Archer let the silence linger for a moment before answering, his gaze fixed on the imposing gates. "I have a plan," he said, finally turning his gaze back towards Alex. "And it involves a bit of subterfuge."
"Subterfuge?" Alex raised an eyebrow, his interest piqued.
"Yes," Archer confirmed, a cunning glint in his eye. "I believe we can outwit them without resorting to violence."
"And how's that?" Alex asked, leaning closer.
"We'll send a group of us, preferably the crafters, through the gate after paying the fees. They'll have instructions to play along and chat with those inside. They will get a better few of the city and exactly where the portal lays. Once they get to the portal they will relay all the information to us."
Alex tilted his head, "But what about the rest of us?"
"We will take the alternative route to another fallen city," Archer continued. "Or at least that is what they will think. In reality, we will head far enough away from them to be out of sight and work on sneaking into the city. It's a gamble, but it might just work."
The whole plan sounded risky and far-fetched, but Archer was known for his unconventional strategies. His success record in leading their caravan to safety so far was unblemished, and he had a knack for turning disadvantageous situations in their favor.
"Are you sure about this?" Alex finally asked, scanning Archer's face for any signs of doubt. “What about future members of your guild trying to get through to the third floor?”
Archer met Alex's gaze, a determined look in his eyes. "I will have to level up and reclaim another city with some guild members in a week or two. Things will be delayed for them, but it won’t cost us half a million Tower Points or more in return. I know it is risky, but it's the best chance we have. And I'm confident we can pull this off."
The caravan split into three groups. The first of which was the crafters and a few other climbers who were willing to pay to quickly enter the third floor. The second group consisted of climbers truly in search of other cities that had been destroyed by the undead. Archer needed them to succeed if they were going to get around the Seekers permanently. Finally, the last group was the infiltrators. They planned to travel with the other climbers for a time before heading back toward the city. Archer planned to execute his idea at night and finish things by dawn.
Angela was among the group of crafters. She helped carry a few carts meant for the third floor. The group approached the gate. The head crafter leading them. The seemed to be a pre-established understanding between the watchers of the gate and the head crafter. Once they got close enough to the gate the metal beams rose with the clink of metal and they were let through. She scanned the area though that was not her assigned job. Others were working on mapping the area and seeing where guards had set up and with luck, they might glimpse where the guards would be in the evening.
Once they were through the gates they dropped back down with a clank. She and the others followed behind a member of the Seeker’s guild.
“How many of you are going to the third floor?” asked the Seeker’s member.
“53 of us are ready to use your city portal,” answered the head crafter confidently.
“Will you be paying altogether or individually? Personally, I would prefer it if you organized yourself and paid me the lump sum.”
“Would you take a little less if we did so. 53 is not a great number. Uneven. How about 45 thousand for our group,” she said trying to negotiate with the man.
“That is less than we have asked of you and is not a nice number. Though I can be swayed. If you can swiftly organize and pay the lump sum of.” The Seeker member in charge paused. “50 thousand Tower Points in the next two minutes then we will have a deal.”
He held out his hand expectantly. The head crafter expecting the deal kept her face unchanged as she turned back to the group. She had already gathered the funds from the group in the lead-up to their march into the city, so the move was all for show. Going over the plan in her head she turned back to the man with she felt the time was right and brought out her hand to match his. A moment later the funds had transferred and a smile form on the guild member’s face.
“Let’s get you to the third floor. I know you would like to get there as soon as possible, and we would rather not have you stay here long either. So please follow me.”
The group turned swiftly into a building and down a set of stairs. It was lit with magical lamps and was cleaned well. Angela took it in noting the people outside the building and now inside the building who were watching them. They were led to a familiar hallway like all the other teleportation halls Angela and everyone else had experienced before.
The guild member stepped to the side and pointed down the hallway. His eyes looked toward the head crafter and leader of their group. “This is where we part ways. Take the portal out of here as quickly as you can and do not come back through here. You and everyone else here in principle are not allowed to use this portal without authorization. We would be happy to trade, and passage may be bought with the proper notification. If you do not follow our rules and return through here you may be treated as a hostile entity. I would also like to remind you that if this location is blacked out on your map it is nothing personal and if the portal becomes reactivated you are not free to use it right away.”
Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.
“We understand your laws,” said the head crafter. “We thank you for this generosity you have provided and will not return.”
Some of the crafters had already left through the portal while others joined in on the forming line. Angela joined the growing line. Their destination was already set and there were no incoming climbers from the portal. She looked back one last time before she was at the front. The Tower system automatically popped up a message for her and she quickly accepted the new addition to her list of available options. A half second later she was gone.
<<<>>>
Alex looked back toward the city. “When are we headed back?”
They had spent the last hour traveling away from the city tangent to the tunnel ruins. Archer looked up from his steady walk.
“I’m still trying to go over the information we gathered and has been sent to me via communication crystals. Though I suppose we could turn around now. I just want to be sure that they aren’t watching us anymore or at least don’t notice that the remaining caravan reduces in size. Let’s check with David and then we can start the next phase of our plan. David! How are things going in your end? Do they have anyone that can see us at all?”
“Unlikely unless they snuck something into our carts, but I already did a check of them. I can run through the checks one more time while watching in the sky. I am having Edda fly in a rather random pattern and the clouds as well. She has not been spotted. They should not be suspicious of anything.”
“Good. Do the checks one more time and be thorough. When that is taken care of we will prepare for our trek back. Have Edda watching the guards on the walls but be careful more than anything else. Take it slow we can’t make any mistakes. I also want any updates as she sees them. I don’t want anything unexpected to hit us at the wrong moment.”
The earth mage ripped the stone from the ground and split it up between the infiltration team. Together they brought the stone above everyone’s heads and locked it into place. Next, they added more stone to the side. This created the effect of camouflaging their position. Now they could walk back with the mages holding the stone in place. It was a disguise that would not hold up after a certain point, but Archer hopped that it would get them close enough that the rest of the way would not matter. Once the raised stone was in place they moved out as soon as possible. The earth mages did not have unlimited mana after all.
The stone camouflage was a thin reinforced piece to make it easier for the earth mages to hold.
As they moved, the stone above them seemed to blend seamlessly with the surrounding landscape, a testament to the skill of the earth mages. The caravan, now significantly smaller, moved slowly and deliberately, careful not to draw attention to themselves. The mages, their faces etched with concentration, maintained the stone camouflage, their hands moving constantly as they manipulated the earth.
Alex, Archer, and the others walked in silence, their eyes constantly scanning the horizon. The city loomed ahead, its towering walls casting long shadows in the fading light. The once bustling metropolis was now eerily quiet, a ghost town abandoned by its inhabitants. The only signs of life were the guards patrolling the walls, they were consistent and planned.
David was constantly in communication with Edda, his falcon. She flew high above them, her sharp eyes watching the guards on the walls. Every so often, David would relay information to Archer, who would then adjust their course accordingly. He played the role of their eyes in a literal way. They had covered up even their front to prevent the Seekers from potentially noticing their moving legs. As an added protection even the back line of earth mages disrupted the ground behind them to cover up their feet.
As they drew closer to the city, the tension among the group was palpable. The earth mages were beginning to tire, their faces pale and sweaty from the strain of maintaining the stone camouflage. Archer gave them a nod of encouragement, his gaze steady and unflinching. They were close now, close enough to see the individual bricks that made up the city wall.
Suddenly, David's voice cut through the silence. "Edda spotted a change in the guards' pattern. We need to stop.”
He signaled their group and the mages stopped. Everyone else followed. Archer's eyes narrowed. "Alright, we need to change our approach. What are the guards up to now?”
“They are more focused around the main entry that our companions went through. They don’t seem to have noticed us yet.”
“We'll move towards the eastern wall then. It's less guarded."
The group changed direction, moving stealthily towards the eastern wall. The earth mages, despite their exhaustion, managed to shift the stone camouflage accordingly. As they neared the wall, Archer signaled for them to stop. He turned to Alex, his eyes serious.
"We're close enough now. The stone camouflage won't hold up any longer. It's time for the next phase of our plan."
Alex nodded, his heart pounding in his chest. This was it. The moment they had been preparing for. He looked at the city wall, then back at Archer. "Let's do this."
With a deep breath, they shed their stone camouflage, revealing themselves to the open air. Thunder cracked in the sky on the other side of the city fortress adding to their distractions. The earth mages downed some of their remaining mana potions and rebuilt their camouflage. This time it was more detailed while also more compact. Instead of tightening up their formations the stealth inclined rangers left the group.
Two dozen climbers dashed forward activating their abilities. Even Alex who already knew of their existence could barely see them. A few seemed to also draw the eye away from themselves. Weapons broke the stone wall and provided easy grips to help the rogues get to the top of the wall. David watched the top of the wall informing them of when the guards had moved away and when they needed to slow down. Alex watched a hundred feet away from the wall in anticipation.
Once at the top of the wall they quickly ran to the other side and slid down unnoticed.
“What happens now?” asked Alex.
“Now we will wait for them to find a suitable entrance for us. There are too many buildings around the perimeter for them to watch. They barely have enough to cover the walls. For now, we wait for their message and then we can let the water mages do their work.”