The Grind

by Dante Doom

  “I really wish we had cryoweapons,” Elanor replied as she fired another rocket at the Phoenix. This time, the flaming bird dodged out of the energy’s path and swooped down towards Timon.

  “Crap!” Timon yelled as he glanced around. The lava was still pouring from the volcano and there was nowhere to run. He switched to his shotgun and readied for the attack. The cooldown was long finished, and it was primed to be utilized again. He raised the shotgun high and steadied his aim, waiting for the right moment to use his burst option.

  “Look out for its grab attack!” Elanor shouted as she switched to an Energy Pistol. The small silver pistol fired a long beam of yellow energy that crashed into the side of the Phoenix. 10 damage hovered above its head as the beam continued to connect to the creature. Each second that passed, the damage increased by 1 point, rapidly scaling up the damage per second.

  Timon took a deep breath and started firing at the Phoenix once it got within range. The bird was large enough for him to hit it without a problem. In a short span of time, he managed to get 300 damage on the creature before its large talons grabbed him by the torso and lifted him into the air.

  “Ahhhhh!” Timon yelled as he accidentally dropped his gun. It plummeted into the lava and burst into flames as it sank down.

  “Hang on!” Elanor shouted as she switched to her Rocket Launcher. “Just hang on!”

  Being pulled into the air was quite unpleasant. He grunted and gasped as he felt the claws tighten around his body. Timon gritted his teeth and glanced at his power-ups. They wouldn’t do much to help him right now. He wished that Savannah were around. What had he been thinking, letting her go off by herself to search for the android? She was supposed to be protecting him! He should have gone with her. Dammit, if she’d been here, he’d have been able to swap places with her, but since she was on a different map, the power wouldn’t work.

  And though the talons weren’t doing any damage to him now, if the bird dropped him into the lava, he’d be dead within seconds. The talons around his torso were holding him tightly, too, preventing him from moving his arms, so he couldn’t even get a gun out. You are being Grappled hovered above his head.

  “Sqwaaaa!” the Phoenix shouted as it flew towards the flaming whirlwind. The bird was flying higher with each flap of its wings now, and Timon realized that it was planning to drop him into the flaming whirlwind.

  “Come on!” Timon shouted down to Elanor as she fired a few rockets at the Phoenix, missing each shot as the bird rolled to the left and the right, effortlessly dodging her attacks.

  “I’m doing the best that I can!” Elanor leapt from rock to rock, following after Timon. “Keep struggling and you can break out!”

  “If I break out, I’ll fall into the lava!” Timon shouted. “I mean, I can escape any time with my special power, but what’s the point if I’ll die in the lava?”

  “Okay, uh…” Elanor looked around and spotted a rock. She pointed to it. “Listen! When I say drop, you drop!”

  The bird jerked upwards a little more, continuing its frenzied flapping.

  “Are you kidding me?” Timon shouted over the rushing sound of the wind.

  “The damage per second in that whirlwind is going to kill you! Trust me on this one; I know what I’m doing!”

  Timon looked down at the Noble, trying to decide if she was trying to trick him. Taking a deep breath, he nodded at her even though he was too high up for her to see now.

  “All right, fine, tell me when!” he called out, silently praying that he could trust her.

  The bird continued its ascent, screeching the entire time.

  “Okay…” Elanor said holding her hand up. “Now!”

  Timon activated his Freedom power-up and he was immediately released from the clutches of the Phoenix. He plummeted towards the ever-burning lava. As he fell through the air, he could see that Elanor had gotten into position by leaping to a large rock in the center of the bubbling magma. She had a rocket launcher in her hand and had aimed it carefully at him.

  Elanor fired a rocket at Timon and the concussive blast knocked him backwards in mid-air, throwing him onto one of the rocks. He took no damage from either the hit or the fall. He skidded to a stop just short of falling over the stone, reaching his arms out to tightly grab onto a rock before he could slide any further.

  “How did you do that?” Timon asked once he got back to his feet.

  “They’re called Force Rounds; they don’t do damage, but they move people around,” Elanor said as she leapt from rock to rock to get closer to him. Her agility was astounding. The shrieking of the terrible Phoenix drew both their attention back to the monster in the next instant, though. It had 1,200 hit points left even after all of the attacks, and the whirlwind had dissipated.

  “Let’s get ready for a fight!” Elanor said as she pointed at the Phoenix again. Floating above its head was the word Charging. “It’s going to breathe fire, so you need to get ready to dodge.”

  “Dodge where?” Timon asked as he pointed to the lava. “That volcano keeps spewing out lava—we don’t have anywhere to go.”

  Elanor shrugged. “Figure it out.” She pulled out her Beam Pistol and began firing it at the Phoenix again.

  “What’s all this about?” Fingers asked as he leapt from rock to rock, coming into Timon’s view. “I leave for a few seconds and all the fun starts. Where’d all this lava come from?”

  “We’re fighting a Phoenix in its second stage!” Timon shouted. “You have elemental ammunition, right? Hit it with cold damage, as fast as you can!”

  “Where the hell were you?” Elanor demanded. The Phoenix was rapidly beating its wings, preparing to charge at them once more.

  “I was busy scouting, like you asked me to,” Fingers said as the Phoenix flew overhead, breathing bursts of flames at them. He was just as nimble as Elanor, leaping from rock to rock with ease. “Then I got lost.”

  “How did you get lost?” Elanor asked. “You said you’ve been here hundreds of times.”

  “Yeah, I might have exaggerated that a little bit to impress you,” Fingers replied. “But rest assured, I did find the portal to the Med Center.”

  “Wonderful,” Timon said as a few flames crashed into the rock that he had been on a few seconds ago. “Now, can we please get back to focusing on the giant flaming bird that’s coming to kill us?”

  “Right!” Fingers said as he pulled out his revolvers and spun them in his hands. “I’ve got plenty of ice bullets, so they’ll make short work of this thing.”

  “Here it comes!” Elanor shouted as the bird squawked angrily. It flew towards Timon as fast as it could come, breathing out a torrent of bright red and orange flames.

  “Ahhhh!” Timon shouted as he tried to dodge the attack in vain. The flames poured over him and he felt searing pain shoot through his entire body. 150 damage hovered above him, dropping his armor down to only 50 points.

  “Yeee-haw!” Fingers exclaimed as he rapidly shot his pistols at the Phoenix, dealing 100 points of damage with each hit. Streaks of ice burst in the air as the bullets crashed into the monster.

  “Nice shooting, cowboy!” Elanor called out as she fired another series of rockets into the Phoenix, finishing it off with a final blow of 200 points of damage. The Phoenix shrieked and erupted into ashes. Golden orbs of points came flying down to greet both Timon and Elanor. 120,000/1,500,000 hovered above Timon’s head.

  “Yes!” Timon shouted as he held both his fists up in triumph. “We did it! We killed the Phoenix!” And as the Phoenix had faded away, the lava on the ground had melted as well, leaving nothing behind but normal red clay for them to walk across.

  “I guess the lava was a part of the boss fight,” Elanor said as she hopped off her rock. “We’re glad you got here when you did, Fingers.”

  “Yeah, sorry it took me so long; I didn’t realize you’d be getting into big fights without me,” Fingers replied. “Anyway, the portal is to the east, so it shouldn’t take us too lon
g to get there, but I did notice something kind of sketchy.”

  “What was it?” Elanor asked as she dusted ash from her armor.

  “There was a large group of players, maybe thirty,” Fingers said as he shook his head. “And they were camped out right by the portal.”

  “More Wild Cards?” Timon asked.

  “I don’t think so,” Fingers replied. “I didn’t recognize them. They weren’t grouping up for any kind of a big fight, either, because there are no raid bosses in the area.”

  “Well, I suppose we’re going to have to figure out some way to sneak past them in case they’re troublemakers,” Elanor said. “I’d rather not have to deal with more players trying to kill me.”

  “I don’t know if they’re dangerous,” Fingers said. “I didn’t bother to go talk to them.”

  “We’ve talked our way past thugs before,” Timon said. “I’m sure we’ll be fine.”

  “No, I don’t want to risk trouble,” Elanor said. “May I have a word with you, Timon?”

  Fingers groaned. “Why can’t I ever be included in side conversations?”

  “Because you don’t like the real world, remember? We’ll only be a moment.” She grabbed Timon by the hand and pulled him away until they were out of earshot of their ally.

  “What is it?” Timon asked, his mind flashing to the conversation that he’d had with Savannah earlier.

  “I think I know who those thirty people are,” Elanor said. “They’ve got to be working with the King.”

  “So? They’re going to be your problem, not mine,” Timon replied.

  “You’re a tough one to read,” Elanor said as she sat down on a nearby rock and shook her head. “But Savannah? I picked up on it the moment I saw you two coming back from that private conversation at the lighthouse.”

  Timon said nothing. He waited for her to continue.

  “You’re different from your father,” Elanor said. “You seem to know when to hold your tongue. Look, I know how it works, okay? You bow before Leopold in order to become a member of the High Court. My first journey was no different than yours. I’ve had the same conversations that you’ve had with Leopold.”

  Timon continued to hold his tongue. This seemed to unnerve Elanor a bit more. She shifted a little and crossed her legs.

  “Are you just going to give me the silent treatment?” she asked.

  “I don’t know what you want me to say,” Timon replied.

  “I know that Leopold wants you to kill me and that you’ve convinced your little Grinder pal to turn on me, too. Like I said, picking up on it wasn’t hard.”

  “So, are we to fight, then?” Timon asked. He really wished Savannah were here, although that wouldn’t do much good. Elanor was far more powerful than the both of them combined.

  “Not unless you want to,” Elanor said. “Listen, laRange–”

  “My name is Timon,” he sharply corrected her.

  Elanor chuckled a little. “Oh, did I strike a nerve? You don’t like being called by your last name?”

  “There are a lot of other people with my last name,” he replied. “I prefer to hear my own name.”

  “See, I knew you were different. My spies have given me interesting reports on you,” she said. “You don’t seem to care much for all the trappings of nobility, but you have some sense of obligation to them.”

  “What do you want from me?” Timon asked.

  “If those men waiting by the gate are with the King, then you’ll have a shot to try and take me down. You will fail, of course, and then die miserably by my hands. But I don’t want to get into an unnecessary fight with you or your house. I’ll still need allies when I become the Queen.”

  “So you want me to support your rise to the throne?” Timon asked. “If I believed it were possible, I’d still say no.”

  “Why?”

  “Because, you are just as ambitious as Leopold. Your dirty dealings and double-crosses are well known in the Courts. I also have spies.”

  Elanor giggled at his words. “You mean your daddy has spies. And sure, I am ambitious, but not for the reason that you think. What if I were to tell you that I’m planning on changing things in Verre?”

  “You’d sound no different than all of the countless court members who bluster about trying to gain support for their own ascents to the throne.”

  “Perhaps, but if it was a compelling enough reason, would you hear me out?”

  “My father is dead-set on supporting the King,” Timon replied.

  “Your father will support anyone who looks like they’re winning,” Elanor said.

  Timon laughed at that. Her observation was true enough, as House laRange was well known for being made up of political opportunists. “Okay, what is going to make your reign any more palatable than our dear King Leopold’s?”

  I’m going to stop all of this corruption. Every ruler is the exact same, you know. They become a King or Queen and then they spend the rest of their reign preventing anyone from being able to move up without their say-so. Do you know how many hours Leopold spends inside of the Grind? Do you know how much time he devotes to making sure that he’s safe?”

  Timon shook his head, his eyes examining her. There was a lot of anger in her face, but he didn’t see any falsehoods so far.

  “Far too long. I’d wager to say that he spends half of his life inside of this place. That’s not right. Verre has too many problems right now. Two hordes of survivors showed up at our gates a few months ago, talking about some kind of… military force. People with tech from the World Before, and they know how to use it. These invaders destroyed Chi and Go.”

  Timon gasped. “Really? I thought those cities were still around.”

  “No,” Elanor said as she shook her head. “These invaders are strong and they have weapons. They’ve been destroying the weaker cities, and it’s only a matter of time before they invade Verre. And do you know what Leopold is doing to prepare?”

  “Nothing?”

  “Nothing,” Elanor agreed. “He’s far too busy trying to protect himself. Our city is in trouble, and the lines are far too divided for anyone to care about the real issues. Nobles are moving themselves left and right, trying to get in line for their expected rewards, and the regular folks? They’re just as ignorant as most of us. You didn’t even know about these invaders. Why? Because no one cares enough to talk about it. These invaders will take us by surprise and obliterate us, just like the other two cities. The peasantry won’t even have enough time to arm up to fight back.”

  Timon crossed his arms at that. “You seem dead serious.”

  “I am,” Elanor replied. “There are things much more important than position or power involved here. Verre is in danger and, frankly, it has been in danger for a long, long time, with each of its new leaders being more incompetent and power hungry than the last. The problem is that we don’t feel it since we benefit from the corruption. The Serfs? The peasants? They starve while we eat sweet meats, blissfully ignorant of real danger.”

  “You’ve tried to warn others before about this invasion?” Timon asked.

  “In private, with my allies. Few believe me, but that doesn’t matter. What matters is that we put an end to all of this corruption for good.”

  “You keep saying that,” Timon said, “but nothing is going to change once you get into power. You might be able to save the city from destruction, maybe, but how long can you last before someone else supplants you? If you aren’t willing to do what Leopold does, you won’t last for more than a few weeks at the most. And whoever replaces you won’t be any different than before.”

  Elanor glanced around and leaned in close. “Once I’m the Queen, I’m pulling the plug on the Grind.”

  “What? That’s crazy!”

  “What’s crazy is the fact that we have an entire tradition built around the idea that playing some dumb game will make you fit to rule. It’s nothing but corruption. I’m going to destroy this place for good, and then we’ll focu
s on rebuilding Verre into something of glory. No more classes, no more Grinding, and certainly no more leaders who are in charge because of how much money they can spend.”

  “You’re insane,” Timon said with a laugh. “The people would despise it. They’ll destroy you.”

  “Hah, you really think that?” Elanor asked. “The only thing that prevents the peasantry from taking up arms and slitting all of our throats in the middle of the night is the belief that they can become Nobles, too, if they try hard enough. They hate this thing with a passion, but thanks to the nobility, we are able to create the illusion that advancement can happen. It keeps them docile and always hoping to get lucky. The only people who object are the people who’d die without having servants spoon-feed them.”

  “And without the constant threat of losing your power due to someone winning points in a game…” Timon trailed off.

  “I could enact real change,” Elanor said. “I could finally fix everything that’s broken with the system.”

  Timon slowly nodded. “It… it makes sense. But it’s insane.”

  “Perhaps, but think about it, Timon. You could help me change this world for the better,” Elanor said. “Together, we can save Verre from those invaders, free the working class from oppression, and unhorse Leopold. You’re the child of a Noble and I know how unremarkable it is to you. You live like a god to the Serfs, and you don’t even know it. I’m asking you to do something truly remarkable, Timon. To make something of your life, rather than become another bored Noble who sits around all day.”

  The offer was tempting. Did Elanor have another angle, though? He wasn’t sure. “You know my father would never agree to support you ahead of time.”

  Elanor smiled. “Yes, I know that full well. But do you know what he would do if you were to aid me without telling him? It would–”

  “Force my house to ally with you,” Timon interrupted. “Of course. My father would never publicly challenge my decision, and since you were the new Queen, he’d be in a favorable position to you.”

  “You know your courtly intrigue well enough,” Elanor said.