by Hugo Huesca
It was so different watching them from afar. They looked nothing like the outdated graphics of Ivalis Online.
A chill ran through his back. All this time that’s what people watched when I ran with my party. That’s what Kael Arpadel had faced. Unfeeling humanoid creatures built for killing, culling living beings without mercy or hesitation. He focused on his drones and the tunnel they were digging. They were so close to Klek and the riders… but the Heroes’ path was right in their way. He willed his drones to speed up, his urgency flowing like electricity between the mental link with them. They were already going as fast as they could, though.
“Isn’t that too much of a coincidence?” Kes asked, rubbing her chin. “It has to be some kind of trick. All the Heroes around, and you run into your old party?”
Ed shrugged. “IO’s player-base was already low when I arrived in this world.” For all the procedurally generated content, IO had many failings that other games in the genre lacked. Spotty servers, buggy advancement, a bitch of a difficulty curve, a non-existent tutorial, and many others. Its players, like Ed, had stayed because they enjoyed the plot and the small—but dedicated—community that had grown around the obscure game. “Most people played in Heiliges. We knew it as the Light Kingdom, though. The four of us liked to play in Starevos because it was the least populated area, so we had more experience points to ourselves. I guess they never left.”
This was bound to happen, Ed thought. It was as if he was caught in the middle of a train-wreck, his old life colliding with the new.
“Can you… just tell them that it’s you?” Alder asked. “Let them know what happened, get them to help?”
“Yeah… That will not work.” Ed and Ryan, his ex-boss at Lasershark, hadn’t left on the best of terms, mostly because Ed had smashed the other guy’s face into his own desk before quitting the job. On one hand, Ryan had had it coming. On the other, Ed doubted the face-bashing had helped Ryan see the error of his ways. Perhaps if he could separate Mark and Lisa he could talk to them. Not that it’d do much to help. “First of all, they’ll probably attack us on sight without reading our chat. Even if they listen, the Militant Church controls the interface. There’s nothing stopping their sys-admin from simply changing the text to a copy-pasted evil speech—”
A thought tore across his brain like an arrow. How many did I kill while they were begging for mercy? His throat dried in his mouth.
“So we’re right where we started,” Lavy said with a heavy sigh. Nearby, an owl screamed into the night.
Kes drew her sword and readied her shield. “Not exactly, Lavy. Get behind me, we got incoming.”
A surge of adrenaline buried Ed’s worries in some vault in his head—he’d deal with them later. He drew his sword and readied himself to activate his talents. Alder did the same, hurrying to his side, with Kes guarding the other. The four of them were alone in the clearing.
Somewhere in the foliage behind them, Eyegouger and the other mounts bawked angrily. The owl screamed again, three short warnings.
“We’re running out of time,” Kes said.
A woman came from the tree-line in front of them.
How did she get so close without anyone hearing her? Even the warnings had come with barely seconds of leeway.
This mystery, at least, was solved when the Inquisitor strolled into view, her bow drawn and an explosive arrow nocked. A Ranger, skilled in tracking and moving silently through the forest. Ed had fought with this particular Ranger before, a long time ago. Alvedhra had changed since then. Her face was fuller, and she had more muscle in her body. An extra couple ranks of Endurance and one of Brawn, probably. Her hair was cropped short, her heart-shaped face shared the tan of a full-blooded Starevosi, and her high-cheekbones and sharp chin could’ve made her Ioan or Nicolai’s cousin.
“Oh, time’s certainly ran out for you,” said Alvedhra, flashing a smile full of teeth.
“They’re coming this way. I’m sure we can take them,” said Strodzark, not really sounding that sure of himself.
“Let them come,” said Rose through an angry hiss. “I’m ready.”
Tulip turned to her sister with a click of mandibles that was the spider equivalent of an eye roll. “Then you deal with them, dear.” She faced Klek, who was in the middle of the tent, staring at the floor with a distant expression. “Snack, we need to leave while we still can. The drones aren’t coming. Perhaps we can sneak out through into the forest if we’re very lucky, but staying here is not an option.”
Vogkord nodded. “She’s right, Klek. We’ve no chance against them.”
“We can’t leave,” Klek muttered. “The Haunt is counting on us.”
“The Haunt doesn’t pay us enough to die for it!” Horm exclaimed.
Klek turned his small hands into fists. “They’ll be here,” he said, with a finality to his voice that admitted no further discussion. “I know it.”
Outside, the sound of battle was fading. It was a strange paradox: the Heroes had unleashed a cacophony to the battlefield that had quickly turned into a deathly silence. They made no noise. No war-cries. They didn’t even call out their spells.
It’s like they’re barely paying attention to us while they kill us.
“Klek,” Tulip said. “Guards are approaching. If we don’t leave now, we’re dead.”
“Look,” Klek said. “Anyone that wants to leave can do it. But every minion that fought outside is gone or dead. This is the safest spot in the entire camp, so make your call.”
“Hogbus save us,” said Vogkord sadly. “I knew I should have listened to my mate.”
A strong breeze reached the tent and made the entrance flap and flutter. Despite himself, Klek jumped like everyone else. Someone squealed.
The ground above Klek’s feet began to shake. Acting by reflex, Klek jumped away barely in time. The ground collapsed and became a ramp as it fell with a heavy thud. A dirty drone in a purple-and-pink tunic stood atop it. It had a yellow mining hat with a shard of magical torch at its front. It regarded the stunned riders and their mounts with a disapproving look, then gestured at the cart behind him, which was connected to the stone floor by a strange iron line that extended beyond Klek’s view.
With a dignity that befitted the Adventurer Slayer, Klek patted himself clean of most dust—with little success. “Right,” he said. “What are you waiting for?” he told his crew. “Get to work! Secure the loot to the cart so we can do what we do best.”
One by one, the crew overcame their surprise. The spiders pulled the coffin and the bag of loot toward the cart, while the riders secured it. Outside, it was quiet enough that Klek could make out the sound of voices heading their way.
Tulip reached his side while the others worked. “Turns out you were right again. Tell me, brave snack, what is it that we do best?”
Klek gave her his best confident smile. “Running for our lives. We have no equal at that.”
The horned spider chuckled darkly.
“Alita’s tits,” Alder whispered. He turned to Kes, his eyes wide. “That’s Alvedhra!”
“I can see that,” Kes said, sharply. She was pale, the muscles in her arms taut with tension. “Alvedhra. What are you doing here?” she asked the Ranger. “And what the hell have you done to your character sheet?”
Ed activated his Evil Eye and stole a quick glance.
Alvedhra, human Inquisitor. Exp: 275. Unused: 15 Brawn: 12, Agility: 13, Endurance: 12, Spirit: 12, Mind: 12, Charm: 12. Skills: Archery: Improved IV, Tracking: Improved I, Religion: Basic VII. Talents: Explosive Arrow, Smite, Pass Without Trace, Pact of the Faithful.
The Ranger’s talents were all over the place. She’s become an Inquisitor? Last time Ed had seen the Ranger, she’d suffered an allergic reaction to spider venom in the middle of a battle against Queen Amphiris. Kes had saved the Ranger by making a pact with what she thought was an evil Dungeon Lord who had tricked them into trusting him.
With time, as they had gotten to know each other, Kes
had come around. Now she was one of his most trusted friends.
Alvedhra, though… she hadn’t been there for that part. Only for the betrayal.
“I could ask you the same damn thing, minion.” Alvedhra gave the word such a dark emphasis that Kes involuntarily took a step back. The Inquisitor turned to Ed. “So this is what you really look like, Dungeon Lord. The armor and cape suits you better than your scrawny adventurer disguise, I’ll admit. Your pet batblin is missing, though. Yes. How different things are. And my, that’s such a huge experience gain you’re sporting, Kes. I wonder how many innocents you had to kill for it.”
“You have no idea what you’re talking about,” Kes said.
“Is that so? Correct me where I’m wrong, then. You became a Dungeon Lord’s minion and helped him raze Burrova and kill Ioan and all the others. Last winter, you and he tried to release a sentient wraith into Constantina… but failed. So you rallied more Dungeon Lords into Starevos, then built a base here. And now you’re raiding the goddamn Militant Church!”
“Oh, come the fuck on,” Lavy muttered. She was inching for the bushes toward Scar and the other hell chickens.
Alder frowned and lowered his sword. “At least you got two of those right, Al.”
Kes glared at him. “Alder, don’t.” She glanced back near Ed and raised her fist without making eye contact. “I deal with her on my own, understand?”
“Got it,” Ed said, trying to appear nonchalant. Klek and the riders were running for their lives inside the tunnel while the drones collapsed it as they passed. We really don’t have time for this.
“I hope you’re better at ‘dealing with me’ than you were at securing this clearing,” Alvedhra told her. Everything about her demeanor just oozed fury. “It was trivial to sneak here undetected. And now I’ve got your Dungeon Lord surrounded, Kes. It’s over. A single gesture and he dies. Your reign of terror ends tonight, and by Alita’s grace, it’ll be by my hand.”
“Are you even listening…” Kes shook her head and didn’t finish her sentence. Her hands clenched her sword so tightly her knuckles were white. “Look, we didn’t summon the wraith—we killed it. And I don’t know what Gallio told you, but we didn’t burn Burrova. Ioan did, and we stopped him.”
Alvedhra loosed her arrow. Ed’s eyes flashed green, and the arrow exploded midair in a puff of smoke. Lavy yelped and jumped back a step. No one else acknowledged the attack—Kes didn’t even blink.
“I’ll kill you for speaking like that of Ioan,” Alvedhra said. “He was a hero, and he died defending the village from a Dungeon Lord’s attack, like you should have done. You say that’s a lie. Am I wrong in saying you’re his minion, then? Do you deny it?”
Kes shook her head. “No. I don’t deny it.”
Ed wanted to clutch his head and scream his frustration away. Kes couldn’t tell her the whole truth! Because doing so would be admitting the mindbrood’s existence—to an Inquisitor, at that—and then Hoia, Undercity, and every village in the vicinity would get purged by holy fire. He had stumbled into a situation that could be resolved by all parties involved calming down, drinking tea, and talking for a while. But they couldn’t do it!
And Kes knew it.
“So, the one truth you can’t twist is the one you own, yet you expect me to believe all the others you can’t prove.” She grabbed a small metal piece she carried on a necklace. An arrowhead. “I found this in Burrova’s ashes. It’s Ioan’s. When you’re gone, I’ll bury you with it, so he can find you in the afterlife. We’ll him decide if you’re worth forgiving.”
“Go fuck yourself,” Kes said quietly. “Your new friends are no saints, you know. If you want someone to blame, it’s them. They go killing anyone who won’t bend the knee to Alita, and when we dare defend ourselves, you scream to the heavens as if we were the ones burning entire villages down.”
Alvedhra let go of her necklace and nocked another arrow. “The Militant Church gave me a home after I lost mine. They nursed me to health. They gave me purpose, taught me how to hone my hatred into a weapon of good so that I could stop massacres like those from ever happening again.” She paused, and her face was distant for a second. “I won’t fail them, Kes. There’s only one thing I need to know—one thing I keep asking myself. Because, you see, I thought I knew you, that you weren’t one to fall for the sweet lies of a servant of the Dark. What did he offer you in the first place? Was it riches? Women? Your homeland taking you back?” Alvedhra shook her head, although Kes’ expression didn’t change. “No. Tempting, but not enough to fuel such a betrayal. It has to be something deeper. The true wish of your heart.” For an instant, Ed’s gaze met with the Inquisitor. He didn’t like what he saw there. “He offered your wings back, didn’t he? He told you he’d make you fly again, and then you sold your soul and did everything he asked of you—like the good whore you are.”
Kes drew a breath as if someone had stabbed her. Ed knew that Alvedhra had unearthed Kes’ greatest pain—something very intimate that Kes had shared with her in a way she hadn’t with him or anyone else. Alvedhra had paid back Kes’ perceived betrayal in the same coin.
The Marshal raised her head. She just looked… tired. Very much so. The vivid image of a person with no more fucks to give.
She sighed and said, “Okay.” Then she raised her shield, aimed the tip of her sword at the Inquisitor’s neck, and advanced.
“Now!” Alvedhra said immediately, entering a defensive stance. “Get them, now!” She stared at the trees.
Kes stopped and looked around, her shield covering her face.
Nothing happened.
Alvedhra cursed in Starevosi and drew her bowstring. “Explosive—” Something red-feathered struck her neck. Her arrow went wide and disappeared into the underbrush. The Inquisitor blinked and reached for a small bamboo shaft protruding from her neck. She blinked again as she removed it to reveal a small syringe attached to the shaft. “What?” she repeated.
The surrounding trees shook, and five tall kaftar jumped down from the branches above. The spotted furs under their leather armor shook with the breeze. “Bet you didn’t see that one coming,” Kaga said, barking a laugh. “Not such a good infiltrator, after all, am I right?”
“Right you are, boss,” Yumiya said, flashing a grin of yellowed canines.
“Kaftar!” Alvedhra reached for another arrow, but her hand missed its mark somehow. “What have you done to my men?” She seemed to have trouble standing.
“Sleeping draught,” Kaga said, pretending he didn’t see Kes’ furious scowl. “They’re having such sweet dreams, you should join them.”
“A poison? Ignorant barbarian, I’m an Inquisitor. My faith shall burn through your silly juice in an instant.”
“Sure.” Kaga shrugged. “But that draught is my great-uncle’s personal recipe. He used to hunt were-alligators all over the misty swamps of the distant south, near the Wetland frontier.” The kaftar had a nostalgic glint to his eye. “Those were the days. That draught would put any were-gator to sleep, force them to revert back to normal. If your faith can burn through it, maybe people should pray to you instead of the Light, young lady.” As he spoke, he and Yumiya calmly strolled for the Inquisitor, with the remaining kaftar hanging back outside the clearing.
Alvedhra’s entire body was tense with raw effort as she forced herself forward on willpower alone, step by step. “Blasphemous, ignorant fool. You won’t stop me from having my revenge.” With a trembling hand, she grabbed an arrow and nocked it. She took aim at Kes. Ed readied himself to reflex a drone her way. “I am Alita’s hand on this cursed earth. Through my arrow, her will… be done!”
She released her grip with a guttural war cry. Her bow shot from her hands into a very surprised drone. Alvedhra studied the arrow that she was still holding, raised an eyebrow, and then collapsed into Yumiya’s waiting arms. The Monster Hunter deposited the Inquisitor on the ground with a careful motion.
“Another victory for great-uncle Shigo,” Kaga declar
ed off-handedly. “That man was an artist.” He took the weapons away from Alvedhra’s snoring body with practiced ease.
Kes reached him, her face flush with anger. “I told you I’d deal with her on my own!” she told the kaftar.
Kaga bared his teeth and pulled back his ears like a puppy rebuked, but only for an instant. “My apologies, Kes, I must’ve missed that order while we were dealing with the Inquisitor’s two friends. In truth, she should never have come this far, but those two made so much noise it’s no wonder we missed her approach.” By his side, Yumiya nodded.
Ed squinted, unsure if he had read the kaftar right. Is he actually angry because Alvedhra managed to sneak past him? Somehow, she had done so in a way that also missed the kaftar’s presence entirely.
Tonight, two expert infiltrators had passed by each other without either being aware of the other.
If Murmur is watching this, he must think mortals’ lives are a black comedy, Ed thought.
Kes rolled her eyes at the kaftars. She gave Alvedhra one last sad look, then straightened her back and returned to Ed’s side. “There’ll be more, Ed, and they’ll bring those Heroes with them. We need to leave right the fuck now.”
There were no more spiders in the camp, and Ed could see men and women moving in a flurry of activity. He wasn’t sure if they were coming this way yet, but they would.
“I’ll go get Scar,” said Lavy, who had kept a healthy distance from the action since running out of spells. “By the way, Kaga, I’ve an ex in a dungeon somewhere I’d like you and your great-uncle to meet.”
“You point and I’ll dart,” Kaga said cheerfully, hiding his blowpipe within the folds of his armor.
At that moment, a section of the ground in front of Ed gave way with a rumble, collapsing in a way that created a ramp for the creatures below. There followed the unmistakable crash of a wooden cart stopping the old-fashioned way against a wall of dirt. Ed took a step back as the dust settled. A sweaty batblin emerged, almost completely covered in grime.
