by Wolfe Locke
“It goes underground, too, I think,” Celeste said, smiling at Zander’s excitement. “Although that might be dangerous.”
“Definitely dangerous.” Zander agreed. “But possibly worth it. Is there a map somewhere of what store is where? This isn’t even on the one I have.”
Celeste pulled a pencil out of her kit and carefully drew the Peachtree onto the map she’d taken from Zander, then handed it back to him.
“Now it is,” she said. “So you won’t forget. And you can come back anytime. And yeah, I think there’s a little guide by the entrance. At least there was. Let me see.”
The Peachtree map was in rough shape, but still legible. Secured to the wall in a protective case, it had been left in tact, Zander immediately whipped out a notebook and started copying it down.
“For future visits,” he explained. “And I already know where we will be going first.”
“Where?” She responded.
He pointed to a purple corner on the map. “The Eight-Sided Die. It looks promising. I bet we’ll find some good gear there.”
She laughed. A slow and quiet laugh. Zander shifted his eyes, somewhat annoyed by it.
“What’s so funny?” He asked, wanting to know. This isn’t really the time to be laughing.
“Of all the options here, that’s the one you pick?” she said.
“What’s wrong with it? Did you have a better idea?” He responded? “You are from around here. I’m sure you could show us something better if that’s the wrong place to go.”
“It’s just that it’s a total nerd store. Dungeons and Dragons supplies, novelty swords, axes, joke cards, weird knick-knacks. Are you sure that’s the first place you want to hit?” She continued.
Zander crossed his arms. “Swords? Sounds great to me. I need a new weapon. This staff of mine isn’t fit for close up fighting.”
“All right, all right,” she said, backing down, suddenly feeling silly. “Eight-Sided Die it is.”
Chapter Nine: The Eight-Sided Die
The store was on one of the lower levels, close to an escalator down from the street. The stairs were crumbly with rust, and Rocktooth balked when he saw them.
I can’t go down there with you two. The stairs will collapse under my weight. Even if I shrink myself, my mass remains the same.
“That’s all right,” Zander said. “You stand guard upstairs. Let us know if anything comes. We’ll try to be quick.”
“Not sure how quick you’ll want to be when you see what’s in there,” Celeste teased. “It used to be pretty crazy.”
He ignored her and started down the stairs, keeping his magic ready in case anything leaped out from below. Zander had no intention of being surprised by another monster like before. It was eerily silent when they reached the basement of the shopping center. No Draugr. No monsters. Nothing. I’ve been wrong before though. I need to be on guard.
“Feels like something’s up,” Celeste said quietly behind him. “Shouldn’t we have run into some kind of monsters by now? That’s how this works right?”
“Maybe.” Zander responded in a shushed whisper as he held up his staff, ready to use a magic ability like [Flare] for light if needed. “Remember the Slime? It took a while for him to show up.”
She shuddered and stepped out of the stairwell. “Hope it’s at least something less gross.”
They walked in silence through the ruined halls of the old building. Light shone from outside through large gaps in the walls and through openings where windows used to be. When they arrived outside of the Eight-Sided Die, Zander’s face lit up in excitement. He could tell just by looking at it that the old store had exactly what he needed.
“Look!” he said, pointing towards an awkwardly leaning mannequin near the entrance. “Maces! Daggers! A golden broadsword right in the window! This is one of the best ancient outposts I’ve ever seen!”
“Some ‘ancient outpost’,” Celeste grinned. “Do you also want the plastic video game figurines too? Look at this guy with the giant sword.”
Zander frowned. “What’s a video game? Those sculptures are beautiful. Are they highly prized in your time?”
She laughed. “Not really. I’ve known a couple of guys who had whole collections of them, but I wouldn’t exactly call them art collectors.”
“Oh.” Zander was disappointed.
He wasn’t really sure what she meant, but he made a mental note to pick up some of the figures to take back to the village. His sister might like them at least.
The door to the shop was locked and sealed shut, even after all that time had passed. The two of them got in by breaking the glass on the door, and Zander was in heaven. He couldn’t decide what to take first. The golden sword was tempting, but heavy. He’d have to keep it in storage most of the time and take it out only for battles. The small set of daggers seemed more practical, but a bit boring The mace was a wild card—not his usual style, but exciting. There were more weapons in the back of the store, too. Maybe he could find a way to take them all.
Meanwhile, Celeste wandered the aisles, opening boxes at random and pulling out the contents.
“Hey, look!” she said, waving a pack of cards at Zander. “Magic.”
“Magic?” Zander’s interested kicked up, wondering about the ancient artifacts Celeste had found.
Celeste laughed. “Yeah. This is different. I can make the Ace of Diamonds disappear.”
“Oh,” he frowned. “I didn’t realize you’d picked up additional powers. When did that happen?”
“No,” she laughed. “It’s human magic.”
“Humans had magic?” Zander was skeptical. “I always thought they didn’t. Magic didn’t return to world until after the Harrowing, remember?”
“Zander, it’s fake. There’s an instruction manual included with the props. It’s all sleight of hand. That’s the kind of thing you’d find in this ‘ancient outpost’ back in the day.” She explained.
She showed him the book and then demonstrated the trick. It wasn’t very impressive, and Zander wasn’t amused by it.
“Oh,” Zander said, losing interest. “That’s not magic at all.”
She shrugged, and he turned his attention back to the weapons, pulling one after another down from the wall and dropping them into his storage pocket. He decided against the golden broadsword in the end—after a long debate with himself about it—but took the daggers, the mace, a smaller sword, and a rapier.
“We won’t need all of these,” he said after the fact. “But we can try to sell them in the village later. Or to a travelling merchant or bard.”
“A travelling merchant or bard!” she said, sounding delighted. “Just like medieval times.”
“Do you want anything for yourself?” he said. “We can take some of those fake magic tricks, if you want them. But if you want anything real—a weapon or something—that’s also okay. I can leave some room for you in the [Spatial Ring].”
She looked at the wall of weapons, biting her lip thoughtfully, then turned toward the window. An idea came to her.
“What about that golden broadsword?” She asked, sounding nervous.
“What about it?” Zander said, trying not to be covetous. He’d really wanted that sword.
“What if I took it and added some magic to it?” She asked. “You know, enchanted it. Made it stronger, more powerful, more deadly.”
“Um,” he said. “Sure. If you can do that, might be an interesting effect.”
She pulled the sword down and looked at it intently. Then, she snapped her fingers and turned her right hand to ice.
“Watch this,” she said, touching one icy finger to the hilt. “Let’s see what it does.”
Frost surrounded her hand and spread up and down the blade, covering it in a thin and seamless layer of black ice. The sword stayed frozen when she pulled her hand away.
“Interesting,” she said. “I think it’ll stay that way.”
“Let’s try it,” Zander said. “What ca
n we attack?”
Celeste looked around. “Maybe one of these displays?”
She raised the sword high over her head and brought it down like an executioner’s axe. It clanged on the metal display case, and it turned over, dumping stacks of old DVDs and magic tricks onto the floor.
“Hm. That didn’t work.” She admitted disappointedly.
“Try using your frost magic while you strike.” Zander theorized. “The ice on the blade might need input from you in order to activate.”
She turned toward another display and tried again. This time, the sword hummed with power and glowed with a chilly blue light as she brought it down. The case and everything on it froze solid instantly, and Celeste grinned. She whipped the blade around and struck a second time, and this time the case shattered into shards of ice.
“[Glacial Enchantment]!” Zander said. “Nice! You’ve gained a new ability!”
Celeste was beaming—and she was also glowing from within with an ethereal light as her body absorbed her new skill. Zander smiled. She was turning into quite a powerful ally.
“You can keep the sword,” he said graciously. “It’s all yours. We won’t try to sell it. You’ll make better use of it than anyone else will.”
She smiled up at him, one hand on the hilt. “Thanks.”
An unholy screech from above them interrupted the moment.
You two might want to get up here, Rocktooth said. Incoming. Undead on wings. This is going to be difficult.
Chapter Ten: The Harpy
“What’s going on?” Celeste said as they raced toward the quieted escalator. “What are we in for? Is it that bad?”
“Sounds like Harpies,” Zander said. “But I’m not positive. Rocktooth isn’t always the best at descriptions.”
“Like, Greek myth Harpies?” She responded.
“I don’t know,” he said. “They’ve got wings. They’ve got claws. And they’re incredibly dangerous. This is going to be a rough one.”
“Good thing I’ve got my new sword.” She said, still beaming from the ability she’d unlocked.
Zander looked back at her, his face grim serious. “It’s a good thing too. You’re probably going to need it. Seriously.”
When they emerged from the basement, they saw three hideous creatures circling Rocktooth’s head. They had human faces grafted onto bird bodies, and their faces were ugly and cruel. Black-feathered wings sprouted from their shoulders where arms should be. One dove at Celeste as she approached, and she ducked. Its teeth were yellowed and broken, and its breath was foul.
Took you long enough, Rocktooth said. We need some ranged attacks. I can’t get them. They just fly out of range whenever I try.
“On it,” Zander said, pivoting to look at Celeste. “Can you—”
She was already rising into the air, taking on her spirit form. Frost crackled over her entire body, and her eyes blazed with blinding light. The Harpies stopped screeching to look at her, aghast. They hadn’t expected a frost spirit to join the battle.
Zander took the opportunity to attack. He hurled [Arcane Bolt] at the nearest Harpy, and it recoiled with a shriek.
Better push while they’re too stunned to move. These creatures are vicious.
It was a good idea. Zander went on the attack while Celeste completed her transformation, throwing [Arcane Bolts] at the monstrous creatures hovering in the air above him. He managed to bring one down, and Rocktooth sprang into action, stomping on the Harpy’s head until it was dead.
The other Harpies hissed their displeasure—but to Zander’s surprise, they dove for Celeste, digging their claws into her shoulders. She dropped like a stone, still halfway through transforming, and the Harpies followed her down, slashing at her wildly. Zander threw magic attack after magic attack at them, trying to draw them off of her, but it didn’t work. The Harpies had accurately assessed Celeste as the greatest threat in the battle, and they were trying to take her out.
“Rocktooth!” Zander shouted. “Do something! She’s going to die!”
The golem stomped toward them, ground shaking with every footstep, and dove into the fray. He pulled one Harpy off of her and hurled it across the sidewalk. Zander stepped in front of it and pulled his sword out of storage, determined not to let it get back to Celeste. It crouched on the ground in front of him, hissing.
Ahhh! It’s got me! They are so much stronger than they look. Rocktooth bellowed in pain. Zander turned. The battle between the golem, Celeste, and the remaining Harpy wasn’t going well. The monster had buried her claws into Rocktooth’s arm, cutting through the stone exterior and was trying to carry him into the air. Meanwhile, Celeste was on the ground, still half-transformed. She wasn’t moving.
Zander looked back at his own Harpy, torn. Should he stay here and try to destroy her, or intervene in the fight on the other side of the street? There didn’t seem to be a clear answer. He readied a tentative [Arcane Bolt], preparing to fire it at Rocktooth’s opponent. Maybe that would be enough.
Suddenly the air was full of a horrific cracking noise, as if an avalanche of rocks were falling on the pavement. The flying Harpy had managed to rip Rocktooth’s stone arm off. He bellowed with pain and rage, trying to grab the harpy and pull her down, but she had already ascended back out of reach.
That settled it. I’m mad now. Don’t worry Rocktooth.
“Rocktooth!” Zander screamed, sprinting over. “Hold on! I’m coming to help!”
He fired bolt after bolt at the flying Harpy as the golem wailed next to him. Grotesquely, she was still carrying the arm as she struggled to climb higher into the air. She squawked at them, sounding exasperated, but she didn’t stand a chance against Zander’s rage-fueled rapid-fire barrage. His fifth shot brought her down, and she hit the ground hard.
Get my arm back! Rocktooth shouted, as his amputated limb dropped to the ground next to his attacker. Those don’t just grow back. I’ll have to return to the Nether to get a new one!
“Let me get the Harpy first.” Zander responded.
One of her wings was broken, but she rushed at him anyways, teeth bared with rage. He raised his sword to strike—
But Celeste got there first. She was still only partway through her transformation, but her ice sword was sharp and her aim was deadly. The Harpy’s head dropped to the ground, neatly severed at the neck. Black blood dripped onto the pavement.
“Nice work,” Zander said, grinning. “Let me get the next one?”
She was looking behind him, eyes wide with horror. “Zander, Zander, Zander… TURN AROUND—”
The last Harpy sank her claws into his leg, and he screamed. It hurt. A lot. The harpy started beating her wings, about to take off, and he knew he couldn’t let her take off. If she got him into the air, he’d probably die. He couldn’t survive being dropped from a height, and unlike Rocktooth, he couldn’t just absorb the damage of a severed limb.
She screeched triumphantly, red eyes gleaming, and he slowly reached into his storage pocket, careful not to startle her. The Harpy was too close for him to wield his sword—but the daggers he’d taken from Eight-Sided Die were sharp enough to do the trick. Once he had one in his hand, he aimed carefully and threw it at her head, praying that he wouldn’t miss.
His aim was good. The knife buried itself up to the hilt in her right eye, and she screamed, coughed up black blood, and died. As her claws loosened on his leg, Zander collapsed to the ground. The last thing he saw was Celeste. She was leaning over him, shouting, and her eyes were full of panic.
Notification: You have defeated a trio of harpies, though you may not easily recall this victory. You have been further marked.
Chapter Eleven: The Healer’s Den
When he woke up, the sun was higher in the sky than it had been, and the ground was hot around him from the sunlight beating down through the openings in the walls and ceilings..
“Ow,” he said, sitting up. “How long was I out? Did we win?”
“We won,” Celeste said. “I�
��m glad you’re alive”
She was sitting against the railing of the escalator down to Eight-Sided Die, looking cool and comfortable in the shadow cast by one of the nearby skyscrapers.
“You were out for a few hours,” she said. “We were worried about you. Well, I think Rocktooth was worried about you. I can’t tell. You’re the only one who can talk to him.”
“Not true.” Zander shook his head, “He can talk to you too. He just chooses to ignore you. Bit jealous, I think. Anyways, how’s my leg?”