“The weapon is me!” Tao declared.
“I’m not sure what you’re offering.”
“Everything’s simple, Mirgus. We have to kill the Err of the Eyre Nation and take the Crown and the Keys from his body.”
“And how will you get to him? Eyre’s declared martial law. The city’s teeming with guards. Getting inside the castle is going to be impossible! He’s protected by high-level NPCs and a magic dome. We can’t teleport inside the city, and portal masters can’t open a pentagram inside the kingdom!”
Instead of answering him, Tao pulled out a dagger used to press the map to the table and handed it to Mirgus. It was a weapon in a black leather sheathe with an elbow-long narrow wavy blade. Its handle was crafted in the form of a bird, its wings outstretched, and carved from a weird mineral that resembled a semi-translucent bone. A white-streaked piece of agate was set in its hilt.
“Nestor created it after studying the Axe of Olter. The enchantment is unstable, but the properties are the same. It can open the way into the Shadow!”
“I get it. You want to pass through the Shadow!” The analyst of PROJECT HELL nodded. “But we still don’t know how to charge this athame with energy outside of the “magic land” biome! The phenomenon of edra deposits...”
“Actually, there is a way,” Tentacle remarked quietly as she came closer and put her arms around Tao. “We discovered it accidentally, when Peacemaker inadvertently killed one of Nestor’s pawns in a lab with this dagger. But it won’t be easy, boss. There must be a beacon inside the Eyre dome, or the Shadow might lead God knows where.”
“There will be one,” said the leader of PROJECT, nodding. “My Herald will come through.”
“As I understand it, field testing hasn’t been performed yet? It’s risky business, Tao.” Mirgus shook his head, doubtfully. “A real gamble.”
“I’m willing to take risks. Ananizarte gave me three Great Scrolls, but I need your help. Listen to me—that’s what you’ll have to do...”
* * *
The castle warehouse, which only a dozen PROJECT HELL clan members had permission to enter, was caught up in a commotion. Tao was dressing for success.
“Living Armor? Ring of Nine Lives?” The clan treasurer was horrified when he heard the list. “Windwalker Gem?! Do you have any idea how much they cost?”
Tao did have. PROJECT HELL had spent a year collecting all seven parts of the legendary Living Armor set. On top of attribute bonuses, the armor could instantly adapt to any type of damage, giving almost seventy-percent resistance. Its defense value was equal to a full mithril set, but it was considered a medium armor and had the Absorb Magic property. It was almost indestructible, as it could regenerate Durability on its own. The legendary cuirass fit the PROJECT leader’s body like second skin and hardened, its black scales impenetrable.
He put Ring of Nine Lives on his right hand, and Band of Great Darkness on his left. Picking out the best inlaid gems, Tao cleaned out all the PROJECT’s jewelry stock. Without an ounce of regret, he destroyed the gems already set in his equipment, choosing only the very best. Seven rocks with a perfect royal cut, three of them legendary.
Soul Forge Gem.
Windwalker Gem.
Death’s Breath Gem.
Epic quality elixirs lay inside the belt slots like ammo: potions of Dragon Scale, Black Hydra Blood, Mirrored Gaze, and the catalyzer—a vial of ellure colloid, so-called “liquid gold”. From the sash across his chest, he hung cases with scrolls gifted by the Lady, then put the athame—Nestor’s spectral dagger—into his left sheathe, and his new toy, Black Sword, the legendary weapon from the Netherworlds, into his right. A wide white cloak stretched behind his back, King Sildo’s Mantle.
New archetype unlocked! A system message made the usual chime. Revise your character data to identify it?
Tao arched his left brow in surprise. Aside from generic archetypes, the PROJECT leader had access to two rare archetypes, Demonologist and Swordmaster, and one epic archetype, Night Wanderer. What else could it be? On the other hand, he was now bedecked in legendary items and had a continental quest issued by a Goddess...
Identifying archetype...
You are assigned a legendary archetype: Eternal Warrior! Congratulations! You are the first owner of this archetype in Dorsa! Achievement unlocked: First Coming! Receive 50,000 XP!
Do you wish to view the archetype’s description?
Eternal Warrior is the avenging sword of Balance. This is an invincible warrior who comes whenever the scales of Balance are tilted. Nobody, neither demons nor gods, can stop Eternal Warrior, as he was born for one purpose only—to restore Balance!
Do you accept the archetype’s properties?
The corners of Tao’s mouth curved into a smile. He adjusted the leather patch covering his right eye and stepped inside the portal.
* * *
Tao exited the Shadow successfully. The portal was almost untouched with pulsation. It was a strange magic, something from the Ancients’ arsenal. A long time ago, PROJECT HELL had chanced upon a working artifact from the era of the Ancients — the Axe of Olter. It could open portals into the Shadow, the other side of the world, and allowed one to travel between the different worlds in Sphere. It was a priceless artifact, but it had one flaw: it could only be used by members of the Ancient race, and legends claimed that they all disappeared from Sphere thousands of years ago.
The clan’s magic artisans and artificers had spent a lot of time studying the axe’s properties. After numerous attempts, Nestor, owner of a unique Magic Inventor archetype, managed to create a replica, a spectral athame that worked based on the same principle.
Tao looked at the dagger’s dull blade and realized that teleporting back required feeding it life force. Nestor had been unable to make the enchantment permanent: each new transportation demanded a recharge. But that was a small price to pay...
Tao looked around. He had appeared in a narrow arched passageway, dimly lit with a single torch at the end. On both sides, he could see rows of barred windows with jail cells behind them.
Had the Anchor sent him to the Eyre dungeons? It would seem so, as a bearded muscular man, dressed only in a leather apron, slowly backed away from him, his eyes wide open. Tao identified an NPC, the jailer, noticing beside his feet a tray with simple food the man had dropped. Or was he a warden? Whatever! Living Armor instantly created a long sharp spike on a gauntlet, and he stepped forward, poking the guy’s eye with a finger.
The jailer’s corpse revealed a bunch of keys. Tao picked them up and walked down the corridor, carefully examining the cells. Inside one cell, he found Ramin, his pawn. Tao’s herald was hanging naked from the wall, chained to iron hooks in the stone. His health bar was at the very end of the red zone.
Softly, Tao opened the door and removed the Dark Knight from the wall. His strength, increased with legendary items and buffs, was enough to tear the iron chain links apart with bare hands. Ramin’s dry lips moved.
“Tao? Hail... Darkness. I...knew...that you’d...come...”
“We don’t abandon our own, Ramin!” Tao replied. “Never!”
“I lost...my equipment... Are we...leaving?”
“Not yet,” said Tao, smiling. “But it’s not your battle anymore.”
Tao shrunk the Dark Herald, and Ramin’s jade statuette disappeared into the bottomless depths of the inventory. So far, everything was going just as planned. The alarm had not sounded yet, and in the waking hours, when few Russian-speaking players were online, he only had to battle NPCs, and even they were sleeping soundly, as the laws of Sphere decreed. Only the night watch was on duty.
Tao: I’m in Eyre. Inside the dome. Found Ramin. Stick to the plan.
Peacemaker: Showtime! We’re attacking!
Svoy: Got it. Sticking to the plan.
Illith: Roger that. Starting the Eyre massacre!
Tentacle: My const party will cover you from the air. Hang in there, boss!
PROJECT HELL would
create a diversion, sending several teams to strike at the war camp near the city, and the NPCs inside Eyre itself. This attack would draw the attention of most NPCs guards and distract them, while Tao would launch the main assault from an angle nobody expected: Eyre’s soft underbelly!
The plan was simple and bold: step out of the Shadow inside the temple, find the Err, kill him, take the Crown and the Key. Problem was, defeating a faction leader and his guards, and fighting through the ranks of his army would be a hard task even for an entire raid of players, and that’s even if the raid managed to force their way into the castle, that was defended with magic and steel.
Tao passed through the corridor and climbed the long narrow staircase. Before opening the door in front of him, he slowed down, drank all three of his elixirs and washed them down with “liquid gold”. The ellure extract, the magic catalyst, procced just as it should have, expanding mana limit, quintupling potion duration, and increasing Thirst for Ellure stat by ten. As always, imbibing the colloid made Tao mildly euphoric, and a dizzy feeling of omnipotence filled his mind.
The key clicked inside the lock, and the door opened. Tao slipped inside, a triumphant smile on his face. Two “barleys”, the Err’s personal guards, were keeping watch in the guardroom. They weren’t asleep, although most of their equipment, including the yellow cloaks of their uniforms, was lying on the benches along the walls. Tao smashed the head of the first guard, throwing him against the wall with incredible force, and choked the other, pressing him against the stonework.
The NPC was an elite soldier, who could easily hold his own against the average player, but now, he was grabbed by a creature, so far above average, that the guard’s stats didn’t matter a bit. A cold hand clad in black armor squeezed his throat with unrelenting force, that stopped the flow of air and preventing him from screaming. A handsome face with a black leather eyepatch drew close to the purple-headed guard. A single blue eye inspected the gasping warrior, and his lips formed a smile. Then Tao moved the eyepatch, revealing his right eye, and the guard croaked and gurgled, kicking his legs against the wall in horror.
“Tell me,” Tao commanded, loosening his grip slightly. “Where’s the Err?” Subjugate Will had worked. The NPC had no chance of resisting the ability; he spilled everything, rambling, his tongue loose with terror. Tao learned that he would have to exit through the door, pass through the long gallery, cross the castle courtyard, and go up into the throne room. Behind it lay the personal chambers of the Err and his family.
After receiving all the information he needed, the PROJECT HELL leader closed his fist on the guard’s throat, waited until he stopped twitching, and lowered the lifeless body to the floor.
Behind the door, there was a dark gallery, lit only by the occasional torch. As Tao entered, he was pleased to hear alarm horns roaring in the distance and the tolling of the bell, indicating that his clan had begun the attack. Inside the castle, the alarm had not been rung yet. No doubt, it was only a matter of minutes.
“Hey, who are—” Three “barleys” turned the corner, only to bump into Tao. They stared at him in shock and reached for their weapons, but Black Sword shot out of its sheath, hissing, angular runes of Darkness shining on its grip.
“Alar—”
A torrent of blood gushed forth, staining the yellow walls with red. Tao cut down the first of the “barleys”, wedging himself between two of them, and then chopped off the head of the second with a swift reverse slash. The third guard, a tough-looking, broad-shouldered guy with an officer’s badge, managed to sound the alarm, and then rushed at Tao, brandishing his guisarme. Tao threw a flash of icy lightning at him, then punched the frozen statue, shattering it into a million pieces.
“What the hell was that screaming? What’s going on here?” Three more guards appeared. The blade swooshed and fell silent, only the whisper of blood dripping onto the stone floor filled the air. The combination of Death’s Breath Gem and Infernal Toxin made each hit deadly, as the effect of poison grew stronger, depending on the damage. One of the guards went as far as to parry a blow from Black Sword, but the force of the clash destroyed his own sword, breaking it into fragments. He crashed against the wall and slumped down to the floor. Tao finished him off with a quick thrust, and passed by, without even throwing him a single glance.
The sounds of the alarm could now be heard all over the castle, and worried voices were humming just round the corner. All that remained was to cross was the dark castle courtyard—two hundred steps before the stairs to the throne room. All around, there was flickering torchlight, the tramping of feet, and clanging of weapons.
“Here! He’s here! Come on!”
The battle had started before Tao had time to take a dozen steps. The guards attacked him from all sides, crossbowmen and archers firing at him above the heads of the guards. Laughing like a child, the PROJECT HELL leader cut into the thick of the fight. Each strike of Black Sword took someone’s life, the Windwalker Gem deflected almost all the arrows that were shot at him, and the enemy’s weapons had no hope of penetrating Living Armor. Like an angel of death, Tao destroyed everything around him. He was graceful and awe-inspiring, his white cloak fluttering behind his back like wings. His movements polished to perfection in an elaborate dance, he hit hard and fast, throwing the “barleys” away to the sides like rag dolls.
* * *
Ciage Nialit sprung from his bed, clutching his buzzing head in his hands, which was throbbing with intense pain. Somewhere very close, somebody had just cast a spell. Outside, behind the castle walls, and inside the city, sirens were blaring, and the alarm bell tolled. Dressing on the go, the wizard rushed downstairs into his lab.
The crystal ball on the table was burning with a steady blue-white fire: the protective dome around the castle was intact. What’s happened, then? He felt another jab in the temples, and a crimson flash appeared inside the ball. Screams and the clash of arms were coming from below, from the castle court.
The wizard flung open the curtains and leaned out of the window. In the failing torchlight, he saw people scurrying around the court, other collapsing. The castle was abuzz, like a disturbed beehive.
“El lait ah daya!” Ciage whispered, extending his hand. Obeying his command, a small sun sprang to life above the yard, a ball of white fire, that flooded everything around it in a steady white light. The Err’s wizard saw a white-cloaked player hacking his way through the guards’ ranks. It seemed impossible, but the seemingly invincible man was killing them all, performing inconceivable feats. He impaled one of the guards, right in front of the wizard’s eyes, and effortlessly raised the body with his sword, spinning it, scattering the surrounding soldiers with the weight of the corpse. The bodies of hit “barleys” were tossed over the court, and sent crashing into walls and buildings.
“Kron!” Ciage called loudly. “Come here, Kron!” A blond Arveonian stormed into the room. Despite the early hour, he was in full battle gear.
“What’s going on, master?”
“The castle’s under attack. Kron! Go find the paladins of the Order in the right wing! Tell them to go to the throne room. That’s where the enemy’s headed!”
“But who’s the attacker?”
“I don’t know! Hurry up, Kron! We don’t have much time!”
Once again, a splitting headache came over him. The enemy in the courtyard was almost half way across. He was using ice and dark magic, freezing the “barleys,” and shattering their statues. His health bar twitched, when he got damaged, but his regeneration looked unstoppable, and in a few seconds, his hit points were restored to full.
Ciage took his main amulet from the table, the crystal ball filled with blue-white fire, and raised it above his head. For many years, he had been feeding it magic energy and was using it to charge the dome and protect the castle from unwanted guests. Now, it was time to strike with all the power it had accumulated. But what should he pick? Fire Arrow? Great Lightning? No, they were too weak. Let it be Star Wrath! The bal
l blazed with blinding flame, warming Ciage’s hands. He breathed out violently, and rained down the combined might of Star Fire upon the stranger.
* * *
Seeing the magic light flash above him, lighting up the courtyard like a powerful projector, Tao realized that the Err’s mages had just joined the battle. He had been waiting for the, to arrive, and started turning round, searching for where the spell was coming from, but he could not find it. The spell turned out to be powerful enough to ignore his resistance and burn through all his hit points in one go. A roaring white flame poured down from the sky, shrouding Tao in a pillar of fire.
Ciage Nialit dealt you 7,600 damage with Starfire! Your HP: 0/6,800.
You are dying! 60 seconds left till final death! 59...58...57...
You used item: Ring of Nine Lives. Restored 5,000 HP. Current HP: 5,000/6,800.
Remaining charges of Ring of Nine Lives: 8/9
The first opal stone on the rim of the epic ring faded and fell out of its socket. He had eight more charges that could return him to life with zero hit points. Tao straightened inside the scorched circle, thin wisps of smoke rising up around him, and charged once again, attacking the approaching guards.
The damned mage managed to wound him twice more, before the PROJECT HELL leader finally noticed the blue glow of his magic ball in the top embrasure under the sharpest spire. Tao activated Canopy of Great Death, a spell built into the second ring. It covered everything around him with an impenetrable shroud of magic darkness that could only be pierced with ever-burning light or dark-vision. For a few minutes before the mage dispelled the enchantment, Tao disappeared from view.
Cat's Quest Page 25