After killing Damien, I gave Icalia one of my [Good Enough Health Potions] and topped off her health. I was annoyed that Jailen was gone - his quicksand had been incredibly valuable in dealing with both the players and the mobs.

But I guess it served me right. If I had just stayed in my little corner of the trenches and focused on the mobs, this event would have likely been a piece of cake.

As it was now, I was concerned about the possibility of Git and the other players respawning to harass us during a wave. So, even though there was only about ten seconds until the next wave timer, Icalia and I agreed to find a different position.

She dropped her firewall, and we left the clearing, sprinting back the way we had originally come. We would never make it back to our first position, but we had run through plenty of defensible positions on our way here, and we beelined for the closest one.

I briefly entertained the idea of just trying to hold out in one of the trenches. The narrow path would force the hyena mobs to come one or two a time, and I could farm them at that pace forever. But I expected more of the centaur elites, and those would make defending the trench nearly impossible. While they benefited from the narrow trench system with their lance, I had the advantage in an open space, because I could get into their blindspot like I’d done with the first elite.

But as the next wave started, the sounds immediately indicated that this was a different composition of mobs.

We made it the next defensible position before the wave was on us, but the uncertainty of the new sound made me question everything. Was the next wave a mix of different mob types? Would there be more than one elite at a time? Why did this wave sound so different?

With no information, I decided to stick with the original plan. Icalia posted up at one trench, her firewall filling it as she had been doing before. I had her place it slightly further into the trench, giving her enough space to squeeze in, the walls of the trench covering her flanks. On my end, I’d have to make sure no mobs broke through, or she’d be a sitting duck.

We waited in silence, the blood-red moon above giving off that ever-present light, casting everything in scarlet.

When the sounds of the incoming wave neared, it sounded to me like the marching of feet. It was much less loud than the hyena waves, or even the pounding hooves of the elites, but the steadiness of it filled me with foreboding. Were we about to face rank-and-file soldiers marching in tandem?

When I got the first glimpse of the third wave in the scarlet light, I realized I wasn’t too far off.

In front of me were two lines of soldiers, swords and shields glinting in the moonlight. They marched in perfect step in sharp contrast to the chaotic nature of the hyena waves. They weren’t human, I realized, but some sort of orc-type creature, reminiscent of Lord of the Rings.

As they noticed me, they began banging their swords against their shields in unison, the sound echoing across the entire trench system. I watched them approach, my feet set, my poleaxe slick in my hands.

Before they were in range, I sent Icalia a quick message:

RayGun47: You good?

Icalia: They stopped. They won’t go into the fire. I can come assist if you need?

RayGun47: Negative. Be ready for any surprises. Ping me if anything changes.

Icalia: Will do.

The orc things were mere feet away now, and I was able to examine them.

Name: [Feral Mountain Orc of the Scarlet Horde]

Level: 45

Health Points: 375/375

I noted they had three times as much health as the hyena mobs, and were a few levels higher. I hoped that I could still tear through them like I had the others.

Before they could get in range, I stepped forward, thrusting my poleaxe hard at one of the orcs in the front. He brought his shield up in a quick response. My weapon smashed against the shield, the force slamming him backwards into the orcs behind him. They managed to hold him upright with their shields, but the ripple effect of the blow passed through the entire wave. I noted the combat text that briefly flashed above the orc’s head:

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

You did 205(355 blocked) damage to [Feral Mountain Orc of the Scarlet Horde].

“No fucking way,” I said out loud.

The line of orcs had been thrown out of position by the strike, but continued their march forward after a moment of recovery.

Shit! I shouldn’t have stopped.

I pulled my weapon back and swung in an arc this time, trying to cleave through the other orc’s head. He also managed to block the attack, but the angle was awkward for him, and he was shoved sideways into the backlines. I didn’t relent this time, reversing my swing and knocking the first orc completely to the ground through his shield. That was enough to zero out his health, but his companions just marched right over his corpse.

It went on like this for minutes - me banging away at their shields, disrupting their formation, and ultimately killing those in the front after a couple swings, or a lucky blow. But it was hard work, and my stamina was noticeably draining for the first time.

I cast [Freezing Wave] to buy myself a few moments. The wave of ice exploded out from me in a ring, but unfortunately, only a small cone of the skill hit the orcs. The ice smashed into their ankles and they struggled in place as their fellows shoved them from behind.

I mentally typed out a message to Icalia:

RayGun47: These guys are tough! If your side is stable, come fire storm these guys!

Icalia: On my way.

A moment later, she was at my shoulder, the distinctive flames of her [Eye of the Fire Storm] ramping up around her. When it was nearly cast, I backed away, giving her space to run forward. The edge of her skill clipped me, but engulfed the orcs. I backed away out of range, my health only down a couple percent. The orcs, on the other hand, immediately caught on fire, and a terrible knell rose from the frontline. The combat indicators that I usually ignored were flashing as Icalia’s skill embroiled the mobs.

Critical hit!

Critical hit!

Critical hit!

The realization hit me right away - the orcs were weak to fire! That’s why they avoided her firewall entirely.

The lines of orcs fell like wheat before the scythe, and the formation broke apart completely as those in front tried to scramble back from the fire storm.

When the spell died, there were over a hundred barbecued orcs before us, and the rest were fleeing in terror.

I turned to Icalia with a pleased grin. “Hmm, that worked well.”

She grunted agreement, then nodded in the direction of the fleeing orcs. “Wanna chase them down?”

I checked the event timer and bonus objective.

Bonus Objective: 802/1000

50 minutes remaining.

“Naw, we’re pretty well on schedule, and I’m assuming there’s one or two more surprises coming this wave,” I said. “Why don’t we chill out for a minute. You can recover your mana and I’ll let my stamina build back up.”

She nodded and immediately crouched against the mud wall of the trench, closing her eyes. I lingered a moment, wanting to talk, but feeling uncomfortable breaking the ice. I shifted back and forth - torn between sitting down next to her, or across from her - when she opened one eye, a small smile on her face.

“Something on your mind?” she asked, closing her eye again.

Well, I guess that was the invitation I hadn’t realized I’d been waiting for. I moved to crouch in the mud next to her, our shoulders briefly grazing before I shifted to give her more room.

“Well, I mean-” I started, but stopped, feeling uncomfortable. Man, I was bad at small talk. “Um, it wasn’t anything important, just idle curiosity…”

She opened her eyes and looked at me, her expression masked. “Yes…?”

I looked away, trying to find a way to formulate the question on my mind without sounding pushy. “Jailen-That is, you and Jailen, umm…you seem like you guys know each other,” I said, afraid to look at her and see anger at the invasion of privacy. I awkwardly examined the trench walls around me, waiting for a curt reply, or something about her personal life being off limits. Instead, she said nothing, and I risked a glance at her.

She had an amused smirk on her face, and I felt myself blush.

“Sorry! I shouldn’t have brought it up. I’ll just shut up now,” I said hurriedly.

She barked a short laugh, then seemed to realize she had just laughed at her client, and locked her expression down - though I could see the mirth in her eyes. “It’s not something we generally talk about with clients,” she said. “But yes, since I’ve already broken character more than once, there’s no harm in telling you that we’re married.”

My eyes went wide, and I almost called bullshit before clamping my mouth shut. “What? How is that possible?” I asked. “Aren’t the assignments randomized?”

She shrugged. “The more specialized your role, the more they try to keep you in a position you’re familiar with. My husband and I are both top-tier mercenary actors…” She looked away, biting her lip. “And, I may or may not, be a shift supervisor.”

My eyebrows raised in surprise. “Ohhh, Icalia! How scandalous!”

She immediately jumped to her feet, pacing away from me. “Dammit, I never should have told you that! I know better!” she said. “Stupid, stupid, stupid,” she added under her breath.

I got up from my crouch, concerned at her reaction. “Hey,” I said, “I know we don’t really know each other, but I would never do anything to hurt a fellow actor or actress’ employment.” Her back was to me, so I moved around to face her. “What’s a wee bit of nepotism in this world, anyway?” I asked with a smirk.

She searched my face for a moment, then sighed - in relief or disappointment with herself, I couldn’t say. “You seem like a good person, Ray, but I should know better. And if you really are a damsel NPC that’s gone off the rails, they might hold anyone that interacts with you suspect…” She trailed off, an ashamed look on her face.

Ahh, I hadn’t thought of that. If the higher ups used my situation to punish Jailen and Icalia, I would feel like absolute shit.

“I’m sorry I pushed,” I said, trying to console her. “I shouldn’t have-”

“You didn’t push,” she said with a shake of her head. “I let my guard down with you because…” She looked me in the eye now, a determination there that struck me. “Because I sympathize with you. When I read that article, I knew it was bullshit right away. They were railroading you, and it pissed me off!”

Before I could respond, the sound of heavy hooves echoed across the trench.