"So, you have a contact?" Kylian asked. "Someone who can get us high level characters?"
"I know a few, yeah, but it's not a cheap deal. Buying characters is super against the rules, and they're well aware of that. Plus, like I said, they're not cheap."
"Don't worry about money, we've got plenty of funds to solve this issue," Sang replied. "Turns out the government is pretty generous when the world might blow up."
"I don't know if we can trust some sketchy online guy to keep our secrets," Kylian said. "I mean, who knows who these guys are? It's too risky."
"So, what's the alternative?" Van asked. "Are you suggesting that we borrow someone else's character for a bit? We've got three weeks to put this whole thing together. I say we take the risk and buy our characters. Where do these guys work?"
"In the Mountains of Melan," Fredlin said. "They've got a process. You've got to meet them in the game first, and prove that you're not with Draco, and then you'll need to meet with them in meat space."
"Two step authentication?" Van joked, "I like it. They won't sell us out – for all they know, we're just some random people who want good characters."
"A word?" Sang asked as she gestured to Van. He nodded and the two walked away from the group as Kylian asked for more details about the purchase.
"What's up?" Van whispered.
"Doesn't it seem strange that Fredlin automatically has a solution to our problem? I mean, sure it sounds really helpful, but… I don't know. He shows up and insists on sticking with you at all times? Who is this guy; can we trust him?"
"We can trust him," Van replied. "I did some research and it turns out that Fredlin was one of the more enthusiastic people to respond to our Reddit thread. Neil already sent me a full background check on the guy, and he comes out clean. From the looks of it, we’re gonna have to trust him if we want to get anywhere." Van paused for a moment. He'd noticed that Sang had winced when he'd said Neil's name. That was odd, but he decided to ignore it and kept talking. "Plus, he served in the military, got an honorable discharge, and worked as a firefighter. Everything about him seems on the level."
"I suppose," Sang said. "Maybe I'm just being paranoid. If the CIA cleared him, I guess that's reason enough to trust him."
"If it makes you feel any better, I do know about the guys he's talking about," Van said. "I actually wanted to work for them for a little bit, but decided to go pro instead of risking getting caught and kicked out of the game."
"So, we can trust them?" Sang asked.
"We'll have to find out," Van said. He looked back at the team. "Alright, folks, let's pack up and get moving. It'll be the five of us only. How far is the mountain from here?"
Sang looked at the large map on the wall. "Maybe about three days?"
"Well, let's get moving then, team!" Van said. "We can't waste a single second with that tournament right around the corner!"
CHAPTER THREE
"Move forward!" Sang shouted as she fired another arrow at the hulking, two-headed Ogre that was lumbering toward them. The journey had been fine until they'd reached the base of the Mountains of Melan. As soon as they'd come into the area, battle music had begun playing and Ogres of all kinds had poured out from one of the ridges of the mountain ahead.
"Crap!" Sahara shouted as one of the Ogres swiped his massive hand at her and knocked her flat on her back. "I'm hit!" she screamed as her health bar dropped down 100 points.
"Why are there so many of them in this area?" Van asked as he blew into his bagpipes, casting a powerful buff that raised the damage resistance of the entire team.
"No idea!" Kylian grunted as he slashed away at the Ogres with his great sword. "But I don't think we've got the numbers to fight them back."
There were nearly fourteen Ogres, all of them two-headed monstrosities that towered over the players. Sang gritted her teeth as she loosed another arrow at one of the nine-foot tall monsters. The alert Arrow Resistance 1 Damage hovered above the Ogre's head as the arrow sank into the side of the brute.
"It's not normal for an Ogre to have Damage Resistance, is it?" Sang asked.
"No," Fredlin said as he ran in between two Ogres and hacked at their legs with the dual axes he was wielding. He didn't seem to be doing much damage either.
"They're fireproof, too!" Sahara cried out as she narrowly dodged a blow from an Ogre's club. She was on her back then, scrambling to get up.
"Retreat?" Kylian asked.
"No, no retreating!" Van shouted. "I'll play an anti-magic song. That might work." He began to blow into his bagpipes, playing a tune that caused a large white mist to envelope the entire area. The words Spell Cancelled appeared over each Ogre's head.
"Someone must have powered these guys up!" Fredlin said as one of his axes connected to the head of an Ogre, causing blood to gush out as the phrase 225 damage floated above it. "Now we're talking!"
The tide of battle changed quickly with the buff spells removed. Sang was able to fell a few Ogres now that her arrows were able to do damage, and between her and Kylian and Fredlin, the battle was over rather quickly.
"Whew, that was a fight," Fredlin said as he knelt down to loot a few of the Ogres.
"Why are you wasting your time doing that?" Sang asked as she watched the rest of the team begin to go through the belongings of the dead. "We're literally on our way to get brand new characters."
"Oh, right," Van said as he snapped out of his looting frenzy. He stood and dusted himself off. Sang could see a pained expression on his face. The shifting was slow, but she could see that he was working through the fact that soon the game would be gone. A shadow came across his face and his shoulders sunk low. The confidence and bravado that he had been exuding was gone. She wanted to say something, to encourage him, but what could she possibly say to this guy? What could she do other than tell him that she felt bad for him?
"Come on, we've got to move," Van said, his voice quivering a little. "We don't have all day."
"What powered up those Ogres?" Sahara said. "It was definitely some kind of high level magic."
"I dunno," Kylian replied as he looked around the mountain. Snow was beginning to fall. "I guess we'll find out, the further we get in."
"Let's stay on our toes," Fredlin said. "Watch the high ground, if some rock-throwing Giants get the drop on us, it's going to rain boulders."
The team began to advance up the side of the mountain, moving with great caution. The snow wasn't too bad, and the cold wind was refreshing after the heat of battle, but an eerie silence had fallen across the team. Everyone was glancing around nervously, watching their backs for signs of danger.
"This way," Fredlin said as he pointed to a large cave sticking out of the mountain. The words Cave of Terror floated above the cavern.
"Gee, that sounds like a nice place to hide out," Van said.
"It'll lead to an underground network," Fredlin explained. "The Gorgon Brothers use the network to travel around and avoid detection by Draco pros. They built some kind of work-around that prevents anyone from detecting them with any kind of program. Only sight reveals these guys."
"That's quite the work-around," Sang said. "Almost sounds impossible."
"Well, I guess they might have made it up," Fredlin replied. "I have no idea. Either way, we'll have to search the tunnels for them. Be careful, though… if they don't like the way we look or talk, they might just kill us."
"How do you know all this?" Sahara asked as she poked her head into the cave. She raised her staff high, causing a powerful burst of light to flash through the darkness, illuminating the entire area. The words Daytime Visions Successful appeared above her head. A gentle orange light glowed in the cave, providing enough light for everyone to see into it.