by Rick Scott
I decide to meet with Wilbur in the village center and get some town administration done before I find a place for Gilly and I to go level for the day. After my late-night chat with Val Helena, ideas have been itching in my brain about the types of improvements that could be made to the village, and what we can do to help.
The morning sun is still weak when I venture toward the village square; we got up quite early thanks to the roosters crowing outside the Common Hall. The townspeople are already busy at work, though. Farmers tend the fields while others work to mend the homes that were damaged last night.
I bring them up on my HUD.
Actions in Progress.
Repair House
Labor: 25 units
Wood: 15 units
Percent Complete: 58%
Quest Available: Assist with Repair.
+100 XP +10 Favor
3 more actions in queue.
#2 Repair House
#3 Repair House
#4 Repair House
+10 Favor? I recall seeing that before, when we cleared the three quests to claim the town. I look it up and see that there are several levels of favor you can gain within a town, each with a different type of bonus.
Favor Level 1:
+5% discount on goods and services
+10% XP boost in area of influence
Favor Level 2:
+10% discount on goods and services
+20% XP boost in area of influence
Favor Level 3:
+25% discount on goods and services
+30% XP boost in area of influence
Favor Level 4:
+35% discount on goods and services
+40% XP boost in area of influence
Favor Level 5:
+50% discount on goods and services
+50% XP boost in area of influence
Your Favor Level for Brookrun Village is Level 1 [50/100 Favor to next level]
Nice! Only 50 more favor points to reach Level 2? That 20% XP boost will come in real handy to help us level. I also notice that there are negative levels for gaining hate. A good thing to avoid, I suppose.
I wave to Wilbur when I see him. He’s sat on a small wooden bench in the middle of the village center, smoking a pipe as he oversees the work being carried out on the cabin repairs. He smiles when he sees me and offers me a seat next to him.
“Sleep well?” he asks.
I nod, though my back is aching something fierce from the hard wooden floor. I’ll never complain about my crappy mattress back home ever again. “I see the repairs are going quite well. How can I lend a hand?”
“You can probably help by hauling materials from the wood stores,” he says.
New Quest Available: Cabin Repairs
Carry building materials from the wood stores to the affected homes.
Reward: +100 XP +10 Favor
“Sure thing,” I say.
You have accepted the Quest: Cabin Repairs
“I’ll get to that in just a moment,” I tell Wilbur. “What else can we help with, though? On a larger scale?”
“How do you mean?” Wilbur says.
“In order to grow the town. What things do you need?”
While Wilbur pauses to think, I have a peek at my HUD again. There are dozens of options available for construction.
HouseBankShop Blacksmith Windmill
Barracks FieldFisheryBarnSilo
SawmillTanneryPenWallStockade
MarketInnTavernStillWinery
BreweryForgeSewerAqueductTown Hall
Some of the options are grayed out, meaning they need certain prerequisites met before they can be constructed, and others expand into further trees with specializations. Just the sight of all the options has my mind ticking with ideas of how this small village could one day be something bigger, like my starting town of Timberdale back in the Shards, maybe even something as big as Swifttide.
I wonder how big the town Val Helena built eventually got. After ten years, it must be massive. Or maybe it would take ten years just to grow from a village to a town. This is the real world, after all. Things might not happen as quickly here as they do in the Shards.
“Our safety is my greatest concern at the moment,” Wilbur says finally. “If you hadn’t come along last night, we would have been wiped out by the goblins. A wall to protect us would be a great advantage.”
I pick the wall option, and then specify defensive perimeter to check it out.
Wooden Perimeter Wall: +50% security +10% morale -10% Trade
Labor: 1000
Wood: 1000
A hefty price tag. “We could probably work toward that, I guess.”
“We could also eliminate the main threat in the area,” Wilbur said. “The goblins have taken over some nearby mines. It’s why they keep raiding us. With you defeating their champion last night, they’ve lost most of their strength. What’s left of them would not pose much of a challenge for you. If you can clear them out, we could even take back the mines again.”
New Quest Available: Remove the Goblin Horde
Reclaim the Brookrun Mines by defeating the Goblin Queen and her minions.
Defeat Goblin Commanders (5)
Defeat Goblin Champion (1) [Complete]
Defeat Goblin Queen
Rewards: 100,000 XP +200 Favor with Brookrun Village. Control of Brookrun Mines.
Holy cow!
My eyes widen as I read the details. A quest like this would kill two birds with one stone! Maybe even three! “Wilbur, I think you just found yourself a goblin exterminator.”
* * *
You share a quest with your party: Remove the Goblin Horde
“So, what do you guys think?” I ask when I see the quest pop up on their HUDs, their eyes glowing.
It’s midmorning now, and both Gilly and I have reached Level 2 in Favor by assisting with the cabin rebuild and running a few small tasks for the villagers here and there. Maxis and Rembrandt have returned from their scouting mission, and we’re now back in the Common Hall, sat around a table, studying the quest details.
“What level is the dungeon?” Rembrandt asks.
I shrug. “Doesn’t say. But the goblins can’t be much tougher than the ones we fought last night. And with the champion defeated, Wilbur said the dungeon shouldn’t be too hard to beat at all.”
“He’s right,” Val Helena says. “I’ve cleared low-level dungeons like this before. Once the champion is defeated, it’s pretty much cake. It’ll probably be good XP for Gilly, too.”
Maxis grimaces. “I suppose it’ll do. Let’s saddle up. Those mines are probably a good hour’s hike from here.”
“Hold on, handsome.” Val Helena rests a hand on his shoulder. “We can’t all go and clear it. The XP split will be too high.”
“Well, I’m not letting them go by themselves.”
Val Helena laughs. “Gosh, you really are the overprotective big brother type, aren’t you? That’s kind of sweet.”
Maxis mumbles something inaudible, but I’m pretty sure it’s a cuss.
“Can’t we just not party up or something?” Gilly asks.
“The XP won’t be split evenly if you’re not in a party,” Val Helena says. “The majority will go to whoever does the most damage. So you still wouldn’t get much.”
“Fine. I’ll go with them, then,” Maxis says. “Splitting three ways is better than five.”
The thought of just my brother coming with us has me suddenly feeling less enthused. The last thing I want is him bossing me around. Especially in front of Gilly. It must show on my face, because Val Helena jumps right in to save me.
“Actually, I could really use your help around here,” the half-giant goddess says. “I got a quest to chop down some trees for more wood. Sure wouldn’t mind the helping hand . . .” And then she winks at him.
Maxis furrows his brow. “You’re as strong as ten people. Why do you need my help?”
Val Helena lets out a god
dess laugh. “Wow. You really are just like your brother.”
“What?” he says.
I turn a little red. I know exactly what she means: Clueless.
“Oy, I don’t mind playing chaperone, mate,” Rembrandt says, clearly less clueless than my brother and I. “You go give the big lady a hand. I got the kids. Don’t worry.”
My spirits lighten immediately. Going with Rembrandt is a much better option. Plus, a ranged DPS like him will have us clearing that dungeon in no time.
“Sounds like a plan to me,” Val Helena says. “Thank you for offering, Rembrandt.”
“Call me Rem, miss.” The cyberpunker tips his head in a bow.
Maxis still has a sour look on his face.
“We’ll be fine,” I say. “And if we find anything that’s more than the three of us can handle, we’ll come back. Right, Rem?”
“Absolutely, mate.”
Maxis looks at us, and then Rembrandt. “All right. Just don’t take any chances with my little bro, man.”
“Or his girlfriend!” Gilly pipes up.
That gets a laugh out of everyone and even a stiff chuckle from my brother.
“Or his girlfriend,” Maxis echoes with a smirk. “All right, we’ll see you guys when you get back. I want to start going over some ideas for where to head next. Gilly might be able to level in there, but she still needs scrolls.”
“I got that covered,” Gilly says.
Everyone looks at her.
“You do?” I ask.
“Yup.” Gilly beams. “And it’s on the way, too. Let’s go.”
Chapter 7: Pitstop
I head out with Gilly and Rembrandt, into the open forest, leaving the village of Brookrun—as well as my brother and Val Helena—behind. Gilly is the navigator this time, guiding us from what I assume is a map on her HUD. Rembrandt stays a few yards ahead of us, and when we set off in the chosen direction, his mirror shades glance back and forth as he keeps an eye out for trouble.
“So, where are we headed, exactly?” I ask.
“We’re looking for a hermit,” Gilly says.
“A what?”
“An old gnome that lives by himself out here in the woods.” Gilly hikes up her mage’s robe as she trudges through the underbrush. “When I was talking to the villagers earlier, I asked them where I could maybe buy some magic scrolls. They said that, aside from heading to a major city, this old dude named Blacktop would be my best bet. They said he’s a real packrat and likes to trade stuff.”
“What are we going to trade him?”
Gilly shrugs. “Let’s just see if he has any scrolls first. Then maybe we can do him a favor or something.”
We travel through the forest for another twenty minutes before Gilly indicates that we should stop. I don’t see anything particularly different from the pine trees we’ve been trekking through for the last hour, though.
“You sure you got the right spot?” Rembrandt asks.
“Should be. I had the villager mark it on the map.”
I check the map myself and, sure enough, we’re on the spot where Gilly placed her waymark. “Maybe the villager had it wrong.”
“Or maybe the goblins got him,” Rembrandt says. “This area’s pretty out in the open.”
I focus my senses. If something is supposed to be here, then maybe it’s hidden. Which means it has to be either up or down. Looking up, all I can see are the branches of the pine trees. There’s nothing in them. That leaves the latter. I look more closely at the ground littered with pine needles. As I kick them about, I hear a faint creak.
Your Awareness increases by 0.3!
“Guys, I think I found something.”
I kick away the needles and uncover a wooden door buried in the ground. It’s about three feet square, and there’s no obvious handle or way to open it. But there is an eye slot embedded in the center of the door. “Did the villager say the place would be underground?”
Gilly shrugs again, but then her face lights up with recollection. “Oh, yes! They did say it was well hidden.”
I laugh as I roll my eyes. “Always so late with the details!”
She just grins. “Sorry!”
I stoop down and knock on the door. “Hello? Anyone home? Blacktop?”
We wait a few moments before I knock again.
The “eye slot” falls inward, perhaps on a hinge, and the business end of a double-barreled shotgun comes poking out.
“Bloody hell!” Rembrandt cries as he pulls his pistols.
“Don’t shoot!” I say, raising my hands. What the heck? I totally didn’t expect a gun!
A gruff voice answers from the other side. “Who are you? And how did you find me?”
I’m at a loss for words as I stare down the twin barrels of death pointed at my face. “Um . . .”
“We’re Shard Warriors!” Gilly says quickly, panic in her voice. “Villagers from Brookrun said that we could find you here. We just want to trade.”
“Trade what?”
“We need magic scrolls,” I say. “The healing type, if you have any. And would you mind lowering the gun, sir? We really don’t mean any harm.”
There’s a mutter I can’t comprehend, and then the shotgun slowly withdraws, replaced by two bloodshot eyes that squint in the sunlight. “From the Shards, eh? Which Shards?”
“The Crystal Shards,” I say. “My name is Reece, and this is—”
“I didn’t ask your names,” the man—Blacktop, I assume—says gruffly. “And I know what the Shards are called. I asked which ones you are from.”
I look at Gilly, puzzled. “Uh . . . Nasgar?”
“Nasgar?” Blacktop lets out a grunt. “Doubt you got anything I’d be too interested in, then.”
“I’m from New London,” Rembrandt says.
The bloodshot eyes go wide. “Lemme get a look at you.”
I move to the side as Rembrandt crouches over the door.
A wheezing laugh comes from the other side. “Well, I’ll be. All right. I’ll give you five minutes.”
I’m about to ask if he has any scrolls when the peephole slams shut.
The mechanical workings of a latch sound from behind the door, and then the whole thing swings inward to reveal a ladder underneath. Blacktop is standing on it a few rungs from the top. If his name has anything to do with his hair, then it must be ironic, because his is completely white, and thinning at the top. His full beard is much the same, and is long enough to be a plaited at the bottom. His face is hardened with wrinkles, and his skin is pale—from lack of sunlight, I presume. He lowers himself down the rest of the ladder and makes room for us to enter.
I head in first, and when I reach the bottom, I’m amazed at how big the underground home is. I still have to stoop slightly, but it’s clearly built for averaged-sized people. It makes me wonder if Blacktop, with his full four-foot frame, was the original owner or if it once belonged to someone else. The room we enter is about ten by ten, and the walls are earth, reinforced with wooden planks. When Gilly and Rembrandt enter, Blacktop climbs back up the ladder to seal the hatchway, and then leads us down a corridor to an even bigger room.
Small lamps light the way, and illuminate the larger room as well, which looks more like a garage full of junk than anywhere someone would actually live. Old furniture, rusted armor, weapons—anything you could think of is heaped into piles or scattered across the floor.
Blacktop plops himself down in a ratty-looking easy chair as we tiptoe our way through the minefield of debris. “Let’s see what you got.”
I study the short little man and pull up his stats.
Name: Blacktop
Sex: Male
Race: Gnome
Class: Tinker
Level: 85
Guild: Everlast
What the heck?
Those don’t look like NPC stats to me. And I’ve definitely heard of a Shard called Everlast before. Could this mean . . . ? “Are you from the Shards, too?”
Blacktop ch
uckles. “You must be new here.”
“Yeah, they’re first-timers,” Rembrandt says. “How long you been here, mate?”
“Long enough to forget where I’m from,” he says. “It’s a beautiful thing. You should try it sometime. Now, what you got for trade? Any guns? They like guns here, though they can barely use ’em.”
“I can spare you one of these,” Rembrandt says, and produces a submachine pistol with a flash of nano-dust. “Level 65 weapon. B class.”
“Not bad,” Blacktop says, studying it from afar.
“Do you have any Celestial Magic scrolls?” Gilly asks. “I need a whole bunch.”
Blacktop looks at her a minute, and I see his HUD light up within his eyes as he checks her stats. “That you do. You’re a brave one, coming out here at that level. Must have had one heck of party backing you when you fought the world boss.”
Gilly shrugs with a smile. “I guess. So, do you have any?”
Blacktop eases off his chair and rummages through a random junk pile. Amazingly, in less than a minute, he returns to his seat with a small chest. When he opens it, there are at least a dozen scrolls inside.
“Now,” Blacktop says. “I don’t really remember what’s in here, but I’ll give you the whole thing for that gun.”
“Can we look at them first?” I say.
“Nuh-uh,” he says. “That’s the deal. Take it or leave it.”
Man, this sucks. “What if there aren’t any scrolls we need in there?”
He shrugs. “The beauty of the bargain, my boy.”
Some bargain. Then again, what choice do we have?
He chuckles as he studies me, and then a furrow creases on his brow. “You sure you’re a first-timer? You look awfully familiar to me.”
“You might have met his brother, mate,” Rembrandt says, which totally makes sense to me. “He’s been here plenty of times. Maybe you’ve seen him. He goes by Maxis.”
