by Dante Doom
"I don't know if we can trust some sketchy online guy to keep our secrets," Kylian said. "I mean, who knows who these guys are? It's too risky."
"So, what's the alternative?" Van asked. "Are you suggesting that we borrow someone else's character for a bit? We've got three weeks to put this whole thing together. I say we take the risk and buy our characters. Where do these guys work?"
"In the Mountains of Melan," Fredlin said. "They've got a process. You've got to meet them in the game first, and prove that you're not with Draco, and then you'll need to meet with them in meat space."
"Two step authentication?" Van joked, "I like it. They won't sell us out – for all they know, we're just some random people who want good characters."
"A word?" Sang asked as she gestured to Van. He nodded and the two walked away from the group as Kylian asked for more details about the purchase.
"What's up?" Van whispered.
"Doesn't it seem strange that Fredlin automatically has a solution to our problem? I mean, sure it sounds really helpful, but… I don't know. He shows up and insists on sticking with you at all times? Who is this guy; can we trust him?"
"We can trust him," Van replied. "I did some research and it turns out that Fredlin was one of the more enthusiastic people to respond to our Reddit thread. Neil already sent me a full background check on the guy, and he comes out clean. From the looks of it, we’re gonna have to trust him if we want to get anywhere." Van paused for a moment. He'd noticed that Sang had winced when he'd said Neil's name. That was odd, but he decided to ignore it and kept talking. "Plus, he served in the military, got an honorable discharge, and worked as a firefighter. Everything about him seems on the level."
"I suppose," Sang said. "Maybe I'm just being paranoid. If the CIA cleared him, I guess that's reason enough to trust him."
"If it makes you feel any better, I do know about the guys he's talking about," Van said. "I actually wanted to work for them for a little bit, but decided to go pro instead of risking getting caught and kicked out of the game."
"So, we can trust them?" Sang asked.
"We'll have to find out," Van said. He looked back at the team. "Alright, folks, let's pack up and get moving. It'll be the five of us only. How far is the mountain from here?"
Sang looked at the large map on the wall. "Maybe about three days?"
"Well, let's get moving then, team!" Van said. "We can't waste a single second with that tournament right around the corner!"
3
"Move forward!" Sang shouted as she fired another arrow at the hulking, two-headed Ogre that was lumbering toward them. The journey had been fine until they'd reached the base of the Mountains of Melan. As soon as they'd come into the area, battle music had begun playing and Ogres of all kinds had poured out from one of the ridges of the mountain ahead.
"Crap!" Sahara shouted as one of the Ogres swiped his massive hand at her and knocked her flat on her back. "I'm hit!" she screamed as her health bar dropped down 100 points.
"Why are there so many of them in this area?" Van asked as he blew into his bagpipes, casting a powerful buff that raised the damage resistance of the entire team.
"No idea!" Kylian grunted as he slashed away at the Ogres with his great sword. "But I don't think we've got the numbers to fight them back."
There were nearly fourteen Ogres, all of them two-headed monstrosities that towered over the players. Sang gritted her teeth as she loosed another arrow at one of the nine-foot tall monsters. The alert Arrow Resistance 1 Damage hovered above the Ogre's head as the arrow sank into the side of the brute.
"It's not normal for an Ogre to have Damage Resistance, is it?" Sang asked.
"No," Fredlin said as he ran in between two Ogres and hacked at their legs with the dual axes he was wielding. He didn't seem to be doing much damage either.
"They're fireproof, too!" Sahara cried out as she narrowly dodged a blow from an Ogre's club. She was on her back then, scrambling to get up.
"Retreat?" Kylian asked.
"No, no retreating!" Van shouted. "I'll play an anti-magic song. That might work." He began to blow into his bagpipes, playing a tune that caused a large white mist to envelope the entire area. The words Spell Cancelled appeared over each Ogre's head.
"Someone must have powered these guys up!" Fredlin said as one of his axes connected to the head of an Ogre, causing blood to gush out as the phrase 225 damage floated above it. "Now we're talking!"
The tide of battle changed quickly with the buff spells removed. Sang was able to fell a few Ogres now that her arrows were able to do damage, and between her and Kylian and Fredlin, the battle was over rather quickly.
"Whew, that was a fight," Fredlin said as he knelt down to loot a few of the Ogres.
"Why are you wasting your time doing that?" Sang asked as she watched the rest of the team begin to go through the belongings of the dead. "We're literally on our way to get brand new characters."
"Oh, right," Van said as he snapped out of his looting frenzy. He stood and dusted himself off. Sang could see a pained expression on his face. The shifting was slow, but she could see that he was working through the fact that soon the game would be gone. A shadow came across his face and his shoulders sunk low. The confidence and bravado that he had been exuding was gone. She wanted to say something, to encourage him, but what could she possibly say to this guy? What could she do other than tell him that she felt bad for him?
"Come on, we've got to move," Van said, his voice quivering a little. "We don't have all day."
"What powered up those Ogres?" Sahara said. "It was definitely some kind of high level magic."
"I dunno," Kylian replied as he looked around the mountain. Snow was beginning to fall. "I guess we'll find out, the further we get in."
"Let's stay on our toes," Fredlin said. "Watch the high ground, if some rock-throwing Giants get the drop on us, it's going to rain boulders."
The team began to advance up the side of the mountain, moving with great caution. The snow wasn't too bad, and the cold wind was refreshing after the heat of battle, but an eerie silence had fallen across the team. Everyone was glancing around nervously, watching their backs for signs of danger.
"This way," Fredlin said as he pointed to a large cave sticking out of the mountain. The words Cave of Terror floated above the cavern.
"Gee, that sounds like a nice place to hide out," Van said.
"It'll lead to an underground network," Fredlin explained. "The Gorgon Brothers use the network to travel around and avoid detection by Draco pros. They built some kind of work-around that prevents anyone from detecting them with any kind of program. Only sight reveals these guys."
"That's quite the work-around," Sang said. "Almost sounds impossible."
"Well, I guess they might have made it up," Fredlin replied. "I have no idea. Either way, we'll have to search the tunnels for them. Be careful, though… if they don't like the way we look or talk, they might just kill us."
"How do you know all this?" Sahara asked as she poked her head into the cave. She raised her staff high, causing a powerful burst of light to flash through the darkness, illuminating the entire area. The words Daytime Visions Successful appeared above her head. A gentle orange light glowed in the cave, providing enough light for everyone to see into it.
"Well, if you must know, I had a girlfriend who wanted to play, but didn't want to be low level, so we sprung to get her a character. And, of course, she grew bored with the game in a matter of days. So, that was a messy break-up."
"Sounds like you made the right choice," Kylian said. "I'd kill for a free high level character."
They began to walk through the warmly lit cavern. Their footsteps echoed for quite some distance. The fire spell seemed to provide warmth as well as sight, and Sang felt rather cozy, despite how cramped the spaces were. She could feel the gentle heat ebb and flow against her skin. It was making her a little sleepy. The rest of the team soon began to yawn, as well.
The
y had been travelling for three days with only four or five hours of sleep a night. And while Sang and Van were used to this kind of rough running, for the others, it was growing harder for them to keep up the pace. It was only a matter of time before they'd need to take a longer break.
"There!" Fredlin said as he pointed to a small painted circle on the wall. The paint was bright red and there were three dots in the middle. "That's the Gorgon Brothers symbol. Let's search for a hidden tunnel or something."
Sang activated her Search skill and began to feel her hands along the wall. A small stone embedded in the wall began to glow. She grabbed it and pushed it back, causing the entire wall to slide open.
"Is this it?" Sang asked with a grin. No matter how many times she found a secret door, it always made her feel accomplished.
Van held up a hand. "Not so fast," he said as he walked up to the entrance. The passage led to a set of stairs that went spiraling downwards. "If these guys are cautious, I'm willing to bet this is rigged with a trap." He knelt down and placed a hand on the ground, running his fingers along the floor. He jerked his hand forward for a moment. "Gotcha!" he triumphantly declared as he pulled a wire.
Four large axes came swinging down at once, slicing in all directions on the inside of the secret room. Van was safe, as he had triggered the trap while remaining outside of the passage. The axes swung around violently for a few seconds and then retracted up into the ceiling. Van took out a knife and cut the wire. "It's clear. Let's go."
"Nice work," Kylian complimented him as they walked down the stairs in a single-file line. The stairwell was far too narrow for them to move while side by side.
"I don't like everyone being so squished together," Van said once they reached the bottom of the stairs. The stairwell led to another hall, although this space was equally as narrow as the stairwell. "Makes us way to vulnerable in a fight."
"That goes both ways," Fredlin said. "Only one person can come at us at a time."
"True," Van replied. He knelt down to check for further traps for a few moments before moving forward to lead the team.
In the distance, they could hear some talking. There were three distinct voices – all male. They were arguing about something.
"I'm telling you, I sent the money," said a high-pitched voice.
"And we're telling you that it didn't arrive," said another, lower voice. "So, you don't get your character."
"I travelled a long way here, Bramif!" the high-pitched voice shouted. "I did everything that you guys said."
"Apparently not," the one called Bramif replied, "because your money didn't come through."
"And it's not like we haven't been patient," said the third voice.
"So, get the hell out and don't come back," Bramif said.
"Whatever. Just give me a few days, and I'll get the money to you guys."
"Sorry, but if you say you're going to have it on Friday," the third voice said, "then you better have it on Friday. We don't work with people who can't keep their word."
"But –"
"Get out!" Bramif said. Sang could hear the sound of a weapon being drawn.
"Alright, alright, I'm going. Jeez, lay off, will ya?" the voice responded. They could hear footsteps coming towards them.
"Excuse me," a short man with several gold chains and a flute hanging from his back said as he tried to push by Van. It was awkward as he shoved and pushed until finally he made it to the back of the team's line of players. "If you ask me, these guys are a bunch of scammers," he muttered to Sang. "I'd spend my money elsewhere." And with that, he began his ascent up the stairs.
"We can hear you all!" one of the voices cried. "Please, come into our office. But we would prefer it if your weapons were put away."
Van turned to face his team and nodded. They all quickly sheathed their weapons in compliance with his nod. Then, one by one, they walked toward a large open door. Fortunately, this entryway opened up considerably and there was enough space within the room for everyone to fit comfortably.
The room itself was nothing special; there was a wooden table resting in the center, and two men were standing on opposites sides of the table playing with what looked like little miniature figures of people. The men were dressed identically, wearing silver jackets and thick coke bottle glasses. One was slightly shorter than the other.
"Well, hello," said the short man. "I'm Bramif and this is my brother, Sulif. We're pleased you managed to find us here."
"It's not an easy journey to get here," Sulif said. "Not when you fill this mountain full of traps and Ogres."
"Yeah, it was a bit of a journey," Van said. He pointed to Fredlin. "I believe you two have made his acquaintance?"
Bramif adjusted his glasses and scuttled over to Fredlin. "Hmmm, I remember you. You had that girlfriend, right? Sylvia, I think?"
"Yeah," Fredlin said as he sheepishly grinned.
"My favorite customer!" Sulif laughed. "This guy, head over heels, buys a three-hundred-dollar character for his girl and she barely plays it for an afternoon before saying she's bored."
"We had to make an exception in our no-refund policies because of how hard we laughed when she dumped him!" Bramif said, chuckling heartily.
"Yeah, right," Fredlin coughed. "Well, we're looking for some alts for our characters."
"All of you?" Bramif asked.
"Yeah," Kylian said as he slowly walked around the room, inspecting the space. There was nothing in the room except for the table. There weren't even any entryways except for the one they had just entered through. All in all, it was a very odd place for people to be meeting.
"Well that won't be cheap," Sulif said. "And it certainly won't be something we'll be completing today. You folks are from the Iron Dragons, yeah?"
"We are," Sang answered as she leaned against the table. She looked at the walls carefully, searching for some kind of secret compartment or cracks in the walls, but there was nothing that she could see.
"Figures," Bramif replied. "Well, you guys might be crazy, but at least you're not friends with Draco. Are you expecting to be banned from the game? Is that why you're going for alts?"
"It's long and complicated," Van said. "The only thing that you need to know is that we have the money to pay and we're needing these characters as soon as possible."
"Sorry, friends," Sulif said as she shook his head vehemently, "but we're not particularly inclined to rush on anything."
"Why not?" Sahara asked as she stomped her staff on the ground hard.
"Because," Bramif replied, "we're easily making a six-figure salary from this job, and it's also super illegal, so we need to be careful. Here are the rules: you gotta pay up front, and then we do a background check. Then one of you goes out to meet us in the real world, to pick up the data sticks with the new characters. All you gotta do is plug them into whatever haptic systems you're using and you'll be golden."
"Where are you guys located?" Kylian asked.
Bramif shrugged. "You'll know once you pass our background check."
"How long does that take?" Sang asked after she sighed. This was going to take forever, and she knew it.
"Well, we gotta check for each one of you, so we're talking maybe three to four weeks if we can hustle."
"We don't have that kind of time," Van said. "We're trying to get these alts into the big tournament."
Bramif looked at Sulif and they both nodded at the same time. "I'm sorry, but we don't do rush orders," Bramif said. "So, you can take it or leave it. You'll be looking at a thousand bucks per person."
"A thousand?" Sahara gasped.
"It's fine," Sang mumbled. "We'll pay you double if we can get the characters immediately."
"Double? Oh, wow," Sulif said, clapping his hands against his face in a mock expression of surprise. "We've never been offered that kind of money!"
"Sorry, but we don't deviate from the plan. One mistake and we're banned from this game for life. I mean, if we get caught, Draco will take us to court
and we'll have to pay them back everything we've earned and more. No temporary gain is worth losing everything in the long run," Sulif said.
"Triple?" Sang asked.
"That ain't gonna work," Kylian said. "These men seem very well versed in their methods and have been running this business for quite some time. I doubt we'll sway them."
"Good man," Bramif said. "Now, how many characters can we put you down for?"
Sang glanced at Van. She leaned over and whispered in his ear. "It'll be faster to track these guys down in the real world and make our request in person."
Van shrugged. "How are we going to find them?" he whispered back.
Sang grinned. Very carefully, she raised her hands and activated her user interface. The CIA had been working on figuring out some work-arounds against Draco's security systems and had made some significant progress. Sang's ability to hack had been severely stunted due to the new protocols that Draco had unrolled, but thanks to the increased amount of manpower and funding that the CIA had obtained from the government, she had a few tricks up her sleeve.
Select Target > Bramif LVL 58 Rogue the display said as Sang began to ever so cautiously break a few dozen rules of the game. She ran a quick IP trace and, after a few minutes, was able to determine the player's exact location in New York City. She scanned Sulif and found that he was in the same spot. She ran a few more checks to determine if they were using any kind of spoofing software, but it was clear they weren't. Modifying a haptic system to that degree would mean some advanced computer engineering, and it was doubtful these guys had those skills.
Sang grinned. Now armed with their location, all she and Van would have to do was give Neil a call and… a sharp pain rose up through her stomach. Neil was still in ICU, in critical condition. She gritted her teeth. Of all the people she could trust, she knew that Neil was the guy who'd have gone and roughed up these two without a moment's hesitation. Now he was lying in a hospital bed, comatose. Guilt and fear began to rise up through her stomach. Flashes of the scene from two days ago began to play through her head.