“Guess we head to Hillside,” he said as everyone gathered around. “Repair, sell, craft, and pick our Tier 2 skills.”
“Then it’s off to another adventure,” Jimmy mused. “Hopefully, there’s no crazy glitches this time. I’m already having enough nightmares as it is.”
They transported back to Hillside and immediately set off for their trainers. Bishop stepped into the darkened room and rushed up to the wall displaying his skills. He nearly had enough Shards to upgrade two skills, but fell just ten Shards short. A few more dead Demons and he’d be right back here. For now, he studied his choices with glee. All during the dungeon, he had debated which skill he wanted to change and finally decided on Penetrating Shot. The Tier 2 option allowed him to place a drain on the armor, acting like a bleed, and continued to do damage for ten seconds. That was a long time during a fight. He selected it and smiled to see it change on the wall.
“Perfect.” He stared at the other options and knew his next choice would be increased range on his Stunning Blow. Then he’d have three shots with farther range and be able to keep his distance from the fighting. It made it easier to see the battle before him and direct others so less people died.
Back outside, he sold the useless items from his bags and took the time to check and see if there was any material he could use for new gear, or a new bow. His current weapon was still pretty decent, but monsters were only going to get tougher the farther east they went, and having something that dealt extra damage to Demons might not be a bad idea.
He searched through the Auction House and came across a rare item he hadn’t seen yet that another player managed to mine from deep in the mountains.
“Fire Brimstone Gemstone,” he said, reading over the name. “What?”
He was wrong, it hadn’t come from the mountains. It had come from Vorgan itself! How the player had managed to mine it while they were in there completing a dungeon was impressive, and was probably why they were asking nearly fifty gold for a single one. Bishop had the money and he didn’t hesitate long before he purchased it. He checked his mailbox and withdrew the item before heading to the worktable to craft a new bow.
He had plenty of wood and other materials which he laid out on the table before him. He arranged the pieces the way Calista showed him and then added the rare gemstone to the pile. If this worked right, the gemstone would add fire power to any fire abilities, but also amp up the damage against Demonkind by almost twenty percent. It was a hell of a chunk when most of the bad guys he faced lately were Demons. He began the crafting process and held his breath as he watched the elements begin to glow and come together on the table before him.
The light grew so bright it blinded him, but it wasn’t the typical blue or white; the items on the table glowed a fierce red, and there was a sharp crack that made him jump backwards and others around him yelp in alarm.
When the light dimmed and he could see again, his jaw dropped at the beautifully crafted bow resting on the table. Red power crackled across the obsidian wood. He ran his fingers along it and it reached up to caress his hand before settling back into its ceaseless moving. The string was strong when he drew back on it and, when he checked the stats, he couldn’t believe how much agility the bow came with, along with the damage range it could inflict now.
“Holy cow,” he whispered and stepped back to go and test it out on a training dummy.
A few players who had watched him craft the bow stood by to stare as he drew back with a simple Instant Shot and fired. The shot hit the dummy for a quarter of its health. Bishop grinned, but wanted to try a Fiery Arrow, which was now his Explosive Arrow. He’d seen the damage it did to Kevork and thought he knew what to expect. But when he unleashed the arrow, the training dummy exploded completely, landing in bits and pieces around where it stood. The dummy maybe had half the normal health of a Demon and not nearly as much as a Demon Lord, but this bow could hit damn hard.
With it, Bishop was ready for anything. He slung the bow over his body and casually strolled away from the shocked crowd, messaging his guild to let them know he’d see them at the tavern.
He was enjoying an ale, watching the NPCs interact with the other players and each other, when the chair across from him scraped backwards and Tavin sat down, staring at him. “Tavin,” he said, and he lifted his mug in greeting.
“Bishop, I hear you’ve killed Kevork. Nicely done.”
“Yes, he’s dead. Dead and gone, dead, dead, and dead.”
She frowned. “You do not sound like yourself.”
“Eh, I’m just ready to keep this killing machine going. Take out some more bad guys and get to Valenastrious.” He took a long drink. “Everything will be better once she’s dead.”
“You have a long ways to go before you can reach her,” Tavin said. “And you won’t be able to simply kill her. She’s the Demon Queen of Vorgan and, though you may have defeated her legions in the south, she has an army in Vorgan waiting to break through to the surface. All she needs is a chance.” She leaned closer and added, “And you are giving her that chance.”
Bishop paused, his mug halfway to his mouth. “I’m doing no such thing.”
“What are you doing, right now Bishop? And don’t lie to me,” she seethed. “Your friends might be fooled, but you cannot fool me.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m fighting, aren’t I? I’m killing Demons, and freeing people, and trying to find a way to stop Godfrey.”
“Are you really? Or have you forgotten what’s really happening in this world runs deeper than a simple game,” she snapped, slamming her palm on the table. Bishop looked around, but no one paid any attention to them. “You think she will leave you alone forever?”
Bishop straightened. “I haven’t heard her voice in days, haven’t seen her in longer.”
“Liar.”
He stiffened in his seat, biting his tongue. How could she know he heard the laughter last night in his room? It wasn’t possible. She was part of this game and had no knowledge of what happened outside the computer server. Right?
His face wrinkled as he wondered suddenly what else those servers were hooked into. The entire facility was one giant Smart Building, but Dennis wouldn’t connect it all together, would he?
“You’re pale, Bishop. Perhaps you need something to eat to go along with your ale.”
He set his mug aside. “No, no, I’m going to be leaving as soon as the rest of the guild arrives,” he said, not meeting her accusing gaze. “We have to try and get through the next territory quickly so we can go after Bronson. He’s missing you know.”
“Yes, Jinx.” Her lip curled in anger and Bishop felt it wash over him. “We have dealt with him before. He is not like the other Demon Lords; he’s far worse.”
“So Winston said.”
“You’d do well to heed his words, and mine.” She stood and Bishop inwardly breathed a sigh of relief. “If you lose heart, Bishop, it’s not only yourself you will hurt in the end. Everyone in this world is connected in one way or another. They might not know it, but they’re depending on you to see this through to the very end.”
“And how is it going to end?” he asked, before he could stop himself.
She rested her hands on the table, not meeting his gaze as she said, “That all depends on you and what outcome you want. Do you truly want to see Samar and those you care about saved?”
“Of course I do. That’s why I’m a hero, isn’t it?”
Her brow arched and her intense stare pierced right through him. “Are you?” Then she turned and walked away, disappearing out the front doors, leaving Bishop to wallow in his mug of ale and wonder if what just happened actually happened, or if it was all in his head.
Not wanting to sit in there any longer, he headed outside to stare at the crowd of players that now filled Hillside. Nearly everyone had made it to this point at least and it had become a busy hub of excitement. He wandered the streets, checking if there were any places Calista mi
ght be able to open a second shop since he couldn’t get back to Weston to help her with the other one.
He was just looking up the price for one not too far from the tavern when he heard Jimmy yell out his name. He waved and Jimmy, Maverick, and Calista joined him. “Get your stuff upgraded?”
“Yeah, all set…wow, is that a new bow?” Calista held out her hands, a look of awe on her face.
Bishop smiled and handed it over. “Yeah, just crafted it. What do you think, too much?”
She hefted it in her hands, then drew back on the string. No arrow appeared since she had no bow skills, but she nodded in approval and tapped it to bring up the stats. “How did you get these stats?”
“Found a new material in the Auction House,” he told her. “A Fire Brimstone Gemstone?”
“A what? From where?”
“Vorgan. Apparently, someone did some mining in the Demon world and came back with that, so I bought and I used it. Pretty sweet, right?”
“I’d say it’s more than sweet. You’re going to be kicking some major Demon butt with this thing.” She handed it back. “Why are you looking at an empty shop?”
He slung his bow back over his body as he said, “Wondering if you’d be up to moving your shop here. Seems to be a decent amount of traffic and I can’t help you back in Weston, at least not while Godfrey has a price on my head. You like this place?”
“Does it have a forge in the back like the other one?”
They looked up the information on the shop and saw how much it cost.
“After a few more major quest chains, I might be able to afford it,” she finally said. “It is busier here these days than Weston.”
“Great. Then as soon as we can afford it, we’ll move you here and set up a new shop.”
A message appeared in his view and he opened it. The guild waited for him outside the tavern.
“Looks like we’re ready to continue onwards,” he announced. “To our next great adventure!”
Jimmy cheered with him and Maverick tapped her spear annoyed on the ground. “Let’s get this circus on the road. What do you think we’re going to see in the next territory?”
“As long as there’s nothing with tentacles, I’ll be fine,” Calista murmured with a shudder.
Bishop didn’t blame her. That incident had left marks on all of them. Quickly, he messaged Trajan back to say they were on their way and to gather everyone at the gate. They would leave from there, take a ride to Chesterville, and hit the road leading east.
Bishop was chatting with Jimmy, forgetting all about seeing Tavin, when something made him turn to the right. He flinched when he saw Valenastrious’ grinning face staring back at him from a mirror. When he whipped around, though, she was gone.
“Bishop?” Calista asked. “You alright?”
“Yeah, yeah, thought I saw something.” Then, realizing what he just said, he forced a laugh and added, “Someone I knew is what I meant. Never mind. Let’s go.”
Calista and Maverick exchanged a glance he didn’t miss, but he picked up the pace, needing to get away from Hillside and back into the thick of fighting. He’d need an excuse to go and see Dennis soon, so he could refill his flask. Seeing Tavin and Valen in the same short span of time told him the amount of booze he drank wasn’t working as nearly as well as it had before. He risked being found out if he drank too much, but he didn’t want to go back to the craziness that drove him to drinking in the first place. He wanted to keep the voices out, keep the hallucinations at bay, and play this game.
Because that’s all it was. It was just a game.
Chapter 13
“I hate swamps!” Benji yelled as his boots sunk into the murky grime again. They suctioned when he tried to pull them out and he lost one. “Damn it! This is a joke, right?”
Maverick had to agree. She had shifted to beast form a while back when she kept getting her own boots stuck too and had to carry her spear over her head to stop it from getting covered in slime and sludge. They had tried to stay on the main road, but it was washed out by what the locals in a tiny hub of huts said was a freak rainstorm that lasted days on end. She reached a patch of grass and shifted back.
“Are we close yet?” she asked, pulling up her map.
They’d picked up several quests to explore the region and aid those also afflicted by the heavy rains, along with investigating the source of some strange lights towards the south. The group had also split up again. They had all agreed it was too easy walking around in a group their size just to do normal quests, and were trying to reach the halfway point through the territory where they’d meet up again.
“Should be beyond that ridge there,” Bishop said pointing.
Maverick turned in the direction he was showing. “At least, it’s uphill. Might not be so bad.”
“Or it could be a giant mudslide,” Benji yelped as he tugged his boot free and nearly fell back into the water and muck if Calista hadn’t grabbed his robes by the front. “Thanks.”
“Hey, no one wants to hear you bitching about muddy robes,” she said grinning.
“I don’t like mud.”
“It’s a game, which means you’re not really covered in mud, remember?” Jimmy said, scooping up a handful and threatening to chuck it at Benji.
“Feels like it and that’s bad enough.”
Bishop was still checking the map when he stood beside Maverick. “There might be another village up ahead, too. I can’t tell from the map.”
Despite the dreary landscape and the always overcast sky that was starting to dampen everyone’s spirits and make them all snip at each other, Bishop was focused on their quests and happy. He was covered head to toe in grime, but he was damned happy and Maverick didn’t like it at all. She didn’t want anyone to be in a pissy mood, but there was something off about the way he grinned, how he held himself. Every now and again, she caught him starting to giggle then shaking his head to stop himself and look around as if worried they’d notice.
And notice she did, along with Calista who kept eyeing the back of his head like she wanted to pin him to a tree and figure out what was up with him. If he was hearing voices again, or seeing things, he needed to tell them so they could be aware of the situation. Not that Maverick expected him to be happy if the Demon Queen was torturing him again.
Bishop moved on ahead, and Maverick stayed behind and nudged Calista when she passed. The woman stopped and, once the others were well out of earshot, she whispered, “Have you asked him what’s going on?”
Calista sighed. “I tried the other day, but he says he’s fine.”
“You don’t believe him.”
“No, no I don’t. He says he’s just happy because the game seems to be treating him like any other player again. No voices, no weird visits by NPCs, but…no, I don’t know.”
They started forward again through the mud. “You don’t think he’s drinking again, do you?”
“Where would he get it from?”
“So the thought has crossed your mind.”
Calista cringed. “A few times, but I’ve checked the cafeteria. They don’t keep any booze where someone could easily get it, and we don’t get any incoming mail or packages. If he’s drinking, he’s doing one hell of a job finding something to drink.”
“He won’t tell us if he is.”
“I doubt it. He’s too worried about hurting you all again. It tore him up the first time he came clean about his past and why he was here to begin with,” she said quietly.
“But all that’s behind him, so why start drinking now?”
“Unless it’s what’s keeping the voices away,” Calista whispered and paused. “Maybe that’s why he’s doing it, if he is? This game is screwing with his head; the alcohol could be what’s stopping it from getting to him.”
“And if that’s the case, the problem isn’t solved and he’s putting himself and all of us at risk.” Maverick hung her head. “Damn it. We have to figure this out.”
“I haven�
�t smelt it on him, ever.”
Maverick tapped her spear in the ground until it got stuck and, with a curse, she lifted it over her head again. “What if we talked to Dennis?”
Calista tilted her head back and forth as she mulled over the idea. “And tell him what exactly?”
“Tell him we’re worried Bishop is doing something that could potentially harm himself.”
“And watch as he pulls Bishop from the game? He’ll hate us if he finds out it’s us.”
“Better that than watching this game tear him apart from the inside out.”
Calista nodded in agreement, chewing her bottom lip. “You ever worry the game could somehow physically start hurting us, too? Because we’re with him?”
Maverick shrugged. “I’d like to say no, but it does seem to glitch more when he’s around. That dungeon shouldn’t have happened that way, and even Dennis said he never had an issue that massive when they were running through the game before.”
Bishop was a walking hazard, but Maverick wasn’t about to leave him out to dry. She’d do whatever she had to do to get him back on track, and if that meant forcing him to talk to Dennis and making him admit he was drinking to drive out the game’s effects on him, then so be it.
“I say we give it until we hit the next dungeon and see how he is by then. If it gets worse before then though,” she added, “I’m talking to Dennis with or without you.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll do some snooping of my own if I have to.”
“You two coming or what?” Jimmy called back. “We found another village!”
“Yeah we’re coming,” Maverick hollered back. “Guess it’s show time.” She shifted back into beast form and, with Calista, hurried to catch up with the others; Bishop appearing none the wiser that they were planning a way to save him from himself.
***
Arthur reached out a hand, but Jimmy dragged him backwards away from the cave opening. “What? I think it’s a portal.”
“Probably one that leads to Vorgan. Let’s not go to the Demon world right now.”
The Dead Fortress: A LitRPG Epic (World of Samar Book 3) Page 17