“I guess what I’m saying is that trust is difficult. I don’t know your friends’ situation or what they’re going through, but even small betrayals can feel like heavy blows if you’re already bruised and bloody,” Angie explained quietly. “I’m not sure this helps,” she added with a soft chuckle. “It’s probably just the prattling of an old woman.”
With this last statement, the conversation descended into silence. Angie nursed her coffee as Jason considered what she had said. Maybe she was right. The lie about his plan seemed small, but he hadn’t really considered what was going on with Riley or Frank or how they would interpret it. The Old Man’s lecture rang in his mind. His friends were people, with their own feelings, desires, and wants. Maybe he hadn’t been treating them with the respect they deserved.
Jason’s thoughts wandered to the events that had occurred over the last week in-game. The first thing that came to mind was the massacre in Peccavi. What stuck out to him was Riley’s conflicted expression when she thought he was simply going to kill them all against their will. Then he remembered their conversation that next day where she had confessed to him that she needed to learn to trust him. She had been hurt by Alex in a way that Jason probably couldn’t understand. To her, maybe he was just another guy that had betrayed her trust.
Frank had also seemed off since they began playing. He had been timid and meek in the beginning, sticking to the back of the group. Jason considered their conversation as they were traveling to poison the cultists. He was dealing with his own issues and insecurities. The fact that Jason hadn’t told him his plan probably came across as not trusting him or thinking he was too inept to handle the responsibility.
“I messed up,” Jason admitted. He looked up at Angie. “Your story definitely helped. I hadn’t considered where Frank and Riley were coming from or how they would react to my lie.”
Angie gazed at him evenly. “Well, then you should go fix it. Take one more piece of advice from an old woman - you don’t want to live with regret.”
Jason nodded. “You’re right. I need to meet with them today. That’s assuming they’ll even answer my call.”
Resolved, Jason finished his breakfast and then messaged Riley and Frank. He explained that he was sorry and that he wanted to meet with them to apologize. As he finished his morning routine, he received their reluctant replies. He arranged to meet them at the bubble tea shop that Riley had introduced him to. It seemed like a good place for him to beg for forgiveness.
An hour later, Jason stepped out of a driverless taxi. He looked around, taking in the cracked and crumbling sidewalk and the graffiti that adorned the side of the small shop. He stood there for a long moment, collecting his thoughts.
“Hello, Jason,” Riley said from behind him.
Jason turned and found himself looking into Riley’s angry brown eyes. A feeling of déjà vu overcame him. It wasn’t that long ago that he was standing in front of this same building. The only difference was that the tables were now turned.
“Hi, Riley,” Jason said. “Frank must be running late. Do you want to go inside and get something to drink?”
“Sure,” she said. She walked past him and into the store without any further discussion.
The pair ordered their drinks in silence and then took a seat at one of the tables on the patio. Jason fiddled with the cup in front of him, not certain how to begin. Then he took a deep breath and jumped into it. “I want to apologize. I shouldn’t have hidden my plan from you and Frank.”
Riley didn’t respond right away, so Jason kept going, “I get that you’ve been through a lot with Alex. I want to be a person you can trust - not another guy that’s going to lie to you and hurt you just to manipulate you into doing what I want.”
Jason shook his head, his eyes on his hands. “I’m not even sure why I hid my plan from you. My reasons seem flimsy now. You and Frank have been nothing but awesome and supportive. I also know you went out of your way to fix things with my parents and at Richmond. I guess I’m dealing with my own trust issues,” he said softly.
“But you deserved better from me,” Jason added.
Riley met this torrent of words with silence. “I do,” she finally said. Jason glanced up at her and saw that the anger in her eyes had faded slightly, replaced by a lingering pain.
“You screwed up. You should have told me what you were planning to do,” she said bluntly. Then she hesitated for a moment, her hand clenching around her cup. “But some of my anger might be because of Alex. It just reminds me of what he did to me…”
Riley’s eyes dropped to the table, shaking her head slightly. “That’s probably why I hate the cultists so much. They enslaved all those townspeople and tortured them. Alex used to look at me like those Masters - like I was some kind of test subject in some sick experiment. That’s probably why I have just been giving myself over to my dark mana. It makes it easier to act without thinking about all that baggage. The sense of freedom is intoxicating.”
Jason nodded. “I can definitely understand that. I did the same thing when I first started playing. I ended up slaughtering an entire city full of people after all,” he added with a dry chuckle.
Riley looked up at him with tears in her eyes. “I just haven’t gotten over it. I keep looking for reasons not to trust the people around me, wondering if they are going to screw me over. I just…” Riley trailed off, uncertain how to continue.
Without thinking, Jason reached forward and took Riley’s hand in his own. “Hey, I understand. He was an asshole. He screwed me too. In some ways, I’m an even bigger asshole for lying to you. Especially since I already knew what you were going through. I promise you, I won’t lie to you again.”
Riley took a deep breath. She glanced at Jason’s hand but didn’t pull away. “I’m sorry I get all weepy every time we come here,” she said with a chuckle.
“Hey, it’s okay, but I stand by what I said the first time. You’re not the cutest crier,” he said, handing her a napkin.
Riley glared at him. “Watch it. You’re still on thin ice, and I’m pretty sure I could take you out in-game.”
“Isn’t this cute,” a voice said from beside them. They both turned to find Frank walking through the doorway leading out onto the patio.
“I was prepared to start yelling at you, but that was kind of touching,” he said with a grin. Riley blushed and pulled her hand away from Jason’s, dabbing at her eyes with the napkin.
“Hi, Frank,” Jason said. He stood and greeted his friend. “I just want to…”
“Yeah, yeah. I get it. You’re sorry,” he interrupted. He then punched Jason in the shoulder. Hard. Jason staggered sideways from the force of the blow.
“Damn it,” Jason hissed, feeling his arm go numb. He looked back at Frank who was taking a seat at the table. “I suppose I deserved that.”
“You did,” Frank said shortly. “You were a huge dick.”
Jason took his seat, his eyes on his large friend. He hadn’t noticed it at first, but Frank was looking more toned. A lot of the flab had disappeared, and Jason could make out muscle definition in his arms and torso. He remembered thinking the same thing when he looked in the mirror a few days ago but had forgotten to ask Alfred about it. Maybe they were due for another heart-to-heart conversation. Assuming, of course, that he could find time with the impending battle approaching.
As though reading his mind, Frank rubbed his hands together. “I guess the question now, is how are we going to take on this player army. I couldn’t find anything online about the group traveling to the dungeon. That must mean that they are smarter than Alex.”
“That’s a low bar,” Riley said sourly.
“So, this means you guys are going to help me?” Jason asked, still rubbing his arm.
“Well, yeah,” Frank said. “At a minimum, we’re trapped in that damn dungeon with you. However, I’d also like to test out my new equipment,” he added with a grin.
Riley looked at Jason levelly. “To be clea
r, I still think you’re a jerk, but we need to save the dead villagers we left in the ruined city. Besides, we’re a team. A dysfunctional one maybe, but still a team.”
“Also, I kind of like tapping into my evil side,” Frank said, glancing at Riley. “I can’t wait to see the looks on those players’ faces when they run into us.”
Jason stared at his friends in surprise. “I don’t know what to say. Thanks for giving me another chance. I promise to tell you guys my plans from now on.”
Frank waved a hand. “Good. I’d hate to have to show you who’s really carrying our team,” he said in his best attempt at a menacing voice. When they both just stared at him with a deadpanned expression, he pushed forward. “Anyway, now that we’ve gotten that stuff out of the way, let’s talk about tactics!”
Jason grinned, planning was always his favorite part. “Okay, after you guys left, Pint explained that there were at least a hundred players in the group approaching the dungeon. If we log back in today, we’ll have a few hours until they show up. I ordered Rex to station our troops in the lake near the entrance to the dungeon. That way they won’t be discovered and will be in position to flank the players. I guess we’re going to find out if the undead need to breathe.”
“What about the people in Peccavi?” Riley asked, concern in her voice. “Won’t the players just destroy the town on their way up to the dungeon?”
Jason nodded. “I had a similar concern. When I originally sent the note back with Pint, I ordered Rex to evacuate the town and move the townspeople back into the forest. He assigned some troops to defend them. I doubt William is happy about it but better safe than sorry. We can move them back once the players enter the dungeon.”
“Then that leaves one question; how are we going to tackle the players?” Frank asked, rubbing at his chin.
Riley’s eyes flashed with anger. “That’s easy. We’re going to make them regret messing with us. This is the second time that players have tried hunting us for that stupid real world bounty. We need to make an example of this group.”
Frank stared at her for a moment before lifting his drink. “Cheers to that!”
Jason watched his friends. The Old Man’s words were beginning to make sense. They were a team, and he needed to learn to trust them. Raising his own drink, Jason joined the toast. Together, he expected that the three of them would make the digital world tremble in fear.
Chapter 27 - Crafty
The technicians in the control room were riveted on the screen hovering over the lab. The display had been broken into several different perspectives, showing the viewpoints of players around Grey Keep. The city was in complete chaos. NPCs and players were engaged in skirmishes throughout the city, many of the buildings were ablaze, and the bodies of the city’s residents littered the streets.
Many of the monitoring programs had relayed elevated stress levels for the players engaged in the conflict in Grey Keep. Normally, that would have signaled the need for a game master, but Cerillion Entertainment couldn’t afford to let the CPSC intervene in a city-wide conflict. With their past conduct, it was likely that they would raze the whole city. Robert had been forced to call George to get him to hold off the game masters.
“I haven’t seen an in-game war on this scale since Jason’s attack on Lux,” Claire said, her eyes focused on the screen.
“I know. We’re likely witnessing the fall of another city,” Robert replied distractedly.
His attention was focused on a scene playing out on one of the windows on the large screen. “Focus on that bottom right-hand player,” Robert ordered. The image soon filled the screen.
The player was standing in front of the keep. A quick glance at the player ID showed that they were viewing Alexion’s player camera. A tech glanced up at Robert. “Alexion has a full video suite installed. We can show a third-person perspective,” he explained.
“Well, then do it,” Robert said impatiently.
The screen zoomed out to show the area around the keep. Alexion stood in front of the stone structure. Yet he didn’t try to siege its walls. Instead, he faced the courtyard of the keep. Troops dressed in the livery of the various noble houses and peasants armed with makeshift weapons filled the enclosure.
“People of Grey Keep.” Alexion addressed the crowd. Golden light radiated from him in waves, and he held his glowing yellow sword aloft, its flames lapping at the air. “Today, Grey Keep has been purged of its corruption. Regent Strouse and his soldiers are dead. We have claimed this city for the Lady.”
He took a deep breath and then continued. “No longer will Grey Keep be ruled by selfish bureaucrats that use its people and its troops for their own ends. It will be governed by the Lady and her vassals. This city shall feel the light’s touch, and it shall flourish!”
At this last statement, the crowd let out a triumphant roar into the sky. The Lady answered. The clouds over the city parted, and beams of light shot down toward Grey Keep. The rays illuminated the buildings and people, motes of golden energy swirling within the columns of light. Without warning, the earth beneath the crowd’s feet began to tremble and jerk. Then the Roman-themed structures began to change.
The keep buckled and shook as the heavy stone blocks that made up its walls turned into semi-transparent crystal. Towering spires shot from the roof of the keep, rocketing up into the air. Concentric golden rings could be seen hovering around the peaks of each tower.
The buildings were not spared, their plaster walls turning to a brilliant mix of glass-like crystal and gold. Similarly, the walls ringing the city changed to a milky white crystal, the edges of the walls forming a jagged, erratic pattern. The light struck the surface of the transformed buildings and refracted in a kaleidoscope of color, bathing the city in a rainbow of light.
The residents of the city also underwent dramatic changes. Many of the guardsmen sprouted golden wings, and their mail and plate armor were replaced with glowing yellow bands of energy. The townsfolk experienced a subtler transformation. Their clothes shifted to an incandescent white, while glimmering halos appeared above their heads.
“Holy shit,” a technician whispered softly.
As Robert scowled at Alex’s glowing form, he muttered, “That’s not too far off the mark.” Robert hadn’t missed the fact that the dead and dying were unaffected by the changes. Corpses now littered the beatific streets of the transformed city, their blood staining the white pavestones red.
A universal system message was broadcast to every player logged into the game. It explained that Grey Keep had been converted to the light, granting players the opportunity to start as a Nephilim. In contrast to the Twilight Throne, the city was bathed in perpetual light, granting a stat bonus to NPCs and players with a positive alignment and a penalty to those with a negative alignment.
“The Crystal Reach,” Claire said dryly. “What a jovial name for a city - especially one created from such bloodshed.”
As Robert watched Alexion’s impassive, almost bored expression, he couldn’t help but wonder if the name was meant to be ironic.
***
An hour after their conversation in the café, Jason sat on a rock in the Hydra’s den. Frank was leaning against a nearby wall, while Riley paced in front of them. Jason had seen the notification regarding the fall of Grey Keep, though he wasn’t entirely surprised. When he saw Alexion’s name, a few pieces began to click into place, particularly the desecration that had been pinned on him.
Unfortunately, Jason had bigger problems at the moment. After only a few minutes of discussion, it had immediately become clear that the battle against the players would be challenging.
If Jason’s group started from the assumption that the enemy players weren’t idiots, then the invading force was going to quickly realize that they faced a significant tactical problem. The entire first level of the dungeon was a maze of relatively narrow hallways. This meant that the players likely wouldn’t assault the dungeon en masse. If they were intelligent, they would send s
maller scouting parties ahead to map the maze before moving their troops into the dungeon.
At first, this seemed like this offered an opportunity for Jason and his group to whittle down the enemy numbers by taking out their scouts. Yet that wasn’t going to be a straightforward process. Any players that died in the maze would simply respawn at the entrance in forty-five minutes. This meant that they couldn’t permanently reduce the size of the enemy army if they killed someone inside the dungeon.
On the other hand, attacking the players while they were outside the dungeon wasn’t an option either. If they killed a player in that situation, he or she would respawn at whatever city their spawn point was bound to, meaning that Jason and his group couldn’t kill them repeatedly to summon new NPCs for the Twilight Throne.
“I want to state for the record that this was a stupid plan,” Frank grumbled from where he leaned against the rock wall of the cave.
“He’s right,” Riley added as she walked back and forth in front of the pair. “We basically need to draw the enemy players into the dungeon and then kill them. However, we don’t know how many players we’re facing, and our NPC troops don’t respawn.”
She looked at Jason with an irritated expression. “On top of everything else, we have no way to communicate with Rex once the players show up.” She put up a hand to forestall Jason. “Let me correct that. We have a way to send commands through your zombies, but no way for Rex to send us a message back.”
Jason grinned as he watched his two friends. “That sounds about right.”
“Then why do you look so damned happy?” Frank asked in irritation.
“It’s a challenge, isn’t it?” Jason asked. “Plus, I think I have an idea.”
That got his friends’ attention. They both grimaced slightly, but at least they were listening. “It’s clear that we have to allow the enemy army to map the first level or they won’t enter the dungeon as a group. We also can’t wait too long, or the creatures in the dungeon will respawn. Looking at the system clock, we only have a couple in-game days left.”
Awaken Online: Precipice Page 38