Stone Raiders' Return (Emerilia Book 6)

by Michael Chatfield

  “Okay, that looks like it for business. In other matters, as a guild member of the Stone Raiders, I have two things to bring the council’s attention to. First of all. The Stone Raiders Guild has created a city called Terra. They are asking if we would like to send an ambassador or representative to the city. I can’t go into details right now, but Terra will become a hub for people all over Emerilia. Second, the Stone Raiders know of a plot by Lord Esamael of Emaren, in Gudalo. He wishes to usurp King Sigaird of the Gudalo kingdom. They have set their eyes on attacking the Stone Raiders’ Guild Hall in Verlun. They wish to use the teleport pad there to assist them in moving their forces into Haugr to kill the king and allow Lord Esamael and his forces to take control of the country.” Dave’s eyes looked over them all.

  “The Stone Raiders desire to defend their guild hall, repel the attackers and then lead an assault on the rest of Lord Esamael’s forces. They wish to create a show of power, asking for those who are allied with them to support their defense of Verlun. They will carry out the assault themselves. I have a personal interest with both of these items, so if it is agreeable with you, I will give you the information and excuse myself from this conversation and your votes,” Dave said.

  “Wise choice; we will let you know when we have made a decision on these items,” Quino said, his face hard.

  Dave nodded to Quino, using his interface and the controls for the Mirror of Communication to move him to a different conference room. He waited there for a while before he got a message to rejoin the rest of the council once again.

  “We will wait for more information on this hub before putting an ambassador’s position there. For the defense of the Verlun location, we will allow the lords and ladies under the mountains to make their own decisions as the Stone Raiders are allied with the various mountains and not with the Dwarves altogether,” Quino said.

  “Thank you.” Dave looked to those around the table.

  ***

  Light smiled at her high priest in Markolm, spreading word of the coming apocalypse, of following their true god, the Lady of Light. She dismissed the vision from her view and sat back in her chair.

  Ever since she had found out that the Demons were released back onto Emerilia and that the different creatures that Bob had locked away over the centuries were going to be released, she had been appearing to her highest priests across Emerilia, telling them to have their congregation prepare for the coming battle.

  Who will stand in my way when my Angels return? A cold smile crossed her face.

  The Pantheon had not met in months. Water and Fire tended to their Creatures of Power. Bob was off across the world, never staying long enough in one location for her tracking and spying spells to lock onto him. Her expression turned sour as she thought of the Dark Lord. He had disappeared after the battle between his new Demons and old.

  Ten million Demons! He must’ve been working on them ever since the first batch disappeared. Light growled and her eyes shone brighter.

  She took a second, calming herself.

  “Well, Air is off playing around with different leaders, while Earth is trying to raise an army.” Light snorted to herself. Earth wasn’t that strong of a god, and he had no forethought. With his sprites in low numbers and now able to get Champions, he was off blessing anyone who would become his Champions.

  “Idiot. Does he not know that those POEs will cross him whenever they sense his plans not going in a direction they like?” She shook her head.

  “But my Angels, my beautiful and powerful Angels. I must thank the Dark Lord—he did show me one thing. Creatures of Power double their levels when called to be Champions by their gods. No one will be able to stop the tide of Light.” She smiled as her long delicate fingers played with a strand of her golden-blonde hair.

  “It’s time for the Players and People of Emerilia to know why they should fear a true god.”

  ***

  Esamael watched as Geswald walked into his office. The old man looked haggard from racing to Lord Esamael’s castle and up to his office.

  “You sent for me, Lord Esamael?” Geswald bowed his head slightly.

  “I have sent orders to my forces; they will begin moving. In one week, we will be ready to return this country to its rightful rulers,” Esamael said.

  “Yes, my lord. What do you need from me?”

  “Keep my people updated on the actions of the Stone Raiders. General Loughbreck will collect his various men and move toward Verlun in force. I suspect it will not take him long before he has cleared out the guild and has the teleport pad under his control. I want your people to watch and make sure nothing unforeseen happens,” Esamael said.

  “I will have my best people on it,” Geswald promised.

  “Good; soon this will all be over and Gudalo will be ours.” A hungry smile passed over Lord Esamael’s face.

  “Yes, Lord Esamael.” Geswald forced a smile, even as shivers ran down his spine.

  ***

  “Are you sure about this?” Dave asked as he and Deia sat on their deck, looking over the cliffside that their house backed onto.

  “I’m sure. I’m not going to leave my party and you all out there on your own. I’m not even showing signs of pregnancy yet and Jules said it will be fine.” Deia looked into Dave’s eyes.

  “If you die, even though you’ll respawn, the baby won’t,” Dave argued.

  “I know. I’m not going to be on the front lines. I can stay back, provide support and run if I need to,” Deia said.

  Dave sighed, knowing that there was no stopping her now. Once she had made up her mind, he just had to accept it. “Okay, but you’re wearing all of your armor and not using any of the power in it for your spells. I don’t want you getting mentally exhausted or flooding your system with Mana. We don’t know what that would do for the baby.”

  “I won’t use above my own Mana pool,” Deia agreed, nestling into his side. “Now, pass me that ice cream!”

  “Yes, babe.” Dave shook his head andpassed her a bowl of ice cream into her outstretched hands. “Aren’t you supposed to be the adult?” Dave laughed at her childish excited expression as she put a spoonful of ice cream in her mouth.

  “Yes, a cute adult.” Deia pouted and put her back to Dave, eating her ice cream.

  Dave laughed, wrapping his hands around her, and pulled her back to him as she tried to be playfully stubborn.

  “Noooo, you just want my ice cream!” She tried to wriggle out of his arms as she continued to eat the ice cream.

  “I won’t steal your ice cream.” Dave chuckled.

  “Promise?” Deia said, as if she were some five-year-old.

  “Pinkie swear.” Dave held up his pinkie.

  “Okay!” Deia shook his pinkie and got close to him.

  He snorted, putting the furs around her to make sure she was completely covered against the cold.

  One week to go until Esamael’s forces reach Verlun.

  The Stone Raiders leadership weren’t saying anything yet, waiting until there were two days before telling the rest of the guild and just a day before they contacted their allies to ask for help.

  They didn’t mean to just show Emerilia that they were not going to just sit back and let the POEs screw with them. They were going to show Emerilia that they were not alone; they had allies and that they stood together against anyone who might attack them.

  The Stone Raiders and their new recruits had been busy at increasing their spells, skills, and stats.

  Dave opened up his character sheet, checking his stats.

  With three days, I should be over the worst drawbacks of upping my stats.

  “Should move 40 to Agility and 30 to Intelligence; don’t want to be out for a few days recovering,” Dave muttered as he input the new stats into his character sheet.

  Character Sheet

  Name:

  David Grahslagg

  Gender:

  Male

  Level:

  202

&nbs
p; Class:

  Dwarven Master Smith, Friend of the Grey God, Bleeder, Librarian, Aleph Engineer, Weapons Master, Champion Slayer, Skill Creator, Mine Manager, Master Summoner

  Race:

  Human/Dwarf

  Alignment:

  Chaotic Neutral

  Unspent points: 106

  Health:

  29,300

  Regen:

  15.86 /s

  Mana:

  11,630

  Regen:

  35.55 /s

  Stamina:

  3,540

  Regen:

  28.25 /s

  Vitality:

  293

  Endurance:

  793

  Intelligence:

  1,163

  Willpower:

  711

  Strength:

  354

  Agility:

  565

  Pick a new class

  Upon reaching level 200, you may pick one more class or change your old classes.

  “Nearly at a hundred stat points. Once these run out, my classes are just going to assign stat points. I’m probably reaching the end of how I can alter my stats through just gaining levels.” Dave frowned. This was the power of classes. If he had classes that weren’t related to the way he played, then his stats would be skewed in a way to not follow his strengths.

  Dave went through the various classes, taking his time. Getting to level 300 to pick his next class could take years.

  “Okay, summoning master was meant for me to get a better idea of teleportation. It helped me out some, but I think now that it would be of more use for me to learn more about gravity, time, physics, and all that pesky extra stuff that comes with teleportation. So, good-bye summoning master.” Dave removed the class, so he could select another. Looking through the extensive list of classes left behind, he moved to the more advanced subjects.

  “Master of Space and Time, Master of Gravitational Anomalies—I’ll take that.” Dave switched out his new classes.

  “Wow, okay, ouch.” Dave’s mind raced with new knowledge. Prompts filled his vision and flashed in his notification bar as he held his head between his hands. Around Dave, the room seemed to distort and change. Cracks formed in the ground that he lay on.

  He let out a cry as power wracked through his body. His mind worked dozens of different ideas at the same time, coming together in experiments that he was trying. With his increased Intelligence and the new classes, his mind was making connections with his knowledge and the newly acquired classes.

  Stuck in an emotional state, he didn’t have complete control over his actions. He had found answers! He had found something that could alter his spells and formations, turn them from just theoretical to possible.

  Classes could be earned in two ways: one by completing the pre-requisites for the class and then being above level 10. The second was to reach one of the levels where classes were awarded and purchase them.

  When someone was rewarded with a class or they bought it, there was an influx of knowledge. The Jukal were basically using an AI to teach a person through the nanites in their bodies.

  Someone could buy a class or switch it out only when they had reached level 10, 50, 100, 200, 300, and every 100 level after that. If someone bought a class, then they would have to wait until the next class level before changing out. If they were to dismiss a class, then all of the stats and benefits would disappear. They would naturally keep the experience that they had gained through improving their class level; they would also keep the knowledge they gained.

  Raising levels was not an easy task, so although someone could change out all of their classes every time and gain a new one, it was of limited use. Their overall stat increase was going to be low; they would be a jack-of-all-trades but the master of none.

  Some classes not only gave new stats and bonuses when they increased, they gave knowledge.

  Both the Master of Space and Time as well as Master of Gravitational Anomalies gave more knowledge upon the completion of a class level. The Jukal gave out a decent amount of information but it wasn’t close to the level of knowledge that they themselves had on various subjects.

  However, if someone was able to combine just the right classes with their own knowledge and high Intelligence, then it was quite possible to reach the level of Jukal knowledge on certain subjects.

  “Dave! Dave!” Deia called out as Dave fell from the couch with his head in his hands, screaming in pain from the new knowledge. It was as if he had stayed up for months studying one subject. And the power—the power was something else.

  Dave started laughing into the ground as he flexed his Mana and physical muscles. To the people of Cliff-Hill, a chill ran down their spines.

  Dave was currently absorbing the information from both of these classes. Much like when he had destroyed Magical Circuits in the past, the information flooding his mind gave him a sort of rush. The world seemed to fade away, time meaning nothing as he combined the knowledge he gained withthe knowledge he knew. His high Intelligence linked it together as he quickly advanced his knowledge and passed through the second barrier of the classes with no signs of slowing down.

  ***

  Bob arrived in a flash of light, looking from Deia to Dave. He didn’t say anything. Another flash of magic enveloped them as they appeared in Dave’s lab.

  Parts of the deck rained around them. Bob didn’t have the time to refine his spell.

  “What’s happening?” Tears streamed down Deia’s face.

  “I don’t know.” Bob grabbed Dave. With a strength that belied his small stature, he jumped up to a different level. Deia followed as Bob threw Dave into the room.

  Deia followed, using just her Strength and Agility.

  Once Dave was on the ground, distortions started to fill the room. Runed objects appeared from thin air. The hazy air messed with both Bob and Deia’s senses as they watched the various forming items. Some would appear for just a few seconds, while others for whole minutes.

  The entire time, Dave held his head, in clear pain from whatever changes he was undergoing.

  “Bob, what’s going on?” Deia asked.

  “I don’t know. What was he doing before he collapsed?”

  “He was putting some stat points into his character sheet. He just got his new class and was switching out summoning for space and time and another class for gravitational anomalies!” Deia said, not taking her eyes off Dave.

  “I told him that he should hold off on that crap, but even I didn’t think that this would happen.”

  Dave’s armor appeared over him, covering Dave’s face under his hood.

  “What is this?” Deia demanded.

  “I think he had some kind of breakthrough. What it means, I don’t even know. His high Intelligence makes him vulnerable to impulses and influxes of information. When he gained the new classes, he must’ve got a rush of information? Maybe, as he started acquiring more knowledge, he started figuring out more and more. He has a lot of knowledge inside that mind of his. With those stats and the right starting point, it was like lighting a gasoline-covered fire. The match was the new classes’ influx of knowledge. Now, his mind is taking on a path. He must not want to leave. I’ve had a few rushes like it and the more curious you are, the harder it is to get out of a stat binge. It can take hours or days before you fully recover. I don’t know what he’s learning, but I know he will be fine. Of that, I can promise,” Bob said with a kind smile.

  “Okay.” Deia’s hands unconsciously moved for her stomach. Her eyes searched the room. “Where are we?” She took in the sight of the laboratory.

  “Oh, uh, I guess he wanted to wait until the big reveal before showing you this place. We call it the laboratory, though the nickname is Pandora’s Box.” Bob smiled.

  “What have you been doing in here?” Deia looked at the different laboratories and intricate runes around the room.

  “Things that might change the very future of Emerilia.” Bob grinn
ed.

  Chapter 18: Into Motion

  General Loughbreck certainly looked like a war general on his large war cat.

  Lucy yawned as the general wound down his little speech.

  “We march for Verlun! To claim back what is rightfully ours!” The general was being broadcasted to all of the cities under his control through the soldiers’ interfaces.

  Some of the armies were already on the move, leaving their cities that were sealing up behind them while gathering more forces that had been hiding in the forests.

  They would gather before reaching Verlun in three days.

  Lucy rubbed her eyes and opened up a private message. She attached a number of files, sending it, and opened up the guild’s forums. A cold smile appeared on her face as she typed out a message and posted it.

  Within seconds, there were replies on the thread. All across Emerilia, Stone Raiders were moving to the closest teleport pads.

  They left the wilderness, or their smithies, their mage’s colleges and fighting arenas. Finished off their dungeons and started moving.

  The Stone Raiders’ command had been sent. The guild was gathering.

  ***

  Sigaird looked up from his dinner, checking out the message he had received. Not many got his personal messaging information. He nearly choked on his wine as he read the contents of the letter.

  “Are you all right?” One of the guards moved to help the king.

  “Seal the cities! Call the lords and ladies loyal to the crown!” Sigaird said, still coughing while he left his table, his meal forgotten as he headed for his offices.