by Brian Simons
Swordsmanship. This skill unlocks sword fighting moves. As you gain proficiency in swordfighting, additional moves become available to unlock. (1 skill point)
Chivalry. Expend MP to increase the chances of diverting combat damage to yourself to protect the womenfolk in your party. Chivalry works only on female players and NPCs at a lower level than you. (2 skill points)
Gallantry. Knights lead by example. All allies receive +5% to Strength and Spirit in combat. This bonus increases with each level of Gallantry. This skill is passive, but is only available when you are not under a Dishonor debuff. (3 skill points)
The first investment was an easy choice. One point to unlock Superintend. Within that skill were various types of hirelings he could select:
Hired Hand. Commission a hireling to assist with non-combat work such as gathering, crafting, or carrying items for you. Must stay within a 25 foot radius to maintain oversight. Radius of effect extends with each additional level of Hired Hand. (1 skill point)
Body Guard. Enlist a hireling to assist in combat. Must stay within a 25 foot radius to maintain oversight. Radius of effect extends with each additional level of Body Guard. (2 skill points)
Messenger. Appoint a hireling to deliver a message to any individual in Travail. (3 skill points)
Daniel spent two points unlocking Body Guard so he could hire some help for their trip. He also unlocked Swordsmanship so he could see what moves he could open up for himself. One skill point gave him access to the list of Basic Swordsmanship skills.
Up-Thrust. Point your sword upward and jump into your target, adding 10% to your base attack power. (1 skill point)
Parry. Use your sword to block enemy attacks. (2 skill points)
Sword of Ploughshares. Point your sword at a foe and expend MP to prevent them from attacking. (3 skill points) Requires Swordfighting 3 or higher to unlock.
What to do with the rest of his points was an important decision, and Daniel didn’t want to make any rash choices. He closed out his menu so he could give some thought to what else to unlock. “Your Highness,” Daniel said, “may I hire two of your guards for this quest?”
“Of course,” the Regent said. “You have 700 gold. Spend it wisely.”
With a Diplomacy of 18, Daniel could only hire guards at Level 9 or lower. He chose the only two guards that fit the bill: Chauncey, at Level 9, and Ivan, at Level 8. He paid over their first day’s wages from his orange pouch, a total of 170 gold.
“Let’s show those runts who’s boss,” Chauncey said, referring to the dwarves whose mines they were about to invade. Daniel winced. This wasn’t the kind of quest he wanted to take on, but with all the bills he’d need to pay at home he didn’t see any other way. The gems that came from this quest could be sold for gold coins, which they could all transfer out into real world cash.
“Oh, and Sir Daniel_of_Manayunk,” the Regent said, “you are aware that Knights abide by an honor code?”
Daniel hadn’t given that any thought but nodded anyway. It seemed like a reasonable class limitation.
“Good. Do nothing dishonorable and you will be fine.”
The sharp clang of metal on metal drew everyone’s attention toward the south. Beyond the central fountain, beyond the narrow streets lined with NPC houses and shops, people started yelling. A loud popping and cracking sound erupted, suggesting an explosion.
“Guards!” the Regent yelled, pointing toward the commotion. All of the guards ran off except Ivan and Chauncey, both of whom now reported to Daniel.
The royal guards barely made it south of the plaza before a wave of attackers became visible. They were four feet tall at most, clothed mostly in green, and all had stark white hair. Elves.
Daniel knew they had no choice but to fight. “Sybil?” he said, inviting the Shadowsiren to lend a little support. She was already thumbing through her songbook. She took a step backward, putting Sal between her and the oncoming attackers, and began to sing. The words Abandoned Life appeared above her head.
A plague comes to steal my new lover away,
Though the fever runs hot, I promise to stay,
But when the coughing starts, her blood will spray,
So I run. And I leave her. To live another day.
She sang the looping verse over and over, slowly at first but at a slightly faster tempo each time. Each refrain added +0.5% to the team’s speed. It would take a while for the hastening effect to compound into a benefit they could really feel.
Meanwhile, Sal stood stalwart in front of Sybil, ready to protect the songstress from attacks so she could continue her song. Marco cowered behind Sybil. At his low level, he was especially vulnerable.
Alua held her hand in the air, a jeweled ring glowing green as the Regent was bathed in protective light. The tattoos that ran up her arms and across her neck started to glow with the same emerald light.
The Regent, magically protected, stood imperiously in the city’s center. He didn’t lift his sword to join the fight. His eyes were trained on Daniel, watching to see what his Knight would do.
Daniel opened his skills menu. He spent the three points it took to unlock Gallantry. This would immediately improve everyone’s attack damage and their defense to magical attacks.
>> Gallantry. All allies gain +5% Strength and +5% Spirit.
He also unlocked the Parry sword skill since he didn’t have a shield equipped. Now that he could use his sword to block attacks, Parry gave him +10 Defense. This left him with only seven skill points to invest in other skills later, but he’d worry about that then. His most pressing need was protecting the Regent.
Coral stood by his side, an arrow nocked in her bow.
The first wave of elf attackers had short swords and wooden shields, but Daniel knew better than to write them off as ill-equipped. Those shields could hail from some magic tree, or be heavily enchanted. The Regent’s guards stopped them from advancing into the plaza.
Then a small elf pushed through the line of guards and ran toward the fountain. He wore a simple green robe with brown leather pads sown onto the shoulders. He held a small wand in his outstretched hand. Daniel charged at him, expecting him to take aim at the Regent.
Instead, the elf spun on his heels and aimed back at the guards. Daniel thrust a sword through the elf’s body, but it was too late to stop his attack. With a flick of his wand he had lit the cloth under the guards’ chainmail armor on fire.
>> Elf Mage takes 326 damage. Elf Mage dies. You receive 8 XP.
The guards dropped their swords and went into a panic as their burning clothing drained their HP bars of life. This allowed four elves with swords to advance. They formed the front line, protecting two more mages behind them.
Daniel didn’t have time to Surveil the elves to find out how much HP they had. Still, if this Elf Mage was any indication, they seemed to be lower level elves. In that case, his hirelings could take care of a few of them.
“Ivan, Chauncey,” Daniel yelled, “stop the swordsmen from advancing.” They sprang into action, each taking on an Elf Warrior.
An arrow shot past Daniel’s head. Coral was taking aim at an elf swordsman, who rushed at her in retaliation. Daniel jumped in the way, knocking the elf’s blade to the side with his sword. The elf turned its attention to Daniel, swinging its sword in a wide arc toward him.
Daniel swung his sword downward and caught the elf in the leg, slicing into his exposed skin. He was wrong to give these elves the benefit of the doubt. They weren’t well equipped at all.
>> Elf Warrior takes 234 Damage.
>> Congratulations! You have improved your Swordfighting combat skill to 3. +6% damage when using a sword.
The elf dropped to one knee and let his sword hit the ground. Daniel raised his sword again, but something stopped him from bringing it back down and striking the warrior in front of him.
>> Elf Warrior takes 26 Damage.
Another elf had grabbed his blade. With his bare hands!
The warrior in
front of Daniel kicked him in the stomach. He was wearing his new iron armor. The elf didn’t do any damage to him, but he did send Daniel back a few paces. He decided to use the momentum to his advantage.
He threw himself backward and landed on the elf that had grabbed his sword. He slammed down on the elf’s body, flattening him out against the cobblestones of the courtyard. Daniel looked up and saw the Regent staring at the rooftops of the surrounding buildings, practically ignoring the fight in front of him.
The elf underneath Daniel curled his arms up around Daniel’s arms, and wrapped his legs around Daniel’s waist. Between the weight of his iron armor and the elf entangling him, he couldn’t get back to his feet. As he rolled from side to side to shake the elf loose, he saw the Regent’s yellow mage with his hand in the air. A bright white light crackled and jumped in his palm.
Then Daniel looked forward again and saw the other Elf Warrior raise his sword. What really worried Daniel though was one of the mages just behind him. He had his wand raised and had a ball of fire at the tip. He was getting ready to shoot flames at them all.
Not again, Daniel thought. His heart kicked into overdrive. The memory of burning alive coursed through every nerve. He went into an immediate panic.
Daniel rolled with all of his might and ended up on his stomach. The elf that clung to his body was on top of him now, exposed, as an Elf Warrior thrust his sword down toward Daniel. Daniel felt the sword slam into his iron armor. He didn’t take any damage. He couldn’t say the same thing for the elf on his back, who now had a short sword buried rib-deep.
Then Daniel felt the heat. It started where his skin touched his iron armor, and then spread to the rest of his body. His breathing got short. His mind went blank with fear. He wanted to run far away, but it was like he was paralyzed. And it just kept getting hotter.
5
There were too many of them. Elves with swords, elves with wands, all taking aim at her and her friends. Coral aimed an arrow at one of the Elf Warriors, but it smacked into his wooden shield and fell to the ground without sticking.
>> You missed!
She tried again. She managed to hit him on the forearm.
>> Elf Warrior takes 97 Damage.
That was a lot of damage for a limb shot, which was encouraging. Daniel was busy fighting off two elves, but he had decent armor. She was mostly worried about the mages. They were lobbing spells at Sal, whittling down his HP.
Every now and then a +14 appeared above Sal’s head. Marco was healing him, but he couldn’t keep up with the damage Sal was taking.
Coral shot an arrow at one of the mages and it pierced through his short green robe and stuck in his chest.
>> Elf Mage takes 198 Damage.
Not dead yet, but close. The mage’s HP gage was low. He raised his wand and conjured up a fireball that grew larger by the second. Coral also saw that Daniel was struggling. He was on the ground with one elf as another stood over him, poised to strike with his sword.
She pivoted and shot an arrow at the Elf Warrior above Daniel. An arrow lodged in the elf’s shoulder.
>> Elf Warrior takes 245 Damage.
He thrust his sword down toward Daniel unfazed.
In the instant it took Coral to shoot that elf, the elf mage released its fireball at Daniel. The second the flame left his wand, Coral set another arrow and released it. She wasn’t accustomed to moving so quickly in battle, but she liked it. Sybil had pulled another winner out of her songbook.
The arrow landed in the elf’s torso. A kidney shot, if Coral had to guess.
>> Elf Mage takes 298 Damage. Elf Mage dies. You receive 8 XP.
Ivan and Chauncey were still trading blows with two elves, and two more Elf Mages were lighting spells up from their wands with their eyes trained on Sal. Then the sky flashed a blinding white. Coral saw a dozen lightning bolts strike the ground in silence, each one dancing along the cobblestones until they found an elvish target.
Then the thunder came. It was a deafening roar that rumbled through the city, drowning out the anguished cries of the dying elvish fighters. By the time the noise had ceased, every elf lie dead on the ground. Apparently the Regent’s court mage had a few tricks up his yellow sleeve.
A few injured royal guards crawled toward them. Others lay motionless.
Sybil finished the last verse of her song and closed her songbook.
Coral reached down for Daniel’s hand and helped pull him to his feet. His armor was warm to the touch, but not hot.
She was about to ask why his hand was trembling when the Regent yelled out, “Where is the watcher?”
“What does that mean?” Coral asked.
“Elves always send a Tactician with an attack. To learn about their enemy and devise tactics for the next battle. He was here watching us. I know he was. The Tactician got away!” The Regent placed a hand on the short stone wall that framed the fountain, steadying himself. He balled his other hand into a fist and slammed it into the wall.
Coral had a watcher of her own that morning. Was it an Elf Tactician who had observed her fight with the Sahuagin? It made her uncomfortable to think that the elves identified her as someone of interest, someone worth spying on.
“Those elves were a suicide mission,” the Regent said through clenched teeth. “Too weak to do any real damage. The elves just wanted intel, and to level up their Tactician. We’re too late. They’re already preparing an invasion.”
The Regent’s eyes stared dead ahead as if he were searching for a military strategy in the fountain water.
“Your Highness,” Coral said, “perhaps two could play at that game.”
Harold stood and narrowed his eyes at Coral. “Speak.”
“If we went to Diardenna, we could gather some intelligence of our own,” Coral said. “With an elf in our party, it might be possible to find a way into the forest.”
In the corner of her eye, Coral could see Sybil stirring at the mention of Diardenna. She had started the game as a drow, a dark elf with a birthright quest to kill Sivona, queen of the elves. After their last big battle, Sybil reincarnated and convinced the old woman to send her back a different race. She came back as an elf, with all the same skills — and quests — she had accumulated so far. She was itching to learn more about the forest kingdom and the queen.
“You!” the Regent said, taking a long stride toward Sybil. He reached out a hand and wrapped his fingers around her neck. “I could kill you with one strike. Chop off your head and send it to your evil queen as a sign that Havenstock will not cower from this fight!”
“Your Highness,” Daniel said, stepping closer to Sybil, but making no attempt to free her from the Regent’s grasp, “Sybil helped us in the fight against Otto. She is a loyal member of our team.”
The Regent released Sybil. She put her hands up to her own throat, hiding the red marks the Regent’s fingers had left behind. “Ha, loyal! Elves are racially incapable of loyalty. At least she isn’t a dark elf. The drow are even more devious and vicious. If you insist on keeping her, then get her out of Havenstock before I change my mind and have her executed.”
“Yes, Your Highness,” Daniel said. “Shall we investigate the forest then?”
“Do it,” the Regent said. “Another quest for my diligent Knight. Your reward will depend on the quality of information you return.”
“Thank you, Your Highness,” Daniel said. He waved to the others to let them know it was time to leave. No one hesitated to leave the Regent behind.
“Might I join you?” Alua asked.
“Of course,” Daniel said. Alua had been instrumental in protecting the god of rebirth, Januar, against Otto’s attempts to kill him. “We would be honored to have you in our company.” Daniel squinted at her for an extra second to see that she was a Level 92 Medium, making her the strongest person in their group. Sybil was close behind as a Level 60 Shadowsiren, and Sal was a Level 58 Gourmand.
“Thank you,” she said. “The temple of Ze is in Diardenna,”
Alua explained. “I need to commune with her. I have tried to contact her from here, but she has not responded. We should leave immediately. If we cross the river to the west, we can trek through the Dour Scrub on our way north to the forest.”
The party of eight wound through Havenstock’s streets together. Coral walked closer to the rear of the group, near Chauncey and Ivan. Marco was in front catching up with the others and she felt out of place with him around. Last week she had been a stand-in for Marco when the team needed a fourth player for an instanced raid dungeon. Now that Marco was back she felt like an outsider again.
Chauncey muttered something to Ivan and Coral leaned back to listen in on their conversation. “I can’t believe I agreed to this,” Chauncey said.
