Perla Online, Book Two: Shella (A LitRPG/GameLit Adventure)

by Shawn Wyatt

  I felt Evey give my a hand a quick squeeze, which I returned. I appreciated the subtle sign of support.

  I continued forward. My fingers glided along the wall until they brushed against a hard surface. I stopped and ran my hand along a solid wall in front of me, the movement stirring up dust. “Dead end,” I said. “Clint?”

  The lizard shot a spout of flame. We stood in a circular room like the ones before, except that it ended in a flat wall on end. A odd symbol adorned the wall in front of me, but Clint's light did not last long enough to study it.

  It might be another puzzle. Or it might be a trap. There was nowhere for us to run in here.

  “Bastion, we’re in some kind of dead end room. Do you hear anything back there on the end?”

  “What?” Bastion sounded confused. “I’m not on the end, Wish is.”

  “No, I’m not,” Wish said. “I’m between you and Quinn.”

  “You’re holding my back hand,” Bastion said. “And Quinn is in front of me. I feel his glove.”

  “Yeah, Bastion is behind me, Rune in front,” Quinn chimed in.

  There was a pause. “Then who is behind me?” Wish asked.

  The cold hand of fear wrapped its fingers around my throat. Wish screamed—and a malicious laugh cut through the darkness.

  Panic raced through me as I watched Wish’s HP nosedive. “Somebody get some light!” I shouted. The laughter echoed through the chamber, but I couldn’t pinpoint its source. The sound seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere at once.

  Light and heat flared from the end of the chamber. Bastion’s sword no longer put out just a dim glow—it now roared with flames. The Prophet of Truth stood in front of Wish and shielded her body with his own, a look of fury on his face. He held the blade in one hand and channeled a healing spell into her with another.

  Wish’s skin shone a deathly white in the light of the blade, and her left arm looked like it had gone through a wood chipper. Strips of flesh hung as if torn free with jagged teeth, and blood poured freely from her wounds.

  Rune crouched low over Wish’s fallen form, shielding her from approach from any other angle. In the glow of Bastion’s sword, I caught sight of the monster.

  It was humanoid and about Wish’s height, covered in black scales from head to toe. Its head twisted at an unnatural angle, with a too-large mouth ringed with razor-sharp teeth. The eyes looked like sapphires that burned with the light of hell.

  [Rakshasa, Level 28]

  The monster opened its mouth and laughed again, its eyes locked onto Wish. Its body swayed from side to side, as if taunting Bastion to attack—or readying itself to pounce. I didn’t hesitate.

  I drew and fired both revolvers, and both bullets found their mark. The Rakshasa tumbled end over end and disappeared into the darkness.

  “Bastion? Is she okay?” I called.

  “She’ll be fine,” he said. He kept one eye on the shadows and one on Wish. “But that immediate damage output must have sent her into shock. She’s out cold. Did you kill that thing?”

  “No,” I said. “I didn’t receive experience. It’s still alive. Be ready.”

  Boris growled. From the shadows behind us, the Rakshasa emerged, the bullet holes visible in its body—but now its eyes shone fiery red instead of blue. “Behind us,” I called.

  “Got one over here, too,” Evey said. She backed up against me, an arrow nocked in her bow.

  “Same here,” Rune said.

  The monsters approached from all sides and forced us into a tight ring. At least seven of the creatures appeared, and I would bet more waited in the shadows.

  “Is Wish stable?”

  Bastion nodded. “As much as she can be right now. We’ve got work to do first.”

  Evey looked to Nova and made a quick gesture with her hand, and the bird hopped across the ground to stand over Wish’s body. “She’ll guard her if any of these things make it through.”

  “Rakshasa is an old Sanskrit word that means ‘demon,’” Quinn said, his voice a whisper. “More specifically, a band of demons. Be careful.” The Swashbuckler stood in the group with us, both of his rapiers drawn and ready.

  “Demons? Then maybe this will work on them.” Bastion held a hand forward, and a golden beam of light shot forward that pierced the monster through the chest. Its HP dropped to one-quarter, and it staggered back into the shadows with a whimper. Bastion gave a satisfied huff. “Not the most powerful spell in my repertoire, but it works well against these guys.”

  “What was that?” I asked.

  “Penance. Slows movement speed and deals damage based on my Intelligence score. Damage is multiplied when fighting demons or the undead.”

  “Keep it up,” I said. “I want them dead."

  Rune launched himself forward in a blur of motion. He swung both of his axes in a crossing arc that severed the head of one of the monsters from its body. It slumped to the ground and died, but two other Rakshasa jumped from the shadows and landed on his back.

  My Desert Bullet knocked the first of the creatures off his back and to the ground, but didn’t kill it. Evey’s arrow took care of the second. “Get back here,” I shouted. “Don’t let them get behind us. They aren’t strong, but there are too many of them.”

  Beside me, Evey loosed three arrows at once. Each arrow found its mark, and it took only two volleys to kill the creatures.

  I switched to Splinter Shot rounds, six in each revolver, and emptied the chambers as fast as I could load them. Bastion lashed out in huge, sweeping arcs that either dismembered the beasts or sent them tumbling away.

  The entire world narrowed to the fight, a nightmare of gunfire, arrows, and the scent of inhuman blood. I felt surges of pain whenever the creatures drew too close and landed a blow. One ripped my left calf open and forced me to favor my right leg.

  Boris reared on his hind legs and invited the monsters to attack. Any that did he crushed beneath his weight. Those that didn’t die from the impact he tore to shreds with his teeth and claws.

  Every so often, golden light bloomed around us as Bastion cast a group healing spell. A small part of my mind thanked him for paying attention. I hadn't even glanced at my HP gauge.

  After what felt like an eternity, I realized fewer of the creatures appeared. I only fired one round every few seconds. Finally, no more of the monsters appeared. I looked around the room.

  Gore covered every surface, the floor slick with the Rakshasa’s eerie purple blood and the air thick with its stench. My armor was filthy, and blood pooled around my feet from the teeth marks in my calf.

  Evey bore similar injuries. One of the creatures had attacked from behind and bitten a chunk out of her side. Quinn fared the worst of us all. The creatures didn’t mind puncture wounds and had raked their claws up and down both of his arms and his chest.

  Rune was the only one of us not injured, but only because the monsters had been unable to get through his plate mail. Even Boris had patches of fur missing from where the monsters had torn into him with their teeth and claws.

  “Wish?” I asked, a feeling of dread in my stomach.

  “She’s fine,” Bastion said. A neat line of dead Rakshasa lay in front of her, and Nova’s talons dripped with their blood. “The falcon earned its keep.”

  At the edge of the room, a lone Rakshasa sprinted forward with unnatural speed.

  It tumbled end over end as my bullet caught it between the eyes and dropped its HP to zero. “Is that the last of them?”

  “I hope so,” Rune said. “Are you all okay?”

  Everyone was fine. Bastion pointed to the wall at the end of the room. “Look.”

  A staircase stretched up out of the darkness. At the end of its long ascent, I saw the faintest hints of daylight. “Looks like a way out,” I said.

  “It was a trap room,” Evey said. “Kill all the monsters and you get to leave.”

  “They’re definitely all dead,” I said. “Now let’s go. I’ve got no desire to join them.”
>
  Chapter Thirty: The Jungle

  I breathed deep of the fresh air, glad to escape the scent of damp earth and demon blood. The stairs deposited us at the entrance of a hidden cave, high on a steppe halfway up Tuvalu's volcano.

  Bastion let out a low whistle. “Would you look at that,” he said.

  The entire southern side of the island stretched out below us. Along the shore, I made out the silhouette of Betsy's sails. "What is this place?" I asked.

  “I think it’s the second half of the temple,” Evey said. “Look.”

  A pedestal lay at the edge of the cliff, larger than the previous one. The pedestal hid its contents beneath a stone rim. Evey walked toward it as if drawn to the stones, but paused at the edge.

  She reached into the top of it. The moment she touched the item, an intense light flared out of the box. I lifted my arm to shield my eyes.

  Evey drew the item from inside the box. Its light faded as she held it in her hands. A prompt appeared on my screen.

  <<<>>>

  Recurve Frame of Storm

  Legendary Item, Bow

  This frame bears the marks of many battles. Innumerable notches down its sides mark each kill with the weapon. The ancient hero of Shella bore this weapon when he fought, and his foes came to fear its soft twang—for death followed the sound.

  Combine this item with the Bowstring of the Tempest to reforge the legendary weapon, or combine this recurve frame with another bow string to create a unique weapon.

  <<<>>>

  “This has to be what the Great Turtles meant,” Evey said. She hefted the frame of the bow and admired it, turning it end over end. “I wonder what kind of weapon it will make.”

  I kept half of my attention focused on the tunnel behind us. Nothing else emerged—and I heard no sound—but I couldn’t shake the feeling that we were being watched. “I’m as excited as anyone to see what this weapon will be, but let’s wait until we’re well away from here. Sound good?” I cast a look at the horizon. The sun had begun to set.

  “That’s a good idea,” Bastion said. “We haven’t seen any of those level 50 monsters we heard about, but I’d be willing to bet they’re more common at night.”

  “That would be a safe bet.”

  Wish nudged a loose brick with her foot. She had woken up once her HP had been fully restored. “Looks like there is a staircase that leads down from here into the jungle. Think it could be a way down?”

  The foliage had long since grown up and over the staircase and shrouded it from view. It led into the jungle until I lost sight of it under the canopy. “That’s what it looks like,” I said. “And if it continues on this course, it will take us straight out to the beach. A better bet than trekking our way back through those tunnels.” I didn’t relish the thought of running into the Rakshasa again.

  “Let’s get moving before night sets in,” Bastion said. “I don’t want to see anything stronger than we’ve already fought. Not when we’ve had so many close calls already.”

  I let Boris led the way, his large bulk knocking aside any undergrowth and clearing the path ahead. Aside from that, the way down was steep. If we fell, Boris would serve as a soft cushion. His claws and strong limbs let him dig into the loose soil and maintain his footing where the rest of us might have fallen.

  It took almost an hour to reach the bottom of the stairs. By the time we did, the sun was little more than a sliver on the horizon. Light hardly reached the jungle floor.

  The path ahead was wide enough to accommodate us all, but the dark reaches of the jungle bordered it on both sides. “Let's walk side by side. We don’t want to be too close to the sides of the path in case something reaches out and grabs us.”

  “Oh, great,” Bastion drawled. “You had to put that out there, didn’t you? Didn’t we have enough of creepy forests back on Toris?”

  “Hush,” Evey said. “Enough whining. Come on.”

  She leapt onto Boris’ back and took point. Nova scanned the jungle ahead from the sky. I walked beside them, while Quinn and Rune followed behind us, with Bastion and Wish bringing up the rear. Wish summoned her Spirit Wolves and ordered the ethereal creatures to spread out.

  “Stay alert," I said.

  I struggled to make out the path ahead in the evening gloom. Hazards threatened every step. Vines reached across the jungle floor that would trip anyone that didn’t see them.

  The trees swallowed our view of the sky before we reached the forest floor. I had no idea how long it would take to reach Betsy from our current location. Although no one said anything, a sense of quiet urgency had descended over the party. I could see it in the way everyone looked around and in the way we increased our pace.

  The dark jungle was unsettling. As my eyes strained against the darkness, I began to imagine movement in the shadows. At least, I hoped I imagined it.

  Beside me, Boris came to a sudden stop. His head snapped up and, after a sniff, a low growl emerged from his throat.

  Evey leaned close to his head. “What is it, big guy? What’s out there?”

  Boris continued to sniff at the air. High above us, out of sight beyond the canopy, Nova let out a screech.

  In the distance, I heard something make a loud thud—and under my feet, the ground shivered.

  Nova screeched again, closer this time. More urgent.

  “What’s out there?” I asked Evey. “Can Nova show you?”

  She nodded. “Give me a second. Looking through her eyes is disorienting.” The Beast Tamer relaxed her shoulders and closed her eyes. A few seconds later, her head snapped up, the color gone from her face and her eyes wide with panic. “Run!”

  Evey held out a hand, and I took it without question. She yanked me onto Boris’ back, and the bear bounded off without a second thought. The rest of the party leapt onto the Spirit Wolves and followed.

  The thudding grew closer with each second that passed, and Nova screeched again. I heard a distinct current of fear in the falcon's cry.

  The reason became clear seconds later. The sun had dropped almost out of sight, but enough light remained to silhouette the shape that burst through the trees. A furious roar came from its teeth-ringed maw.

  Disbelief flooded me, and I felt my jaw go slack even as I drew my pistols on instinct.

  Bastion craned his head behind him and let out a string of creative obscenities. “Is that what I think it is?” he shouted.

  “Shut up and run!” I shouted. The echo of my pistols underscored my reply, but the shots did little to the creature. The shells slammed into its thick hide, but the attack had no effect. Above the HP bar, I could only stare in disbelief.

  [Island Guardian, Tyrannosaurus Rex, Level 50]

  Boris ate up the distance but panted with each step. “How much longer can he keep going at this pace?” I asked.

  Evey’s mouth was set in a grim line. “I don’t know,” she said. “Lean left.” When I did, she fired an arrow at the monster that pursued us. “Not much longer, so we better reach the shore soon.”

  “Come on, buddy,” I said. “Get us to safety and I’ll get you all the honey you can ask for.”

  Though huge, the Tyrannosaurus lacked agility. The twisting jungle path was the only reason it had not caught up to us. Boris and the four Spirit Wolves maneuvered around the tight corners far better than the massive lizard could.

  Of course, Boris couldn’t bowl trees out of the way like it could, either.

  The monster’s HP remained at 100% despite the wave of attacks. "Focus on slowing it down!" I called. "I don't think we can't kill it. We're supposed to run, not fight. Quinn! How long will it take to get the rowboat into the water and away from shore?”

  The Swashbuckler grimaced as the wolf he rode leapt over a fallen log. “Sixty seconds, if everyone gets in and we get moving.” He cast a look behind him at the monster, no more than thirty seconds away. “I don’t know if we have that much time.”

  “We’ll make time,” I said. I fired another Desert Bull
et at the monster’s head and eyes. I wanted to blind it or trip it.

  “Ren, concentrate your fire on its feet,” Wish said. “Use your Freezing Shots. I’ll launch Frostfield at it.”

  “You got it,” I said. It was a good idea. I didn’t know if the attacks would actually freeze the monster’s feet, but maybe it would cause it to slip a bit. I loaded two more Caster Shells into my revolvers—not an easy feat on the back of a galloping bear—and took aim. “Ready?”

  “Ready!” she called.

  The shots echoed out through the jungle. At any other time, I might have worried about attracting attention, but I doubted anything on the island posed a bigger threat than the ten tons of prehistoric terror bearing down on us. Both of my shots fell short of the actual monster, but I had never intended to hit it dead-on. Ice exploded from the impact points, joined by the creeping field of frost Wish conjured from her hands.

  The monster hit the patch of ice and slid. It let out an angry roar as it fought to regain its balance. Its loping gait fell short as it struggled to remain upright.

  The Tyrannosaurus never tripped, but we forced it to slow down. It had to punch its through the jungle instead of following the path.

  “That did it!” I shouted. I could hear the furious screams in the darkness as it fought its way toward us, but we had bought a bit of time. That’s all we needed. “Let’s keep going! Quinn, do you have a song for restoring stamina?”

  “On it.” The Swashbuckler hummed a tune, its sound lost to the roar of the wind in my ears, but I didn’t need to hear the song for its magic to work. Soft green light swirled around the Swashbuckler and out to Boris and the wolves.

  The five creatures surged forward, more energy in their steps. Through a break in the trees, I could make out the white sandy shores of the beach.

  We were almost there. We would make it.

  ***

  The girl flipped through the air, her body light as a feather, muscles taught as a drawn bowstring, and brought her blade down at the apex of her jump. The shimmering metal tore through flesh and bone and rent limb from body.

  One of the monster’s seven arms fell to the ground in a spurt of gore. The creature let out a scream of pain.