by Sarah Lin
Logically he should have turned on the one chasing him, tried to take him out before the archer and the knife fighter joined him. But he had an arrow sticking out of his back and his other injuries were catching up to him... the box might say he had some health left, but his body couldn't keep fighting like this.
But it could run. Bloodwraith stumbled forward, vanishing into one of the side chambers that linked up to the others. He heard laughter behind him and realized that they must know this was a dead end. They'd be careful as they followed, the archer taking up a vantage point near the center and the others moving carefully to avoid an ambush.
In a way, that was a resource too. Instead of setting up any kind of ambush, Bloodwraith fled to the furthest tunnel, lay back against the wall, and took stock as he tried to rest.
[Health: 27/161
Mana: 2/13
Stamina: 43/126]
He didn't have much left. The one obvious strategic decision was to drink his final health potion, which at least soothed the ache of his wounds. Though he might not be able to take many more injuries, he could keep fighting a little longer.
Was he far enough from combat for his mana to begin regenerating again? That would make a huge difference, but unfortunately the boxes refused to tell him. Meanwhile, the three greencloaks were still making their way through the linked chambers cautiously, so he had a little more time.
Bloodwraith pulled out all the herbs he had been gathering on his trip out. He couldn't afford to pull out equipment and make potions, even if he had all the necessary items. But he could use his skills a little. If he ground the herbs with a mortar and pestle, then mixed them with water, they formed a concoction that did some good slathered on wounds.
As he did so quickly, his eyes were repeatedly drawn to the failed potion in his inventory. For a time he ignored it, but eventually he had covered his wounds and drank the last of the mixture. His condition was a little better, but not much.
If he didn't drink it now, he probably wouldn't get another chance. Bloodwraith raised the potion to his lips and drank.
His body began tingling and a box appeared almost immediately.
[Failed potions may have a variety of negative side effects.
Health regeneration stopped.
Combat reflexes -20%.
Stamina regen-]
"Imbecilic boxes!" Bloodwraith slashed his hand through the box, flat out disbelieving what it said. His body didn't feel worse. The tingling was strange, but it wasn't a negative magical effect.
Was he just in denial? If he was, he might as well embrace it. Bloodwraith threw his will against what the boxes declared, focusing solely on his body. The potion might not have granted him any mana or healed all his wounds, but he felt better. In fact, there was a strange energy running through his veins.
When he looked again, he found that his health had risen slightly and his stamina had mostly recovered. What did that mean? He didn't believe that he could change reality by willpower, so had he unlocked some other potential of the potion?
But there was no time to consider such questions, because at that moment he saw the largest of the greencloaks appear at the end of the corridor. The man smiled unpleasantly and advanced on him.
"Nowhere left to run, adventurer. Won't you come and fight us?"
A ploy to lure him into range of the others, no doubt. Bloodwraith stayed where he was, not raising his sword, just leaning back against the dead end. This wasn't combat, not yet. A relaxing break before it.
"It doesn't matter. You're only delaying the inevitable."
The greencloak advanced on him, step by step. He was definitely right in most of the ways that mattered. Bloodwraith had nowhere else to go, and in a narrow corridor like this his greatsword was of less use than those knives. He'd consumed all the resources he had left and he was still a little shy of the goal. It made sense for the greencloak to move cautiously to find the perfect time to kill him.
Except at that moment, Bloodwraith saw his personal box flicker and his mana number went up by one.
He pushed himself off the wall as fast as he could, hurtling toward his opponent. The greencloak brought up his knives confidently, but was completely taken off guard when the spell of force hit him in the chest. Stumbling backward, he had no defense when Bloodwraith thrust forward and through his chest, impaling him to the wall.
There was no time to celebrate - his charge had taken him around the corner, where the other two waited. He abandoned his sword and barely managed to throw himself back in time to avoid the next arrow.
That wasn't enough to escape the last melee fighter, who came after him swiftly. One knife slashed out, cutting his chest, and the other went straight for his face.
He managed to jerk to the side, making the knife hit his helm instead. It tore through and scraped along his skull, but it also became stuck in his helm. Bloodwraith ignored it, smashing his forehead into the other man's nose. When the knife fighter stumbled back, Bloodwraith struck him repeatedly with his fist until he stopped moving.
Then he dropped to his knees, gasping for breath. Yet it wasn't over, the archer was still around the corner. And unfortunately, the archer could wait forever, receiving reinforcements while Bloodwraith bled out. He needed to do something else to get out.
For a start, he picked up the corpse of the knife fighter. When he went around the corner, he saw the archer immediately loose, but he lifted the corpse and used it as a shield. Though the archer tried a second arrow around the corpse, Bloodwraith ducked low and kept himself behind it. He heard the archer retreat to the next corridor.
Now that he could reach his greatsword, Bloodwraith retrieved it from the wall and put it on his back again. He dropped his current human shield and replaced it with the larger greencloak, since he'd be able to block more arrows. But that wouldn't be enough, since the archer had to know what he was planning...
When he rounded the next corner, the archer again attempted to ambush him. Again his makeshift shield worked, but instead of advancing, Bloodwraith hurled it at the archer. He saw a flash of surprise in the man's eyes before he retreated, narrowly avoiding the projectile. Bloodwraith smirked and went back for the first body.
Gods, it was hard to lift. As much as he had been healed, he had lost a lot of blood, and the magic had stretched him thin. He didn't need to check his personal box to know that he was exhausted and had little stamina left.
As he struggled to drag the corpse along with him, a stranger idea occurred to him. Bloodwraith stared down at the body... then took off his mangled helm.
He switched his helm with the corpse's hat, then traded their cloaks as well. Both were green, but his had been torn to more pieces than the first. The two of them might not look very similar, but in the low light... this might be suicide, but it was his best hope.
Bloodwraith headed around the corner backward, trying to make his body look limp and holding up the corpse as if he was using himself as a shield. He heard the twang of an arrow and braced himself...
An arrow sprouted from the face of the corpse over his shoulder. The archer had chosen the wrong target.
Whirling, Bloodwraith hurled the corpse behind him. This time, the archer was too shocked to dodge, knocked sprawling. Though his limbs ached, Bloodwraith charged to close the distance and hacked down. It was messy and sloppy, but it was good enough. After several blows, the archer died and he was finally alone.
His body trembled when he moved, and as much as he tried, he couldn't stop the trembling. This was near his actual limit, but it might have been enough. Keeping one hand on the wall and trying to ignore the blood he left on it, Bloodwraith dragged himself out of the dead end, down the final corridor and toward the exit.
Though part of him expected yet more greencloaks to stand in his way, or the crypt to be sealed, he saw the door ahead, no more obstacles in the way. When he staggered through, he found himself back in the small building that served as the entrance to the crypt.
/> For a long moment he just stood there, not quite able to believe he had survived. A few small windows toward the street allowed actual sunlight to fall into the room and he reveled in it. Was it still daytime? It seemed as though it must have been much longer, but when he thought rationally he realized that it hadn't been so long.
So, had he really survived the crypt? As if in answer, boxes began to appear in front of him.
[Victory! You received 9278 EXP.
Marathon Bonus x1.2
Total EXP: 11,134
Marathon Stat Bonus: +1 Unassigned Stat Point
Deferred Stat Updates:
Max Health +22
Max Mana +4
Max Stamina +9
Might +1
Vitality +2
Quickness +1
Intellect +2
Willpower +1
Wisdom +1
Luck +1]
[Quest Complete!
Clear the crypt beneath Cresthaven for Daek the Knife.
Local Reputation +250
Guild Points: +100
Reward: (acquire from Daek the Knife)
Core Quest Completed: +2 Unassigned Stat Points
EXP +1000]
[Congratulations! You gained a level!
Current Level: 8
Current EXP: 9971/12,800
Unassigned Stat Points: 16]
Bloodwraith took a deep, shuddering breath and smiled. For once, he didn't mind the bombastic boxes and cheerful music in the slightest. So he had actually made it.
His body still hurt, yet he could move it more easily now that the tension had dissipated. As he limped toward the door, he wrapped his cloak around himself better to hide all his wounds. What he should do was get to another street as soon as possible, then switch from the cloak and armor to the peasant clothing he still carried. Then he could get back to the Guild and plan how to deal with Daek from there.
He opened the door, stepped out into the sunlight, and realized that there was a group of greencloaks waiting for him on the street.
Chapter 14
More than despair, Bloodwraith felt anger. It wasn't fair that he could have accomplished so much only to fail here. How could he have predicted that Daek the Knife would be willing to kill him in the street in broad daylight?
And though it was irrational, it irritated him that all those points were sitting unused because the boxes had never allowed it. That was a huge amount of raw power he would never be able to use. Not to mention the power he had gained while fighting, which did his exhausted and nearly dead body no good at all. All of it was just too unfair.
"How the hell did you make it here?" The quiet voice was Daek, who slipped from behind the others. "I suppose it's obvious you paid the price for it. But how?"
Bloodwraith just stared at him.
"Well, it doesn't matter. Because we're not going to kill you - no, we're going to heal you, then torture you until-"
"Not so fast, villain!"
The loud shout took them both off guard. Their heads swiveled to the side, Daek sharply and Bloodwraith wearily. For a moment he wasn't sure if he could possibly be seeing correctly or if the exhaustion had driven him to hallucinate.
But no, it was reality. Danniah was ramming the greencloaks out of the way with her shield, making way for the others. Rhil'lahan was the one shouting, pointing a finger toward Daek. More importantly, Herena and Khassfhit led a group of more people, both adventurers and civilians, along behind them. Witnesses.
What had happened to them, he couldn't know, and it didn't make sense that they would be helping him after he had betrayed them. But there was no time for that now. Rhil'lahan was challenging Daek directly, and that was entirely the wrong choice to make.
Though Rhil'lahan wasn't stupid enough to attack, instead moving to break the greencloak circle and draw Bloodwraith to them, the elf was still confronting Daek. Bloodwraith could see the master of the underworld's eyes growing harder and colder. He might not usually work as overtly as this, but if pressed, he was probably willing to use his control over the Cresthaven Guard, bribe the Governor, and eliminate anyone in his way.
"What are you talking about, adventurer?" Daek didn't put his hands on his knives - he didn't need to. But Rhil'lahan didn't see the threat, still thrusting a finger at him.
"You know full well what we're talking about!"
To reverse the direction of things, Bloodwraith knelt down next to Danniah when she got close. It was easy to do, since his body was eager to crumple to the ground. But he forced himself to stay upright and instead whispered to her. "Danniah. You need to act fast."
"I know! Daek the Knife betrayed us all!"
"We can't challenge him directly, we have to use his public honor against him." He saw her uncomprehending look and realized that it was useless to try to explain it. Instead he merely bent closer and whispered in her ear. "Look, just say this..."
Just when it looked like Rhil'lahan would say something that couldn't be taken back, Danniah nodded in understanding. She marched up to Daek and beamed at him.
"We finished clearing the crypt, just like you asked!"
Daek and Rhil'lahan both stared at her. The elf glowered and spoke in a terse voice. "You idiot, what are y-"
"We know you could have taken care of it yourself, but the Adventurers Guild is happy to work for you if we can help!" Danniah spoke the words so earnestly that it almost seemed like she believed them. Hell, maybe on some level she did. But the important thing was that everyone watching heard as well.
Now Daek had a choice to make. He could reveal that he had not only set up the entire crypt as a death trap, but that his trap had failed miserably... or he could accept the respectable way out being offered to him. Declaring the request complete like this would make it difficult for them to bring any charges against him, but it would be worth surviving the day.
Judging from how long Daek paused before answering, it wasn't an easy decision. When he finally moved, his smile was like ice and his movements filled with malice, even if all he did was reach into his coat and pull out a small bag.
"Thank you for your work, adventurers. I believe I said the reward would be one gold piece each." His voice was filled with raw hatred barely masked by civility. In silence he pulled five pieces of gold from the bag, then dropped them onto the cobblestones. Only when they stopped ringing did he speak again. "Perhaps I will have need of your services again. Stay well."
With that, he made a gesture that ordered his greencloaks to follow him and departed down the street. As he turned away his gaze swept across them, lingering on Bloodwraith. There was no question that all of them were marked for death, but not that day.
That left Bloodwraith in the middle of a group of adventurers that he had betrayed. Rhil'lahan looked angry at his meddling, but Khassfhit nodded in understanding and the others seemed glad to see him. He wanted to ask what they were thinking, but that would ruin whatever had turned his luck this way, so he just stared at him in silence.
"You had to fight your way out, did you?" Herena stepped closer to him and began casting healing spells, shaking her head. "Looks like you took the worst of it. I guess I should thank you."
"Things definitely didn't go as we'd planned." A response that meant absolutely nothing, delaying any interaction for a while longer. Fortunately, at that point Danniah turned to him and started chattering.
"You're amazing, Raigar! I didn't notice the ambush at all, but you knew right away! It was brave of you to take on the entire ambush yourself - I'm so glad we were able to come back in time to rescue you!"
"Stupid," Khassfhit said, "but brave. Why didn't you explain it to us, though?"
It was difficult to keep his face neutral as understanding flooded through him, so Bloodwraith gave a barbarian-like grunt and shrugged. "Wasn't thinking, just acting on instinct. I saw the treasure and knew that it was fake, and I figured out all the rest later." He pulled some of the false gold from his sack and showed it to them -
he'd taken it for its small amount of value, but this would be much more useful. No need to tell them about the cursed artifacts.
"So that's what it was." Rhil'lahan snatched the fake gold from him and sniffed. "I knew something was wrong, but I never imagined Daek would go that far."
"What happened to all of you? You didn't need to fight greencloaks?"
"There were a few, but we took care of them easily enough." The elf looked over his battered body and sniffed before turning to walk back to the Guild. Soon the others followed, Danniah supporting him under one shoulder, which was easy given their height difference. Khassfhit walked on his other side, stroking the spine underneath his chin thoughtfully.
"Why would Daek go this far, though? Was he fueling the death ritual?"
Bloodwraith shrugged. Even with this meat-headed body he had many observations, but he didn't feel like sharing them. As glad as he was for the others saving his life, he wasn't exactly overflowing with positive emotions toward them. Unless they were idiots, they had to know they were saving themselves as well by forcing the confrontation.
"The real question is, why get the Adventurers Guild involved?" Khassfhit asked no one in particular. "That would be a huge risk compared to just sacrificing the poor of Cresthaven."
That was a better question, and one that Bloodwraith didn't have any answers to. He strongly suspected that it had something to do with the warning box he had received. Did Daek the Knife know something about other worlds? Was he a tool of the Outsiders, an enemy of theirs, or something else altogether?
It was a critical question, but his mind was as tired as his body. Once he had rested he could consider all such things. For now, he needed to recover so that all of this effort couldn't be undone by a few more injuries. Even with healing, he felt mostly dead.
The others talked about their experience, which sounded like heaven compared to his. He downplayed what he had done and the piles of bodies he had left behind him. Unfortunately, he doubted that Daek would be so foolish as to ignore them. Next time, the underworld boss wouldn't send any novices at him.
But for now, at least, Daek was held at bay. Still, just to be safe, Bloodwraith distributed his points. Though it bothered him to focus so much on his physical skills, he placed all his points into those three statistics. If his primary tool was going to be his body, it needed to be overwhelmingly powerful, not merely slightly stronger than his opponents. His stats looked impressive now, even compared to other adventurers, but he was too tired to really enjoy it.