Chapter 199 - Back to Jariq (Patreon)

Zeke sat on the bed, shirtless and his hands digging into the mattress as frustration and worry clouded his thoughts. On the other side of the expansive room, Pudge’s hulking, furry form lay in the corner where he slept peacefully. Zeke couldn’t read his companion’s mind, but he got the sense that the bear’s dreams were pleasant enough. For his part, Zeke couldn’t say as much.

His friends were long overdue.

Not for the first time, he found himself wishing he had some means of contacting them. But, in the Radiant Isles, such a thing was impossible. He knew because he’d checked, both in Jariq and in Beacon, what felt like a lifetime ago. If items that allowed for communication across vast distances existed, no one was talking about it.

That left Zeke in something of a conundrum. He could remain in the tower, hoping that his friend would make their way back to him. Or, conversely, he could head toward Jariq and hope to catch up. Once he did, they could resume their journey to the fire wyrm’s lair, complete their quest, and go about the business of reaching level twenty-five. Once they did that, they would find the location of the portal to the higher plane and leave the Radiant Isles behind.

It was a good plan, but, first, Zeke needed to decide on that first step. Stay and wait? Or go and hope for a reunion?

Both options had their benefits. If Zeke chose to stay, his friends would know precisely where to find him. If he left, there was every chance that they would miss one another. But, Zeke had a nagging feeling that his companions were in trouble. Some of that was simple experience; after all, Abby, Carlos, and Talia were incredibly competent people. If they were delayed, it was because something had happened.

Finally, after a little more thought, he decided on his course of action. He would lose nothing if he followed them, largely because, between him and Pudge, they could hopefully ensure that they wouldn’t pass his friends by. With his path chosen, Zeke rose from the bed and headed into the bathroom, where he took care of his morning ablutions. When he emerged from the bathroom, a towel around his waist, he noticed that Pudge hadn’t bothered to rise.

So, Zeke walked toward the corner, and when he reached the infernal bear, he nudged the huge ball of fur with his foot. “Time to get up, buddy,” he said – a statement that was met with an annoyed snort. A bit fire came out of Pudge’s snout, but the tiles on the floor were largely impervious to damage. Yet another of the tower’s strange characteristics.

“I’m serious,” Zeke said. “Get up, or I’ll drag you out of here.”

Pudge gave a long-suffering sigh, then rolled to his feet. As he did so, he cut a glare at Zeke, who pretended not to notice.

Instead, Zeke said, “We’re going after Abby and Talia today. So, get ready for some scouting, okay? I think they’re in trouble, but I could be wrong.”

That perked the bear up, and he shook himself awake. After that, it was only a short time before the pair were on their way, the tower having been de-summoned. Zeke had chosen to don his armor – after all, it wasn’t nearly heavy enough to inconvenience him, and if something attacked, he wanted to be ready.

Like that, they both took off at a jog that, in the old world, would have exceeded the speed of an Olympic sprinter. Even then, Zeke knew that he was holding back – mostly because, for all his strength, Pudge was still a bear. And bears weren’t known for their stamina. Still, they made fantastic time, and by midday, they were three-quarters of the way back to Jariq.

But that was where the problems found them.

Zeke looked on in horror as he saw the seething mass of undead. There were thousands of them. Maybe hundreds of thousands. Nestled among the more mundane zombies were giants, corpse golems, reapers, and a host of zombies that felt far stronger than their brethren. They were still too far away for him to [Inspect] them, but he felt certain that these elite zombies were all at least in their teens, maybe even into their twenties. It was an imposing force on par with the army of demons Zeke and his friends had faced in Mal’araxis.

And they were marching steadily toward Jariq.

Zeke knelt beside Pudge, saying, “This isn’t good.”

From everything Zeke had seen, the desert city couldn’t stand up to such a force. Certainly, they had millions of citizens, and quite a few of them were higher level. But if the demon invasion had made one thing clear, it was that they were not prepared to fight for their city. Nothing Zeke had seen during his time within those walls had changed that opinion, either.

For a moment, Zeke was torn with indecision. He desperately wanted to plunge into that mass of undead monsters and kill however many he could. But was that the right choice? He’d been trying to make better decisions lately. He wanted to think things through as much as he could. Otherwise, he would find himself mired in a situation he could not escape or overcome. This seemed like one of those times.

Sure, Zeke could put a big dent in the undead horde. He might even be able to win. But even if he managed to come out on top, he wouldn’t do so unscathed. Likely, he’d be so battered that he’d have to take another month off. Or worse, if he didn’t have access to something like the Pools of Serenity.

No – he needed to be smarter about the chances he took. And in this case, the smart thing to do would be to circle around the undead horde and continue on to Jariq. There, he could warn the city’s elite, and they could prepare for the battle coming their way. Hopefully, he would find his friends there as well.

So, without further contemplation, Zeke set out to the north, making a wide circle around the much-slower-moving undead army. As he did, he was distressed to discover that the army he had seen was not alone. There were many other, much smaller bands of roving undead, all of which were making their way in the same direction as the main army. When they eventually converged, it would be even worse than Zeke had imagined.

Fortunately, it wasn’t difficult to skirt past the single-minded creatures, and eventually, he made his way to the city. It was much as he remembered leaving it, which was to say that the walls looked entirely inadequate to protect the citizenry from the approaching army.

He trotted toward the gate, Pudge at his heels. As he drew closer, he raised his hand in greeting. However, almost as soon as the guards saw him, they scrambled away. A second later, Zeke felt a rumbling deep within the earth. It only gave him a split-second of warning, but that was enough to send him springing away from the attack. An instant after he’d vacated the area, a giant spike of pure iron erupted from the rocky ground. If he’d been any slower to react, it would have impaled him.

Before the sand settled, Zeke had activated his skills. First came [Life Scythe], enveloping his hands and his summoned mace in a red mist. Next came [Heart of the Berserker], sending a jolt of power throughout his body. Finally, he embraced his martial path, lending both spiritual and physical weight to his every movement. Even as he sprinted forward, another spear of jagged iron exploded from the ground, missing him by barely a foot.

Pudge bounded forward right beside him, his heaving breath laced with fire and smoke as he activated his own versions of Zeke’s skills. Together, they covered the ground in mere moments, all the while staying just ahead of the progressively deadlier spikes of iron. Finally, they reached the gate, and Zeke saw the originator of the attacks.

He wanted to demand an explanation, but the slim figure’s attacks gave him no time. Arrows rained down on Zeke, plinking off his armor. Balls of fire, bullets of water, and blades of wind came at him from atop the walls, creating a gauntlet of deadly skills.

Pudge and Zeke roared in twinned anger, but the attacks didn’t let up.

Three figures flanked the metal-controlling mage, each holding a sword and shield, emblazoned upon which was a stylized spider. Zeke swung his mace, letting loose a blade of red energy that swept through his four enemies, stealing a good portion of their vital energy. Pudge pounced, his giant paw hammering into one of the warriors. He sailed through the air, a good portion of his torso crushed by the powerful attack, only to come to a sudden stop when he thudded into a sandstone wall.

As Pudge targeted the other warriors, Zeke only had eyes for the mage. He came in high, swinging his mace like a sledgehammer. But when he made contact, his attack rebounded from the suddenly-metal-encased mage. It was like they had created a sarcophagus of black iron. Not to be outdone, Zeke quickly recovered, pummeling the immobile mage with heavy blows.

Over and over, he brought every point of his massive strength to bear. The sound of his mace hitting the iron coffin sounded like a bell, and it was loud enough to stagger the nearby warriors. That was all the opening Pudge needed.

The infernal bear didn’t bother with fire. Instead, he used the weapons with which he’d been born, swiping at the warriors with his massive claws. They lasted only a few seconds before they joined their broken compatriot on the ground. None moved more than a few twitches.

“Burn it, Pudge,” growled Zeke, who backed away from the iron-encased mage.

Pudge complied with a roar, and a thick bar of red-and-black flame erupted from his mouth. It was unending, and after only a few seconds, the iron had been reduced to slag. The only thing that remained of the metal-controlling mage was a charred and blackened skeleton, and even that was being steadily reduced to so much ash.

Fuming, Zeke turned his attention to the walls. The barrage of skills had continued, but none of them had so much as scratched his armor. The only real threat had been the mage; Zeke hadn’t had the presence of mind to [Inspect] them, but he suspected that they were at least level twenty. Maybe even as high as level twenty-five, though if that was the case, they were incredibly weak for their level. Either way, with them gone, he could slaughter those atop the wall with relative ease.

“Don’t kill them,” came a voice from a nearby shadow.

Zeke’s head whipped around to see Carlos standing in a nearby alley. The young man’s hair was disheveled, his clothing was ripped and torn, and he looked like he was sporting more than a few bruises.

“Tell them to stop attacking me, then,” Zeke growled. “Otherwise, I’m going to kill every single one of them.”

Carlos nodded, then stepped into a shadow. Only a few moments later, the attacks ceased. Beside Zeke, Pudge simmered, his thoughts reflecting Zeke’s own anger. After everything they had done to save the city, they were attacked on sight? It was almost enough to send Zeke on a rampage.

And depending on Carlos’s explanation, it wouldn’t take much to tip him over the edge.

Zeke waited, his fists clenched in anger, until, finally, Carlos returned. Zeke demanded, “Why did they attack? Where are Abby and Talia? What happened to you?”

Carlos sighed. “We were betrayed,” he stated. “When Abby and I brought the refugees in, we were given an ultimatum. Either we surrender or they would kill the refugees. We chose to keep them alive and were taken prisoner. Talia showed up and freed us, but the girls are pinned down by a level twenty-five archer.”

“Was it your guild?” Zeke asked. Having seen the emblem on the warriors’ shields, it wasn’t really a question he needed answered. But confirmation wasn’t a bad thing.

Carlos nodded. “Yes,” he said.

“Where is this archer?” Zeke asked.

“I…I don’t know,” Carlos responded. “She could be anywhere. She’s a sniper and an assassin.”

Zeke let out an annoyed sigh. Then, he raised his voice, shouting, “If my friends are hurt, I will make it my personal mission to kill every single person in this city!”

Carlos flinched away.

Zeke focused on him. “I’m going to kill these Spiders, once and for all,” he said. “I tried to leave them alone. I tried to ignore what they are. What they’ve done. I was willing to let it stop there. But they’ve stepped over the line. You know that, right? I can’t let them live after this.”

Carlos’s shoulders slumped. “I know,” he said. Looking up, he continued, “What if I show you where the leaders are? Will you spare the rank and file, then?”

Zeke stared at the man. It was an obvious trap, at least as far as he could see. He still didn’t trust Carlos – not really. After all, the man was a member of the very organization that had caused him so much trouble. Knowing that, how could he trust Carlos?

But on the other hand, did it matter? Zeke wasn’t afraid of the Spiders. And whether it was a trap or not was irrelevant. All he needed was to gather them all together.

“Let’s find the archer, first,” he said. “Once that’s taken care of, we’ll worry about the rest of the Spiders.”

For a moment, Carlos looked as if he was going to push for more, but, thinking better of it, he said, “Fine. If you head to the headquarters, I’ll shadow you. As soon as she attacks, I’ll hit her.”

“I’m bait, huh?” Zeke said.

“Seems that way,” was Carlos’s response. “More than willing to try something else if you’ve got a better idea, though.”

“Yeah, no – it’s fine,” Zeke stated. “I doubt she can hurt me anyway.”

“Pretty confident,” Carlos said.

“I think I’ve earned that,” Zeke countered. The truth was that if he didn’t have his armor, he never would’ve chanced it. However, with that protection in place, he felt assured that nothing outside of a monarch-tier monster or one of the world’s true elites could harm him. Turning his head, he said, “Pudge, go ninja.”

Ninja bear!

With that, Zeke strode forward. As he did, Pudge darted into one of the alleys, melding with the dark shadows until he was almost invisible. How the infernal bear managed it, Zeke wasn’t sure, but he’d become very adept at stealth. After Zeke took a couple of steps, he looked back at Carlos, saying, “You coming?”

Carlos shook his head, then said, “I’ll stick to the shadows.”

Zeke shrugged. “Fine by me,” was his response. Then, he resumed his gait, heading toward the Nest, where he hoped he could find some Spiders to kill.