The Kartoss Gambit (The Way of the Shaman: Book #2) (27 page)

The woman went around the temple and headed to the cemetery. I carefully approached the cemetery fence and looked inside. Elizabeth settled down on a small patch in the centre of the cemetery which was free of graves, took out some candles from her bundle, placed them in a particular configuration, then lit them and sat at the centre of the figure that they made. In a couple of moments I heard her voice, which was mumbling some sort of an incantation in anything but the common tongue.

And what are we doing here? I looked at my internal clock: it was an hour to midnight. Soon I'll have to run to the square to lure out the monster and I'm still here spying on Elizabeth. Although I was very interested in what it was she was doing. Especially why it happened to be during the night when the mist beast came out.

Elizabeth continued to mumble the incantation and I felt someone's hot breath on my neck. Slowly, trying not to make any sudden moves, I turned to face my predicament.

I was greeted by two red eyes and the mist that covered the beast head to toe.

"I'm happy to see you too," I wrinkled my brow when the thing snorted right in my face. The furnace-hot breath of the beast, which was mixed with some unpleasant sharp smell, made me veer away. "How's it going? Let's negotiate — I have a proposal. There must be something that you want and I'm prepared to help you get that something," I wasn't even a little afraid. I thought I was heading in the right direction. I had to get this thing talking, and the next bit could be figured out later.

The beast snorted again, engulfing me in another wave of hot air, and in one blurred movement was right next to me. It was so close I could touch it, something I had exactly zero intention of doing. I was no longer scared of dying, but I wanted to live all the same. I stood still as a statue, hoping that the beast may not recognise me, when two clawed paws shot out of the mist and grabbed me by the neck. Immediately the 'No Air' status bar appeared, measuring the two minutes I could survive without the said substance. I resisted, but to no avail: I couldn't kick the misty bastard, its arms were too long, nor could I unbend the paws clenching my neck. The level difference was too big. Was I really looking at yet another respawn? Tisha sure would be happy when I turn up with a confession to make... Instead of waiting for the monster in the square, I went looking for it myself.

But I did find out how it turned up in Beatwick: the secret entrance known to Elizabeth. And it looks like she happens to be a common demonologist, who summons this terror on the village once a week. But why would she do that? And what kind of a beast is this?

The air bar flickered one last time and my Hit Points started to fall with frightening speed. Never mind. A plan had already ripened in my mind on how to stop the beast appearing in a week's time and expose Elizabeth for who she is. If she was the Vagren, I would have given some thought about what would happen to her children, but if she's the one summoning this horror on the village, there isn't much else to be done — she had to be handed over to the authorities.

Attention!

In connection with your death, your level of Experience has been reduced by 30%...

"I see you're becoming a familiar face around here, my son." The priest of Vlast was standing by the temple when I respawned there. "Did you decide to mend your ways and hand in the Vagrens? Yes, I know everything about the Headman and his family. Even if they have come over to the side of light, any priest would immediately recognise them in their human guise."

"The Vagren is innocent. There's something else at work here."

"And what is it?" the priest looked at me with interest.

"We'll know in a week's time; I thought up of a way to catch this little monster. But I need your help. Can you make me a scroll with the Movable Prison spell?"

"Eh. I don't know how to make scrolls — I don't have the Cartographer skill."

"What does Cartographer have to do with it?" I was very surprised by the Priest's words. Is there something I don't know about my profession?

"Yes, you see, one of the Cartographer specialisations is 'Scroll Scribe'. Only they are able to transfer their spells or recipes onto scrolls."

Wow! I'll have two of those! I just happen to have some original recipes that I produced! If I manage to transfer them onto scrolls and put them up at the auction, I could earn good money. There are plenty of collectors of various recipes in Barliona.

"All right, I'll think of something myself. Thank you for the advice."

"Don't mention it. What do you have in mind?"

"I have a certain suspicion. I'll check it out in a week's time."

"I will await your news," the priest turned around and stared into the distance.

I heaved a deep sigh, anticipating my conversation with the Headman and Tisha, and headed off to Beatwick. I made a decision not to tell anyone about Elizabeth until next week.

“Mahan! where were you?!" Tisha flew out of the house and run up to me. We waited and waited for you last night, but you never came! Just vanished without a trace! What happened? We had an agreement!"

"Just a moment, Tisha, calm down," I heard the Headman's quiet voice behind me. I turned around and saw him giving last-minute instructions to his sons, who were already on their horses, ready to head out to the next village. "Mahan is a free citizen and they are not so easy to destroy. When their Life is reduced almost to zero, they travel to the Grey Lands. Then twelve hours go by and they return to the nearest graveyard. A very interesting trait that only free citizens possess. If I remember correctly, the cemetery is exactly the place you've just come from. Right?"

I gave a resigned nod.

"So the beast got you before you could lead it to the square, eh?" I started and was almost ready to give the Headman a big hug. He asked the question himself and was ready with the answer — an answer that happened to get me off the hook. I love NPCs like that.

"Yes, I wasn't fast enough. We should start right on the square next time. The thing is just too fast."

"Then in a week's time we'll meet right on the square. This time we'll get it for sure. It's really into you for some reason."

I exchanged a couple of phrases with Tisha and went home. Although now I could hardly call this abode a home. Elizabeth was ordering the workmen about as if nothing happened — sending some to chop the wood and others to fetch the water.

"I see you like taking night-time walks," she remarked, turning to me. "You should go to the gates and scare off the children that keep scratching them. We end up having to fix them every week."

"I will, for sure. Is the kids' next trip to the gates scheduled in a week's time?" I was watching the woman's reaction very carefully. "I'll just go and have a look at who it is that's scratching those gates. Then I'll drag them off to the Headman for sure."

Did I imagine it or did Elizabeth tense up? That's fine — this is good for you. I have a week to think of a way to deal with you, dear landlady. Or, rather, I already know what to do – all I need is to hop over to Farstead and back. I wouldn't even be too stingy with my gold for something like that.

I took out my last portal scroll. Time had come to get to grips with my Totem...

Farstead met me with drenching rain. It didn't get in the way (the droplets flowed down a transparent sphere around each player), but it didn't do much for visibility or NPC spirits. The majority of shops were closed when it rained, the prices in the tavern doubled and the town itself acquired the status of a 'conditional safe zone'. During the rain it was permitted to kill other players in the town if you managed to avoid getting seen by the guards and waited out the eight hours in some hiding place afterwards.

This is why bigger towns had a so-called 'safe-zone'. It was a zone where it never rained, where players knew they had nothing to be afraid of. But the prices in this zone were several times higher than in the normal zone a few streets down. As I understood it, Eric and Co. holed up in such a zone, so their money was disappearing at an alarming rate. Never mind, they should last a couple of months or so.

Ignoring the gremlin, who habitually inquired how he could be of service, I entered the Personal Room. There were two letters there. The letter from Hellfire was not unexpected, but the other, from a player under the nick of Nurris, was a surprise. I had no idea who this was or what he wanted from me. Well, we'll see, I guess. I opened the letter from the head of Phoenix first:

“Hello Mahan. As you asked, I'm sending you the holograms of the top twenty players of the Phoenix and the Dark Legion clans. Good luck."

I just don't get it. What happened to all the questions about when he'll be getting the chess pieces, the rate of my progress and so on and so forth? And in general — a whole week had gone by and Anastaria hadn't contacted me once. Why? Baffled by all these questions I picked up the second letter:

"Hello Mahan.

We are not acquainted, but I know you through someone else. Mike told me that you know how he ended up in prison. Yes, I am that very reason. He also explained the incredible way a prisoner marked 'no parole' managed to make it into the main gameworld. He would have had to spend five more years raising his reputation by himself. But your help messed up the law-enforcers' plans. They had to choose: either break the rules or let Mike go. By the way, if you haven't guessed it, I'm talking about Kart. He said that you'll understand what this means. Now then. As soon as he left the mine, I paid his bail and got him out of the game — thankfully the sum wasn't that big. Now he's in rehab. Ten years in the game is no joke.

Now, about you. Mike has already told me all about you, begging for money to get you out as well. You can't bail someone from a mine, only after the prisoner himself makes it into the main gameworld. I looked at your case. I don't have a hundred million to spare, so I'm sorry. But I did find one million. I owe Mike too much. I have access to prisoner's cases, so I know the size of your compensation and the cost of removing the red headband. The money has already been paid and the payment is currently being verified. I think your headband should disappear in about a week.

P.S. Mike will not be coming back to the game. He spent too long outside real life. Good bye. I believe I repaid his debt in full."

My hands were shaking from the emotions that overwhelmed me. The red headband will soon disappear! This means that I could no longer be killed without any fear of punishment and I would get the standard level of Attractiveness with NPCs: 20 points. Kart, Kart... Thank you so much for not forgetting me. When I get out I will try to find you through Nurris.

I once again took out the chess pieces to try and solve this damned riddle. It wasn't giving me any peace, but I made no headway at all in solving it. It was all too abstract.

So, we have:

a
2
+b
2
=c
2

||x||=√
x
1
2
+x
2
2
+...+x
n
2

1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21….

[Value entry field]

Seven digits after the comma

*

*

=

The first formula was the Pythagoras theorem, the second — the formula of volume and the third — the Fibonacci sequence. What connected them all? Nothing. I tried inserting different values, but there was no result. Where shall I use the seven digits after the comma? Why can't I think of anything? Where the heck is my intuition, damn it!

I spent several hours staring at the text input field, entering different possible answers from time to time, then shoved everything back into the bag and headed off to the High Mage. I had to buy a couple more scrolls to Beatwick and Farstead and also another Bone Trap, but for level 170 his time. I dreaded to even imagine how much it would cost.

Things did not turn out to be that bad. They turned out simply terrible. Today was clearly not my day. I chose the door with the questions again and got one of my least favourite themes: Cultural studies. If I managed to get the first answer right, just about, at the second one I folded. The scroll of teleportation to Farstead and back cost me a thousand two hundred each way. Crazy stuff! With an aching heart I handed over three and a half thousand for the Bone Trap. It's been a while since I'd spent quite so much, but there was no helping it. I knew what I was getting into.

I dropped by the Smithing Trainer and learned the 'Smelter' speciality. Now I had a five percent chance of getting as many as two ingots from five pieces of ore. Nothing big, but still a bonus. Then I visited the Cartographer to learn the 'Scroll Scribe' speciality and immediately obtained a bonus from it: my Intellect increased by five percent. I looked at the description and couldn't help feeling pleased: I could make scrolls with recipes or spells of up to level fifty inclusive. Did someone ask for a spell scroll? I made a scroll with 'Summoning a Water Spirit — Water Dart'. Great! On one hand I'll be levelling up in Cartography and on the other these would come in useful when I ran out of mana. I sat on a bench and created twenty scrolls of healing and damage. Who knows when I get caught by that rainy day...