Heralds- The Proving Grounds, page 19
“Yeah, no problem.” Jen sheathed her sword and pulled the cloak forward a bit to hide the shining golden hilt.
Jesse wandered over to where the other members of Tobin’s group had gathered. It wasn’t far, really. Ten yards maybe.
It was strange to see them so close and be visible herself. Part of her wanted to run, to hide… but that would be far more suspicious than standing around doing nothing.
Gorin found his way to the front of the reinforcements. Not surprising. “Hail, Tobin Ironblood. I am Gorin Stoneshield, a humble servant.”
Wow. Even Jen rolled her eyes a bit at that. Wherever Sam had gotten off to, she was probably retching.
There was an exchange of glances among the top brass. Paul, the paladin and guild leader, seemed to defer to Tobin.
The young man stepped forward as he sheathed his black sword. “Well met, Gorin. Our thanks for the timely assistance.”
Gorin’s shoulders moved backward as he stood on his tip toes. “We had no fear of your failure, we only sought to share in the glory.”
The truth… and yet framed in such a way as to make it seem an exaggeration. Heh.
Tobin only nodded. “I’d say you did that.” Maybe he understood what was really going on after all.
Paul laid a hand on Tobin’s shoulder. “What our lord means to say, is that you are a most welcome sight. Any Kingsmen may always stand with us.”
Far more diplomatic. Probably a good reason he was the guild leader.
“Cool.” Gorin resumed his normal mannerisms. “I hear there are rewards for helping out now?”
Paul nodded. “Indeed, though we’ll have to see the event through to get them.”
“Oh yeah, of course.” Gorin turned slightly and waved to show the people behind him. His gaze passed over Jen for a moment. “We’re in it for the long haul. Hope you’re not too cross for us trailing you, but you have this uncanny knack for finding events.”
Paul grinned. “It’s called ‘scouting.’ Glad of the help. There’s much to be done yet.”
Tobin rubbed at his chin as he looked around at all the fallen orcs in the ruined camp. “So… why isn’t the event finished?”
Gorin tilted his head. “Say what?”
Paul frowned as he looked about. “You’re right. We haven’t received credit yet. Odd…”
An earsplitting horn blow pierced the air.
Paul’s eyes widened as the horn echoed. “Oh shit.”
Tobin drew his sword as his eyes swept the camp. “What, what it is?”
Claire, their cleric, shook her head. “It’s an invasion.”
“Invasion?”
Jesse, the druid, nodded. “We killed the orcs faster than the game figured we could. Any time you do that with an event it’s like issuing a challenge. We told the system the content isn’t hard enough. That we can take more. Pretty much a fifty fifty shot it takes you up on the boast.”
Paul nodded a few times. “And it’s withholding rewards until we do.”
Gorin’s face grew long. “Wait, you mean we’re not done?”
“Not by a long shot.” Paul waved to the newcomers. “Come on, get inside the walls. We’ll use them as best we can. There’s not much time.”
The horn calls sounded again. They were closer this time and there was more than one, if the different notes were any indication.
Jen didn’t need to be told twice. She turned and headed for the walls. The other reinforcements moved with and around her, taking up positions. The place had certainly seen better and more defensible days, but any port in a storm.
She still had no idea where Sam was but this event was probably the one Bulorn had been shepherding Tobin’s people to. The chances of them finding another was slim. Events were rare. Had he managed to trigger an invasion somehow? Was that part of the plan, or was that Gorin’s fault?
Either way, it was happening. Jen preferred to think the reinforcements were a good thing. The main force had looked to be in a bad way until they got there. Maybe they had triggered the next part… but Bulorn and his PKs were still out there somewhere. Tobin was going to need all the help he could get.
She stopped beside one of the many gaps in the metal walls along the south side. It was more or less where the reinforcements had entered. This place was less fortress and more swiss cheese… still, something at her back and funneling the enemy was better than nothing.
Horns were sounding from the open lowlands beyond, but also from the other side of the camp. She could see something moving on the hills off that way.
Well this certainly had the potential to suck.
Kingsmen were lined up all along the wall. Some beside her, some on the other side of the gap she guarded, more over her head on the narrow metal walkway. They spoke amongst themselves… morale didn’t exactly seem high.
She’d lost sight of Sam and Gorin. Most of those nearby where reinforcements like her. A few were from Tobin’s raid. They seemed more focused, maybe more knowledgeable. They were probably picked for their experience. Hopefully that would show through soon enough.
The dark shapes approaching were orc shaped before long. Another minute or two at most before things would get messy.
“Alright, who’s got a bow?” Jesse’s hands were held up in front of her mouth. “Line up along the top of the wall toward the center. Time for some fireworks. Get any casters up there, too. Move it, ándale!” She paused a moment when she saw Jen. She waved.
Jen nodded in return. She didn’t meet any of the qualifications for heading up on the wall. The intent was clear enough. Thin them out, or weaken them before they got here. Not a bad plan.
Of course, fighting things that were on fire was probably not going to be fun. Oh well. Nothing for it.
Jen took a calming deep breath.
She could hear heavy footfalls now.
19
Fire rained from above, the whoosh of flames sailing through the air was a near constant sound as Jen stood beside the opening.
Orcs fell to the fire, but far more of them seemed only mildly irritated by it. A bit distressing.
And Jen wasn’t the only one that noticed.
A few members of the team were inching away, hands shaking.
That wouldn’t do. Relic sword or not, she wasn’t going to hold the wall by herself.
Soulshine sung a high note as she drew it from her scabbard. She raised her voice a bit to be heard over the fire above. “Stay close. We’re going to need this wall.” She rapped her knuckles against the iron wall and held the sword in close to her with both hands. It shone with an otherworldly light. “We may be mortal now, but I at least intend to die well. Stay close, and I’ll guard you as best I can.”
No one seemed particularly moved by her words… but they didn’t run away, either.
The sound of thundering feet began to drown out the sound of fire.
Jen took a slow breath as she pushed away from the wall and turned to face the gap.
The orcs were nearly on top of them. The first one pressed in and tried to shove past her, but she lifted her sword high and swung it straight down. The orc cried out as the shining steel sliced through its shoulder.
More blades pierced and chopped at it from either side. The orc fell backward, knocking its fellows a few steps away from the wall.
It didn’t take long for a second to claw its way over its fallen friend to try again. Jen charged ahead and bashed with the sword, as Sam and Anna had shown her. The orc was pushed back out into its fellows.
Kingsmen pressed in close to the gap, one with a shield raising it high. “Ha. Let them try.”
Jen lowered her sword and took a step back. As a DPS focused paladin she wasn’t exactly a tank. Besides, even if they didn’t need her to hold the gap she would swing on anything that made it through and she could certainly help with more pressing matters.
All around here health bars were dropping. She could see the raid members easily enough, but those from Tobin’s raid group she had to target individually to heal. In fact, it wasn’t just Jesse up on the wall throwing fire, two more of his group were down in the dregs fighting the orcs with Jen. Paul and Tim the rogue were not far.
She tried not to get too close to them.
A series of loud booms sounded from the north side of the camp, but a quick glance showed it seemed to be in hand. At least their wall had fewer gaps. Those atop it seemed to be making a lot of headway. Lots of firepower.
A few minutes into the siege Jen’s mana was gone… but not gone. She tried to let it recuperate a bit before each cast, as if she truly had to. There were a few emergencies when she threw out heals when the mana bar of a normal paladin might have prevented it, but it was doubtful anyone was watching her terribly closely right now.
She had to fight a bit more when two orcs pressed the entrance at once and shoved the tank back. The white hooded rogue with no name from Tobin’s group appeared out of nowhere to cut one down while Jen and the other defenders pressed the second back. Just a few swings, a few blue trailed follow ups, and everything was back the way it should be.
Keeping everyone in range alive and well took far more mana than she should have had, but it worked. The south wall just kept on being pressed by orcs, though defenders from the north side moved in to help after a few minutes of this nonsense. Tobin Ironblood himself ended up amongst them.
With four members of the party around it was getting difficult to avoid them…
There were two bad spots along the wall where defenders were having a hard time keeping orcs out. Jen moved to heal people up at the closer breach. Tobin had moved to the other. She doubted she was his equal in a fight, but she would do what she could.
Lightning tore down from the sky sending flaming orcs flying. They struck others as they landed, convulsing all the while.
Jesse stood atop the wall, errant tendrils of electricity still circling her arms.
Jen made a mental note not to piss off the druid.
She leveled again in the midst of the fight, but she was far from the only one. She wasn’t even sure what level she was anymore but it probably meant Sam was somewhere making hamburger out of the orcs. Tobin might be her ultimate goal, but leveling stock was leveling stock.
Orcs pressed in again from the other wall breach, but most of Tobin’s people were over there. Besides, this side wasn’t exactly secure. She was practically healing the tank and DPS pushing the orcs out over here by herself.
They would handle the other breach. Or they wouldn’t. Either way, she had her own problems.
After an intense few minutes the orcs outside had thinned considerably. Maybe two dozen left. They kept pressing the line out of pure stubbornness, or bad AI, but either way they were far less of a threat.
It wasn’t long before the last of the orcs fell to their superior numbers.
“The Orc War Machine - Rank 2: Complete!”
The pop up offered Jen a brand new sword. The comparison to her equipped sword showed nothing but red numbers and down arrows, of course.
But that was for the best. She couldn’t get rid of Soulshine even if she wanted to. She sheathed the shining blade at her side and pulled the cloak up to hide it again.
Healers were making the rounds, and Jen was no exception. She healed whoever she saw lacking but was much more mindful of her mana bar now. People would have time to notice.
Blue light from her healing spell was just beginning to wash over a young man from her group as he gave a cry and fell to the dirt dead. His bar had been at least half full. Now it was empty.
An arrow was standing out of his stomach.
Several other healers were running toward him, hands flying… but nothing happened. He was gone.
Another arrow struck one of the healers as they ran. It didn’t manage to drop her, and there were plenty around to get her health back up.
“Find cover!” Paul’s voice rose above the rest.
Jen had her back to the wall only a moment later. There was a metal walkway above. The arrows were coming from outside, she should be safe…
More arrows landed all the time, inspiring those still outside to find solid rooftops or things to hide behind. Most ended up along the walls. A few headed for the buildings.
Tobin Ironblood wasn’t far from her, his back to the wall, but his attention was on a small gap in the metal wall’s plates.
Jen hazarded a glance out the gap she had defended before.
There were no orcs outside. They hadn’t missed any.
Player nameplates appeared outside. Red nameplates. Lots of them.
All of them bore the Seven Eyes guild tag.
Jen muttered to herself. “Damn it, Bulorn.”
He’d chosen his time well. Even with the reinforcements, people were bloody and hadn’t had time to recover. The event triggering an invasion had probably made things worse than it would have been, so part of this might be her fault.
Well, more Gorin’s fault really.
Half of the Seven Eyes people where on horseback. It made sense. That was how they could get around fast enough to keep the place clear and lead people along a given path. None of the Kingsmen from either group had a horse to their name. Not that she had seen, anyway.
They all seemed to have a similar fashion sense as well. They were decked out in black armor. Somewhat ironic that the evil PK force actually had a uniform while the Kingsman trying to impersonate a military force did not.
She leaned back into cover before anyone with a bow got any bright ideas.
“Good evening.”
Jen glanced back out the opening. Bulorn was standing in the open far ahead of the assembled force now. He wore his own black armor and carried an axe Jen hadn’t seen before.
“My name is Bulorn. You can probably deduce why we are here. We only want one thing. Tobin Ironblood.”
The white hooded rogue appeared beside Tobin in a burst of smoke. “Say when.” He was spinning a dagger around his finger much like Sam.
Tobin shook his head. “Doubt you can get him in one, and going out there will make you a target. We need a better plan.”
Jen frowned. They were trapped in here for now… even if they tried to flee out the other side of the camp the Seven Eyes riders would hound them or turn them back.
Where the hell had Sam gotten off to? If anyone was willing to fight Bulorn, she was. Then again, that would sort of expose their opposition to his plans.
Bulorn’s voice grew louder. “If you send him out, we’ll happily end this nightmare once and for all. Who among you wishes to remain chained to this base system of mortality? We were not meant for this. We were meant to die and rise again. A thousand times if needs be. Who wishes to keep on living like cowards, hiding away behind a shield after every hasty swing? Who would instead prefer to be able to take chances? Risks? To be rewarded for bravery, instead of punished? We can give you that.”
“Yeah,” a voice answered from inside the camp, “right after you kill us.”
“So what if we do? As long as Ironblood dies, you’ll all get right back up anyway. Right as rain. And we won’t even be able to kill you a second time.”
Gorin’s voice rose above the back and forth. “This is a unique event. We’ll never see its like again, and you’d end it because you’re lazy? Or a coward?”
Bulorn sighed. “Hardly. I would see my people free to tackle pursuits as they see fit, without all these stupid restrictions.”
Well, he was still rolling out the Heralds sales pitch. Even though he, personally, liked the PVP centric rules he was trying to fulfill his duty as a Herald. He just wanted to try for the title while he was at it, no doubt. It was only the third day, still early, but the longer he waited the more chance someone else would have to take it.
Tim raised his voice, his white hood shifting a bit. “Oh, I dunno. Looks like you’ve done well for yourselves murdering other players. How are you going to swing that with harsher rules? None of what you’re using comes from mobs. Its all crafted with player only materials.”
Jen blinked a few times. That armor was made from… people?
Bulorn’s eyes shifted to the panel Tobin and the rogue hid behind.
“Seems to me,” the rogue continued, “that you’re just a glory hound. Perfectly willing to mislead people for your own benefits. You want the title and the rewards for yourself. How many people have you already locked out for the week? Because I can tell you our total. It’s zero.”
Well, Mr. Rogue certainly had Bulorn’s number.
Bulorn scoffed. “Then let it stay that way. Don’t resist. Send Ironblood out and lets have an end to it.”
Tim’s hood tilted back and forth as he made an exaggerated show of pondering it. “I’m thinking… no.”
Bright yellow letters appeared in front of Jen’s eyes. “Ranged attackers, if you’re not already at the wall, get there.” A message to the entire guild… something Bulorn couldn’t see.
Kingsmen shifted about quietly and were clearly trying to stay low. There were some gaps in the walls, but they were blocked by men with shields at the moment. Those outside couldn’t see in very well.
“As a secondary goal,” Bulorn’s voice was heavy with irritation, “whoever brings me that anonymous hood will be handsomely rewarded. But remember, I land the killing blow on Ironblood.”
Well, that wasn’t exactly surprising, aside from the bit about the anonymous hood? What was that? Her eyes cut to the rogue beside Tobin. He had no name plate like everyone else… that would certainly be a boon for sneaky people. It must be what Bulorn meant.
“Tanks, get ready to block those breaches.” More yellow letters with no sound for Bulorn to hear. Most tanks were already in place. Healers where doing what they could, though they were as pinned down as everyone else limiting their range.
Arrows pelted the open ground once more. They didn’t find many targets this time. Only those who were moving about. Sadly those were following orders. Fortunately the healers kept everyone up.
But if the arrows kept coming… that wasn’t a guarantee. Time wasn’t on their side here.
