Raid Slayer 2

by Riley Morrison

  Shrunken Hag’s Head

  The head of the Betrayer Queen

  +1 all Stats

  +15hp

  +15ap

  “I guess you want it,” he said. He had control over the item distribution in the harem and would need to assign her the item, like he had earlier with the looted player corpses.

  “Yeah, I killed the hag, I get the rewards.”

  Missy helped Zack to his feet. “The deadlight exploded and put a Knocked Unconscious debuff on you. You’re lucky your lovely music was not silenced, unlike that of the Rotting Trickster.”

  Zack went over and sifted through the ashes with his boot, searching for items. Nothing.

  Then something on the other side of the shattered throneroom caught his eye. Sitting beside the broken throne was a chest.

  He started toward it, Missy at his side. Anita was too busy checking out her stats to notice he had left her.

  Reaching the chest, Zack first searched it for traps and finding nothing, opened the heavy wooden lid.

  The ancient chest contained 200 meals and a couple of items.

  Ring of the Court Joker

  Once worn by the Rotting Trickster, now it belongs to you.

  +1 Intellect

  +1 Spirit

  +1 Dexterity

  +10 Inspiration

  +10hp

  Random chance to make you LOL

  *This LOL effect is disabled in v.0.1145 of the game but will be restored in the next patch due to drop in approxamently three weeks time!

  Trophy Head of Betrayer King Macbeth

  Just a giant skull with a shitty cheap crown.

  Zack handed Missy the ring and she beamed at him. “Ah, gleaming gold glimmering on my gilded fingers.” She slipped the ring on, then kissed him on the lips. “Thank you, my sweet song.”

  Anita finally noticed they had moved on and hurried over. “We done here?”

  Zack glanced around the room and saw nothing else of interest. “Seems so.” He headed outside. “Let’s blow this joint.”

  After another few hours of travel through a labyrinth of caves, they finally emerged from the randomly generated zone and arrived at the edge of the Bottomless Well. The well ended up being a giant lake, with a path running around its edge and dozens of passages leading off to destinations unknown.

  Lights shone from the opposite side of the dark waters, reflecting off its black surface.

  Zack brought up his map. “Those lights must be the home of Malghana.” He closed the map. “About bloody time.”

  It felt like an age since Gwynn the Scaleless had given him the quest to see the Black Witch.

  With only three and a bit days left to find the cure, he couldn’t have arrived at a better time. No doubt, the witch would require something in return for the cure which would likely eat up the remaining time until his death.

  Whatever she wanted him to do, he would do it. If his death in game didn’t mean his death out in the real world, the Oligarchy would have long ago found a way to kill him and force him out of the game and into their evil clutches.

  Anita’s plate armor clanged as she came up next to him. “My pig of a former companion had a quest to come to this place.” Zack could sense Anita’s rage just by the way she stood like she was about to punch someone in the face. “If he is here, you better not get in my way.”

  He turned to her. “You better not start something, at least not while we are in Malghana’s home. I’m here for my cure, first and foremost. I must confront Ivan at some stage too, but it can wait.”

  Her snarl was muffled by her faceguard. “This witch sounds like a strong, independent woman. She and I will get along just fine.” Anita cracked her knuckles. “Maybe we can come to some sort of agreement. She hands Ivan to me in exchange for me agreeing to do a quest or two for her.”

  “You’ll have to leave my harem to do that.” Zack took Missy’s hand and headed along the edge of the lake.

  Anita followed after them. “Oh, right, you have to rub in the fact that I live in an oppressive patriarchy.”

  “I didn’t force you to join my harem.”

  The orc woman scoffed. “Everything is made to please men.”

  He glanced back at her. “Even reverse harems?”

  “Yes, even them. Most men fantasize about gangbanging a woman.”

  “So a harem is a reverse gangbang then? Do women fantasize of that?”

  Anita grunted. “A reverse gangbang is also a male fantasy. Everything is about male wants and needs.”

  “What about an all-female harem for a female player?”

  “Male fantasy.”

  “A harem of doorknobs?”

  She shrugged. “A doorknob is a phallic object, so definitely part of patriarchy.”

  Zack rolled his eyes. “I can’t win.”

  Missy leaned in close to him. “Does she ever shut up?”

  “I heard that!” Anita snapped, then walked in blessed silence.

  On the way around the lake, Zack found green plants growing in the shallow water. He went over to the water’s edge and brought up the plant’s information.

  Cave Kelp: Used in alchemy as an ingredient and can be eaten. One plant is equal to one meal.

  The kelp was worth more to him as a quest item, rather than as food. “Give me a moment, I am going to harvest this kelp.” He shared the quest he had picked up in Vanamoor with Anita so she could read over it.

  With Missy and the grumpy orc woman’s help, Zack acquired twenty two kelp. Once he handed it back in at Vanamoor, he would be rewarded with a good amount of food. Enough to upgrade his last remaining Canvas Sack to a Large Canvas Sack and maybe buy another upgrade for Margery.

  Further along the lake, they found eleven more kelp plants and harvested them.

  Soon, they neared the edge of a plantation of herbs growing in neat rows in a dirt bed. Zack reached for his sword when he saw figures moving about the place.

  Goblins.

  “Wait.” Missy held up her hand. “These goblins work for Malghana.”

  Anita had already drawn her sword and looked ready to run forward and start slaughtering anything that moved. “How do you know?”

  “I’ve been here before.” Missy waved to one of the goblins and it came over, its eyes never looking at the armed orc woman. “Queen Missy, I barely recognized you.”

  “Boglan, long time no see.” Missy glanced at Zack over her shoulder. “I have brought my lover with me. We must see Malghana.”

  The old gray-bearded goblin bowed to her. “Let me bring you to our mistress. She is hard at work on a new spell, and has sent off half her students in search of ingredients. The place is abuzz, but I am sure she will find time to speak to the queen of Vanamoor.”

  Motioning them to follow, the goblin set off through the fields. Finally, Zack would have his cure and could rest easy. Well, rest easy only after Amy and Betsy were awake.

  Missy put her arm around Zack and held him close. “You’re truly blessed to have me at your side, my love. Having a queen as your lover, hearing her songs, her soothing music, gives you access to places you would never have been able to access without me.”

  He kissed her cheek, then breathed her perfumed scent in. “I reckon there’s plenty more I am thankful for having you around for.”

  Her cheeks reddened. “I’m sure there is.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  Fist Fight

  CORE QUEST COMPLETE

  Objective: You have traveled through the Shifting Labyrinth and reached the Black Witch, Malghana. Not only does she know of the second half of your cure for Cave Blight, she will also be able to tell you how to reach Upper Underworld.

  Rewards

  +5000xp

  “That’s my final offer.” Malghana glared at Zack with her yellow eyes, her black cloak draped around her. “All your experience points you and your harem have acquired since reaching level 12. Then, and only then will I tell you what you need to cure yourself.”
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br />   Zack growled under his breath, running his eyes over the beautiful dark-skinned woman’s private laboratory. Missy and Anita were waiting for him outside, as the witch had insisted he speak to her alone.

  His XP or his life. It was an easy choice to make.

  “Fine, you can take my experience points and I’ll ask Queen Missy if you can take hers. But Anita—”

  “That angry orc bitch.”

  “Ah, yeah, her.” Why did you have to piss this witch off, Anita? “She might not accept these terms. I will need to speak to her first.”

  Malghana shrugged. “Convince her, or don’t. She seems pretty obstinate to me.” The witch placed her spellbook on the table covered in specimen jars. “A word of advice, young man. That woman is nothing but trouble. If you don’t find a way to bring her under control, she will turn the Underworld against you.”

  The witch looked him up and down. “You’re a strong young man. Why don’t you put her over your knee and spank her? She’d probably enjoy it.”

  He frowned. “I’m not into that kind of thing.”

  “Bah, they all say that. My male students come here seeking power and to woo me with their youth and handsome charms.” She slapped her hand on the table. “Now they all know the sting of my hand and let me tell you, the lot of them are docile now. They do what I tell them and no longer make nuisances of themselves when my female students are about.”

  She waved dismissively. “It’s up to you what you do with the orc woman. I’m just here, offering some advice from one group leader to another.”

  Zack sighed, thinking of all the times Anita had insulted him, Missy, Betsy and Amy. “Anita was forced onto me. If I didn’t need her, I’d send her on her way.”

  “No, you wouldn’t. You think she’s hot and a deep part of you is aroused by her uncontrolled barbaric ways.” The witch grinned.

  Zack stared at the witch open-mouthed. “Ummm…” Well, Malghana was probably right, at least about Zack thinking Anita was hot. But still! “I have three other gorgeous women. I don’t need her.”

  Malghana raised an eyebrow. “You just told me you did need her.”

  “What? Oh, right. I did.” Idiot! This witch probably thinks I’m a brainless boy. Zack spun on his heel. “Enough of this. I will go tell her your offer and see what she has to say.”

  He stormed out of the room. Ever since meeting the Black Witch, he had felt out of his depth. The woman was incredibly demanding and didn’t seem to hold back on anything. Probably why her and Anita didn’t get along…

  Anita had been right, Malghana was a strong, independent woman, and she got what she wanted.

  Zack found Missy and Anita waiting for him on the balcony overlooking the apprentice library. The two women looked like they had ignored one another the whole time he was gone, instead passing the time watching the young men and women below at work reading or mixing ingredients.

  Missy came up to him. “What is it?”

  Zack told them of the price the witch had demanded they pay.

  “I accept,” Missy said, strumming a few notes on her guitar.

  He brushed her face with his fingers. “Thank you.”

  Zack could have told the witch Missy accepted and nothing would have come of it, but it felt wrong to do that. He viewed Missy as a real person, so he had to let her make a decision like this.

  Anita pounded her armored fist on the railing. “She wants my experience points just so you can hear what you need for the second part of your cure? She’s not even going to give it to you, just send you off to find it. That frigging—”

  “Shut up,” Zack snapped. “You’re the one who pissed her off. Maybe if you hadn’t raged at her male apprentices and started attacking them, she might have told me what I needed to know for free.”

  Anita tore off her helmet. “How dare you speak to me that way, male. You fucking worm. You should be on your knees, begging for my XP so you can get your damn cure.” She spat at him. “You’re no better than all those other spineless male scum out there.”

  Missy backed away from them. “Stop this, please.”

  “Spineless?” Zack squared his shoulders. “I’m not one of those boys you can push around. I’ve been through too much shit to allow myself to be intimidated by the likes of you.”

  Anita put her sword in her inventory and removed her nose ring. “Then let’s do this. No weapons, just fists and feet.” She stripped down to her small clothes. “Get your armor off, male and let’s fight.”

  After a moment, Zack removed his own armor, placing it into his inventory. He wouldn’t be able to use any of his abilities while unarmed—but nor could Anita.

  Maybe Malghana was right. He had to bring Anita under control or send her on her way. The orc woman was poison and would insult friends and allies, the same way she would enemies.

  Missy clung to him. “What if she kills you? Please don’t do this.”

  Dressed only in his underwear, Zack embraced her. “I have to. We need her. Without Amy and Betsy, we aren’t going to make it very far without Anita around.”

  She sobbed, her tears wetting his cheek. “I will heal you then.”

  He pulled back from her, clasping her face gently in his hands, hearing Anita pounding her fist into her palm, waiting for him to fight. “You won’t be able to heal us. We’re going to be dueling one another, and it won’t end until one of us surrenders, or…”

  “One of you dies.”

  Zack nodded grimly. Out in greater Aralia, you would spawn at a graveyard but the Underworld wasn’t like that. “Don’t worry, even without armor, I have more hit points than her and more damage resistance. I’m a tank, even without my equipment.”

  He didn’t mention the fact that Anita would be able to do more damage than him. With luck, his increased armor and avoidance would more than make up for her extra attack power.

  In a game world, women were just as strong as men, depending on their stats, talent distribution and skill. No need to hold back, for either of them.

  After kissing Missy hard on the lips, Zack turned and initiated the duel.

  Anita accepted right away, then charged. She came on hard, throwing her fits in a quick, one-two punch. Zack blocked the first attack with his forearm, but the other one hit him in the chest with a loud thump.

  -23hp

  Not much damage, but over time, she would whittle down his health. She threw several more strong-arm punches, a few hitting him, the rest he managed to dodge or block.

  She started to puff, so Zack waited for the right moment to make a move. After she had swung a massive wide punch, he got in a few quick jabs to her muscled stomach, hearing the air shoot out of her lungs with every hit.

  Inflicted 16 damage

  Inflicted 17 damage

  Inflicted 13 damage

  He had studied karate as a child and remembered a few moves.

  Anita grunted as he kicked her in the side of the leg. “You hit like a boy.”

  “And you hit like a girl,” he spat back.

  Her face twisted with rage. “You sexist, misogynist, pig!” Anita leapt at him, her fingers curled into claws. “I’ll kill you.”

  Zack barely managed to stay out of her reach.

  He hit the railing then slid sideways along it. She slammed into it, almost going over the side. Some of the students looked up in horror, others calling for them to stop making so much noise, reminding them that it was a library.

  Anita called out to them. “Do I need to come down there and smash a few of your heads together again?”

  The students quickly returned to their studies. “Good, then shut the fuck up!” Anita spun and charged Zack.

  As she bore down on him, he ducked sideways, then brought his leg up in a sidekick. She ran right into it.

  His foot took her in the gut, and he heard the air explode out of her lungs.

  But she recovered quickly and punched him in the face, blood spurting up her arm. He almost lost his balance as he fell
back, but managed to right himself.

  Missy tried to move to help him as blood poured from his nose but he motioned her to stay where she was.

  Like a charging bull, Anita raced at him again. This time, he managed to get out of her way and trip her as she sped by.

  She face-planted into the ground with a sickening thud. That’s gotta hurt!

  Inflicted 45 damage.

  Before she could get up, Zack leapt on top of her. He punched her in the back of the head as she tried to reach around and grab him. He took out a chunk of her health but then she got wise, and threw herself onto her side, taking him with her.

  They rolled over a few times, then she ended up on top of him. She could do little, as he was still behind her and his sword arm was wrapped around her chest, pinning her arms to her side. He used his shield arm to get her in a headlock so she couldn’t try to bite a chunk out of him. “Concede the fight. I don’t want to keep hurting you.”

  Anita threw back her head, smashing him in the already bloody nose.

  -26hp

  Zack groaned as more blood splattered over his face, some running into his eyes. “Concede!” He roared, turning his head to the side so that when she tried to headbutt him again, it only hit his jaw.

  “Fuck you.”

  She started to try to stamp down on his knees, so he wrapped his legs around hers, then tried to roll over so she was under him. Finally, he managed it and had her pinned to the ground. It took all his strength to hold her down. “Are you done now?”

  “Go to hell.”

  Great, she’s one of those types. He’d known several people over the years that were so stubborn they refused to give an inch, even when it was in their best interests to do so, simply because they saw any compromise as weakness.