“Steer us toward the Necrosium!” Sara shouted from the front of the sky-cutter. “I sent a message to the Necromancers asking for help. They’ve got weapons to use against the Blight.”
Eve adjusted something, and the sky cutter rolled sideways.
Kaden’s agility let him grab the railing and stand on it sideways.
Sara’s horrors had each coiled around a railing, and she slashed at a Blightling until it fell off the side, following the ones that had focused on Ashi over the side. The sky-cutter righted itself and then flipped over the other way.
“Good job throwing them off!” Sara called.
“Throwing them off? I mean, yes, that’s what I was doing!” Eve steered again, this time more gracefully, taking them around the edge of the volcano. “How do I make it go up or down?”
“No up! No down!” Ashi said. She hovered an inch off the deck, focusing on the [Thread of Fate]. “Away from volcano. Away from wall. Back and forth, cover the city. When I say stop, stop.”
Kaden saw the next Blightling fall from the darkness far overhead and met it with a swing of Remembrance, flinging it off the sky-cutter and into the city. “Sorry! Look out below!”
“Go up. Go up now!” Sara shouted from the bow.
“No Up! No—” Ashi dropped to the deck. The mana globes above the ship flared brilliantly.
Because dead ahead lay an arena. Above it, mana displays showed a team of gnomes fighting to slay a group of adventurers. The sky-cutter gained height, but not fast enough.
“Slow down,” Kaden said. “We need to go up! We need—”
The Sky-Cutter slammed into the top of the arena, and broke through, sliding down the seats on the other side. The stern of the cutter remained aloft, while the nose dipped farther and father down into the arena.
“Keep the gnomes off the ship!” Eve shouted. “Ashi, get us—”
“I know!” Ashi shouted back.
The arena was filled with ruined buildings, and gnomes hunted the adventurers among them. Sara leaped from the tip of the ship to the top of one of the buildings. “Sorry for the interruption, we’ll be out of your hair in just a moment. Just don’t—”
A wand blast blew a chunk out of the the building.
The Buried City was built better.
“You did not just shoot at me,” Sara said. “You. [Shield.] Did that gnome just shoot its wand at me?”
“They’re killing us! All of us, and you’re worried about if they shot at you?” the [Shield] shouted back. “Anika, how’s the resurrection going?”
“Benny’s on his feet, Tsaro’s got three of them deluded, haven’t seen Chen but that’s how I like it, means he’s working.” The woman called from inside a building.
The [Shield] cursed. “Join the games, they said. Win prizes, they said. We should have stuck to clearing ruins. Anika told us.”
PATTERN OF FATE DETECTED. RESCUE/IGNORE GNOME VICTIMS [IGNORE]
*There’s a Pattern of Fate here. We’re not supposed to interfere*, Kaden sent to Sara. *Karmic Penalties.*
“Anika? Anika Kabat?” Sara said. “Oh, hells. I’ve spent too long teaching you to fill out your Quest reports to watch some level fifteen gnomes disintegrate you. Kaden, I’m going in.” Sara hopped from roof to the ground and her Horror lashed out, snatching a pair of gnomes from behind a barrel and slamming them against the walls until they dropped their wands. “Catch.”
She tossed them, one after the other, through the door where the [Shield] waited to crush them. “Where are the rest?”
“The rest of what?” the [Shield] asked.
“The gnomes. The others haven’t shot at me yet, but now, I don’t trust them. Now they all have to go. Kaden! Screw Fate. Kill the gnomes!”
It was never polite to intrude on someone else’s gnome killing without an invitation, but now? He let go and fell, using [Shield Smash] to crush the stone below him and eliminate any damage. “How many were there?”
“Too many!” [Healer] Woman shouted. Oh, that was Anika.
Gnomes screamed like a flock of birds as [Anthem of the End] broke out. They skittered out of a nearby house to discover Trinity waiting. Kaden waiting.
You have incurred a Karmic Penaty. Due to repeated interference, Karmic Penalty has been increased from minor to serious.
Kaden activated [Moment of Speed] and smashed a pair of gnomes, while Trinity killed three and stabbed one straight through with her tail, then threw it into the crowd, who cheered.
His TriTerror went wild.
“You get a gnome, and you get a gnome!” Kaden tried using Remembrance as a bat. Several someones in a general area received part of a gnome. “Sorry, that’s a splash zone,” Kaden called as Trinity hurled another speared gnome into the upper seats. He pocketed wands from all the dead. “Shake them! Sara, shake them and a wand will pop out.”
Sara didn’t answer him specifically. “That. About. Does. It.” With every word a gnome screamed.
Sara stepped out. “Why are you fighting level fifteen gnomes? Why are you even in this stupid tournament?”
“Fun?” The [Shield] said.
“Glory,” a [Mage] added.
“Gold,” Anika whispered. “The recruiter said they were desperate and paying a gold piece each. We didn’t know they’d put us against twenty gnomes with level advantages.”
“[Backstab]!” A [Rogue] stabbed Kaden. “You won’t kill my party without killing me first.”
Kaden grabbed him by the throat and lifted, holding him off the ground. “Did he not get the message?”
The [Healer] rushed out. “He’s with us. Chen, they’re not enemies. Tsaro, no [Deluding] them.”
“I tried, it’s not working!” an [Illusionist] emerged from the house. “We’re going to die in this damned arena.”
Sara looked them over. “Everyone, on the ship. Suridev has it right, you’re just about to shit on the business.”
“The guards won’t let us leave the arena,” Anika said.
“Ship. On it.” Sara pointed. “Kaden, please stop strangling the [Rogue].”
“Because you said please.” Kaden let go and pulled the dagger from his side. “You want it back?”
The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
The [Rogue] looked like he might be ill and scrambled to climb the roof. The bow of the sky-cutter hung just above it, and their [Shield] was throwing them one at a time onto the ship.
“Halt! You are interfering in a sanctioned game!” A level thirty guard shouted from down the street. Granite covered his body as he charged at Kaden.
“Halt!”
“Halt!” the cry came from all around them.
Sara looked left and right. “We should go. One on one? I like my chances. We’ll be outnumbered.”
Kaden cupped his hands and boosted her upward.
The Horror latched onto the railing and hauled her aboard, while Kaden scrambled up to the roof. “Ashi!”
“I know!” She shouted back. “We are stuck.”
Kaden wedged himself under the edge of the bow and heaved. The sky-cutter shuddered and lifted back an inch—then three inches. He leaped to grab a rope and hauled himself onboard as the ship rose higher and higher, then pitched back and began to climb.
A floating eye circled the entire time, showing the sky-cutter and Sara standing at the bow, pointing with one sword upward—and out.
[Sara Scylla — Summoner], the mana projection showed above the arena.
Sara’s pseudopod whipped out to snag one of the eyeballs. “Sorry for the interruption, enjoy your games. Remember S&K Holdings for all your shipping and poisonous snake needs!”
She threw away the eyeball as the Sky-Cutter clipped the top of the arena and dipped down again, sailing toward the white globe of the necrosium. “All of you, stay near the cabin, in case.”
“In case of what?” The [Mage], Benson, asked.
Four [Blightlings] plopped on the deck.
Two, as Kaden spun in a circle, bashing the two that hadn’t quite formed.
“The Thread moves!” Ashi shouted. “Keep going!”
Eve jerked her hand, and the sky-cutter dipped sideways, throwing another [Blightling] off.
Karmic Penalty applied. [Blightling] has become [Blight King].
Sara unleashed lightning on the remaining one, and screamed in agony as it gripped her Horror.
The Horror was not of this universe. Most things that tried to absorb it died quick, explosive deaths. At the Blight King’s touch, the color drained from the pseudopod and it recoiled.
“Ashi!” Sara’s voice held fear for the first time. The colorless patch continued to spread up the pseudopod. “I have to unsummon it before whatever that is reaches me.”
Her other pseudopod blocked a lunge, and now a white patch spread over the other one.
Kaden sank Remembrance’s axe into the [Blight King]’s back. The blob didn’t so much turn as it focused using a new set of eyes on its back, and stretched out oozing white tendrils. The one that struck his chest sizzled and pulled back, but the other hit his arm where Kaden gripped Remembrance.
Agony burst as Kaden’s skin turned white. Kaden hurled it over the edge of the ship and fell to his knees, gasping as the pain grew worse. Every few moments, the white patch grew larger.
You have received a status condition: BlightBurn.
[BlightBurn]
You have been afflicted with the blight. Healing will only cause it to spread. Soon the Blight will be afflicted with you.
With a gasp, Sara unsummoned her Horror. “I can’t resummon for an hour. I’m useless, and if one of those attacks, I’m dead. And that doesn’t look good. Eve, Kaden’s got a status condition.”
The Necrosium loomed up ahead.
“Slow down!” Kaden shouted.
Too late. The Sky cutter ground into the dome top of the Necrosium and came to a stop. Skeletons swarmed over the sides of the railing, raising daggers and swords.
“We’re all going to die,” Anika said. “I’m the party leader. It’s my fault. It was my job to know we could betrayed and forced to fight a hord of gnomes for the entertainment of a lawless city.”
“See what you did?” Kaden shouted at Sara. “Fix her. This sounds suspiciously like you.”
Sara sighed and turned to face the party. “Eventually, yes, you will die. Some of you sooner than others. Today is probably not your day.” Sara waved to the skeletons as they dashed back and forth. “Hello, down below, and thank you!”
A ladder of bones curled up over the top, and a moment later, Dannae climbed over the edge, followed by an eight-foot monstrosity with a bone beard made of fingerbones that dangled off its jaw.
“Duggarn says you may be able to locate the twins. This ship needs a bigger crew.” Dannae waved to all the skeletons. “If it’s got flesh on, leave it on. If it’s [Blight], kill it all.”
Dozens of skeletons hissed and ground bones against each other.
“We really are going to die,” the [Mage] said.
Kaden was going to say ‘not today’ but he couldn’t help feeling he knew the behemoth. He spoke through gritted teeth. “Skully?”
The Behemoth turned and dipped its head.
“What did you do to Skully?”
Danna held out a hand, and he lumbered over to pick her up. “There was an accident with the original skull and he volunteered. We had a limited window. He’s still your pet, he’s just bigger. It’s your responsibility to understand how large a pet will get before you adopt them.”
Kaden studied the bone beard and long ‘hair’ that fell off the back of the skull. “The [Carrion Crows] are still in it?”
“Not exactly. We’re calling Skully a [Plauge Generator]. The nest mutated due to the [Plague] binding Eve helped install. We’ve been triming the nest to populate other skulls, and it only spawns two [Plague Crows], one per eye socket.” Dannae waved.
Skully kneeled down so Kaden could look at the hateful red birds in each eye. He activated [Beast Taming] and connected with the nest. “I love them.”
“Wait and let them prove their worth. We’re not sure they’re as effective. First off, there’s only two. Second, they seem to be more interested in spreading their disease than actually blinding enemies. But you know, happy little accidents happen all the time. How do we find the Twins?” Dannae listened as Ashi explained about the thread and the plan to cover Omnor.
Then pointed to the adventurers they’d rescued. “Unless you’re bringing them along to turn into skeletons, leave them at the Necrosium. Wait—you got [Blightburn!]”
“I’m trying to remove it,” Eve said. “It keeps getting killed and coming back in the same cycle.”
Dannae drew a glistening black dagger. “Blight can’t be healed, it can only be killed with Death Mana. You know, most people run screaming when I draw this thing.”
She sliced at the patch of white that had grown larger and larger, peeling skin—and [Blight] until only bloody flesh remained. “You’ve got to let me know when that happens. There’s a reason Necromancers are required.”
“Please,” Ashi said. “I need that mana. I can assist.”
While Ashi begged for mana, Eve healed Kaden’s arm enough that it wasn’t bare muscle, and Sara attempted to deal with her baby Adventurers.
Anika bowed her head. “We’re grateful for the rescue, but we barely survived our first deathmatch. We’ve taken a vote and want to head back to the Guild and do some boring tasks until level fifteen. The coins will come in time. Gnomes? Blight? Necromancers? There’s no XP worth this.”
“There’s always more XP if you live. Kaden, give them some loot.”
Kaden took out gnome wands, holding them up for Ashi. “Fire. Ice. Stone. Wind. Solar. Gravity—”
Ashi waved and the wand flew to her hand. “Yes. This one, I keep.”
Kaden shuffled through the other and handed them out like treats for Everdark celebration. “And here’s a dagger I found in my side a few minutes ago. And that’s something’s claw. This is a tongue I ripped off a [Dangler] a few nights ago. Careful, that’s poison. Spell book on Life Magic. I think this sword is cursed. Oh, yeah, it’s cursed good, if you don’t have [Hard to Kill] better not take it. Here!” He presented the [Shield] a helmet, a breast-plate and two gauntlets.
“They’re caved in,” the man said.
“I tell people all the time it’s not worth trying to rob us. Head to the Guild in Verona, look for a man named Thatcher. He’ll pop those dents right out and probably keep the ghost.” Kaden kept searching. And dropped the corpse of a [Assassin] on the deck. “I really have no idea where this guy came from.”
“Kaden!” Sara said. “You said you got rid of all the assassins at the guild.”
It all came back to Kaden. “This is the guy. Mister ‘free cursed rings in the market’. The Guildmaster said to drop him in the incinerator, but we had that erratic to deal with.”
“The incinerator,” the [Rogue] said quietly. “How do I avoid that?”
“Oh, come, now,” Eve said. “Don’t hand out cursed objects and then sell the cure. Don’t poison random wells and then loot the commoners. Don’t put a town to sleep with no way to wake them up just so you can kiss a princess. It’s creepy and you won’t be forgiven. Common sense, really.”
“Do not create a portal from the sewer to the top of the [Mage’s Tower],” Ashi added.
“Don’t dual class as an assassin and slowly murder your party as you get deeper in a dungeon until you’re trapped, the last survivor, starving to death and someone has to smash your skull with a hammer so the dungeon can reopen,” Kaden offered. “Too specific?”
“Too specific.” Sara said. “Anyway, head back to the Guild. There’ll be a nice fresh Quest waiting to clear Ashitton. We named it after Ashi.”
“What was that name?” Ashi asked.
“Eville,” Kaden corrected. “We named it after Eve.”
“Excuse me?” Eve asked.
Sara stepped in to avoid a murder. “The name isn’t agreed on. The town I’ve been paying to have you clear. Kill some giant rats. Swing by Verdant Vineyards and get [Resist Poison.]” She pointed to the ladder. “Can I offer you all some advice? Don’t enter death matches.”
“If your brother drags you to a different dimension to kill you, flee,” Ashi offered.
“Don’t make a deal with Shadow Blade organizations or get trapped in pocket dimensions, either.” Eve looked to Sara. “Too specific?”
“Those are fine.”
“Don’t ambush a Demon Lord, steal his eye, offer to have sex with his daughter and then get marked by Demons.” Kaden felt like this was right on the edge. “Also—”
“That’s enough advice.” Sara pointed to the ladder. “And don’t judge Necromancers just because they deal with the dead! One might make a great addition to your party!”
Kaden was fairly sure they were eager to slide down the bone ladder, in spite of how it grew hands to help keep them from falling. “They seemed nice, but the karmic penalty was—”
“Totally worth it. Good help is hard to find.” Sara looked out over the city. “Let’s go find those twins.”