by Rick Scott
There has to be a way.
I study the patterns on the platform as they change from shape to shape. There are three lines, one red, one blue and one green. Just like the crystals that were outside when we fought the Shadow King. Coincidence? Not likely. This was still a game world after all. Stuff like that had meaning.
Sometimes all three colors make a straight line across the platform, but sometimes they turn at a right angle, going either left or right. Other times they split apart or one color goes straight across while the other two go in opposite directions. But one thing is common.
They all run from edge to edge of the platform.
I look toward a platform across from us, a couple hundred feet away and see the same thing—colors and patterns that ever change, but all leading to the edge.
Then one of the colors on our platform flashes.
Your Awareness increases by 0.7.
Skill Up! Your Awareness is now 42!
It remains illuminated, brighter than the rest. I follow where it leads and see it point to the same platform I was studying two hundred feet away. On it is the same color lit up, pointing back at us.
Your Awareness increases by 0.5.
Skill Up! Your Awareness is now 43!
Could it be?
A spark of intuition races through my mind and I grab Val Helena by the hand.
“Come with me!”
“Huh?”
“Just trust me!” I say, and take off running, praying my gut is right. “Run to the edge!”
I charge hand-in-hand with Val Helena, sprinting towards the end of the platform.
“Reece!” Val Helena cries. “There’s nothing below us on that side!”
“I know!” I say. “Just jump!”
I feel the giantess crush my hand as we hit the edge and take a leap of faith.
My heart is in my throat as my feet leave the platform and for a brief second I fear that I just made a terrible mistake. And then my vision blurs as the entire world zooms towards me at incredible speed.
Val Helena screams and we both land on solid ground again, but on the platform that was some two hundred feet away before. A wave of relief washes over me as I fall to my knees.
“Thank goodness that worked.”
“What?” Val Helena says, looking over her shoulder to where we’d just come from. “You weren’t sure?”
I shrug. “I had a hunch.”
“What did you do?”
I check the lines again. The green line we just followed stops glowing and grows dull again.
A grin spreads across my face.
“I think I just figured out how to navigate the labyrinth.”
* * *
Val Helena and I spend the next five minutes tele-leaping from platform to platform in random fashion. I’m sure there is a system to the patterns that appear on the platforms as well as some means of predicting when one of the lines will illuminate, allowing passage to an adjacent one, but right now, we just need to keep moving.
I keep an eye on both Gilly’s timer and the names of my friends to the side of my vision while shouting for them through the party chat. And then I see something that takes my breath away.
The health bars of Maxis, Rembrandt and Aiko suddenly flash into the orange at around halfway depleted. The update must be from them suddenly coming into range or something, because I hear their voices spill through the party chat as well.
“Maxis, pull hate so I can Backstab her!” Aiko yells.
“Make sure you can take it back, because I’ve got to switch stances for that!”
“30 percent! Hurry up and get this dead, mates,” Rembrandt says in his New London accent. “More are coming!”
Holy crap! “Guys, are you okay? What’s going on?”
“Ryan!” My brother shouts my real name. “Where are you?”
“With Val,” I say. “Where are you guys?”
I look around for them, but don’t see them on any of the adjacent platforms.
“We’ve got our hands full, mate!” Rembrandt says. “Use that center orb for orientation. We’re below it and to the left.”
I scan for the orb at the center, which, now closer, resembles a giant ball bearing and try to make sense of Rembrandt’s directions.
“There!” Val Helena points, one step ahead of me. “Two down!”
I follow her arm to a platform that’s two levels below us and at least one across. My friends are the size of ants and I can’t make out what’s going on exactly, but I can see the flash of Rembrandt’s pistols and hear the faint echo of their report as they sound across the distance.
“No time to wait for those lines,” Val Helena says, tightening the strap to the sleeping bag that’s holding Gilly. “We need to get to them the old-fashioned way.”
“What?”
She leaps off the platform, causing my heart to jump.
Oh geez!
I say a quick prayer and follow after her.
Wind rushes through my hair as I fall for what seems like ages. I cast Shadow Copy right before I impact with a force that makes me think I’m going to break straight through the glass.
Your shadow absorbs the attack!
Val Helena slams into the platform ahead of me, falling to her knees and losing 10% of her hit points.
“One more,” she grunts with a strain as she gets back to her feet.
We dash to the edge of the platform for a final 50-foot plunge to where I hope my friends are. I catch sight of them as I near the edge of the tile and check each of their stats as they update on my HUD.
Maxis Level 85 Karate Master
HP 1338/2392
STAM: 292/430
TP: 154/380
Rembrandt Level 85 Gunslinger
HP 1011/1247
STAM: 330/830
TP: 114/290
Aiko Level 85 Ninja
HP 1035/1497
STAM: 230/460
TP: 280/410
They’re still hanging in there. I’m amazed to see how many hit points Aiko has even in my crappy level 65 gear. The thought reminds me to check my own stats and gear.
Name: Reece
Class: Ninja
Level: 85
Strength: 6+20
Dexterity: 80+100
Agility: 80+160
Intelligence: 4
Mind: 6
Vitality: 31 +20
HP: 1732/1732
Stamina: 357/357 (+50)
TP: 261/261 (+80)
You have equipped:
Dark Shinobi Mask: +30 Shadow Magic +30 TP
Dark Shinobi Gi: +150 HP +30 Shadow Magic+30 AGL+30 Dodge
Warrior’s Tekko: +75 HP +20 AGL +20 DEX +20 STR +20 VIT
Ninja Hakama: +150 HP +30 Dodge +30 AGL
Dark Shinobi Kyahan: +75 HP +30 Shadow Magic +20 Dodge
Anju: +80 AGL +50 TP +50 Katana Skill
Zushio: +80 DEX +50 STAM +50 Enmity
[You have 4 unassigned Veteran Points]
I still have points to spend, but those will have to wait. We’ve got fighting to do. But against what, I still don’t know. We jump off again and sail through the air.
My heart rises into my throat as I see nothing to land on below!
“Val!” I cry.
“We’ll make it!”
About halfway down, a platform slowly moves beneath us, coming within range, but just barely. I cast Shadow Copy right before I hit the edge and lose my shadow as I transition into a roll.
Val Helena releases another grunt as she impacts solidly next to me, losing another 10% health.
“You okay?” I ask, pulling my kunai blades. “That was close!”
She nods, regaining her footing. “Yeah, but we made it.”
She then scans ahead of us, to where our friends are clustered at the opposite corner of the platform engaged in combat.
Val Helena makes a face. “What the heck is that thing?”
I look to see what she�
�s talking about and see a monster I’ve never seen before.
Hovering a couple feet off the ground is a winged humanoid figure that has to be about ten feet tall. It’s feminine in form with completely white skin that glows faintly blue and sparkles in the semi-twilight. Two sets of translucent wings spring from its back, but upon closer inspection they don’t seem attached to it, but rather floating just off its back and affixed by some unseen force. A mane of ice blue hair floats as if underwater, framing a face that, if not attached to a monster, would be kind of attractive. Sharp elven features come complete with a set of pointed ears and its full lips are painted cobalt blue. Where its eyes would be however, is a white bandage, giving the impression the thing is blind, but by the way it’s thrusting a crystalline halberd at my brother, I’m pretty sure it can see just fine.
I focus on it to see what it is.
Labyrinth Keeper
Level: ???
N/A
Attribute: N/A
Figures. Another partially descripted monster. I wonder for a second if I’m perhaps seeing something different than everyone else. Back when we fought the Shadow King, I saw one of the fire-throated demons from my nightmares, while everyone else was seeing some giant samurai in black armor. I still don’t know what to make of that, but I pray the same thing isn’t happening again.
“Val, do you see them fighting a big blind angel-looking thing?”
“Yeah,” she says. “Come on!”
At least that’s a relief.
Val Helena dashes ahead, drawing her battle axe and I follow behind her. My friends have the Labyrinth Keeper’s health down to 18%. My brother is tanking, parrying the monster’s quick halberd thrusts with his forearms while absorbing big AOE swipes with a cross-armed block as the angel spins with a gust of wind.
Maxis parries the attack.
Maxis retaliates for 237 damage!
Maxis parries the attack.
Maxis retaliates for 241 damage!
Labyrinth Keeper uses Halberd Swipe.
Maxis blocks the attack!
Maxis takes 137(367) damage!
I can’t help but be impressed at the sight of my big brother in action. Decked out in his distinctive red karate gi, dark shades and black scarf, he’s the epitome of cool. At least to me. We share a resemblance, even in-game, dark hair with piercing blue eyes that we get from our mom, but he has the addition of a thick goatee, partially hidden beneath his scarf.
A few feet from him, Rembrandt is sporting his black trenchcoat with tech armor beneath. He has a goatee like my brother and shades as well, only his are mirror-tinted. His bald head is covered in a sheen of sweat from either nerves or exertion that makes his deep ebony skin gleam. He peppers the angel woman from afar with his dual pistols blazing, draining its life steadily.
A gorgeous elven woman with blue hair and ninja armor then appears from nowhere, dropping from out of the sky behind the Labyrinth Keeper. Aiko. She sinks her dual kunai blades right between the angel’s four wings, then tears straight down its spine.
Aiko uses Backstab!
Aiko uses Assassinate!
Aiko successfully assassinates the Labyrinth Keeper!
Aiko defeats the Labyrinth Keeper!
The monster’s Health bar goes completely black as Aiko flips away with martial prowess, showing off both her skills and her statuesque, athletic build. The angel lets out a horrid screech and falls to the ground in a heap, its wings falling on top of it like a death shroud.
Val Helena and I reach the others just as Maxis kneels down to convert the angel’s corpse. He rests his hand on it and the thing vanishes in a puff of nano-dust.
“No time for reunions, mate!” Rembrandt reloads his pistols. “Two more of those things inbound.”
I look to where Rembrandt’s mirror shades are pointed and indeed see two more of the angel-like creatures gliding across the twilight sky towards us, apparently coming from one of the large floating icebergs in the distance.
“You guys okay?” Maxis runs to Val Helena, who greets him with a nod and a quick embrace.
“We were trying to find you,” Val Helena says.
“Looks like you succeeded, sis,” Aiko says with a grin, rebuffing herself with Shadow Haste and Shadow Copy. “Now help us kill these things. They’re tough as hell! Reece, I’ll take the one with the halberd.”
I didn’t even realize the ones coming have different weapons. When I see what the non-halberd one is wielding, I can see why Aiko picked the other. In its hands are dual scimitars that are glowing with white flames.
Great…
Aiko must catch the look on my face because she says, “What? You got the better armor, remember?”
That I did. Her armor.
I cast Shadow Haste and Shadow Tendrils, preparing myself for the battle to come.
“You solo yours,” Aiko says, buffing as well. “Everyone else focus on mine to kill it fast. We don’t want two of these things throwing AOEs around.”
Crap… this just keeps getting better.
My heart pounds in my chest in anticipation. It’s not like I haven’t faced worse things. Heck, I just defeated the Shadow King. Or whatever the heck that thing is really called. But going up against something like this without Gilly’s healing support has my guts trembling.
Gilly…I inadvertently glance at the bedroll strapped to Val Helena’s back. This is all for her. I redirect my thoughts and focus them into determination. I’ve got to do this.
I’ve got to fight hard if I’m going to save her.
I cast Shadow Copy just as the two angels come within range.
“Over here!” I scream at the one with the flaming scimitars using War Cry.
I wait just long enough to make sure it reacts to me and then perform a backflip using Retreat. I break into a Sprint to drag the monster away from her sister and the rest of my party. For a split second I marvel at how I instinctively knew to do that. It was only a week ago that I was a cripple back in Citadel, stuck mining with no chance of ever playing a combat class. And now, here I am, on the surface, a high-level ninja with legendary gear, in some world within a world, using raid tactics without needing to be told.
I think I’ve leveled up out here in more ways than one.
A screech from the angel breaks me out of my mental back-patting and I react just in time to nimbly duck under a double swipe from its scimitars. The blades are fast. Much faster than the one wielding the halberd and I wonder if it’s even the same kind of monster.
I focus on it to check.
Labyrinth Warden
Level: ???
N/A
Attribute: N/A
Yup. Warden sounds a lot tougher than Keeper.
I grit my teeth as I slash at the Labyrinth Warden, cutting into its shins with my blue buffed blades. I dance from foot to foot as it lunges with a strangely delayed attack pattern. I dodge too early and take a slash right across my throat.
Your shadow absorbs the attack!
Holy crap!
The near miss causes me to focus more. Even with 240 Agility, that thing was able to catch me off guard. I have no idea what level it is, but I need to start assuming that it’s way above mine. I pop Active Dodge to breeze through its next set of attacks, which come fast and furious. But I use the scant moment of invincibility to adjust my spacing and flank the angel from the side. I tear into its thigh with my blades, landing six lightning-fast strikes and reduce its HP by about 5%. I anticipate its retaliation and duck just as it whips about in my direction.
Labyrinth Warden misses you.
Labyrinth Warden misses you.
Labyrinth Warden misses you.
Labyrinth Warden misses you.
Good, I’m getting the hang of this.
The Labyrinth Warden then rises up and opens its mouth to reveal a set of needle-like teeth, totally shattering the illusion of beauty portrayed by its elegant face.
Labyrinth Warden readies Siren’s Call.
Uh oh…
I have no idea what that move will do, but I’m pretty sure it won’t be good. I lunge into the monster with a Charge Strike, hitting it in the lower abdomen with my kunai blades. The Stun lands, interrupting its ability. A second later a shot from Rembrandt hits it, confirming my intuition that it was about to do something very bad.
Rembrandt uses Silencing Shot!
Rembrandt hits the Labyrinth Warden for 112 damage!
The Labyrinth Warden is silenced.
“Ah, I see you had it covered, mate!” Rembrandt cracks me a grin, before returning his attention back to the Labyrinth Keeper. “Nice one.”
I take advantage of my monster’s stunned state to land more damage as well as reposition myself. I also check on my teammate’s progress on the Labyrinth Keeper. With Val Helena joining the mix, they deplete its HP with rapid speed. They finally kill it by the time I get mine to 85%.
Maxis defeats the Labyrinth Keeper!
You gain 0 experience points.
Weird… no XP. But then nothing seems normal in this place. I’m not even sure where ‘this place’ is exactly. I continue to tank as my friends join in to kill the Warden. I use War Cry to keep its attention on me as their attacks quickly deplete its health. Aiko vanishes with Shadow Cloak and then reappears to finish the monster off with a well-placed Backstab.
Aiko defeats the Labyrinth Warden!
You gain 0 experience points.
Again, nothing.
I place my hand on the angel’s unearthly white flesh to absorb it.
Do you wish to convert the corpse? [Y/N]
I hit yes and the giant angel corpse collapses into nano-dust.
I don’t get any fragments, but I do get something else.
