by Alex Mulder
“Not much is known about it,” said Private Ajell. “The Western Sea is beautiful, but the islands are full of dangerous enemies. The Tymians have a strong presence there.”
That’s not a bad reason for avoiding it.
The answer had been much more precise than Luke had been expecting. He suddenly began to wonder just how well the NPC could play at conversation, and how much they actually understood.
“Have you ever been there before?” Luke asked. Private Ajell looked over at him and nodded.
“I used to be part of one of the patrols than ran up the coast,” he said. “I’ve been to some of the smaller islands before, but Azanora Island, the big one, is still impenetrable.”
“Because of the Tymians?”
Again, Private Ajell nodded.
“That’s one of their strongholds,” he said. “The Temple of Rygon teaches that it was one of the places where the initial attack was launched from, back during the Severance Onslaught.”
Impressive, I wonder how deep his knowledge bank is?
“Yeah, I heard the High Priestess Azalene talk about that at the start of the… er, after being revived in the temple.” Luke scratched his head, watching his footing as they continued on. “What was it, exactly?”
“I’m not sure anyone knows exactly, not even the High Priestess.” Private Ajell’s voice had a surprising amount of apathy in it. “The Temple of Rygon teaches about it in the vaguest terms possible, no offense to them.”
“Were the records lost?” asked Luke.
“It was nearly a hundred years ago when it happened, when humanity was nearly wiped out.” Private Ajell sounded as though he was reciting information that he’d learned through rote memorization. “It was only through the Universal Truth, and through magic, that Kantor was able to take to the skies and we were able to escape.”
“Interesting…” Luke slowed to match Private Ajell’s pace. The coast had appeared on the western horizon, the beach partially obscured by a line of trees up ahead.
“Get ready,” said Private Ajell. “The patrol should be somewhere around here at this time of night.”
“Hold on, what’s that?” Luke reached his hand out and pulled the militia man back. He could hear something moving through the air in the distance. The two of them stopped to listen for a second. The sound grew louder.
“Damn it!” Private Ajell took a couple of steps and dropped into a crouch. “Get down!”
Luke fell to one knee just in time to dodge something that was clearly intent on doing him harm.
WRYE WING: A flying, carnivorous Yvvarite. Wrye Wings can grow to be the size of a human child and attack with powerful kicks from razor-clawed feet. They hunt exclusively at night and in packs. Only the power of the Universal Truth keeps them from attacking Kantor from the air.
Private Ajell was already moving into an offensive position to face them. Luke wasn’t sure what the NPC’s class was, but he attacked the monsters with speed and precision, jabbing his spear into the sky and pulling them from the air with it.
Luke stood up and pulled out his sword. He twisted as one of them rammed into his back. He swung his blade wildly in retaliation. The blow he struck was only a glancing one, but it matched the minor damage that the Wrye Wing had inflicted on him.
“Keep moving!” yelled Private Ajell. “They are most effective against stationary targets.”
Luke began to strafe to the side, straining his eyes in the dark, fog tinged night. He listened more than looked, waiting until he could hear the familiar screech from one of the creatures and then putting all of his energy into his swing.
His sword connected and he watched as a health bar over the Wrye Wing sank to zero.
There we go.
The monster looked like something out of a psychological horror movie. It’s wings looked almost like they’d been modeled after a bat’s, but the head was shrunken, and the mouth was too big. Its legs were out of proportion, too, looking a bit more humanoid than they should have.
“More coming your way!” Private Ajell shouted a warning to Luke just in time. Another group of three was headed toward him, traveling in a single file line straight at his head.
PIERCE ATTACK 2
Luke struck forward with his combat skill at just the right time. His heart raced as he smashed through the Wrye Wings, killing all three of them in a single intensely satisfying moment.
LEVEL 4 ATTAINED
A few feet away Private Ajell was finishing up with the last of the flying creatures. Luke took the time to take out his character record and assign his five newly acquired skill points. He put two into Speed, and one each into Strength, Endurance, and Luck.
If I learned anything from these monsters, it’s that speed is not to be undervalued.
“Are you ready to move on?” Private Ajell was waiting expectantly in the same spot he’d been in before the creatures had shown up. Luke nodded and began following him again.
CHAPTER 11
“They should be here.” Private Ajell stood on the beach with his arms crossed, glancing up and down the coast. “And if they saw us fighting before, they would have stopped to lend assistance.”
Luke shrugged. He was a bit mesmerized by the view of the ocean. He felt guilty for not being more engaged in the quest. Even though only some of the smaller, closer islands were visible on the horizon, the sight of the Western Sea made him want to push out into the water and go for a swim.
“Wait, there’s something over there!” Private Ajell motioned for Luke to follow again, and he took off after him.
“This doesn’t feel right,” said Luke, suddenly becoming aware of just how far they were from of Stark Town. “We should be on guard.”
The militia man nodded.
“I knew some of those men,” he said. “They are good people. If something did happen to them they… they wouldn’t have gone down without a fight.”
There is emotion in his voice. It almost sounds… real.
Private Ajell stopped a couple dozen feet ahead of Luke, he instantly saw why. An armored human corpse lay on the ground, half covered by sand.
“Dakiron…” Private Ajell knelt down and felt for a pulse on the dead man’s neck. Luke watched for a moment until he heard rustling coming from the tree line.
He pulled out his sword and watched as five Tymian charged out of the woods. Luke could only tell what they were from the dark silhouettes of their bodies. They made inhuman growling noises as they closed in on Luke and Private Ajell.
“Attack!” The militia man threw himself against the monsters with little regard for his own safety. Luke rushed forward, feeling as though it would have been smarter for both of them to hang back and fight defensively.
PIERCE ATTACK 2
Luke launched forward using his combat skill and struck into one of the Tymians. It didn’t do enough damage to take the monster out, only taking away about half of its health, but it pushed it back.
Another of the Tymians was ready to counterattack. Private Ajell moved to try to cover Luke, but a third creature cut off his approach. Luke turned in time to see a grotesque claw coming down on his shoulder.
His health dropped by a third, and only through a desperate backward dive roll was he able to avoid taking even more damage. Luke noticed something about the blow that made him a little nervous.
It didn’t just damage my Health. It took points out of my Stamina, too… what happens if I run out during a fight?
The march out to the coast had already depleted his Stamina bar by a quarter and the Tymian’s hit had taken it down another third. Luke realized that he was going to have to be very, careful.
He slashed at the next Tymian to approach and then rolled to the diagonal, moving to open up the creature’s flank.
PIERCE ATTACK 2
He dropped the Tymian by finding an opening in the monster’s guard with his blade. The Tymian’s health bar sank to zero, and the creature fell to the ground.
Yes!
We can win, we just have to-
One of the monsters took advantage of his inattention and swung at him with its massive claw, managing a solid strike against his back. Luke’s stamina plummeted to zero, along with a large portion of his health. His legs buckled and he dropped to one knee.
No!
“For Kantor!” Private Ajell fought his way over to Luke and cut the monsters off from him. He fought aggressively with his spear, leaving his flank open to lure the Tymian’s into striking and opening themselves up to counter attacks.
Luke struggled to push himself away from the fray. With no Stamina, his Health and Magicka were draining automatically, and he could barely do more than crawl across the ground. It was a death sentence in Luke’s current situation.
The bread… I still have some left.
Luke pulled the food out of his satchel and forced it into the mouth of his avatar. Instantly, his stamina regenerated halfway. He could stand again, and moved forward to back up Private Ajell. Unfortunately, he was a moment too late.
There were three Tymians left. Private Ajell took out one of them in what was clearly a suicidal lunge. Luke saw that his health bar had dropped down to a sliver. One of the Tymians took advantage of the opening and struck him, reducing the sliver to nothing. Private Ajell fell to the ground, dead.
“Damn it!” Luke charged the last two Tymians in a rage.
PIERCE ATTACK 2
He used the Sword Saint’s only low level combat skill to stab into one of the Tymians. He saw its health drop to zero. Luke whirled to face the final foe.
Luke dropped into a defensive position as the Tymian moved forward, swinging its claws wildly. He used his sword as though it were a shield, guarding against the strikes and inflicting light damage on the Tymian as he did.
The monster was still at full health, Luke’s was dangerously low. He chewed on his lower lip as he thought about his options.
I don’t have any magicka left. This fight will be won by whoever can spot the other’s mistakes.
The Tymian moved unexpectedly. It crashed into Luke head first, pushing him back and down to the ground. The attack wasn’t enough to kill him, but the next one would be, and the Tymian was already moving into it.
Now!
As the claws came up into the air, Luke pushed his sword forward. The point stabbed into the creature’s stomach slightly and distracted it from attacking for just long enough for Luke to get his feet under him and push it even further in.
“Die!” His blade skewered through the monster, and its health bar dropped to zero.
LEVEL 5 ATTAINED
Luke pulled his sword out. He breathed a sigh of relief and immediately rushed over to Private Ajell.
The man was dead, as dead as the other militiaman that had drawn them into the ambush in the first place. Luke shook his head, touching both of the men briefly on the chest before standing up and turning away from the ocean.
He was an NPC. It’s not like he’s dead for good. But… still…
Private Ajell had been convincingly human. Though his mannerism was stiff and formal, he had shown a surprising depth of emotion when speaking of his missing comrades. That combined with an ability to understand and really answer Luke’s nuanced questions was striking. His death left Luke reacting the way he would to the death of a real live human being.
My avatar doesn’t breathe in this game, either.
The thought was a strange one, and Luke took it as a sign that it was time for him to head back to Stark Town. He moved off the beach and across the Inner Plains. Though he moved at a brisk pace, the return trip seemed to take longer than the journey out had. This time, he didn’t have anyone to talk to.
Luke was tired when he finally got back to Stark Town. He headed straight for the militia garrison, ignoring the level-up icon in the corner of the screen. All he wanted to do was get his reward and then go to sleep.
“Greetings, Kato,” said the NPC garrison commander. “You were on a mission with Private Ajell, were you not?”
Luke nodded and then frowned.
He knows without even needing to be told.
“Well then,” continued the commander. “What of the western patrol?”
“They were attacked by Tymians,” said Luke. “The entire squad is either dead or scattered. And Private Ajell… is also dead.”
The garrison commander nodded slowly. He set a hand on Luke’s shoulder and squeezed.
“That saddens me to hear,” said the commander. “They died for the sake of us, for the sake of Stark Town and Kantor.”
Luke nodded and watched as the man reached into a chest behind him and pulled out a small bag.
“Here you are. 100 gold coins.”
QUEST COMPLETED
Luke took them from him and thanked the man before heading back outside. The bag felt light, lighter than it should have, given the intensity of the experience he’d just been through.
I think it’s time for me to get some sleep.
CHAPTER 12
Luke slept in late the next morning. It was a Saturday, and not at all unusual, but that didn’t prevent him from feeling a little bit guilty when he finally pulled himself out of bed.
I told Ben that I’d meet up with him this morning…
He grabbed his phone from his nightstand and saw that his late awakening had already been noticed. There were two text messages waiting for him, one from Ben, and surprisingly, one from Sam.
“Text me as soon as you wake up! We need to get started on the guild hall.”
“Hey…”
Luke sighed and pulled himself out of bed. He started pulling his clothes on quickly, feeling a strange mixture of excitement and apprehension. It was the weekend, and he’d have plenty of time to sink deeper into the world of Yvvaros, but he was also dreading the emotional tightrope walk that awaited him with Sam.
Nothing is ever clear cut with her. I almost wish that the two of us could be like we were back in grade school, back when things were simple.
Instead of formulating a text to send back to her right away, Luke decided to take the easier road and get in touch with Ben. He hurried through a shower and got dressed quickly. He hoped to spend the day at Ben’s house gaming as a way of avoiding his father on his day off from work.
There was a knock at the door as he was making his way downstairs. Luke hurried into the living room, hoping that it hadn’t been enough to wake his dad out of his hangover infused sleep. He swung it open and was a little surprised to find Ben standing on the other side.
“You already texted me,” said Luke. “Was it really necessary for you to come all the way over here?”
Ben smiled and scratched his head.
“Actually, yes, Emily is making me do yard work. The only way I could sneak away and enjoy my morning ritual was by saying I was heading over here to grab you.”
Luke nodded, suddenly noticing the smoky scent coming from his friend’s clothes.
“Well, whatever,” he said. “You’re in luck. I’ll help you out. Just let me grab my headset and laptop from upstairs, first.”
“Exactly what I was thinking, man,” said Ben.
On his way back upstairs, Luke pulled his phone out of his pocket. He had let the message from Sam linger, but it felt rude not to respond, even after her harsh words and the way she’d shot him down.
Hey, Sam. I didn’t mean to mess things up last night.
He stared at the message for a couple of seconds before hitting send.
Am I being too passive?
Luke pushed the thought out of his head as he grabbed his gaming stuff and carefully packed it away in his backpack. He headed outside to meet up with Ben, and the two of them started down the road.
“Is your dad asleep?” asked Ben. “I thought he was usually off work on Saturdays…”
Luke sighed. His father’s unpredictable mood swings and the full extent of his alcohol abuse were something that he had actively worked to keep a secret from people. He w
asn’t sure why he did it, but one of the usual excuses came to his lips before he could stop himself.
“He was up late last night working,” said Luke.
Working on being a scumbag.
As they rounded the corner onto Ben’s street, Luke could see that they had their work cut out for them. A carpet of dead leaves, brown, red, gold and green, was spread out across the lawn. Underneath that, the grass had grown far past what was acceptable, and there were also a couple of hedges that had overgrown into strange, wild shapes on either side of the lawn.
“Hey, you volunteered,” said Ben, preempting his complaints.
“That I did.”
Emily was making her way outside and onto the front porch. She smiled when she saw Luke. She had on a tight pair of jeans and a sweater that was slightly baggy on her. Luke tried not to notice just how nicely the outfit complimented her figure.
She’s Ben’s sister, she’s Ben’s sister…
“Hey Luke,” she said. “I see you’ve been drafted into the yard brigade for the day.”
Luke nodded.
“Yeah, I guess I have,” he said. “I don’t mind helping out.”
“That’s what makes you one of the good guys.”
“One of the good guys,” said Luke. “Right…”
“I’m serious!” Emily walked over to him and playfully shook him by the shoulder. “You’re enough of a good guy to look out for my little brother. Who knows what kind of trouble he’d get into without a friend like you by his side?”
“Sis, that’s a little demeaning,” said Ben. Emily just shrugged.
“I’m just being honest,” she said. “Don’t be so hard on yourself, Luke.”
Luke caught Emily’s eyes for a moment. She looked happy, but there was a hint of something sad behind it, something melancholic and depressing.
What is it I’m seeing?
“I won’t be, Emily,” he said. “That’s good advice, thanks.”
“You owe me one,” she said, smiling.
“Yeah, I owe you one,” replied Luke.
Emily disappeared back inside and Ben started off toward the shed in the backyard. As Luke began to follow, he felt his phone vibrate. Even before he’d pulled it out of his pocket, his heart began to beat faster in anticipation of Sam’s reply. He turned his phone on and looked at the screen.