by Paul Bellow
“And?” I asked. “That makes him less of a bad guy, why?”
Josh stepped closer, shuffling from one foot to the other.
“How are you?” he asked. “Everything okay?”
“I’ve never been better,” I said.
“Have you been on this level the whole twenty years?” Bernard asked. “Are all the undead everywhere a recent development?”
“Slow down,” I said. “There’s a lot to go over. I see you’ve found my hidden room. Did Magi Inyontoo make it in there?”
“No,” Eric said. “We did read your diary.”
My eyes opened wider in shock.
“Not all of it,” he continued. “Just enough to get some answers.”
“Magi Inyontoo interrupted us too,” Bernard added.
“His power isn’t all that,” I said. “I’ve learned a lot about him over the last twenty years. You guys don’t know how good it is to see you.”
“You’ve really been in here twenty years on your own?” Josh asked.
“It’s been amazing. After the brownies killed me…” I stopped and turned to Eric. “Thanks for avenging me, by the way.”
“You know about that?” he asked.
“I’ve been watching you guys from a distance for a while,” I said, not telling them I’d actually heard the story from someone else. “The gamemaster in the tower gave me a choice after I died. I could respawn as an NPC near you during the same time-period, or I could respawn as a PC twenty years before you arrive on a strange penalty level connected to this level and receive a new, unique class in the game.”
“What’s a clone level?” Erc asked.
I smiled. “All in due time. I’m thirty-eight years old in my mind, but my body hasn’t aged in the real-world. That is amazing on so many levels. This last twenty years had been good in a lot of ways. I missed you guys, but I had a lot going on.”
“You said something about food earlier?” Derringer asked.
I kept smiling. “Did you find the kitchen upstairs?”
“There’s an upstairs?” Eric glanced up. “Where?”
“Follow me,” I said.
I walked across the room and activated the secret door and elevator.
“Come on,” I said then stepped in. “Two at a time.”
Eric walked over and got in beside me. Josh glared at him but said nothing. Were they getting along better? I hoped so, as I pulled a cord to bring us up to the second floor. We spilled out of the elevator and into my kitchen and informal living room.
“Are you okay?” Eric asked as we stepped off the platform.
“Yeah,” I said. “And you?”
“Better now,” he said then smiled.
“Send the elevator down for the others,” I said. “I’ll get some food going.”
Eric pulled the cord to send the elevator down then walked back over to me as the others came up. I mixed up a quick batch of Brownie Gruel. While it looked and smelled nasty, the taste wasn’t too bad. My magic helped a bit.
“Watch this,” I said then waved my palm over the bowl of goop.
The contents of the pot changed into a thick, hearty beef stew. Eric’s eyes widened as he looked from the bowl to me. I smiled as I picked it up and headed over to the table.
“Tastes even better than it smells,” I said. “I got to create some of my own spells.”
“I would’ve taken the twenty years alone for a new class too,” Eric said.
Josh walked over, sniffing the air with his sexy nose. I’d missed him so much.
“That smells good,” he said.
I sat down at the table. Eric took a seat to my left while Josh sat to my right.
“Pass me a bowl,” Derringer said.
“I wasn’t expecting so many guests, but hold on,” I said.
I waved my hands over the table, as a bright light emanated from them. Six smaller ceramic bowls appeared on the table with silver spoons in them. The minor spells were mostly parlor tricks I’d learned and didn’t cost any mana.
“That’s amazing,” Bernard said. “A new class, huh?”
“A Valkyrie Skyrider,” I said. “A mix of warrior and wizard mostly.”
“What happened to your spider?” Josh asked.
I frowned, remembering Charlotte and what had happened.
“We had a falling out,” she said. “A long time ago.”
Derringer spooned some of the stew into his bowl.
“Where is she now?” Eric asked.
“I don’t know,” I said. “I’ve stayed here the last year, waiting for you guys and plotting a way to take out Magi Inyontoo.”
“Do you know he’s creating all the undead in the Tower of Sherlock?” Bernard asked.
I nodded. “He loves that place.”
“What level are you?” Eric asked.
“Only level ten,” I said. “This class has super-slow progression because it’s so powerful. I think the gamemaster tried to trick me.”
“Sounds like him,” Bernard said.
Eric shuffled nervously in his seat.
“You don’t have any powerful spells to stop addiction, do you?” he asked.
“What’s wrong?” I asked. “You didn’t take the Everlast potions, did you?”
I’d heard rumors that a few of them had somehow appeared on the level during the last few months as I cleared undead and gathered information.
“Of course he did,” Josh said.
“Eric…” I let my voice trail off.
“We were in a tough spot,” he said, shrugging sheepishly.
“He took two of them last time,” Derringer said.
“Didn’t you read the warnings?” I asked. “Magi Inyontoo has been spreading them around to trap people.”
“Yeah, I read the instructions, but I needed to take one…”
He stopped talking while staring at me.
“All I care about is killing Magi Inyontoo,” a new woman said.
I nodded. “Me too. I’ve been waiting for you guys for a long time. We can sleep and rest here tonight. I’ll teleport us to Fishguard in the morning.”
“Now that’s a cool spell,” I said.
I smiled and stood, not telling them about the ring. Over the last twenty years, I’d learned to keep things to myself unless others absolutely needed to know.
“If you guys will excuse me, I need to meditate downstairs for a while.”
“Want me to come with?” Josh asked, pushing his chair back.
“No, that’s okay,” I said. “I need a bit of privacy. You guys eat and relax.”
I walked over to the elevator, feeling relieved and overwhelmed at the same time. While I didn’t need to meditate, I wanted some time alone.
* * * * *
The next morning, I used the Ring of Mass Teleportation to take us all back to Fishguard.
“I need to go get something on my own,” I said as we stood behind a tavern.
“We’ll go with you,” Eric said.
I shook my head. “You can’t come with me. None of you.”
“What’s going on?” Josh asked. “Why all the secrecy?”
“If I told you,” I said. “It wouldn’t be a secret any longer, would it?”
“We should go equip for this battle,” Raven said.
I’d finally learned her name earlier that morning during breakfast.
“And see if we can get some help,” Bernard added.
“We’ll meet back here in two hours,” I said. “If I’m not back by then, something went terribly wrong and you should go on without me.”
“You sure you don’t want us to go with you?” Eric asked.
“Positive,” I said. “I’ll see you guys soon.”
I turned and walked away, curious about what they thought. Was I being too strange and mysterious? I didn’t have anything dangerous to do, but I wanted some more time alone. After so many years of taking care of myself, I found being in a group again a bit concerning. Would I ever get accustome
d to it again? Had the game changed me completely?
Pushing all the questions aside, I stopped at the first magic shop I came across and purchased all their healing and mana restoration potions. I browsed the racks of wands and other assorted items, not really seeing anything special. During the last few months, I’d built up a considerable amount of wealth by attacking undead lairs.
“You break it, you bought it,” a frazzled middle-aged man said from behind the counter. “If you can’t afford anything else, you should leave.”
“Didn’t I just buy all your healing potions?” I asked.
He raised his hands defensively.
“Sorry,” he said. “No need to bite my head off.”
I turned back to the shelf of magic items I’d been looking at before his lecture. With the wealth I had stored in a few places on the level, I could buy his entire shop if I wanted. None of the items looked powerful or even useful. The good stuff had likely gone to people trying to stop the undead menace, ending up in the hands of that which they hunted.
“Can I see these two rings?” I asked. “The invisibility and soul stealing one.”
“Are you sure you can afford them?” he asked.
I gave him a disapproving glance. He grabbed the rings. “Here.”
“Perfect,” I said. “How much for both?”
After he gave me the price, I got the coins and a few gems out of my sack. He greedily accepted them, counting the coins as I turned to leave. The potions and rings would help if we had a final showdown with Magi Inyontoo. Eric, Josh, and the others had filled me on the details about Magictology trying to floor the entire first four levels of the game with undead—so many that the barrier keeping him from the higher levels would break.
I walked down the streets of Fishguard, comparing it to Kron—the city I’d created from nothing. While similar in some ways, I’d done a much better job. The Tower of Gates could create a basic city like the ones we’d seen on the first three levels, but I wondered about the other cities founded by players on the higher levels. Would we reach them?
Or would we find a way out first? I missed the real world, but after twenty years inside the Tower of Gates, the game world had become a part of me. What would I even do with myself if I ever went back to the real world? Could I adjust to the boring mundane reality of day-to-day life without going insane? I didn’t think so, but I still craved certain things and people.
I stopped at an intersection and stared at all the faces passing in both directions. Most of them would be NPCs, but I always wondered if one was actually a player character hiding for a reason only known to them. It wouldn’t surprise me a bit if someone came up and revealed themselves as a PC. Going incognito as an NPC could have its perks.
Two boys ran past, laughing and talking. I smiled, wondering about starting a family of my own someday—even if it was inside the Tower of Gates. Whether or not I could even conceive a child inside the game wasn’t certain, but I’d heard rumors from other players over the years about children being born inside the Tower of Gates.
And if it was possible, would I want to do it? Would my offspring become a PC or be forced to work as an NPC after they grew up? That thought made me think about death and my own mortality inside the game. Eventually, I would die. Unless I could use magic to fend off death somehow? Thomas the Quest Giver had become a PC lich.
I shuddered at the thought of becoming such an abominable creature. Still, it might be better than outright death and starting a new character all over. I shook my head at my crazy thoughts and continued walking toward the city gates where I would meet the others. Derringer I’d met, but I knew nothing about Raven. The others trusted her, so I did too.
As I approached the spot, I saw Bernard, Derringer, Josh, and Raven standing around. I stopped next to them.
“Where’s Eric?” I asked, looking around.
“He went to the docks,” Josh said. “Doing his own thing as usual.”
I forced a smile, somewhat amazed I’d dated Josh. Our relationship had happened so long ago, that he appeared like a new person to me now.
“We have a bit of time,” I said. “Magi Inyontoo expects us. We need to do this right.”
“I’m going to kill him,” Josh said.
“Not if I do it first,” Derringer added.
Raven remained quiet, seemingly lost in her own thoughts. I listened to the others banter back and forth a bit before seeing Eric walk up.
“You’re late,” I said, teasing as he stopped.
“Just a few minutes,” he said.
“Where’d you go?” Bernard asked.
“To the docks to check on Captain Skids,” Eric said. “Since we found Sarah, I thought it would be a good idea to make sure our ride off this continent doesn’t sail away without us.”
Eric ran his fingers over his collar, something he always did when he lied.
“Did anyone find someone to help us defeat Magi Inyontoo?” he asked.
“No,” Derringer said.
“We’ll be fine,” I said. “My new class is powerful, and I’m ready to kick some ass and take names.”
Josh pumped his fist. “Now we’re talking!”
“We should go,” Raven said in a quiet, reserved tone.
“Fine,” Eric said. “We’ll start flying once we’re outside the city.”
I followed Raven as she walked through the open gateway and down the road outside the city. The others came alone too. A half-mile away, Josh activated the floating platform, sizing it big enough for all of us to fit. We all got on board. He levitated us ten or so feet off the ground before moving us forward.
Eric kept glancing up at the sky in a gloomy mood.
“Someone’s approaching from the air,” Raven said, pointing.
“What is it?” Eric asked, squinting. “Another dragon?”
“A single dwarf flying on a platform,” she said.
“How can you see that far away?” he asked.
“A simple spell,” she replied.
“I bet it’s Axelrod,” Josh said.
“Here’s hoping he’s still not mad with power,” Bernard added.
Everyone waited as the other flying platform approached. Josh slowed us down as we got closer, finally stopping when the two platforms reached each other.
“I’ve been looking for you guys,” Axelrod said. “Where’s Boki?”
“He died,” Eric said, frowning “We’ve been through a lot since we left you. Do you want to join our party and help take out Magi Inyontoo?”
“Do I ever,” Axelrod said in an enthusiastic voice.
Eric turned to the rest of us.
“Let him in, please?”
I accepted him with the game prompt.
[PC] Axelrod the dwarven fighter has joined your party.
“Good to be back,” the dwarf said.
“What happened back on level one-two?” Bernard asked. “Did your friends come out of the Roguelike?”
Frowning, Axelrod shook his head. “No. Can we please not talk about what happened between us? That stupid scepter drove me nuts. You guys should’ve taken it away from me.”
“Maybe,” Eric said. “We wanted to find Sarah.”
“Did you find her?” he asked.
I smiled and raised a hand.
“Good to see you,” Axelrod said.
Bernard nodded to the other floating platform.
“I thought we had the only one left,” he said.
Axelrod grinned.
“We’re mass-producing them now. I think they’ll be a hit on higher levels. They’ll bring me a fortune of in-game currency. And with that, I’ll build a proper paradise for the dwarves on level one-eight.”
“Are we ready to go?” Raven asked. “He likely knows we’re coming.”
I didn’t know a lot about her yet, but I liked her.
“We should split up,” Derringer said. “And use both platforms to fly in unexpected.”
“I doubt it’ll work,
but let’s give it a try,” Axelrod said then laughed. “Good to be back with you guys. And everyone new, too.”
“We’ll catch up later,” Eric said. “We’ve got a side-quest to finish by killing Magi Inyontoo and stopping him from creating more undead.”
Derringer and Raven joined Axelrod on the other platform. Bernard, Eric, Josh, and I rode on the other. As we approached the Tower of Sherlock rising from the ledge high up the mountain, I took a deep breath and calmed myself for the battle ahead. If I had my way, Magi Inyontoo would soon be dead.
Chapter 34
Not Yet Another Death
Sarah
I saw waves of undead on the ledge outside the Tower of Sherlock. Were they protecting the tower? Did Magi Inyontoo know we were coming?
“We should’ve went through the Cave of Fish Smells again,” Eric noted.
“It’s blocked on this level,” I said. “I explored them a few months ago. That’s when Charlotte went away.”
Why did I make up that lie? Maybe I wasn’t ready to talk about the last twenty years with anyone, especially about how I’d killed another player? I sighed as the platform slowed. We stood still, levitating a few hundred feet away from the top of the cliff.
Axelrod stroked his beard with one hand while holding his axe with the other.
“What do you think?” he asked.
“I’m not sure,” Eric answered.
Axelrod turned around. “I was talking to Raven. What do you think?”
“We’re outnumbered and low on spellcasters,” Raven said. “Not looking good.”
“Remember,” I said. “I’m a war wizard now.”
“Yeah?” Axelrod scoffed. “What can you do?”
“I’ve got a few tricks up my sleeve,” I said, holding my hand out with the palm up.
The dwarf’s eyebrows raised as a ball of energy formed—another parlor trick.
“Are we ready to kick this off?” I asked.
“We’ve given Magi Inyontoo enough time to prepare,” Josh said. “Let’s do this.”
He flexed his arms, and it made me wondered why I’d dated him again.
“I’ve got no idea what you’re about to do, but I’m ready,” Derringer said.