The plan, as dangerous as it would be, was rather simple. Thanks to the combined efforts of the Sisters and other players skilled enough to help create gear, and Azalea contributing a rather large amount of raw materials, they were able to equip nearly fifty players, either members of the guild who had a staked interest in making sure Silver Village survived, the core of players who remembered Matlin and wanted to put him down for good, and those who wanted to help because they felt it was right.
And they hadn’t just created average items, either, Azalea thought with a fierce sense of pride. Everyone was using Uncommon gear at the least. There had even been two cases of Rare gear, and Oscar’s bow came back with an unexpected upgrade to Mythic. She’d watched him test the weapon on an archery target, and his arrow had actually punched through the stiff straw barrier to bury itself in the wall of a building behind it.
For her part, Azalea had taken over a small kitchen built by Tankbabe and a few other construction workers, and worked on making food items for buffs until she was exhausted. Over the course of a single day, she’d produced enough food and potions to keep their force buffed for up to four hours. What was more, she’d whipped up a special magical buff potion for her and the other mages, so that they could keep heals and buffs going for any fights they encountered. There was no other way they could prepare. They were ready.
Logging in the next morning, she saw that a large group of players was gathering at the center of the Village. The Terrians that called it home were looking upon the force with approval. At their head, Caius stood with Kyraa, delegating raiding zones for the parties that had formed. He gave Azalea a quick nod as he saw her, then returned to work.
“Looks like we’re getting started early today,” A voice said to her right. Turning, she saw Patsy standing beside the entrance to the inn. He was dressed in a new set of plate mail. Like the other members of the Progenitors, it was mostly blue. But to make him stand out from Caius, she’d instructed the smith to add more red. Together with the different styles, she was confident that there wouldn’t be any mistakes when they were both fighting.
Azalea nodded in reply to his words. “Hope you’ve gotten enough practice with that hammer. I’d hate for it to go to waste too fast.”
She added a smile to take any unintentional insult out of her words, and he smiled thinly. She could see the nerves, the anxious energy he was trying to hide. She felt the same but thought she was doing a pretty good job of masking it. He glanced over his shoulder to where the handle of the large hammer stuck out over his armor. “Yes, I’m grateful for the weapon. I’m still not sure hammers are best for me, thought.”
“If Caius thinks that’s your weapon, it probably is,” she assured him. “Besides, it’s better to learn one weapon thoroughly rather than trying your hand at several without learning the basics of any of them.”
He nodded. “So Caius told me. Many times. Not that I got more than the basics, mind you.”
At that, she could only shrug, but offered no reply. The simple fact of the matter was that they just didn’t have enough time to do anything too carefully. He’d have to learn what it was like to be in a real fight eventually, and the sooner they accomplished that, the better. As Caius often said, the only real way to gain experience in fighting was to actually get to it. She was living proof, she thought with a small smile. Barely two months in, and she was leagues above the ‘skill’ she’d possessed when they first joined the game.
“You’ll be with Caius and Riley,” she said quietly. “So most of the fighting will be on them. Just obey orders, and we’ll make sure you survive the encounter. Well, we’ll try.”
She let out a short snort of laughter, then immediately regretted it when she saw the petrified look on his face. When had she become so dry and sarcastic? Too much time around Caius and Oscar, she reminded herself. She’d have to focus on spending time with Riley… if only to balance herself out.
“Hang tight in the meantime,” she added in a more gentle tone. “And please, try your best to react. Eat something, and drink something cold. If you keep standing there like a bomb ready to go off, you’ll just tire yourself out.”
He nodded his acceptance, smiling gratefully. “See you later, then.”
As he returned to the cool interior of the inn, Azalea made her way over to where Caius was directing the last of the fighters. She caught up with him just as the last party walked away, looking both excited and apprehensive. “Got everyone an assignment?”
Caius nodded. “We can’t cover the entire area in a single day, of course. That anti-magic field is too wide. But we can hit key points. Each party is aware of their instructions.”
She knew the plan all too well, after repeating it to herself like a mantr all throughout the previous day. If a party found the source of that field, they were to rush back to Silver Village at all costs. The last thing they wanted was to find what was causing the massive dome and lose that party. Ten minutes was enough time for the enemy to reinforce the position, and make disabling the field even more difficult.
“I have a few real-life things to take care of before I can join the raid,” she said, though she didn’t specify. He didn’t need her to, either. With his memories of his life before dying in the real world, he knew what she was getting at.
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“My final will and the funeral,” he said, nodding gravely. “I’m sorry you have to deal with that. I know it was inevitable, but it is still unpleasant.”
“Well, it’s not as if you’re really gone,” she said, dodging the serious nature of the statement. “I just have to contact whoever you’ve left your stuff to, and make sure the coroner’s office knows what you want to be done with..”
She couldn’t say ‘your remains’. Even if Caius was still here in the game, the loss of his real-life presence was a little too heavy at the moment. He shook his head, recognizing her reticence. “Still. You shouldn’t have to deal with it alone. If I had hired another worker to cover the gaps-”
“I don’t think anyone could have put up with your surly days,” she shot back, momentarily forgetting her sadness to offer up the joke. It even brought a semblance of a grin to her face. “Face it, Dale. I’m the only one who could put up with you after Anne introduced us. I mean, she practically threw me at you and ran away.”
He let out a low chuckle at that, and the good humor seemed to further lift the depressive weight of her thoughts. Maybe she would be alright after all, she thought. It might just take a while, but she hadn’t lost Dale. Not really. “Care to tell me what your will says in advance? Prep me to meet your family?”
Save for his niece Anne and a distant cousin she’d already forgotten the name of, she’d never met nor heard of Dale’s other family members. She knew they existed, but they also kept their distance, by mutual desire. Caius’ grin widened.
“Why should I deprive you of the surprise?” He asked cheekily. He looked like he wanted to throw another jab in, but was distracted as Oscar appeared to their left. He almost seemed to rise up out of the open ground. “Well, I’ll leave you to that. Don’t take too long, and don’t let it burden you too much. You’re a strong girl. You’ll do fine.”
Oscar heard the last two lines as he came within easy speaking distance. He was also able to glean what they were discussing based on that little information. “So, which did you choose?”
They looked at him in confusion for a moment before he elaborated. “Burned or buried?”
“Burned,” Caius said, a wry smirk replacing his grin. “Graves are too expensive nowadays.”
Oscar nodded his agreement with that sentiment. “True that. Any special plans for the ashes?”
“Not really. It’s illegal to feed anyone my ashes, fortunately for my enemies.”
“Got many of those, do you?” the rogue asked, raising one eyebrow. “Here I thought you were a placid old man.”
Caius let out a bark of laughter. “Hardly.”
Azalea bid them both a quick farewell, already turning back to the inn. She was already running low on time, and she didn’t want to delay it any further. The sooner she got this unpleasantness out of the way, the better, she thought. Then she could be done with it. All that remained was to find a new apartment, and that could be done another day.
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Sorting out the house turned out to not only be easy, but extremely quick. The lawyer overseeing his estate had already emailed the details to her late the previous night, while she’d been logged in making all that food. Rubbing tiredness out of her eyes, Aster sat herself down at the desk, where she’d once done her schoolwork but now barely used. She fired up the old laptop that sat there. She could have used her V-Lens of course, but she felt she owed at least this much effort to Caius, the man who’d shunned recent technology.
Ms. Franklin,
I am sorry to hear of Dale’s passing. I know you two have become very close in the recent years, and though you only signed up as a temporary caregiver, I know your presence improved his mood drastically and made his life better. The times that we have spoken, Dale told me how he approved of you. He called you the only sensible person of your age.
Azalea couldn’t help but smile at that. Dale’s dislike of her generation had been well-documented. As a member of the old millennial generation, he saw people her age - called Generation Alpha - as irresponsible, annoying children. It was a sentiment she agreed with herself, though she never admitted that to him. She read on.
Unfortunately, all good things do eventually come to an end. It pains me to be the executor of his estate, knowing that such a fine man has passed from this world. If you’ll forgive my sentimentality, I’m honored to have met Dale and to have been his personal attorney.
As you may expect, there are a great many things to do in regard to his estate, and other final affairs that he wished for me to handle. Please, rest assured that I am more than capable of handling these matters. Dale made it quite clear that you were to be as untroubled as possible when it came to handling his affairs. He stated, and I agree, that you worked quite hard enough for him. So now, please allow yourself some time off, to recover and relax.
The true purpose of this e-mail, however, is to inform you that, as far as his last will and testament is concerned, you are listed as his primary benefactor. His home - the address at which you currently live -, holdings, and considerable savings are to be transferred to you at once. As he had no heirs, there were no other claimants to his estate.
He was aware of how you would react to his decision, however, and has also instructed me to inform you that it is quite impossible to change or override his decision on this matter. Once the property and money are in your name, you will, of course, be free to do with them what you wish. But it is our sincere hope that you accept this gift. You were an invaluable addition to his later life, and we wish for you to live the rest of your life in comfort.
Please do not hesitate to contact me further if there is anything else you may need. As the attorney of his estate, I am also obliged and eager to be your personal counsel. Again, please take this time to be with yourself. I’m sure the loss is greatest to you in particular, as his oldest and closest friend. I will handle all matters that must be handled. Take this time to grieve, and be comforted in the knowledge that your life may continue as it was.
Wishing you the best,
Randy Tuck, Esquire