by Domino Finn
The gate was halfway shut when mermen emerged from the depths and latched on. We were braced on the barge against the gate, but they were powerful swimmers. The tug-of-war began to slip in their favor. I released the gate and poked my spear in the water. A poke here, a poke there, just enough to drive them away. Crossbow bolts peppered their ranks as well. We once again had control of the gate.
With one last heave, heavy steel swung around. Instead of a satisfying slam into its housing, with a couple of feet to go, the gate snagged on something. A watchmen lost his grip and fell. The entire barge shuddered and we all fell to our knees.
"Ugh," groaned Kyle, shaking off the painful tumble, "what the hell was that?"
The outer river gate tore from our grips so fast it banged against the city wall and nearly rumbled off its hinges. The barge jerked away from the metal bars with enough force to upend us all over again. One of the city watchmen screamed and plummeted into the Albula. Despite all reason, the wide barge skidded against the river current, away from the gate. Brothers in Black outside the tunnel rowed toward the opening. We could do nothing but hang on as a mysterious force powered us through the tunnel and back into the city.
"Bad feels," I muttered. "Bad feels."
A primal scream tore through the city. The river itself shuddered and foamed. The pirates and I knew in that moment that closing the river gate didn't matter anymore.
"What is it?" asked Kyle urgently. "What's everybody not saying?"
I shivered as I suddenly understood why the Eye of Orik had been complaining of pagan proximity. It wasn't the goblins or ogres. The undine wouldn't rate as they weren't officially associated. No, this was something much larger than a simple mob. Larger even than the horde outside the city walls.
This was a titan.
Giant tentacles burst from the water and towered over us. They hammered at the barge, snapping wood and knocking the remaining city watchman to shore. Fear swept over us as the impossible bubbled to the surface right before our eyes.
The kraken was in Stronghold.
1410 Sea Monster
The barge rocked against the surge of water. The kraken dipped underwater again, but only for a moment. Tentacles emerged from the river and tenderized the heavy boat. Kyle switched to his crossbow and loaded fire arrows.
"How is this possible?" floundered the brewmaster. "Pagans aren't allowed to enter the city. Goblins and ogres are one thing, but the kraken is the fucking definition of a pagan. It's one of their twelve gods!"
"Nine."
"Whatever. Stupid fantasy bullcrap! You're gonna tell me a pagan titan doesn't qualify as part of their faction now?"
I shook my head. "I don't know."
I clicked the help button to summon Saint Peter. Varnu, from tech support, appeared on the unsteady barge, dressed in his bright-red colonial jacket with gold buttons. He smiled and twisted his golden mustache.
"Ah, Talon, it is good to—what in the many noses of Garethluka is that abomination?"
I creased my brow. "The noses of who?"
Varnu Johnson shook his head frantically. "What the fuck is that thing, sir?"
I dove away as a tentacle smashed my position. I spun my spear into a sucker. The damage was laughably minimal, but the pain caused the kraken to recoil beneath the splashing current. The dragonspear was a titanslayer, after all. Still, if the kraken was anything like the cyclops, I would need to find a weak spot for it to be truly effective. As long as the beast could hide underwater, we were unlikely to do so.
"It's a kraken, Varnu! Inside the city. I need to talk to Saint Peter right now, and I don't wanna hear excuses. And if you can't help me, I wanna escalate this to your supervisor!"
The resident companion froze as he considered swaying from his script.
The kraken once again broke the surface of the water. Its gaping mouth opened wide behind a tangle of tentacles. Spiraling rows of crosscut teeth snaked downward. I wondered if somewhere in that garbage disposal was a weak spot. Undulating gums vibrated as the titan bellowed with the force of a hurricane.
Saint Peter appeared and cleared his throat. "It's okay, Varnu. I'll take it from here."
Varnu's legs stiffened and his hands hurried to the seat of his pants. "Um, if you will excuse me, sirs, I believe I have, as Americans say, shit my breeches." He blinked out just as a tentacle swiped through him.
Kyle fired two bolts. The small projectiles had trouble getting through the tangle of arms. Fire exploded and tentacles jerked away. Others just filled their place. Once again, the kraken wasn't worse for wear.
"Hadrian's attacking the city," I hurried. "He's leading the Brothers in Black, and using the Squid's Tooth to command the kraken."
Peter's beard puffed out as he frowned. "I can see that, Talon."
"Well, isn't there something you can do about it? He's a player trying to take the city."
"The Pantheon is safe," returned the saint.
"But the city watch—"
"Is manning the walls and guarding the Pantheon. The soldiers are doing their job, Talon. A PvP war is not within their jurisdiction."
"So he's allowed to bring a titan into the city? What about the angels?"
"The angels didn't interfere with Orik, and they won't do so with the kraken. Their purview is stopping players from breaking the game. Hadrian's working within the rule set. As long as he doesn't attempt to take the Pantheon, hack the Oculus, or attack the saints, the angels have no reason to activate against him. He's not a game imbalance."
Damn it. Hadrian was in the clear. Manipulating Brugo, controlling the Trinity, compromising Loras—he was gaining influence through the actions of others. The saints were already deposed, he'd said. I was the only one in his way. Even now, out in the open, Hadrian was too smart to risk the angel's wrath. The kraken was smart enough to call of its attack while the saint was on board. In order to turn the repercussions back on Hadrian, I would have to catch him red-handed.
"What about the Eye of Orik?" I asked. "Isn't it supposed to be impossible for pagans to enter the city while under saintly control? Isn't that a hack?"
Saint Peter sighed. "Alas, Haven is no longer as black and white as it was programmed to be. Hadrian's subversion is no less heinous than your bringing goblins and ogres into Stronghold under your wing."
Kyle blinked. "So you're saying the kraken no longer self-identifies as a pagan."
Peter nodded. "The devil's gift of free will is a double-edged sword. NPCs and monsters were never meant to have the freedom of players. Many of the systems governing them can be easily sidestepped, given the proper forethought."
"How's that for identity politics?" muttered Kyle.
I groaned. It was the same as the reasoning to make cities free-for-alls. NPCs were never prevented from engaging in town combat because their behaviors never allowed it. Once their behaviors became unhinged it was anything goes. The entire governance plan for Haven had been upended.
"Okay," I reasoned, "attacking Oldtown isn't illegal. But Hadrian's hacked Loras somehow."
"Has he?"
I huffed. "What do you mean, Peter? Of course he has. The Loras avatar has developer access."
"I am less questioning the why and more questioning the who. Hadrian is not a hacker, unlike your friend, Lucifer."
Every response by the saint was pushing me further and further beyond exasperation. "You think Lucifer's behind all this?"
Saint Peter sighed, calmly and forlorn. "The real question is how can you not?"
I nearly pulled my hair out. "Because he's the only one who's being honest about what's really going on around here!"
"Lucifer's a traitor with the sole goal of bringing down the world that birthed him. You've heard his diatribes against capitalism."
"His diatribes aren't always off base: Kablammy's rush to launch, to put a good face on the leaks, the attempted company takeover, and however the hell satellite launches fit into the picture..."
Peter flushed. "How do
you know about that?"
"Oh, I know a hell of a lot more. I know Larry isn't on sabbatical in the Greek islands, he's a corporate mole who was fired from Kablammy. That mole works for Hadrian."
Peter erupted with indignant laughter. "Are you kidding me? Lucifer actually told you that? The nerve. If anybody's the source of the corporate takeover, it's him."
"You're wrong, Peter. Hadrian's the interloper. Lucifer was scheming against him the entire time. Hadrian's trying to take over Haven for himself."
"You just refuse to see it. But you need to trust me, Talon. You don't know what I know about Lucifer."
"What? What do you know?"
Peter took a long breath as he struggled over how much he could say. As always, his internal filter won out and he revealed nothing.
I was so angry I wanted to knock some sense into him. It was easier squeezing help out of Varnu. Then I realized it was way past noon. Tad Lonnerman should've been in the clear.
"At least look into it yourself," I stressed. "Check the assassin needle history log. Find the link to Loras. Do anything but sit back and watch while we lose Haven for good."
The old man's eyes flared against my accusation. "I can do nothing," was all he said. Saint Peter vanished.
The stubborn old fool... I had to believe something I said had gotten through to him, but we were very likely on our own.
The quiet following the saint's departure didn't last long. A tentacle kicked the barge backward, creating space for the Brothers in Black to spill into the city. No doubt a stream of undine flowed beneath their oars. As our boat jerked and rocked, we struggled to remain on our feet and out of the water.
Kyle whiffed another volley of crossbow bolts. "It's no good. The damn thing is too fast in the water."
"What if we get off the river?" I offered. "Force the titan on land?"
" 'Tis a sound strategy, fer sure," said Errol, " 'cept I was hopin' we could light this barge up 'fore she goes under."
"What are you talking about?"
The pirate captain led me to the waterproof storage boxes along the length of the transport vessel and opened one up. It was jammed to the brim with rockets and black powder.
"What did you—" I paused. "You're crazy, Errol."
"What?" he protested, slightly offended. "Ye said t' filler up with fireworks, fer all you cared."
"I was just making a joke about scrapping a useless barge. You weren't supposed to take it literally!"
Grug and Grom frowned, but Errol wasn't taken aback. "Ye should've known a pirate would jump at any chance fer a party with explosions. I loaded this here barge up fer tonight's grand openin', and there'll be no take-backsies."
I blinked in the face of the stupid, dumb luck. This was gonna be a party all right.
The kraken snaked below the water, errant tentacles testing the edges of the platform. Errol slashed his rapier at the rubbery skin. The limb jerked and knocked him over.
I lit a torch, grabbed a fist-sized pail of powder, and set it alight. The fuse burned fast so I dumped it on the approximate location of the kraken. The makeshift depth charge sank and popped. A pillar of water blasted into the air. The boat shook and the kraken roared from the deep.
"It worked," I said.
We all grabbed handfuls of fireworks and passed around the torch. These things were the real deal, volatile black powder packed to the brim, not the sad little pretenders you spark up in your backyard on the Fourth of July. These here were real nasty weapons, capable of blowing a lot more than your fingers off. Thank God for pirates.
The blasts harried the sea creature. It punched the bottom of the boat, lifting us off the water for seconds at a time. Luckily the deck was heavily reinforced, built for stability and a double load. The barge rocked and swayed but held together. After a succession of explosions that were too close for comfort, the impressive mass of the kraken dove downriver. It surfaced at a distance and screeched.
"That's our chance!" yelled Errol.
All three of us hefted large fireworks at the titan's mouth. Tentacles flashed—one, two, three—effortlessly knocking them away. They exploded onshore. The thing just had too many arms.
"We're gonna need a bigger boat," said Kyle.
Errol cursed. "Talon said the barge was too large as it was!"
"It's just an expression from Jaws," he explained. "Never mind. We need more firepower."
"That's only half the problem," I pointed out. "As long as the kraken remains submerged, he'll have the advantage on us."
"We can run," agreed Errol. "But that ain't exactly savin' the city, is it?"
I nodded. "So forget about trying to draw the kraken out of the river. What if, instead, we draw the water out of the river?"
Kyle's face flashed with recognition. "And here I thought the river pearl was a useless add-on. That combined with the water turrets might be just what the doctor ordered."
"What doctor?" asked Errol, confused. "Ye players be a bewilderin' bunch."
The kraken screeched. The spiral of teeth quivered as the kraken snaked our way. Tentacles crunched hard to the deck, splitting wood. Fireworks and barrels of powder splashed to the water.
"There's just one problem with that plan," I said to Kyle, regaining my balance. "We need to make it to the tower first."
As if understanding our predicament, the kraken submerged and swam under the barge. It surfaced and smashed the other side of the boat, spilling more explosives into the surf.
"You heard the man!" Errol berated his pirate crew. "Take this barge upriver to Dragonperch posthaste." They paddled in double time.
1420 Hang-On
I eyed the approaching contingent of boats and the debris littering the river surface. "Kyle."
The brewmaster smiled. "Gotcha covered." He produced a fire mixture and lit the opening.
"No." I capped the flame with my palm, putting it out. "Not yet. Like you did with the other boat of rogues. Slick the river with oil."
His devilish grin widened. "You're evil, bro." He laughed as he opened the bottle and sprinkled its contents into the water. When it was empty, he reloaded with another one. The yellow fluid clung to the surface as we rowed south. Knowing Kyle, he had plenty of stock to keep it up.
Since I was the only one not doing anything, I put myself on kraken duty. I moved to the head of the barge and readied the dragonspear. The titan attempted to break our boat in half. It was nearly there as it was, but holding together. We couldn't afford to let it go more. I braced my weapon and crossblocked what blows I could. Damage came through, of course, but not so much that I was immediately worried. We began making decent progress through the town.
The kraken's next tactic was more effective. A stray tentacle caught Grug and wrapped him up like an anaconda.
"I regret nothing!" bellowed the pirate. "Except bein' grabbed by a giant tentacle!"
We flinched when the kraken squeezed and crunched his bones to pulp.
"Heft the chain, men!" commanded a familiar voice.
Nooner and his boys pulled their chain into the path of the backpedaling sea creature. The unexpected obstacle stunned the beast. I hurried to light a barrel of powder.
"Ha ha!" boasted Nooner. "Try to take my city, will ya! Well, I'm gonna—"
The kraken flexed cords of muscle. The heavy chain snapped off its landbound support. Angry tentacles reared high into the air.
Nooner's jaw dropped. "But that's triple-gauge steel..."
The arm crushed the gangster to the ground, sending the rest of his men scrambling in terror.
The barge strayed close to the west bank of the river. "New plan." Kyle unloaded a bunch of fire potions at my feet and leapt off. He made it to the ground but ate dirt, his agility unable to gracefully account for the maneuver.
"What're you doing, Kyle?"
"Easiest way to Dragonperch is getting off this river, where the kraken isn't. I'm gonna drain this river before you know it."
"Now that there be a pla
n!" remarked Errol.
"You guys hold off the kraken!" Kyle sprinted south along the riverbank.
The pirate cocked his head. "Can't say I be fond o' that part."
The kraken bellowed. I braced the dragonspear as the full mass of the titan bore toward the barge. At the last second, the kraken dove and slipped beneath us.
We turned in confusion. The sea creature swam past the boat, dragging a length of triple-gauge chain over the water. It caught around a splintered support beam and the barge jerked sideways, spilling fireworks to the deck.
"Incoming!" screamed Grom.
Tentacles rose from the water on all sides of the boat. They slashed blindly and indiscriminately. Errol was knocked aside. I blocked one arm but was tripped up by another. A tentacle smashed into the pile of fire bombs, shattering glass and splashing yellow fluid everywhere.
Errol growled and drew his rapier. "Hold it off, he says."
I flicked my spear as Grom slashed a hooked blade, executing short strikes on nearby feelers. The tentacles recoiled.
Behind us, the Brothers in Black advanced. Kyle jogged ahead on the shoreline, running past the Forum backstreets. The kraken surfaced with a roar. Then it spotted Kyle. For a giant squid beast, it was surprisingly tactical. It dove and swam south.
"He's goin' fer the tower," surmised Errol.
The length of chain caught on the titan snaked the river surface in its wake. As soon as the slack was exhausted, the barge bucked upriver. Grom was caught by surprise and tumbled into the water.
"No!" shouted Kyle. "Don't lead him to me till I'm ready."
Errol and I held on for our dear lives. "I think he's the one doing the leading, Kyle."
The kraken rocketed over the water surface, barge in tow. Chunks of the deck fell away as we wildly crashed into the bricks walling the river. Barrels of powder, yellow oil, and various fireworks plopped into our wake. We easily surpassed the brewmaster's foot speed and watched as we passed. We were going so fast we overtook the boat of rogues that had rowed past us in the tunnel. They turned in surprise and capsized as we blew by.