by Kevin Murphy
[You have sneak attacked a trest for 582 damage. Trest has been slain.]
The second strike was unnecessary. The sneak attack’s extra damage was certainly overkill. Dakkon had hoped to find out whether a single swipe from his dagger would be enough to kill the monsters, but the only useful information gleaned was what the monsters were called—trests.
[You have gained 900 experience! EXP until next level 1,540/3,330]
Dakkon and the rest of his party members stared at the message, frozen.
“I just got 720 experience from that,” Melee said. The others nodded. Dakkon gained more experience than the rest of the party as usual, but nowhere near the same, three-times, ratio as before.
“Well, what’s the goat got?” Cline asked impatiently. The sleeping trest had by his side a bone cudgel which, upon further inspection, seemed to be intended to strike a large metal plate that was hanging beside where the creature slept.
“If that goat had been awake, we would be screwed,” Roth noticed aloud. “We got lucky. Perhaps Arstak wants these guys out of his temple as much as anyone.” He bent down and picked up the bone cudgel.
|Name: Reinforced Femur
|Item Type: Weapon - Crushing
|Durability: 28/38
|Damage: 25
|Attributes: +5 Intimidation
|Description: The cudgel is made of human bone that has been reinforced through heating layers of paste, leaving a leaf’s vein pattern along the entirety of its shaft. Bone is a brittle material and cannot easily be repaired. Note: Showing this item to others may result in a lowering of the player’s standing.
“This thing does nearly twice as much damage as my current weapon,” Roth said with some surprise.
“Well, I don’t want it,” Mina looked a bit disgusted by the idea of holding something so grim.
“I doubt Dakkon or Melee are interested. Cline, do you mind if I take the cudgel?” asked Roth.
“Go ahead,” Cline responded. “I’ll soon be too busy with my new bow to care about some club. Just don’t take it out in town and get us chased off or strung up.”
With a nod from Roth, he put his old wooden club into his bag. Melee dragged the body of the goat around to the front side of the large pillar, and faced it downwards to cover the stab wounds. The act of sliding left the goat with an outstretched arm and, as something of an afterthought, Cline placed the bottle it had been clutching near its hand. The party continued forwards at a snail’s pace behind Dakkon, who crept his way toward one of six darker and unexplored passageways that led away from the large, central hall. Taking care not to step on anything, the group walked into and within the tunnel, single file, and hugging close to the right-hand wall. As they walked, the passage wound slightly to the left and downwards.
A light shone out from the bottom, marking the end of the tunnel, about 40 meters onwards. The distinct sounds of herded animals, bleating laughter, and a woman sobbing could be heard, but only faintly. Careful not to make any noise despite their urge to aid the woman, they moved along sure of foot. The noises grew louder as they approached and Dakkon, raising his hand to halt the progress of his group, dropped down to a crouch supported by his hands and peeked into the room. Deer, sheep, and a single horse were enclosed in a shoddily constructed pen made of wood tied to bone. One goatman knelt, prodding at a fire fed by white wood which appeared to produce no smoke when burned. Three other goatmen, seated on uneven crates, took their enjoyment from throwing carefully selected specimens from a pile of small stones at the girl who Cline and Dakkon had seen dragged away by the trest raid party.
Sure that there were no other goatmen in the area, Dakkon returned to a proximity of his group suitable for whispering. “There are four. Three are at the far end of the small room with their backs turned to us, facing towards the girl—she seems ok for now. The other one is closer with its back half turned. It’s working on a fire, but there’s still a good chance it will see any of us who come into the room.”
“Do you think you can take out the one at the fire by yourself?” Mina asked, apprehensive.
Dakkon shrugged. “I can’t really see any better way to approach the situation. I’ll try to find a good time to head in. If I’m seen, I’ll run back here so you guys can jump them. If I manage to take it down, you guys slip into the room and we’ll try to sneak up behind the three seated trests.” He was ready to act. He knew dragging the situation out would only grow his feelings of stress. The group nodded their consent of the plan and Dakkon peeked back into the room.
Seconds later, Dakkon could hear his pulse growing louder. He knew the plan was reckless, but what better choice did they have? He watched the trest tend its fire for 20 seconds… 30 seconds. He was shaking with anticipation. He was approaching his tipping point. “There’s no chance this plan…” Dakkon’s thought was cut off as the trest he watched stirred, tired of kneeling, it began to seat itself. By the time he realized it, Dakkon was already three steps into the room with wide eyes. He stepped forward twice more and nearly knocked his knee against a crate.
The pile of small stones that one of the goatmen was pulling from toppled with a skittering sound. As the goats turned their attention to that sound, Dakkon hid behind the crate that had almost ruined his advance.
[Your carefully laid steps become more natural. You have gained a rank in Stealthy!]
The message only served to alarm him further. “Did they get up to collect the stones? Are all of them standing now?” After a second or two passed, he heard a carefree snort and knew the truth of it. The three goats were still seated. Nothing had changed.
Dakkon looked back towards the entrance and saw Cline’s shocked expression. “I must have just managed to hide in time.” Dakkon pointed towards the general direction of the goats from behind his box, and watched Cline intently. Six seconds later, Cline gave a nod to commence. Dakkon slid out from behind the crate and slinked towards his target. “Only four more steps… three… two…” Dakkon was behind the goat. He reached one hand around to its mouth and stabbed the unaware trest twice in its neck.
[You have sneak attacked a trest in a vulnerable location for 744 damage. Trest has been slain.]
[You have gained 900 experience! EXP until next level 2,440/3,330]
Dakkon laid the goat down gently. The stick that it had been prodding the fire with was resting to the side of the small fire. It hadn’t made a sound, so Dakkon assumed the goat hadn’t been using it. It was a small detail he had neglected. If the goat had been holding the stick, Dakkon could have forced him to drop it or, worse, throw it in surprise. Both options would have been remarkably bad for him.
Dakkon looked back and saw his group beginning to walk towards the goats. The woman tied to a post glanced at him, then away. She sobbed louder than before, holding the attention of the three beasts antagonizing her. As the three jeered and each threw another stone, Dakkon moved to the side of the animal pen and slipped in, where he could hide among the tightly packed animals as he moved to flank the goatmen. The party members moved towards the three bullying goats and when they were about 4 meters off, Dakkon nudged the side of the single, uncomfortable mare who whinnied loudly in protest. The three goatmen turned their heads and noticed four humans attempting to get the drop on them. They let the stones fall from their hands, turned towards the foolish sneaks, and ran forward with weapons raised.
Frightened, Dakkon’s group took a few steps back while reconfirming that their allies were still willing to engage. Melee grunted, jerked her torso forward aggressively, and bared her teeth. That confident display halted the charge of the riled trest, and Melee started to circle them counterclockwise, the rest of the group following her actions without truly realizing the situation. Dakkon was amazed. “That clever, wonderful girl.” He hopped out of the animal pen, making sure not to knock against any animal that may spoil his element of surprise. He crept towards the beasts from behind thanks to Melee’s maneuvering. As they raised their clubs and swor
d to menace or strike, Dakkon leapt forwards the last leg of his approach and stabbed one, then another in the small of each’s back.
[You have sneak attacked a trest for 555 damage. Trest has been slain.]
[You have gained 900 experience! EXP until next level 10/3,540]
[You have gained a level! You have 25 free stat points to distribute!]
[You have sneak attacked a trest for 565 damage. Trest has been slain.]
[You have gained 890 experience! EXP until next level 900/3,540]
The goats bleated as they fell, the last one turned towards Dakkon and he was raked by its nails before the trest brought down an intimidating sword upon him.
[You have been scratched for 7 damage. Remaining HP 343/350]
[You have been slashed for 120 damage. Remaining HP 223/350]
The blow stunned him and he fell to the ground. Mina began chanting rhythmically.
Melee swung downwards at the goat viciously, Roth and Cline struck at its legs in an attempt to throw it off balance. The goat managed to land another swing on the downed Dakkon who tried to roll away but was clipped in the arm.
[You have been slashed for 140 damage. Remaining HP 83/350]
For a second, Dakkon was in agony. The pain was tremendous. Then as quickly as it came, it went. His body pulsed with blue light.
[You have been healed for 75 hit points. Remaining HP 158/350]
The furious goat turned and flailed at the three raining blows upon his back and legs. Its wild swing caught Melee in her temple. She flew to the ground from that single blow and tumbled, the green tone of her hit points replaced by an alarming shade of red. Panicked, Mina focused her attentions on her downed friend.
A worried glance at Melee’s health stirred Dakkon to action. She wasn’t dead, but Melee had suffered a critical strike. One more blow would probably kill her, and there was no guarantee a 75 point heal would make any difference. Getting to his feet, Dakkon took two quick steps and jumped at the goatman’s back, just managing to plunge his dagger in its kidney.
[You have stabbed a trest for 240 damage. Trest has been slain.]
[You have gained 820 experience! EXP until next level 1,720/3,540]
Melee’s body coursed with light blue energy. Her health bar filled up slightly, and immediately she stirred. Mina continued to chant. Roth knelt beside the fallen redhead. Dakkon looked down at his shaking hands, and Cline went to the room’s entrance to watch for any signs of unwanted company. Soon, Melee had recovered and Dakkon managed to somewhat calm himself. He walked to the tied-up girl who was freshly bleeding from some particularly cruel stones. He cut away at her restraints and the two walked to where Melee sat. “If you don’t mind, I’m sure she could use a heal,” Dakkon said to Mina who nodded, and when Melee was back to 75% health, she began healing the girl before moving on to Dakkon.
“Thank you,” the girl said while she cried. Upon closer inspection, the long-haired girl was older than she originally appeared. This ordeal would still, undoubtedly be the worst she had faced. “Oh, thank you. I thought… No. I knew…” the recent hostage was a flood of emotions.
“Glad to help,” Melee said with a large grin on her face. “I assure you we’re all just as surprised as you are.”
Roth first nodded his head to agree, then shook it in bewilderment. “I can’t believe it.” He looked Dakkon up and down. “Cline said if you’d hid yourself a half of a half second later they’d have seen you. Then you climbed in the animal pen and startled that horse…”
“Yeah,” admitted Dakkon. “If it weren’t for Cline telling me when to come out, I never would have gotten the jump on the first one, either.” Dakkon felt something like a glow of foolhardy accomplishment.
Mina looked troubled. “That was almost a disaster. I know Dakkon pulled it off somehow, but two of us almost died. There were, what, at least 30 of them that you and Cline saw? How are we supposed to compete with that?”
Dakkon’s glow dimmed. She was right, after all. The situation seemed unwinnable. Even more so now that he knew there was no chance two goats wouldn’t manage to kill him without the element of surprise. Cline ran back to the rest of the group.
“Doesn’t look like any of them are coming,” Cline said as he slumped to the ground. “You just pulled that whole engagement right out of your ass. There’s no way that should have worked. You’re a madman Dakkon. You’re certifiably insane. I like you, you’re good company.” He smiled a broad, sincere smile.
“I think we might need to throw in the towel on this one, guys,” Mina said with a frown on her face.
“Please!” exclaimed the long-haired woman they had saved. “You can’t go yet. I overheard some of what the leader of the goatmen has planned for tonight.”
“Those things can talk!” Melee asked, shocked.
“To some extent they all can, but their leader is clever and he’s doubly so wicked” said the girl.
“What’s so important that we can’t regroup and come back with a strike force?” asked Roth.
“Now that they’ve struck the village and taken what they wanted, they plan to use the supplies they’ve gathered to salt and burn the fields.” The girl was terrified. “With most of the animals taken or slaughtered, the fields are all we have. There’s no rebuilding from salted soil.”
“That’s awfully cheeky of them,” said Cline.
“Since they’ve already attacked earlier today, everyone will need to focus on holding the area around the inn,” reasoned Mina. “A good portion of the players won’t be able to log in for four more days. It does seem like a bit of an urgent problem.”
Getting to his feet, Dakkon came to his decision. “We might as well scout out the area. If we can move quickly and make plays like this one—No, more carefully than this one, we may be able to prune the force so severely that they’ll abandon their plans for the night. Plus, double experience and item drop rate isn’t something we’ll get again here if we wait.”
“I have already gained a level,” chimed in Cline, as if conceding some ground in his internal argument to leave.
“We all have,” said Roth with a smile. “It’s fast EXP. Perhaps even more important: it’s damned exciting. I’m on the edge of my seat. Metaphorically, anyway… capsule, full immersion, and all of that.”
“Ok, count us in,” Melee said while wrapping her arm around Mina’s neck. “You guys sure know how to sell a suicide mission.” Mina seemed uncomfortable, but didn’t challenge the statement.
“You know I’ll do it,” said Dakkon.
“The thing is,” began Cline, “I don’t really want to die. I suspect I may be something of a coward. I’ll come along, but if things look particularly bad, I’m legging it.”
“Then how about this,” Dakkon proposed, “if I go down, or there’s no way I can escape from a tough spot, you guys take off while you can. I get the feeling this would be a lot tougher down one person and without my dagger, anyways. Any objections?” There were none. “Good. Also,” Dakkon turned to the girl they had rescued, “do you want to head outside and back towards Greenburne on your own, or stay here and wait for us?”
“You can’t be serious!” the girl came close to shouting. “There’s nothing that could make me stay down here hoping that the goats don’t come back.”
“Fair enough,” said Dakkon. “When we’re back to the entrance you’ll slip out and head back towards town to warn your village. Be quiet and careful.” The girl nodded at his words.
The group quickly searched the contents of the room, leaving alone anything that would be troublesome to move, take time, or make noise. Besides the pen filled with animals, they found supplies from the village and travelers. On the bodies of the four goats they found a pair of leather vambraces they decided would go to Melee, a necklace studded with clear gemstones that went to Mina, and a simple quiver that would hopefully soon be useful to their ranger, Cline. Of the goats’ weapons, three more bone clubs were picked up by Roth as spares, and a l
ow-quality sword was given to the recently rescued NPC who was instructed to take it with her on the road back to town. Dakkon didn’t feel shortchanged. In fact, he insisted that Melee get the vambraces and the sword go to the girl. It wasn’t that he didn’t want loot—he did, but he also wanted to wait for something particularly interesting to drop so that he could lay claim to it with no hard feelings. Double drops in an ancient temple for the God of Luck? He’d take his chances on missing out for now.
The party of five plus one worked their way back to the entrance of the temple, taking care to pause and look around the main hall to ensure the downed lookout had been undisturbed. It had remained so, and if any goats saw the body, then they must have simply figured it to be a dead drunk trest. The party escorted the NPC to the forest outside and bid her farewell.
A brief pause in the antechamber was spent on strategy. If they came across too many to take by surprise, they’d try another area before coming back. They would pick off any stragglers and hide their bodies as best they could. Setting plan into action, they entered another of the unexplored passageways that connected to the main hall, to the right of the first they had entered. This one did not curve to the left or right, but had an inclining grade. Sneaking ahead of the rest of the pack, Dakkon stealthily approached the next, darker room and looked around. Here, six goatmen slept. Dakkon was dumbfounded by the luck of it. He backed up and explained the situation to the group, then the other four party members watched on in muted fear as he delicately walked up to a sleeping goat and slashed its throat, with one hand held gently over mouth to prevent its death rattle from alarming the slumbering neighbors.