker into the ground as her claws flashed to either side, tagging two of the others. She spun in place, her claws raking across all three in range of her Whirlwind Ability.

  “Mary, stay out of it,” Gerald called over his shoulder, then Charged and hit the one who’d been out of Fluff’s range. Shield Bash stunned the Assassin just as Stacia and Kitten slumped in place, Sapped by the two Assassins still in stealth.

  The two who had Sapped Bob and BJ dropped to the street, laughing, “You can’t stop us all.”

  “No, but I can,” came a bitingly cold voice from down the street. “Meet my favorite Ability,” Rolland said, then slammed his staff into the ground. An arctic gust enveloped the street, encasing each Assassin in a block of ice. Wheezing, he slumped to his knees. “Though it does take a bit out of me.”

  Marysue spun to Rolland, “How long do we have?”

  “A minute, since there were only ten of them. That should be long enough for the Saps to fade,” Rolland said as he pushed himself back to his feet. “If you will pardon me, I have to meet Kim inside.” With a grimace, Rolland entered Giardino’s.

  “Smart man, to retreat when he needs to,” Gerald grunted. “Mary, you aren’t flagged yet. Please stay out of it unless we need you.”

  “Fine,” Marysue said as her hand clenched her staff. “I’ll Halo if it comes to it.”

  “That will be fine,” Gerald said, turning his eyes to Fluff. “You ready to carve them up?”

  “Yes.” Fluff’s growl seethed with hatred.

  “As am I,” said a shimmer from behind the farthest two. “I’ll Sap these two before joining in. Sap has to be done from Stealth after all.”

  “Right. We’ve got this,” Gerald’s smile was vicious. “Let’s send a clear message that Alpha Company’s lead group is not to be trifled with if all of us are here. Focus on the ones who didn’t Vanish already.”

  Stacia shook her head, “Wha’ happened?”

  “Assassins. Get ready, they also have
some kind of shield against mind control, though it might be a one-time thing. Try Dazing before you go for Ally,” Gerald told her.

  “Aye,” Stacia said, her eyes sparking flame, “tha’ I can do.”

  “I’m alive?” Alburet said as he shook his head clear of the Sap. “Targets?” he asked, looking around and seeing all the frozen Assassins, “What the fuck?”

  “Later,” Gerald said. “Focus on the four right here first. Bob, you guys need to be ready to cleanse any poisons. Marysue will only join in if we absolutely need her.”

  “Got it,” Bob said, grimacing, “fucking Sappy motherfuckers.”

  “They should be coming out of it in a few more seconds,” Gerald told the others. “I wonder how many of them will try to run by the time we’re done?”

  “None shall escape,” Tiny rumbled.

  “Good,” Gerald said. He brought his shield arm back, ready to Shield Bash the Assassin in front of him as soon as the spell fell off him. The ice entrapping the Assassin started to melt rapidly, “Get ready.” When the ice got about halfway melted, the Assassin seemed to become aware again. “Now!”

  Shield Bash stunned the one before Gerald, while both Tiny and TJ Bashed theirs. Fluff was kneeling atop another one, her claws digging bloody furrows into his chest. Alburet joined Gerald in attacking the one right next to him, his maul slamming into the stunned Assassin and taking good sized chunks of life away with each hit to the head.

  Karen appeared next to one that Fluff was mauling, her daggers slicing across his throat. “You chose the wrong group to fuck with today.” Dodging aside as the two hurt Assassins turned on her, Karen grinned. “Come on, then.”

  The two Assassins who had jumped down from the roof shook off the Daze spells from both Stacia and Kitten. Their protection, though, was used up and both Succubi had chain cast straight into Ally. The two mind controlled Assassins rushed at their friends, who were trying to tag-team Karen. Once her Ally ability had taken hold, Stacia shifted back to her human guise. She glanced around to see if anyone had seen her shift, but only the group and Assassins were on the street.

  As the stuns wore off, the two who had been fighting Tiny and TJ Vanished. Without a target, they both turned to help Fluff, only to slump in place as the Vanished Assassins Sapped them. Bob had been waiting for that moment, though, and Burning Cleanse hit both Destroyers, removing the Sapped condition from them.

  “Fuck this,” a voice said from near Tiny. “I’m out.”

  “Yeah,” said the other Stealthed Assassin.

  Before they could run off, twin Fire Bursts hit the area and revealed them. “Don’t leave yet,” Tiny rumbled as he rushed forward to hit one, while TJ mirrored him on the other one. Bob and BJ used Burning Cleanse to wipe off the poisons that afflicted the group at the start, and began to chain cast Fire Bursts onto as many of the attackers as they could.

  “Fuck this, we got to run,” one of the Assassins on Karen said.

  Fluff’s arm darted out, raking across the leg of the one who had spoken and hamstringing him. “No, you don’t.”

  “Add me please,” came a cultured voice from behind Marysue.

  Turning her head, she saw Ioaniss loading his crossbow. “Gerald, add Jones,” Marysue called out as she dropped the group.

  A quick glance behind him let Gerald target Ioaniss and add him to the group. “You sure?”

  “Quite. I’m getting tired of hearing about the fights in the streets, and they are delaying my lunch,” Ioaniss said as he took aim at one of the Assassins, who was trying to disengage. “Don’t run off, it’s time for a lesson,” his left hand blurred, a trap flying at the Assassin as his crossbow fired. The metallic clank of the bear trap stopping the Assassin’s retreat was just audible over the melee, followed by the sound of sizzling and a scream of agony from the Assassin, who had acid eating at his neck. “That looks painful.”

  With Ioaniss added in, the Assassins didn’t have a chance to flee, and the group took the Assassins apart bit by bit. When the last one had died, Ioaniss put his crossbow away and brushed at his jacket. “Well, that was my exercise for the day. Shall we go have our meal and talk?”

  “Let me get Marysue back in,” Gerald said as Ioaniss left the group. “Sorry for the problem, we’re working on getting it corrected.”

  “I’ve heard,” Ioaniss’ lips twitched. “An interesting tactic.”

  “Let’s get off the street before they come back,” Alburet said as he gave each of his wives a kiss. “Good work. We need to thank Rolland, too.”

  “He told me you were busy out here,” Ioaniss chuckled, “so he helped you twice.”

  Holding the door for them, Ioaniss gave the women smiles as they went by. “Tiny, Bob, Kitten, go home for a bit,” he asked the Infernals. “It’s a small place and they’re busy.”

  “Master?” Tiny asked.

  “I’ll call you back when we head out,” Alburet said. “Good work with the Assassins.”

  “Be careful, master,” Tiny rumbled, he and TJ vanishing in a puff of smoke.

  “See you soon,” Bob said as he and his Copy disappeared.

  “Ya will be on me mind,” Kitten purred.

  “She does that very well,” Ioaniss said softly. “I wonder, though, why she isn’t greyed out like the others?”

  Alburet’s face went blank, “What?”

  “I already knew. All the clues were there,” Ioaniss said as he entered the restaurant. “It matters not to me, I know you will not harm Stormguard.”

  Alburet heaved a sigh of relief, “Okay. We should talk later, though.”

  “I agree,” Ioaniss said as he looked back at Alburet. “I’m very interested to hear the whole story. But for now, lunch. And you had something else to discuss with me, I believe?”

  “This way,” Giuseppe called to them, gesturing toward a private dining room.

  Alburet considered Ioaniss as they walked. There was no hatred or disgust from him, only curiosity. “It can probably be arranged, but it might be a bit.”

  “In your own time. Just let me know when. I want to chronicle the tale, though I’ll omit the names so that her family doesn’t get any backlash,” Ioaniss replied before giving Giuseppe a thankful smile.

  The others were seated, waiting for them with varying degrees of questioning looks. “Sorry I held him up, I had to ask an unrelated question,” Ioaniss explained as he took his seat.

  “I seated them,” Karen explained, seeing Alburet glance at the other women. “I didn’t know how long you might be.”

  “Thank you,” he gave her a quick kiss before moving to the vacant seat between Fluff and Stacia. “Food first?” Alburet asked.

  “I already ordered for us, so it should be…” Ioaniss trailed off as the door opened and a few of the servers came in with two carts. “Ah, here they are now.”

  Lunch was a delightful shrimp alfredo, paired with an excellent white wine. They ate in silent appreciation, aside from the occasional comment on how good it was. Dessert was served moments after the last of them finished the entree. Cannoli, filled with a light, sweet cream, were served with coffee to end the meal. Once the dishes were cleared away, Ioaniss leaned back in his chair and waited.

  “We wanted you to see this, and ask what you thought about it,” Alburet said as Fluff placed a copy of the letter before him.

  Ioaniss read the letter, his carefree smile vanishing. Sitting forward as he finished reading it, his face drained of color. “Oh, gods.” Looking up at their expectant faces, Ioaniss shook his head. “If this is right… It might mean that an heir of Stein is still about. The Bride gathering forces is likely to be Ophelia. I know that name from somewhere, but I haven’t been able to pin it down yet. I need to bring this to the King’s attention. We’ll have to dispatch a quick moving force to investigate the City of Peace so we can make the appropriate preparations.”

  “Sir Dracon asked us after we got our Keep to let him know when we hit level 80, as he wanted us to escort him to P
eace,” Alburet added.

  Eyes going unfocused, Ioaniss went into deep thought. After a few moments, he shook his head. “Vladimir might be many things, but I do not believe he is loyal to Stein. However, that does beg the question of why he wants to go to Peace. Have you brought this news to him?”

  “We have a dinner meeting with him tomorrow evening,” Gerald said with a questioning look. “Do you think he’s liable to run off without us being level 80?”

  “Yes, and it would also put any team I put together at risk if he left before we did,” Ioaniss exhaled heavily, as if weighing options. “He might still want you to go with him, as you’ve had a knack for being at the crux of events.” He stared at Alburet as he spoke. “If he wants you to go with, tell me and I will arrange to meet you for the trip. I will have an associate who can help with what we are likely to encounter with me.”