The Secret of the Dark Forest ( (The Way of the Shaman: Book #3)

by Vasily Mahanenko

  "You will make a worthy apprentice," said Geranika thoughtfully, looking pleased. "You are right and wrong at the same time. When those that you call 'phantoms' have had their fill of a victim they return back to the source. Watch my next summons and try to describe it."

  Players once again floated into the air, but this time there were a lot more of them – at least a hundred. ...

  "The next summons that I will show you is the complete opposite.” The Lord of Shadows continued his demonstration. "Look!"

  The bodies of the levitating players twisted and phantoms began to fly out of the avatars’ chests. One, two, three ... soon the flying hundred was surrounded by dark entities, which vanished a few moments later. Just like the players. Another hundred less ... another light shower of gold and just one Legendary item.

  "Do you understand what happened?" Geranika asked me.

  "No, teacher," I admitted honestly. "What happened just now completely breaks with the logic of my first theory. The phantoms didn't come from you, but from the victims. ... Forgive me, teacher, but I don't understand ..."

  "Honesty, Mahan, is exactly what I value the most in my subordinates. Ask if you don't know, but don't be weak. I have shown you something only I, as the master of the source, possess. None of my apprentices would be able to learn this by themselves. You've passed the test. Now you have some work ahead of you: you will have to personally destroy all these uninvited guests, now so abundantly scattered in the vicinity of our castle. Take the knife." Geranika handed me a black blade streaming with mist, which sported a wooden handle. It was almost the twin of the knife that was sticking out of the Throne of the Malabar Emperor. "I made it safe for you, so it shouldn't take you too long to send everyone to the Grey Lands. Time to act, apprentice!"

  Dear player,

  We are warning you that if you carry out this instruction, after completing the 'Making of a Dark Shaman' quest you will either be transported to the Pryke Copper Mine (Reputation with the Malabar Empire Neutral or above) or to the Groll Copper Mine (Reputation with the Malabar Empire below Neutral), following which you will be brought before the court. The decision whether to complete the quest remains with you. Make the right decision.

  Yours sincerely,

  Barliona Administration.

  The surrounding world stopped. In complete disbelief, I kept re-reading the message from the Game Administration, trying to find a single loophole. The very fact of the Game Administration addressing a player directly was nonsense, something completely unheard of. But to give me such a savage choice – either get sent to the mines while finding out the source of Geranika's power, or abandon the quest, and get huge penalties for killing Yalininka and Almis. ... To hell with this! I knew what would be waiting for me when I chose this path, so it's too late to change my mind now. The mines? Seven and a half years? Like I give a damn!

  When I finally made up my mind, Geranika lowered me to the ground. Oooh! So it looks like these days Imitators also monitor the player's resolve and act in response to that. ... All right, off we go – I have a lot of hard monotonous work ahead of me. ...

  The first player I came up to turned out to be Hellfire. The Dwarf was lying on the ground like a broken doll and only his living eyes indicated that he was aware of what was happening. If the game could provide the ability to kill with a stare, I would've been incinerated on the spot. … Hesitating a moment, as if still uncertain I wanted to go to the mines, I abruptly lowered the dagger, which entered Hellfire's chest right up to the hilt. Something flickered and a shield of some kind was all that was left in place of the dwarf. Just as I was looking around the glade, thinking about how much work I had in front of me, all the players who’d rushed here to kill me were lifted up into the air and floated in the direction of the castle. Judging by Geranika's pleased smirk, it was his doing: he’d decided to give his apprentice a hand. ... There was little else I could do other than wave the dagger intensely left and right, sending a player to the Grey Lands with every blow. I dreaded to even think what was going down on the forums right now ...

  "STOP!" Geranika suddenly roared. I turned around and saw Plinto standing, or rather already lying, a few feet away. "HOW DARE YOU TRY TO INTERFERE WITH THE TRAINING OF MY APPRENTICE?!"

  "You are mistaken," rasped the Rogue, whose Hit Point had started to melt rapidly. "I intend to stick with Mahan whatever happens, with or without you, but ..."

  "Teacher, stop! Plinto doesn't wish me any harm!"

  "Then why did he leave the Castle?" asked Geranika calmly and I typed a 'thank you' to Barsina in clan chat for restoring half of the Rogue's Hit Points.

  "Those who came for our death deserve what Mahan is doing to them now," said Plinto, getting up from the ground, "but it would be foolish to leave their gold and other items just lying around. Free citizens can return from the Grey Lands, so after some time they will return for them. They will again grow strong and bold ... why would I want that? No! No way I'm letting a prime looting opportunity like that slip by!"

  "Ha ha ha!" Geranika's pleased laughter echoed through the forest. "When I finish training Mahan, you'll become my next apprentice! Go, get your loot!" After that the Lord of Shadow turned to me and said, "you have the right kind of subordinates, apprentice! You shall all aid me in bringing Barliona to its knees. Let us continue!"

  The floating players once again started to move, so I had no time for thoughts other than: 'hit to the left', 'slash to the right'. I had to make almost forty thousand hits ... yeah. ... How did that classic writer put it? "Thus striking blow after blow, the warriors' hands did weary grow …"

  "Apprentice, you have proven your readiness to carry out my orders without question," said Geranika about an hour later. The flow of players did not abate, so I had to keep up being the butcher for a good while yet. ... "There's little sense in losing all this time, so I'll take care of the rest." Geranika made a gesture with his hand and the scene instantly cleared – in the sense that the forty thousand players were simply no longer there, but a real shower of gold descended to earth.

  You've acquired 'Elephant and Pug' achievement level 8. Damage to all creatures and players 50+ levels higher than you increased by 90%.

  You've acquired 'Killer' achievement level 8. Damage caused to other players increased by 9%.

  "You have completed your trials, apprentice," said Geranika, turning to me. "I will give you an hour's rest before the last one. I need to prepare. You will be taken to the chambers!" Geranika disappeared and a Mage came up to each of the players in my clan and, with a respectful bow, silently pointed towards the central building in the Castle. What had Geranika come up with for the last test?

  "Right," said Anastaria as we found ourselves in a cozy room. Soft armchairs, a fireplace, a small table covered with various dishes. ... If not for the dozen Mages, who stood by the walls like invisible shadows, you might have thought we’d ended up in Anhurs. "Judging by what Geranika just said, we have about an hour, so I suggest all those who can should log out and browse the forums. We have to understand what consequences the current events could have for the clan. I will try to contact some representatives of the Administration and ask them what on earth made them opt for a mass killing."

  "No way, I'm staying here," said Plinto immediately. "What can they do? Declare each of us a persona non grata? Ha! The PK-system will break down! Thanks to Mahan we're all in the same group, so I got my Killer up to level 16 now! They want to keep sending us for respawn? They're welcome to try: from what I could see, not everyone's bought the updated purse yet. We've made about four million in an hour! Mahan, I put this money into the clan, let the Imitator allocate it all later. Whoever comes at us with a sword will get his ass perished!"

  "All right, stay if you want," said Anastaria reluctantly. "Barsa, will you help at least?"

  "Yeah, I'm rather curious myself," replied the Druid. "But I have one question: Mahan just killed off almost forty thousand players, who were two hundred levels higher
than him. Why didn't we gain any experience?"

  "You don't get experience for a scenario PK," said the Paladin. "Mahan, send me the video you recorded. I'll upload it to the net, let everyone else enjoy the scene ... right, got it," the girl thanked me. "I'm off. I won't be leaving the Game, so if you need me, press my thumb three times. I've set an alarm, so I'll come right back. I’m out."

  "Damn, how do you set one of those things up?" asked Barsina, but there was no-one there –Anastaria had logged out. "All right, I'll be back soon." With these words Barsina's eyes also glazed over.

  "Alrighty then. While everyone else is busy, let's get down to the fun part," said Plinto, rubbing his hands. "Sorting through the trophies!"

  "You do realize that you'll have to give them back, right?" I reminded him.

  "Of course, boss! No problem! As soon as I see anyone I'll give it them their stuff back right away!" said Plinto with a mischievous grin and then handed me a leather belt. "Here, have a look! This one's for you, I think."

  Item acquired: Borhg's Artificer's Band.

  Description: The great Master liked to say that excellent gear is the guarantee of any victory. He spent two years of his life creating a belt that would make item crafting much easier.

  Item class: Legendary. +5 to Crafting.

  Requirements: Crafting level 1+.

  "It looks like this one came from Rick's bag. Legendary items can drop from inventory as well," said Plinto happily. "So, in view of our plans for item crafting, would it make sense to give this thing back?"

  Knockout. It seems that I'd missed a direct hit from the right, as well as a hook and a slam-down too. Moreover, once down I was given a good kicking to boot, because my entire inner zoo, which had been peacefully asleep the entire two weeks after Beatwick, suddenly woke up and penned down a note of protest, where in all solemn seriousness it declared the impossibility of handing back such an object to any third party. Otherwise they would gnaw a hole in me and run away to join Rick. I realized that I would have to hide the belt in the Bank until happier times, because it could drop from my bag too, but it was worth having to limit my crafting to safe zones only. +5 to Crafting! This was cheat mode, plain and simple!

  "I see that you catch my drift now, boss," said Plinto, watching my reaction. "Some of the items are of no use to me, so I'll sell them and put the money back into the clan. But two or three of them – I still haven't quite figured out which – would come in damn useful! Where did these goons get daggers like these?!" came the Rogue's exclamation as he fully immersed himself in sorting out the loot.

  "Yeeahh," uttered Anastaria when she came back to the Game about an hour later, "is Barsa back?"

  "Yes, I'm here."

  "So ... what have you found out?" It looked like Anastaria's news was so unpleasant that she was unable to regain control over herself in reality and logged into the Game in an agitated state.

  "If you ignore the swearing and bile aimed at the Seathistles clan," Barsina began, "the forum is silent. There isn't a word about us. I spent half an hour sifting through messages, but except for the profanities from those that Mahan sent for respawn and mockery of noobs who had allowed themselves to be destroyed, I haven't found a thing. What about you?"

  "I contacted Ehkiller," said Anastaria, "and it turns out that the entire raid, just before it ported, had their quest updated. It was variable: either to destroy Mahan, preventing him from completing the trial, or not to appear in the Dark Forest under any circumstances. As the leader of the raid, Hellfire took the decision to destroy. ... Aside from this, the Emperor has issued a proclamation throughout Malabar in which he asks that the Empire be kept safe from the Shaman. ... Yes, it was updated for those who decided to fly to the Dark Forest, but for the majority of the players it remained the same: destroy Mahan. ... All in all, I don't understand what's going on. ... And also 'Killer asked for the dropped items to be returned. Half of them, at least, since he understands that many of them could catch Plinto's eye, and ..."

  "Rick has really blown his top?" I asked the girl, who had fallen silent.

  "You've seen the belt then? Yes, Rick raised such hell that 'Killer's going to have a tough time of it now. Hell, on the other hand, looks totally down in the dumps. We shouldn't expect any trouble from Phoenix, Legion or the Dragons, as they will lay the blame on Hellfire for making the wrong decision, but the players from the Heirs and other smaller clans have declared war. That includes around twenty-five thousand of those that came to the Dark Forest today, plus everyone else from their clans. ... So it's going to be a rough ride from now on. Plinto, what about the items?"

  "What the boss says, goes," was the Rogue's simple answer, "but I'm not handing back these daggers even if I get kicked out of the Game. No way I'll let some schmuck walk around with these beauties, and as for the belt ... that decision is for Mahan to make. For the rest, the price is negotiable."

  "All right, that's what I'll tell them then. Has Geranika appeared yet?"

  "No. What's with the video?"

  "I handed it over for editing – I have a contact with the right skills. He promised to show me the rough cut tomorrow. And we've yet to survive that long," smiled Anastaria. "I have no intention of switching to Shadow, by the way. I'm happy enough in Malabar."

  "Chicken," snorted Plinto. "So, what are we waiting for?" he said to the Officers and Barsina. "No-one knows how long we'll have to wait here, so it's jumping time. Off we go, no slacking! Mahan, you're joining us too. Extra Agility isn't gonna hurt you ..."

  "Apprentice." Geranika appeared after about an hour. I had no idea where Plinto got all his Energy from, but mine had run out after thirty minutes, try as I might to out-jump the Rogue. Or are his stats for this so astronomical that I'm nowhere near catching up with him in this respect? In any case, +3 to Agility was useful enough. "I am pleased to see that you don't like to waste time. I was delayed because our torture room was occupied. There is one last trial ahead of you, after which you will become a real Dark Shaman. Come!"

  Clutzer pressed Anastaria's thumb three times to return the girl, who had logged out for the second time, back to the Game, and our entire group followed Geranika. What had this bastard concocted this time and what does a torture room have to do with it? I'd be heading for the mines after this quest anyway, so what difference would it make who I’d be torturing?

  "I think it's time to continue your training," said Geranika as soon as we left the building and moved towards a small hut, just two by two meters square. "Remember, apprentice, that there are entities other than Spirits. Now I will teach you and your subordinates to summon these powers, but you will only be able to use them after training. I will implant a fragment of the crystal into each of you and together we shall conquer all of Barliona."

  You acquired a variable ability: Shadow Transformation.

  If the trial is completed successfully, you will allow part of the Reverse Side of the world within you, sending a Shadow into a chosen opponent.

  Base kamlanie time: 5 seconds.

  Damage dealt: (Intellect *5) Points. This ability ignores all types of armor.

  Range: 100 meters.

  If you refuse to go through the trial, you combine the world of Spirits and Shadows, embodying one Shadow into the physical world.

  Base kamlanie time: 5 seconds.

  Shadow embodiment time: 10 seconds.

  Ability cool down: 1 minute.

  Cost of summoning: (Character level) Hit Points of the summoner.

  Range: 20 meters.

  So that's what we're up against! It turns out that along with Spirits their Shadows also exist, which have gained some sort of corporeality. ... And this strange Reverse Side, which we've already visited, also plays a part here. ... Now only the key question remains: what is this crystal and where did Geranika get it? Never mind, we'll find out soon enough. ...

  "Wow," Plinto, Barsina, Eric and Leite said at the same time. They used different words, of course, but the gist was the sa
me: they were in shock. Clutzer and Anastaria controlled themselves, but one look at them made clear that they had acquired a similar ability. I wondered if it was doubled for them as well.

  "Shadows," breathed out Anastaria, getting to grips with her emotions.

  "Yes, Siren, Shadows. The protagonists of the Reverse Side of the world," confirmed Geranika. "I will teach you to use them and then no-one will be able to harm you. There are no weapons that work against them in this entire world."

  "Shamans know how to embody them," the girl kept at it, wanting the Lord of Shadow to get even more candid. "They can be easily destroyed after that."

  "Shamans know how to embody only the lesser Shadows, which are weak and untrained. They are unable to do anything with the Lieutenant."

  "And yet we still managed to destroy him."

  "I know; using the Astral Plane was an exquisite solution. The light was so bright that for a very short moment shadows ceased to exist altogether there. That's what did it. But can you tell me, future apprentice, how many Shamans are there with the ability to enter the Astral Plane and carry out a summons there? You can't, can you? Think about that."

  The small structure that we’d entered contained nothing save a spiral staircase leading downwards. Wow! So the site had a whole underground section as well! Was this something peculiar to this Castle? Judging by Anastaria's narrowing eyes, she hadn't come across such an architectural feature during previous raids all that often.

  "Apprentice," Geranika addressed me, once we started our descent. "Now is the time you prove to me that there is only one teacher left for you in Barliona – me. Kornik, that fool of a Harbinger, is waiting for us below. He thought he was so clever, jumping all over Malabar to evade me, stupid little goblin. I was unable to convince him to join me, so now it is time to destroy him. And no-one will do it better than you. You still have the knife that you used to destroy the Free Citizens, so you should make a quick job of it."