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“Damn it,” Jason gasped, his voice swallowed up by the dark void that enveloped him. Then the world popped back into existence. His mind was still reeling from his recent death, and he stumbled from the abrupt change in scenery, falling to his knees on the ledge. He gasped for air as he tried to process what had happened. After a few moments, his churning thoughts began to settle, and he looked around him.
He was kneeling on the ledge overlooking the Hydra’s den. The game world had taken on an otherworldly cast, the colors washed out and wisps of blue energy trailing through the air. He looked to the side and saw himself, his black cloak obscuring his face and armor. Then his eyes shifted to the lake. He saw the creature begin to lumber out of the water and the battle commenced again. And again. And again.
Jason watched his friends die over and over, unable to help them. He now understood what Frank had meant when he described his earlier death. Anger, frustration, and guilt warred in Jason’s mind. He hadn’t been strong enough to protect his friends or smart enough to call for a retreat when he realized what they were up against.
He pulled up the system menu and tried to log off. He just couldn’t take watching the scene replay on an endless loop. He discovered the logout button had been grayed out. When he pressed it anyway, he was confronted with a notification informing him that the option to log out had been suspended. If he logged out before he respawned, he wouldn’t be able to log back into AO for three real-world hours. He assumed this was a way to compensate for the faster respawn rate in the dungeons and to encourage players to learn from their mistakes.
He couldn’t afford to delay his respawn, so he endured the scene again and again. He watched Frank’s battered body tossed across the cave. He watched Riley incinerated by the beast’s flamethrower. Guilt welled in his chest as he kept watching. This was his fault. He could have just sent in one skeleton as a test while the group stayed safely in the tunnel. He could have prepared an escape plan.
He had been arrogant.
A rumbling voice spoke from beside Jason, startling him. “Finally, you’ve realized your mistake,” the Old Man said in irritation. He approached Jason slowly. “You think because you have won previous battles, that you are somehow invincible?”
Jason didn’t know how to respond. The Old Man’s words echoed the guilty thoughts that flitted through his mind. “I told you before that a leader must learn to lean on others,” the Old Man continued. “By the same token, the people that follow you are important. You should not toss away their lives lightly.”
He motioned to Frank and Riley’s prone bodies. “Do you think that this world comes with no costs? What will happen when you make this mistake with those that do not come back? What if these were the bodies of Rex or Jerry?”
“I messed up,” Jason admitted softly. “I understand that.”
“Do you?” the Old Man hissed. Jason had never seen him this upset. “You walk my path, boy. That comes with a great responsibility. You see those around you as merely moving pieces on a chessboard of your own desire. Cardboard caricatures of people cut out to serve a specific role in your design. Even with your fellow travelers, you do not treat them with the respect they deserve.”
The Old Man hesitated, his eyes turning to the scene of his friends’ deaths which had begun to replay again. “What do you know of the people that follow you? What of your so-called Shadow Council? Do you know their histories? Their goals and dreams? Those are people that lead your city!” He gestured to Frank and Riley’s bodies. “Do you understand why this pair follows you? What drives them? You call these people friends, but you know nothing about them.”
Jason could feel his anger rising at the Old Man’s words. “You told me before to follow my own desires. Now, what are you saying? That I shouldn’t?”
The Old Man stooped in front of Jason where he knelt on the ground, his cowled face hovering in his vision. “Sometimes I forget you are merely a child. Learning to embrace your desire is only the first step along my path. Those that wish to see the full extent of the power that I have to offer must go further. You must learn to identify the desires of others and foster those wants and needs. This is the true mastery of desire.”
He stood back up. “To do this, you must try to understand those that follow you.”
Jason stared at the Old Man in shock. He hadn’t considered that there was anything deeper to the power the Old Man offered than the pursuit of his own agenda. As the full realization of what the god was saying weighed on him, Jason muttered, “Maybe I don’t want this.”
The Old Man chuckled, his tone softening. “No good ruler wants to assume the obligations of leadership. I never claimed that this would be easy. If you must turn to self-interest for motivation, ask yourself what you stand to lose if you don’t continue to move forward. I believe the same message is often reiterated in those books you’ve grown so fond of. If you will not trust the word of a god, then perhaps you will believe your dead scholars.”
With a final grunt of irritation, the Old Man disappeared in a cloud of dark mana. Wisps of ebony energy floated through the air, faintly outlining his robed form before dissipating.
Jason considered the Old Man’s words, closing his eyes. Maybe he was right. Jason had been focused solely on himself and his city. He looked at his friends and the other NPCs as tools to accomplish his own goals. That was part of why he had kept his true plans from Frank and Riley. He had overlooked the growing changes he had seen in his friends, not bothering to dig any deeper, because they didn’t seem relevant to his goals.
Jason shook his head, rising slowly to his feet. He would try to learn from this, but there was nothing he could do about his relationship with Riley and Frank right now. Like the Old Man said, he had plenty to lose if he didn’t keep moving forward, both in-game and in the real world. He needed to focus on one problem at a time. Right now, he needed to defeat the Hydra and take its heart. He should be using this time to figure out how to defeat the creature, not sitting here and wringing his hands. After they made it past this battle, he could figure out how to act on the Old Man’s advice.
The problem was that it seemed impossible. The creature could cast up to four spells simultaneously, both defensively and offensively. Its natural armor was incredibly resilient, and any damage caused to the Hydra released a spray of caustic blood. It was also able to cast devastating area of effect attacks, destroying or immobilizing waves of Jason’s minions at once. On top of all that, Jason had lost his remaining minotaurs and all his archers. His mages had just barely escaped the blast that had destroyed him.
“How are we going to do this?” he muttered. Jason knew that almost every conflict he had encountered so far in the game had a solution. It usually just involved using unconventional tactics. In contrast, their group had simply charged the beast head on with no solid plan. He needed a strategy.
Jason’s eyes drifted around the cavern. Was there something he could use to get an edge on the Hydra? The lake didn’t help him and likely represented a death trap with the beast’s air magic. The ledge Jason stood upon gave him some high ground, but also made him an easy target. There was little ground cover on the floor of the cave, with few boulders or other obstacles to hide behind. As Jason surveyed the cave, multicolored light played across the floor. Then he paused and his brow furrowed.
He looked up at the crystals that hung from the ceiling. Sharp, jagged shards pointed down at the Hydra’s enormous body. Given the creature’s size, multiple stalactites hung directly over the serpent. Then Jason surveyed the ledge where he stood. A glimmer of an idea was starting to form in his mind. Maybe he couldn’t beat the creature in a head-on fight, but perhaps he could do what he did best; he could sucker punch it.
Jason’s lips pressed into a grim line as he looked at the Hydra. “You’ve won this round,” he murmured. “But we’ll be back.”
&nb
sp; Chapter 23 - Shrewd
Alex’s head was covered in a thick woolen bag, only faint sunlight showing through the cloth as he trudged forward. The guards roughly guided him, making certain to offer the occasional kick or shove as encouragement. Regardless, he was grateful for the bag. His mind was still reeling from the memory he had relived a few hours earlier, and he could use a few more minutes to compose himself before he had to put on his next performance.
Alex suddenly stumbled, his foot catching on a rock in the road. He was rewarded with a sharp kick. “Keep moving,” one of the guards rasped from behind him.
Cursing under his breath, Alex kept shambling forward as his mind fixated on the forgotten memory of his father’s conversation. This wasn’t the first memory that he had recalled in the last few days. Why hadn’t he remembered these events before? Although he was reluctant to admit it, a part of him knew that the answer was simple - he had repressed them. They were immensely painful, his mother’s sickness, her death, and her probable mental illness.
What he didn’t understand was why they were resurfacing now. Was it the game doing something to him? Was it that damned cat that kept showing up? Was it the Lady of Light? Or perhaps the most difficult question to face; was there simply something wrong with him?
His foot struck the edge of a stair. Hard. Alex drew in a sharp breath as a dull pain radiated up from his foot. He could hear the guard behind him laughing, his chuckle accompanied by several other men nearby. As he moved forward, he could also make out the murmur of a nearby crowd. They were close.
“Up the stairs, prophet,” the guard growled. Alex stumbled up the steps, carefully trying to feel out the edges of the staircase with his feet.
Once he made it to the top of the steps, he was shoved forcefully. Alex toppled forward, landing heavily on his knees. The bag was ripped from his head, and blinding sunlight shone in his eyes. He blinked rapidly, trying to make out the area around him. As his vision adjusted, he saw that he was kneeling on a wooden platform set up in the market square. A crowd of people stood before him, their eyes all focused on Alex’s prone form.
“Hello again, Alexion,” a strong voice sounded from behind him. Alex turned and found himself looking upon Strouse’s chiseled features. “I see you didn’t take my warning to heart.”
The man leaned in close, a cruel glint in his eyes. “You should have kept your head down and your mouth shut.”
***
“Damn it,” a voice called out. Jason could hear a fist strike the stone floor with a dull thump.
He opened his eyes and found himself lying on the ground of the Minotaur King’s throne room. Riley and Frank sat beside him. Frank was glaring a hole in the floor, and he rubbed his bruised fist idly. Riley looked similarly shaken. Like Jason, she hadn’t experienced a death in-game until now. She glanced around the room with a panicked and confused expression. Jason noted that her eyes had reverted to their natural color, her death forcing her to release her dark mana. He could only imagine the rush of emotions she was feeling as the anesthetic effect of her mana abandoned her.
Riley glanced at Jason briefly before her eyes dropped to her hands. “That fight seems impossible,” she said softly, her voice quavering slightly.
“No kidding!” Frank retorted angrily. “That stupid snake creature can cast four spells simultaneously, is built like a tank, and can wipe out half our group with one attack. Maybe if we had forty players and a full support team…”
Jason pushed himself from the ground and wiped off the dust that had settled on his cloak. He then looked back at Frank and Riley, addressing them in a serious voice. “I admit it was a setback.”
“I’m not certain ‘setback’ is the right word,” Riley replied. “We barely injured the creature on our first attempt and it… it destroyed us.”
“I second that!” Frank added, also rising to his feet with a grunt.
Jason walked over to Riley, offering her a hand. She eyed it skeptically for a moment before accepting his help. She still looked disoriented from her recent death. Her hand lingered on his for a moment, and he could feel her fingers curl around his slightly.
“You alright?” Jason asked Riley quietly. He received a short nod, and she released his hand. He gave her a worried look as she turned to collect her bow from the floor.
Jason watched his two friends, considering carefully how he should broach a discussion of the fight. “That first loss is on me. I screwed up. We shouldn’t have rushed in so recklessly since we didn’t know what we were facing. One good thing did come out of it, though; I think I might have figured out a way to defeat the creature.”
Riley adjusted her armor and took a deep, steadying breath. She raised an eyebrow at Jason in question. “What are you suggesting?”
“We can use the terrain to injure the Hydra. Specifically, I need the two of you and my minions to distract it while I bring down the roof on the thing’s head.”
Frank snorted dismissively. “I remember seeing those crystals hanging from the ceiling, but how are you going to knock them down? They were nearly five feet across in some places.”
Jason put a hand to his chest. “Trust me. I have a few tricks up my sleeve. I need to go gather the remaining corpses we’ve left scattered around the dungeon and re-summon my minions.”
“While you do that, I think I’m going to take a short break,” Riley said, her eyes still clouded. “I’ll be back in about an hour.” With that, Riley pulled up her system menu and disappeared with a popping sound and a flash of multicolored light. Jason’s eyes lingered on the spot where she had stood a moment ago.
It’s just going to take her some time to adjust to the dark mana and process the last few hours, he thought. Maybe some downtime to herself will help.
Jason looked over at Frank and saw that he was also about to pull up his menu to log out. He put a hand on his large friend’s arm. “Before you go, tell me about that tome you took from the Masters.”
His large friend looked at him with an embarrassed expression. Then he pulled the dark, bloodstained book from his bag. “After the Master explained what this thing did, the information window updated. It’s apparently a skill book.”
“That teaches what?” Jason asked, intrigued.
Frank hesitated, his eyes fixed on the book. Then he replied, “It teaches a new class. It’s called a Thaumaturge. Judging from the Master’s explanation, it probably involves shapeshifting. To use the book, you need to have a balance of the elemental affinities.”
Jason’s eyes widened. “Okay, so why do you look so conflicted? Can you use it?”
“Yes,” Frank said in a quiet voice. “I just don’t know if I should.”
“Why not?” Jason asked bluntly. He didn’t understand his friend’s reluctance.
“I just… those guys were messed up in the head, man. You saw their lab. I don’t know what’s involved with this class or what I’d have to do in advance,” Frank said, shaking his head slowly.
“Hmm. I guess I can see your point,” Jason replied. “On the other hand, shapeshifting would help with the type of warrior role you’re leaning toward, and anything that can make you faster or stronger would be great. Maybe it’s worth the gamble.”
Frank nodded his head, his eyes still on the book. “You’re right. I know you’re right. I’m just worried about the direction I’m heading in this game; like the rage I enter during these fights. I think I’m actually starting to enjoy it…” he trailed off.
Jason let out a short laugh. “And you think I’m not conflicted? I slaughtered a city full of people and recently convinced a whole town to commit ritual suicide. This isn’t real life. You can be anything you want in this world, Frank. There’s no one stopping you but yourself.”
His friend looked up sharply, meeting Jason’s gaze. Frank’s eyes hardened, and his lips curled into a smile. “In between coming up with crazy, suicidal schemes, sometimes you make a lot of sense. So, do you want to find out what a Thaumaturge can
do?”
Jason matched his friend’s grin and nodded. Frank closed his eyes, and the book suddenly shot forward, hovering before him. The cover flipped open, and the pages danced through the air as multicolored energy spun and coiled above them. Then the energy swam toward Frank, entering his mouth, nose, and ears. Jason’s friend promptly lifted his hands to his head, moaning in pain as he dropped to his knees. As he opened his eyes, Jason could see that they shone a myriad of different colors, alternating among the elemental affinities. After only a few moments, the book disintegrated, and Frank was left staring into space - presumably reviewing his notifications.
“So?” Jason asked tentatively. “Did your class change?”
Frank looked up at him with pain-filled eyes. “Yes. It came with some downsides, though. My mana pool and my ability to learn magic have been reduced substantially. It looks like it costs me Stamina to transform.”
He hesitated before continuing, his eyes scanning an invisible page before him. “I learned how to shapeshift, but it may be more difficult than I originally thought.”
“How so?” Jason asked, offering a hand to his friend.
Frank accepted Jason’s hand. A frown twisted his face as he rose to his feet. “You have to consume different animals to learn their shapes. Different parts give you different abilities. It’s like you memorize the creature’s limbs somehow.”
“Consume them? What does that mean?” Jason asked, a faint look of disgust on his face as he visualized having to eat the creatures they encountered.
“Hey, you know as much as I do!” Frank retorted. “Maybe it’s just as simple as casting a spell or something. If it’s more than that…” Frank trailed off, a grim expression on his face.
“Well, I remember seeing a bunch of caged animals in the Masters’ laboratory. You could probably start there and figure out how it works. I have a feeling we’re going to need any edge we can get,” Jason said.
Awaken Online: Precipice Page 33