by David Petrie
Steel scrapped steel as he blocked a hit and used it to push himself to the side. With a little distance, he swiped at the group, then pushed into them.
They fell back as he rushed low, hooking the blunt edge of his sword behind one of their legs to yank them off balance. The guard fell with an armored crash as Corvin dropped down to pierce his heart. He ducked an attack at the same time, his mind firing on all cylinders to keep him from taking a hit.
The moment was short lived.
Pain streaked across his back, dulled by the system as it faded to a numb tingle. A boot connected with his shoulder, sending him to the floor hard. A glance at his wrist showed his health drop twenty percent. The slash had been shallow. There was still a chance.
Stomping boots filled his ears; a memory of the day when three of his teeth had been kicked from his skull shot through his mind. He growled to chase away the thought as silver glinted across his vision.
He kicked off one of the guard’s legs, throwing himself a foot to the side as a sword came down. It hit the floor with an ear-splitting screech, like a car door being keyed.
Two arrows hit his attacker from out of nowhere.
“I got you, man,” Kegan shouted through the chaos.
Another couple of arrows forced the group back.
Corvin pushed himself up from the floor with a grunt just as one of the remaining guards made a break for the alarm. Kegan loosed an arrow, only for a sword to swat it out of the air.
“I don’t have a shot. Cover me.” The Leaf dove into the fray, landing on his knees in a slide.
Corvin didn’t even have time to think before two swords streaked toward his partner's head. He lunged, blocking both as he braced his foot against the wall. Kegan slid underneath like a spider escaping a rolled-up newspaper.
The Leaf pushed back up on to one knee and let loose three arrows, stopping the runner hard only a foot from the pull chain. He stood and turned just as one of the guards rushed him, his weapon aimed for a critical thrust. Without a sword of his own, Kegan parried with the last arrow in his hand. It snapped but deflected the blow just enough to miss his heart as the sword slid into his chest.
Kegan gasped, but he had the health to take it. He didn’t struggle. Instead, he simply dropped his bow and grabbed the strap on the guard’s chest plate as he fell back. The momentum threw him to the floor but not before placing a foot against the man’s abdomen. Kegan pushed off as he hit the ground, throwing the guard head over heels into the wall.
Before the guard could recover, Kegan pulled two arrows from his quiver and stabbed him in the neck. The act was horrible, even if there was no blood.
Corvin’s stomach flipped as he impaled another nameless guard and pushed him back until the tip of his sword hit the stonework behind. An instant later, another enemy did the same to him from behind, burying their weapon in his back up to its hilt. He almost cried out. It hurt, but not anywhere near as much as it would if it had been real. His stat-sleeve showed his health drop below half.
The NPC had missed his heart. It pinned him to the body in front of him, or at least, it would have if he hadn’t gotten a foot up in time to push back. He let out a stifled growl as he shoved back, sending the three remaining Blades sprawling.
They recovered quickly.
He didn’t.
The problem with fighting against Noctem’s enemies was that they never got tired. Corvin, however, was exhausted. Not to mention that he couldn’t reach the handle of the sword sticking out of his back. He rolled to one side to put a small amount of distance between himself and his opponents. Then deflected a slash with a weak parry, almost losing his grip on his own weapon in the process.
With few options, he reached forward, grabbing the sword sticking out of his chest and shoving it back hard enough to dislodge it. It fell with a clatter that seemed to go on forever as his chest heaved and his heart raced.
His stat-sleeve ticked down another ten percent. Without a healer or time to get a health vial out of his bag, he had reached his limit. There was a reason he avoided taking on large groups, after all.
The guards closed in for the kill.
Kegan suddenly rushed the group from behind, jumping on to the back of the middle guard and pulling him to the ground. Without his bow, the leaf simply punched the enemy in the face to keep him down.
Corvin took the opening with an uncoordinated lunge. He didn’t even bother to maintain his footing. Instead, he slashed into one guard’s chest with as much momentum as possible, letting it carry his katana and him in a circle until it struck the back of the other.
Neither guard fell.
Corvin hit the ground with a thud that took the wind out of him. He wheezed and scrambled across the floor, finding Kegan’s bow laying to the side. “Catch,” he coughed to his partner before lobbing the weapon in his direction.
The Leaf rolled off the guard and snatched up his bow, scooting back on his rear to gain some distance. He reached for his last handful of arrows.
The three guards turned to rush him.
Kegan drew back his bow and shouted, “Hold them still!”
Corvin raised his head, locking his yellow eye with the first target. The guard froze in place, leaving his throat wide open. The sound of a bowstring struck the air. Corvin didn’t wait to see where the arrow hit before flicking his eye to the next target. He didn’t want to watch.
The three guards fell like dominos. After that, the hall fell almost silent. Only the heavy panting of the victors filling the space.
“That sucked.” Kegan gasped as he crawled. “You alive?”
“Yeah.” Corvin pushed himself up against the wall and fished a health vial from his bag. Kegan did the same, scooting up next to him. They clinked the vials together before downing the contents. Even after their health was full, they still waited a full minute before finding the strength to stand.
Bodies littered the room.
Kegan nudged one of the lifeless forms. “I’m just gonna say it because it’s kind of the elephant in the room, but this is pretty messed up.”
“I know,” Corvin answered, trying his best not to look down at the bloodless carnage. “There aren’t any human type enemies in the rest of Noctem. They’re just here in the cities. We’re not really supposed to kill them. I read online that Checkpoint had decided that fighting people would be too disturbing to include them as a common enemy.”
“Well, they’re right.” Kegan shuddered. “I’ve killed plenty of players in my PVP days, but this is probably the worst I’ve ever felt about winning. “I’m mean, I just drove an arrow through a man’s throat.” Kegan shivered. “It’s all just too–”
“Intimate?” Corvin finished the thought for him.
The Leaf took a breath. “That makes it sound weird, but yeah.”
Corvin tapped a few options on the menu woven into his stat-sleeve, hoping to have access to the collect loot option now that the room had been cleared. At least that way, the bodies would disappear. He let out a sigh of relief when he saw it highlighted. The bodies to dematerialize as he pressed it, depositing any item drops gained from the fight into their virtual inventories. “That’s better.”
“Outta sight, outta mind. I feel less morally bankrupt already.” Kegan gave himself a nod.
“They’ll probably respawn when we leave, if it works like other dungeons. We should learn everything about the vault we can now so we don’t have to go through that again.”
“I hear that. Let’s get on with the breaking and entering.”
With that, Corvin punched the button on the next door. At least it wasn’t locked with another ridiculous puzzle. The door rolled off to the side, just like the first one. Kegan let out a low whistle at what lay beyond.
“That is one hell of a laser grid.”
“Mana fence,” Corvin corrected.
As expected, in classic heist fashion, a crisscrossing web of blue beams filled the space. Many were positioned so close together that it
seemed impossible to get through without crossing one.
Corvin just stood there for a moment in awe of the monstrosity; it was actually really cool to see in person. “At least it’s visible without having to blow fog into the hall or something.”
“But how the hell are we going to fit through there?” Kegan scratched his head.
Corvin crouched down to get a different angle. “Simple. We’re not going to fit in there. It’s way too small for either of us to crawl through. But we do have a pint-sized fairy on our side that might be able to help us out. Maybe if we ask nicely.
“Kira’s going to hate this.” A grin crept across Kegan’s face.
Corvin chuckled and pulled out his inspector. “This as far as we go for now. I’m going to snap a few photos of the setup. If I can get enough angles, I can use the perspective to map it out. Maybe we can recreate it somewhere to practice.”
“Good thinking.”
Corvin motioned to step through the door, but before his foot could touchdown, Kegan grabbed the back of his vest. Startled by the sudden contact, his inspector slipped from his hand.
What did I miss? The question shot through his mind like a bullet as the world slowed.
A look of horror was plastered to Kegan’s face. His eyes locked on the small pane of glass as it tumbled end over end. Corvin followed the path of the falling inspector to the floor.
His heart nearly stopped. It wasn’t marble like the rest of the palace. It was metal with an out-of-place carving of flames at its edge. Even worse, he recognized it from a dungeon he’d done with Kegan back when first he’d changed classes. It was from the Fire Tomb, and it was a trap.
The entire floor was a pleasure plate.
Corvin’s hands shot out for his inspector as he leaned forward past the door. His partner held tight to his vest so he didn’t fall in. He willed the item to his hand with everything fiber of his being until his fingertips touched the glass. It teetered back and forth, balancing for an instant before falling to the floor.
Corvin held his breath as a deafening silence filled the hall.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Max shifted in his seat, feeling out of place sitting in a movie theatre while wearing a pair of pistols in a shoulder holster. He usually stored them in his inventory whenever he visited one of Noctem’s more modern facilities.
Actually, modern wasn’t the right word. Sure, there was a screen behind the red velvet curtains at the back of the stage, but that was about it. The rest of the extravagant room was covered in gold leaf and filigree from floor to ceiling. Max felt more like he was spending a night at the opera.
“This is not what I expected to be doing tonight.”
Farn sat back into her plush leather seat. “I can’t complain. There are a few things that I wanted to see playing. I kind of feel bad that we don’t get to sit with our friends though. Being a bodyguard sucks.”
Max turned his attention a few rows ahead where Kira and Ginger sat with Berwyn. “Yeah, sitting in the back doesn’t really sit well with me either, but it’s probably for the best. We’d probably just get in the way down there.” He leaned on the armrest that he shared with the empty seat between himself and Farn.
After the conversation that morning about asking the Shield out, he was uncomfortably aware of the fact that they were now seeing a movie together. Hence, why he had left the empty seat as a sort of social buffer between them. Obviously, he didn’t want to make things weird or send mixed signals.
Max gestured at their housemates in front to lessen the tension he was imagining. “Is it me, or do you feel like we’re parents taking our daughter to her first movie with a boy?”
Farn slouched in her chair and folded her arms. “If Berwyn pretends to stretch and put his arm around her, I’ll break…” she trailed off as someone began shuffling down their isle.
“'Scuse me, sorry.” Nix scooted past Farn, carrying an armload of snacks and a beverage. She dropped into the empty seat between Max and Farn, spilling loose popcorn on him in the process.
Clearly, the reynard didn’t require a social buffer, as she seemed oblivious to her status as a third wheel. She definitely wasn’t a helpful one either like on a tricycle. More like that one on a Reliant Robin, the three-wheeled car from Mr. Bean that was notorious for flipping over.
Max eyed her suspiciously.
“What? Free movie,” she said, leaning back into the leather cushion as if that explained everything.
“Fair enough.” Max found the mercenary hard to read, similarly to when he had met her. She was either kind of dumb and just wanted to see a free movie and make new friends, or she was keeping an eye on them. He leaned back and tried to ignore her.
One of Berwyn’s Serpents brought down a tray of popcorn and drinks for Ginger and Kira. It made Max smile. He could almost see the inner conflict that must have been raging in the fairy’s head.
An imaginary Kira dressed in the frilly, white dress she had worn a year ago, perched innocently on her shoulder. “Remember the mission. It’s just popcorn. Act like a lady and eat slowly.”
On the other side, a second tiny Kira dressed in the black dress of the Rasputin form she once had barked commands. “Shovel fistfuls into your face!”
For a moment, Max was a little worried that the dark side might win. He relaxed when the fairy politely tossed a couple of the buttery puffs into her mouth. He sighed a minute later when Berwyn turned to talk to Ginger and Kira took the opportunity to shove in as much popcorn as she could fit into her face. It was actually pretty impressive.
“Your Archmage really likes popcorn, huh?” Nix commented while tossing a kernel up in the air so she could catch it in her mouth. It hit her in the eye and bounced on to Max’s lap.
Farn gave an awkward laugh. “Yeah, Kira likes pretty much anything that she can fit in her mouth.”
“You may want to rephrase that one there.” Max flicked Nix’s dropped popcorn off his leg.
Farn paused for a second before her eyes went wide in understanding. “Food! She likes any food that she can fit in her mouth.”
Max shook his head as the lights dimmed, and the curtain raised. He leaned back and settled in. At least his seat was comfortable.
That was when alarm bells filled the air.
Chapter Thirty
Max almost jumped out of his seat when the theatre lights snapped back on. The sound of dozens of bells bombarded his senses.
Nix launched her popcorn into the air, clearly just as startled. It rained down in butter clumps as the reynard wiped her spilled drink from her skirt.
Ginger stood, signaling for her bodyguards to come to her defense as if she feared for her safety. Max drew his pistols and jogged down to meet her. Farn took up a position in the aisle facing the door, ready to confront the threat.
It was a good act.
Max had a pretty good idea of why the bells were ringing. What the hell did you guys do? A ridiculous image of Kegan and Corvin running for their lives while being chased by the entire House of Serpents passed through his head. He shook off the thought and joined the others.
Berwyn placed a hand on Kira’s shoulder as she shrank back near Ginger. The act was probably meant to calm her, but from the look on her face, it didn’t. Actually, it probably stressed her out more. What was odd, though, was that his first act had been out of concern for her. Max would have expected that he'd be more interested in the security breach. Apparently, he considered her a priority.
Nix strolled down to join them, her gun held limply at her side. Max tried to get a look at it but couldn’t see the weapon well without it being obvious that he was looking. She leaned close to Berwyn so that he didn’t have to yell over the alarm. He said something that Max couldn’t make out before turning to Kira.
“We’re going to head to the center of the pyramid. It’s the safest place in the palace. The rest of my men will form a perimeter around the throne room. That’s the protocol for something like this.” He made
eye contact with Nix for an instant. “Take the lead.”
The reynard shifted her stance to grip her gun with both hands as she moved up to the door. Farn joined her, activating her new gauntlet’s barrier to give the reynard some cover. Nix gave her a nod and moved forward into the hall.
Max tore his attention away from the other Fury and fell back to join Ginger. She gave him a concerned look that said volumes. Max glanced to his house ring.
Why haven’t Corvin or Kegan checked in?
It wasn’t like them to leave everyone in the dark. He resisted asking over the house line, since raising his ring would have been suspicious. As far as Berwyn knew, there weren’t any other members of Lockheart in the palace.
With nothing left to do in the current situation, Max just held his guns at the ready and followed the group out of the theatre. Besides, with all things considered, there was only one explanation. His friends had been caught. There was nothing he could do to change that.
If it came to it, he could just stand back and pretend he didn’t know them. As unpleasant as that sounded, it was an option. Hell, it was the only option. Max ground his teeth. Watching his friends get executed wasn’t high on his list, but at least his cover wouldn’t be blown.
Suddenly, his forehead broke out in a cold sweat as a realization hit him. Kegan and Corvin were wearing their house rings. Rings which had Lockheart’s crest emblazoned on them. If they had been caught, then all of their covers would be blown the moment Berwyn’s Serpents marched them into the pyramid. All the Lord of Serpents needed to do was glance at their hands, and the whole heist would go south.
He should have told them to remove their rings as a precaution. It was a rookie mistake, and now it was only a matter of time. Max choked down his terror; he wasn’t going to help anyone if he let himself freak out.
His party followed Nix to the enormous throne room within the pyramid. Moonlight shined down, casting a foreboding pallor across the sand. The sound of waves drifted through the air. Berwyn took a moment to assure them that everything was going according to protocol once more. Then he broke away from them and joined some of his house members near the patio where he and Kira had danced. It was far less magical than the night before.