by Wade Adrian
Max pointed off to the south.
Birds where wheeling in the sky without direction. Scared out of their boughs. As a rule birds didn't care about animals, but people could spook them easily enough. Especially a lot of people.
He'd pointed out similar flocks to Max in the past. Where was his head today...
Tom sighed. "Guess it was too much to hope they had given up."
Max scoffed. "We took their money. They'll follow us for days."
"They can just rob more people. Waste of time chasing us."
"You're right. Maybe we should have found a way to put an end to them." Max frowned.
Tom shrugged. He didn't need paladin boy losing hope. Mopey paladin was worse than dopey paladin. "I was kidding. Besides, after we're done we've got to head back, right? We'll burn the place down or something. We'll make a day of it. It will be fun."
"Promises, promises."
The further north they moved, the colder it seemed to get. Tom's interface had a lot of information but no temperature gauge.
They'd been staring at their breath as they walked for a few hours, though, so... that was a thing.
If they weren't wearing cloaks and the like they might already be taking cold damage. If it got cold enough they'd take damage anyway. Even Tom's magic could only help so much.
That didn't bode well for when the sun was gone. It was already nearing the horizon. Of course, the horizon was a mountain, so it was earlier than one might expect.
Tom didn't say as much... but he was watching for places to camp. They were still hours out if their current progress was any indication.
He'd lost track of the trail some time ago. Up here there were no roads, just low points they could follow. He tried his best to line those up with the map, but it was a losing battle. He was just following the compass now. Northwest as best he could lead them.
"You know what I hate?" Tom rubbed at his arms. "This mountain."
"It's not in my top ten mountains, I admit." Max didn't seem as bothered... of course, he wasn't wearing metal armor, and he had his cheesy scarf.
Movement caught Tom's attention. It had been awhile since they had seen so much as a bird. Or trees, for that matter. Just rocks and snow.
He squinted and held a hand up to shade his eyes.
It wasn't exactly clear but... he would almost swear someone was waving.
That could be a good thing or a bad thing. They did have a considerable number of bandits somewhere behind them. The place was sure to have some monsters, too.
Well, it wasn't like they had a lot of choices.
Tom inclined his head. "See something. Let's check it out."
Max squinted the way Tom had indicated. "I don't see anything."
"Maybe I'm going crazy then. That should be fun."
As they drew closer a dark spot appeared. A cave mouth.
Tom sighed. "I hate caves."
"It's out of the wind. I'll take it."
"A place to camp, I guess."
The mouth of the cave was nearly ten feet tall. It didn't have a back he could see from the opening.
"Of course. Big cave." It wasn't defensible if they didn't know how big it was. They needed a wall to put their backs to. This was no place to stop. He turned, waving for Max to follow.
A voice echoed out from the cave behind him. "Come."
Tom looked back over his shoulder.
Yar stood just at the edge of the light spilling in from the cave mouth. "This way."
Tom sighed. "Super."
Max tilted his head a bit. "Sup?"
"This is the path." He dug into his inventory. He wasn't much on crafting but he knew enough. His old table leg club plus a bandit shirt soaked in the wine he had found equaled a torch.
He held the light high, throwing bright light and dark shadows on the path ahead.
At least it was relatively level.
"Come on, lets get this over with."
The tunnels twisted and turned beneath the earth. Tom used the compass to the best of his ability, but when the path went east, or south, he didn't have a hell of a lot of choice but to follow.
The air felt... stale.
So far the cave hadn't really branched. It just grew wider or narrower now and then.
The system clock said they'd been down here for hours. It was nearly 2 AM.
Stupid cave didn't even have the decency to be warm.
A loud thump behind surprised Tom. He turned, swinging the torch high in the air.
Max was sitting on the floor, arranging sticks.
"You trip?"
"I'm making camp."
Tom frowned. "We can't stop here."
"We can, and we are. What we can't do is march through this cave until morning without rest. We don't even know if we'll find our way out in the morning."
"The way out might be twenty minutes ahead. Or ten."
"Then it will be an easy jaunt in the morning." He got the fire started.
It was... inviting. And it lit the way ahead and behind well beyond what the torch was capable of.
Max laid out his bedroll.
Tom sighed as he doused the torch and sat. "Okay, fine. But not long. I want to be moving again by eight or so. I don't like it in here."
Max shrugged. "Okay. First watch or second?"
"First. You've been awake longer."
He also wasn't entirely sure he could sleep in here. It was... unsettling. Worst case, Max would rest and they'd get moving again.
They ate in silence, and Max settled in. "If you need anything, I'm right here."
"Get your hours. You'll probably need them."
Tom checked the system clock again.
2:11 AM.
Great.
"Why do you stop?"
Tom sat up with a start.
Yar was standing by the fire. She looked... irritated.
Tom rubbed at his eyes. He hadn't meant to fall asleep... the clock said it was 4:37 AM. Almost time to get Max up.
Idiot. Idiot idiot idiot. Anything could have happened.
Bandits could have caught up. The cave was the obvious place they would have went.
Or wolves could have found them.
A bear.
A yeti.
Wait, did this game have yetis?
He shook his head a bit.
The girl was still staring at him.
"I told you, we need food and rest like anybody else."
She stamped her foot a few times... but relaxed a moment later. "You're close. So close. You'll arrive and things will change."
"Heh." He rubbed at his neck. "Like a kid before Christmas."
"What is christmas?"
"Never mind." He shook his head. "How close are we?"
"Close now."
She wasn't the most helpful person. "Could you be more specific? How many steps? Or how many hours of walking?"
"Hours. Some." She paced around the dying embers, all that remained of the fire, nearly stepping on Max a few times.
"How much further before we get out of the cave?" Tom set to getting the fire going again.
"Out?" She tilted her head. "Why go out?"
"Well, because I hate it." He shrugged. "Is the shrine in here?"
"Yes? No."
He sighed. "We'll be moving again soon, I promise."
She seemed to relax a bit, her eyes turning to the path ahead. "Soon."
"Can't get out of here soon enough." Tom rolled out his own bedroll. He'd been leaning against the cave wall. Less than comfortable.
He looked up when there was no reply.
The girl was gone.
She did that. Clearly a fan of Batman.
Or just easily distracted like the child she appeared to be.
He sat on the bedroll and tended the fire. He hadn't realized how tired he had been. He should have, the day had been nothing but walking and occasional fighting.
Good cardio, sure, but tiring.
He'd let Max get a bit more rest
and then take his turn.
They abandoned the fire in the morning. Not like the cave was going to burn down. And if it did it wouldn't' bother Tom.
He'd laugh.
The compass was their guide once more as they started walking. In the torchlight it was difficult to discern progress. The map showed they were moving, but with all the twists and turns they might as well have been walking in a circle.
Stupid cave.
Unfortunately the kid hadn't been wrong. It was mid afternoon and the cave just kept going.
"Now I officially want to burn it down." Tom poked the cave wall with his torch.
"You do that. What does the map look like?"
"Like we should be there by now." Tom opened his map again. The note he'd made for the location of the shrine was nearly under their feet. Of course, in this stupid place that could be a mile above... or below.
The flame atop the torch danced while Tom grumbled.
"Hold up." Max pointed at the fire. "We've got moving air."
Tom shut the map and pointed the torch ahead. It flickered slightly. "Goddamn finally." His feet were cold and tired, but moving forward wasn't a problem anymore.
Light appeared subtly. Hardly noticeable at first, but it definitely got brighter as they went. Two turns later they didn't need the torch anymore.
They kept it, of course. It was warm.
The tunnel ended in a round chamber. The far side looked to have been damaged, much of it open to the sky. There were clouds above... and below.
There didn't seem to be a thing beyond but clouds and sky. Like the world just ended.
In the cave, but not in the cave.
A small stone shape stood at the center of the room. It looked a bit like a birdbath, but it was flat on top.
Max scratched at his chin. "This what we're looking for?"
"I guess?" Tom wandered up to the birdbath-table thing. It didn't look all that impressive. There was no ornamentation or carvings. Just a little bag sitting on top.
Yar appeared on the opposite side of the shrine between blinks. She hissed at the bag. "So that's it." She turned her eyes up to Tom. "Get rid of those."
He raised an eyebrow as he reached out for the bag. It clacked softly as he picked it up.
He opened it carefully.
...marbles?
Yar let out a relieved sigh, then took a deep breath as if she could breathe again after being ill.
Tom would swear she had grown taller over the course of the breath. Older, even. She didn't look like a kid, she looked like she was starting her teens.
A smile crept onto her face. "Ah. Thank you, acolyte."
Tom was less than sure he had done a good thing. "Why were these here?"
"I don't know. Someone placed them there in my absence."
"They gave the god of lost marbles marbles?"
Her face twisted with distaste. "An insult. A curse. A talisman meant to harm."
"Who would do that?"
"It's not a short list." She leaned against the shrine. "And it hardly matters." She pointed at Tom. "Take them, with my blessing. They thought to harm me? Hmph." She reached out to touch the bag, her eyes shut and her mouth moving in a silent whisper. She opened her eyes again a moment later. "To you they are power. Each time you use one the power you borrow will be strengthened ten fold."
Tom blinked at that. "That's... a lot."
She smiled. "I can spare it. I only have one you. And you have done so well, my acolyte. You deserve a reward."
"I had a little help." Tom hooked a thumb over his shoulder.
Max frowned. "Leave me out of your crazy talk."
Yar narrowed her eyes at him. "Help? Hmm. A tool. Useful, perhaps. A blade for you to wield, nothing more. Do not trust in him too deeply. He has the stink of my sister about him."
That... probably didn't need to be relayed.
Tom held up the bag of marbles for a moment, then put them away in his inventory. "So can you see farther now? To find more players, people like me?"
Yar hopped up and sat on the stone shrine. She shut her eyes, humming softly as she moved her head back and forth in an almost serpentine pattern. "Your people are far. Very far. Not days, but weeks. Months, perhaps. So far I can only perceive them as existing."
"Damn." Tom sighed.
The girl frowned. "Odd..."
"What? It can't get worse."
She opened her eyes. There was... sadness behind them. "I found some creatures like you that were... not there."
"Okay, you're going to have to explain that one."
"When a life ends in your world, what happens to it?"
"We... cease being. The spirit moves on, supposedly, while the flesh rots away to nothing."
She shook her head. "How horrible. In this world lives that end begin anew, but your people... it seems not. They are hollow. Empty."
Tom tilted his head. "What? How did that happen?"
She closed her eyes again, a hand reaching out. "Madness is my realm. All of them are tinged with it. Touched. Fear drove them to it, just before... they ceased." She opened her eyes. "They fell. Combat. Poison. Beasts. Any number of ways, but the result is the same."
Tom stared at the young woman. "You're saying we can't die? Not once?"
"No, I'm saying you can die only once. And then you cease to be. At least, you cease to be useful."
Tom tugged on his beard. "Is... dying the way out, then? For us?"
She shook her mess of hair about. "I fear it is not. Some part of those that are lost remains here. Useless. Broken. They were afraid in their last moments. Great fear and pain. Too much to endure."
Tom could hardly imagine...
Max stood a few paces off, his arms crossed. He didn't look happy. For him this was probably like only hearing the person on one end of a phone call. A bad phone call.
Tom didn't much care for what he was hearing either.
He'd been tempting fate for days now. Hell, he had taunted a small army of armed wackos just the day before.
If he had known he was mortal in here...
He shivered.
It had nothing to do with the cold.
Yar turned her head. "What's this?"
Tom rolled his eyes. Of course it could get worse. "What now?"
She vanished between blinks.
"Typical." Tom turned to Max. "She's gone. Something shiny caught her attention."
"Is she a god or a cat? Never mind. Want to fill me in on the news?"
"Uhh..." Tom shrugged. "We're a long ways from any other players. So that sucks. Bigger news? Don't die. It seems to be problematic. Potentially permanent."
Max stared at him for a few moments. "Good to know."
The mood had certainly shifted. Before they were stuck in a game they played in their off hours. A source of amusement and relaxation. An inconvenience. Now they were trapped in a world where death might well be just as real as it was outside, but this world was designed to induce death regularly.
A punishment for everything from walking the wrong direction to not eating properly.
Well... reality held those same rules, so maybe not the best examples. But reality had some fail-safes in place like not having giants and dragons. This place had nothing of the sort.
Tom let out a sigh as he lifted the torch high. "Guess we're done here. She seems happier now, and I've got a bag of god mode. At least until it runs out."
"Sounds like we might need it."
"Not sure it will work on you. She doesn't like you." Tom started back into the cave. He didn't like the idea of spelunking, but it was basically one long and winding tunnel so at least he didn't need the compass or map anymore.
"Well that's not very nice."
"She thinks your useful, though. So there's that. You are apparently just a weapon for me to wield."
"Huh. Doesn't sound like a thing I'd put on my resume."
11
The trip out was less eventful. The food lasted, but it was a ne
ar thing. Tom didn't mention Yar showing up, which was just fine with Max. He wasn't sure if there actually was a creepy kid or if Tom was going nuts. Of course, when one's god professed to be all about madness, either was entirely possible and both may well be functionally identical.
What Tom had relayed wasn't the best news. They were a very long way from getting help from other players, but at least they knew how far they were and which direction to head. It was more than they'd had before setting foot in this ridiculous cave.
Light at the other end was a thing of beauty.
Max filled his lungs with the cold air spilling into the cave, even though they were still a ways off. They could see the light ahead, but it only made the surrounding dark that much more difficult to navigate.
Tom grumbled. "No more caves. This was my cave quota."
"Caves are a game staple."
"Caves are game designers being lazy. 'I need an underground building, I know, a cave!' Bah. Lame."
"I'm not disagreeing, but we'll probably see more."
"I'll send you next time."
"Because your crazy god likes talking to me so much."
Tom tilted his head back and forth. "Hopefully this is her only cave, then."
"Since they drive you crazy she'll probably make one for you."
The cleric narrowed his eyes. "That's not funny." He headed for the mouth of the cave with renewed vigor.
"Probably cold out there."
"It's cold in here."
"Yeah, but there's less wind."
"I'd rather freeze with sky over my head."
Max chuckled. He didn't know if Tom had a touch of claustrophobia, but it seemed like it.
He watched as Tom barreled out into the world beyond the cave, letting the torch drop and sizzle away to nothing as it buried itself in melted snow. He held his hands high. "Finally."
Max tugged his hood and scarf up inside the cave. That wind was no joke. After a few days of it, the cave had actually been kind of nice.
"That's far enough."
He immediately dropped into stealth.
Tom spun back and forth, throwing up snow as he looked around.
Men with matching armor and dark blue livery surrounded the cleric, the points of spears mere inches away from him in every direction.
More soldiers were closing in. They had been waiting on either side of the cave, letting it look like they were home free...
