The War (Play to Live: Book #6) (27 page)

I blushed, thanking all the gods for my massive helmet with its aventail to cover my beet-red ears. I quickly changed the subject: "What language are we speaking now? Lettish? Hebrew?" I nodded at the raft as I bent down, touching the hot rubber with my hand and tossing the object into my inventory with a mental effort. Eighty pounds was nothing.

I glanced at the girl to see if she liked the miracle physics. But she didn’t care, she just sat there with a crooked ironic grin and feverishly shining eyes.

"We’re speaking Russian, bro, the great and mighty. Come on, hurry up and stop looking so surprised! No elven ears and phoney scars can hide your Ryazan face."

Lifting my hand with adamant injuries, I rubbed my cheek which got burned by the Sun God’s plasma and muttered: "The scars are real."

I prodded Hummungus with my heels, turning him to the bodyguard’s grave. I grew slightly irritated, thinking I was being manipulated again. Important work was piling up, and there were countless people to rescue and tons of abandoned goodies to collect. Only I wasn’t the one deciding what to do about it; the girl sitting behind me was now making these decision for me. She sure didn’t have a Baltic character. I really felt strong next to her, but I also felt a bit like a slow, dumb bear. I wondered if that was the norm for a Russian man. As the saying goes, Russians harness their horses slowly but ride fast.

We didn’t get very far. The varans that had attacked the raft were staying in a shady lowland between two rows of tall sand dunes. The trench was roughly 60 feet deep. I couldn’t cast Resurrection underwater, and doing so from the saddle or a small patch of land would put the spell out of range.

I put a marker on the map, then looked at the girl’s knuckles. They turned white as she clutched the pommel. Turning slightly, I yelled, trying to shout down the strange rumbling in the distance: "We can’t reach him! We’ll head back; there’s nothing left for us to do here. I got his coordinates and will put my dwarves on it. Maybe they’ll build a leakproof well over the gravestone or put together a diving bell. We’ll figure something out! Damn, what
is
that noise? A waterfall?"

Kate bit her lip in disappointment, nodded in agreement and pointed ahead with her finger. "Seven waterfalls! That’s where we came into this world. After seeing this, nothing can surprise me now."

I looked hard into the distance. I couldn’t see anything, as if a storm was brewing at sea. I used the veil of Eagle Vision again. What I saw made me gasp. It was like someone had been firing cannons into the sky. There were seven giant holes, all at different heights from 300 feet to over half a mile, and every one of them was spewing forth water of different colors. The water pressure was insane. That’s how I found the breaches in the fabric of reality.

"The Ocean of the Seven Seas…" I muttered, labeling the new location by habit and automatically receiving the Discoverer bonus.

The rumbling became deafeningly loud. It turned out that Hummungus, entranced by the sight, was nearing the waterfalls, using the tops of sand dunes to get there faster.

The sheer grandiosity before us reminded us of how unimportant we were. Even Kate’s mask of imperturbability was shattered. Squeezing my shoulder, she brought her lips to my ear and began excitedly sharing her story: "I’m well aware of the Perma phenomenon and the mess surrounding it. My dad’s sponsoring a private medical center for the poor. It’s better than the public ones. That’s how I got to be a volunteer. The worlds didn’t just fall apart in one instant. I mean their bonds broke instantaneously, but the spatial wounds still haven’t closed everywhere as you can clearly see."

I nodded.
Yep, I saw it all right.

"My dad called, gave us the Zombie Apocalypse command. Most of our situations have code names and special provisions laid down for them. Alas, I was on vacation at the Red Sea at the moment, on our frigate Hope. We didn’t have time to reach shelter. We had just turned the ship around when we got caught on something and were cast out here with a piece of the stern deck. Good thing Andrew was always by my side. The debris sank, the liferaft self-inflated and rose to the surface. You know the rest. By the way, what’s this world called? I hope it’s not the Padishah or some other perverts’ paradise!"

"It’s called AlterWorld," I said reassuringly. "It’s fine. Oligarchs, special services, slavery, and religious wars. You’ll like it here. Say, what’s that huge carcass floating between the blue and green currents?"

Kate looked at it hard. "A giant cruise liner! About 900 feet long and 16 stories tall. But it’s on its side. Looks like this area wasn’t deep enough for it. And also…"

"What?" I asked, alarmed by the size of the ship, and gave my greedy pig some Validol as I wondered whether to get all of the Alliance involved in looting this vessel or try to handle it with the help of my clan alone.

"We were trying to swim over to it at first, but then Andrew said we have to lie down and stay low. Some ugly types in spotted uniform had seized the ship and were in a hurry to loot it."

I shuddered.
Camoes?!
So, our paths have crossed again.

The lust for vengeance, the anger at seeing loot being stolen right from under our noses, and the desire to destroy one of AlterWorld’s vectors of power – all this determined my plans for the near future.

Just wait, you bastards! I'm coming after you!

Chapter Sixteen

I
didn’t risk getting close to the ship. I wanted to, and my hands itched for loot. My greedy pig was throwing a fit; the evil strangers had collected the most prized loot in this world! This giant pial of manufacturable iron, stuffed with freebies from keel to the 20th VIP deck, cost a few billion dollars.

There was nothing magic in there, no artifacts. As for weapons, it had only useless kitchen knives. The only valuables were the contents of personal safes in some of the cabins and a few boutiques.

This was no Fort Knox, but still; thousands of tons of all types of metals, millions of gallons of fuel, and countless everyday belongings and decorations, all of them natural, from Earth. They were all worth the effort.

And people? Even if the ship wasn’t carrying passengers, it must’ve had at least 2,000 sailors, officers and all sorts of hired staff from highly trained security professionals to cooks and pretty singer girls. They would’ve made a terrific reinforcement for any clan. Even cancan singers and dancers could’ve come in handy as the demographic situation was still quite bad; every day I would hear suitors crossing swords under my window. A mercenary Drow was better than nothing, but it didn’t suit everybody…

Of course I would’ve been much happier to find a war ship or a strategic mobile reserve fleet instead. But it is unwise to want to much. I always bowed my head in gratitude for any gift or challenge fate sent my way.

My instincts told me to board the ship, chase away the vultures and claim whatever loot was left onboard. But I resisted. My rational side prevailed over my lust for adventurism which got stirred up by the prospect of a new solo mission.

I put the lid on my desires and made my bear back up, taking cover behind a low sand dune. Hummungus fidgeted nervously; the newly formed island with its delightful golden beach was quickly turning into a deadly trap of quicksands as it got soaked in salt water.

But for me, the air of freedom was intoxacting. Loneliness was like a healing potion for my weary nerves, even though Kate was there with me.

As I temporarily set aside the problems of the unmanageable cluster, the mighty Alliance and my clan, I was finally able to meditate and feel reborn. At last, I stopped being the main part of a huge mechanism and became the old Max, riding his bear out in the Frontier with nothing to care about.

Several weeks of insane stess followed by a time of rest when I pondered over my new experiences gave my personality a new dimension. I jumped down from the saddle, then told Kate to stay. The wet sand gave a squelching sound as it sucked in its first victim.

I flipped through my spell book, looking for the old Bind icon. I swallowed hard. I was afraid. My hands trembled and my legs grew weak. I had seen thousands of slaves and dozens of torture chambers. I had been chained up myself, had been on the sacrificial altar, had heard the screams of people immured into stone walls.

To change the bind point and to break your own rules was truly frightening. This taboo of my own making had become linked to my survival instinct. But I just had to do this, Sungoddammit! It was critically important to pace myself.

I clenched my teeth and climbed a little higher, then activated the pictogram. Everyday magic was always slow. For eleven seconds Kate watched with curiosity as flames danced around us, accompanied by the quiet bell-like chiming.

Again, I better not die…Who knows? Maybe this place will be the bottom of an ocean in a few hours, with a pressure of several atmospheres.

I opened my staff chat. It was suspiciously quiet. Were my officers asleep? I gave them a wakeup call by raising the alert status to Orange, then sent a series of blitz-codes: "Prepare for siege" and "Enemy unknown." I also informed them of the place and time оf my arrival.

At that moment, a huge flash appeared in the sky behind us. In ten seconds, the deafening sound of an explosion reached us, followed by the air wave.

Kaboom!
The ground shook. The air wave nearly broke all the laws of physics, almost tearing the clothes off our bodies. It was like a blow of a celestial hammer to the chest. I flew through the air and got pressed into the sand.

Hummungus remained standing thanks to his four paws and massive weight. Because of the game algorithms, Kate remained in the saddle but still lost two thirds of her HP. Her nose was bleeding. She rubbed her neck in bewilderment, smudging the thick blood running out of her ears.

"You’ll have to get used to it," I said, casting an intense look in the direction of the magical explosion.

My intuition told me that the Portal to Seventh Heaven was no more. The angels had left, sealing their plane of reality and slamming the door in our faces.

The water was quickly receding from the island’s shoreline, filling up the giant crater left by the explosion that was over there somewhere, and exposing the seabed with its freebies. Fish floundered on the sand, broken glass glittered in the sun, and the varans began rushing about.

Kate was the first to react. "Sea’s receding! Had this been in the real world, I would’ve said beware the tsunami."

I nodded slowly. "Same here…"

I evaluated the situation, at the same time healing Kate and casting some much-needed ranger buffs on myself; Eagle Vision and Wolf’s Ear.

I really did hear water somewhere. It was roaring, sounding quite frightening.

I tossed my head, dispelling the buff in a hurry. "Here, accept this group invite! Let’s get outta here!" I told Kate as I sent her an invite and patiently waited as she familiarized herself with the interface.

Meanwhile the water began to rise in the distance, forming a giant bulge. Hummungus growled quietly and backed up, and I felt a knot in my stomach. The wave would kill us. We’d respawn in ten seconds, returning to the murky waters teeming with sharp splinters and dangerous creatures. Then we’d die over and over again, our chances of hitting level zero increasing significantly. Have I not told myself to never set bind points outside of friendly walls?!

"Press the key already!" I cried, losing patience, and quickly activated the priestly Portal to Altar.

Alas, this also took time…

The giant wave swiftly gained speed in shallow water, towering over us and ringing with the laughter of dozens of water elementals. Their foamy limbs reached for us, wishing to strangle us and dissolve our power.

Kate’s imperturbability was gone. She did not want to go back to the Great Nothingess. The girl went pale as a ghost and tried to make Hummungus run for it. She pulled his bridle, making him turn his head, dug her bare heels into his mighty flanks. But she would’ve had more luck trying to move a mountain.

I ground my teeth so hard that I crushed my enamel and lost HP. I had to stay where I stood. Retreating like a coward could make me lose focus and fail the cast. Then I would surely die.

The wave crashed into the sand dune just as I heard the long-awaited clap of my portal. Even though transportation by portal was quick, we still brought along a few tons of salt water and a dozen marine animals. Spectacular!

Coughing up water, I kicked a fish floundering on the steps of the First Temple. It landed right under the nose of a hellhound eagerly sniffing around nearby.

I motioned for Kate to dismount. "Get off, end of the line. You’ll be safe here. Welcome to my castle."

But the girl was not in a rush to leave the comfy saddle. She clearly felt safer up there.

I could see why. Hellhounds and temple guard orcs didn’t look too friendly. And the grand temple itself had an overwhelming aura.

There was already a crowd gathering around us. The return of the nomad leader did not go unnoticed.
Whatever,
I thought,
let them run, they could use some exercise.
Some of the logistics officers were already growing beer bellies with all the government grub and their easy life. That’s the sad part about possessing knowledge. They ate like pigs and
knew
that it would be impossible to keep the fat off. And believing in something can make a lot of things happen.

I slowly turned to the Fallen One’s Throne and looked at it with a hypnotizing gaze, mustering up the determination to commit a sacrilege. What was it Uri said? Find your own Place of Power? Well, where does a First Priest feel most powerful if not by the altar of his sovereign god?

But standing at the entrance like a beggar or sitting on cold steps was something I’ve been told not to do when I was little. Sitting on cold, hard surfaces is a sure way to get prostatitis or haemorrhoids. So I slowly walked up to the throne, brushed the dust off the always warm onyx, and resolutely sat down in the master’s chair.

I didn’t hear everyone’s simultaneous gasp of amazement and horror because I suddenly lost my sight and hearing; they just went out like a sky lantern connected straight to the circuit of a nuclear power plant.

Clap!
Hello, true darkness and silence…

I was like an overclocked processor force-fed outrageous amounts of energy. My body temperature rapidly increased, threatening to fry my brains. Astral channels were ringing from the tension and twisted into incredible patterns like burning wood chips. Should I survive, then the intricate snowflake shape of my aura would be puzzling even to the gods.

My convulsing fingers settled into the ergonomic grooves left in the stone by the hands of the Fallen One. I was sure my skin was popping at that point and my clothes were starting to smoke. A little longer, and the smell of burning flesh would overpower the aromas of the sacrificial incenses.

But I did get something out of it. For a few secods, I had become equal to the Younger Gods. The world became an open book for me. The savage saw the meaning and universal wisdom in the pages between the tattered covers. I could see through mountains and make out ancient buried treasures and the carefully concealed ore veins. Complex quests revealed their secrets to me while the mighty beasts bowed their armored heads in obedience.

The power I felt was practically absolute. I swept aside temptation and listened in alarm to the growing attention concentrated on my person. Things weren’t so perfect on the summit of Olympus. All the spots had already been taken. The true gods and the unshakeable laws of the universe were avidly looking after the Balance. They would not allow this fragile canoe to be rocked even in a violent sea.

I cringed under the jealous and fearful gazes. I reached into the planet’s infofield, seeking the answer to a single question: where is the pool of unclaimed souls?

The world blinked and opened up obediently, sharing its knowledge with me. The great balance, the world karma, or simply the balance of the Game – everyone calls it by different names – gloomed in irritation. I was way out of line trying my luck like this, insolently venturing to access the inaccessible.

But I didn’t care. I reached for what was hidden on the other side of the world, greedily rummaging through its dearest and most safeguarded parts. I rudely probed whatever souls I could find, swiftly sorting everything I touched.

There were kings and warriors; sentient monsters and banished spirits; those who had passed and now awaited rebirth. Some still remembered certain things, others had already lost their identity and all looked alike like a myriad of freshly minted coins. You could scoop them out and use them without a second thought. No one could tell them apart anymore.

The universe screamed in perturbation and fear as if I fingered it underneath its skirt. Space gave a terrified howl as it got torn apart, yielding to the invisible hand raised high to deliver a blow of planetary proportions.

I squinted in fear, pulled my head in and raised my shoulders trying to shield my face. My hands were busy digging through the boundless field of souls, looking for what it had taken under its protection.

Not that one
…
No
…
Someone else’s
…
An empty one
…
Another empty one
…
Doesn’t remember its identity
…
Hates everything warm-blooded
…
Misses flights, but no other feelings left
…
Another empty one and not what I’m looking for
…
A tight group that sticks together: a warrior Drow
…
a female soldier
…
sergeant Estoc
,
I think I even remember him. Sorry
…
A nameless cleric
...
Corporal Mona Lisa
…
Gotcha!

Smack!
The universe saved me with a heavy blow to the face, knocking me off the trone which I shouldn’t have sat on.

My armor was smoldering, my broken nose was bleeding and bent sideways, and there was a deep cut in my brow. My cheek hurt from the blow, my saliva was viscid and salty, and the teeth on the left side of my mouth were loose. That was one strong bitch slap.

The tiles by the First Temple were littered with ice; my clan mates remembered how I had helped the Fallen One increase his heat elimination and decided to use the same treatment on me.