“It’s a trap, right? It’s got to be,” Finn grumbled as he and Rosa hunkered down at the foot of a windblown oak. Around them, the last straggling trees led back up the hills behind where they had said good-bye to Loca and his family of Verdans.
Finn was sure that Blackwood would welcome the new refugees, as Laurie herself had said so through Sesuuk that morning when Finn had used the Lamakai Trine Medallion to tell them what had happened.
“Don’t trust anyone. Not even those who appear as friends. Especially not even those,” the reptilian prophet had advised, which hadn’t exactly filled Finn with a sense of cheery optimism.
Laurie, however, had been just as suspicious but more pragmatic. “Find out the numbers of these Malvans. Their size, their capacity. If they are looking to trade, we can supply good timber and the best carpenters in the New Zone.”
And the best archers too, should it come to a fight, Finn had added to himself.
Either way, whether Malvas would turn out to be a blessing or a curse, Finn and Rosa had found their way to the edge of the forest and now had a panoramic view of the coast by the time the sun was high in the sky. They could also see the ruined city over which hung the bright purple star, declaring the new realm.
“It’s not exactly . . . small, is it?” Rosa grumbled, and Finn could only agree.
Ahead of them, the coast broke from cliffs to roll down toward a river valley, eventually emptying itself into the sea. Where the river met the sea, there appeared to be endless gray stone buildings instead of fields or marshes or beaches. Streets, walls, squares, and entire districts of blocky, square buildings all huddled against each other. It made Finn think of an old Italian or Spanish design. He wondered what had happened to this city, or even where it had come from. Had it originally come from Laurie’s world of Tierra? The Verdan old world? Or maybe it was from somewhere entirely new to all of them, and the process of assimilation had destroyed it?
“It’s not in the best repair,” Finn pointed out.
From where Finn sat, he couldn’t see a single house or wall that didn’t look ruined in some way. There were entire streets filled with rubble where walls had collapsed, and most of the buildings had great rents in their stonework, holes that looked as though it had been bombarded by some vengeful god.
“Well, they’re going to need the timber, for sure,” Finn murmured as he scanned the horizon. There were small drifts of smoke coming from some of the larger, grander half-domes near the center. He wondered if that was where this ‘council’ had made their home.
“I can’t see anyone moving down there,” Rosa said, half-rising from her crouch to peer more intently.
Finn grunted. His conviction that this was indeed a trap only intensified. They still had no idea who had attacked them yesterday, and he didn’t like feeling as though someone had gotten the best of him.
“Stay sharp,” Rosa murmured as she stepped out from their hiding place. “You know what they say; Nothing ventured, nothing gained?” She threw a half-smile back at him.
“Who says that? People who clearly didn’t wake up in an insane murder-game designed by even crazier gods, that’s who!” Finn grumbled, but he still rose from his crouch and followed the Air Initiate.
It didn’t take long to reach the outskirts of the city—a high, crumbling white stone wall that had been breached and broken all along its length.
“I guess we head for the star. It’s hanging over the center,” Finn whispered as he started to climb the mound of rubble, pausing to scan the streets beyond and discovering that they were in fact deserted.
“Nothing. Nothing but more rubble.” Finn frowned, hopping down to the other side of the wall. The pair picked what appeared to be the most direct street heading toward the heart of the ruined city.
The buildings around them were little more than stone skeletons reaching up toward the clear blue skies, with great holes and ruptures across their faces. Finn and Rosa walked between what they thought might have once been storehouses, now open and empty. Several times, they had to abandon their path to clamber over piles of rubble, their boots scattering stone chips as they scrambled.
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“What was that?!” Finn suddenly halted after one such climb, certain that he had heard something. A hiss? He froze where he was crouched, looking carefully at everything around them.
Nothing. No movement.
“Do you want me to summon Whispers of the Wind?” Rosa asked. “But without knowing where the noise came from . . .”
There was another hiss right then, coming from where the rubble had broken open one of the building walls.
Finn growled and slid down to the cobbled street, summoning the Pyrrhic Blade to his hand as he did so. Rosa stayed in her crouch, but her silver quarterstaff was at the ready.
“I think it came from that building—or what’s left of it,” Finn said, eyes narrowing as he nodded at Rosa, and the two started moving toward it. Finn moved toward a still-standing doorway into the broken open building, while Rosa skirted across the top of the rubble.
There was no question of not investigating, in either of their minds. Finn wondered when he had gotten so brave.
“Sssskt!”
Finn had barely taken a step inside the building before he saw that the floor was partly ruined too, broken open and leading down to some sort of cellar or dungeon. Before he could investigate further, the hissing sound came again from behind him, out in the street.
“Rosa?!” Finn turned back to the street, but Rosa wasn’t there. The rubble now effectively blocked them off from each other.
“Finn, there’s something down here!” she called.
There was an answering hiss from the rubble.
Suddenly, something jumped at Finn from behind a ruined wall. It was smaller than he was, but it moved fast. Very fast. Finn caught sight of greenish, gangly limbs and large, fish-like eyes before a clawed hand was raking across his face.
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> You have been struck by Level 12 Ghoul. 42 Health Points deducted.
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Ghoul?! Finn thought in horror as he felt a sudden wash of pain and stumbled back. He swung the Pyrrhic Blade in a wide, flaming arc.
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> You have struck Level 12 Ghoul for 95 points of damage.
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There was a pained shriek as the creature fell, hitting the floor and immediately scampering back toward the rubble.
“Gah!” Finn felt the sudden weight of another ghoul as it leapt onto his back and sank its razor-sharp fangs into Finn’s neck above where the Part-Plate of Azor ended.
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> You have been struck by Level 12 Ghoul for 38 points of damage.
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> Surprise attack. 76 Health Points deducted.
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“Don’t bite me! That’s rude!” Finn yelled in horror as he twisted and rolled his shoulders, unable to reach his passenger with his blade and instead opting to jam his back against the floor. He heard a terrible crunch and a gurgling whimper.
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> You have struck Level 12 Ghoul for 40 points of damage.
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> You have slain the Level 12 Ghoul. Experience awarded.
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Finn felt the ripple of pain run through him as he hit the floor, but he quickly rolled aside when he saw more ghouls emerging from the ruins. The wounded one was back, and it was hissing as it edged toward him. There was another one running at him full tilt, its hands curled into claws and fingers ending in blackened talons.
He saw this one coming and lunged forward to strike through the air with his flaming Pyrrhic Blade. There was a flash of crimson, and the sudden smell of burning flesh as he tore the ghoul from its murderous leap.
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> You have slain the Level 12 Ghoul. Experience awarded.
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No sooner had Finn completed his swing than he felt a shock of power running through his body. Tiny lines of burning purple lightning raced across the ground to leap into him.
Finn cried out as the muscles in his legs locked up, driving him to his knees.
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> You have reached Level 21.
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> As a Defender, you receive +2 Strength, +2 Intelligence, +5 free statistic points.
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> Your Stamina advances 10 per level.
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> Your Mana advances 10 per level.
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> Your Health advances 10 per level.
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You’d think I’d be used to this by now! Finn snarled as waves of cosmic power flooded his body. It wasn’t entirely unlike getting electrocuted, if electrocution also brought with it feelings of godly might.
He didn’t have time to upgrade his statistics just then, though, as the wounded ghoul had taken advantage of Finn’s momentary level ascension and leaping toward him.
Finn felt cold, clammy hands seize his arms and pull at him with surprising strength, dragging him across the rubble.
“Finn?!”
“Get off!” Finn struggled as he heard Rosa’s hurried shout. He slashed out with his blade just as he and the ghoul reached the low wall, and with a flash of flames, he had slain his third ghoul.
Not that it helped much. From the other side of the wall came more hands reaching up to grab his arms and shoulders and bleeding neck. He felt the slap of moist palms with sharp claws against him as he raised his burning blade once more.
Finn slashed down with the Pyrrhic Blade, but even as he heard screams, he felt his weight topple over the low wall as the bodies of half a dozen ghouls pulled him down into the dark hole beyond.
“FINN!”
Rosa’s scream was the last thing he heard before the world went dark.