by Alex Knight
Titus look at Zelda.
“Didn’t you listen to what Dawson told us?” Zelda said. “Or read your notifications?”
“There’s a lot going on,” Titus said. “Lay off, alright?” He crossed his arms, then turned very deliberately to Kaiden. “Is there anything else I need to know about this game?”
Zelda snorted.
“Anything else? How about everything else?”
“Actually, never mind.” Titus stormed off down the hallway. “I’m following my tiny map towards the noobies we have to rescue. You coming or what?”
Chapter Fourteen
Titus led the way through the corridors of the Mochinki, keeping his shield on and at the ready. Zelda was in the middle, head turning side to side as she scanned for signs of more raged. Kaiden watched their rear, but also couldn’t stop his eyes from drifting to the health bars on the edge of his vision.
Clutchtime - 90%
gtrain_737 - 33%
MadKilla - 20%
Tomari9 - 82%
Kaiden found it strange that their health bars weren’t regenerating. If they were in a safe location, then surely they would be out of combat and would be regaining their health. Maybe the raged were still close to them, or had been regularly raiding the area. But they hadn’t been outright killed yet, and that was something.
Four out of four still alive, Kaiden thought to himself, glancing at his minimap. They were getting close now.
“They’re all still alive,” Zelda said for the thousandth time. “But we have to hurry. Captain Thorne won’t consider this a success unless we get all of them out of here.”
“Why are you so concerned with impressing the captain all of a sudden?” Kaiden asked. She’d been going on and on about it since they’d left the shuttle. “What’s the point if we’re planning on, you know—” He lowered his voice. “If we’re going to find the assassin who killed Bernstein, we’re likely going to have to go off script a little bi—”
“That’s one heck of a mess,” Titus said, cutting him off as he stared at something down the hall.
“That might qualify for understatement of the century.” Kaiden swallowed hard as he too took in the sight.
This must be what’s left of Terrel and his group, the ones Sola was trying to rescue. Clearly, she and her squad hadn’t made it in time.
The remains before them had been wardens, but beyond that, there wasn’t much information to be gained. There was too little left. Kaiden focused on the closest of the corpses.
Cencar Ollo **Deceased**
Warden Private
Class: Power Warden
Faction: Warden Corps
Level: 12
Level twelve? That’s really high, relatively speaking. We just barely managed to survive a fight with an injured level six berserker. I can’t imagine what seeing a level twelve in combat would look like. It could probably kill us with a look.
Kaiden checked the other corpses for more information. Finally, he came to Terrel.
Terrel **Deceased**
Warden Private
Class: Blast Warden
Faction: Warden Corps
Level: 11
“These Wardens were all at least level eleven,” he said, feeling himself frown. The way his shield had overloaded in the recent fight weighed heavily on his mind. One raged had taken down both his and Titus’ shield. Against multiple berserkers they wouldn’t last more than ten seconds.
“You mean they were all nearly twice as strong as that raged we fought back there? And they still died?” The normally rock-steady confidence in Titus' eyes faltered a moment, interrupted by a look of concern. “I need to find some more of those little spawn things and kill a bunch of them until I level up about a dozen times.”
“That’s called ‘grinding,’” Zelda said, but only halfheartedly. The realization of just how far they were in over their heads was a daunting one.
“Um, guys? Are you seeing this?”
Kaiden had looked back down to his minimap, and what he saw there was less than comforting.
Aside from the fight with the raged, thus far his map had shown only their green dots weaving through a maze of hallways. Now, however, several other signatures were being picked up. These were red dots. Enemies. More appeared, a good ten or so, until the dots turned the corner at the end of the hall and stepped into physical view.
Kaiden focused on the first of the newcomers.
Raged Berserker
Level: 10
He focused on the next.
Raged Berserker
Level: 12
He focused on another, then one more for good measure. Both were berserkers. It was a safe bet all the rest were, too.
“Back!” Zelda hissed, yanking them back toward the corner they’d just turned. A scream silenced her efforts, however, as the raged spotted them and broke into a sprint.
Kaiden glanced down to his minimap. They were nearly to the galley, nearly to the new players they were here to rescue in the first place. All that stood between them was the pack of raged. Which, all things considered, might as well have been an army for all the difference it made. There was no way they could hope to fight their way through.
“We can’t fight them. We won’t stand a chance,” Zelda said.
“We have to run,” Kaiden said. “Maybe we can lose them and double back?”
The raged were halfway down the hallway now, a screaming, frenzied mass of flesh and weapons and, as the smell assaulted his nostrils, stink.
“Guys, if we’re going to go, we need to do it now…” She trailed off, staring at something behind Kaiden. He turned and found a wall of shields rushing toward him.
The general comms channel crackled to life. “Ensigns, stay behind us!”
It was Sola! The lieutenant they’d heard earlier.
Four wardens with large rectangular shields rushed past. They spread out as they passed Kaiden and the others, then bunched back up, side to side so that their shields formed a near complete wall, protecting them from shin to shoulder.
Kaiden stared in awe, bringing up the additional details screen on one of them.
Gareth Marleon
Warden Private
Class: Shield Warden
Faction: Warden Corps
Level: 11
Quick facts: Shield Wardens are the tanks of the Warden Corps. Boasting shields increased in size and charge capacity, they fight on the front lines, drawing enemy attention and protecting weaker allies.
Tanks in the front; that makes sense, Kaiden though, entirely forgetting his fear as he studied the new arrivals.
The raged howled with renewed anger and excitement at the sight of the reinforcements, then threw themselves at the shield wardens. Several berserkers launched into the air, weapons held high above their heads, all slamming against the shield wall. The shield wardens were driven back a pace, but dug their feet in and held their ground.
“Ensigns!” A hand grabbed Kaiden’s shoulder and pulled him to the side. A warden he could only assume was Sola stood over him. He focused on her to be sure.
Sola
Warden Lieutenant
Class: Enhanced Warden
Faction: Warden Corps
Level: 13
Quick facts: Enhanced wardens are a unique support class able to quickly process strategic information, using speed to scout ahead, deliver vital intel and escape deadly situations. Powerful visors allow them to analyze additional information.
It was Sola, all right. She wore some sort of advanced combat armor which included the aforementioned visor over her eyes. It wasn’t much more than a thin, sleek strip of glass, but numbers and images flashed on it, detailing a vast amount of information.
Zelda and Titus were still staring in awe at the shield wardens, but she grabbed them too and pulled them back to stand beside Kaiden.
“Stay here and stay alive.” With that, she turned toward the fighting.
“Shielders ready?” she called out.
“Ready!” the wardens on the front line called back.
“Blasters on three, then. One, two, three!” Sola shouted the command, then ducked to one side. As she did, the shield wardens in front parted, spinning to the sides of the hallway. For a moment the raged were left staring, confused by the unexpected move, perhaps. They weren’t left confused for long, however, as a second line of wardens stepped up, leveled their hammers as if they were guns, and fired.
A barrage of spears made of crackling, glowing light exploded forward. All the berserkers were hit at least once, and those hit more than once fell backward, clearly severely injured.
“And again!”
Another barrage, this one of smaller blasts that looked more like laser-bullets and far less powerful, though it killed several of the weakened raged.
Kaiden focused on one of the hammer-gun-toting wardens to get more information.
Terhan
Warden Private
Class: Blast Warden
Faction: Warden Corps
Level: 11
Quick facts: Blast wardens are the ranged fighters of the Warden Corps. Wielding modified hammers that sacrifice melee attacks for the ability to fire a variety of laser-based projectiles, blast wardens engage from a distance and are particularly strong when front line fighters distract the enemy.
“Now that’s a sensible way to fight,” Zelda said, jaw near hanging to the floor as she watched the ‘blasters,’ as Sola had called them.
Just as the shield wardens had larger, shoulder-to-shin shields, so too had the blast warden shields changed based on their specialization. They had become thinner, with half-circles cut into either side so their bodies could still be relatively covered while their hammer-guns fired through the slots.
The hammer-gun itself was long and thin, with the weapon’s handle turned into a gunstock. A trigger protruded along its bottom and the laser blasts emerged from the adapted head of the hammer.
The ranks of the raged were considerably thinned by the one-two punch of the shield wardens followed by the blast wardens. But the remaining raged charged through the short corridor left by the parted shield wardens, screaming bloody murder.
“Powereds,” Sola yelled, turning to the last few wardens not engaged in the fight. “Have at ‘em.”
There was no need to say anything else. Like bizarre, angry grasshoppers, the remaining four wardens launched into the air. Their behemoth-sized hammers near struck the ceiling before they slammed down into the raged. Each blow sent a roiling, shimmering shockwave out in a small radius. One, two, three, four shockwaves in total that battered the raged.
When the air cleared, only two were left standing. A quick glance told Kaiden their health bars were in the red, but he might as well not have bothered looking because one moment and several hammer strikes later they fell to the floor, dead.
Achievement Unlocked!
Impossible Odds - 100 EXP gained!
Somehow, you survived a near-impossible fight. You’re not hacking, are you?
In the wake of the battle, Kaiden focused on one of the grasshopper-like wardens who had gone blow for blow with the raged and come out just fine.
Marsin
Warden Private
Class: Power Warden
Faction: Warden Corps
Level: 11
Quick facts: Power wardens are the warriors of the Warden Corps. All offense, all the time, they have a much-reduced size of shield, but also gain some charge by hitting with their hammers. An appropriate ability, considering how charge-hungry their onslaught of attacks can be.
“Well done, wardens,” Sola said, nodding at the results of the incredibly quick skirmish. “Good thing we had some charge left over from the last fight. Now, reform ranks. Those players aren’t going to rescue themselves, eh?”
The shielders took the front, followed by two of the power wardens, then the blasters, then the remaining two power wardens. The whole formation locked together tightly, then awaited further orders.
“Ensigns,” Sola said, turning to them. “You came in on the Borrelly, right? I’m afraid we lost contact a while back. Have you heard anything from Lieutenant Ellenton?”
“No, we haven’t,” Kaiden said, feeling more concern for their laid-back handler than he’d expected to. “Is she okay?”
“Well,” Sola chuckled, “I’m not sure she was ever okay. Last I heard from her she was merrily dogfighting a bunch of pirate ships, then she cut off. The long and short of it is, you're stuck with us until we can hail another warden ship to give us a ride.”
“Our mission was to rescue the new players holed up in the galley,” Zelda said. “We have to get them out of here. Even if we could, we can’t just leave.”
“Command had a mix-up, or bad intel,” Sola said. “Either way, you shouldn’t be anywhere near this fight. But, since you are stuck here, you’re my responsibility, and I won’t have you dying on my watch. Stay with the group and stay out of the fighting.” Without missing a beat, she turned to the wardens under her command. “Move it out, you lot. Those players aren’t going to rescue themselves.”
Chapter Fifteen
The noobs had barricaded themselves in the galley. Toppled freezer units made something approximating a wall. Power wardens and shield wardens made short work clearing the debris and Sola strode into the galley, Kaiden following in her wake.
“Someone called for a rescue party?” Sola said.
Four sets of eyes peered over the top of an overturned table.
“Wardens,” a relieved whisper ran through the group.
“Well, it’s about dang time!” One of the noobs stood up with an aggravated gesture. The game revealed his name was ‘MadKilla’ as Kaiden focused on him. It also showed his health was still low in the red. “We called for you more than half an hour ago. What, did you stop for lunch on the way over?”
“Ran into a spot of trouble.” Sola rested her bloody hammer across her shoulders. “Nothing we couldn’t handle.”
“Fine, whatever,” MadKilla said. He held out a hand expectantly. “I need some health stims.”
Sola shook her head. “No can do, kid. We had to use them all ourselves fighting the raged. Sorry.”
MadKilla looked aghast. “What? We all got cleaved by some attack and got a crappy debuff called ‘Touched by the Raged’ which is preventing our health regening for like a whole hour. Ridiculous.”
Sola shrugged. “Bad luck, I guess. That’s why we’re here.”
“Well, maybe next time you should do a better job,” MadKilla said. “With how much this game costs each month you’d think we’d be able to get some decent protection.”
“You know,” Sola said, approaching him. “I don’t expect gratitude for doing my job, but a bit of civility would be nice.”
“Maybe you shouldn’t have gotten yourself thrown in prison if you wanted civility.”
This, apparently, was the last straw. Sola touched MadKilla with her hammer – gently, no more than a tap – and there was a flash of light. The light shrank, then solidified into a mess of chains. They coiled around MadKilla’s wrists, arms, legs, and ankles, then with a snap, tightened all at once. The noob balked, then gasped as he fell to the floor, securely bound.
“What did you do?” he shouted.
“I’ve Shackled you, you little twerp,” Sola said. “And if you don’t apologise, I’m gonna just leave you here for the raged.”
“That’s it,” Zelda hissed in Kaiden’s ear. “That’s the ability I was trying to tell you about during Sergeant Dawson’s briefing. It’s the wardens’ most valuable ability.”
“What does it do?” Kaiden whispered back.
“So, it chains players up, like you see there,” Zelda explained. “They can’t physically move in-game from it. More importantly, it prevents them logging off.”
“That seems a bit…broken.”
“It was a sticking point for NexGen, but they capitulated in the end,” Zelda said. “If warde
ns are catching players who’ve committed fineable offences in-game, or have to question them about something, they can’t have the player just log off or fight to the death. This is partly why not every warden gets the move as a standard ability. You have to earn it from the higher-ups.”
Kaiden now better understood Zelda’s plan. “So, if we have Shackle, when we find this assassin we can use it on him and get him talking.”
“That’s the idea,” Zelda said.
Further conversation was interrupted by MadKilla’s sobbing.
“Let me out of this, please. I’m sorry.”
“Oh, be quiet for a moment, will you?” Sola said. “I’m trying to check if we can get a shuttle out of here.” She began to pace the galley, speaking over another comms channel. “This is Lieutenant Sola to all craft near Mochinki Station. Looking for evac. Over.”
From behind their table, the other players in peril trotted out to stand near their shackled friend. Tomari9 looked down on him with a withering look. Clutchtime was smirking to himself.
Now Kaiden was close enough to all the players, quest notifications started popping up.
Quest Complete: Rescue trapped players on Mochinki Station
Part 1: Reach the players
Rewards: +900 EXP, + 4 faction prestige
Level 4 achieved!
Max health and stamina increased
+3 stat points
Ability unlocked: Hammer Toss
One whole level jump, just like that? And another new move as well! I guess the quest difficulty changed to veteran, so it makes sense. We weren’t supposed to be on a mission this hard.
He focused on his new ability.
Hammer Toss: The warden throws their hammer, dealing x 2 base damage if they successfully hit the target. The hammer will return itself to the warden’s hand. While disarmed, the warden is unable to use other abilities that require a hammer. Minimum range: 10 feet. Maximum range: 30 feet. Cost: 20 charge. Cooldown: 30 seconds.