Read Dreadknights Page 5

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  Christine spent the next few hours sifting through her spam folder before she finally decided she needed some shut-eye. Even narrowing the field down to the few days before Oscar’s death did no good. There were credit offers, dating service ads, a bit of fan mail, some rather disturbing crazed fan mail, and other things that couldn’t be unseen.

  She was about to unplug the session out of frustration when she remembered Trollbogies’ warning:

  “Leave no stone unturned.”

  The trash folder caught her eye. She opened it with a groan. Her diligence paid off. Scrolling back to the day of her match at Castle Obsidious, she found a visor mail from Oscar Diggs. How had it ended up in her trash folder?

  Taking a deep shuddering breath, she opened it.

  Christine found herself back in Oscar Diggs’s office. It was exactly the same as before. The aquarium with the creepy little trilobite. The anachronistic bookcase behind the dark-stained wooden desk. The swords, pistols and models of wooden sailing vessels in their display cases. The quaint flag from the old United States on his desk next to the brass nameplate that still bore Diggs’s name.

  Mr. Diggs was sitting in the chair on the other side of the desk. He looked pained. He held a blood-stained handkerchief to his nose. His left eye was nearly swelled shut. There was more blood on his shirt.

  The virtual Diggs considered her for a moment and then rose from his seat.

  “Christine, if you’re seeing this, something has gone very wrong. I’ve gone missing or… worse.” Her former boss tapped his fingers on the desk in nervous repetition. “There’s something I need to tell you but I’m afraid to tell you too much.”

  “For now, let’s just say I stacked the deck. For both of us really. If anyone comes around asking about me, tell them the truth: that you don’t know anything. In fact, that’s probably the safest thing you can do at this point.”

  Mr. Diggs hesitated, clearly struggling to continue. “Still, I feel like you deserve to know ahead of time, just in case someone lets the cat out of the bag and it all goes south. So I’m gonna give you the classic blue pill, red pill choice here.” He opened his desk drawer and pulled out a small wooden box. When he opened the box, she saw the two pills in question. “Just know that there are certain consequences for knowing,” Mr. Diggs said. “It could destroy your career, but not knowing might not be enough to save you. I dunno. If you want to know the truth, just take the red pill – choice is yours. Again, I’m very sorry and I never meant to hurt you. I never meant for anything to happen.”

  He pushed the box across the table toward her. “Anyway, the choice is yours, Miss Johanssen.”

  Christine stared at the box in horror. She reached out her hand, but found herself unable to choose. How could she make that kind of choice? The blue pill came with plausible deniability. Everything was going so well. Frankly, her ignorance was the only thing that’d saved her from Eddie Mondo’s lie detector. Besides, Mr. Diggs looked like he was pretty beat up, and didn’t Mr. Jones say someone cut his head off after this Vmail? Maybe she didn’t want to know. Maybe knowing was too dangerous.

  Of course, she might already be in danger. How could she protect herself if she didn’t know what she was up against? Only the red pill would give her the truth. Normally, she would’ve said that the truth was very important to her, but right now she just wasn’t sure.

  She shook her head. What she had here was a classic ogre’s choice: the choice between a quick demise and a slow demise. Red pill or blue pill.

  Just looking at the box took her breath away. “I can’t decide.”

  She shut the box and ended the Vmail session.

  [Back to Table of Contents]

  20 – MAGGIE

  Dorothy stared at Christine with big round eyes. “Are you OK, Chrissy?”

  Christine rubbed her face in her hands and let go of a shuddering sigh. She nodded. “Sure, kid. I just saw something that shook me up. You can’t be too careful what you watch these days.”

  “That’s what mom says.”

  “Well, your mom is definitely right on that score.”

  “So glad to hear that my wisdom is so highly prized,” Aunt Maggie said dryly. She smiled at her daughter. “It’s time for bed, little dormouse.”

  “Aw! Can I have a story first?”

  “Not tonight. I need to talk to your cousin for a bit.” Her aunt sized Christine up and said, “Don’t go anywhere. You’re gonna want to hear this.”

  In short order, Maggie had Dorothy tucked away in bed. She joined Christine at the kitchen table and slumped down heavily in a seat.

  “So what’s up?” Christine asked.

  “You’re not going to like this, but I think there’s something you need to know,” Maggie said. Her expression was flat as if she’d already given up all hope of anything but the worst possible outcome. “I deleted one of your Vs.”

  Christine’s eyes widened. “What?! You had no right!”

  “I know. I was way out of line and I hope you’ll forgive me. I was angry at you for playing in the Guild Wars even after I unplugged you. I broke into your V account looking for… Well, I’m not really sure what I hoped to find, but I was sure there was something. Instead I found a V from Oscar Diggs.”

  Christine could tell that her aunt was reading her face for any sign that she knew where this was headed. “So I take it you opened it.”

  Maggie nodded.

  “What did it say?”

  “You’d probably better look at it for yourself… if it’s still there. Oscar… He said he’d done something without your knowledge that could end your gaming career.”

  Christine took a deep breath. “Did he say what?”

  “No. He gave you a choice to know what he did or not. I didn’t make the choice. It was meant for you after all.”

  “Why did you delete it?”

  “To protect you.”

  “Protect me? From what?” The words came out with more venom than she intended. Years of pent up resentment mixed with her frustrations and fears, washing over her aunt in a swell of accusation. “I’d think this would be a dream come true for you. I mean, if my gaming career is over, I’d have no choice but to commit to the Trials, right?”

  Maggie shook her head. “That’s not what I wanted. Not like this.”

  “I don’t get it,” Christine said. “I don’t get you. You do everything in your power to stop me from playing Guild Wars – you even unplugged me from a Championship match! – but now you’re saying you deleted a potentially incriminating Vmail to protect me? Make up your mind!”

  “That’s enough of your sass!” For a moment, Maggie was every bit the self-righteous wicked witch Christine had contended with ever since they moved to Platform 161; that posture of nostril flaring wrath and finger pointing indignation melted in a martyr’s sigh. “You have a right to be upset but… Edger’s Void, you didn’t ask for this and, and you wouldn’t even be here if I hadn’t asked Glinda to come here to settle that labor dispute!” She ran her fingers through her hair. “Anyway I don’t expect you to understand, but when I saw that V and thought about how Oscar used you to get ahead, no matter what it might mean for you… They killed him, you know. We’re lucky they didn’t come after you, too!” Christine was surprised to see genuine worry heavily lining her aunt’s face. “Anyway, I realized I’d been wrong to what I’d been doing. I had no right, Chrissy. I may’ve wanted what was best for my family, but…” She gave a shuddering sigh. Her eyes welled with tears. “I don’t expect you to forgive me, but I am sorry.”

  She rose from the table and walked slowly toward her bunk.

  “Wait. Why are you telling me this now?” Christine asked.

  Without turning around, Maggie said, “It’s all over the news. Havok Hurtlocker’s accusing you of cheating. He says your character’s been illegally levelled up and that the Dreads should be disqualified from Guild Wars like the Golden Gears were.”

  “You?
??ve got to be kidding me!”

  “For the record, I do hope he’s wrong. I hope nothing comes of Oscar’s meddling and that you win the Guild Wars.”

  “Thank you, Maggie.”

  Maggie nodded and entered her quarters. A moment later the privacy screen zapped into place.

  [Back to Table of Contents]

  21 – ON THE FENCE

  Davis and Christine trekked in silence through the shadows of the corn forest until they reached their destination. She was exhausted from yesterday’s interview and the subsequent tedium of pouring through her Vmails. It had been an emotional day to say the least and she was having trouble processing everything.

  Her aunt’s uncharacteristic behavior since Christine’s match against the Golden Gears made sense now – in a twisted sort of way. It was odd to think that her aunt might be anything more than a soulless witch bent on using her as a stepping stone. A part of her worried that maybe this was just part of some elaborate trick; that perhaps her aunt was just trying the carrot to get what she wanted instead of the stick. Another part of her wanted Maggie’s story to be true.

  She’d made the mistake of watching the news before she went to bed. Havok Hurtlocker was doing his dead level best to drag her name through the dirt and get the Dreadknights disqualified. A terse V from Trollbogies warned Christine that her guildmaster was handling it and that she was not to respond in any way. Christine had to settle for shouting her imagined responses at the holoscreen.

  She’d been too wound up to go to bed when she should have. She’d barely got out of bed in time to make her next session of the Colonial Trials.

  Davis hadn’t spoken a word since they began this trek, which was very, very uncharacteristic for him. A part of her wondered if he’d seen the news and what he thought of it. Did Davis think she was a cheat?

  Why did she care so much what Davis thought? Of course, she knew why and, frankly, she needed to let it go. While the physicality of nodal tech made all sorts of long distance relationships possible and she’d certainly entertained the fantasy of becoming more than friends, the fact was that they’d never met in real life. Unless she became a Colonist, she and Davis could never be together – maybe nodally – but not together together. The trouble was that she felt a real connection with Davis. Davis was the reason she stopped resenting the fact that she had to take the Trials. She enjoyed spending time with him. They’d been getting closer and closer with each session. She was sure he had feelings for her too, but he’d never come right out and said as much. That tour he’d taken her on the day before yesterday had almost been like a date.

  She’d never figured him for the silent treatment type. What was he mad about? He acted like something was bothering him. Was it her? She worried again that he’d seen the news. Until now, it’d never occurred to her that Havok’s smear campaign might lose her both Guild Wars and Davis Crimmeans. If anything, she’d started to think of Davis as her consolation prize.

  Except now, he wasn’t even speaking to her.

  “OK,” he said at long last. “We’re almost there.”

  “Almost where?” She wasn’t familiar with this part of the farm colony. They’d been trekking through the corn forest for hours. Up ahead was some sort of structure. It reminded her of a siege tower, only much taller.

  He smiled at her for the first time since they’d began their journey. “What’s the matter? Don’t you trust me?”

  “I told you. I’m not overly fond of heights.”

  “This will be worth it. I promise.”

  She shrugged and returned the grin. “Fine. Lead away.”

  To her surprise, the tower was equipped with an elevator. She raised an eyebrow.

  “Blasted technomancers,” he said with a smirk. “Always messing with stuff. Can’t trust ‘em.”

  “We could always take the stairs,” she suggested.

  He pressed the button for the top floor.

  At the top of the tower was an observation platform. To the south, there were cornfields as far as the eye could see. To the north, was a much different view. Wide rolling plains became forested hills, then high majestic mountains. Train tracks were evident in the distance. A steam locomotive chugged along those tracks.

  “Is that a dragonrail?” she asked. Dragon engines were similar to locomotives, but they were alive. Most of them were designed to look a bit dragonish. They were also temperamental.

  “Yes,” Davis said, “and off there in the distance, those are the Dragon Mountains.”

  “They’re so close. I had no idea.” In the center of the field stood a large, lumpy shape. “What’s that?”

  “A drubulb.”

  Christine knew enough about the alien life forms on Tarak to know what a drubulb meant. “So there are dru this close to the farm colony?”

  He nodded, squinting in the sun. “We tried moving them. They won’t be moved. After our talk the other day, I figured you might want to see them for yourself.”

  “Aren’t they supposed to be dangerous?”

  “Unpredictable, yes, but if you leave them alone, they generally leave us be. Well, except drones. They attack most any robots that venture too near the bulbs, which is why we can’t exactly go knocking on their door in your condition.”

  She snorted. It was still surreal to think she was remote piloting a robot on some alien world.

  “The dru aren’t my problem,” Davis said. He took a deep breath.

  Christine steeled herself for the worst. Had Davis bought Havok’s slander? Had GameComm found out about whatever Oscar did to her? Were they disqualifying her from Guild Wars? From the Trials? Both?

  “The furrybites came back,” Davis said. “They shorted out power in three sectors before we managed to flush them out. Where there’s furrybites, there’s devilpedes. We haven’t seen it yet, but it can’t be that far away.”

  Christine exhaled. “Thank God!”

  He raised an eyebrow. “That is not the reaction I was anticipating.”

  “I’m sorry. It’s just with the buildup, I thought it was going to be something much worse. I mean, have you seen the news?” She cringed as she awaited his answer.

  He scoffed. “Havok Hurtlocker does this all the time. My brother thinks he’s a blustering coward. Oh, he’s not a total gold shield. He’s got skills as a gamer; I’m not denying that. But when you prefer to cheat or get your opponents disqualified than meet them on a level playing field, I’d say you’re probably not as good as you let on. Besides, it’s not like what he’s saying about you is true.”

  She felt like a deer in the headlights.

  He frowned. “Christine?”

  “It’s complicated. My guildmaster thinks I’m being set up.”

  He nodded. “My brother said you might want to watch out for something like that. He wouldn’t give me the details but it might be in that V he sent you.”

  “I will do my best to unearth it then.”

  “And don’t worry about it. I know you, Christine. You’re no cheater.”

  Christine smiled at him fondly. Davis was quite simply perfect. Then she frowned. “Wait. Let me get this straight: you just brought me up here to talk about devilpedes and furrybites?”

  “Um, no, actually. That was just… I just thought you’d like to know what you missed yesterday, and I have a little surprise for you.”

  “Yes, I’m very excited about it and I think you will be too. It’s taken everything I’ve got to keep it to myself on the way over here.”

  “Is that why you were so silent?”

  He smiled. “Sorry. I didn’t trust myself not to let the cat out the bag too soon. Anyway, first a little mood music.” He pulled up a song from his playlist.

  “I know this one. Isn’t this by Shotgun Wedding Cake?” She raised an eyebrow. “Huh. I always kind of figured you as more of a country fan.”

  “What? Why would you…” He scoffed. “It’s the corn. People think that because I work in a cornfield that I naturally
like country music. I mean, I do like BetterNchickN. Well, some of their songs anyway, like –”

  “Shut Yo Mouth,” they said at the same time. They both laughed.

  “So you’re into country then?” he asked.

  “Actually, I’m more of an Anthem fan.”

  “That… makes a lot of sense. Speaking of your uncommon sensibilities, I’m glad you thought of the Magnus Centarii. That is just the sort of level-headed yet outside-the-box thinking we need around here.”

  “OK, just stop,” she said. He looked genuinely confused, so she added, “I know what this is.”

  “What what is?”

  She took a deep breath. “Look it was really clever and really, really sweet the way you brought me way up here with the view and the music and the surprise and everything, so I could choose between the Colonies and the game, but I think I made it pretty clear where I stand.”

  He laughed. “That’s not why I brought you up here,” he said, smirking. He used a whistle he wore on a cord around his neck and then cupped his hand over his eyes as he scanned the heavens. Grinning, he pointed and said, “There!”

  Two very impressively oversized grasshoppers flew down to the top of the platform, landing close by. As the horse-sized insects regarded them, Christine noticed they were wearing saddles.

  “What is this?” she asked.

  “These are skyhoppers,” he said, grinning. “They’re basically the insect equivalent of a Pegasus or griffin.”

  “We get to ride these?”

  He nodded.

  “Wow. I mean, this is quite the upgrade. When did this happen?”

  “Like I said, your Magnus Centarii idea was great. So great that the Gamelords approved it. We can change into our new armor in there,” Davis said, pointing to a door to one side of the tower elevator. “Actually, in your case, I think we just change your drone’s mod. That’s neither here nor there. The point is that now we’ll be able to give those devilpedes a run for their money.”

  “This is so slaughter!” Christine said. She ran up to one of the giant grasshoppers and stroked its big head. It clicked its mandibles and leaned into it.

  “Ebenezer likes you,” Davis said. “Oh. Almost forgot,” he said, patting his pockets. He fished out a whistle and handed it to her. “You’ll need that to call him. So? Surprised?”

  “Very.”

  He brushed his sandy hair out of his eyes. “You know, I may not have told you this, but I’m actually kind of a big fan of yours.”

  “You may’ve mentioned that.”

  “More than a fan actually. In fact, as cool as Ebenezer is, he isn’t the only reason I brought you up here.”

  She raised an eyebrow.

  “I also wanted to tell you that no matter what you choose, the Colonies” – he waved his hand toward the maize forests – “or the game” – he waved toward the Dragon Mountains – “I just wanted you to know that, even if you feel the same way I feel about you, that you don’t have to give up your dream. I’ll be right here in Drackenwold, running your fan club.”

  She considered him for a moment. “How you feel about me..?”

  He blushed. “Oh, come on, Christine. You must know.”

  “Say it. If you mean it.”

  “I love you, Christine Johanssen.”

  “Aren’t you afraid that I’ll win the Guild Wars and we’ll never see each other again?”

  “Well, that was what I was trying to say,” he said. “You’ll know where to find me. I’ll be right here. I thought you could visit if you want and see how things go…” He frowned. “Was that not clear?”

  “It is now.” She leaned over and kissed him. She rested in his embrace for a few moments before an impish thought crossed her mind.

  “You know, I could just as easily find you and drag you along on my adventures. Unless Bloodskull is a little too much for you?” She hit him playfully

  “Don’t underestimate me, milady. I’ve fought devilpedes.” His smirk faded as his voice took a more serious tone. “The point is that you don’t have to give up being Ogress Bloodskull to be with me. She’s your Golden Ticket to fame and fortune and freedom, Christine. Take it!”

  She laughed. “OK, I will.”

  They held each other in silence for a while until Davis asked, “So someone’s setting you up?”

  Christine groaned. “Yeah. It looks that way.”

  “Is there any way out of it?”

  “I dunno. Can I ask you a question?”

  He nodded. “Anything.”

  “You know what an ogre’s choice is, right?”

  “Of course.”

  “What happens if you don’t choose at all?”

  He snorted. “Then the ogre’s choice becomes the ogre’s choice.”

  She shook her head. “What is that supposed to mean?”

  “Well, as I understand it, an ogre’s choice is where an ogre offers you the choice between a slow death and a quick one, right?”

  “Right.”

  “So the implication is that if you don’t choose, the ogre does.”

  Christine sighed. “I was afraid of that. Look, I hate to bug out early but there’s something I gotta take care of. Something Bloodskull needs to do actually.”

  “You’re not going to test ride Ebenezer first?” he asked. He was clearly disappointed despite the grin he flashed at her.

  “I want to, but this is important. Please tell me you understand.”

  He grinned. “Do what you gotta do.”

  She kissed him and then smiled. “You’re awesome. You know that?”

  He hugged her one more time. “Just hurry back.”

  [Back to Table of Contents]

  22 – BITTER PILL

  Christine’s bravado melted away to stomach-churning anxiety as she dialed up the nodal connection for her guildmaster. She knew now that if she wanted to stay out in front of whatever Mr. Diggs had done to her, she needed to take the red pill. Even so, she also didn’t want to do this alone.

  Trollbogies nodded a greeting as they materialized in the Dreadknights’ guild hall. “Bloodskull, was your mission successful?”

  “I have a choice to make.”

  The troll raised an eyebrow.

  “It is best to show you. Hold on and I’ll patch you into my Vmail.”

  “This does not bode well,” Trollbogies said, her face somber.

  Christine didn’t bother answering. There was no denying that whatever they discovered, it would almost certainly be bad news.

  Moments later, Christine found herself back in Oscar Diggs’s office. Trollbogies appeared a moment later and then melted into the form of the guildmaster’s player, Olivia Ziegler.

  Olivia took a look around. “Where are we?”

  “My old supervisor’s office. Mr. Diggs was murdered after the match against the Golden Gears. My new supervisor said it had something to do with his gambling debts.”

  Olivia nodded. “We lost and you were his chalk horse.”

  “His what?”

  “His favorite.”

  “That’s what Jones thought too.”

  Olivia’s eyebrows raised sharply. “Jones?”

  “My new supervisor. He met with me here of all places.”

  Olivia frowned and shook her head. “You might want to double-check that, Christine. I was contacted by a Mr. Jones regarding you, but the man who contacted me was an Agent.”

  The blood drained from Christine’s face. The Agency was AmeriCo’s espionage and security division. Agents had almost unlimited power to carry out their duties to protect the interests of the West. “I really hope you’re wrong about that.”

  “Me too,” Olivia said. “Of course, I may be jumping to conclusions. Jones is a very common name.”

  “Nothing about my life has been common lately.”

  “That’s an understatement.” The older woman took another look around. “This Mr. Diggs really likes wood.”

  “That’s what I said.”
>
  The virtual Mr. Diggs materialized in his chair. Olivia took note of his bloodied and battered condition. “So this was sent just after the match but just before he –”

  “– was beheaded, yes.”

  Diggs stood up and began delivering his message.

  “Christine, if you’re seeing this, something has gone very wrong. I’ve gone missing or… worse. There’s something I need to tell you but I’m afraid to tell you too much. For now, let’s just say I stacked the deck. For both of us really. If anyone comes around asking about me, tell them the truth: that you don’t know anything. In fact, that’s probably the safest thing you can do at this point.”

  “Still, I feel like you deserve to know ahead of time, just in case someone lets the cat out of the bag and it all goes south. So I’m gonna give you the classic blue pill, red pill choice here.” He opened his desk drawer and pulled out a small wooden box. “Just know that there are certain consequences for knowing. It could destroy your career, but not knowing might not be enough to save you. I dunno. If you want to know the truth, just take the red pill – choice is yours. Again, I’m very sorry and I never meant to hurt you. I never meant for anything to happen.”

  He pushed the box across the table toward her. “Anyway, the choice is yours, Miss Johanssen.”

  “This is as far as I got before,” Christine said.

  “I can understand why,” Olivia said. “I take it you’re ready now?”

  Christine nodded. Before she could change her mind, she grabbed the red pill and swallowed it.

  Everything went red for a moment. A few seconds later, dark shadows began outlining a new setting. Christine recognized the structure in front of her before it even fully materialized.

  “It is as I feared,” Olivia said.

  Christine shot her a look, but Mr. Diggs materialized before she could ask her guildmaster what she meant. “This is the Tower of Perpetual Peril,” he said, “but I don’t need to tell you that. What I do need to tell you is that you didn’t exactly do as well as you think you did.”

  “What is he talking about?” Christine asked.

  Olivia shook her head and put a finger to her lips.

  “I was approached by someone, someone you know. He wanted me to hackerjack the Tower here. The idea was to use a proxy, a far more experienced gamer, to take on the challenge but make it look like you did it. We had to hack your nodes to make you think you were doing all that stuff that our proxy did. That’s why you did so well. If you don’t believe me, you’re welcome to take on the Tower again and see how well you do.” He offered up a raspy laugh.

  “Anyway, you’ve probably guessed how it works. Our proxy was better than we anticipated. Seriously, who could’ve guessed that Jack Nabbit would make it within five levels of the top?”

  Christine’s eyes widened at the name. Nabbit was a vexati, a sort of anthropomorphic rabbit. Apart from his involvement in the Reevetown fiasco, no one took him particularly seriously.

  “Anyway, that boosted your levels pretty good and got you signed with the Dreads, which was even better for me. I bet a lot of good money on you and…” Mr. Diggs face twisted into an expression that was equal parts anger and despair. He choked back a sob. “It’s not your fault, kid. You played your heart out. I may’ve hackerjacked you into the Finals, but you definitely proved you deserved to be there.”

  He wiped his eyes on his sleeve. “Anyway, I don’t have a lot of time. You should know that Mr. Favreau said that this was his insurance policy.”

  Olivia and Christine exchanged a wide-eyed glance. Did he mean Owen Favreau, Havok Hurtlocker’s player? Diggs did say that it was someone she knew and she definitely didn’t know any other people with that last name.

  “I wasn’t sure what he meant. I maybe suspected, but after he double crossed me with that deal with Rosco… I mean, he knew how much I had riding on you winning! He knew who I owed – knew what Mr. Gund was gonna – to me if I lost.”

  “What’s going on?” Christine asked. “Why’s he breaking up?”

  Olivia shook her head. Before her guildmaster could answer, there were a series of loud bangs that Christine recognized as gun shots.

  All hope drained from Mr. Diggs face. “They’re here.” As if resonating with his mood, the background began dimming. “I –ta go. J – remember: I never –nt – any of this to – hope you can find a way – of this mess. –bye, Miss Johanssen and – luck.”

  “We have to get out of here!” Olivia shouted. “We’re being blacked!”

  Christine’s eyes widened. The virtual world was pixelating around her and fading to pitch black. She’d heard of people being blacked before. Though it was usually touted as a worst case security measure, it was well known that cyber assassins used this kind of malware to turn a person into a vegetable.

  Olivia vanished, exiting the session. Christine tried to follow her, but something was trapping her in the disintegrating nodal environment. The black had her surrounded on all sides and was quickly closing in.

  For a moment, she heard Havok Hurtlocker laughing.

  Just when she thought all was lost, the Dreadknights’ guild hall re-materialized around them. Trollbogies stood before her. She exhaled heavily at Christine’s arrival. Christine was too stunned to speak at first.

  “It all becomes clear now,” Trollbogies said, sounding more weary than Christine had ever heard her. “You were Havok’s unwitting Trojan Horse. He set us both up. He jacked your levels when he knew I was looking for fresh talent. All so he could pull the rug out from under us if Rosco didn’t pull through and we managed to win the match against the Golden Gears.”

  “I had no idea,” Christine said. “You have to believe me.”

  “I do. You passed Eddie Mondo’s lie detector… and Havok did just try to kill you, after all.” She steepled her fingers together. “I was wondering how he’d been sloppy enough to leave such an incriminating V behind. Apparently, he meant for you to find it to tie up loose ends, knowing you’d be curious enough to take the red pill.”

  “But we still have the V,” Christine said.

  Olivia scoffed. “Do we? I’m certain that you’ll find that V deleted itself as it tried to black us. You’ve been a pawn in a much bigger game than either of us could comprehend. My guess is that he chose you because you quit the Dooms. He chose Rosco because he could be bought. He chose your Mr. Diggs because he was desperate.”

  “He also mentioned Jack Nabbit,” Christine said. “He was the proxy. Maybe he could back up our story.”

  Olivia waved her hand dismissively. “If he even knows. Jack was involved in Reevetown of his own accord, so Nabbit’s not above a back door deal,” she said. “Even so, I can’t see him passing up the levels, not to mention the popularity points, the Tower would’ve gained him. I doubt he’s any more aware what transpired at the Tower than you were before you took the red pill. It would appear Nabbit was just as much a pawn as you were.”

  They sat in silence for a moment, each trying to make sense of this mess.

  Christine balled up her fists. “I bet Mr. Diggs had something to do with that little labor dispute that brought me and my mom to the Platform in the first place!”

  “It’s possible.” Olivia shrugged. “It’s also possible that Havok just took advantage of the situation once it developed. He had to be actively looking for some way to make this happen if he wanted it to be you. And it had to be you,” she said. “The fact that you were a former Doom who might have some insight into how they played was one of the bigger reasons I signed you. Either way, Diggs is dead and I’m not sure we have time to track down Nabbit to see what happened. Our options are limited.”

  “Are you going to fire me?” Christine asked, tears brimming her eyes.

  “No, but the guild may call for both our contracts by the time this is over. We need a way to turn this around and clear your name. Does anyone else know about that V?”

  Christine shrugged. “My aunt Maggie. She rea
d it up to the part about the pills and then deleted it.”

  Olivia raised an eyebrow. “She was in your Vmail?”

  “She says she feels bad about it, but it’s not the first time she’s done something like that. She decided to tell me about it after she heard Havok telling the news that I’d hackerjacked my levels.”

  “You do realize that the timing of your aunt’s revelation may not be coincidental.”

  The thought had actually never occurred to Christine before. Giving it some thought, she shook her head. “No, I know my aunt Maggie. She’s a bit of a baba yaga, but I don’t think she’s necessarily in league with Havok.”

  “What makes you so sure?” Olivia asked.

  “Because of Glinda. My mom would pick up one of my cousins and beat her with ‘em.”

  Olivia snorted. “You have a curious family, Bloodskull. Does your mother know about the V?”

  Christine shook her head.

  “Anybody else?”

  “N-no… Hold on. There might be somebody,” she realized. “Harley Crimmeans.”

  Her guildmaster looked genuinely stunned for a moment. “As in Baldur Splintershield? Why would he be involved in this? What haven’t you told me?”

  “It turns out he’s a fan,” Christine said. “At least, that’s what his brother told me. Davis Crimmeans is my, um, supervisor in the Colonial Trials. After the Eddie Mondo interview, Davis said his brother had some inside information that Havok might be trying to set me up and that he’d sent me a V that might have more details.”

  “And did he?”

  Christine did her best to look apologetic. “I hadn’t had a chance to look for it yet.”

  Olivia stared at her for a few tense moments. She was clearly angry at Christine. Maybe even angry enough to fire her. Curiously, Olivia smiled. “If what you say is true, I may have a way out of this mess.”

  “How?”

  Olivia smirked. “You’re not going to like it.”

  [Back to Table of Contents]

  23 – GAUNTLET

  Guildmaster Trollbogies knew her business. In less than an hour, she’d announced a press conference and invited Havok and Eddie Mondo to be a part of it.

  In the meantime, Christine checked her Vmail once more. In light of recent events and Trollbogies warning not to jack into the system until the press conference, it probably wasn’t the best idea, but there was nothing to do and she was ready to climb the walls.

  The message from Oscar Diggs was gone like it’d never existed. Trollbogies had expected as much, so Christine tried not to let that dismay her. She was lucky she hadn’t been deleted along with it!

  She found the V from Harley. It turned out to be fan mail, more or less. No warnings of foul play from Havok or anyone else for that matter, but it did contain the surprising proposal that, if she made it to Tarak, that Baldur and Bloodskull team up. She wasn’t sure if Davis would find that out of line, so she didn’t immediately respond to the offer. Besides, she wasn’t even supposed to be online right now.

  She was about to unplug when she noticed a new V from Davis. Deciding she could use some good news, she opened the message.

  Davis was suited up as a full-fledged knight of the Magnus Centarii. He was walking toward his monstrous grasshopper mount, helmet held in the crook of his arm. “Christine, we got a sighting on the devilpede. It attacked an outpost on the border of the Southern Fields near where you saw that smaller one the other day and a caravan of weeders enroute to Drackenwold. It’s big. Maybe the biggest we’ve ever encountered. If you get this in time, grab Ebenezer and meet me in Drackenwold.”

  He vaulted himself atop his insect steed and then looked at her one last time and grinned. “See you there, Christine. I love you. Davis, out.”

  She unplugged. Whether she was flushed from the thought of battling the devilpede or the fact that Davis had once again said he loved her was up for debate. Maybe a bit of both.

  Still, she couldn’t afford to go rushing off into battle with him just now. Trollbogies said that she needed to be ready when the moment came. No distractions.

  Just when she thought she was going to jump completely out of her own skin, she got the summons. Jacking back in, she found herself in the Dreadknights’ guild hall. The common table was gone. Instead, Christine ala Bloodskull found herself seated at a short table beside her guildmaster, Captain Belch Hammerhands, Killmore, MikeMonkeyMike and Tantrum Bloodfire. The other end of the room was filled with media representatives. At the center of the room was an octagonal raised dais, which was empty at present.

  At her arrival, Trollbogies nodded at Captain Hammerhands. Belch slammed his fists on the table. “Order! Order! This meeting of the Dreadknights of Outland has now come to order!”

  Bloodskull steeled herself. Trollbogies hadn’t really told her what she had in mind, so she was basically going into this blind.

  “Welcome to the Hall of Dread!” Trollbogies intoned. “It is Trollbogies, guildmaster of the Dreadknights of Outland who speaks before you today!”

  “You are guests of the Dreadknights of Outland!” Belch shouted. “Do not forget your place!”

  “The Dreadknights recognize Eddie Mondo of Level Up,” Trollbogies said, her voice a deep rumble.

  The hobgoblyn bowed deeply. “Thank you for this truly unprecedented invitation inside the Hall of Dread, Guildmaster.”

  “Charges have made against the Dreadknights of Outland.” Trollbogies gestured toward Bloodskull. “Havok Hurtlocker seeks to discredit one of our own.”

  “For those tuning in,” Eddie said, “Ogress Bloodskull has been accused of hackerjacking her levels by none other than her old guildmaster, Havok Hurtlocker of Doomsmack. Trollbogies, the question first and foremost on everyone’s mind is: is there any truth to Havok’s allegations?”

  “Bloodskull is no hackerjacker,” Trollbogies said. “She passed Eddie Mondo’s lie detector, did she not?”

  “Indeed, she did,” Eddie said, beaming widely. “With Trollbogies’ permission, Level Up is about to show our viewers exclusive deleted footage from yesterday’s interview.” As the holographic footage appeared above the center dais, Eddie set the scene. “This was during our joint interview with Rogar Thunderhammer and the Dreadknights. Rogar had been giving his take on the leveljacking scandal that Goldenboy is now enmeshed in and I asked him this follow-up question.” He gestured toward the holographic replay.

  “I’m assuming you feel even more strongly about hackerjackers?” the holographic Eddie asked Rogar.

  “No question. Those guys are the worst!” Rogar shouted.

  Christine nodded.

  “I see you nodding your head, Bloodskull. I take it you agree with Rogar’s assessment?” Eddie asked.

  “Obviously.”

  “I’m a little surprised.”

  “After what went down with Rosco,” Trollbogies said, “why would that answer surprise you?”

  “Wasn’t your character levelled up with a hack over your hiatus?”

  Bloodskull rose to her feet. “What?! That’s just a lie! I earned everything I’ve ever got!”

  “So you didn’t have someone level hack Bloodskull while you were off playing the Prometheus Initiative? Because I gotta say your skills since you’ve come back are a whole lot more impressive than they were when you worked for Doomsmack.”

  “This is slander, Eddie!” Trollbogies said.

  “Unless it’s true,” Eddie said.

  “Enough!” Bloodskull yelled. “I did not level hack my character! To the best of my knowledge, I don’t even know any hackerjackers! Why are you accusing me of this? Did someone tell you I was hacked? Was it Havok?”

  “She passed,” Circe Maximus said.

  “What?” Eddie asked. “Edger’s dice! Edit all of that out. Quickly! And cut to commercial. I’m very sorry, my friends. My informant made this sound like it was rock solid, but she passed the lie detector. If this is in any way true, well, she’s not aware of it.”


  “Aware of what? Who told you this?” Christine asked.

  “It doesn’t matter. I will deal with it. Somebody obviously set us up with a false tip,” he said, “but no worries. It’ll never air. No one’s using Eddie Mondo for this kind of dirty character assassination.”

  The replay ended. Christine had to force herself not to mouth Circe’s deleted coda of “Not this time anyway.”

  “Bloodskull speaks truth when she says she is no hackerjacker,” Trollbogies said.

  Eddie Mondo nodded and then assumed an expression of feigned reluctance. “But it is my understanding that we have reason to believe Bloodskull was hackerjacked against her knowledge. Is that correct?”

  Everyone was looking at Bloodskull. She looked at Trollbogies, who nodded.

  “It is,” Bloodskull said.

  There was a great commotion as the assembled press representatives each clamored to ask her questions about the breaking scandal.

  Belch pounded the table. “Order! Order!” When they had quieted, he added, “Bring forth the accused!”

  To everyone’s surprise, the dais split in two and a pair of figures rose from the opening. A dwarf clad in black armor held a hand cannon to the back of a chained, hooded prisoner who, given his size and musculature, was certainly an ogre or troll.

  “The Dreadknights recognize Baldur Splintershield.”

  Baldur bowed his mohawked head. The Dark Dwarf, was clad in black armor and covered in tattoos. He managed to look formidable even in the presence of ogres and trolls.

  MikeMonkeyMike walked toward the Dark Dwarf with a good sized treasure chest and laid it at Baldur’s feet. “You want to count it?” Mikey quipped.

  “No need,” Baldur said. “I have a standing deal for those who cheat me. For each coin I’m shorted, I’ll take a head from the shoulders of someone you love.” He offered Mikey a ghastly grin.

  Mikey stared at him mouth agape. Glancing back at Captain Hammerhands, he asked, “Somebody did double count this, right?”

  At a sharp glance from Trollbogies, he hurried to resume his post.

  Baldur hit his prisoner in the gut with the pommel of an iron mace. As his captive doubled over in pain, he snatched the hood off his head to reveal the incredibly angry ogre.

  “The Dreadknights recognize Havok Hurtlocker,” Trollbogies said, letting a hint of amusement slip into her rumbling voice.

  “How dare you –”

  “The Dreadknights have no fear of your threats,” Trollbogies said. “The Dreadknights have no fear of you at all. It is you who fear the Dreads.”

  “You wish,” Havok said. “I have to admit, this is cool. Having Baldur kidnap me. The Hall of Dread. Very bold.” He looked around the room, grinned at the sight of the press and settled his gaze on Bloodskull. “Hey you. Miss me?”

  Bloodskull stood up. Trollbogies waved for her to sit down.

  “You didn’t arrange all of this just because of little ol’ me, did you?” Havok asked with a leer.

  “You’ve been accusing Bloodskull of being a hackerjacker.”

  “Because she is.”

  “No, you set her up.”

  Havok scoffed. “I was wrong. This is just sad. Now you’re just making stuff up.”

  “Am I?”

  “Where’s your proof?”

  “You have the vexati?” Trollbogies asked Baldur.

  “Mr. Nabbit is waiting in the wings,” Baldur replied.

  The look of smug confidence on Havok’s face faltered.

  “And I too am willing to testify of what I know,” Baldur added, stroking his braided mustaches, “even to the Gamelords themselves, if necessary.”

  Havok growled. “What do you want, Trollbogies?”

  “We know what you’ve done. We don’t care about that. We’re here to throw down the gauntlet. Here is the Dreadknights’ challenge to Doomsmack: Stop hiding behind these games and let the Dooms and Dreads face each other at last in glorious battle!”

  Havok didn’t immediately respond.

  Killmore spat and crossed his arms. “Coward! The snake plays these games and hopes to disqualify the Dreadknights because he is afraid to face us. Behold!” He smote his breast with one ogrish fist. “Before you stand the cream of the Dreadknights of Outland. Your whole guild could not hope to stand against us!”

  “Are you proposing that the six of you could take all fifteen members of Doomsmack?” Eddie Mondo asked. “Wow! You’d really face the Dreads in the Finals at those odds?”

  “The Dreads have no fear of the Dooms,” Killmore said. “Bloodskull was their best player.”

  Havok scoffed. “You sorely underestimate us. As you say, Bloodskull is a former Doomsmack member, and she practically carried your entire team during the match against the Golden Gears! The Dreadknights are nothing!”

  “Then you accept our challenge?” Trollbogies asked, hands steepled before her.

  Havok hesitated.

  Trollbogies sneered. “Even with the odds we give him, look how his fear of the Dreadknights causes him to hesitate.”

  “Fine!” Havok said. “On one condition.”

  Trollbogies cocked her trollish head to the side. “I’m listening.”

  “I pick the venue and the contest.”

  “You have one advantage. Now you ask for three? Behold the towering confidence of Doomsmack!”

  “I don’t need no advantage,” Havok said. “”You’re throwing down the gauntlet… well, so be it. It’ll be my best six against you lot here running the gauntlet.”

  “Wait!” Eddie Mondo said. “Are you saying you want the final match of the Guild Wars to be a gauntlet-style competition?”

  Havok nodded.

  Trollbogies raised a bushy eyebrow. “Best overall score or aggregate?”

  “Aggregate. Two at a time. One from each guild. Head-to-head. Me and Bloodskull go last.”

  Openly scoffing, Trollbogies looked over the assembled Dreadknights and then back at Havok. “When and where?”

  “Midnight tonight,” Havok said. “Meet us at the Tower of Perpetual Peril.”

  Bloodskull’s heart sank. She tried not to show her despair, but the scorn in Havok’s eyes let her know that her former guildmaster knew he’d hit his intended mark. The whole world thought she’d gone within five floors of the Tower’s top. Unless she got really lucky, there was no way she could do anywhere near as good this time. He was going to make an open show of her.

  “Midnight then,” Trollbogies said. “This meeting is adjourned.”

  “Out! Out! Out before I beat you out!” Captain Hammerhands shouted. For emphasis, he picked up the table and tossed it into the assembled media representatives. “The Hall of Dread is closed! Get out!”

  In less than a minute, the guild hall was empty of all but six Dreadknights.

  “It worked,” Killmore said. He glanced at Bloodskull with his usual scorn. “I hope it was worth it.”

  “We shall see,” Trollbogies said. “Havok accepted our challenge to save face on a live broadcast, but he may yet try to get us disqualified.”

  “You told them?” Bloodskull asked. Her face flushed with embarrassment.

  “They deserved to know,” Trollbogies said.

  “Besides, it’s not like you did anything wrong, Bloodskull,” MikeMonkeyMike said. “This was a setup from the start.”

  “Either way, I suggest you all get some rest,” Trollbogies said. “The match is only a few hours away.”

  “Shouldn’t we take advantage of this time to practice then?” Tantrum asked.

  Trollbogies shook his head. “It’s too late. You’d only tire yourself out. Besides, there is no practicing the Tower. The very point of it is that it’s different every time.”

  “She’s right. I’ve ran the Tower a few times,” Belch said. “There’s no learning curve because it’s different each time.”

  “I’m not liking the part where we go in two by two,” Killmore said.

  MikeMonkeyMike scoffed. “I
t’s like Noah’s Ark in reverse.”

  Killmore rolled his eyes at Mikey. “What I’m saying is that it’s bad enough trying to survive the Tower without having to worry about a Doom buffoon trying to off me.”

  “And you know they’re going to cheat,” Mikey said.

  The others nodded.

  “It is what it is.” Trollbogies took a moment to survey them. “Do you have anything to add, Bloodskull?”

  Bloodskull hesitated. “He picked the venue for a reason.”

  “I need a moment alone with Bloodskull,” Trollbogies said.

  After the others left the session, Trollbogies looked at Christine and smiled. “I know what you’re thinking, but know this: I’ve seen veteran gamers not get past the first ten levels and I’ve seen novices spend their entire lives trying to recreate that lucky run where they reached the top twenty. The Tower is completely random. A bad run tonight would prove nothing.”

  “Then why pick it at all?”

  Trollbogies shrugged. “My guess is that he picked it was in the hopes that he could psyche you out. That’s probably why he paired himself against you. Well, that and the ratings.” She shook her head. “Havok is clever in all the worst ways.”

  “I remember,” Bloodskull said. “I just didn’t think he was capable of all of this.”

  “He capable of far worse. I don’t know if you picked up on it or not, but he nearly turned the tables on us during that press conference. Do not underestimate him.”

  “I won’t,” she said. She sighed heavily. “His timing wasn’t great either. I was supposed to join Rogar and Luckbane tonight.”

  “I see,” Trollbogies said. “There’s no way you can do both. I know you really want to join their adventure. Let’s be honest: who wouldn’t? Even so, the Dreadknights need you tonight. I can’t let you go until the match is over. I’m sorry.”

  “I believe you,” Christine said. She shook her head. “I need to let Rogar know what’s going on, so he has a chance to refill his roster.”

  Trollbogies gave her a sad sort of smile. “You know what? You have enough on your plate. I’ll talk to Rogar for you. And I’ll do everything I can to keep you in his good graces.”

  Christine put on a brave face and tried to bury the soul-sucking disappointment she was feeling right now. “Thanks. That would be slaughter of you.” Tell him I –”Without warning, the world around her began to fade in and out, alternating between a clear image and a red haze. “Edger’s Void! I’m getting an emergency flash. I gotta go!”

  “Take care of your emergency, but let me know what’s going on. If you need to cancel, I need to know sooner than later.”

  “Understood,” Christine said.

  [Back to Table of Contents]

  24 – DEVILPEDE

  When Christine terminated the nodal connection, her Aunt Maggie was standing over her. Her aunt’s face was flushed with emotion.

  “What have you been doing?” Maggie asked. The words came out between clenched teeth. Her aunt was really mad this time.

  “The Dreadknights called a press conference. I was contractually obligated to attend.”

  Maggie seemed confused by her answer. “Oh, of course.” She took a deep breath. “There’s been another attack, Chrissy. A devilpede. We’ve almost lost everything. Everything we’ve worked for in these Trials is just… That demon had its way with the rabdils and it’s killed a lot of people, too. Killed me! Do they fail you if you die? They’re going to fail us. I know it. You need to do something!”

  “What do you expect me to do?”

  “I don’t know!” her aunt wailed. Maggie slumped down to the floor and sobbed. Christine moved instinctively to comfort her, but was brought up short when her aunt’s head snapped up to glare at her. “We’re going to lose everything! Everything! You don’t care. You got the Guild Wars! But what about me and my boys? What about us? If we fail the Trials, that’s it. We’ll just be stuck on this floating prison until it rusts away! Is that what you want?”

  “No,” Christine said. She took note of the whiskey bottle on the kitchen counter. Things started to make a little more sense.

  Maggie sneered. “Oh, sure you don’t. I bet you’re just loving it, seeing me like this. Aren’t you? After the way I treated you…” She despaired for a moment. She looked so lost. Then she started cackling. “Why did I even try? It was never gonna happen! You knew that, didn’t you? Yes, smart girl. Clever girl. You knew. You knew!” She stabbed the air with her finger to accent her accusation.

  “Aunt Maggie, are you drunk?”

  Her aunt stared at her, the very picture of pickled offense. Then her eyes rolled back into her head and she passed out.

  Christine shook her head. Her aunt was never much of a drinker. She must’ve been really and truly upset to get this snockered. Davis had said he and the rest of the militia were after a devilpede. It looked like things had gotten out of hand.

  Pangs of worry gnawed at the pit of her stomach. A lot of the people of Drackenwold were real live Colonists. If that monster was on a rampage…

  She decided to check in with Davis and see what was going on.

  Putting thought to action, she jacked back into the system and dialed up the Colonial Trials. As the town of Drackenwold materialized around her, she received a transmission.

  “Christine Johanssen, stand by for further instructions.”

  “Who is this?” she asked. She looked at her hand. She wasn’t wearing her usual armor. Instead, she was dressed as a member of the Magnus Centarii. In her hand, she held a power stave. She took a quick inventory of her other weapons as she waited.

  “I am called John. Drackenwold is under attack. A devilpede of unprecedented size has killed –”

  “I know about the devilpede,” Christine said. “I was briefed on the situation when it started.” Drackenwold was truly under attack. In fact, the building she found herself standing in was so damaged that it took her a moment to realize she’d spawned in the barracks as per usual. Even through the fire and smoke, she could see that only a few walls were still standing. Fiery pools of Devilpede spit littered the ground. She threw herself toward the door and crashed out of the building to save herself.

  After Christine picked herself off the ground, she looked around. Half the buildings of Drackenwold were burning. Villagers were running around in a panic. Most of them appeared to be trying to find a place to hide. A lumbering rabdil rounded the corner up ahead of her and began stampeding down the cobbled street. The be-tusked creature was wild-eyed with fear. Christine dashed out of its way and readied herself to face whatever was chasing it.

  To her horror, more rabdils began pouring into the street. The elephant-sized mutants were in a full panic and were trampling everything in her path. A child ran into the street, intent on reaching her mother on the other side.

  “Is this armor fully operational, John?” Christine asked. “Including shields?”

  “Yes, but –”

  Christine dashed into the path of the stampede and scooped up the child. Turning toward the rabdils, she held up her hand and shouted, “Mystic force!”

  Her armor glowed bright blue for a moment and then a forcefield of the same color formed around them. When the herd reached her, there was a big crash and the sound of an explosion. A second later, rabdils were flying away from the mystic forcefield in every direction, crashing into the buildings and rubble on either side of her.

  The shield faded as the threat neutralized. The little girl broke from Christine’s embrace and ran to her mother. Christine smiled. She was really glad right now she’d convinced Davis to outfit the guard as mystic knights.

  “Congratulations,” John said. “Your bravery has cost us the lives of seven rabdils and injured several humans. You’re lucky you didn’t kill anyone else.”

  Christine’s blood boiled at the criticism. “I saved the girl. We can eat the rabdils. Where’s Davis Crimmeans? He’s my supervisor. I need to meet up with my team.”<
br />
  She was met with silence.

  “Where is he, John?”

  “Hi, this Barclay Reiter,” a new voice said. “I’m the head of GameComm’s security here on Tarak. You’ll have to excuse John. He’s a mutant and you know how they feel about rabdils.”

  “Um, sorry. I didn’t mean – I didn’t know.” A lot of mutants wouldn’t eat the meat of any other genetically-created creature on principle. Apparently John was one of those who valued all mutant life with equal sanctity, animal or sentient.

  “Look, I’m going to try to walk you through this. This thing is on a rampage. We are sending in a team, but they will not arrive for another ten to twenty minutes.”

  “Great. What do you want me to do?”

  “We need to contain it somehow. We tried to lure it into the rabdil pens but it just made a mess. Devilpedes don’t really have a taste for rabdil meat.”

  “They prefer horses. I don’t suppose you can tell me where I can find one of those?”

  “Maybe. Hold on. There’s one in a barn two blocks to your right. Think you can get to it?”

  “Um, sure, but we got a problem.”

  The town’s water tower had been severely damaged during the rabdil stampede. It began groaning and buckling until it was obvious that it was about to collapse. A man and woman were hiding in its shadow. Christine began running toward them.

  “Save the man,” Barclay said.

  “I can save them both.”

  “Don’t waste your energy. The woman’s a drone.”

  “Right.”

  Christine rushed in, but it was too late. The tower collapsed on the helpless pair. A moment later, a water bomb hit the cobbled streets, washing Christine backwards with the force of a tsunami wave. In its wake, she sputtered to her feet. Looking back at the tower’s base, she asked, “Did they make it?”

  “The drone is functional. It’s administering CPR. The Colonist should be fine.”

  “No thanks to me.”

  “Look, shake it off. I’ve read your file. Even if you’re not Ogress Bloodskull down there, you have a gamer’s instincts – and you’re a damned good one at that. I can’t think of anyone else who would’ve just pulled that stunt with the rabdils.”

  “Yeah, but we both know I got lucky. I saw that move on a livecast once. I was hoping we’d get to train a bit more. As it stands, I know way more about being an ogress than being a Magnus Centarii.”

  “I know where you’re coming from but you’re literally all I’ve got right now, ok?”

  Christine sighed. “Where’s the devilpede now?”

  She heard Barclay groan. “Um, it’s headed for the barn. It’s got the horse’s scent, I think. Might beat you to it.”

  Christine began running. “Not if I can help it. Look, what happened back there can’t happen again. I could’ve got to that guy if I’d know the other one was a drone. Davis had a way of showing me the drones. Can you do that to me?”

  “Good idea. Initiate protocol Alpha Romeo Golf Uniform Sierra. That better?”

  “It certainly can’t hurt things. How close is my skyhopper?”

  “Ebenezer is too far away to be of assistance, but I can summon Improbable to your location.”

  “Improbable?”

  “Davis Crimmeans’ skyhopper.”

  She shook her head and grinned. Of course he’d named his something like that. That was just like him.

  She slowed down when she reached the barn. The streets were empty now. Was the devilpede already inside? Taking a chance, she bolted for the barn’s entrance.

  It was darker inside, but she could see the horse restlessly pawing in its stall. Hurrying toward it, she opened the stall doors. The horse was obviously spooked, so she took a deep breath and forced herself to walk towards it slowly. “Hey, big fellow,” she said, speaking to it gently to calm it. She kept her hands at her sides. “I just need you to calm down so I can get you out of here. That’s it. Nice and easy.” She placed her hand on the horse’s forehead. It relaxed visibly.

  Suddenly, it snorted and its ears pricked forward. Christine looked over her shoulder. The devilpede was snaking down out of the upper levels of the barn.

  The horse reared up, knocking Christine aside. As it fled the barn, the devilpede gave chase.

  Getting to her feet, Christine ran out of the barn. “It got away.”

  “We might be able to get it back,” Barclay said. “Your ride’s here.”

  Improbable darkened the skies above her. It landed heavily and clacked its mandibles in greeting. In short order, she’d mounted the skyhopper and they were airborne once more.

  It took less than a minute to spot the horse and its monstrous pursuer. “Found it. Now what?”

  “You’re going to grab the horse with the skyhopper and use it as a carrot on a stick.”

  “How do I do that?”

  “Just get close to the horse and I’ll do the rest.”

  “What? How?”

  “The skyhopper’s a simulacrum. I’ll just program it to grab the horse.”

  Christine shook her head. It’d never occurred to her, but, of course, the skyhopper wasn’t really a giant insect. It was a biological robot. “On it,” she said.

  She urged her mount to dive down over the horse. Sure enough, it grabbed the very alarmed horse with its forelimbs and carried the struggling animal skyward. The devilpede screeched in outrage.

  “Don’t go too high,” Barclay said. “Stay just out of reach.”

  “OK, fine,” she said, “but where am I going exactly.”

  “Head for the windmill. You’re going to need to give yourself a little bit of a lead if we’re going to do this.”

  “Do what?”

  “We’re going to trap the devilpede inside the windmill. You’re going to keep it there until my team arrives.”

  “Wouldn’t it be better to lead it away from Drackenwold entirely?”

  “It’ll just come back. We need to trap it somewhere so we can deal with it.””

  She landed in front of the windmill well ahead of the devilpede. The skyhopper held the horse gently yet firmly in its grip. Grabbing its reins, she led it toward the front doors.

  “Um, Christine, we have a problem,” Barclay said. “The devilpede’s lost interest.”

  “What? But they love horses!” she said.

  “Not apparently more than they love furrybites.”

  “You’re kidding me. Where is it headed?”

  “The church.”

  “There are furrybites in the church?” She let go of the horse and mounted Improbable once more. In seconds, she was flying back toward the church.

  “Checking. Ah. Thermal imaging shows a probable nest under the building. That must be what it’s after,” Barclay said. “Good grief. Some of the Colonists have barricaded themselves inside.”

  Christine arrived at the church shortly. The church was a dependable structure made of stone. The doors were made of solid oak banded with iron. Apparently, the doors were locked because the devilpede was scurrying across the tiled roof toward the bell tower. Spotting her, the monster shot a long stream of fiery goop at her. The flamethrower nearly caught Improbable in its path. The skyhopper banked out of the way, Christine took a few shots at the devilpede with her powerlance. It shrieked as bolts of energy splashed across its hard exoskeleton. Another flamethrower attack forced Improbable to the ground to avoid being barbecued.

  Christine urged her skyhopper back into the fray. It used its long legs to jump onto the roof. Vaulting off Improbable, Christine ran along the rooftop with the ninja like grace of a Magnus Centarii, powerlance blazing. Overwhelmed, the devilpede slithered into the bell tower.

  Growling with frustration, Christine remounted Improbable and took to the skies. There was no point in following the devilpede into the bell tower. In fact, that was good way to get ambushed. Still, she couldn’t leave it in the church with the villagers who’d barricaded themselves inside.

&nbs
p; “Good work, Christine!” Barclay said. “Now make sure it doesn’t leave.”

  “What? What about the people inside?”

  “I’m sorry, Christine, but this is our best chance at containing this problem. Just make sure it stays put until my team arrives.”

  Christine growled with frustration. She thought of Davis. She had no idea where he was or if he was even alive, but she knew she couldn’t just let the devilpede have its way with the people he called friends and look him in the eye. She needed a way in. The very fact that they’d barricaded the doors prevented her from using them too. Fortunately, there was a rather big stained glass window…

  Improbable burst through the window in a shower of glass, startling the devilpede. She flew over the heads of the villagers, who were hunkered down near the altar. The devilpede had entered the sanctuary via the bell tower at the front of the chapel causing a panicked stampede toward the opposite end of the church. It was in the act of surging forward to pick off a few stragglers when Christine burst through the window. It grabbed a drone up its scorpion claws and shredded it into pieces. Christine was really glad she wasn’t seeing the full effect right now, because she imagined the carnage was pretty gross if you were seeing the drone as a colonist.

  The devilpede backpedaled at her entrance.

  As the skyhopper landed, she took a quick survey of the villagers. There were a few drones amongst the Colonists. Staying atop Improbable, Christine pointed her lance at the monster. The devilpede arched up like a cobra, fiery goop dripping from its jaws while its scorpion-like mouth pincers clacked in anticipation. They stared at each other, each waiting for the other to make a move.

  “What are you doing, Christine?”

  “You need to give me a chance to save these people,” she hissed into her commlink. Speaking louder, she said, “I need everyone to get out now, except you, you, you and you.” Christine pointed to the drones in turn, all the while keeping one eye on the monster.

  “Why us?” one of the drones asked as the flesh-and-blood colonists hastily exited through the hole she’d made on her way in.

  “You guys are in the Trials,” she said. “This is a test of loyalty.”

  They looked at each other. Finally, one of them nodded. “We’re ready to lay down our lives for Drackenwold.” The others nodded agreement.

  “Find a weapon,” Christine said.

  “Christine, those drones are programmed as peasants. They don’t stand a chance against that thing. What are you doing, Christine?” Barclay asked.

  “I saved your colonists but I made a big hole in your church. Now, I’m going to keep this demon busy long enough for your team to get here.”

  “The Marshall and his team are still a few minutes away.”

  She glared at the devilpede. “Keep me posted.”

  The devilpede hissed and crept forward on countless legs.

  “It’s moving,” Christine said. “Form a line on either side of me,” she barked to the drones. “Help is on the way, but it must not leave this place.”

  The devilpede was staring at her with those alien compound eyes in a way that was still somehow unmistakably malevolent. One of its eyes had a long scar across it.

  Suddenly, Christine knew.

  “Oh no,” she said. “This is the devilpede I ran into the other day.”

  “Say again?” Barclay asked. “How’s that possible?”

  “I read the report on that incident,” John said. “I specifically recall it because your encounter was unique. The devilpede was smaller than anticipated.”

  “Well, it’s a lot bigger now,” she said. “And I think it recognizes me.”

  “It must be a coinc–”

  Christine didn’t hear anything else he had to say because the devilpede chose that moment to strike. Surging forward, it sprayed Improbable down with fiery death. Christine just managed to leap free of her mount.

  One of the drones ran forward with a war cry on her lips and a brass candlestick in her hand. She never got to use her makeshift war club. The devilpede scooped her up in its pincers and threw her remains against opposite walls of the sanctuary.

  The drones looked at each other uncertainly.

  “Attack!” Christine yelled, firing her powerlance at the creature repeatedly. The devilpede screamed as energy blasts rippled across its body. The drones ran in to harry the creature. It grabbed a pew and then another, tossing them at the drones, crushing them beneath their weight. Then it dove under another pew and began rapidly crawling toward Christine.

  From Christine’s perspective, it looked like a tidal wave of disintegrating wooden pews was coming at her. She couldn’t get a clear shot at the thing until it tossed the closest pew to the altar.

  She got in a single shot, further damaging its scarred eye. The monster screeched. Through a haze of pain, the devilpede still managed to knock her weapon out of her hands during its enraged thrashings. Christine was knocked backwards into the sacramental table. It came after her, hoping to take advantage. One of the drones had grabbed the big brass cross that usually rested on it as a weapon, but the big metal plates they used for Eucharist were still present. She grabbed one and used it as a shield against the demon’s pincers and then shoved it into its open mouth. While the devilpede gagged, she dashed away from it.

  Drawing her sword, she waited for the monster’s next attack.

  “Christine, you’ve done your job. You need to get out of the church,” Barclay said. “Our team is in range.”

  “They’re here?”

  “No, but there’s a rocket heading your way.”

  A rocket?! Apparently they were through with keeping up appearances. “That’s just great,” she said.

  “It was your choice to go in,” Barclay said. “I told you to stay outside and keep it contained.”

  Christine didn’t respond. She didn’t trust herself to keep a civil tongue. How could he be so cold? Her mom was right. GameComm did not care about these Colonists at all. If she hadn’t intervened, Barclay would’ve just let that devilpede have its way with the Colonists. Even worse, any survivors would’ve been blown up along with the church.

  The devilpede hissed, bringing her attention back to her present predicament. She started making her way to the back of the church where she’d entered through the stained glass. The devilpede moved in quick. She was forced to swing wildly to bat it away. “You know, this would be a whole lot easier if I were Bloodskull!” she complained to no one in particular. “How much time do I have?”

  “Less than twenty seconds. Get out now!”

  She shook her head. “I can’t. It’ll just follow me out.”

  “Fine,” he said. “At least go down fighting. Request granted. Look at your hands.”

  Christine looked down at the hands and arms of an ogress. She grinned savagely. Tossing the sword aside, she leapt at the devilpede. The monster was surprised by the sudden turn of events. Bloodskull grabbed one of the devilpede’s claws and ripped it out of its socket like she was pulling apart crab legs. The creature screeched and locked her body in the embrace of its other scorpion pincers. As it opened its mandibles to take a bit out of her she rumbled, “Nope!” and punched it in the head.

  Shrieking with pain, it tossed her aside like a ragdoll. She hit a far wall and tumbled to the floor. Getting to her feet, she asked, “How much time?”

  “Five seconds.”

  Nodding, Bloodskull ran for the front door of the cathedral. The devilpede gave chase, crawling over wrecked pews and then the walls themselves to reach her. She reached the vestibule at the front of the church. The door was barricaded from the inside. It was no match for a charging ogress.

  Bloodskull exploded through the door as the rocket hit its target. The blast shot her out the front doors like a cannonball, sending her through the wall of a nearby building and out the other side.

  When she got to her feet, her ears were ringing and everything in her body felt broken or bruised. She turned to
the smoking crater that was once the church. “Did we get it?”

  “No signs of movement,” Barclay said. “No signs of life. Good job, Bloodskull.”

  “Thank you very much.”

  “You really do have a gamer’s heart. Me? I would’ve just unplugged before the rocket hit.”

  “I know that.”

  “So why didn’t you?”

  She sighed deeply. “Because I want to know what happened to Davis,” she said, “and I got the feeling I’d never get to ask you if I unplugged.”

  “Christine, I –”

  “Don’t sell me a jabberwocky, Barclay,” she said, fighting back tears. “Davis loves Drackenwold, but he wasn’t here. He should’ve been here fighting that devilpede with his last breath! He wouldn’t leave these people to face this alone… unless he didn’t have a choice. It doesn’t make sense.”

  “He’s gone, Christine.”

  Christine’s mind reeled, refusing to accept what he was saying. She felt disconnected from reality. Her body betrayed her with tears. “That’s not true.”

  “I’m afraid it is.”

  She sunk to her knees in despair.

  Barclay disconnected her session.

  [Back to Table of Contents]

  25 – DOOMSMACK

  Her mom found her curled up in bed, her face still wet with tears.

  Glinda’s expression was a mixture of worry and surprise and she reached up and stroked her cheek. “Christine? What wrong? What happened?”

  “He’s dead.” Her voice sounded hollow. Distant.

  “Who’s dead?”

  “Davis Crimmeans,” Christine said. “There was a devilpede attack. He wasn’t there. He’s gone.”

  Glinda frowned. “Are you talking about one of your games?”

  “No, I’m talking about the Colonial Trials, mom,” she said. “Davis was my… supervisor.”

  Her mother smiled kindly. “Oh, Chrissy, I know those simulations can seem so real, but you have to shake it off. You have a big game to get ready for.”

  Christine sat up and looked her mother in the eye. “You don’t understand. The Trials are real.”

  “Christine, are you OK? You’re starting to worry me. The Trials are a simulation. Everyone knows that.” She placed a hand on her daughter’s shoulder. “I don’t know what happened to you tonight, but it wasn’t real.”

  Christine opened her mouth to protest.

  “What were you even doing logging into the Trials right before the biggest match of your life?” her mother asked.

  “Maggie said that –”

  Glinda’s eyes blazed. “So this is my sister’s doing. I think it’s high time I took care of this situation once and for all.” Before Christine could say anything, Glinda stormed off.

  Christine struggled out of bed after her. When she caught up to her mother, Glinda was hauling Maggie off her cot and tossing her to the floor. Glinda pointed an accusing finger down at her sister’s sprawled frightened form. “Margaret Mombi Hamilton! I have had enough of your meddling in my daughter’s affairs!”

  “Mom, stop!” Christine placed a hand on her mom’s shoulder.

  Glinda jerked her shoulder away “No, Chrissy. I came here to help you, Mags! I passed up a promotion in the union to come here and make sure that you and your boys had a place to work and live. And this is how you treat me?”

  Maggie looked from Christine to Glinda, clearly bewildered. Being woken up in such rough manner was almost certainly sobering, but she still had no idea what was going on. “What are you talking about?”

  “I’m talking about the way you treat my daughter. I dragged her off to this godforsaken rust bucket on the ocean, away from her friends and everything she knew to help you. The one thing she gets pleasure from, the one thing she’s really good at, you keep trying to sabotage.”

  “I’m not trying to sabotage her!” Maggie screeched. “I’m proud of what my niece has done in Guild Wars.”

  “No thanks to you!”

  “And she knows that,” Christine said, placing herself between them. “Me and Aunt Maggie have already talked about this. She apologized and everything and, you know what? I believed her. So can we stop this already? I don’t need the drama right now.”

  Glinda looked like she’d been slapped. “I can’t believe you’re defending her, after everything she’s done.”

  “Mom, drop it.”

  Glinda looked from her daughter to her sister and then threw her hands up in the air. “What the Edger’s Void is going on here?”

  “You were right,” Christine said. “About the Colonists. If what I just went through is any indication, the lives of the Colonists mean exactly squat to GameComm.”

  “Chrissy, what happened?” Maggie asked.

  “They were going to blow up a church full of Colonists just to kill that devilpede, Maggie. I saved them, but they were gonna do it.”

  “Christine, it was just a simulation,” Glinda said.

  “What kind of GameComm simulation shows GameComm as the villain? They showed me. We were running remote-controlled simulacrums. They said it makes it easier to transition live recruits into Drackenwold.”

  “There were rumors,” Maggie said. “I mean, we weren’t allowed to say anything that even suggested we weren’t really there. It was supposed to be practice for life on the real life Tarak, but you’d slip sometimes. It’s only natural. I remember talking to someone from the Eastern Fields. Silas was his name. I was just joking around and I told him I couldn’t wait for all of it to be real and he just gave me the funniest look. There were other things too.” Suddenly the dreamy half-drunken look on her face was replaced with an expression of utter despair. She staggered to her feet. “Oh, no, no, no! No!”

  It looked like she might swoon. Even Glinda reached out to steady her.

  “What is it?” Christine asked.

  “I was right, wasn’t I?” Maggie asked. “If you die in the Trials, you’re out. I mean, they can’t exactly transition you in if everybody else thinks you’re dead, can they?”

  Christine looked at her feet. She knew how much the Trials meant to her. “I’m sorry, Aunt Maggie. I don’t know.”

  “But they’ll still let my boys go, right?”

  No one answered, until Glinda stepped forward. Holding her sister by the shoulders, she smiled confidently and said, “They’ll have to. You’ll have the union on your side. We’ll make it happen.”

  Maggie fell into her sister’s arms, sobbing. Glinda held her for a moment and then turned to look at Christine over her shoulder. “We can talk about all of this later, Chrissy. You have a game to get ready for. I was coming to tell you that your guildmaster wants to talk to you.”

  Christine wiped a tear from the corner of her eye and sniffed. “Right. You guys will be OK?”

  Glinda nodded.

  A few moments later, Christine found herself once more in the Hall of Dread. She was the last to arrive.

  Trollbogies nodded at her arrival and then looked at each of them in turn. “Tonight, we face our toughest challenge yet. We six are all that stand between Doomsmack and glory. The Tower of Perpetual Peril is an unforgiving place.”

  She waved her hand toward the center of the iron table. A hologram snapped into focus, showing the dread tower. “Only one thing about the Tower does not change: there’s only one way in.” The hologram zoomed in to show the portcullised entry at the tower’s base.

  “I will not sugarcoat this. Most of us will last minutes if we’re lucky, especially with Doomsmack looking to kill us on the fly.”

  “I still don’t like the part where we’re paired with a Doomie,” Killmore said. “Won’t that just lead to a fight at the gates for each of us?”

  “There is a 30-second grace period,” Trollbogies said.

  “That’s not much,” Tantrum said.

  “It will basically get you inside. Since we’ll be going in without any weapons or artifacts, it is tantamount that you use those pr
ecious seconds to find a weapon inside.”

  MikeMonkeyMike scoffed. “We’re going in unarmed? This should be pretty quick.”

  “He’s right,” Belch Hammerhands said. “That may put us on equal footing with the Dooms but, even if they don’t cheat, the Tower will just pick us off that much quicker.”

  “And they are going to cheat,” Mikey said.

  “Cheating of any sort will lead to immediate disqualification of the party involved,” Trollbogies said. “Even so, yes they will and they will be sneaky about it, so be on your guard.”

  “Who’s up first?”

  “Tantrum, then Mikey, myself, our Captain, then Killmore, and lastly Bloodskull.”

  “We know Bloodskull’s got Havok,” Killmore said. “Did they tell us who the rest of us have been paired with?”

  “Not yet. We’ll be assembling at the base of the Tower as soon as the Gamelords patch us in, so I need you all to be at the top of your game tonight. Distance will be the deciding factor. Each of you needs to get as far as you can tonight to give Bloodskull all the edge she can get for the final run. Understood?”

  They nodded agreement. “Then come back in glory or upon your swords,” Trollbogies thundered. “Dreadknights forever!”

  The wait seemed to last forever, until finally the Hall of Dread dissolved around them. In seconds, they found themselves standing at the base of an imposing tower. A short drawbridge separated them from the front door.

  The chosen members of Doomsmack stood off to their right. Havok had his arms crossed over his massive ogrish chest. He looked as if he was about to say something when a bright red cardinal swooped down out of nowhere and materialized into a bearded wizard in red robes.

  Christine recognized the magus instantly. Everyone knew who Kryptos the Pretty Good was. Not only was he the most powerful wizard in all of Obsidius, veteran campaigners had learned that he was a foil for the Gamelords. He only showed up when your character ambled into one of the major events or plot points of the game.

  “Now if memory serves me, it should be right around –” Kryptos stopped up short at the sight of the two guilds. “Oh dear.” He straightened up somewhat and patted his robes down. “I hope I’m not interrupting. I take it you’re about to try your luck with the Tower of Perpetual Peril, hmm?”

  Trollbogies started to speak, but Havok cut his rival off. “You came at a good time. Doomsmack is about to show the good people of Obsidius how it’s done.”

  Kryptos raised his eyebrows. “Do tell?”

  “Not if the Dreadknights of Outland have anything to say about it,” Trollbogies said.

  “So this is a contest?”

  Havok scoffed. “Surely, such a one as Kryptos the Pretty Good has heard of Guild Wars.”

  Kryptos bowed his head. “Let’s dispense with the ruse. I’ve certainly heard of your little spitting contest. In fact, the Gamelords have sent me to ensure that all proceeds fairly.”

  “So you are their lackey,” Havok said.

  “Not quite,” Kryptos said. “I am sent because I was already coming to pay the Tower a visit. You see, someone has stolen something from me. Something that may hold the key to unraveling a mystery that has been plaguing the Magus Council for some time.”

  “How can the Dreadknights be of assistance?” Trollbogies asked.

  “Please,” Havok said, sneering. “If you really want help, you should be asking Doomsmack.”

  “Well, as it turns out, I can use all the help I can get,” Kryptos said with a wry grin. “The thief stole the ring of truth.”

  “You want us to go in there and look for a ring?” Havok asked.

  “The ring of truth,” Kryptos said. “And yes, that’s exactly what I want you to do. I realize the task seems impossible, but your efforts will not go unrewarded.”

  “What’s the prize?” Havok asked.

  “What would you like?”

  Havok didn’t even hesitate. “A nexus.”

  Kryptos studied him for a moment and then shrugged. He looked at Trollbogies. “That is a kingly prize. Its value to the right buyer…”

  Trollbogies stroked his trollish beard. “I think I might know someone in the market for such an item.” He winked at Havok for spite. “Of course, it’s gonna cost him.”

  “Then it is agreed,” Kryptos said. “The one who can bring me the ring of truth will receive the nexus.”

  “Any idea where this ring might be stashed?” Havok asked.

  “Our thief was a sarcogyps named Calvus,” Kryptos said.

  Christine made a face. Sarcogyps were a vile race of vulture men from the Razak desert.

  “The ring will not be far from him,” Kryptos continued. “And, yes, he’s still inside.”

  “How is that possible?” Trollbogies asked. Victims of the Tower were automatically teleported back outside.

  “We believe he has an aegis. It will keep him hidden so long as he does not move or make a sound. The Tower cannot kill what it cannot see.”

  “If the Tower can’t find him, how are we supposed to?” Havok asked, sounding very much like a whiney brat asking why he has to clean his room for his allowance.

  “The Tower doesn’t exactly see as we do,” Kryptos said. “It detects movement, life auras, that sort of thing. The aegis confounds the Tower’s sensory mechanisms so long as he does not give himself away. You simply have to find a means to make him give himself away.”

  “But I think Havok’s point is that the aegis will hide this thief from our sight as well,” Trollbogies said.

  “Yes, well, the aegis will do the best it can to conceal him, but given the fact that the Tower was probably trying to kill him, I’m rather hoping he called upon it in a hurry and there will be something that gives him away.” He shrugged. “Besides, it’s not like he can stay in there forever. And I’ll be here waiting for him when he comes out. I would simply prefer not to wait, so I’m willing to pay to expedite the process.”

  “Anyway, your primary concern right now should be this spitting contest you’ve assembled for, so just think of it as a bonus if you find Calvus in there. So then,” he said, slamming his staff into the ground, “here are the rules: No cheating of any sort. That includes transformations and resurrections.” He tapped Havok’s breastplate for emphasis and no one supposed it was on accident. “No magic, weapons or tools of any sort actually. There is a thirty second grace period at the start of each set during which you may not touch or impede your opponent in any way. Cheating of any sort will result in immediate disqualification of the one responsible and their progress will be thrown out.” He glanced at Havok. “That means you’ll be a run short if you’re caught cheating.”

  “It’s only right,” Havok said. He snickered at Christine.

  “While I do not doubt your considerable skills, I am invoking a piggyback rule to allow you to progress further into the Tower than you likely would separately,” Kryptos said.

  This announcement result in a bit of clapping and backslapping. Kryptos was basically allowing each runner to pick up where the last one left off.

  “It will also make it more obvious to the Gamelords and everyone else who the real victor is,” Kryptos said, “allowing us to avoid all of those post-Guild Wars accusations of foul play that we’ve all grown so weary of.” He looked at Christine this time. She flushed. How much did the Gamelords know?

  Kryptos turned toward the Tower of Perpetual Peril. “Speaking of which, I’m sure you’re tired of waiting. Guildmasters, are your teams ready?”

  “Bring the Doom!” Havok shouted.

  “Dreadknights forever!” Trollbogies’ roar sounded like an avalanche.

  Kryptos winced. “I’ll take that as a yes. The Gamelords have paired BRZRKR and Tantrum Bloodfire up first, so they can take their places at the edge of the drawbridge.”

  “Here goes nothing,” Tantrum said. Nodding a farewell to Trollbogies, she stepped up to the line. BRZRKR trotted up next to her, took a moment to stretch and
took his place to her left without so much as acknowledging her presence.

  “On my mark,” Kryptos said. “Ready? Go!”

  [Back to Table of Contents]

  26 – TOWER

  Tantrum and her foe took off across the wooden drawbridge, each sprinting as fast as they could. Thinking of the contest as a race turned out to be a mistake. Tantrum was forced to brake hard when a giant circular saw cut across the bridge in front of her. BRZRKR was ahead of her, so the first blade posed no danger to him, but then he had to stop short of the next saw blade to keep from being sawn in half. Unfortunately, he was between the two cut lines. As the cut out section fell, so did he. He ghosted out as he landed in the midst of the blades of a technomancer’s sawbridge trap below.

  Taking a deep breath, Tantrum leapt over the gap and kept running. She managed to dodge another circular saw as it shortened the span further. She tried to beat the next one but ghosted out when it caught her halfway.

  Two phantom lines, representing the progress Tantrum and BRZRKR had made, glowed atop the drawbridge. The Dreadknights were definitely in the lead, but nothing was certain. The drawbridge changed. It was whole again but now it was made of iron mesh. A moat of hot lava bubbled beneath it.

  “Next will be the ogress Flower versus the troll MikeMonkeyMike,” Kryptos said. “If you will take your places at the end of the drawbridge, you will be teleported to your team mate’s progress point. On my mark. Ready? Go!”

  As soon as they began running, Mikey and Flower were magically whisked away to the place their team mates had perished. Mikey was slower than the ogress – ogres were faster than trolls as a rule – but neither was Mikey rushing into things headlong. Instead, he was looking down through the iron mesh, watching the lava for signs of trouble. Flower laughed as she passed him. Seconds later, Mikey stopped cold. A jet of fire blasted up through the metal bridge, melting through the mesh. It would have incinerated him in mid-run if he hadn’t stopped.

  Flower wasn’t so lucky. She ghosted as a jet of flame burst through the drawbridge beneath her. Taking a deep breath, Mikey jogged forth, keeping a careful eye on the lava below. He avoid three more jets in this careful manner and soon he was past Flower’s ghost point and nearly at the front gate itself.

  A jet of fire erupted behind him with an audible roar. Mikey turned at the sound only to find himself staring into the face of an elemental fire snake. The creature of living flame began winding itself around the drawbridge, forming a circle of fire that began steadily gaining on Mikey. As the elemental monster continued its work, the metal bridge began glowing red. Mikey’s feet began smoking even through his boots. Christine wasn’t sure how he was managing to continue through the pain.

  Suddenly, everyone felt a chill. The whirlwind flames of orange and yellow the elemental had been creating turned white and blue. Snow began to fall. The elemental’s snake head transformed into the head and upper body of a beautiful woman made of ice.

  “That’s no fire elemental,” Trollbogies noted aloud, his voice filled with wonder. “That’s an elementus, an elemental wyrd.”

  MikeMonkeyMike dared breathe a sigh of relief as the bridge cooled and soothed his hot boots. He slipped and fell as the bridge began to ice up. Hearing rippling laughter, he turned to see that the elementus was reaching out for him with both hands, a smile on her perfect lips. She kissed him. Christine thought she saw a smile on Mikey’s trollish lips just before her kiss turned him into an ice statue. Stepping away from her victim, the elementus returned to her fire snake form. Mikey ghosted as he and the drawbridge melted away under her fervent heat. Still, he’d made it within a few steps of the main gates.

  “Hamm Phist and Master Trollbogies, you’re up next,” Kryptos said.

  “Think you can at least make it inside this run?” Havok asked with a sneer.

  Trollbogies looked toward the drawbridge. The elementus was gone. Instead of a drawbridge, there was an unadorned earthworks. The Dreadknights’ progress line was practically at the door. The Doomsmack line was much further back than that. Trollbogies scoffed. “Think you Dooms can?”

  “Just in case either party make sit inside,” Kryptos said, pointing his staff in the air, “I think we should all like to see your progress.” With a word of magic, he caused a hologram to appear in the air, showing Trollbogies and Hamm Phist at the starting line. “That’s better. Now as before, on my mark. Ready? Go!”

  Trollbogies teleported to Mikey’s terminus and reached the gate within two trollish steps. He was forced to somersault forward to avoid a crashing portcullis. On the holoscreen, Christine could see that he had three choices: go up the spiral staircase or head into one of two rooms, one directly ahead and the other to his left. He hesitated for a second and then ran for the stairs. A few seconds after he got started, a section of the ceiling fell and littered the place where he’d hesitated. Apparently, the Tower didn’t like it when folks mulled things over too long.

  Halfway up, the stairs retracted and formed a slide. Trollbogies tried to stop himself, but he ended up tumbling and sliding to the bottom. A loud bang brought his attention back to the closed portcullis. Hamm Phist was ramming it with all his ogrish strength. Judging from the dust he was stirring up, he’d be inside in no time. Trollbogies headed through the door on the left.

  It opened onto a slim ledge. Trollbogies had to really make an effort not to fall. The door slammed shut and locked behind him. With the door at his back, he could see brackish water below and a few hanging vines just out of reach. It was obvious that he needed to grab the vines and swing across to the other side.

  Just as he was about to leap for the nearest one, Hamm Phist burst through the door, knocking Trollbogies into the water. Apparently, the door was only locked from one side. Trollbogies rapidly disintegrated into bones and ghosted. Whatever the “water” was, it was magically toxic. Hamm Phist was unable to recover his own balance after the collision. He too ghosted when he hit the water.

  “Now that is surprising,” Kryptos said. “Halfway through and you’re at a draw. This spitting contest of yours is certainly going to be close.”

  On the holoscreen floating above their heads, the room the latest contestants had perished in transformed itself into a kitchen.

  “I need Average Savage and Captain Belch Hammerhands,” Kryptos said. “Since you will be in close quarters, I will remind both parties that you are not even permitted to touch until the grace period is up.”

  Moments later, both competitors materialized in the kitchen. The ogres exchanged a wary glance and then began a frantic search for weapons. In short order, Belch Hammerhands was armed with a cleaver. Additionally, he’d picked up a heavy cauldron to use as a bludgeon. Average Savage had picked up a handful of knives. For a moment, it looked like they were just going to wait around and fight it out.

  Then the oven door opened with an unnerving creak. A tentacle unfurled. Then another. Then several more. Both competitors backed up as far as the kitchen walls would allow. An eyeball on a long stalk emerged from the oven to peer at them. Neither ogre dared to move.

  After what seemed like forever, the tentacles and the eyestalk receded back into the oven.

  “The grace period is up,” Kryptos noted to no one in particular.

  Average Savage breathed a sigh of relief. From the ugly leer that darkened his face, Christine guessed he too realized the grace period was over. Without warning, he raised a fistful of knives, intending to throw them at Captain Hammerhands. The Dreadknight’s attention was still focused on the oven door, which had not quite closed completely.

  Seconds later, a handful of Average Savage’s knives were sticking out of Hammerhands’ chest. He stared down at the weapons with an expression of surprise and confusion that was almost funny. Then he toppled heavily – and loudly – to the floor.

  At the sound, tentacles flooded out of the oven, the cabinets and drawers and even the kitchen sink. They grabbed both ogres and pulled them into the darkness. Th
ey both ghosted.

  Kryptos sighed. “No progress, I’m afraid. Maybe Captain Howler and Killmore will fare better.”

  The kitchen vanished. Captain Howler and Killmore materialized in a wide square chamber that seemed to stretch upwards for eternity. A long pendulum hung in the center of the room. It began swaying back and forth, increasing its momentum with every pass over their heads. High above them, they could hear machinery cranking. Chains also hung down near the pendulum.

  A bell tolled. The tiled floor at the edges of the room began to fall away, revealing nothing but the cold grip of celestial space beyond. Instinctively, each competitor ran for a chain and began climbing. Seconds later, the entire floor was gone.

  Until the grace period was up, there was nothing but the climb. Both ogres knew that the advantage lay with being above the other. Hand over hand, the ogres climbed. Honestly, both Killmore and Captain Howler were strong, even as ogres went. Neither broke a sweat as they steadily made progress.

  They were almost at the top when the grace period ended. Killmore reached the end of his chain first. His chain was actually the tongue of an iron gargoyle sitting on the edge of the top level. He almost lost his grip when it took a swipe at him. Taking the offensive, he grabbed the creature’s lower jaw by the teeth and jerked it forward before it could bite his hand off. The gargoyle toppled over the edge into oblivion below. Killmore hauled himself up and took stock of the situation. He was in a large room full of gears. One wall made of stained glass and the light shining through it revealed the opposite face of a giant clock. It appeared that the Tower of Perpetual Peril was now a clock tower.

  Captain Howler managed to overcome his own iron gargoyle. He beat his oversized chest with one massive ogrish fist. “Killmore!” he shouted. “Behold! Your Doom awaits!”

  Killmore scoffed. He’d spotted a door. Unfortunately, it was only accessible via a gauntlet of giant moving gears and oversized cams.

  “What are you waiting for?” Howler asked. “Are you a coward?”

  “I think you’d better keep that talk to the kid’s table where you belong,” Killmore said.

  “Such boasting! But is the mighty Killmore all talk and no action? I could beat you with one hand tied behind my back.” Indeed Christine saw that he did have one hand behind his back. What Killmore couldn’t see from his angle was that the Doom was holding a plate-sized gear in his hidden hand. He wanted Killmore to come in close so he could bludgeon him over the head with it. And there was no way she could warn him!

  Killmore started walking toward the beginning of the gauntlet of gears. “My record speaks for itself,” he said. “Now if you’ll excuse me, the grownups have things to do.”

  “Face me, you coward!” Howler yelled.

  Killmore hesitated. At first, Christine thought he was going to take the bait. Then she saw what had arrested his attention. A black feather.

  It didn’t take Christine long to make the connection. The sarcogyps was nearby!

  Captain Howler saw it too. “Oh no you don’t!” he yelled. He tossed the gear like a discus thrower. It sailed across the room. It certainly would have smashed Killmore’s head in like a melon – if Killmore hadn’t caught it in one hand.

  Killmore cast the gear aside with obvious contempt. Howler ran at him, hoping to shove him into the gauntlet of gears. Killmore stepped aside at the last second. Caught in the mechanism, Howler ghosted away.

  Peering about carefully, Killmore spotted another black feather. He must’ve seen something else that convinced him the vulture-man was near because he quickened his pace and climbed atop a gear that brought him upward. He leapt off onto a maintenance catwalk.

  As he moved forward to seize his as-yet-unseen prize, the gears and other machinery below began rapidly assembling themselves into a man-shape mechanical giant. The gearbot had big feet and oversized fists. It also had a mouth full of grinding gears. It swatted Killmore off the catwalk with ease. He almost bounced and slid off the level entirely into the oblivion below.

  It ran at Killmore. It raised a metal foot to stomp him at the last second. He rolled out of the way and dashed for the doorway he’d seen. The only good thing about the appearance of the clockbot was that it was made of the very gears which once posed an obstruction to that doorway.

  Seeing its prize get away, the gearbot shot three gears at Killmore in quick succession. He managed to avoid each one with a skill Christine hadn’t known he possessed. Giving the gearbot a jaunty salute, Killmore stepped through the door.

  Perversely, the door led right back into the clock tower room. Before he could recover from his confusion, the clockbot lifted an enormous foot which ghosted Killmore when it came down.

  “Well, that was exciting!” Kryptos said. “I would be remiss if I didn’t point out that there was some sign of our thief in that room. Will he still be there when the room changes I wonder?” He glanced at Havok and Bloodskull. “And so it comes down to you two. Master Havok Hurtlocker will face off against Ogress Bloodskull. Are you ready?”

  Bloodskull nodded.

  “Bring the Doom!” Havok shouted.

  “Good then,” Kryptos said. “In that case, it being the final round and all, what say we dispense with the grace period altogether? On my mark. Ready? Go!”

  [Back to Table of Contents]

  27 – HURTLOCKER

  Christine tried not to panic as she felt herself being teleported to the end of Killmore’s progress line. The room had changed again. The walls had reshaped themselves until she was in a narrow corridor. The doorway which had confounded Killmore was in front of her. Quickly, she entered it.

  It dumped her back in the corridor. What was the trick here? How could she get past this?

  She tried again with the same results. She searched the door for some clue as to how to gain entrance. All she saw was a fish-shaped glyph near the top. She had no idea what it meant. Growling in frustration, she realized she was going to have to give up on it and find another way out. She crept down the corridor until she came to an intersection. She peered around carefully. There was no sign of Havok. Just a long rows of doors.

  She peered behind her to make sure Havok wasn’t on her trail and saw that the hallway she’d come from was also lined with doors that hadn’t been there before. What new devilry was this?

  One of the doors ahead opened a crack. Remembering the kitchen, she watched the door warily. As she watched, a tiny imp, no more than a few inches tall, walked out of the door. It was followed by several more. They crossed the hall to the opposite side and formed a living ladder to reach the doorknob. After opening the door, they slipped inside and shut it.

  She heard a cawing sound coming from the corridor to the right. Shaking her head at the nebulous doings of imps, she slipped quietly into the corridor in the direction of the bird noises.

  Halfway down the hall, a door opened just in front of her. She froze. As before, an imp opened the door and led its fellows to another door. When they opened the door this time, a monstrous eye was staring at them from the other side. Screeching in panic, they slammed the door. More doors began opening. The imps looked noticeably terrified. Suddenly, a dragon-sized skeletal claw reached through a door and snatched an imp. As they fled up the corridor, another skeletal talon claimed its victim. And then another. And so on, until all the imps were gone.

  Bloodskull stood staring at the empty hallway in horror until she heard a creaking sound. She turned to see a giant eyeball staring at her from an open door.

  “Edger’s abyss!” she muttered. Slamming the door shut, she ran down the corridor, hoping to get away from these infernal doors. A door began opening to her right. She put her shoulder into it, shutting it again with prejudice. She made progress in this manner, barreling into doorways to her left and right to keep them shut as she passed.

  At long last she reached the end of the hallway.

  She found herself in a den or living room of some sort. Animal heads and portraits littered t
he walls. Some of the heads weren’t animals at all; there was an orc, an owlbear and a minotaur head mounted on the wall alongside the other trophies.

  Havok Hurtlocker sat in a tall backed chair by the fire. He grinned at her and motioned for her to sit in a chair across from him near the roaring fireplace. Slowly and cautiously, she came to stand across from him. The fact that he wasn’t speaking was really bothering her.

  Havok motioned for her to sit down again.

  “No thanks,” she said. “I’ll stand if it’s all the same to you. I really don’t like you.”

  There was a metallic ringing sound.

  Havok stood up, crossed his arms across his chest and transformed himself into Bloodskull. She took a step back. There was no way Havok was cheating with Kryptos watching. This had to be a doppelgänger. If it had taken Havok’s form, it must’ve already encountered him, but where was he?

  She backed up to give herself some more room. It walked toward her slowly, forcing her to retreat until her back was against the wall.

  She steeled herself for its attack. Just when she thought she was going to have to fight herself, a halberd came descending out of seemingly nowhere to separate the doppelgänger’s head from its body. Havok raised the halberd again and looked at her coldly.

  “Um, thanks?” she said.

  He scoffed. “Don’t thank me yet. I just got the wrong one.”

  She heard the ringing sound again.

  “Now hold still,” Havok said.

  He brought the halberd down swiftly. To her surprise, he apparently wasn’t aiming for her. The owlbear trophy head to her right fairly tripped over itself to dive out of the way. As it moved, it stopped being an owlbear head, wooden plaque and part of a wall. Instead, a very terrified sarcogyps began taking shape as the aegis’ magic was undone.

  Havoc took another swing at the vulture-man thief. Bloodskull plowed into him, knowing she couldn’t let him get the kill – and the prize. She’d been thinking about it and it was obvious that if she got her hands on this nexus Havok so highly prized she might be able to use it as leverage to convince him to leave her alone.

  Both ogres struggled to get to their feet. The ogress was quicker. She kicked Havok in the face for good measure and then took off down the hall after Calvus.

  She caught up to him quickly. Having nowhere else to go, he tried opening one of the hallway doors. He screamed as a giant set of jaws roared at him from the other side. She grabbed him and slammed the door shut.

  “Give me the ring of truth!” she shouted.

  “How do you know about that?” Calvus asked.

  “That doesn’t matter right now,” Bloodskull said. “What matters is that the big thug with the halberd wants it too and he’s willing to kill you for it.” She heard the ringing sound again.

  As if to accent her point, Havok came charging up the hallway. He was momentarily impeded when a skeletal talon burst out of a door and tried to grab him. He brought his halberd down on the monster’s wrist, shattering the bone to pieces.

  “Save me!” Calvus wailed.

  “Give me the ring of truth!”

  “Say it! Say you’ll save me!”

  “Fine! If you give me the ring, I will do my best to save you!”

  She heard the ringing sound. Nodding, he put his hand inside his coat and pulled out a silver ring on the end of a necklace. He thrust it into her hands. “Now get me out of here!”

  Wordlessly, she grabbed the sarcogyps in one hand and ran away from Havok as fast as she could. Her luck ran out when she rounded an intersection and found herself staring at a door. She instantly recognized it as the reversing door.

  She started to go back but the vulture-man slipped from her grip. “This way!” he said, heading for the devious door.

  “That’s not the way out!” she yelled. “It’s a trick.”

  “Only to those who don’t know how it works,” Calvus said. “Any thief worth his salt knows how to pass through a red herring.”

  “A what?”

  “The door is marked with a glyph. The red herring. Means it’s a reversing door.”

  Still weaponless, she had no choice but to trust him.

  By the time they reached the door, Havok had them blocked in. He laughed. “Fools! You can’t get out that way.”

  “I’m not going down without a fight,” Bloodskull promised. She felt the ring vibrate as it rang out again. Her eyes narrowed. So was the ring of truth like a lie detector of some sort?

  “By all means,” Havok said, stalking toward her. “It won’t be as much fun otherwise.”

  “I expected more, you know.”

  He stopped.

  “I could say the same about you. Didn’t you get within the top five floors the last time you ran the Tower?”

  “Let me ask you something, Havok: Do you seriously think no one’s ever going to find out that you hacked me?”

  “I never did any such thing.”

  “Or that you hacked Jack Nabbit?”

  He scoffed. “I don’t have any idea what you’re talking about.”

  “He’s lying,” Calvus hissed. “The ring will not speak for him.”

  “I know,” Bloodskull said.

  “You promised to save me, but it appears I must save you,” the vulture-man said. “Just do what I do.”

  Calvus turned to face Havok, waved goodbye and stepped through the door backwards. Bloodskull waited, expecting him to reappear. She and Havok exchanged a glance. Bloodskull stepped backwards through the door.

  She found herself in another room. Calvus was already across the room at another door. “Where now?” she asked him.

  He shook his head. “I’ve never been in this one.”

  “Don’t just stand there. He’s coming!”

  Calvus hesitated and tapped a scratch on the door. “But there’s a water glyph.”

  “Do you see any other doors?” she pointed out. “Move!”

  The sarcogyps opened the door and a wall of water washed him back into the room. Bloodskull braced herself against the coming wave. Havok came through the door while she thus distracted. The last thing she saw before she ghosted was his leer in the reflection of the halberd.

  Bloodskull found herself in the Hall of Dread. She looked to each face, expecting to see only disappointment, anger and despair. Instead, she saw hope, confusion and tentative smiles.

  Trollbogies clapped her on the back. “You did it!” he said.

  “I don’t understand,” Bloodskull said. “I thought we just lost.”

  “We did lose,” Killmore said. “Guild Wars is over.”

  “Then?”

  “I convinced the Gamelords to investigate Havok,” Trollbogies said. “That’s what that whole bit with the ring of truth was about. They caught your little session with him in the Tower. They know he was lying about hacking you and Jack Nabbit.”

  “Does that mean Doomsmack is disqualified?”

  “I don’t know,” Trollbogies admitted. “All I know is that they’ve told me to stand by and await further instructions.”

  [Back to Table of Contents]

  28 – FAREWELL TO IMPWORLD

  The view from Seneschal Tower was amazing. The sprawling city was laid out before her like a map. The Everwylde River cut through it like a ribbon and then cascaded into the Sea of Gabriel. The skies were filled with many-sailed merchant vessels and fantastical hot air balloons heading to and from the city’s Sky Docks. Piloted by elite war wizards, the Seven Shields flew lazily over the fabled city of Cabon Gabrielle as they guarded her from all harm. The Shields had never failed. Christine had always promised herself she’d come here for real when the Dreadknights won the Guild Wars.

  “Unless you’re planning on doing that head-first, you’re going to need to find someplace higher,” a voice said.

  “What?” She turned and saw Kryptos the Pretty Good staring at her, shaking his head.

  “You’re an ogre. You think a little tumble like that would be eno
ugh? Oh, you’d make a decent-sized hole…”

  “I wasn’t –”

  “Really? Even after the week you’ve been having?”

  “I didn’t do anything wrong,” she said.

  “Indeed, you did not,” Kryptos said. “The Gamelords have received affidavits from Eddie Mondo, various members of your guild, Baldur Splintershield – a fascinating character witness, I must admit… I even had an Agent send me proof of your innocence!” He shook his head and sighed. “Furthermore, while Havok did not outright admit he was responsible for this mess, you did get him to perjure himself to the contrary in the Tower, so we cannot ignore that.”

  “What are you going to do?”

  “The Gamelords have decided that the Dreadknights are going to Tarak.”

  Bloodskull could hardly believe her ears. “That’s great!”

  “It’s good news for you Dreads at any rate,” Kryptos said. “The Gamelords have also decided to let Doomsmack come as well.”

  “What?! How can you do that? He cheated!”

  “Quite probably. He certainly couldn’t pass a lie detector; however, we have no solid evidence. Whatever he did, Havok was careful to cover his tracks. If we deny him his prize, he will just tie us up in the courts.”

  “That’s not fair,” Bloodskull said.

  Kryptos scoffed. “Whoever said the Gamelords were interested in what’s fair?” He grinned mirthlessly. “Make no mistake, young lady: you Dreadknights haven’t done the Gamelords any favors here. What they had before your guildmaster pushed the issue was blissful ignorance and plausible deniability.” He shook his head. “While I believe you were a victim in this game, the fact remains that you aren’t the first to be treated like this and you won’t be the last. People are cheating and hacking and manipulating each other any way they can to get to Tarak’s brave new world. You want to talk about fair? Thanks to some of that behind the scenes shenanigans I mentioned, the Gamelords now have to tell a player they’ve already given the nod to that they have to… revise his invitation a bit. Meanwhile they assure me that their offices have been flooded with Vs to the effect that Jarrod Seventhborn should’ve had a Melborp’s Multipass into the live game.” He made a sour face. “In the interests of fairness, mind you.”

  “Then why?” She hesitated, fearing that if she finished the complete question, she’d push her luck too far.

  “Why what? Why do the Gamelords let the Dreadknights go to Tarak if they’re not interested in fairness?” He smirked. “Because they are interested in ratings, and having the Dooms and the Dreads together on Tarak will make the fans go insane.”

  He turned to go.

  “Wait! Can I ask you a question?”

  He hesitated.

  “Look, I know the Gamelords don’t owe me anything but I have to try: my aunt game-died during the Colonial Trials and –”

  He waved his hand dismissively. “That’s between you and the Gamelords; however, as I understand it, your Player contract allows you to bring family as guests. She can sign a Colonial contract the moment she arrives if she so desires. Or not. It’s really none of my business. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I really must go.”

  With that Kryptos transformed himself into a cardinal and flew away.

  Bloodskull watched the bird’s progress until she lost track of him with distance. She was about to log out and contact Trollbogies with the good news when she felt a presence behind her.

  “Relax,” a black-bearded mohawked dwarf said. “It’s just me.”

  “Baldur Splintershield,” she said. “What brings you here?”

  He stroked his braided mustaches. “I got wind that the Dreads might be back in it and I, um, came to tell you the good news. I didn’t expect the Gamelords to deliver it to you personally,” Baldur said.

  She frowned. “Come to think of it, that was odd. You’d think they’d tell Trollbogies first, right?”

  “Well, congratulations anyway. You Dreads deserve it as far as I’m concerned.”

  She nodded. She felt awkward around Davis’ brother. Did he even know what happened yet?

  As if hearing her thoughts, he looked at his feet and said, “So I heard about Drackenwold.”

  She sighed. “I’m sorry about Davis,” she said.

  “Don’t be. He told me all the time that he would gladly die for those people. You’ve been down there. You know what it’s like. The Colonists… well, they ain’t getting a fair shake.”

  “You sound like my mom.”

  “She sounds like a smart lady.”

  “Thanks,” she said, “and thanks for all that back in the Hall of Dread.”

  “I figured Davis would want me to do something, all things considered,” he said, “and I don’t really like Havok that much anyway. Speaking of which, I heard they let you keep the nexus. You need to be careful with that thing. A nexus is a pretty valuable commodity to the right buyer.”

  She raised an eyebrow. “I don’t suppose you know a buyer?”

  “We both know a buyer.”

  “I’m not selling to Havok Hurtlocker.”

  “I wouldn’t expect you to,” Baldur said, “any more than I would expect him to actually buy it. But mark my words: now that he knows you have it, he won’t rest until it’s his.”

  “I’ll be ready for him,” she said.

  “Well, I don’t do this often, but if you need any help, Baldur Splintershield is at your service.”

  “Um, thanks,” she said, blushing slightly, “but I wasn’t planning on putting a hit out on him.”

  “Of course not, but the offer stands if you change your mind.” Glancing at her, he returned his attention back to the view.

  She nodded, not sure what else to say.

  He looked at her again and started to walk off. He stopped again. “One last thing. Did you love him?”

  She nodded. “Yes. Very much.”

  He smiled. “He’ll be glad to hear that.”

  Before she could say anything, he stepped off the tower. A wyvern swooped in and caught him on the way down, just like she’d seen him do on the livecasts.

  ~ Ø ~

  Later that night, Christine discovered a V that stood out from all the fan mail. The sender was a Mr. Improbable. It simply said, “Gone. Not dead.”

  Christine went to sleep, dreaming of Otherworld and Davis.