Grand Game 276: Striking Terror (Patreon)

“Where’d he go?” Tevin whispered.

You have healed yourself. Your health is at 65%.

“He’s hiding,” the first mage replied. “Be careful. He’s still close.”

“What is he?” the knight asked, nervously eyeing the darkness.

The mage shrugged. “An assassin, probably.”

“Who would send assassins after us?” Tevin wondered.

“Who cares?” Lorita screeched. “Just find him!” Hefting her axe, she rushed toward the spot where I’d disappeared.

The second mage broke off his chanting. “Don’t be a fool, Lorita,” he ground out harshly. “If you go out there, you’re dead. He is waiting for us to panic. Don’t give him what he wants.”

You have healed yourself. Your health is at 85%.

The half-giant hesitated for a moment, then retreated to the mage’s side.

“Good,” the mage pronounced. “Now, let’s stick together. If we do that, he can’t get at us. All you two need to do—” he pointed to Lorita and Tevin—“is protect us. Leave finding him to Inga and me.” Not waiting for their responses, the mage resumed chanting.

You have healed yourself. Your health is at 100%.

Crouched down a mere ten yards away, I opened my eyes. I’d used the temporary respite from action to heal myself while listening to the Marauders with half an ear. As the full sense of the mage’s words penetrated, I smiled indulgently.

It was a good plan, but not good enough.

The mage was correct: I did want to separate them. But if they didn’t comply on their own, I had other ways of meeting my objectives. Opening my backpack, I retrieved a stone bottle. Holding it ready, I reached into the minds of the fighters.

You have cast slaysight. You have terrified 2 of 2 targets for 10 seconds.

Surging upward, I flung the bottle at the four Marauders huddled together.

You have ignited a smoke bomb, creating a smoke cloud.

The reaction was instantaneous. Tevin and Lorita took off running, feet pounding against the ground as they burst out of the gray clouds and into the forest.

“Fools!” the overbearing mage yelled after them. “Come back here. At once!”

Naturally, the two fighters didn’t respond, and for the time being, I forgot them; I would find them again soon enough. Narrowing my focus instead on the mage’s mindglow, I stepped through the aether.

You have teleported into Greaves’ shadow. You remain hidden.

Wrapped in shadow and smoke, I was invisible to my targets. Taking ebonheart in a two-handed grip, I struck at Greaves’ shield.

You have backstabbed Greaves for 5x more damage!

Your target’s shield has blocked your attacks.

The mage spun around, his swishing robes betraying his movements. “He’s here!” Greaves cried. “Help me, Inga!”

I sensed the other mage turning towards me, but I didn’t stop my attack. The two spellcasters could no more see me in the billowing smoke than I could them. Empowering my arms, I pounded on Greaves’ shield twice more, dealing huge swathes of backstab damage each time.

It was enough.

Your target’s shield has been destroyed!

“Inga, do something!” Greaves yelled. “My shield is—”

Ebonheart flew forward to where I knew the mage to be and slid easily through cloth and skin to bury itself in my foe’s torso.

You have critically injured Greaves.

“Aiyee! It hurts!”

I’d failed to land a killing blow, but that didn’t matter. Retracting the black blade, I adjusted my aim and struck again.

You have killed Greaves.

One down. Swinging around, I stalked through the smoke toward my second target. I didn’t get far, though.

Inga has cast self-immolation.

Flames roared outward from the mage, consuming him, me, and the lingering smoke cloud.

You have failed a magical resistance check! You are burning. Duration: infinite. The debuff will remain in effect as long as the source spell is being channeled.

Your void armor has reduced the elemental damage incurred by 10%.

Magical fire wreathed me from head to foot. Squeezing my eyes shut, I screamed. I couldn’t help it; the pain was stupendous. Superheated skin charred, and flakes fell off. Simply thinking was difficult.

But one thought kept me upright: Inga had to be hurting as much as I was, or nearly so.

The spell he’d cast was a gamble, damaging him as it did me. In the split-second I’d had before the fire had overtaken me, I’d seen the mage’s shield flicker out, consumed by his own flames.

I… just… need… to… get… to… him.

I took a shaky step forward. More of my skin sloughed off. Shadow blinking was out of the question. Wrapped in pain as I was, using any of my abilities was beyond me.

I took another step.

The health potion on my bracelet cried out to be used, but I ignored the temptation of quick relief. I had to learn to fend without it. It’s only pain, I told myself.

I took another step.

Vaguely, the sound of another scream penetrated, a twin to my own. It was Inga. I forced blistered eyes open. A blurred shape swayed in front of me.

Almost… there.

Pulling ebonheart back, I thrust. The blow was a feeble imitation of my previous ones, and the point wavered noticeably as it sunk into my target.

Nonetheless, the blow sufficed.

You have killed Inga.

Flames extinguished. You are no longer burning.

With a relieved gasp, I collapsed to the still-smoking ground. Not… out… of… danger… yet.

I marshaled the dying strands of my will, and before unconsciousness could claim me entirely, I blanketed myself in darkness.

You are hidden.

✵ ✵ ✵

Two hostile entities have failed to detect you!

I groaned softly, jerked into some semblance of consciousness by the Game message.

“… they’re dead,” a voice said bleakly.

I recognized the speaker. It was Tevin. I quietened my breathing, in no condition to fight yet.

“And the assassin?” another asked. Lorita.

“I don’t see his body. He must’ve fled.”

“Keep looking,” the half-giant ordered.

“We shouldn’t be here,” Tevin argued. “Let’s head back to camp. Yzark must be informed.”

“Shut your gob,” Lorita growled. “And do as you’re told.”

The knight didn’t object further, but his steps were heavy as he stomped deeper into the clearing.

A hostile entity has failed to detect you!

I didn’t dare move. Pain still clouded my mind, leaving my senses impaired and unable to pinpoint the two fighters, but I knew they were close.

Turning my attention inwards, I drew psi. Before I could do anything else, I had to attend to my wounds. Chain-casting quick mend, I began nursing myself back to health.

Less than a minute later, Tevin threw up his hands again. “I can’t find him. I told you: he’s not here!”

“He must be,” the half-giant insisted, although she didn’t sound so certain anymore. “I didn’t see any footprints leading away.”

“Footprints?” the knight echoed incredulously. “Did you not notice the assassin flying?” he asked, his tone scathing.

Lorita snorted. “He can’t fly.”

“Then what do you call…”

Another Game message dropped in my mind, and I stopped paying attention to the pair’s bickering.

Your health is at 100%.

Silently, I rose to my haunches. Time to end this.

✵ ✵ ✵

Ten minutes later, I was still in the clearing. And was I not alone. Instead of killing Tevin and Lorita, I’d taken them prisoners.

Disarming and capturing the two Marauders had gone off without a hitch, and now the pair were trussed up securely and watching me with burning intensity.

Leaving them to stew a little longer while their fears ran wild, I looted their companions’ corpses. The dead Marauders were chockful of items, too many to sift through just yet, so, without hesitation, I dumped everything into my bag of holding.

You have acquired 15 x caches of miscellaneous items.

After my scavenging was done, I reviewed the battle results.

You have reached level 138.

Your light armor has increased to level 113 and reached rank 11.

Your telekinesis has increased to level 120 and reached rank 12.

Your null death has increased to level 11 and reached rank 1.

Not bad, I thought. I’d gained two more levels and advanced a bunch of skills, three of which had ranked up, too. I strode towards my prisoners. Now, though, it was time to decide what to do with them.

I had two choices: kill both or kill one and let the other go.

I pursed my lips. Going with the first option would mean abandoning my plan for the Marauders—something I would’ve scoffed at earlier but, after the difficult battle, deserved weightier consideration—whereas the second was necessary to discover their camp’s location. I paced a circuit about the prisoners, thinking hard.

“Who are you?” a glaring Lorita demanded suddenly.

“More to the point, what are you?” a more subdued Tevin inquired.

I ignored both questions. The human knight is the one I need, I decided. Lorita was too temperamental. If I let her go, odds were she would turn back and hunt me—no matter how futile that was.

I stopped short, realizing I’d made my decision already.

The battle with the Marauder team had been touch-and-go more times than I cared to count. But I had prevailed in the end, and that’s what mattered.

That’s it, then. I go ahead with the plan. Taking a moment, I reflected on just what that was.

Ambushing the Marauder team had not been a whim. I’d done it precisely so that I could let some go—after suitably terrorizing them, of course. Not only would the freed prisoners lead me to their camp, they would also raise the alarm.

Both actions served my purposes.

Taking out five hundred Marauders in a fortified camp was too risky. Even I knew that. I snorted. No matter what Eyes had told Beorin, I wasn’t that foolish or reckless.

But… five hundred Marauders spread out and searching for a lone assassin? Against such, in the forest, and in the dark, I fancied my chances.

Of course, I couldn’t expect all the Marauders to leave their camp and go searching for me, but every one that I managed to kill in the forest would be one less to deal with when I eventually penetrated their camp.

Which brought me back to my prisoners.

Rounding on the pair, I buried ebonheart in the half-giant’s throat without preamble.

You have killed Lorita with a fatal blow.

Tevin stared at me, aghast. “What did you do that for?”

“So you understand who you are dealing with,” I replied mildly. Crouching before the knight, I held his gaze. “I want you to deliver a message for me.”

“A message?” he sputtered. “Why would I— Wait. You’re letting me go?”

“This time,” I said with an evil smile. “You will tell Yzark what happened here and make sure he knows I’m coming for him. You understand?

Not about to question his good fortune, Tevin nodded vigorously. He squinted at me for a moment longer than strictly necessary, and I felt a failed analyze attempt ripple over me.

“Stop that,” I ordered sharply.

“Sorry,” Tevin gulped as he realized he’d been found out. “But what name should I give him?”

“You will tell him,” I went on, ignoring his question, “that by the time I’m done, every Marauder in the valley will be dead. I will slay each ten times over if necessary. If he wants to avoid that fate, he will pack up and leave now.”

“He won’t listen,” Tevin objected.

“Make him.” Rising to my feet, I cut the knight loose. “Get going.”

Making no move to leave, the near-naked human—I’d relieved him of his armor and weapons—stared at me.

“Go!” I snapped.

Scrambling to his feet, Tevin fled.

Smiling to myself, I gave him a minute’s head start, then followed in his wake.