Kenjan cocked his head, undisguised hope in his eyes. “Is this related to the resurrections you mentioned?”
Devon nodded. “I can’t promise anything, except that I’ll try my best.” She ran her eyes over the crowd. “I’ll be taking Dorden, Heldi, Greel, and Bayle.” It would be just like old times, just her and her NPC followers out on a mission. She needed that right now because she needed to be reminded that it was the people of Stonehaven that mattered. Buildings could be replaced.
“And as for Stonehaven?” Jeremy asked.
“That’s exactly what I was going to cover next. We can’t win Stonehaven back. We can’t even come close given our current situation.” She ran her eyes over the group then gestured toward Jeremy. “I recently handed over some of the management of the base battle to Jeremy. While I’m away, he’ll continue to hold that responsibility. Please take his orders as if they were my own.”
She waited as the gathered leaders shifted, the information settling in and becoming part of the new order. “Jeremy, I want you to stop organizing attacks of any sort through the shrine. It’s a waste of resources. From now until I return from Vulture’s Rift, I want you to focus on two priorities. We need groups of players attacking the demons from the edges, but only picking fights we can win. This is about gaining experience and levels and nothing else. That’s one priority. The other is more important. Demons are quarrying glass blocks from the remains of the player camp. They’re using them to build a structure that will obliterate any chance we have of surviving. However you see fit, I need that supply chain disrupted. Get with Hazel for a map update that will show the route where they’re transporting the blocks.”
A hush fell over the gathering until finally, Hazel raised a hand. “Sorry, Mayor Devon, but just so I understand, you’re saying we give Stonehaven up?”
It hurt, like a fist to the ribs to hear it stated so plainly, but Devon nodded. “That’s what I’m saying.”
Chapter Thirty-One
“HEY, SO ABOUT those priorities…”
Devon stopped at the sound of Jeremy’s voice and turned while waiting for him to catch up. She’d been walking with the group of NPCs she’d chosen for the escort quest, and when Jeremy reached to them, she nodded to Dorden. “I’ll meet you in the Veian Temple in an hour. Grab what you’ll need for two or three days out, okay?
“Aye, lass, sounds good,” Dorden said, nudging Heldi with his elbow. “We’ll just say goodbye to our wee lad and grab some trail rations.”
Devon waited until the group, including King Kenjan, had moved out of earshot, then turned back to Jeremy. “They’re putting on brave faces, but they can’t be taking the decision to abandon Stonehaven very well. I figured we could at least spare them from listening to us talk about it.”
Jeremy laid a hand on her shoulder, and Devon tried not to jerk in surprise. He wasn’t usually the touchy-feely type. “It was totally the right call, you know. I’m guessing it’s hard on you, too.”
“Yeah, you could say that.”
“But that’s not actually what I wanted to talk about. It’s about the new agenda.”
“Oh?” Devon shifted her weight to her other hip. “Do you have another suggestion?”
As he dropped his hand from her shoulder, a small wrinkle formed in his brow, just barely peeking out from his fringe of perfectly styled hair. “You know the former player camp is clearly visible from the walls of Stonehaven.”
“Yeah, I know.”
“That’s what I’m saying.”
“Huh?”
“I know you know, so that’s why I can’t quite figure out why you want to attack the supply line. Stonehaven’s walls give a good view of the savanna pretty much all the way to the swamp. But since the bulk of the demon forces are centered in and around Stonehaven, why go for the supplies? Why not attack the rear installation? The ziggurat or whatever.”
Right. She hadn’t explained the conditions surrounding the ziggurat. “Sorry. I forgot to mention that there’s a fear aura surrounding the place, and the guards are like ten levels higher than us.”
“Oh,” Jeremy said with a grimace.
“Yeah, exactly.”
He tugged at his velvet cape as if thinking. “But it’s not actually critical that we attack near where the player camp was, right? It would be okay if we, say, tried to disrupt the supply inside the swamp where their leaders can’t see us in action? I mean, no reason to try to provoke a whole demon army into attacking our little raid parties, right?”
Devon smirked. “Yes, please disrupt the construction in the least-idiotic way possible.”
Jeremy laughed. “Okay. Don’t be an idiot. Got it. Thanks, Dev. I figured you had a reason for staying away from the ziggurat. Just wasn’t sure what it was.”
For a moment, the space between them felt like it had during the better times in Avatharn Online. Jeremy could be an ass, and the new troubadour class certainly hadn’t made him less annoying, but there was a reason they’d grouped together for so long, the relationship spanning different game worlds.
“You know, I really appreciate your help here,” she said. “The number of things I’m juggling had just gotten to be too much. And the stakes are too high for me to fail by trying to do it all myself.”
Jeremy seemed to have been on the verge of saying something, but he shook his head as if reconsidering. “It’s a ton of pressure, Dev. Not sure how you’ve held up this long, actually. But for what it’s worth, I think you’ve done a crazy good job. I’m just glad I can help out.”
“Thanks, Jeremy,” she said. “I should have started leaning on you guys for help sooner. Anyway, speaking of responsibilities, I better get ready to head into the Skargills.”
Again his brow wrinkled, but he once again seemed to shake off the thought. He doffed his hat and gave a ridiculous bow. “Be safe,” he said before hurrying off.
Chapter Thirty-Two
HOLY SHIT. OKAY. Yes. Hailey—or Hailey’s avatar anyway—was still playing Relic Online.
Hidden in the shadows of the pillars making up the outer boundary of the Veian Temple, Emerson watched as the woman—or maybe it was a man in control of her character now, he had no way to know—walked across Temple Square with Owen. Talk about bold…if Emerson had stolen hardware from a dead woman’s skull, implanted it in his own, and then taken over her online identity, he certainly wouldn’t be hanging out with her former friends. That was just begging to be unmasked as a fraud.
But this mystery hacker didn’t seem worried; they must have spent a hell of a lot of time observing Hailey to be able to slip into her identity this way. Which was actually a clue as to their real identity when he thought about it. It seemed almost certain that the perpetrator was one of the subscribers to the woman’s livestreaming channel.
Emerson made a mental note to grab the list of subscribers—he could probably use his E-Squared credentials to get the streaming service to send him the full data dump. And actually, he should probably check to see whether the identity thief had taken over the stream or whether they’d shut it down.
But for now, he had the opportunity to watch the thieving scum in action. Fumbling through his interface, Emerson found the controls to start recording video of his session. It might be important if this went to court.
Hailey and Owen stopped near the base of the marble steps leading up to the temple proper, then their faces went blank, their eyes distant, as they started examining their user interfaces.
Emerson crept closer, hugging the pillars. He scanned his list of abilities just in case he had something to help him eavesdrop, but the Frenzy class was more focused on frontal assaults than subterfuge. Still, he managed to pick up fragments of their conversation. They seemed to be looking through details about Ishildar and discussing whether they might be of use against the demons.
Emerson shook his head. It wasn’t like he’d hoped that there would be a flashing hacker icon over Hailey’s head
or anything, but the thief’s ability to fit in wasn’t making this any easier.
He sighed. The truth was, the hacker theory was partially concocted out of self-preservation. Hailey Landers had been one of his star players, specifically recruited to help him train Veia into making clever content. If she’d willingly handed over her implants and identity once she found out she was dying, it wasn’t exactly his fault, but it didn’t say great things about his ability to judge character either.
He needed to alert E-Squared and the hardware company, Entwined, about the situation. But first, he wanted to gather more information. Because what if—okay, this was just occurring to him now, and maybe he should have thought of it earlier—what if it was her real-life details that had been “hacked”? As in, what if someone, a rival gamer or something, was trying to screw up her life by somehow tripping alerts to suspend her bank account and by sending a fake death letter to her employer? If Emerson reported her character as online after her supposed death, he could just be falling into this hacker’s trap.
Pulling up an external window, he set up a task to scan for and analyze network traffic associated with Hailey’s character. If his first theory were the true one—that Hailey had passed away and someone had stolen her game access, the hacker would almost certainly be using tricks to disguise the real-world origin of their network connection. That was cybercrime 101. But Emerson was exceedingly confident in his ability to divine patterns from what might seem to be random data. A deep analysis of the traffic was sure to tell him something.
Once the scan was configured, he stepped out from the shadows and descended the steps.
“Hey,” he said. “Sounds like you’re digging into Ishildar’s details? Anything I can help with?”
Hailey’s eyes went wide for just a fraction of a second. If he hadn’t been looking for micro-expressions, he wouldn’t have noticed it. But Emerson smiled, knowing he’d caught the emotional tell on camera. So yeah, theory number one was looking pretty solid. He wasn’t too bad at this detective stuff.
Tragic circumstances notwithstanding, this investigation might actually be kind of fun.
Chapter Thirty-Three
STONE LEAVES, CHIPS of translucent agate long since fallen from the petrified trees towering over the ancient roadway, clicked and clattered under the party’s feet as they filed through the forest. Dorden marched at the front, his warhammer slung over his back. The dwarf hummed to himself, a repetitive tune. Every once in a while, he sang a couple of words, usually having to do with ale, cheese, or beards. Evening haze filled the air, and honey-colored shafts of sunlight slanted through the trees, glinting brilliantly off crystalline twigs and shining through the thin blades of leaves still attached to their branches.
Even with Greel muttering and grumbling at the rear of the party, Devon could almost imagine they were on a grand adventure. Heading out to slay some baddies, explore a cavern or two, maybe come home with some awesome shiny loot. The notion kept her footsteps light; she needed this chance to group up with her friends and visit somewhere new, even if the end of the trip would find them at a settlement with a population grieving for their murdered royal family.
Near Ishildar, the roadway through the Stone Forest had been clogged with deadfall. Jumbled logs of onyx and jade and opal had crossed the path, forcing the party to clamber over or duck beneath the petrified wood. As they journeyed deeper into the area, however, the obstacles grew less frequent, and fewer leaves carpeted the track. Never short of theories, Greel mused that the change likely reflected the history of the place. After the fall of Ishildar, but before the petrification of the forest, the road linking the outlying settlements to the ruined city would have fallen into disrepair, the state worsening the farther the road traveled from the Skevalli hub city.
“So does that mean we’re going to pass through the old Skevalli capital?” Devon asked.
Greel snorted as if this were the most idiotic question in the world.
“What?” Devon asked. “Seems like a valid question. If you’d prefer, I could go back to ignoring you.”
“Look,” the lawyer said, pointing into the trees.
Devon squinted through the fractured light, the faceted crystal branches creating starbursts from the rays of the evening sun. High above, she spotted what looked like wooden platforms built between the branches. No, actually, it appeared that the trees had been encouraged, long ago, to grow in a manner that created the flat perches. Now preserved in stone, the griffon landing sites would likely last as long as the forest itself.
You have discovered: Parshinta, Ancient Capital of the Skevalli Vassaldom
You gain 100000 experience.
Congratulations! You have reached level 27!
(About time…)
“What do you mean, ‘About time?’” she muttered as she brushed away the popup. “It’s not like I’ve been sitting around twiddling my thumbs.”
“Pardon?” Greel asked. “Speaking nonsense again?”
Devon shook her head. “Nothing. So hey, think there’s any reason to search through the settlement?” She projected her voice forward to include the rest of the group. Peering ahead, she spied more structures, some of which appeared to be crafted of the same limestone and marble used in Ishildar’s buildings, and others which had been formed, at least in part, by training the foliage into desired shapes.
Bayle looked back and shrugged; more than the others, the ranged fighter almost always deferred to Devon when it came to adventuring decisions. Of course, ask her about crop rotations in Stonehaven’s farm plots, and you could count on a full dissertation on the subject.
Dorden’s rolling gait slowed as he glanced upward, taking in the surroundings. Behind him, Heldi had a hand on her crossbow. Not a bad idea to be ready for a potential attack—they still didn’t know who had attacked Chasm View, or why. Devon rested her hand on Night’s Fang’s hilt as the party advanced.
“Ordinarily, I’d say aye, lass,” Dorden said. “But I can’t help thinking we’ll get our fill of adventure in the Skargills. Basilisks, ye say?”
“According to King Kenjan. But he said that only the alphas have the Stone Gaze ability, and there hasn’t been one of those spotted near Vulture’s Rift in a generation. So I think we’ll be okay, even without an antidote or a spell to cure petrification. The common type just has a temporary paralysis attack.”
“Oh, just temporary paralysis,” Greel muttered. “Well, that certainly makes me feel better about this venture.”
The dwarf patriarch, however, turned with a wide grin splitting his face. “Ye answer like ye think I was looking for reassurance, lass. To tell the truth, I just don’t want to waste time turning over rocks in a dead city when I could be cracking some reptile skulls.”
Devon blinked. Were basilisks actual reptiles? She’d never really thought about it. The last time she’d encountered one in a game world, it had been kind of like a two-legged armadillo-rooster hybrid with lizard scales. So yeah, maybe?
Dorden’s grin was infectious, and even Bayle started smiling as she glanced toward the north where the Stone Forest thinned near the foothills of the Skargills. Devon wanted to mention that, Stone Gaze or not, the basilisk threat was serious enough that the Skevalli commoners needed help from their griffon-riding royals to fend off the beasts. The cracking of their skulls might be a challenging matter. But she decided there was no reason to be a downer.
They’d entered the denser portion of the ruins of Parshinta, and she cast a faintly longing glance at one of the open doorways. Okay, so there might be loot inside some of the buildings, but then again, there might not. It wasn’t like the Skevalli ancestors had abandoned their home in a panic. They’d probably taken their most valuable items with them, anyway.
“All right,” she said. “Onward.”
Dorden unslung his warhammer from his back and raised it in a cheer. “Time to show the beasties what it means to mess with a Stoneshoulder.”
Beside him, Heldi sighed and shook her head. She cast Devon a long-suffering look.
Oblivious, Dorden turned back to the north and started stomping forward, a tune once again rumbling from his throat.
“Oh,” he said, “speaking of creatures and turning to stone, did I ever tell ye the story of the search for Agawen’s silver vein and the cave troll that interrupted us?”
“Fool man,” Heldi said. “Ye know that’s not true about sunlight turning those monsters to stone.”
“Aye, but many still believe it.”
“Only because people like ye keep telling tales that say that’s the truth.”
“Shush, woman. I’m talking here!” Dorden raised his hammer again as if to punctuate his words.
Heldi rolled her eyes and shrugged at Devon as if to suggest she’d tried.
“Anyway,” her husband said. “It was me, Gonavan, Elshwill, and Bombli, and we’d heard a rumor from a traveling bard that Agawen’s lost silver strike might be found in the cleft between the Wyvern’s Tooth and Olwen’s Knucklebones. So we packed up our rucksacks and laced on our boots. Drank a few horns of ale and headed out to make our fortune.”
***
An hour later, the group reached the edge of the Stone Forest, and Dorden was still talking.
“So when we heard it again, and this time I said ‘Bombli, ye beardless fool, cave trolls don’t come out in the daylight. Quit yer yellow-spined whining and go peek over that ridge.’”
“Wait,” Greel said. “I thought we already established that cave trolls don’t turn to stone when struck by the rays of the sun. If you were to walk in the sort of circles in which you talk, we’d be back to Ishildar by now.”
Dorden raised a finger. “Patience, friend. I never said anything about why I told ‘im that the monsters stay hidden in daylight.”
Throne of the Ancients: A LitRPG Adventure (Stonehaven League Book 6) Page 20