Shepherd's Wolf

by M. Andrew Reid

“We’ll find out about the last one,” Lockjaw chuckled and hefted his axe from one shoulder to the other.

  “This rifle weighs over thirty pounds,” Fischer said. There was some amusement in his eyes. “You can’t weigh much over ninety. Will you be able to use it in combat?”

  Grave snickered, “Don’t you worry ‘bout me. Worry ‘bout the poor basterd on t’other end of it.”

  Amusement faded from Fischer’s eyes, “The bullets from this rifle can travel quite a distance if you miss your target. We are under orders to avoid collateral damage at all costs...”

  “Captain, you let me worry about that,” White snapped. “Can we get moving and get this over with?”

  Grave nodded as the soldiers closed the case and carried the rifle away, “Let’s go.”

  Alex was taken to a Stryker that had been set up as a support vehicle. He rode inside with some of White’s staff, seated against the hull across from a nervous-looking Captain Fischer.

  The Strykers set out of town in a long column. A few troops stayed behind - guarding their landing craft and extra Strykers. If any soldiers were killed by the perils of Verdia, they would respawn here, and could rejoin their brethren.

  Terrain rose as they left the Sweet Lady’s banks. Mountains loomed to the east - the same mountains that held the Agilar in their stony grip. Here, the hills were smooth and green - covered in lush vegetation.

  Grave, Lockjaw, and the other Conquerors rode on top of a Stryker. A group of players had gathered near the town, and they murmured with suspicion; Dalton was not supposed to work directly with factions. As the Strykers disappeared into the hills, headed toward Ra’ah, the small crowd dispersed.

  Room 3: The Menagerie

  A humid jungle greeted the party at their next stop. High domed ceilings held intense lights - artificial suns. The air was filled with the hoots and howls of a thousand different animals. Exotic insects, birds, and other creatures darted throughout the green canopy.

  “This is the Menagerie. It’s filled with all sorts of angry alien critters,” Bishop explained. “Limerick said if we cross through quickly, we shouldn’t have to fight anything excessively horrible.”

  A wide path cut through the jungle, and the group moved at a brisk pace. Soon they were deep in the forest, with trees towering over them, and the path before and behind disappearing in a green soup. Burning lights peaked through the canopy, and mist drifted among the treetops.

  “Limerick may not have seen anything bad in here, but it’s possible Limerick just got lucky.” Athena’s fur was standing on end. Her ears twitched, they would be swiveling back and forth if not held in place by her headgear. She turned to Laura, “Can you reveal whatever is in this jungle? You should be able to see through the trees. These animals are alien and I cannot sort out the different smells. There is something out there.”

  Laura fearfully eyed the dark jungle, “I’m not sure I want to.” She held up her hands and closed her eyes briefly. When she opened them again she gasped, “There’s something big…”

  “How big?” Haymaker asked.

  A suckered tentacle burst explosively from the foliage, wrapping itself around Ben and pulling him into the trees. Gabe snarled and bounded into the green void without hesitation. Jungle noises ceased; every creature fell silent. The party stood dumbfounded for what felt like an eternity.

  “After them!” Athena urged, shifting into a red leopard and disappearing into the jungle.

  Wisp entered close behind, followed by Haymaker. Bishop stayed on the path with Laura, peering fruitlessly into the tangle of damp leaves and flowers. They both waited in silence.

  …

  Athena stumbled into a clearing, and quickly transformed back to her true form. Haymaker and Wisp emerged an instant later.

  Gabe was locked in battle with an enormous squid-like beast. Tentacles flailed and grasped at Gabe, who had his teeth locked in a death grip around the slimy arm that was holding Ben.

  Like a slug, the squid had left a trail of goo on the forest floor, and everything it touched was caked in mucous. Ben was barely visible; cords of slimy flesh were wrapped around him. The monster was trying to bring Ben closer to a clacking beak. Gabe’s grip on the tentacle was all that saved Ben from being digested. The creature had many eyes, and they flicked back and forth between Ben and the new arrivals.

  Athena drew her bow tight, but a tentacle lashed out and pulled her off her feet. Wisp lunged forward and hacked through the slimy muscle before it could pull her away. The monster screamed, and withdrew into the darkness of the forest. Gabe hung on to the tentacle and was pulled to the earth, whining when his injured leg struck a rock. Ben struggled weakly from within the slimy coils.

  Haymaker ran after the monster, grasping at a trailing arm that dragged on the ground. Powerful hands dug into the tentacle like iron clamps. He looped the tentacle around his arm, and the creature bellowed with rage. The monster pulled against him, flinging out its remaining tentacles to nearby trees and using them as leverage.

  A tug of war ensued, with Haymaker bracing himself against a tree root, and the monster desperately trying to withdraw into the forest. Haymaker’s knees began to bend; the squid was overpowering him and threatening to pull him off balance. He roared with furious rage; his blue mane bristled and spittle flew from his mouth.

  Athena regained her feet and took a wide stance. She drew her bow slowly, and paused. The tip of her arrow flared with light.

  She released, and a white comet burst forward. A tremendous shockwave followed the arrow, tearing leaves off the surrounding trees and digging a furrow in the soil beneath the arrow’s flight path. The shrieking bolt hit the monster square in one of its huge eyes.

  An explosion of guts and green goo splattered the forest behind the monster. The remaining eyes went dim, and the clacking beak parted gently.

  Haymaker let go of the tentacle and trotted over to Ben. Gabe got there first, and was licking the boy’s face excitedly. Haymaker lifted Ben up onto Gabe’s back and pointed toward the path, “We have to move.”

  Wisp stared at the ruined creature before him, “Why haven’t you used that before?”

  Athena shrugged, “I only had one of those. I was saving it for you.”

  “I’m flattered.”

  They returned to the path to find Bishop and Laura standing inside of a pale blue sphere, surrounded by a pack of hyena-like creatures with razor sharp claws and barbed scorpion tails.

  Bishop was concentrating on holding the protective sphere in place, and Laura was stamping her feet as if the monsters were stinging her ankles. Neither of them looked very happy.

  Haymaker shook his head sadly, “Well they’re dead. Let’s keep moving.”

  Athena knocked an arrow, “Can you be serious until we are out of here?”

  “Fine,” Haymaker charged into the pack of hyena-scorpions.

  After the beasts had been sent to hyena-scorpion heaven, the group followed the path to an exit door. They stepped inside and remained tense until the door closed behind them. When the elevator moved, they set about healing their various scratches. No one was free of signs of fatigue, and Ben and Laura were clearly terrified.

  “Almost half way,” Haymaker said cheerfully. “This isn’t that bad.”

  Room 4: The Armory

  The doors opened to a dark hall filled with rows upon rows of security robots. Rigid and cold they stood, facing in every direction and hunched like metal gargoyles. They were spaced evenly about fifteen feet apart. Half of the robots held preposterously large crystalline swords against their chests. The remaining robots toted rocket launchers on their shoulders.

  Haymaker searched for a button to close the door again, “So we just keep going, right? New stop?”

  “I don’t think it works like that. We have to go through.”

  “We can’t go out there!” Athena protested.

  “We can if we’re quiet,” Wisp said. He pointed at the robots. “They aren’t active.”r />
  “He’s exactly right,” Bishop said. “Limerick said to sneak quietly through this room and we should be fine. This was another room where stealth is more important than firepower. We just have to sneak through to the other side without disturbing the robots.”

  “I guess I’m the most qualified to go first,” Wisp slipped quietly out into the chamber.

  The security bots towered above him, motionless and dark. Wisp examined a robot up close; staring into its dead eyes. He could see no signs of animation whatsoever.

  Wisp waved the others forward and cautiously moved toward the exit door far on the other side of the chamber. The group made its way slowly between the rows of deactivated robots, not sure if their next breath would bring destruction down upon them

  “Stop!” Laura gave a loud hoarse whisper. Everyone tensed and froze. Laura quietly moved closer to the front. “There’s a trap up there, I think.”

  “A trap? Why do you say that?”

  Laura shrugged, “I can feel it. Something is telling me there’s a trap.”

  Bishop nodded sagely, “Viper was right. It is a good thing we have a Sojourner. Limerick didn’t say anything about traps. He said they set off a robot about halfway through the room and they had to run.”

  “Can you see anything?” Athena asked Laura.

  “Not really.” Laura whispered. She waved awkwardly in front of her. “It feels like there is a wall on the path in front of the next two robots.”

  Athena crept lightly, sniffing the air. She inched forward on one side of the path, with Wisp on the other.

  “Stop!” Laura whispered harshly. “It’s right there!”

  “There’s nothing here,” Wisp said. He looked at the nearest robot’s feet and let his gaze move upward. When he reached the eyes, he gasped and took a step back.

  A dim red light, barely visible, shone from the robot’s eye. Nobody took a breath or blinked. Even Gabe pulled his tongue in and stopped panting for a moment.

  Athena reached into a pouch at her belt, and cast out a cloud of blue powder. As the powder drifted through the air, it revealed a web of glittering red lasers that scattered from the robot’s eye to the floor. The path was completely blocked. If Wisp had taken another step, he would have passed into the beams.

  Athena turned to her left and cast out more powder. This time, the lasers formed a wall to her left, between the robot nearest her and the next one behind it. When she turned to the right, the powder revealed nothing.

  “It’s a maze!” Bishop said. “Limerick was wrong. They must have tripped the lasers here because they thought they were supposed to sneak straight through. I’m starting to think he isn’t that great of an explorer or guide.”

  The group moved on cautiously behind Athena as she revealed the laser walls with her powder. Slowly, they made progress. Often they would have to double back and move away from the exit. After fifteen or twenty minutes of careful advancement, they escaped the maze in front of the exit door.

  “Halfway!” Wisp exclaimed.

  Bishop allowed himself a grin, “I believe we are doing well. It certainly helps not having to worry about the security robots following us.”

  The words had barely left his lips when the entrance door on the far side of the chamber blasted open, revealing the pair of security robots that had confronted them in the waste facility. Their pursuers appeared slightly charred from their bath in the molten metal, but were otherwise as formidable as ever.

  “Intruders!” blared the sword-wielding robot. “Intruders!”

  Across the huge chamber, robots sprang to life. Their blue eyes burned brightly in the dim light. In a symphony of metallic screeches, they straightened up. Their heads turned as one, until every angry eye was glaring at the group.

  “Moving on.” Haymaker slapped the button for the door, and the party quickly stepped inside.

  Agilar Entrance

  The entrance to the Agilar was underwhelming. Viper had never personally seen the door, but after hearing about how arduous the dungeon was, he had assumed it would be something a little more dramatic.

  He dropped down from the saddle, leaving his spear behind. Viper would have to move quickly to catch up to the group- If he could catch up at all. His breath was ragged and anxious.

  The keypad beeped as he rapidly punched in the access code. To get the code, a player had to complete a long series of difficult quests - or pick up a copy of Limerick’s Dungeon Guide and flip to the section on the Agilar. Viper had done the latter.

  After the code was entered, an error tone sounded. A voice crackled from the doorframe, “This area is currently off limits. Please check back in twenty-four hours.”

  Viper entered the code again.

  “This area is currently off limits. Please check back in twenty-four hours.”

  “No…” Viper whispered. “NO!”

  Metal rang as he pounded the door with his fists. He pulled out Flame and struck the door furiously. Sparks sputtered and fumes flew with each impact, but no marks were left on the unyielding barrier. Viper pounded harder and harder until the axe slipped out of his hand and sizzled out on the ground.

  He slumped against the door and slid down to his knees, choking back tears. He was too late. His family stood behind him, shaking their heads in disappointment and shame. Once again, his selfishness would cause others to suffer. His father grunted disapproval.

  Startled, Viper sat up; that grunt was not his father. He turned around and found himself face-to-face with Christine. The dragon stared at him unblinking, her snout inches from his nose. She grunted again.

  Viper slowly rose to his feet. He glared at Venom, who had been too busy chewing on some green leaves to warn him. Viper kept his back pressed to the door. Christine tottered away, each footfall causing her body to shudder.

  Fletch buzzed down from the trees, landing on the dragon’s head. The hawk’s yellow eyes pierced his soul.

  Don’t give up.

  “It’s locked!” Viper pointed at the keypad, “It’s a secure dungeon. Only one group at a time. I can’t - I can’t get in.”

  Fletch screeched, and Viper stumbled. His vision clouded, and he saw a white mountaintop below him. The world spun and the mountain rushed up at him. There was something sticking out of the snow - an object, something unnatural, with hard straight lines.

  Look.

  Viper’s vision returned, and he discovered that he was looking directly into Fletch’s eyes. “What was that?”

  Fletch screeched again, and Viper staggered once more. This time he drifted closer to the icy peak, and could see an outline in the snow.

  “Another way in?” Viper gasped.

  The hawk screeched once more. Look.

  Viper looked up through the trees at the mountain that towered above them. The slope was steep and treacherous. It turned to ice above the tree line.

  “It’s up there?” He pointed up, “I can’t climb that in time.”

  Fletch screeched a fourth time and took to the air, landing on the dragon’s snout. Christine roared and stretched out her wings. She had grown since Viper saw her last; her wings were at least twenty feet across. She was still not nearly as big as her mother, but she was getting there.

  Christine mewled and dropped to the ground. She lowered her long neck until her snout rested on the earth. She snuffled and looked up at Viper. Fletch screeched again. You will fly.

  Viper shook his head, “I don’t understand.”

  Christine grunted and fluttered her wings. Fletch screeched urgently.

  The blood drained from Viper’s face. He waved the dragon away, “You can’t even fly. If you can’t then I definitely can’t.”

  Christine roared and charged forward until her eyes were inches from Viper’s. Streams of heat trailed out of her nostrils. Once again she lowered her head and looked up at him.

  Viper sighed, “Give me a second.”

  He trotted over to Venom, and scolded her for not warning he was being
approached. She rolled her eyes and continued munching on greens. Viper reached into a saddlebag and pulled out a leather cord. He tied it into two loops; one large and one small.

  He gently slipped the large loop over Christine’s head and down her long neck. He held the small loop in his right hand. Viper braced his left hand on Christine’s side and hesitated. The dragon’s spiky, thorny back was not very inviting.

  Viper gritted his teeth and swung up onto the dragon’s back. He aimed for a point in front of the first large spike, and found that it made a surprisingly comfortable seat at the base of her neck.

  He was suddenly lifted high in the air as Christine got to her feet and raised her head. There was a clatter behind him that turned into a dull roar as the booster wings beat the air. Vibrations caused his armor to ring, and he had to clamp his jaw shut to stop his teeth from chattering. The roar grew louder as dust filled the air.

  Christine lumbered forward. Her head wagged from side to side as she picked up speed. Tectonic thumps shook Viper, and it was difficult to hang on as he was rocked violently side-to side. There was a loud flutter and a snap as if a giant flag had unfurled. Viper glanced to his left and right as the enormous main wings stretched out to either side. White feathers whipped in the wind. The drone from the booster wings rose in volume and in pitch.

  Christine stroked her main wings downward, and there was a moment of silence. When she brought them up the boosters fluttered once more, creating a strange staccato atmosphere of deafening noise punctuated by brief moments of quiet.

  The pulses of chaos and tranquility continued as Christine lumbered ever faster. They were headed for the base of the mountain. It seemed impossible to Viper that they would get off the ground, much less avoid the steep slope.

  Christine clawed the earth and pushed off with a jerk. The pounding stopped, and Viper realized they were airborne. Powerful strokes carried them higher as the face of the mountain rushed closer. Christine banked away in time to miss a large rock, but veered back toward the forest. Now, trees were rushing at them.