Yvvaros: The Clash of Worlds (23 page)

It was over a hundred feet long and crowded with activity. A couple of merchants were on their way to the mainland, pulling carts along with them, but the majority of the traffic was heading toward the island. Luke recognized a number of the players attending as representatives of their guilds.

“What’s your plan?” asked Luke as the three made their way onto the bridge. The rogue was grinning manically. He grasped Luke’s shoulder as he began explaining.

“Just follow my lead,” said Silverstrike. “I’ve already greased most of them over with favorable trade deals and combat alliances. At this point, I just need to lay out the facts and wave you in front of them.”

Luke sighed.

“Does that really need to be a part of this?” asked Luke. “Can’t we just-”

“Trust me, they won’t go for it if we don’t make this seem like an in-game quest,” said Silverstrike. “If we present it to them like a World Event, and give them a chance to make history alongside their hero, they will jump at the chance to be part of the rebellion.”

No pressure though, right?

The three of them walked across the bridge. The wood shifted slightly under their feet, moving with the waves like a loosely bound raft. Luke noticed other players looking at them as they passed by, or rather, he noticed them staring at him.

The Carthac Island settlement was a neutral trade zone. The guild leader, Merrick allowed his zone to be used by other merchants hawking their wares rather than producing and selling the goods himself. In turn, he collected a small fee.

He’d built a large guild hall that had temporarily been emptied of trade. Instead it was set up to accommodate the men and women Silverstrike hoped to recruit to their cause.

Luke, Silverstrike, and Tess walked through the large double doors.

“Silverstrike.” Merrick was standing just within the door and smiled when he saw him. “And Kato, welcome! You must be Tess? Excellent, you are right on time.”

The guild hall was packed with guild leaders and emissaries from all of the major factions in Yvvaros. Silverstrike seemed to recognize most of them, but many of them were new faces to Luke. He did recognize Megwin, who smiled at him and nodded.

They all look like they recognize me, though.

“I believe we are waiting on one more said Merrick. Silverstrike nodded, Luke and Tess followed him over to an empty table at the center of the room.

The room hummed with dozens of private conversations. Most of it consisted of polite small talk as they waited for the meeting to begin. Luke tried to relax. Silverstrike looked tired, and on edge, but also confident.

Luke thought again about the changes he was seeing in his friend. He could see both sides of his Silverstrike coming to a head, his impulsiveness and addiction pitted against his confidence and vision.

This is Silverstrike’s real struggle. This is his battle to fight for the plan to succeed.

The guild hall’s doors slowly opened, and the last guild leader walked in. Luke froze when he saw who it was, a mage dressed in a long red robe, with a stoic expression on his face.

Arex!

The memory of Arex was still fresh in Luke’s mind. In reality, not that much time had passed since then, but the rapid developments in Yvvaros made it feel longer.

Arex had been one of the founding members of The Consulate. Then, he’d betrayed them, twice. First, he’d taken Tess hostage and killed her, though it was back when permadeath hadn’t been a factor. Then he’d sided against them with another guild, attempting to bully Luke into giving up the resources of Dunidan’s Rest.

Luke instinctively stood and reached for the hilt of his sword. Silverstrike grabbed him by the shoulder and pulled him down, shooting him a cross look.

“A lot of the guild leaders here have issues with each other,” whispered Silverstrike. “Some of them have even fought battles against each other and taken zones. We have to put the past aside.”

“Arex, welcome,” said Merrick. “Please, have a seat. The meeting is just about to begin.”

Arex smiled coldly. He met Luke’s eyes as he walked by, holding his gaze as though he was a lion sizing up a wolf. Luke stared back at him.

I haven’t forgotten, Arex.

Tess squeezed his hand underneath the table. He looked over at her, expecting her to be frightened or at least a little unnerved. She was smiling, as though nothing was out of the ordinary. Luke forced himself to follow her example as Silverstrike stood to his feet and began addressing the room.

“Alright, I think it’s just about time for us to get started.” Silverstrike walked over to the entrance. He motioned to one of Merrick’s men stationed at the bridge as a lookout and shut the door. Then he walked back to the center of the room and stood, waiting for the room to draw silent.

With all eyes on him he began to speak. “I believe that most of you already know me. You either have trade deals or treaties with my guild, or, you owe me money.”

Several emissaries chuckled. Luke watched his friend as he spoke to the group. He couldn’t help but be impressed. Silverstrike’s charisma was evident, but even so, he could detect that his voice held a tremor of stress along with it.

He can do this. He just needs to stay focused.

Silverstrike continued, “But in case you don’t know me, I am Silverstrike, co-leader of The Consulate, the guild I founded with my Sister Tess, and Kato, the Hero of Kantor.” I brought all of you here today for one reason.” Silverstrike scanned the room, meeting the eyes of as many players as he could. “The Arbiters have to go.”

An anxious murmur passed through the room. Silverstrike lifted up one of his hands for silence, but let it continue for a couple of seconds before clearing his throat.

“I’m not going to dance around the point. You’re all smart, capable players.” He slowly walked over to a large window in the back of the room that looked out onto the Western Sea and nearby islands, and raised a hand. This world is special. I think we’ve all come to realize that. It’s a chance for us to create something new. For many of us, it’s a chance to start over.”

Everyone in the room was mesmerized, hanging on Silverstrike’s words. He walked slowly away from the window continuing his performance. He cast his eyes at the ceiling, as if receiving a message only he could hear.

“This is our world. Not theirs.” Silverstrike raised his index finger and pointed it back at the window. “They took what was ours. They took what we built and what we fought for. They’ve taken our lives and they’ve perverted the beauty of Yvvaros.

“You’re being overdramatic,” called a voice from the back of the room. “Besides, it’s probably only temporary. Soon enough the government will-”

“It’s not temporary,” said Silverstrike. “It’s deliberate, and it’s permanent, as permanent as permadeath.”

Luke looked around at the other players in the guild hall. Most of them had been in good spirits before the meeting began. Now Silverstrike had their attention and they looked serious and pensive.

“The real world is changing. It’s evolving. And this…” Silverstrike spread his arms out and gestured around him, “…is why. People are immigrating, like they have since the dawn of time, only now the new frontiers are digital with limitless potential”

“I haven’t gone all in, and I never plan to,” said another player from over to the side. “Why should I risk my ass going along with any of this?”

He makes a good point. How is Silverstrike going to convince the players that still see Yvvaros as just a game?

“They’ve taken our cities!” Silverstrike raised his voice. “They’re capturing and killing our people! If you want to sit back and pretend like that doesn’t affect you, then go right ahead. See what happens next. We already got a taste of how bad things can get at the Battle of Kantor.”

Silverstrike gestured to Luke, who slowly rose to his feet and joined his friend in the center of the room.

And this is where I come in, apparently.

“Many of you may recognize Kato. Or as he is more commonly known, the Hero of Kantor.”

Another murmur went through the room. Luke couldn’t tell if the overriding emotion was curiosity, respect, or adulation.

“Kato only discovered Yvvaros because I goaded him into giving it a try.” Silverstrike smiled. “But it wasn’t a fluke of chance that led him to his role in saving Kantor.

Luke tried not to frown.

It was a fluke. The skill I used to win the battle came out of nowhere, and disappeared immediately after it.

“The rumors you’ve heard are true,” said Silverstrike. “Kato’s dad is, or rather was, one of the former developers of the game.”

This time, the players in the guild hall didn’t just start murmuring. They spoke loudly among themselves. Luke heard questions being shouted at him from all sides. In the back of the room, Arex was smiling at him with his arms crossed.

“Quiet!” yelled Silverstrike. “Hey, I said, quiet!”

The crowd slowly calmed.

“You’ve been saying a lot, but explaining very little,” Megwin called out from a table near the back of the room. “Please, Silverstrike, Kato… you’ve only told us why. We need to know how.”

Silverstrike cleared his throat before continuing. “We have a plan to take down the Arbiters. Kaoru, who many of you have also heard rumors about, has joined our cause. We will take back Yvvaros, but we need your help.”

He again scanned the room, making eye contact with Megwin and other powerful guild leaders before continuing. “There are several parts and phases to this plan. Kato and Tess are already working on the first phase, and Kato and Kaoru are working together on the second one outside of Yvvaros.”

“So what do you want with us?” Megwin spoke again.

“Within Yvvaros, we will need to build up an allied force. What I need from all of you is to gather your players, equip them with the best equipment you have available, and wait. We don’t know when the attack is going to take place, but it will be within the next few days. You will need to mobilize with very little notice.”

“How can we attack them?” asked Merrick. “Kantor has been taken. The rune circle is guarded by Arbiters.”

“I mentioned the first phase. The Hero of Kantor has already found a way.” Silverstrike grinned in triumph. “Kato has been claiming the Elemental Wells. Once all three of them are under his control, we will summon the floating city of Makorin to serve as our weapon.”

The room erupted again. Silverstrike sighed and shot Luke an exasperated look.

It’s my turn to step in.

“Hey! Listen up!” The room was instantly silent. Luke felt an anxious flutter in his chest as their eyes turned to him. “Look, the plan sounds outlandish, but I assure you, it’s doable.”

The words left his mouth with more confidence than he actually felt. Silverstrike nodded in agreement alongside him and wrapped an arm around his shoulders.

“Your hero has spoken,” he said. “And phase two? Kato and Kaoru have devised a plan to free the world state server from the government in the real world. We aren’t talking about starting a rebellion. We’re talking about finishing one.”

“We can do this, all of us, together,” said Luke. “Just trust us, and be ready.”

Several guild leaders nodded in agreement. Merrick was smiling broadly. He began slowly and rhythmically banging his fist on his table. Other players joined and within seconds, all of the assembled guild leaders were drumming their fists down, beating out a loud, steady rhythm in support of the plan. Even Arex.

“Yvvaros! Yvvaros!” Silverstrike started chanting, and the entire room followed his lead. It felt ritualistic, like they were a tribe preparing to declare war on their enemies.

That’s not too far off from the truth.

The energy level in the room was so high that they almost didn’t notice when the player who’d been posted as a lookout stumbled in through the door. He had a panicked expression on his face, and an arrow jutting from his shoulder.

“The Arbiters are here,” he said, before collapsing.

CHAPTER 25

Luke was the first one out the door. Tess tried to grab his hand as he moved, but he pulled away. He unsheathed his sword and charged toward the bridge. A group of at least three dozen Arbiters stood waiting on the other side.

They killed Anna. They’ll kill Tess, too, if I let them.

At the front of the group stood the tall, commanding Head Arbiter wielding a long, golden spear. Luke stared into his eyes and saw pure, unadulterated loathing. He charged forward, but a hail of arrows shot toward him as he did. Something flashed bright green in front of him and a force field appeared blocking out the deadly projectiles.

“Kato, are you out of your mind?” Silverstrike grabbed his arm and pulled him back into the guild hall. Inside, all of the guild leaders had their weapons out. A dozen panicked voices were talking at once. Luke shook his head and stepped to the front of the room.

“There’s only one way out of this!” He yelled to them with an intensity that he hadn’t been aware he could muster. “We have to attack!”

The room was a chorus of objections. Luke looked back out the door at the force field and the Arbiters waiting on the other side.

“He’s right,” said Silverstrike. “We have to fight them, if only to push through and make our escape. The Arbiters can’t kill all of us at once. We can do this!”

“This was a trap!” yelled Merrick. “You set me up! You just wanted to-”

The guild leader’s accusations were cut off as a powerful explosion caused the force field to collapse. The Arbiters began to rush the bridge. Luke had hoped that they would hold at the end of the bridge, giving the group more time to formulate a proper counter strike.

“Come on!” He grabbed Tess’s hand and pulled her over toward the side exit of the guild hall. He beat out several of the guild leaders in his rush through the door.

I can’t lose my cool again. I have to get her to safety!

The Arbiters were moving across the bridge, but there was nothing stopping Luke and Tess from swimming to the mainland. He essentially pushed her into the water as he reached the edge of the island.