“Don't forget we're going to the movies tonight before we game!” Rachel said to me as we entered homeroom.
“Huh? Oh!” I recalled as we reached our seats and sat down. “The pirate movie!” I said with a grin as the full details came back to me.
“Yep!” she smiled in answer. “Hmm... Chrissy sent me a message back saying they'd be good for the eight-thirty showing.”
“And we get done with rehearsals at six today,” I said, my face adopting a soft wry grin. “Hrrmm... it's Friday. We don't have to worry about homework until tomorrow.”
“Ohh, true... I guess we kind of don't!” Rachel smirked. “Ah! I wonder if we can make some addendums, then...” she then quietly mused, pulling out her phone to send a message before homeroom started up.
“Hmm?” I wondered.
“You'll see!” she winked back.
“I guess so,” I smiled, gently laughing.
A few moments later the bell rang, and as usual homeroom was called to order to start off the day.
“With feeling, Sean, with feeling! Now try it again!” Miss Andrews said to me as I (apparently) flubbed a line again. I took a deep breath, and tried again.
“But I say to you, my merry men, that this vile villain of a sheriff shall not make morsels of us or our glad company while yet I draw breath!”
“There it is!” our teacher said with enthusiastic satisfaction.
“But Robin,” said Henry as Allan, “The sheriff has Guy of Gisbourne, grim as you please, who has sent many a proud yeoman to the gallows!”
“Gisbourne shall not send us to the gallows -- nay, for these are our woods and we know them best! Warriors and knights we may not be; but we are yeoman true, and in this our native home we shall outwit all who come our way, be they knight, bishop, or king!” I recited.
Classes had gone the same as always, by the way. At lunch break, Rachel had announced her little addendum: we were going to dinner before the movies. And then of course after that, Rachel and I would be helping Myanihia and then the Northern Warriors in-game while the others worked on their own thing or did real-life stuff. But for now, it was five-thirty and I was trying to deliver my lines as best as I could without looking at the script--which I still had to do a fair bit of the time at this point.
“The king?” Matthew as Little John returned. “Can we truly defy the king?”
“Heaven forbid!” Herby as Friar Tuck exclaimed.
“Not our good and true king, Richard the Lionhearted, but this miserly coward John I do indeed defy, for he has allowed that miserable cretin the sheriff to harry the good people of Nottingham and all the countryside 'round!” I answered in character.
“Aye!” the other outlaws chorused.
From there we did a rehearsal of the musical number (“The Merry Men of Sherwood”) these lines of dialogue preceded. I'm not sure how well it went; I will say that the others (who had all run through some of their own numbers by this point) were either really ecstatic about it or really amused by it. After that, our teacher and director decided to release us early for good progress, and Thomas, Rachel, and I scurried off to get ourselves ready for the evening.
***
“Good thing I started keeping a set of extra clothes in the car!” Thomas grinned as we set off from my house. We had dropped Rachel off first and then gone back to my place so I could change; Thomas had gotten into the habit of keeping a set of clothes in his car for work reasons so he came in for a bit to exchange the school uniform for these while I did the same.
“Definitely.” I had to agree.
“So you, me, and the girls will be in this car; well, our girlfriends, anyway... was Lizzy coming in this one or was she on her own?” he wondered.
“Ehh, she'll be picking up Anhe and Mary,” I replied.
“Oh right! And the other two will turn up at the restaurant.” he nodded.
“Yep.” I said. We reached the girls' house in a couple minutes, whereupon I got out to get in the backseat with Rachel while Andrea sat up front with Thomas.
“This is such a good idea.” the older girl remarked as we set off. “Oh, by the way, our workplace visitation will be in mid-March at the gaming company.”
“Eh? Did you decide on that yesterday?” I wondered.
“I submitted it yesterday, and Mrs. Brown approved it today.” she smiled back.
“Gotcha.” I nodded. “Ah... what restaurant were we going to anyway?” I then wondered. Andrea started to reply, but Rachel held her hand out to stop her.
“It's a surprise for him, remember?” she said to the other girl.
“Ohh, yes it was!” Andrea returned, then giggled.
“Hah... poor Sean.” Thomas quipped.
“Oy...” I sighed. I settled back into my seat as Rachel grinned over at me, and I gently smiled back. Whatever it was, I guess I was in for a treat.
About five minutes before we got to wherever we were going, Rachel took a piece of cloth from her purse and used it as a blindfold on me to keep me in suspense. The last thing I saw was Andrea stifling a laugh as she watched.
“You're into this surprise thing tonight,” I remarked as she made sure the knot was firm.
“Yep!” she replied in an upbeat tone. I could just bet she was grinning quite happily.
“We should have saved it for a more special occasion and--” Thomas started, but I heard a light smacking sound.
“Getting together with friends is a special occasion!” Andrea remarked.
“Ahh... yes, but--okay. Yes.” he replied, and the two of them laughed. “Oh there's that turn,” he then said with a tone of realization.
“That is hard to see.” Andrea agreed. “Oh look, there's Mandy; and here's Ellie pulling in from the other direction.”
“Yep. And... will she stop at that sign...? A slight pause, then back to her normal speed; not slowing down for the turn... and... right into the spot just ahead of her... and now she stops.”
“Pfft!” Andrea giggled at Thomas' narration of Ellie's driving as we pulled in.
“Mary seems unconcerned about all that, but Anhe looks a bit anxious,” Rachel observed.
“Well of course. Ellie's a wild card with driving.” Andrea said.
“Time to get him out!” Thomas said as he stopped the car, getting out himself as the other two did so as well. I felt around for the seatbelt and then the door as I began extricating myself as well, and when I had the door open Rachel took my hand to assist me out.
“Really? You blindfolded him? Pfffft!” I heard Christina remark.
“Aww. Poor kid. Well you can take it off now!” Mandy said.
“First we turn him like this!” Rachel returned, no doubt setting me in position to face the restaurant.
“And then we do this!” Ellie continued, gently yoinking the blindfold off.
Before my eyes was a homely looking building that looked as if it had been transplanted from some fantasy video-game world. It was nestled in an obscure part of the Food District, surrounded by a small forest and with a pond to one side. I blinked, and looked up at the name. “The Fairy Cafe and Diner” was written out in an appropriately stylistic manner for a restaurant with such a fantastical theme to it.
“Oh wow! How did you find this place?” I said with wonder as we began heading in.
“Me. It was me.” Mandy smiled back. “We used to come here when I was a little kid; when Rachel suggested going out to dinner before our movie, I had to make sure it was still around so I could recommend it and Rachel picked it up immediately!” she told me. I looked over at Rachel with a smile, gently squeezing her hand, and she smiled back.
“Tonight is going to be a good night.” Mary remarked with confidence.
“Definitely!” Ellie grinned, and Anhe nodded.
“But I bet someone will end up in-game later anyway.” Christina smirked.
“Don't judge him. I'm going too.” Rachel quickly said.
“Of course you are!” the older girl answered, still smirking.
“Almost kinda have to,” I said with a wry grin, which Rachel affected as well. A server then seated us at a booth near a window, and I looked around at the place.
Except for most of the customers, including ourselves, being in normal clothes (save for one group dressed in renaissance and fantasy attire), I genuinely believed this could have been taking place in Panarena. Even the music was in theme, being performed by a troupe of musicians with some instruments that were expected (there was a lute, a hand-drum, and a harp among others), and only a couple that were more modern, a synthesizer and an electric guitar.
“Definitely trying this.” Christina remarked as she read her menu, and Mandy rolled her eyes, a weary smile already on her face.
“A Vanilla Ice-cream shake with Rum and a dash of honey... I'm going to be keeping an eye on you until we get home, aren't I?” she quipped.
“I wonder if that's good...” I softly wondered to Rachel.
“I like vanilla and honey, at least... maybe we can make up a similar treat in Panarena,” she whispered back.
“Did they have ice-cream there, though?” I returned uncertainly.
“I feel like one or more of our in-game celebrations during the tournament involved ice-cream for sure,” Rachel said, a mildly puzzled look on her face. “I guess we'll look!” she then smiled.
“Definitely!” I agreed.
“I could give you a taste tonight.” Christina smirked.
“Chrissy!” Mandy scolded straight away.
“Ahh...”
“Ah-heh...” Rachel and I bemusedly smiled back.
“Whaaat?” the raven-haired girl returned.
“No underage drinking in public!” the other girl chided.
“So if we were home it'd be no problem?” she retorted with a skeptical look.
“Hoo-boy.”
“I'm not underage anymore.” Mary shrugged.
“Oh, that's true,” Ellie said.
“But I'm going for this!” the principal's daughter then grinned, selecting her beverage from the menu as Christina affirmed her choice of drink.
“Hmm... 'Pirate's Fancy', a rum and punch blend with an orange slice.” Thomas read as he caught sight of it. “You two are certainly getting into the movie's spirit tonight.”
“I might have one sip, but I'm still driving.” Mandy grinned.
“I see taxis in our post-high school future.” Ellie quipped.
“L-let's not go there,” Rachel said. “Sean! This one?” she poked me, pointing to a vanilla cola.
“Oh, sure,” I agreed, and we both pressed it on our menus.
“Honey tea!” Andrea smiled.
“Same!” Anhe agreed.
“Gotta go for the lemon-lime,” Ellie said.
“Ooh, that sounds good too,” Andrea remarked.
“And I will choose... Dr. Fizz!” Thomas then said.
“And this responsible chick will go for water with a slice of lemon.” Mandy smiled. We touched the menu-screens to affirm our drink-orders, and then began browsing food choices.
“Hmm... but there's a lot here,” Christina remarked. “Definitely this chocolate parfait.”
“They have parfaits?!” Andrea immediately exclaimed, hurriedly flipping through the menu.
“And cheesecakes, and shortbreads, and all sorts of other baked goods or chilled treats,” I remarked as I read the menu.
“Actual food first,” Rachel quipped, flipping my menu back a few pages.
“Hahh...” I sighed, and the others laughed.
“Oh, I know, let's just get a platter of something we can agree on!” Ellie then suggested.
“Oh def!” Andrea agreed.
“Just like home, huh?” Christina smiled.
“Pretty much!” Thomas nodded.
“I agree!” Anhe smiled. “And I would recommend trying this build-it-yourself platter.”
“Good eye!” Mary nodded in agreement.
“Yes!” Rachel smiled as well.
“Now let's just see the options...” Mandy said as she opened the group menu so we could begin deciding on our fare for the evening.
***
After a thoroughly enjoyable meal -- a platter of lamb stew with vegetables, some buttered rolls, and an entrée of grilled fish -- we made our way to a slightly later showing of the film we intended to see (the nine-fifteen showing instead of the eight-thirty) on account of being so engrossed in the food we lost track of time. We hurriedly found seats in one of the middle-back rows, just as all of those rotten previews and commercials finally ended, and quickly settled in with a few snacks we had gotten (as if dinner hadn't been enough!). The place was not as packed as we expected for a Friday; there were probably at least five other groups of people here tonight besides us and that was it.
“Woof...” Mary sighed quietly, sipping on a cola. “That thing was too much.” she said in reference to her earlier choice of drink.
“At least you went with water and coffee after just one,” Mandy remarked.
“And Chrissy went and had another of hers and one like mine!” Mary returned with a smile of amusement.
“It's a pirate film! Gotta have rum!” the girl in question said in an audible tone. We heard some scattered laughs as Mandy hurriedly shushed her, the poor girl's face red from both embarrassment and laughter.
“Oh boy.” I said in a quiet tone.
“I did not expect her to be a drinker,” Anhe whispered over to Rachel and myself.
“Sh-she sure didn't show her hand when we were on vacation,” Rachel said bemusedly.
“Hsst! It's on!” Ellie said to us, and an ear-catching, ominous theme started playing as the title screen for the movie came up.
Pirates of the Seven Seas: The Lost City.
A skull and bones logo with two crossing flintlock pistols underneath came up behind it, and I was immediately engrossed. Rachel looked over at me with a smile, and the movie began.
“Whew! That was a plot-twist.” Ellie quipped as we sat outside the theater later that evening, waiting on some of the others who were “dealing with some business”, as they put it.
“You're telling me,” I said. “I kinda saw it coming, but it was still a shocker.”
“No way!” Rachel said to me. “You saw that coming?!”
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
“I mean...” I smiled wryly, rubbing the back of my neck, “It was almost similar to a game I played a few years ago, 'Delvers of the Mystic Sea', but it was definitely a refreshing take.”
“Ooh, I think a cousin of mine played that one.” Ellie nodded.
“No pirates in it though.” I shrugged.
“We should replicate those characters for Halloween this year.” Rachel suggested.
“Nice idea!” Ellie agreed at once.
“Yes!” Anhe smiled.
“I like that idea far better than last year's,” I said with a goofy grin.
“Pfffft!” Ellie snorted, and the other girls giggled. “Fine, fine, we'll let you be Captain John Silverhawk this year, and Rachel can be Lady... Lady What's-her-name.” the older girl said.
“Lady Alice Heart.” Rachel said dreamily. “That reminds me, we should work on homework and our lines tomorrow for sure.” she told me.
“Oh definitely.” I nodded back at once.
“I'll come over to your house for a change.”
“Eh? You sure?”
“The brats are coming over to our place tomorrow.” she said to me with a wry look.
“Ahh...” I remarked as a faint grin appeared on my face. “Y-yeah, we can make that work.” I replied, and she smiled.
“Heh. Those two.” Ellie softly guffawed. “Did Andi ever tell you about the time she forgot her clothes chasing the one down the street?”
“Ahhh...” I started uncertainly.
“Yep.” Rachel nodded, shaking her head as a lopsided grin came to her face.
“Hee! I had to hold that over her for a week.” the other girl beamed.
“P-poor Andrea,” Anhe smiled hesitantly.
“Oh, there they are -- lo-sers! It's been ten minutes!” Ellie cried out as the others finally emerged.
“Uuugghhh,” Christina sighed. “Noisy.”
“Sorry 'bout that!” Mandy grinned awkwardly.
“I think we're all ready to go home now, though,” Mary added.
“It's almost midnight, huh?” Andrea noted as she checked her phone. “We should do this again sometime!”
“Def!” Ellie smiled. “For now, though, let's get everyone home!” she said, and after a round of goodbyes we went our separate ways for the night.
***
No one was awake at home, so I was not peppered with questions about everything as I got in the door. I'd told them what was going on anyway, so it's not like they didn't know where I'd been. As soon as I was in my room, I quickly got myself ready for the night and then set the Dream Machine upon my head to escape into Panarena. Ariana was waiting for me, and told me that Myanihia was waiting near the agreed wayport by her home.
“Hope she hasn't been waiting all night,” I said.
“The message only came about one game-hour ago, so I doubt it; but hurry!” she told me. “I'll go mark the other wayport with Fyu.”
“Good idea; see you after a while!” I said, and we exchanged a hug before parting ways.
As soon as I materialized on Pirate Isle, I saw Myanihia on a nearby bench, without her mask on. She smiled as I came into view, and when I had returned the smile and stepped off the wayport she began inputting a destination.
“You're a bit later than I expected.” she told me.
“It was a big Friday night tonight,” I shrugged back. “I got on almost as soon as I got home.”
“I see.” she returned, a soft smile on her face. “I... never had friends, or a social circle. I was always by myself. Except during the beta testing.”
“I understand that, for the most part. I wasn't always as popular... and it still seems weird.” I said as the portal opened.
“I suppose that's how you made your connection with me.” Myanihia smiled back, and we stepped through to the Yucu Plains.
“I guess so,” I replied as we came through the other side.
“We'll need a steed. There is, a special animal here, that can carry two.” she told me as she put her mask on.
“It really is the plains out here,” I said with wonder as I looked around. There was hardly a tree in sight.
“Ironically, the dungeon I want, is in a more forested area of the region.” Myanihia said as she led me to the stables.
“Huh.”
“Here we are.” she then announced. The animal in question looked like a large ostrich with a tropical coloring to it. I blinked a couple times as my eyes fell upon it, while Myanihia paid the rental fee and hopped on. I got on behind her, and the bird-mount took off at a brisk trot before breaking into a full speed charge once outside the town we had arrived in.
“Whoa!” I exclaimed as the wind began rippling by.
“The bright-plume rhea is one of the fastest and most agile mounts in the game, and probably the best for heading swiftly through jungles or forests.” Myanihia said as we rapidly crossed over the plains.
“Oh neat; yeah, I can definitely see that,” I replied.
“We'll need all the speed we can get. The other dungeon, it has a timed aspect to it.” she told me.
“Hmm...” I mused.
“We will get it.” she said confidently. “And we will get this one, too. All it needs, is a mirror.” she added.
I wondered about that last remark until we actually got into the dungeon itself a while later. It was an ancient temple based off of the Mesoamerican style, and inside were two paths. I saw at once why it needed two people.
“So one path has devices and such that disable the traps on the opposite path, and vice versa,” I noted.
“As expected of you, Lana.” Myanihia said in a soft tone. “Ariana, has warned me of something; so, I will take the riddle passage; you can take the one with mechanisms.”
“Ah--! Thanks,” I managed to grin back.
“Let's go.” she then said, patting my shoulder, and I headed to the left while she headed for the right.
Now the dungeon's mechanics certainly sounded simple at first glance, but it is tricky to actually pull off. Never mind coordinating without a time-limit, we apparently had to clear this dungeon in thirty in-game minutes or the challenge would fail. And some of the traps would reset in a certain amount of time as well, so we had that hurdle to overcome, as well as the occasional interloping monster that popped up to harass one of us. In spite of that, we managed to get a decent rhythm going, and were nearing the end of the path when the boss appeared. The arduous paths had just converged, and this guy was apparently the final hurdle.
Okay, okay... what's around? Five levers; two on my side, two on Myanihia's, and one right in front of that boss... who's only using ranged attacks, I mused as I evaded the attacks in question.
“It must be the levers,” Myanihia said calmly. “We only have seven minutes left, though.”
“S-seven?! We've been in here that long?” I wondered in amazement.
“We have.” she nodded back to me.
“Hrrmm...” I sighed, looking around again.
The boss was standing on a narrow bridge that connected the converged path with a small alcove on the other side. At this far end, there was a chest atop a pile of treasures. That was definitely where Myanihia's gem would be, if we could get to it in time. As I caught a glimpse of the boss' healthbar, I suddenly realized it was one of those kill-all mechanics, which meant there was no way for us to actually beat it -- but in this situation there could be a way to disable it. You know, I bet these levers do *That* thing, I suddenly thought to myself.
“Now I see why you wanted two shadows,” I then smiled. “Pull them!” I said, and we pulled the levers on our respective sides before heading for the middle one. I pulled it and knelt down while Myanihia used me as a springboard to jump. The final lever yanked the bridge out from under the boss, and it fell into the depths of the temple as Myanihia soared over it. Then I used Shadow's Jump and Shadow Speed to cross over myself, landing safely.
“I figured that was the trick,” she said to me, faintly giggling.
“That was some mechanic,” I agreed with a grin. She then went to open the chest, nodding in satisfaction as she pulled out a radiant blue sapphire set in a gold pendant.
“The Snow Queen's Gem. It enhances some of my racial skills.” she told me.
“Oh nice.” I said, remembering the skill she had used during the tournament.
“And the rest for you, including that adamantine orb. But, we should hurry. Let's not keep the others waiting.” Myanihia then said.
I nodded, and gathered up the rest of the loot in my inventory before we exited the temple and raced back on our mount to the little town we had arrived in. The bright-plume rhea returned to its stable, and we used the wayport to head for Bethelia, where Ariana was waiting for us. She smiled, and inputted the new destination of Spruceward. We headed through, and found the others waiting for us at the south gate. Barbarianne looked at us in surprise, then shook her head, smiling as she came up to Myanihia. The dual-wielding warrior extended her hand, and Myanihia reached out to accept it.
“Next time we fight, I won't go down so easily.” the redheaded girl said with a fierce grin.
“I know.” Myanihia said in a soft but kindly tone.
“All right!” Barbarianne said as they ended their handshake, “Looks like we have some serious back-up tonight!
“Wraithwail Well, was it?” Myanihia remarked.
“You know it?” Kiana asked her.
“What you want... requires a series, of special challenges, to be completed. Lana, and I, can take care of that, and Ariana as well.”
“Hmm.” the other guild leader nodded back. “Oh, by the way, these are our other guildies: Dara, who's a druid, Hillman, the Barbarianne knock-off,” she commented, earning some laughs from the others and an eye-roll from the man in question, “Hudwyn, our shield-user, Eogarr the Bowman, Gorm Dubh our pugilist, and you already know Barbarianne, myself, and Nightwing!” Kiana smiled.
“Good to meet you all!” Ariana smiled back.
“Cheers!” Hillman grinned with a salute.
“'Gorm Dubh',” I repeated softly, giggling.
“Hmm?” Ariana looked over at me.
“She gets it right off the bat, huh?” Eogarr remarked.
“Gets what?” Ariana smiled at me curiously.
“It means Blue Black. And he's a pugilist.” I told her.
“Yes?” she returned, and then she got it. “Ohh!” Ariana said in realization, and we all laughed -- well, Myanihia smiled, at least.
“Right! Off to get some draigod ore!” Kiana said when the laughter subsided. We replied in a chorus of aye's, and set off for the Wraithwail Well.
Thematically, Evergrim was not unlike Varkstania or the Mountains of Night, except that it had a stronger, darker sense of grimness to it. The monsters were no joke, either. We had to fight through a pack of elite werewolves at one juncture, and right before we got to our destination we ended up in a brief scuffle with a vampire that ended with Myanihia taking it out with that deadly combo. As for the dungeon itself, it definitely lived up to its name.
In addition to the horned-yetis that apparently lived here, there were lots and lots of wraiths in this dungeon. Ariana and Dara had their work cut out for them, since their attacks did more damage in general to such monsters. Kiana's attacks were somewhat like Valkrysti's, but her skills were more focused on enhancing her physical damage as opposed to the other girl's focus on magical attacks or bolsters.
“Lana.” Myanihia said to me as we nearly passed by a side passage. The two of us headed into this for a moment, dispatching a hidden elite boss together before quickly catching up to the others.
“How many more?” I asked her as we rejoined the fight against the wraiths.
“Nine... I think.” she replied.
“That fits with the number of side passages we've seen here,” Nightwing agreed.
“That was quick, though,” Ariana said as she incinerated two wraiths with a lightning strike. “Did you even need me along?”
“Absolutely!” I returned at once.
“Definitely!” Barbarianne exclaimed. I could see Myanihia's eyes glinting with amusement as a soft laugh came from her.
“My attacks, and Lana's, are not completely useful, against these wraiths.” she remarked.
“True!” my partner grinned back, eradicating a few more as if on cue.
We then returned our attention to clearing the dungeon, which definitely got harder as we ventured deeper. The side-passages got more complicated as well; some of them needed riddles answered or mechanisms triggered to get further into them and defeat the hidden bosses that lay at their end. At once point, Myanihia and I had to use a certain ring to get through a crawl-space so we could reach the boss. Everyone just loved that. Ariana looked particularly pleased with herself for having it along, though I was secretly amused at seeing Myanihia's child-form. Don't tell her, though.
For the last secret boss Ariana had to join us, casting a damage booster onto the two of us so we could take it down before time ran out. Both Myanihia and I were perplexed by it, considering it wasn't a world boss. When I looked at the combat logs, though, it apparently had a redundant series of defensive skills or magics, which is why our first coordinated combo failed to take it out. Myanihia softly humphed when she saw it, softly grumbling that the game always had some sort of surprise for her.
“Ack! The yetis!” Nightwing squawked in her bird-form, and then she cast a few disorientation spells on them while the rest of us began taking them out.
“Argh, here comes the horde!” Hillman grunted.
“Ahh!! The passage!” Kiana realized. “Nightwing, Lana, go!” she said, pointing towards a very small hole in the wall indeed.
Ari tossed me the Ring of the Eternal Child with a smirk as I sighed, and hurried off to catch up with Nightwing. I put it on as she slipped through, tossing what didn't stay on me through the hole before slipping through and taking it off again to get geared up again. Nightwing resumed her human form, putting on a wraparound robe that she quickly fastened as we began swiftly exploring the place.
“There's got to be something in here,” she said to me. “Whatever it is, I bet it weakens the boss or has something that weakens it!”
“Hmm...” I remarked thoughtfully, looking around. “Like that sword up there in the cavern?” I pointed. A bit further ahead, there was an underground pool with a solitary rock in the midst, upon which lay a crystalline sword. We looked at each other, and then hurried over towards it.
“It's called Wraithbane... how obvious.” Nightwing quipped.
“Hm. It's enchanted so that it can strike the incorporeal, and it has a chance to leave a DoT behind every third strike or blow.” I read, and she smiled.
“Works for me! Let's hurry back!” she said, switching to wereraven form again as I picked up the sword. She flew out first, and I shoved the sword out to her while I wrangled myself out of the passage the same way I had gotten into it. When we were back to our regular selves, Kiana and the others were just finishing off a wave of yetis.
“What's that?” she asked as Nightwing handed her the sword.
“Use it on the boss. It'll make the fight easier.” the other girl replied simply. Kiana took it, still gazing at us curiously, and then we turned back to the battle at hand.
“We're almost there!” Hillman said enthusiastically.
“Time?” Kiana asked him.
“Just under forty-five minutes on my count,” Dara reported. “We have fifteen more, and then our special timer runs out.”
“Grrr!” she groaned. Ariana and I exchanged a glance, and she nodded.
“Myanihia, take Kiana; Nightwing, come with us!” I said as Ari got up on my back. Myanihia intuited at once what I planned to do, and quickly had Kiana get on her back as well. We both entered Shadow Speed, racing along the corridors with Nightwing furiously flapping after us.
“Catch you there, boss!” Barbarianne called as we disappeared down the passage.
“Whee! You're fast!” Kiana squealed with delight.
“Too fast, too fast!” Nightwing squawked at us.
“Where's the boss chamber?” I asked.
“There's a special door on next right, that'll be it!” Kiana told me. Nightwing managed to perch on her shoulder just then, panting tiredly as she ruffled her feathers with an indignant flair. “What's the matter, Nighty?” Kiana beamed at her cheekily.
“You always find the craziest people!” the wereraven croaked back at her as we reached the door. There were several dials on it; I assumed they had to do with unlocking the thing. Nightwing resumed her human form again, and she began dealing with them as soon as she had her robe on once more.
“They are a bit crazy, but we saved ten minutes of fighting that way.” Kiana shrugged.
“And we need that time for the boss, I know, I know.” the other woman sighed. “There!” she said in a satisfied tone as she finished with the dials and the door began opening.
“Will it stay open?” I wondered.
“Nope, but the others can take care of themselves and we don't need another horde of horned-yetis in here with us.” Kiana said.
“Here we go then!” Ariana nodded, and we hurried inside.
The boss room was an appropriately spooky cavern, with underground pools of murky water here and there and a chill-wind that softly blew around us. As soon as the door closed behind us, the boss, a large wraith-queen with five minions, appeared in the center of the room.
“All right, we can take out those five minions and she won't summon anymore of them, but she gains a five-percent damage bonus for each one lost.” Kiana told us.
“You can't damage,” I began, and Ariana smiled.
“What you can't hit.” she finished.
“The three of us, will take them out. Kiana, Nightwing, please handle the boss,” Myanihia said.
“Let's go, girls!” Kiana said, grabbing the wraith-queen's attention with a shout as she drew out Wraithbane to attack. At that moment, all six wraiths began to focus on her, but Nightwing had a few potent healing and defensive spells to keep her guild-leader going, allowing the rest of us to quickly dispatch the minions before returning our attention to the boss itself.
“Ack! Hudwyn's better at tanking!” Kiana grimaced as she got knocked back a pace.
“But he has no sword skills.” Nightwing quipped back. I recalled now that he had been wielding a nasty looking spiked mace this entire time.
“Enchantment: Holy Blade!” Ariana then called, and Myanihia's weapons and mine began glowing with a white aura.
“Nice, Ari!” I cheered as Myanihia nodded to her gratefully, and we went on the attack with Kiana while Ariana and Nightwing supported us.
Between the negative effect that Wraithbane had on this particular boss and Myanihia and I both using that deadly combo skill at the same time, our attack took that boss down to nothing in less time than it takes to tell it. But hey, a quick fight was what we wanted. The wraith-queen went up with a shrieking wail, vowing to return and have vengeance, and then imploded. A few moments later the doors opened, and the others came rushing in.
“Good grief!” Hillman quipped. “You took it out just like that!?”
“Just like that.” Kiana shrugged.
“Told you.” Barbarianne said to him.
“Ho-ly mackerel.” he shook his head in disbelief. “At least the other monsters disappeared with it.”
“That's always a plus.” Gorm Dubh nodded.
“And now...!” Kiana grinned happily, striding up to the largest chest.
“Ohh yeah!!” Eogarr beamed, eagerly anticipating the opening.
“Finally,” Nightwing smiled. Kiana opened the chest, and inside it was indeed a cache of draigod ore.
“Woo-hoo!” Barbarianne cheered.
“Nice!” Hillman crowed.
“Lana, Ari, Myanihia, we owe you!” Kiana smiled over to us.
“I... have been repaid by Lana, already. You, owe me nothing.” Myanihia shook her head.
“Aw, come on! At least let us buy you a dessert or something!” Barbarianne replied, putting a hand on her shoulder and winking.
“I...” Myanihia began hesitantly, looking around at the rest of us. Ari and I exchanged a smile with each other. “I... will accept.” she then said, and the others cheered. We divvied out everything aside from the draigod ore, and then celebrated our success at a small restaurant in Harmonia City for the rest of the evening.
***
“It... was fun.” Myanihia said to Ari and me later. The Northern Warriors had returned to their guildhall, and the three of us were just about to part ways as well. “I... am starting to feel... differently, about guilds, about people.” she confessed. “Between you, and my sister... I want, to know more. To feel more.”
“I'm sure it'll happen!” Ariana said to her with a smile, and the Snow Elf nodded back.
“Maybe, when this competition, is over... I will join you.” she said.
“Whenever you're ready and willing.” I said to her.
“Yes... until then... Lana, the orb you got, from the Yucu Plains dungeon,” she reminded me, and I pulled it out again.
“This one?” I asked her.
“That, is the item I mentioned to you last night. Rub it.” she said to me. I did so, and a quest popped up.
“Oh!” Ari and I both exclaimed.
Quest: The Fall of the Unholy.
“It is a long quest chain... but, you will find it worth the time, and effort.” Myanihia said to us.
“Hey... thanks, for tonight, and for the other time,” I then said to her, and she placed a hand on my shoulder.
“You... opened my heart. It is the least I can do.” she smiled at me, and then used the wayport to head home. Ariana and I looked at the orb, and then the quest log.
“I know what we're doing after homework and running our lines.” Ari said to me with a smirk.
“Still... I've never even heard of this region,” I remarked as I closed the log and put the orb back in my inventory.
“I think I saw it on a forum once?” she replied, her face scrunching up thoughtfully. “It looked like a very small region.”
“Hmm...” I nodded as we entered our own wayport destination. “It can wait, though. Until then, let's get through that abomina--I mean, our math homework,” I said, and she giggled.
“Let's do some crafting before we take our in-game nap, at least. Then we'll meet up about nine?” she asked.
“That works for me,” I nodded.
“Yay!” she replied, and we set off through the wayport portal to do just that.