The Dragon's Revenge Read online

  Immediately, some twenty hands went up. There were several questions about how to get to the ring of stones that was the assembly point. Not every player was grouped with someone who could cast Portal of the Stone Rings. Then, the slender, long-haired young man who had asked about equal pay at the previous meeting was called to speak.

  ‘If this fails, is the deal over? Is the game wrecked? Are we laid off?’

  Clearly uncomfortable, his heavy face looking grim, Blackridge took a step back and looked across to Watson, who pushed himself up out of the chair and with his untroubled rolling gait, came up to the microphone.

  ‘We have a plan B. You won’t like it though, it’s nearly all about trade skills. So let’s try to get plan A back on track.’

  ‘Interesting,’ whispered Raitha beside me. ‘As it happens, I like games with trade skills.’

  Gesturing to his colleague, Watson moved to the side, though he stayed up by the lectern, smiling and nodding as Blackridge dealt with a number of tactical questions.

  I put my hand up.

  Although Blackridge immediately looked towards me, he then quickly turned his gaze around to the rest of the room and, regardless of the fact that my hand had gone up first, invited other people to speak. Finally, lacking any other choices, Blackridge looked sourly in my direction and gave a faint nod of his head.

  ‘My group have a couple of special abilities that will be useful here. Can I ask that we remain grouped together in this raid?’

  ‘Tyro, up until now we have been very tolerant of your anarchist attitude. At this time, however, we have to work together, everyone, as a tightly organised unit under one direction. You’ll be grouped as I see fit. I will be balancing classes and levels and you’ll go where you are needed.’

  Facing me were scowls of disapproval, couldn’t they hear the pomposity in his voice? Evidently not.

  ‘Special abilities?’ asked Watson, leaning forward past Blackridge to command the microphone, his voice silencing an upsurge of discontented murmurs. ‘What special abilities?’

  ‘Raitha has Form of the Sea Eagle, which has obvious uses in a situation like this. And I…I have Wolf Form.’ Should I have told everyone that I also had the abilities of a vampire? Not while I was still smarting after that last speech from Blackridge, one that could have come straight from the mouth of my worst teachers.

  ‘Very useful. And I’m sure that Mr Blackridge will bear this information in mind when he forms his groups.’

  ‘And I’m sure we won’t be in the same group,’ I whispered to Raitha.

  Fifteen minutes later, back in Epic 2, my prediction was confirmed. No sooner had Sapentia teleported us to Djorjuna Mountain (the others carrying my coffin) than we were split up and I was placed in a group with two warriors, a cleric and a druid, all level 12.

  [Group] ‘I don’t see you, Klytotoxos, where are you?’ asked the cleric. Her voice was young and she had an American accent, a slow drawl that maybe was from the south-east. All I really knew about American accents was from streamed movies and TV shows.

  [Group] ‘Can you see a coffin, under a load of cloaks?’

  [Group] ‘No.’

  [Channel Klytotoxos/Raitha] ‘Hey, friend, where did you leave my coffin?’ I asked Raitha.

  [Channel Klytotoxos/Raitha] ‘A moment…Sorry, I was just listening to my group leader. Your coffin is resting behind the tallest stone.’

  [Channel Klytotoxos/Raitha] ‘Thanks. And good luck.’

  [Channel Klytotoxos/Raitha] ‘You too.’ Raitha sounded distant. He was probably distracted by group chat.

  [Group] ‘Can I ask everyone to meet behind the largest stone please.’

  [Group] ‘Tyro, I’m the group leader. What’s going on?’ This was the voice of an older man, our druid.

  [Group] ‘I’m sorry to say that I get damaged by sunlight. I’ll need you to carry me to the action, at least until sunset.’

  [Group] ‘What the hell?’ The druid sounded angry. ‘When will this stop? You’re always pulling something. Coffin, damaged by light. Are you a vampire?’

  [Group] ‘I’m afraid so.’

  [Group] ‘Well, that’s ridiculous and makes you completely useless for the next three hours or so. Did you tell the General?’

  [Group] ‘No.’

  [Group] ‘I’ll do that now. Jesus. You suck; you know that.’

  Our cleric, though, spoke in a kinder tone. [Group] ‘I could try a Remove Minor Curse Spell?’

  [Group] ‘Thanks, but I don’t think it would work. And in any case, I actually think being a vampire will prove useful to the project. At night-time or underground at least.’

  [Group] ‘How did you get that?’ another voice asked, one of the warriors. Although we’d all said hello and introduced our class and level, I hadn’t yet learned to associate each voice with a particular person.

  [Group] ‘A vampire attacked me. She didn’t kill me though.’ I had been wondering about this myself. When I offered to entertain her with stories she hadn’t heard, had that influenced Lady Cruoris’s decision? Or had Braja’s oafish remark about me being good in bed? Her harem of male vampires stored away in the attic were old and decrepit. Maybe she just wanted a lively companion and a younger lover.

  [Group] ‘And the Wolf Form?’ asked the same voice.

  [Group] ‘My starting quest got nerfed when the bad guys ran over a nearby town. My mentor NPC gave me Wolf Form instead, it was all she had.’

  [Group] ‘You did some quests?’ The cleric sounded surprised. ‘The General told us not to bother with them.’

  [Group] ‘Not even for your basic weapons and food?’

  [Group] ‘The General made sure I was given bronze armour and a mace from the get go.’

  The druid came in on our chat, his tones as hostile as ever. [Group] ‘Thanks to the General, everything is all very well organised. Those of us who get ahead have to farm gear to help those further behind. You should try being a team member sometime and seeing how it works.’

  Then a familiar voice came into my ears. It was Blackridge, whose jolly enthusiasm sounded forced to me. [Channel Yuno] ‘That’s it. We are all here. Thank you for being so prompt. You have your groups and your group leaders have their instructions. Let’s gather just north of the Tower of Nalinda and get ready to create the space for Woan and Oveidio to rejoin us!’

  There were plenty of whoops and cheers at this in channel Yuno and a certain amount of banter among players who were obviously familiar to one another. Personally, I liked my raid channels quiet.

  [Group] ‘I’ve found Tyro’s coffin,’ our cleric announced, ‘do we carry it?’

  Grumpily, the druid said, [Group] ‘I suppose so’.

  Soon after that, the tracking beneath my feet began to move, making me sway. I was tempted to pretend I was having a snooze, or a read of a graphic novel, while they lugged me down a mountain path. Instead, I kept it civil.

  [Group] ‘So, where are you all from? Dublin, Ireland here.’

  [Group] ‘Let’s not chit chat,’ said our druid, ‘there’s a lot going on in one-to-one chat and Channel Yuno.’

  That was me told. I passed the time checking in on Raitha and Braja. For some reason I felt that Grythiss, who liked to get into role, and Sapentia, who would be busy organising her group, would not welcome an exchange.

  After about an hour, we came to a halt and with one last tremor, the ground beneath me steadied. There was then a long, dull, waiting period. From what I was hearing in Channel Yuno, the General was moving his groups around the tower, more or less encircling it.

  With some excitement, our druid suddenly announced, [Group] ‘Time to move. Everyone follow me. Tyro, you’ll just have to lie there until this is over and we’ll bring you to Middlehampton. By then it should be dark and you might actually be of some use.’

  Among all the questions and comments - should I buff resistances now? Is someone casting Haste for the raid or do I have to arrange it for my group? That kind of stuff
- came a voice I didn’t recognise which made my heart beat faster. [Channel Yuno] ‘There’s a hunter in my group who can turn into an eagle. She wants to try pulling the ogres away. Can she?’

  The question was lost in the welter of conversation going on in the raid channel. It was really tempting to try to speak up in the channel myself and draw attention to that idea, to reinforce it. Yet I held myself in check. Probably, if the suggestion came from me it would be answered negatively. Clearly, though, Raitha’s idea was definitely worth a try. All we wanted from this part of the raid was time enough for the two blocked players to log in and escape. Was it worth all this setup when we were not going to stand and fight? Or were we? Surely Blackridge didn’t think we had a chance?

  [Channel Yuno] ‘What about the eagle? Do we try it?’

  [Channel Yuno] ‘No,’ Blackridge himself answered this time, ‘we are nearly set, let’s just stick to the plan. Your hunter is to use her bow.’

  ‘Idiot.’ I whispered to myself.

  It was frustrating, being stuck in a dark box at a moment like this. The sight of the fantasy army creeping through the bushes towards the tower and its ogre guards would be a memorable one.

  Calling up the raid screen on my UI, I studied the groups. There were thirty classic, self-contained units, with at least a couple of fighters, a couple of healers and a couple of DPS characters in each. This was the way to organise a raid when each group looked after its own healing. It was a good strategy for a chaotic melee in which there were lots of opponents and no particular boss. Against three ogres, though, whom we only had to keep away from the tower for about two minutes, might it not be better to put all the fast, aggro-drawing characters together into the same groups?

  With some satisfaction, not to mention surprise and then amusement, I noticed that Blackridge’s avatar, called ‘General’, was only a level 4 warrior. That was unexpected. He hadn’t been putting much time into the game.

  Finally (with what should have been last-minute spell-casting and buffing taking so long that I had even begun to hope I might get to participate), they were underway.

  [Channel Yuno] ‘Go group one,’ said Blackridge, like the boss of mission control during an Apollo launch.

  [Channel Yuno] ‘Group one, on the way.’

  [Channel Yuno] ‘Go group two.’

  And so it continued, Blackridge launching the groups one by one, all the way to the last, number thirty. Mine was sixteen. Not that I could go with them.

  Nor could I even watch what was happening, other than follow developments on the raid screen. There I could see the first casualty, a monk in group one. His hit point bar went from full to empty in an instant. These ogres hit hard. If they caught up with you and landed a blow, well, you’d want to be at least level 20 to survive it. Soon the other groups began to suffer losses, bright green bars emptying out and character names becoming grey.

  This did not signify a problem. Luring the ogres away from their guard stations was inevitably going to lead to casualties. There was a tone to the - far too many - cries in the raid channel, however, that did not sound promising. From a soundscape made of good-natured, relaxed voices, I was now listening to urgent shouts that seemed to be a good octave higher than when I had joined the raid.

  [Channel Yuno] ‘He won’t move!’

  [Channel Yuno] ‘We need group six to take over. Group six, now!’

  [Channel Yuno] ‘Ogre Two is turning back. Repeat, he’s turning back and there’s nothing we can do.’

  Then boom!

  A quarter of the raid was greyed out.

  [Channel Yuno] ‘What was that?’

  [Channel Yuno] ‘Fireball.’

  [Channel Yuno] ‘Ogre Three is a spellcaster.’

  [Channel Yuno] ‘Ogre Mage.’

  [Channel Yuno] ‘He’s chasing me! He’s chasing…Tell Woan and Oveidio to log in.’

  [Channel Yuno] ‘They just tried.’

  [Channel Yuno] ‘Try again! Quick he’s…’

  And so it continued until only about ten players were left alive. As intently as I was concentrating, listening for his orders, I could not hear Blackridge. He was still alive though, his green bar full when I called up the raid screen on my UI.

  [Channel Yuno] ‘One last try.’ At last, Blackridge spoke up again. ‘Everyone alive run past the ogres and see if you can shift them.’

  Within a minute there were only two green bars on the raid screen, mine and Blackridge’s.

  Our raid leader spoke with surprising cheerfulness. [Channel Yuno] ‘Well done everyone, you tried your best, I can see that. Shame about the Ogre Mage, we didn’t have that intel. Please take a short break and then make your way to the nearest stone ring for a teleport. Stay in your groups. We’ll get back together and try again.’ He paused, then said rather more severely. ‘Who is Klytotoxos? Why are you still here on full strength?’

  [Channel Yuno] ‘It’s Tyro,’ announced my group leader with considerable venom.

  [Channel Yuno] ‘What on earth are you doing, Tyro? Didn’t you hear my orders?’

  [Channel Yuno] ‘He’s in his Wolf Form, lying in a box.’

  [Channel Yuno] ‘Get out of that box now and take a run at the ogres.’

  [Channel Yuno] ‘Has the sun set?’ I asked calmly.

  [Channel Yuno] ‘Get out of that box or you are going home tonight.’

  At long last, the whole raid channel was silent. What a shame it was to hear me get roared at rather than to pay attention to a raid leader. I could feel them all listening. It was not a pleasant sensation, lying there in the dark, being bullied while three hundred people listened. Sod you, Blackridge. A hundred responses welled up in me, most of them involving swearing. Somehow I managed to sound reasonable, at least to my own ears. [Channel Yuno] ‘If I leave the box before sunset, I’ll die.’

  Blackridge’s voice was tired now. [Channel Yuno] ‘Just follow my orders. If you die, you die like everyone else.’

  No, I thought, dying would not be unproblematic, like it was for everyone else. They could come straight back to their bodies, reclaim their gear and get on with their game. I, on the other hand, would have to log out or I would respawn in the northern forest in daylight and die again. Then respawn and die again. And again. Until my penalty for dying would have created a mountain of experience for me to grind through to start moving forward (I must, I realised while following this thought, move my spawn point to somewhere out of the way of any light).

  [Channel Raitha/Klytotoxos] ‘It’s only forty-two minutes to sunset. Then you can demonstrate to our great leader the value of your restraint.’ Raitha spoke with great bitterness at the way I was being treated and my heart warmed to him for it.

  [Channel Raitha/Klytotoxos] ‘Hi Raitha. Good. Can you unclip and ask Woan and Oveidio to stand by to try again when it’s dark? If you can be clipped up then too, I’ll let you know when to signal them.’

  [Channel Raitha/Klytotoxos] ‘I understand. Yet, perhaps this is a better idea. My Eagle Form is reset, I could get Sapentia to bring me back to Djorjuna Mountain. By flying from there I can make it to you by sunset and be on hand to help.’

  [Channel Raitha/Klytotoxos] ‘Great idea, definitely better. All right, then can you please ask Braja to clip in ready to alert Woan and Oveidio.’

  [Channel Raitha/Klytotoxos] ‘Certainly. See you soon.’

  [Channel Yuno] ‘Not moving, Tyro? Then you’re done at Yuno.’

  Suddenly, the raid screen was gone. I was on my own, ungrouped.

  I saw a private message request from Blackridge and took the call, even though I knew it wasn’t going to be pleasant. [Channel General/Klytotoxos] ‘Unclip and go to your hotel. I’ll arrange for your flight home when we are done here.’ He spoke curtly.

  It was understandable that Blackridge was feeling angry and stressed, his job was probably on the line and the raid had failed. Taking it out on me, however, was pathetic. Up until now, I realised, the hassle I’d been getting from Blackridge and
his followers hadn’t really bothered me. Now, it did. I found that his recent words sounding so intimately in my ears had caused my teeth to clench together and my stomach to tighten in knots.

  I didn’t answer. I couldn’t answer, I was in too much inner turmoil. If it came to defending my behaviour, well, surely it was obvious that nothing would have gone differently if I’d have left my coffin? And even if I was sacked now (wasn’t that a matter between Watson and I?), unless somebody physically pulled me out of the game, I was staying. I had something to prove.

  [Channel Yuno] ‘Right everyone,’ the General announced, ‘carry on. You have your orders. Find your nearest standing stones and I’ll arrange for pick-ups to Djorjuna Mountain.’

  Evidently, Blackridge couldn’t block me from listening to the raid channel.

  [Channel Raitha/Klytotoxos] ‘Sapentia has dropped me off and I’m in the air.’

  [Channel Raitha/Klytotoxos] ‘Great.’

  [Channel Klytotoxos/Braja] ‘Hey Braj, are you in-game?’

  [Channel Klytotoxos/Braja] ‘Yep.’

  [Channel Klytotoxos/Braja] ‘Stand by. I’m hoping the ogres don’t have the means to kill a vampire and I’ll be able to shift them.’

  [Channel Klytotoxos/Braja] ‘On it. I’ve moved rooms so I’m right beside Oveidio and Woan, who have been briefed and are good to go.’ He paused. ‘And Tyro?’

  [Channel Klytotoxos/Braja] ‘Yeah?’

  [Channel Klytotoxos/Braja] ‘Show him. Show them all.’

  [Channel Klytotoxos/Braja] ‘I will if I can.’

  For the next half hour or so, I waited in a strange emotional state, part cold and analytic, part furious. Anger kept surging up in me as I listened to Blackridge reorganise his raid. Wasn’t it obvious that the apparent cheer in his voice was all fake? That the man was panicking?

  Braja broke in on my bitter thoughts. [Channel Klytotoxos/Braja] ‘You know what I like about you, Tyro?’

  [Channel Klytotoxos/Braja] ‘Hah, I dunno. I’m glad you like me though. What?’