At the massed assent of the raid, Alburet turned to Gerald. “You’re the lead again, Gerald. We go when you’re ready.”
Gerald got nods from the other three tanks, and the four of them shoved the doors open again. The same scene from before greeted them, with the mist curling up from the floor. Gerald stepped into the room with purpose, his shield held firmly in his grasp, his weapon on his belt.
The raid filed in, some of them nervously waiting for the action to start. As soon as the last member of the raid was through the doors, they slammed shut, sealing them all in again.
“You came back! Good, I get to have more fun with you,” Gwain mocked them, his voice echoing in the large empty room.
“Get ready,” Gerald called out as he turned back to the raid, waiting to see who was going to be first.
With no warning, ten people suddenly attacked one of the healers. Greenbeard, their target, went down with barely even an exclamation of surprise. People frantically grabbed for the possessed members as they swung to face their next target. Then the healers started to heal them.
Those people who were possessed let out horrible screams that echoed throughout the room. As the second set of heals landed on the possessed individuals, they went limp in the grasp of those holding them.
A moment of tense suspension went through the raid as the healers cast another round of healing on the held people. As the formerly possessed came to their senses, ten different members of the raid turned on the healers.
“They jumped,” Jaxton called out.
The raid pivoted on the new possessed members, again subduing them. The healers got off another round of spells, resulting in more screams before the round of possessed went limp.
“Get ready,” Alburet called out. “Looks like we get to wear them down one or two heals at a time until they stop.”
“You will never kill my most loyal men,” Gwain snarled. “At the most, you might render them ineffective for a time. I’ll be waiting for you, if you can reach me.”
“We’ll be along shortly,” Alburet yelled back as he turned to watch the next round of possessed show themselves.
It took five minutes before people finally stopped becoming possessed. Near the end, the number of those being possessed had dropped, until finally only one person attempted to turn on their guild mates. They waited several moments without anyone else becoming possessed. “That might be it,” Alburet called out.
“Good,” Marysue sighed heavily. “I think every healer went through at least two mana potions. They had a ridiculous amount of health.”
Greenbeard shook his head, “At least I was the only casualty. Thanks for the battle rez, Lambert.”
Lambert nodded, “Druids got to stick together.”
“We saw the bosses on the roof, so I’m thinking we should go up,” Alburet said. “Trapsmiths, can you check the doors for us?”
“On it,” Friendzone said as he headed for the door straight back.
“I’ll get the one upstairs,” Ironhand added as he went for the stairs.
Alburet handed out the mana potions to the healers from the extras he had in his bag. He found Ectoplasm in his bag as loot from the Possessive Spirits. He was wondering what it was used for when a flash of light came from the door Ironhand was at.
Everyone looked up to see a small puff of ash floating down from where Ironhand had been, all that currently remained of the Dwarven Trapsmith. Goldleaf went up the stairs and revived him. Ironhand thanked him, then reported to Alburet, “Door was trapped. Nasty big lightning bolt. It did about six thousand in damage.”
Alburet winced at that, “Anyone here have over six thousand health?”
Ioaniss gave a strained smile, “I do, in fact. But, I’m only here as an observer, per your own wishes.”
Kim sighed, “I have a touch over six. I’m also a Trapsmith, so maybe let me handle the doors?”
Alburet grimaced, but nodded, “Not the best way to keep you safe, but it looks like we don’t have a lot of choice in the matter.” Turning to the healers he continued, “All of you, be ready to heal her.”
Lambert spoke up, “She’s in my group, I’ll make sure she stays up.”
“Okay. Kim, you’re up,” Alburet told her. “Please check the lower door first.”
Friendzone had backed away from his door when Ironhand had gotten fried. He gladly made room for Kim as she approached. “I didn’t see anything, but I’m not at your level yet.”
Kim gave him a small nod as she approached the door. After a few minutes of careful examination, she backed away. “I don’t see anything on this one. I’ll go check the upper door now.” With that she made her way upstairs to the other door.
She examined it for a minute before stepping back, “This one has two traps on it still. The first one is a needle trap, probably poisoned. I need someone with a shield to help, please.”
“Tiny,” Alburet said before anyone else could offer, “go be her bulwark.”
“Yes, master,” Tiny rumbled as he moved to aid Kim.
“Place your shield right here, and be ready for them,” Kim told Tiny as she positioned him. “I don’t know how many will be firing, but it won’t be pleasant.”
“I will be your shield,” Tiny told her simply as he crouched down, holding his shield in the spot she wanted him to.
Licking her lips, Kim reached forward with a thin metal rod. A heartbeat later the staccato sound of a drummer amped up on meth echoed through the room. Tiny grunted as he was almost pushed out of position by the barrage of three inch metal needles that impacted on his shield. When the sound ended Tiny stayed still, waiting.
Kim glanced around him, “Okay I think that was all of them.”
Tiny grunted as he stood up, stepping to the side so she would be able to access the door again. He stayed there, waiting for her to say he could go. Kim ignored him as she focused on the door, trying to gauge the next trap.
After another few minutes she stepped back from the door again, shaking her head. “It will unleash a magical effect, but I don’t know what kind. It’s beyond my skill to discern.”
Ioaniss sucked on his teeth, “So it’s a trip trap.”
Alburet raised a brow, “Huh?”
“A trap we can’t understand. The only way to find out is to trip it,” Ioaniss grimaced. “Every Trapsmith hates them. We never know if it will be death or not.”
“Master,” Tiny rumbled, his head turned to look down at Alburet. “I can trip it.”
Glancing at the raid he nodded, “Tiny, are you sure? I’m certain it won’t be pleasant.”
“Helping the master is my only wish,” Tiny rumbled.
“Fair enough. Kim, come on down here so you don’t get caught in it,” Alburet told her. Kim retreated quickly, going to stand beside Rolland. Alburet looked back to Tiny. “Alright, Tiny, go for it.”
Tiny stepped back to the railing then slammed his body into the door, shield first. A ball of dark energy surrounded the Destroyer as he vanished from view into the hall behind the door. Alburet looked at his UI, seeing that Tiny was undamaged. Puzzled, he looked up to see Tiny come back into view again.
“It is clear now, master,” Tiny rumbled. “Dark energy does not hurt Infernals.”
A chuckle rippled through the watching raid. Alburet shook his head, a smile on his lips. “Okay. Guys, we’re going that way first. Gerald, take the lead.”
“Form up, Alpha Company,” Gerald called out. Once they had he smiled, “Okay, let’s go see what the next challenge is going to be.”
The raid split, going up both sets of stairs. Gerald and Jaxton led the way into the new hallway. Doors along the hallway came into focus in the dim light inside the Keep. Before they reached the first of the doors, a pulse of darkness enveloped Gerald and Jaxton. When it dissipated, both men were on the floor, dead from the dark energy trap they had triggered.
“Stop,” Alburet called out, though he didn’t need to as the raid already had. Marysue and
Brightlight revived the dead tanks. “Maybe we should have Kim go first, as loathe as I am to put her into even more danger.”
Gerald sat up as he came back to life, “Al, maybe we should have Tiny take point with Kim again?”
Tiny looked to Alburet, “If that is your wish, master.”
“Keep her safe, Tiny. That is your first priority at the moment,” Alburet replied, motioning with his head.
“Just stay a step behind me, please,” Kim added as she moved up to start examining the hallway. “If I raise my hand, stop immediately. It will be the fastest way for me to signal a trap.”
“As you say,” Tiny rumbled as he made sure his shield and weapon were ready. “I’m sorry if I hurt you.”
Kim gave a small smile, “If it saves my life, I’ll be fine with a little pain.” She looked behind her, “Everyone else stay a few feet back, please, in case we need to dodge backwards.”
The raid gave her the room she asked for, waiting for her to lead them on. She scanned the hall, which thankfully lacked any mist obscuring the floor. The dim light though, made many details difficult to discern.
Kim eventually reached the first of the doors, the rest of Alpha Company following several yards behind her and Tiny. She ignored the restless shifting of the bored players, carefully examining the door.
“Hey, Alburet,” Friendzone called out, “why don’t we just strip off our gear and run down the hall kicking the doors open?” A few others supported his idea.
Kim looked up from the door, “It’s trapped with a fire spell of some kind.”
Looking over the raid, Alburet tried to gauge the players. “How many want to try zerging the hall?”
A number of hands shot up. Alburet counted them with pursed lips. Gerald addressed them, “Guys, don’t we want to do this right? This is the way it’s supposed to be done.”
“No it’s not,” Lambert rebutted. “It’s normally five people at the right level, not fifty plus, way under level.”
“Okay. Everyone who wants to just rush the hall and kick open doors stay here. Everyone else, fall back to the main hall.” Alburet nodded to Friendzone, “We’ll be waiting for you all to respawn.”
Friendzone grinned as he began to pull his gear off, “Sweet. Come on guys, let’s do this.”
Kim pulled back, shaking her head, “You Two-souled are odd in the extreme. Throwing your lives away as if they don’t matter.”
Marysue shrugged, “Not all of us.”
“Even your group does things no natives would do,” Kim replied. “We are much more cautious, knowing that each death could be our last.”
“That is a fair point,” Fluff agreed. “For us, this is a secondary world. For many of us, it’s almost like a game.”
“I hope they don’t unleash another wave of Possessive Spirits on us,” Gerald muttered under his breath.
“You and me both,” Alburet agreed as he turned back to face the twenty mostly naked people lining up to zerg the hall. “We’re going to shut the doors. As soon as they’re closed, have at it.”
Friendzone gave him a thumbs-up as Alburet grabbed the door handles, “See you in a few.”
After a few seconds the hall echoed with explosions, thuds and thunderclaps as traps were triggered. Silence settled, then two minutes later Friendzone reported through the Raidstone, “We have the hall mostly clear, I think. Feel free to double check it while we come back up.”
“That is definitely a different way of doing things,” Ioaniss mused as Alburet opened the doors to the hall again.
“Kim, Tiny, if you two would be so kind as to check the hall for us while we wait,” Alburet asked.
Kim shook her head as she went past Alburet, “I don’t mind.”
Chapter Thirty-three
Kim came back a few minutes later, Tiny a step behind her. “It’s clear down to the end where it turns right. All the doors are opened, and the traps left their marks all over the stonework. I didn’t open any of the doors further than they already were. No sounds to be heard and no active traps detected.”
Grateful, Alburet thanked her, “Thanks Kim. Tiny, thanks for going with her, though it seems like you were unneeded this time.”
“It is my duty,” Tiny answered, still standing behind Kim.
“It’ll take a few minutes for the trap springers to get back to us. Then we’ll check out the rooms,” Alburet informed the raid. They milled around on the balcony and first floor while they waited.
Almost twenty minutes after the last trap had been set off the group of recently dead Two-souled came back in the front doors of the Keep. “That was kind of fun,” Friendzone laughed as he came back into the main room. “Did we get them all?”
“In the first section,” Gerald informed the Trapsmith. “Now that you’re back we were about to move on.”
“Cool,” Friendzone said. “We talked on the way up, most of us are willing to do it again.”
“We’ll keep that in mind,” Alburet replied before addressing the raid as a whole. “Okay, folks let’s check out the rooms…”
He was interrupted by a mocking laugh that rang through the room. “Time to play again,” Gwain told them.
Ten people turned on the closest healer, Marysue, and cut her down. The Possessive Spirits were back, and had taken them completely by surprise.
Gerald let out a cry of rage as he watched Marysue fall, turning on one of the attackers. He was tackled from behind, stopping his attack. “Get off me,” Gerald snarled as he broke free. “I’ll fucking kill them for that.”
“Tiny,” Alburet snapped out the command, “stop him. Hold Gerald so he doesn’t attack the possessed guildies.”
Tiny leapt off the second floor, shoving a few people aside as he landed next to Gerald. Grabbing the enraged Defender, Tiny lifted him clean off the floor, holding Gerald so they were face to face. “The master says stop, Gerald.”
The rest of the raid followed the procedure they’d established earlier, shoving the attackers back and taking the damage needed to safeguard the healers as they worked at banishing the Possessive Spirits with healing magic.
Gerald raged, cursing Alburet, Tiny, and the raid as a whole. It wasn’t until Greenbeard battle rezzed Marysue that he stopped.
“Gerald, stop it and help them.” Marysue’s voice was calm, collected and commanding.
“Yes,” was Gerald only reply as he calmed immediately. “Tiny, set me down so I can do my job. I’m sorry for that.”
Tiny looked at Alburet, who gave him a nod. Releasing Gerald, Tiny grunted as he grabbed Karen when she tried to slip past him. “Sorry, Karen, but you’re not yourself.” He held her firmly, though not easily as she squirmed like an eel, stabbing him when she could.
She came back to herself a moment later as the Possessive Spirit was healed from her. “God damn it, those things suck,” Karen snarled. She patted Tiny, “I’m fine, let me go now.”
Tiny released her, moving forward to grab Ironhand, who had suddenly turned to throw a trap. “It is as the master wishes.”
This time it took almost ten minutes for the attacks to stop. The healers all sagged, relieved to finally be able to catch their breath and regain some mana. Alburet handed around mana potions to replace those they’d had to use during the fight. He checked his supply, he could only do that two more times, then he would be out of potions.
Gerald pushed through the raid to get to Marysue, “Are you okay?”
Marysue’s lips creased up into a smile, “Of course I am. I know it’s hard to remember, but it’s still just a game.” She took his hand, “Thank you for worrying about me, though.”
He ducked his head, kissing her before she could react. When he pulled back from the short kiss, he whispered to her, “I don’t like losing you, even briefly.”
Her smile blazed brightly, her eyes starting to sparkle with unshed tears, “Good.”
“Mana potions are almost gone,” Alburet informed the healers as he finished passing them out. T
urning to Friendzone, a sardonic smile settled on his lips, “I think I see the flaw with the death zerg for the traps.”
Shrugging, Friendzone sighed, “It takes fifteen minutes to get back up here, two minutes for the rezz. They respawned twenty-ish minutes after our last fight with them. So, yeah, you could be right.”
“Well with that said and the battle over, we should move on.” Alburet glanced around the raid before he called out to them. “Okay folks second floor, room checking. Trapsmiths in front, to check the rooms first. Do not go past the turn in the hall.”
Playing For Keeps (Alpha World Book 4) Page 31
