by A P Gore
Balthazar's eyes moved, and Shui's body floated in the air. He was thrown back against a wall, pinned there. Pain shot across his limbs, restricting his movements. It was a mind control magic, something rare and only available to high-level sorcerers in the game. Shui knew about it because his level 100 sorcerer mentor had access to the magic and had once demonstrated it to Shui.
Balthazar zipped through the air and appeared next to Shui in a fraction of a second. “Okay, listen mate. This is a game, and there is a fix for every curse. I repeat: a fix for every curse. Now, find that fix and get that man out of that shitty place as soon as possible. I’m not paying you thirty grand in RL for wasting my time.”
Shui’s insides contracted, constricted by the force of Balthazar’s psychic ability. The breakfast he ate that morning rose to his throat, giving him the taste of the ham sandwich once again, but this time it wasn't pleasant.
“This one will try, friend.” Shui spread sugar on his words, hoping to calm down the predator in the room. Balthazar. Shui knew he couldn’t fight with a being that could zap him out of anywhere to an unknown place. When he was here last time, he’d tried to check his map, but no world map appeared on his map screen. It was strange. No location in the whole of BlackFlame Online acted like that. Even when he’d landed in the undiscovered demon town of Sumara, his map had showed a black cloud. But this location was completely uncharted.
Baltazar released Shui and folded his hands at his waist, but the threat in his eyes never truly went away. “I suppose you’ve used the pinger I gave you?”
“Yes. This one has buried the pinger near the town. This one can go there five more times.” The pinger was another surprise, a small unique ring that allowed him to tune his teleportation landing to a certain location. This had never happened before. His teleportation skill was a unique one and didn’t allow him to choose the destination. But now he had 5 charges that he could use to teleport near the town of Sumara, near the expansion site. The fool—Noah—didn’t know what a gold mine he was sitting on. And that wasn’t the only expansion site present in the area, either. There were two more. Again, this was a rare phenomenon he hadn’t seen in the twelve years of his game life. He would have loved to explore one, maybe claim it for himself.
Maybe sometime in the future.
Balthazar stood, pushing his ornate metal glasses back on his nose. “Don’t use the pinger unless you find a fix for the curse. The next time I see you, I want results.”
Shui wanted to ask a question, but before he could open his mouth, he was teleported back to the town square of Ampethia. The square bustled with humans, elves, and so many other races. No one noticed a human dropping from the sky.
2. Reluctance
Tia
Tia stood in the doorway of her dorm room, looking at it one last time. Her favorite white bed sheets with a circle of green flowers in the center decorated her wooden bed. The books she’d checked out from the library lay on the rack next to the bed. She had moved the rack there, so she could read in bed. She wanted to take it with her, but she couldn't. It was academy property. Moving it in her tiny eight-by-eight room wasn’t an issue, but the marks it left on the purple carpet had gotten her in trouble in the first-year inspection. Her brown duffel bag lay on the polished wooden table provided by the academy. From five feet away, she could spot the markings for a game she and Visaka had done on the wooden surface. For fun.
She sighed, holding back tears. It was a final goodbye. It was time to shoulder her fully packed bag and never look back at the room she’d called home.
Her favorite song played on her personal wrist computer. Visaka was calling. She must be waiting for her somewhere on campus.
Tia walked slowly toward the table, inhaling the scent of the room. Everyone despised their dorm rooms because they smelled old and rusty, but not Tia. She loved being here. When she first arrived, her room smelled disgusting, but over the years it changed. Her scent, her friend’s scent, her emotional scent… everything mixed together, making it a perfect blend of smells. Now she would have to say goodbye to it all.
Before picking up her bag, she traced her fingers over her own name carved on the table’s wooden surface, feeling the smooth edges of the carvings. They were rough when she’d carved it in her first year, but they’d smoothed out much like her life had with the help of her friends.
“Hey sweetie, are you all right?” A deep, masculine voice pulled her from her thoughts.
She quickly wiped her tears away with her sleeve, not wanting to show weakness in front of her boyfriend. She turned to face the six-foot-tall mage teacher, Emanuel. He kept a long beard which, she was trying to get him cut—if only he would listen to her for a change.
“Yes. I miss this room already.”
“That’s why I joined the mage academy as a teacher.” Emanuel flashed his sugary-sweet smile that melted Tia’s heart, a smile she fell for a few years ago.
“Don’t lie. You joined it for me.” She raised a brow and looked into his eyes. They’d met in his final year of study at the academy, and their relationship took off. Emanuel had worked as a warrior mage for a couple of years before returning to the mage academy as a teacher.
“True. That, and that the room they offered me was much better than this shit.” He smirked.
“I love this room,” she said. He had invited her to live with him. He was working as an assistant teacher, and technically wasn’t her teacher, so they could share the same room. But she preferred staying in her own room. Though tiny, it was her home.
“Let’s go to Starbuds. I’ve got great news. News I’ve been waiting on for ten years.” Emanuel rushed forward and lifted her bag. “I’m dying to tell you about this.” His words practically ran together. The happiness in his tone was infectious, and it lifted her mood too.
She spun back and looked at the room for the last time. She was going to miss this. All the late-night parties, study sessions, gossip nights, pajama parties… Everything. “Okay. Let me text Visaka and ask her to meet us at Starbuds.”
“Is she gonna bring her boyfriend too?” A single crease appeared in Emanuel’s wide forehead.
She touched his temple, easing his reaction. “Em, relax. They are in love, like us. Why are you so bothered by Richard?” Richard was a… okay guy. Visaka liked him, and that was enough for Tia to trust him. But for some reason, Emanuel despised him.
She quickly texted Visaka from her wrist PC and left the room before another attack of emotions could hit.
♦ ♦ ♦
The cafeteria was half full when Tia spotted Visaka walking in. The environment was comfy and casual. No one was rushing to line up in front of the vendors, and most of the students were sitting with their parents; ambient smiles decorated their faces. It was like someone had cast a happy spell on everyone present in the cafeteria, but that spell failed to affect Tia.
“Hey Ti.” Visaka half hugged Tia and brushed her cheek against hers. As usual, Visaka wore a pristine blue robe with a golden serpent embedded on the left shoulder. It was her royal symbol, the symbol of being a princess of the Spectra 33 planetary system.
Spectra 33 Princess. Those words brought a hint of jealousy to Tia’s heart, but she shoved it away as fast as the thoughts came to her. Their friendship was much more than this, far beyond any materialistic concerns.
“Where is Richard?” Tia asked, returning Visaka’s hug.
“He got some work. Urgent, in his words.” Visaka rolled her eyes. “I don’t know half of the things he does these days. Anyway, what’s the good news you mentioned in the text?”
Tia turned to face Emanuel, who was already munching on the burger he had ordered. Cheese leaked through the bread plates, and Em licked at it disgustingly. She hated the cheesy smell of the burger, but Em loved it more than he loved her. He always feasted, especially on the homemade food the academy cafeteria served, like he was eating for the first time in life. She leaned on the table, snatched the burger from Em’s ha
nds, and dropped it on the plate. She scowled as some of the hot cheese spilled on her fingers, burning it. It was gummy and disgusting. “What’s your big news? And stop eating like a monkey.”
Emanuel growled at her, grabbed the burger, and pushed it into his mouth.
Tia turned to Visaka and signaled her to seat down. She knew Em wouldn’t open his mouth until the burger vanished inside his fat stomach. The man was crazy around food, and she got annoyed whenever he exhibited this disgusting behavior. But his heart was made of gold, and that mattered the most.
“Okay, here goes.” Em wiped his hands on a white napkin Tia had left in front of him. “We are going on a trip to Gamisha tomorrow. We’re visiting the Laxania headquarters.”
Tia’s chin lifted, her fingers clenched around the soft coating of the fiber chair she was sitting on. “Laxania? Why?” A memory of a man in a black business suit visiting her couple of days back surfaced in her mind, and that memory was associated with her deceased father. Hatred and anger filled her mind as she remembered the man’s words.
Visaka touched her shoulder, rubbing it lightly.
“I haven’t told you gals before, but my brother has been stranded in the BlackFlame Online game for the last ten years, and in a months’ time he will be set free. These guys want me to come and sign some contract. I might get a chance to visit my brother in the game.” He leaned forward, grabbing Tia’s hand. “And I want you to be with me. I want him to meet you while he’s in a good mood. I’m not sure how he will behave after coming out of the game. I’ve heard people who spend a long time in the game start hating the actual world.”
Em’s words spilled over her mind like acid, burning through the surface, exposing a dark pit she had kept hidden for the last twenty years. “Sorry, Em. I can’t.” She slammed her hand on the table. The empty food plate jumped and fell off the table. She stood and left the cafeteria. She couldn’t take the toxic smiles of the students anymore. She needed plain air to breathe some calm in, to clear the toxins from her heart.
3. The Antidote
The room went silent for a moment. A tremble started in Noah's core, eventually spreading to his hand. The tea cup in his hand dropped to the ground, breaking into three pieces. Each piece resembled his broken heart. Noah dropped to his knees, collecting the pieces. They could be patched together, but there was no mending his heart. His girl, Thia, was infected by a curse, and he was the sole reason for it. The curse of death.
“Leave it. I’ll prepare another cup for you.” Roderich poured the intoxicating drink in another cup. The aroma of the tea should have eased Noah’s senses, but it couldn’t. Instead it added to his uneasiness.
Roderich continued, “I’ve something I can use on her. But it’s going to cost a fortune. The ingredients don’t come cheap.”
“How much?” He hoped he had enough gold. Greedy Mathial had been slowly eating away his cash.
“I’m not talking about gold, human. I need a monster crystal of iron, level 2, for this. Something that a hobgoblin or orc warrior can drop.”
“I’ll get one for you. I know where I can find a goblin.” The view of goblin town appeared in Noah’s mind. “But do you have one you can use, right now? Please.”
“Yes. Relax, human. I’ll make the antidote for her.” Roderich pulled a white cloth from a plate he had carried out earlier. There was a set of equipment on the plate: a small crusher, a cutter, and a glass tube. A few green leaves were also present on the plate. Noah tried to identify them, but the system errored out, saying he had a low level of herbalism. One more reason to improve his herbalism.
“But will this save her permanently, High Mage?” Noah asked, putting the broken cup on another plate.
Roderich ignored him and first crushed a couple of herbs in a small stone pot. Then he ground them with a marble crusher for a few minutes. Next, he pulled a pink, pentagon-shaped crystal from his pocket. Noah suspected it was Roderich’s bag of holding, which Noah couldn’t see—a soul-bound bag of holding, indeed. Roderich slammed the core on the stone pot, breaking it in half. Pink liquid oozed out of it; he let mix with the herbs. He threw the empty shell of the crystal away and started mixing the herbs with the crusher slowly.
After ten more minutes, Roderich put the pot away and covered it with a marble lid. “This will take an hour to complete, but we’ll go to the inn and check on the girl first. This antidote should stabilize her condition for a few days.”
Noah’s heart filled with hope. “Thank you, High Mage.” Noah bowed, and for the first time it was out of respect. The demon was doing this for the little girl, and Noah would be in Roderich’s debt. “But what about a permanent solution? Is there any way to save her from this curse?” He needed to find a way to save her permanently.
Roderich's head hung. “I don’t have one.”
Noah’s heart shrunk. There had to be a way, and he had access to the goddess Sumara. Yes, I’ll go and ask her as soon as Thia drinks this.
The journey back to the inn was a silent one.
Thia was still unconscious in Noah’s room, and Mathial was sitting near her with a half empty red vial on a tray. Noah quickly checked her status with perception, and her health was at 202/235. Five seconds later, it dropped to 198. It was a slow decay, and would have been okay in other times, but right now Thia was unconscious, and her face was twisted in pain. Noah sniffed his tears back and turned away.
By examining his own emotions and actions, Noah understood the immersion of the game, making it so realistic that he was doing everything for the NPC. But she wasn’t an NPC anymore. She had ascended to the next level for him. She was a family now, and he would do anything to save her—even face the evil goddess. He would visit her soon.
“She is stabilized. We have to wait two hours,” Roderich said after checking her pulse.
When the two-hour wait finished, Roderich poured the brown liquid from the pot in Thia’s mouth. The effect was immediately visible. Her chest—which had been heaving up and down like a restless child—settled into a normal, steady rhythm.
“She will wake in few hours,” Roderich said with a reassuring smile.
“Thank you, High Mage.” Noah once again bowed willingly. He pushed away a few notifications that had popped up. “How can I repay you?”
“Did you learn more about the cave I asked about?”
“Yes, indeed. It’s a cave of Xamphala, and it has level seven restrictions.”
“Wonderful.” A smile appeared on the Roderich's face. “I’m sure it would help you in clearing the cave.”
A notification with a golden border appeared. A golden border meant a quest update or quest complete. He looked at his all notifications, since he had some time to kill.
Congratulations! You have demonstrated courage that no other player would dream to show by risking your life for a demon and demonstrating the will to pay everything you have to get her the antidote. +1 to charisma, +1 to wisdom.
Quest updated: Inaccessible Cave. You have provided more information on the dungeon to the High Mage Roderich. Reward: Map to the human town. Reward deferred until quest completion.
Congratulations! You have gained +5000 reputation with High Mage Roderich for the care and dedication you have shown for the demon girl Thia. Current level of Reputation: Considerate.
“I can’t give you a map to the human town unless you get the diadem of our head demon, but I can teach you one spirit related skill,” Roderich said.
“That would be great.” Noah cast a quick glance at Thia, whose health was now rising bit by bit. Her face too had eased into a relaxed state.
Noah thanked Mathial for his help, then followed Roderich around to the empty ground behind the inn. Roderich stood in front of Noah with a small stick in one hand. He stood still and silent for a moment, perhaps contemplating the best way to teach Noah.
“This skill is called Spirit Run. When it comes to spirit and mana, there are multiple skills considered utility spells that can be learned
by anyone with a high affinity to a respective school. Spirit run is one of those spells. It is not damage dealing, but it will help you in many other areas. The spell is based on spirit manipulation. In spirit manipulation, you improved your prime spirit channels and widened them. Now, using this skill, you will use those channels to imbue your muscles with the power of spirit and use it to run and walk faster.”
“Is that why we opened the leg spirit channels?” He wondered what he would be able to do with the other parts of his body now.
“Yes, but how big is your spirit reserve now? Did you keep practicing the spirit manipulation as your spirit increased?”
Noah looked at Roderich in confusion. “Was that necessary?”
Roderich smacked Noah’s head with the stick. Roderich’s slap hit Noah like a hammer and took 20 points of life away. Noah fell backward, landing on his ass. Mathial’s laughter echoed in his ears.
Noah stood, mentally cursing Roderich, and cast a frown at the blacksmith who was still laughing at him from the nearby smithy.
“That was for your foolishness,” Roderich said. “How else would you grow your prime spirit channels? If you haven’t done it, then do it now. It’s always wise to learn any new spirit skill at the highest level of your prime spirit channels. Do it now. I’ll wait.”