The Way of the Clan 3 (World of Valdira)

by Dem Mikhaylov

  -- Oh my dear kind and generous friend! – cried the bog creature, holding onto my pants— Please, help me! Protect me!

  -- Huh?! – I stuttered.

  You are entrusted with the task “Protect and Save!”

  Deal with Mrs. Rott.

  Minimum conditions for the task: to conquer Lady Rott, the Swamp Creature must stay alive!

  Reward: Unknown.

  Do you accept the job?

  Yes/No

  -- Please! Protect me!— the creature continued to yell, as I looked at the translucent flashing letters to the approaching monster, I couldn’t make a decision.

  -- What is this turtle?— thoughtfully said the player, who had just materialized beside me.

  -- Hello, Whisper— I said, glancing at him— I have no idea either.

  Mrs. Rott was no more than ten paces away from me now.

  -- Are we gonna help the beaver? – asked Whisper, nodding at the creature which clung to me— I understand you were given a job?

  -- Yes. But I have not accepted it— it’s on hold, still hanging.

  -- Throw me into your group, then accept he task— Whisper offered, producing between his fingers a sparkling chain of metal with a blue sheen, with sharp spikes on each link.

  Mrs. Rott was now a mere five paces away from me, and the bog creature screamed so piercingly that it must have raised all the ears of the swamp.

  -- Hm…

  -- It’s a boss. You can’t do it alone— whisper voiced a well-known truth— Well? I do not care— I just haven’t killed such things before.

  -- No obligations— I clarified and, waiting for his quick nod, sent his a group request.

  -- Run, beaver— Whisper growled and, with one quick leap forwards, landed on the armored shell of the mud spattered Mrs. Rott. The blinding blue chain whistled through the air and wrapped around the neck of the beast.

  -- T-take that! – the player of the Sleepless clan yanked back the chain, causing enormous damage to the turtle, and swung again for the next strike. What kind of weapon was this?!

  -- Stay here, swamp beast! – I ordered to the creature, snatching my wand from my belt.

  Releasing the magic now was not wise— the large spell would likely catch Whisper in “friendly fire.”

  Turning in the water, Mrs. Rott opened her mouth and let out a hiss from deep within and a dark green cloud quickly began to spread. Poison! Another hiss and, raising a wave, the turtle disappeared into the muddy water. Whisper leapt gracefully into the air and caught the branches of a nearby tree, where he hung, observing the marsh expanse carefully.

  -- Retreat!— he called to me— Poison!

  -- Yes, I see that already! – I shouted in response and, in the corner of my eye, saw as toad legs jerked convulsively as the green cloud passed over them. They died instantly— Don’t touch the water!

  Pointing the want down, I released lightening spells into the water one by one.

  Before my eyes ran distant lines indicating the damage done— water and electricity was a deadly combination. Onto the surface of the water floated a variety of fish, colorful snakes and the mustachioed catfish, surrounded by dozens of dead frogs.

  -- And again! – I yelled unnecessarily, sending three more lightning bolts into the water and anxiously glancing at the surface. If not the royal gift from the immortal, I would have been toast. But now it was quite okay. If this didn’t go on for too long.

  -- Where are you, beast?! – Lightning bolts, one after the other, went into the swamp, and still the giant tortoise did not appear. Sitting at a distance from me the pitiful swamp creature whined incessantly, and with a wild horror peered into the swamp. I involuntarily began to absorb his emotions— a gloomy swamp, poison in the air, a monster lurking in the muddy water. Scary, that is… the blood boils with adrenaline.

  With my left hand, I constantly cast healing spells in any way I could, trying to make up for my draining life points.

  Another lightning bolt! And another one!

  You’ve reached a new level!

  Damn that new level! I waved away the notification.

  -- She’s coming!— shouted whisper, looking down.

  Literally at the same moment, the water below him literally exploded, and the huge mass of the turtle jerked into the air with wide open jaws.

  She is able to jump out of the water! The jaws closed with a clang, just missing Whisper’s feet by a centimeter. With a fierce and frustrated roar the tortoise sunk again into the water, covered with a network of zig-zags and electrical discharges. I did not wait, and sent another lightning bolt at Mrs. Rott.

  The green poisonous gas, the blinding lightning bolts as they raced, the boiling water and the large body of the tossing, monstrous evil creature. What a thrill! That was the appeal! That was why I loved Valdira. Judging by the smile eerily plastered on Whisper’s face, he felt the same.

  Drawing a luminous arc in the air with his chain, with a whistle, he flashed it into the water. Inside the water there was a bright flash, and I imagined for a moment that the chain had shattered to pieces or exploded like a grenade. Maybe, I had imagined it, but I certainly had not imagined the deafening roar of the wounded turtle as she roared so fiercely, that the sound reached us through a few meters of water. A roar from which my feet trembled. Green duckweed bubbled up to the surface, as well as thousands of bubbles.

  -- Here’s your critical hit! – yelled whisper, swinging his chain like an acrobat and getting ready for the next blow— And this is for… o-o-o-…go-go-go-go! Sh-ii…

  An explosion! Water soared up in a boiling geyser and there emerged the grotesque body of the turtle, it’s neck stretched to the limit, it’s jaws open wide. Teeth, real fangs in a turtle!

  Still emitting green clouds of poisonous gas, the tusks of the turtle clamped shit on Whisper’s chain. As the inertia of the unthinkable leap subsided, Mrs. Rott fell back into the swamp, taking the chain with her… as well as Whisper himself, who did not wish to part with his weapon.

  -- Drop the chain! – I yelled uselessly, shaking my wand helplessly and watching the player fly into the water— Drop it!

  -- Yeah right! This is a rar… — Whisper had time to cry out, before he disappeared into the water, which closed above him..

  Another second passed, and I saw nothing except for the wildly troubled marshes and the dead snakes and fish above it.

  -- Oh shit!

  -- And no fish! – echoed the harmless swamp creature.

  -- Shut up! Where’d he go?!

  -- There!

  --Where?!

  A gnarled finger jabbed the water and began to move quickly from side to side, describing an uneven arc. The turtle did not just dive to the bottom— it moved actively through it.

  -- You can see through the water? Even when it’s muddy?!

  -- Yes, I see! – happily grinned the creature.

  -- Keep showing me— I yelled, frantically rummaging through my backpack, trying to find a replacement weapon— And talk. About the man with the chain. And the turtle.

  -- She’s dragging him! – immediately reported the bog creature— Boom! Rock! Bam! Another rock! Crunch!

  -- Crunch?!

  -- A tree with branches— said he— Sharp! Brr!

  Poor whisper… I shuddered involuntarily at the thought of this crazy race under the water, and the bog creature would not shut up, enthusiastically describing all the obstacles. He should be a commentator…

  -- Plop! Bam! Buried in poisonous mud! Swimming again! Bam!

  There is poisonous sludge?! What a hell of a swamp! Why buried in the mud? Recharging its attack?

  I barely had time to turn my head, listening to the nonsense that the creature was talking, trying to rid myself of the poison. Apparently, the bog creature did not suffer from the effects of the poison…

  -- She’s stopped! Shaking her head! – The words kept pouring— Chewing! Chewing! Chewing!

  -- Who is she chewing?! Huh?! The grass?!
>
  -- Chewing!

  -- Yes, who is she chewing?! Whisper?!

  -- The chain she’s chewing!

  -- Shit— I wailed— she’s breaking the chain!

  The turtle had quickly identified the one major threat to her health, and the monster took upon herself the destruction of this incredibly powerful weapon— Whisper’s “toothy” chain. An expensive trinket, probably, but the strength of it is not limitless… if it reaches zero, it will surely crumble into dust. And the repair of such a weapon is surely not cheap, either…

  -- When whisper emerges, he’s going to be sobbing loudly— I muttered darkly, pulling two bottles of Mana out of my bag.

  -- Of course! There is no fish! – agreed the bog creature.

  I almost choked on the Mana I was swallowing.

  -- She rises! She rises! – squealed he, leaping behind me— Right here she’s coming up!

  -- Well… born ready! – I said, removing the nearly empty thunder wand from my belt and raising my hands above my head, ready to fire the combat spells.

  Hardly had the new geyser risen from atop the marsh surface the green and poisonous gas came from the gaping jaws again, and I screamed hysterically—

  -- Duck!

  -- Already!—echoed the answer from somewhere above the poisonous swamp.

  Focusing on the gigantic tortoise, I shouted:

  -- Black Whirlwind!

  A whirlwind appeared out of nowhere and ruffled my hair, clothes, and soon the water trembled under the gusts of the mad howling wind. The toxic haze and mist was sucked up into the whirlwind, and Ravendark appeared to me in crystal clear air. Above the forlorn Whisper and the writhing Mrs. Rott a black gaze began to thicken. Gas still flowed from the open mouth of the turtle but it was pulled up immediately, into the rapidly emerging funnel. Another moment, and the howling of the wind turned mad, the screaming bog creature grabbed my leg, and I hastily stuck the staff into the mud and held onto it. We were being pulled towards the center of the raging whirlwind.

  Above the water spin a gigantic black tornado, the tapered end of which hung over the shell of the ugly monster.

  The turtle budged to the side and slightly up. The tornado was so strong that it nearly stopped and lifted the carcass of the giant monster, clad as she were in armour. And at once, it rid the air of the poisonous flow of gas. In my free hand I formed sharp ice needles and tossed them heavily at the turtle. I spared no mana. The life points of the Missus had decreased by a third, and slowly continued to decrease. Too slow. But I wasn’t finished…

  -- Acid Whirlpool! – my cry was drowned in the noise of the howling elements, but the system recognized my call.

  The scroll crumbled into dust, rearing a wave once the spell was set into motion. And the green water became even greener, and absolutely unnatural shade. Acid! Water saturated with acid, turning all living things into liquid. And finally— Mrs. Rott had not managed to escape from the clutches of the black tornado, and was beginning to sink rapidly into her native watery element. Under her belly was another tunnel, rapidly gaining momentum. The funnel filled with burning acid. Both tornadoes— air and water— one above and the other below. And sandwiched between them, the twitching and howling monster.

  Bending under the gusts of wind, ignoring the waves that were overcoming me on my tiny island, I did not take my eyes off the monster, pummeling him with icy needles and branching lightning bolts. My own health was rapidly decreasing, and before my eyes flashed a dozen warning messages— the screeching of the poor and frightened water creature had risen to an ultrasonic range.

  -- Keep going! – shouted whisper, emerging from behind me— I’m healing you! Heal! Heal!

  Clutched in his fingers were two high-ranking white scrolls, and both my health and that of the bog creature instantly shot up.

  -- We’re running out of time! – I yelled, baring my teeth in a strained grin— I don’t have any more scrolls!

  -- Wait! I have them! – cried back Whisper, trying to keep his footing on an island that was rapidly deteriorating— Won’t let you die!

  The last of my charge was used up as the final lightening rod flew out from my hands, and empty charred scrolls fell away from them too. I was shooting with both hands. Continuously. On fumes. My mana bar almost at zero. Interlacing fire and ice were boring into the shell of Mrs. Rott, who was still making insane attempts to escape. Jaws opened in a fierce and toothy grin, the wind howled and the whirlpool roared… and we just a few steps away from this hell.

  -- Now! – I cried, snatching a bottle of mana from my waist— The wretch is dying! She’ll get away!

  -- And here’s a present for your birthday! – Whisper yelled wildly, raising above his head a red and black scroll with a golden border— Meteor!!!

  One of those wildly, ridiculously expensive scrolls, which had transcendent powers… I have only heard of such…

  -- We’re doomed— for some reason, I whispered, raising my head to the sky as it suddenly darkened. Among the leaden clouds there was an unbearably bright spot, rapidly increasing in size. The wild howled and the sound rose so high that it blocked all other sounds. The fall of the meteor must now be being watched by thousands of players. From the side. And we saw it from the bottom up… watched the rapidly-approaching apocalypse.

  -- Dome Protection! – shouted whisper, and another scroll crumbled into dust. The roar of the raging elements outside of us was sharply muted, and I stopped casting spells. Dome protection… a good defense… but not total. Depending on the rank of the scroll…

  -- Ah-hh-hh-hh! – screamed the bog creature in a heart-rendering screech, his bulging eyes fixed on the meteor which was surely going to bring death to us all.

  -- Hh— exhaled whisper, without getting rid of that wry smile I had come to be familiar with. Crimson reflections and glowing shadows fell upon my upturned face.

  -- Well… -- I said, stretching my lips into a smile— Let it be!

  Before my eyes flashed a blinding white light, the quiet earth trembled, trees broke like matches…

  B-b-b-aaa-aaa-nn-g-g!

  Knocked down by the incredible force of the meteor, we tumbled to the ground, everything was plunged into total darkness. I was thrown to the opposite wall of the dome, there was a sharp crack, and the dome began to cave in. The interface flashed red, and life scores rushed in huge leaps and bounds towards zero.

  -- Sphere of life!— croaked the invisible Whisper and, in the dark, there flashed a white crystal ball, emitting hundreds of beams in different directions. One of these rays hit my chest, and my health began to rise as quickly as it had fallen not a few moments ago.

  You gained a new level!

  You gained a new level!

  Lines jumped one after another. Total: 11 new levels. The tortoise was dead!

  If I had killed the turtle— I would have received no less than fifteen-twenty levels, and then some. But the difference in our levels were giant, and Whisper had delivered the final blow…

  Although, can you consider dropping a meteorite a real “hit”? … in any case, nearly all the experience points went to him, or perhaps to no one at all.

  To my left the water creature, and to my right stood Whisper, who stretched his mouth into a wide grin and beamed:

  -- Just a small survival kit! – the player nodded to the sphere.

  -- I’m even afraid to ask, what goes into a full kit— I returned the smile and got up from one knee— Looks like we made it. After a nuclear bombing, no less!

  Whisper was silent, but philosophically shrugged— “Who even knows?”

  A few agonizingly slow seconds later, the surroundings began to lighten. The magical dome was still holding and, through its wall, I saw a solid wall of falling water, dirt, stones, and other contents of the Ravendark swamp. I saw the diminishing crimson glow drain from the sky. The sky cleared— the last drops of the stone rain had fallen. With a tinkling, the crystal sphere of life broke and the life-giving light went out. A m
oment later, the dome melted, bringing us back to the “real” world of Valdira. Straightening up, I looked around and involuntarily closed my eyes. From shock. “Meteor” is not just a regular spell. No— it also changed the landscape. Ahead of me still stretched the Ravendark marshes— but without its usual misty fog, and without a standing tree in sight. There was a huge crater in front of me, which was quickly being filled with swamp water. The diameter of the crater was three hundred meters or so, and no less. Valdira would repair its damage. In ten days, everything would certainly grow back— but the spectacle was still impressive, and depressing, all at once.

  -- I guess that’s how we go fishing — whistled Whisper, who got to his feet behind me.

  -- There are no fish here— sighed the creature.

  -- Now there’s definitely not — I concluded.

  -- Oh! – the player became happy, pointing to the side— the house of the turtle. A trophy!

  To the right of the island, five meters from the edge of the crater, lay the empty shell. No turtle. Mrs. Rott had completely vanished— literally. Just a huge shell, completely cleaned of debris and algae. A shadow flashed swiftly and whisper was standing on top of the shell, swaying imperceptibly. A turtle lodge, no less than the height of two men…

  -- Saved— the creature twisted his mouth into a joyful smile— I’m saved! Thank you, great warriors! Here, take this as a token of your gratitude! – In his outstretched paw, I saw quite a large bunch of colorful seashells.

  Congratulations!

  The task “Save and Protect” was completed!

  The reward: a large bunch of iridescent seashells.

  Glancing at the creature— dressed only in a close fitting gray loincloth— I thanked him for the bunch of shells and muttered

  -- I’m afraid to ask where he got them.

  -- Hm… -- said Whisper, sitting on the tortoise shell— And what’s there to think about? We can ask! Hey, beaver!

  -- I’m a bog monster! – said the creature proudly, almost forcing me to take the seashells.

  -- Where’d you get the shells from?

  Whisper and I froze in anticipation of the response.

  -- Out— the creature began modestly.

  Our anticipation worsened.