Silver Peak, page 31
part #2 of Sky Realms Online Series
Hall crouched in front of the opening, looking in. With his Limited Night Vision, he could see that the tunnel stretched only a couple feet before widening. He wasn’t sure how much, but at least it did. The thief had just said that the Knockers “have a secret entrance past the walls” but would say no more. Hall could see why. This was an escape tunnel, not a smuggling tunnel. Angus and Jackoby would barely fit inside and might get stuck if it narrowed at all.
With a sigh, he sent a mental command to Pike, telling the dragonhawk to stay on the outskirts of the city and wait for a call. Hall wondered if they would end up anywhere that he could summon Pike or would he be without the dragonhawk for what came next?
Pushing thoughts of the future away, there was nothing he could do about it now, Hall got down on all fours and started crawling into the tunnel. He had to push the spear in ahead of him as he moved. His sword, sheathed at his side, kept bumping the walls. More than once, the tip of the javelin above his shoulder caught on the low dirt ceiling. He could feel bits of dirt sprinkle down onto his back. Crouching lower, he pushed on and made his way through the first part of the tunnel.
It did widen out but not enough for him to stand. Cursing, staying on all fours, he continued to crawl. He could hear the others entering behind him, Angus coming second. The cow mooed, complaining.
“Angus,” Leigh scolded quietly. “Shush.”
To his credit, Angus did quiet a bit. He kept up the mooing, but it was quieter.
Hall had never thought of himself as claustrophobic but as the tunnel narrowed, the walls and ceiling closing in, he fought down the panic. His breathing became ragged, finding it harder to catch a breath. Ahead was darkness, no ambient light to see anything by. He had to trust in Ulysses, which was hard. Bit by bit, he crawled, the floor starting to slope up.
Slide the spear forward, crawl along the shaft until he got to the tip and slide it forward again. Repeating the process over and over. The slope got steeper, the floor of the tunnel littered with loose rocks.
How long is this tunnel? he thought. His knees were aching, his shoulders hurting. He kept pushing, cursing with each shift of the spear. He could hear the others behind him. The scratching of Leigh and Sabine’s staves against the floor. The screech of Jackoby’s shield as it caught against the ceiling. The scrap of Roxhard’s axe as he pushed it ahead of himself.
All echoed loud in the tight space.
Hall reached forward with his hand, expecting to touch the sloping floor of the tunnel, the loose rocks moving beneath his gloved fingers, but instead, he felt the floor even out. He had reached the end of the tunnel. Quickly, bolstered by being at the end, he pulled himself out into a larger room. One in which he could stand, and did so happily.
His knees cracked in protest, his body stiff and aching as he stretched out tired muscles. His back did not want to move, almost stuck in the bent-over position. He glanced at his Status and saw that he had lost a point of Vitality from the trek through the tunnel.
Angus’ front half popped out of the tunnel and the small cow was having a hard time bending his body to get the rest out. Hall reached down and helped, pulling the cow out as the rear hooves scrambled against the floor. Small stones and dirt fell down the tunnel, the others coughing and crying out as they were hit with small rocks. The cow mooed happily and danced in a circle, stretching his legs. He shook, dust flying out of his fur causing Hall to cough.
He shoved against the cow, pushing the animal away from the tunnel set in the floor. Looking around, Hall saw that they were in a wide space with a low ceiling. A rectangle, the sides almost perfectly smooth and straight. Above him, faint light leaked through wooden floorboards, allowing him to use his Limited Night Vision.
They were in some kind of empty cellar.
Angus started to moo again, but Hall shushed the cow, who surprisingly obeyed. There was no movement above, no shadows visible through the floorboards, but Hall wasn’t taking chances. They had already made too much noise and would make more still as the others exited the tunnel.
One by one they came out, each stretching and brushing off loose dirt and rocks. They spread out, each looking up at the thin light coming through the floorboards. The final one out was Ulysses.
“Forgot how tight it was in thar,” the thief chuckled as he brushed himself off.
No one else said anything. In the dark, he couldn’t see their glares of annoyance.
“Now what?” Hall asked.
While waiting for the others, he had examined the room and couldn’t find a way out besides the tunnel.
“Typically, we donnut come in this way,” Ulysses explained as he walked toward one of the end walls. “It be an escape tunnel, right?” He stopped in front of the dirt wall, looking up at the wood ceiling. “You, Hall, bring yer spear,” he grunted.
Hall walked over to the thief, spear in hand. He stood there for a second, waiting. He knew that Ulysses couldn’t see him, but the thief would be able to tell he was standing there. Hall was annoyed with the small man.
“Push up ‘gainst ta end boards,” Ulysses said after a bit with a small chuckle, which just made Hall more annoyed. “Hopefully, it be not locked.”
Hall had rotated his spear, ready to push the butt end against the boards when he registered what Ulysses had said.
“Locked?” he exclaimed, ready to smack the thief with the spear.
“Weren’t able ta warn ta Knockers in ta city that we was coming,” Ulysses said and probably shrugged. Hall was even more annoyed that he had spent enough time with the thief to get a read on Ulysses mannerisms. He knew when the thief would shrug. “Shouldn’t be. Standing orders be ta keep it unlocked since ta war started.”
Silently cursing, Hall pushed his spear against the boards. He felt resistance at first, fearful it was locked, but then the first board popped up with a loud creaking. He stopped, waiting, listening as the sound seemed to echo and echo.
“Not locked,” Ulysses chuckled.
Hall still wanted to smack Ulysses with the spear, but he concentrated on pushing the hatch open. It lifted up and Hall struggled to push it over. The spear and his reach were just not enough. He couldn’t lift the spear high enough to flip the hatch.
“Jackoby,” he called out.
The Firbolg walked over, handing Hall his hammer. Hall grunted as he took the weight, never realizing just how heavy the weapon was. Taking the spear, and using his longer reach and strength, Jackoby pushed up. They watched the hatch stand straight up, bright light coming from above. With one final push, the hatch fell over. Hall winced as the loud crash caused them all to jump, the floorboards shaking with the impact. They waited, listening, but it seemed nothing and no one had heard the hatch slamming into the floor.
Hall looked up at the opening. It was eight or nine feet above them. They could possibly have Jackoby lift them up through the opening but would have a hard time reaching down to pull the Firbolg up. He was about to start doing just that when he noticed Ulysses running his hands over the dirt wall. Revealed by the light coming from above, Hall could see indentations dug into the hard-packed wall. A ladder had been carved into it.
Smiling, glad something was going their way, he pulled a length of rope out of his pouch.
“Angus,” Hall called out, stepping over to the cow. “Hold still.”
The cow grumbled but let Hall tie the rope around him.
They found an empty room above, lit by small windows on the ends that let the daylight shine through, showing the street outside and walking feet barely visible. The cellar was as big as the carved-out space below, the ceiling and walls supported by posts and beams. A thin and railing-less stair was set along the opposite end wall. It led up to a solid-looking door.
“What’s above?” Hall asked as he walked around the room.
Jackoby and Ulysses were the only ones up, except for Angus. They had just pulled the cow up, Angus mooing quietly to himself. Leigh was climbing the last of the dirt rungs, which was hard as there was nothing to wrap their fingers around. The ladder had been designed to go down, quickly, not climb up.
“A small shop and office,” Ulysses replied. “Couple bedrooms on ta second story.”
“Leigh,” Hall said, waving Ulysses to go up the stairs first. “Have everyone wait down here. Don’t close the hatch yet.”
At the landing, Ulysses paused at the door, leaning against it. He reached out for the handle, listening through the thick wood. Reaching up, he tapped on the door and waited. Nothing happened so he tapped again. Still nothing.
With a shrug, Ulysses opened the door and stepped through.
Hall followed the thief into a dark room. It was small, another door directly across the few feet. It was a storage closet, small crates stacked to the side. Ulysses repeated his tapping procedure and opened the next door. The room beyond was bright, lots of daylight streaming through large windows. Hall could make out a street through the windows, people walking by. Stepping through the second door, he found himself in an office. A desk was against the wall, another door next to it, windows directly opposite with another door.
It was empty, some papers scattered over the desk with quill and inkwell. Signs that someone used it, or just for show from anyone looking in the window. The office was small but functional. Quickly, he moved to the windows, Ulysses alongside. They looked out onto a street, more buildings across and to the sides. People of all types; commoners, workers, and a few higher class; moved up and down, none of them paying any attention to the store and the two men looking out the windows. Hall didn’t recognize the street.
“Know where ya are?” Ulysses asked with a chuckle.
Now knowing that he should recognize it, Hall studied the street in more detail.
He cursed, now fully recognizing the street. He and his companions had crossed it a couple days ago when Sergeant Brient had first sent them on the quest. They had walked past this shop while looking for a Silver Blade extortion operation.
It explained how Berim and the Door Knockers had known to expect them. They had been watched from this very shop.
They were in the Noble’s Square.
Back where it had started.
“You said there were bedrooms above?” Hall asked.
There were two rooms on the small shop’s second floor. The Door Knocker front was the office for shipping concerns, which meant it never got much visitor traffic but wouldn’t raise any questions being in Nobles Square. A rich merchant with his own fleet would want his offices near his home and his people there at all hours. The second floor was a full apartment, with a bedroom and a small kitchen and living space.
Ulysses assured them it was safe, but Hall still had them pull watches. Two to a shift, including Ulysses. They took turns sleeping after eating a quick dinner. The windows gave an excellent view to the street below, and there was no back alley or access from the rear, which made keeping watch easier.
Hall, as was his habit, took first and last watch. He had pulled a chair from the table closer to the window was looking out onto the street. He had the second floor and Caryn was downstairs. The sun would be rising soon, the start of a new day, one he hoped would bring an end to this quest chain.
Pike was somewhere above, having settled on a nearby rooftop where the dragonhawk wouldn’t be noticeable but could come to Hall’s aid quickly.
Hall watched the citizens of Silver Peak Keep start their morning routine. It had started with just the nightly PeakGuard patrol, the streets empty, and then slowly more and more people had appeared. First were the merchants, opening their shops, and then the servants of the rich. They came to buy wares their households would need for the day. Food mostly, but some clothing. Picking up orders their rich masters had commissioned.
As he watched the people go about their day, Hall tried to come up with a plan.
He was failing.
Knowing he was considered the leader, he knew they would look to him for a plan for confronting Cronet. The problem was that he had none. If this had followed the old Sky Realm Online rules, there would be quest prompts and markers to follow to where they were supposed to face Cronet. It would probably be classified as a dungeon, even if in the Councilors mansion, with lots of combat and traps as they made their way through the building followed by a final Boss fight. But he had no marker. Ulysses knew where Cronet’s mansion was, but without a Wikipedia guide, they didn’t know what they would face.
Or if Cronet would even be there.
If they had the time, Hall would have some Door Knockers stake out Cronet’s mansion, warehouses, and other places of business. Establish a pattern, scout out the locations, and determine the best place to make their move. At least that was what he had learned from reading and watching many movies and books. It was something he had never needed to put into practice before, not in any games and especially not in Sky Realms Online. He knew they couldn’t hit Cronet in public. Sergeant Brient had warned against it and without immediate and visible proof of his being the Cudgel, they would be the ones perceived as the attackers and wrongdoers.
There was one part of the plan he had down. Remove Cronet.
That was the easy part.
Where it would fall in the sequence and how it would happen, he didn’t have any idea.
He opened up his Character Sheet, checking his status. At least he had fully recovered his Health and Vitality. Back at full strength, except his gear. All of his weapons and armor were in bad need of repairs. It was the best they were going to get.
Playing with the menus, just randomly cycling through them, he passed the time while looking out the window. What was he going to tell them? There is no plan. Your fearless leader has no clue what he is doing.
Which was true. He had been winging it from the beginning. Even after gaining lordship of Skara Brae, he was still just making it up as he went along. They had set out from the village, heading to Silver Peak Keep with a vague idea of getting supplies to rebuild the village. There was Duncant, the carpenter, but would that be enough? And Hall had fallen into him by pretty much accident. It had been a lucky break.
When Raiding in the game, pre-Glitch, leading the Guild or party hadn’t been difficult. They knew the objective and the game pretty much guided them on where to go. The how came from the various Wikipedias. Even new content was solved fairly quickly just by the sheer mass of Players that threw themselves at it. That made leadership easy.
It was just a matter of keeping the various personalities of the Players under control. But now it was more. There were still the personalities of Players, and now free-thinking NPCs, to contend with along with no guidance from the game.
He had accepted being stuck in the game, but more and more it was starting to feel like not a game. Not just the physical elements but now the mental. No RPG had ever had a puzzle like what he was facing now. He required real training to figure it out.
Or did he?
They had managed fine so far. No real tactics, just brute force. Why not continue? It was working for them. No need to change.
He smiled as he closed his Sheet. Now he had his plan.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
The warehouse was burning.
Even in the morning sun, the flames were bright and visible.
Smoke billowed out of the open doors and windows, thick and black as it drifted into the air. Clouds of it formed over the city. Flames could be seen within the wooden walls. Bright orange and red, flickering as they spread throughout the inside and along the floors. Crates could be seen burning, some already nothing but piles of ashes.
Everyone in Peakdock was out and watching. All activity had stopped on the docks themselves, all eyes turned to watch the flames. Bucket brigades were forming, throwing water onto the nearby buildings to keep them from catching. None bothered to try and save the burning warehouse.
No one had seen what had caused it. Or at least no one said anything.
Most knew who had set the blaze, and they thought it best to stay out of the Door Knocker’s business. If the thieves Guild wanted to destroy a warehouse belonging to the Councilor of Trade, Lord Cronet, a wise man would just let it burn.
Hall watched the smoke and the burning warehouse from just outside the gate. He stood on the thin strip of land between the heavy stone wall and the edge of the plateau, watching the flames engulf the wooden building. Visible from even this far away, he was not alone. Dozens of citizens crowded the land in front of the wall to the sides of the gates. The PeakGuard at the gates had to push them away from the road to keep it clear. But it was only half-hearted as they too watched the fire.
Bets were made if other buildings would catch. Questions were asked about who owned the warehouse and how it had caught fire.
Hall was just amazed at how good a job the Door Knockers had done. When he had outlined the plan to Ulysses, the thief was only too eager to carry it out. Hall thought it was the sheer audacity that appealed to the small thief.
More smoke joined the sky over Peakdock. The new stack came from a series of homes in the middle of the town. Wooden homes, surrounded by others, were catching fire. One by one, the flames were not spreading but starting in each of the buildings. Two next to each other, another four streets over, a fifth even further away.
The people around him starting talking, more than before. They pointed, they yelled. And then someone from within Silver Peak Keep shouted.
“Fire.”
The one word drew all attention. All heads turned to look into the gate, even the guards. People screamed, they yelled, they cursed. The sound of the city, always loud, took on a panicked pitch. More voices took up the cry.
Hall glanced up, seeing the small speck that was Pike circling high above. Connecting with the dragonhawk, he was given a good bird’s-eye view of the city. He could see all the rooftops, the guards walking patrols along the tops of the walls, the people moving through the streets. And he could see the two thick plumes of smoke rising out of the city. One in a random street in the Trade District and another from a home in Nobles Square.
