Mark of the fated 3 a li.., p.62
Mark of the Fated 3: A LitRPG Adventure, page 62
I sighed telepathically. I’ll think about it. No promises.
She smiled at me in the gloom. Edgar smiled too.
Chapter 79
Our journey had unfolded as we’d laid out in the discussion. The winding river guided us northward in almost perpetual darkness. Wishbourne was nothing but a burned out ruin, the dual towers hollow and blackened. Hours later, the protective mountains rose to our east and west, covering the wealds and Bloodfang forest. Pterry had followed the path I’d given him, and the others flew in line behind me. Much of the time we’d slept in the saddle, shutting off from the monotony.
Whatever remained of the sun’s dwindling power was reduced to a brief lightening of the horizon for around half an hour, and then full night again. We never even saw the fiery orb at all. It was now laid out on the canvas, head reeling, its face a broken mess. The brave sun tried to push itself up to beat the ten count, but the punishment was so severe it just collapsed.
Cody had spoken for all of us when he’d said, It’s almost time.
Almost time for the vampires to ascend.
Almost time for the living to be drained unto death, rising again as one of the army of bloodsuckers.
Almost time for the two factions to go to war. The final war. The one that would determine if the quest description would come true and Tulahr would fall forever to the darkness.
We’d flown on in brooding silence.
When we finally reached the mouth of the river, the Great Glass Lake was absolutely jaw-dropping in its scale. I could barely see the other side of it against the snowy mountains to the north, many miles away. A dense layer of trees lined the entire circumference of the still water.
Shall we land here and stretch our legs? I asked.
I’d rather we cross the mountains and get stuck in, said Cody.
We can always take a break above the citadel and scout from there, suggested Cris.
Now that we’ve come this far, I want to see it too, agreed Sun.
Abby?
I think we should cross and finish this. My father won’t be resting. Nor will Broderick.
Good point. Let’s go and see what the last piece of your dad called up, eh?
Nothing good, she replied.
The Pteranodons flew on without complaint. Their stamina was on another level. An alien level, I assumed. Spires of dark rock and snow packed valleys passed below us. Small clouds hung on to the highest peaks. The scenery belonged on the cover of National Geographic.
I pulled Cris into a private room. I’m terrible at it, but we need to go skiing once this is done. Honey and Marco can make snow dogs and lay by the fire to get warm.
I’ve never been, so we can be bad together. It’ll be a good excuse to fall over and pull you on top of me. We can make snow angels and warm ourselves by the fire too.
That sounds like a dream.
With all these holiday plans, we need a few more trillion dollar ideas.
I’ll work on it.
We crossed the last few miles of mountain and found Bloodfang forest waiting. The range had largely protected us from the wolf’s incessant howling. I’d heard a few mournful cries and put them down to the winds blowing through the ravines below. Now, we were under full assault. I’d always thought the howls were powerful and majestic. Sleek hunters paying homage to their moon goddess. I could immediately see how the king had been driven mad by the mournful baying. It never let up, grating on my nerves.
Shall we land on there and see what we can see? suggested Cody, pointing at a squat tower.
Yeah, sounds good.
Our target was the only way into the citadel from the ground. It lay on one side of a huge chasm, rising about two hundred feet. It provided the southern abutment for the bridge which spanned the vast gulf. It led to an open area before the imposing gatehouse. The giant citadel itself was all gothic spires, buttresses, and archways. The entire thing reeked of age, and evil. Compared to the bastion, this didn’t seem like a pleasant place to rule a kingdom. It was markedly colder, isolated, and desolate. On the other hand, the enemy would also have the psychological burden of being in such a place for an extended period of time, so perhaps that was the point.
I landed on the bridge, stashed Pterry, and withdrew my weapons. The others followed suit. Nothing swarmed at us from the citadel itself, but the forest was a different story. A blanket of coarse black fur flowed around the thick trunks. The creatures thundered across the rotten ground, heading straight for the entrance to the tower.
“That’s not something you see every day,” I muttered, pulling up their bestiary.
Name – Bloodfang Werewolf (Level 29)
Description – Magically corrupted by the lich, the once proud beasts now have a new master. These creatures have never walked the world as men, turning only at the peak of the moon’s brilliance. Their existence for many years has been one of solitude and starvation, dwelling in the barren forest.
Weakness – Unknown.
Resistances – Physical. Unknown.
Immunities – Unknown.
“Let’s block the way, shall we?” I asked, running through the archway.
The way up was large enough to provision a castle of the citadel’s size. We had vast amounts of debris to seal it tighter than a drum. Unlike before, we actually spent a bit of time Tetrising the staircase. Pieces were selected and dropped into place, thankfully without vanishing in neat rows to boost our score. I wanted to ensure there were as few gaps as possible for powerful paws to start yanking pieces free.
The enemy icons were closing in fast. I felt the vibrations when they hit the blockage out of sight. Their howls of denial sent a shiver down my spine.
“I’m glad we flew in,” said Abby.
“Those things would’ve torn us apart. Sun, can you drop Fen in his armour. Give them a bit of a scorch and get them to fuck off,” I said.
The warg appeared and began to sniff around the seams of our hasty construction. Sensing the creatures a few metres away, he started to growl, then bark fiercely. In the confines of the tower, it was loud enough to risk deafening us.
“Stop it!” ordered Sun, and Fen fell quiet. The werewolves weren’t under her control, however, and answered the warg’s challenge with their own yips and barks. Angry hunger turned to confusion, and then to yelps of pain as the demonic aura seared their flesh. An entirely obvious weakness to fire revealed itself on their bestiary. I couldn’t hear anything, but the icons began to hastily disperse.
In addition to the blocked steps, we backtracked and filled the vacant room that topped the tower with more rubbish. Abby was out on the bridge, leaning over the wall.
“What can you see?”
“Lots of angry dogs,” she replied.
“Can you see any way up?”
“No. They’re just running around the base, snapping at each other.”
“Then we need to get into the castle before they realise the burning pain is gone and they can start to work on the stones. They might be animals, but they’re cunning too. Like the way they lured the people of the Glens to watch the walls so their homes were undefended.”
“Do you think there might be another way up?” asked Abby. “Like the secret escape tunnel in Galbury Castle.”
I surveyed the deep ravine below us. It stretched off as far as the eye could see in both directions. “I bloody hope not. If there is, I don’t think it’ll be coming out this side anyway. The enemy might be able to find it and use it to get into the castle.”
“We could always blow the bridge,” suggested Cris, raising an eyebrow at me.
“That was like a half dozen times, and most of them were accidents,” I replied.
“It’s still an option,” she continued. “No way for them to follow that way.”
“Yeah, yeah, I’ll think about it. In the meantime…” I said, returning to the wall.
I had a new skill and I was desperate to see it in action. The werewolves were quite a distance away, so there was a chance it wouldn’t even work. Picking out one of the muscular brutes near the cliff edge, I waited until it was barking at me in frustration before casting Taunt. The spell was just the nudge it needed to try and leap the impossible distance to reach me, only to end up jumping out into the ravine instead. For long seconds, it flipped itself over, still trying to bite and claw me. Whatever limit the skill carried came into effect, and the doomed creature started to howl in terror. It didn’t last long when it struck something deep below.
Cris was at my side, doing a quick headcount. “We could spend a few days here and have them all jump off like lemmings.”
“As tempting as that is, we kind of need them. Abby’s only got two entire armies to count on. Three rounds it off nicely.”
“They are kinda cute,” she agreed, watching the baying frenzy. Edgar was using his fake eye to watch too and the stalk nodded in agreement.
“If we’re not going to fight them, we need to hurry up and move into the castle itself,” said Cody, scoping ahead.
We all turned to follow the ranger. “You’re right. See anything?”
He scanned the walls, the towers, the windows. “Only faint firelight in a lot of the rooms. Candles if I were to guess. No faces yet.”
I was busy watching the minimap for any icons. “I can’t see anything. Is the map still glitching?”
“On and off,” said Cris.
“Wait!” hissed Sun. “Markers!”
I saw them as soon as she did, though I didn’t understand what my eyes were telling me. “They’re yellow. They’re neutral.” The heavy portcullis started to clatter and rise as someone lifted it. Just beyond the thick lattice of steel, the gates groaned open. “Does that mean he wants a chat?”
“Or he’s preparing the jaws of the trap,” said Cody.
“We were going to get in anyway. Let’s move with caution. Pets out and at the ready,” I said.
Both Red and Spidey appeared, taking up position with Fen on our flanks. I ordered my companion to scurry ahead and climb over the entrance to give us some scouting in the courtyard. He fired off a silken tether and yanked himself up into the ramparts. I immediately got the sense of gathered undead from his arachnid mind. The source of his thoughts stepped into view, their bones clacking on the flagstones.
“Skeleton warriors,” I whispered to Cris.
“Like a starter zone,” she replied.
They were the archetypal early-game enemy. Rusting armour sets hanging loosely on their reanimated frame. Ancient swords and spears clutched in bone-hands. Shadowy sockets stared at us without eyes. They started to form up in a line at each side of the bridge.
“Are they setting up a guard of honour or a gauntlet?” asked Sun, watching the skeletons closely.
“They don’t seem hostile,” said Abby.
“Do we accept the invite?” asked Cris.
Our pets were as confused as we were, tensing in readiness for an attack order that we hadn’t yet given.
“Fuck no,” I replied, making the decision. I slipped to the right, hitting the first with a Shield Bash. It flew back over the wall, falling into the ravine. Sun followed suit on the left, smashing them up and over the battlements with the flat of her warcleaver. Cris gathered an Arcane Nova and let it rip, sending several more over the edge.
Fen and Red savaged the skeletons, ripping bones from the magically tethered sockets, scattering them far and wide.
“Why aren’t they fighting?” I growled, switching tactics to just pick them up and toss them from the bridge.
In less than a minute, we were alone apart from the leftover tibias, fibulas, and whatever other names I couldn’t remember. I collected them and tossed them over like gathered kindling.
“That was anti-climactic,” said Cody.
I’d seen movement in the corner of my vision. “I think we’ve stirred the hornet’s nest.”
More of the warriors flowed from the citadel. The walls above filled with skeleton archers.
“Everyone get ready!”
My party gathered behind me, their weapons at the ready. Sun was turning her golem ring with her thumb, staring at the enemy, ready to activate the ability and get stuck in.
The enemy clattered from the castle gate.
And once again, just formed up against the wall.
The archers above didn’t even raise their bows.
“What the fuck is going on?”
As one, the parallel rows of sword and spearmen on the bridge raised their arm and motioned toward the gate.
“We could keep throwing them from the bridge,” suggested Cody.
“It’ll keep their numbers down,” agreed Cris.
“This is most unusual. I am intrigued,” admitted Sun.
“Me too,” I replied, trying to puzzle through the enigma. “Does anyone know how a lich thinks? Is he inviting us in for drinks and canapes?”
“They’re always evil aligned, so I expect the drink will be vinegar and the snacks made from insects,” said Cris.
“If that’s the case, I’m going to trash this place on Tulahr’s travel websites. One star all the way, with a heavy explanation about the poor service and abysmal catering.”
“In all honesty, the staff are pretty attentive,” said Cody, nodding at the skeletons.
“Ok, I’ll give it a one-point-five,” I replied.
“Are we going in, or are we throwing more of them from the bridge?” asked Sun.
“If the lich wanted to, it could rush us with all the markers we can see, right? We’re trapped between a rock and a hard place, so to speak. I know we can fly off, but we need to go forward. We need that piece of heart.”
“What’s your gut telling you?” asked Cris.
“That we might be safe until we’re in the presence of Raz’Gharag.”
Sun grunted with satisfaction and started walking towards the citadel. “Then let’s get to it.”
I followed the creepy, unmoving arms of our welcoming committee into the unknown.
Chapter 80
The courtyard was filled with ranks of the undead warriors. They paid us no more attention than those outside the gate, continuing to point at the archway to the citadel itself. Beyond the open doors, there was the same light Cody had seen elsewhere. I climbed the steps, watchful for any movement that indicated an attack. Passing over the ancient threshold, the reception area was far warmer than outside. Fireplaces at each side of the vast room crackled as the stacked logs burned within.
The roof above was missing large sections of the old trusses and tiles. Stars glittered through the gaps from the cloudless night. Birds nested in the remaining rafters, the stone below covered in puddles of white shit.
“Bit of a fixer-upper,” I said, moving more deeply inside.
Archways led off to the left and right. A balcony looked down, stretching around the upper floor. Thick candles dotted the wall, and torches fluttered in their sconces. Twin sets of spiral stone steps led up to the gallery. More of the skeleton archers waited for us above. They pointed toward the other end of the room. I was glad they weren’t shooting. Any force that managed to make it through during a battle would face a hellish rain of arrows.
“Do we keep going?” asked Abby.
“In for a penny, in for a pound,” I replied, cautiously leading the way. If they chose this place as an ambush, I’d take the first volley and buy my friends a chance to fight.
I remained free of arrows as we walked past the rotten furniture. Anything that had been exposed to the rains from above was nothing but mulch. Some sheltered chairs were just about hanging on. One good kick and they would crumble to dust.
“What gives with the home comforts?” I asked, noting piles of wood by each fire.
“It’s pretty creepy. What are they going to do, warm their bones?” asked Cris.
“It seems like something is trying to mimic life,” said Sun, and her words rang true. It did seem just like that. The dead had no need of comfort. No food, no water, no air, no warmth. They were beyond such things.
At the end of a long passage waited another expansive room. This one too was bathed in warm light. A table fit for a king’s feast came into view, along with the final boss sitting in the thronelike chair at the head of it. Eldritch fire glowed green in the lich’s eye sockets. Its skeletal form was draped in purple robes. A dented golden crown sat askew atop its skull. Standing upright at its side was a staff not unlike Abby’s. Vicious looking tines curved around the glowing green crystal.
Name – Raz’Gharag (Boss) (Level 30)
Description – Lich King of Meloros.
Weakness – Unknown.
Resistances – Unknown.
Immunities – Unknown.
I was as shocked by the lack of excessive description as I was by its seeming immobility. Despite the lack of open hostility, we started to activate our buffs and prepared for combat.
“Hold, mortal, I beg of you,” wheezed the lich, raising his free arm. His voice was like sharp nails raking a chalkboard, even though he had no lungs or vocal chords with which to speak.
“Is it a trick?” I whispered to my party.
“No trick, mortal, simply a request,” replied the lich, bidding us to enter.
“What do you think?” I asked the others, not buying what he was selling.
“We’re already in his home. We haven’t been attacked,” said Cris.
“Nor shall you, yet, if you will only afford me one courtesy,” rasped the undead horror.
I didn’t miss the yet qualifier. “What do you want?”
“A conversation. An exchange of words,” it replied.
“I know what a conversation is.”
The lich’s jaw bobbed a couple of times in annoyance, its yellow teeth clacking. “Will you acquiesce? Or do I unleash my full power on you?”
