Ambush Read online

  “What did the stone say?” he asked, impatient.

  Oh, @hellekith could be a lousy orator sometimes!

  “You can see it for yourself.” @hellekith removed a stone from his inventory and held it up in front of his eyes. It was a strange kind of gem that sparkled in whatever sunlight burned through the dark clouds. He took it from his friend and looked at it in a confused way.

  “How do I go about activating it?” he asked.

  @hellekith frowned. “Have you never come across a knowledge stone before?” he asked.

  Matt shook his head. “Nope.”

  “They are everywhere, dude. Everywhere. Especially near academies and universities, sometimes even in town centers and places of great interest to the quests. They give tidbits on all types of monsters in the game. What’s more interesting is the knowledge stones match the level of the person who finds it and adds it to the person’s stats.”

  “How come I didn’t know about this?!”

  “Well, all you need to actually do is pay attention to the game engine and the surroundings, you know. Everything is there, ripe for the taking.”

  “Fine, fine,” he said, raising his palms to his shoulders in a laid-back way. “I got it, I got it. But what’s that tidbit about the phoenix?”

  “Oh, yes!” @hellekith remembered. “Tap twice on the sides of the stone, and a screen will pop up in your augmented vision.”

  Matt twitched his lips, impressed. He did what his friend suggested.

  Knowledge Stone Insight:

  A phoenix can be convinced to let you pass if the former impedes on your way. The only way it can be convinced is by appealing to its emotional side.

  “Emotional side?” He looked at his friend.

  @hellekith nodded. “Yes, emotional side. Rumor has it that phoenixes are quite emotional. If we appeal to that side then perhaps it will let us pass. It has to be convinced that our appeals are genuine, otherwise it won’t let us.”

  Matt let out an exasperated huff.

  The things I have to do!

  He turned to the phoenix, which still snarled at him as if he was doing something that was troubling him. He looked at him and then turned back to his friend.

  “What do I even call him?” he asked.

  @hellekith shrugged. “I dunno. You decide.”

  A sigh later, he turned to the phoenix again and said, “Hey, Mr. Phoenix.”

  To his side, @hellekith snickered.

  Ignoring him, he continued, “Hey, Mr. Phoenix, please let us pass. Justice needs to be carried out and we need to find a fellow warrior if she hasn’t already been defeated. We worry that she is facing a terrible task at fighting the monster in this city. So, please, let us help her. Let us go to her. Let us finish off this mission once and for all.”

  The phoenix stood rooted to its place. The fire that covered its hands flared bright with every word he spoke. Emotional appealing had never been his strong point. He wished @doomsday16 was here. That guy knew how to veer his way through dilemmas like these. He would know what to tell the phoenix. Matt had no idea, but he had to try. If not for him, if not for @hellekith, then for @BlondeWarrior.

  The light in Matt’s eyes dimmed. Hope lost, his efforts in vain. He shifted in his place, having no idea what to do further. The phoenix seemed to sense his discomfort for it moved aside, the flaring fires subsiding. His smile returned again, and he beckoned to @hellekith to move forward with their swords raised together. Matt cringed when the phoenix roared and thumped on the ground, shaking it. It felt like a mild tremor running through the earth. But to his relief, it did not attack.

  @hellekith raced off to the other side of the road, looting what he could.

  As they moved forward down the road, he sensed that the phoenix was following them. He looked askance at it and would have turned around to question it had it not been for his friend shaking his head. They kept checking the avatar bodies for any inventory items they could find.

  Grenades? A Laser Pistol? In a Fantasy world?

  Technology mixed with magic just seemed a little weird to him, but at the same time he'd seen some pretty awesome weapons being used by higher level players. He couldn't wait to get his hands on one of those Magical Anti-Gravity Guns that increase the target's gravity. The results are devastating: crushes men and buildings with ease, leaving nothing behind but rubble and blood.

  The magic of the gun stems from the infamous Hammer of the Gods spell. The only downside of the weapon is that firepower exhausts a large quantity of the user’s Mana. An unskilled player would likely expend all of their resources, resulting in the death of their avatar. There are the occasional suicide bombers who give up all they have to destroy a city... but these are the rare techies who have bypassed the energy feed limiters just to experience the thrill of it. Apparently it creates a euphoric high when your avatar dies in such an explosion.

  He found a lot of things that he could store in his inventory. He avoided all of the hacked guns because of their volatility. A lot of the techies had crafted their own weapons, but had done so using hacked code. There was no guarantee those weapons wouldn’t backfire, and DarkForce servers had added warning labels to these hacks to alert unsuspecting looters. Matt heard that there had already been several pranksters who would fill their inventories with hacked items before purposely getting their avatars killed. They would then watch In Real Life (IRL) from the game’s live feed as unsuspecting looters fell prey to their pranks.

  He did found some gold coins, which he gleefully pocketed. He also found a Laser Pistol and for a moment he wondered whether he could use it to shoot down the monster in the city, but he found it needed a new power source which had been exhausted.

  New Weapon Acquired: Laser Pistol

  The owner of this gun is granted the ability to take down opponents with a blast of energy. Chances for Instant Kill are 80%. Greater distances and accuracy increase with higher levels. Requirements: Level > 15, Strength > 10, Agility > 8, Intelligence > 4

  ***Disclaimer: This weapon requires an energy source, otherwise the weapon is rendered ineffective***

  Warning!

  You are unable to utilize this weapon until you attain the minimum Requirements

  Unfortunate, he mumbled to himself.

  “Don’t worry, you’ll find a power source for that gun in later missions, and you’ll level up soon. Right now, your sword is your best option, but it’s good you found that gun now. Store it, it will come in handy later.”

  His friend made sense. Finding it at a later point in the game could be cumbersome and hinged on a probability. There was quite a possibility that he might not find such a weapon in the later stage of the game.

  Might as well hang on to it then.

  Chapter Eleven

  The Undead

  “Why is that phoenix following us?” Matt asked.

  @hellekith took a look back. The phoenix had stopped and swiveled its head around in all directions.

  His friend turned to him again and said, “I told you already - the phoenix’s mission is to protect. I’m guessing it is following us and it will protect us until our quest is complete. To tell you the truth, it’s a good thing.”

  Matt just shrugged. Having a monster as a companion would definitely make a difference. Perhaps the phoenix would come in handy. That could give him the time to search for @BlondeWarrior and not fret about mindless fighting.

  A prompt appeared in his augmented vision.

  System Alert!

  The Temporal Artifact has detected a foreseeable outcome in an upcoming scenario. Do you wish to activate your foresight skill?

  Yes | No

  Matt made a side glance at @hellekith, who continued to plod along. As he suspected, only he received the alert. Even though last time he almost lost his lunch when he travelled through that temporal vortex, hitting yes totally saved his butt. It had definitely given him a huge advantage, that’s for sure.

  Matt cringed, and pressed ‘Yes�
��. With a tiny flash, the Temporal Artifact appeared again in his right palm. a blue mist swirled around it, and seconds later he was sucked into the portal it created. spinning wildly, he concentrated on keeping his vertigo in-check. The massive flash of light that ensued sent him tumbling wildly in the air, landing hard on the ground. It was really disorienting to fall from the sky and land in the exact same spot where the portal had opened.

  This is going to take some getting used to.

  Suddenly ahead of them on the street, and also to his flank, the dead bodies rose up from the ground - awakened like zombies. All of their eyes were glowing icy blue. The phoenix roared, the fire on its hands flaring bright once again.

  Threat Detected: Level 3 Undead Avatar

  HP| N/A

  Strengths: Undead Avatars do not have Hit Points (HP), so wounds do not affect them. Cannot be killed.

  Weaknesses: Unknown.

  ***Disclaimer: If you are killed by an undead avatar, your lockout time doubles. Meanwhile, your own avatar becomes undead***

  He took up his sword and slashed at one of the undead avatars that had come snarling at him. His sword cut its hands.

  [No Effect]

  Slash.

  [No Effect]

  Strike.

  [No Effect]

  Stab.

  [No Effect]

  Behead.

  Decapitate: Easy

  Instant Kill

  [+150 XP]

  Skill Unlocked: Decapitate

  Delivers an Instant Kill when hacking off the head of an opponent. Only works at close range. Greater chances for Instant Kill increase with higher levels. Requirements: Level > 11, Agility > 8, Stamina > 12, Willpower > 8

  ***Disclaimer: This skill can only be utilized with a large sword***

  Aha! That worked!

  That was all he did for the next few minutes. One undead body after another, he took their heads off. Five easy decapitations later, and he heard a lovely chime from the sky.

  LEVEL UP!

  +1 Intelligence

  Feeling confident having achieved Level 13, he attacked with vehemence. But to his dismay, the second wave of Undead Avatars were higher levels with thick armor. They weren’t going to be as easy to defeat.

  Threat Detected: Level 12 Undead Avatar

  HP| N/A

  Strengths: Undead Avatars do not have Hit Points (HP), so wounds do not affect them. Cannot be killed. Thick armor does not add any Hit Points (HP), however it does make the opponent a more challenging foe.

  Weaknesses: Unknown.

  ***Disclaimer: If you are killed by an undead avatar, your lockout time doubles. Meanwhile, your own avatar becomes undead***

  Matt tried his hardest to lop off the undead avatar's head, but clearly it had a high level of agility stacked up. He missed, and hit the metal plates of the avatar's shoulder blades instead which sent a spray of sparks to the ground. The forward momentum caused him to lose his balance and stagger, and was unable to avoid his opponent's first attack.

  [-250 Damage]

  He parried the next blow, but then shrieked in pain as the avatar's sword pierced through the upper plates of his armor and through his chest.

  [-1,000 Damage]

  CRITICAL HIT!

  He watched in horror as the brute warrior's undead avatar twisted the hilt and kicked against his chest to retract his blade. The virtual pain was excruciating, unlike anything In Real Life (IRL) he had ever before experienced. He sucked in a final raspy breath as his body crumpled to the ground.

  GAME OVER

  Cause of Death: StabTwist

  [-500 XP]

  System Alert!

  You have been killed by an Undead Avatar. You now face a penalty lockout of 48 hours. Any unlocked items in your inventory are subject to looting.

  ***Disclaimer: You can bypass the penalty lockout by paying the Penalty Fee. For more information about this option, you can chat with a CyberBolt Associate HERE***

  Good thing this is just a foreseeable outcome. That penalty sucks!

  System Alert!

  This completes your foresight into a foreseeable outcome. You will now be returned to your save point.

  ***Disclaimer: If you change the circumstances in your upcoming scenario, you will effectively change the outcome***

  Matt closed his eyes in anticipation of what came next. Spinning back through the time and space vortex was much more bearable without a visual. The only downside was that when he came back out the other side of the tunnel he completely lost his balance and hit the ground hard.

  [-50 Damage]

  Ouch! That was stupid. I won't be pulling a stunt like that again!

  Just like he saw in foresight the dead bodies rose up from the ground - awakened like zombies. All of their eyes were glowing icy blue. The phoenix roared, the fire on its hands flaring bright once again.

  Threat Detected: Level 3 Undead Avatar

  HP| N/A

  Strengths: Undead Avatars do not have Hit Points (HP), so wounds do not affect them. Cannot be killed.

  Weaknesses: Unknown.

  ***Disclaimer: If you are killed by an undead avatar, your lockout time doubles. Meanwhile, your own avatar becomes undead***

  Knowing what he was doing now, with a single strike he beheaded it.

  Decapitate: Easy

  Instant Kill

  [+150 XP]

  Skill Unlocked: Decapitate

  Delivers an Instant Kill when hacking off the head of an opponent. Only works at close range. Greater chances for Instant Kill increase with higher levels. Requirements: Level > 11, Agility > 8, Stamina > 12, Willpower > 8

  ***Disclaimer: This skill can only be utilized with a large sword***

  It had been a while since he had last checked his character sheet. Even though they were in the thick of the battle, he scrolled past the Skill Unlocked alert and quickly glanced at his stats.

  DarkForce: Player Stats

  Name | @Andrex

  Class | Warrior

  Level | 12

  Experience | 4,760

  XP to next level | 840

  HP | 3,200/3,200

  Mana | 100/100

  Strength |Total: 14 | Original: 5 | Level Ups: 1 | Bonuses: 8

  Agility |Total: 9 | Original: 5 | Level Ups: 2 | Bonuses: 2

  Stamina |Total: 12 | Original: 7 | Level Ups: 5 | Bonuses: 0

  Intelligence |Total: 8 | Original: 1 | Level Ups: 3 | Bonuses: 4

  Willpower |Total: 10 | Original: 2 | Level Ups: 7 | Bonuses: 1

  Not bad. Not bad at all!

  He exited the sheet, and saw that @hellekith was already fighting a small horde a ways off. Just then, the phoenix let out a strong breath of air, which sent the approaching hordes flying away, smashing to the sides of the buildings.

  Oh, now it feels good to have both wind and fire!

  He yelled a battle cry and entered the fray.

  Threat Detected: Level 3 Undead Avatar

  HP| 300/300

  Strengths: Undead Avatars do not have Hit Points (HP), so wounds do not affect them. Cannot be killed.

  Weaknesses: Unknown.

  ***Disclaimer: If you are killed by an undead avatar, your lockout time doubles. Meanwhile, your own avatar becomes undead***

  Like second nature, he swung and lopped off the avatar's head.

  Decapitate: Easy

  Instant Kill

  [+150 XP]

  As he continued to decapitate one undead after another, his nerves were on edge. He knew that any minute now the second wave of high level undead would attack, and he'd be a dead man. Then he heard the foreboding chime ring from the sky.

  LEVEL UP!

  +1 Intelligence

  What should I do?! I have to change the circumstances! Fast!

  The horde kept coming at him. Before he knew it, he was facing his soon-to-be killer.

  Threat Detected: Level 12 Undead Avatar

  HP| N/A

  Strengths: Undead Avatars do not have Hit Points (
HP), so wounds do not affect them. Cannot be killed. Thick armor does not add any Hit Points (HP), however it does make the opponent a more challenging foe.

  Weaknesses: Unknown.

  ***Disclaimer: If you are killed by an undead avatar, your lockout time doubles. Meanwhile, your own avatar becomes undead***

  Run!

  He dodged the undead's first attack and took off at a sprint. He couldn't go very far however, for they were utterly surrounded.

  What to do? What to do?!

  In the distance he saw the phoenix smash the zombies with its fiery fists. They caught fire, and collapsed in a fiery heap. And they stopped moving...

  Fire kills them!

  “We need to light a fire!” Matt yelled at the top of his voice. “Fire kills them!”

  He quickly accessed his inventory and used the flint and steel icon to activate a wooden torch.

  [-15 Mana]

  The Level 12 Undead Avatar that had been chasing him immediately stopped its advance and shrank back. Matt grinned widely, and attacked. Screams filled the air as the fire consumed the avatar.

  Incinerate: Difficult

  Instant Kill

  [+210 XP]

  Congratulations!

  You have successfully altered the foreseen outcome of this scenario. For your wisdom, you will be rewarded:

  +1 Intelligence

  +1 Willpower

  Thank goodness! That was a close one.

  To his side, @hellekith was also attacking them with a torch. Wave after wave, the undead fell down engulfed by flames. They shrieked and wailed, snarled and growled as the fire burned them.

  They fought valiantly, and incinerated. Their phoenix companion smote and smashed its enemies, yet the numbers just kept coming.

  There's too many of them!

  Chapter Twelve

  Ice Demon

  Matt wondered how long they could hold out like this. All three of them had taken a considerable amount of damage.

  He climbed into a nearby building through a broken window, nearly cutting himself on a shard of glass. He quickly recognized the building as the city’s apothecary. Everything lay strewn about as if there was a scuffle quite different from the battle that raged outside. Someone had dueled here. With another player or monster, he wasn’t clear. Racks and bottles of potions lay on the floor, many of them broken.