Another Online: Clockwork

by Terra Snover

  “And what happens to the players that are logged in when this whole thing happens?” Thaz asked.

  “Like I told you before, Thaz, I don’t know, but my best guess is they get logged off.” Lily shrugged again. “Or maybe they are stuck here until they log off. Really, I have no idea.”

  “And who cares about them anyway?” Alexander spat.

  Thaz raised her hand ever so slightly. “Um, I do, seeing as me and my friends are all human players.” There was another flash of light and a crack of thunder.

  It was my turn to talk. “But it won't matter anyway because during the DoS attack, Thaz will tell all the other players in her guild what’s happening here and log off. Then there will be thousands of people who know what Gear Tech has done and they will be our allies on the outside. Hell, maybe they could find a way to get us out of here.”

  “These are all interesting ideas but there is one problem.” Hell’a spread her arms with her palms up ever so slightly like she was presenting said problem to us. “How are you going to kill the Hivemind?”

  I spoke up before anyone else could. “I have an ally in the Hivemind. They will be taking care of everything.”

  “An ally in the Hivemind? This is the first I’ve heard of it.” Hell’a gave me a side glance.

  “I don’t tell you everything.” I looked away from her, I didn’t want to spill the beans with my face.

  “Look, we have most of this handled. The only thing we need is protection.” Amber rescued me from Hell’a’s gaze. “What we need is protection. If Var is woken up or killed during any of this, the entire plan goes to shit. Var has to stay alive during the attacks during the day, and especially during the DoS attack.”

  “Why especially during the DoS?” Hell’a inquired.

  “There is a chance that if she dies during the DoS she’ll explode the universe,” Thaz stated simply.

  “Noted…” Alexander’s eyes went wide with that realization.

  “So, I need you three.” I gestured to Alexander, Hell’a and Amber. “To have my back and keep me safe as this all goes down.” The three looked at eachother and gave each other uneasy looks. “You all got this?”

  “We have your back, Var,” Amber said without hesitation.

  “I wouldn't dare lose you, my sweet,” Hell’a responded, licking her lips ever so slightly. “I’m not much of a fighter, but I’ll do my best,” Alexander added, his tail twitching uneasily.

  “We have another problem,” Lily added. “I did the math, and you all are going to lose hard during the attack on the Alliance. We can’t do the DoS if you are all dead for the day.”

  “Not if we get the Machina running,” I informed the group.

  Alexander frowned. “Var, I have been working on getting them operational for days and as you know we can’t control them or power them. Well, we could power them if the Fae were still inside them, but they are not.”

  “Show them, Amber.” I gave her a knowing smile.

  “Tada!” She put out her hand and in its center held three colored rocks.

  “Okay, we have some rocks,” Hell’a said to her dryly.

  Amber shook her head ever so slightly. “Not just any rocks, they are items I designed. One casts an energy spell when equipped to the second equip slot. Another drastically reduces the cooldown time on any item equipped to the third slot. And the third will change any equipment from the third equipment slot to the second when cooldown ends. We have the power items switch and power the Machina.”

  I nodded. “Basically endless energy for smaller machines. I got the idea from that asshat the Crimson King when we had our first fight. He had done something similar but with protection spells.”

  “Okay, that fixes the problem of power, but we still don’t know how to control them,” Alexander said.

  “We have that taken care of also,” Amber informed them. “Var has this cool item that lets her, for lack of a better word, become a part of Void City. I copied the code from that item and attached it to my helm and changed it to work with the Machina. So as long as I have my helm on, I can order them around with my mind.”

  Hell’a frowned. “And who said you should be the one to command them?”

  “I did.” I eyed Hell’a. “I trust Amber with my life.”

  “So if we have the Machina working in the battle, what are our chances in the fight now, Lily?” Thaz inquired.

  “Much better,” Lily thought out loud. “We may be able to pull this all off.”

  Suddenly, Alexander’s ears tweaked and his head darted to the side.

  “What's wrong?” Thaz’s ears darted in the same direction, probably trying to hear what he heard.

  “I don’t know, I thought I heard something.” Alexander crept over to a pile of rubble and as soon as he got close there was a streak of light that darted away from him into the night.

  “What the hell was that?” My heart skipped a beat, as whatever it was disappeared into the rain and darkness.

  “That was a Fairy,” Thaz said, glancing over her shoulder at me.

  “Oh crap.” I gulped. “Leon has been given control of the Fae we captured…”

  “Crap, indeed,” Hell’a muttered. Why did everything need to be so complicated?

  “That was all out of game talk, it won't be able to tell Leon or anyone else anything that we said.” Amber’s voice was uneasy. “Right?”

  “Right up until the DoS.” Lily frowned. “Shit.”

  “What’s the problem?” Alexander asked.

  “Leon and Drac want to end the world,” I informed him. “And we just told her how they may be able to do it. Killing me.”

  “Then we change when we do this.” Thaz moved to the center of us all. “Then he won't know what's going on.”

  “Doesn’t matter when we do it.” Hell’a informed her. “They will know how to end everything whenever the DoS happens. No matter when it happens, they will know, so it may as well happen as on our timeline.”

  “So we better make sure you defend me at all costs!” I spread my wings in an attention-grabbing way. “Okay gang, we have a lot to do and not much time to do it in. Hell’a, Alexander, I need you to make sure the DoS and the airships are all good to go.”

  “I’ll do my best, my love,” Hell’a purred.

  “A lot to ask of me, but seeing as I’m so amazing I don’t see why I can’t handle it,” Alexander said with a smug as hell look on his face.

  “Amber, I need you ready for the main attack on the work with Tilln, Ral, and Tyn to make sure the Game Masters have a lot on their plates by the time the DoS attack happens.”

  “Yeah, can do.” Amber grabbed her helm and slipped it on her head.

  “Thaz and Lily, you have a guild to prep for war, and an assassination and a humanitarian mission in the real.”

  “Yeah, we can do this!” Thaz wrapped her arms around Lily.

  Lily struggled against the hug for a moment but gave up.“We got your back, you big dummy,” and gave me a wink.

  “And what will you be doing, my love?” Hell’a asked, probably fully knowing my answer.

  “Trying to take over the world.”

  The rest of the day went by quickly. There was a ton to do and little time to do it. And before I knew it, I was standing on the top of a tall building in Rivercrest city looking over my army, navy and sky force that lay and floated in front of me. It was a sight to see. The forces stretched out as far as the eye could see. I looked to my right and saw Drac dressed in a fine red spider silk suit, his hair tied in a ponytail, showing his pointed ears and making his long face seem ever longer than it was. His glasses glistened in the setting sun. Beside him was Tilln, decked out in dragonscale armor with a long silver cape blowing in the wind. Her hair tied in a tight bun. Her spear held tightly in her hand. She looked extremely intimidating. And at the end of the line was Amber, her armor glowing bright in the dimming light. The only thing I could see of her beneath her brilliant armor was her eyes, determined
and maybe a bit sad? I couldn't quite put my finger on it.

  I turned to my left and there stood Hell’a. I think this was the first time I had ever seen her not in a dress, well, other than the times I saw her nude. This evening she was in fine silver and Alacrome armor. The Alacrome’s foggy surface moved and pulsated like a river, moving along the whole of Hell’a. Her fingertips were covered in sharp blades to enhance her already frightening claws. Next in line was Tyn, my Grand Admiral. Her usual, more dressy uniform was replaced by a more practical one. Still pristine and tailored to fit her every curve, but it seemed that this would be much easier to move in. Her silver hair was also pulled back and was in a thick braid. And last was Ral, my Left Hand. She was in her normal silver and steel armor enhanced in ice magic. Out of everyone here, she looked exactly the same as she did everyday. I guess she was ready to go to war as is. Good for her, I guess?

  I looked out at the nightmare forces that I had under my control and smiled. I took a step forward, my black and red high neck top and tight red slacks were unordered and extremely simple. My trusted torn and tattered red coat blew on the cold sea air that moved through the port city. I took a long, deep breath and shouted using my magically enhanced voice. “I’ll keep this brief. We have a lot to do and I don’t know about you but I’m itching to go kick some Alliance ass!” There was a huge cheer from every person that stood before me. “Good to hear.” I smiled. “You all know what’s at stake here. Today, we can do one of two things: crush our enemy or die trying. And I don’t know about you, but I don’t feel like dying this evening, so how about we do some crushing instead!” Another, louder cheer. “NOW, LET’S MOVE OUT AND CRUSH THAT ALLIANCE SCUM!” I spread my wings behind me and blasted fire out of my mouth. Every N and player exploded in shouts of excitement and rage that didn’t truly slow down or simmer until all our forces were heading out for hopefully the last war Another Online would ever know.

  I turned to face my allies and family. “Inspiring speech as always, Mother.” Drac gave that impish smile. “But maybe next time we go to war you could use more flare and drama?”

  “I’ll consider that.” I rolled my eyes at him and walked past him to Amber. “You know what you need to do. Let’s make this a night that is worthy of the stories that will be told about it for thousands of years to come.” Once I reached Amber, I turned and glanced at everyone. “Move out!” And without another word, they left to destroy a kingdom. Everyone but Amber whose eyes had that sad look to them. “Are you ready for all this? There is no coming back after this.”

  “I have waited years for this. I'm more than ready.”

  “Alright, good luck, Var.” Amber clasped my hands and placed the three items for the DoS later into them. “We’re going to need it.” I gave her a nod and placed my forehead to her helm and we stood there for a few seconds, enjoying this respite before the storm. She was the first to pull away and whistled for Tundra, who was napping behind a set of warehouses. She yawned and sounterted over to Amber. Amber jumped on the dragon’s back and the two flew off into the cloudy night sky. I took off soon after. This was going to be a night to remember.

  Chapter 18

  The Burning City

  “I like this side of you. You are so full of gusto, glad to see you living up to your full potential,” Mama whispered in my ear. “It suits you.”

  “Breaking into my mind with ease now?” I grumbled as I flue between the mass of airships, beasts, players and friends. Well, at least I think they were there with me. With how dark it was and with all the steam it was hard to see much of anything. “Sweet Sugar Dumpling, as I am a part of you it was only a matter of time before I broke into the waking world.” I felt her breath in my ear as it spoke.

  “I’m busy now, can we talk later?”

  “No, what I have to say needs to be heard.”

  “Sigh… Fine, what is it?”

  “As much as I’m in love with your little idea of killing the Hivemind, I want to propose an alternative.” The monster’s tone was chilling. “Instead of letting the other yous and Papas kill the Hivemind, let me do it.”

  “You have said before you are just a reflection; how could you kill it?”

  “Truthfully, I don’t know, but I think I’ll have a better chance than your Papa or Lily.”

  “And why is that?”

  “Think about it, your Papa is kind and loving. He only raised his voice to you three times when you were growing up. He is the most kind person you know. Then there's the other you. She is like you, an artist, not strategically inclined. Lily is also an artist and has said she doesn't want any of this.”

  “And your point?”

  “Do you trust them to fight or kill something?”

  “Well, I…” But I had to stop, she was bringing up a good point.

  “Where us, on the other hand. We have become something stronger, smarter, all around better. Creatures to be feared.”

  “Let’s say I let you help kill the Hivemind. What do you get out of it?”

  “My sweet Sugar Dumpling, must I keep reminding you I am you, I care about the things you care about. And above all else I care about you. I would do anything to keep you alive, my Sugar Dumpling.”

  “Okay, fine, but you only seem to exist in the dream, vision, world thing. How could you interact with the System at all?”

  “Don’t you know you will be sleeping, and I am real as anything in AO when you dream,” she purred.

  I pondered for a few moments, “I’ll think about it.”

  “That’s all I ask. See you soon.” As she spoke the voice was overtaken from the his of the airships emitting steam and the wind blowing past my ears. I shook my head and frowned. Now was not the time to be thinking about her fighting by my side. I had a battle to win. I flapped my wings as hard as I could and broke free of the cloud that the airships were making. I looked back and it was very strange; it looked like nothing was there, just a weather front moving through, nothing to worry about at all.

  I caught a glimpse of the firelight of city streets and buildings. We were here. I darted down as fast as I could and landed in the city center of King’s Rest. I even did that thing where I landed on a knee and foot with one fist on the ground like from those old superhero movies from the 2010s. I regretted it immediately, landing like that hurt, but I hope it made me look like a total badass. I looked around to find a cluster of confused looking players and Ns milling about, each and every one looking at me. I slowly stood up, gave them a smile and a wave. “Hello, how are we doing this fine evening?”

  “Shit, it’s the Red Queen!” one of the players shouted and pointed her bow at me.

  “Humph, does everyone in the Alliance have these horrible manners? I mean, I said hello and asked how you are doing.” I pointed my finger at him. “Titan Bolt.” He was one of the new races and was low level because of it so the lighting hit and obliterated him. “You all don’t know it yet, but you are having a bad night.” And thousands of explosions cracked out of the cloud of airships. Soon after, cannonballs rained from the sky, crashing into the buildings throughout the city. Most of the Ns ran for cover, the city guards and players rushed me. I let them get close, their attacks bouncing off my barrier. “I was expecting better.” I shrugged. “Algid Soul.” The cold wind blasted out of me, freezing and killing the cluster of attackers. “Well, this is one sided.”

  Out of the mist, the airships descended on the city; the Ns and players that could fly already attacking anyone they could find. Screams and shouts were happening more and more frequently from around me along with a number of lights. People were waking up and were going to be in for a rude awakening. I started to approach the castle, but as soon as I started moving, a cluster of max level players came rushing out of a building with a huge crest aderon to the side of it, probably a guildhall. They spotted me, and after one of them barked some orders at the others, they were all rushing me. Probably around a hundred players attacking me all at once. Now, I am a total b
adass able to take down any player who decided to try and fight me, but this was another story. I could more than likely take them all down, but at the cost of a huge chunk of HP, and I needed that health to fight the bigger fish. I had to think fast, how can I manage all these players without taking all the damage?

  As the players grew ever closer, it came to me. I pointed my finger and cast, “Blackhole!” Not at the players but at the building behind them. The mass of darkness hit their guildhall and vanished moments later. The building was now missing a large chunk of its support structure and began to make sounds like a screaming banshee as the wood and stone gave way. Suddenly, it began to tumble to the ground, right on top of the high level players. I jumped back, my wings giving me a bit of extra umph. I watched as the players were crushed under the weight; well, most of them. Some, like me, managed to dodge the rubble, while others deflected or tanked the damage. After everything was said and done there were about fifteen players left.

  “Well, aren't you the tenacious bunch?” I gave them a wicked little smile. “Shadow Swarm.” My shadow turned into the mass of tentacles. “Surge Claw.” And my claws arked with energy. “Entangle.” And to finish off my quick mess of spells, weblike strands tangled the players between the buildings. I rushed at one of them, a heavy set muscular Human woman who was built to take a lot of damage. Luckily for me, my Surge Claw ignored most of the defence stat. I ripped past her armor and made a good opening for my Shadow Swarm to get to her gooey center. After a few minutes of clawing and stabbing, she was nothing more than a dead icon floating where she had been. I turned to look at the others who were beginning to slip out of the entanglement. One lanky Lamorea managed to get out first and was starting to rush me with a pike, but she suddenly exploded under a blur of metal falling from the sky. At first, I thought it was a cannonball, but it was much too large for that. After the dust cleared I saw it was a heavy armored Vampire; ‘P-11,223,689, Helter Droth’ hung above his head. He smiled and let out an unnatural belly laugh. “Did you see that?! I told you all I could land on someone!”