Fate of Camlan

by A. T. Gilbert

  I can’t think about it anymore. I nock another arrow and fire it as quickly as I can into the next closest King Spider. We’re so close to reaching Slade Pass; we just need to get through this and a little farther.

  Another several arrows fired and the tide begins to turn. The onslaught of attackers begins to slow. So much so that I’m tempted to pull out my Blade of Burnical so I can practice more, but ultimately decide against it. My Bow of Eternal Rest continues to do its job, draining each monster of health and vitality, stopping the attack and keeping our party alive for another day.

  [+1430 XP]

  When the last King Spider falls, I look around at where we have found ourselves. This valley of closely grown trees and thick spider webs has obscured our view of where we are going. Hopefully we’re still on the way to the next step in our quest.

  88EGG88 has again appeared, and has a whispered consultation with MadMachine.

  “We’re close,” MadMachine calls to the group. “If we don’t get delayed again, we can make it to the pass by the end of the day. Loot your stuff and then let’s go.”

  Autolooting the corpses drops a few things into my inventory. I collect a couple pieces of gold, a broken sword, a loaf of bread and a several low-level rings. I save all of it, making a mental note to visit a merchant as soon as I can to unload the junk. In fact it seems like so much junk, I almost miss the Singular item. In my looting I uncover a smooth, rounded stone. It’s deep purple, with some flecks of silver and I feel my breath leave my body when I see what it is.

  Acquired: Stone of Fate

  Item Type: Singular

  Description: This is one of five Absolute Stones in Camlan Realm. The Stone of Fate offers the possessor power and control over luck and destiny throughout the realm. When matched with the other Absolute Stones in the Vulgate Mantle, the possessor becomes invincible.

  Attention: Four of five Absolute Stones acquired.

  Quest Discovered: Seek the Vulgate Mantle

  Description: The Vulgate Mantle is the most prized object in all of Camlan Realm. The Departed King died protecting it, after which it was lost to history. But the mantle is still out there somewhere, waiting for a worthy warrior to claim it. When matched with the five Absolute Stones, the possessor becomes invincible.

  Reward: +10000 XP; Vulgate Mantle

  Whoa.

  I read the quest text again. And then a third time. I had almost forgotten about those other Stones I had picked up. Without this level of Power Perception, I had no idea what they were for or why I was even keeping them. But now …

  I feel a grin spreading across my face.

  “Asher?” Erinocalypse puts her hand on my arm, a concerned look on her face. “Are you okay?”

  I nod. “Um, yeah. Yeah. I’m good. Why?”

  “You just look …” She pauses to scrutinize me. “Just different. I don’t know. Maybe just happier than I’ve seen you in a bit.”

  I laugh. I can’t help it. She’s right. That’s what this feeling is. I hadn’t realized it; it’s been so long since anything in this game has actually brought me pure joy, but this quest. This special, extra, probably secret goal I now have is bigger than anything I have ever come across in any MMORPG.

  I decide not to tell her about it, or why I’m so happy. None of the others know about the other stones I’ve gathered throughout the game. And I think after collecting the Blade of Burnical this will only make them more jealous.

  While the others are sorting their loot, I revisit my inventory. The Stones of Waking, Shrouding and Adapting are safely stowed away. I add the Stone of Fate, and reread the new open quest language.

  The Vulgate Mantle is the most prized object in all of Camlan Realm

  Could it be that this quest to recover the Vulgate Mantle ties in with the quest to bring back the Departed King? I can’t help but think that the recipe for the various potions I’ve collected in the meantime can help too.

  I’ve got to get to Smeaton. I’ve got to continue learning my alchemy.

  “Now, don’t forget,” MadMachine is saying, cutting through my thoughts, “the sooner we get to the Citadel, the sooner we can shut down Toterra Online’s AI. The longer this technology is under their exclusive control, the harder it will be for it to spread and flourish like we need.”

  “Let’s move,” 88EGG88 says, leading the way up through the other side of the valley.

  I try to set aside my thoughts of glory and fame that will inevitably follow if I am the one to complete the quest to bring back the Departed King. This quest we are following for Fountain Games is important, I know that. But it’s not going to be like I can coast on my fame and reputation as a gamer if I do it. In fact, it might even make me some enemies.

  I believe it needs to be done, but at the moment what I really want to do is go hunting for the last Stone and the Mantle. I want to visit the alchemist in Smeaton. I want to just play this game the way it was meant to be played and not have to worry about the responsibility of big corporate interests.

  But I keep all these thoughts to myself and follow the rest of the group out of the spider’s small valley, into the forest beyond.

  Chapter 41

  On the other side of the King Spider valley, Dyrnwood continues on. We had to fight our way through, but now we’re making progress again. I feel like I have been in this forest forever, though I know it’s only been a couple of days. The fact that we haven’t found a place to save the game at any point in the forest makes it feel even longer. But we must be close. We must be near our objective. The foothills of Pendragon Mountains are only a little bit farther.

  As we continue through the forest, the carnivorous Raptorial Bushes appear periodically, glowing red in my Power Perception, but otherwise look harmless and decorative to others. SteelFeather takes a swing at each one we pass, as though he somehow hasn’t had enough fighting in the game so far. It makes me laugh, but it also gives me an idea.

  As we walk through the forest, I equip the Blade of Burnical, holding it out in front of me. Balderdash13 catches my glance and rolls her eyes.

  “Dios mío, Asher. Again?”

  “How am I going to get better?”

  She doesn’t respond to me, but puts a hand out to stop SteelFeather from taking a swipe at the next Raptorial Bush. He looks at her quizzically, and she indicates to me standing behind him with my sword aloft.

  He grins. “You want a shot at this?”

  I nod, not taking my eyes off the bush.

  “You want any tips?” He eyes the way I hold the sword.

  “Um.” I look at what he sees. “Yeah, sure.”

  “Well, first of all, it’s not a baseball bat.”

  “Oh. Right.” I adjust my grip.

  The rest of the party continues their progress through the forest around us.

  “Not waiting for you,” MadMachine calls back.

  “How does that sword feel in your hand?” SteelFeather asks me, ignoring him. “Balanced? Is it a good weight?”

  “Yeah, I guess so.” I shrug. “I think so.”

  “Great. So why don’t you take a stab at that one,” he suggests pointing to the next Raptorial Bush. “Careful, though. Don’t get too close.”

  I nod, determined, and make my way to the plant. Standing directly in front of it, I eye the stalk, the petals, the leaves, trying to figure out the best place to attack. Parts of the bush wave almost hypnotically, drawing me to it. I watch for another moment, before a scolding voice interrupts my thoughts.

  “Stalling like that could get you killed, SirAsh3r,” SteelFeather says from behind me.

  “I know. Yeah. Okay, I can do this.”

  I realize I am again holding the sword like a baseball bat and adjust my grip. This is a one-handed sword after all, and I should be able to deal damage with just that. With my eye on the target, I step forward, swinging, throwing my weight into the attack. The blade of the sword hits exactly where I want—where the leaf meets the stalk of the Raptorial
Bush.

  I slice through the vine perfectly, and am about to congratulate myself on the well-placed hit, when I realize I can’t pull the sword back. When the blade sliced downwards, the plant reacted, reaching towards the blade with other small spiky leaves, vines and petals. Even with the sharp edge of the sword cutting through the tender stalk, the Raptorial Bush gets a firm grip.

  “Hey!” I exclaim.

  Behind me SteelFeather is chuckling.

  “Let go!” I yell at the plant. I wrap both hands around the pommel of the Blade of Burnical and tug. I’m tempted to use one of my feet to leverage and push off, but that will just end up with my leg wrapped in vines too.

  “Um.” SteelFeather stifles more laughter. “Do you want help?”

  “No!” I pull harder. I twist the sword around, trying to use the blade to further cut through the tendrils. The petals that are filled with tiny, carnivorous teeth get closer and closer to the sword. “Yes,” I say resigned.

  With just a few quick swipes, the tank frees my weapon and I stumble backward.

  “Damnit,” I say under my breath.

  “You’ll get it,” SteelFeather says with a friendly smile. “Just… you know. Not right now.”

  I nod, resigned. I’ll take what I can get.

  We keep walking, hurrying to catch up with the others. The edge of the forest is close. The trees thin out until we find ourselves at the edge of Dyrnwood. Finally. I slow my steps, and look around. The sun is high overhead and there’s a light breeze coming off the mountains. I take a deep breath, enjoying the brief moment of calm. Of hope. Just a little bit farther to travel and we will have completed this quest and be on our way to the next leg of the mission for Fountain Games.

  The path out of Dyrnwood ends at the top of a shallow ravine. There’s a small creek without a name below. I would guess it is a tributary or grows into Bors River somewhere farther downstream. On the other side of the ravine are the foothills we’ve been heading for. The snowcapped Pendragon Mountains loom above us. I know they must be farther than they look, but from this viewpoint, I feel like I could hike to the Slade Pass in just a couple of hours.

  It only takes us a few minutes to find a path down into the ravine. The trail winds back and forth in a switchback, taking us all the way to the ground. 88EGG88 continues to take the lead as we make our way down. When I look around, Power Perception doesn’t give me any indication of what we’re walking into, either good or bad. I don’t see any glow of a side quest at all, either. This ravine seems to be strictly a location to get through.

  When we reach the floor of the ravine, we begin to make our way upstream along the shore of the creek. The round, water-smoothed rocks under our feet crunch as we walk. There doesn’t seem to be any other sound. No animals. Nothing but the stones, the water and us.

  The stream is shallow enough that we wade across easily, but there doesn’t appear to be a trail up out of the ravine on the other side. 88EGG88 consults the map of Camlan Realm, and we decide it is fastest to follow the water farther north and exit the ravine as soon as we can.

  This time following 88EGG88 I don’t make the same mistake and let my mind wander. Instead, I stay vigilant. I watch for any sign of movement and any hint of danger. No flash of red or suspicious noise distracts me, but I keep the arrow ready.

  The quiet unnerves me, but I have no evidence—yet—that there’s anything to worry about.

  No sooner do I have that thought than I hear a twang. My stomach clenches. I know that sound. I hope I’m wrong, but it sounds exactly like a bow string once an arrow is fired. And I’m the only one of our party that uses a bow and arrow. It wasn’t me.

  I look around frantically, trying to determine where it came from, but my thoughts are interrupted by a groan of pain from behind me. I spin around to see TexBadass, on his knees on the rocks at the edge of the stream, an arrow embedded deep in his side.

  Chapter 42

  “Tex!” I cry.

  The healer has fallen to the ground with an arrow in his side. My stomach drops. I don’t know how to help him. Erinocalypse and SteelFeather are already kneeling on the ground next to him, the former gingerly touching the wooden shaft as though trying to decide what to do with it, the latter looking furious.

  “Should I…?” she asks.

  TexBadass nods fervently but doesn’t speak. His mouth is screwed up, closed tightly holding back any more cries. Erinocalypse nods, wraps her fingers around the arrow and yanks hard, pulling it out completely. I already have Bestow Relief ready and begin casting the low-level health spell as soon as the weapon is removed.

  I barely have time to cast once before another cry of pain rings out. I turn around and see that 88EGG88 is writhing on the shore of the stream, an arrow sticking out of the calf of her leg and blood dripping down on to the rocks.

  “Where are these coming from?” Balderdash13 asks, rushing to the scout’s side at the front of the group.

  I cast my small spell again and again, trying to fill TexBadass’s health points as quickly as possible. It’s going even slower than I expect. Damnit! We can’t lose our healer. My own contribution is barely noticeable, and without TexBadass the whole party could fall apart.

  SteelFeather stands quickly, running to the front of the group, weapon in hand and ready to take on any enemy that shows his face. If the enemy shows his face. Ahead of our group is only the stream, running through the ravine up into the mountains. Either side of the water shows only several feet of smooth rocks, no indication of footprint of man or animal. The path turns and there are plenty of places for attackers to hide out of sight, totally aside from the fact that they could easily be using some invisibility spell or other enhancement.

  My heart thumps.

  This is an ambush.

  Who could be attacking us?

  Power Perception offers me a faint red glow, unhelpfully indicating there’s a moderate level of danger around. This skill should be showing me if other players are around, even if they’re being hidden by a magical enhancement, but I still don’t see anything. That means either the enemy is an NPC—I’m not sure this skill would reveal that—or that they’re hiding the old-fashioned way, behind rocks or around the corner.

  My bow is armed with a poisoned arrow, but I have nowhere to shoot it.

  TexBadass climbs to his feet slowly, casting his own healing spell on 88EGG88 as he walks. In the few steps it takes him to reach her, three more arrows come at us from several directions, the tell-tale sound of bowstrings vibrating through the ravine. One arrow lands in the dirt at the healer’s feet, just missing him as he takes a step, one impales SteelFeather in his bicep and the third embeds itself deep in my thigh.

  [-3420 HP]

  I stifle a groan, knowing that it won’t help. That’s almost ten percent of my health in one hit, and the points keep dropping.

  [-320 HP]

  Attention! Debuff received: Warrior’s Bane

  Description: You have been affected by poison. You lose 1% HP every ten seconds for two minutes.

  Damnit. No wonder my Bestow Relief wasn’t helping, if Tex kept losing more HP to the poison. My strength leaves me. The injured leg buckles underneath me and I fall to the ground, accidentally bumping the shaft and pushing it farther into the muscle. I try to keep my head clear, as the party falls into further chaos.

  [-345 HP]

  Think. What do I need to do first? Protect our health. I can pull out this arrow myself, and I do so with a shaking hand. When I throw it to the ground, I notice TexBadass looking at me. He’s still weak from his own arrow, but as I watch he casts a spell in my direction.

  Enhancement received: Absorb

  Description: You are no longer affected by poison and the debuff is lifted

  He nods when I grin at him, and he turns to start healing someone else. With my own injury beginning to heal, I stay down on the ground, eyeing the terrain ahead, above, anywhere looking for signs of our attacker. The arrow itself offers no clues; it
is as plain and unremarkable as any other arrow. It could have come from anywhere.

  I look around, trying to judge the angle the arrows have come from and determine how many attackers we are dealing with. Three? Four? More, even?

  Enhancement received: Bubble of Protection

  Description: You will sustain -5% damage for the next sixty seconds

  Around me the rest of the team seems frantic. Erinocalypse has the sense and clarity to cast the buff, but others seem completely at a loss. MadMachine yells instructions, but no one listens. Balderdash13 stays with 88EGG88 and helps her to her feet. ElJugador doesn’t seem to have moved an inch since the first arrow was fired, but stands stunned and watching everyone else. Between the fear of losing our healer and the terror of not knowing where the attacks are coming from, it’s unclear what we should be doing.

  “Come on, everyone,” MadMachine says, taking charge amidst the chaos. “On your feet.”

  His voice carries, and I cringe, imagining who else can hear us.

  “What?” I say, amazed. “Can we just take a minute? We need a plan.”

  “We don’t know what we’re walking into,” Balderdash13 points out. “Do you know where those arrows came from? I don’t. And while we can tank for you, we have to know where the enemy is in order to be between you and it.”

  She sounds more exasperated than I’ve ever heard her.

  “We’ve got to keep moving. We have to.” MadMachine insists. “Look, I know you’re right, but we have to risk it. It’s either this or go back to that path up to the ravine and just hope we find another way to the pass.”

  “What if we do?” Balderdash13 asks.

  “But what if we don’t?”

  The group falls silent. What choice do we have? For all their planning and secret spy developers and creating towns out of nothing in the game, this whole plan from FGI seems fraught with weaknesses. This really is our only option if we want to continue the quest.