Crystalfire Keep

by J. A. Cipriano

  My armor smoking and my teeth grit against the burns resulting from looking a fifth of my Health in one go, I was shifting stances to press my target, the Elemental Shield having evaporated with the Nova, as Vanni was cementing the Right Hand’s attention. Unfortunately, that left the Left Hand unattended on its course.

  As Dunya and Burndall started their fiery sword assault backed by a barrage of bullets and alchemy from Vindril and Wazif respectively, the Left ground to a stop before swiveling around to orient behind the Grand Golem. The moment the Dancer’s steps had wound through her next dance, the cadence of a soothing rhythm rushed through my body and the Left Hand of War’s faceless head snapped to attention, focusing on Merina.

  Merina performs the Pirouette of Tranquil Waters! Her Royal Dancer’s Slippers glow in response! All allies in range are healed for 18% of the Maximum Health Points.

  My first instinct was to Threat Transfer her but without line of sight, both that and Impose were off the table. Still, with how slow the thing moved, I was sure that Vanni would pick it up in a moment. It couldn’t cause any real harm and I had my hands full, diving in slam my shield into the Grand Golem as more elemental blasts began to rain down. The straight physical hit didn’t cause the same reaction as the Light attacks of Watchdog Stance. Maybe each golem was attuned to a different element?

  Between my lack of concern and my own problems, I didn’t notice the golem focused on Merina explode with a burst of choking black smoke from jutting pipes on its back, circled around the massive wrist of the Grand Golem. It was like the exhaust of a jet engine and it had the effect of one, rocketing the once-snail-slow automaton right at our Dancer.

  The Corrupted Left Hand of War’s Carburetor Charge (Darkness) hits Merina! She takes 4% Physical Damage and 8% (-4% resisted) Darkness Damage! HP 6896/8410

  And that was when I realized the real deviousness of this triple threat set-up. While it wasn’t impossible for two tanks to keep everything locked down, the attached arms of the Grand Golem acting as walls to cut off the field on top of its gigantic body meant that the moment things went south, regaining control would be hard, especially when those Elemental Shields went nova and the raid had to take to the side passages.

  “I don’t have an angle on the third, Shale,” Vanni shouted as she parried another Flame Punch from her sparring partner, “and this one’s about to blow!”

  The Right Hand’s Elemental Shield was attuned to Fire and that was what the majority of our DPS on that side was, between Burndall and Dunya’s attacks have been backed by Fire, from Exploding Runes to Brimstone Slashes to Pyroclasms. Considering the situation, Vindril and Nahma both were wisely keeping their distance. Vin stuck to his Sparkshooter, the combined Air and Physical assault making some real progress on the golem’s Health bar while the Shadow was hurling Poison Darts (not so effective) and Steel Shuriken (much more so).

  Wazif: Eight stacks on the Right, zero on the rest!

  To just add an extra layer to the complete chaos starting to unfold, Merina was starting to panic. She was trying her best to twist and dodge away, throwing another self-healing dance into the mix, but while her Class was meant for tanking, her gear and Gems weren’t. Though she was exceptionally hardy for a healer, Merina was going to get pasted if something didn’t happen fast. At least Wazif was thinking on the fly, switching from the bomb he was about to throw at the Right Hand to throwing off a quick incantation, layering a Warm the Soul heal on Merina’s wounds.

  Merina: Gah! I’m sorry! What do I do?

  Vanni: Can you get that thing back to where Shale or I can see it?

  It was a good thought, but I already knew the answer. There was no way Merina could get that thing to our half of the battlespace, not without using the tunnels again, something that would leave the DPS high and dry when the inevitable Nova hit, something that was coming in moments.

  Kayla: Do you think the Hands can fit in the side halls?

  Vindril: Smart tactical thinking but won’t that split our forces even more, depriving us of support?

  Shale: Yes but … I have an idea! Wazif, do you have any Fire damage item with a delay, like Dynasticks?

  I was no crafter, but I had some passing familiarity with low skill items from my start in EO. Dynasticks were the lowest level of alchemical attack items, basically the Elementalis equivalent of dynamite. They had a timed fuse once thrown before exploding for damage and any kind of timed attack like that would make for the perfect remote Nova trigger. During the split-second it took the miner to answer, I unleashed a Defiant Display, slamming down my banner, making sure the Grand Golem was stuck to me like glue, even as Kayla ducked out of her cover to let a Soothing Cascade over me, healing waters running into my multiple wounds.

  Wazif let out a gasp of realization over the raid channel as he realized what I was thinking. No, but I do have a satchel of Crystal Switch Mines! They don’t have a timer, but I can trigger their detonation with the, well, Crystal Switch connected to them.

  Sticking close by her Promised, Crysta fired off two consecutive Greenlife Arrows, the glittering emerald-headed shafts exploding into restorative energy around Vanni. Like, that’ll let peeps get under cover but what about Lefty?

  I shifted right, then cut left, making for the hallway that Kayla had just emerged from. Drop a mine, Wazif, and once he’s set, give Righty one more Fire hit, Dunya! Everybody else back there save for Merina, go to the right hall. Vanni, Crysta, you’re with them.

  Kayla cut off the next healing spell she was weaving and stepped back into the hallway. And Merina cuts left with you and me? I can heal her and you’ll Threat Transfer or Impose?

  Shale: Right! Also, you’re swapping with her. Go to the back to cover the DPS. We’re going to use that threat to work some magic here.

  Though she tried to cut it short, Merina’s sigh echoed through the channel and it was a sigh I knew all too well. It was the sound of self-doubt, the familiar refrain of defeat. It was something to file away for later. Win or wipe, I’d fix that morale problem after this. We didn’t have time to worry about it right that moment, especially as the Left Hand slammed a smoke-wreathed fist into the ground, unleashing an explosion of inky darkness that engulfed Merina and Vindril both.

  The Corrupted Left Hand of War’s Fog of War erupts around it!

  Merina is hit (glance)! She takes 9% (-5% dodged, -5% resisted) Darkness Damage! HP 6644/8410

  Vindril is hit! He takes 14% (-6% resisted) Darkness Damage and gains the Bane ‘Choking Fumes’! HP 1865/2220

  Barely flailing clear of the inky explosion, Wazif fumbled with a strangely uniform crystalline lump, the mine I assumed, as he scrambled towards the looming figure of the Right Hand of War. Knocked down to 52% of its Health already, the war machine’s shell was cracked and dented, a swirling blue glow from the elemental power at its core shining through, but its attention was still purely on Vanni as she ducked a swing and swiped with her blade. Dunya pulled back the monster of a sword in her two hands, fire roiling up and down its curved length.

  As the miner slapped the cluster of crystals right onto his target’s knee joint, we all made our moves. Demoralized or not, Merina sprang out of the lingering smoke towards the left hallway, dark tendrils of corruption trying to find purchase in her flesh. Vindril looked staggered, barely keeping a grip on his Sparkshooter as he tried his best to cough up his lungs. Making it to the archway of the hall with Kayla in tow, I almost called out another warning but Burndall beat me to it.

  The Burnie we had started this quest with would have been too wrapped up in the immediate moment, more concerned with showing off than watching out for the group. This new Burnie, well, he had the old soldier by the arm as Dunya let out a primal scream and drove her blade in the Right Hand’s side. She was hot on Burnie’s heels with Wazif right behind a moment later. Merina ducked into the left hall as the Sorcerer led the retreat into the right, Vindril still blinded and coughing from the Darkness-infused smoke. Across from Kayla and m
e, Vanni and Crysta had made their move as well, moving with a synchronicity that I was frankly a little jealous of.

  I shook that feeling off as the plan truly began. The moment everyone was clear and before the Hands started to move too far out of position, Wazif triggered the mine and a detonation echoed through the courtyard. The screech of tortured metal was followed immediately by the much larger detonation of an immense Fire Nova. A sheet of scarlet flames, wisps of corrupted blackness at the core of each licking tendril, washed across the entrance back into the courtyard, scorching the stones mere inches from where Kayla and I huddled.

  The Corrupted Right Hand of War reaches 10 stacks of Retributive Energy (Fire)!

  The Corrupted Right Hand of War’s Fire Nova engulfs the courtyard, expending all stacks of Retributive Energy (Fire)!

  True to Wazif’s hypothesis, no one was turned into briquettes by the Fire Nova, all safely ensconced in the side halls. As the fire burnt out and the smoke wafted away, what we saw was something almost comical. At first, the Grand Golem seemed torn as each of its Hands went off in completely opposite directions, the Left chasing after Merina in the far left while the Right clambered after Vanni in the near right. The master machine in the center turned in place, trying to best extend its reach. There was a sudden screech and clatter as the Grand Golem’s arms reached maximum extension, not quite long enough to reach either of the opposite halls.

  While the metal triplets were trying to sort themselves, I finally had a chance to get a look at this side hall, Merina and Kayla already racing down it to switch positions. Like the entrance tunnel, it was about a ten-foot space, with several stout wooden doors leading off deeper into the Keep. At the far end, a portcullis like the one that blocked off the Life Crystal was slammed shut in front of a set of stairs going up. The only open exit at the moment was the one that led back into the main courtyard.

  Dunya: Can we get back out there and start whacking again, Shale?

  Shale: Wait for my signal and when you do, I want you and Burnie to switch to the Left Hand. Vindril, Wazif, finish off the Left!

  Vanni: Crys and I will swap the moment Righty goes down.

  Once again, I was thankful that Vanni and Crysta were here. They had all the benefits that Kayla and I shared from our Promised status and then some on top of all the experience in the world with raiding, even if it was from before Patch 2.0.

  As the two supports passed in the hall, Kayla threw an Ice Shield on the Dancer even as she added another quick twirl that mended more of her own wounds. Merina skidded to a halt beside me and if I had any doubt as to her cracked confidence, her face said it all. Though time was short, I could make the time to flash her a reassuring smile and a thumbs-up.

  In fact, what had started as a screw-up was giving us the moment to reset the fight. As I anticipated, it was taking a few moments for the Grand Golem to sort its wayward arms, especially as its own desire was to squash me flat. During those few moments, status bars equalized and Health bars across the raid shot up as Crysta launched a Healing Rain in the opposite hall and Merina topped off my own Health.

  Out in the courtyard, the Left Hand, sensing that its prey had moved away, followed as best it could, tugging on its big brother’s arm as it clanked along the wall. Once it had passed the midpoint of the room, the Grand Golem seemed to realize it now could advance on me and the combined weight of the two drug the Right Hand away from where Vanni and Crysta waited. It reminded me of that one yappy dog struggling on its leash as its owner moved on.

  Shale: Great work, Merina! Now they’re right where we want them. Go!

  The Dancer looked at me with wide eyes at the unexpected praise, about to say something but I was already on the move. Only now that the three golems were in position did I throw my hand back at Merina, activating the Threat Transfer Gem in my gauntlets. A reddish glow passed in a line between us, and a split second later Lefty turned its faceless torso towards me. On the opposite side of the courtyard, the rest of the raid sans Kayla spilled out, Vanni launching forward with a recharged Shield Charge right in the unprotected backside of the Right Hand.

  In fact, as the Grand Golem continued to drag its right arm in its pursuit of me, it pulled its brother along before it had a chance to take a fiery swing at anyone. In essence, the Grand Golem was making it possible for us to kite the Right Hand safely!

  As Dunya and Burnie took a curving approach to get a safe angle on the Left Hand, Vindril drew his two maces and began a weaving, in-and-out dance with Vanni and the golem as his dance partners, the Warlord and Vanguard passing each other again and again as they unleashed pure physical blows on the battered golem, Wazif digging up more Liquid Ice and Spark Crystals from his seemingly endless inventory of crafted weapons.

  The tide was turning and now was a chance to go for a coup de grace, a full-court onslaught to take these things down before they had a chance to unleash more Novas, one of which would catch us out of position again for sure. If you have a buff or cooldown on offense, do it! Burn everything!

  Sure, a careful approach would have made sense now that we had an idea of how the mechanics worked but I couldn’t help but consider the time. If we could shave minutes off this fight by taking a risk, it might be worth it. After all, things would only get harder and more complicated from here.

  My thoughts were cut off as the Left Hand crashed into me, blasting into me with another Carburetor Charge, just as the Grand Golem unleashed a full volley of elemental bolts into me from the other side. While Shale’s arm moved automatically, guided by my stacked Block Rate to intercept the charging golem, I wasn’t paying enough attention to fend off the bolts that hammered into my armor, seeming to find every chink in my defenses, burning, freezing, shocking, and pummeling me in turn.

  The Corrupted Left Hand of War’s Carburetor Charge (Darkness) hits (blocked) you! You take 1.5% (-1.5% blocked) Physical Damage and 6% (-4% blocked, -2% resisted) Darkness Damage! HP 3719/4020

  The Grand War Golem’s Elemental Barrage hits (critical) you 10 times! You take 14% (+6% critical, +2% vulnerability) Fire Damage, 12% (+6% critical) Water Damage, 10% (+6% critical, -2% resisted) Earth Damage, 10% (+6% critical, -1% resisted) Air Damage, 4% (+3% critical, -2% resisted) Darkness Damage, and 8% (+3% critical, +2% vulnerability) Light Damage! HP 1388/4020

  I won’t lie to you. I let out a shout of alarm and pain as I was blasted to one knee, grimly keeping a grip on my shield to hold the smaller golem at bay. Agony tearing at my thoughts, I wanted to hit Last Stand, save my skin from the follow-up strike from the Left Hand that would come in moments. Crysta was too far away and Kayla was now out of line-of-sight with me; I couldn’t count on them to save me. Merina, well, maybe she could, maybe she couldn’t. I trusted her but she wasn’t in a good place right now.

  But if I used Last Stand, I wasn’t doing what I should be doing which was calling up the demon, channeling Chernobog into the entire raid. Even if I was splattered in the next moment, the massive offensive buff would still be up, more than enough to turn these robots into the pile of spare parts they so deserved to be. So, imminent death or not, I pushed up to my feet, shoving the Left Hand back with my shield as I slammed the Banner of Two Nations into the crystal floor. The four-Gem array surrounding my Strength of the Mountain stone burst into light, a light that mixed and swirled with the pure black tendrils that issued forth from the polished darkness of the Darkness Mod Gem.

  Shadows surged up from the ground around each and every one of us before swirling up to cloak us in clingy blackness. Unlike the soul-draining icy feeling of the Darkness we had encountered before, this was a strangely soothing coolness, even as power flooded into my tired muscles and demonic wings sprouted from the shadowy aura.

  You give the Order to summon the power of Chernobog! All your raid members have all their resistances (including Light and Dark) are increased by 27% and all their Attack Abilities and Spells inflict 18% extra damage. In addition, any enemy that attacks them gains a stack of t
he ‘Spreading Corruption’ Bane (a Darkness Damage over Time effect) to a maximum of 10 stacks.

  Even as that power flooded me, the Left Hand raised both of its steel fists, smoke curling around them as its pistons whined. Here came that finishing blow but who cared if it came? We were going to win this, I was sure of it.

  That didn’t happen, well, the dying part anyway. As that hammer blow descended down on me, two sensations mingled with Chernobog’s power.

  First, another heady rush of power joined Chernobog’s, rushing out of my Ring of Promise and across my skin. Pure white phantasmal armor covered my own as a pair of ghostly feather wings joined the black demon wings already spread wide. As the Soul of the Paladin rushed through me, the worst of my wounds mended and that pure might straightened my stance. Apparently, Kayla didn’t need line of sight to use the powers of the Ring of Promise or our Role Fusion Gem!

  Second, almost at the same moment as Role Fusion happened, scarlet streamers engulfed me as something seemed to tug on my soul. It wasn’t a painful thing, more akin to a strangely bolstering transfusion. Entire wounds disappeared as if they had been cheap prosthetics pulled off my body, and that pain and hurt flushed down that conduit that was opened with me and …

  Merina let out a shriek as every wound that left my body erupted on hers.

  Merina dances the Twinned Soul Two-Step! All attacks you have suffered in the last 3 seconds are transferred to Merina and all attacks she has suffered over that same time period are transferred to you! Your new current Health Points are 5020/5020. Merina dies!

  It was the scaling that did it, as well as my superior armor and resistances. What were horrific but survivable wounds to me were immediately lethal to the Dancer. Her body jerked as she relived the entire critical barrage from the Grand Golem before hurling into the nearby wall from the impact she stole from me.

  Yeah, it was a game and yeah, I knew she would be able to respawn as soon as this son of a bitch boss was wrecked, but I felt a roar of rage rise from my lungs as I ignored the blistering shot from the Left Hand, most of the damage absorbed by the combined power of Chernobog and the Paladin’s Soul.