The Secret of the Dark Forest ( (The Way of the Shaman: Book #3) (31 page)

"I appoint you Sergeant," said Midial to one of the priests. "You the Lieutenant and you the General of the Fallen. The rest will come in handy for the initiation. As for you," the Priest turned to Ishni, "I have great plans for you. ... Argh! The damn thing burns so much!" Midial took a small frog statuette from somewhere inside his robes and threw it to the ground. "Useless trinket!"

* * *

"As you can see," said the Patriarch, "for ten years now Midial has been trying to return to his teacher, but without success. The Reardalox clan will never capitulate before the invaders."

While I was recovering from what I'd just been shown, a string of messages flashed before my eyes:

Quest 'Restoration of a Holy Relic, Step 2: The Search for the Stone of Light' completed. Reward: +35000 Experience, +500 to Reputation with the Priestesses of Eluna, +100 to Reputation with the Goddess Eluna.

Level gained!

Quest available: Quest 'Restoration of a Holy Relic, Step 3: Return of the Stone of Light.'

Step 3 description: The lost Stone of Light was dropped somewhere in the Dark Forest. With time, an oasis of goodness and peace has formed around it. Return the Stone of Light to the High Priestess.

Requirements: Reputation with Goddess Eluna: greater than 0; Reputation with the Priestesses of Goddess Eluna: Friendly or above; combined group level: 600.

Quest chain class: Rare.

Reward for completing Step 3: +1 Level, +500 to Reputation with the Priestesses of Eluna, +100 to Reputation with Goddess Eluna.

Reward for the quest chain: Hidden.

Penalty for failing/refusing the quest: none.

The quest chain will be updated for all the members of the group.

Update to the 'Cleansing of the Dark Forest' quest. Source of the taint: the Tear of Eluna planted into the ground.

"I can see that my words have shocked you," the old Vampire returned me back to the game. "I understand that it's hard to accept betrayal, especially from a Priest, but that is the story of my forest. You will now be taken back. I’ve found out all that I wanted to know: I have no interest in helping you, but my warriors will not hinder you either. You will be allowed to pass through our lands unimpeded and take the Tear of Eluna out of the ground yourselves.

"Then why ..." I started, but then fell silent. At first I wanted to know why the Patriarch's Vampires wouldn't pull out the amulet themselves, but why ask a question to which I already knew the answer? The Tear was probably stuck in the ground at the place where the Priests were initiated into being Cursed Ones. This means that's where the Lord of the Fallen, who is Geranika's apprentice, will also be located. But then another question immediately arose: how could a Shaman teach a Priest? Formally they deal with different entities ... although ... if I remembered the words of the Supreme Spirits of both worlds, Geranika hasn't been using Spirits for a long time now: ten years or more. And yet he used his tambourine when destroying the Guardian ... I urgently needed Antsinthepantsa. ...

"Thank you for your help, we will walk this path to the end. I have a request and a question. The question is simple. So that we don't spend ages roaming the Dark Forest, can you please tell us where Midial stuck the Tear into the ground? The request is a bit more complicated. You have a lot of Cursed Weapons lying around your square. I am a Blessed Artificer and have the ability to change Cursed weapons into Blessed ones." I may have been slightly economical with the truth here, since I'd never actually done this, but I had to give it a go! What if it worked? At the very least I could always take them to Beth and she could help me remake them. "Can I take a few of these items, since you aren't using them?"

For a few moments the Patriarch was lost in thought – probably his Imitator was calculating possibilities and analyzing the piles of metal for anything useful – and then he answered:

"I will not mark the spot where my enemy is located. The fight between us is an internal Dark Forest matter, not something free citizens should concern themselves with. If you want to get involved it's your business; my Fighters will not stand in your way. But don't expect any help from them either; you have to solve your own problems yourself. As for the weapons and armor ... yes, we really don't have anywhere to put it, but I cannot just hand it over without knowing for sure what you will do with it. Prove to me that you are indeed a Blessed Artificer. You will be brought a sample: change it. If you succeed, I will allow you to select around ten objects. This will be my personal gift to you. If you fail ... you will have to make your way back to the Guardian's glade via the Grey Lands. Do you agree to my conditions?"

So that's how it is! That's some twist Mr. Head Vampirello put on things! And in general, our meeting didn't seem to have come out quite right. Firstly, the Patriarch didn't appear in the list of encountered factions, so leveling up with him in Reputation was a separate story. Secondly, he had no intention of helping us and there was nothing to be done about that. Thirdly, he was about to send me for respawn, because I was no Priest when it came to switching polarities. And I couldn't decline either; my Reputation with the Patriarch could easily plummet, which was the last thing I needed. What to do?

"I agree," I answered the impossible question, mentally preparing myself for a 12-hour rest, although for me it would rush past in the blink of an eye, and at least my body would get a break from Barliona.

"You will be brought one of the simple objects suitable for your profession," said the Patriarch, snapping me out of self-castigation mode. “Suitable for my profession” meant that I would have to work either with a ring or a neck-chain, in other words with a piece of jewelry. All I needed was an hour of time and ...

Cursed Ring of Driall.

Item class: Epic, Unique.

Minimum level: 320.

Stats: +12800 to Intellect, +5400 Stamina, +80 Energy, +1400 Agility, +1400 Strength, when casting a spell you have a 30% chance of an instantaneous free repeat cast. 2 Gem Stone sockets. Upgradable (the cost and level of upgrade can be confirmed with an Advisor/Master).

Cursed Ring's special properties: when worn, -20 character levels (the effect is applied no more than once to any player wearing the ring; total stat point reduction: -100); when placed in inventory, -30% to all stats (temporarily).

Its properties were quite mind-blowing. Prior to this I thought that the most expensive and amazing items for players were those made by the Thricinians. The armor I was now wearing would be quite decent even at level 300 ... but now that I'd seen the properties of a 'simple' – as the Patriarch put it – Epic ring for level 320, I realized that I was wrong. Very wrong.

"This is the ring of the first Lieutenant. Three years ago we managed to destroy him. Midial initiated a new one, but his level and experience are not the same. You have an hour, as of now." With these words the Patriarch froze on his throne, showing that for the next sixty minutes I didn't exist for him. That's fine by me. The main thing now was to figure out what could be done with this ring. ...

After twenty minutes of fiddling with the ring it finally dawned on me that I was unable to recreate it in the design mode. The ring constantly turned out deformed however I tried to imagine it: either the gem sockets were bent or the ring itself became square or its surface looked corroded, as if by acid. It looked like the level difference between my profession and a 300-level object was just too large. Was giving up and preparing for respawn all I could do? I would've dearly preferred to avoid that, but by the looks of it ... although ... what if ...

I went to the Shaman abilities and started to read. It’s true what they say: everything new is just the well-forgotten past. If I couldn't use Jewelers’ skills, perhaps I could use my Shaman skills instead? Essence of Things and Change of Essence. ... Let's hope that this ring doesn't have the 'Shield' spell active on it ...

Revulsion. Rage, pain, fear and again revulsion. As soon as I applied the ability to the ring, I was engulfed by a great torrent of negative feelings. I don't know how I managed not to chuck the ring and wash my hands of it there and then, but I'm pretty sure that the look of disgust on my face was reminiscent of someone who’d just fallen into a cesspit. The ring wanted to be revolting, wretched, evil, and terrifying. The list could go on, but I tried to detach myself from the sensations that the capsule was trying to feed me and went back to the ring. So, are you a piece of filth hell bent on being that and nothing else? I see. But what if I try to force you to become a happy and harmless lump of metal?

My first attempts at Change of Essence resulted in nothing except a headache and, most surprisingly, a nosebleed. I glanced at the Patriarch, who was still sitting statue-like on his throne, and realized that he’d sensed the blood too. His nostrils widened slightly, as he inhaled its sweet scent, but the Vampire himself remained motionless. There was little else to do than sit there and try to guess what was going on: was this due to the properties of the location, which happened to be the abode of blood-loving Vampires (similar to the Shaman Initiation Cave) or was it specific to changing the Essence of the ring? Forty minutes had already gone by, but I saw no clear way of solving the problem. Time to give up? What else is there left to do ...? Like hell I will! I'm a Shaman and no ring is gonna make me give up!

Once again I closed my eyes and called up the design mode. There was black empty space where items that I had created were sorted on their own special 'shelves'. Kameamia, with the note 'cannot be repeated', the images of the Orcs, the Dwarves, the thirty-two players from Phoenix and the Dark Legion clans, the stone button, a ton of rings and neck-chains ... a good collection of crafted items, for sure. Now I just needed to add another ring there, which was completely refusing to appear. What if I'm doing it all wrong? What if I shouldn't be trying to re-model this ring, but just skip the first stage and create the ring that I'm aiming to make? I am a Blessed Artificer, and not a Cursed one, after all, someone who makes blessed and not cursed items, so why do I need a 'black' item on my shelves?

The template of the ring appeared straight away – round and shining, molded from a single piece of metal, with two gem sockets (I should experiment with designing such rings, as well as with the number of sockets – why should there only be two?). The ring I created looked very similar to the one that the Patriarch had given me, but no waves of light were emanating from it. If I crafted it now, I would simply get a bronze cast ring of something or other. There had to be an extra ingredient to make the ring change, but how?

"Hi, come over, I need your help,"
I called my Totem. I saw no other means of correcting the ring other than bathing it in Dragon’s breath. This was probably stupid, but I was out of options: I had only ten minutes left.

"I'm here. What do you need? Is it normal for you to have a dark ring hanging in front of your face?"
Draco asked, almost breaking my concentration. It turned out that if I relaxed even a little, the ring in my imagination immediately started to melt and deform.

"Take no notice. Now here's the job: the ring must be burned. Do it, just try not to fry me as well."

"I'll be careful," Draco roared at me and warm air began to blow in my face. "Nope. It's not working."

"Accelerate."

"But ..."

"Draco, I realize it will hurt, but do it!"

"All right, I'll jump to level two ..."

"No. If the second level won't do it, go to third and fourth. ... Something tells me that you should jump straight to six."

"I've never gone that far! It will hurt a lot!"

"If you don't do it, I'll be destroyed. I won't force you, it's your choice." Even if he were just an NPC, but this is Draco ... I'd become attached to him and I wouldn't make him do something he doesn't want to do, even if I really needed it. What's 12 hours of sleep? Nothing, gone in the blink of an eye ...

"I will do it, brother," said my Totem in a hollow, heavy-sounding voice and then warm air again began to blow into my face. "Entering the second," Draco reported and strange things began to happen to the ring in the design mode: it started to melt, like a piece of butter in the sun. Was this really the result of the Totem's breath? I should’ve been happy that it was working, but a feeling of foreboding rose up within me: something wasn't right. I had to prevent the ring from melting entirely; it had to remain whole. ...

"Entering the third," said my Totem through gritted teeth – or rather fangs in Draco's case – when I started to fight for the ring to stay whole. Its form had to be round, two sockets for the gems, a perfect surface ... a few seconds went by, but the ring continued to melt. Either I was lacking concentration and experience, or I was doing everything totally wrong. Stop! Didn't I just ask my Totem for help? Why don't I make use of my Shaman skills? The three seconds it took me to enter the Spirit Summoning Mode seemed an eternity to me. I freed up one of the active slots without even a glance at what I was chucking (I'd get it back later) and began to summon the Spirit of Petrification. I had no idea whether one even existed, but I really needed it right now. ...

You have summoned the Lesser Spirit of Petrification. ...