Change

by Tony Corden

  “I understand the theory but three missiles are going to explode ‘almost simultaneously’, in a certain location near you and you have to choose the exact instant to translate just before the shock waves hit the ship. Zack did the calculations, and you have to be accurate to within a nano-second.”

  “Not me! The computers which Zack and Amy are already working on will do the work. Have faith, John!”

  “Of course I have faith. I’m going to be on the bridge with you, and I am supposed to fire one of the missiles. I still think you're crazier than my Aunt Myrtle and she’s crazier than a soup sandwich.”

  “No pressure John, I just want you to know that the missile you fire will have the most effect, it’s a very expensive gravitational bomb which creates a micro-black hole and will modify both our direction and speed.”

  “I know! I’ve spent the last nine hours practising on the Corvette’s weapons systems. I’ll be ready, don’t worry. If anything goes wrong, it’ll be because of your dumb idea not my execution of it.”

  “That’s the spirit, John! I’m headed back to Dunyanin but will be here to welcome the new kids at two.”

  Back in the Tower Leah said, "Gèng, I'm going to see how far I can get toward Pazar today. While I'm gone, can you check with Akia about Charlie Brown? I had expected her to be here by now."

  Gèng agreed, and Leah logged in. She unzipped the tent and looked around at her perch, high above the forest on the top of the peak. She had not looked around fully the night before, but in the early morning light, she could tell that she was higher than she had imagined. She caught occasional glimpses of the Hizli and the trail beside it. She was probably fifteen or more leagues from the closest section of trail that she could see. She could see a line of hills and several tors and buttes rising from the surrounding woodland. Checking her maps, some of the features were marked and looked to be within teleport distance of the trail. Far in the distance, she could make out the rising Demir Dovuyor Mountains.

  After a final check, she visualised a butte at what she guessed was ten leagues distance and visualised the location and teleported. As she arrived, she stumbled a little on the uneven ground and found herself on a flat section of rock probably three acres in size. She had some time before she could teleport again, so she wandered around and checked for wildlife, but the area was barren. She equipped her mining pick and found several places which showed green. She spent some time mining but found only a few pieces of low-grade iron ore. She was about to check the sides of the butte when her timer showed she could teleport the full distance again. She walked to the edge of the butte and looked toward the much closer Demir Dovuyor Mountains. Leah finally picked a tall needle-like protrusion which appeared to be within her range and almost three-quarters of the way to the foothills of the mountains. This time when she tried to teleport she wasn’t able to. Either the needle was too far away, or her perception of what it looked like was somehow skewed.

  She found another tall rocky peak about halfway between the Butte and the needle and teleported there. Again she had to wait and found a few rocks to mine. When she was able to teleport she took a look at the needle and again tried to teleport but again she wasn’t able to teleport to the top of the needle. She decided that she had time to investigate and visualised herself arriving at a clear section of forest she could see close to the base of the needle, and teleported there with no problem. From where she was it was almost a thousand metres to the top of the needle. It took her just over thirty minutes to walk around the base checking for any easy access to the top. Nowhere showed up as suitable to mine and there were no clearly defined paths, or steps, to the top.

  She worked her way back from the needle and looked at a point only two metres from the base. She teleported and immediately tried to Mist. While falling, she found it to be too difficult to Mist. She equipped the Orumeck’s Hands of a Spider gloves and teleported to the same point. She was able to stop her fall and then Mist upwards for a time. In the end, Leah stepped back from the needle and found a point near the top which was easy to focus on. She teleported and then immediately held on with the gloves. Rather than Mist, she scurried up the needle until she was able to hold firmly to the upper edge. She slowly lifted her head over the edge and saw that the top of the needle was a perfect circle just over twenty metres in diameter. Covering most of the area was a large metallic disc inscribed with runes, numbers and various diagrams. The only section not covered by the metal was a small walkway around the circumference. Leah pulled herself onto the walkway and began to study the disc.

  The detail was such that she was unable to read the words more than a metre in from the edge. Finally, after looking over the whole outside of the disc, she found what looked like small stepping stones to a central clear section. Each stepping stone was covered in writing and diagrams. She moved closer to the first and read the following:

  Ten steps to lead the chase

  Nine moons to finish the race

  Eight challenges to clear the dross

  Seven great lands and oceans to cross

  Six cities of old, to find and claim

  Five followers to help win fame

  Four ranges to climb, subdue

  Three caverns, their treasures pursue

  Two teams to find Merkize

  One hand to hold the prize

  It sounded like another great Odyssey but this time against others. She counted the footsteps to the middle and found there were over forty, staggered between the first and the central circle. Again she walked around, and this time she could see the faint imprint of the Dunyanin world covering the entire disc, it was underneath the runes, numbers and puzzles. The starting footprint was in the ocean below Vatan, and the stones crossed the continent to the centre of the Map where the legendary continent of Merkize was situated.

  “Gèng, is there any record in the forums to Merkize and a challenge, odyssey or race?”

  “Merkize was highlighted several years ago as a new land to be opened. The administrators instigated a challenge across all continents to find a map. When all ten maps had been found there would be a race to the centre of the continent to open it for exploration. The first map was discovered in Tanamore just over eighteen months ago. Since then eight other maps have been found, at least one on each of the six main continents except Vatan. I suppose this is the tenth and final map.”

  “Do you know who holds the other maps?”

  “Everyone except the Tanamore Map. The name was released, but supposedly the finder sold the map to an unidentified buyer.”

  “I imagine I need to choose ten steps to take to get to the middle, is there any information on what the others have faced?”

  “Only one person has a comment. They found a map and made a mistake in claiming it. The disc or map disappeared and was found later at a different location by someone else. None of the successful map holders has given any hints.”

  Leah was certain she needed to use the initial step as the others were beyond her reach without jumping. Even so, she would need to step over a metre to get her feet in the first space. As she took the step, there was a small chime, and the step below her feet turned golden and began to glow.

  She could only see the detail on three of the next stepping stones. She studied them, but nothing stood out to give a hint until she noticed a small crescent in the corner of one of the stones. Instinctively she stepped to that stone and heard another chime. From then on it was straightforward as she stepped on the stones which had some reference either by symbol, word or rhyme to the moon. Her tenth step from the initial stone brought her into the central clear circle with the faint etching of the new continent of Merkize.

  As soon as she stepped on this, the whole disc shone with light, and a message appeared:

  World Achievement: First 10 (1, Diamond)

  The Map to Merkize

  Atherleah (Level 240) You have found a map to Merkize. This is your second World Achievement: 'First 10 (Diamond)’.r />
  You are the tenth and final player to acquire a map to the hidden continent of Merkize.

  Reward 1: 5000 x 240 = 3048000 (+154%) Experience Points (1050000/1050000)…(375040/1080000)

  Reward 2: + 5% to all future Experience

  Reward 3: 2 x 1 Diamond

  Fame: 7500 Fame Points (133705)

  A Commemorative Plaque has been placed in your bag.

  Note: Due to the unique nature of this achievement it will be published on the Dunyanin achievement forum. Do you wish to retain your privacy?

  [Y] [N]

  As she clicked ‘Yes’ the light dimmed, and the whole disk disappeared. A dinner plate sized metallic plate appeared at her feet. She picked it up and looked at it. All the writing, the runes and puzzles had disappeared and instead there was the outline of the Continent of Merkize. A second message appeared:

  The Map to Merkize

  All ten maps have now been discovered. Exactly 72 hours Dunyanin-time from the finding of this map, you and the other nine map holders will be transported to a meeting to discuss the Odyssey, or journey, that this map entitles you to embark upon. You have until then to sell or trade this map to another should you wish not to participate. After the meeting you will once more be able to study the map.

  Gèng interrupted her thoughts, “The achievement hit the forum, and the thread is exploding. There is a significant amount of money being channelled through various betting sites. Currently, the favourite to secure the final prize is the famous Level 514 Chinese player Yuè_Fēi_Lóng with odds of 2 to 1.”

  “Am I able to bet on winning?”

  “You can. The current odds of the unknown tenth map holder to win are 340 to 1.”

  “What amount can I bet at that price?”

  “Several sites are offering similar odds, and they allow a maximum bet of one diamond.”

  Leah sat there for some time thinking and finally shook her head and said, “Sorry Gèng, I got caught up in a bit of a brain loop. Just ignore the betting for now. But keep me appraised of the odds as it will inform the contest, I think.”

  Leah walked around the edge of the needle and was able to make out what she imagined from her map was the town of Pazar. She focussed on a clear field just outside the town and teleported. From the field, it was a short walk into the small town, and she made sure to change her resurrection point just in case the ambushers were nearby. From here to the foothills of the Mountains was ten leagues and then a further six leagues deeper into the mountains to reach the settlement. Leah checked the ranger map again and decided to skip the trail and teleport into the mountains. From the outskirts of the town, she could see a steep ridge which her map showed being on the near side of the main trail. She reasoned that from there she should have a view of the trail. If not she would teleport back to Pazar and make the trip the following day.

  She visualised arriving toward the highest point of the ridge and teleported. Her sudden arrival startled an amphithere who dove off the rock on which it was sunning itself. She inspected it and read

  FIRE WYVERN AMPHITHERE (Level 220) 48400HP 11000EP

  Leah watched as the fourteen-metre long beast rode the currents and then turned toward her. Its wingspan was easily ten metres from tip to tip, and it was covered in dark burgundy scales. It had no legs but had three sharp claws at the wrist joint of each wing. As it dove toward her Leah equipped her bow and fired several arrows, two deflected from the tough scales while one penetrated a short distance into the torso near the neck. Before it reached her, she dove to her left and behind a small tree. It was fortunate that she ducked, for the creature’s right-wing shifted down and sliced through the tree just missing Leah. Instead of turning again, the amphithere flared its wings and turning rapidly folded the wings against its body and began to move toward Leah like a snake. Unfortunately for it, this was something she was prepared for, and at the closer distance, she was able to target the eyes. After that, it was straightforward, and she soon harvested the creature’s corpse.

  She sat for a while and tried to think of ways that she might defeat the creature in the air. She also wondered if the wing would have been able to cut Merdiven. She walked up the ridge but didn’t find any other creatures. She decided that she most likely wouldn’t have been attacked if the Amphithere hadn’t been surprised. It was rare in Dunyanin for animals to attack players who were more than ten levels higher than them except if the animals were a part of a group. She finally reached the part of the ridge where she was able to look down on the trail and to the top of the pass, which the map said would lead her to the settlement of Daglar Duman in the valley on the other side. As she glanced at the trail her eyes were drawn to the figure of a dwarf, some halfway up the trail, who was surrounded by three creatures which looked like the Amphithere but instead of wings they possessed a set of front legs.

  As she watched one of the creatures succeeded in knocking the dwarf on his back. It stepped forward and raked the dwarf’s legs. Before it could take another step, Leah had teleported onto its back and grabbing the head between her hands she cast freeze. She stepped off the dying creature and equipping her bow fired two arrows at the next closest creature. One just missed the eye but the other wedged itself in the roof of the mouth causing the creature to rear backwards and screech. Leah was now the centre of attention for the two mobile creatures. Both were over twelve metres in length and had a dragon head with the front part of their body resembling a lizard and the rear like that of a snake. Leah cast chain lightning and then stepping toward the third creature she equipped Baris and began to attack. With her Ki speed, she seemed to be dancing around the snapping and shifting head of the creature.

  The creature with the arrow in its mouth suddenly snapped toward Leah, but she was ready, and as it came close she thrust Baris through the eye and deep into its brain. As it dropped the sword was ripped from her hand. She ducked to her left to evade the snapping mouth of the final creature and then quickly turning and taking a step she swung herself behind its head and drove one blade of her Haladie down through the top of the skull. As she stepped off the creature, she read its name.

  MOUNTAIN LINDWORM (Level 212) 0HP 10600EP

  She turned to the dwarf who was just getting slowly to his feet. She checked his health which was just under half and said, “Hi, my name is Atherleah, would you allow me to cast a healing spell on you?”

  “Aye, that’d be great. My name is Hargaer.”

  Leah cast the spell of healing which was now at a level to bring the dwarf to full health.

  “Thanks, Atherleah. Just for me understanding, where did ye drop in from?”

  “I was on the ledge over there when I saw you being attacked. I’m on my way to Daglar Duman. Do you know of it?”

  “Aye, it’s the settlement in the next valley. I was on my way there when I was attacked. From here it’s only a few hours walk. Maybe it’s best if you come with me for they can be a terrible suspicious lot of your kind, here in the mountains.”

  “What kind is that?”

  “Well, Traveller, Elf, and human. To be honest, the only thing worse would be if you were riding a dragon.”

  “So, I should leave my dragon at home?”

  “You’ve a wit. That’ll stand ye in good stead. What be your purpose in coming to Daglar Duman?”

  “I have a letter to deliver to one of the residents, and I was hoping to talk with the Master Smith about some weapons.”

  “You’ll be able to drop off the letter, but I’ll wager the Master Smith won’t even talk with ya.”

  “How much?”

  “What?”

  “How much will you wager?”

  “Ah, it’s only a turn of phrase, but I’ll humour you. I’ll wager a Gold you won’t see the Master Smith.”

  “Done.”

  Leah and Hargaer made their way up the rest of the trail and through the pass. As they came through the other side, Leah could see the Dwarven settlement. It was built into the wall of the valle
y. As they made their way down the trail Hargaer explained that half the settlement was inside the steep valley wall and the other half outside. Those who lived outside had small thatched homes and made their living from their gardens, from hunting or by shepherding the mountain goats which thrived in the hills. As they approached the settlement, Leah asked if there was an inn or hotel where she might stay the night. Hargaer said that she must come and stay with him and his family. Leah explained that as a traveller she needed to be asleep soon so she could visit other places in her dreams.

  “I understand lass, that’s one of the things we find odd about you travellers. But not to worry, I have a small room my son sleeps in, he can sleep with my wife and me, and you can have the room.”

  The guards were hesitant to allow Leah to enter but accepted her presence after Hargaer’s tale of her saving his life. Soon she was safely in his home and able to log out.

  When Leah arrived in the Tower, she found Gèng sitting on the sofa. Leah joined her and said, "Is everything all right?"

  “No Leah, it isn’t. I spoke with Akia, and she had expected Charlotte to be here already. After I asked her, she investigated the situation. A body was found late last night in the Brisbane River. The identity had been withheld, but Akia was finally able to gain access to the report. DNA identified the body as Charlotte Brown. Police have already ruled it a suicide, but Akia says that is not likely as Charlotte has a husband and young child. She would like your permission to visit, is that okay?”

  Leah nodded and put her head in her hands. She was in shock. At some level Leah blamed herself, and the guilt almost overwhelmed her. She took some deep breaths and began to breathe as she was taught. Slowly her mind stepped back from that cliff, and she was able to start processing the information. Gèng interrupted her and said, “Akia will be here in a moment.”