Bishop leaned his head back to view the next row of abilities, unable to stop smiling as he glossed over them all. The Level 60 included a chance to have Camouflage, Voiceless, or Darkness. The last was intriguing; blinding his enemy for ten seconds was never a bad thing. The next row was even more interesting and he mouthed over the descriptions of each one.
Hunter’s Rage: All AOE deals extra 30% damage, but increases mana cost.
Distraction Shot: Distracts target for five seconds.
Armor Melt: Turns penetrating shot into an acid shot that deals consistent damage to target, leaving a poison on their armor even after out of combat.
“Damn, I could’ve used that one a while ago,” he murmured, and he moved on to the last row and the level 100 Talents.
Demon Bombard: Calls a demon ally to attack for ten seconds.
Inner Rage: Converts mana to rage for 3 minutes.
Assassin’s Suicide: Kills everything within range instantly, including the player who shot the arrow.
“Huh, a hefty price to pay, but possibly worth it.” He had to hand it to Dennis. These were some interesting abilities. If he was looking to drag people into this game, Bishop had no doubt he would be able to do so once potential players saw these Talent and spec trees.
Finished with his selection, Bishop exited the room and glanced around. No one else was finished yet, so he found a spot to sit by the forges and wait for the others. A few players crafted items and the sound of hammers tinking against ore and anvils was soothing. He rested his head back against the wall, the heat from the forges comfortably warm; at least in game, he couldn’t sweat sitting so close to so much heat.
“If you fall in the fire, I’m not going to pull you out,” a woman said.
Bishop opened an eye and squinted at the elf staring back at him. “Promise I won’t.”
“Says the man who’s sleeping next to the forges.” She studied him with intense eyes and a smirk playing on her lips. “I haven’t seen you around this Crafting Hall before. Just get to Hillside?”
“No, no I’ve been here with my guild,” he told her, watching as she set ore on an anvil nearby. “Don’t spend much time crafting is all. I’m more of a go out and kill things kind of player. Saving the world, all of that jazz.”
All of that jazz? What the hell is wrong with you? Is this you trying to flirt, seriously?
Bishop shifted on his crate and cleared his throat. “You come here often?”
Wow, you are a complete and utter idiot. Good job.
The elf burst out laughing, sweeping her long blue-black hair behind a leather headband, and she slipped a heavy leather apron over her gear. “Actually I do. I’m more of a crafter than a killer,” she purred with a wink and they both laughed.
He liked the sound of her laugh and the way her hands moved effortlessly as she arranged her ore and materials on the anvil. Hammer in hand, she set to work. The materials flattened out, and she picked them up with the tongs which she shoved into the hot coals. Bishop found himself watching her work, moving in a sort of graceful dance.
“Why are you here?” she asked, not even breaking the rhythm of her hammering as she spoke. “If you don’t mind me asking.”
“Hit level twenty today,” he explained. “We’re all setting up our Talents and checking out the Tiers for our specs.” He spotted her level. “I see you must have done the same.”
“Eh, I’ll get there.”
“You’ll get there? Don’t you want to improve your character’s stats?”
She smiled and tossed the ore now taking on the shape of a dagger back into the coals. “I think I have my priorities in order, don’t you worry about that.”
“Sorry, if I uh, if I ticked you off.”
“Nope, I know why most people are here. And I have my own reasons. I’m wondering if you know why you’re here, Bishop,” she said, and she set the dagger on the anvil for finishing touches. “Do you know?”
“It’s a long story,” he admitted.
“I think it’s not,” she argued. “But that’s for you to figure out.” He started to stand thinking she might want to be left alone, but she stopped him when she said, “You can stay, really, I don’t mind the company.”
“No?”
“No, I’m not good at making friends,” she added in an undertone, and he grinned.
“I know the feeling,” he said, and he sat right back down on his crate to watch.
***
Jimmy stared at the wall before him, his jaw slack, and his heart racing. He knew picking the Exorcist spec would be cool, but he had no idea it would be this intense. “Good bye Healer, hello full DPS,” he whispered to himself.
His trainer had left him alone a while ago, but he was too excited to move for a few minutes. He liked taking it all in stride.
After a while, he finally decided to move his feet forward so he could check what all his skills could morph into. He usually stuck with healing, but doing DPS with this type of damage was too interesting to pass up.
“Alright then, guess we’ll start at the top,” he said, and he selected his first ability, Soul Drain. Currently, it drained the soul of the target for 50 damage per 3 seconds and lasted for a total of 9 seconds unless he was interrupted.
Tier 2 Soul Drain: Increase damage to 75, but the mana cost is greater, OR, Gives back health from drain to player.
Tier 3 Soul Drain: Does damage to all targets marked with a dot, OR, can grant health to friendly players.
“Not bad, not bad at all. That would definitely come in handy,” he mused, thinking of all the times Bishop or Giles found themselves in trouble. He moved on to the next skill, Holy Light, which for the moment dealt a measly 300 damage and had a long cooldown. “Tier 2 can increase damage done to six hundred. Nice,” he whispered, “or it uses fifty percent less mana. Tier 3, what do you do? You can either reduce cooldown by one minute, or regenerate health for each successful enemy killed. Huh, that wouldn’t be a bad idea since I’m no longer a healer.”
There were still a few skills he had access to which would grant him back some health, but not as many if he had decided to stick with the Holy Guardian spec instead of turning to the Exorcist one. These first few abilities weren’t the ones he was really interested in. Life Absorb was great, dealing out hefty damage by stealing health, and the morphed versions of it only made it better, increasing the life drain he could steal while also dealing magic damage.
But what Jimmy was really curious to see was the Exorcism ability he and the others used in Hillside during the attack. He chewed his lip as he selected that skill and read about the Tier 2 and 3 changes.
Tier 2 Exorcism: Turns demon scourge into disease that spreads to nearby targets, OR, Use on self to draw out feared or poison de-buffs.
Tier 3 Exorcism: Mind control of demon for 10 seconds, but mana cost is 50% more, OR, Use demon to possess self and double all stats for 10 seconds at 50% health cost.
“Geez,” he whispered. “That’s crazy! I think I want that one.” Having double stats for ten seconds would boost his mana and allow him to full on obliterate whoever was in his way, as long as he didn’t die in the process.
He made a note to make sure he focused on that ability first when it came time to add demon shards to his Spec tree. The next two also drew him in and he selected Silent Mind, the skill that allowed him to interrupt and silence a magic caster by casting a ward over them that lasted five seconds.
Tier 2 Silent Mind: Ward increases range by ten yards, OR, Deals out magic damage.
Tier 3 Silent Mind: Turns to AOE and doubles mana cost, OR, AOE with no mana increase but lasts only 3 seconds instead of 5.
“Hmm, that doesn’t sound too exciting.” He moved right on to the last one. But when he selected the Shadow Summoner, a warning appeared beside it, one he had not seen yet. Maybe because he hadn’t had a chance to use this skill yet, but as he read through it, his eyes widened. “Wait, what?”
To use Shadow Summoner is to
put your very soul at risk for turning towards the darkness you use to do your bidding. After so many uses of this ability, you must purify your spirit at the nearest monastery or holy ground using specific holy oils granted to you by your trainer. If you do not, you may in fact turn into the very beings you summon.
“I’m glad I hadn’t used this yet,” he muttered. “Purify my spirit. Dennis did decide to make this different than any other game.”
At the moment, the skill gave him the ability to summon a demon to his side, writhed in shadows. He only tested it once against a training dummy but, the mana cost was so great, he hadn’t found it worthwhile to use. As he read over how the ability could morph, however, he realized he would have to add it to his arsenal.
Tier 2 Shadow Summoner: Reduce Mana cost by 20%, OR, reduce cooldown by 2 minutes.
Tier 3 Shadow Summoner: Turns Shadow Demon into Dragon dealing fire damage, OR, Turns Shadow Demon into an Ice Beast dealing frost damage.
“A dragon,” he whispered with glee. “I get a dragon!”
Jimmy danced around, not caring since no one was around to see him, and he made a mental note to pick up as many purifying oils as he could. He had a feeling he would be using Shadow Summoner many, many times in the future, and placing most of his demon shards in that ability and his Exorcism one. He skipped over to the Talents, humming as he went, and stared up at the wall. The level 20 Talents were lit up for him to choose.
The first would give him an increase in mana for each piece of light armor he wore. The second allowed him to use a staff made of iron, which could potentially increase his damage. The last would give him a buff to increase his shadow—what he used to power such abilities as his Shadow Summoner and Exorcism skills. The warriors got rage, Jimmy got shadow power. He selected it without thinking twice and barely glossed over what came next. Level 40 was too far away for him to focus on. He was too excited anyway to share his upcoming abilities with Maverick and Bishop to stay in that room alone any longer. He rushed out, stopping by his trainer first to buy a hundred oils for purification, and raced on to find Bishop sitting by the forges.
Jimmy slid to a stop when he saw the gorgeous elf Bishop was speaking to. Since they had started the game together, Jimmy only ever saw Bishop smile a few times. Talking to that player, though, the guild’s leader was grinning from ear to ear.
“Who’s she?” Maverick asked from behind him, causing Jimmy to jump with a yelp. “You’re ridiculous, you know that?” she teased.
He shrugged and draped his arm over her shoulders. “Isn’t that why you’re drawn to me?”
“Sure, we’ll go with that. So, do we know her?”
“Calista? No, at least I don’t. Maybe Bishop bumped into her before?” Jimmy offered. “Not that it matters. Can’t see a guild symbol by her name.”
“Hmm, perhaps we should recruit her,” Maverick mused. “If you’re going to go full DPS, we’re going to need another healer, or another tank to help pick up the slack.”
Jimmy liked the idea of another healer in their group, just in case something happened to Benji or the LongBeards weren’t around to back them up. “Want to hear about my specs?” he asked, unable to hold off much longer.
Maverick beamed. “Only if I can tell you about mine.”
“You can always tell me about yours,” he told her, and he winked.
She shoved him playfully and they chatted about their new abilities and Talents. Maverick was stoked to see Jimmy’s Shadow Summoner, but told him she worried about him forgetting to purify his spirit often enough.
“If you go dark side, I will never forgive you,” she warned.
“I’ll just drag you with me. We could be the baddies. It’d be fun.”
“Who’s going to be the baddies?” Bishop asked, strolling over to them.
Jimmy nudged Maverick and she shushed him. “Well now, don’t you look like the happiest man in the world? Who was that you were talking to?”
Bishop chuckled as he turned to glance back at Calista, crafting at one of the clothier tables. “Oh Calista? She was just working the forge earlier while I was waiting for you lot. She kept me company for a while, that’s all.”
“Uh huh, are you sure that’s all?” Jimmy urged, waggling his eyebrows.
“Pretty sure, why?” Bishop asked, and his smile faltered. “Jimmy, what are you up to?”
“Nothing, nothing at all. Looks like everyone else is finishing up to. Anyone up for a pint?”
Chapter 06
Bishop waited with the others as each one turned in the quest to receive the ward that would, supposedly, protect them against the siren’s call. Today was the day they hit the third dungeon and killed off another Demon Lord, Helenex. Now that they knew about the demon shards, though, there was much more at stake. The more shards they were able to acquire, the quicker they could morph their spec abilities.
Maverick received her ward first and went on ahead to the Dead Man’s Bay. There was a summoning stone there that could transport the entire raid group. She was the only one ready to go, stocked up on potions for everyone and with repaired gear. Bishop worried their equipment would need to be upgraded at some point, but none of the crafters in their guilds were up to the task yet. Buying gear off the Auction House wasn’t impossible, but it would wipe out their money and they might not even be able to upgrade everyone properly.
Calista could do it, though. She was presently pushing to be at the top of the skill levels in the crafts she had selected. Thinking of her brought a smile to Bishop’s face, but only for a moment. Who she was outside of the game was still a mystery to him. He looked around yesterday evening, but didn’t want to embarrass her by calling out her player name. That could be seen as rude by some players, too. Too bad everyone already knew who he was inside and outside of the game. He checked through his supplies one final time and summoned Willy to his side. He considered waiting until they saw what the dungeon looked like before calling on his companion, but Willy gave him comfort, a warm furry body trotting along beside him.
“You’re thinking about her again, aren’t you?” Jimmy asked, appearing beside Bishop.
“Thinking about whom?”
“That sexy elf from yesterday. You never told us anything about her.”
Bishop rubbed the back of his neck and shrugged. “Didn’t think I needed to. There’s really nothing else to say. We talked, that was it.”
“That’s exactly what you said yesterday, but that smile of yours tells a different story. Come on, admit it, you liked her just a little bit, didn’t you?”
Bishop thought of his pleasant conversation with Calista yesterday and instantly smiled. “Can we talk about this later, after we make it through this dungeon in one piece? I think that would be a good idea.”
“Sure, whatever you say, but we are talking about it.”
“It’s really not that big of a deal.”
“Oh but it is. Yesterday was the first time we’ve seen you actually smile like that and be happy.”
Bishop frowned. “I’ve been happy since I’ve been here, well, now that there’s no outside issues.”
“No, this was different. This reached deeper than just happiness from the game. This was… this was like how I feel when I’m with Maverick,” Jimmy explained. “There’s nothing wrong with that, is there? I mean you are single.”
He was indeed, and Juliet made it quite clear she would never be with him again. He never expected to find himself drawn to anyone else and certainly not this quickly. It had to be the excitement of the game and this world. It was ridiculous to think he could so quickly start to fall for someone he had yet to meet in the real world.
“Everyone ready?” Trajan called out, and Bishop was tugged from his musings.
“Looks like it. Maverick should be reaching the summoning stone soon,” Bishop said. “What do you think it’s going to be like, this dungeon?”
“Filled with sirens and the demons that attacked Hillside maybe,” Trajan sugg
ested. “Those necromancers could show up too, I guess, but I don’t think they hold any sort of real connection to Helenex. I’ve been wrong before, though.”
Considering Lachlan had been turned into a necromancer by Valen and forced to stay in Old Weston where those cultists resided, Bishop had a feeling they would be part of this dungeon. Everything in this world was connected to Valen, somehow. He watched their group chat and make ready for the fight to come. They buffed themselves and those with group buffs applied them, increasing health and mana for 10% for five minutes. Another gave their armor a shield that would reflect the first hit they took. A healer cast Hope, just in case they faced any fear affects when they first entered the dungeon. They had to wait until they were inside the dungeon to use the ward provided to them by the priests.
Bishop held his bow firmly in his hand, tapping the sides of Willy. From the outset, they appeared ready, but his gut told him otherwise. Something was wrong. He had spoken with Trajan that morning to make sure he wasn’t suspicious of any of his players turning, as they had experienced in the first dungeon, but everyone seemed on point. They all chose their Talents and he should have felt good.
Instead, that nagging sensation in his gut only worsened when the prompt to be relocated to the summoning stone outside of Dead Man’s Bay appeared. One by one, the group members accepted and he watched them be whisked away across the map.
“See you in a minute,” Trajan said, and he confirmed the summons.
Trajan shimmered out of view and, soon, Bishop and Willy were the last two standing of their group inside the town square. He sighed and glanced down at Willy’s big brown eyes. “What do you think, boy? Should I be worried?”
Necromancers, Demons & Kings Page 10
