Crystal Shards Online Omnibus 1

by Rick Scott

  “Holy crap.”

  “It’s how she got exposed to the radiation,” Maxis says, and then pauses before grimacing, reflecting perhaps on Mom’s current condition. I do, as well, and I can’t help but think how brave she must have been to do that, to risk her life to find our father. Especially at the risk of leaving two young kids behind.

  “I think after that is when they decided to call it quits on searching for Dad and told Mom that they found him dead.” Maxis pauses to swallow a lump in his throat. I don’t ask, but the thought must stir up memories for him. I was only two, but he would have been old enough to remember the day they came to tell Mom that Dad was dead. It must have been traumatizing for him. “They gave her his wedding band as proof, but told her his body was unrecoverable. I guess they were worried she’d keep heading out to look for him if they didn’t. They were probably right, too, knowing her.”

  I begin to understand what my brother meant now, about hope being a dangerous thing.

  It can lead to desperation.

  “Oh man . . .” My head is swimming. “So, Gilly’s dad knows all of this?”

  Maxis nods. “Trust me. I belted him a good one when he first told me. But after a while, I understood why they had to do it. To protect Mom. To protect us. The one thing he did say was that Dad had the reflexes of a mongoose, and that he couldn’t understand what could have happened to him up here. That was his nickname, by the way.”

  “What? Mongoose?”

  He chuckles. “Stupid, right? He said I was a chip off the old block. Fast, just like him.” My brother smiles at me. “I think you are, too . . . maybe even more so.”

  Whoa. That’s a pretty amazing compliment, coming from him.

  “You know what?” Maxis breathes out a long sigh that ends in a whistle. “I actually do feel better telling you all that crap. Thanks, man.”

  I look at him, perplexed, and then drop my gaze to the ground. “I don’t know what to think.”

  “Yeah, it’s pretty heavy, right?”

  “Totally.”

  I can hardly believe it. My Dad could be alive. And we could find him!

  “You can’t go telling Gilly, or anyone else, though,” Maxis says. “Way too much crap to explain.”

  “Yeah, no doubt,” I say. “I guess we’re still keeping secrets.”

  “Like I said, it’s in our DNA.” He shrugs. “But hey, I guess sometimes, it’s the only choice you have, right? Especially if it means protecting a loved one.”

  I can’t argue with him there. “So, what do we do now?”

  He scoffs at me, like I just asked the dumbest question in the world. “What we came here to do, stupid.” He grins at me. “You get to tank the Shadow King.”

  Chapter 40: Preparation

  I spend the next few minutes sitting quietly with my brother, reflecting on my Dad. It still feels like a bit of a dream to me, and I can’t keep the smile off my face. Of all the things Mike could have been hiding, this was the last thing I would ever have thought of, but at the same time, it’s also the most amazing.

  I think of my mom back in Citadel and whisper a promise to her. I’ll find Dad. I’ll bring him home to you. I look over at my brother and smile. We’ll do it together. We’ll find our Dad and be a family again.

  Be the family I never got to have.

  “You ready?” Maxis says finally.

  I give my brother a nod as I push those thoughts aside to focus on the present. It’s time to do what I came here to do. What Val Helena put all her trust in me to do.

  It’s time to defeat the Shadow King.

  * * *

  Maxis and I reemerge from our impromptu family counseling session to see the whole team waiting for us on pins and needles. It almost makes me laugh to see them all so pensive about the outcome of our conversation. It’s a shame I can’t share it. Although inside, I’m bursting to tell them everything.

  Gilly steps forward, tapping her fingertips together while wearing a worried expression. “So . . . you guys all cool now?”

  “Yeah,” Maxis says with a smile. “But don’t expect a wrestling match.”

  That gives everyone a laugh.

  “Yeah, we’re good,” I say. “But it’s time to get on with the mission.” I shift gears mentally, preparing for the challenge to come. “Where exactly is this thing, Val?”

  Val Helena steps forward, and I can see that, despite the joke we all just shared, her countenance hasn’t really shifted from the pensive stare she held before. Perhaps it’s a bit of trepidation now; her mission to save her best friend and sister, the possibility of finding out her true fate, is finally coming to a head. “I’ll lead the way,” she says.

  We follow behind the half-giant goddess as we make our way through the rocky shale. The land is desolate and barren, and the air warms the further we travel. Cliffs rise on either side of us as we make a cut through a portion of the mountain range. Eventually, it becomes a narrow channel that ends at a cliff face, not unlike a crack in a wall. We stop and peer out the exit, into what looks like a massive caldera that’s at least a couple miles across. The earth is cracked and worn, made of the same dark shale we’ve been walking on for the last twenty minutes. To the south, the ridge of the caldera is lined with a thick forest that leads upward into the mountains.

  “That must be the mountain pass,” Rembrandt says, pointing toward it. “We cut off a good bit of time, that’s for sure.”

  No doubt. Though we had to run a gauntlet through the wild, getting up and over the towering mountains I see before me wouldn’t have been a picnic, either.

  “Where’s the Shadow King?” I ask.

  “It spawns at the center of the basin, down there.” Val Helena points. “It should react to us when we get close. Once we kill it, a portal to the labyrinth will appear. It only lasts a moment, though, so we’ll have to be quick to enter.” She pauses, and then adds, “And then the real hard part starts . . .”

  Maxis rubs the small of her back. “Hey, your sister’s going to be fine. We got here as fast as we could.” My brother gives me a nod. “Thanks to him.”

  “Yes,” she says, looking back at me. “Thank you for that, Reece.”

  I smile and nod. “No problem. So . . . what’s the game plan? What should we expect?”

  “You’re the quarterback, Val,” Aiko says, nudging her. “Set the play.”

  The giantess blows out a sigh as she thinks about it. “Well, as for the mob itself, I’ll defer to you, Aiko, since you’re the one who’s tanked it. All I know is that its attacks are really fast, and it has this AOE move it can spam.”

  “Sounds good so far,” I joke.

  “When the arena spawns, there will be three pillars at the edges,” Val continues, indicating where with a wave of her hand. “When the boss moves to the center of the arena, it’ll use energy from the pillars to power up. After it does, an arena-wide attack goes off. We need to destroy at least two of the pillars to survive it. Three, if possible. They each have a different color. I’ll call out which color pillar to attack first, so we can focus it down fast. Gilly, even you’ll need to DPS during that phase.”

  “Got it,” she says.

  “Right after the AOE goes off, we’ll need to run to Gilly so she can heal us up with a Great Heal.”

  “Understood,” Rembrandt says.

  “Does it spawn any adds?” Maxis asks.

  “Yes,” Aiko says. “Two miniatures of itself. They’re fairly tough, too. But I can tank them for you.”

  “Will it be okay to leave Reece on the boss alone like that?” Val Helena asks.

  I shrug. “I’ll have the ring. I should be okay, right?”

  “If not, I can tank the adds myself,” Maxis says with a flex of his neck.

  Aiko grins at him. “Okay, Mr. Macho. We’ll see how you do on the first set. Don’t be afraid to call me if you get your panties in a bunch.”

  “What should I be doing?” Gilly asks.

  “Your main focus shoul
d be Reece at all times,” Val Helena says. “But during the add phases, you’ll need to keep an eye on the rest of us, too.”

  “Reece will need some kind of regen on him, too,” Aiko says. “That ring will drain his HP fast.”

  “How fast?” I ask.

  She shrugs. “Put it on and find out.”

  I summon the ring from my inventory and slip it onto my finger. A pulse a sickness courses through me.

  You take -50 poison damage.

  Whoa! That was a lot. And then, two seconds later:

  You take -50 poison damage.

  I hastily remove the ring. “25 HP a second! That’s going to be rough.” I do some quick math in my head. “I don’t think I’ll be able to last more than a minute with that thing on before I croak.”

  “My regen spell should help double that,” Gilly says. “I’ll make sure you stay topped up. Don’t worry.”

  Aiko looks at me and frowns. “One more thing. Follow me, pretty boy. Just you.”

  Aiko exits the small crevice we’re hiding in and walks around the edge of the cliff face until she’s out of view. I glace around at everyone else to get an idea of what’s going on, but they look as clueless as I am.

  “You coming?” she calls from around the corner.

  I share a shrug with Gilly, and then follow her. When I round the corner, I stop in my tracks. Aiko is standing there, wearing nothing but her elven underwear and a sexy smile.

  “Strip,” she commands.

  “Huh?”

  Gilly: What’s going on! >:(

  Me: I dunno! D:

  Aiko lets out one of her trademark cackles. “Come on. Don’t leave me hanging.”

  I get a trade request.

  Aiko wishes to trade with you.

  Aiko offers you:

  Dark Shinobi Mask: +30 Shadow Magic +30 TP

  (1) Dark Shinobi Gi: +150 HP +30 Shadow Magic+30 AGL+30 Dodge

  (1) Warrior’s Tekko: +75 HP +20 AGL +20 DEX +20 STR +20 VIT

  (1) Ninja Hakama: +150 HP +30 Dodge +30 AGL

  (1) Dark Shinobi Kyahan: +75 HP +30 Shadow Magic +20 Dodge

  My eyes go wide. “Whoa! You’re giving me your gear?”

  “I’m loaning it to you,” she clarifies. “I definitely want this stuff back. It’s prestige gear. But since you’re going to main tank, you might as well have the full package. This gear should give you an extra couple hundred HP, too.”

  Sweet!

  I quickly remove my gear and put it in my inventory before I load it up in the trade window. I’m just about to confirm the trade when Gilly steps around the corner. I nearly laugh when I see the daggers that shoot from her eyes straight toward Aiko.

  “What going on?” she huffs with a scowl, her hands on her hips.

  Both Aiko and I burst out laughing at the same time.

  “It’s not what you think, hun,” Aiko says with a wink. “Although, a girl can dream, I suppose.”

  I blush at that one, made worse when Aiko gives me a sultry stare. Gilly turns her daggers toward me. “Reece?”

  “We’re just swapping gear,” I say with palms raised. I hit the confirm button.

  You receive a Dark Shinobi Mask.

  You receive a Dark Shinobi Gi.

  You receive a Warrior’s Tekko.

  You receive a Ninja Hakama.

  You receive a Dark Shinobi Kyahan.

  I place the gear on my body and model for her. “See?”

  Gilly squints her eyes at me again, but playfully this time. “You just saved yourself a butt whooping, bucko. Nice improvement, though.”

  I take a look at my awesome new Ninja gear and can’t help but agree.

  Aiko puts on my old Level 65 stuff and looks far less so.

  She sighs. “Wish I could say the same.”

  Now it’s Gilly and my turn to laugh.

  The rest of the crew arrives, then, and share in the brief release of tension. It’s probably needed for what we’re about to face. I take a quick peek at my stats with my new gear on.

  Name: Reece

  Class: Ninja

  Level: 85

  Strength: 6+20

  Dexterity: 80+100

  Agility: 80+160

  Intelligence: 4

  Mind: 6

  Vitality: 31 +20

  HP: 1732/1732

  Stamina: 357/357 (+50)

  TP: 261/261 (+80)

  “Wow!” I say, amazed. “I have over 200 Agility right now.”

  “Prestige gear is no joke,” Aiko says. “Which is why I want it back.”

  That reminds me of something. “Speaking of giving things back. I think I owe you something too, Val.”

  The giantess glances down at me, puzzled. “Huh?”

  I produce the ring she gave me back when we were in the Shards.

  You send a trade request to Val Helena:

  You offer: a Black Onyx Ring

  Black Onyx Ring

  +2% TP regeneration every second.

  She laughs, and then shifts her gaze to Gilly. “I think it best you wear it, Gilly. With over 1k TP, a 2% per second gain is nothing to sneeze at.”

  “You’re right about that one,” Rembrandt says. “Put it on, Gills.”

  I cancel the trade and reinitiate it with Gilly.

  She chuckles. “Thanks, Val!”

  Gilly: I guess I get to keep it this time, huh? ;)

  I think back to when Gilly first wore it, back in that low-level dungeon. The Murky Swamps, I think it was. Man, that seems a lifetime ago now. We complete the trade, and Gilly places the ring on her finger, showing it off like it’s a wedding band or something.

  “I guess, since we’re all gearing up, I might as well optimize, too,” Val Helena says. Her eyes light up with her HUD and her gear changes. The red sports bra disappears, replaced by an ornate blue breast piece with an underlay of tight wrappings. Although it’s not as sexy, it still looks just as impressive.

  “What’s that do?” I ask.

  “A little less damage, but more HP and defense,” she says. “If we’re going to be taking AOEs, I want to have as big a buffer as possible for Gilly to heal me up.”

  “Don’t worry,” Gilly says with a grin. “I got you guys!”

  “Are we ready, then?” Maxis asks, shaking loose his shoulders.

  We all look at one another and nod.

  “I guess so,” I say. “Let’s go kill us a Shadow King.”

  * * *

  We descend down toward the center of the caldera. The air is much hotter now, and I marvel at the thick forest at the base of the mountain as we cut across the wide pass leading up its slopes. I didn’t think anything would be capable of growing out here—maybe it can’t in the caldera itself. The tree line is quite well defined, and cuts off sharply at the caldera’s edge, much like the grass did at the edge of the wild. Though, whatever is heating the air must also be aiding the growth of the forest.

  Your Awareness increased by 0.1!

  A strange feeling creeps up my spine as we place our backs to the mountains and head further into the caldera. I can’t tell exactly what it is, though. Maybe it’s just nerves. We are about to face off against a monster ten times tougher than a world boss, after all.

  “Maybe we should buff,” I say when we get about halfway down to the center.

  “Good call,” Val Helena says, and stops. “I can’t remember exactly where it spawns. Wouldn’t want us to trigger it unprepared.”

  Gilly buffs the entire party with Major Favor of the Goddess and Protection, giving us a decent defense buff and extra HP, Stamina, and TP. We then do our individual things, enhancing ourselves for the battle to come. I keep it simple with Shadow Tendrils, Shadow Haste, and Shadow Copy. As expected, the Haste spell Gilly casts on everyone doesn’t stack with my Ninja version. But that’s fine. I’ll be using the ring, anyway. I check my stats in the corner of my HUD, where the party list sits, to see what kind of increase the 10% buff from Major Favor jus
t provided.

  Reece Level 85 Ninja

  HP 1905/1905

  STAM: 392/392

  TP: 287/287

  Wow! Over 1900 HP! Not bad.

  “When should I put on the ring, you think?” I ask Aiko as we start down the slope again.

  “After we engage the boss,” Aiko says. “I can take it off you for a second so you can put it on during combat. Gilly, that’ll be your cue to give him a regen.”

  “Okie dokie.”

  I chuckle at her cute response. Sometimes, I wonder how Gilly stays so chipper. No matter the circumstances, she always has a smile. She really is the most awesome girl in the world. I reach over and take her hand.

  We share a smile just as the ground shakes.

  Your Awareness increased by 0.1!

  “What the h—?”

  My sentence goes unfinished as the ground cracks open beneath our feet. High-pitched screeches fill the air as I’m buffeted by a flurry of wind. Something dark shoots up out of the cracks.

  “Spread out!” Val Helena yells.

  With Gilly’s hand in mine, I jump across the cracks to firm ground and look behind me to figure out what’s going on. With some distance between us, I’m able to see that the blackness spewing from the cracks is actually the wings of bats—hundreds of them!

  They pour out of the earth, but when I look closer, I see that they’re not bats at all. They’re giant eyeballs with bat wings! I shudder at the sight of them and focus on one to see what they are.

  Wing Eye

  Level: 85

  N/A

  Affinity: ???

  “I forgot about these!” Val Helena shouts, pulling her giant axe from her back. “We kill them to make the boss spawn. Don’t let them stun you.”

  As soon as she says it, one of eyeball monsters flashes like a camera going off. I see stars, and the world turns bright white. Gilly cries out next to me, and I lose my shadow. I feel bat wings and sharp teeth scraping against my armor, some of them biting through.