Then, as my new memories filtered into my psyche once I had logged in, I learned that I had just missed the second earthquake as it shook both the Grove and Aldford above it, lasting only a handful of seconds before stopping. Yet once the rumbling ended, I was told that the intensity of the Ley Line had increased yet again and that the distant glint of flowing Æther had now become a constant flow as the rupture widened, just how the very first one had when the world event started.
It’s just like a giant doomsday clock counting down towards the apocalypse, I thought as I crawled out from under the table and tried to figure out where to start my cleanup efforts. Each quake brings us one step closer to running out of time, except that none of us can see just how much time is left on the clock.
Well, maybe on second thought, that’s not entirely true, I mentally corrected myself as I grabbed the knife that I had been holding just a few seconds earlier, the item having landed on the floor front of me, and forced myself back up onto my feet. I know how much time we specifically have, which is only until Sunday morning. Then we’re going to be forced to take our rest cycle and watch from the sidelines, hoping that everything doesn’t go to hell while we’re gone. After that…assuming everything’s still here when we come back, we’re going to be seriously understrength as everyone else is forced to take their rest cycles, unless we risk everyone taking them at the same time Sunday…
Breathing out a deep sigh as the familiar train of thought wormed its way through my mind, I tried to focus my attention on my current task and began to pick up all the tools that I could find, while tossing the scattered armor that had spilled out of the broken crate into a pile. I’d eventually need to find a new crate to stash all the gear in again before we took it down to the camp and handed it out to the guild.
Léandre and I had been working nonstop since I arrived back in Aldford to upgrade all the arms and armor that the Virtus members had in preparation for tonight’s assault into the Grove. With so much on the line, we wanted everyone to be outfitted with the absolute best we could provide, knowing that it could very well make the difference between success or failure.
“Don’t borrow any more trouble than you have to, Lyrian,” Léandre told me from across the room after hearing my sigh, knowing all too well what was causing it. “We have a plan that we are working towards. We must see it through, even though the troubles that we are facing now are so distracting.”
“I know, Léandre,” I replied as I continued to sort through the mess. “It just feels different to be up here on the sidelines while everyone else is fighting and scouting down in the Grove to get ready for tonight. I know crafting all of this is the best place for me to be right now…but still…”
“You will have your chance soon, Lyrian,” Léandre said soothingly. “We have what? Another two hours before the raid starts? Even with this setback, I’m confident that we will be finished within the next half-hour, perhaps slightly longer to get it all packed up again.”
“That would be great,” I agreed, appreciating the elder man’s efforts to steady my nerves. “Thanks, Léandre.”
“Think nothing of it, my friend,” the Tul’Shar replied, waving a dismissive paw in my direction. “Besides, it will be good for you to lead the assault with a fresh mind, not one already fatigued from a day of combat…or god forbid, death sickness. It seems that there has been an unusually large amount of poor souls today that have run afoul of something in the Grove, if the curses that I occasionally hear from outside are any indication.”
“I can’t even imagine what the place is like now,” I replied with a shake of my head, having managed to catch a brief report earlier in the day of the chaos that was unfolding below us.
Apparently, the Nafarrian spirits were attacking every living thing that they saw in the Twilight Grove, including the regular creatures that inhabited the place, which weren’t exactly known for their sociable nature either. The result had been essentially an all-out war in the Grove between the two forces with us Adventurers caught in the middle.
At least until the Grove creatures lost, like we all knew they eventually would. The spirits’ ranks seemed to be endless as they emerged from the tainted lake of Æther in the cavern, where, on the other hand, the creatures’ ranks weren’t. Attrition would eventually swing things in favor of the undead spirits, assuming of course whatever they were doing to the Ley Line didn’t destroy the place first.
With nothing left to say for the moment, the two, well, three of us, once Amaranth felt confident enough to come out from under his table, focused our efforts on tiding up the aftereffects of the earthquake, and before long I found myself sorting through the armor that had broken free of its crate.
Had I known this crate was going to break, I would have sorted these two sets of armor separately like I did the other one, I thought as I glanced over at an intact crate full of armor, filled with the same Twilight Avenger set I’d made for myself yesterday. It wasn’t exactly difficult to sort the scattered armor pieces based on their appearance, yet given the sheer number of pieces involved there was a small chance to accidentally mix them up if I didn’t pay attention. After managing to finally to collect two of the sets together, I made sure to check their descriptions to ensure that I hadn’t missed a piece, carefully reading them over as they appeared in my vision.
Twilight Savant Armor Set
Slots: Arm, Chest, Feet, Hands, Legs, Head, Shoulders
Item Class: Magical
Item Quality: Mastercraft (+20%)
Armor: 355
Set Bonus: (7/7)
Intelligence: +12 Willpower: +12
Armor Type: Light
Weight: 6 kg
Favored Class: Any Arcane or Divine
Level: 19
Twilight Protector Armor Set
Slots: Arm, Chest, Feet, Hands, Legs, Head, Shoulders
Item Class: Magical
Item Quality: Mastercraft (+20%)
Armor: 455
Set Bonus: (7/7)
Strength: +12 Constitution: +12
Armor Type: Light
Weight: 18 kg
Favored Class: Any Martial
Level: 19
“I wished we’d been able to figure out a way to add a third attribute to these new sets of armor and weapons,” I said aloud to Léandre as I bundled the two sets of armor before me together and set them to the side. “We seem to be stuck in a pattern where we can only include two main stats into a crafted item.”
“Perhaps that is something that will come with time?” Léandre suggested in an amused voice. “Despite all of our achievements thus far Lyrian, I must remind you that we are still ranked as Apprentice craftsman in our tradeskills, and will be until we can reach level thirty in them.”
“I know,” I replied, mentally wincing at still how far I had to go until I hit that milestone. Despite all the crafting that I had done over the last day, I’d managed to only get Leatherworking and Blacksmithing up to level twenty-one before everything that we’d been working on turned trivial to create. “Just wishful thinking on my part, I guess. Being able to add just a few points of Constitution on these items would be perfect…”
“That it would be,” Léandre agreed before we resumed cleaning up the room, gradually restoring order to the place and bringing it back to the state that it was before the quake.
Amaranth told me a few minutes later as I finished reassembling the last set of armor I could find, prompting me to turn around and find him holding a long metal object in his mouth.
“Ah! That’s Freya’s new spear!” I exclaimed, setting the armor aside and reaching out to take the item from my familiar. “I forgot I had this leaning against the wall. Thanks, Amaranth.”
Purring contently, the cat flicked an ear in acknowledgment as I took the item and looked it over, making it sure that it hadn’t been damaged somehow.
Not that I expect it to be, I thought as I hefted the spear in both hands. T
his thing is pretty much a solid iron bar.
Convincing Léandre to allow me to use some of the iron that Ritt and Jenkins had sourced from the Grove, I had done my best to make good on my promise to Freya and crafted her a weapon that I was confident she would love. It was heavy enough for her to pierce through armor, yet also balanced to ensure that it wouldn’t slow her down. Plus, it gave me the perfect opportunity to use one of the large Deathstalker’s claws that Lazarus and I had looted from the creature, turning it into a rather vicious looking spearhead with only a minimal amount of modification. Finishing my inspection of the weapon, I was satisfied that the fall hadn’t damaged it and brought up its description for one last look before I packed it away, this time properly.
Deathstalker’s Revenge
Slot: Main Hand and Offhand
Item Class: Magical
Item Quality: Mastercraft (+20%)
Damage: 60-90 (Piercing & Slashing)
Strength: +9 Agility: +9
Durability: 200/200
Weight: 3 kg
Class: Any Martial
Level: 19
Probably the highest damage weapon I’ve made yet, I thought with a smile as I dismissed the item’s description from my vision and moved to pack the item for our trip back to the camp. However, no sooner did I manage to get the item stored, did I hear Aldwin’s voice ring out from the hallway outside our room.
“Lyrian! Léandre!” he called out. “Are either of you in here somewhere?”
“We’re in here!” I answered as I stood up from the new crate that I’d begun to organize and turned towards the door, managing to make it nearly halfway to the door before it was pushed open and Aldwin’s face appeared.
“Figures you’d be in the last room I checked,” he greeted us with a sigh. “Everything in order here after that latest quake?”
“Just about,” Léandre answered, waving at the mess we’d yet to finish cleaning up. “It was enough to throw the room into chaos, even with our regular precautions.”
“Was there any damage to the town?” I asked, despite having a feeling that if there had been, Aldwin, or more likely someone else, would have come running with much more urgency.
“Nothing serious,” he replied with a shake of his head. “The Town Hall is still standing without any apparent damage, but the southern watchtower has definitely shifted even more. I don’t think it’s enough to be a danger, not yet at least, but we all would appreciate your eyes on it when you get the chance, Léandre.”
“I’ll make it a priority once we’re finished here,” the Tul’Shar said, letting out a frustrated growl at the news. “Though if it has shifted again, we will likely have to dismantle it and rebuild the foundation anyway, which I expect to be a pain since the river has made the ground so soft in that area.”
Aldwin nodded in silent understanding, obviously not truly worried about the damage a falling watchtower could cause given our current situation. He paused for a moment, eyes shifting between the three of us as he looked for a way to ask the question that I knew weighed heavily on his mind, the one he’d really come here to ask.
“And…” he finally managed to get out, his eyes landing on me as he spoke. “How goes our preparations?”
“We’re ahead of schedule,” I replied, seeing the Bann’s stance relax at the news. I could appreciate how hard it had been for him not to hover around or request constant updates as the day wore on, but with the latest earthquake shaking the town and our time running out, he had a near perfect excuse to come and check on us. “We should be ready to head back to the camp within the hour…and then we’ll be setting out into the Grove an hour after that.”
“Good,” Aldwin said, relief clear in his voice. “Then we will hopefully be able to put this nightmare behind us.”
“We will,” I affirmed with all the confidence I could muster. “We have practically every Adventurer in Aldford coming with us tonight. If we fail…it won’t be from a lack of trying.”
“That…is actually something that I wanted to mention to you as well, Lyrian,” Aldwin said, his face taking on a stone-like quality to it as he looked at me. “I have decided that I will be coming with you all tonight, and I believe Veronia will be as well. I can’t stay on the sidelines any longer, not when an extra pair of arms or two could make the difference between success or failure.”
“Fredric,” I replied, feeling my eyes widen in panic at the thought of having Aldwin and Veronia with us. “You both could die.”
“And that is supposed to keep me from helping?” he replied, instant anger on his face. “I will have you know, I risked dying every day I fought for Eberia, why would I not want to do the same for my home now?”
“Because you have us to take those risk for you now!” I countered, knowing that the words were hollow the moment they left my mouth. “It may take multiple attempts for us to clear the Grove tonight and tomorrow; we can all afford to die as many times as we need to! You can’t!”
“And does that somehow make my life more special…or somehow cheaper, than yours?” the Bann asked in a quieter voice, but still retaining the earlier anger. “Because I only have one to give?”
“No, it’s because if I—we, screw up, you’ll be gone!” I exclaimed while glancing at Léandre for support, only to see him raise both of his hands to ward me off, clearly smart enough not to get involved in the conversation.
“If my death is the price that it takes to keep Aldford, and by extension, Eberia, safe. Then that is a price that I am more than willing to pay,” Aldwin said to me. “For this entire month, I’ve sat within Aldford while you’ve all taken unimaginable risks on the town’s behalf and I find myself unable to stomach it any longer, Lyrian. Especially with everything we have at stake. Not if I want to be able to look at myself in the mirror again.”
I stared at Aldwin silently for a moment as I tried to come up with a suitable reply, but found myself unable to disagree with anything that he’d said. Ever since the new settlers arrived, the administration of the town had taken almost the entirety of Aldwin’s time, forcing him to watch from afar as we Adventurers hunted for food, found resources, and dealt with threats. I couldn’t blame him if he wanted to take an active role in protecting everything that we’d built together, knowing that if our position were exchanged, I’d feel the exact same way.
“Okay, Aldwin,” I said, breaking the silence that had hung between us. “I understand.”
“I knew you would…eventually,” he replied with a nod, the anger on his face fading. “And I have the utmost confidence that we will all succeed today. For if we didn’t, the gods would have to go find someone else to torment, and I doubt they would ever find anyone worthy of replacing us.”
“I think Shelia said something similar this morning,” I replied with a smile, the momentary tension that had been in the air vanishing. “Though maybe not as…”
“Apt?” Léandre offered.
“Sure, let’s go with that,” I said with a chuckle.
“Anyway, that was all that I wanted,” Aldwin said to us after the moment had passed, taking a step backward towards the door. “I will leave you two to finish your work. Veronia and I will be ready to depart shortly.”
With a nod of his head, Aldwin turned and left the room, leaving both Léandre and me alone together once more.
“I never even doubted that he would be joining your expedition tonight,” Léandre said after we heard the Bann walk down the hallway and out of earshot. “I thought you knew.”
Amaranth added, letting out a raspy croak as he walked up beside me.
“I guess I’m a little slow on the uptake today,” I said, reaching up to run a hand through my hair as I turned back towards my half-packed crate. “But you’re right; I should have expected it…it’s not like he’d b
e in any less danger up here. If we fail…all of this here will be destroyed.”
“A factor that he likely took into consideration,” Léandre pointed out. “At least he will feel that he is doing something, rather than waiting endlessly for the world to end…or for you all to return victorious.”
“I suppose,” I admitted. “As much as I hate to use Aldwin that way, his presence should hopefully help motivate everyone to just be a little bit more on their game tonight.”
“There is that,” Léandre said, picking up a large unstrung bow stave from the table before him and using it to motion over towards my crate. “Now, before we let the time get away from us, finish packing that box. I will need your help in a moment to string this new contraption for Sierra.”
With that, the two of us went back to work, getting our newly crafted equipment sorted and putting the finishing touches on the pieces that we had yet to finish, eventually taking all the crates outside to where a horse-drawn wagon was waiting. We’d be able to use the animal in getting all the supplies to the mouth of the shortcut, but it would be up to us to haul it into the ruins afterward, the sheer quantity of items that we were taking just too much to fit into our inventories. Fortunately for us on that front, we had planned ahead, and had enlisted the services of Cadmus, Abaddon, and Helix, to both escort us to the ruins safely, and for the added muscle to carry everything down.
“Well, I guess that’s everything,” I found myself saying to Léandre less than an hour later as the two of us looked over the now loaded wagon one last time.
“Looks like it,” the Tul’Shar agreed, the two of us then stepping away from the vehicle and glancing around at the deathly silent streets of Aldford. The repeated earthquakes today had done much to unnerve all the townsfolk, and many of them had resorted to hunkering down in their homes or the Town Hall for the evening, leaving Aldford to almost feel as if it had been abandoned, save for the lights that peered through the odd window.
Legacy of the Fallen (Ascend Online Book 2) Page 68
