I took off at a run, needing to buy a few seconds to spin psi.
The harbinger adjusted his course the moment I did.
He wasn't slowing down either, and I could only guess he meant to run me through. The seed’s death seemed to have infuriated him beyond reason, and cold sphere or not, he was coming to finish me off himself.
Unfortunately, I didn't have much mana to channel the frost ent’s stolen spell for long, leaving me disinclined to meet the stygian Power head on. Killi...
2023-08-07 13:22:50 +0000 UTC
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“Prime?” Ghost asked, her mindvoice quivering with anxiety that echoed my own.
I had become careless, I realized, despite my steadfast resolution not to be and had grown too sure of my own abilities. There was ample evidence that my stealth was equal to the challenge of deceiving the stygian Power but, foolishly, I had come to rely more on it than I should’ve.
And now that the harbinger had neutralized my stealth, I was at a loss on how to escape him…
Wordle...
2023-08-04 07:00:11 +0000 UTC
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Day Twelve in Draven’s Reach
I couldn’t believe it.
I had been found out. My mind turning frantic circles, I tried to work out what was going on. I had been discovered.
But by what?
Where were the foes that had detected me? And more importantly, in which direction did I have to flee to avoid them?
The only mindglows in range were the weavers behind me, and they weren’t moving. Besides, I knew from experience that my stealth was good enough to hide me from t...
2023-08-02 03:00:03 +0000 UTC
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Day Eight in Draven’s Reach
Ghost and I picked off the crawlers one at a time.
Using charm, I bespelled a single stygian and lured it away from the column for killing. It was slow and tedious work, but it sped my telepathy skill along nicely, and by the time the last crawler died, I’d achieved my training goal.
Your telepathy has reached rank 15, allowing you to learn tier 4 abilities.
In the process, I also advanced a few other skills and gained t...
2023-08-01 05:57:45 +0000 UTC
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I waited a long ten minutes before risking mindspeech again. “Are they gone?”
“Castor is,” Ghost replied. “Some of the others are still poking around.”
“Alright, tell me if anything changes.” There was no reason to move. My hiding place amongst the gargoyles was as safe a place as any, and until I removed my debuffs, I was too vulnerable to do much of anything.
With nothing else to occupy my attention, I reviewed the post-b...
2023-07-30 11:21:54 +0000 UTC
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It was difficult to imagine how I would escape this time. In fact, I was almost certain I wouldn’t, and of its own accord, my mind wandered beyond my present circumstances to thoughts of the future.
When—if—I died here, how was I going to get back to the city? I hadn’t even established where the safe zone was yet. Could I make it back without gear? Another concern loomed large. What would the possessed do with my equipment? Maybe, I should—
“I’ll save yo...
2023-07-27 12:27:51 +0000 UTC
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Ghost’s words hit me hard, and for a moment, I closed my eyes, tasting defeat like ash in my mouth.
Stone has cast revealing light.
Light blossomed in the T-junction, but I was already far enough away that the few rays that managed to reach my position failed to disrupt my stealth.
“I’m sorry, Prime. I didn’t think there was any choice. That blizzard looked nasty.”
I waved Ghost’s concerns aside. “You did the right thing. Sta...
2023-07-26 06:59:09 +0000 UTC
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As Gagan scurried away, Avery ordered half the mages to circle around me. Retreating the way I’d come was definitely no longer an option. My gaze flickered forward. It did mean, though, that there were fewer obstacles between me and the rest of the fifth floor.
I eyed Avery and the seven other mages in the corridor speculatively. They were talking, but no part of their conversation carried to my ears, which made me suspect someone had to have raised a silence ward.
They’re...
2023-07-21 07:25:19 +0000 UTC
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The fourth floor was a maze of corridors and after only a few seconds navigating them, Ghost and I were in danger of getting lost. Sending her ahead to scout, I followed more slowly.
“You there, stop!”
The shout had come from behind. I halted. I hadn’t sensed my questioner’s approach, which meant his mind was shielded.
Have I been found out already?
But no, the voice was relaxed—bored. Deciding to maintain my ruse, I pulled off my spectacles and, kee...
2023-07-19 06:06:12 +0000 UTC
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Elron and I spoke for hours.
I did not remove my disguise or share any of my own truths. There was no need to, and the possessed were already looking to the marshal for answers. I couldn’t risk my secrets falling into their hands. For his part, Elron did not pry, and I was certain he kept his own council on many matters.
We came up with a half a dozen schemes for evacuating New Haven. But every plan was convoluted and fraught with peril, and more crucially, they all presumed the...
2023-07-18 05:56:37 +0000 UTC
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Day Seven in Draven’s Reach
The marshal’s house was a small one-story building that overlooked the city walls.
After Ghost scouted the building and pronounced it safe, I slipped inside. Elron was not home. The dark elf had no servants and no family, and the place looked barely lived-in. Sitting down in the somewhat empty living room, I made myself comfortable. I expected I had a long wait in store before the marshal returned.
Two hours passed, and still, Elron didn’t...
2023-07-14 07:39:29 +0000 UTC
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“How?” I gasped. “How is it that you can be what you claim?”
While waiting for his response, I went over everything I’d learned. Matters were no closer to making sense. If anything, they’d grown even more confusing.
Retired players? It sounded like an impossibility. How did a player even leave the Game? I’d never heard any mention of anything like it before. Nor did the moniker, ‘possessed,’ bode anything good. It suggested that Castor and his companions...
2023-07-13 07:05:10 +0000 UTC
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You have passed a thieving skill check!
You have removed 4 trap-making crystals from your trapper’s wristband. Remaining trap-making crystals: 128 of 200.
Elron and I drew to a stop as we reached the doors to the council chamber. In my closed fist, I held four crystals. I’d been tempted to trap the corridor but had decided against it. Even in my present circumstances, I couldn’t afford to waste my traps, and I suspected the council chamber w...
2023-07-10 04:52:43 +0000 UTC
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Mouth agape, I stared at the objects lined up on the table.
I’d analyzed each in turn, and the results had left me deeply shocked. “Do you know what you have here?” I whispered.
The old man shook his head, grinning toothily. “None at all. Not even our mages have been able to identify these artifacts. But I reckon they’re important—and expensive.”
I nodded, not bothering to attempt convincing him otherwise. Gamil appeared too shrewd for that. “That they are....
2023-07-07 07:00:00 +0000 UTC
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“Let’s go,” Elron said as soon as the city gates shut behind us.
I glanced around but failed to spot Avery. “Where’s the magister?”
“He had other things to attend to,” Elron replied, not looking at me as he strode away.
I hurried to catch up. “That’s a pity. I had some questions for him.”
The marshal looked at me sharply. “Questions? What sort of questions?”
I shrugged. “All sorts. Like why he and his fellows didn’t participate in th...
2023-07-06 04:21:36 +0000 UTC
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I’d killed two stygian seeds but gained no player levels. That did not mean the Game did not reward me for the day’s efforts, though.
Your nether absorption has reached rank 8.
Your deception has reached rank 14.
Your sneaking has reached rank 15, allowing you to learn tier 4 abilities.
I was pleased with the progress of all my skills, but it was the advancement of sneaking that delighted me the most. It meant I co...
2023-07-05 12:46:42 +0000 UTC
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I emerged from the fog bank to find Elron and his men on the move. I frowned. Just as I’d expected, the marshal’s company had retreated to shelter beneath the city’s walls, but now they were swinging further west and toward the second seed.
“What is he up to?” I muttered. Jogging forward, I hurried to find out.
Behind me, the nether was already dissipating, and it wouldn’t be long before it vanished entirely. Catching up to the marching soldiers, I stormed to the fore....
2023-07-04 12:54:45 +0000 UTC
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“Do you trust them?”
Elron and I were back at the city walls. The marshal was readying his men inside the south gate while Ghost and I stood silent witness. The spirit wolf’s question was an apt one, and I took my time reviewing what I’d learned from the council meeting before answering.
New Haven was not a new city, and its inhabitants were not in the dungeon by choice. Like me, they had entered Draven’s Reach unwillingly, and like me, they were trapped here. S...
2023-06-30 07:55:02 +0000 UTC
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Day Six in Draven’s Reach
An hour later, I found myself in one of the fortresses at the heart of the city. New Haven did not have anything like a main keep, but that did not mean its center was undefended. Four separate strongholds occupied the middle, each almost a fortified city on its own.
The inside of the fortress was decorated with tapestries, rugs, and artworks of wooded forests, green pastures, blue skies, and meandering rivers. The pictures were a stark contrast to Drav...
2023-06-28 09:33:52 +0000 UTC
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As I ambled through the city gates, a squad of waiting soldiers surged forward to form a solid block around me.
Multiple unknown entities have failed to pierce your disguise.
Multiple unknown entities have failed to pierce your disguise.
Multiple unknown entities have…
…
Ignoring both the guards and Game alerts, I stood on my tiptoes and peered at the city beyond. The streets bordering the wa...
2023-06-27 11:44:56 +0000 UTC
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It took Ghost and I just under an hour to reach the gorge’s edge.
Two things became immediately apparent. One, the walled city at its center was huge, nearly the size of the plague quarter in Nexus.
And two: it was under siege.
The gorge nestled right up against the dungeon’s protective dome and marked its northwestern corner. The city commanding the valley’s center was replete with towers, ramparts, and ringed by walls so formidable that I doubted even the dungeon’s...
2023-06-22 04:47:42 +0000 UTC
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Day Four in Draven’s Reach
You have slept 8 hours. Stamina, mana, and psi reserves have been fully restored.
I awoke early the next day. The night had passed undisturbed, and I was rested and refreshed. Yawning, I made my way to the entrance of my hidey-hole.
“All quiet?” I asked Ghost who sat guard there.
“All quiet,” she agreed.
“Then let’s get out of here.” While Ghost floated upwards to the canyon floor I flexed my li...
2023-06-21 04:48:26 +0000 UTC
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The rock under my hands trembled, only slightly at first, then more violently. A boulder fell from above, passing scant inches from my face.
“Prime!” Ghost screamed.
“Keep going!” I shouted and reached upward with my right hand.
A jagged scar ripped across the rockface, and the entire cliff shifted, leaning inwards.
Uh-oh. I wasn’t going to make it.
A huge chunk of stone, as large as two golems, broke off from the plateau and ...
2023-06-20 06:47:12 +0000 UTC
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You have teleported into Sunfury’s shadow.
I stepped out of the aether and directly onto the phoenix. Sunfury was afire, and immediately, heat and flames assailed me.
You have failed a magical resistance check! You are burning.
Your void armor has reduced the elemental damage incurred by 40%.
I ignored the heat.
The flames rolling off the phoenix’s body rose no more than knee...
2023-06-15 09:45:32 +0000 UTC
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You have successfully stored the cold sphere spell in the ring, mage’s surprise. You have fully restored your health, mana, and psi.
Hours later, Ghost and I were still traveling north across the plateau. I took the most direct route feasible, teleporting across yawning chasms when I could or skirting around the cracks in the plateau when I couldn’t.
It was only for the fog banks that I made allowances. Whenever Ghost and I en...
2023-06-13 05:36:29 +0000 UTC
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It did not take long for the harbinger to recover from its dive. Less than a dozen seconds after I blinked away, the creature winged aloft and immediately began cutting a wide arc through the air.
“It’s heading back this way,” Ghost warned.
Looking over my shoulder and seeing the same, I nodded. My stealth was holding but it might not when the harbinger drew closer.
I didn’t have long to decide my course.
How does the harbinger know to turn around?...
2023-06-12 07:35:59 +0000 UTC
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At the spirit wolf’s cry my head jerked upwards. The fog bank had all but dissipated, laying bare the purple sky above.
And the shape hurtling down.
Closing my fingers fast around the seed in my left hand, I threw myself out of the way.
You have evaded the attack of an unknown hostile.
Behind me rock shattered and stones flew, the ground itself shuddering as my mysterious attacker dove headlong into it. Rolling to my feet, I raced away in the opposit...
2023-06-08 05:52:09 +0000 UTC
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I'm posting this because some of you requested it. I maintain Michael's character sheet throughout the story, updating it in the background after each encounter. I don't normally post it because of how long it is, but if you want to see it more often, lemme know :)
After killing last 4 seed guards
Player Profile: Michael
Level: 167. Rank: 16. Current Health: 100%.
Stamina: 100%. Mana: 100%. Psi: 100%.
S...
2023-06-08 04:32:59 +0000 UTC
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The windslide carried me ten yards, far enough for the mists to shield me from the gazes of the furious weavers.
Four hostile entities have failed to detect you! You are hidden.
I smiled wanly. Ironically, the very nether that was responsible for my current peril was now sheltering me from its minions. Stretched flat across the ground, I raised my head slowly and listened to their angry calls.
The weavers were not drawing closer.
I lowered my head care...
2023-06-07 08:59:28 +0000 UTC
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Only a few moments later, I was ready to commence.
Ghost had been briefed as to the plan and waited a few dozen yards behind in case I needed to make a quick getaway. I was once again outside the fog bank, a touch under fifty yards from my targets.
Drawing psi, I flung a net of bewitching at the six weavers.
Strands of my will surged forward and invaded the minds of the stygians. One by one, they fell under my spell. Sadly though, some resisted.
You have charme...
2023-06-06 06:58:48 +0000 UTC
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