“Damn it,” he muttered as he checked the timer. He still had four hours left on the Tame, but the failure meant he couldn’t try again for a full day.
Okay, then. And thank you for being my personal Wikipedia.
He had to shrink the Drakeling for it to fit the corridor, but that seemed to be part of the Tame package. Tava had to do the same with Rabbit. When the group was gathered by the entrance, they sent pets and summons in first. Gosto’s Nature Guardian led the way, followed by 3PO and another Animated Shadow, after which Hawke went in and released his ace in the hole, the Darkness Guardian he had Analyzed at the Mana Node he now owned. After that, he, Desmond, and Rabbit followed suit. The rest of the team was supposed to wait until he gave the word, then come in and set up behind Nadia’s Elemental Shield.
Hawke entered just as the Nature Guardian was torn to shreds by a Fireball and a Lightning Bolt. His animated shadow was already gone, and both 3PO and the even more massive Shadow Guardian were already down to half their Health as the elite monsters exchanged blows with the trio of armored figures. The Drakeling’s flame attacks had reduced the targets’ Health by less than a hundred apiece. They needed to take those super-Sidhe down quickly if they didn’t want to lose anybody.
He rushed in and cast a Consecrated Ground under their pets and healed them while Desmond attacked the Fae. A few moments later, the Warrior launched his war-cry, forcing the Defenders to concentrate on him. Hawke told Tava to send everyone in.
A moment later, the Warrior was hit by two spells and a critical hit with a sword; his armor and buffs mitigated a lot of it, but a lot more went through. Hawke took almost three hundred points of damage as the wounds were magically transferred to him.
He insta-cast Touch of Light on himself while Gosto healed him, and then did his Ninja backstab move on the most badly-hurt Fae, delivering three hundred and forty damage and following up with a double-cast Hammer of Light that ate a lot of Mana but burned a hole through the silver armor. Tava and Nadia finished him off. Meanwhile, Desmond kept attacking the Fae. He did a lot of damage but took a hundred and eighty points in return. Hawke was briefly down to the single digits in Health, but a Lesser Healing, all his HOTs and another Nature’s Warmth from Gosto restored him to over fifty percent a second later.
The Darkness Guardian and 3PO grabbed one of the Battle-Mages by his arms and pulled. For a second, the inhumanly tough Fae held on, but Hawke, Tava and Nadia hit it with spells and the unfortunate Elite was literally torn apart. The dismembered body went flying in a splash of blood and offal; a loot bag appeared where it landed.
Desmond took another two hundred and fifty damage, staggering Hawke as the wounds transferred directly to his Health. The Warrior wasn’t defending himself, attacking wildly and leaving himself open to the Fae’s sword. Hawke realized Desmond was doing it on purpose, knowing his wounds would be Hawke’s problem. Bastard! He concentrated on healing himself and sicced his pets on the remaining Fae. He got dangerously close to death, but the last Sidhe went down before that happened.
For slaying your foes, you have earned: 1,080 Experience (120 diverted towards Leadership).
Current XP/Next Level: 3,484/16,000. Leadership XP: 4,749/6,000
“Time to collect,” Desmond said.
First, he took all the weapons and armor of the Fae Guardians. After that, everybody ‘opened’ the personal loot bags floating over the dead minions’ heads and allowed Desmond to take what he wanted. He grabbed all the gold – over a hundred denars – and potions, as well as three magic rings, two pouches of Holding, an Enchanted belt, a sheaf of magic arrows, and a necklace. The only things he left for the rest of the party were any silver and copper coins, amounting to less than a gold each.
“I thought the deal was first pick, not everything!” Nadia protested.
“It’s fine,” Hawke said, raising a hand to warn Desmond before he said something that might get him killed; everybody in the party was staring daggers at the Warrior. “It’s his parting gift. He won’t be getting anything else from us, ever again.”
It would be so easy to put an end to this, but he couldn’t murder someone just because he was an asshole. And it wasn’t like Desmond had turned heel without any reason. Was he even an asshole, or just someone who felt betrayed and was lashing out, not without justification? He expected Saturnyx to chime in, but the sword remained silent.
“All right,” Desmond said a few moments later. “You keep your word, Hawke. I’ll give you that. Now I’ll go to the Vault first, as we agreed.”
“Be my guest.”
The Warrior walked up to the metal box standing on one side of the clearing. It was taller than a man, and covered in High Fae words Hawke couldn’t decipher, as well as mystical signs and runes of power. His True Sight didn’t provide much information about it:
Vault of the Sidhe (Level ?? Magical Construct)
That wasn’t much to go on. Hawke watched Desmond approach the metal box and stare at it for a second before vanishing into thin air.
“Okay,” he said. “There is a chance that Desmond is going to come out swinging. He is pissed off and blames me, Nadia and Alba.”
“You think he will try to claim enough power from the Vault to take revenge on you,” Tava said.
He nodded. “I could be wrong. Maybe he’ll be happy to take all the loot and whatever he picks from the Vault and move on.”
“You should have killed him before he went into the Vault,” Gosto said.
“That’s what everyone keeps telling me.”
Nadia gave him a hug. “You did the right thing. If it’s anybody’s fault, it’s mine. I dragged him here.”
“You didn’t put a gun to his head,” Hawke told her. “He made his choice.”
“The day before it happened, we were on the phone. I was feeling like shit that day and was starting to get worried. I told him maybe he should quit playing. He said, ‘It’s less than one percent chance. And nothing special ever happens to me.’ I felt so bad for him.”
“Low self-esteem, sense of entitlement, maybe just bad luck,” Hawke said. “But he thinks any woman he does something for owes him, and he is possessive as hell.”
“Nobody owns me,” Alba said. “Not Dorrham, not any man I bed, and not you, either, Twilight Templar. And most certainly not that little boy in a man’s body. If he returns seeking revenge, he will only find death.”
“I know why he’s mad at me,” Nadia told the Shadow Assassin. “But why is he mad at you?”
“For bedding Hawke,” the former tavern server said. “Just the once, and before he was courting or making promises to anyone, let me be clear, before any of you takes offense.”
“You are a dog!” Nadia told him.
“My intended is a man of huge appetites,” Tava said, not sounding very thrilled, either.
“He was in pain and alone, after being killed by Urso. In pain and alone in a strange world, and he still went out into the night to fight off vampires,” Alba said. “I have never been with a more deserving man.” She grinned. “And he is very good between the sheets, as well.”
“He is that,” Tava said, looking slightly less miffed.
I can always count on you to keep me real.
Before anyone else commented on Hawke’s sexual prowess or lack thereof, his Party Interface informed him that Desmond had died. He must have asked for too much, and the Vault Keeper had gotten him. That meant he had lost another 4 Identity on top of the 3 from his earlier death.
Sucks to be you, dude, he thought, with less sympathy than he probably should be feeling. A few moments later, a new set of notifications followed:
Desmond the Destroyer has left the Lair.
Desmond the Destroyer has left the Party.<
br />
Desmond the Destroyer has resigned from the Earth and Realms Defenders Guild
“Good riddance,” Gosto said. Everyone in the Party and Guild had gotten the same messages.
“He wouldn’t do anything to the townspeople, would he?” Tava asked, a worried look in her face. “He bears a grudge against Father.”
“I don’t think so,” Hawke said. “For one, I left Kinto in charge of the Town Interface. If Desmond starts trouble, your father can use Call to Arms!”
That ability would raise the level of anyone who defended Orom against invaders by five, turning even level zero normies into level five opponents. And as Town Ruler, Hawke would be notified if Orom was under attack. Between that, Kinto’s experience and the Sterns watching the town, the Warrior would be crazy to start trouble.
Nadia nodded. “I agree. His problem is with me for not having sex with him, Hawke for being with me, and Alba for… you know.”
Gosto had been making fake retching sounds all along. “Are done with the bedding talk yet? I believe we have quests to complete.”
“True that,” Hawke agreed.
Twenty-Five
“Okay,” Hawke said, dismissing Desmond from his mind. “Do we do the Vault first, or the Prince? Nadia and I have an extra Quest dealing with the Mana Node that maintains the Lair, but that can wait for last. After that, I intend to claim the Node for myself.”
“What if I want to claim the Node for myself?” Nadia asked.
That was actually a good question. Nobody had died and named Hawke lord of the universe, much as circumstances sometimes suggested otherwise. Nadia – or anybody in the party – had as much right to try to take the Node as he did. He began to see why Desmond had been so angry, beyond the fact that Hawke had slept with every woman the Warrior had wanted. He truly was acting like the universe revolved around him.
“I think you have earned the right,” he said. “Or anybody else in the Party.”
Nadia shook her head. “No, it’s all yours. From what you tell me, doing anything other than destroying it is difficult and dangerous. And you have some super-secret power that I’m sure helps you handle all of that.”
“I am not a spellcaster. A Place of Power is of little use to me,” Tava said.
“And I am too far behind in the Path to try for such things,” Gosto added. “But when I reach the tenth level, I will build a Grove of my own, dedicated to Cerunnos and the Green Gods.”
Alba just shrugged.
“Just teach me your cool powers, and I’ll call it even,” Nadia said. “And maybe if I marry you after all, leave me a Node or two in your will.”
“Marrying him now, are you?” Tava said.
“I said maybe, I don’t know if I want to be wife number three.”
“Who is the second wife?” Alba asked. Gosto looked curious as well.
“We will do the Vault first,” Hawke announced, trying hard to steer the conversation away from his love life. “Who wants to go first?”
Gosto raised his hand. “I have a reasonable request to make, and no desire to be taken into Cerunno’s embrace before my time. I spent some time last night in contemplation about it. I think I will be all right.”
Hawke wasn’t thrilled about the young Druid – not even eighteen yet – risking his one and only life like that, but nobody objected. Gosto walked up to the Vault and disappeared. Hawke spent the ensuing several seconds checking on the Party Interface. Tava walked on over and held his hand while they waited. If the kid got killed, he would never forgive himself.
There was a flash of light, and Gosto returned to the spot he had left. “I am now Attuned to the Element of Earth!” he announced proudly. As a Druid, his spells came from the Nature School of Magic with a ‘minor’ in the Element of Life. Getting a new Element would open up a lot of possibilities for him. He went off happily to sit down and examine his new spells.
“I will go next,” Alba offered.
“What are you going to ask for?” Hawke asked.
“That will remain between the Vault and I, methinks,” she answered, and disappeared into the Vault.
Hawke turned to Gosto. “What happened in there?”
“Well, I…” the Druid blinked for several seconds. “I do not remember. All I know is that I came back with the gift I wanted.”
“That’s just great. Guess the Vault doesn’t like spoilers.”
Alba returned. She was wiping her eyes, which surprised Hawke. He had never seen her cry. “Are you all right?”
She smiled at him. “I am all right and more than all right, Hawke Lightseeker. I found something I sought. I am quite content.”
Hawke didn’t ask her any more questions. “I’m glad, Alba.”
“Thank you.”
And people think it’s my fault I marry every attractive woman I meet.
“Guess I’ll…”
“Me first, please,” Nadia interrupted him. “Unless you really want to.”
Hawke shrugged. “Honestly, I don’t know if I want to go in. I have a lot of stuff I want, so I’ll probably shoot for something stupid and end up respawning with no experience. Go ahead, but be careful, okay?”
“Don’t worry. I won’t ask for anything major. And I’m sure as hell not asking to be sent home. I’d rather die.”
And off she went. Tava and Hawke waited together.
“Any idea what you want?” he asked her.
“I want for little. I already have so much: a strong partner by my side, new friends, and a family that loves me, with one exception whose name I shall not utter. I thought I might seek something to ease my father’s pains. The passing of the years is hard on him.”
“I’m planning on doing something about it already. I keep meaning to see Flava the Alchemist, but so far she’s not been available when I am.”
“She is a busy woman, but I fear she might be avoiding you; for what reason, I do not know.”
“Something else to worry about. But I will bring Kinto back to full health, Tava. I promise you.”
Quest Accepted: Bring Youth to an Old Hunter.
You have sworn to restore Kinto to his prime, making an oath to yourself as well as to your intended.
Quest Objective: Reduce Kinto’s physical age to forty years or below, eliminating the penalties to his Characteristics. This must be done within one year’s time.
Quest Rewards: 1,200 Experience, +200 Reputation with Kinto and his family.
Penalties for Failure: -1,000 XP, -100 Global Renown.
Hawke shrugged. The rewards or penalties didn’t matter; he was going to do it regardless.
“So, don’t risk yourself trying to help Kinto,” he said. “I will find a way without putting you in danger. More than usual, that is.”
“Very well. I will not ask for that.” She kissed him. “Thank you.”
Nadia came back with a dazed look on her face. “That was interesting.”
“Can I ask what you got?”
She grinned. “A Level Twelve Masterwork robe. Maximum I could get, since I’m about to hit seventh level – wait, I just got my Quest rewards. Level seven it is. I don’t know how big a fight I had to win to get it – I remember being scared but not much else – but I figured I could use better gear, since I’m hanging out with Hawke the Troublemaker.”
“Show that to him while I seek my prize,” Tava told her and headed for the Vault.
Hawke whistled in appreciation when Nadia produced her gift: a cloth tunic that was made of some sort of plant fibers, dyed brightly green and covered with an intricate silvery brocade – probably mithril thread – depicting Elves and other Fae in various activities, from dancing to hunting to holding court. If he stared at the tunic for more than a few seconds, Hawke thought he could see the images begin to move. He looked away.
The stats were just as impressive:
Tunic of Faerie (Masterwork
Quality)
Item Level: 12 (Minimum Level to use: 7)
Armor: 18/20% (Physical), 24/25% (Elemental), 10/15% (Forces)
Bonuses: +5 to Intelligence, Spirit and Willpower.
Mana Storage: +100 to Mana Pool
Special Abilities: -2/-20% to spell Mana costs, -1/-10% to Casting times.
“You are going to be a great Sorceress,” he told her, while trying not to think about how long it had been since Tava had been gone.
“For a while. Not sure if I’ll stick to the adventuring life forever. The fighting and danger wears on me. I can handle it, but I don’t know if I want to do it for the rest of my life.”
“It’s rough on everyone.”
“It’s not the same for you, Hawke. I’ve seen you in action. You like it. The danger. Winning against all odds. You get off on it. Tava too, so I can see why you guys are getting married.”
Hawke nodded. “You’re right.”
Neither is wanting to lead some sort of normal life.
“We’ll figure it out. Maybe you can run Orom and keep it safe after I move on to other Realms.”
“That might be nice. Let me see how I like the people, the customs. This society has some serious issues, you know.”
“It does. They all do, though.”
“Don’t I know it.”
Tava came back, looking angry, and also sad.
“How did it go?”
“I spoke to Mother,” she said, and walked off towards Gosto. “It… didn’t go well.”
He wanted to go to her, but it looked like it was a family matter. Best to let her and her brother share a moment together.
“Guess I’m up.”
“Be careful,” Nadia told him. Tava looked up from where she and her brother were having their talk and she gave him a thumbs-up gesture.
He walked towards the Vault. An eyeblink later, he was standing on top of a narrow and very tall mountain, with dark clouds swirling above him, briefly lit by intense lightning bolts. He looked down and couldn’t see the bottom of the hill, just more clouds. A cold wind battered the mountain, not quite in hurricane strength but bad enough to make him avoid getting too close to the edge. Lovely place.
Lord of the Dead: A LitRPG Saga (The Eternal Journey Book 2) Page 14