Trial by Fire: A LitRPG Dragonrider Adventure (Archemi Online Chronicles Book 2)

by James Osiris Baldwin

  Ignas bowed his head. “Indeed. I was… somewhat taken aback by Kanzo’s use of explosives and mana, to be quite frank with you. I knew Petko. He was a good man.”

  Ebisa uttered a testy sigh. “Kanzo has mechanical scorpions that can deliver a fatal sting on a man’s ankle. He blew up the auction purely to make a scene. You see what I mean about his unrelenting narcissism.”

  “Yeah, I think I do.” I pulled the quest back into focus and hit Yes. “For better or worse, I’m in.”

  The elder Corvinus looked over us both, then let out a tense breath. “Good. You have my word, and I assure you it means a great deal more than Andrik’s.”

  Chapter 37

  “How do you feel?” Suri said to me, as the door to the tavern slammed behind us. “About betting on Ignas, that is?”

  “There’s two things I hate more than anything else,” I replied. “Liars and bullies. Ignas doesn’t have clean hands, but if what he told us is the truth, then Andrik needs a good drop-kicking. Plus, you know how Ignas was talking about him being a part of some cult?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Well, this is complicated, but bear with me. So, you know that global notification we had yesterday morning? A guy named Baldr Hyland becoming the Grand High Poobah in Ilia?”

  “Yeah? What about it?”

  “Baldr is Starborn, and he once murdered me in cold blood over that broken spear of mine,” I replied. “He’s also probably possessed by the ghost of a fucked-up Architect. The how and why isn’t stuff I want to discuss out here… but the short version is that Architect, Ororgael, is a bad seed. He’s also the Architect at the center of a cult, and he’s been known to meddle in world affairs.”

  “Like empowering a weak-willed prince to usurp the throne from someone who would stand up him?” Suri nodded slowly. “Possible. Kind of a stretch, though. It’s all circumstantial. He could be in a cult to Rusolka on the side, or a demon. We don’t know.”

  We exited the gate, and I smiled when I spotted Karalti at the iron lattice table. She was sitting upright on her haunches, her tail lashing stiffly behind her as she watched one of the Meewfolk rogues dexterously switch a series of three cups around and around. When he stopped, he spread his fingers.

  “Which cup do you think the die is under, oh ssscaly one?” He asked her. “One, two, three?”

  Karalti’s eyes narrowed. “Inside your cheek.”

  The Meewfolk’s ears flattened back. He put a palm against his chest, clearly affronted, but leaned away in alarm as Karalti ducked her head down and put her snout in close.

  “Cheeeeeek.” She let her jaws part, showing him two rows of fire-polished, backswept fangs.

  The other guards laughed as the Meewfolk spat the die he’d palmed from the shell game onto the table. Karalti giggled.

  “What happened to watching Cutthroat?” I pointed over at the hookwing. She was lurking near a crooked tenement building on the other side of the cul-de-sac, growling as she paced back and forth along the edge of the weeds that grew beside the wall. Her head was snaking constantly, nose darting in and out of the grass. The feathers of her chest and winglets were slaked to her body with filthy city mud.

  “Oh, she’s fine. She’s been hunting rats all day,” Karalti said. She bobbed her head to the bouncers and got to her feet, shaking herself out in a leathery rustle of wings. “She’s too big to catch them, but that doesn’t stop her from trying.”

  “Cutthroat! Come on!” Suri called out to her.

  Cutthroat stood tall and turned her head, quorking in her throat when she saw who was calling her. She was about to trot over when there was a rustle in the grass. She spun back around, chomping her jaws from side to side as she charged into the weeds… and ran herself right into the side of the building with a dull thump. Dirt and chips of brick and stone came raining down.

  “Oi! Get over here!” Suri stalked over as the cross-eyed hookwing shook her head and smacked her teeth together. When Suri gathered her reins, Cutthroat turned her head and nipped at her arm – then squawked when Suri slapped her muzzle away. “Oh no you don’t. You bite me, and you’re gonna regret it for the rest of your life, you bloody great chook.”

  “See? They’re a good match!” Karalti lashed her tail happily as I got on board, watching Suri rant on as she climbed up into the saddle. “All Suri has to do is dance and puke for her–”

  “Don’t,” I said. “Just let that train of thought stay at the station, thanks.”

  We rode out of the cul-de-sac, and only once we were clear of Ignas’ hideout did I remember something – Rin. I whistled to Suri. “Hey – Rin sent me mail. Can you keep an eye out for surprise assassins?”

  “Sure.” Suri jerked her chin up in acknowledgement.

  Stress built in my chest as I went to my mail and opened up the message from Rin.

  “Hi Hector.” The window narrated the letter to me in Rin’s voice. “I’m okay thanks to your warning. I got out through the Cellars (>__<).Can I trust you with something? Best regards, Rin.”

  I couldn’t help but smile at Rin’s old-fashioned formality. “Hi Rin - Sorry for the delay: we were in a meeting. And sure.”

  There was a few minutes pause while we slogged our way back toward the canal bridge. Just when I thought she’d backed out, I got a new alert.

  “Don’t tell anyone yet, but I’m in contact with Kanzo,” Rin messaged. “But after what happened at Kobayaz, I’m having second thoughts. What he did was really messed up and our people, the Mercurions, are suffering in the Tanners' District. He keeps trying to justify it, so… I’m willing to cooperate and have him arrested, okay? Can we meet somewhere public? I’m desperate to talk to someone who isn’t crazy (;__;).”

  I winced. Perfect fucking timing. “We shouldn’t meet. P.M is safer. I don’t know if we’re being followed, but there’s a good chance that Andrik is following us somehow. Look, Rin… our quest has changed a lot. I’m willing to talk to you about it, but I don’t think we should meet face to face. Let me and Suri find somewhere safe to settle in, and we can set up a party chat.”

  “I know it’s a risk, but I’m lonely and scared, and I really just want to be around some people I know. I think Kanzo might do something even more terrible. He’s crazy, Hector. I need to be somewhere else. I can be discreet, I swear. Maybe we can go to lunch? I don’t eat any more, but… you know. I still think about food. It would be nice to see some people eat |(;A;)/”

  I sighed. Fuck. There was no mistaking the terror and fatigue in Rin’s voice. “Okay. Give us fifteen minutes or so. We’ll meet you in the Main Square, location TBD. I’ll make coordinates once we settle in.”

  She sent me back a heart emote. Aww.

  We were just passing out of the gate leading into the Meewfolk ghetto. I tapped Karalti’s shoulder, steering her in closer to Cutthroat and Suri. “Hey, Suri - would you like to go out to lunch with me?”

  “What? She asked, voice lifting with surprise. “Now?”

  Karalti tensed under my hands.

  “Yeah. As in, let’s go eat a meal and meet up with Rin. She’s okay, and she found Kanzo. I told her we’d RV in the Main Square, where she can blend in with the few Mercurions who are outside of the Tanners' District.”

  “Oh. Right.” Suri flushed, turning her face away from me. “Sure. Where do you want to go?”

  Even I wasn’t dense enough to miss Suri’s disappointment.

  “It uh... I mean, I’m not asking you out just so we can talk to Rin,” I said quickly, tripping over every other word. “I mean, I also just want to take you out to lunch for you, if you’d like to go out with me? For lunch. You know. Food. For two humans... you know, hanging out and talking about royal conspiracies together?”

  Slowly, Suri nodded. “You know, actually, I would like that.”

  Wait. She said yes? I couldn’t believe my ears. But was this a yes-yes or an ‘okay’-yes? Regardless, it was like one of those corny movie moments where the sky opens up with sunbeams an
d a chorus of angels. My back broke out into a nervous sweat. It was weird – I hadn’t felt like this around Rutha.

  “Great! What uh, what food do you like to eat?” I stammered.

  “I know a good kebab place off Osteria Utca. Like, really good.” Suri chuckled under her breath. “Cum-your-brains-out good.”

  “I thought you said sharing food was gross,” Karalti grumbled.

  “We’re not throwing up on each other, Karalti. We’re having lunch.” I thought back. “Fuck. She’s flirting with me. What do I do now?”

  “You tell her that Karalti is the most beautiful queen in the world and you don’t need anyone else. Just Karalti.”

  I sighed and rolled my eyes. “We’ve been over this. I thought you were okay with the human-human relationship need?”

  Suri arched her eyebrows, then frowned in hurt confusion. “What? You don’t like kebab?”

  Oh fuck. “No! No way, I love kebab!” I squeaked. “Karalti just asked me a question, sorry. Do they have beer at this place?”

  “’Course they do. Every restaurant here has beer.”

  “Thank god for that.” I patted Karalti on the neck. “Come on, Tidbit. Try and remember what we talked about last night,” I said to her.

  Karalti began to mutter under her breath like a pissed-off parrot, which sounded remarkably similar to a demon talking through an old radio.

  We broke out of the squalor of Cat Alley and into the traffic leading into the Market District. It was going on one p.m, the busiest time of day, and the Main Square was packed with people enjoying the clear hot weather. Hawkers hawking, farmers selling produce off cats. Jugglers were performing for knots of people while pickpockets prowled. People streamed in and out of the great market, the church, the many small stores clustered around the fountain sculpture of Taltos in the middle of the plaza.

  “Suri, do you know the address of the kebab joint?”

  “Grazi Utca 32.”

  I quickly relayed our destination to Rin, and she sent me a thumbs up. Once that was taken care of, I returned my attention to Suri.

  “By the way,” I asked. “What do you think of this whole thing with Ignas?” I asked. “You never really said.”

  “He’s alright. I like him more than Andrik,” she replied. “Bastard tried to cop a feel at the auction house.”

  “He what?”

  She made a scooping motion with her hand. “Whoopsie, right up under my ass. If he wasn’t the King, I’d have decked him.”

  If I hadn’t disliked Andrik before, I definitely did now. It was kind of weird to feel protective of an ex-pit-fighter Berserker with seventeen more Strength points and four levels on me, but I did. “If he tries it again, I guess I’m going to end up getting staked, but I promise you the Volod won’t have any teeth left.”

  She smirked, riding out into the town square. “Cute.”

  I scoffed. “Cute? In case you hadn’t noticed, Suri, I am an A-grade cut of man-beef, hewn from the plump loins of an enormous bull with really big... uh... horns.”

  Karalti chuffed, rustling her wings in agitation. “More like an A-grade load of bullshit.”

  Suri’s eyes danced. “Horns, huh? Plural?”

  “Yeah, and like, I totally don’t mean to boast but, in addition to having at least two dicks, I have a green belt in Taekwondo.” I put on my best dumb Chad voice for that one, and Suri laughed. But it was the last straw for Karalti.

  “Mine!” The dragon snorted a thin stream of fire from her nostrils as she broke into a run. “Mine, mine, MINE!”

  I nearly fell head over ass, because I’d been too busy acting like a peacock and wasn’t hanging onto the saddle. I caught it just in time, bouncing and flapping around until I caught both grips and got my knees down.

  “Karalti! Why!?” I called to her as she barreled into the Main Square. People jumped out of her way with yelps and screams. “We had such a great time last night - I thought we’d sorted this out!”

  “I’ll show you why! She can never do what I can do! Never!” Karalti roared, a sound that boomed out across the entire market, and beat her wings stiffly by her sides as she built up speed. She was headed straight toward the great big fountain in the center of the plaza.

  “Karalti! Stop! Bad dragon!” I got my feet into the stirrups just in time as she flung her wings open, sending people and crowds of pigeons running to either side, and kicked herself into the air.

  She had barely gotten her wings under her when the entire fucking fountain exploded.

  Chapter 38

  The blast swallowed us like an open mouth, turning the world to noise and fire. The explosion blew Karalti out of the air and flung her away like a ragdoll. I lost my grip on the saddle, vaguely aware of spinning, falling, and then impacting the unforgiving ground.

  When I regains consciousness, I couldn’t see. My eyes were gummy with blood and dirt, and my legs were numb. That wasn’t good. I swiped my wrist over my face, rubbing the dust away. When my vision cleared, I thought – for one terrified moment – that I’d somehow been ejected from Archemi and back into the real world, the Total War, and that I had woken up in the ruins of a building devastated by a nuclear explosion. But then I saw the broken body of a dragon sprawled in the wreckage of human bodies and market stands.

  “No! Karalti!” I tried to get up, and my arm and leg just kind of folded underneath me, bending in places they weren’t supposed to bend. It hurt, but the pain was distant, pushed away by raw panic as I dragged myself over to Karalti’s side. Notifications were streaming in about both of us.

  [Karalti is in a critical condition! You must restore HP equal to one quarter of her total HP! HP: 10/949]

  [You have sustained Internal Bleeding! 3 HP per second damage until healing is applied!]

  [You have a broken arm! You cannot use two-handed weapons or physical skills until healing is applied!]

  [You have a broken leg! 50% movement speed until healing is applied!]

  [Karalti’s wings are broken! Karalti is suffering internal bleeding!]

  [You are in a critical condition! You must restore-]

  “I fucking know already!” Frantic, I raided my Inventory for potions and dragged myself up to Karalti’s head. She was down to 7 HP by the time I reached her. The explosion had erupted almost directly underneath her, and her chest and abdomen were pierced by shards of wood and stone. She was unconscious, and trickle of blue blood ran from the corner of her mouth as I forced her jaws apart, uncorked a potion, and poured it down her throat. Then another, and another. She had 949 HP, which meant I had to restore at least 238 points to stop her from dying. I only had three Moss Tinctures and no Bonebreak Poultices – healing a total of 210 HP.

  As I drained the potions into her, a voice began speaking from all directions at once, like a loudspeaker.

  “Here me, citizens of Taltos!” Kanzo’s voice rang out sharply and clearly across the plaza. “I am the one you call the Slayer, a weapon in the hands of corrupt and unjust terrorists! Well - no longer! I will not be used by you sang’hi bastards anymore! Whoever among you took my daughter from me, know this! For every day onward that my people are held captive in the Tanners' District and my child is held captive by the so-called ‘King of Cats’, I will detonate a bomb - just like this one - in locations around Taltos!”

  Karalti moaned, drawing a ragged breath. I used my good arm to pull pieces of shrapnel out of her, and was confused when two pairs of arms reached past me to start helping: slim silver hands, and gauntleted ones.

  “Here. Drink.” Suri crouched beside me, holding a potion bottle to my lips. I shook my head.

  “G-give it to Karalti,” I said. “She’s dying–”

  “YOU’RE dying,” Suri snapped. “Drink the fucking potion.”

  While we argued, Kanzo’s voice continued to rant on over the sounds of fighting and screaming. “Heed my words, King of Vlachia, King of Cats, whoever you are - none of you shall know peace until my child is free! You will be torm
ented as I am tormented! You will suffer as my people are suffering! You think to oppress me?! I am Tlaxi’ca, and while I would choose peace, I was bred for war!”

  “I respawn. I d-don’t know if she d-does. Give to her. Please,” I rasped.

  “Christ.” Suri went to the dragon, who was starting to struggle and moan on the ground, and tipped the potion down her neck. Karalti swallowed weakly, then shuddered and opened one eye.

  “Some of the bodies are Stranging! Help!” I heard Rin shout.

  Kanzo’s message was on repeat, but the sound faded out as my hearing began to fade. My vision blurred, darkening as the edge of my HUD throbbed red. Then Suri’s arm snaked around my back, and I breathed in her deep honey and sandlewood scent as she propped me up.

  “Here. Last one.” Suri touched my lips with another glass vial, and the herbal smell of a Moss Tincture wafted to my nose.

  I swallowed, and then shivered as my HP jumped and the ache of broken bones receded. I felt the disjointed edges of the breaks in my arms and legs realign and then seal. As Suri lay me down against Karalti’s flank, the world came back into focus – the sounds of battle, the moaning of mana-animated undead, shouting, and the sound of steel striking stone.

  I groaned. “The fuck is going on?”

  “Zombies. The Volod’s soldiers are coming to back us up. Sit tight.” Suri stood, pulling her greatsword from her back, and then ran off into the fray.

  Zombies? I wasn’t staying in place if there were zombies running around. Gritting my teeth, I reached out to my dragon as she stirred on the ground. “You alive, girl?”

  “Yeah. Kind of.” Karalti’s telepathic voice was strained. “I’m sorry. This is my fault.”

  “There’s only one person whose fault this is, and that’s Kanzo.” Anger gave me strength, and I rolled to hands and knees. “I don’t care if Andrik and Ignas hate my guts for the rest of eternity – I’m going to pull that self-absorbed motherfucker’s heart out through his asshole.”