Dullahans and Tablets

by Daniel Kolade

  “I want a rematch!” she grumbled.

  “What was the bet about this time?” Hyde asked.

  “The bet was that, Nitro wouldn’t exceed a certain amount of wins against you,” Abe explained. “Mila said, she’d get three wins, Remi thought one win, I was for two and Mari bet that she wouldn’t get a single one.”

  “Are you serious…” Hyde’s shoulders sunk.

  “Mari, I can’t believe you bet against me like that, whose side are you on!” Nitro complained. “C’mon, rematch. Draw your sword,” she said turning to Hyde.

  Why the hell was I so worried about facing her? Hyde thought, looking at the harmless girl.

  “So?” She eyed him.

  “Yeah, yeah, fine.” He accepted the rematch.

  It went on for some time, but Hyde just kept winning again and again. No official bets were made. The repeated rematches went on for a good while until Zora called it quits. In the end, Nitro walked away without a single win.

  “That was just painful to watch,” Abe said, taking a seat on the sofa, in the main office, where they’d met Hyde for the first time.

  “Tell me about it,” Zora said grimly.

  “Shut up! Next time, I’ll show you just how devastating the great Nitro can be!” she exclaimed.

  “If you keep at it like this, we might have to find a replacement Sage,” Remi whispered.

  “What! You wouldn’t… right?” Nitro wrinkled her brows and turned to Mila. “Right?”

  “Of course not,” Mila assured her.

  Nitro turned back to Remi and scowled as he sat down with a rather unchanged expression, however hints of a smile were visible in his eyes.

  “Anyway, Hyde,” Zora began. “Now that you’ve had some experience with some of the classes, I’ll explain a few things,” she said, sitting on the desk overlooking the two sofas.

  “Sure thing,” Hyde sat up attentive on one of the sofas next to Remi and Mari.

  “First off, each and every class has very distinct playstyles with very different strengths. It might be obvious, but every class has its own advantages and disadvantages in regard to the other classes. For example, an Architect excels at ranged combat, when fairing against a Dragoon, the advantage becomes much, much clearer.

  “At the same time, if the Dragoon was to get in close and personal, the Architect would no longer have the upper hand and the scales would tilt in favour of the Dragoon,

  “There is obviously counterplay on both ends, so one won’t always best the other even with an advantage. Anyway, this brings us to Roles. Roles are exactly what you think they are. Basically, the role one plays in combat. Frontliners, Backliners—again as you probably expect, the brawnier classes that excel in close combat are the frontliners, while the others are the latter.”

  “That makes sense,” Hyde nodded.

  “Here’s where it starts to become slightly more complicated. The combat system is broken up into three major sections with minor deviations. Damage, Support and Control. Basically one will fit into one of these categories, usually dipping or helping out in a second or third category as well.”

  “I take it, Dragoons fit into Damage then?”

  “On first glance, yes, but not necessarily. Dragoons have an array of skills that allow them to primarily fit into potentially all three categories, it’s just about what skills are equipped.”

  “Okay…” He frowned, still a little unsure.

  “This game system is designed to be played both as a solo player, to a certain extent, and as a group of players, which is the reason why Healing Skills exist.

  “So these categories can sort of melt into each other. Skills are then your bread and butter of combat. Some are based on the weapon that is equipped, others provide new mechanics, like Parry, and some simply just change bad situations into good ones—”

  “Hey, is there a Skill that allows one to negate an AoE spell like Hyde did when he blocked the swords?” Mila asked, cutting into the conversation.

  “Wait—what’s AoE mean?” Hyde asked.

  “Area of Effect,” Remi noted.

  “What he used wasn’t a Skill or rather it was an extension of one,” Zora explained.

  “An extension?” Nitro frowned.

  “It means he used a Skill in an unorthodox way,” Mari added.

  “Exactly,” Zora nodded.

  “But which skill and how?” Mila cocked her head to the side.

  “It’s called Perfect Parry, it’s a mechanic that awards skillful play to melee fighters when faced with ranged combat,” Abe explained.

  “Basically, any projectile-based attack can be negated with a perfectly timed Parry,” Zora revealed.

  “And what a surprise that Abe knew all about this system exploit…” Remi shook his head.

  “It’s not an exploit!” Abe retorted.

  “That was actually pretty cool, Hyde,” Mila smiled.

  “Oh—thank you, but honestly, I had no idea that Skill could be used like that,” Hyde said, rubbing the back of his neck.

  “That’s why it’s impressive. Not many people make that link,” Zora smiled, looking down at her Tablet. “Damn, it’s getting late, we’re going to have to wrap this up, we’ll continue later.”

  “Okay, what’s happening now?” Hyde asked.

  “You’re going to participate in your first operation,” Zora’s smile deepened.

  “Which means what exactly?” He narrowed his eyes.

  “This is a way of furthering your training and helping you get up to speed with the different systems in place in this world. Consider this a simple field exercise,” her smile grew mischievous.

  “We haven’t done Night Owl in a while, have we?” Remi said.

  “Now that you mention it, we haven’t,” Abe added.

  “And that’s exactly why this is the perfect time to do Night Owl,” Zora announced.

  Night Owl. Hyde thought, imaging a rather disturbing looking bird.

  “Night Owl is what we call this operation. Quite simply we will be borrowing money from the NPCs when they’re not looking,” Zora explained.

  “Wait—what? Aren’t you stealing?” Hyde exclaimed. “No matter how you slice that, it’s wrong! I can’t believe this! You’re just a bunch of assholes with weapons prancing around with a noble cause!”

  “That’s not quite right,” Abe smiled.

  “How so?” Hyde turned to him.

  “Because it’s not the policy of The Endangered Blinking Spiders to steal from actual players,” Abe explained.

  “Can things be endangered in this world?” Mila asked.

  “Doubt it, I’m sure they’ll respawn at some point.” Remi noted.

  “Respawn—whatever, what’s the difference? Stealing is stealing!” Hyde argued.

  “It’s borrowing,” Zora clarified.

  “No it’s not!”

  “What we take doesn’t affect their lives in the slightest, they get reimbursed at the end of every day, so they wouldn’t even notice if we robbed them blind.”

  “Wait, really?”

  “So in some sense, we’ll be sharing a bit of their NPC privileges with our guild,” Zora explained. “Anyway, this is the plan: Hyde, you’re going to be with Remi and Abe, they’ll show you how things work around here, and don’t forget to ask them if you have any questions. Mila, you’re with me as usual, we’ll be offering recon support.”

  “Wait, you’re not coming with us?”

  “No, you three will be the ones doing the actual stealing.”

  “I can’t believe we’re actually doing this…” Hyde muttered, crouching behind Remi.

  “If you keep complaining like this, we’ll be spotted before we get anywhere near the stash,” Remi said, solemnly.

  “Getting caught by the city guards is something you really don’t want to happen,” Abe whispered, ducking behind Hyde.

  “Why, what happens then?” Hyde looked over his shoulder.

  “Either you pay a ridiculo
usly expensive fine or worse…” Abe murmured.

  “Worse?” Hyde turned back, his feet creaking on the wooden floor. For a second the darkness grew thicker and the streetlights could no longer penetrate the windows.

  “Going up against the city guards in a head-to-head fight is suicide and if you don’t pay the fine, that’s what happens,” Abe continued.

  “Okay… I get it now, don’t get caught no matter what,” Hyde nodded.

  “Exactly,” Remi silently stepped across the the wooden flooring. “Now, c’mon let’s get moving.” He led them down a dark, silent hall.

  They tiptoed through the small building doing their utmost to not wake the sleeping NPC in the room on the second floor.

  They moved almost silently across the narrow hallways, squinting through the darkness. The shaded furniture only featured black silhouettes and very few lighter shades because of the dim streetlights standing along the shopping district street.

  “Okay, now Hyde, we’re finally here—” Remi began.

  “Here—where?” Hyde frowned.

  “We’re at the chest,” Abe smiled.

  “Chest?” Hyde wrinkled his brows.

  “The money stash, Hyde,” Remi whispered.

  “Oh okay,” Hyde nodded.

  “Now, this is very important,” Remi said. “The moment we open that box, it makes a very distinctive sound and that sound will inevitably alert nearby NPCs, mainly the one owning the shop and the city guards.”

  “Oh, so then it becomes some sort of time-attack to get out?” Hyde asked.

  “Exactly, you catch on pretty fast,” Abe smiled. “Are you sure you haven’t done this before?”

  “I haven’t…” Hyde looked over his shoulder, or at least I hope I haven’t.

  “Anyway, so the moment we open it, we need to silently leave this building,” Remi noted.

  “Okay, how do we get out? Same way we got in?”

  “Yep, we’ll be leaving through the window where the NPC’s sleeping,” Abe smirked.

  “And how exactly are we going to do that? Aren’t they going to wake up?” Hyde frowned.

  “You’re right, they’ll be awake, but we’ll find a way around it, just stay close and follow my lead, okay?” Remi turned to him waiting for assertion.

  “Okay, got it.” Hyde nodded.

  “Zora, how does it look out there?” Remi said looking down at his tablet. On the display was something that resembled a calling icon.

  “It looks pretty good from here… or, wait a moment, before you open it,” Zora said, speaking through her own tablet as she lay down next to Mila, who used her tablet like a pair of binoculars. They sat atop one of the taller buildings overlooking the shopping district.

  “Okay,” Remi whispered, waiting for the command.

  A distinctive city guard lamp floated by the window, barely rivalling the light of the streetlamps. When the light was far enough and the slow footsteps had faded away, Zora’s command came. “Go!”

  Remi opened the box and a loud cashier sound echoed from it as he swung it open.

  “Wow, so that’s it,” Hyde said, watching Remi unload the contents and store it in his inventory.

  “Time to go,” Abe grinned and led them back through the narrow hallway and up the stairs that seemed so foreboding.

  They scurried up the stairs without a sound and now at the peak of the staircase, the disturbed NPC got out of bed. Abe was the first to rush from the staircase into a nearby room, peeking into the dark hallway and into the NPC’s room on the other side. The NPC stood up ready to head out and check the stashes. “Stay,” he gestured at Hyde.

  Although, he had clearly signalled, his important message was never received, for the recipient was far too busy gazing out into the corridor trying to see any signs of movements. From his side, there was nothing, not even a glimmer of light, but from Abe’s side, it was obvious.

  Hyde gently extended out into the hallway, leaving the peak of the staircase and Remi behind. However, midway to his destination, he saw it. The light gleamed into the dark corridor, erasing all signs of shade.

  Frozen in his guilty stance, the glimmer of the lamp, held by the NPC, sprinted across the walls. Soon the entire corridor was lit and the light seemed impossibly bright. The rays touching Hyde’s body were so hot.

  Don’t get caught. The one and most important rule was about to be broken.

  Damn.

  CHAPTER 6

  Don’t get caught. The words zapped in front of his eyes. The light, revealing what was once obscure, almost hurt on Hyde’s skin. His heart stopped and every strand of hair on his body stood completely erect. Cold sweat broke out faster than ever before.

  Shit. He thought, not knowing where to go or where to hide. The arm holding the lamp extended past the doorway and a foot followed. It’s over.

  That’s what he thought, until Remi yanked him back.

  “What was that?” The man holding the lamp whispered, rushing out into the hallway.

  Abe turned in, hiding himself from the light. Hyde and Remi scrambled down the stairs, trying their bests not to make a sound but it was impossible. Hyde creaked his way down the wooden staircase, followed by the man, and the candle light looking for intruders.

  “Shhh…” Remi put a finger to his lips as he hid under the staircase with Hyde in tow.

  The man arrived on the ground level, quickly illuminating everything with his lamp. He held it up moving to the places he thought the intruders would go. However, he found nothing. He cautiously walked, knowing that they were somewhere, little did he know that one glance under the stairs would be sufficient. He continued into one of the rooms.

  “C’mon,” Remi whispered and Hyde followed. They tiptoed their way back up the staircase in silence, until Hyde’s foot creaked on one of the steps.

  Right then all that stealthy business was thrown out of the window.

  The man scrambled into action, running back to the stairs.

  Remi and Hyde did the same, dashing up the staircase, turning the next corner and running into the man’s room where they’d entered from.

  This was it, the heart pounding moment where it was all or nothing. The thumps of steps and pulses quaked against their ear drums.

  Under the veil of night, the lively cat and mouse game played out.

  The moment Abe saw Hyde and Remi enter, he jumped onto the sill and out to the next building. He latched on in a hurry and just as fast raced up while Remi and Hyde were right behind him.

  The burning rays of light and its revealing glare peered into the room, clearing it of the shadows. But underneath those shades was nothing but stillness. The same one that he’d fallen asleep and woken up to.

  The trio of nearly caught thieves, climbed up onto the roof of the building next door.

  “That was close,” Hyde whispered, still panting while his nerves calmed.

  “Yeah,” Remi added, sitting next to him.

  “Not bad for your first time,” Abe smiled.

  “Really, we almost got caught,” Hyde raised his brows.

  “And that’s all that matters,” Remi nodded.

  “Yeah, there’s a reason Mari and Nitro are not here with us,” Abe shrugged.

  “They got caught?” Hyde asked.

  “In a heartbeat. The fine was not fun,” Abe looked with a pitiful smile.

  “Because of that Zora refuses to give them another chance,” Remi noted.

  “Harsh—” Hyde began.

  “How’d it go?” Zora’s voice came from Remi’s tablet.

  “A little close, but we still made it,” Remi replied.

  “Good, get ready for the next one, you’ll have an opening in a minute.” she said.

  “So who wants some tea when we get back—what! What do mean next one?” Hyde muttered.

  “Did you really think that was it?” Remi looked at him, unimpressed.

  “I don’t know, maybe…”

  “Hyde, we’re going to be robbing the
entire shopping district blind,” Abe smirked.

  “WHAT!” Hyde screamed.

  “Down!” Remi sent him to the ground, knowing what was going to happen next.

  And without fail, the man, who had just been robbed looked out of the window. But what he saw was just the silhouette of the dark neighbouring buildings and the starry night sky.

  “What’s happening?” Zora said, watching them from another roof-top.

  “Hyde almost got us caught,” Remi noted.

  “But we’re still good, don’t worry,” Abe added.

  “Are you guys serious?” Hyde complained, getting back up onto his feet.

  “Of course,” Remi replied.

  “C’mon, get ready for the jump in three—” Zora began.

  “I can’t believe you guys are doing this,” Hyde stood behind Remi at the edge of the roof.

  “Jump!” Zora’s voice came, and Remi quickly leapt off.

  “What are you talking about Hyde, we’re doing this together,” Abe said, giving Hyde a strong enough nudge to send him off the building.

  Just before he fell, he looked back at Abe and saw that usual smug expression of his. I can’t believe this. Hyde thought and took out his paraglider and followed Remi’s lead across the shopping district with Abe at his rear.

  When they landed in the alleyway opposite to where they’d jumped from, Hyde said, “Hey, why did we fly all the way here instead of just jumping into the neighbours?”

  “Because if you rob one person, everyone around will be on high alert, that includes the guards,” Remi explained, while they lurked through the shadows turning some corners and staying low.

  “Which is why we’ve got to mix it up, and do rob rotations,” Abe added.

  “Okay, that makes sense—” Hyde nodded.

  “This is the building,” Remi said, stopping at a wall.

  Hyde looked up at the silhouette of the window. That was their entry point. Without a shred of hesitation, Remi and Abe had already started climbing the building to get inside. Before long, Hyde followed and just like that a string of robberies took place that night—from close calls to clean getaways. Some were huge hauls, others minor, most, somewhere in between. Those served as a valuable lesson for the newest member in the gang of thieves.

  “I can’t believe you guys made me a thief!” Hyde muttered, when they returned to the main office in the guildhall.