Patch 17 (Realm of Arkon) (34 page)

I drew a heavy sigh. Why did game devs and writers always try to represent dwarves in this manner—as loud, quarrelsome louts? Even when these dwarves happened to be demons. I took out the letter from Raey's father and handed it to the smith.

"I need gold, not kindling paper," Kryon grunted, but did take the letter.

"Duh, now he's at it, too!" said the smith gruffly. "What did you do, cut off Vill's balls and give them to him for his experiments?" he inquired, though the hostility was gone from his voice.

Your reputation has increased. Kryon the Master Smith relates to you with respect.

"Eight hundred gold and not a single coin less. You and that tailed bastard will drive me to bankruptcy." Un-freaking-believable! Eighty thousand bucks for a suit of armor. And that was with a 60% discount. On the other hand, a suit of armor in this world was much more important than an SUV in the other one.

"Might you be interested in this, master?" I produced a vial of skhiarta's blood from my bag.

Kryan took the vial and examined it.

"How many do you have?" asked the smith in an indifferent voice, trying to look calm.

"About ten," I shrugged. I knew how this game was played!

"I'll take eighty off," grunted the master smith, hiding his eyes.

"Don't take me for an idiot! The last skhiarta was killed fifty years ago," I recollected Kyle's words. "It's an extremely rare ingredient." I had forgotten to look up the value of the reagent in the wiki, but the rare class of the vials told me some bargaining was definitely in order. "Half the price!"

"Are you out of your mind?" Kryon made a grand gesture with his hands, addressing the smirking apprentices who stood in the corner of the smithy, as if calling onto them to bear witness to my madness. "You must have hit the cobblestones with your head when you fell from your plane to ours!" He gestured downward with his hand, describing my alleged arrival and head injury. "One hundred and sixty, and not a copper more!"

"Really, Master, it's not like I'm trying to pawn off ten vials of gopher blood or some such. That thing came from the Gray Frontier! Three hundred, and it's a deal!"

"Two hundred for ten vials is my final price."

"All right, it's a deal," I was tired of bargaining, and I was actually fine with the price. "I suddenly remembered I had forty of them. Such a lucky coincidence, isn't it, Master Smith?"

"My gramps told me not to have any dealings with light ones—he said all of you were dodgy," Kryon muttered. However, he didn't look particularly disappointed. "So what is it that you need?"

"This set here," I pointed at a pair of greaves from a level 100 set of armor.

"But you won't be able to wear them," the demon was surprised.

"I think I will, in about a month," I reassured him. "A shield would be nice, too," I said while looking around the smithy. "Actually, I recall that I have another fifteen vials on me..."

I don't know whether my inner hamster was disappointed by my overpaying or rejoicing at the fact that its master would receive an amazing rare set of armor in three weeks, but I was approaching the Temple of All Gods in a good mood. Actually, there wasn't much to be that happy about—a suit of armor of this sort could be purchased at the game auction for about 300-400 gold pieces, given the price gap between the auction and similar craftsmen. But I must reiterate that auction house access was a long way off, and the suit of armor had cost me nothing, since I didn't intend to level my alchemy or blacksmithing skills.

Initial levels of professions could be learned in starting cities. The local starting city was Iskhart, but I had no wish to travel all the way there. I had enough money for the time being—over nine thousand, which should last me a while. My only problem was my main weapon—I could probably make it to level 100 with what I had, but I'd definitely need an upgrade once I got there. Unfortunately, Kryon was only a master armorer—he did have a few swords for sale, but nothing above the unusual class, which wouldn't be much better than what I had equipped at the moment. Oddly enough, there were no good weaponsmiths in Nittal, and Kryon suggested that I inspect the shops and look for weapons personally. I didn't feel like doing anything of the sort, so I decided to head to the Temple, then pay a visit to Dara in the evening, and set off for Urcahnta tomorrow morning.

If you asked an Ancient Greek who their god was, the reply would be instant—something along the following lines: "We have many gods, but the main ones are those sitting on Mount Olympus." There was no equivalent of Olympus in the realm of Arkon, nor were there any dramatic legends of how Zeus gave birth to Athena, who came out of her daddy's head clad in a full suit of armor and wielding a spear (how was it she didn't emerge mounted?!). Arkon's gods just existed, and that was that. The copy that accompanied the patch mentioned gods' plans of some sort—I knew nothing of them, and had no wish to find out for as long as they didn't affect me personally.

The attitude to religion within the game could best be described as one of philosophical resignation. Similarly to their Ancient Greek counterparts, each god had a limited area of specialty. Gods could help you raise your reputation; they could also give you quests and either provide perks or hit you with debuffs. However, you could not get any decisive advantage within the game even if you were some god's favorite—after all, any game must maintain a certain balance. At least, that was the case before the latest patch.

There must be as many gods here as there were in the Ancient Greece—you could hardly keep all their names in mind. However, if one of them marked you with their attention, you should probably remind them of yourself periodically—who knew what perks that might give you? Therefore, the fact that the Goddess of Justice favored me and even gave me a one-time ability could be considered very fortunate—there were around twenty million players in Arkon at the moment, and barely fifty deities. The ability received from the goddess was very much like the Shield of Faith, a skill used by the paladin class. The knights of light used their shields to reduce their sustained damage to one third; however, the skill only worked once a day, if my memory was correct. But beggars can't be choosers—and indeed, maybe Setara's shield would someday prove the very thing that would protect me from some kind of trouble?

Those were my thoughts as I approached the Temple of All Gods—an enormous building whose design was copied from the Pantheon in Rome by the devs (only they made the Temple four times bigger). Drawing was much easier than actual construction work—you never know, maybe in a few thousand years the demons would admire the skill of the ancient builders the way we used to admire the skill of those who'd built the Egyptian Pyramids back on Earth. Hot damn! A thought came to mind that stopped me in my tracks. What if Earth, in turn, had been drawn by someone at some point in time? Then again, it didn't really concern me much at the moment.

It was lunchtime, and the Temple grounds were pretty crowded. All sorts of petitioners and visitors were either moving toward the entrance of the temple, like myself, or simply walking along the paths paved with white tiles between the numerous marble statues standing on the temple grounds. Oddly enough, I didn't notice any beggars—back in Valdarra, for instance, there were crowds of them. Temple acolytes could be told apart by their beige cassocks with symbols of different colors upon them. I had no idea about the meaning of those symbols and whether they were associated with gods or represented the temple hierarchy. Wiki contained no relevant information.

The pediment of the Temple bore the legend, "The Gods see us all and reward us by our deeds." I shrugged and entered, passing between the massive stone pillars of the portico. What I really loved about virtual reality was that you could create miracles like this one here—the temple was twilit inside; the rotunda, or the temple's main room, was cylinder-shaped and over a hundred and fifty feet in diameter. Entrances to gods' shrines were located alongside its wall. The numerous pillars, statues, ornaments and frescoes appeared lit from the inside with some surreal magic luminescence. The hemispherical dome looked like a starlit sky and had a mesmerizing effect on whoever looked at it. There were plenty of people around me, but I still got the impression of being alone in the Temple.

"You shouldn't gaze at the dome for too long, light one—it may give you a splitting headache," a calm and soft voice behind me made me turn around. There was a young demoness there, clad in a beige cassock with her hood up, and the intent gaze of her green eyes made me feel a bit timid.

"You don't seem surprised at all. Do the likes of me visit the Temple every day?"

"Even gods visit our temples sometimes, so there is no reason for me to be surprised about your arrival. The prophesies of Maeliss dar Karis say that by the end of the fourteenth century the boundaries between our planes will disappear. I have no reason to distrust this information." She took off the hood with a light gesture. "My name is Sister Arsa. Can I be of assistance to you, light one?"

"Krian. I'd be really grateful if you could show me the way to Setara's shrine." There were lots of arches in the circular wall. I could have tried each shrine, but I didn't feel like lingering too long.

"Of course, Krian," she pointed toward one of the entrances. "This is the shrine of Setara the Winged—to the left of the shrine of Hart."

The entrance to the shrine was a marble arch with a pair of open wings, one to either side. I went through the narrow corridor, past the walls decorated with bas-reliefs and mosaics, and ended up in a spacious chamber with an altar (a large block of marble). Above the altar stood a ten-foot statue of the goddess. The majestic and beautiful woman with clothes ruffled by the wind was armed with a sword and shield, and her posture suggested unstoppable motion forward. The open wings on her back made the illusion of flight complete. I admired the statue for a while, and then nodded, as though greeting the goddess, and joined the line to the altar.

There were just five demons standing in line, so I didn't have to wait long. I put my hand into a special niche, put ten gold coins into the bowl that stood here, and whispered words of gratitude. Nothing happened, so I nodded the statue goodbye and headed for the exit without undue haste. At some point, I felt a calm examining gaze directed at my back. I decided against turning around, and the sensation of a stare was gone as soon as it appeared. I shrugged, thinking that I must have imagined it—either that, or that was the effect of the surroundings.

After some contemplation, I decided to visit Hart's shrine, too. I was wondering about the appearance of the god whose name I heard the most often over the last couple of days. I didn't have to search the entrance too long—the developers in their irony placed the shrine of the God of Thieves right next to that of the Goddess of Justice.

In a minute I was standing in complete silence, looking at the statue of an old man sitting on a chair above the altar with his body leaning forward and his palms resting on his knees. Hart was giving the visitors an appraising ironic look. I stood there for a minute, admiring the designers' skill, and then did the same as in Setara's shrine—I put my right hand in the niche upon the altar and gave the God of Thieves a gold coin, since it somehow didn't seem right to leave just like that. I nodded Hart's statue goodbye, for one had got to be careful in such places, and left the temple quickly.

I wonder what would happen if one player put his hand upon the altar, and another one threw the money into the bowl—which one of them would get the credit for the donation?
That's what I thought to myself on my way to the local alchemist's shop. All the donations in the shrines of the realm of Arkon followed the same pattern, though I didn't quite understand why. Most likely, the AIs responsible for the entity that received the sacrifices must read the data of the player who made the sacrifice. However, if that was the case, I could put my hand on the altar while someone else threw the money in the bowl, the deity involved would probably consider these coins to be my offering. I shrugged and decided I didn't care enough either way. And then I saw a familiar sign up ahead.

I cited pressing business to decline the offers of tea, mulled wine, and something called kava, gave Master Regus the rest of the money, and collected forty magenta vials with the ability elixir. I pondered for a while, and then bought some more health and stamina restoration potions, twenty vials each. Then I bade my farewell to the companionable old man, having promised to buy potions and elixirs from no one else while in Nittal. He must have been starved for company, but I needed to wrap up my business here without undue delay and set off for Urcahnta.

I dropped by a tavern with the sign of a rooster with its tail fluffed out upon it, and ordered myself a meal. I sat down by the window in an empty hall and tucked into my lunch in peace.

"Phew, good thing I managed to catch up with you," a young dark-haired demon in plain gray garb flopped down at my table right across from me.

"How can I be of service?" I pushed the empty plate away and eyed the interloper inquisitively. There was nothing special about him: level 51, hair tied in a neat ponytail, large brown eyes with a hint of mischief, and a square earring made of some white metal in his left ear.

"I'm Leeque," the young man introduced himself. "And you must be the notorious wizard Krian."

"I am indeed Krian, but whence the notoriety?"

"Ooh, a modest one, too," the young demon smiled. "Few here could boast of your achievements."

Could he be referring to Shaartakh?

"If that's all you have to say, I guess I'll get going," I rose. "Got a lot of stuff to do."

I really resented characters of this sort. He looked like a regular guy, but there was something about him that defied understanding, and one should keep well away from anything one doesn't understand in a magical world such as this.

"Hold on! I completely forgot—I was following you and saw you drop something, quite by accident, so I picked it up and ran after you to hand it back. Here you go."

The guy placed a well familiar signet ring on the table.

The Champion of the Order of the Red Flame's Signet Ring! But how could this be? It was a quest item—it could not be lost or sold! I grabbed the ring and stared at the young demon in front of me, completely baffled.

"What is the meaning of this?!"

"Master said you'd be a bit surprised," Leeque chuckled. A bit surprised?! I'd just witnessed a violation of one of the game's fundamental laws!

"What master? As a matter of fact, who are you and what do you want from me?" I said in as cold a voice as I could muster. "You've just told me you followed me and saw me drop a ring. How could any 'master' know about it? Also, you have been running after me too long—I managed to finish my meal in the meantime."

"You should stop quibbling, really," Leeque shrugged. "And don't get so stressed, your mental health is too important... The look in your eyes tells me that you suspect yours truly of having stolen the ring from you."

"You mean you haven't?" I made my countenance even gruffer, but the demon just smiled in response.

"No one stole your signet ring. What I've just given you was a simple copy that vanished as soon as you put it in your bag." The young demon raised his hands, as if to say that his every word was true. "Please consider everything that has transpired an innocent practical joke—I needed something to catch the interest of someone as extraordinary as yourself, didn't I?"

Indeed, even if he didn't steal the ring, how did he see it in order to copy it? Insofar as I knew, quest items from a player's inventory were invisible to others.

"Then let me reiterate—who are you, and what do you want from me?"

"One shouldn't conduct serious business when one's throat is dry!" Leeque called the waitress and ordered a jug of wine.

While the elderly demoness was collecting the empty plates and bringing what Leeque had ordered, I studied him carefully, trying to fathom what I'd gotten myself into this time. The demon's level 51 didn't intimidate me in the least, but who could this mysterious master be, and what could he know about the ring and my quest?

"I think that my identity matters not one bit," Leeque took a sip from his glass and narrowed his eyes in visible delight. "What does matter is what I can do to help you."

"So, what is it you can do to help me?" I said slowly.

I wasn't going to drink with this shady character, so I was just sitting at the table, waiting for what would happen next.

"Krian, you want to make your way up there, don't you?" the young demon sighed and studied the ceiling dispassionately.

"So?" I tried not to let my agitation show in any way.

Leeque shifted his gaze to the fingers of his left hand as though he were examining his manicure for defects.

"If you do me a small favor, I'll share some useful information with you." The demon finally stopped contemplating his hand and raised his eyes to look at me. "I'll also throw in a present that will come in very handy in the future."

"What is it that I'm supposed to do?"

"A trifle, really. A while ago, a certain..." Leeque wavered for a moment, looking for the right word. "Well, let's call him a master. So, this master sent one of his apprentices into the house of a rather dubious individual—we can call him a necromancer." The demon took another sip of wine and continued. "The apprentice was supposed to borrow a certain object from this necromancer's collection, but he never managed it... mm-hmm." Leeque shook his head, apparently recollecting something. "Well, this necromancer did a rather rotten thing to his apprentice—he placed his soul inside the very object that the master had needed. So..." Leeque crossed his arms on his chest, looked me in the eye, and uttered very distinctly: "The master wants you to retrieve this object."

You've accessed the quest: Restoring Justice.

Quest type: unique.

Bring the Star of Hittara to Leeque.

Reward: experience, unknown.

I accepted the quest without thinking twice. I didn't care about understanding anything about the whole matter—it might be my only lead to getting to the other plane, after all. It would be folly or worse to reject such a gift. I produced a pipe from my pocket, which I had already filled with tobacco, lit up, and asked the most logical thing in this situation:

"Why me? Is there no one else in Nittal who could retrieve this object? Believe me, I harbor no illusions about my current abilities—to tell you the truth, that lady over there is three times more powerful," I pointed toward the old waitress, level 120, who was observing the dining hall from her chair next to the entrance.

"Is this what I hear from the slayer of the Netherworld's Elder Demon?" Leeque chuckled.

"I have had nearly nothing to do with the vanquishing of that demon."

The demon clasped his hands behind his head and leaned back on the bench, contemplating something. Then he appeared to have reached a decision and turned his gaze toward me once again.

"Your modesty does you credit, two-lived, but believe me—there's no one else but you who could handle this quest."

"What was that?!"

"Duh, stop trying to pretend you're something you're not!" the demon made a dismissive gesture. There was an imperceptible change in his gaze, which suddenly became coldly calculating. "If some are ignorant of a certain fact, it doesn't mean everybody else is. Up there," he pointed toward the ceiling, "there are lots of those like you. But none of them can do what you can. Moreover, there is absolutely no one else but you who can actually tackle this task."

"Have you been up there? How? Who are you?"

"I believe we have already reached an agreement upon this: business first, information later," the demon replied coldly.

"All right, all right," I poured myself a glass of wine from the jug, downed it at once, took a few deep drags from the pipe, and asked in a quieter tone, "So what is it that makes me unique?"

"The fact that you don't exist," my companion grunted.

I nearly choked on the smoke upon hearing this.

"How's that supposed to work?" I barely managed to utter those words without coughing.

"Hard to say," Leeque shrugged. You're a human being and a demon at the same time, which is absolutely impossible, but there you are, so that's why I offer you this deal."

"Is it you or your master who needs the Star? Where am I supposed to find it? And how can I retrieve it without sharing the fate of that apprentice? The last thing I want is for my soul to be transferred into some object."

"Does it really matter who needs it? Retrieve it, and you'll get the information you seek. As for the rest of it, you're headed for Urcahnta anyway, so you'll end up sticking your nose into the Ghorazm Ruins, right?"

"I have no idea what's happening over there, so I can make no assumptions yet."

"Oh, please," Leeque waved dismissively. "You can handle whatever they throw at you there. If you really want to help the locals get out of the mess they've found themselves in courtesy of that very, uh, necromancer, for want of a better word, you'll have to take a walk through the ruins. You'll find a portal there." The demon placed a vial with a powder of some sort onto the table. "Dump this into the portal window before you go in yourself. Please don't forget, or you'll simply stop being two-lived and become, how do I put it, someone who dies very frequently."

"What's going to happen once I dump the powder into the portal?" I wanted to get all the details to avoid having an explosion of some sort send me to the graveyard.

"The powder will reorient the portal, which will take you where you need to go."

"Could you tell me more?"

"My, aren't we thorough," Leeque smiled. "The portal will take you to a place that's close to the necromancer's dwelling—it's only about half a mile away."

"All right, but how do I collect the Star?" I didn't really think the owner was likely to bring it out on a tray and to give me a basket of warm pastries to keep me from hunger on my way back. "And how do I recognize what I'm looking for, anyway?"

"A relative of mine will help you there. Believe me, light one, I have no illusions about your abilities, either. All you need to do is enter the vault and take what's needed."

"What relative and how is he supposed to help me?"

"Well, this relative of mine also has a bone to pick with the necromancer. His wife's diadem is in the same vault as Hittara's Star. We shall simply surprise the necromancer a bit," The demon smiled, winked at me and placed three more objects on the table—a rock fragment of some sort, a scroll and a small black box. "Once you go through the portal, draw the symbol from the scroll on the ground, place the rock in the center, and dump the contents of this box on top of it. Nothing too complex, right?"

"Won't you tell me anything about the identity of this relative?" I realized I'd subscribe to this cryptic quest anyway, so I tried to get as many details as I could.

"Curiosity doesn't become you, Krian. Once you do everything as per my instructions, you'll see everything for yourself, so why ask? Oh yeah, that relative of mine... He's a bit, you know..." Leeque made a gesture with his hand, trying to find the right words. "This guy's got a short fuse, so try to explain to him right away why you summoned him."

"Why don't you come along and explain everything yourself? You'll most likely find it much easier to converse with your kinsman."

"I would go, of course, but can't you see I can't even get through the ruins. Also," the demon made a despondent face, "there's a dispute of, uh, a theological nature between yours truly and the kinsman in question. So it's best for the two of us to avoid seeing each other presently. As for you, just tell him you can get his diadem, and he'll do the rest. You'll be able to sense where the vault is from a long way off."

"How do I find you afterwards?" I could see I wouldn't learn anything else.