Yvvaros: The Digital Frontier (17 page)

The experience had left Luke mentally exhausted and almost completely depleted his stamina bar. He ate to regain strength and then moved through the city in a daze. It felt as though his heart was still beating abnormally, left over adrenaline keeping him from being able to fully relax.

I’m not going to let myself be killed again. I’m not going to let Tess, or Silverstrike, die either.

Instead of heading straight back down to the continent through the rune circle, Luke walked over to the edge of one of the outer fences and stared off into the distance. The regions further out from Stark Town were full of danger. He’d known that even before encountering the Winter Beast, but the reality of it still took some getting used to.

I guess I’ll have to buy some new equipment. I’m about overdue for an upgrade anyway.

Luke headed to the one of the few weapon and armor vendors in Kantor and pushed his way in through the front door. Luckily, by the rules of the game, everything in his satchel, including his gold, was secure even after respawning.

“Welcome, welcome,” said the merchant. “I can take care of all of your equipment needs.”

A couple of minutes later, Luke was back outside. He’d upgraded his basic Leather Cuirass to a complete set of Level 9 Dunidan Scale Armor. The merchant had given him a discount after Luke had remembered the left over Dunidan teeth and spikes, trading them in and getting the best price he’d seen offered in-game so far.

Next time I should just find a player with armor or weapon crafting skills and see what they can do with the stuff.

His new sword was an Emerald Hilt Long Blade. It felt strange in his hand, lighter than either the basic one he’d been using since the start of the game or the one that Tess had given him. The pummel, true to the sword’s name, had an emerald embedded into it. Luke checked his character record and discovered that it did almost twice the damage of his old weapon.

I’m going to have to explain to Tess that I lost the sword she gave me. That’s not going to be a fun conversation.

A message icon appeared in the corner of his vision, and he fished the envelope out of his satchel. It was from Silverstrike, and Luke knew better than to waste any time before opening it.

Kato

I’ve set up a meeting with the guild I told you about before. I want you to come back to the base and be there for it. Don’t worry, they are reasonable and seem to need us as much as we need them.

Silverstrike

Luke folded the letter in his hand and tucked it back into his bag, thinking about his friend’s words.

They need us as much as we need them? What’s that supposed to mean?

He headed through Kantor and toward the rune circle. There were a couple of other players respawning at the Temple, at least one of which he recognized as another member of the Winter Beast assault team. Their faces looked shell shocked and weary as if their deaths had aged them by years in an instant.

Mine must look the same way.

Luke teleported down to Stark Town and immediately began heading south toward Dunidan’s Rest. As he passed by the merchant’s district, he saw Tess standing outside of a vendor stall, perusing through colored dyes.

“I’m a fan of the blue,” said Luke. “It matches one of the moons.”

Tess glanced back at him in surprise and then smiled.

“That’s actually exactly what I was thinking.” She leaned in toward him and crossed her arms. “How did it go with the Winter Beast?”

“It went, uh, a little different than I’d been expecting.” Luke swallowed hard. He felt a bit ridiculous at how affected he still was by the in-game death. It was the way someone might feel after an intense nightmare, even knowing that it had only been a dream.

“Luke…” Tess shook her head slowly.

“I sort of lost the sword you gave me, too,” he said, frowning. “I know, I know, I’m really sorry.”

“Oh no! Look, don’t worry about it. It didn’t cost me too much in the first place.” Tess reached her hand out and set it on his shoulder. “I just thought… Well, you’re the strongest member of our guild. You’re the toughest player I’ve encountered in-game so far. I thought you’d be the one to strike the killing blow.”

“Thanks,” said Luke. “It’s no big deal, really. Hey, I’m headed back to the guild hall to meet with Silverstrike and some of the players that he’s working out a deal with. Want to come with?”

Tess smiled at him.

“I would love to.”

The walk across the Inner Plains and over the border into the Sarchia Desert was exactly what Luke needed. He made small talk about nothing in particular with Tess, a back and forth exchange of words that was more for the sake of hearing the other’s voice than anything. It made him feel as though everything was just as it should be. It made him feel like he was returning home.

Dunidan’s Rest was unchanged from when he had last been there, save for a few unfamiliar players that were milling around outside the guild hall. As he drew closer, Luke spotted Silverstrike in the center, gesturing about something with his hands as he spoke.

“Here he is!” Silverstrike pointed toward Luke, and the attention of the entire group turned to him. “This is Kato, the co-leader of the guild. And behind him is Tess, another one of the founding members.”

“Hello, Kato.” The player standing next to Silverstrike was a tall, attractive woman, with platinum blonde hair. “My name is Katrina.”

Luke reached out and shook her hand. She was wearing tight leather armor, which hinted at one of the rogue subclasses.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” he said. “Silverstrike mentioned that another guild was looking to reach a deal with us. What is it that you need?”

The other unfamiliar players around Katrina were also female, and Luke began to wonder if that was a mere coincidence. Katrina was smiling at him warmly and stretched out one of her arms toward the oasis.

“I think our guild and yours can help each other in many ways. Have you had any dealings with a guild by the name of the Revolutionary Rebels?”

Luke nodded.

“Did Silverstrike fill you in on our background with them?” He glanced over at his friend, who shook his head slightly from side to side. “They came to us a couple of days ago and made it clear that they aren’t interested in being reasonable.”

“That’s what we took away from our encounter with them, as well,” said Katrina. “Our zone is just southwest of here, bordering the mud flaps.”

Luke felt a tug on his arm. He turned and looked at Tess, who was sending him a signal with her eyes that he couldn’t identify right away.

She looks worried… Maybe she’s picking up on something that I’m not.

“Let’s cut to the chase.” Luke walked over to the guild hall and positioned himself in front of the door of it, as though assuming the role of the diplomatic gatekeeper. “What are you asking for and what are you offering?”

Katrina smiled warmly at him. Luke could tell from her expression that she appreciated his straightforwardness.

“My guild wants the same thing that the Revolutionary Rebels want,” she said, “access to your oasis. We are not interested in taking it by force, what I’m suggesting is for you to let us set up an irrigation and farming project on the side of it.”

Luke thought about what Katrina was asking. Before he could respond, he felt Tess tugging more deliberately at his sleeve.

“We need to talk about this in private!” She pulled him toward the entrance of the guild hall, grabbing Silverstrike as they went by. “Wait here for a moment.”

Tess closed the door behind the three of them once they were inside. Luke had never seen her be so assertive before and found it a little intriguing.

“Tess, what’s up? Are you picking up on something that I’m missing?”

She let out a heavy breath and looked toward the window.

“Kato, I’m not sure if we can trust them.” She glanced over at Silverstrike, as though looking for backup. “They just show up out of nowhere, and make a case for why they should have access to our most valuable resource? This feels like a power play…”

“First off, they didn’t show up out of nowhere, and this isn’t a power play.” Silverstrike stepped in between Luke and Tess and held his hands out. “They control the zone diagonally to the southwest of us. The Revolutionary Rebels are directly to the south of us. This guild, Athena’s Wrath, is our natural ally against them.”

Athena’s Wrath?

Silverstrike saw the look on his face and continued.

“They’re a gamer girl guild,” he said. “No guys allowed, as far as I can tell. But they’re good people, and decent players. We need their help.”

Luke thought for a moment about what his friend was saying. Tess didn’t speak up, but he could tell from the look on her face that she had a lot on her mind.

“Alright, let’s bring their leader back in and talk this out.” He paused, seeing the look on Tess’s face. “We can give them a trial run. We’ll authorize them to set up a small base here in our zone, just one or two players. A number that won’t be a threat.”

Silverstrike clapped his hands together, a smile coming across his face.

“Yes, that’s exactly what I was thinking! The enemy of our enemy is our friend, and in this case, our enemy has us badly outnumbered.”

“Whatever,” said Tess. She turned toward the back of the guild hall and crossed her arms.

She’ll understand, especially once the situation comes to a head.

Luke walked over to the door and opened it and gestured for Katrina to come inside.

“We’ve come to a decision,” he said. “Your guild can set up a small-”

“The situation has changed.” Her voice sounded small and shaky, and Luke immediately felt concerned. “My guild… our zone… They’ve attacked it.”

“What?” Silverstrike moved over toward the eastern window of the guild hall, as though he expected to see a battle on the horizon.

“They struck while we were here meeting with you,” said Katrina. “We only have five players in our guild. Our base was undefended.”

For some reason, guilt began to sweep over Luke. He knew that it wasn’t his fault in any way, but his conscientious, moralistic side insisted that he take responsibility.

“You can set up a base here, whatever you need,” he said. “We’ll host you for as long as it takes for you to get your zone back.”

Both Tess and Silverstrike looked over at him in shock. Luke held his hands out toward them and furrowed his brow.

“Look, if they can take out a guild with five players that quickly, what do you think they’ll do to us when they get the chance?” He paused, and then looked back over to Katrina. “Let your guild members know that they can gather here.”

She lowered her head into a nod that was deep enough to be a bow.

“Thank you,” she said. “We won’t take more from the oasis than what we strictly need. And when the time comes, we will fight with you to protect it.”

Luke smiled.

“That’s all we can ask for.”

Katrina and the other members of Athena’s Wrath went outside and began scoping out a building site on the other side of the oasis from where The Consulate’s guild hall was. Luke went over to the water pool and stood next to it, watching the gentle breeze slowly waiver across the reflective surface.

“Are you sure about this?” Tess walked up next to him, wearing her skepticism openly on her face. “It might not be so easy to change our minds once they get set up.”

“I’m sure. Don’t worry.”

Luke felt an arm wrap around his shoulder as Silverstrike pulled both of them into a huddle.

“We’re getting exactly what we need,” he said. “This is perfect. This is huge.”

I hope you’re right.

Tess was not nearly as enthusiastic, and, in fact, looked even more distraught after hearing the opinions of her friends. Luke watched her as she began to walk back toward Stark Town, and after a moment, he pulled away from Silverstrike to go after her.

“Hey…” He had to jog at a decent pace to close the distance between them, Tess refusing to compromise her pace. “What’s up?”

She didn’t say anything. Luke matched her speed with his own steps and walked next to her in silence, letting the bright desert sun warm his face. After a couple of seconds, Tess sighed and looked over to him.

“Sorry, I don’t mean to be dramatic. I just like it how it was. I liked that it was just… the three of us.”

“I can understand that,” said Luke. “You should know, though, that Silverstrike was already planning on expanding the guild with new members. This is no big deal.”

“Kato, there’s something I think I should tell you.”

Tess stopped walking. Luke looked at her and saw emotion flicker across her eyes.

“What is it?”

Tess opened her mouth, and then closed it and shook her head. She opened it again and then turned away from him.

“Never mind,” she said, “I… I trust you. And you can trust me.”

“I do trust you.”

Something is up.

Tess looked like she was biting her tongue, using all of her willpower to hold something back. She started walking again.