Landasy Reality: Angel's Escape

by Fredrick Stokely

  “--You can see, between the demon and fae capitals it would be wiser to leave the fae capital open since that is where the brunt of their defenses will be when it's their last--” the spokesperson said while he paced back and forth.

  She didn't understand why they even had to discuss this. Camelot was the easiest to defend so they destroyed it first. Yggdrasil had next to no real choke points and the size of the trees that surrounded it made it an easy, if sometimes difficult to traverse, attack point. Sure, they couldn't bring the big guns like catapults due to the forests, but they still had other ways of attacking. When time for voting came her hand joined the majority to attack the demon's home first.

  Once that was finished there came the most important and only discussion that interested her. “As I'm sure many of you have noticed, betrayals have become more frequent,” the speaker said in the same monotone that made her wonder if the player actually was a player, and not an NPC. Even though it technically had to be a player, she wouldn't have been surprised to find he was computer controlled. “Entire brigades have switched sides mid battle, and the fortress is constantly suffering from sabotage. Unfortunately, there is nothing we can really do aside from sending in our own spies and try to find out who theirs are. With so many members in the coalition we are having difficulties identifying who may or may not be a spy. Me and a few of the other higher ranking members have come up with what we believe may be a minor solution. Mister Bahamut, if you would?”

  That made her freeze before glancing to her guild master. When he stood up her mind reeled and tried to imagine what exactly he had planned, and why he hadn't told her.

  The dragon coughed into his hand to clear his throat before speaking. “As you all know, the sudden division between the two factions took most of us by surprise. There was no warning, and prior to this all affiliation rewards were purely cosmetic and had no real effect on the game. This war has changed all that and I imagine this is just the beginning. New events will begin and this war will shape the entire world. As such, I've considered the guild system will need to be changed, at least the way we have used it. While many guilds are made up of both factions, it is time we create a new guild. One that is for, and only for, the Righteous Coalition. With elite members who have not only mastered their class, but proven themselves as members who won't betray us.”

  His gaze shifted to her and she gulped, her gaze lowered as she thought about Yeanna's offer. “As a triple master I plan to relinquish my leadership of my current guild, at least in name as a player can only be the leader of one guild at a time, in order to create this new one. All members will be hand picked by our most trusted. These will make up our greatest and most loyal soldiers, the ones who can be turned to in even our darkest hours. Other leaders who wish to join the guild will become council members.” He paused for a moment to allow the group to ask questions.

  “Won't they have to quit leading their guilds if they become council members?” a fox man asked.

  “Yes. If they can't accept that, they can always become normal members with a different title. They wouldn't have the same powers mechanically, but they should still have the same level of respect,” B4hamutt said with a nod.

  “What will the guild be called?” an angel woman called out.

  “That has already been decided. The Heroes of the Coalition.”

  “How will this help?” a bunny girl asked. “How will this stop people from betraying us?”

  “It won't really force people to stop,” B4hamutt said. “What it will do is ensure we have a group that we can always depend on. For our most dangerous and important missions, we'll use them and know that we won't be betrayed. It'll also give our members something to aim for, a goal. A prestige title.”

  Silence reigned for a moment before the dragon raised a hand, “If there is no objections let's put it to a vote. All in favor?” While not as many hands raised as the attack on the demons, enough were raised for the motion to pass. With the final manner ended the members slowly dispersed. Asura quickly got to her feet and rushed towards B4hamutt.

  “Why didn't you tell me about this?” she asked, her voice low and angry. “I should have known if you were planning to recede!” She was honestly more annoyed he hadn't told her, over the news of his departure. If he left there was only one candidate who would really take over the guild. Well, her or Scalios.

  “I wanted it to be a surprise. Come on though, we're heading to the guild hall. It's almost time for the meeting, I'll be announcing the change there.”

  “Who's taking over?” she asked as she followed behind him towards the teleport array room.

  “Haven't decided yet. Was going to let the guild decide. I've been thinking about Galfrayed, silly name or not, he's really come along in the last few years. He's pretty good with the guilds flag designs too.”

  She froze for a moment before staring. “I... what? But what about me? Or Scalios? We're both triple masters and we've been in the guild since the first days! If anyone is leading the guild it should be-”

  “Why would you two be leading them any more?” he asked before cocking an eyebrow. “I'll need both of you in the new guild as council members. I'm hoping I can get the other triple masters to join as well. With all of us in one guild it will really give our guild a flare,” he said before stopping. “You will join as one of the leaders, right?”

  She stopped for a moment before blurting out her answer. “Of course!” she said with a wicked grin. “I'll get my own unit too, right? I could be like a general!” She then paused for a few moments before glancing to him. “Is general the right word in this case?”

  “I think you're looking for captain. I don't see why not. As a council member you'll be able to do whatever you like. So long as you don't betray us.”

  “Awesome!” she said with a happy squeal. “Wait, why not have one of us lead and just have us be council in name only?”

  “I don't want anyone thinking we have more loyalty to our old guild than we do the coalition. Escape from reality never cared about the race of its players or their allegiances until now, and I'd rather not have nay sayers to this new guild spreading false information that it's going to end up just another cross faction bounty hunting guild.”

  “I guess that makes sense,” she said with a smile. “Well, let's get to it then!”

  ------

  The next few weeks went by fast(at least in the game), as the new guild began to gather its power. Within the first week alone they received over a thousand requests to join, but in the end only a few dozen had made it inside. In response the Unholy Legions had created their own guild, the Protectors of Freedom.

  Another effect was caused by the new guild. Betrayals and sabotage were at an all time low as players fought for a chance to become a member of the new guild and prove their loyalty. Becoming a member of either of the two elite guilds was something most were working for, at least those involved in the war. Unfortunately for Asura, she was still receiving messages from Yeanna, inviting her to become one of the generals of the Protectors. She had declined each time, but she couldn't deny it was tempting. Despite the new guild they were still losing the war. Three assaults had been made on the demon capital, Feldusk, and easily repelled. One had even been made on Yggdrasil, but that had failed as well. She had been to two of them and, unfortunately, they had been over whelmed. They were outnumbered even with the enemies forces split between two cities and their own assaults.

  Fortunately, it wasn't hopeless yet. Asura and a few others had begun creating their own special groups within the guild. She called hers the Warriors of Pendragon, in honor of the once angel city, but stolen and now destroyed, Camelot and the Arthurian legends it was based on. All six members were master level angels with the occasional second mastery. After their fourth failed assault she and her men had set on performing different war efforts.

  Namely assassinations and capturing of the more dangerous opposition.

  Their mission for today
involved such a task in Feldusk. In preparation, they had all taken some time to level up the demon class in order to get its stealth ability, the quests to unlock such things could now be attained in the main capital from special NPCs who, lore wise, had joined the Coalition against their demon brethren. Mechanically it was just so players could still level all the classes as they wished without having to go to the enemy faction.

  Feldusk was as black as midnight of the new moon, a bleak valley of demonic obsidian surrounded by black towers and massive spiked walls. A huge gate barred the only way into the city, unless the invaders had wings. The walls were the primary reason all assaults had failed. Inside were large buildings, towers and castles, built into and from the obsidian that filled the valley.

  They waited until nightfall before striking. With the sun gone, the shadows covered the walls allowing them to fly up and to the wall with ease. Guards were stationed at the top so Asura's unit spread out in groups of two in order to sneak by. 5t4r, having joined her unit early, was by her side as they flew up the wall and gripped the edge. Guards paced back and forth ahead of them, fortunately not hearing them while they grasped the walls. She slowly peeped over the edge to look at them. There were two, both NPC.

  She glanced down to 5t4r and motioned up. They both drew their blades before shooting up and over the walls, bringing their blades down on two nearby guards and shoving them over the opposite ledge. The two players followed quickly and dove over the other side, using their wings to quickly catch themselves before they latched onto the edge. They held their breaths until the two guards hit the ground far below them and disappeared into a flurry of red sparkles. No alarms went off and they let out a sigh of relief before glancing down.

  There were no actual roads, just places where the obsidian had been smoothed down, and in some places it was heavily worn from years of use. Most of the homes were either large towers made of obsidian or, in places where the material had been heavily harvested, some had made homes and the like by putting up make shift roofs over the holes.

  There were a few people out, so they quickly melded with the shadows before dropping down to the ground. She cringed a bit before letting out a soft sigh of relief. Normally the demonic obsidian was quite painful to step on. While it was harder than most metals, it shared some properties with normal obsidian, in that it was quite sharp. However, to demons and their specially bred mounts it was completely harmless. Unless about a few hundred pounds of it fell on them. First time she came here years ago, she had made the mistake of walking barefoot on it. It had looked so smooth she hadn't expected anything to happen. She could still remember the surprise as invisible little edges dug into her feet. She hadn't come here since.

  “Why don't we just fly?” 5t4r's voice asked from her left.

  She shook her head a moment before realizing how silly that was. “Too dangerous. More shadows down here and if a spot light catches us up there we're toast. We're both too... angelic looking for demons now,” she whispered before they slowly slid into a nearby alley. “Our allegiance with the Coalitions makes our skin and colorations too light. If we're spotted we'll be attacked in a second. Neither of us have this class high enough to really fight real players either, so it's better to take it slow and careful...”

  Asura froze before suddenly a big red demon stepped into the alley and started running towards her! Quickly she dove up against the wall and pushed against it as best she could, holding her breath and hoping her friend would do the same. The demon ran right passed her, his black robe brushing her as he ran by, but failed to notice the angel-turned-demon.

  As soon as the demon rounded the bend she looked around. “Star, you here?”

  “Yeah... we could have taken him before he alerted anyone.”

  “Too risky. If we alert anyone before we succeed we put the entire operation at risk. He might have been higher level than us, too,” she whispered before sliding toward the exit of the alley and took a look around. That demon wasn't the only one running around, at least a few dozen others were running and charging through the streets. “I worry one of the others might have been seen though...”

  “See? It wouldn't matter then if we knocked him out,” he said before he bumped into her. “Sorry.”

  “It's fine, stealth does that. Come on.” She reached around and tried grabbing his hand, finding it after a few seconds. “We're going to get to the rendezvous point. If the others don't arrive in about fifteen minutes we'll leave without them,” she whispered before they began sneaking through the city. They made their way slowly and cautiously, sneaking through alleys, around stands and once even sliding under a cart and riding it, dangling from underneath. They made there way in front of another, slightly smaller but still massive, black gate. It was made of steel rather than the demonic obsidian. She nervously looked around. “She said it would be around here somewhere...” She squeezed his hand tightly, her nerves making it cold and clammy. “There!”

  Asura tugged her friend along as they entered a small tunnel of obsidian. She ran her hand along the edge as they walked, being careful to avoid anyone who came running down the tunnel, before finding a small narrow line cut into the obsidian. She let out a silent thank you to the developers that the obsidian didn't cut demons like it would have angels. “Here,” she said before using her claws to dig into it until a small chunk of obsidian pulled away, revealing a hidden room inside. She quickly dragged him inside before closing the door behind her. “Flaming hands.” Fire enveloped her hands and allowed them to see.

  It was small, able to hold about eight people if they all crammed themselves inside, but it was almost completely barren. She moved up against the opposite wall and sat down with a groan. “I guess now we just wait.”

  “Y-yeah,” 5t4r said before he sat down next to her. “So uhhh, how come you chose me to be on your squad?”

  “Hmmm?” She glanced to him.

  “W-well, we've got some time. I wanted to know why you chose me in particular. Why not Scalios or someone else from the guild?”

  She shrugged. “I dunno. Cause I helped train you I guess. You're not bad, you're an angel and over the years you've been getting quite strong. Sure, you aren't the best fighter around, but you're nice and we get along well. Mutt, Scales and Media have a lot on their plates as it is, not to mention they haven't all mastered angel, so having them in my group wouldn't work. Besides, at the end of the day I trust you. I've known you a pretty long time so I know you won't betray me. The others in the group are just people others recommended to me.”

  He squirmed a little then and looked off to the side, his cheeks bright red. She let out a soft sigh. “Star, we need to talk. I--”

  She froze at the sounds of something scratching outside. Within moments the obsidian door moved and two winged demons slid inside and closed it behind them. “About time,” Asura said.

  “Sorry,” the nearest one, Sauna, said. The two were named Sauna and Fauna and near identical. Not surprising since, supposedly, they were friends in the real world and had joined the game together. They had both mastered the angel class and had been working on mastering the demon class when she met them, so in the team they were the two highest level demons. They were also the ones responsible for knowing about this little hide out they now used, since they had spent a lot of time exploring the city before the war and messing with the obsidian. “We ran into a bit of trouble. One of our old haunts got a bit more crowded than we expected and we had to take a different way. Any news from the other team?”

  “Not a peep. I was planning to leave soon if they don't arrive soon. This will be difficult with just the four of us, though. We'll need to be careful. At least with the two of you it'll be easier.”

  “Yeah, we should be able to get everyone into the castle. But once we're there the place might be crawling with players. We'll have to be careful,” Fauna said before glancing towards the door. “Everyone ready?”

  “As ready as we'll ever be,” Asura whispered
before, one by one, they exited through the small side door and made their way down the tunnel. The two girls led them towards the back and looked up.

  “Chances of being seen should be lowest here. Aren't many windows that can see this area since one of the flags in the court yard blocks the view,” Sauna said before the group spread their wings and flew to the top. As expected a large flag, standing fully out despite the lack of wind, hovered above and blocked most of the view from the castle. They quickly dispatched the two nearby guards and darted down the battlements, finding shadows near the base they could mold back into.

  “You two spent a lot of time here, right?” Asura asked softly.

  “Yeah. We thought the obsidian was pretty awesome, especially since you could mold it and shape it if you take the time. We're the ones who made that cove in the tunnel after all, took a ton of time since we were keeping it secret in case we got in trouble.”

  “Interesting. Too bad you didn't make one under this gate here...” 5t4r whispered while they slowly made their way across the courtyard, moving slowly as to not run into each other, hit the guards, or get caught in the torches.

  “Wouldn't have been any point at the time...” Sauna said before pulling on the door and drawing her sword. A guard was stationed on the other side which she quickly dispatched. “Why can't we just go after their ruler?”

  “Too dangerous...” Asura said. They slowly made their way through the halls which were oddly almost devoid of life, only a handful of NPCs. “Even if it's down time they are bound to have some players in the city, and quite a few guarding him. With the leader, his body guards, the soldiers in the room and the players all at once? That would require more than just four of us. Not to mention it would probably take long enough that reinforcements would arrive.”