Now he could see them, alien humanoids with dark green skin that almost blended into the bush. They had four arms, and hung from branches with one set while throwing spears with the other.
Byron reached for his Scorpio pistol on his belt before remembering they had taken it away from him. His shield code expired in seconds, leaving him unarmed and unprotected.
But he wasn't helpless.
He charged at the tree line with a roar. One of the aliens hurled a spear at him that went straight through his right shoulder. The pain made him stumble, knocking his health bar down, but he kept running.
He reached the alien and jumped. He caught hold of the alien native's legs and his weight ripped the creature from the branch it held. The two of them crashed to the ground.
One of the alien's four hands grabbed the spear still sticking out of his shoulder. The pain made him scream, but he rammed a fist into its jaw. The creature let go. He twisted its head to snap its neck.
+100 XP
As its body faded away, the alien left a spear and some coins behind. He grabbed the loot and spun around while game text appeared and faded.
EXTRIXA SPEAR
LEVEL REQUIRED: 1
DMG: 100
ACCURACY: HIGH
+5 CREDITS
One of the aliens hung from a tree above him, already drawing back its spear. He threw his spear at the alien above. He was glad for his high skill with weapons, because it hit the alien's throat with pinpoint accuracy.
+100 XP
As the alien fell from the trees, he charged further into the jungle.
This was his chance to get away.
It hit him that if he left Jokah behind at the temple, she would get the treasure.
He grit his teeth and turned back.
He didn't get more than a few steps before something slammed into the back of his head and he blacked out.
=×=
His head throbbed along with his shoulder as he opened his eyes.
Captain Jokah stood in front of him with her hands on her hips and a big smile on her face. "Wakey wakey, eggs and bakey."
He wanted to strangle her, but thick ropes bound his hands to his sides, holding him against a wooden pole. The spear in his shoulder had been removed, leaving a bloody hole in his armor.
She stood at the center of the clearing. At her feet, all her pirates lay dead with spears impaling them.
A group of the four-armed aliens stood behind her, and they all had paint on their tusked faces and loincloths on their slender bodies. They held spears in their hands, but didn't throw them. They just glared at him.
Jokah laughed as she held up the three gems. "So the funniest thing just happened. It turns out the gem is inside that temple, and it turns out the Ghazan (that's what these fellows call themselves) have been guarding the gem in their temple like it's a god or something. But the Ghazan have a prophecy that someone will arrive with the other three gems, and that one's a prophet who will come to get the last gem, and they just let 'em roll right in. I'm guessing that's what Dark Storm told them so he could come back and get the treasure later. Well, guess who they think that prophet is? Go on. You'll never guess."
Byron snarled, "You."
She pretended to open her mouth and look shocked. "How'd you guess? You been reading my diary? Well, you're right, love. So these bloody idiots will do whatever I say. Like, for example, kill and eat you."
She turned and said something in an alien language.
The Ghazan raised their spears and pointed them at Byron's head.
Chapter 21
Byron Jones opened his eyes wider as the alien raised their spears. He tried to expand his arms and break the ropes tied around himself, but they barely moved.
Captain Jokah held up her hand and called out in the alien language again.
The spears lowered.
She broke into laughter again. "Oh, you're so fucking easy! You really thought I was gonna waste all that good man meat? Oh, no, I got a better deal for you, Sweet Cheeks."
She spoke to the aliens. One of them came forward and used a knife to cut the ropes around Byron.
As the bindings fell away, Jokah pointed to the temple. "These lads tell me the pyramid is booby trapped. And while I like boobies, I kinda like keeping my insides more, yeah? So that's where you come in. You're gonna go ahead into the temple and get the gem. If you survive, maybe I'll let you live. If you die, well, we had a good run, eh? But I'll also kill your girls so I suggest you work really hard and not try anything funny."
Byron stood up, looked at the heavy stone arch at the base of the pyramid, and shot her a glare. "I won't let you get that treasure."
She made a face and waved a hand in the air. "Yeah, yeah, save the threats, will you? And one last thing."
She stepped close and pressed their lips together in a passionate kiss. As much as he wanted to pull away, his body responded to his desire.
She finally broke the kiss and slapped him on the cheek. "That's for good luck. Come on, off you go. I got worlds to blow up."
She laughed while pushing him towards the temple.
The armed aliens came together on both sides of the entrance, forming two lines for him to walk between. Their spears kept him on the path to the temple entryway.
Jokah followed a few steps behind with her gun drawn.
As he walked through the entrance, a cool wind blew from the inside, which he thought was weird. Normally, wind blew into buildings, not out of them.
As his eyes adjusted to the darkness inside, he could see a hallway carved from solid rock. Strange symbols and hieroglyphics had been carved into every surface, including the walls, floor, and ceiling.
He could only see a few feet ahead from the sunlight falling inside until he turned on the flashlight on his shoulder. That let him see further, but still only a few feet of the corridor stretching before him into shadows.
"Bloody spooky, eh?" Jokah's voice echoed through the temple. "If we find any mummies, I'm lettin' them get your arse first."
She laughed and he tried to ignore her, but the temple did remind him of some sort of Egyptian tomb.
He slowly walked forward, keeping his flashlight's beam ahead of him. "So what's the plan here? You get the treasure and the weapon and then what? You really think just killing Lady Necralia will make you the ruler of her entire empire? That's not how it works."
She shrugged. "Maybe. Maybe not. But I figure if I blow up enough planets, they'll come around."
He wondered if she was just pure evil or had a heart somewhere inside her he could appeal to. "And all the billions of people you kill? That doesn't bother you?"
"Can't make an omelette without breakin' some eggs. But to be honest, I like killing people. I'm so good at it, I just kill people for fun. Like I'm gonna kill your girls if you don't get me the gem. To be honest, if you get killed and I don't get the treasure, having their pretty guts spread all over your ship will make a nice consolation prize."
She laughed again, that frenzied laughter that made him want to punch her.
"Jokah, anyone ever tell you you're a psycho?"
She raised her eyebrows. "Yeah, lots of 'em. My mum in particular, which is why I killed her. She was the first, actually broke my murder cherry, so I'm grateful for that."
At that point, he decided he didn't want to hear more about her. Reasoning with her was obviously not possible.
They came to a huge stone slab that ended the tunnel. Words had been carved into the door that they could read.
"The path to the treasure
Cannot be rushed
Else your soul
Will surely be crushed"
Jokah winced. "Not the prettiest poem I've ever heard, but I guess it's more a riddle about the traps."
He looked around. "I don't see a way through."
She pointed with her flashlight at three small holes in the stone slab. "Looks about the right size for the gems."
She took out her gems a
nd pushed one into each hole.
A rumble echoed through the temple as the stone wall began to pull away. She quickly snatched the gems out as the wall continued to move back a few feet. It stopped for a moment, then slid upwards into the ceiling.
Now Byron could see the stone slab was a sort of door several feet thick. It slid up into the ceiling, exposing more of the corridor until it stopped with a loud boom.
"Nice." Jokah pulled her gun out again and gave him a nudge with the barrel. "Go on, age before beauty."
He stepped through into the hallway, wondering where the booby traps were.
The stone slab clicked and came loose. He reached up and pressed both hands to it, holding it up.
The slab felt like it weighed a ton, and would have crushed his old body, but he had enough strength to stop its descent. Just barely.
As he struggled under the weight, Jokah ducked her head to look up at him. "Does this mean you've got a crush on me? Ha! See, I knew those gorgeous muscles were good for something other than fucking me."
He grit his teeth, really regretting he had ever slept with her.
She got down on her hands and knees and crawled through his legs to the other side. He caught a glimpse of her ass as it wriggled under him, and hated himself for getting a little excited.
When Jokah stood up in front of him, she sighed. "Well, I suppose you'd better come out of there."
"Brilliant plan," he grunted.
He bit his lower lip and grunted as he pushed hard with all his strength. The stone block barely moved, then began to rise.
He let out a roar as he rose up to force the stone up higher and higher. His arms burned lIke fire as he saw veins bulge on his biceps. The pain in his side from the knife returned like a fire burning in his ribs.
When the stone rose high enough that he could stretch his arms up straight, he took a few deep breaths, and dove free. He reached the other side just as the stone block slammed shut behind him, just barely missing his boots.
Jokah clapped. "Well done, love. Well done. Honestly, that was so hot, I want to fuck you again right now, but we gotta stay focused. Come along."
She strutted off down the hallway again, her laughter echoing from the walls.
He charged up to her, rage flooding through him like fire. She had been perfectly happy to let him die. He was ready to kill her whether she was armed or not.
He stopped when he saw she had come to another stone door. He took deep breaths to remind himself that he had to keep her alive to save his crew.
The door had another riddle that read,
"If you wish the treasure
From the chamber freed
You must move quick
With lightning speed"
Of course, Byron thought, this wouldn't be a videogame without a puzzle level.
Jokah hummed as she pushed the gems into slots on the second door.
The door slid open to reveal a wider chamber. Sunlight fell from slits on the high walls, so they could see clearly without their flashlights. It looked completely empty with a dirt streaked floor. Alien figures with open mouths had been carved into the walls.
Jokah picked up a rock and threw it into the chamber.
Laser bolts shot out of the open mouths of the alien carvings, turning the rock into ashes. Even after the rock had been destroyed, the lasers still fired, turning the chamber into a web of hot fire.
Over the crackling of the lasers, Jokah patted Byron on the shoulder and called out, "Right, off you go."
He glared at her. "You really think I'm gonna make it through that?"
"Not really. But it's either you try and turn it off or you fail and I--"
"Yeah, yeah, you kill my friends."
Jokah widened her eyes. "Hey, now you're getting it. Who's a clever boy then?"
He growled under his breath while facing the lasers again. He told himself the same mantra whenever he faced a seemingly impossible danger: he was in a video game. Video games had rules. He just had to find and exploit those rules.
Whenever he played a game where you had lasers flying around, there was always a pattern to the way the lasers fired. He just had to figure it out.
He watched them, counting under his breath. It didn't take long to recognize it.
The lasers on the right fired every minute. The lasers on the left fired three times, then stopped for three seconds before firing again. After five minutes or so, he could see the gaps in the pattern. It would be tough, but he could make it. He just had to be fast, like the riddle had said.
He also used his dropdown menu to turn on his shield code, and the shimmering disk glowed on his arm.
He took deep breaths, crouched down, and watched for the gap again. When he saw his chance, he leaped.
The heat of the lasers flashed across his face and legs, and one shot hit his shield, but he made it through. He found himself standing inside the chamber. He wasn't as fast as he was strong, but he was a lot faster than his old body. He didn't have long before another laser fired, and he jumped again.
This time, when he landed, a laser slammed into his left leg. It burned its way right through, and left a dark patch on his armor and probably his skin, but he couldn't even stop. His health bar dropped by another third. He just let himself scream and kept moving.
His shield faded away, making him wish he had upgraded it to last longer.
Wherever he moved, the lasers kept burning the air around him. His scorched leg slowed him down but he couldn't let it stop him. He twisted, leaped, jumped, and ducked as the lasers flashed all around him.
Another laser seared across his chest, leaving a smoldering gash. He clenched his teeth and grunted but kept going. Only a few more feet.
He leaped across the gap while wondering what he would have to do until he stepped onto a row of red blocks on the floor.
The lasers instantly stopped.
As smoke curled through the air, laced with the scent of his burning flesh, Jokah walked through the chamber towards him, clapping. "Well done, my boy. That was hot stuff. Love to see some of those moves in the bedroom, eh?"
He collapsed onto his knees, gripping his burned leg in trembling hands. He could barely force words through his clenched teeth. "I'm done. I can't go any further."
She patted him on the shoulder. "Oh, yes, you will. Come on, up you go. Don't make me hurt you. Or someone else."
He remembered Chetaara, Scarlet, and Xana and took deep breaths until he could rise again. The pain in his shoulder, leg, and side made his whole body feel like it was nothing but pain. But he braced his hands on the floor and forced himself up to his feet.
Jokah ignored his pain, focused on another stone door. "Nothing written on this one. Maybe this is the last one. Hope so, for your sake."
She inserted the gems into the door.
The door rumbled open. This time, instead of another room, it opened to reveal a recessed area with a stone statue standing on the other side. The statue was of a tall alien with glowing red eyes and tentacles frozen in curling shapes.
The eyes turned to focus on Jokah and Byron. The elongated mouth swung open on a hinge.
"You," it said in a booming voice, "are not the pirate Dark Storm."
Jokah ran her hands down her body and giggled. "Well, yeah, duh. I like to think I've got a better body than him. We just want his treasure."
The statue rumbled, "To receive the final gem of Dark Storm, you must prove yourself by answering one final challenge."
Three of the statue's tentacles curled down to hold out three large gray stones. "The final gem is hidden in one of these. Touching the other two stones will kill you both instantly. You must determine which stone to take from my hand from these instructions: one of these three statements is true, the others are lies. The first stone does not have the gem. The second stone has the gem. The second stone does not have the gem."
Jokah shrugged. "Easy. Take the second one."
Byron looked up at the statue. Its e
yes shone down at him, but betrayed no emotion.
He shook his head. "No. It's the first stone."
She raised an eyebrow at him. "How do you reckon, love?"
"It said only one of the statements is true. If the gem is in the second stone, statements one and two would both be true. If the gem is in the third stone, that makes statements one and three both true. With the gem in the first stone, that makes statements one and two false, and statement three the only truth."
Treasure Chest: Venus Online 3 (LitRPG Sci-Fi Harem) Page 14
