by K R Dimmick
“We need to get going,” shouted Mikael, who’d just arrived back with Kira, Allion and Damir. “The Dragon Hunters all suddenly vanished. They must be up to something, so we need to move.”
60
Thank Goodness for Stamina Potions
We left El Sanctum and headed west, toward the grayed out mist on my mini-map and the small, red dot where Kailu had marked Goran Thedgate for me at the start of this adventure.
I’ll scout. Soter said, picking up on my worry about the Dragon Hunters. Unless they had some kind of mass invisibility spell the guards couldn’t see through, they’d disappeared. That meant they’d reappear somewhere at some point, and probably somewhere I didn’t want them to be.
“How did the rest of the attack go?” I asked no one in particular, in an effort to take my mind off what was coming.
“Well,” replied Kira. “All the traps had been full and Damir had started to stun the ones that had slipped through by the time Allion joined us again.”
“I think you’ll find we have quite a lot more Guild XP now, too,” Damir grinned.
“Really? I thought you hadn’t been planning to kill anyone?” quickly checking, I saw that he was correct, we now had another 10,000 Guild XP.
“We only captured the locals. All the Dragon Hunters were killed on sight,” Kira replied. “We decided it might slow them down a little better.”
That was a nice bonus, I thought. Hopefully, it wouldn’t have repercussions later, but for now, what’s done is done.
“So, are you going to tell us about this secret project you’ve been working on, Arik?” I asked. “I can’t wait to see what it does.”
“Definitely,” he declared, downing a stamina potion so he could keep up with us as we moved quickly through the forest.
He reached into his inventory and pulled out a long, flexible strip of silver-colored metal.
“It’s a charm,” he said in answer to my blank look. “I call it an Infinity Charm. I’ve inscribed it with various combinations of sigils. All told, it should boost your ability to defend yourself. While it doesn’t affect your stats directly, it does allow you to move faster and think more quickly, too. It will also allow you to see two seconds into the future, but it can only do that once a day.”
“I’ve never seen anything like it,” Mikael said, looking at it in awe. “What’s it made of?”
“It’s made of Cadrite,” Arik replied. “It’s really rare because anything created out of it soul binds as soon as you put it on. I was given a piece of it by my mentor when he died. He told me to put it to good use, but to make sure it only went to a person I trusted completely. As our guild leader, I want to help you get through this challenge and then take Andrew down. So, I’m hoping this will help you do that.”
He handed the strip of metal to me.
You have received: Infinity Charm
Allows you to move faster and think more quickly.
Allows the owner to see 2 seconds into the future once every 24 hours.
Quality: Exotic.
Rarity: Unique.
Soul binds on equip.
“Wow. I don’t know what to say,” I told him, admiring the intricately carved metal. “It’s beautiful.”
“You could try saying thank you,” Mikael suggested wryly, smirking.
I glared at him.
“It’s meant to wrap around your leg,” Arik said.
It was quite long, so I wrapped it twice around my left thigh. The ends sealed themselves with a flash of light, leaving no visible way to remove it. I guess that’s what it meant by soul binding.
“What?” I exclaimed.
Arik chuckled at the look of horror on my face.
“It’s okay,” he said. “All you have to do is wish to remove it and it will come off.”
Well that was a relief.
About an hour later, we’d made it to the edge of El Silvam, near the Vulpeel Plains, just like when we’d gone to Gads End Dungeon. So far, the trip had been exceedingly quiet, with no problems. That would hopefully last for the rest of the journey.
Harpies ahead, at the edge of the forest, Soter told me, just as I finished jinxing myself with that thought.
“Soter says there’s harpies ahead of us, at the edge of the forest,” I told everyone.
“What? There’s no way there would be harpies in a forest,” Mikael said, before ducking to avoid an arrow that sailed through the space his head had been occupying. “I take that back!”
Arik’s eyes went wide as the color drained from his face.
“Damir, protect Arik,” I shouted as I cast Minimizer on everyone.
Any idea how many there are? I thought at Soter.
Ten, he replied.
Before I could tell the others, there was a high-pitched scream and a stray arrow flew off out of the forest.
Nine now, Soter amended.
“Nine more, Soter just got one,” I yelled to the others.
I watched Mikael Snipe another one, the arrow hitting her between the eyes, causing her to fall out of the sky and into a crumpled, leathery heap on the ground. Damir finished her off with a lightning bolt.
Everyone was holding their own, despite being outnumbered and having a non-combatant to protect. Still, with no offensive spells I could use that didn’t risk burning down the forest, I was starting to feel a little useless.
Suddenly, an arrow embedded itself into Kira’s shoulder as she moved to avoid a different one. I really needed to watch what was going through my mind and stop jinxing us, I thought.
I rapidly cast Healing Mist as she pulled out the arrow. Just as I was about to cast Wound Seal, another arrow found its mark, this time hitting Damir’s throat. I abandoned Kira and hurriedly cast Wound Seal on Damir, followed by another Healing Mist. He’d managed to get a shield up around Arik, but either hadn’t thought about himself, or hadn’t had the time to extend it to cover them both.
A quick glance around me showed that Baynor was holding his own and slowly wearing down a harpy at the back of the group. Saris seemed to have vanished. Kira, Allion and Mikael were all side by side, attacking five of the harpies. That left two unaccounted for, I thought.
Frantically, I looked around the area, trying to spot them. Sure enough, Soter had managed to ground another one and had nearly killed her. I then spotted the last one trying to get behind us. Before I could do anything, Saris launched herself out of a nearby tree, onto the harpy’s back. It didn’t have the Strength to carry them both, so, with its wings flapping as hard as they could, they tumbled down to the ground, rolling until Saris managed to get the upper hand. She thrust her dagger down into the harpy’s throat, killing it in just two hits.
I returned to casting Wound Seal on Kira, bringing her back up to full health. After that, I decided the harpy that Baynor was attacking was far enough away from the trees to risk a Fireball. Pulling my mana into my hand, I watched it form. I launched it straight at her and managed to set one of her wings on fire despite her Dodging at the last minute. That gave Baynor the time to Snipe and finish her off completely. Soter finished the one under him at the same time, taking us down to five left.
Allion overreached with his sword, leaving his side open. Much to his surprise, one of the harpies quickly took advantage of it, landing an arrow deep into his chest.
I rushed in, casting Healing Mist as I ran, and Wound Seal as soon as he’d yanked the arrow back out.
Saris, now free, had climbed a little way up a nearby tree, and once again launched herself at the shooter, stabbing it in the throat. They fell to the ground, where Soter proceeded to bite and claw at her until she was dead.
Baynor covered the remaining harpies with a Rain of Arrows while I finished healing Allion.
The last four harpies realized they were now outnumbered and started to try and fly away. Baynor, Kira and Mikael all knelt down to Snipe one each as Damir shot the furthest one with a bolt of lightning. Allion, Soter and Saris all rushed in to finish them
off as soon as they hit the ground.
Another Healing Mist on everyone took care of the remaining scratches and topped up everyone’s health.
“Those are some useful skills you have,” Saris commented as her health topped up. “Andrew is an idiot for not letting people become healers.”
We turned around to see a very pale Arik standing where Damir had left him. Soter suddenly launched himself toward Arik.
“Arrrgh,” Arik yelled, taking a step backward, tripping over something and falling flat on his back.
Just as he opened his mouth to presumably yell at Soter, Mikael knelt down to Snipe something. I was about to ask what he thought he was doing, when a muffled scream came out of whatever was underneath Arik.
Soter pushed Arik to the side just as Mikael let loose his Snipe. It hit the dark-colored lump Arik had just been pushed off with a thud. Soter was now between a shaking Arik and the lump on the ground, growling fiercely.
Without warning, the lump stood up.
Baynor, Kira and Mikael all let loose another Snipe as Allion attempted to jump in front of whoever it was. He was too late, though, and the dark-covered body keeled over dead.
“What did you do that for, Allion?” yelled Mikael.
The flash of guilt on Allion’s face disappeared so quickly I wasn’t certain I hadn’t simply imagined it.
“I thought we could question him and find out what he knew about the harpies being here,” he replied, looking extremely annoyed. “But instead, you three decided he was better as a pin cushion. Harpies don’t leave their mountains without a very good reason, and they certainly don’t come into forests where it’s difficult to fly and shoot arrows. So, something or someone had to bring them here.”
Arik collapsed against Soter, hugging him as if his life depended on it.
*Sigh* It’s like having a nervous pup around. Soter sent my way.
I tried not to laugh. Poor Arik, he was so far out of his depth that he must have been terrified. Still, at the moment at least, he hadn’t given up and that spoke volumes.
As Allion and Mikael glared at each other, the rest of us went over to Inspect the body. Baynor pulled back the hood and both he and Saris gasped. It was a Dragon Hunter. One I hadn’t met before, but that didn’t seem to stop them wanting us dead.
Allion rushed over and started searching the body before it disappeared.
“Now what are you doing?” asked an irate Mikael.
“What do you think? I’m looking to see if there’s any information about who sent them,” Allion scoffed.
Unfortunately, he didn’t find anything, which seemed to annoy Mikael even further.
The way I saw it, if there was a Dragon Hunter involved, that meant Andrew knew where we were going and had somehow worked out exactly how we were getting there. I knew that shouldn’t surprise me, but for some reason, I’d naively thought we wouldn’t be attacked until we actually reached Goran Thedgate. Clearly, I was wrong. We either needed to change our intended route or try and avoid any more surprises.
“Is there another way we can get to Goran Thedgate?” I asked. “Somehow, Andrew seems to know the route we’re taking, so I think we need to try a different one.”
“Not anymore. We could have started out along a different path, but now the only options we have are the current route, one that will involve dealing with a lot of wild beasts, or one that takes us a long way off track and will probably add a couple of hours to the journey,” Mikael replied. “I say we just push forward, but this time, Kira, Soter and I will all scout out front so hopefully we can avoid any other surprises.”
“I’ll help scout,” announced Saris.
Mikael looked decidedly unhappy.
“No offense,” he sighed, “But I don’t know you yet and I really don’t trust you, either. Clearly, someone told Andrew the route we’d take. How do I know it’s not you and this isn’t just some elaborate plot Andrew set up by having Orianna rescue you? I’d feel a lot more comfortable if you stayed here with Allion and Damir so at least I know the two of you are outnumbered.”
I waited for Saris to blow up at him. Instead, to my surprise, she just seemed to deflate.
“Okay, I get it,” she said. “I probably wouldn’t trust me either if I were in your shoes. But once I prove I’m not a traitor, you’d better never tell me to hang back again. Got it?” she declared, waving her finger in front of his face.
“Done,” Mikael replied, looking considerably happier about having her around.
I did not understand people sometimes. Why that had made Mikael happier was beyond me.
I pulled a still shaking Arik off Soter, trying to encourage him with a smile.
It was time to do something to ease my own tension. Casting Combine so both Soter and I could also get a sense of what was between us, I hoped to ease the nagging worry that maybe I shouldn’t have rescued Saris.
A notification popped up, telling me my Pet Bond skill had now leveled up and I had one unspent Pet Bond Point. I’d been waiting to see what Combine might evolve into, so I pulled the description up as we started walking again.
Combine 2
Combine your HP, SP and MP with all your pets for 10 minutes.
You or any of your pets can use the combined pools. You can now also combine your skills to create new and explosive combinations.
Cooldown: 1 hour.
Cost: 1 Pet Bond Point
Explosive combinations sounded interesting. I still wasn’t drawn to Share 1, and this progression sounded more enticing than the transformation one’s had, so I let Soter know what I was doing, then spent my one point and upgraded to Combine 2.
I had nearly an hour left before I could cast it again, so there wasn’t anything I could do to test it out at this point. Plus, if it turned out to be as awesome as it sounded, it would then be on cooldown when I got to Goran Thedgate. I sighed. Why couldn’t skills be explained better in this game? I know it gave me leeway to experiment and possibly come up with something new, but at this point, I wanted easy more than I did flexible. I know, I was bound to change my mind on that later, I thought, and it was probably just my nerves talking. Get through today and it’ll all be fine, I told myself.
The ground started to slope upward. It looked like Goran Thedgate might be at the top of a hill. Thank goodness for stamina potions, I thought as I trudged onward.
An hour later, after a long, steady climb, we finally crossed the edge of the mist on my mini-map.
Congratulations! You have discovered: Goran Thedgate.
In the distance, the forest continued on for as far as I could see. Directly in front of us, though, was a huge, deep gorge, with a river at the bottom of it. The entire ravine looked like it had been cut out of rock. There were no trees, just precariously placed large rocks and loose scree, all the way to the bottom.
On the far side of the gorge, a flat-topped hill emerged out of the forest. The trees thinned out about halfway up the hill, and I could just make out something that resembled a stone circle on the very top.
I looked down, desperately trying to see a way to cross the canyon. About a quarter of the way down this side, I could see a rickety looking rope bridge hanging between the two sides. A quick glance showed me that a couple of different pathways all seemed to converge at the start of the bridge.
There seemed to be some wooden slats left, but given that the others had probably rotted away, I wasn’t sure whether having some slats was a good thing or not. Hopefully, that wasn’t where we were heading.
61
It’s Time
“I have some rope,” announced Mikael.
“As do I,” added Kira.
Allion quickly fumbled with something in his inventory, then muttered that he’d forgotten to bring rope.
“Typical! Two will have to do,” Mikael said, glaring at Allion. “We need to tie ourselves together, so no one falls over the edge.”
“That’s a long way down,” Arik said, looking nervously a
t the canyon. “Doesn’t look very safe, either.”
“That’s why we have ropes,” muttered Mikael. “Now stand still.”
Mikael started to tie himself and Arik together. The rest of us followed his instructions, and pretty soon, we were all tied together in a long line. We carefully, and slowly, climbed down the rocks. Only one person moved at a time, with the others holding on in case someone slipped. It felt like it was taking forever, but about thirty minutes later, with only a couple of near misses, and some nervous muttering from Arik, we all made it down to the start of the bridge.
Just as I finished untying myself, Soter started to growl. I could hear a clicking noise that sounded horribly familiar. I spun in place to see what was going on.
Scuttling toward us along one of the other paths to the bridge were several large beetles. A quick Inspect showed they were level 18 Corrupted Bombardiers.
“Incoming!” I shouted, quickly casting Minimizer on all of us.
This had to be another attack from the Dragon Hunters.
Baynor, Mikael and Kira were quick to respond, raining down arrows on the unwanted intruders.
Saris darted around the back to see if she could find whoever had driven them here.
“Be careful, these things spray acid,” I shouted. “We need to start crossing the bridge.”
“I’ll go first since I have long range attacks,” replied Damir. “Arik, as soon as I’m done, you’re next.”
Damir turned and started to make his way across the flimsy bridge, leaving Arik looking like he was about to throw up as he stared down at the huge drop under the bridge.
Kira screamed as one of the beetles shot acid at her. I quickly turned back to the attack and cast Healing Mist on everyone, followed by Wound Seal on Kira.