by Pavel Kornev
I was seething inside, eager to clear up the situation here and now. Still, some things are better left unsaid in the presence of strangers, so I had to hold fire.
I had to wait. Wait.
Wait! And wait! How I hated the word!
By the time we’d reached the guest house, I was completely beside myself. Still, Isabella immediately sloped off with Julian to his room on the third floor.
“We won’t be long, kitten,” she gave me a wink before slamming the door shut right in front of my nose.
What the hell?
I felt like breaking the door down and forcing an entry, but came to my senses just in time. I stomped down the stairs and went outside.
Neo was still there, busy feeding the dead phoenix with scraps of food he’d scavenged from somewhere.
“May I?” I asked, reaching for Scarecrow.
The boy nodded. I took control over the bird which hissed his displeasure and made him fly up to the third floor and perch himself on the relevant windowsill. Although the shutters were closed, the dead bird’s hearing had no problem detecting the rustling noises and whispers that came from inside.
“Normally, I don’t do this sort of thing IRL...”
“Normally, I don’t, either...”
I felt a tug on my sleeve.
“Uncle John! It’s not right to be a peeping Tom!” the boy announced with somewhat misplaced moral rectitude.
“I’m not peeping!”
“You’re eavesdropping!”
I heaved a doomed sigh. With a powerful flap of his wings, Scarecrow shed off my control over him and took to the air. His black outline flashed past the crimson disk of the Moon and disappeared into the darkness.
“I was just doing a bit of reconnaissance,” I explained, trying to justify my actions to him.
“You should learn to trust people,” the boy remarked patronizingly.
I shook my head and tousled his ginger mop. “You should dump that dangerous notion as soon as possible.”
His head shrank back. “Get away with you, Uncle John!” he made a face. “I’m being serious!”
“Me too.”
For a while, we continued arguing just for the sake of it. Finally, Prince Julian came out into the yard. I had to bite my tongue not to say something improper: in Isabella’s absence, he could very easily take offence and go for his sword, so I had to keep my witty observations to myself.
He gave me a grim look, then proffered his hand to Neo. “Count me in.”
They shook on some deal that was unbeknown to me. Immediately Julian’s armor darkened. A new line appeared in his status:
Champion of the Order of the Black Phoenix
Unable to keep the next stupid question to myself, I let out an amazed whistle. “So! Are you sure they won’t kick you out of the clan?”
Julian winced. “That’s none of your business.”
“You think it’s worth it?”
The newly-baked Dark Knight — for he was truly Dark now — gave me a condescending look. “Better to reign in hell than serve in heaven,” he said, then pointed upstairs. “She’s waiting for you.”
I immediately lost all interest in the conversation and flew up the stairs to the third floor. The door was wide open; Isabella stood in front of a full-length mirror, studying her reflection with a satisfied smile.
I couldn't contain a sarcastic smile. “I take it, you failed to lead him off the right path? Did he refuse to join your coven?”
She gave me a haughty look and shrugged. “I've only just started,” she said suggestively.
I laughed. “Get over it. Neo must have offered him a better deal.”
“What?”
“He bought your Prince lock, stock and barrel.”
Isabella launched on a complex diatribe of cussing. A new system message popped up:
Isabella Ash-Rizt has delisted you from the High Priestess of the Mistress of the Crimson Moon quest!
“You didn’t expect that, did you?” she said with a smirk.
I ignored her provocation. “Didn’t need it, anyway.”
Never mind. There’re lots of ways to skin a cat in a game. If you failed a quest, all you had to do was look for another option. And Isabella had done just that, probably realizing that I was as useless as a chocolate teapot for her purposes.
“So I wasn’t the only reason you accepted the quest?” I asked darkly.
She sniggered. “You joking? You just happened to be there, so I grabbed you. I have my own agenda here. I won’t cry just because you’re not around.”
“That’s funny. You don’t seem to mind that I might not get out of the game in time.”
She slumped into a chair and crossed her legs. “You’ll manage,” she said with a dismissive shrug.
“How can you be so sure? I need to raise over a million XP within a month! You think that’s nothing?”
“Keep your hair on. Tomorrow I’ll find you a nice dungeon to cleanse. You’ll get by. Goar will see you’re all right.”
“Is that it?”
She arched a brow. “Is it not enough for you? Do you need money? That’s not a problem, either. You can take all the gold we’ll get for the scrolls. Julian doesn’t mind. Just make sure you pay Goar and the boy.”
I faked a pensive chuckle. “That’s already a bit better.”
“Enough, kitten! I need to split! My time’s up!”
“Wait,” I stopped her as she rose from the chair. “Does that mean you’re the top dog here?”
“Not at all. I’m just part of the inner circle now.”
“What, by striking an agreement with some third-rate clan?”
She laughed. “A stitch in time saves nine. Didn't you see what was going on in the city? This will bring a shedload of players to our camp, and not all of them will agree to side with the Swords of Chaos. The Black Trackers might be the proverbial grain of sand which will become a precious pearl. And don’t forget that thanks to you, my mistress was able to enter the Kingdom of the Dead. It might come in handy in the future.”
“Bah!” I snorted. “The place is now overrun by the Spawn of Darkness!”
“It’s not set in stone yet,” the priestess said. “They never managed to take over the Power of Decay.”
“No way! Seriously?”
“Bye, kitten,” she disappeared into thin air, leaving me alone.
“Hey, wait up! What about me?”
Too late. The only answer I got was Scarecrow’s lousy crowing outside.
Oh great.
Time left: 29 days 17:56:29…
I DECIDED AGAINST leaving the room. I closed the door, cast a dubious look at the disheveled bed and planted myself into the chair which creaked its protest under my weight. At the end of the day, it made no difference where I waited for Isabella and Goar to log back in. It was still better than pacing up and down the street.
Also, there was a new message blinking in the very corner of my eye, asking me to distribute the available points. Which was exactly what I decided to do. I had to know what kind of creature I might become this time.
Out of force of habit, I started by investing three of the ten points I had into Strength. Immediately I regretted my decision. My damage numbers were decent anyway, so what was the point persevering with this stat? Shouldn’t I concentrate on Agility instead? On the other hand, I was still a sorcerer albeit a greenhorn, so I could always use a few magic abilities in combat. Which meant that I shouldn’t ignore Intellect and Perception, either.
Dammit!
With a heavy heart, I added 3 points to Agility, then gave 2 to Intellect and another 2 to Perception. I might regret my decision in the future but in any case, I had no intention of staying in the game long enou...
I dropped to the floor, suddenly shuddering in convulsions. Never before had I suffered such a cruel transformation. My whole body burned as if on fire; my evaporating flesh hissed, turning me into a taut, pale-skinned bag of bones. The magic tattoos had sw
ollen up, filling with a wicked sapphire glow and burning right through me like countless lightbulb filaments planted under my skin.
Then it was all over, replaced by insurmountable fatigue, indifference and the realization of the fragility of life.
Dammit! So what was I supposed to be now?
I scrambled out of the chair, walked over to the mirror and removed the mask.
An abhorrent skull stared back at me. A sunken nose; thin pale lips that did nothing to cover my teeth. My only eye glowed with a blue flame.
Only a mother could love a face like this! The worst thing about all this was the disappearance of my Almost Alive ability. I tried to activate it but couldn’t. I just couldn’t find it.
What the hell was that now?
I checked the description of my new identity. Aha. Now it all fell into place.
Ancient Lich!
Shit. It wasn’t as if he’d died recently enough to be able to pass for a human being. Which meant that now I couldn’t appear in public without the mask.
Overcoming the desire to check all the other changes in my char, I added 1 pt. to Dodge. Dammit! My status as an Apprentice didn’t allow me to raise it any further. Ditto for Stealth. What a predicament.
How about professional skills? I improved Incognito and Execution, selected Circle Strike as an additional skill and invested the two remaining points into Two-Handed Weapons.
John Doe, Executioner, Hangman
Undead. Ancient Lich. Level: 35. Human, Rogue. Level: 35
Experience: [107 239/114 000]; [107 283/114 000]
Strength: 35.
Agility: 35.
Constitution: 24.
Intelligence: 12.
Perception: 12.
Life: 1680.
Endurance: 2065.
Internal energy: 840.
Damage: 500–650.
Covert Movement: +25
Dodge: +35
Critical damage when attacking a target oblivious of your presence.
Professional skills: “Incognito” (5), “Execution” (5), “Hangman”.
Fencer: two-handed weapons (6), weapons in one hand, “Sweeping Strike”, “Powerful blow”, “Power lunge”, “Sudden blow”, “Accurate Blow”, “Crippling Blow”, “Blind Strike”, “Rapid Strike”, “Circle Strike”, “Lightning Reflexes”
Creature of the Dark: night sight, penalty for being in sunlight, Retinue, Suzerain, Crypt, Lord of the Dead, Skin of Stone +15, Resistance to magiс +10%, internal energy +20%, spells’ efficiency +20%.
Neutrality: the Undead
Enemies: Order of the Fiery Hand, the Swords of Chaos clan, subjects of the Lord of the Tower of Decay.
Immunity: death magic, poisons, curses, bleeding, sickness, cures and blessings.
Achievements: “Dog Slayer” Grade 2, “Tenacious”, “Man of Habit”, “Destroyer”, “Slayer of Circle-5 Demons”, “Defender of Stone Harbor” Grade 1, “Pioneer”, “Carrier of Divine Will”.
Well, well, well. So what had I received with my new reincarnation? My dead flesh had become slightly more resilient to slashing blows; my resistance to magic had improved as had my internal energy; I’d also received a 20% bonus to magic damage. Not bad, even though none of these changes made me a great wizard. All it did was more or less allow me to compete with same-level players, that’s all.
How about Retinue and Suzerain?
The former turned out to be an improved version of the Lord of the Dead. It allowed Ancient Lich to control all the undead whose levels were four times lower than his own. It happened automatically, requiring no expenditure of internal energy. That wasn’t bad; then again, it was nothing to write home about.
But the latter skill made me chuckle in surprise. If Retinue allowed the Lich to surround himself with an entourage of the dead, Sovereign permitted him to enslave human beings. The Lich could use his vassals to siphon their health and energy. He could even devour their souls, turning them all into undead in exchange for himself becoming stronger and faster, albeit for a short while.
My joy was somewhat tempered by the fact that you couldn’t enslave the first person you met: he or she would have to swear an oath of allegiance first.
I could play this trick on Goar, I suppose, but he wouldn’t be much use for my purposes, anyway. How about a group of mercenaries? I spent some time contemplating the idea, then shook my head. Too costly. I’d rather use the money to buy the missing items of the Deadman’s Set.
The money? Which money? I had nothing yet! Selling scrolls at auctions is a long-winded affair.
Cussing, I scrambled out of the chair.
Very well. What else did I have? The Crypt? What the hell was that?
The Crypt is a place of power of the Ancient Liches, allowing their spirits to materialize once their physical bodies are destroyed. The time spent in the Crypt improves one’s sorcerous abilities and restores one’s energy.
The description was followed by a number of stats: rate of regeneration as well as various bonuses. Still, my gaze was glued to one particular line.
Allowing their spirits to materialize. Did that mean that I could finally get rid of the wretched skull?
Yes please!
The crypt-building ritual proved to be not too difficult. All I had to do was find a suitable dungeon. As soon as Isabella logged back in, I’d have to talk to her about it. Her Mistress of the Crimson Moon wouldn’t miss some scruffy old basement, would she?
My mood thus improved, I moved on to studying my Executioner skills.
Execution V.
Experienced executioners never hurry. They know which points of the body hurt the most. Their knowledge of anatomy allows them to observe their opponent’s physical vulnerabilities to crippling blows whenever they get the chance to study their enemy prior to combat.
+10% to your chances of dealing a critical hit.
+5% to your chances of dealing a crippling blow.
Not bad, you think? Not bad at all! Such a shame that this ability was tied up with Perception which wasn't my forte. In any case, the improved chance of killing an immobilized victim with one blow was already good news.
Never mind. What next?
Incognito V
Sometimes, executioners have to keep a low profile, hiding from the enraged families of the criminals they’ve executed. They’re quite used to taking on another person’s identity.
Stealth: +25%
Oh really? I laughed quietly. This improvement, on top of being able to conceal my profile from other players, would also allow me to assume another person’s name and even pass for an NPC. Although I wouldn’t be able to fool those who already knew me, it would deceive any strangers with no problem at all.
Life is a bitch, isn't it? I’d got myself a unique character that I could spend my whole life playing — and instead, I was desperate to get back to real life ASAP.
Just think of all the opportunities!
I shook my head and opened the spell book. Unfortunately, my character’s lack of Intellect had dropped me in it: I’d only received one spell for each level between 7 and 10. The bad news was sugarcoated by the Girdle of Memory which had added an additional spell each, classes 4 and 5.
At this point, I completely zoned out, trying to weigh up all the pros and cons and fit my unmeasurable needs to my rather curtailed possibilities. I couldn’t become a fully-fledged sorcerer but I could use magic to give a lethal edge to my combat skills. I just had to give it a lot of thought.
In the end, I added Shield of Death to Haste and linked Dust with Decay. Unlike the Veil of Death, the former spell didn’t cover the sorcerer with a protective sphere. Instead, it created a small power shield which required much less energy. The latter spell turned all dead bodies to dust, raising a cloud which absorbed all magic attacks and deflected arrows and crossbow bolts. All you had to do was kill enough people to activate the spell. Yeah right.
After a brief deliberation, I selected Phantom Skulls for level 7. This spe
ll created additional magic energy storage which could become quite useful in combat, seeing as my own internal energy stocks left a lot to be desire. What was the point is choosing some super-powerful combat spells which might use up all my mana in one or two hits? That would be neither here nor there.