by Arthur Stone
Chapter 22
Life Eight. Suicidal Rescue
The car stopped so abruptly it nearly broke Cheater’s neck. No wonder transportation in the trunk was against the law back on Earth.
Had they crashed? There had been no sound of a collision. Had the batteries died? That shouldn’t have stopped the car instantly. Something bad had appeared on the road, surely.
Without receiving any commands to do so, both of them stepped out of the trunk. Cheater wanted to stretch his whole body, at least symbolically to express how uncomfortable his position had been, but the first thing he did was arm himself. Needing to shoot something in the next minute was always a likely possibility.
He fumbled around on the roof, where all of the larger weapons had been stored. Sadly, there was no space for such storage in the trunk, nor in the passenger cabin. Cheater had two rifles now, and he grabbed the older one—which he had found in the pickup that had perished along with Physic and Georgy—without hesitation. It was not a bad weapon, but he only had seven rounds left. If they were going to flee on foot, it was best to shoot these rounds and abandon the weapon so he could take his new one with more ammo.
Always a pity to leave a weapon, of course, but carrying too much on your back was a sure way to die.
Tossing his bow over his shoulder and holding the heavy rifle, he joined the rest of the party. They were all standing in front of the car staring ahead.
Cheater looked around and realized: They had reached the finish line.
They were here.
The road ended. Well—it didn’t exactly end. About fifty yards away, it emerged onto a bridge over an abyss. Thirty yards out, the bridge was cut, as if with a knife.
A cluster border. The next cluster also had a bridge. But resets did not weld bridges together; they just mashed them up as best they could. So there was a gap between them, of course.
The bridge on this side had held, despite half of it being cut away. But the other side had not been so strong. It still stood on its supporting towers, but it had given way partially and bent, down and to the side.
Without that sideways bend, it would have been possible to jump. The distance was short—clearing a dozen yards would be enough to cross. A strong player was almost guaranteed to pull it off without any serious injuries, and even newcomers might make it without breaking their legs. But with that buckling to the side, even world champions of the long jump were unlikely to make it. It was a sad sight, but not a reason to stand idly by.
They were wasting time. The bots would appear any moment now. No cover, no retreat. Just an abyss. Could they proceed on foot?
No, it seemed like the place was made specifically to screw them. Cheater wondered if the bots were taking their time since they knew what lay this way. The rocky desert was nearly perfectly flat here, devoid of any shelter or even small rise—besides the steep cliffs of rock that formed two sides of a triangle. The third side being the abyss. The only way out was to go back, and the bots would be thrilled that the encounter was hastened without any effort on their part.
Roach looked around, confused. “Should we split up?”
“Then what do we do?” Fatso inquired.
“We could try to hide in the cliffs.”
“They’re sheer stone walls! And they’re pretty far away. I bet the bots will be here in ten minutes, tops. We’d have to run full speed to reach the nearest cliff. Just so we can be trapped there. And die. The bots will shoot us from far away, and find us quickly if we try taking shelter.”
“Can we climb down?” Tat asked.
“Ever been rock climbing before?” Clown replied.
“No.”
“Then forget about it. We don’t have a rope, not even a weak one. I guess we could try to knit one from your hair, for laughs. But there’s no time for that. And your hair doesn’t seem up to the task. What a boring ending to our crossing. I thought we’d see something new, but here we are, trapped at the edge of an abyss by bots. How original.”
March was staring across the abyss.
“That’s the border.”
“We’re not blind, it’s obviously a new cluster over there,” Roach said. “We’ll never discover it, though, since we’ll die here.”
March shook his head. “No, not just a border. The border.
This is the first region boundary.”
Everyone stared, spellbound. Across the way, it was more of the same stones, baked red by the sun, livened only by stunted, scarce bushes.
But it was not the same.
Just seventy yards away lay the point they had come here for. Another region. Taking one single step across was a victory, even if they perished on the spot. They would get bonuses for crossing and would respawn on the other side, in a new region.
Problems with the Spiders and whatever else would be left behind.
But those seventy yards might as well be the distance between Earth and the Moon.
Fatso could not tear his greedy gaze from the spot. “We could try to clear it in a running jump.”
Roach sighed. “Which will kill us. That’s twenty yards across to the other bridge. The height difference helps, but not enough.”
“I didn’t say anything about the other bridge. You just have to get across the border, even if you fall to your death on the other side. Of course, make sure you change your settings to automatic region binding first. Then you won’t have to accept any offer from the System before you die. The binding will be automatic.”
March shook his head. “That won’t work. Your eyes are tricking you. The border is on the opposite side of the abyss. You’d have to reach the wall.”
“But—the bridge is severed in the middle,” Button noted. “That’s where the border should be, too.”
“The System’s rules are not always followed here. There is no ‘should’ in the borderlands. This is not two clusters we are looking at, it’s three. We’re in the first. The second is only abyss, a wedge shape. Hence the gap. I’m sure that the wreckage of the third bridge, which was meant to connect the other two, lies at the bottom of the abyss. Without any supports on either side, it fell immediately. The third cluster, on the other side, is the next region. I don’t know how that other bridge is still standing. Its one mid-abyss support has even buckled, but not failed. Region boundaries are amazing places.”
“Amazing!?” Roach flared. “What are we going to do? Stand around like this is National Geographic?”
“No. We’re going to grow wings and fly,” March said, unmockingly.
“We’re stuck. Stuck up the System’s ass! What the hell came over me when I joined this group?”
“We need to build a defense,” Fatso fussed. “There are plenty of good rocks over there. It’s not much cover, but it is some. With luck, we’ll kill some bots. At least we’ll get some good experience from that.”
Clown had been staring at one point. He whispered so quietly, they all listened intently. “There is one option.”
“What?” Roach perked up. Accelerate hard in the car and jump the gap.”
“Are you sick in the head? This isn’t the movies. The car will never fly that far. And it’s no race car—you’ll never ‘accelerate hard’ enough. Only the bridge is straight enough to floor it. If we had an SUV, yes, we could accelerate across the sand. But not in that pile of shit.”
Clown raised a hand and shook a finger. “That machine is a pile of shit, yes, but one of the better piles I’ve seen. I know a trick to get it up to speed. Something fools like you have never heard of. Give me a couple of minutes with the wires and I’ll make it fly like a rocket. It’ll only sustain that for a few seconds. But that’s enough. Then, it will either die, or burst into flames. But I doubt it’ll burn. The batteries will run out before then, since they’re almost dead already. As long as they don’t give out before we jump, we have a chance of getting across. Less than fifty percent, but better than nothing. Maybe twenty-five percent.”
“You don’t seem
very hopeful,” Fatso complained.
“It’s shit, I’ll give you that,” Clown admitted. “But it’s something. If we stay here, the bots will kill us all from a distance with big guns. It’ll be a shooting gallery. I counted eleven vehicles back there, and nearly every one had a machine gun, if not a grenade launcher. They’re in no hurry, since we have nowhere to go. They’ll be ready. If we don’t make the gap, at least they won’t get us.”
“One in four? That’s stupid,” Roach wavered, glancing nervously at the area the bots would attack from.
“Do you have a better idea?” Clown mocked.
Cheater was in his settings checking his skills and his cooldown meters. His idea seemed a little crazy even for him. “Clown, if you can really make that car get up to speed, I can multiply our chances.”
“How? By emptying all the extra weight out of the car?”
“I have an ability.”
“Everyone has abilities.”
“Don’t interrupt, please. My ability—”
“—increases Cheater’s Luck for a few seconds,” March interrupted unexpectedly.
Cheater glared at him. March shrugged.
“I’m not an idiot, you know. I figured it out a long time ago.”
“What use is his luck in this situation?” Roach blinked.
March explained, calmly. “Young man, you have no idea the miracles that happen when Cheater activates his ability. Once I saw him surrounded by a gang of unrealistically villainous types. Animals in player form, and much stronger than him. They were intent on capturing him, and they had him at gunpoint. Suddenly—I kid you not—a truck full of bananas came into the picture. It capsized at full speed, spreading bananas everywhere. Then, every single one of the villains slipped on the bananas. That was the end of them. Some slipped and broke their necks; others slammed their heads on concrete or impaled themselves on tiny pipes sticking out of the ground. It was a single moment of pure unluck for everyone else. That’s what Cheater’s Luck is like. It works for a few seconds, but every second is pure joy.”
Roach gaped. “You’re exaggerating.”
March turned to Cheater. “That’s what happened, isn’t it?”
Cheater shook his head. “Exaggerating is right.”
“Go ahead, tell them there were no bananas!” March snorted.
Cheater raised his hands. “OK, look. We don’t have time for the details. March is correct. I can increase my Luck wildly for a few seconds. If I activate that skill just as we are about to jump, our chances will increase significantly. That only applies to me, but since you’re in the same car as me, it will have an effect on you too.”
Fatso looked more alive now. “They what are we waiting for? It’s a wonder the bots haven’t shown up yet. I agree with Clown. Let’s give it a try.”
Clown nodded.
“I’ll take care of the car. I need one minute, maybe two.”
“There’s one issue,” Cheater hesitated. “I used the skill yesterday. It’s twenty-six minutes away from cooling down.”
“Fuck!” Roach let loose. “Why did you bother then? We don’t have twenty-six minutes. We don’t have ten minutes!”
“I’ll get working anyway,” Clown groaned, reaching into the car with a hefty screwdriver.
Cheater ignored Roach’s complaint.
“There’s one sure-fire way to cool an ability down.
“What?!” Tat gasped.
“You know what. I will lose one life, yes, but we will all have a chance. You heard Clown. Twenty-five percent. He loves cars more than any of us, so perhaps he is even exaggerating our chances of success. My ability can boost that massively. Consider me a wounded party member you’re finishing off. I’ll be glad to die, to be honest. I’ve had a shard of metal in my back since yesterday. It’s in there deep. I can’t bend or turn at the waist until it comes out. But this way, I’ll get up in full health.” Cheater grinned nervously. “Too bad Janitor is dead. He was good at this sort of thing. Isn’t that right, Roach?”
“Kiss my ass!”
“Janitor is actually alive,” March said thoughtfully. “His icon never went black, not for a second.”
Button perked up. “Should we write him a message?”
“We’ll make it without him,” March replied calmly from behind Cheater’s back.
Suddenly, the pitch blackness of another death consumed Cheater’s world.
Well—I did ask for it.
Chapter 23
Life Nine. The Border
“Say something, damn you!” Fatso shouted, rubbing Cheater’s ears for some reason.
It was an unpleasant feeling, especially with all the shouting and the saliva in the face.
“Get away from me,” Cheater said, rising.
He looked around and saw the party piling into the back seat. Sounds were distorted, and colors were desaturated. Nothing seemed real. But it was better than the first time had been.
“Who... who did that...” he muttered as he stared stupidly at the car.
“March. An act of friendship. You asked for it. How are you?” Cheater believed the man’s name was Fatty, or maybe Fats. “Can you think straight? Will you be able to use your ability at the right time?”
Cheater nodded slowly.
“Perfect. The passenger seat is yours. It’s more comfortable, and with a good view. How many seconds does your ability last?”
“Eleven.”
“Really? Amazing. Activate it as soon as we start moving. The car will accelerate for four seconds, fly for about two, and then if we reach the other bridge, we would like to stay on it. It’s at an angle, and the guardrails seem weakened. That gives us a second or two to spare. Just don’t activate it too early, whatever you do. Understand?”
“Yeah. Once we start driving. Not a second before or after.”
“Excellent. Alright, get in. We’d let you return to your senses, but we don’t have time for that.”
“Yeah, bots, I remember.”
Five people crammed into the back seat. With all of their body armor, helmets, and some of the weapons. It was a bit crowded. But no one wanted to be in the trunk for the car’s maiden flight. It was simply too risky. They would likely be tossed out, even if the jump went off without a hitch. Plus, Clown said that improved the car’s balance.
The closer the main load was to the car’s center of gravity, the better.
Cheater sat in the passenger seat and closed the door, leaning back in exhaustion.”
“You ready?” Clown asked.
The newcomer nodded.
“I’d buckle up if I were you.”
“What about the crowd in the back?”
“That’s their problem. They can wrap the seatbelts around their balls for all I care. OK, listen up. As soon as I pushed this lever forward, trigger your Luck magic.”
“Fatso said I should activate it once we start moving.”
“I suppose he knows cars better than I do? No. We follow my plan.”
“Got it.”
“Then here we go. Look, even if we end up a flaming pile of scrap at the bottom of the ravine, this trip was a little interesting, I’ll give you that. This is the second time I’ve used a car to fly, by the way.”
“The second?” Cheater asked, not surprised.
“Yeah. I’ve seen everything this shit life has to offer, like I said. Or nearly everything, anyway. Alright, ladies and gentlemen, say your prayers. Our newly christened battery-powered plane is about to take its final voyage.”
Cheater activated Smile of Fortune. At that instant, his body kicked back into the chair with such force that he wondered if they had found a rocket while he was out. Or a catapult from an aircraft carrier. How had Clown managed to turn the car into a jet in a matter of seconds? The vehicle did not drive forward, it leaped forward, gaining a dangerous amount of speed in an instant.
Dangerous because they had to turn in order to get onto the bridge. A yellow sign warned that sixty kilometers per hou
r was the safest speed for the turn.
But they’d be going at least ninety.
Clown hit the turn. Tires squealed and gravel scattered as they drifted around it. It was as beautiful as a Mario Kart championship win. Then, he connected two wires hanging from the dash. They sparked, and a nasty white chemical smoke filled the car. The car rushed straight for the bridge.
It was a short stretch, but Clown undeniably squeezed every last bit he could out of it.
The speedometer moved so quickly that Cheater stopped watching it out of fear. As he watched the precipice approach at all speed, he grabbed his seat belt with both hands. The driver’s twenty-five percent chance had been severely high.
Five percent would have been high.
He had only his astronomical Luck to rely on now.
It was not like the movies. The car tore off the edge and dove like a fish, gravity pulling it down hard. The opposite edge of the abyss flickered past in the windshield, and then they saw the rapidly approaching surface of the other bridge closing on them. Yes, it was too tilted. Bent much too far. There was no way they would land on all fours. They would slam into the surface front-first and perish in a ball of fire.
Note: You have left the Interfluvial Steppe region! Note: You have entered the Seventeen Lakes region! You have set automatic region binding in your settings. Your current region is now the Seventeen Lakes. You have crossed the border between the Interfluvial Steppe and the Seventeen Lakes! Congratulations to you and your party members. You succeeded despite insurmountable obstacles. You receive +5000 distributable base stat progress points, +10000 distributable auxiliary stat progress points, +5 to all meters, max refill of all meters, +250 Humanity, +2 to your Life counter, +4 primary inventory cells, +45 grams max inventory capacity, +750 grams personal cache weight capacity, +250 grams personal cache special cell weight capacity (you can carry unlimited non-bound objects, with the exception of trophies obtained from monsters, in this cell).You have received a new perk: Cache Finder! You have increased chances of finding a cache if you are within 75 meters or less. High-level caches +25%, mid-level caches +40%m, low-level caches +60%. All of your hidden stats get +1 level or +1 stage, regardless of their current progress.