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

by Shawn Wyatt

  Evey stood at the railing and stared out at the waves, her eyes mere slits against the bright sunlight. “Do you see anything?”

  “Not yet,” I said. She wanted to test her new bow, and I had agreed to help her find a suitable target—something more substantial than the small fish we had encountered so far. “But given where we are, I’m sure there’s something out there.”

  Her fingers twitched, ready to experience the power now available to her. I bit back a grin. Evey wouldn’t appreciate me laughing at her, but it was hard not. She acted like a giddy schoolgirl.

  “There!” She snapped her arm out and pointed. “Below the waves. It’s a shark monster of some type.” In the blink of an eye, she drew an arrow from her quiver and slid it along the string.

  The moment her bowstring reached full tension, lightning crackled along her fingertips. Evey grinned. “This will be good.”

  I glanced behind me. The rest of the party watched with interest. “Do it,” I said. “Let’s see if you can one-shot this thing.”

  “It’s a level 25 monster, so not likely.” Her brow furrowed as she lifted the bow up and to the right, adjusting her aim to account for the movement of the ship and the wind currents, and then let the arrow flight.

  The arrow lanced through the air with a soft whine on a collision course with the monster. It breached the surface of the water with nothing more than a whisper, but a moment later, a crack of thunder shattered the silence.

  A flash of light erupted from the water as electricity crackled over the surface of the waves and the monster dropped to zero HP.

  Evey whooped. “I can’t believe that killed it in one shot!”

  I eyed the bow and took a step back. Electricity still crawled up and down its shaft, and I had no desire to be the recipient of an unlucky arc. “That weapon lives up to its potential,” I said.

  “Doesn’t it?” Evey grinned. “Let’s hurry up and reach Kiribati. I’m ready to see what this will do against something stronger.”

  “You just one-shotted a level 25. That’s not enough for you?”

  “Well, I’m level 28. I want to see what I can do against something my own level.”

  I looked back at the water, where the body of the shark now bobbed on the surface of the waves. “Is there any way to control the follow up effect?” I asked. “That isn’t the most stealthy weapon if it lets out a crack of thunder every time the lightning damage triggers.”

  “I’m not sure,” Evey said. “I’ll have to test it more to find out.” She grinned. I had a feeling we would all need to get used to the sound of thunder.

  “Land ho!” Quinn shouted. A dark mass loomed in the distance. Even from this far away, I could tell it was larger by far than any of the cities we had stopped at so far.

  “Is that Kiribati?” I called.

  The Swashbuckler grinned. “Aye, it is,” he said. “Get ready to be amazed. I told you it’s the most impressive city on Shella, but more than that, Kiribati is the mother of the other four Great Turtles. She dwarfs them in size.”

  I eyed the city in the distance. As unbelievable as Quinn’s claim was, I saw truth in it. Even Tarawi, the smallest of the four turtles, had been large enough to carry an entire city on her back—but Kiribati looked like Everest floating on the sea.

  And as we sailed, that mountain turned in the water, and a head the size of Mount Rushmore rose from the waves to watch us approach.

  Chapter Thirty Three: Kiribati

  Quinn tugged the rigging to slow our approach, but the ship lurched forward through the water. He frowned and pulled once more on the rope.

  No response.

  “We may have a problem,” he said. “I can’t seem to get Betsy to slow down.”

  I looked from Quinn, to the sails, and then back to the enormous turtle. “I think I know why. Let go of the sails.”

  Quinn nodded and let the rope go slack. The sails collapsed. I felt not one hint of wind, but still the ship raced toward our destination. Toward Kiribati. Toward the end of this journey.

  The Swashbuckler followed my gaze and raised an eyebrow. “Kiribati is doing this?”

  “I think so,” I said. “You know a lot about her. What sort of magic does she have?”

  He shook his head. “I don’t know. Kiribati is by far the most mysterious of the Great Turtles, though for a good reason. It’s easy for a legend to hold immeasurable power if no one knows exactly what that power is.”

  Evey winced. “I know at least one of her powers,” she said. “She’s ready to meet us.”

  “What do you mean?” I asked.

  “She’s talking to me.” Evey tapped her temple. “In here. Like the others did. They usually warned me first, though."

  “We’ll be there in less than five minutes,” I said. The Great Turtle's bulk cast a long shadow. “Let’s get ready. I don’t think she’s hostile, but I’m always wary of mythical creatures.”

  “It’s a good position to hold,” Bastion said. “That giant deer from Toris still gives me the willies.”

  I laughed, but kept my attention turned toward Kiribati. She held us captive with her gaze. I wanted to look away—in the edges of my vision, all kinds of sea life danced through the waves—but I could not seem to pull my eyes away from the fathomless depths of the turtle.

  In what seemed like no time at all, Betsy slowed and stopped no more than fifty feet from the Great Turtle. Kiribati lifted her head completely from the waves. “Travelers. You have come a long way to seek an audience with me.”

  The timbre of her voice was that of a nor’easter and a sunset. The violence of summer storms warred with the calm of an unbroken sea in each word—a promise of power I hoped never to see in action.

  Once more, I felt myself quake in awe. For better or for worse, we stood before the equivalent of a god in this digital world.

  Evey was the first to react. She stepped forward and dropped to one knee, her head bowed in respect. “Yes, Great One. We come here on a mission, and we seek your aid to complete it.” She spoke with the same reverence she had used in dealing with all the Great Turtles, but this time there was something more behind it. An undercurrent of fear.

  Kiribati’s presence affected us all.

  “Stand, child. There is no need for formality.”

  I looked up in surprise. Kiribati’s voice still held the same ageless quality, but her words now had a hint of laughter in them.

  “You bear the magic of my children. Though half of them are young still by the standards of this world, they possess great wisdom. If they entrusted you with a quest of this magnitude, then I honor their decision. Come, speak your mind.”

  Evey gestured for me to speak. I took a breath. “We seek to destroy the corruption that threatens Shella. You control the last barrier to the Sunken Labyrinth, where the poison lies. We came to ask if you would lower that barrier and allow us entry.”

  Kiribati remained silent for a time. “The Sunken Labyrinth is a place of great danger. Even those as strong as you all will find it a difficult challenge to overcome. Tell me, do your aims stop here, or do you seek to destroy the corruption among all the realms?”

  “All the realms,” I said. “We are not from this world. We want to go home to our world. To do that, Foscor must fall.”

  Kiribati could not smile, but a wave of approval washed over me. “As I suspected. It is you and your team that destroyed the evil that tainted the forest world of Toris, is it not?”

  I nodded. “Yes, Great One. That’s where we began our journey. The airship that carried us from Toris crashed here, on Shella.”

  “You fought well,” Kiribati said. “I watched your battle against the Waldgeist. Its magics were powerful, but you rallied the people together and led them to victory.”

  I nodded again. That had been just over a month ago, but it felt like years had passed since. I did not have the raid group behind me like I did then, but a part of me was thankful. Though Kiribati said I led the group to victo
ry, it had cost the lives of two members. And that had been two members too many. I did not want to face that again. “Thank you,” I said. “Your praise is unnecessary, but appreciated.”

  “I am well aware that you all are not of this world,” Kiribati said. “But you have made it your own for the time you have spent in it, and those of us that do call it home owe you a debt of gratitude. I will do as you ask and lower the barrier. However, I have conditions."

  I nodded. I had expected she would. "What would those be?"

  "I will hold the barrier in place until you reach its edge. The moment the barrier drops, the corruption will spread wild and unchecked. You must destroy the source of it within three hours of my dropping the barrier, or I will have no choice but to raise the wall once more. Permanently.”

  Permanently. I took another breath to steady myself. We had faced death on multiple occasions, but always in battle. The idea of a slow death sealed behind a magical barrier was not an enticing prospect. Would we die, or would the Corruption consume us? Would we become a Withered creature? Some sort of half-life, a shadow existence, stranded within a virtual world—a collection of corrupted ones and zeroes.

  “I understand,” I said. “We know the risk.”

  “Then take the opportunity to rest and restore your strength. The barrier has held for this long. I can maintain it for another day. Restore your strength before you embark.” Kiribati lowered her head into the waves, but her voice still reached us. It echoed in my skull. “Allow me to help you on your way.”

  The ship lurched once more, the ocean current propelling it around Kiribati’s massive form. A stone sea wall ringed the city. I couldn’t make out any details of the buildings within, hidden as they were behind stone, moss, and lichen. The current pulled Betsy alongside a dock and brought us to a gentle halt.

  Quinn raised an eyebrow, shook his head, and leapt onto the dock with the tie line. “I guess we’re here,” he said. “Everyone off.”

  Evey and I walked through the streets of the city. The rest of the party split up when we disembarked, eager to explore the sprawling cityscape on their own. Rune wandered off with Quinn to find the marketplace. Bastion said he wanted to stretch his legs and walk on solid ground a while. Wish went in search of an Arcane Vendor to get more details about her new Soulstones.

  As for the two of us, we just wanted to relax. “How can they all be so carefree?” I asked aloud. Evey strolled beside me, making a pointed effort to ignore the stares the people of the city sent our way.

  It wasn’t every day that two people walked through the streets with a bear in tow.

  “I don’t think they’re as care free as they’d like you to believe,” she said. “Everyone is still shaken from the Rakshasha. We haven’t had a chance to sleep. I think a good night’s rest in a soft bed will do wonders for everyone’s morale.”

  “You’re probably right,” I said. We had only slept in the hammocks, and though passable, it was nothing like a proper bed. “The fatigue is getting to me, too.”

  Evey stopped at a stall along the side of the street and picked up a trinket. “You know you don’t have to shoulder all this on your own, you know. I know you feel responsible for what happened on Toris, but everyone knew the risks. Just as we all know the risks of going through this barrier.”

  “I know. But there is a difference between taking on a raid boss with stats and HP and hunting down some mysterious force. And that's without the threat of eternity inside a magical tomb."

  “And if we don’t destroy it, we’ll be trapped inside a virtual tomb. How is that any different?” Evey shook her head. “I’d rather take the chance. We’ve won every fight so far. We’ll win this one too. And then we get to see the restored airship landing and go to another realm.”

  “I guess you’re right,” I said. I sighed. Throughout our time in this realm, I had kept a brave face—but the stress of it all began to wear on my nerves. I had a headache that never completely faded, and the tension in my neck and shoulders grew worse with each passing day.

  “I know I’m right,” Evey said. “Just remember what you’re fighting for.”

  “What do you mean?”

  She turned to face me. “The biggest risk in a world like this is forgetting why we’re doing this. You have your sister to get back to. Your family. I’ve got my dog. We all have our reasons for wanting to be free of here, but it’s not easy. We’ve made friends. Formed bonds.” Evey scratched Boris behind the ears, and the bear whined in satisfaction. “When we escape, we have to leave all that behind.”

  “And will we be able to?” I asked.

  She locked eyes with me, and the intensity of her gaze threatened to knock me down. “Yes. Because if we find the strength to escape this world, then the convictions and desires that carry us to that end will help us log out.”

  I nodded. It was good to have someone to lean on, to confide in. I trusted the rest of the party, but Evey had been with me since the beginning. Since this all began. I could tell her things I couldn’t so easily tell the others. “Thank you,” I said. “You’re right. How about we get some food and find the rendezvous point? I’m ready for that feather bed you mentioned.”

  She laughed. “You and me both. I’ve always liked sailing, but a world of nothing but water is a bit much. If I never see salt water again, it’ll be too soon.”

  That night, my entire party gathered in my room. “I don’t know what we’re going to find out there tomorrow,” I said. “If anyone wants to turn back, you can do so. No questions asked. No judgment.”

  “Not a chance,” Bastion said. “I’m with you all the way.”

  “Me, too,” Wish said. The small Invoker had a fiery glint in her eyes that had not been there earlier in the day. “I’ve had a productive evening. I’m eager to see what these can do.” She patted the bag at her hip.

  “I fought alongside you on Toris, and I’m going to do the same here,” Rune said. “Besides, you need a tank.” He flashed a thumbs up, but shot a sidelong glance at Wish. Anxiety etched its way across his face whenever she brought up her Soulstones. The poor Berserker had never gotten used to her quirks.

  I looked to Quinn. “Well, Swashbuckler?”

  “Aye, mate. I’ll go too. How else will you make it to where you’re going?” He grinned. “You need me and Betsy.”

  “You’re sure? You know what the risks are?”

  He nodded. “I do. But I owe you all, and, well...Shella is starting to get a bit dull. I can only wander around these seas for so long before I need a change of pace.”

  “Then it’s settled,” I said. “Evey, do we know Scarlet’s location?”

  She nodded and held up a note. “Nova returned with this earlier. Scarlet waits for us at the docks. We’ll meet up with her in the morning and go from there.”

  Until now, I had not been sure if the Pirate King would follow through on her word or not. If she waited for us, then we had a much better chance. It wasn’t exactly a raid group, but having all her pirates fighting alongside us would even the odds a bit.

  “Everyone get some rest,” I said. “Distribute stats. Repair your gear. Do whatever you need. This will be our last chance before we set out for the final battle.” I looked around the room at each one of them. “Make sure you’re ready for whatever we run into. We all come back together tomorrow, got it?”

  At their nods, I leaned back and sighed. “Good. We’ll set sail after breakfast.”

  Chapter Thirty Four: The Barrier

  Scarlet waited in the bay like she had promised. She called out when she caught sight of us.

  I looked up, and the Pirate King guided her flagship to a stop in front of the dock. “Scarlet.” I gave her a nod. We needed her help, I knew—but I still found it hard to trust her. “Have you made your preparations?”

  “My crew is as ready as they're going to be,” she said. “There’s nothing in these seas that we can’t handle.”

  “Don’t be foolish,” I warned. I r
elayed the information Kiribati had given us the day before. “We won’t have much time once that barrier falls, so every second counts.”

  “And the downside is that we're trapped within the barrier if we don't complete the quest in time?”

  “Exactly.”

  Scarlet smiled, a hint of arrogance in the expression. “My ships have plenty of provisions. We can ride out the wait.”

  I held up a hand. “You don’t understand,” I said. “If we don’t make it out of the barrier in time, we are struck forever. The barrier will never come down again.”

  “That’s just flavor text,” she argued. “Perla Online is a game. Games operate based a set of rules. There’s always a way. Don’t tell me you’re buying into all the bluster.”

  How could she be so stubborn after all this? “Yes, I’m buying into it. How is this like any game you’ve ever experienced before? The deck under your feet may only be a mass of data, but it’s real to you, isn’t it? We’re playing for our lives. Don’t forget that.”

  Irritation flashed across her face. “Don’t forget for a second that I know that. I’ve lost men. I know the risks. But I also know there's always a second way.”

  “Believe that all you want,” I said. “But I don’t want to find out whether you’re right or wrong. Let’s get in there and get this done under the time limit. Alright?”

  Scarlet nodded. “Fine. I’ve already split my crew into groups. You lead the way to our destination. I’ll follow.” She turned to walk away, but stopped. “I hope you know how irksome it is to say that.”

  I gave a small smile. “Yeah. I know. Thank you.”

  The Pirate King nodded once more, then shouted orders for her men to ready the ship. I turned to my party. “We seem to be at least somewhat prepared.”

  “If you want to call it that.” Evey shook her head. “I don’t think I’m ever going to understand that woman.”

  “She’s her own person,” Quinn said. “And I don’t think she’ll ever bow to anyone. Whatever led her to become the Pirate King here has given her a fierce sense of pride. It’s pointless trying to figure that out.”