Douglas walked in and I followed behind him. The home was fairly dark and didn't have any decorations. It was just a basic round little home. Standing in the corner, was a small man with a triangle shaped head. He wore a small blue robe and had spiked up red hair. I expected some wise old man or something. Not this guy. But, I never wanted to judge a book by its cover. Too many people had told me not to do that. So, I gave him the benefit of the doubt. “I have come here for information,” I said with one hand into the air.
“Of course you have,” the mage replied with a surprisingly deep voice.
Douglas bowed down to the mage. “Sir, he is my cellmate.”
Damn, this mage had the troll in line. “You are sharing a cell with Douglas?” The mage asked.
“Yep,” I replied.
“Very good,” the mage replied.
“I have come to you to seek advice about Nightfall Magic. I want to know its weakness.”
“Most everything has a weakness if you look closely enough,” The mage replied. “And smart players prepare for this. But, many do not.”
“How do they prepare?”
“They do their research.”
I began to think about Cosmo sitting in the bar drinking. I doubted he was doing much research. “So how do I defeat someone who mainly only uses NightFall Magic?”
The mage put one hand on my shoulder. “You take it away from him, and use it against him.”
I rubbed my hands together. I liked the sound of that. “But how? How do I do this? Please tell me more.”
“You will learn that there are many weapons in this world. Some of these weapons, can actually cancel out other weapons. Having a wide range of weapons and armor is critical here.”
“What weapon? What is the weapon I need to defeat this man?”
The mage began to laugh. “Patience. Only time will give you your answer.”
Time? I had plenty of time. “I have all of the time in the world.”
“Then open your ears and only listen.”
I tried to open my ears, but they just wiggled a little. The mage put his chin against his chest. “There are a few shields that can absorb his magic. But, you will need a specific potion for this to work. The shield nor the potion are important on their own. But, when combined, things become different.”
Douglas eagerly came closer to us. “Where can he find this shield and potion?”
“The most reasonably priced shield can be found at Henderson's shop.”
Henderson? I remembered him. Seemed like a nice enough NPC. “What about the potion? Where can I find it?”
The mage pointed at himself. “I have the information you need. I'm well known around here for a reason.”
“How much?”
“It's not only a matter of price. But, how much experience do you have in alchemy?”
My head went down. “Not much,” I replied.
“How much?”
“Well, none. I don't really have any experience in it yet.”
The mage tucked both hands behind his back. “I will show you how to create the potion. But, since you have no experience, the effects will be very weak. The potion will still enchant the shield, but will not absorb your opponent's magic as well as it could.”
“But it will still work pretty well won't it?”
“It's hard to say,” the mage replied. “It will work. But, it could require a lot of patience before it begins to accumulate his magic.”
“So what's the shield called that I need to get?”
“The Shield of FlatStone.”
“Okay,” I replied. “I will go and get it now.”
“That's not all you will need. You will also need two different herbs. Sabletop and Dawndrop. Get two of each, and bring them back here.”
“Where do I find these?”
“You can journey to the far northwest corner of FlatFall and find them deep in a cave. A cave that is infested with trolls, rats and other creatures. That would be quite the journey to retrieve such a small amount of herbs. The better choice would be to give me a reasonable amount of gold.”
A slow growing smile came to the mage's face while his hand went out in front of him. I looked at Douglas and then back at the mage. “How much gold are we talking?”
“Six gold coins for each herb.”
I wasn't sure how much these herbs normally costed. It was something I needed to research. I looked back at Douglas. “Doesn't that seem a bit high?”
Before Douglas could answer, the mage replied. “Convenience always has a price to it. Would you rather journey to the cave? I could mark the spot on your map if you wish.”
The truth was, I didn't want to journey to the cave. The thought of entering a cave full of goblins and rats just didn't excite me during that moment. My mind was only focused on beating Cosmo in the coliseum. “If I pay this price, it will also include the fees for teaching me? No hidden charges right?”
“Very well,” the mage replied. “I will include that as well.”
“Fine. You can have your twenty four gold coins.”
I pulled the coins out and handed them to the mage. I knew he was ripping me off, but I didn't care. I took the herbs and put them in my inventory. If he could show me how to enchant the shield, it was totally worth it. “How much will the shield cost me?”
“It shouldn't be more than 25 gold coins. The shield is fairly common.”
I opened my inventory to check and see how much gold I had left. Crap, I only had 71 coins left? After I bought the shield, I would only have around 46 coins. Oh well, I was willing to spend everything I had for the purpose of revenge. I shook the mage's hand. “Get the shield and bring it to me,” he said.
Douglas and I quickly left his home and headed to Henderson's shop. We moved quickly as we knew we had a limited amount of time. The last thing I wanted was for the guards to come for me before I got everything completed. About midway to his shop, I had a new message alert pop up:
“Hey, it's me Tommy. The big day has arrived dude!!! We are here to bust you out. Go to the entrance of FlatFall and follow the tall wall all the way to the left. It is a pretty long ways. But, we are here at the very left corner on the outside of the wall. We have chipped a chunk off the wall and have created a small hole. It's almost big enough for you to crawl out. Turns out Sonny is really talented with the Pickaxe. So run over here right now and crawl out of this hole. We have a big boat waiting for us. It's the perfect plan! When can you be here? Message me back asap because we can't stay here forever. Really you should message me now. Yes. Please message me now.
Tommy.”
I stopped walking. Damn. Everything seemed to be happening at once. Douglas looked over at me. “What are you doing? We gotta hurry before the guards come and get us.”
They were actually breaking a hole in the wall? It just seemed too basic to work. I wanted to tell Douglas what I had just read. But, I didn't know if I could trust him for sure. What if there was some sort of rule here? Maybe if you knew someone was about to break out, you had to turn them in? I didn't know. It seemed risky to tell him. Were they really chipping a hole in the wall? Crap. I felt so confused. Why did they have to come at the exact time that I was planning my revenge? What was I going to do? I wanted to fight Cosmo, but I also didn't want to miss an escape opportunity. They had come all the way here just to save me. I was surprised. Tommy was really keeping his word. In front of me, I could see a little anger building inside of Douglas. “What are we doing? Are we just going to stand here?”
I shook my head. “Nothing. I just need to rest for a moment.”
Douglas ran ahead of me. I looked from side to side and didn't know what to do. Shit. I needed to get the shield. After that, I would meet Tommy and the others. I quickly ran and tried to catch up with Douglas. “I'm coming,” I yelled.
We both ran until we arrived in front of Henderson's shop. Douglas pushed opened the door and I followed him inside. I ran up to the NPC and got straight to busine
ss. “I need The Shield of Flatstone.”
Henderson reached under the counter and pulled out a fairly cool looking brown shield. It was much larger than I would imagined and was shaped like a diamond. I examined it and realized it was constructed with a mix of bronze and wood. “How much is it?”
“It will be 23 gold coins,” he replied.
“Fair enough,” I replied while pulling out my coins and giving them to him.
I took the shield and we quickly exited his shop. Once outside, Douglas took off in front of me. “Wait,” I yelled.
He turned back and seemed irritated. “You really need to work on your stamina levels,” he said.
“It's not that. I just need to think for a moment.”
“Haven't you had enough time to think in our cell? We have all damn day to think. Why did you wait until now?”
I didn't reply. I looked behind us and could see the entrance of FlatFall. I had to meet them. If I could escape this place, then I would. It was weird because I had gotten so caught up in the “world” of FlatFall. It almost seemed like I belonged here. But, I must have been brainwashed or something. Yes, I would meet them and try to escape. My head went up and down. It was final, I would meet up with them and try to escape.
I looked over at Douglas and noticed him picking up a small rock. Then, he held the rock over his head. “What are you doing?” I asked.
“Keep your voice down. I see him,” he replied while looking at the sky.
Who did he see? I looked up to see what he was aiming at, but didn't see anything. Then, he threw the rock into the air. “I got him,” he yelled with excitement.
At first, I didn't know what was happening. But then, there was a loud thud as something hit the ground in front of me. I leaned over the small object. Shit, it was that ugly little pigeon. He wasn't moving and showed no signs of life. If was official, Douglas had killed the talking pigeon. I bent down and took a close look just to make sure. Yep, that was him. His face had a large dent in it, but I could still tell it was him. Douglas bent down and grabbed his lifeless body. Then, he held it in front of his face. “Who's the loser now? Huh?”
Douglas began to growl. He looked back at me and then pointed at the pigeon. “How come he's not talking anymore? Has he finally ran out of stuff to say?”
After that, Douglas let out a long laugh and slammed the pigeon to the ground. “Victory is mine,” he screamed.
Damn. This was one happy little troll. “Did you see that? Did you see the accuracy in that throw?” he asked with a smile.
“That was pretty impressive,” I replied.
“I have been waiting a long time to kill this little bastard,” Douglas replied. “Let's eat him tonight in our cell. His final hours will be spent in my belly. Isn't that great?”
I could understand eating the pigeon for nutrition, but this wasn't the case. Douglas wanted to eat the pigeon for other reasons. It seemed like a bit too much to be honest. But, I had seen how the pigeon had treated him. He really was a mean spirited little creature. Douglas reached down and picked the pigeon back up. “Thanks for the meal,” he said while walking ahead of me.
In the distance, I heard many people cheering and screaming. Douglas stopped walking and turned around. “What's going on over there?' he asked.
I looked over at where the noise was coming from. There were many players jumping up and down. “It's probably the Grand Champion,” I replied. “This always happens when he shows up.”
“I don't think so,” Douglas replied. “It's something else.”
Douglas walked towards me and didn't stop. I wanted to see what was going on, but I didn't have time. I needed to meet Tommy and the others. I hated to leave Douglas, but I had no other choice. I looked at the wall and began to walk towards it. Douglas ran up to me and looked excited about something. “Let's watch this,” he said. “They caught some players trying to break down part of the wall.”
My heart felt like it had stopped beating. “What? Where are they?”
“Over there. They are taking them to the Emperor.”
I ran towards the crowd and tried to locate the players Douglas was talking about. I knew who they were, but I wanted to see them with my own eyes. In the middle of the crowd, I saw them. It was Tommy, Todd and Sonny The Healer. I squinted my eyes and noticed Sonny even had his cage with him. Damn, I guess he had recaptured that poor pet of his. They all walked while many guards followed behind them. Suddenly, Tommy saw me. A smile came to his face while he jumped up and down waving at me. “They captured us,” he yelled. “Can you believe it?”
What was he smiling about? I waved back to him and shot him an awkward smile. Todd and Sonny both looked over at me, but they didn't look near as happy. I ran closer to them. But, one of the guards pushed me back. “Don't come any closer,” he commanded.
“Where are they taking you guys?” I asked with a yell to Tommy.
“We are gonna meet the Emperor,” Tommy yelled back.
“How do you know these people?” Douglas asked from behind me.
“They are my friends,” I replied. “Let's follow them.”
Douglas and I followed them until they arrived at the entrance of the dungeon. We tried to go inside of the dungeon, but a guard blocked our path. “You cannot go in here right now,” he said.
“What's gonna happen to them?”
“They will be stripped of their belongings and will become prisoners. After that, they will fight in the coliseum like the others.”
Wow. I guess they were just like me now. In a weird sort of way, I wasn't really sad about not escaping. And in an even weirder way, I was actually happy that they were here with me. But, I almost felt guilty for thinking that thought. How could I be happy that they were locked up in the dungeon too? I didn't know. But, I knew I could learn to live a happy life here. In fact, I knew we could all live a happy life here. If you could advance in the coliseum, you could live a life of fame and fortune. I had seen how the Grand Champion lived, and I wanted to live like him.
I turned around and looked at Douglas. “This has been a crazy day. Hasn't it?”
“It's one of the best days of my life,” he replied. “I finally got revenge against that annoying pigeon. I finally took his life. Never again will he visit our cell. Those days are over.”
“Let's go bring the shield back to the mage before we run out of time,” I replied.
“What about your friends?”
“What can I do? I will see them soon enough I am sure.”
Douglas ran off ahead of me and I quickly followed. While I was running, I couldn't help but wonder how things had gotten so crazy. I was eager to talk with Tommy and see what had happened. I wanted to hear all of the details. At the same time, I was also eager to tell him about my fight with Cosmo. Thoughts continued to race through my head as I blindly followed behind Douglas. Eventually, we had arrived at the egg shaped home. We went inside and I pulled out the shield. “I got it. Now what?”
The mage looked at me with both of his hands together. “Excellent. Give me the herbs.”
I opened my inventory and pulled out the Sabletop and Dawndrop. “Here you go,” I replied while handing the herbs to him.
The mage walked out of his home and we followed behind him. “I have a fire pit behind my home,” he said while entering his backyard.
In his backyard, there was a small fire pit. Soft flames flickered around a small stone slab in the middle of the pit. The mage put the herbs on the small stone slab. Then, he pulled out a worn out book. He flipped through some pages while looking for something. “You need to find the correct symbol,” he mumbled. “Then, you must align the herbs in the shape of that symbol.”
The mage began to tear apart the herbs and place them on the stone slab. He continued flipping through the book. “This is it,” he said while pointing at a picture.
“Let me see,” I replied while grabbing the book.
I squinted my eyes and examined the picture in the book
. The herbs looked to be crushed into a fine powder. But, the powder created a specific shape. It was the shape of a triangle with a circle on top of it. I looked over at the mage. “So we just make this shape?”
“This is a simple enchantment,” the mage replied while smearing the herbs into the stone. Slowly, he began to create the same shape the book had shown. Then, he flicked some of the herb dust into the fire. Suddenly, the flames became much larger. “Press your shield on to the stone,” the mage yelled. “Hurry.”
I held my shield and pressed it on to the stone. Slowly, the shield began to heat up. Moments passed until the mage told me to remove it. Once I removed it, I took a close look at it. “Doesn't look much different.”
BladeDust Online: A LitRPG Adventure (Book 1) Page 27