Bishop absently tapped his fingers on the table outside the tavern in Burning Glade. His eyes narrowed, staring down the path leading out of the village and right back to the camp they rescued the villagers from. The rest of his guild mates were repairing and picking up quests from around the village. He, on the other hand, wasn’t feeling too great. The crevice called to him, the entrance into the demon realm. He tried to ignore it but, if he wasn’t sitting down, he found his feet leading back that direction. Willy dragged him back by his jerkin the last time and firmly planted his furry butt beside Bishop so he couldn’t get up and wander away.
“Bishop.”
He glanced over his shoulder and started. “Tavin?”
“I said I would meet you in Burning Glade and so I have. I meant to be here sooner, but I hear you managed to save everyone.” She patted Willy on the head and sat down opposite him. “You look strange.”
“I’m having some issues is all. I’m fine.”
“Your eyes betray you. It’s Valen, isn’t it?”
“I said I’m fine, so I’m fine. We have bigger issues to deal with, like this Demon Lord Mortagh. Is he the one you and Bronson were talking about?”
“Mortagh, yes, yes we know him well.” She leaned back in her chair, shaking her head. “He came to Weston long before Valenastrious did, trying to recruit our priests and convince them to kidnap whole villages of people.”
“What does he need them for? Slaves?”
“Yes, soulless slaves. He feeds on them and, once they are nothing but empty shells, he puts them to work mining demon magma.” She rested her hands flat against the table. “You will not see him until you reach the next territory, but there is much you need to do to prepare for taking him on.”
“Where is he hiding out in Samar?”
Tavin smiled, but it was not a happy grin. “He is not in Samar. He resides in the demon realm, the only place you will be able to reach him. You must traverse through the demon magma mines, the barren plains of Grogash and find him in his fortress.”
Bishop couldn’t believe it. “We have to go into the demon realm?” That was a bad idea. The way it was calling to him and, now, he was going to have to actually go in there and take on Mortagh? “How do we do it?”
“That will come in time. You are not ready yet, Bishop.” She held out her hand for his and he took it. A prompt appeared before his face to confront Demon Lord Mortagh. He withdrew his hand as he accepted the quest for the next dungeon. “I will be there to fight by your side this time, Bishop. Have no fear.”
“No fear, right, I’ll get right on that.”
“You must stand strong,” she commanded. “This war is far from over.”
“Where’s Winston?” he asked.
Tavin glanced over her shoulder and leaned closer. “You will find him when he wants to be found. Follow the clues and seek out his loyal men. They will lead you to Winston.”
“So you know he’s on the run?”
“I know Godfrey has everyone fooled, but we cannot let him maintain power for long. This war will come swift and be over swifter if we are not careful from here on out.” She rested her hand on his. “I know I have asked much of you already, but I need more from you.”
Bishop pulled his hand free of hers as the voice whispered against his ear again. His eyes closed and he twisted his neck, trying to hear the words better, but they were still just mumbles. “I will do my best like always. I just can’t guarantee how this will turn out.”
“A choice lays before you, Bishop. You may choose to venture north into the mountains and seek out the Order of the Fallen, Knights loyal to Lachlan and stopping demons,” she informed him, “or you may continue on this road east and find the one woman who may be able to help us deal with Godfrey.”
“And who is that? His mother?” Bishop teased.
“Yes,” Tavin replied. “She is a great woman, but she was cast out as I was when her second son took control of the throne. Now she hides in a cottage in the wild. Many call her the Scarlet Witch. I have not seen her in many years and fear she is dead.”
Bishop would have to talk to the rest of his guild to decide which area they would want to venture into, but he knew what he wanted. “Thank you, I will take your words into consideration.”
“Bishop! Trajan and the LongBeards just finished the quest for Burning Glade!” Jimmy said, waving him over. “You ready?”
He waved back and turned to Tavin. “Where will I see you next?”
“When you need me, I will appear. For now, I must return to Hillside and keep a close eye on Godfrey now that Winston is gone and Bronson is being watched.”
“Bronson, too?”
“Yes. Godfrey is taking no chance.” She pushed back from the table. “I will wait here until you make your decision, Bishop. Go, see to your people.” She paced away to stand outside the tavern, and Bishop and Willy wandered over to join the others.
Trajan held out his hand and Bishop shook it. “Crazy with that Demon Lord, right? I thought we were all going to die.”
“Same. I’ve been thinking, the quest we pick up here takes us either to the north or east. What do you say to making it official? Turning our two guilds into one big one and then splitting up until we reach the next dungeon?”
“I like the sound of that. Shall we discuss it over a pint or two?”
“Might as well.” Bishop waved over his guild, and the two groups entered the tavern. Bishop noticed Tavin’s eyes following him until Benji, Giles, and the other half-breeds went up to her to continue their quest line. Everyone else met with their designated person at various places in Burning Glade, so they were all on the same part of the quest.
They chatted and joked as they drank their pints, all the while Bishop’s gaze wandered to the door and his feet danced under the table, wanting to return to the camp. He wondered if the Demon Lord put a curse on him and worried this would happen every time he logged into the game from now on. Once the ale was drunk and the mugs empty, Trajan stood and pulled Bishop to his feet beside him.
“We have an announcement to make. As of today, the LongBeards are going to be falling under the wings of Bishop’s Guard!”
The players whooped and clapped at the joining of their guilds. Trajan brought up the guild menu and disbanded his. Bishop then sent out invitations to all the LongBeards and watched as his guild doubled in size.
“I think we’re going to need a bigger house,” he said, and Trajan let out a belly laugh.
“Now, the plan is for us to split until we reach the next dungeon,” Trajan explained. “We, being mostly dwarves, are going to venture north into that territory for levels twenty-five to thirty. The other territory directly east is for the same levels. All in agreement with this plan?”
Every hand went up at the table and Bishop grinned, shaking Trajan’s hand again. “After today, we’ll split up and I wish your group safe travels. If you need any help, though, you message us.”
“And vice versa. Now, time to celebrate!” Trajan announced, but a prompt appeared before his face. “Never mind, time for lunch and then we celebrate!”
Bishop said good bye to Willy and logged out of the game, along with everyone else.
When Harrison Harper opened his eyes back in the lab, he stared blankly for a long time at the ceiling tiles overhead. His body felt strange and his palms were itchy.
I have to get back there, he thought. She’s calling to me.
The second the thoughts raced through his mind, he froze.
“Harrison?” Tyler asked. “You’re extremely pale. Everything good?”
“Yeah, I’m good,” he answered automatically. “Just hungry I guess.” He stepped down from the table and away from the computer station, even though his mind screamed for him to get back in the game and find her, find his Queen. He gripped his head tightly and shut his eyes against the whispering voice still caressing his ears.
Telling Jimmy he would meet them at lunch, he hurried to the
bathroom to splash some water on his face and clear his mind. It had to be an aftereffect. There was no possible way it was affecting him out of game like this.
“Harrison, how is the game treating you so far today?” Dennis asked, bumping into him near the restrooms.
“Fine I guess,” he said, shorter than he meant. “Sorry, headache.”
“Do you need any pills?”
“No I’m fine.” This man is lying to you, a voice that did not sound like his own fluttered through his mind. He has been lying the entire time. Did you tell him what she said? Did you? “I forgot to tell you something the other day,” he said, not sure where the words came from. “Valen, she said to tell Daemyn she said hello and that she missed him.”
Dennis’ face blanched and he flinched away from Harrison. “Did she now? Well, that’s odd. That character has never met Valen.”
He lies, the voice told him. See his face? See his eyes? He cares nothing for you.
“Just thought I’d pass the message along,” Harrison said, and a weird smile lifted his lips. “If you’ll excuse me, I have to use the restroom before lunch. Maybe we can catch up another time.”
“Yes, yes of course,” he replied, but Harrison caught how his eyes narrowed and his brow creased with worry.
Harrison continued to smile as he strolled into the restroom and stared for a long time at his reflection in the mirror. Soon, I will find you, my Queen.
Then, he washed his face, went to the restroom, and on his way out, wondered why he was ever so worried in the first place about this game he found himself in.
Necromancers, Demons & Kings: A LitRPG Epic (World of Samar Book 2) Page 23