City of the Dead

by Vasily Mahanenko

Tailyn turned toward the door, and a wave of excitement ran through his body as his perception went to work.

  Mor-Do-Gun (black lix). Ranger. Age 20. Level 10.

  But their opponent wasn’t alone—he was dragging a girl in with him. Just one glance at her was enough for his heart to begin beating wildly. His hands felt heavy, and blood rushed to his head, but his perception worked even under those conditions.

  Valia Levor (human). Mage. Age 10. Level 7.

  Just then, limping over on his damaged leg, Ka-Do-Gir attacked.

  Chapter 13

  THE BLOW KA-DO-GIR landed was fearsome. Leaping over to his bewildered opponent, the lix slammed his claws home in a sweeping uppercut. Sparks flashed—the steel slashed across the black lix’s shield, doing incredible damage and sending it flying back against the wall. The green lix pounced quickly, but his opponent used its hind legs to hurl him backwards. Mor-Do-Gun wasn’t a ranger for nothing. Regardless of how suddenly the attack had come, the creature’s body reacted on its own to repel it. And not only was it able to repel the attack, but the black lix even leaped to its feet and threw itself into a counterattack aimed at the stunned green. Where had he come from?

  “Don’t just stand there—do something!” Valanil yelled, and Tailyn finally pulled his gaze away from Valia. Ka-Do-Gir’s strike had sent her flying against the wall. As her eyelids drooped like some city drunk, it looked like her head had taken the brunt of the blow.

  The lixes whirled around each other like two streaks of lightning, one black, the other green. Ka-Do-Gir’s opponent had nothing on him regardless of his damaged paw and the level difference. In fact, he had an ace up his sleeve. While the black lix was only fighting for his life, the green was fighting for his family, too. Hatred for the blacks dulled the pain from his wounds and infused him with strength. Of course, he was going to pay for all that later, but in the moment he didn’t care.

  Tailyn watched the pair fight and tried to come up with something to do. Valanil wanted him to help, but how? What could he do? His enhanced shield card was out of charges, which meant he couldn’t buff he partner. And while Tailyn didn’t know how black lixes reacted to his electric strike, he knew for sure that it turned greens into helpless, trembling masses. What if the bastard didn’t have that weakness? In that case, Ka-Do-Gir would be defeated, and the rest would be soon to follow. No, it was a risk Tailyn couldn’t take. Not right then. And all that left was waiting, worrying, and watching the dance of death, unable to pull himself away.

  It didn’t last long. Just a minute later, and the endgame started to take shape—Ka-Do-Gir was breathing hard and weakening fast. He wasn’t dodging the black’s strikes nearly as deftly, and several of them landed. Finally, Ka-Do-Gir’s shield gave in, and Mor-Do-Gun’s sharp claws tore open the green lix’s gut. Gray innards spilled onto the ground. The number of lixes in the room had dropped by one.

  “Greens,” Mor-Do-Gun snorted contemptuously as he caught his breath, unwilling to admit that if his opponent had been just a couple levels higher, the battle would have been a toss-up. But just when the black stepped away from his fallen opponent, Tailyn attacked.

  Ka-Li.

  The new key phrase really was easy to use. He was able to whisper it right over the card and blow in the direction of his foe. Having taken just one single step, the lix’s body collapsed to the ground in a fit of convulsions.

  You used Electric Strike-I.

  You did 76 damage to level 10 black lix Mor-Do-Gun and stunned it for 30 seconds due to its weakness against electricity.

  Charges remaining: 41 of 50.

  “Quick, help me drag him into the other room!” Tailyn yelled as he ran over to the fallen creature. The numerical girls were huddled and shaking in a corner, in no way capable of assisting. Mistress Valanil was lying unconscious against a wall—she’d apparently been caught up in the lix battle. Only Valia, who’d come to, rushed over and grabbed the lix.

  “What are we doing?” The girl’s voice was pure, ringing, and surprisingly pleasant. Tailyn was forced to shake his head and focus.

  “We have to get him over into the other room!”

  “But won’t he just break down the door?”

  “He won’t have time—I’m going to fry him!”

  The kids heaved the black lix away, though not far. The body was heavy, their pace just this side of snail-like.

  “We’re not going to make it in time,” Valia said, no panic in her tone, and Tailyn had to agree. All they could do was hope his card had enough charges…

  Ka-Li… Ka-Li… Ka-Li…

  You used Electric Charge-I.

  You did 76 damage to level 10 black lix Mor-Do-Gun and killed it.

  Charges remaining: 8 of 50.

  Status change: combat complete.

  ***

  Dividing loot…

  Ka-Do-Gir receives LIX-II tactical suit.

  Tailyn Vlashich receives Booster-II amulet.

  Tailyn Vlashich receives 2542 gold.

  Mor-Do-Gun’s body twitched one last time before going quiet. The boy dropped to his knees, his cards and the loot that had just appeared still clutched in his shaking hands. Still caught up in the heat of the battle, he didn’t even notice the latter—his cards had barely been enough to take out the monster. Where had Mor-Do-Gun come up with defenses like that?!

  “Why did you want to drag him into the other room?” Valia asked reasonably.

  Tailyn was about to explain when it hit him like a bolt of lightning—the god’s message meant his partner was still alive. Corpses weren’t awarded loot. Forgetting everything else, the boy rushed over to the green lix’s motionless body. His insides were all over the floor, but Tailyn was able to hold back the nausea and place a hand on the lix’s neck.

  Nothing… Nothing… Thump.

  His heart was still beating.

  “Mistress Valanil!” Tailyn shrieked. “Help him!”

  But there was no reply forthcoming—the woman lay there motionless. Tailyn yelled in frustration, unsure of what to do. He’d never lost someone close to him before.

  “Nobody can help him now, Tailyn,” Valia said, placing a hand lightly on the boy’s shoulder. “Only a superior healer could take care of that kind of wound, and we don’t have one of those.”

  “No, he’s my partner! I’m not just going to let him die.”

  Tailyn himself had no idea where the resolution came from. Jumping to his feet, he threw his loot into his inventory and dashed over to the black stone. He was standing in the store a moment later.

  “I need something that will heal the lix!” the boy yelled. “He’s hurt so bad. I have to save him!”

  Processing request.

  A one-time full regeneration potion costs 400 coins. You have 238 coins in your account.

  “Please… I need the potion!” Tears appeared in the boy’s eyes. “I’ll… I’ll get the coins. I promise! Please, just help me.”

  Loans cannot be extended until your initiation is complete.

  Would you like to sell your items?

  “Yes!” Tailyn would have done anything in that moment to pull his partner out of the arms of death.

  Analyzing items available for sale…

  Each simple card charge is valued at 5 coins.

  Electric Strike-I card valued at 50 (10 base + remaining charges) coins.

  Enhanced Shield-I card valued at 10 (10 base + remaining charges) coins.

  Wave of Fire-I card valued at 180 (50 base + remaining charges) coins.

  Fireball-I card valued at 20 (10 base + remaining charges) coins.

  Booster-II amulet valued at 400 coins.

  Bag with 36 slots valued at 500 coins.

  OGM-II outfit valued at 1500 coins.

  “Wave of fire! I’ll sell the card. No, wait, no, I won’t!”

  The boy hit the cancel button so hard that the store disappeared and sent the boy back out into the real world. Nothing had changed there. Tailyn pulled up his card saturation ski
ll and began recharging, the nerves just about doing him in. It was a good thing he’d thought twice before getting rid of his only powerful card. Without it, the rest of their trip would have been much more difficult, and it wasn’t like he didn’t have another way to get the job done.

  Tailyn had 347 mana at that moment. Without a second thought, he drank the potions he’d recently made to boost that number to 407. It was still well below his max, but that was fine. The card already had two charges on it.

  Fireball-I recharged. Charges remaining: 47 of 50.

  You spent 405 mana. Restoration speed: 2 mana per hour.

  He had just 2 mana left. That definitely wasn’t enough for him to get anything real done, but Tailyn was focused on something else. Soon, he’d get it all back provided he lived that long. Provided they lived that long. The boy jumped back into the store.

  “I want to sell my fireball card and buy the regeneration potion!”

  Fireball-I valued at 245 (10 base + remaining charges) coins.

  Full Regeneration Potion received.

  You have 83 coins left in your account.

  The terminal completed the exchange immediately. The card disappeared out of his inventory, and a flask full of a purple liquid appeared in the boy’s hands. Taking time to check the bottle, Tailyn found that it was much different than the alchemical retorts he’d been using. The flask had a pattern, the form was different, and the unusual cork was even shaped like the head of some fantastic beast. Shaking his head as he remembered that he wasn’t there to study the flask, the boy finished up with the store and ran over to his wounded partner as soon as the world around him took shape.

  Valanil was lying by the wall and waiting. Having pretended to go unconscious, she knew the black lix wouldn’t be willing to talk while there were other people around. He would kill the green lix first, then go after Tailyn, continue with the screeching numericals, knock out Dort, sacrifice the girl, and only then finish her off, a motionless, helpless woman. And when he did, she was going to have her chance to cut a deal with him. She had something to offer the insatiable creatures—Culmart wasn’t the only human city. If she’d been able to pique the greens’ interest, she could certainly do the same with the blacks. Valanil hadn’t been lying when she said the creatures weren’t to be trusted. The greens, after all, had betrayed her, handing her over to the blacks instead of giving her free access to their lands. But that was the only way she was going to survive in that moment. The warrior that had shown up was too strong for Ka-Do-Gir and Tailyn. But then, the impossible had happened—the boy had emerged victorious. Sure, the green lix had done the lion’s share of the work, stripping away most of the black’s shield and leaving him vulnerable to the finishing touch. But if Tailyn had used fire, the lix would have gotten to him before the job had been done. It was the lightning that had rendered the creature powerless. Still, the victory had been won at a terrible cost—Ka-Do-Gir was lying in a pool of his own blood. A goner. Valanil didn’t even twitch when Tailyn asked her for help, knowing full well how powerless she was to do anything. And spending her coins on some lix… But when the boy pulled himself away from the stone, Valanil couldn’t help herself. She knew very well what the purple liquid Tailyn was holding was. The little rascal had somehow gotten his hands on 400 coins and was about to throw them all away.

  “Don’t you dare!” Valanil’s scream filled the room, though it was too late to stop Tailyn. Pulling open the lix’s mouth, he jammed the flask inside and dumped the contents down the lix’s throat. His partner had to live.

  Valanil could only sigh as she ran over to the boy too late to stop him. The idiot had wasted the invaluable flask. Practically overwhelmed with the urge to clap him upside the head, she managed to get a grip on herself, remembering he wasn’t the same Tailyn she’d used to know. In just a few days, the boy had changed completely. He’d grown firm, learned to think for himself. Where was the idiot kid who’d always stared at her mouth and brought her free flowers?

  The potion kicked in immediately. The lix’s innards sucked back in, and the wound closed completely, not a trace left on the outside. Even the arm that still hadn’t healed from the previous battle was restored. A second ticked by. Then, another. Suddenly, the lix gasped and opened his eyes.

  Five to two… The human is even further ahead.

  That was the first thought that ran through Ka-Do-Gir’s head. Tailyn had saved his life yet again. And that time, he hadn’t just saved it; he’d pulled the lix right out of the jaws of death itself. With the kind of wound the black lix had inflicted, Ka-Do-Gir didn’t have long to live, but his partner had somehow come up with a unique flask. The lix got up and looked around. The enemy’s body was lying on the ground a little distance away, and there was a gorgeous outfit lying right next to it. The one the black lix had been wearing. It belonged to Ka-Do-Gir, and the lix wasn’t about to turn down such a rich gift from the god.

  He pulled it on immediately, tossing his suddenly outdated breastplate and bracers into his inventory. Suddenly, his shield jumped to unheard-of heights—with enhancement, it was all the way up at 600. It made sense why he hadn’t been able to do any damage to the black lix. And not only that, but the suit increased his attack by 30 points. The suit didn’t include a helmet, of course, which was a shame, as it would have let Ka-Do-Gir stand up to Halas himself, the head of the black lixes. The greens would finally have been free.

  “Where did you get the regeneration potion?” Ka-Do-Gir asked the boy. “I need to know what other surprises I can count on in the future.”

  Tailyn didn’t hesitate long. He was sure nobody else spoke the lix tongue, and so he went ahead and told his partner about the store and how he could sell his cards. But if he’d turned around, he would have noticed a flash in Valanil’s eyes. The woman could barely contain herself. Of course, she knew where to get lots of cards if you had the gold, and now she had a way to turn them into coins. It was strange that it had never occurred to her to offer cards to the god. Apparently, she’d just assumed that you only got coins for ancient items, with the god only paying gold for what came after the exodus. The news was fantastic.

  “You need this more than I do right now,” the lix said, handing Tailyn his fireball card. “Give it back to me when this is all over.”

  Tailyn accepted silently, though he couldn’t suppress an annoyed sniff—there were only two charges left on the card. On the other hand, that was still two shots, which was better than nothing. His partner quickly forgot about him and went back to checking out his new getup. Tailyn frowned in frustration that he hadn’t even gotten a thank-you for his efforts, the lix having already moved on. His mood souring quickly, Tailyn decided to check out his own loot.

  Analyzing human Tailyn Vlashich and his belongings.

  Modifying Booster-II amulet.

  ***

  Loot received

  Booster-II amulet. Description: rare item. A self-regenerated amulet worn around the neck that significantly boosts the wearer’s chances of surviving. Shield level: +10 * (level + Enhancement); mana level: +70 * (level + Enhancement); Mysticism +1. Initial charge level: maximum.

  Tailyn felt much better—he had 422 mana available to him right then, with his maximum all the way up at 1080. That was enough to charge another couple cards. Maybe not completely, but it would still be enough to survive another tough battle.

  Status table

  General character information

  Tailyn Vlashich

  Alchemist

  Level

  1

  Age

  10

  Yearly tax (crystals)

  1 (beginning at age 16)

  Coins

  83

  Gold

  3727

  Main parameters

  Shield level

  95 (670)

  Mana level

  422 (1080)

  Physical attack

  34

  Magic attack

  76


  Attributes

  Enhancement

  5

  Mysticism

  3

  Intellect

  1

  Armor

  1

  Wisdom

  2

  Perception

  1

  Skills

  Alchemy

  Points invested:

  10

  Herbalism

  Points invested:

  7

  Linguist

  Points invested:

  1

  Tailyn decided the amulet was worth everything he’d been going through.

  “Sweetie, are you hurt?” Tailyn heard, and he quickly closed his status table. Since it wasn’t the numericals in question, he wanted to hear the answer.