“Okay,” Cuby said. “I like this plan, but I don’t like this plan. It’s the right plan, but… I just want to be useful, is all.”
“You will be.”
She shot me a flat look. We had reached the mountain pass, another narrow crevice between two slopes that was only passable because many laborers had once cut enough tunnels and steps into the stone to make it so.
“I’m bait,” said Cuby.
“If you think about it,” I said. “In a way, I’m bait too. But if you want, we can go over the relevant details. What’s your Divine Resistance?”
She didn’t answer, scowling at me instead. Cuby’s Divine Resistance was 15. But mine—based as it was in the Spirit stat—was 47. Our Physical Resistance was equal. My Defense Rating was higher, not only because I had more stats from more levels to prop up my Reactive Armor, but because my stupid human bullshit had given me 16 free Agility—against the 22 that Cuby had gained from her own levels, which were always 2 points into Agility and 1 point into Strength.
Go-go gadget intergalactic racism, I thought wryly.
On the off chance that my latest level had put me out of the range of the devil’s true sight ability—the one that Valariel had used to see that I was chosen—I’d used False Identity to appear as a level 9 mage, the juiciest of targets.
But the simple fact was this: I was way, way tankier than Cuby, especially against divine and magical attacks. She was a liability. Thus, the plan: she was going to trail 2 minutes behind me as we traveled through the pass, and if a devil did engage me, she could use her mobility abilities to catch up when I called her.
But that was all if the devil spotted us before we caught wind that the outpost was nearing and had time to prepare. If not… I was going to get to use my new toy.
“Fine,” said Cuby. “Go. I’ll just… follow like I’m supposed to.”
“Great,” I said. And I began to walk through the pass, map in hand, trying to interpret which kink or corner of the little line that represented the pass I was currently walking through. As I went, I called out landmarks so that Cuby could make sure she was the appropriate distance behind.
Big discolored stone to my right, I said. Just a bit taller than me, greenish.
But the other thing I did as I walked was get a clear idea of the Spellcraft that all the spells I might cast with Rune Trap Spell required, composing a list that looked something like this:
Mana Shield – 3 (Counts as 8)
Psychic Parasite – 12
Devour Magic – 10
Implosive Missile – 6 (Counts as 8)
Haste – 10
Hardlight Construct – 12
Unnatural Terror – 6 (Counts as 8)
Supercharged Spell: +1, 100%
Rune Trap Spell: 100%
And I could lay 48 Spellcraft worth of spells with my Rune Traps. The most attractive option honestly seemed to me to be 3 Implosive Missiles, which came to 16 each once the 100% increase from Rune Trap Spell was factored in.
“These rune traps seem pretty strong,” I muttered to myself as I traversed the pass. “They give this to mages at level 8? I suppose you’re only supposed to have 24 Spellcraft then….”
The devil had seen us at a great distance and in the dark last time, and so as we grew closer I slowed, trying to make sure I knew where we were. Then, trying to be overly cautious, I actually backtracked with the map in hand to be certain that we were in a particular hard turn in the road.
Then I was very careful to track my turns for another ten minutes, until I was sure I was there. I think the outpost will be visible when I turn the corner up ahead, I said at last. I’m going to lay some rune traps and then I want you to join me.
Wait. So I didn’t even need to lag behind you?
Guess not, I said. But being smart about things means doing a lot of things that amount to nothing in the end: we’ve got to prepare for whatever outcomes we can.
And you weren’t sure you could read the map well enough?
Yes, I said. This road is basically a squiggle. It’s not easy.
I set an Implosive Missile Rune Trap into the ground and stared at it. It was fairly visible: faintly glowing, enough that the blue-white color looked very clean and pure in the daylight. I set two more next to it, each of them set to go off when I detonated them remotely, targeting the nearest enemy.
I’m going, I said. I’ll call you if I need you.
As I rounded the bend, I had to admit that all the preparation I’d insisted on might have just been me being overprotective—our Gift of Mercy ability had gained both its charges back at dawn, and so we had four instantaneous heals to throw Cuby’s way if things got very bad.
Still… I pictured her Hit Points dropping to 0 as Valariel stabbed her in the gut. Better to be overcautious.
It was almost a relief when I rounded the corner to see, standing before a gateless square tunnel that had been cut into the rock, a devil much like the one we’d met before, only female. I tagged her:
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
Erinciel – Devil – Level 12
Then I stopped in the road as if reconsidering my choice of road. In the daylight, there was no way I could act as if she couldn’t see me.
Erinciel appeared closer to me in a cough of smoke, then shook out a long flow of crimson hair and smirked. “Come now, Alatar. I don’t bite.”
I pretended to hesitate. “You speak,” I said. “You’re not like the other demons.”
She threw back her head and laughed. “I am no demon, child—surely you’re not so scared you can’t read.”
“Okay,” I said. “A devil. What’s the difference?”
“The difference,” she said, practically cooing. “Is that devils don’t try to kill people on sight.”
“That’s a significant difference,” I said, pretending to overcome my fear. “I appreciate it: really I do. Now, it was nice to meet you, Erinciel, but I’m actually on my way to Mirrakatetz….”
“How fortuitous,” she said, not moving from where she barred my path. “Because it happens that my sole purpose here is to help those souls who are on their way to Mirrakatetz.”
“Great,” I said. “But at the same time—I don’t know, Erinciel. Something about you throws me off, a little. No offense.”
She grinned. “None taken. You see despite my appearance I’m a trader of sorts.”
“Great,” I said. “We can make a bargain right now, then.”
“Oh?” she asked, tilting her head.
“I’ll consider trading with you if you can tell me where the hidden entrance to Mirrakatetz is.”
She blinked. “What?”
“The seer spoke of an alternate way into the mountain before she died,” I said, completely bullshitting. “I want you to tell me where, exactly, it is.”
Erinciel’s face spread into a devious grin. “And why should I give away such information for free?”
“Because information is the only thing I’m willing to bargain for,” I said.
She inclined her head toward me. “A man who knows the value of knowledge. I respect that.”
“And I can respect someone who has any knowledge worth giving. Either you know where the door is or you don’t, Erinciel.”
“And if I should simply invent a location?”
“I’ll know that you did because I know where the door is.” I almost smirked. “I thought that was obvious.”
Erinciel threw back her head and laughed. “Oh, I like you,” she said. “But not quite enough to give you anything for free. Even if you already have it.”
I shrugged. “It was worth a shot.” Then I rolled my shoulders. “How about I give you some knowledge, then, and you can decide whether it’s worth what you know?”
Erinciel was still smiling. “And what makes you think that I won’t already know what you have to tell me?”
“Oh,” I said, “I think the information that I have to give you is something that you might find valuable, and soon.”
“By all means,” she purred. “Do tell.”
I leaned in, then, letting my voice become filled with disdain, I said: “Don’t open combat with a fucking stun, genius.”
She cocked her head in one moment of confusion—and I threw out my hand in exactly the gesture I used to cast Implosive Missile and shouted:
“Flipendo!”
And Erinciel, expecting a spell, teleported behind me and summoned her silver sword as I spun, cracked my Moment of Mastery, and loosed a Supercharged Implosive Missile into her face.
She lost almost 40% of her Hit Points to the critical, then her weapon flashed as she hit me with a Blinding Strike. My vision nothing but a field of white, I started casting an Intuitive Fragmented Implosive Missile, removing only the vocal component. I could feel her strike me twice—but to little effect. My Mana Shield looked like it would take as long to break as two thirds of Cuby’s Hit Points, with attacks like these.
My vision cleared….
Only to see a bolt of red energy strike me, enervating me and leaving me with just enough strength to stand, my neck too weak to wholly support my head. She’d stopped attacking to cast her stun—I suppose she expected it would ruin my cast or something? I was disappointed in her.
A stun didn’t keep me from speaking, and so I cleared almost all of the stun with Rousing Command, then tried to finish my cast as she—
The devil screamed out a wild howl and I felt a surge of fear overcome my body. It was the most curious feeling, going from being in total control to feeling hopelessly outmatched, stumbling away from her and then… getting up as her spell ended, still at 95% Hit Points.
A moment later I finished my cast of Implosive Missile, not needing to bark the command word because it was an Intuitive Spell. I thrust my hand forward, shouted: “Flipendo!” And the devil did nothing to avoid the missile that streaked from my hand in the last syllable of the word and took her down another 15%.
Erinciel snarled and I began to cast a Supercharged Fragmented Psychic Parasite, knowing full well that she’d just dispel it as Valariel had done. I waited for another crowd-control… but she was apparently out, and she preoccupied herself with whittling away at my Hit Points while I cast the spell.
Both of us were playing a game of deception, only I knew hers: she was going to go shot for shot with me as long as possible before revealing her miracles, bait me into a sense of security before filling her Hit Point bar or using the same attack miracle we’d seen on Valariel. She had at least two, that was certain: and so even though it seemed like my damage would outdo hers, she could whittle me down without fear, baiting me into not running until it was too late by giving me a false hope.
My Psychic Parasite hit her… and she tried to attack through it for a few seconds that I spent storing a Supercharged Unnatural Terror. But as I saw through both her eyes and mine, I evaded an attack and triggered my Evasive Insights, evading another attack….
After she missed four of her first five hits, and after I’d stored my Unnatural Terror, she finally used her burst of silver light, her miracle, to wipe the Psychic Parasite and restore some Hit Points.
And that was my sign to make a play. My eyes widened in fake panic, and I spent a moment pretending to decide before turning and using Mighty Leap to bring me back toward Cuby, casting a Charm of Gliding to cover the space fast.
Now, I told her before I rounded the corner.
I landed near my glyphs, Cuby a translucent ghost nearby—she’d used her temporary invisibility even though I doubted it would matter against the devil.
And speak of the devil….
She appeared in a cough of smoke, her voice a predatory lilt: “Going some—ah!”
She had turned to see Cuby just before the Blinding Strike took her in the face. Perhaps sensing the seriousness of her situation, Erinciel used her miracle, again restoring some Hit Points and clearing the blind… and then I loosed my Supercharged Unnatural Terror, the real crowd-control.
She cowered. I triggered three missiles to take out 45% of her Hit Points as Cuby used her flurry and dispensed at least half a class worth of damage abilities into the devil, who disappeared in a puff of smoke somewhere between the first and second seconds after she’d appeared.
“Incidentally,” I said, grinning down at the dispersing smoke. “That would be why you don’t lead combat with all your crowd control effects. Genius.”
For killing a servant of evil, you receive 30 Virtue Points.
Congratulations! You’ve reached Pure Virtue Rank 4.
You have been awarded a new ability: Gift of Empyreal Flight