After listening to him, I nodded. “So you want us to go the Raven Gully and kill whatever the creature is?”
“Kill it, convince it to leave, throw it a party. I don’t care what you do as long as Bear gets through. It’s been ages since I stocked up. He usually brings me a new selection of books, too. Do you know that I’ve been reading the same copy of ‘The Blasphemous Hog’ for months now?”
I turned away from the trader and looked at Brian and Smoglar. “You guys okay with this? We could always use the potions.”
“You’re the boss,” said Smoglar, and grinned.
Quest Received – Clear Raven Gully of the Beast
There’s a creature stalking Raven’s Gully and stopping travellers from passing through. Are you strong enough to stop it? I doubt you are, but you might as well try.
Rewards:
45 exp
Sneak Potion x1
Health Potion x10
Mana Potion x10
Chapter Seven
We found Raven Gully south of the trader’s house. We saw few creatures on the way to it, and only one player crossed our paths. He was a level 18 Shaman named The Sullied Onionman. He ran in front of us, completely naked, and then sprinted off into the distance without saying a word.
Raven Gully was once a ravine that cut through the Raven canyons. Stemming from the river Ryle, which flowed in turn to the Saltblood Ocean, it was used as a shortcut by traders travelling to Iskarg. After the Nine Month Summer the ravine dried up, and all that is left of it is a dusty trail that cuts through the rocks.
The Gully around us was so dry that it made me need a drink of water just looking at it. Orange cliffs rose fifty feet into the air either side of us, and the passageway was so tight that it made our words echo. I looked ahead but couldn’t see any sign of a creature stalking the canyon.
“Stay alert,” I said. “Depending on what this thing is, we might need to change tactics. I’ve prepared some screw bombs already, and I made a few mushroom bombs. I’m hoping they’ll heal us.”
“Or they might just blast us with burning fungus,” said Smoglar.
As we walked through the gully we looked from left to right, expecting something to leap out at us. The pathway was so tight that it made me feel claustrophobic. Gradually it opened up until finally, we reached the centre.
Something snorted ahead of us. It was a deep, wheezing sound.
“This is it,” I said.
We walked around a corner and then stood in the middle of the gully. This was a large circle that had been cut into the cliffs, and it seemed that it had been done purposefully rather than by the ravine. The remnants of old camp sites and bonfires were scattered around us. In the centre, watching us with a hateful stare, was the creature we had heard.
It was a Desert Boar.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” said Smoglar. “This is the thing that’s been stopping people getting through?”
There had to be more to it than this. I focussed on the boar and used my Appraiser skill. With my increased intelligence I found it easier to concentrate, and within a few seconds its stats displayed in front of me.
Desert Boar – Level 7
HP: 125 / 125
Looking around, I saw that the gully was empty. There were a few openings dug into the sides of the cliffs around us, but other than that there was nothing strange.
“I didn’t expect it to be so easy,” I said.
“Maybe the Gods are smiling on us for once,” said Smoglar. “First one to kill it gets the meat.”
With that he rushed toward the boar with his axe held in the air, bellowing as he charged. The boar saw him and took a few tentative steps back and gave a snort.
As Smoglar reached the animal he swung his axe and dug it into the creature’s flesh, carving away half of its HP. With another cleave it was dead, and a few seconds later its corpse evaporated into the air.
I walked forward to join Smoglar in the centre of the opening. I expected a message to display telling us that we had completed the quest, but nothing came. Something wasn’t right. I took a screw bomb out of my bag and held it ready to light.
As if to confirm my suspicions, I heard the sound of whooping and yelling all around us. I looked to my left. High up on the side of the cliff, where a six-foot hole had been cut, a group of men and women emerged. They had long hair that fell to their shoulders, and they wore armour that was in tatters. Staring at us, they carefully climbed down the sides of the walls.
“It was an ambush,” grunted Smoglar. He pointed to our right, where another group were climbing down the cliff face.
“Raiders,” said Brian. “They must have been camping here and trapping anyone who crossed the gully.”
“Let’s go, tank,” I said, looking at Smoglar.
As the raiders ran at us I lit my screw bomb and tossed it into the crowd. It exploded on impact, sending shards of metal flying out. Some of the raiders screamed as the screws embedded in their flesh and drained their hit points.
One raider, the tallest of the group, reached Smoglar and swung a rusty broadsword at his head. Luck must have been with the dwarf, because he was able to dodge just enough to avoid a critical hit, and the blade hit his arm instead. Grunting in pain, he dropped his axe to the floor.
Brian tossed another bomb as the raiders flooded toward us. Smoglar picked up his axe and fought with the taller raider, each of them striking blows that drained the other’s health. Smoglar’s attacks seemed to have more effect. With relief, I saw that the raider’s health bar drained faster than my friend’s.
I lit another screw bomb and threw it into the mix. The explosion echoed through the gully, sending a flight of ravens into the air. Men and women screamed around me. I tried to focus on the survivors, but messages flooded my vision.
15 Exp Gained!
15 Exp Gained!
15 Exp Gained!
Smoglar hit the raider leader with the blade of his axe, making the taller man stumble back. His health bar was but a fraction now, and it would take just one more blow to finish him.
Suddenly a red glow surrounded him, like a flickering light of magic enclosing his body.
“He’s got the Final Strike ability,” said Brian, as he lit a bomb. “His attacks are tripled near death. Watch out for him.”
The warning was lost on Smoglar, whose eyes burned with anger. He rushed at the raider leader, but the taller man dodged to the side and then caught the dwarf with a critical strike. Smoglar crashed to the floor and his hit points drained almost empty.
I couldn’t let Smoglar take another hit, and I didn’t have time to make another bomb. While Brian tossed an explosive at the last of the raiders, I pulled out my dagger and rushed at the leader. The man stared at me wide-eyed as I charged. He lifted his blade, but before he could swing it I stabbed my weapon deep into his chest, pushing it until I felt his bones crack. He let out a final gasp and then fell to the floor.
I turned around to strike the next raider that I saw, but all of them lay dead on the floor with the smoke from Brian’s bomb rising above them.
Level Up to level 11!
Exp to next level: 158
After the battle, we all sat and let our stamina recharge. I had a few mushrooms left in my inventory, so I handed them to Smoglar so that he could recover some of his health. Brian sat on a rock with his legs crossed and looked at the carnage around him. The raider’s bodies had started to evaporate, leaving only their loot behind.
“Melee weapons go to Smoglar,” I said. “And Brian and I split the CR. Deal?”
Smoglar shook his head. “Nice try. How about a 40, 40, 20 split? I need beer money.”
I nodded. “Sounds good, my friend. I can’t believe it was raiders tricking people all this time.”
“You can’t trust people,” said Smoglar.
Message from viewer: ‘He’s right.’
Smoglar looked at me and smiled. The expression on his face was one that I had seen before;
back when he told me that things in the past should stay there.
“You’ve proven yourself to be a friend to us, Janus,” he said. “So I reckon it’s about time we clued you in a little.”
He looked at Brian. The giant nodded, and said: “Go ahead.”
“I wasn’t always a dwarf,” said Smoglar. “And Brian wasn’t always a giant. Not so long ago, both of us were levels 68 and 73. I was 73, obviously. Now don’t get uppity about this, but Brian and I were in the Serpent guild. We were officers, which is a few ranks higher than an inductee.
“We weren’t bad people, but being in the Serpent guild gave you a certain respect. Not to mention that as officers, we got paid a healthy salary from the guild coffers. One day Brian and I were asked by the high command to deposit our CR in the guild bank. The account we used would be our own, but the guild would make a profit on the interest. In turn, they'd use that for weapon-forging and to buy scrolls.
“Not only that, but Herelius had decided that a large chunk of guild money would be dedicated to finding Necrolor. Brian and I counselled against this. Our dead leader was feared by everyone in the guild, and he had brought us nothing but war and pain. We thought that the guild should have taken his death as an opportunity to go in a new direction. Make peace treaties with the Halons, and set up trade routes with the Mercs. You know, bring some stability to the world. We could even hold an election to choose a new leader.
“I remember being in the room with Herelius when I said this to him. He gave me a smile, but it was so cold that it chilled my bones. He stood up and thanked me for the advice. I knew then that something was wrong.”
The dwarf stopped talking for a while, and I thought about what he had said. Everything I knew about the Serpents led me to believe they were bad people, but that couldn’t be completely true. Smoglar and Brian were my friends. Sure, Smoglar was a little aggressive sometimes, but he had good intentions. Most of the time, anyway.
Smoglar sat up straighter. “After the meeting, Brian and I went to the guild bank to deposit our CR.”
“Was the bank made of marble, by any chance?” I asked, remembering the vision I’d had of him lying dead on the floor.
Brian looked at me strangely. “How did you know?”
“He appraised me,” said Smoglar. “I knew you were doing it, Janus. Your skill needs to be a lot better before you can do it without people realising.”
I gave him a grim nod. “I’m sorry. I just had to know.”
“Had to know what?” asked Brian.
“If I could trust you.”
“And can you?”
I thought about it, and I knew the answer instantly. “Yes,” I said.
As the gully stayed silent around us and the ravens flapped back to their perching spots, Smoglar spoke.
“When we got to the bank we found Herelius, Battan555 and Dyzmal waiting in ambush. Battan cast a spell to hold us in place, while Dyzmal robbed us of everything in our inventory. After that, Herelius killed us.”
“He betrayed us,” said Brian. “And that’s why our path is entwined with yours.”
Quest Complete: Clear Raven Gully of the Beast
45 Exp Gained!
Items received:
Sneak Potion x1
Health Potion x10
Mana Potion x10
Chapter Eight
After dividing up the potions between the group, Brian marked Ambergrim Fortress on my map. I set off there alone, travelling with caution to make sure I didn’t run into trouble. We were in an area of the map where quests were few and loot was rare, and there weren’t many players around to take an interest in me. After walking for miles, the structure finally loomed in sight.
It was a grey stone edifice with a twenty-foot wall surrounding it. Four watchtowers marked the corners. Gaps were cut into the walls where, back when it was an occupied fortress, archers would rest their crossbows to help their aim. The building gave off an aura of gloom as if nothing living had crossed its threshold in decades.
I stopped short of the walls. The brigands would be in here and they would be expecting me, but not just yet. I took the sneak potion out of my bag. The silver liquid looked thick, like metal that had been melted down. When I unscrewed the cork a thin mist drifted out, and I smelled something bitter. I drank the potion down and then held my hands in front of me. My skin shimmered and then started to fade. I could still see my palms, but it seemed as if they were made of smoke. The effects wouldn’t last long, I knew, so I had to work quickly.
Ambergrim Fortress was home to the Ledbarrow clan of dwarves. Under the rule of Dhoruth Ledbarrow, the dwarves of Amerbrim became wealthy stone merchants. They dug minerals from a mine underneath the fortress and shaped them to be sold to nearby towns and cities. The stone under the fortress was imbued with durability spells from a mysterious source. It made mining difficult, but increased the market value of the finished product.
As the dwarves dug deeper, strange things happened. There were accidents in the mine, and several of the Ledbarrow clan perished. Advisors urged Dhoruth to stop mining, but the clan chief pushed them on.
Finally, they came to a sheet of rock with runes carved onto the surface. Gygorgian, a lore-master and advisor to Dhoruth, begged his ruler to halt mining while he deciphered the runes. Turned rash by greed, Dhoruth dismissed his closest friend. Just weeks after breaking the surface of the runes and digging deeper, the Dwarves awoke something from a deep slumber. None of them were ever seen again.
The only survivor was Gygorgian. It is said that he wanders the land trying to decipher those dark runes, and one day he will return to the fortress to avenge his fallen clan.
As I wandered through the deserted fortress I looked down at the floor. I saw stones crunch under my feet, but they made no sound. Everything around me was silent. Shadows covered the ruins, and I felt myself drawn to them, as if the sneak potion were urging me into the darkness. Sticking close to the wall, I went ahead with the plan.
On the way to the fortress I had stopped by Gospag Forest and spent time picking herbs. After using my Appraise Everything skill on each herb, I had finally found the one I sought. It was an herb called Paralys, and it had the effect of stunning those who ate it. I opened my bomb casings and mixed gunpowder with crushed herb, and soon I had a bag full of stun bombs.
I walked through the fortress planting the stun bombs in strategic locations. I stuffed them in holes in the crumbling walls and hid them next to doors. I couldn’t be sure where Dracol and Red Leroy were, but if I covered enough places with my bombs, I would get lucky.
Brian and Smoglar had stayed back at the hamlet for a while, but I knew they would be on their way now. Since the plan relied on stealth, it was agreed that I would come here alone and use the sneak potion. They would meet me soon, and then we’d draw out Dracol and Red Leroy. If all went to plan, one of my bombs would stun the brigands. At that point we’d strip them of their weapons, recover Smoglar’s stash, and then force Leroy to remove the map marker he had on me.
As I explored the ruins I couldn’t help but think of a familiar phrase. ‘The best laid plans of tinkers, giants and dwarfs….’ I forced it out of my mind. Self-doubt was a good thing in doses because it made you careful, but I didn’t need it today. I didn’t have long before the potion would wear off, and I had to move quickly.
I came to a room that looked like it served as a dining area for the people who once lived here. There was a long table that had collected so much dust and rubble that the wood was grey instead of brown. Lined against the walls were bulbous cooking cauldrons that hadn’t been used in years.
I was going to skip the dining room since it didn’t seem like the brigands had been here, when something caught my eye on one side of it. It was an object on the floor next to the wall and it was coated in dust, but it seemed worth investigating.
I crossed the room, making sure that my steps were silent. Every so often I glanced around, but I was sure nobody was here. I walked
over to the wall and kneeled down.
It was an axe. It was larger than Smoglar’s, and there were three sockets gouged into the handle. Two of them were empty, but the one at the top had an amber gem in it. I didn’t want to spend time appraising it yet, but it seemed perfect for the dwarf.
Item Received: Axe [Unidentified]
I heard voices from outside the room, and they were accompanied by the sound of footsteps. I knew that Brian and Smoglar weren’t here, and even if they were, they wouldn’t be so loud.
Tinker, Tailor, Giant, Dwarf ( LitRPG Series): Difficulty:Legendary Book 2 Page 7