Cat's Quest

by Roman Prokofiev

  Tonight, he would have to put everything he had on the line, the clan leader realized, and tore away the seal on the first scroll of the Lady’s Crimson Fire spell. As the spell activated, Tao felt the unimaginable power unfolding around him with his entire body. A feverish heat enveloped him, and a ball of crimson black flame appeared above his open palm, the greedy spurts of which could devour any in-game material. Tao squinted and threw the Crimson Fire right into the embrasure of the tower, where he knew the mage was inside.

  Boom! The rumbling of collapsed stones drowned out all other sound. The earth shook beneath his feet. The source of magic light that had illuminated the courtyard blinked and went out. Nialit’s tower and the wall attached to it crumbled into the castle, and feather-like fractures ran across the stonework. The frame of the tower, or what was left of it, slowly collapsed, melting like a candle. Black fire gnawed at the stone, sinking its teeth into the dented carcass.

  You dealt 436,870 damage to Ciage Nialit (Eyre)! Ciage Nialit is dead!

  Receive 890 XP.

  You dealt...

  You dealt...

  You dealt...

  Tao grinned, contentedly. It was an unusually lucky strike. But his business was far from over; he heard the scraping of the gates being raised, and could see small birdies in the sky above the castles, now that the sun had risen. They were faster than he had anticipated. He tore off the seal on the second Great Scroll of Ananizarte. The Grand Summoning burned his fingers as it came to life. The roaring of the flames all but deafened him, and the flash of red fire pierced the magical darkness, once again making the earth tremble. With a loud rumbling, a creature emerged from a huge cloud of smoke that that appeared next to Tao. As the creature walked, its footsteps made the ground shake.

  It was a large demon, red and black in color, whose body looked like it was forged from glowing obsidian and lava. He had the body of a dog, and a human chest, and his curved horns were almost as tall as the castle wall. In one mighty hand, the demon held a scorching black scimitar, and in the other, a seven-headed flaming whip. Fiery wings protruded from the demon’s back, and he was surrounded by a shower of blazing sparks.

  The demon let out a horrible howl and stomped with his front foot, summoning a circle of fire that swept the area. The guards, who were afflicted instantly, burned like living torches, fleeing in pain.

  “WORLD OF HUMANS!” Roared the demon, shaking his scimitar. “HOW LONG HAS IT BEEN? WHO DARED SUMMON ME?”

  The demon vomited fire, then turned toward Tao, who was leaning against the grip of Black Sword. The leader of PROJECT HELL noted with some satisfaction that the demon had his lesser siblings with him, hellhounds—barbed monsters vague;y resembling large dogs—pressed against his legs.

  “I summoned you!” Tao said to the fanged muzzle that was getting closer. “And no need to yell, I don’t want your sparks on me.”

  “PATHETIC WORM! HOW DARE YOU?! I AM ATARIX, A BALOR FROM THE NETHERWORD, THE LORD OF FIRE! BEHOLD MY WRATH!”

  The demon’s feet, red-hot and spiked, left wide scorched prints on the courtyard’s stone tiles. Atarix roared furiously and brought his black scimitar down on Tao, following it with a wave of fire. Black Sword intercepted the demon’s crushing assault. Tao parried with such force that Atarix’s scimitar bounced back, and the demon himself recoiled, almost dropping his weapon.

  “YOU HAVE OUR WEAPON! WHO GAVE IT TO YOU?”

  The demon’s flaming aura damaged Tao, but not too much—elixirs and Living Armor gave him more than ninety-percent resistance, and regeneration covered the rest. He fearlessly stepped forward, under Atarix’s fiery breath, ripping off the patch that covered his right eye.

  The blue light shining from Tao’s face enveloped the demon, and his fanged maw opened wide, the corners of his eyes flashing.

  “WHERE DID YOU GET IT? WHAT DO YOU WANT?!”

  “I want to get in there!” Tao said, pointing at the staircase that lead into the Err’s throne room. “Cover my back, kill everyone here!”

  “DEATH TO THEM!” The balor roared, turning towards the half-open gate, an armed squad of NPCs standing behind it. The pack of hounds charged forward, as if receiving a command, engaging the remaining guards in the courtyard.

  The demon will keep them busy, thought Tao as he quickly moved toward the staircase, while the cocoon of impenetrable darkness was on cooldown. A new battle awaited him on the steps leading to the throne chamber: a noble and his retinue, six elite fighters, blocked his way. The leader of PROJECT HELL destroyed them in less than a minute, his blows strong enough to crack stairs and shatter the balustrades and statues that decorated the entrance. An attack of overwhelming power sent the noble flying right into the throne room, its doors mangling as his body broke through them.

  Alerad dealt you 340 damage! EvilN00b dealt you 490 damage!

  Two birdies dived from above, cackling wildly, their riders raining arrows and darts down at him. The gusts of Windwalker Gem lead most of them astray, but even its magic could not block all the hits. Tao activated Levitation, a hidden ability of his cloak. With a sudden jump, he leapt a hundred feet high and reached one of the birdies.

  Black Sword beheaded the flying mount, and in a somersault, Tao passed by the rider, who hadn’t expected such speed, and slashed his face with his spectral dagger. Both the mount and the player, crashed downward, their bodies caught in a bloody tangle. Abruptly, the leader of PROJECT HELL found himself behind the second player, in an empty saddle. Black Sword skewered the rider straight through his chest. Tao cut the straps that had held the player in with his dagger, and then, kicked him out of the saddle.

  Broad granite stairs shattered in bursts of stone fragments and cracked when Tao landed. He finished off EvilN00b, who was crawling around, stunned, with a strike of Black Sword, and, finally, climbed the staircase and entered the throne room.

  Mirgus: Alert! The Watchers are going online en masse! They’ve created a raid and are regrouping. Their numbers are growing! Fourteen...no, make it twenty players!

  Tao: Can you hold them off?

  Tentacle: They’re pressing us! Lots of birdies on the way! We’re holding, but...

  Tentacle: Boss, what did you release? A nuclear bomb? The fire’s spilling over the castle walls!

  Illith: I’m all right so far. We’re kiting them. No losses, but lots of NPCs inside the city!

  Peacemaker: Tao, we can’t cover you! Half of my party are already at resp point! I’m withdrawing from the camp! There's too many of them!

  Mirgus: Check, check! The Watchers will attack the castle, ETA five to seven minutes! They’re flying on birdies!

  Tao: Got it, thanks.

  Tao: Attention all parties! Drop everything! Your main goal is to prevent airborne players from getting into the castle!

  CHAPTER 18 EYRE UNDER FIRE

  I was woken by the persistent buzzing of the communicator. In the darkness, I looked around for my smart watch and saw the time it showed. Half past three, what the hell? On the screen, I saw a message from the Liberty messaging group, to which it was mandatory that we were all connected. That was one of the main conditions of membership to the clan.

  CALL FOR ACTION!

  TO ALL MEMBERS OF MAIN AND SECONDARY CLANS, GO ONLINE RIGHT NOW!

  EMERGENCY IN EYRE!

  NEED HELP!

  The message was copy-pasted from the Watcher’s operational channel and sent by the player who was currently on duty. My first thought was to turn off the comm and go back to sleep, but then I remembered, that it was only five days before the exam. Balian and Lorindale were already looking at me cross-eyed, and being online at night would give me a few more points in the alliance’s DKP table. I turned on the capsule and got inside, just as I was, dressed only in my briefs.

  The inn was empty, but lots of NPCs were gathered in front of the entrance, mostly locals. I spied the innkeeper and his daughter in the crowd. Despite the nightly hour, it wasn’t dark: numerous fires spread through
the city. The NPCs were chatting and pointing toward uptown, where a humongous glow hung above the Err’s castle. A giant fire was blazing, and even from down one the ground, we could see flames dancing around the castle walls. Huge shadows thrashed around in the fire, and we could hear screams, roaring, and the noise of battle.

  The entire city was full of disturbing sounds: the tolling of bells, horns being blown in several places at once, cries coming from afar, the clanging of armor, and the patter of hoofs, as armed regiments crowded the streets. Right above us, almost touching the roofs of the houses, a squad of birdies flew by, spraying us with gusts of air. A few nearby soldiers unloaded their bows at them, cursing. A tumbling item fell down from one of the riders and landed on a neighboring roof, pouring liquid fire all over it and setting the house on fire.

  What’s going on? Who are the firesetters?

  I connected to the op channel. A message was pinned about a raid being assembled on the market square. I was immediately invited. There was almost a score of us. I saw a few familiar nicknames: Alex, Dimonicus, Abel. As for Liberty recruits, Lionel and Amour were there.

  I reached the market square quickly enough. That said, on my way there, I almost got stomped by a crowd of armored cavalry, who were headed toward the castle at full speed. The grandees were armored to the teeth; mounted on their spear-carrying stallions, they were in such a hurry to get uptown, that they paid no attention to the road.

  “What’s going on?” I asked, seeing the worried faces of the Watchers gathered next to the herald’s stone.

  “The city’s under attack!” Balian yelled. “PROJECT HELL! From several directions!”

  “The dome’s down! It’s total madness inside the castle,” AlexOrder added. “They’ve opened a portal inside, summoning an entire horse of demons.”

  “Just one demon, but with a retinue,” Abel corrected him. “Getting through the gates is impossible, it’s a real massacre!”

  “Let’s disembark from the air! Mount the birdies! Everyone, get ready, buff, five minute call!”

  Five minutes later, sixteen flying mounts took off from the marketplace, carrying twenty-two players. Screeching, the rocs, griffons, and wyverns carried us above slanted tiled roofs, weathervanes and spires, burning fire-beds, and narrow streets, full of soldiers and worried citizens. We turned right, circling the castle. From my position behind the back of Javded, who was controlling our mount, I could clearly see a huge crowd near the main entrance. The gates and the entry arch had collapsed, engulfed in flames, and a furious fight was raging. A giant black and red shadow howled and rushed around inside the roaring fire, bringing down the knights and militiamen who surrounded him with a flaming whip and a huge black sword. More and more NPCs were getting sucked into the whirlwind of battle that raged around the demon.

  “PROJECT! To the left! To battle!” We were intercepted, and a few PROJECT birdies flew ahead to block us off. They had been waiting for us to arrive, and in a blink of an eye, were right upon us! Arrows swished through the air.

  Javded cursed and clasped his shield that had already caught several missiles. One arrow grazed my hair, and a few more struck the roc’s coarse feathers. The birdie squawked and dropped downward, gliding along with a cry. A full-on air battle was starting above us. The Watchers and the PROJECT showered each other with arrows and darts, and a few griffons even grappled in a suicidal melee. With a desperate scream, a rider, thrown out of the saddle, fell past us and collided with a roof. A few player icons in our raid blinked and faded away.

  “Cat, fire, fi—” Javded stopped speaking abruptly and slumped to the side. He was impaled with a thin jerid that pinned him to the mount, keeping him from crashing downward.

  Abel: They have dragon venom! Poisoned arrows!

  AlexOrder: Healers, heal the birdies!

  Balian: Everybody who can get into the castle, DO IT!

  My roc was dying; the PROJECT had coated the tips of their spears and arrows with dragon venom, a rare potion designed to affect flying creatures. It glided down, up to the castle wall, and collapsed in a heap, knocking tiles from the roof. I tumbled down past a few bushes and hit the wall, losing almost a third of my hit points. Jumping up, I threw a quick look up above. There, battle raged on.

  * * *

  Loud steps boomed across polished floor tiles. There was the whooshing of a sword, and the furious clatter of blades, screams of rage and pain, the creaking of armor, and the heavy thud of falling bodies. Beyond that, was the quiet, almost soundless, dripping of blood. Tao advanced, leaving a trail of bloody steps in his wake, a vicious smile on his face. A tall grey-haired NPC in a crown stood up from the throne to meet him, its back shaped like rising barley ears.

  All of his bodyguards were dead, the path to the throne marked with their slaughtered corpses. The Err was left alone, clutching a two-handed poleaxe with semi-circular blades. Laon Elyon, nicknamed The Vulture, the Err of the Eyre Nation, frowned under his grey eyebrows, and drew them together as he watched the approaching enemy.

  Like a beast that finally smelled blood, Tao broke into a run, raising Black Sword above his head to deal the final blow. His elixirs were about to run out, and the game was nearing an end.

  A faction leader was a rank five NPC of the Highlord class. They had inhumanly fast reflexes and off-the-charts defense and resistance. It was thought that defeating a rank five NPC alone was impossible; it was a tough task, even for a well-coordinated raid group. Tao tended to believe that nothing in Sphere was impossible, especially for the Eternal Warrior.

  Their blades met, filling the air with a furious clash. For a few seconds, both fighters froze, trying to drive each other back, but the PROJECT leader, his strength enhanced with the legendary armor set, came out on top. Pushing the Err back, Tao put all of his skill, experience, and prowess into the next series of blows, making the Highlord put up a guard. Still, penetrating his defenses seemed all but impossible. There was only one chance of killing him, and Tao risked everything in that single hunch. The floor was cracking and crumbling under the force of their blows and as their blades crossed, showers of sparks scattered around them. Tao, empowered to the brim with his elixirs, buffs, and legendary equipment, spun around with the ruler of Eyre, swept away in a deadly dance, while tearing the throne room apart.

  Tentacle: Tao, they’re breaking into the castle!

  The sixth gem on the Ring of Nine Lives turned to dust. A tremendous blow from the Err’s poleaxe pushed Tao thirty steps back. Re-activating Levitation, the PROJECT leader shot upward, while breaking the seal of the last of Ananizarte’s scrolls. A gust of wind, that seemed to appear out of nowhere, blew into his face, and his body shivered. The Divine Power in the shape of a black spectral spear, dotted with gleaming stars, trembled in his fingertips.

  It was time for the finale. Laughing, Tao threw the Black Spear into the advancing Err. The Lady, who had created the Grand Scroll, was a goddess of this world. Even a speck of her power placed inside him was greater than the leader of an NPC faction. It had to be greater!

  You dealt 745,789 damage to Err Laon Elyon (Eyre)! Laon Elyon is dead! You receive 116,000 XP.

  You defeated the leader of the EYRE NATION! You receive 500,000 XP.

  You single-handedly defeated a faction leader! Achievement unlocked: One Against a Kingdom!

  You single-handedly defeated a Highlord-class NPC! Achievement unlocked: Mad Kingslayer!

  You...

  Laon Elyon, the Err of the Eyre Nation, slowly slumped to the floor, like a felled tree. The golden crown of his kingdom, decorated with emeralds in square crests, dropped from his head and rolled down the shattered tiles of the hall with a loud clatter. It came to rest opposite the Throne of Old Kings, the ancient seat of Eyre.

  * * *

  “Follow me! Ferg, close ranks! Fast!”

  A small group of NPCs was walking briskly down the castle passages, resplendent in their polished steel armor and gold-embroidered cloaks. They were carrying ever-b
urning torches, heavy swords, and siege crossbows. The flames, reflecting in the metal of their blades, colored their faces crimson.

  Four knights and four armigers of the Order of the Lily on the Sword had marched out to the Err’s chambers immediately upon getting a message from Kron, the bodyguard of the late wizard Ciage.

  “Power!” one of the Order told the others, turning around, worried. “Power!”

  “I feel it, Malleon!” Their leader, a tall dark-haired paladin replied. “Time to raise the Magister’s Defense!”

  In unison, the knights performed a mysterious action, and something changed in the world around them—either in the way the torchlight reflected off the walls, or the surrounding dusk. The paladins had created a shield, tangible yet invisible, that protected them from the rest of the world, particularly enchantment. All Order initiates could use magic: combat magic, of course, since the southern brotherhood never used any other kind.

  “He’s here! Another power surge!”

  “That’s right, brethren. Get ready. We’re using Holy Flame, the target is the weapon!”

  After a few gestures and words from the paladins, who chanted something in First Speech, the blades of flambergs, swords, and axes and the tips of crossbow bolts were covered with a coat of spectral fire. This granted them huge power against any user of dark magic; now, they had a chance of beating the intruder.

  “Are you prepared?” asked the leader, looking over his warriors. “Close your visors! Ferg, close ranks! And for the love of the Seven, go!”

  They were too late. When their group emerged from one of the side entrances into the Err’s throne room, he was already lying dead on the floor, and a slender man in black armor and a white cloak was steadily approaching the corpse. In his hand, he held a sword enveloped in the aura of darkness, and a strange blue glow emanated from his face.