The fear came in waves. Max wanted to run, but he was scared rigid. He stared up at the Death Knight, mouth open, eyes wide. The Death Knight raised its war hammer. Max sat shivering in fear even though the air around him was warm. His eyes darted here and there for any release from the terror. Anita was standing, her shoulders slumped, spear dropped, forgotten. Jahrod backed away, head shaking, tiny eyes as wide as Max had ever seen them. Elderon stood, gripping his head, twisting it side to side, almost on the point of crushing his own skull. He threw his head back and shouted to the sky with a deep bone-shaking yell.
What was he even doing here? Max thought. This was not his world. He was just some backstreet kid from nowhere. He had nothing; he had no one. He was nothing, so what if he died here? Who would miss him? Who would even know he was gone?
“Snap out of it, Max,” Janet said. She appeared before Max, a shimmering white apparition in the center of a black hole. “It’s just the dark portal,” she said. “They are channeling the energy of the portal, and it’s driving you and your friends mad with fear. It’s just like when you use the portal for Dark Movement. You must choose to step back out from it. Step out of the darkness now. Wake up.”
As Janet fell away, Max found the confidence to shake off the fear. The danger was real, the threat deadly, but fear of the Death Knights no longer had him in its grip. The fear burst like an over-inflated balloon. He stood up. The two Death Knights only a few yards away, closing in slowly, their weapons raised and ready to attack.
Anita and Jahrod were further away, leaving Elderon and Max as the Death Knights’s immediate targets. Max knew he couldn’t take them on alone, and his party was still overcome by terror-induced apathy. He needed to snap them out of it. He only had one option. He just hoped it wouldn’t kill them all.
>
>
> Max casts Fireball.
>
>
The fireball leapt away from his hands and exploded between the two Death Knights, instantly engulfing them in a magical inferno.
>
>
> Death Knight takes moderate damage.
>
> Death Knight takes moderate damage.
>
>
And the fireball kept expanding. Max felt the heat on his face. He turned away as the fire hit.
>
>
> Max takes moderate damage.
>
> Health critical.
>
>
>
> Elderon takes moderate damage.
>
>
And the fireball expanded outwards further to Jahrod and Anita, cooling and slowing as it went.
>
>
> Jahrod takes minor damage.
>
>
>
> Anita takes minor damage.
>
>
The fireball faded, and Max looked up to see the two Death Knights still advancing. The flames flickered over Elderon’s robes, smoke from his singed beard, but he had a steely look in his gray eyes, not the panic-induced terror of a moment ago. His gaze was fixed on the Death Knights, and he was casting. He cast a Magic Missile at close range before stepping back and casting another.
A huge yell of fury and anger went up behind Max. He flinched at the sudden sound and turned. Here came Jahrod, charging towards the Death Knight, his beard smoking, his axe raised. And Anita too, her eyes focused and determined, spear in her hand. She leapt at the Death Knight and struck. The Death Knight staggered backwards, knocked off balance by the blow.
Jahrod swung his axe and delivered heavy damage. The Death Knight retaliated and punched with the handle of his sword. The blow glanced off the top of Jahrod’s helmet with a clang, but Jahrod took no damage.
Max could see the Death Knight and Jahrod were both close to defeat. He felt the handle of his Shortsword of Lightning in his hand and ran in.
>
>
> Max attacks Death Knight.
>
>
The shortsword point found a chink in the black armor, and Max thrust it home.
>
>
> Death Knight takes minor damage.
>
> Bonus Lightning damage.
>
> Bonus Strength damage.
>
> Death Knight has been defeated.
>
>
Max laughed as the black armor fell into a heap at his feet, a single burst of laughter born of surprise and relief as the Death Knight fell. He saw the swinging war hammer of the remaining Death Knight just in time. He ducked, and the huge hammer swung overhead. The Death Knight brought the war hammer up and then down hard towards Max. Max rolled away, but Elderon was there, his white-silver sword crossed with his staff and held up in defense. The sword and staff let out a burst of light as the war hammer struck. The war hammer bounced off Elderon’s defense, sending the Death Knight staggering backwards.
Anita and Jahrod closed in on the Death Knight from either side. Elderon faced the huge Warrior. Max pulled up his hood and activated his Sneak ability. The Death Knight attacked each of the party with heavy blows from his huge war hammer, swinging it in wide arcs, but every blow was parried away. Max came up on the Death Knight’s rear and attacked.
>
>
> Max attacks Death Knight.
>
> Death Knight takes minor damage.
>
> Bonus Lightning damage.
>
> Bonus Strength damage.
>
> Bonus Sneak Attack damage.
>
> Death Knight has been defeated.
>
> Max gains experience points.
>
> Max has leveled up.
>
>
The Death Knight fell. The war hammer dropped, the armor fell apart and landed in a heap on the ground. Max poked the heavy black armor with his sword. Empty.
“You saved us,” Jahrod said, clapping Max on the back. “That Fireball trick really worked out.”
“It was foolish,” Elderon said. “I had almost broken free of their dark spell. There was no need to hit us all with the Fireball spell to break the fear.”
“It worked though,” Anita said. She started casting minor healing spells on Max. “Good thinking, Max.”
Max’s Health was quickly restored with a few spells, but he was still heavily injured. He needed rest and a meal and a few potions of Cure Moderate Wounds.
“I gained a level,” Max said.
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Elderon stood over Max, and his scowl became a look of admiration and approval.
“Level up now, young Mage. We will watch over you until you are done.”
Max sat down on the ground as Anita cast another Healing spell on him. He looked up at the clouds overhead. The thin wisps of cloud in a warm sky formed the table of his stats, but as ever, the detail was hidden behind a glowing pair of words: Level Up.
Max let the words rush towards him. They washed over him like a warm breeze and vanished. With the words Level Up gone, he now saw a swirling mass of other words for him to select from. Most prominent of these was the word “Mage.” It was very close, large, shining bright gold, hovering directly in front of him, almost impossible for him not to select. Behind it, smaller than before but still shining brightly, were the words “Bard” and “Assassin” and “Thief.” Behind them, hardly even readable now that they were so small, were the words “Warrior” and “Barbarian.” They were a dull-rust color and seemed out of reach. It would take extra effort for Max to reach out to those options.
Max had decided that he would stick with the Mage class. Even though he was gaining levels at a frustratingly slow rate and maybe he could advance quicker if he selected Bard or Thief, he thought of it as being a little like climbing a tall building. It was important to pick a climbing route and stick to it, no matter how hard it became. Changing route in the middle of a climb could end in getting stuck, or worse still, falling.
Max reached out and selected Mage.
>
>
> Max gains Level 6.
>
> Max gains extra Health.
>
> Gain one extra spell slot at Level 3.
>
> Four spells at Level 1.
>
> Two spells at Level 2.
>
> Two spells at Level 3.
>
> Sneak ability has been improved.
>
>
His table of stats was then revealed once again.
>
>
> Name: Max Lightfoot
>
> Class: Mage
>
> Level: 6
>
> Health: Badly Injured
>
> Strength: 10
>
> Stamina: 17
>
> Agility: 18
>
> Intelligence: 17
>
> Wisdom: 12
>
> Charisma: 16
>
> Abilities:
>
> • Climb
>
> • Dark Movement
>
> • Pick pocket
>
> • Sneak
>
>
It was a little disheartening that he hadn’t recovered all his Health. His Health bar was longer now, and he could take an extra hit of damage, but he needed to refill his Health bar. He needed a rest. But there was one thing that was very exciting: he had a new spell slot. He could have more active spells at his fingertips. He checked his Mage Book.
>
>
> Mage Book
>
>
>
> Level 1 Spells:
>
> • Magic Missile
>
> • Detect Enemies
>
>
>
> Level 2 Spells:
>
> • Strength
>
> • Summon Fog
>
> • Web
>
>
>
> Level 3 Spells:
>
> • Shield
>
> • Fireball
>
> • Disguise
>
>
He could select an extra Level 3 spell. He knew which spell was most powerful: the one that had just saved him, even if it had delivered damage to his party as well as their enemies. He checked his selected spells. Only the Summon Fog spell was still active of his selected spells. He’d used the rest in the single encounter with the Death Knights. Maybe one Fireball was enough. He took a close look at the Disguise spell.
>
>
> Disguise spell: Alter appearance of physical features and garb. Appear as friend or foe. Disguise spell cancelled if attacked or if any hostile action is performed. Sneak attack bonus applied if attacking while disguised.
>
> Duration: One day unless dispelled or cancelled.
>
>
Disguise looked like a powerful spell if used correctly. He added it to his selected spells. Now he needed to rest, but there was little chance of that right now.
>
>
> Selected Spells:
>
> • Magic Missile
>
> • Magic Missile
>
> • Magic Missile
>
> • Magic Missile
>
> • Magic Missile
>
> • Magic Missile
>
> • Strength
>
> • Summon Fog
>
> • Fireball
>
> • Disguise
>
>
“All done?” Elderon asked as Max stood up.
Max dusted himself off and nodded. “All done.” He beamed up at Elderon. “I’m a Level 6 Mage now.”
“You are so much more than that, young Mage,” Elderon said, laying a hand on Max’s shoulder. “You have come a long way in a short time.”
“Are we ready to go and find Captain Fineblade?” Anita said.
Max nodded and then caught a glimpse of something in the steadily evaporating armor of the defeated Death Knights. He probed the armor with his sword, and it crumbled away like burned paper. Max picked through the armor. It was slowly evaporating, the dark armor flaking away and drifting on the breeze before finally evaporating to nothing. Inside the armor, Max spotted a scroll.
He picked it up with the tip of his sword, blew off the black soot left by the evaporating armor, and then unrolled the scroll.
“What is it?” Anita said.
“It’s a scroll of Dark Terror,” Max said. He felt a flutter of nerves as he read it.
>
>
> Spell of Dark Terror: Disable enemies with crippling fear. Affects all within an area of effect, friend or foe.
>
>
Max didn’t know what to make of this spell. He was tempted to discard it. He didn’t want to hold on to it. Max studied the scroll. If he copied it to his Mage Book, it would be safely out of the way and if he never selected it or activated it, then it would do no harm to him or his friends ever again.
Max read the scroll. The dark icons shimmered on the scroll as he read the incantation. They appeared to scream in piteous fear as the scroll crumbled. He checked his Mage Book, and there, amongst his Level 3 spells, was Dark Terror.
>
>
> Mage Book
>
>
>
> Level 1 Spells:
>
> • Magic Missile
>
> • Detect Enemies
>
>
>
> Level 2 Spells:
>
> • Strength
>
> • Summon Fog
>
> • Web
>
>
>
> Level 3 Spells:
>
> • Shield
>
> • Fireball
>
> • Disguise
>
> • Dark Terror
>
>
It was a powerful spell, but he still felt a lingering fear from having been affected by it himself. He slammed his Mage Book shut. It shrank down in size and fitted in his palm. He tossed it up in the air before pulling his pouch off his belt. He opened his pouch, and the Mage Book was drawn to the opening. Once safely stored in his pouch, he closed it up, fastened it to his belt, and made ready to move on.
“Ready,” he said.
The expression on Elderon’s craggy old face told Max that the old Mage was not impressed by Max throwing his Mage Book around, although Max knew he and the book were bound together, and he couldn’t lose it. Mages could not lose their Mage Books. The Mage and his Mage Book were one.
Elderon led the party, and they headed westwards, ever deeper into the forests of Deepwood.
Walking into the forest, Max felt a sense of wonder. The air was warm, the trees were impressive, but he felt the lingering shudder of fear from the Death Knight’s Dark Terror spell.
“How did those Death Knights find us, Elderon?” Max said, walking alongside the old Mage.
“They are not natural creatures,” Elderon said. “They are summoned by the power of the darkness. Any who have access to the darkness that is infecting Eveirea can summon dark creatures, but one must have a concentration of power to summon two such fearsome creatures as the Death Knight. I fear that King Daynor has summoned them. We must be cautious.”
The forest seemed to grow darker although it was bright daylight. Darkness hid behind the tall broad trunks of the trees. The forest road was wide and clear, well kept by the elves of Deepwood, but there was darkness closing in from the shadows of the trees. Max remained alert. Anita scouted ahead of the party a few hundred yards but chose to stay on the road and not venture off into the forest.
“Are there any dangers in Deepwood?” Max asked, looking into the trees. They looked like they went on until the end of the world.
“There is danger everywhere,” Elderon said.
“That’s reassuring,” Max said sarcastically.
“Should I reassure you with baby stories?” Elderon said, “or do you want to know the truth of the world?”
Max felt Elderon’s tone was unsympathetic, not kindly at all. Bitter and abrupt.
“No need to bite my head off,” Max said, his voice rising.
Jahrod stopped walking and turned to confront the two. “Why don’t you both stop your complaining? Why do Mages revel in argument? Chew on your Mage Books and stop up your mouths, or I’ll stop you with steel.”
“Do you challenge me, dwarf?” Elderon said.
“You don’t scare me, Mage,” Jahrod said.
“Why don’t you shut your mouth?” Max felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise with the volume of his voice. “Shove something disgusting in there and chew on that.” Max felt his fingers curl around the handle of his sword.
“Why don’t you go back to where you came from?” Jahrod stepped towards Max. “Where even is that, Max? You never say. What are you hiding from me? You are a bad spell; I can sense it in you.”
“Thought you said a bad smell,” Max said, squaring off against the dwarf, “but you’d know all about that. Why don’t you just go? Go back to whatever dung heap of a town you call home.” Max snarled. “You saved my life from the kamora. We are even. But maybe you owe me for forcing you to have a wash. Go, dwarf. Leave.”
Jahrod’s hand gripped his axe until his knuckles turned white. Max drew his sword, the metal singing on the scabbard as it came forth.
“What are you doing?” Anita said, running over and stepping in between the two. “Put your weapons away. What’s the matter with you?”
Max looked at Anita, her wide green eyes sad and imploring. He looked down at Jahrod, who was clearly confused.
“I . . .” Max said, faltering, struggling to find a reason for his outburst.
“Something is not right in the Kingdom of Deepwood,” Elderon said.
“Jahrod, I’m sorry,” Max said. “I don’t know why I said that.”
“Me neither, young Mage.”
“It is the darkness,” Elderon said. “There is a concentration of dark power here. We must be extra cautious.”
“I have something that might help.” Anita started casting a spell.
The spell erupted around the party, and the darkness was dispelled with bright cheerful color. Max felt a wave of relief.
“What was that?”
“It is a spell of harmony. We will be resistant to fear spells, and we gain a bonus to defense as a party.”
Jahrod wrapped his arms around Max. “I don’t care where you are from. You will tell me when you are ready. Sorry, friend.”
Max returned the embrace, but boy, the smell.
“There,” Elderon said, “along the road.”
Max looked to the distance. There were figures up ahead. Max saw the long white coat of Captain Fineblade. A small number of his company on either side of him. They raised their bows.
Even at this distance, Max could see the darkness around their eyes.
And then a group of elves appeared in the trees on either side of them, bows raised, dozens of elven arrows trained on the party, each one aiming for the heart.