Stay on the Wing

by Michael Atamanov

  When we were near the entry to the building, the red-headed lady raised the question of biotic prostheses for my sister again. Kira had no understanding of the reason for the girl's categorical stubbornness. I was much more familiar with Val's nature and understood that, for my sister, the very thought of having to stay in a strange place surrounded by totally unfamiliar people caused a sense of panic and alienation. Nevertheless, I promised her I'd speak with Valeria and gradually begin to impress upon her the necessity and importance of the medical procedures. Meanwhile, I'd already set aside money for the purpose, one hundred nine thousand credits, in a special deposit account.

  When I entered the corporation, the automated system scanned us and the gates moved aside. Although there was no real need for it, a muscular security guard ran out of his booth and greeted my companion with a respectful bow.

  "The guards must know and respect you," I said, turning Kira's attention to the man's unusual behavior. "When I went to get your lost ring, too, no one asked me for any signatures or documents. They all knew you."

  "Come on..." Kira smiled happily. "Timothy, I've been working for the corporation practically since their first day. I've successfully taken part in a lot of projects and mass events. I’ve earned more than one ten-million-credit prize. Some of the money was immediately invested in stocks of the Boundless Realm corporation, so I've got skin in the game, and want our company to do well. It's not written in my personal record what job I have exactly, but the guard sitting in front of the monitor sees my red access level and understands that the person in front of him must be from leadership."

  After parking the car in the underground lot, the beautiful redhead let me out and bid me farewell. Kira had to go up to the highest floors of the skyscraper for some business. I though, had to go down to the tester floor.

  "I say we should go out tomorrow morning after work for breakfast," Kira said, smiling as she kissed me goodbye.

  In an excellent mood, at eight o'clock, I entered my game cabin and turned on the screen. So, what's the news? There was relatively little mail, but one message lit me up. It was a level two hundred sixteen dwarven warrior I already knew by the name of Headshots_For_All from the Keepers clan:

  "Amra, we took the Goons' castle! They clearly weren't expecting our attack. There were almost no guards. To be honest, there wasn't very much loot — their leader, Mariam Standing_Right_Behind_You [GOONS] threw almost all the clan's resources into organizing the hunt for you. Practically the whole clan has left their normal place and dashed off on the chase. You must have gotten them really mad! Exactly what we wanted! As we agreed, ten percent of the loot is yours. Present this letter at any branch of the bank of dwarves, and you'll be given twenty-eight thousand coins."

  Alright! Very pleasant news! I closed the message, grabbed my phone and called my sister, saying I'd arrived at work. After that, I closed the lid of the virtual reality capsule and started the procedure of loading Boundless Realm. Half a minute later, my big-eared Goblin Herbalist opened his eyes, still in the very same dwarven train car.

  "Finally! I was starting to worry — in twenty minutes, we'll reach the Dotur-Khawe station, and you undying just wouldn't show up!" Gnum Spiteful groaned.

  Taisha also complained her fill, saying that I was gone for too long and she had grown very bored and felt uncomfortable. But I didn't manage to answer her — Valerianna Quickfoot appeared in the seat next to mine.

  "That's what I'm talking about!" The mavka's eyes were wide open in elation. She rushed to share her new impressions. "Now, I understand the difference between playing normally and full immersion in a virtual reality capsule! Tim, I can clearly discern the smells of cinder and smoke! I can sense that the seat below me is soft and made of leather. There's a draft coming from that crack! This is just all unbelievably awesome!!!"

  The dwarf, as predicted, let the idle chatter of the undying pass by his ears unnoticed. But Taisha, sitting opposite, was looking at me with alarm and making a "screw loose" gesture, pointing at the wood nymph with her other hand. I reassured the NPC thief with a smile, saying that my sister had entered Boundless Realm by a slightly different means this time, so that was why she was acting strange. Taisha didn't understand anything of my explanation, but still stopped being afraid for Valerianna Quickfoot.

  "Enough chatter! Do you feel it? The speed has already started to gradually fall. The stokers have stopped throwing turf into the furnace. That means we'll be at the station in ten minutes," said the Dwarf Mechanic, who was even more impatient than usual today. "After all, I still don't even know what you want in the city of dwarves, or where to bring you. Dotur-Khawe is a huge city. It would take you more than a week to explore all its levels and corridors."

  I answered this question almost instantly:

  "Gnum, I'm not planning to stay in Dotur-Khawe long. There are three locations in your city that interest me: The Bank of Thorin the Ninth, the Alchemists' Guild, and any store where I might come by good equipment."

  "How good?" the small persnickety man immediately clarified.

  "The very best!" Taisha answered for me, and Valerianna Quickfoot repeated these words.

  I nodded in agreement. I had money now, but the equipment I'd once bought for my Goblin Herbalist at level fifteen or twenty had grown much too old a good while ago. Actually, we all needed new things.

  "And also," I clarified. "I want the place with the least undying. Better if there were no undying at all."

  "In that case..." the Dwarf Mechanic stood decisively from his seat and cracked open the blinds on the window, trying to see something in the dark corridor. "We'll have to get off a bit earlier, before the railroad point. There's an old track there that leads to old mined-out copper pits and the old part of town. They have a branch of the Subterranean Bank of Thorin the Ninth there, and an Alchemists' Guild building, as well as a whole block of good craftsmen. Undying are known to enter the old part of town, but very infrequently. All in all, it's just what you asked for... Although, it looks like we've already gone past it... Ah, no. Now I'm recognizing familiar places. Two minutes from now, we'll have to jump out. Get ready. But for now, I'll go and warn your companions and open the door for the wolves."

  * * *

  "Jump!" the dwarf's cry caught me off guard, as I supposed we still had another minute to go.

  My big-eared goblin took a decisive step toward the wide-open door and jumped into the darkness. The second I spent in flight put my heart in my throat. I landed hard on my feet, making Amra tumble and roll headfirst down the stone floor, nearly slamming into a massive stone column.

  Successful Agility check

  Experience received: 200 Exp.

  Dodge Skill increased to level 22!

  Acrobatics skill increased to level 16!

  Taisha landed gracefully next to me, taking a little run and not even falling. But then Valerianna Quickfoot flew with a frightened shriek down a side corridor. I grew afraid for my sister, but a few seconds later, her enraptured voice reached me:

  "Holy shit! That was awesome! It was like jumping off the swing when I was a kid!"

  Irek, Yunna, Darius and Darina as well as the animals all jumped out of the train without incident. The most surprising thing was that the fat and heavy dwarf mechanic jumped almost best of all, staying confidently on his feet.

  "That way!" our guide called out in an even tone, pointing down a weakly lit tunnel with rails on the floor. It was as if jumping off a train was business as usual for him, so he didn't see anything worthy of discussion.

  We tramped down the ties for ten minutes, passing by the occasional lit lamp on the walls. In that time, a few paid messages landed in my mailbox — nothing but nonsense. Pure spam. But these messages meant that the pursuers, after Amra entered the game, had not discovered him in the port of New Tortuga and were trying to determine his new coordinates. Then, after yet another bend in the tunnel, we suddenly saw a bright light.

  "We're almost there. Ah, old
town... My old stomping grounds... It’s been so long… I thought I'd never ever return..." nostalgia and pity could be heard in Gnum Spiteful's voice.

  "So, why'd you leave?" I asked just because, without any secret motive.

  Successful check for Gnum Spiteful's opinion

  Experience received: 200 Exp.

  Level thirty-six!

  What? Just a level-up? But where were the usual bumps to poison or cold resistance?! I opened my character guide. Clearly, the resistances simply wouldn't go higher than eighty percent, and full invulnerability to two types of damage was impossible to achieve by raising level alone. But what a shame... After placing my free stat points as usual — one in Agility and two in Charisma — I closed the computer information and got ready to listen to the dwarf's story about why he'd left his home.

  But our guide was behaving strangely — looking up into the distance, where a big group of dwarves was coming our direction with picks. Gnum Spiteful burst from place unexpectedly and ran out in front, crying out joyfully:

  "Daddy!!!"

  One of the bearded dwarves dropped his tool and ran in our direction, his hands parted and crying:

  "My daughter!!!"

  "Daughter?" I asked out loud in surprise, trying to see even one feminine feature in the singed-bearded face of our companion.

  "Yes, that's a lady dwarf. Just a girl, in fact. And by the standards of her subterranean folk, she's actually quite pretty," Taisha assured me. "Many lady dwarves have beards, so there's nothing surprising here. While you were gone, her and I spent the whole day chatting in the train, and she told me about her life. Our friend's real name is Vanessa. And her original nickname was 'Hamfist' or 'Shithand.'"

  Valerianna was just snickering away. I couldn't hold back a smile either. Darius, who had no sense of tact whatsoever, was cackling away loudly. Taisha looked unhappily at all of us and said:

  "She bungled some work that her whole family had spent the week prior making in the forge. It was because of the insulting nickname that Vanessa left her family, and went somewhere where no one would know her. First, she went to the humans, where she was given the new name Gnum Spiteful due to her rotten nature and habit of rushing into a fight after the fifth glass of beer. After that, she was captured by the orc pirates. What happened from there is obvious..."

  We walked up to the embracing pair of dwarves, and Vanessa pointed me to her father:

  "Captain Amra freed me from the pirates and took me on in his crew."

  The black-bearded dwarf took a decisive step toward me and embraced me tightly with his big strong calloused mitts, causing my bones to crackle.

  Successful Constitution check

  Experience received: 20 Exp.

  Damage taken: 76 (122 Physical damage — 36 Armor)

  Hit points: 233 of 309

  Damn! I managed to take a strained breath after the extremely warm reception. My whole body ached. Every muscle was announcing its existence with pain. If that was what the system called a successful check, I was afraid to even imagine what would have happened with a failed check. Broken ribs, punctured lungs, death and respawning on the Island of the Wanton Widow? I shuddered just to think of it!

  "Your captain's pretty flimsy!" the dwarf guffawed in good nature. His comrades laughed as well. "But in any case, thank you for rescuing my daughter! I invite you all into my home! We're having a big celebration today!"

  The dwarves all whooped in joy, hard hats and even mining equipment flew upward. Gnum Spiteful or, probably I should be calling her Vanessa now, took advantage of the occasion and whispered into my ear:

  "Don't think about refusing, Amra. That would seriously offend them. And I ask you not to talk to my relatives about the composition of the crew of White Shark — pirates are not thought well of here. Orcs either."

  * * *

  "...then, the proud and extraordinary daughter of the glorious subterranean folk shouted out that her shot on the enemy trireme was sure to hit! Otherwise, she'd make a mop with her red beard and wash the deck of White Shark with it."

  "Oh! Ooh! That's what I'm talking about! A really serious oath!" the energized howl of hundreds of dwarven voices drowned out my words.

  I took advantage of the pause and suggested everyone refill their mugs and glasses to the top, because the next part was the most interesting. My suggestion was met with shouts of approval, and the underground humanoids hurried to the drink barrels. Val furtively elbowed me in the side and suggested I not repeat the mistake I'd made on the Island of the Wanton Widow.

  "Don't worry about that, Val. I've got the situation totally under control. My resists have grown much higher since then, and I've passed every check for resistance to alcohol so far. Plus, it's such a wonderful chance — all the key NPC's of the old town are gathered here in one place! I'm simply telling them the story of my adventures, and that's gotten me through two levels of the Socialization quest! I'll finish the third part of it really soon, too!"

  After graciously accepting a big foamy mug of King of the Depths from the hand of the master of the house, I continued my tale. In passing, I noted that Vanessa's mother had sent one of the young relatives out to the market for more malty beverage, as the reserves of beer and moonshine in the house were coming to an end.

  "So then, Vanessa managed to prove that her words were not just idle talk! She spent a long time carefully aiming the catapult, and when the enemy ship, it seemed, was just about to hit us with their battering ram, she fired!!!"

  I went abruptly silent and took a big gulp from my mug, enjoying the excellent brew with purposeful composure.

  Successful check for Poison Resistance

  Experience received: 80 Exp.

  The crowd was silent, patiently awaiting the rest of the story. Hundreds of eyes were fixed on my big-eared goblin. I was constantly getting messages about successful checks for the reaction of dwarf smiths, dwarf mechanics, dwarf traders and members of other professions. The markers of the hundreds of NPC's around me on the mini map had already long since changed from yellow to green, and there were more blue ones every minute. Experience was gushing in like a river — I'd leveled up twice in an hour and a half just talking with dwarves about my adventures on the high seas!

  "And what happened after that?" rang out an impatient voice from somewhere in the back rows. "Did Vanessa hit the pirates?"

  "She did! And did she ever! A fiery hell rained down on our enemies! An all-devouring flame rolled over the deck. The pirate ship lit up like a candle!"

  The dwarves gasped in delight all at once, as if they had just lit fire to a pirate ship themselves.

  Mission completed: Socialization Dotur-Khawe Old Town 3/3

  Experience received: 8000 Exp.

  Finishing the quest meant that the key NPC's' average opinion of me was now over +75. Leading my eyes over the message, I continued the story:

  "You'll never believe it! Trying to get free of the flames, the burning pirates jumped to White Shark one after the other. There were a lot of them! But the most dangerous was their captain. He wailed horribly in rage, got a running start, made a powerful push off and jumped to our ship! It was a level one hundred eighty undying human paladin bound in a suit of black armor covered in spikes!"

  Everyone gasped in fear. I then thought belatedly that I should have claimed the pirate captain had a different profession. After all, paladins were, by definition, lawful and good warriors. Such a person would be entirely out of place among pirates. Before any of the guests managed to notice that contradiction, I rushed to continue my story:

  "It already seemed that the ghastly opponent would cut us into a fine mince with his terrifying two-handed sword. But Vanessa saved the day again! She bravely ran out in front and met the flying enemy with a two-handed hammer! The ringing when the hammer struck the black armor was so loud that fish in the sea got stunned and floated belly-up to the surface. The pirate captain flew back in his heavy armor and immediately fell to the sea floor as cr
ab food! For that feat, the brave Vanessa got the right to be first to take loot from the captured ship!"

  The end of the story drowned the crowd in elated screams. They all congratulated the brave lady once again and made toasts in her honor. I didn't go without attention, either. Unknown dwarves walked up to me, squeezed my hand and thanked me for saving their fellow dwarf.

  Attention!!!

  You have reached the maximum opinion with the residents of Dotur-Khawe Old Town

  Hidden mission completed: Socialization 4/3 (Dwarves)

  Experience received: 7200 Exp.

  Charisma increased by 2 points

  Automatic +5 to the opinion of all Dwarves

  Status received: Honored Guest of Dotur-Khawe

  Foreman Skill increased to level 24!

  Level thirty-nine!

  I'd leveled up three times in just an hour and a half! That's what I'm talking about! But now, the time had come to gradually wrap things up — it was already nine in the evening, and the branches of the Subterranean Bank and Alchemists' Guild, as far as I'd managed to tell, closed at nine in Dotur-Khawe.

  But as soon as I even hinted about leaving, the master of the house, barely able to stay on his feet, gestured for me to wait and, a minute later, was dragging behind him a dwarf who was drunk as a skunk, saying this was the very alchemist I needed to talk to. The dwarf, having drunk to excess and tripping over his tongue, promised me that his alchemy shop would stay open all night for me, so there was no reason to rush to leave the celebration.