Collecting The Goddess (Chronicles Of KieraFreya Book 1)

by Michael Anderle

  He spread his arms wide as if waiting for them to applaud.

  “What are we looking at here?” Tag asked.

  The next thing they knew, the candles went out and they were plunged into darkness. Chloe and Tag placed their hands on the hilts of their weapons, then withdrew them as they saw an orb of white light appear.

  The wisp bobbed excitedly, illuminating Derren’s grin. “It’s been a while since a wisp has been around this farm. Came at just the right time.”

  Chloe’s throat went dry. Was that her wisp?

  As much as a wisp can be anyone’s, Chloe, the wisp said in her head, Chloe recognizing the shaman’s voice.

  The wisp circled Derren, spinning ever faster as a pattern lit and glowed around his feet. Not too dissimilar from the fast-travel icon, this pattern displayed edges like waves and was decorated in strange combinations of footprints.

  “What is that?” Ben breathed.

  “I’m glad you asked,” Derren replied. “This is what is known as a ‘moonhopper.’ It’s a relic from the old world that I happened to have won in a game of cards with a most unsavory group of wizards.”

  Gideon coughed.

  “Sorry, mages. By expelling a certain amount of mana into the moonhopper, one can quick-jump to a location known by someone in the room. It’s as easy as fast-traveling, but the amount of mana expended can be great.”

  “How much are we talking?” Gideon asked.

  Derren silently eyed the company. “Around 1,000MP in a single blast should do it.”

  “1,000?” Chloe gasped, pulling up her character sheet and looking at her 200MP. Even with Gideon’s MP and what little the others must have, there was no way they were going to be able to pull together 1,000MP for this.

  “Never fear,” Derren said, seemingly reading her mind. “In place of a portion of the mana, one can offer a wisp to the ritual. Wisps store an enormous amount of mana within their spheres and can morph and bend into the shapes of others. With this one’s agreement, I think you will be just fine.”

  Chloe turned to the others uncertainly. “Well?”

  “It’s up to the wisp, really,” Ben said.

  Chloe reached out to the shaman. Is it true, what this man is saying?

  Truer than the day is blue, the shaman replied. I have stores of MP hidden within me that can manage this magic. The only problem is that this man hasn’t taken into account the transference of a goddess. I won’t be able to take you all.

  What do you mean? Chloe replied.

  You’ll need to leave KieraFreya behind.

  The hell she will! Not that she could, KieraFreya snapped before hearing the shaman chuckling. You poor excuse for a mortal.

  Says the goddess who’s stuck in metal, Chloe quipped.

  “Very well,” she said at last, stepping into the moonhopper. “Let’s do this.”

  The others joined her in the circle, the strange glow a little unnerving. Derren stepped outside the circle, touched his hand to the glowing rim, and said, “Goodbye, fair adventures. Thank you all once again for your help. I hope to see you again within this lifetime.”

  Before anyone had the chance to speak, there was a great rush of sound. The basement slipped away and they shot into darkness.

  Chapter Forty-Three

  “So this is it?” Demetri said as Mia loaded the website on her laptop.

  They were sitting in the plush chair where they now spent most of their available time. Mia lounged on Demetri’s lap as the large television on the wall showed Chloe’s adventures in Obsidian. Neither of them watched the main screen as Derren led Chloe and the others into the dark basement.

  The apartment was a hovel now. There were empty takeout boxes, discarded bottles and cans, and clothes were strewn here, there, and everywhere from their various passion-fueled romps, but neither of them cared. They remained in their bubble and scrolled through the website.

  The screen showcased a large Obsidian logo in its center. Demetri had to admit, the whole thing was pretty cool. The official website was live, and it included a store in which people could register to buy the pods and dive into the game. There were also t-shirts, mugs, mouse pads, phone cases, and more.

  The official forums were open, and thousands of players were already uploading their questions and chatting with other players and fans. A catalog of the game’s locations, monsters, creatures, and races was being created as they went along, and it seemed as though the community was buzzing.

  Mia dragged the mouse to a Watch Live tab in the corner and the screen filled with squares. Demetri couldn’t help thinking the whole thing looked a little dodgy, with a bunch of Premium videos listed that fans would have to pay to view. Mia had explained that these were the game’s celebs, influencers who had fanbases and who were often given the priority adventures and baddies that made the best viewing.

  It was another clever way for Praxis to increase revenue and also allow gamers to make money as they played.

  “So that means that people can now see Chloe playing?” Demetri asked.

  Mia’s lips touched his cheek. “Sure. You can search by level, character type, location, or username. Here...’Chloe.’”

  Demetri laughed at some of the names that were displayed before the screen refreshed. In that split second he saw a ‘RydTilIDi3,’ a ‘247F*ckF3st’ and ‘MickeyRAWRK!’

  “Wow, she really could have picked a more inspired name.”

  “Ya-huh. Ah, here we go!”

  The screen went black for a moment, then Chloe and her crew reappeared in full color. At the side of the screen, a viewer could look up their stats, check their activity log, and leave comments for other viewers to reply to. In the corner was a small red symbol of an eye with the number 13 next to it.

  “What’s that for?” Demetri asked.

  “That’s live viewers,” Mia replied. “If you exclude us, that means 12 other people are watching Chloe navigate the realm of Obsidian.”

  “That means people know about the bracers of KieraFreya?”

  “Probably. She doesn’t do a great job of keeping secrets, does she?”

  Demetri grew warm. Since the game had gone public, available to 7.2 billion people across the globe, they hadn’t had a chance to let Chloe know about the live-streaming function. Even the guys she was with who logged off regularly seemed to be more excited about jumping straight back into the game than deep-diving into the information that was now available and circulating through the lower ranks of gaming communities across America.

  “Well, she’d better keep one of her secrets inside her. If Mom and Pop Lagarde find out the world knows about Chloe’s little experiment, we’re in for some trouble.”

  “You mean, you’re in for some trouble.” Mia winked.

  “Thanks for the reminder,” Demetri said, mock-scowling. “The press is already picking up on Chloe’s absence. It’s unheard of for a Lagarde to not be in the public eye for more than a few days. Vogue and Cosmo are starving for details on Chloe’s whereabouts. They’re missing their regular page 12 feature of Chloe and her buddies on their nights out. They’ve questioned Hugo and Helen and been told that she’s away on travels, but if the press can’t find someone, they just make up shit until it becomes the truth.”

  “The life of a Rockefeller, eh?” Mia scrolled through several other live-streams, clearly not feeling the same fear as Demetri.

  Demetri ran a hand through his hair, staring intensely at the girl on the screen, who was now panicking as the floor gave way and they were transported into darkness.

  “All I’m saying is, we need to monitor this situation very carefully. If Chloe’s reputation is somehow damaged before she finishes her stint in Obsidian, not only will the Lagardes have something to say about her investment, but it could make it very difficult for Chloe to resurface and live her life.”

  One minute the very foundations shook and rolled, the next the world stood still.

  Chloe kept her eyes closed, suddenly aware of
voices all around her. There was a city smell in the air, and she imagined herself opening her eyes to the sight of skyscrapers, traffic lights, and Uber drivers. Around her, Tag, Ben, and Gideon were gasping.

  She opened her eyes, not quite believing what she was seeing.

  They were on a high viewing platform overlooking a bustling city, only the city was entirely contained within the trunk of the most gargantuan tree Chloe had ever seen. It rose into the air until it disappeared into the clouds. She couldn’t even see the upper canopy, and suddenly felt as if she knew how ants and bugs felt in the forest.

  The roots of the tree slithered and snaked in all directions, with houses and paths and roads built into the nooks and crannies the tree offered. Everywhere they looked, there were people of all ages and races. Chloe spotted humans, elves, dwarves, and even a few goblins and pixies.

  In the distance was what appeared to be, a minotaur, and farther up the tree, on the higher branches, she was certain she saw bird-like creatures with humanoid limbs.

  “What is this place?” Chloe asked no one in particular.

  “When you’re done gawping, some of us have places to go,” a gruff voice said from behind them.

  Chloe almost screamed as she saw what could only be described as a goblin crossed with a troll.

  “What’s the matter? Never seen an orc before?”

  Chloe shook her head.

  The orc rolled its eyes. “Friggin’ townies. Now, move. It’s my brother’s 118th birthday.”

  The orc swept the group aside, crouched, and touched the pattern of the moonhopper in the same way Derren had. In a swirl of colorful magic, he was gone.

  The rest of the line, some 30 people strong, shuffled forward.

  They moved out of the way of the queue and found a quiet place up on the overlook. Chloe was suddenly overwhelmed, not quite believing she had transported from a tiny, sleepy village to a certified metropolis.

  “This is where we’re going to find Tohken?” Chloe asked, unable to peel her eyes away from it all. “I have seen a thousand people already, and I’m not sure that’s even a fraction of the people who live here. How are we going to find one man among all this?”

  Tag patted Chloe’s back. Due to his stature, it was a little too close to her butt for her liking. “Don’t you know anything about these games? You start with the taverns. You always start with the taverns.”

  Ben nodded eagerly.

  Chloe rolled her eyes. “Any excuse to drink, sing, and hump with the locals.”

  Tag and Ben grinned.

  They made their way down a set of wide steps that looked to have been made from fallen leaves. The stairs swept into the city and, like the river had taken Tag, before they knew it, they had been swept away.

  The pace of the city was frenetic. People rushed here and there. Wide lanes had been created for those with horses and carts. People who were pompously dressed rode by and scowled down at those who walked the streets, spitting in the direction of the many homeless who had found nooks and crannies from which to beg for change.

  They passed houses and lodgings, apothecaries and general stores, clothing outlets and patisseries. Even KieraFreya let out a few awed utterances as they passed a particularly large shopfront that displayed suits of armor that Chloe could only guess would cost a lot more than she had.

  And then they found it. Around a corner, on a street where the road thinned to nothing, they entered a building with a hanging sign on the exterior that read The Moon and Sun.

  The tavern was warm and accommodating on the inside. A large fire burned in the center, sunk into a pit in the floor. It cast a flickering glow on long tables and benches where people spoke animatedly and sloshed their drinks around.

  The clientele was nothing to shout about, the place hosting a large number of orcs, with a few humans here and there. Elves clearly ran the establishment. Chloe spied several tall, thin figures with pointed ears wandering around with trays filled with full and empty cups.

  Chloe elbowed Ben. “Your kind of town.”

  “If you say so,” Ben replied as they made their way to a quiet table in the corner, away from the majority of the raucous customers.

  They filled their stomachs on cooked meats and a selection of vegetables that Chloe had never before seen and fell to discussing their journey so far. At one point, Chloe pulled out the letter they had looted from the body of the mage they had taken down back in the mountains, and re-read it out loud to the others.

  Grinyada,

  It is with urgency that I burden you with this quest of mine. A disruption has occurred in the wilds of Obsidian, a disturber of the peace on a mission to claim what is by rights my treasure.

  Seek out the girl who has obtained the mythical bracers and bring her to ruin. Return with the bracers to my manor in Nauriel to receive your not insubstantial reward. My spies claim she was last sighted among the Oakston people, accompanied by three of the blessed. Remove them from the equation to ease your journey.

  But remember, don’t waste your time on their deaths. The blessed only return.

  Tohken.

  P.S. Tell no one of this request.

  “Sounds like a man of wealth,” Gideon mused, dragging a piece of bread across his plate to absorb the residue of the meal. “Who else could hire someone to do such a task and also offer a…” he raised his fingers for air quotes, his voice taking on a tone of pretention, “‘not insubstantial reward.’”

  Ben nodded although he was deep in thought. Tag, distracted by the elf sitting on a raised platform by the bar, allowed his eyes to go glassy as the elf began to play a tune on a harp.

  “Then we need to find the upper rungs of society?” Chloe asked. “Shake the aristocrats and find the answers?”

  “I don’t think the aristocracy works quite in the way you think it does.” Ben took a sip of his drink. “You’re more than likely going to get yourself killed or thrown in jail if we dive straight in there and start shouting that we want vengeance on Tohken for something he did to us, don’t you think?”

  Reluctantly, Chloe agreed. “Then what do we do? This place is too huge to just wander aimlessly.” Chloe pulled up her map. As expected, the area was largely black space, apart from the routes they had traveled on their way to The Moon and Sun. She zoomed out slightly and her heart nearly jumped out of her throat.

  There, a little way out into the unexplored, was the sigil of the gods—the signs that the gods had placed on Chloe’s map to show her the locations of the rest of KieraFreya’s missing armor. Somehow she had fast-traveled straight into a city where one of the items had been placed.

  Is that what I think it is? KieraFreya piped up.

  Oh, yes, Chloe replied internally. I can’t believe we’re so close.

  Then go find it. What are you waiting for?

  Chloe shook her head. I can’t just go find it. It’ll arouse suspicion. Besides, what the hell is your armor doing in a bustling city? Surely someone…anyone...could have found it by now.

  “Isn’t that right, Chloe?”

  Chloe was pulled out of her thoughts by Ben’s voice. An elven waiter stood by the table, their plates and empty cups piled onto a tray in one hand. Ben waited patiently for an answer.

  “I’m sorry, what was that?”

  “I was telling this gentleman we’re new to the city, and we’re in need of lodgings. We’ve heard from a mutual friend that Tohken’s guesthouses are the best and most comfortable in the city of Nauriel. I don’t suppose you know how to get to one?”

  A strange flicker of something crossed the elf’s face momentarily, then it was gone. In a mask of composure, the elf replied, “No. I’m afraid I can’t help you. Tohken is not a name that I am familiar with. However, we have bedrooms for rent should adventurers like yourselves need some well-earned rest.”

  Chloe and the company hung around in the main room of the tavern for some time, doing their best to remain out of the public eye and eavesdrop on as many conversati
ons as possible to try to get some understanding of local affairs and glean any nuggets of information that might be useful.

  From a nearby table of several brutish-looking orcs, they overhead a tale of a series of incidents concerning an underground guild that called themselves ‘The Shadow-keepers.’ According to the main orc, a great hulk of a beast with one long tusk protruding from the bottom of his mouth and skin as putrid green as vomit, the incidents had been occurring all across town, involving petty thievery, scare-mongering, and the occasional murder while the target slept.

  At another table across the way, several dark-haired elves rolled dice and moved counters across a board, clearly a celebration for an elf with blue-ink skin and several white tattoos carved into his body. He smiled and laughed as the others patted his back and offered more and more drinks.

  In the shadows beside them, an elderly humanoid couple sat, deep in a conversation held in a low whisper. The main topic of conversation had to do with a current dispute among the monarchs of this town over the guardianship of one of the royal family’s youngest children. Rumor had it that the queen had been unfaithful, but this was all speculation, of course.

  Eventually, they headed to bed, sharing a room between the four of them. Tag and Ben took the double bed, while Gideon and Chloe took the singles. They lay in the dark for some time, the only light coming from the wisp, who had settled in the corner of the room. The sounds of the evening’s mirth rose through the floorboards.

  As Chloe’s eyes closed and she drifted into slumber, her mind went back to Tohken and her map, and eventually into dreams of cosmos and bar tabs.

  No one woke up when their door creaked slowly open and several pairs of eyes peeked through.

  Chapter Forty-Four

  “Look at ‘um sleeping,” a voice growled in the darkness. “Precious fings, ain’t they?”

  A growl rumbled in the darkness.

  “Such a shame that they ain’t ever gonna wake up, ain’t it?”

  A blade was unsheathed, and one of the assailants took few muted steps in the shadows.