by Riker Kane
Only a few goblins remained but they were relentless, jumping for me at the same time from all sides.
“Revolver Drill!”
My gauntlets moved up and caught all of the goblins before they could reach me. Their armor couldn’t save them.
I regained control and sighed as I looked out at the Mana surrounding me. They put up a fight but it was the abilities I used that drained me more than anything. Without the adrenaline of a fight, I remembered just how cold it was.
“You okay?” Jade glanced at the blood coming from the back of my leg.
“Nothing serious. The next checkpoint is just ahead. Let’s get to it.”
35: Secrets & Promises
Enzo Drake
Level 39 Slayer
(0 levels available)
Hit Points 100
Endurance 50
Strength 24
Speed 22
Durability 20 (+2)
Control 18 (+1)
There weren’t any more encounters before the first checkpoint but the snowfall and cold were enough to force Jade and me back to the dusty confines of the storage warehouse.
Three levels added a couple of points to my durability. Hopefully it’d make the next trip to the plains a little less annoying.
Redgrave sealed the wound on my leg and I was as good as new.
“I’m heading over to Tim’s tonight,” Jade said to me. “I’ll spend one last night at his place before I pack my things and go over to yours. You sure you have room in your apartment?”
“It’s not some lavish penthouse suite but you’ll have a roof over your head.”
“We just spent an hour in the snow. Anything sounds better right now.”
While Jade walked over to put away her staff, Redgrave stayed busy at his workstation to prepare the Potent Mana.
I was planning on taking a break for the rest of the night when my phone vibrated in my pocket. Alisa’s number appeared. I already knew it was strange because it was late.
“Hello?”
“Enzo… Are you busy?”
“Jade and I just got back. What’s up?”
“I… I was wondering if you could come visit me.”
The tone of her voice was off. Alisa was always in a good mood.
“I’m at the hospital.”
“Did you say—”
“Yeah. On Central Ave. Can you come over? I’m okay. It’s just… Do you mind?”
“…I’ll be right over.”
I lowered the phone slowly. Maybe I didn’t hear her right. Or maybe I was just hoping it was a mistake.
Jade raised an eyebrow at me. “Who was that?”
“It’s Alisa. She…”
“Is she okay?”
“She said she was. I’ll go find out for sure.”
~ ~ ~
The hospital on Central Avenue was a place I’d been to often. Most of my visits involved routine checkups with a doctor before and after my fights. They never had any bad news for me. I knew I was one of the lucky ones because of it.
Alisa sent me a text saying where she was. Knowing she wasn’t in the emergency wing made me a little relieved.
I found her in the main hall waiting room. Her hair was messier than usual. She never wore much makeup but it was even more obvious with how tired she was. Her clothes looked like she just grabbed the first pair of sweatpants and sweatshirt she could find.
I took a seat next to her but she didn’t respond immediately. She just stayed staring at the ground. Her mind was somewhere else.
She finally let out a soft sigh before looking up at me. “Thanks for coming.”
“You know it’s not a problem for me.”
“I know what it’s like to finish a mission. Redgrave might be able to regenerate your injuries with that fancy doodad of his but it’s exhausting.”
“I’ve been pushing myself ever since I was a teenager. Running. Fighting. I’m used to it.”
Alisa stewed in her chair, her fingers fumbling with each other. “You ever get so tired you think about giving up? In the end, you know you can’t. But do you ever just think about it? Like you’ve just had enough and maybe you want some of the freedom of not having a burden?”
That wasn’t the Alisa I knew. There was no enthusiasm in her voice. No excitement in her eyes as she stared at the ground. She wasn’t even tapping her legs. Just sinking into her seat, not budging.
“We’ve all been through some shit,” I sighed. “You just have to keep going. The world keeps spinning. Life keeps going even if you try to stop it.”
“Hmm…” A half-hearted smile crossed her lips. “Never thought I’d hear something so poignant from you.”
“Back when I was still fighting, there was another guy training at the gym. Tristan. He was one of the better fighters.”
“Better than you?”
“I was an ordinary fighter, so that’s not much of an accomplishment. But yeah, he was better than me… One weekend he’s got a big fight. If he wins it, he could be a contender for a championship. Local league but it’d get some national eyes on him. It was his big break.”
“Something tells me he didn’t do very well.”
“Just the opposite. Tristan was beating the guy bad. Winning the fight in a landslide. Late in the fight though, he threw a kick. Must’ve planted his leg wrong. Everybody who was at the fight said they heard it. Something popped in his knee.”
“Ouch…”
“Fell right on the spot. His opponent won by technical stoppage.”
Alisa scoffed. “Losing a fight you already won. That sucks… What happened to Tristan after that? He okay?”
“He tore his ACL. Doctors told him it was gonna be at least a year of rehab. And that’s just to get him back on his feet so everything was normal. Probably take more time to get back into fighting shape.
“Tristan though… You wouldn’t have known he was injured. Pushed himself. Did all of the rehab work they asked of him. He was working harder than anybody else and that was just to get things to normal.
“I saw him in the gym one day. Light walking on the treadmill. He was moving gingerly. Asked him how he was doing. You know what he did?”
Alisa finally turned her head up and looked at me. She was staring at me intently, waiting for my answer as she shook her head.
“He smiled. He smiled bigger than I’d ever seen from him.”
“That’s weird…”
“I thought so, too. He told me he cried when it happened. Imagine a 200-pound guy that was all muscle breaking down in tears.”
“I don’t think I can,” she said with a soft laugh.
“He was devastated. But all of the rehab and training and sacrifices he made… He was all doing it to fight again. But he realized he didn’t need the fighting. He was happy with his life. He was grateful for that. That’s why he smiled.”
“Right…” Alisa sank deeper into her seat. She didn’t seem as sad as before but she was still distracted. “There a reason you told me that?”
“It’s just like you said. Tristan was on top. Then he hit the bottom. He pushed himself because he wanted to get back in there. But he realized that wasn’t what made him happy. That’s what you have to do sometimes. Just keep going and find something you don’t know you’re looking for. You never know what’ll happen…”
Alisa didn’t move. I kept waiting for her but there was nothing. So I figured I’d give her some space.
“I’ll be outside if you—”
“Wait. There’s something I need to tell you. Just… keep this between us, okay?”
~ ~ ~
She was older than she looked. Her face wrinkled and her cheeks sunken in. Her hair gray and thin. Her arms were frail, just bones with skin hanging off of them. Her eyes were closed and her mouth half-open. The machines monitoring her vital signs beeped steadily.
Alisa stood at her bedside. She was a statue. Eyes unblinking, she just stared at the woman.
I waited at the sid
e of the room and watched as Alisa reached out to put her hand on hers.
“Auntie…” Alisa whispered. “I’m still here. Everything will be fine, you hear me. Everything will be…”
Alisa swallowed when her voice started to crack. She clenched her jaw and forced herself to smile.
“It’s okay.” She squeezed her hand tight around the woman’s hand then gently set it down on the bed.
I stepped outside of the room and waited a few seconds before Alisa came out. She looked up at me, half-exhausted but still smiling. Her eyes were glazed over but there was no threat of tears leaking out.
“Aunt Agnes,” she said. “She’s not…”
“What’s wrong?”
“She’s sick. The cancer’s affecting her immune system. Everything is piling up together. She’s getting worse by the day.”
“Is there anything…”
Alisa shook her head, a solemn look in her eyes. “It’s too late. It’s not a question of if, but when.”
“I’m sorry, Alisa.”
“It’s not your fault. She’s old. She lived a good life. I just wish there was more I could’ve done for her. She… She was the one who was always there for me. Not mom. Not dad. Just her.”
“…I’m guessing this has something to do with why you want the money.”
She nodded. “I’m not exactly making it big. Just quit my job at the cafe because I couldn’t afford to pay the medical bills. Thought about applying to the Legion but couldn’t leave. Going over to the Pussycat Club crossed my mind. Not much of an exhibitionist though, believe it or not. So I went to the gym… Thought maybe I could get a fight or two and make money that way.”
“You got that in you…”
She stared at the door to her aunt’s room and sighed. “She doesn’t have much longer. But I told myself I’d spend every last dollar I had to make sure she’s comfortable.”
“Castleberry could help you out with that.”
“He could. And to be honest with you, I thought about taking his offer…” She smiled at me suddenly. “It’s not about the money though. It was never about the money. It was about my aunt. Hearing the story about your pops… I could never take away someone else’s chance to be with someone important. I’d just be a hypocrite.”
Shit. Never expected her to tell me something like that. But damn did it make me realize how fortunate I was. It was all just some terrible luck for all of us.
I put my hands on her shoulders and looked her right in the eye. “Thanks, Alisa. I couldn’t have gotten this far without you.”
“You could’ve. But let’s get this mission done and you can pay me back later.”
“That’s a deal… Jade and I will be hitting the warehouse early tomorrow. Cover as much ground as we can.”
“I’ll be there.”
“Make sure you bring a jacket.”
“Why? Wait… Never mind. I don’t wanna know.”
We shared a laugh. For a moment, we forgot about all the bullshit we had to deal with.
Alisa’s smile left her quickly as she looked at the door. “I’m gonna spend some more time with her.”
“Yeah…”
I gave Alisa her space and headed down the hallway. Just as I got into the elevator, my communicator rumbled against my wrist.
SYNERGY with ENZO DRAKE
Jade Conrad - Level 4: 10% power increase to all abilities
Alisa Bosworth - Level 4: 10% speed increase to all basic attacks
Faster attacks. First thing tomorrow, I was gonna find out just how much faster they were.
36: The Challenge
WHAM! My right fist shot like a rocket, cratering in the goblin’s face. The crunching snap of its skull breaking was as loud as its cry of pain. The streaks of blue blood spilled on the snow before the rest of the creature burst into Mana.
I held my hands out and collected my rewards without thinking too much about it.
“Poor guy.” Alisa looked down around the ground. The only evidence of a fight was the small divots in the snow from the goblins’ fallen bodies. There was enough snowfall to cover it all quickly though.
“Poor guy?” I said.
“You creamed him pretty bad.”
“I’ll be more gentle when I’m killing the next one.” I chuckled at her and proceeded down the trail.
The snowfall continued but it was gentle enough not to bother me. The sun was more visible through the clouds but I couldn’t feel any of its warmth. The breeze whipped all of the snowflakes forward, so I didn’t have to worry about them hitting my cheeks. I was a little more prepared than usual though.
Early in the afternoon, we gathered back in the storage warehouse and resumed where we left off in the Wild White Plains. Jade and Alisa walked just behind me. Both of them were more adequately dressed for the cold. Their thermal jackets and jeans covered them up entirely. Their boots had more protection for the snow. I knew they were still trying to stay warm though because I had a long-sleeve shirt on and it was cold as shit.
An hour along the trail and we only encountered two goblin groups. The battles were the only thing keeping me warm and stopping me from focusing on the cold. The bleak, bluish-gray horizon in front of me didn’t change. I kept trudging through the snow with my head down and my fists clenched.
Every step was one step closer. I’d get to the end of the zone no matter what.
“We already finished one of the missions,” Alisa said.
I glanced at my communicator.
Available Missions
Defeat 50 Shadows
Reward: $500
Completed
Gain 5 Mana Levels
Reward: $500
Defeat the Zone Shadow
Reward: $1,000
Redgrave loaded us with all of the missions we were eligible for. It was a lot easier to take them knowing what Alisa was doing with the money.
“Shouldn’t be a problem to finish,” I said. “Early start means we’ve got the rest of the day to get this done.”
“Through rain, sleet, and snow,” Alisa said. “How about that?”
“How about what?”
“The Post Office. That’s us.”
“What?”
“Our squad. We can call ourselves the Post Office. Through rain, through sleet, through snow. You know, that’s their motto.”
“I know what their slogan is… I don’t think the Post Office is what we should be calling ourselves.”
“You got a better idea?” Alisa’s slightly annoyed tone made me chuckle. I turned around and saw Jade smirking to herself.
“I don’t have a better idea,” I said. “But the Post Office… Doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue.”
“Fine, fine,” Alisa said. “You’d have to admit, it’d be cool to have a name for our group.”
“Group names are kid stuff.”
“How about we call ourselves the ‘Group That Gets Things Done’?” Jade said.
“Speaking of not rolling off the tongue…” Alisa let out a deep sigh and pushed forward through the snow.
A few more minutes of the blistering cold and the snow began to pick up. Didn’t think anything of it at first but the wind started to blow harder.
“Shit…” I put my hand up to block the snow. The wind was so strong it took more effort to pick my feet up. Suddenly, there was nothing but white all around me. I could barely make out Jade and Alisa behind me.
The display on my communicator blinked to indicate the path going forward.
“What the hell is going on?” Alisa shouted out.
“It’s just a little weather,” I said. “Keep moving! Follow the map!”
I dug my feet into the snow as it continued to pile up around me. Soon it was up over my ankles and I had to pull my feet out with every step.
BOOM!
Thunder cracked in the air but the snowstorm had gotten so violent I couldn’t see any of it.
“There’s a checkpoint just ahead! Let’s go!”<
br />
I kept my gauntlets up and activated my Power Shield. The barrier blocked the snow and gave me some relief.
“Should’ve done that sooner…”
Alisa and Jade moved behind me as we kept walking forward with no clear path in front of us.
“Hold on,” Jade said. “Something’s happening…”
The violent winds began to slow. The snow became gentle. Even the sun managed to shine a little brighter than usual. Everything began to clear around me, giving me a view of the snowy forests in the distance around me. The snow had blanketed everything as far as I could see.
But my eyes were focused on the figures that had emerged from nowhere. White goblins in scrappy leather armor surrounded us. They were more than fifty yards away but they were in every direction. Must have been a hundred of them. At least.
They all locked their empty blue eyes on me, their makeshift weapons by their sides. They were all motionless. Trying to get me to make the first move.
Alisa raised her gun. “What kinda ammo does this thing have?”
“It’s energy-based,” Jade replied. “It’s infinite.”
“Good. Because I’m gonna need it if you expect me to shoot every one of these guys. Have we ever fought a hundred goblins before?”
“Not all at once.” I punched my gauntlets together. “Looks like a good workout though.”
More lines of white energy formed in the sky. Giant circles of light flashed and even more goblins poured out, doubling the ones that were already out.
“Make that two hundred,” Jade said.
Shit.
I wasn’t worried about taking a goblin on. They were savages who used their aggression to compensate for any actual ability.
This was different. A whole sea of them could just drown us without actually having to do anything.