“Lighter Shade? Where did you hear that name?”
Lightforge was, for once, not sitting in his shop. Instead he was sitting in a park, enjoying an afternoon picnic with his friends. The team from the dungeon mission was all there, with other acquaintances popping in and out through the afternoon.
It was a good chance to relax and get away from the stresses of their day to day lives. But such ease couldn’t last forever, and the conversation had eventually turned to the matters of heroes and villains. Lightforge had asked if any of them had heard of the alliance Lighter Shade, much to Circe’s surprise.
He shrugged in response and grabbed a piece of fruit that Gray Guardian had brought.
“I had a visitor the other day from that Alliance. High level, too.”
“By what scale?”
“You tell me, she was level 41.”
The reactions from the group were an interesting sight. Sunbird and Gray Guardian whistled softly, clearly impressed at the high number. Cannoneer looked unsettled at the revelation, and Circe just looked thoughtful. She closed her eyes and considered for a few moments.
“Hmm, that is pretty strong. Was it a muscly woman with super speed? Not big on talking?”
“Yeah, sounds like her. You know her?”
“Just by reputation. Actually, more like by rumor. She’s pretty high up in Lighter Shade.”
“And I take it that’s a big deal?”
Cannoneer was the one to answer this time. He gave the gadgeteer a longsuffering look and said, “Yes, it is. They’re one of the top five or six alliances in the city. And as far as I know they’re the strongest neutral alliance of all. They mostly work as go-betweens when high level heroes and villains have to negotiate.”
Lightforge under his breath. It made sense; being a neutral intermediary was exactly what Gale Force had done at his shop. Having some backing from a group like that would be huge. Then a new thought occurred to him.
“What about Shattered Chains and the Protection Agency? They were more on the level for this area.”
Cannoneer nodded and said, “I’ve heard of the Protection Agency. They’re supposed to be arrogant little [BLEEPS]. They like to think of themselves as the leaders of this whole section of the city.”
“And yet, I’ve never heard of them.”
“Well, I did say that they’re arrogant. And I think I’ve heard of the villain alliance, but I don’t know any details.”
All eyes turned back to Circe, but she simply shrugged and said, “Sorry, I’ve got nothing to add. While I love schemes and secrets, I find politics tedious.”
The mood deflated a little bit at that, but it didn’t take long to be brushed off. After all, they were taking the afternoon to relax for once. For a time they returned to idle chit chat, though work related things would come up from time to time.
At one point Gray Guardian asked, “Hey, Lightforge. What did you want to talk to me about the other day?”
“Huh? Oh, right! I almost forgot about that. You remember that XP item you let me borrow? I was wondering if you would let me give it to a customer of mine.”
“What?! You didn’t, did you?”
“No, of course not. I hadn’t asked you yet.”
“Ok, but why did you even want to? You know how valuable that is, right?”
“Of course I do. I just feel really bad for her. She’s only level 2, and she was trapped in her base by a gang that kept killing her.”
The alarm that had pervaded the healer’s body language eased as Lightforge explained the situation. While it wasn’t exactly common, it was a story that they’d all heard rumors of. In fact, it was probably one of the most paranoia-inducing possibilities in their world. While he wouldn’t admit it out loud, Lightforge had had nightmares about it happening to him, and he suspected that he wasn’t the only one.
Gray Guardian nodded and said, “Yeah, I guess I can understand that. If it’s for a cause like that–”
“Hey,” Cannoneer said, “Mind if I add my perspective on this?”
“Uh, sure?” Lightforge said.
“Thanks. I admire what you’re trying to do here, Lightforge, I really do. But I think that you’ve done enough for that woman.”
“You didn’t see her, Cannoneer. She was chased all the way to my door.”
“I know. But you already gave her a set of free gear, right? From your description, really good gear. She successfully escaped and has probably found a safer place to put her base. The next group of newbies is due to arrive in about nine days. There will be plenty of opportunities for her to level up on her own.”
“But she’s already so far behind, it makes me feel bad for her.”
“Behind? You just had someone above level 40 show up at your shop, and you’ve been here for more than six weeks. We’re all behind.”
“Alright, I guess you might have a point.”
“I’m not done yet. From your description, she has a solid set of combat powers. With a little time and training, she’ll be progressing just fine. But Gray? They’re a healer with almost no combat ability. An XP potion at the right time is huge for them.”
The more the weapon specialist spoke, the more Lightforge wanted to turn and walk away. He was right, and the gadgeteer hadn’t thought things through as thoroughly as he’d thought. It was a bad plan all around, and there was nothing to protect him from the embarrassment, though he tried.
“Ok, enough! How are things going with you and Sunbird, by the way?”
Sunbird snorted from where she was, lying in the grass enjoying the sunshine. Actually she was hovering just above the grass because it made her itch. She didn’t even bother to look up before responding.
“Nice try, builder boy. We’re hot, it’s epic, moving on. Back to you wanting to rob our dear healer blind.”
They all chuckled at his expense, though a slight redness to Cannoneer’s cheeks gave away his actual opinion on sharing such matters with the group. That was soon washed away as they settled back into their comfortable chatting and occasional barb at one another.
----------------------------------------
Their picnic was ending when Circe took on a thoughtful expression and bit her lip. Seeing how she was never reticent to share her opinion, Lightforge immediately assumed it to be an act. He watched with fascination as she visibly struggled for a few moments before finally coming to a decision.
She took a deep breath and said, “I think we might all be taking Lightforge’s situation a little lightly.”
“Huh? What are you talking about?”
“It turned out pretty well last time, but you’ve attracted the attention of people way above your level. That’s dangerous.”
This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.
“She was literally there to keep things peaceful. But I get what you mean. If people like that are watching, then I need to be careful. And I will be.”
“This is what I’m talking about. Do you even realize just how powerful the people at the top are?”
Lightforge gave her a flat look and rolled his eyes.
“Of course I do. They’re like 40 or 50 levels above me. I played this back when it was a game, remember?”
Circe put her head in her hands and groaned quietly to herself. This lasted for a full thirty seconds before she finally looked up and spoke again.
“That’s what I thought. You know the numbers and you’ve seen it on a screen. That’s not enough.”
“Really? And what would you suggest?”
“I keep my ear to the ground for rumors and information. I have a lead on a big fight that’s going to go down in a few days.”
“What, more battles around here?”
“No. One of the truly big time villains is planning to rob a bank. They’re calling out the Heroes.”
“And how do you know that?”
“It’s supposed to happen in Centuryville. Do you really think rumors like that would make it all the way out here on their own? The person behind this wants people to know about it.”
“And you think, what? That I should go and watch?”
“Yes. It’ll be good for you.”
“Alright, if you insist. Let’s hear the details.”
----------------------------------------
Two days later, Lightforge found himself crouching on an unfamiliar rooftop in an even more unfamiliar area of town. Centuryville, an area designated for mid-level characters around 50. Well, sort of. Outside of the starter areas, there wasn’t really a strict level range for any particular neighborhoods. The so-called ‘high-level’ areas just had higher odds of spawning top tier NPCs and missions.
That system added a certain level of uncertainty and danger to the game. Even if you kept to places of your level, every once in a while there would be a random NPC criminal who could challenge entire teams alone. That possibility used to be exciting.
Of course, everything in Centuryville could kill him without any effort, which was oddly comforting. He didn’t have to worry about a random powerhouse showing up when everything was a powerhouse around here.
Sunbird was sitting on the roof next to him. She had offered to fly him across the city rather than risk passing through on foot. The others had considered coming too, but she could only carry one person. So it was just the two of them on the rooftop, staring down the street at the bank that was supposedly the target of the day’s excitement.
Sunbird was studying the area with great interest. There weren’t a lot of people out and about, but the atmosphere was very different from the Chancery Hills. It didn’t help that it was also raining. Not pouring or anything, but enough to make the experience less than exciting.
“So, do you think Circe was telling the truth?” she asked.
“In general, no. But in this case I think she was telling the truth.”
“Why?”
“She has some kind of plan brewing, and I’m involved somehow. She won’t risk me dying because of a lack of knowledge on my part.”
“Sure, I guess. I’m just hoping to see an awesome fight. This rain sucks, I wish it–”
There was a flash of white light, and the rain froze. Lightforge could see his own breath as the air was suddenly full of gleaming ice, hovering in place and filling the area with refracted light. He and Sunbird fell silent, their eyes wide.
The world around them had become very quiet in a matter of moments. Less than a hundred feet away the rain continued to fall, but the little section in front of the bank was quiet.
In the sudden silence of the icy air, a figure floated into view like a ghost. She was covered from head to toe in long, flowing robes of white and icy blue. Her purple mask showed a twisted, laughing face. They stood on a block of ice that gently floated through the air as her long hair floated in a breeze around her.
The figure stopped in front of the bank and gave a slight wave in its direction. The frozen rain filling the sky surged forward like shots from a machine gun, shattering the windows and almost certainly leveling everything inside. Someone inside screamed, and Lightforge wished that he felt inclined to leap to their protection.
Unfortunately, he had to face facts. Whoever this villain was, she was far, far above his level. If he’d been any closer, he’d probably be dead completely by accident. It was simply the truth of this world; you had to know your level and what you could handle.
He didn’t realize he was staring until Sunbird jabbed him in the side. She motioned to his goggles and he nodded. He slipped them over his eyes and tried to take a closer look at the villain.
Player Info
Name: Louhi
Level: ?
Current Alignment: ?
Alliance: ?
Well, that was mostly useless. How was she hiding her personal information? He caught Sunbird’s eye and just shook his head; he would explain the details to her later. He turned his eyes back to the ice villain.
Despite her incredible initial attack, she made no move to enter the bank. Instead she turned to look at the sky, ice forming around her into hovering knives and shields. Something was coming, and she knew it.
Lightforge followed the villain’s gaze and found a blur racing across the sky. As it passed, it didn’t slow even slightly, instead it dropped something that hurtled towards the ground like a meteor, wreathed in flames.
It only took a moment to recognize the meteor as a person falling through the sky. A person dressed in brilliant red armor with gold highlights, serious face unhidden by any sort of mask. Brilliant golden eyes were locked on the villain.
"Louhi!" the hero cried, "You won’t escape this time!"
The halo of fire surrounding him split into half a dozen motes of flame, each one encircling part of the hero as he fell and pulling upward. His descent slowed just before he crashed to the ground, and he landed on his feet, ready for the fight ahead.
The individual flames whirled back around him, dancing fireballs that stood ready for the fight. Upon closer inspection, each fireball had faint features resembling a face. So not normal flames at all; fire familiars of some kind.
Sunbird whistled softly and pointed to them. He just shrugged, so she came close and whispered, “Will O’ the Wisps. They’re all-rounder familiars, so he could pull out just about anything.”
The villain, Louhi, was already in motion. Razor sharp shards of ice whipped through the air towards the hero and the local temperature continued to drop around her.
The hero's familiars shot forward and flared to life, engulfing the icy projectiles and melting them. For a few moments the fight was at a standstill, with projectiles from both sides darting back and forth through the sky. And while the assault was foiled, the dancing fireballs were left at only half the size that they'd started.
The end of the volley was like a starting gun, and the hero charged forward at a full sprint, his familiars vanishing into him as he went. Instead his hands and feet erupted into flames as a new volley of frigid weaponry came flying towards him, but none found their mark. Every one of them slipped just past him, never quite coming close enough to land.
Even when the ice became too dense for him to dodge, his flaming fists lashed out. He cleared a path for himself and continued advancing.
His second power became obvious when the weapons that had missed him turned around in midair and came hurtling at him from behind. Just like before, the hero carefully adjusted course as he ran, making sure that all of the attacks missed him. He had Enhanced Awareness, and he was confident in its ability to keep him safe.
Louhi was still floating on her block of ice a solid ten feet in the air, watching silently as ice spikes continued to form around her and fire down at the advancing hero. She looked prepared to continue the onslaught forever, but whatever skill she was using ran out and opened up a brief window.
The hero had been waiting for that. The flames on his hands erupted and he shot a beam of fire the width of a car up at his opponent. The villain’s icy platform surged away to dodge the attack, but it wasn’t finished yet. Will O’ the Wisps shot out of the flames in all directions to follow and encircle her.
Louhi shattered the platform that she was standing on and dropped to the ground, away from the path of the incoming flames. She hit the ground with a burst of frozen energy that knocked back the familiars. She pointed down at the frozen ground and sheets of brilliantly reflective ice rose from the ground like frozen mirrors. There were ten of them all around her, and she started to laugh.
Her laugh was high and crisp, like breaking glass. It sent chills down the spines of the two onlookers, who didn’t know what to think. The hero, on the other hand, clearly knew what was happening. He swore and tried to charge forward, but he wasn’t fast enough. Louhi’s voice rang out through the street like a struck bell.
“Winter’s Mirror Image!”
Duplicates of the villain emerged from the mirrors, each one wielding a weapon of some kind crafted from ice. They countered the hero’s charge and tried to overwhelm him.
The man’s senses were sharp. He ran right through two of the copies, revealing them to be illusions. He started to do the same to the third, only to roll to the side just as a frozen scythe whipped past him. It buried itself in the street beside him and he had to dive away again as a lance of ice shot through the air towards him while he was down.
Lightforge swallowed hard. While the duplicates were illusions, some of their weapons were very real. Personally he had no way of distinguishing between them, which was really just one more way that he wouldn’t have lasted five seconds in this fight.
Louhi’s laugh rang out again and she spoke again, humor tinged with malice.
“Still can’t measure up, huh? Too bad.”
The hero was back on his feet, but it was too late. The illusions collapsed and frigid weapons clattered to the ground, already starting to dissolve. The rain started back up, which confirmed it; the villain was gone.
The hero stared at where the villain had been for a few long moments, his fiery familiars spinning out around him in all directions. Finally his shoulders slumped and he turned away. But instead of walking away, he looked right at the two watchers and motioned for them to stay put. His familiars swirled in close around him, took hold of his body and hurled him into the air. He flew through a gentle arc to land gracefully right next to Lightforge and Sunbird.
“Hello there. Who are you?”