by K. T. Hanna
“What is it? What’s wrong?” Laria didn’t like the tension in the room now.
“I need you to breathe deeply and listen to everything I have to say before you dart out of here, okay?” Shayla was obviously putting in effort, but there was still a shake to her voice.
“Ok.” Laria didn’t want to promise anything, but something had upset Shayla, and the woman was rarely ever upset.
“I just received a call from Davenport on the private line.” She glanced out the window again. “It seems James was working for our major financial sponsor; the military. It also appears that he’s figured out something. One of Davenport’s contacts who works for them called him to warn him.”
“What?” Laria could already feel the cold pit forming in the bottom of her stomach. The bile reached her throat enough to taste it, and dread chased up her spine.
“They’re headed to your house Laria. They’ll be there in about forty-five minutes, and only because their base is outside of the city. Go home. Fast. I’ll try and figure out a reason for Wren to be in that damned pod.”
Shayla’s words went in one ear and floated around in Laria’s head. They were there, and she heard them, but they were still foreign to her. Laria’s body moved on its own, until finally her thoughts caught up to it. She was already into the elevator when it did. And she caught James smirking at her as the doors closed.
They’d deal with him later, oh, how she would. Him and that smug little smirk. But right now, she had to call David, and had to get home before everything they’d sought to protect turned to shit in her hands.
“You’re not Lilith.” Murmur stated the obvious to fight off the uncontrollable rage she was scared would threaten to overtake her.
“Observant, Murmur.” Riasli practically purred the word. “But really, who needs Lilith when you have me?”
Havoc began to cast a spell, but Riasli cut him off. “No, no, dear necro. Not like that. I just thought I’d add some fun into the mix for you. I wasn’t expecting you to keep any of the siblings alive. Still...”
“What do you want?” Devlish sounded tired, impatient, and Murmur couldn’t blame him.
“I want Fable to lose. I want Murmur to die and to realize that Somnia is the only place for her.” Riasli growled out the words in a voice that didn’t entirely sound like her own, and then she stood up straight and grinned her Cheshire grin again. “But for now, I’ll just let you know that I’m still out there, having fun and making your lives hell.”
With a whirl of her white robe, she disappeared.
And then the messages started flashing across the screen.
You receive one of the twelve keys.
You receive a getashi
You receive a midia crystal.
You have completed the Lilithheim Internal Dungeon.
Lilithheim is no longer accessible as a dungeon.
You gain experience.
You gain bonus experience for being the first to solve the Riddle of Torch.
You gain bonus experience for being the first to solve the Riddle of Xestia.
You gain bonus experience for being the first to solve the Riddle of Hortia.
You gain bonus experience for being the first to solve the Riddle of Wartia.
You gain bonus experience for freeing the king and queen from Lilith’s grasp.
You gain bonus experience for tackling the dungeon before reaching maximum power.
You gain bonus experience for completing the dungeon and discovering a new level of truth.
You have hit level forty-two.
Murmur knew everyone else was receiving the notifications. And she knew she should be happy that she’d reached level forty-two. Only eight more to go...but why had Riasli been there? Had she taken control over this dungeon as well? It didn’t seem like it, especially since it appeared to have been a quest that was given ages ago. Before Riasli’s time. And what a fucking nerve. It was a good thing Murmur wasn’t easy to kill.
“Mur?” Sinister stood at her shoulder. “Don’t want to check for loot?”
Murmur sighed. That blasted enchanter had even made her forget about loot! “Yeah. Sorry, she just threw me.”
“All I know is that I need sleep, Mur. And if she wants you dead, she’s going to have to pry you from my cold stiff fingers. I’m a blood mage. That’s not going to happen.” Sinister linked her hand in Murmur’s and dragged her over to the chest.
“Thanks, Sin,” she said and lifted the trunk open.
“Don’t worry, Mur.” Rashlyn gave her a brief shoulder hug, ignoring the daggers Sinister shot her way. “We’re not about to let her touch you.”
Murmur nodded, leafing through the inventory mechanically. She handed out loot, barely glancing at it until she came to her own iridescent legs. Yeah. This was going to be a nice set, and it should protect her from lots of potential death.
That is of course, if Riasli even needed to touch her to kill her.
Murmur stumbled as she ported to the island, her tiredness overwhelming her. She hadn’t expected Lilithheim to be so utterly draining. Mind Bolting and Mana Draining the crap out of everything sure took its toll.
She sat heavily next to the teleportation pad as the others rolled in behind her and flung her arms around Snowy. She had so much yet to do. But right now, just hugging her wolf made everything feel so much better.
That fight had been harsh and harrowing and fucking evil.
Still, she had to go see Belius, or Dirsna, or some enchanter trainer that wasn’t trying to kill her so she could get her MA Five abilities and grab her level forty-five spells for the road. Maybe it would pay to grab the level fifty ones as well. Forty-two felt good, and she’d have to take time out to go over those spells a bit later. She’d not expected so much experience to come to them at the end of that dungeon. Castle. Whatever the fuck it had been.
She could however take a quick look and see how her stats had grown.
CON 22 (47)
STR 10 (35)
AGI 20 (87)
WIS 12 (79)
INT 82 (194)
CHA 103 (245)
HP 741 (1016)
MANA 1212 (1382)
MA 175 (300)
Well, that gave her a feeling of accomplishment. She stood up and stretched as the last two of their group stumbled through. Both Jinna and Mellow seemed to be propping each other up. It had taken so long, and they hadn’t realized the time had flown so quickly in there.
“Don’t know about you,” Beastial mumbled, “but I need to sleep. Correct that. Pee. Desperately pee and sleep. That’s what I need. I can feel the pain in here.”
Amidst chuckles from his peers, he logged out right next to the port pad.
Devlish laughed and then rubbed his eyes. “He’s got a point. The rest of this shit can wait half a day. I’m tired and I need to rest. I couldn’t even tell the difference between my axes and swords in that last segment. I don’t even know what I ended up using.”
He sighed and yawned, triggering the same reaction in about four of the others who all groaned at him. Devlish waved, grinned impishly, and logged out.
Sinister leaned into Murmur, slinging her arms around Murmur’s waist and holding on. “Keep me upright, Mur. I’m too tired to brain.”
Mur looped an arm around Sin’s shoulder and steadied her, enjoying the warmth it brought, enjoying the closeness. If they could just stay like that for a while, she was certain she could rejuvenate herself.
Telvar approached, standing down near the workshop entrance, beckoning to them. The few of them still logged in trudged down. Jinna and Mellow were still supporting each other. Dansyn and the rangers barely lifted their feel. Veranol, Rash, and Havoc— they were all together in a jumbled group of tired.
“What’s up?” Murmur asked, still looped to Sinister. She wasn’t
even sure she knew how they’d managed to walk this way.
Telvar’s eyes shifted back and forth, looking first into the workshop and then back to the group. “I need to talk to you.”
He sounded concerned and Murmur wasn’t sure what his problem was, but he didn’t seem comfortable in front of the others.
“Sure. Did you want to say you’re sorry for the fact that Riasli showed up in this dungeon too?” she said and pried Sin gently loose, while Telvar gaped at her. “Go see if Neva is in there. Bet she has cool shit for us! Don’t take my level forty-two robe! You don’t need the charisma.”
Sinister pulled energy reserves from somewhere and walked into the shop with the rest of the guild. Shortly thereafter, animated chatter that indicated Neva’s presence echoed out to her, and Murmur smiled.
“She took the dungeon over, but that’s my dungeon. That whole catacomb of different ones in the hillside...” Telvar seemed stumped.
“No.” Murmur waved his worry away. “She just appeared at the end and basically said she wished Fable would fail and I would die or some such.”
He watched her, his expression grim. “We’ll see about that.”
“That’s what we said.” Murmur couldn’t help the impish impulse to be slightly sarcastic, but then she sighed, the tiredness overwhelming her. “So, what’s wrong? You look worried.”
Telvar shook his head and then paused. “Not worried. More curious or hesitant. I...need to try something with you. I need to see if the theory I have is right. And to do so, I need you to trust that I won’t hurt you.”
Murmur peered at him, making sure he wasn’t pulling her leg or having her on. Also making sure it really was him and not some weird twist of something or other in the game world. Her head was a little muddled from the hours they’d been playing.
“I trust you. You’ve helped me out more than anyone else, given me information when I needed it most. Stopped me from blowing up my friends. Which, even without the other stuff, would lead me to trust you.” The more she thought about the words, the more she realized they were true.
It had almost been three weeks, but she felt like she’d been in Somnia a lifetime. When she spoke again, she felt pure conviction for her words.
“It’s okay, Tel. I trust you.”
No. Don’t. Please.
Murmur schooled her face, not wanting to give away the voice in her head. It was probably her own imagination just freaking out because she was exhausted.
Telvar smiled, the expression genuine and somehow reaching his eyes before he took a deep breath. “Close your eyes and activate your logout screen. I need you to choose to exit before I can try this.”
Murmur studied his expression, trying to see how serious he was. But all she could sense were nerves and anticipation. Her thoughts grew jumbled, like something inside her rallied against wanting to believe he’d found a way. She dug deep, closed her eyes, and brought up the log out panel. This would be the fourth or fifth time she attempted to exit past the reality her mother had built. All that could happen was that she’d end up back there, right?
But then she didn’t have time to think anymore.
A forceful push hit the top of her forehead, distinctly resembling the heel of Telvar’s hand. As it made contact, an electric rush shot through her, stinging her from the inside out, rushing through her body and causing everything behind her eyelids to explode in showering sparks that littered the world around her.
Suddenly it stopped. Everything stopped, and she was no longer standing but lying down. Lying in something that was moist and soft, that conformed to her body. Slowly she could hear beeps echoing into her. In the distance she could hear Sinister yelling at Telvar, followed by Mellow and Merlin. All of them angry, all of them questioning what he’d done to her.
But when she opened her eyes, all she saw were wires leading from her body, past the edges of a containment pod, attached to the machinery that was beeping out her life. She tried to speak, to say what the fuck, but all that came out was a dry croak.
Hi there! K.T. Hanna here.
I want to thank you for reading the Somnia Online series and if you’ve made it here (to the end of Book 4), that’s a whole lot of reading. Thank you so much!
Since I met my partner in EQ2, MMORPGs have a huge place in my heart. You know, in case you didn’t notice. The more I write of this world, the more I really miss my enchanter.
If you enjoyed the book, I ask you, please take a moment to leave a review. Reviews are an author’s lifesblood. Without them, our books sink into obscurity. With them, most algorithms allow well reviewed books to self-promote in some way.
I hope you love the world of Somnia enough to want to find out more about it! Here are some of the ways you can stay in contact with me:
Want to read more about Fable? Sign up for my Reader’s Group and get the short story for free!
If you’d like to contact me, my email is: [email protected] I’ll do my very best to get back to you.
If you’d like previews of what I’m writing, or art I’m commissioning then join my Patreon!
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Game Terms
Aggro—When you walk too close to a monster, you get in its aggression radius, thus causing aggro. Once engaged in combat, players must be cautious not to exceed the tank’s threat level. Buffs, debuts, and damage output all contribute to the mobs aggro meter.
AOE—Area of Effect. Spells or abilities that effect an area and not just a single target.
Binding/bound—When someone/you bind(s) to an area, you affix your soul to that place in order to Gate back, or else respawn when you die.
Boss—Nope. He doesn’t employ you, he employs all the mobs trying to kill you. He hits HARD, and often has special group wiping abilities if not handled correctly by the tank and raid as a whole.
Buff—Most classes will get buffs that strengthen at least themselves if not others. These are effects they can cast which enhance aspects of their character.
Camping—When a group finds a spot that will yield good money and experience, they tend to stay in its vicinity. This is called camping.
Con—To consider a mob and see how difficult the fight could potentially become.
DoT—Damage over Time. This is an offensive spell that applies damage to a target over a period of time at regular intervals.
DPS—Damage Per Second. Usually used in conjunction with offensive classes, or damage output.
Debuff—This is the opposite of a buff and is usually used on mobs to detract from their strengths and make them easier to kill.
End Game—Every game has a goal. In some there’s a max level and events and fights only accessible once that level is reached. For Fable, the end game is everything.
Gank—When someone tries to player kill you without forewarning. Often succeeds in taking the victim by surprise.
Gate—You create a Gate to your binding point and travel there instantly.
Grinding—Sometimes gaining levels requires so much camping that it becomes tedious. That’s known as grinding levels.
Healer—Well...they heal.
HP—Hit Points. The amount of damage a character can take before death.
Kite—This is a tactic often employed by ranged classes such as the ranger. It entails slowing a mob, and running ahead of it, slowly
picking down its health. Can also be used as a diversionary tactic to split multiple mobs if no Mesmerize is available.
Line of Sight (LOS)—If a mob can’t see you, but knows you’re there, it will have to run around the obstacle to gain access. This is often used to split up larger groups of melee and casters, so it’s more manageable for the group. The puller will line of sight the casting/ranged mobs to pull them around an obstacle for easier access and closer contact.
MA—Mental Acuity. A type of power generator specifically for Psionicists.
MANA—Mind juice, used for spells.
Meat Shield—The character who takes the hits in place of the rest of the group. The tank.
Melee—Those fighters who stand in close range and use weapons to fight with are often referred to as melee classes.
Mez—Mesmerize. Freezes in place.
MMO—Massively Multiplayer Online.
MMORPG—Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game.
Mob—an aggressive monster. Can be humanoid or animal.
OOM—Out of mana. Literally what it says.
Newbie—Also known as noob. Someone who has rarely, if ever played an MMO and has no clue what they’re doing.
NPC—Non Player Character. Usually not aggressive unless you fuck up.
Pull—Often one person in a group/raid will be designated as the puller, the person who attacks the mob and brings it to camp.
Ranged—A class that can damage (usually) a mob from a distance. Like mages or rangers, etc.
Ranger Gating—Rangers were often known for getting themselves into trouble by kiting mobs in a solo setting. Or else, pulling aggro when DPS-ing. They’d die and resurrect at their bind point, making it what’s known as a Ranger Gate.
Respawn—When a mob or a person dies in-game, they will reappear at the spot where their soul was bound. The more powerful the mob, the longer it takes for them to respawn.