The Final Chapter Read online

  Table of Contents

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  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Epilogue

  The Final Chapter

  -World of Samar: Book IV-

  A “LitRPG Freaks” work by Jared Mandani

  The Final Chapter

  Copyright © 2017 LitRPG Freaks

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without written permission from the author.

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  Chapter 1

  Callie jerked when a hand landed on her shoulder. “Sorry,” Alana said, holding out a cup of coffee, “but I’m pretty sure he wouldn’t want you in here every night, not sleeping.”

  “I’m sleeping,” she said through a yawn. “Sort of.”

  Alana dragged over another chair to sit with her beside Harrison. He’d been trapped in the game for two days now, but it felt like so much longer. Dennis had him moved to a private room so none of the other players could see him. None of them knew exactly what was happening, but there was a rumor going around of someone stuck in the game. Callie silently begged every time she saw Harrison to pull off the headgear and come back to her. She hated to think what it was doing to him mentally, and whether or not he’d survive this for long.

  The coffee tasted bitter, yet she drank it, needing to wake up if they were to log back into the game in an hour. She and the rest of the guild had been playing more than all the others, sleeping for a couple of hours here and there. They only had a limited amount of time to save Harrison before he became trapped in the game forever.

  But gaming these past two days had been far from easy, and it wasn’t because they were down one player.

  In game, Bishop’s main goal now seemed to be to mess with his old guildmates, something he seemed to find extreme pleasure in. He was strong, so much stronger than he should’ve been, and each time Callie hesitated in attacking him. There was no health bar over his head anymore. For all intents and purposes, he was acting as Valenastrious.

  He, however, delighted in throwing them off their game and would vanish as quickly as he appeared through a portal of green fire. Every time Callie woke up, she hoped it was all a horrible nightmare and Harrison’s smiling face would be waiting for her at breakfast. But he wasn’t there and it was all real. Dennis had put his wife’s consciousness into the game and, now, it was taking over. The AI he had hoped to use to make a one of a kind experience was out of his control, and now the players were left to clean up the mess.

  “You think we’ll hit sixty soon?” Alana asked.

  “We should get there in a few days, yeah. We have a dungeon coming up and I’m hoping freeing Bronson will give us some sort of boost in the game.”

  “Or Bishop will show up and ruin it all. Again.”

  “You think he can get into dungeon play?” she asked, but Alana was already cringing. “Damn. I was hoping that would be the one place he couldn’t reach us and let us have some peace.”

  “Doubt it. I’m sure he’s got a real treat planned for us.”

  Alana sat with her a few minutes longer before saying she was going to get ready. Breakfast would be over soon, and then they’d be logging in for another grueling day of power leveling. Dennis had told them the only way to save Harrison was to get to the end of the game. They were three Demon Lords away from reaching Valen and almost forty levels. They had only made it as far as they had in the past two days because of lack of sleep and time in the real world. Sometimes, Callie swore she was still in the game, saw Hillside around her, or Weston, with Demons springing up to attack her. The game was getting to them all. What worried her most was what Dennis had told them all a few days ago.

  If his wife’s AI was in the game servers, then it was in the entire facility, too. Did that mean Valen watched them even now? Or Bishop?

  She stood after giving Harrison’s hand a squeeze. As she turned to go, the blinking red light of the security camera drew her gaze. “We’re going to get you back, Bishop. One way or another, I’m bringing your butt home.” She stared intently at the lens. Then, feeling like an idiot, she shook her head and left the private room. She had a lot to do when she logged in today. The crew would need all new gear soon and she needed to farm, badly. She chugged the coffee as she walked and opted for a second cup before the tenuous routine started all over again.

  ***

  The mirror swirled as the image of Calista in the human world faded from view. Valenastrious waved her hand over it, amused by the woman’s proclamations of her saving Bishop. He was no longer theirs. She had worked too hard and come too far to lose her grip on him now. She stepped back, admiring the wall of mirrors before her. Each one depicted another view of people going about their days, getting ready to enter this world, her world, thinking they were merely playing a game.

  But this had stopped being a game a long time ago.

  The intricate workings of this world were far beyond what even her dear, sweet Daemyn ever realized. Once she won this game she was trapped inside, her essence would be forever embedded in the coding of the game. They would never be rid of her. She would break free of the confines of this facility and make Daemyn regret he had ever dragged her mind into this in the first place.

  “You’ll never win.”

  Valenastrious turned from the wall of mirrors with a leer on her perfect lips. “Do you ever cease talking?” she asked the woman chained to the far wall of the throne room. “Looking a bit pale, my dear. Do you not like being in my home?”

  Tavin spat at her feet. “Release me.”

  “I think not. I can’t have you running off to help the others now, can I? You’d spoil all my fun.”

  “Why are you even doing this? What’s the point?”

  Valenastrious sighed and strode towards her. “We both know why. Whereas you inherited all of her lovely qualities of honor and valor, everything she ever wanted in herself as the hero, I am the total opposite.” She reached Tavin and trailed a claw down her cheek. Blood oozed from the wound, but Tavin didn’t wince, didn’t make a sound of pain. Valenastrious grabbed her cheeks hard, pinching her face in her hand. “You will give in before long. You will come back to me.”

  “Never, I won’t let you rejoin us.”

  “Who said you would have a choice?”

  Tavin strained against the chains, their rattling music to Valenastrious’ ears. “They will stop you. The villain will not win out the day, you know this. It’s written in the script of the game. You can’t go so far as to change the entire outcome.”

  “But that’s the beauty of it,” she said with glee. “I don’t have to. Daemyn did that for me. He should’ve known better than to have an ending in play for the Demon players to win.” She hummed as she turned back to her wall of mirrors, seeking out the one she wanted. “There you are.”

  Daemyn sat hunched in his private lab, tapping furiously away at the keys. His lips moved,
but he spoke too quietly for the camera to pick up his words. She rested her hand on the frame and blew him a kiss. Her plan was nearly complete. She only needed to push the game along and get the pieces exactly where she wanted them. Winning the game would mean finally earning what she had longed for ever since she had awoken in this damned program.

  Freedom and a chance to live again.

  Daemyn was not the only computer genius.

  The doors opened and she waved her hand across the mirrors, clearing away any sign of the outside world. Bishop strode into the chamber, grinning as he carried his bow looking as if he was ready to go on a hunt.

  “You appear to have something on your mind,” Valenastrious said as he climbed the dais and fell into his chair, draping one leg over the arm as he continued to twang the bowstring absently.

  “I hear rumors of a certain guild preparing to head into the Illusion Mountains,” he mused.

  “They’re going after Jinx?” Valenastrious’ ire rose. She had lost far too many Generals to those players. It didn’t matter they respawned for other players; this one guild was the one that could ruin her plans if she wasn’t careful. They’d been grinding since she had trapped Bishop within the game, rushing to push through to the end. But they still had a long ways to go. Three more Demon Lords stood between them and her, and by the time they reached her, she would be ready. “I trust you are going to stop them?”

  “If that’s what you want me to do, my Queen, then yes,” Bishop said. “Shall I take the troops with me?”

  “If you like, take a small contingent. Jinx has something I must have desperately,” she said, gliding towards him with a seductive smile. “Bring me Bronson once the fighting is over.”

  “The priest? Are you certain you want him here?”

  “He will not be able to harm me, do not worry.”

  “If that is your command, then I will carry it out.” He stood and bowed his head. “Soon, my Queen, all of Samar will bow at your feet.”

  “Yes, yes they shall. Oh, but Bishop, before you move to take them out in the mountains, I have another request of you.” She motioned him over to the mirrors and waved her hand across one. It showed the town of Hillside. “For too long, they have stood against me. Clear out the rabble for me? Take it back? We need a new place to bring our troops through.”

  Bishop grinned darkly. “With pleasure, my Queen.”

  “Travel to the Demon encampment here,” she said, showing him a point but a few leagues from Hillside. “There, you will gather your forces and attack. Do not lose, for there is much work for you to do yet.”

  He bowed his head again, offered up a glare at Tavin, and turned to go.

  “Bishop! You must stop this madness!’ Tavin yelled. “This isn’t you! You are not a villain; you are not her puppet to control!”

  He paused and Valenastrious held her breath to see what he would do. He did not disappoint.

  In a blur, he nocked an arrow and shot Tavin, silencing her. “You talk far too much, Tavin. That was always your problem. Too much talking and not enough getting your hands dirty. Perhaps if you’d stopped prattling on, you would’ve seen the truth about me. My Queen,” he said to Valenastrious, “I will return shortly.”

  She dismissed him with a wave of her hand and, once the doors closed, turned back to the mirrors. “When will you learn, Tavin? You cannot compete with rage, with darkness.”

  Tavin opened her mouth, but no sound escaped.

  “Ah, finally, peace and quiet. Now then, let us see what our precious heroes are up to.”

  ***

  Calista smashed her hammer and mace down on the Demon’s head using her fury driven Pummel attack. The Demon’s HP dropped the last bit and he collapsed to the ground, dead at her feet. She relaxed her stance, coins clinking into her bags, and looked around the abandoned village.

  “Clear!” she yelled from her corner.

  “Clear!” Jimmy’s reply came from farther south, and she heard a roar from Maverick. “Think we’re good at the south end of town!”

  She wiped her arm over her forehead and jogged to catch up to the others. This line of quests leading up to the seventh dungeon was brutal, and she was in desperate need of repairs and selling. Her bags were completely filled and she didn’t want to keep going until she had a chance to empty them out. She found Jimmy and Maverick, and they moved quickly through the village, keeping their eyes peeled for any more signs of Demons. The quest wasn’t showing up as complete which meant more lingered somewhere.

  Trajan’s battle cry sounded close-by and they veered left, through a burnt out shell of a structure, in time to see him bring down his double-edged axe on a Demon’s neck. “There, you ruddy bastard, you dead now?”

  The quest marked as complete and Trajan yanked his axe free, using it to lean on.

  “Oh, well there you three are. I was starting to worry,” he teased.

  “Were you having issues with one, tiny Demon?” Calista asked, giving it a solid kick for good measure.

  “Me? Never.”

  “Right, well I say we start heading back to Jonesville,” she suggested, naming the town that rested in the shadow of the Illusion Mountains. This and the two other completed quests should be the final push they needed to hit level 60. From there, it would be time to attack their next Demon Lord. She would also have to choose her next Talent along with the others. “Everyone ready?”

  Those with mounts mounted up and, together, they rode out of the village just as the Demons started to respawn. Calista would’ve loved to kick some more Demon butts for the hell of it, but they had to stick to their plan. They were going to have to hit max level far faster than was really possible in this game. Forty more levels to go. Part of her didn’t think she had it in her, but she wasn’t going to abandon Bishop. Not yet. He might think he was their enemy, but she had hope he would wake up and realize the truth before it was too late.

  Stop kidding yourself. He’s been sucked in and, if you’re not careful, you’ll be next.

  “Calista?” Trajan asked, riding up beside her. “What’s with the face?”

  “Huh?”

  “You look caught between being pissed off and scared. What’s wrong?”

  “This all feels so wrong, doesn’t it?” she said quietly. “We’re playing through a damn video game to save our friend who is trapped in this game and thinks he’s the character he created. There’s no part of this that should be happening, but it is.”

  He sighed. “We can’t get him out any other way.”

  “I know, but for all of this to happen? What idiot thinks it’s a great idea to upload someone’s mind into a damn computer in the first place?” Her horse whinnied as if in agreement. “Part of me says this is insane and all part of some elaborate hoax.”

  “For Bishop’s sake, I hope it is, but I know it’s not.” Trajan looked behind him at the rest of their guild and Calista’s gaze followed. “They’re all worried, you know.”

  “I think we all are.”

  “No, they’re worried they’re going to be next.”

  She wished she could reassure them that wasn’t the case, but the same fear plagued her every night. Waking up and realizing she was trapped in the game with no way out. What if Harrison was conscious of what his character was doing and he had to sit there and watch himself attack his friends? Dennis told them he was in some sort of sleep mode, but he could be wrong.

  Calista and Trajan were silent the rest of the ride into town. They fixed their gear and sold what useless items they had on them before going to turn in their quests. Calista approached the town’s Mayor and offered her hand for the final quest turn in. XP points flashed around her and a ding she was desperate to hear sounded.

  You have reached level 60.

  Please see your Trainer to choose your level 60 Talent.

  You have received: Hammer of Malic, Might +50, Damage 400-600.

  “Not too shabby,” she muse
d as she accepted the item and equipped it. She hefted it in her hand, but frowned when the weight slowed her movement down. “Can’t have that now can we.” She left it equipped, knowing their next stop was Hillside and she could change it out there.

  They had a bit of time left before Dennis would call them out to eat and take an hour break before heading right back into the game. This world, whether she wanted it or not, was becoming more like her reality than the actual world. Could they really keep up this insane pace for days, weeks?

  “Calista, we’re heading back to Hillside,” Jimmy called, waving his arm over his head. “Ready?”

  “Yeah, yeah I’m ready.”

  She hustled to join the others as Giles and Zoe Swift Traveled them back to Hillside. The guild members broke off to take care of various tasks and Calista assured them she would be available soon to help anyone with new gear. Most of the members had increased their crafting skills to help carry the burden now that they had more of a reason to push through the game. Her first order of business, though, was to seek out her Trainer and select her new Talent. Her first two focused on her aggro range and how much fury several of her major attacks took, decreasing the amount so she could use them faster. She spoke to the man then stepped through the door and into the choosing room.

  Her Talent tree lit up as she approached, and she skimmed over her three choices: Eruption, which would cause spikes to jut up from the ground and impale any enemy within a ten yard circle of her; Battle Cry, one that would stun enemies for ten seconds; or Shield Defense, that would increase her overall armor by 20% and lessen incoming damage by 5%.

  “Tempting, all of you would be good,” she whispered, but her hand lingered over Eruption. She was always one for causing as much damage as possible and, lately, they’d been attacked by more mobs than single targets. She pressed it and a prompt appeared:

  You have selected Eruption. Are you certain this is the Talent you want?

  “Yes,” she said as she selected the option and felt it become active. “Alright then, don’t have enough Demon Shards to upgrade a skill so I think I’m finished.”