The Sleeper Must Awaken

by Kip Terrington

  “An animal, called a pig, was generous enough to donate that to you,” Zoya informed the vampire.

  “Animal blood! How dare you! Do you realize how painful it is to metabolize blood from a non-sentient creature?” 342 seethed with a combination of fear and anger in her voice.

  “Despite popular sentiment, when someone is lactose intolerant, they should keep it to themselves. I don't need to know about your tummy troubles, some things should remain private. However, there is information we need from you. As you can see, we've brought in a ream of paper and some pencils for you. In keeping with our agreement, you will write down every scrap of information you know on all the vampires you've ever met or heard about. You will also draw a detailed map of every square inch of vampire territory that you can recollect. You will include everything you can remember, whether you believe it will be useful to us or not. When you truly believe you have written down everything you remember, you will inform us and we will give you a lie detector test. Then, and only then, will you receive one of your fangs,” Joe said.

  “That could take years! You can't be serious. By that time, I will be well on my way to growing back my own fangs. This is changing the deal,” 342 complained.

  “It's not changing the deal. There was no time limit on gathering the information. And don't worry about your fangs growing back, as soon as we see a teeny little nub, will take care of it. On this Moon, our prison’s dental plan is second to none,” Zoya explained.

  342 was livid. She challenged her interrogators with a fangless snarl. At that very moment, her stomach acid ate through the wooden vial. Her abs contracted and she struggled in her binds as the pain took over her. Two yeti guards strode in and Joe nodded them forward.

  “As you can see, the change of guard has arrived. We're going to take our leave of you. Go ahead and enjoy your meal. When you're finished, the papers and pencils will be at your disposal,” Joe said as he stood up, turned his back on the vampire, and walked out.

  The door closed behind the four of them, and Joe frowned at the unpleasant interaction. They all carried on in silence as they climbed the staircase.

  “Do you think she'll attempt to write down all she knows?” Lang questioned as they reached the landing.

  “Maybe. If she doesn't, we will bury her in reinforced concrete. Concrete is actually very porous. If we use that area as a slaughterhouse, we’ll never have to worry about the vampire dying of starvation,” Joe said.

  “That's horrible,” Lang said, surprising herself with the show of compassion for a soulless torturing creature.

  Joe stopped, almost mid-step, turned, and faced Lang. His face softened.

  “The vampire is horrible. Burying an undead creature is not. It's only shaped like a halfling. That's one thing I know to be true. I've always believed that no living being is irredeemable, but the keyword in that sentence is living. That animal blood will keep the vampire from respawning indefinitely, but I learned why it hurts so much for them to digest it from my Book of Useful Information. When a vampire drinks blood, it only derives pleasure if the blood was taken from a terrified sentient individual. Blood from a dumb animal can prolong its undead lifespan, but the lack of terror at the bloodletting causes the vampire to feel the lack. Either the object of bloodletting feels pain and terror or they do. And humanely acquired animal blood is all that we will ever give the vampire. As soon as we can, we will bury that undead creature. No matter how difficult it is, that's the way it will be,” Joe said.

  Zoya looked back in the direction of the prison cell. A shadow seemed to cover her eyes. Lang stepped back, startled to see the stars in Zoya’s eyes replaced with the image of a black hole.

  Chapter 21 - It’s Only a Matter of Time

  Bent over a desk, staring at a sheet with names and numbers on it, Joe rested his forehead against his raised fist and took a deep breath. As he let the breath out slowly, his hand drew away from his face and he held up a single finger.

  “One NPC death is too many, and when I look down at this sheet, I see three possible deaths,” Joe stressed.

  “They understand the risks,” Zoya countered.

  “How can they understand the risks when we aren't even aware of them. Beyond the Mezzanine is a blank slate. For all we know, it's one giant pit of acid after that,” Joe said, worry evident in his voice.

  “That doesn't fit within the rules, so there's no giant pit of acid—unless, of course, there's a way to avoid it. I don't want the NPCs to go into that dungeon any more than you do, Joe, but they made it clear that if we don't allow them on the teams, they will find another way in. They want to fight the vampires and all of them know that right now they're not strong enough to hold their own against the weakest vampire under that mountain. They agreed to stick to the first three floors until we approve a deeper descent. However, once they are no longer receiving XP from those levels, there's no question they will demand to go lower. Unless you're willing to take away their free will, they're going to find a way to the deep dungeon,” Zoya exasperated. Picking up the paper, Joe paced back and forth, waving it in the air.

  “This sheet has the names of 89 players and 3 NPCs who wish to take a place on the permanent dungeon diving teams. That's 19 teams and over half of those groups are already too high of a level to get much XP from the first three floors. I want to lead from the front, but I am not even close to the highest level player on this sheet. In order to survive, all of us have to do our best.

  “Unfortunately, at this moment, doing my best means I have to swallow my pride and let the higher level group fight down low enough so they can truly grow. It's difficult for me, but I can do that. However, what we cannot do, is let the NPCs die. Two of them are close enough to our level that I can take them in my group. With my Life Magic, I can probably keep them safe, but there’s no guarantee,” Joe said.

  “Maybe after they have some success in the dungeon, the UI will decide to make them players,” Zoya suggested.

  “Obviously that would be wonderful, but right now we have no idea why the UI is making some people players while others keep their NPC status,” Joe stated.

  “Joe, all three of them are fighters at heart. We can't deny them the opportunity to become strong enough to kill their former masters,” Zoya said.

  Joe crumpled the paper up and threw it against the wall. “Don't you think I know that! I just don't want them to die. I have more power than I've ever had in my life and yet I know I'm not worthy of it. Even with all the strength I now possess, I know I'm not going to be able to keep our people safe. And they are our people, not because we chose them, but because -for some reason- they were put in our care. The only way we can protect them is if we take responsibility for even more people. If we don't grow, and grow fast, we will die,” Joe said as he flopped down in the chair and covered his face with his hands.

  “There’s no need to yell at me, Joe. I don't feel any more prepared for this than you do. Ones and zeros don’t provide comfort when one represents life and zero represents death. Let's try to look at it from a different angle. 19 groups—that’s significant. They’re well-balanced and if they can grow quickly, we might have a chance at killing the mistress in three months. At this very moment, the teams are practicing together. I know it's just a walkthrough and they're not in the dungeon, but they're getting to know each other. They're becoming teams and will be ready for the dungeon once we let them in. Every team has at least one yeti who can tank for them, and although we don't have enough healers yet, hopefully that will change after we make some progress,” Zoya mused.

  “Change after we make some progress? Zoya, we don't know that. Yes, we have many who have seeds of magic within them, but we don't know how to activate those seeds. The vampires stunted them somehow and not even Moes knows if we'll be able to awaken their magic. And honestly, that's not even the most serious issue. You're also forgetting that many of the team members don't have all their limbs. That’s a severe disadvantage,” Joe asserted.<
br />
  “Joe, don't discriminate,” Zoya replied and Joe's eyes narrowed and he quietly stared at the dark fairy.

  “Don't do that. We're not talking about rights, we're talking about a brawl. And I will not pretend that someone who doesn't have arms is just as capable of boxing as someone with two fists. When it comes to strategy and planning, obviously, they're just as capable but you can't win a thumb war without a thumb,” Joe stressed.

  “Yes, I know, Joe, but when someone dies and is reborn their body is reset. Right? What if that means their magic is unblocked and their limbs are returned?” Zoya suggested.

  “We do not know that. The UI might have got its start from games on Earth, but we don't know if it will return their limbs. You were there a few hours ago when we tried to use my magic to regrow one of the paraplegic’s legs. It wouldn't work. The injury was too old. How do you know it won't be the same with the UI?” Joe asked.

  “I don't, but why not assume the best until we're proven wrong? Isn't that what you always do?” Zoya asked.

  “No,” Joe said.

  Zoya sat down, gentleness evident in her eyes.

  “Okay, yes, that is what I do, but you're not supposed to,” Joe protested.

  “I'm a woman, my ways are mysterious and they're only made more so by my artificial parts,” Zoya teased.

  “So, you had some work done? No judgement, just curious,” Joe said.

  “You're hilarious,” Zoya said.

  “Thanks. I guess it's time we let the first team start their run,” Joe replied.

  “They will do fine. They've watched the video of the first three floors multiple times. They're ready. Well, as ready as they can be made in 24 hours,” Zoya reassured.

  “I wish we could let them practice for longer, but we're on a time crunch and the only way to truly get better is to level. Learn by doing and all that. Do you have the cables ready so that we can feed video into the Mezzanine?” Joe asked.

  “It’s already hooked up. Now we just have to go down to the Mezzanine and see if the signal makes it from the cable box on the outside of the dungeon to the canvases in the squad rooms. If it does, we'll be able to communicate with those teams housed in the Mezzanine,” Zoya said.

  “Okay, let’s head to the Mezzanine. On our way there, we will give the go ahead for a few of the all-player teams to start working through the first three floors,” Joe said as he stood and headed for the door.

  “Sounds like a plan, however, you should shower first. You did say that you would make sure you smelled better next time you went in Os,” Zoya encouraged with a shrug of her shoulder.

  Joe lifted an arm and took a quick whiff.

  “Wow… I smell like a combination of reanimated farm animals and sweated-out opiates. Why didn’t I notice?” Joe asked.

  “I can’t be sure that things are the same here, but on Earth your brain ignores most smells that are constant for at least twenty minutes. It seems that the olfactory bulb has mercy on people who smell like you, or those who have to work in the sewer. It doesn’t bother me. It’s just sensory data. I think I might even enjoy the farm-y pungent bouquet. I mean, it’s Joe,” Zoya postulated.

  “Bouquet? I don’t think that’s the right word to describe my odor. Anyway, do we have some stronger soap? Maybe some bleach I could use? This skin is tough. Might as well give it a good scouring. Exfoliation makes you look young, right?” Joe quipped.

  “Let’s not go too far, but there are some chemicals in your Holdall that might work,” Zoya said with caution.

  Chapter 22 - Parkour

  The Wild Mountains.

  The Dungeon of Os.

  Day sixteen, just after the Morning Bunny.

  Stepping into Os, Joe once again heard no greeting. He wasn't sure why the dungeon continued to ignore him when it spoke to everyone else. It didn't really bother him. In fact, it just drew out his deep internal smile.

  “Greetings, Covenant Dungeon of Os. We have come to learn, we have come to grow, and we have come to test ourselves against your might and diabolical traps. As I'm sure your heightened sense of smell can tell, I'm a man of my word. Please be sure to let us know if there's anything we can do to make our crawl through your innards less annoying,” Joe said with a flourish and a bow.

  “Why are you doubled over?” Zoya asked as she flew through the entrance behind him, “No, never mind. I don't need to know. Instead of taking the elevator to the Mezzanine, let's speedrun the top three floors. Maybe if we're incredibly fast, the UI will recognize the extra skill and effort we put in and reward us with XP,” Zoya suggested.

  “That's a good idea. Let's drop our Medallions of Safe Passages here. If the dungeon wants us to have new ones, they'll be in the loot we pick up,” Joe said as he reached in his Holdall and pulled out the coins and dropped them on the ground. As they hit the floor of the dungeon, the coins melted and reabsorbed into Os.

  “Okay, with the first floor, you pick up the loot and throw it in my Holdall as we run. Second floor, you cut the flowers as fast as you can. I will scoop up the petals in my Holdall and try to keep up. Third floor, I think you should cling to my back and throw spells. That way we won't have to worry about you getting snatched. When we get to the troll, I'm going to head straight for it and try to paralyze it. As I'm doing that, I think it would be good if, simultaneously, you tried to stab it in the eye. Once I cut off its head, we will kill whatever monsters ended up kited behind, including the two snakes,” Joe planned out.

  “Decided to treat this like an actual game, huh?” Zoya asked.

  “You gotta play to win,” Joe said.

  Zoya grinned, “Let's start our speedrun.”

  Joe returned the smile and his twenty-sided eye began to spin.

  “Let's do this, Big Z. LEEROY JENKINS!” Joe shouted the sacred battle cry of all true zerg gamers as he turned on his heels and sprinted toward the mushroom boss who was pretending to be benign. It died the same as the last one, only this time there was no discussion following its death.

  His twenty-sided eye continued to spin.

  Joe bounded down the stairs to the second floor and Zoya flew ahead of him, mithril dagger in hand. She sped through the second-floor traps like the dark gardener incarnate that she was. She flew so fast, Joe couldn’t collect all the flower petals and still keep up with her. She killed the second floor boss flower with the boar's tusk before it had even fully sprouted. Joe ran behind her, picked up the loot, and threw it in his Holdall without even looking at what it was.

  His twenty-sided eye continued to spin.

  Zoya jumped on his back with her head popping out just over his shoulder. He bounded down the steps three or four at a time. She snickered at the message Joe received in his HUD.

  Congratulations!

  Your dexterity has increased by one. To you, circular stairs might as well be a waterslide. Your reckless athleticism gives hope that the sport of parkour may one day rise as a favored pastime on this Moon.

  Oblivious to the reward the UI granted for his athletic feat, Joe cut his way through the swamp at a sprint. The nearby gurkins shied away from the fast-moving threat. When he reached the bridge, the troll was running to meet them, having heard them arrive from farther away than would normally have been possible.

  This time, the troll was not possessed by the dungeon, so it lacked the intelligence of a strategic fighter. It headed straight for the human thing creating so much noise running through the jungle. Joe and the troll looked like two trains headed for a fatal collision. Just before the crash, Joe stepped low and to the left, ducking under the right arm of the troll. The troll collided with Joe, but was off center. Holding tight to the troll’s body, Joe shifted his own momentum. Behind the troll’s back now, Joe held his arms around the monster’s waist.

  The troll tried to spin to catch Joe, but Joe held on tight as if he was a backpack. Joe lifted his leg and slammed his heel down hard into the right knee of the spinning troll. The creature fell on its belly and J
oe held it in place with his MIL Bar. Without wasting any time, Joe extended his claw from his right hand and used it to separate the troll’s head from its body.

  Instead of feeling pain from the exertion, Joe merely felt pressure in his head from the weight of messages that had backed up. Barely remembering he still needed to deal with the snakes, Joe turned to his right and caught the striking snake just before it would have sunk its fangs into his exposed throat. With a quick clawed-punch, the snake died.

  Finally, after three floors of constant rotation, Joe’s twenty-sided eye stopped solidly on a twenty, but Joe didn't let his guard down. Searching around for the other snake, Joe noticed Zoya sitting on top of a serpent with a mithril dagger embedded to the hilt in its head.

  “Joe, for the love of goulash, read your messages or discard them. Your eyes look like they're about to bulge out of your head,” Zoya worried.

  “Why does the UI want me to read these messages so much? It's never made me feel like this before,” Joe said.

  “I don't know, maybe because we finished a hidden quest,” Zoya wondered.

  “What quest? Let me take a look,” Joe said.

  Congratulations!

  You have discovered hidden quests.

  Quest: Speedrun, Floor 1

  Quest: Speedrun, Floor 2

  Quest: Speedrun, Floor 3

  Group and individual records apply. Race quickly through each floor and set a new high record!

  Would you like to attempt to set a group speedrun record for any of these floors? Yes/No

  Due to your lack of response to a Yes/No question, your co-Champion has accepted these quests on your behalf.

  Ding

  Congratulations!

  New records set for Floors 1, 2, and 3!

  Note: you may either receive XP from setting a new group speedrun record or for killing the monsters. Receive XP for Records or Monsters? (Hint: the XP for records is higher this time)